Intramolecular Hypervalent X←X Interaction in Mono- and Bicyclic Heteroelement Compounds Containing Se and Te Atoms

Chalcogen-containing heterapentalene and quasimonocyclic compounds having SeÄSeÄSe and TeÄTeÄTe triads or SeÄSe and TeÄTe diads were studied by the ab initio [MP2(full)/6-31G**, MP2(fc)/6-31+G**, and MP2(fc)/LANL2DZ] and DFT methods (B3LYP/6-31G^**, B3LYP/6-31+G^**, and B3LYP/LANL2DZ). Heterapentalene compounds were found to be stable as planar bicyclic structures having a C _2v symmetry. The stability of quasimonocycic -chalcogenovinyl aldehydes increases with increase in the electron-acceptor power of the substituent at the X atom.     

Pathways of the reaction of nucleophilic addition of ammonia to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the complex with formic acid:ab initio calculations

The gradient pathways of the reaction of nucleophilic addition of ammonia to formaldehyde were calculated for free molecules and in the NH₃...H₂CO...HC(O)OH complex by theab initio RHF/6-31G^**, MP2(fc)/6-31G^**, and MP2(full)/6-311++G^** methods. Both reactions proceed concertedly. In the first case, the reaction successively passes through two transitional states with an energy barrier exceeding 35 kcal mol⁻¹. In the case of the complex with formic acid, the reaction follows a conventional pathway, although its activation barrier calculated by the RHF/6-31G^** and MP2(fc)/6-31G^** methods decreases to 12.6 and 3.8 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 13–20, January, 1998.     

Quantum chemical calculation studies on 4-phenyl-1-(1-phenylethylidene)thiosemicarbazide

Ab initio calculations of the structure, atomic charges, natural bond orbital and thermodynamic functions have been performed at HF/6-311G^** and B3LYP/6-311G^** levels of theory for the title compound of 4-phenyl-1-(1-phenylethylidene) thiosemicarbazide. The calculated results show that the sulfur atom and all of the nitrogen atoms have bigger negative charges and that they are the potential sites to react with the metallic ions, which make the title compound a multidentate ligand. The coordination ability of the sulfur atom and the nitrogen atom of C=N double bond increases with the increase of polarity of the solvent. Electronic absorption spectra have been calculated by time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) method. The calculation of the second-order optical nonlinearity has also been carried out with the PM3 semi-empirical method, resulting in the molecular hyperpolarisability is 5.477×10⁻³⁰ esu.     

Preparation,Structural Characterization and the Molecular Structure of 2,3,5-Trinitro-<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-xylene

2,3,5-trinitro-p-xylene (TPX) is synthesized by nitration of p-xylene in mixed acid of nitric and sulfuric acid. Single crystal of TPX is cultured from DMF solution using a slow cooling method. The compound is characterized by FT-IR, ¹H NMR and MS techniques. The crystal structure is determined by X-ray⁴ single-crystal diffraction analysis. The crystal belongs to the monoclinic system with space group P_n. Its unit cell parameters are as follows: a = 0.8271(2), b = 0.6011(1), c = 1.0487(2) nm, β = 105.42(2)^∘, V = 0.50263(2) nm³, D_c = 1.593 g/cm³, Z = 2, F(0 0 0) = 248. The molecular structures of TPX have been calculated at the B3LYP/6-31G^** and B3LYP/6-311G^** levels of theory, and its frequencies analysis have also been accomplished at the same level of theory. The thermal decomposition process of the compound was studied using DSC and TG-DTG techniques. The predicted nitro group vibrations with B3LYP/6-311G^** calculation considerably agree with the observed frequencies. The calculated results propose that the structural parameters from the theory are close to those of the crystal structure from the experiments.     

Tautomerism of xanthine: The second-order MØller-Plesset study

Four 9H and four 7H tautomers of DNA base xanthine were studied by the ab initio LCAO-MO method at the MP2/6-311G^**//HF/6-31G^** and MP2/6-31G^**//HF/6-31G^** approximations. All calculated structures are minima at the HF/6-31G^** potential energy surface with the dioxo 7H tautomer (A1) being the global minimum. The second most stable tautomer, dioxo-9H (B1) is by 9 kcal/mol less stable. For the A1 B1 transition the calculated MP2 energy gap corresponds to the equilibrium constant of 2 × 10^–7. Therefore, only the major tautomeric form A1 is predicted to be detectable in the gas phase. The 7H and 9H groups of tautomers are discussed separately. Within both groups, the dioxo form (A1-7H, B1-9H) is the most stable one and is succeeded by the 2-dihydroxy (A2, B2) form. However, while the energy difference between A1 and A2 is 10 kcal/mol, the energy difference between B1 a B2 is only 2 kcal/mol. The effect of polar environment was estimated by the SCRF method, using a spherical cavity, at the HF/6-31G^** level. These calculations did not change the gas phase stability order of the tautomers. However, the energy difference between A1 and B1 decreased from 9 kcal/mol at the HF/6-31G^** level to 4 kcal/mol at the SCRF HF/6-31G^** level.     

Intramolecular nucleophilicS N 2 substitution at the tetrahedral carbon atom: Anab initio study

Pentacoordination of carbon atom in bicyclic organic compounds of the pentalene type was studied by theab initio RHF/6-31G^** and MP2(full)/6-31G^** methods. It was shown that intramolecularS _N 2 reactions with energy barriers within the energy scale of NMR spectroscopy can occur in systems in which a linear orientation of the attacking and leaving groups is realized. The barrier to the intramolecular nucleophilic substitution reaction in 2,3-dihydro-3-formylmethylenefuran is 36.9 (RHF) and 27.7 kcal mol⁻¹ (MP2) and decreases to 16.4 and 19.4 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively, in the case of diprotonation at the O atoms in this system. For model pentalene type compounds containing electron-deficient B atoms in the ring, theab initio calculations predict a further decrease in the barrier height (down to less than 10 kcal mol⁻¹). Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 7, pp. 1246–1256, July, 1999.     

The C−NO2 bond dissociation energies of some nitroaromatic compounds: DFT study

The C−NO₂ bond dissociation energies in nitrobenzene; 3-amino-nitrobenze; 4-amino-nitrobenze; 1,3-dinitrobenzene; 1,4-dinitrobenzene; 2-methyl-nitrobenzene; 4-methyl-nitrobenzene; and 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene nitroaromatic molecules, are computed using B3LYP, B3PW91, B3P86 three-parameter hybrid Density Functional Theory (DFT) methods in conjunction with 6-31G^** basis set. By comparing the computed energies and experimental ones, it is found that B3P86/6-31G^** is not capable of predicting the satisfactory bond dissociation energy (BDE). The BDEs computed with both B3LYP/6-31G^** and B3PW91/6-31G^** for the nitroaromatic molecules are closer to the experimental ones than those obtained with B3P86/6-31G^**. But, when compared with the experimental one, the BDE from the B3LYP/6-31G^** has the maximum deviation, which is completely outside our desired target accuracy for chemical predictions (less than 2.00 kcal mol⁻¹). Therefore, we suggest B3PW91/6-31G^** method as a reliable method of computing the BDE for removal of the nitrogen dioxide group in the nitroaromatic compounds. In addition, the C−NO₂ BDEs for 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), triaminotrinitrobenzene (TATB), diaminotrinitrobenzene (DATB), and picramide are studied with B3PW91/6-31G^** method.     

Pathways of the reactions of nucleophilic addition of H2O and HF molecules to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the complex with formic acid:ab initio calculations

The gradient pathways of the reactions of nucleophilic addition of H₂O and HF molecules to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the XH…H₂CO…HC(O)OH complex (X=OH, F) were calculated by theab initio RHF/6-31G^**, MP2(fc)/6-31G^**, and MP2(full)/6-311++G^** methods. Both reactions proceed concertedly. The formation of H-bonded bimolecular pre-reaction complexes is the initial stage of the gas-phase reactions; at the same time, no indications of the formation of stable π-complexes were found on the potential energy surfaces of systems under study. The calculated energy barriers to the gasphase reactions exceed 40 kcal mol⁻¹, while those to reactions in the complex XH…H₂CO…HC(O)OH (X=OH, F) become more than halved. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2146–2154, November, 1998.     

Inversion of Pyramidal Configuration of Pnictogenic Center in Diazapnictolenes

The possibility of pyramidal inversion in diazapnictolenes was investigated by methods ab initio MP2(full)/6-31G^** and density functional theory B3LYP/6-31G^**. The inversion of tricoordinate phosphorus in 2-fluoro-1,3,2-diazaphospholene and of arsenic in 2-fluoro-1,3,2-diazaarsolene requires low activation barriers (<15 kcal mol^-1) corresponding to the time scale of the NMR method.     

Structural relaxations and energy effects of intramolecular motions inN,N-dimethylnitramine: A theoretical study

The equilibrium geometry of theN,N-dimethylnitramine molecule and changes in the energy and structural parameters due to the internal rotation of the nitro group and the inversion of the N atom in the amino fragment were calculated by the restricted Hartree-Fock (RHF) method and at the second-order Møller-Plesset (MP2) level of perturbation theory with inclusion of electron correlation using the 6–31 G^* and 6–31 G^** basis sets. The one-dimensional potential functions of these motions calculated at the RHF/6–31 G^* level were approximated by a truncated Fourier and power series, respectively. The frequencies of torsional and inversion transitions were determined by solving direct vibrational problems for a non-rigid model,i.e., taking into account the molecular geometry relaxation. The equilibrium conformation of the molecular skeleton ofN,N-dimethylnitramine is nonplanar. Transition states of the internal rotation of the nitro group and inversion of the amine N atom are characterized by pronounced concerted changes in its bond angles and the length of the N?N bond. In the MP2/6–31 G^* approximation, the height of the barrier to internal rotation calculated taking into account the difference in the zero-point vibrational energies is equal to 9.7 kcal mol^?1. Inversion in the amino fragment is accompanied by a relatively small energy change at the barrier height of ?1.0 kcal mol^?1 calculated in the same approximation.     

Experimental and Theoretical Studies on (<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-methoxyphenyl)thiosemicarbazide

The title compound, (p-methoxyphenyl)thiosemicarbazide, has been characterized by elemental analysis, IR, electronic spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Ab initio calculations of the structure, atomic charges, natural bond orbital, topological analysis, and thermodynamic functions of the title compound were performed at HF/6-311G^** and B3LYP/6-311G^** levels of theory. The calculated results show that the sulfur atom and nitrogen atoms have bigger negative charges, which result in that they are the potential sites to react with the metallic ions. Electronic absorption spectra were calculated by the time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) and configuration interaction single-excitation (CIS) methods and they are corresponding to the experimental values. The calculation of the second-order optical nonlinearity was carried out, and the molecular hyperpolarizability was 2.592×10⁻³⁰ esu, indicating it is a potential candidate as second-order nonlinear optical material.     

Application of Density Functional Theory for evaluation of standard two-electron reduction potentials in some quinone derivatives

In this research, two-electron reduction potentials are calculated for a set of eight quinones using Density Functional Theory (DFT) at B1B95/6-31G^** and B1B95/6-311++G^** levels in aqueous solution. Two different mechanisms, direct and indirect, which have been presented before, are employed for these calculations. DPCM and CPCM models of solvation are carried out to include solution phase contribution. The results show that CPCM is properly matched with DFT method at the B1B95 level in both direct and indirect mechanisms. It is found that direct mechanism gives more accurate two-electron reduction potentials in comparison to indirect mechanism. Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD) obtained through indirect mechanism and CPCM model of solvation are about 0.041 and 0.022 V for 6-31G^** and 6-311++G^**, respectively. The MAD values of direct mechanism are about 0.024 and 0.018 V for 6-31G^** and 6-311++G^** basis sets, respectively. The calculated MAD for both direct and indirect mechanisms is comparable with MAD previously reported at MP3 level for this set of molecules.     

Effects of substituents and n-donors on the energies of Si←N,Si←O,and Si=C bonds in hypervalent silenes

The effect of the nature of substituents at sp²-hybridized silicon atom in the R₂Si=CH₂ (R = SiH₃, H, Me, OH, Cl, F) molecules on the structure and energy characteristics of complexes of these molecules with ammonia, trimethylamine, and tetrahydrofuran was studied by the ab initio (MP4/6-311G(d)//MP2/6-31G(d)+ZPE) method. As the electronegativity, χ, of the substituent R increases, the coordination bond energies, D(Si← N(O)), increase from 4.7 to 25.9 kcal mol⁻¹ for the complexes of R₂Si=CH₂ with NH₃, from 10.6 to 37.1 kcal mol⁻¹ for the complexes with Me₃N, and from 5.0 to 22.2 kcal mol⁻¹ for the complexes with THF. The n-donor ability changes as follows: THF ≤ NH₃ < Me₃N. The calculated barrier to hindered internal rotation about the silicon—carbon double bond was used as a measure of the Si=C π-bond energy. As χ increases, the rotational barriers decrease from 18.9 to 5.2 kcal mol⁻¹ for the complexes with NH₃ and from 16.9 to 5.7 kcal mol⁻¹ for the complexes with Me₃N. The lowering of rotational barriers occurs in parallel to the decrease in D _π(Si=C) we have established earlier for free silenes. On the average, the D _π(Si=C) energy decreases by ∼25 kcal mol⁻¹ for NH₃· R₂Si=CH₂ and Me₃N·R₂Si=CH₂. The D(Si←N) values for the R₂Si=CH₂· 2Me₃N complexes are 11.4 (R = H) and 24.3 kcal mol⁻¹ (R = F). sp²-Hybridized silicon atom can form transannular coordination bonds in 1,1-bis[N-(dimethylamino)acetimidato]silene (6). The open form (I) of molecule 6 is 35.1 and 43.5 kcal mol⁻¹ less stable than the cyclic (II, one transannular Si←N bond) and bicyclic (III, two transannular Si←N bonds) forms of this molecule, respectively. The D(Si←N) energy for structure III was estimated at 21.8 kcal mol⁻¹. Dedicated to Academician N. S. Zefirov on the occasion of his 70th birthday. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 9, pp. 1952–1961, September, 2005.     

Acetaldehyde photochemistry: Testing the additivity assumption and polarized basis set effects

Selected portions of the S₀ and T₁ potential energy surfaces of acetaldehyde surveyed in our earlier studies have been reexamined. The assumption of the additivity of basis-set polarization and of electron correlation effects used extensively in our earlier work on acetaldehyde has been tested through explicit polarized basis-set electron-correlation calculations. The “additivity assumption” introduces average absolute errors in energy differences of only 1.9 (MP3) to 3.4 (MP2) kcal mol^?1 in seven comparisons. The effects of using 6?31G^** SCF optimized geometries as opposed to single-point calculations on 3?21G SCF structures (6–31G^**//3–21G) as in our previous papers were examined. In six comparisons, the average absolute error in relative SCF energies introduced by the use of the 3–21G geometries rather than the fully consistent 6–31G^– ones was only 0.3 kcal mole^?1. After a uniform scaling procedure, comparisons of the 6–31G^** and 3–21G calculated vibrational frequencies with experiment for CH₃CHO (S₀), CH₄, and CO (20 comparisons) yielded absolute differences of 41 cm^?1 (6–31G^**) and 57 cm^?1 (3–21G). All these more elaborate calculations support for the specific case of acetaldehyde and various minima and transition states of relevance to its photochemistry, the commonly used and practically important approximations (e.g., additivity) made in our earlier studies.     

Molecular structures of acetylene derivatives of tin

The geometry and force fields of the bis(trimethylstannyl)acetylene molecule (a conformer withD _3d symmetry corresponding to a minimum of the total energy of the molecule) were calculated by the RHF and MP2(fc) methods. The effective core potential in SBK form with the optimized 31G^* valence basis set was employed in the case of Sn atoms. The 6–31G^** and 6–311G^** basis sets were used for carbon and hydrogen atoms. Vibrational spectra of the light and perdeuterated isotopomers of bis(trimethylstannyl)acetylene were interpreted using the procedure of scaling the quantum-chemical force fields. For Part 5, see Ref. 1. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 4, pp. 616–626, April, 2000.     

Geometrical consequences of resonance-assisted intramolecular hydrogen-bond formation from Ab initio MO calculations on 2-nitroresorcinol

Ab initio orbital calculations on phenol, nitrobenzene, and 2-nitroresorcinol have been performed with the GAUSSIAN 92 series of programs. Initial RHF/6-31G^* and RHF/6-31G^** optimizations were followed by second-order MØller-Plesset MP2(FC)/6-31G^* optimizations. The general geometrical features of these molecules, and, in particular, the characteristic changes as going from phenol to 2-nitroresorcinol and from nitrobenzene to 2-nitroresorcinol are in good agreement with recent gas-phase electron diffraction studies and with the notion of resonance-assisted intramolecular hydrogen-bond formation in 2-nitroresorcinol.     

Mechanisms of ring contraction,C—H insertion and 1,2-hydrogen migration of cyclobutylidene

Isomerizations of cyclobutylidene 1 to methylenecyclopropane 2 , cyclobutene 3 and bicyclobutane 4 have been studied using ab initio method. Equilibrium and transition structures are fully optimized with 3–21G basis set. The reaction barriers are 78, 75 and 110 kJ/mol at 6–31 G^**, respectively, 1→2 occurs via the outward disrotation of two end C-C bonds, 1→3 via the attack of an exo hydrogen to the carbene p AO before the transition state, and 1→4 is unable to compete with 1→2 and 1→3 for its higher barrier.     

Structural peculiarities and the possibility of the existence of small water cluster anions (H2O) n − withn≤4

Structures of (H₂O) _n ⁻ anions withn≤4 were optimized at the UHF/4-31++G^** level and their stability was estimated at the MP2/4-31++G^** level. The trimer anion has a chain-like structure while the tetramer anion can exist either in a chain-like or a cyclic configuration. In the dimer anion and in the chain-like anions, the excess electron density is localized on the terminal water molecule, an acceptor of the H-bond proton. In the cyclic anion, it is uniformly distributed over the free hydrogen atoms. All considered anions have energy values higher than those of the corresponding neutral oligomers. The detachment of an electron from the anions should proceed with the liberation of energy. However, trimer and larger anions are stable against dissociation into individual water molecules and a free electron. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 41–46, January, 1997.     

Molecular Structures and Thermodynamic Stabilities of Cycloalkadienes and Their Methoxy Derivatives: An Ab Initio and DFT Study

The geometry-optimized molecular structures and total energies of 4- to 6-membered cycloalkadienes, and of a number of their monoand dimethoxy derivatives, have been calculated by ab initio (HF/6-31G^*, MP2/6-31G^*//HF/6-31G^*) and DFT (B3LYP/6-31G^*) methods. By comparison with available experimental data, the reliability of these computational methods for an estimation of the relative stabilities (enthalpies) of the isomeric forms of the title compounds was tested. The experimental enthalpies of isomerization proved to agree best with the respective theoretical data based on the mean of the HF/6-31G^* and B3LYP/6-31G^* energies. The theoretical calculations were then extended to several isomeric methoxy-substituted cycloalkadienes, for which no previous thermodynamic data exist. Some structural features of the title dienes were also discussed.     

Ab initio study of atropisomers of derivatives of 1,8-di-pyridine 9H-fluorene, dibenzo[b,d]furan, 9H-carbazole and dibenzo[b,d]thiophene

Ab initio calculation at HF/6-31G^* and MP2/6-31G^* levels of theory for geometry optimization of some syn- and anti-1,8-di-pyridine 9H-fluorene, dibenzo[b,d]furan, 9H-carbazole and Dibenzo[b,d]thiophene are reported. The rotational barrier energy, heat of formation and Gibbs energy are determined for the conversion of the anti-(syn) to the syn (anti)-isomers at 25 °C in the gas phase. The models are chosen as isomers of 9H-fluorene, dibenzo[b,d]furan, 9H-carbazole and dibenzo[b,d]thiophene as scaffold with pyridine as module. Results obtained show that (at equilibrium) for most of atropisomers the syn- is favored over the anti-isomer. Moreover, the ground state structures show that the modules are not parallel to each other but are tilted away in order to increase separation and there by minimize electrostatic repulsion. In atropisomers of 9H-carbazole the isomers are showing an attraction due to the presence of nitrogen atom. Influence of the position of nitrogen atom on the magnitude of the rotational barriers in these atropisomers is also studied.