Size-selected infrared predissociation spectroscopy of neutral and cationic formamide-water clusters: stepwise growth of hydrated structures and intracluster hydrogen transfer induced by vacuum-ultraviolet photoionization

Vibrational spectroscopy of size-selected formamide-water clusters, FA-(H2O)n , n = 1-4, prepared in a supersonic jet is performed with vacuum-ultraviolet-ionization detected-infrared predissociation spectroscopy (VUV-ID-IRPDS). The cluster structures are determined through comparisons of the observed IR spectra with theoretical calculations at the MP2/6-31++G** level. The FA-(H2O)n , n = 1-3, clusters have ring-type structures, where water molecules act as both single donor and single acceptor in the hydrogen-bond network between the amino and carbonyl groups of FA. For FA-(H2O)4, on the other hand, the absence of the free NH stretching vibration indicates formation of a double ring type structure, where two NH bonds of the amino group and the carbonyl oxygen of FA form hydrogen bonds with water molecules. An infrared spectrum of the formamide-water cluster cation, [FA-H2O](+), is also observed with infrared predissociation spectroscopy of vacuum-ultraviolet-pumped ion (IRPDS-VUV-PI). No band is observed for the free OH stretches of neutral water. This shows [FA-H2O](+) has such a structure that one of the hydrogen atoms of the water moiety is transferred to the carbonyl oxygen of FA(+).     

The effect of cooperative hydrogen bonding on the OH stretching-band shift for water clusters studied by matrix-isolation infrared spectroscopy and density functional theory

Infrared spectra of the water clusters have been measured in the N2 + O2 matrix. The aggregation process of water in the matrix has been monitored by annealing the deposited samples up to 40 K and UV irradiation. The monomer, dimer, cyclic trimer and cyclic pentamer are found as water clusters in the matrix. For the hexamer, several structures such as chair, cage, prism, bag 1 and/or book 1 are likely to exist. By UV irradiation, the cyclic pentamer is predominantly formed from the monomer and dimer. On the other hand, by annealing the deposited sample, several hexamers are formed. The theoretical calculation for water clusters has revealed that the formation of one hydrogen bonding in a hydrogen-bonded chain cooperatively enhances or diminishes the strength of another hydrogen bond. Both proton donor (D) and acceptor (A) participating in a hydrogen-bonding pair DA are capable of forming hydrogen bonding with the other water molecules; D can additionally accept two protons and donate one proton, and A can additionally donate two protons and accept one proton. We have proposed the classification of hydrogen-bonding patterns considering the cooperativity, denoting as d'a'DAd'a', where d and a are integers indicating the number of proton donors and acceptors to D (the single prime) and A (the double prime), respectively. Then, a magnitude given by MOH = -d' + a' + d' - a' has been introduced, which is very useful for connecting the hydrogen-bonding patterns to their OH wavenumbers. As a result, it is revealed that the OH stretching bands of water clusters are characterized by eight indicators (free and MOH = -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4). The classification proposed here is applicable to the OH band analysis for the hydrogen-bonded water and alcohols in a condensed phase.     

Zero point energy of polyhedral water clusters

Polyhedral water clusters (PWCs) are cage-like (H2O)n clusters where every O participates in exactly three H bonds. For a database of 83 PWCs, 8 < or = n < or = 20, geometry was optimized and zero point energy (ZPE) was calculated at the B3LYP/6-311++G** level. ZPE correlates negatively with electronic energy (E0): each increase of 1 kcal/mol in E0 corresponds to a decrease of about 0.11 kcal/mol in ZPE. For each n, a set of four connectivity parameters accounts for 98% or more of the variance in ZPE. Linear regression of ZPE against n and this set gives an RMS error of 0.13 kcal/mol. The contributions to ZPE from stretch modes only (ZPE(S)) and from torsional modes only (ZPE(T)) also correlate strongly with E0 and with each other.     

Ab initio theoretical calculations of the electronic excitation energies of small water clusters

A direct ab initio molecular dynamics method has been applied to a water monomer and water clusters (H(2)O)(n) (n = 1-3) to elucidate the effects of zero-point energy (ZPE) vibration on the absorption spectra of water clusters. Static ab initio calculations without ZPE showed that the first electronic transitions of (H(2)O)(n), (1)B(1)←(1)A(1), are blue-shifted as a function of cluster size (n): 7.38 eV (n = 1), 7.58 eV (n = 2) and 8.01 eV (n = 3). The inclusion of the ZPE vibration strongly affects the excitation energies of a water dimer, and a long red-tail appears in the range of 6.42-6.90 eV due to the structural flexibility of a water dimer. The ultraviolet photodissociation of water clusters and water ice surfaces is relevant to these results.     

Cooperativity of conventional and unconventional hydrogen bonds involving imidazole

Correlated ab initio calculations are used to investigate the cooperativity of H‐bonds between imidazole and a pair of water molecules. H‐bonds comprise not only the conventional NH … O and OH … N types, but also CH … O and OH … φ (wherein a proton is donated to the delocalized π cloud lying above the aromatic ring). Conventional and OH … φ H‐bonds obey the normal principles of cooperativity, wherein these bonds are strengthened when a central molecule serves simultaneously as both proton donor and acceptor. In contrast, CH … O bonds do not appear to be amenable to such positive cooperativity. When placed in a polarizable medium, all H‐bonds weaken as the dielectric constant of the solvent grows. The qualitative aspects of the cooperativity are not affected by the medium, although some weakening is observed. Calculations also consider the effects of cooperativity on other aspects of the complexes, including the intermolecular distance, the effect on the covalent X‐H bond length, and IR and NMR spectral data. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2006     

Oxidative properties of FeO2+: electronic structure and solvation effects

An electronic structure analysis is provided of the action of solvated FeO(2+), [FeO(H(2)O)(5)](2+), as a hydroxylation catalyst. It is emphasized that the oxo end of FeO(2+) does not form hydrogen bonds (as electron donor and H-bond acceptor) with H-bond donors nor with aliphatic C-H bonds, but it activates C-H bonds as an electron acceptor. It is extremely electrophilic, to the extent that it can activate even such poor electron donors as aliphatic C-H bonds, the C-H bond orbital acting as electron donor in a charge transfer type of interaction. Lower lying O-H bonding orbitals are less easily activated. The primary electron accepting orbital in a water environment is the 3sigma*alpha orbital, an antibonding combination of Fe-3d(z(2)) and O-2p(z), which is very low-lying relative to the pi*alpha compared with, for example, the sigma* orbital in O(2) relative to its pi*. This is ascribed to relatively small Fe-3d(z(2)) with O-2p(z) overlap, due to the nodal structure of the 3d(z(2)).The H-abstraction barrier is very low in the gas phase, but it is considerably enhanced in water solvent. This is shown to be due to strong screening effects of the dielectric medium, leading to relative destabilization of the levels of the charged [FeO(H(2)O)(5)](2+) species compared to those of the neutral substrate molecules, making it a less effective electron acceptor. The solvent directly affects the orbital interactions responsible for the catalytic reaction.     

O?H stretching force constant in associated methanol species and the cooperativity effect

The effect of molecular interaction on the O? H stretching force constant of methanol (MeOH) is reported for its associated species. The various electron donors (D) and acceptors (A) considered include organic molecules such as methanol, dimethylether, acetone, acetonitrile, dimethyl formamide, pyridine, and ions such as F^?, Cl^?, Li⁺, and H⁺. The variation in the O? H stretching force constant of MeO? H…?D species on interaction with the electron acceptor such as in the species is explained on the basis of the cooperativity effect. (CE ). The effect is discussed in terms of the relationship CE = (ΔF/F) × 100, where ΔF is the reduction is force constant of the hydrogen-bonded O? H stretching mode of the associated methanol species MeOH…?D when the lone pair electrons on oxygen of the methanol molecule are involved in hydrogen bonding with A, and F is the hydrogen-bonded O? H stretching force constant of the species when the lone pair electrons are free. The cooperativity effect (CE ) is found to increase with increasing electron acceptor and electron donor capacities of A and D. The calculated force constants are compared with the experimental results.     

Excess electron and lithium atom solvation in water clusters at finite temperature: an ab initio molecular dynamics study of the structural, spectral, and dynamical behavior of (H2O)6- and Li(H2O)6

The roles of hydrogen bonds in the solvation of an excess electron and a lithium atom in water hexamer cluster at 150 K have been studied by means of ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. It is found that the hydrogen bonded structures of (H(2)O)(6)(-) and Li(H(2)O)(6) clusters are very different from each other and they dynamically evolve from one conformer to other along their simulation trajectories. The populations of the single acceptor, double acceptor, and free type water molecules are found to be significantly high unlike that in pure water clusters. Free hydrogens of these type of water molecules primarily capture the unbound electron density in these clusters. It is found that the binding motifs of the free electron evolve with time and the vertical detachment energy of (H(2)O)(6)(-) and vertical ionization energy of Li(H(2)O)(6) also change with time. Assignments of the observed peaks in vibrational power spectra are done, and we found direct correlations between the time-averaged population of water molecules in different hydrogen bonding states and the spectral features. The dynamical aspects of these clusters have also been studied through calculations of time correlations of instantaneous stretch frequencies of OH modes which are obtained from the simulation trajectories through a time series analysis.     

On the contribution of vibrational anharmonicity to the binding energies of water clusters

The second-order vibrational perturbation theory method has been used together with the B3LYP and MP2 electronic structure methods to investigate the effects of anharmonicity on the vibrational zero-point energy (ZPE) contributions to the binding energies of (H2O)n, n = 2-6, clusters. For the low-lying isomers of (H2O)6, the anharmonicity correction to the binding energy is calculated to range from -248 to -355 cm(-1). It is also demonstrated that although high-order electron correlation effects are important for the individual vibrational frequencies, they are relatively unimportant for the net ZPE contributions to the binding energies of water clusters.     

Gas phase hydration and deprotonation of the cyclic C3H3+ cation. Solvation by acetonitrile, and comparison with the benzene radical cation

The binding energies of the first 5 H2O molecules to c-C3H3+ were determined by equilibrium measurements. The measured binding energies of the hydrated clusters of 9-12 kcal/mol are typical of carbon-based CH+...X hydrogen bonds. The ion solvation with the more polar CH3CN molecules results in stronger bonds consistent with the increased ion-dipole interaction. Ab initio calculations show that the lowest energy isomer of the c-C3H3+(H2O)4 cluster consists of a cyclic water tetramer interacting with the c-C3H3+ ion, which suggests the presence of orientational restraint of the water molecules consistent with the observed large entropy loss. The c-C3H3+ ion is deprotonated by 3 or more H2O molecules, driven energetically by the association of the solvent molecules to form strongly hydrogen bonded (H2O)nH+ clusters. The kinetics of the associative proton transfer (APT) reaction C3H3+ + nH2O --> (H2O)nH+ + C3H2* exhibits an unusually steep negative temperature coefficient of k = cT(-63+/-4) (or activation energy of -37 +/- 1 kcal mol(-1)). The behavior of the C3H3+/water system is exactly analogous to the benzene+*/water system, suggesting that the mechanism, kinetics and large negative temperature coefficients may be general to multibody APT reactions. These reactions can become fast at low temperatures, allowing ionized polycyclic aromatics to initiate ice formation in cold astrochemical environments.     

Vibrational spectroscopy of size-selected sodium-doped water clusters

The vibrational OH stretch spectra have been measured for Na(H2O)n clusters in the size range from n = 8 to 60. The complete size selection is achieved by coupling the UV radiation of a dye laser below the ionization threshold with the tunable IR radiation of an optical parametric oscillator. The spectra are dominated by intensity peaks around 3400 cm(-1) which we attribute to an increased transition dipole moment of delocalized electrons in this type of doped cluster. Aside from the positions of free (3715 cm(-1)) and double donor (3560 cm(-1)) bonds which are known from pure water clusters, specific transitions are observed at 3640 cm(-1) and in the range of the single donor bonds between 3000 and 3200 cm(-1).     

Structure and spectral features of H+(H2O)7: Eigen versus Zundel forms

The two dimensional (2D) to three dimensional (3D) transition for the protonated water cluster has been controversial, in particular, for H(+)(H(2)O)(7). For H(+)(H(2)O)(7) the 3D structure is predicted to be lower in energy than the 2D structure at most levels of theory without zero-point energy (ZPE) correction. On the other hand, with ZPE correction it is predicted to be either 2D or 3D depending on the calculational levels. Although the ZPE correction favors the 3D structure at the level of coupled cluster theory with singles, doubles, and perturbative triples excitations [CCSD(T)] using the aug-cc-pVDZ basis set, the result based on the anharmonic zero-point vibrational energy correction favors the 2D structure. Therefore, the authors investigated the energies based on the complete basis set limit scheme (which we devised in an unbiased way) at the resolution of the identity approximation Moller-Plesset second order perturbation theory and CCSD(T) levels, and found that the 2D structure has the lowest energy for H(+)(H(2)O)(7) [though nearly isoenergetic to the 3D structure for D(+)(D(2)O)(7)]. This structure has the Zundel-type configuration, but it shows the quantum probabilistic distribution including some of the Eigen-type configuration. The vibrational spectra of MP2/aug-cc-pVDZ calculations and Car-Parrinello molecular dynamics simulations, taking into account the thermal and dynamic effects, show that the 2D Zundel-type form is in good agreement with experiments.     

The monoclinic and cubic phases of metaboric acid (precise redeterminations)

In monoclinic β‐HBO₂, endless [B₃O₃(OH)(H₂O)(O_2/2)] zigzag chains are linked via an extensive system of hydrogen bonds with stronger major [H?O between 1.67 (1) and 1.77 (1) Å] and weaker minor components [H?O between 2.48 (1) and 2.63 (1) Å]. The unique three‐dimensional tetrahedral [BO_2/2O_2/2(H)] network structure of cubic γ‐­HBO₂ is stabilized by very short asymmetric hydrogen bonds [H?O2 1.48 (1) Å] with a donor–acceptor distance of 2.485 (1) Å and possesses small empty cages with a free diameter of ca 3.2 Å.     

Structures and energetics of hydrated oxygen anion clusters

Hydration of the atomic oxygen radical anion is studied with computational electronic structure methods, considering (O(-))(H(2)O)(n) clusters and related proton-transferred (OH(-))(OH)(H(2)O)(n)(-)(1) clusters having n = 1-5. A total of 67 distinct local-minimum structures having various interesting hydrogen bonding motifs are obtained and analyzed. On the basis of the most stable form of each type, (O(-))(H(2)O)(n)) clusters are energetically favored, although for n > or = 3, there is considerable overlap in energy between other members of the (O(-))(H(2)O)(n) family and various members of the (OH(-))(OH)(H(2)O)(n)(-)(1) family. In the lower-energy (O(-))(H(2)O)(n) clusters, the hydrogen bonding arrangement about the oxygen anion center tends to be planar, leaving the oxygen anion p-like orbital containing the unpaired electron uninvolved in hydrogen bonding with any water molecule. In (OH(-))(OH)(H(2)O)(n)(-)(1) clusters, on the other hand, nonplanar arrangements are the rule about the anionic oxygen center that accepts hydrogen bonds. No instances are found of OH(-) acting as a hydrogen bond donor. Those OH bonds that form hydrogen bonds to an anionic O(-) or OH(-) center are significantly stretched from their equilibrium value in isolated water or hydroxyl. A quantitative inverse correlation is established for all hydrogen bonds between the amount of the OH bond stretch and the distance to the other oxygen involved in the hydrogen bond.     

High-resolution IR spectroscopy of dimers of HDO with H2O in helium nanodroplets

We report on rotationally resolved IR spectra of dimers of HDO as a deuterium (d) donor with H(2)O, HDO, and D(2)O embedded in superfluid Helium nanodroplets in the 2650-2660 and 2725-2740 cm(-1) regions of the O-D donor stretch and symmetric acceptor stretch vibrations, respectively. By comparing spectra at different levels of deuteration we were able to unambiguously assign the donor stretch signals of H(2)O···DOH, HDO···DOH, and D(2)O···DOH. For H(2)O···DOH, three ΔK(a) = 0 sub-bands were found that were assigned to transitions from the lower and upper acceptor switching states of K(a) = 0 and the lower acceptor switching state of K(a) = 1. In addition, b- and c-type transitions in the acceptor stretch region of HDO···DOH were observed that allowed us to determine the acceptor switching splitting of Δv? = 5.68 cm(-1) in the HDO···DOH vibrational ground state. We suggest that the dominating broadening mechanism is intervibrational relaxation due to coupling of the rovibrational levels of the chromophore via internal droplet excitations.     

Theoretical Studies on the Stabilities and Hydrogen Bond Actions of （H2O）n Clusters

1 INTRODUCTION In the latest ten years, the structure and function of water clusters have captured the interest of chemists. One of the most important study objects in water cluster is to describe the behavior of water so- lution quantitatively at molecule level, which will pave the way for the solving of some environmental and other scientific problems, such as the formation of acid rain and nucleation mechanism of little water drop. Besides, weak interaction in water clusters could be al…     

Synthesis of metal-hydrazone complexes and vapochromic behavior of their hydrogen-bonded proton-transfer assemblies

We synthesized and investigated a new series of metal-hydrazone complexes, including deprotonated [MX(mtbhp)] and protonated forms [MX(Hmtbhp)](ClO(4)) (M = Pd(2+), Pt(2+); X = Cl(-), Br(-); Hmtbhp = 2-(2-(2-(methylthio)benzylidene)hydrazinyl)pyridine) and hydrogen-bonded proton-transfer (HBPT) assemblies containing [PdBr(mtbhp)] and bromanilic acid (H(2)BA). The mtbhp hydrazone ligand acts as a tridentate SNN ligand and provides a high proton affinity. UV-vis spectroscopy revealed that these metal-hydrazone complexes follow a reversible protonation-deprotonation reaction ([MX(mtbhp)] + H(+) ? [MX(Hmtbhp)](+)), resulting in a remarkable color change from red to yellow. Reactions between proton acceptor [PdBr(mtbhp)] (A) and proton donor H(2)BA (D) afforded four types of HBPT assemblies with different D/A ratios: for D/A = 1:1, {[PdBr(Hmtbhp)](HBA)·Acetone} and {[PdBr(Hmtbhp)](HBA)·2(1,4-dioxane)}; for D/A = 1:2, [PdBr(Hmtbhp)](2)(BA); and for D/A = 3:2, {[PdBr(Hmtbhp)](2)(HBA)(2)(H(2)BA)·2Acetonitrile}. The proton donor gave at least one proton to the acceptor to form the hydrogen bonded A···D pair of [PdBr(Hmtbhp)](+)···HBA(-). The strength of the hydrogen bond in the pair depends on the kind of molecule bound to the free monoanionic bromanilate OH group. Low-temperature IR spectra (T < 150 K) showed that the hydrogen bond distance between [PdBr(Hmtbhp)](+) and bromanilate was short enough (ca. 2.58 ?) to induce proton migration in the [PdBr(Hmtbhp)](2)(BA) assembly in the solid state. The hydrogen bonds formed not only between [PdBr(Hmtbhp)](+) and HBA(-) but also between HBA(-) and neutral H(2)BA molecules in the {[PdBr(Hmtbhp)](2)(HBA)(2)(H(2)BA)·2Acetonitrile} assembly. The H(2)BA-based flexible hydrogen bond network and strong acidic host structure result in an interesting vapor adsorption ability and vapochromic behavior in this assembly because the vapor-induced rearrangement of the hydrogen bond network, accompanied by changes in π-π stacking interactions, provides a recognition ability of proton donating and accepting properties of the vapor molecule.     

Experimental and computational studies of hydrogen bonding and proton transfer to [Cp*Fe(dppe)H

The present contribution reports experimental and computational investigations of the interaction between [Cp*Fe(dppe)H] and different proton donors (HA). The focus is on the structure of the proton transfer intermediates and on the potential energy surface of the proton transfer leading to the dihydrogen complex [Cp*Fe(dppe)(H2)]+. With p-nitrophenol (PNP) a UV/Visible study provides evidence of the formation of the ion-pair stabilized by a hydrogen bond between the nonclassical cation [Cp*Fe(dppe)(H2)]+ and the homoconjugated anion ([AHA]-). With trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), the hydrogen-bonded ion pair containing the simple conjugate base (A-) in equilibrium with the free ions is observed by IR spectroscopy when using a deficit of the proton donor. An excess leads to the formation of the homoconjugated anion. The interaction with hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) was investigated quantitatively by IR spectroscopy and by 1H and 31P NMR spectroscopy at low temperatures (200-260 K) and by stopped-flow kinetics at about room temperature (288-308 K). The hydrogen bond formation to give [Cp*Fe(dppe)H]HA is characterized by DeltaH degrees =-6.5+/-0.4 kcal mol(-1) and DeltaS degrees = -18.6+/-1.7 cal mol(-1) K(-1). The activation barrier for the proton transfer step, which occurs only upon intervention of a second HFIP molecule, is DeltaH(not equal) = 2.6+/-0.3 kcal mol(-1) and DeltaS(not equal) = -44.5+/-1.1 cal mol(-1) K(-1). The computational investigation (at the DFT/B3 LYP level with inclusion of solvent effects by the polarizable continuum model) reproduces all the qualitative findings, provided the correct number of proton donor molecules are used in the model. The proton transfer process is, however, computed to be less exothermic than observed in the experiment.     

Microsolvation of formamide: a rotational study

Microsolvated formamide clusters have been generated in a supersonic jet expansion and characterized using Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy. Three conformers of the monohydrated cluster and one of the dihydrated complex have been observed. Seven monosubstituted isotopic species have been measured for the most stable conformer of formamide...H(2)O, which adopts a closed planar ring structure stabilized by two intermolecular hydrogen bonds (N-H...O(H)-H...O=C). The two higher energy forms of formamide...H(2)O have been observed for the first time. The second most stable conformer is stabilized by a O-H...O=C and a weak C-H...O hydrogen bond, while, in the less stable form, water accepts a hydrogen bond from the anti hydrogen of the amino group. For formamide...(H(2)O)(2), the parent and nine monosubstituted isotopic species have been observed. In this cluster the two water molecules close a cycle with the amide group through three intermolecular hydrogen bonds (N-H...O(H)-H...O(H)-H...O=C), the nonbonded hydrogen atoms of water adopting an up-down configuration. Substitution (r(s)) and effective (r(0)) structures have been determined for formamide, the most stable form of formamide...H(2)O and formamide...(H(2)O)(2). The results on monohydrated formamide clusters can help to explain the observed preferences of bound water in proteins. Clear evidence of sigma-bond cooperativity effects emerges when comparing the structures of the mono- and dihydrated formamide clusters. No detectable structural changes due to pi-bond cooperativity are observed on formamide upon hydration.     

On the origin of red and blue shifts of X-H and C-H stretching vibrations in formic acid (formate ion) and proton donor complexes.

Complexes between formic acid or formate anion and various proton donors (HF, H(2)O, NH(3), and CH(4)) are studied by the MP2 and B3LYP methods with the 6-311++G(3df,3pd) basis set. Formation of a complex is characterized by electron-density transfer from electron donor to ligands. This transfer is much larger with the formate anion, for which it exceeds 0.1 e. Electron-density transfer from electron lone pairs of the electron donor is directed into sigma* antibonding orbitals of X--H bonds of the electron acceptor and leads to elongation of the bond and a red shift of the X--H stretching frequency (standard H-bonding). However, pronounced electron-density transfer from electron lone pairs of the electron donor also leads to reorganization of the electron density in the electron donor, which results in changes in geometry and vibrational frequency. These changes are largest for the C--H bonds of formic acid and formate anion, which do not participate in H-bonding. The resulting blue shift of this stretching frequency is substantial and amounts to almost 35 and 170 cm(-1), respectively.