Is the CH2OH + O2 → CH2 = O + HO2 Reaction Barrierless? An Ab Initio Study on the Reaction Mechanism

The reaction mechanism of the CH₂OH + O₂ gas-phase reaction was investigated by means of ab initio calculations. MP2 and QCISD methodologies were used to obtain the stationary points on the potential energy surface. Single-point high-level QCISD(T) calculations were performed over the QCISD results in order to refine the energy of the transition states and the minima found. A new transition state concerning the initial O₂ addition to the CH₂OH radical was found, not reported so far for this reaction. Extra CCSD optimisation and single-point high-level CCSD(T) calculations upon the QCISD results confirm this TS. Additional RASSCF calculations show that its wave function has no significant multireferential character.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at and is accessible for authorized users.     

Inversion Vibrational Energy Levels of PH3+(X2A2") Calculated by a New Two-dimension Variational Method

A new 2-D variational method is proposed to calculate the vibrational energy levels of the symmetric P-H stretching vibration (v1) and the symmetric umbrella vibration (inversion vibration) (v2) of PH₃⁺(X²A₂") that has the tunneling effect. Because the symmetric internal Cartesian coordinates were employed in the calculations, the kinetic energy operator is very simple and the inversion vibrational mode is well characterized. In comparison with the often used 1-D model to calculate the inversion vibrational energy levels, this 2-D method does not require an assumption of reduced mass, and the interactions between the v1 and v2 vibrational modes are taken into consideration. The calculated vibrational energy levels of PH₃⁺ are the first reported 2-D calculation, and the average deviation to the experimental data is less than 3 cm^-1 for the first seven inversion vibrational energy levels. This method has also been applied to calculate the vibrational energy levels of NH₃. The application to NH₃ is less successful, which shows some limitations of the method compared with a full dimension computation.     

An investigation of the relative stabilities of the isomers of CF2N2: Comparison of ab initio and MNDO calculations

Ab initio SCF calculations at the HF/3-21G level and semi-empirical MNDO calculations have been used to locate the stationary points on the CF₂N₂ energy surface. Perfluorodiazomethane is predicted to be most stable isomer, but perfluorodiazirine is predicted to lie only ca 41 kJ higher in energy at the SCF level. There are significant differences between the ab initio and MNDO results for the ordering of some of the isomers. Frequency calculations give results in good agreement with the limited experimental data on these molecules.     

Relative stability of the 3A2, 1A2, and 1A1 states of phenylnitrene: A difference-dedicated configuration interaction calculation

The relative stability of the ³A₂, ¹A₂, and ¹A₁ states of phenylnitrene is evaluated by means of ab initio calculations followed by difference-dedicated configuration interaction (DDCI). This approach is based on effective Hamiltonian theory at a low order of perturbation to select rationally the determinants which contribute to the energy difference. The CI space built on this criterion is then treated variationally. The method allows a considerable reduction of the CI space compared with a complete CAS*SDCI calculation (where CAS stands for complete active space). Depending on the concerned energy difference, different model spaces may be chosen, as illustrated in the ³A₂ → ¹A₂ and the ³A₂ → ¹A₁ transitions in phenylnitrene. Since the CI space may reach considerable dimensions, a direct CI algorithm for selected CI spaces, the SCIEL algorithm, has been used to perform the calculations. The results are in excellent agreement with previous calculations and with available experimental data. © 1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Fission of metal clusters: A comparison of jellium model calculations and shell correction method calculations

We investigate the fission process Ag²⁺₂₃ → Ag⁺₁₂ + Ag⁺₁₁ in order to compare total energies that calculated by the shell correction method and jellium models. A cavity potential and a Woods-Saxon-type potential are used as the shell potential for the shell correction method, with which the single-particle energy levels are calculated. Shell corrections are obtained by using the Balian-Bloch formula and by smoothing the discrete energy levels in the shell potentials. The jellium model calculations are performed in the framework of the local spin density functional approximation. The conventional jellium model and stabilized jellium model are used. Although the qualitative agreement between the shell correction method calculations and the stabilized jellium calculations is very good, an improvement of the liquid drop energy will be necessary for the satisfactory quantitative agreement. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Quantum dynamics of dissociative adsorption of H2 on Ni(100) using the dynamical Lie algebraic method

A dynamical Lie algebraic method has been applied to treating the quantum dynamics of dissociative adsorption of H₂ on a static flat metal surface. An LEPS potential energy surface has been used to describe the interaction of H₂ with Ni(100) surface. The dependence of the initial state-selected dissociation probability was obtained analytically on the initial kinetic energy and time. A comparison with other theoretical calculations and experiments is made. The results show that the method can be effectively used to describe the dynamics of reactive gas-sdace scattering. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 19694033) and partially by the State Key Laboratory of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry of Jilin University (Grant No. 9801).     

Quantum chemical model of dehydration of 2-butanol catalyzed by zeolite X

The CNDO/2 method was used for quantum chemical calculations of the 2-butanol interaction with zeolite X modelled by the cluster Si₃AlO₁₂H₉. Two-site adsorption on a pair consisting of an acidic and a basic catalytic site promotes dehydration of the alcohol. The activation energy of trans-2-butene formation was estimated to be much higher than those of cis-2-butene and 1-butene formation, in agreement with experimental findings.     

Possible cyclic triatomic molecules including N2O and O3

Proposed metastable cyclic conformations of N₂O⁺ and O₃, have been examined by INDO and ab initio calculations. INDO is found to exaggerate the stability of possible cyclic species. In ab initio calculations a multi-dimensional energy surface must be explored. With a [5, 3] basis SCF calculations yield a trivariate local minimum for cyclic O₃. However, for N₂O, N₂O⁺ and O²⁺₃, starting from cyclic “bonded” structures, paths involving asymmetric deformations run downhill in energy to a diatomic molecule and a separated atom. A paradox concerning the removal of an electron from an antibonding orbital in a cyclic molecule is resolved.     

Valence type vacant orbitals for configuration interaction calculations

A method is proposed to determine the valence type vacant orbitals, which are suitable for CI calculations and for the initial guess orbitals in MC SCF calculations. The method was applied to calculate the ionization energies of series of molecules and to draw the potential energy curves of various states of N₂ and N⁺₂.     

Molecular orbital studies on small molecules using H2+-type elliptical basis orbitals. Application to H2+, H2, He2++ and H3+

H₂⁺-type elliptical orbitals are defined in Section 1. These orbitals, which in elliptical coordinates involve a factor (1 + ξ)^σ, are employed in variational calculations on the ground states of H₂⁺ and H₂ (Sections 2 and 3). Various choices of σ are explored for H₂⁺, while two choices are used for H₂ : the “boundary condition” (Equation 6) and the “cusp condition” (Equation 9) values. Variational energies are calculated and compared to the results of similar calculations. Section 3 concludes by employing the H₂⁺-type orbitals in LCETO-MO-SCF calculations on the ground states of H₂ and He₂⁺⁺. For both molecules a four-function basis set with two (nonlinear) variational parameters yields more than 99% of the Hartree-Fock limit. Section 4 deals with LCETO-MO-SCF calculations on triangular H₃⁺. Three four-function basis sets are used, and the best energy is -1.2306 a.u., which is in reasonable agreement with the Hartree-Fock limit, -1.2999 a.u. Our best basis set is a four-term two-center expansion of the wave function with only one nonlinear variational parameter. Section 5 concludes the paper with a summary of the methods used to evaluate the integrals which arise in SCF calculations in the H₂⁺-type elliptical orbital basis.     

Ab initio calculations of relativistic and electron correlation effects in polyatomics using the universal Gaussian basis set: XeF2

Ab initio accurate all-electron relativistic molecular orbital Dirac–Fock self-consistent field calculations are reported for the linear symmetric XeF₂ molecule at various internuclear distances with our recently developed relativistic universal Gaussian basis set. The nonrelativistic limit Hartree–Fock calculations were also performed for XeF₂ at various internuclear distances. The relativistic correction to the electronic energy of XeF₂ was calculated as ～ ?215 hartrees (?5850 eV) by using the Dirac–Fock method. The dominant magnetic part of the Breit interaction correction to the nonrelativistic interelectron Coulomb repulsion was included in our calculations by both the Dirac–Fock–Breit self-consistent field and perturbation methods. The calculated Breit correction is ～6.5 hartrees (177 eV) for XeF₂. The relativistic Dirac–Fock as well as the nonrelativistic HF wave functions predict XeF₂ to be unbound, due to neglect of electron correlation effects. These effects were incorporated for XeF₂ by using various ab initio post Hartree–Fock methods. The calculated dissociation energy obtained using the MP 2(full) method with our extensive basis set of 313 primitive Gaussians that included d and f polarization functions on Xe and F is 2.77 eV, whereas the experimental dissociation energy is 2.78 eV. The calculated correlation energy is ～ ?2 hartrees (?54 eV) at the predicted internuclear distance of 1.986 Å, which is in excellent agreement with the experimental Xe—F distance of 1.979 Å in XeF₂. In summary, electron correlation effects must be included in accurate ab initio calculations since it has been shown here that their inclusion is crucial for obtaining theoretical dissociation energy (D_e) close to experimental value for XeF₂. Furthermore, relativistic effects have been shown to make an extremely significant contribution to the total energy and orbital binding energies of XeF₂. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Vibrational matrix elements of the quadrupole moment functions of H2, N2 and CO

The quadrupole moment functions (molecular quadrupole moment versus internuclear distance) have been determined by quantum mechanical calculations for H₂ (by Kolos and Wolniewicz), N₂ (by Wahl and Nesbet), and CO (by Nesbet). These functions are used with numerical vibrational wave functions to compute matrix elements which are useful for calculations of scattering cross sections, energy transfer rates and excitation probabilities, and infrared intensities of forbidden bands.     

Semiclassical calculation of energy transfer in polyatomic molecules. V. Differential cross sections for excitation of CO2 and N2O colliding with Li+ at E ≈ 4.72 eV

A semiclassical model has been used to calculate differential cross sections for vibrational excitation of CO₂ and N₂O at the center of mass collision energy E≈ 4.72 eV. Also the average rotational excitation as a function of the scattering angle is reported. Comparison is made with experimental data and previous more approximate theoretical calculations.     

An improved potential energy surface for the F+H2 reaction

A new ground state potential energy surface has been developed for the F+H₂ reaction. Using the UCCSD(T) method, ab initio calculations were performed for 786 geometries located mainly in the exit channel of the reaction. The new data was used to correct exit channel errors that have become apparent in the potential energy surface of Stark and Werner [J. Chem. Phys. 104 (1996) 6515]. While the entrance channel and saddlepoint properties of the Stark–Werner surface are unchanged on the new potential, the exit channel behavior is more satisfactory. The exothermicity on the new surface is much closer to the experimental value. The new surface also greatly diminishes the exit channel van der Waals well that was too pronounced on the Stark–Werner surface. Several preliminary dynamical scattering calculations were carried out using the new surface for total angular momentum equal to zero for F+H₂ and F+HD. It is found that gross features of the reaction dynamics are quite similar to those predicted by the Stark–Werner surface, in particular the reactive resonance for F+HD and F+H₂ survive. However, the most of the exit channel van der Waals resonances disappear on the new surface. It is predicted that the differential cross-sections at low collision energy for the F+H₂ reaction may be drastically modified from the predictions based on the Stark–Werner surface.     

Substitution reactions of H2GeFBeF with RH (R = F,OH, NH2): A theoretical study

A combined density functional and ab initio quantum chemical study of the substitution reactions of the germylenoid H₂GeFBeF with RH (R = F, OH, NH₂) compounds was carried out. The geometries of all the stationary points of the reactions were optimized using the DFT B3LYP method and then the QCISD method was used to calculate the single-point energies. The theoretical calculations indicated that along the potential energy surface, there were one transition state (TS) and one intermediate (IM) which connected the reactants and the products. The three substitution reactions of H₂GeFBeF with RH are compared with the addition reactions of H₂Ge with RH. And based on the calculated results we concluded that the substitution reactions of H₂GeFBeF + RH involve two steps. One is dissociation onto H₂Ge + BeF₂, and the other is the addition reaction of H₂Ge with RH.     

A combined theoretical and experimental approach to the unimolecular loss of molecular hydrogen from protonated formaldehyde: Determination of the average internal energy of metastable [CH2OH]+ ions

Ab initio quantum chemical calculations (MP2/4–31G**) were performed for the dihydrogen elimination reaction from protonated formaldehyde. The energy difference between reactants and products and the activation energies were found to be in good agreement with the corresponding experimental quantities. Theoretical rate vs. energy curves were computed for a series of isotopic variants of the reaction using the Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus (RRKM) method. The vibrational frequencies used in these calculations were taken from the 4–31G** geometry-optimized transition state and reactant structures. Quantum mechanical tunnelling was introduced to explain the existence of metastable CH₂OH ions, and a negative kinetic shift of about 0.1 eV was found. The intramolecular kinetic isotope effect for loss of HH/HD and DH/DD was calculated and compared with the experimental data. The result is consistent with the assumption that the average internal energy of metastable [CH₂OH]⁺ ions is very close to the critical energy for H₂ loss.     

Nature and importance of three-body interactions in the (H2O)2HCl trimer

 The nature and importance of nonadditive three-body interactions in the (H₂O)₂HCl cluster have been studied by the supermolecule coupled-cluster method and by symmetry-adapted perturbation theory (SAPT). The convergence of the SAPT expansion was tested by comparison with the results obtained from the supermolecule coupled-cluster calculations including single, double, and noniterative triple excitations [CCSD(T)]. It is shown that the SAPT results reproduce the converged CCSD(T) results within 3% at worst. The SAPT method has been used to analyze the three-body interactions for various geometries of the (H₂O)₂HCl cluster. It is shown that the induction nonadditivity is dominant, but it is partly quenched by the first-order Heitler–London-type exchange and higher-order exchange–induction/deformation terms. This implies that the classical induction term alone is not a reliable approximation to the nonadditive energy and that it will be difficult to approximate the three-body potential for (H₂O)₂HCl by a simple analytical expression. The three-body energy represents as much as 21–27% of the pair CCSD(T) intermolecular energy. Received: 15 September 1999 / Accepted: 3 February 2000 / Published online: 2 May 2000     

Ca-intercalated graphite as a hydrogen storage material: Stability against decomposition into CaH2 and graphite

We have used calculations based on density functional theory to investigate the energetics of hydrogen absorption in calcium-intercalated graphites. We focus particularly on the absorption energy and the stability of the hydrogenated material with respect to decomposition into graphite and calcium hydride, which is essential if this material is to be used for practical H₂ storage. The calculations are performed with two commonly used approximations for the exchange-correlation energies. Our calculations confirm earlier predictions that the absorption energy is approximately −0.2 to −0.4 eV, which is favourable for practical use of Ca-intercalated graphite as a hydrogen storage medium. However, we find that the hydrogenated material is strongly unstable against decomposition. Our results therefore explain recent experiments which show that H₂ does not remain stable in CaC₆ but instead forms a hydride plus graphite.     

Semi-classical calculations of rotational/vibrational transitions in He-H2

The applicability of the classical trajectory equations in three-dimensional calculations of rot/vib transitions in the He-H₂ system has been investigated. The vibrational relaxation time is calculated and the agreement with experimental data is excellent for temperatures above 250 K. The method has been used to determine the differential cross-sections for vib/rot excitation at 1.09 eV total energy and comparison is made with recent quantum mechanical effective potential calculations.     

Intermolecular potential energy surface for CS2 dimer

A new four‐dimensional intermolecular potential energy surface for CS₂ dimer is obtained by ab initio calculation of the interaction energies for a range of configurations and center‐of‐mass separation distances for the first time. The calculations were performed using the supermolecular approach at the Møller–Plesset second‐order perturbation (MP2) level of theory with the augmented correlation consistent basis sets (aug‐cc‐pVxZ, x = D, T) and corrected for the basis‐set superposition error using the full counterpoise correction method. A two‐point extrapolation method was used to extrapolate the calculated energy points to the complete basis set limit. The effect of using the higher levels of theory, quadratic configuration interaction containing single, double, and perturbative triple excitations QCISD(T) and coupled cluster singles, doubles and perturbative triples excitations CCSD(T), on the shape of potential energy surface was investigated. It is shown that the MP2 level of theory apparently performs extremely poorly for describing the intermolecular potential energy surface, overestimating the total energy by a factor of nearly 1.73 in comparison with the QCISD(T) and CCSD(T) values. The value of isotropic dipole–dipole dispersion coefficient (C₆) of CS₂ fluid was obtained from the extrapolated MP2 potential energy surface. The MP2 extrapolated energy points were fitted to well‐known analytical potential functions using two different methods to represent the potential energy surface analytically. The most stable configuration of the dimer was determined at R = 6.23 au, α = 90°, β = 90°, and γ = 90°, with a well depth of 3.980 kcal mol^?1 at the MP2 level of theory. Finally, the calculated second virial coefficients were compared with experimental values to test the quality of the presented potential energy surface. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2011.