Final answer:
Curved arrows in the reaction of alcohols with sulfonyl chlorides indicate electron movement from the alcohol oxygen to the sulfonyl sulfur, and from the sulfur to the leaving chlorine atom. SN2 mechanisms involve inversion of stereochemistry whereas SN1 leads to a racemic mixture without inversion.
Step-by-step explanation:
When alcohols react with sulfonyl chlorides to form sulfonate esters, it involves the cleavage of the O-H bond without inversion of configuration, as the sulfonate group becomes a good leaving group. To show the movement of electrons in this step, we would use curved arrows starting from the lone pair on the oxygen atom of the alcohol, attacking the sulfur atom of the sulfonyl chloride, forming a bond. Simultaneously, the bond between the sulfur and chlorine would break, with the electrons moving towards the chlorine to indicate it's leaving as a chloride ion.
The reaction of alcohols with sulfonyl chlorides is a substitution reaction where the -OH group is transformed into a better leaving group. The protonated alcohol then undergoes either a SN1 or SN2 mechanism, depending on its structure. In the SN2 mechanism, a nucleophile attacks the carbon opposite to the leaving group, leading to inversion of stereochemistry, which is typical for primary alkyl halides. In contrast, SN1 occurs without stereochemical inversion and leads to a racemic mixture for chiral carbons as the nucleophile can attack from either side.