Defined-sector explicit solvent in the continuum model approach for computational prediction of pK a

Accurate prediction of the acidity dissociation constant (K _a) is a challenge for the theory of proton-transfer reactions, making first-principles prediction of pK _a within 0.5?pK units of experimental values a benchmark of broad interest. In the present contribution, the defined-sector explicit solvent in continuum cluster model, which considers the structure-to-chemical affinity relationship of the carboxyl functional group, is presented. The model demonstrates predictable solvent networks based on established ‘preferred’ conformations found in a training set. Predictability within 1?kcal?mol^–1 accuracy is shown for a full set of carboxylic acid systems with varying functionality.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the anilinolysis of aryl 4‐nitrophenyl thionocarbonates in aqueous ethanol

The reactions of bis(4‐nitrophenyl), 3‐chlorophenyl 4‐nitrophenyl, and 3‐methoxyphenyl 4‐nitrophenyl thionocarbonates ( 1 , 2 , and 3 , respectively) with a series of anilines are subjected to a kinetic investigation in 44 wt.% ethanol–water, at 25.0 °C and an ionic strength of 0.2 M. Under aniline excess, pseudo‐first‐order rate coefficients (k_obs) are found. Plots of k_obs versus aniline concentration are linear, with the slopes (k_N) pH independent, k_N being the rate coefficient for the anilinolysis of the thionocarbonates. The Brønsted plot (log k_N vs. pK_a of anilinium ions) for thionocarbonate 1 is linear, with slope (β) 0.62, which is consistent with a concerted mechanism. The Brønsted plots for thionocarbonates 2 and 3 are curved, with slopes 0.1 at high pK_a for both reaction series and slopes 0.84 and 0.79 at low pK_a for the reactions of 2 and 3 , respectively. The latter plots are in accordance to stepwise mechanisms, through a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate (T^±) and its anionic analogue (T^?), the latter being formed by deprotonation of T^± by the basic form of the buffer (HPO). The Brønsted curves are explained by a change in the rate‐limiting step, from deprotonation of T^± at low pK_a, to its formation at high pK_a. The influence of the amine nature and the non‐leaving and electrophilic groups of the substrate on the kinetics and mechanism is also discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Experimental and computational determination of Brønsted coefficients for equilibrium transfer of the O,O‐dimethyl phosphorothioyl group between oxyanion nucleophiles

An experimental determination of the β^Eq value for equilibrium transfer of the O,O‐dimethyl phosphorothioyl group between oxyanion nucleophiles in water and methanol at 25 °C is presented. The respective β^Eq values in the two solvents are experimentally the same at ?1.45 ± 0.08 and ?1.39 ± 0.12. Based on the observation that the Brønsted correlation for the nucleophilic reaction of phenoxides in water with substrate 1d (dimethyl 4‐nitrophenyl phosphorothioate, pK_a^HOAr of 7.14) is linear over the entire range of phenoxides employed (5.53 ≤ pK_a^Nu ≤ 12.38), the reaction for phenoxide nucleophiles displacing phenoxide leaving groups is probably concerted. The obtained data allow one to calculate, for a symmetrical transition state involving 2,4,5‐trichlorophenoxide as a nucleophile and leaving group, an approximately 60% P–OAr cleavage and about 40% P–Nuc bond formation. A computational method is presented for the rapid prediction of the β^Eq values for such processes in water and methanol, and the results are compared with known values from the literature. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Observation of K+d correlations from pA collisions

Results of a first experiment on (K^+p) and (K^+d) correlations from proton-carbon (pC) and proton-deuteron (pd) interactions at beam energies above and much below the threshold for elementary kaon production in nucleon-nucleon reactions ( T _NN = 1580 MeV) are discussed. These data, obtained with the ANKE spectrometer at COSY-Jülich, provide first direct evidence for K⁺ production via the two-step mechanism and an indication for a cluster mechanism. It is shown that both processes contribute significantly in pC collisions at 1200 MeV, while they are strongly suppressed at 2300 MeV and also in pd-interactions at 1344 MeV. It is emphasized that the underlying kinematics can be exploited to distinguish between these reaction mechanisms. Received: 26 November 2002 / Accepted: 26 March 2003 / Published online: 20 May 2003     

Reactions of aryl chlorothionoformates with quinuclidines. A kinetic study

The reactions of quinuclidines with phenyl, 4‐chlorophenyl, 4‐cyanophenyl, and 4‐nitrophenyl chlorothionoformates ( 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 , respectively) are subjected to a kinetic study in aqueous solution, at 25.0°C, and an ionic strength of 0.2 M (KCl). The reactions are studied by following spectrophotometrically the release of the corresponding phenoxide anion/phenol generated in the parallel hydrolysis of the substrates. Under amine excess, pseudo‐first‐order rate coefficients (k_obs) are found. Plots of k_obs versus [amine] are linear, with slope k_N. The Brønsted‐type plots (log k_N vs. pK_a of aminium ions) are linear, with slopes β = 0.26, 0.22, 0.19, and 0.28 for the reactions with 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 , respectively. The magnitudes of the slopes indicate that these mechanisms are stepwise, with rate‐determining formation of a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate (T^±). A dual parametric equation with the pK_a of the nucleophiles and non‐leaving groups show β_N = 0.26 and β _nlg = ?0.16, also in accordance with the proposed mechanism. On the other hand, the reactivity of these thiocarbonyl substrates and their carbonyl derivatives was studied using their hardness index and compared with their experimental parameters, confirming the proposed mechanisms. By comparison of the title reactions with similar aminolyses, the following conclusions arise: (i) The mechanism of the reactions under investigation is stepwise with rate‐determining formation of T^±. (ii) The reactivity of the substrates toward quinuclidines follows the order 4 > 3 > 2 > 1 . (iii) Quinuclidines are more reactive than isobasic pyridines toward chlorothionoformates. (iv) Chlorothionoformates are less reactive than chloroformates towards quinuclidines in accordance with the HSAB principle. (v) The k_N values for phenyl chloroformate and 4 can be correlated with the pK_a of quinuclidines and also with the hardness values calculated by the HF/3‐21G level of theory. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Towards mechanisms of bimolecular nucleophilic reactions in solution—probing the variation of the activation parameters in the reactions of aromatic compounds

Variation of the activation parameters in the S_N2, acyl‐transfer, S_NAr, S_NV, and Ad_N reactions offers a uniquely useful probe for the mechanistic features of these reactions in solution. New approach uses the substituent effects on the aromatic ring to the variation of the activation parameters, ΔH^≠ and ΔS^≠, in the above reactions in the frameworks of the Hammett‐like equations in order to evaluate the resultant δΔH^≠ and δΔS^≠ reaction constants. Compensation relationships of δΔH^≠ versus δΔS^≠ allow one to estimate the contribution of changes of the internal enthalpy, δΔH^≠_int, to the enthalpy reaction constant, δΔH^≠, that is inherent to bimolecular nucleophilic reactions and gives a single linear dependence on the Hammett ρ reaction constants for these reactions. The deviations from dependence of δΔH^≠_int versus ρ serve as useful points of interpretation of changes of the transition state structure or reaction mechanism. The results obtained show that the substituent effects in the substrates, nucleophiles, and leaving groups on the mechanistic features in bimolecular nucleophilic reactions are governed by the magnitude of δΔH^≠_int. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the reactions of aryl chlorodithioformates with pyridines and secondary alicyclic amines

The reactions of pyridines and secondary alicyclic (SA) amines with phenyl and 4‐nitrophenyl chlorodithioformates (PClDTF and NPClDTF, respectively) are subjected to a kinetic study in aqueous ethanol (44 wt% ethanol) solution, at 25.0 °C, and an ionic strength of 0.2 M (KCl). The reactions are studied spectrophotometrically. Under amine excess, pseudo‐first‐order rate coefficients (k_obs) are found. Plots of k_obs versus [amine] are linear and pH independent, with slope k_N. The Brønsted‐type plots (log k_N vs. pK_a of aminium ions) are linear for the reactions of PClDTF with SA amines (slope β of 0.3) and pyridines (β = 0.26) and those of NPClDTF with pyridines (β = 0.30). For the reaction of NPClDTF with SA amines the Brønsted‐type plot is biphasic, with slopes β₁ = 0.2 (at high pKa) and β₂ = 1.1 (at low pKa). The pK_a value at the center of curvature (pK) is 7.7. The magnitude of the slopes indicates that the mechanisms of these reactions are stepwise, with the formation of a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate as the rate‐determining step, except for the reaction of NPClDTF with SA amines where there is a change in the rate‐determining step, from formation to breakdown of the tetrahedral intermediate, as the amine basicity decreases. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The pKa theoretical estimation of C―H,N―H,O―H and S―H acids in dimethylsulfoxide solution

A scheme for the pK_a estimation of organic acids in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) solution based on quantum chemical calculations is proposed. The procedure of pK_a calculation requires several steps. The first is the calculation of the gas phase acidity of the compound. The G3MP2B3, G4MP2 as well as CBS‐QB3 composite methods made it possible to estimate values of gas phase acidities of an extensive set of structures with a high confidence level (standard deviations equal to 1.15, 1.13 and 1.29 kcal mol^?1, respectively; the test set included 91 compounds). The second step is the computation of the solvation correction with the integral equation formalism version of polarizable continuum model (IEF‐PCM)–B3LYP/6‐311+G(d,p) approximation. Within the bounds of our approach, the medium properties were covered only by the PCM model, i.e. the proposed procedure neglects specific interactions between DMSO and the solute. It was determined that the approach to pK_a estimation mentioned above is the most balanced in terms of accuracy, resource intensity and computation time cost. In the third step, the error of the pK_a calculation was decreased by correlation allowances. Correlation allowances were determined for each acid class (62 С―Н, 55 N―Н, 24 O―Н and 5 S―Н acids) in the range of 50 units in terms of logarithmic scale using the test set including 146 compounds. Seven O―H acids showing the ability to form cyclic dimers were separated into a discrete group. The proposed methodology was applied to the estimation of pK_a for trans‐ and cis‐dimethyl‐4,5‐dihydro‐3H‐pyrazol‐3,5‐dicarboxylates as well as for 5‐fluorouracil subject to competitive dissociation, the latter by N1―H or N3―H bonds. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nucleophilicity of metal carbonyl anions in vinylic substitution reactions

Second order rate constants are reported for the reactions of metal carbonyl anions ([M(CO)_nL]^?) with several vinyl halides: PhCCl?C(CN)₂, Z‐ and E‐Ph(CN)C?CHHal (Hal = Cl, Br) which follow the addition–elimination (Ad_NE) substitution mechanism. The obtained data show that the nucleophilic reactivity of [M(CO)_nL]^? anions towards vinyl halides increases in the same order as in aliphatic S_N2 reactions, but much more steeply, by 14 orders of magnitude in the row log{ }: [CpFe(CO)₂]^? (～14), [Re(CO)₅]^? (7.8), [Mn(CO)₅]^? 2.1, [CpW(CO)₃]^? (0.7) > [CpMo(CO)₃]^? (0). A good correlation exists between nucleophilicities of [M(CO)_nL]^? anions towards vinyl (sp²‐carbon) and alkyl halides (sp³‐carbon) with slope 2.7. The reactivity of [M(CO)_nL]^? in a halogen–metal exchange process (with Z‐PhC(CN)?CHI) follows a similar ‘large’ scale as in the Ad_NE process. The nucleophilicity of [M(CO)_nL]^? anions correlates better with their one‐electron oxidation potentials (E_ox) than with their basicity (pK_a of [M(CO)_nL]H). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nucleophilic substitution reactions promoted by oligoethylene glycols: a mechanistic study of ion‐pair SN2 processes facilitated by Lewis base

We present a mechanistic study for nucleophilic substitution (S_N2) reactions facilitated by multifunctional n‐oligoethylene glycols (n‐oligoEGs) using alkali metal salts MX (M⁺ = Cs⁺, K⁺, X^– = F^–, Br^–, I^–, CN^–) as nucleophilic agents. Density functional theory method is employed to elucidate the underlying mechanism of the S_N2 reaction. We found that the nucleophiles react as ion pairs, whose metal cation is ‘coordinated’ by the oxygen atoms in oligoEGs acting as Lewis base to reduce the unfavorable electrostatic effects of M⁺ on X^–. The two terminal hydroxyl (?OH) function as ‘anchors’ to collect the nucleophile and the substrate in an ideal configuration for the reaction. Calculated barriers of the reactions are in excellent agreement with all experimentally observed trends of S_N2 yields obtained by using various metal cations, nucleophiles and oligoEGs. The reaction barriers are calculated to decrease from triEG to pentaEG, in agreement with the experimentally observed order of efficiency (triEG < tetraEG < pentaEG). The observed relative efficiency of the metal cations Cs⁺ versus K⁺ is also nicely demonstrated (larger [better] barrier [efficiency] for Cs⁺ than for K⁺). We also examine the effects of the nucleophiles (F^–, Br^–, I^–, CN^–), finding that the magnitudes of reaction barriers are F^– > CN^– > Br^– > I^–, elucidating the observation that the yield was lowest for F^–. It is suggested that the role of oxygen atoms in the promoters is equivalent to that of –OH group in bulky alcohols (tert‐butyl or amyl‐alcohol) for S_N2 fluorination reactions previously studied in our lab. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Relationship between Hansen Solubility Parameters and Lewis Acid–Base Parameters of Polymers

Hansen solubility parameters and Lewis acid–base parameters are two groups of parameters that are used to characterize solvents, polymers, and the interactions between polymer matrix and additives. Although their definitions are very different, they can well explain the interactions in polymer composites. Therefore, some relations should exist between them. In this paper, the Lewis acid–base parameters of three polymers (PET, PS, and PVA) were measured by IGC technique. Including five other polymers (PE, PMMA, PC, PVC, and PVDF), the relationship between total Lewis acid–base intensity (K _a+K _b) and total polar intensity (δ² _p+δ² _h) of the eight kinds of polymers are discussed, where δ_p and δ_h are the polar components of the Hansen parameters. It is found that these polymers are all Lewis base polymers according to the values of K _b/K _a. Generally, a polymer with a larger (K _a+K _b) value possesses a higher (δ² _p+δ² _h) value.     

Substituent effects on the pH‐dependent multiequilibria of flavylium salt analogs of anthocyanins

Substituent effects on the hydration, tautomerization, and isomerization equilibria of flavylium salts can be described by a series of linear free energy relationships (LSER) based on Hammett correlations. The positions on the flavylium rings were classified as either activated (para‐like) or nonactivated (meta‐like) to decide which σ value to employ (σ_R or σ_m, respectively), while the steric effects of substituents at C‐3 were included via the E_S parameter. Based on these relationships, we then show that it is possible to predict values of the “apparent pK_a” (pK_ap) of flavylium ions that were not included in the original data set, as well as those of several naturally occurring anthocyanins. The value of pK_ap provides a measure of the thermodynamic stability of the flavylium cation as a function of pH and is directly related to the pH range in which the color of the flavylium cation form of anthocyanins persists in aqueous solution. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isospin properties of () reactions for the formation of deeply-bound antikaonic nuclei

The formation of deeply-bound antikaonic nuclear states in nuclear (K⁻,N) reactions is investigated theoretically within a distorted-wave impulse approximation (DWIA), considering the isospin properties of the Fermi-averaged elementary amplitudes. We calculate the formation cross sections of the deeply-bound states by the (K⁻,N) reactions on the nuclear targets, ¹²C and ²⁸Si, at incident K⁻ lab momentum p_K⁻=1.0 GeV/c and θ_lab=0°, introducing a complex effective nucleon number N_eff for unstable bound states in the DWIA. The results show that the deeply-bound states can be populated dominantly by the (K⁻,n) reaction via the total isoscalar ΔT=0 transition owing to the isospin nature of the amplitudes, and that the cross sections described by ReN_eff and ArgN_eff enable to deduce the structure of the nuclear states; the calculated inclusive nucleon spectra for a deep -nucleus potential do not show distinct peak structure in the bound region. The few-body and states formed in (K⁻,N) reactions on s-shell nuclear targets, ³He, ³H and ⁴He, are also discussed.     

Higher reactivity of 3‐pyridinium boronic acid compared with 3‐pyridinium boronate ion toward 4‐isopropyltropolone in acidic aqueous solution: fundamental reaction analyses for an effective organoboron‐based chemosensor

The pK_as of 3‐pyridylboronic acid and its derivatives were determined spectrophotometrically. Most of them had two pK_as assignable to the boron center and pyridine moiety. The pK_a assignment performed by ¹¹B nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy revealed that both boron centers in 3‐pyridylboronic acid [3‐PyB(OH)₂] and the N‐methylated derivative [3‐(N‐Me)Py⁺B(OH)₂] have strong acidities (pK_a = 4.4 for both). It was found that introduction of a substituent to pyridine‐C atom in 3‐pyridylboronic acid drastically increased the acidity of the pyridinium moiety, but decreased the acidity of the boron center, whereas the introduction to pyridine‐N atom had no influence on the acidity of the boron center. Kinetic studies on the complexation reactions of 3‐pyridinium boronic acid [3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₂] with 4‐isopropyltropolone (Hipt) carried out in strongly acidic aqueous solution indicated that the positive charge on the boronic acid influenced little on its reactivity; 3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₂ reacts with Hipt and protonated H₂ipt⁺, and its reactivity was in line with those of a series of boronic acids. Kinetics in weakly acidic aqueous solution revealed that 3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₂ reacts with Hipt faster than its conjugate boronate [3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₃^–], which is consistent with our recent results. The reactivity of 3‐(N‐Me)Py⁺B(OH)₂ towards Hipt was also examined kinetically; the reactivities of 3‐(N‐Me)Py⁺B(OH)₂ and 3‐(N‐Me)Py⁺B(OH)₃^– are almost the same as those of their original 3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₂ and 3‐HPy⁺B(OH)₃^–, respectively. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transition from concerted to stepwise processes as a function of leaving group ability: density functional theory and experimental study of lyoxide‐promoted cleavages of phosphorothioate and phosphate triesters in water and methanol

The base‐promoted solvolysis of a series of O,O‐dimethyl O‐aryl and O,O‐dimethyl O‐alkyl phosphorothioates (1) as well as O,O‐dimethyl O‐aryl and O,O‐dimethyl O‐alkyl phosphates (2) was studied computationally by density functional theory methods in methanol and water continuum media to determine the transition between concerted and stepwise processes. In addition, an experimental study was undertaken on the solvolysis of these series in basic methanol and water. The computations indicate that the solvolytic mechanism for series 1 involves lyoxide attack anti to the leaving group in a concerted manner with good leaving groups having pK_a^Lg values < 12.3 in methanol and in a stepwise fashion with the formation of a 5‐coordinate thiophosphorane intermediate when the pK_a^Lg > 12.3. A similar transition from concerted to stepwise mechanism occurs with series 2 in methanol as well as with series 1 and 2 in water, although for the aqueous solvolyses with hydroxide nucleophile, the transitions between concerted and stepwise mechanisms occur with better leaving groups than in the case in methanol. The computational data allow the construction of Brønsted plots of log k₂^?OS versus pK_a^Lg in methanol and water, which are compared with the experimental Brønsted plots determined with these series previously and with new data determined in this work. Both the computational and experimental Brønsted data reveal discontinuities in the plots between substrates bearing O‐aryl and O‐alkyl leaving groups, with the gradients of the plots being far steeper than, and non‐collinear with, the O‐aryl leaving groups for solvolysis of the O‐alkyl‐containing substrates. These discontinuities signify that care should be exercised in interpreting breaks in Brønsted plots in terms of changes in rate‐limiting steps that signify the formation of an intermediate during a solvolytic process. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kinetic study of the formation of N‐chloro compounds using N‐chlorosuccinimide

Second‐order rate constants were determined for the chlorination reaction of 2,2,2‐trifluoethylamine and benzylamine with N‐chlorosuccinimide at 25 °C and an ionic strength of 0.5 M. These reactions were found to be of first order in both reagents. According to the experimental results, a mechanism reaction was proposed in which a chlorine atom is transferred between both nitrogenous compounds. Kinetics studies demonstrate that the hydrolysis process of the chlorinating agent does not interfere in the chlorination process, under the experimental conditions used in the present work. Free‐energy relationships were established using the results obtained in the present work and others available in the literature for chlorination reactions with N‐chlorosuccinimide, being the pK_a range included between 5.7 and 11.22. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determination of the internal structure of valons

We determine the internal structure functions of the valons introduced by Hwa and coworkers, using low-p _t data and Regge model constraints. Our calibration reaction is the fragmentation processp→π^? observed in 70 GeV/cK ⁺ p interactions. The fitted valon structure parameters are used to make successful predictions for various other fragmentation processes (p→π⁺ andp→K ⁺). A comparison with experimental data of the DISvW ₂ (x)-values implied by this same fit, indicates that soft processes probe the nucleon typically at aQ ²-value of ～1 GeV². This finding supports the hypothesis that soft hadronic reactions are useful (and often unique) tools to learn about hadron quark structure.     

Near-threshold production of a0(980) mesons in πN and NN collisions and a0-f0 mixing

We consider near-threshold a ₀(980)-meson production in πN and NN collisions. An effective Lagrangian approach with one-pion exchange is applied to analyze different contributions to the cross section for different isospin channels. The Reggeon exchange mechanism is also evaluated for comparison. The results from πN reactions are used to calculate the contribution of the a ₀ meson to the cross sections and invariant mass distributions of the reactions and pp → ppK ⁺ K ⁻. It is found that the experimental observation of a ₀ ⁺ mesons in the reaction is much more promising than the observation of a ₀ ⁰ mesons in the reaction pp → ppK ⁺ K ⁻. Effects of isospin violation in the reactions pN → da ₀, pd → ³He(³H)a ₀, and dd → ⁴Hea ₀, which are induced by a ₀(980)-f ₀(980) mixing, are also analyzed. From Yadernaya Fizika, Vol. 66, No. 1, 2003, pp. 155–174. Original English Text Copyright ? 2003 by Kondratyuk, Bratkovskaya, Grishina, Büscher, Cassing, Str?her. This article was submitted by the authors in English.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the pyridinolysis of diaryl carbonates

The reactions of 4‐methylphenyl and 4‐chlorophenyl 4‐nitrophenyl carbonates ( 1 and 2 , respectively), phenyl, 4‐methylphenyl, 4‐chlorophenyl, and 4‐nitrophenyl 2,4‐dinitrophenyl carbonates ( 3 , 4 , 5 , and 6 , respectively), and bis(2,4‐dinitrophenyl) carbonate ( 7 ) with a series of pyridines are studied kinetically at 25.0 °C in 44 wt% ethanol–water and an ionic strength of 0.2 M (KCl). The reactions are followed spectrophotometrically and under excess amine pseudo‐first‐order rate coefficients (k_obs) are found. For all these reactions, plots of k_obs versus free amine concentration at constant pH are linear, the slope (k_N) being independent of pH. The Brønsted‐type plots (log k_N vs. pK_a of the conjugate acids of the pyridines) are all biphasic (linear portions at high and low pK_a and a curvature in between). These plots are in accordance with a stepwise mechanism, through a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate (T^±), and a change in the rate‐determining step from formation of T^± to its breakdown to products, as the pyridine basicity decreases. Also studied are the effects of the leaving, non‐leaving, and electrophilic groups of the substrate, and of the amine nature, on the value (value at the center of curvature of the Brønsted‐type plots). Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.