Computational insight into excited states of the ring-opening radicals from the pyrolysis of furan biofuels

The low-lying valence excited states and Rydberg states of the radical species from the ring-opening reactions in pyrolysis of furan biofuels have been determined by extensive density functional theory and sophisticated wave function theory calculations. The radicals 1-C₄H₅O-2, 2-furylCH₂, and 4-C₆H₇O with the delocalized π-type single electron are predicted to be most stable among the reactive species here for furan, 2-methyfuran, and 2,5-dimethylfuran, respectively. Predicted vertical transition energies by TD-CAM-B3LYP show good agreement with those by CASPT2. Some among the electronic excitations to low-lying states can take place in the visible light region, and they may be involved in the combustion process. Further surface hopping dynamics simulations on the excited states of the most stable ring-opening radical 1-C₄H₅O-2 of furan as an example reveal that 89.9% sampling trajectories at the initial excited state of 2²A”(π¹π*²) decay to the 1²A’(n¹π*²) state within an average of 384 fs, and then 81.2% trajectories at the 1²A’ state go to the ground state within an average of 114 fs. At the end of the simulation for 1000 fs, 18.8% trajectories still stay on the excited states of 2²A” and 1²A’, suggesting that the reactive radicals in the ground state are mainly responsible for the combustion chemistry of furan biofuels. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Highly efficient chiral resolution and determination of absolute configuration of 2-alkanols by using a cyclopenta[b]furan derivative

The reaction of 3a-benzhydryl-3,3a,4,5-tetrahydro-2H-cyclopenta[b]furan and various 2-alkanols in the presence of a catalytic amount of pyridinium 4-tolunesulfonate in dichloromethane gave 3a-benzhydryl-6a-(1-methyl-aloxy)-hexahydrocyclopenta[b]furan in more than 90% chemical yields. The resulting diastereomeric mixture is easily separable on silica gel chromatography because of the large ΔR_f value (briefly 0.1). Absolute configuration of the 2-alkanols can be easily estimated by the chemical shifts of ¹H and ¹³C NMR of methyne group of the benzhydryl moiety.     

Excited state aromatization assisted push-pull abilities of two unsaturated oxazolone derivatives

Molecular structures of two unsaturated oxazolone derivatives involving furan rings, which are decorated with p-tolyl (FurM) and 4-nitro phenyl (FurN), were investigated by X-ray crystallography and quantum chemical calculations. Their ground and excited states were examined by DFT and TD-DFT computations with the aid of topological electron density studies, NBO and Charge Decomposition Analysis. Both compounds have push-pull (D–π–A) framework using oxazolone ring as π-linker. Depending on the transitions from the ground to excited states, intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) in both compounds results in aromatization of oxazolones. Push-pull ability of FurN has more pronounced than that of FurM. The use of furan instead of almost fully aromatic benzenoid ring reduces HOMO?LUMO band gap due to relatively low aromaticity level of furan. Introduction of nitro substituent leads to a further reduction in HOMO?LUMO gap. In addition, electronic redistribution in the excited state results in aromatization of oxazolone moieties without elongation of carbonyl bonds.     

Complete vapor phase assignment for the fundamental vibrations of furan,pyrrole and thiophene

Vibrational spectroscopic studies, including IR vapor, Raman vapor and Raman liquid spectra, have been made to obtain the complete set of fundamental vibrational frequencies in the vapor and liquid states for furan, pyrrole and thiophene. For furan, vapor values have been determined for the two previously ambiguous fundamentals, ν₁₁ and ν₁₈. Also determined is the vapor frequncy of two fundamentals of furan for which only the liquid value had been known. The fundamental vibrational frequencies of pyrrole have been completely determined in the gas and liquid states. The thiophene results confirm the assignment of Rico et al. [Spectrochim. Acta 21, 689 (1965)], although for several of the fundamental modes the vapor frequency is now measured. The Raman vapor spectra are conclusive concerning the refinements in vibrational assignment for furan and pyrrole, where virtually every binary combination band involving the out-of-plane fundamentals that yield an A₁ transition is observed. The Raman vapor results establish two significant Fermi resonances affecting fundamental vibration levels in pyrrole. Also, ¹³C and ³⁴S isotopomers are identified in the Q-branches of the Raman vapor spectra at natural abundance. A comparison of the spectroscopic and calorimetric ideal-gas thermodynamic properties is made. The differences are negligible in the region where the calorimetric data are most reliable.     

Using 4-methyl-4-phenyl-2-pentanone as a singlet probe of benzene,cyclohexane, tributylphosphate and its multiple scavenger effects

A special probe of excited singlet states was established. The Norrish type II elimination reaction of 4-methyl-4-phenyl-2-pentanone (MPP) induced by γ-rays was reinvestigated. By measuring the G value of the sensitization radiolytic product α-methylstyrene (α-MS), we obtained the G value of excited singlet states. It was found that the G value of benzene excited singlets is 1.4±0.2, the rate constant of excitation energy transfer from benzene excited singlets to MPP is (5.2±0.5)×10⁹dm³mol^-1s^-1; the G value of excited tributylphosphate singlets is 1.4±0.3, the lifetime of its excited singlets is (1.3±0.1)×10^-7s; the G value of excited cyclohexane singlets is 1.5±0.2, the rate constant of excitation energy transfer from cyclohexane excited singlets to MPP is (4.1±0.4)×10¹⁰dm³mol^-1s^-1. It was found that MPP has multiple effects in quenching the active species formed in the radiolysis of benzene and tributylphosphate, both excitation energy transfer and reaction with subexcitation electrons have occured. A yield of subexcitation electrons of benzene 4.0, that of tributylphosphate 5.0, was obtained. The kinetics of both processes were also discussed.     

Furan-containing <Emphasis Type="Italic">gem</Emphasis>-bromonitroethenes: Synthesis and reaction with morpholine

The first time the representative of furan-containing gem-bromonitroethenes 5-nitro-2-(2-bromo-2-nitro-ethenyl)furan was synthesized by bromination of 5-nitro-2-(2-nitroethenyl)furan followed by dehydrohalogenation of the dibromide. Morpholine adducts of the synthesized β-substituted gem-bromonitroethene and its analog with a 5-bromo-2-furyl substituent were obtained. The structures of the gem-bromonitroethenes and aza adducts were characterized by spectral methods (IR, UV, ¹H, and ¹³C-{¹H} NMR, including ¹H-¹³C HMQC and HMBC).     

REVERSIBLE PHOTOCYCLOADDITION OF A 4',5'-DIHYDROPSORALEN DERIVATIVE WITH THYMINE

The photocycloaddition reaction between a 4′,5′-dihydropsoralen derivative and thymine was studied in solution using a synthetic bichromophoric model 8 in which the two rings are associated by a tetramethylene chain. In water this model molecule exhibits intramolecular ring-ring stacking interactions as evidenced by UV and NMR spectroscopies. Irradiation at 365 nm at usual concentrations ( 5.10^?-⁴M) leads exclusively to a regio- and stereo-selective dimerization reaction involving the 3,4 double bonds of the psoralen moities. Extreme dilutions (ca 2.10^?-⁵M) were necessary to observe the intramolecular reaction which results in the exclusive formation of a 3,4 cb-anti adduct. This reaction is completely reversed by irradiation at 254 nm. These results are discussed with regard to the behavior of the homologous models in which the furan part of the psoralen ring is not hydrogenated, These latter compounds also lead exclusively to a 3,4 cis-anti adduct. It appears that saturation of the furan ring increases strongly the quantum yield of the photaddition at 365 nm (0.01 → 0.18) and that the triplet excited state of the 4′,5′-dihydropsoralen is involved in the photoaddition.     

Synthesis and some reductions of endo- and exo-3,6-epoxy-Δ4-tetrahydrophthalic anhydride

The synthesis of endo-3,6-epoxy-Δ⁴-tetrahydrophthalic anhydride from the endo-adduct of furan and maleic acid is described. Reduction of endo- and exo-3,6-epoxy-Δ⁴-tetrahydrophthalic anhydride with sodium borohydride gave the corresponding lactones, while catalytic hydrogenation over 10% Pd/C gave anhydride and/or hemi-acylals, depending on the solvent.     

Polyene spectroscopy: Vibronic evidence for a forbidden transition in DECA-2,4,6,8-tetraene

The dimethylpolyene deca-2,4,6,8-tetraene was studied by absorption, fluorescence excitation and fluorescence spectroscopy in glasses at 77 K and in n-alkane crystals at 4.2 K. A strong transition to a ¹B_u excited state is observed with an origin at 32400 cm^?1 in isopentane at 77 K and at 31280 cm^?1 in n-undecane at 4.2 K. A weak transition to a ¹A_g excited state is observed with an origin at 28738 cm^?1 in the n-undecane matrix. The radiative fluorescence lifetime is 500 ns. In undecane the transition from the ground state to the ¹A_g excited state exhibits a classic Herzberg—Teller vibronic pattern indicating a symmetry forbidden transition.     

Assignment of electronic transitions by geometry optimization

Adiabatic excitation energies, excited state geometries, excited state charges, bond orders and dipole moments have been obtained for HCN, CO₂,H₂CO, HFCO, F₂CO, ethylene, trans-butadiene, furan, pyrrole and uracil using the SINDO1 semi-empirical method with configuration interaction. Our results generally agree with those ofab initio calculations and experiment satisfactorily. Geometry optimization is found to mix configurations differing in their allowedness in vertical excitation from the ground state, which in turn helps in the assignment of spectral transitions. TheV excited singlet state of trans-butadiene and various excited states of furan, pyrrole and uracil have been found to be appreciably non-planar. The single and double CC bonds are found to exchange positions due to the lowest triplet and singlet transitions of furan and pyrrole. The first triplet and first singlet transitions of uracil have been found to be of π-π* and π-σ* types respectively in agreement with recent experimental findings. On leave of absence from the Department of Physics, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi-221005, India     

Rydberg and valence-shell character as functions of internuclear distance in some excited states of CH,NH, H2, and N2

SCF MO computations have been carried out on several excited states of CH and NH in which the excited MO 4σ is a Rydberg or near-Rydberg MO at internuclear distances R near that (R_e) of equilibrium in the ground state, but becomes an antibonding valence-shell MO as R increases toward dissociation. For the lowest ³Π_g state of H₂ and the lowest ³Π_g and ³Π_u states of N₂ the extent of 3dπ Rydberg character in the excited MO as a function of R for some R values ? R_e is evaluated by SCF MO computations.     

The rα-structures of partially oriented thiophene and furan as determined from proton magnetic resonance spectra including 13C-satellites

The r_α structures (corrected for harmonic vibrations) of thiophene and furan have been determined from the proton magnetic resonance spectra of oriented molecules including ¹³C-satellites at natural abundance. Carbon-carbon, carbon-hydrogen and hydrogen-hydrogen internuclear distance ratios are compared with earlier NMR and MW 'results. The importance of vibration corrections is demonstrated.     

Theory of single and double ionization of helium through two-photon excitation of the1 S 0 e (1) doubly excited resonance

We present a theory and calculations of two-photon-resonant three-photon ionization of He via the lowest even parity doubly excited state¹ S ₀ ^e (1). We assess the importance of double ionization relative to single ionization into excited ionic states. Although double ionization is found to be quite small in the present context, our calculations reveal the importance of autoionizing doubly excited states as virtual intermediate states and suggest contexts in which double ionization may be relatively more efficient.     

The yield of solvent excited states in the radiolysis of cyclohexane solutions

It is confirmed by pulse radiolysis that emitting solvent excited states are produced in the radiolysis of n-hexane, methylcyclohexane and cyclohexane. The emission is quenched by benzene and benzene emission appears. Applying stern - volmer kinetics to emissions from solvent, benzene and toluene in cyclohexane a very high energy transfer rate constant, viz., k = 2.8 × 10¹¹M⁻¹ sec⁻¹ is obtained. The yield of the excited state of cyclohexane is not greater than 0.3, and it is concluded that the major part of the excited states of other aromatics produced in cyclohexane solutions comes from ion neutralisation.     

2-BENZAZEPINES III1, 2 IMPROVED SYNTHESIS OF 2, 3, 4, 5-TETRAHYDRO-2-BENZAZEPIN-1-ONE

3-Methylfuran is an important building block of terpenoid compounds¹⁾ and some of these compounds are biologically active, for example as a defence substance of animal.²⁾ Though many methods have been developed for the syntheses of 3-substituted furan derivatives,³⁾ most of them lack the generality as a synthetic method of (3-furanyl) methyl derivative. Tannis has recently reported the construction of 3-substituted furan derivative by using 3-(lithiomethyl) furan or 3-(chloromagnesium methyl) furan, and demonstrated the generality of his method.⁴⁾     

One-way isomerization and internal rotation in anthrylethylenes in the excited triplet state

1-(2-Anthryl)-2-(bromophenyl)ethylene and 1-(2-anthryl)-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)ethylene undergo cis→trans one-way isomerization in the excited triplet state through an adiabatic process from the cis-triplet to the trans-triplet states. The trans-isomers of these compounds undergo one-way internal rotation in the excited triplet state with an activation barrier of }7 kcal mol^?1 and a frequency factor of }10¹² s^?1, while no internal rotation takes place in the excited singlet state.     

Photoelectric evidence for a neutral excited state in fully polymerized polydiacetylene-p-(toluenesulfonate) single crystals

The intensity dependence of photocurrent transients excited by the 1.06 μ line of a Nd laser has been measured. Observation of an I² and an I³ branch indicate that charge carriers can be generated via two-quantum absorption and that at high intensities photoionization of a neutral excited state with a lifetime of the order 10^?10 s dominates.     

Photophysics of Push–Pull Distyrylfurans,Thiophenes and Pyridines by Fast and Ultrafast Techniques

Time‐resolved transient absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy with nano‐ and femtosecond time resolution were used to investigate the deactivation pathways of the excited states of distyrylfuran, thiophene and pyridine derivatives in several organic solvents of different polarity in detail. The rate constant of the main decay processes (fluorescence, singlet–triplet intersystem crossing, isomerisation and internal conversion) are strongly affected by the nature [locally excited (LE) or charge transfer (CT)] and selective position of the lowest excited singlet states. In particular, the heteroaromatic central ring significantly enhances the intramolecular charge‐transfer process, which is operative even in a non‐polar solvent. Both the thiophene and pyridine moieties enhance the S₁→T₁ rate with respect to the furan one. This is due to the heavy‐atom effect (thiophene compounds) and to the ¹(π,π)*→³(n,π)* transition (pyridine compounds), which enhance the spin‐orbit coupling. Moreover, the solvent polarity also plays a significant role in the photophysical properties of these push–pull compounds: in fact, a particularly fast ¹LE*→¹CT* process was found for dimethylamino derivatives in the most polar solvents (time constant, τ≤400 fs), while it takes place in tens of picoseconds in non‐polar solvents. It was also shown that the CT character of the lowest excited singlet state decreased by replacing the dimethylamino side group with a methoxy one. The latter causes a decrease in the emissive decay and an enhancement of triplet‐state formation. The photoisomerisation mechanism (singlet/triplet) is also discussed.