Semiempirical computation of homolytic O-H bond dissociation energies of alcohols: comparison of the AM1 and PM3 methods

The heats of formation of various alcohols and alkoxy radicals were calculated using the AM1 and PM3 semiempirical methods, which were then used to calculate the bond dissociation energies of the alcohols. Both restricted Hartree-Fock (RHF) and unrestricted Hartree-Fock (UHF) calculations were performed to determine which technique was most applicable to the computation of bond dissociation energies within the semiempirical frameworks. It was determined that AM1/RHF calculations gave the most accurate results for O-H bond dissociation energies of alcohols. The effect of using configuration interaction calculations to calculate bond dissociation energies within the semiempirical framework was also examined.