Hydrogen bond in 3-acetyl-4-hydroxycoumarin: X-ray diffraction study and quantum-chemical calculations

The proton transfer and the character of the strong intramolecular O--H...O hydrogen bond (O...O 2.442 ) in 3-acetyl-4-hydroxycoumarin were analyzed based on the results of X-ray diffraction study in the temperature range from 100 to 353 K and quantum-chemical B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) calculations. The barrier to proton transfer along the H-bond line is low (2 kcal mol^–1). However, no proton transfer was observed in the crystal at 100 K. Bader's topological analysis of the electron density distribution both in the crystal and in the isolated molecule demonstrated that the hydrogen bond corresponds to an intermediate type of interatomic interactions (E(r) < 0, ²(r) > 0 at the critical point (3, –1)).