Photodissociation dynamics of acetoxime in gas phase

The dynamics of photodissociation of acetoxime at 193 nm, leading to the formation of (CH3)2C=N and OH fragments, has been investigated. The nascent OH radicals, which are both rotationally and vibrationally excited, were probed by laser photolysis-laser induced fluorescence technique. OH fragments in both v" = 1 and v" = 0 vibrational states were detected with a ratio of population in the higher to lower level of 0.07+/-0.01. The rotational temperatures of v" = 0 and 1 levels of OH radicals are 2650+/-150 K and 1290+/-20 K, respectively. More than 30% of the available energy, i.e., 115+/-21 kJ mol(-1) is partitioned into the relative translational energy of the fragments. The results of excited electronic state and transition state calculations at the configuration interaction with single electronic excitation level suggest that the dissociation takes place with an exit barrier of approximately 126 kJ mol(-1) at the triplet state (T2) potential energy surface, formed by internal conversions/intersystem crossing from the initially populated S2 state. Using the calculated transition state geometry and its energy, the observed energy distribution pattern can be reproduced by the hybrid model within experimental uncertainties. The presence of an exit barrier is further supported by the observation of N-OH dissociation upon 248 nm excitation, where the relative translational energy of the fragments is found to be approximately 96 kJ mol(-1). The photodissociation dynamics of acetoxime is compared with C-OH dissociation in enols and carboxylic acid and N-OH dissociation in nitrous acid. The observed emission (lambda(max)=430 nm) and the N-OH dissociation dynamics indicate crossing of the initially populated state to an emissive state of acetoxime, which is different from the dissociative state.     

Intermolecular interactions of H2S with rare gases from molecular beam scattering in the glory regime and from ab initio calculations

Integral cross sections for collisions of rotationally hot H2S molecules with rare gas atoms (Ne, Ar, and Kr) have been measured, in the collision energy range of 10-60 kJ mol(-1), using a molecular beam apparatus operating under high resolution both in angle and in velocity. A well resolved glory pattern has been measured which permitted the accurate characterization of the intermolecular potentials both at long range (in the attractive region) and at intermediate distances (in the well region). Considering the conditions used in the experiments, the obtained potentials must be considered very close to the spherical averages of the full intermolecular potential energy surfaces. Extensive ab initio calculations have also been carried out in parallel in order to characterize energy minima in the potential energy surfaces and energy barriers associated to the motion of the rare gas atoms around H2S. An assessment of the relative role of the various interaction components has been also attempted: the combined analysis of experimental and theoretical results suggests that H2S-rare gas aggregates are mainly bound by nearly isotropic noncovalent interactions of the van der Waals type.     

Enthalpy of formation of the cyclopentadienyl radical: photoacoustic calorimetry and ab initio studies

The gas-phase C-H bond dissociation enthalpy (BDE) in 1,3-cyclopentadiene has been determined by time-resolved photoacoustic calorimetry (TR-PAC) as 358 +/- 7 kJ mol(-1). Theoretical results from ab initio complete basis-set approaches, including the composite CBS-Q and CBS-QB3 procedures, and basis-set extrapolated coupled-cluster calculations (CCSD(T)) are reported. The CCSD(T) prediction for the C-H BDE of 1,3-cyclopentadiene (353.3 kJ mol(-1)) is in good agreement with the TR-PAC result. On the basis of the experimental and the theoretical values obtained, we recommend 355 +/- 8 kJ mol(-1) for the C-H BDE of 1,3-cyclopentadiene and 271 +/- 8 kJ mol(-1) for the enthalpy of formation of cyclopentadienyl radical.     

Water dimer proton affinity from the kinetic method: dissociation energy of the water dimer

The proton affinity of water dimer was measured, using the kinetic method with nitrile reference bases, to be 808 +/- 6 kJ mol(-1). The difference between the measured value and the proton affinity of a single water molecule (690 +/- 4 kJ mol(-1)) reflects the difference in solvation energy for two neutral water molecules (the hydrogen bond energy of water dimer), and the energy for solvation of hydronium cation and water. Using the measured proton affinity of the dimer along with ancillary data yields an experimental value of the hydrogen bond energy of neutral water dimer, 18 +/- 9 kJ mol(-1), in good agreement with previous experimental and theoretical values. The proton affinity of the dimer measured by using alcohol references is ca 100 kJ mol(-1) too low, likely because the structure of the protonated cluster is not well-suited for kinetic method measurements. These results highlight the importance of choosing reference bases that form cluster ions consisting of a proton bound complex between the water dimer and the reference base.     

A photoelectron photoion coincidence study of the vinyl bromide and tribromoethane ion dissociation dynamics: heats of formation of C2H3+, C2H3Br, C2H3Br+, C2H3Br2+, and C2H3Br3

The threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence (TPEPICO) technique has been used to measure accurate dissociative photoionization onsets of vinyl bromide and 1,1,2-tribromoethane. The reactions investigated and their 0 K onsets are C2H3Br + hnu --> C2H3+ + Br (11.902 +/- 0.008 eV); C2H3Br3 + hnu --> C2H3Br2+ + Br (10.608 +/- 0.008 eV); and (C2H3Br3 + hnu --> C2H3Br+ + 2Br (12.301 +/- 0.035 eV). The vinyl ion heat of formation (Delta(f)H degrees 298K = 1116.1 +/- 3.0 kJ/mol) has been calculated using W1 theory and used as an anchor along with the measured dissociation energies to determine the heats of formation, Delta(f)H degrees 298K, in kJ/mol, of the following bromine-containing species: C2H3Br (74.1 +/- 3.1), C2H3Br+ (1021.9 +/- 3.1), C2H3Br2+ (967.1 +/- 4.0), and C2H3Br3 (53.5 +/- 4.3). These results represent accurate and consistent experimental determinations of heats of formation for these bromine-containing species, which serve to correct the discrepancies in the literature for C2H3Br and C2H3Br+ and provide the first experimental determination for the enthalpies of formation of C2H3Br2+ and C2H3Br3.     

Gaseous rust: thermochemistry of neutral and ionic iron oxides and hydroxides in the gas phase

The experimental and theoretical thermochemistry of the gaseous neutral and ionic iron oxides and hydroxides FeO, FeOH, FeO(2), OFeOH, and Fe(OH)(2) and of the related cationic water complexes Fe(H(2)O)(+), (H(2)O)FeOH(+), and Fe(H(2)O)(2)(+) is analyzed comprehensively. A combination of data for the neutral species with those of the gaseous ions in conjunction with some additional measurements provides a refined and internally consistent compilation of thermochemical data for the neutral and ionic species. In terms of heats of formation at 0 K, the best estimates for the gaseous, mononuclear FeO(m)H(n)(-/0/+/2+) species with m = 1, 2 and n = 0-4 are Delta(f)H(FeO(-)) = (108 +/- 6) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeO) = (252 +/- 6) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeO(+)) = (1088 +/- 6) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeOH) = (129 +/- 15) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeOH(+)) = (870 +/- 15) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeO(2)(-)) = (-161 +/- 13) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeO(2)) = (67 +/- 12) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeO(2)(+)) = (1062 +/- 25) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(OFeOH) = (-84 +/- 17) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(OFeOH(+)) = (852 +/- 23) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(Fe(OH)(2)(-)) = -431 kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(Fe(OH)(2)) = (-322 +/- 2) kJ/mol, and Delta(f)H(Fe(OH)(2)(+)) = (561 +/- 10) kJ/mol for the iron oxides and hydroxides as well as Delta(f)H(Fe(H(2)O)(+)) = (809 +/- 5) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H((H(2)O)FeOH(+)) = 405 kJ/mol, and Delta(f)H(Fe(H(2)O)(2)(+)) = (406 +/- 6) kJ/mol for the cationic water complexes. In addition, charge-stripping data for several of several-iron-containing cations are re-evaluated due to changes in the calibration scheme which lead to Delta(f)H(FeO(2+)) = (2795 +/- 28) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(FeOH(2+)) = (2447 +/- 30) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H(Fe(H(2)O)(2+)) = (2129 +/- 29) kJ/mol, Delta(f)H((H(2)O)FeOH(2+)) = 1864 kJ/mol, and Delta(f)H(Fe(H(2)O)(2)(2+)) = (1570 +/- 29) kJ/mol, respectively. The present compilation thus provides an almost complete picture of the redox chemistry of mononuclear iron oxides and hydroxides in the gas phase, which serves as a foundation for further experimental studies and may be used as a benchmark database for theoretical studies.     

Optimized and validated initial-rate method for the determination of perindopril erbumine in tablets

A simple and sensitive kinetic spectrophotometric method for the determination of perindopril in pharmaceutical preparations is described. The method is based on the interaction of drug with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB) in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) at 40+/-1 degrees C. The reaction is followed spectrophotometrically by measuring the rate of change of the absorbance at 420 nm. Under the optimized experimental conditions, the calibration curve showed a linear relationship over the concentration range of 20-140 microg/ml. The activation parameter such as E(a), deltaH*, deltaS* and deltaG* for this reaction were calculated and found to be 27.31 kJ/mol, 24.69 kJ/mol, -138.84 J/K/mol and 61.50 kJ/mol, respectively. The method has been successfully applied to the determination of perindopril in commercial dosage forms. Statistical comparison of the results with the Abdellatef's spectrophotometric method shows excellent agreement and indicates no significant difference between the methods compared in terms of accuracy and precision.     

Absolute proton affinity for acetaldehyde

Dissociative photoionization mass spectrometry has been used to measure appearance energies for the 1-hydroxyethyl cation (CH(3)CH=OH(+)) formed from ethanol and 2-propanol. Molecular orbital calculations for these two unimolecular fragmentation reactions suggest that only methyl loss from ionized 2-propanol does not involve excess energy at the threshold. The experimental appearance energy of 10.31 +/- 0.01 eV for this latter process results in a 298 K heat of formation of 593.1 +/- 1.2 kJ mol(-1) for CH(3)CH=OH(+) and a corresponding absolute proton affinity for acetaldehyde of 770.9 +/- 1.3 kJ mol(-1). This value is supported by both high-level ab initio calculations and a proposed upward revision of the absolute isobutene proton affinity to 803.3 +/- 0.9 kJ mol(-1). A 298 K heat of formation of 52.2 +/- 1.9 kJ mol(-1) is derived for the tert-butyl radical.     

Combined experimental and computational study of the thermochemistry of methylpiperidines

To understand the influence of the methyl group in the stability and conformational behavior of the piperidine ring, the standard (p0= 0.1 MPa) molar enthalpies of formation of 1-methylpiperidine, 3-methylpiperidine, 4-methylpiperidine, 2,6-dimethylpiperidine, and 3,5-dimethylpiperidine, both in the liquid and in the gaseous states, were determined at the temperature of 298.15 K. The numerical values of the enthalpies of formation in the liquid and in the gaseous state are, respectively, -(95.9 +/- 1.6) and -(59.1 +/- 1.7) kJ.mol(-1) for 1-methylpiperidine; -(123.6 +/- 1.4) and -(79.2 +/- 1.6) kJ.mol(-1) for 3-methylpiperidine; -(123.5 +/- 1.5) and -(82.9 +/- 1.7) kJ.mol(-1) for 4-methylpiperidine; -(153.6 +/- 2.1) and -(111.2 +/- 2.2) kJ.mol(-1) for 2,6-dimethylpiperidine; and -(155.0 +/- 1.7) and -(105.9 +/- 1.8) kJ.mol(-1) for 3,5-dimethylpiperidine. In addition, and to be compared with the experimental results, theoretical calculations were carried out considering different ab initio and density functional theory based methods. The standard molar enthalpies of formation of the four isomers of methylpiperidine and of the 12 isomers of dimethylpiperidine have been computed. The G3MP2B3-derived numbers are in excellent agreement with experimental data, except in the case of 2,6-dimethylpiperidine for which a deviation of 9 kJ.mol(-1) was found. Surprisingly, the DFT methods fail in the prediction of these properties with the exception of the most approximated SVWN functional.     

A photoelectron and TPEPICO investigation of the acetone radical cation

The valence shell photoelectron spectrum, threshold photoelectron spectrum, and threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence (TPEPICO) mass spectra of acetone have been measured using synchrotron radiation. New vibrational progressions have been observed and assigned in the X 2B2 state photoelectron bands of acetone-h6 and acetone-d6, and the influence of resonant autoionization on the threshold electron yield has been investigated. The dissociation thresholds for fragment ions up to 31 eV have been measured and compared to previous values. In addition, kinetic modeling of the threshold region for CH3* and CH4 loss leads to new values of 78 +/- 2 kJ mol(-1) and 75 +/- 2 kJ mol(-1), respectively, for the 0 K activation energies for these two processes. The result for the methyl loss channel is in reasonable agreement with, but slightly lower than, that of 83 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1) derived in a recent TPEPICO study by Fogleman et al. The modeling accounts for both low-energy dissociation channels at two different ion residence times in the mass spectrometer. Moreover, the effects of the ro-vibrational population distribution, the electron transmission efficiency, and the monochromator band-pass are included. The present activation energies yield a Delta(f)H298 for CH3CO+ of 655 +/- 3 kJ mol(-1), which is 4 kJ mol(-1) lower than that reported by Fogleman et al. The present Delta(f)H298 for CH3CO+ can be combined with the Delta(f)H298 for CH2CO (-47.5 +/- 1.6 kJ mol(-1)) and H+ (1530 kJ mol(-1)) to yield a 298 K proton affinity for ketene of 828 +/- 4 kJ mol(-1), in good agreement with the value (825 kJ mol(-1)) calculated at the G2 level of theory. The measured activation energy for CH4 loss leads to a Delta(f)H298 (CH2CO+*) of 873 +/- 3 kJ mol(-1).     

Rate and equilibrium constant of the reaction of 1-methylvinoxy radicals with O2: CH3COCH2 + O2<--> CH3COCH2O2

The reaction of 1-methylvinoxy radicals, CH3COCH2, with molecular oxygen has been investigated by experimental and theoretical methods as a function of temperature (291-520 K) and pressure (0.042-10 bar He). Experiments have been performed by laser photolysis coupled to a detection of 1-methylvinoxy radicals by laser-induced fluorescence LIF. The potential energy surface calculations were performed using ab inito molecular orbital theory at the G3MP2B3 and CBSQB3 level of theory based on the density function theory optimized geometries. Derived molecular properties of the characteristic points of the potential energy surface were used to describe the mechanism and kinetics of the reaction under investigation. At 295 K, no pressure dependence of the rate constant for the association reaction has been observed: k(1,298K) = (1.18 +/- 0.04) x 10(-12) cm3 s(-1). Biexponential decays have been observed in the temperature range 459-520 K and have been interpreted as an equilibrium reaction. The temperature-dependent equilibrium constants have been extracted from these decays and a standard reaction enthalpy of deltaH(r,298K) = -105.0 +/- 2.0 kJ mol(-1) and entropy of deltaS(r,298K) = -143.0 +/- 4.0 J mol(-1) K(-1) were derived, in excellent agreement with the theoretical results. Consistent heats of formation for the vinoxy and the 1-methylvinoxy radical as well as their O2 adducts are recommended based on our complementary experimental and theoretical study deltaH(f,298K) = 13.0 +/- 2.0, -32. 9+/- 2.0, -85.9 +/- 4.0, and -142.1 +/- 4.0 kJ mol(-1) for CH2CHO, CH3COCH2 radicals, and their adducts, respectively.     

Photoion photoelectron coincidence spectroscopy of primary amines RCH2NH2 (R = H, CH3, C2H5, C3H7, i-C3H7): alkylamine and alkyl radical heats of formation by isodesmic reaction networks

Alkylamines (RCH(2)NH(2), R = H, CH(3), C(2)H(5), C(3)H(7), i-C(3)H(7)) have been investigated by dissociative photoionization by threshold photoelectron photoion coincidence spectroscopy (TPEPICO). The 0 K dissociation limits (9.754 +/- 0.008, 9.721 +/- 0.008, 9.702 +/- 0.012, and 9.668 +/- 0.012 eV for R = CH(3), C(2)H(5), C(3)H(7), i-C(3)H(7), respectively) have been determined by preparing energy-selected ions and collecting the fractional abundances of parent and daughter ions. All alkylamine cations produce the methylenimmonium ion, CH(2)NH(2)+, and the corresponding alkyl free radical. Two isodesmic reaction networks have also been constructed. The first one consists of the alkylamine parent molecules, and the other of the alkyl radical photofragments. Reaction heats within the isodesmic networks have been calculated at the CBS-APNO and W1U levels of theory. The two networks are connected by the TPEPICO dissociation energies. The heats of formation of the amines and the alkyl free radicals are then obtained by a modified least-squares fit to minimize the discrepancy between the TPEPICO and the ab initio values. The analysis of the fit reveals that the previous experimental heats of formation are largely accurate, but certain revisions are suggested. Thus, Delta(f)Ho(298K)[CH(3)NH(2)(g)] = -21.8 +/- 1.5 kJ mol-1, Delta(f)Ho(298K)[C(2)H(5)NH(2)(g)] = -50.1 +/- 1.5 kJ mol(-1), Delta(f)Ho(298K)[C(3)H(7)NH(2)(g)] = -70.8 +/- 1.5 kJ mol(-1), Delta(f)Ho(298K)[C(3)H(7)*] = 101.3 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1), and Delta(f)Ho(298K)[i-C(3)H(7)*] = 88.5 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1). The TPEPICO and the ab initio results for butylamine do not agree within 1 kJ mol-1; therefore, no new heat of formation is proposed for butylamine. It is nevertheless indicated that the previous experimental heats of formation of methylamine, propylamine, butylamine, and isobutylamine may have been systematically underestimated. On the other hand, the error in the ethyl radical heat of formation is found to be overestimated and can be decreased to +/- 1 kJ mol(-1); thus, Delta(f)Ho(298K)[C(2)H(5).] = 120.7 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1). On the basis of the data analysis, the heat of formation of the methylenimmonium ion is confirmed to be Delta(f)Ho(298K)[CH(2)NH(2)+] = 750.3 +/- 1 kJ mol(-1).     

Thermochemistry is not a lower bound to the activation energy of endothermic reactions: a kinetic study of the gas-phase reaction of atomic chlorine with ammonia

The rate constant for Cl + NH3 --> HCl + NH2 has been measured over 290-570 K by the time-resolved resonance fluorescence technique. Ground-state Cl atoms were generated by 193 nm excimer laser photolysis of CCl4 and reacted under pseudo-first-order conditions with excess NH3. The forward rate constant was fit by the expression k1 = (1.08 +/- 0.05) x 10(-11) exp(-11.47 +/- 0.16 kJ mol(-1)/RT) cm3 molecule(-1) s(-1), where the uncertainties in the Arrhenius parameters are +/-1 sigma and the 95% confidence limits for k1 are +/-11%. To rationalize the activation energy, which is 7.4 kJ mol(-1) below the endothermicity in the middle of the 1/T range, the potential energy surface was characterized with MPWB1K/6-31++G(2df,2p) theory. The products NH2 + HCl form a hydrogen-bonded adduct, separated from Cl + NH3 by a transition state lower in energy than the products. The rate constant for the reverse process k(-1) was derived via modified transition state theory, and the computed k(-1) exhibits a negative activation energy, which in combination with the experimental equilibrium constant yields k1 in fair accord with experiment.     

Molecular energetics of cytosine revisited: a joint computational and experimental study

A static bomb calorimeter has been used to measure the standard molar energy of combustion, in oxygen, at T = 298.15 K, of a commercial sample of cytosine. From this energy, the standard (p degrees = 0.1 MPa) molar enthalpy of formation in the crystalline state was derived as -(221.9 +/- 1.7) kJ.mol(-1). This value confirms one experimental value already published in the literature but differs from another literature value by 13.5 kJ.mol(-1). Using the present standard molar enthalpy of formation in the condensed phase and the enthalpy of sublimation due to Burkinshaw and Mortimer [J. Chem. Soc., Dalton Trans. 1984, 75], (155.0 +/- 3.0) kJ.mol(-1), results in a value for the gas-phase standard molar enthalpy of formation for cytosine of -66.9 kJ.mol(-1). A similar value, -65.1 kJ.mol(-1), has been estimated after G3MP2B3 calculations combined with the reaction of atomization on three different tautomers of cytosine. In agreement with experimental evidence, the hydroxy-amino tautomer is the most stable form of cytosine in the gas phase. The enthalpies of formation of the other two tautomers were also estimated as -60.7 kJ.mol(-1) and -57.2 kJ.mol(-1) for the oxo-amino and oxo-imino tautomers, respectively. The same composite approach was also used to compute other thermochemical data, which is difficult to be measured experimentally, such as C-H, N-H, and O-H bond dissociation enthalpies, gas-phase acidities, and ionization enthalpies.     

Rates and mechanism of fluoride and water exchange in UO(2)F(5)(3-) and [UO(2)F(4)(H(2)O)](2-) studied by NMR spectroscopy and wave function based methods

The reaction mechanism for the exchange of fluoride in UO(2)F(5)(3-) and UO(2)F(4)(H(2)O)(2-) has been investigated experimentally using (19)F NMR spectroscopy at -5 degrees C, by studying the line broadening of the free fluoride, UO(2)F(4)(2-)(aq) and UO(2)F(5)(3-), and theoretically using quantum chemical methods to calculate the activation energy for different pathways. The new experimental data allowed us to make a more detailed study of chemical equilibria and exchange mechanisms than in previous studies. From the integrals of the different individual peaks in the new NMR spectra, we obtained the stepwise stability constant K(5) = 0.60 +/- 0.05 M(-1) for UO(2)F(5)(3-). The theoretical results indicate that the fluoride exchange pathway of lowest activation energy, 71 kJ/mol, in UO(2)F(5)(3-) is water assisted. The pure dissociative pathway has an activation energy of 75 kJ/mol, while the associative mechanism can be excluded as there is no stable UO(2)F(6)(4-) intermediate. The quantum chemical calculations have been made at the SCF/MP2 levels, using a conductor-like polarizable continuum model (CPCM) to describe the solvent. The effects of different model assumptions on the activation energy have been studied. The activation energy is not strongly dependent on the cavity size or on interactions between the complex and Na(+) counterions. However, the solvation of the complex and the leaving fluoride results in substantial changes in the activation energy. The mechanism for water exchange in UO(2)F(4)(H(2)O)(2-) has also been studied. We could eliminate the associative mechanism, the dissociative mechanism had the lowest activation energy, 39 kJ/mol, while the interchange mechanism has an activation energy that is approximately 50 kJ/mol higher.     

Photodissociation dynamics of fluorobenzene (C6H5F) at 157 and 193 nm: Branching ratios and distributions of kinetic energy

Following photodissociation of fluorobenzene (C6H5F) at 193 and 157 nm, we detected the products with fragmentation-translational spectroscopy by utilizing a tunable vacuum ultraviolet beam from a synchrotron for ionization. Between two primary dissociation channels observed upon irradiation at 193 (157) nm, the HF-elimination channel C6H5F --> HF + C6H4 dominates, with a branching ratio of 0.94+/-0.02 (0.61+/-0.05) and an average release of kinetic energy of 103 (108) kJ mol(-1); the H-elimination channel C6H5F --> H + C6H4F has a branching ratio of 0.06+/-0.02 (0.39+/-0.05) and an average release of kinetic energy of 18.6 (26.8) kJ mol(-1). Photofragments H, HF, C6H4, and C6H4F produced via the one-photon process have nearly isotropic angular distributions. Both the HF-elimination and the H-elimination channels likely proceed via the ground-state electronic surface following internal conversion of C6H5F; these channels exhibit small fractions of kinetic energy release from the available energy, indicating that the molecular fragments are highly internally excited. We also determined the ionization energy of C6H4F to be 8.6+/-0.2 eV.     

Experimental and theoretical differential cross sections for the N(2D) + H2 reaction

In this paper, we report a combined experimental and theoretical study on the dynamics of the N(2D) + H2 insertion reaction at a collision energy of 15.9 kJ mol(-1). Product angular and velocity distributions have been obtained in crossed beam experiments and simulated by using the results of quantum mechanical (QM) scattering calculations on the accurate ab initio potential energy surface (PES) of Pederson et al. (J. Chem. Phys. 1999, 110, 9091). Since the QM calculations indicate that there is a significant coupling between the product angular and translational energy distributions, such a coupling has been explicitly included in the simulation of the experimental results. The very good agreement between experiment and QM calculations sustains the accuracy of the NH2 ab initio ground state PES. We also take the opportunity to compare the accurate QM differential cross sections with those obtained by two approximate methods, namely, the widely used quasiclassical trajectory calculations and a rigorous statistical method based on the coupled-channel theory.     

Thermochemistry and dissociative photoionization of Si(CH3)4, BrSi(CH3)3, ISi(CH3)3, and Si2(CH3)6 studied by threshold photoelectron-photoion coincidence spectroscopy

Threshold photoelectron-photoion coincidence spectroscopy (TPEPICO) has been used to study the dissociation kinetics and thermochemistry of Me(4)Si, Me(6)Si(2), and Me(3)SiX, (X = Br, I) molecules. Accurate 0 K dissociative photoionization onsets for these species have been measured from the breakdown diagram and the ion time-of-flight distribution, both of them analyzed and simulated in terms of the statistical RRKM theory and DFT calculations. The average enthalpy of formation of trimethylsilyl ion, Delta fH(o)298K(Me(3)Si(+)) = 617.3 +/- 2.3 kJ/mol, has been determined from the measured onsets for methyl loss (10.243 +/- 0.010 eV) from Me(4)Si, and Br and I loss from Me(3)SiBr (10.624 +/- 0.010 eV) and Me(3)SiI (9.773 +/- 0.015 eV), respectively. The methyl loss onsets for the trimethyl halo silanes lead to Delta fH(o)298K(Me(2)SiBr(+)) = 590.3 +/- 4.4 kJ/mol and Delta fH(o)298K(Me(5)Si(2)(+)) = 487.6 +/- 6.2 kJ/mol. The dissociative photoionization of Me(3)SiSiMe(3) proceeds by a very slow Si-Si bond breaking step, whose rate constants were measured as a function of the ion internal energy. Extrapolation of this rate constant to the dissociation limit leads to the 0 K dissociation onset (9.670 +/- 0.030 eV). This onset, along with the previously determined trimethylsilyl ion energy, leads to an enthalpy of formation of the trimethylsilyl radical, Delta fH(o)298K(Me(3)Si(*)) = 14.0 +/- 6.6 kJ/mol. In combination with other experimental values, we propose a more accurate average value for Delta fH(o)298K(Me(3)Si(*)) of 14.8 +/- 2.0 kJ/mol. Finally, the bond dissociation enthalpies (DeltaH(298K)) Si-H, Si-C, Si-X (X=Cl, Br, I) and Si-Si are derived and discussed in this study.     

Solvation properties of N-substituted cis and trans amides are not identical: significant enthalpy and entropy changes are revealed by the use of variable temperature 1H NMR in aqueous and chloroform solutions and ab initio calculations

The cis/trans conformational equilibrium of N-methyl formamide (NMF) and the sterically hindered tert-butylformamide (TBF) was investigated by the use of variable temperature gradient 1H NMR in aqueous solution and in the low dielectric constant and solvation ability solvent CDCl3 and various levels of first principles calculations. The trans isomer of NMF in aqueous solution is enthalpically favored relative to the cis (deltaH(o) = -5.79 +/- 0.18 kJ mol(-1)) with entropy differences at 298 K (298 x deltaS(o) = -0.23 +/- 0.17 kJ mol(-1)) playing a minor role. The experimental value of the enthalpy difference strongly decreases (deltaH(o) = -1.72 +/- 0.06 kJ mol(-1)), and the contribution of entropy at 298 K (298 x deltaS(o) = -1.87 +/- 0.06 kJ mol(-1)) increases in the case of the sterically hindered tert-butylformamide. The trans isomer of NMF in CDCl3 solution is enthalpically favored relative to the cis (deltaH(o) = -3.71 +/- 0.17 kJ mol(-1)) with entropy differences at 298 K (298 x deltaS(o) = 1.02 +/- 0.19 kJ mol(-1)) playing a minor role. In the sterically hindered tert-butylformamide, the trans isomer is enthalpically disfavored (deltaH(o) = 1.60 +/- 0.09 kJ mol(-1)) but is entropically favored (298 x deltaS(o) = 1.71 +/- 0.10 kJ mol(-1)). The results are compared with literature data of model peptides. It is concluded that, in amide bonds at 298 K and in the absence of strongly stabilizing sequence-specific inter-residue interactions involving side chains, the free energy difference of the cis/trans isomers and both the enthalpy and entropy contributions are strongly dependent on the N-alkyl substitution and the solvent. The significant decreasing enthalpic benefit of the trans isomer in CDCl3 compared to that in H2O, in the case of NMF and TBF, is partially offset by an adverse entropy contribution. This is in agreement with the general phenomenon of enthalpy versus entropy compensation. B3LY/6-311++G** and MP2/6-311++G** quantum chemical calculations confirm the stability orders of isomers and the deltaG decrease in going from water to CHCl3 as solvent. However, the absolute calculated values, especially for TBF, deviate significantly from the experimental values. Consideration of the solvent effects via the PCM approach on NMF x H2O and TBF x H2O supermolecules improves the agreement with the experimental results for TBF isomers, but not for NMF.