Halogen switching of azacarbenes C2NH ground states at ab initio and DFT levels

Relative stabilities and singlet–triplet energy differences are calculated for 24 C₂NX azacarbenes (where X is H, F, Cl, and Br). Three skeletal arrangements are employed including azacyclopropenylidene, [(imino)methylene]carbene, and cyanocarbene. Halogens appear to alternate the electronic ground states of C₂NH azacarbenes, from triplet to singlet states, at MP3/6‐311++G**, B1LYP/6‐311++G**, B3LYP/6‐311++G**, MP2/6‐311++G**, MP4(SDTQ)/6‐311++G**, QCISD(T)/6‐311++G**, CCSD(T)/6‐311++G**, CCSD(T)/cc‐pVTZ, G1, and G2 levels of theory. The aromatic characters of singlet cyclic azacyclopropenylidenes are measured using GIAO–NICS calculations. Linear correlations are found between the B3LYP/6‐311++G** calculated LUMO–HOMO energy gaps (ΔE_{HOMO ‐ LUMO}) of the singlet carbenes versus their corresponding singlet–triplet energy separations (ΔE). Electrophilic characters are found for all singlet azacarbenes in their addition reactions to alkenes with the highest electrophilicity being exhibited for X = F. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 19:377–388, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/hc.20442     

Theoretical study of dihydrogen bonded clusters of water with tetrahydroborate

Ab initio calculations were used to analyze interactions of BH₄ ^? with 1?C4 molecules of H₂O at the MP2/6-311++G(d,p) and B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) computational levels. The negative cooperativity for dihydrogen bond clusters containing H₂O···H₂O hydrogen bonds is more remarkable. The negative cooperativity is increased with increasing the size and also the number of hydrogen bonds in the cluster. The B?CH stretching frequencies show blue shifts with respect to cluster formation. Also greater blue shift of stretching frequencies where predicted for B?CH bonds which did not contribute in dihydrogen bonding with water molecules. The structures obtained have been analyzed with the Atoms in Molecules (AIM) methodology.     

Ab initio and DFT energetics of silylenic X–CNSi (X=H, F, Cl, and Br)

Singlet–triplet energy splitting for 24 silylenic reactive intermediates, X–CNSi (where X=H, F, Cl and Br), are compared and contrasted at 11 levels of theory: B1LYP/6-31++G**, B3LYP/6-31++G**, B1LYP/6-311++G**, B3LYP/6-311++G**, MP3/6-31G*, MP3/6-311++G**, MP2/6-31+G**, MP2/6-311++G**, MP4 (SDTQ)/6-311++G**, QCISD(T)/6-311++G** and CCSD(T)/6-311++G**. Each X-substituted silylenic species may either be singlet (s) or triplet (t), with one of the following three structures: 3-X-2-aza-1-silacyclopropenylidene (1_s-X, 1_t-X); [(X-imino)methylene]silylene (2_s-X, 2_t-X); and X-cyanosilylene (3_s-X, 3_t-X). For all X–CNSi species studied, orders of singlet–triplet energy separations (ΔE_s-t,X), appear as a function of electro-negativity (F>Cl>Br>H). For the six H–CNSi isomers (X=H), stability order is: 3_s-H>1_s-H>2_t-H>3_t-H>2_s-H>1_t-H. Likewise, stability order for the six isomers with X=F, is: 3_s-F>3_t-F>1_s-F>1_t-F>2_s-F>2_t-F. For X=Cl, the order of stability is: 3_s-Cl>1_s-Cl>3_t-Cl>2_t-Cl>1_t-Cl>2_t-Cl. Finally, the order of stability for six isomers of Br–CNSi is: 3_s-Br>3_t-Br>1_s-Br>2_s-Br>2_t-Br>1_t-Br. The lowest energy minimum, among all 24 species scrutinized, appears to be the singlet acyclic 3_s-X. Triplet silylene 2_t-H is suggested to be more stable than its corresponding 2_s-H at MP3, MP2 and DFT levels of theory. Comparisons between relative stabilities; multiplicities and geometrical parameters of 1–3 are discussed.     

Theoretical study of light-metal tetrahydroborates

Ab initio calculations of the structural, energetic, vibrational, and magnetic characteristics of the lowest-lying structures for isolated molecules and ions of light-metal tetrahydroborates (Li, Na, Be, Mg, and Al) have been performed by the perturbation theory (MP2), quadratic configuration interaction (QCISD(T)), coupled cluster (CCSD(T)), and density functional theory (B3LYP) methods using the 6-31G*, 6-31G**, 6-311+G**, and 6-311++G** basis sets. The trends in the behavior of the structural parameters, the energies of different decomposition pathways, barriers to internal rotation of BH₄ groups, normal mode frequencies, magnetic shielding constants, and spin density distribution (in radicals) have been analyzed in various related series of these compounds. The results obtained by ab initio methods and at the DFT level are compared. The economical approximation B3LYP/6-311++G**//B3LYP/6-311+G** adequately reproduces the results obtained at the higher level of theory CCSD(T)/6-311++G*s*//MP2/6-31G* even though it requires considerably shorter CPU times and smaller amounts of memory.     

Theoretical study of hydrogen bonded clusters of water and cyanic acid: Hydrogen bonding in terms of the molecular structure

Ab initio and density functional calculations were used to analyze the interaction between a molecule of cyanic acid (HOCN) and up to 4 molecules of water at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) and MP2/6-311++G(d,p) computational levels. The cooperative effect (CE) is increased with the increasing size of the studied clusters. Red shifts of the H–O stretching frequency for complexes involving HOCN as an H-donor were predicted. The strength of the hydrogen bonds in terms of molecular structures could be deduced from a comparison of HOCN–H₂O with HCNO–H₂O, HONC–H₂O and HNCO–H₂O HB clusters. The atom in molecules (AIM) method was used to analyze the cooperative effects on topological parameters.     

Effects of fused benzene rings on tautomerizations and inversions of benzo, azabenzo, and oxabenzocycloheptatrienes at theoretical levels

Biologically important bicyclic species, including 6H-, 6H-6-aza-, and 6-oxabenzocycloheptatrienes (in which the benzene moiety is fused meta with respect to the tetrahedral constituents: –CH₂–, –NH–, and –O–, respectively), show strong shifts of tautomerizations in favor of the corresponding tricyclic benzonorcaradienes (with ΔH values of −11.49, −14.55, and −19.20 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively), at B3LYP/6-311++G**//B3LYP/6-31G*, and MP2/6-311++G**//MP2/6-31G* levels, and at 298 K. In contrast, such shifts are strongly disfavored by the isomeric bicyclic species in which the benzene moieties are fused ortho or para with respect to –CH₂–, –NH–, and –O–, respectively. Hence for species with ortho benzene rings including 5H-, 5H-5-aza- and 5-oxabenzocycloheptatrienes, tautomerization ΔH values are 30.76, 31.89, and 25.27 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively, while for species with para fused benzene moieties including 7H-, 7H-7-aza-, and 7-oxabenzocycloheptatrienes, tautomerization ΔH values are 24.12, 26.00, and 19.55 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively. NICS calculations are successfully used to rationalize these results. The calculated energy barriers for inversion of the seven-membered rings of bicyclic species predict a dynamic nature for all the structures except for the virtually planar 6H-6-aza- and 6-oxabenzocycloheptatrienes. Finally, our theoretical data are compared to the experimental results where available. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

FC(O)O自由基与NO2反应的量子化学研究

用量子化学DFT, MP2, G3和G3MP2方法对FC(O)O自由基与NO₂的反应机理进行了理论研究. 优化了反应势能面上各驻点的几何结构, 通过内禀反应坐标(IRC)计算和振动分析, 确认了反应中的过渡态, 并用过渡态理论(TST)计算了相关反应的速率常数.     

Electronegativity and resonance parameters from the geometry of monosubstituted benzene rings

Reference values of the structural substituent parameters, S _E and S _R, measuring the electronegativity and resonance effects, respectively, of functional groups (Campanelli et al. J Phys Chem A 107:6429–6440, 2003) have been determined from the benzene ring geometries of 100 Ph–X species, including different conformations of the same molecule. Geometries have been obtained by quantum chemical calculations at the HF/6-31G*, HF/6-311++G**, and B3LYP/6-311++G** levels of theory. The substituent parameters from HF/6-311++G** calculations are in close agreement with those determined at the HF/6-31G* level. Using the B3LYP density functional yields S _E and S _R values which—in general—correlate well with the corresponding HF values. Exceptions occur with some charged groups, and, in the case of S _E, with a few dipolar groups having very high or low electronegativities. S _R values from B3LYP calculations are about 22% smaller than the corresponding HF values. The variations of the benzene ring geometry caused by electronegativity, resonance, and steric effects are illustrated in some detail.     

Theoretical study on the gas phase reaction mechanism of acetylene with nitrous oxide

The reaction mechanism of C₂H₂ and N₂O on the singlet potential energy surface is investigated in this study, at the B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd), MP2/6-311++G(d,p), and CCSD(T) levels of theory. We have obtained three kinds of products in both methods, B3LYP and MP2, which have enough thermodynamic stability. The results reveal that the product P1, CH₂CO + N₂, is spontaneous and exothermic with ?86.176 and ?83.149 kcal/mol in Gibbs free energy and enthalpy of reaction at the MP2 level, respectively. Hence, the product P1 is thermodynamically the most favored adduct of the C₂H₂ + N₂O gas phase reaction at atmospheric pressure and 298.15 K temperature.     

Quantum-mechanical calculations of the structure and vibrational spectra of CH<Subscript>3−<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis></Subscript>Cl<Subscript>n</Subscript>SiF<Subscript>3</Subscript> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> = 0–3) substituted methylsilanes

Quantum-mechanical calculations of the optimized structures, barriers to internal rotation about the Si-C bond, harmonic force fields, and vibrational frequencies of CCH₃SiF₃, CH₂ClSiF₃, CHCl₂SiF₃, and CCl₃SiF₃ were performed using the Hartree-Fock approximation and density functional theory at the MP2/6-31G*, B3LYP/6-31G*, B3LYP/6-311++G**, B3LYP/aug-cc-pVDZ, and B3LYP/aug-cc-pVTZ levels. A new interpretation of the infrared absorption and Raman spectra of the compounds was suggested on the basis of the theoretical results     

N2O…HOCl复合物结构和性质的理论研究

分别在DFT-B3LYP和MP2/6-311++G**水平上求得HOCl + N2O复合物势能面上的六种(S1, S2, S3, S4, S5和S6)和四种(S1, S2, S4和S5)构型. 频率分析表明,其中的S1和S3为过渡态,其它为稳定构型. 在复合物S3, S5 和S6中,HOCl 单体的σ*(5O-6H)作为质子供体,与N2O单体中作为质子受体的3O原子相互作用,形成氢键结构,而在氢键复合物S2中, 质子受体为N2O单体中的端1N原子;复合物S1中,HOCl分子的σ*(5O-4Cl)作为质子供体与N2O分子中的端1N原子(质子受体)相互作用,形成卤键结构,而复合物S4中的卤键结构的质子受体为N2O分子中的端3O原子. 经B3LYP/6-311++G**水平上的计算,考虑了基组重叠误差(BSSE)校正的单体间相互作用能在-1.56 ~ -8.73 kJ·mol-1之间. 采用自然键轨道理论(NBO)对两种单体间相互作用的本质进行了考查,并通过分子中原子理论(AIM)分析了复合物中氢键和卤键键鞍点处的电子密度拓扑性质.     

Isomerization study of C5H5NO molecules

The complex potential energy surface (PES) for the isomerization of C₅H₅NO species, including 18 isomers and 23 interconversion transition states, is probed theoretically at the B3LYP/6‐311++G(d,p) and MP2//B3LYP/6‐311++G(d,p) levels of theory. The geometries and relative energies for various stationary points were determined. The zero‐point vibrational energy (ZPVE) corrections have been made to calculate the reliable energy. We predicted a six‐membered ring structure as a global minima isomer I, which is 118.49 and 131.48 kcal · mol^?1 more stable than the least stable, four‐ and three‐membered ring isomer VIII at B3LYP and MP2//B3LYP levels of theory, respectively. The isomers and interconversion transition states have verified by frequency calculation. The intrinsic reaction coordinates (IRC) calculations have been performed to confirm that each transition state is linked by the desired reactants and products. The isomer stability has been studied using relative energies, chemical hardness, and chemical potential. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007     

Influence of diffuse and polarization functions on the second-order Møller–Plesset optimized dihedral angle of biphenyl

 Using 6-31G and 6-311G basis sets to which diffuse and polarization functions were added in a stepwise fashion (a total of 16 basis sets), Hartree–Fock (HF), MP2 and B3LYP geometry optimizations were performed on biphenyl. With the MP2 method, diffuse functions raise the dihedral angle φ, for example, from 46.3° for 6-31G to 54.1° for 6-311++G, while polarization functions lower it, for example, from 54.1° for 6-311++G to 42.1° for 6-311++G(2d,2p). For a single set of polarization functions, φ(MP2) lies close to or above φ(HF) (44–47°), but for a double set it is below φ(HF) and is close to B3LYP values (38–42°) which show little basis set dependence. The most reliable value for φ, 42.1° [MP2/6-311++G(2d,2p)], is expected to increase slightly by adding more diffuse functions. The corresponding best calculated energy barrier at 0° (coplanar conformation) is 2.83 kcal/mol, much higher than the experimental estimate (1.4 ± 0.5 kcal/mol). The barrier at 90° is 1.82 kcal/mol, in line with the experimental estimate (1.6 ± 0.5 kcal/mol) and with previous theoretical results. Received: 9 September 2002 / Accepted: 15 November 2002 / Published online: 1 April 2003 Correspondence to: Friedrich Grein e-mail: fritz@unb.ca Acknowledgement. The author would like to thank NSERC (Canada) for financial support.     

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.     

A theoretical study on the mechanism and thermodynamics of ozone-water gas phase reaction

Ozone water reaction including a complex was studied at the MP2/6-311++G(d,p) and CCSD/6-311++G(2df,2p)//MP2/6-311++G(d,p) levels of theory. The interaction between water oxygen and central oxygen of ozone produces stable H₂O-O₃ complex with no barrier. With decomposition of this complex through H-abstraction by O₃ and O-abstraction by H₂O, three possible product channels were found. Intrinsic reaction coordinate, topological analyses of atom in molecule, and vibrational frequency calculation have been used to confirm the preferred mechanism. Thermodynamic data at T = 298.15 K and atmospheric pressure have been calculated. The results show that the production of hydrogen peroxide is the main reaction channel with ΔG = ?21.112 kJ mol^-1.     

DFT studies of the phosphinidene derivative HPNaF and its insertion reaction with R–H(R=F,OH, NH<Subscript>2</Subscript>, CH<Subscript>3</Subscript>)

The formations of the phosphinidene derivative HPNaF and its insertion reactions with R–H (R=F, OH, NH₂, CH₃) have been systematically investigated employing the density functional theory (DFT), such as the B3LYP and MPW1PW91 methods. A comparison with the results of MP2 calculations shows that MPW1PW91 underestimates the barrier heights for the four reactions considered. Similarly, the same is also true for the B3LYP method depending on the selected reactions, but by much less than MPW1PW91, where the barrier heights of the four reactions are 25.2, 85.7, 119.0, and 142.4 kJ/mol at the B3LYP/6-311+G* level of theory, respectively. All the mechanisms of the four reactions are identical to each other, i.e., an intermediate has been located during the insertion reaction. Then, the intermediate could dissociate to substituted phosphinidane(H₂RP) and NaF with a barrier corresponding to their respective dissociation energies. Correspondingly, the reaction energies for the four reactions are −92.2, −68.1, −57.2, and −44.3 kJ/mol at the B3LYP/6-311+G* level of theory, respectively, where both the B3LYP and MPW1PW91 methods underestimate the reaction energies compared with the MP2 results. The linear correlations between the calculated barrier heights and the reaction energies have also been observed. As a result, the relative reactivity among the four insertion reactions should be as follows: H–F > H–OH > H–NH₂ > H–CH₃.     

HNO(H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O)<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis></Subscript> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> = 1–4) clusters: a theoretical study

The geometrical structure, binding energy, and vibrational spectra of small clusters of nitrosyl hydride (HNO) and water molecules, HNO(H₂O) _n , where (n = 1–4), have been investigated at the MP2 level of theory, using 6-311++G(2d,2p) basis set. We located three dimers, six trimers, nine tetramers, and three pentamers at the MP2/6-311++G(2d,2p) computational level. Particular attention is given to existence and magnitude of NH···O blue-shifting hydrogen bonds. Blue shifts of the NH stretching frequency upon complex formation in the ranges between 28 and 151 cm⁻¹ is predicted. Cooperative effect in terms of stabilization energy along with the many-body interaction energies analysis was performed for the studied clusters. The Atoms in Molecules (AIM) theory was also applied to explain the nature of the complexes.     

Theoretical study on reaction mechanism of sulfuric acid and ammonia and hydration of (NH4)2SO4

In order to understand the mechanism of nucleation of (NH₄)₂SO₄ aerosol, the reaction between sulfuric acid and ammonia in the absence of water molecule is performed at M06/6-311++G(d,p) level. The results show that the (NH₄)₂SO₄ and NH₄HSO₄ units may exist instantaneously in gas phase without water molecule, which is a theoretical prediction that needs detection by further experiment. To further study the growth of the primary nuclei, the geometries, energies, and harmonic frequencies of (NH₄)₂SO₄ · (H₂O) _n (n = 0–9) are calculated both at M06/6-311++G(d,p) and B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) levels. The tendency of the theoretical vibration frequencies is in accordance with the experimental results. The influence of the water molecule on the properties of (NH₄)₂SO₄ is also analyzed. Our results indicate that M06 is more accurate than B3LYP for this kind of system. Moreover, the first principle molecular dynamics method is used to simulate the structural transformation for two representative isomers whose energies are close, to understand the relationship between solvent-shared ion pairs and contact ion pairs.     

Self-assembly of DMF with chloromethane and their structures: a theoretical study

The stability of hydrogen-bonded complexes, DMF–H _n CCl_4−n (n = 1–3), has been investigated by several theoretical methods including the MP2 level of ab initio theory at various basis sets from 6-31+G* to 6-311++G**. Two stable configurations (respectively a and b) were obtained for each complex with no imaginary frequencies. The minimum energy structure of these complexes has also been analyzed by means of the atoms in molecule theory at MP2/6-311++G** level. It is found that C–H···O hydrogen bonding exists in these systems and that the intensity of HB interaction gradually increases with successive chlorination. Computed results indicate that these complexes automatically assemble into different stable configurations. For the complexes under consideration, their stabilities can be mainly ascribed to the intermolecular HB interaction. The present work is helpful to clearly understand the interaction mechanism of these complexes in theory.     

The thermodynamic properties of delta-lactones

The enthalpies of formation of δ-hexanolactone and δ-nonanolactone were determined by combustion calorimetry. Conformational analysis and quantum-chemical calculations of equilibrium structures, fundamental vibrations, moments of inertia, and total energies were performed for δ-pentanolactone (I), δ-hexanolactone (II), and δ-nonanolactone (III) by the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p), B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p), and G3MP2 methods. The experimental IR spectra and calculated vibrational frequencies were used to suggest the assignment of vibrational frequencies of stable conformations. The thermodynamic properties of I–III in the ideal gas state were determined over the temperature range 0–1500 K. A thermodynamic analysis of mutual isomerization in the gas and liquid phases over the temperature range 298.15–900 K and liquid-phase polymerization of γ- and δ-pentanolactones and 4-pentenoic acid over the temperature range 298.15–500 K was performed.