Molecular orbital studies of conformers and the barrier to internal rotation in 1,3-butadiene

The potential curve for rotation around the central bond in 1,3-butadiene has been estimated by ab initio calculations using Gaussian-type basis functions. The calculations, which also include limited geometry variation during rotation, suggest that in the SCF approximation the second stable form of the molecule is a gauche conformation rather than a cis. The predicted energy difference between the planar trans ground state and the stable gauche form is 2.7 kcal/mole and the barrier to internal rotation is found to be 6.0 kcal/mole using a (9,5) basis for carbon and 4s functions on hydrogen.