An Ab Initio Study of C2H2.H2, C2H2.N2, and C2H2.Ar Complexes

Ab initio calculations at the post Hartree–Fock level were performed on complexes of acetylene with hydrogen, nitrogen, and argon. Total energies, optimum geometries, and binding energies were calculated, using the 6-311G** and the 6-31+G(2df,2pd) basis sets. Calculations showed the complexes to be more stable than the separate entities, with the exception of the acetylene–hydrogen complex.     

Total cross sections for electron scattering by polyatomic molecules at 10–1000 eV: C2H2, C2H4, C2H6, C3H6, C3H8 and C4H8

A model complex optical potential (composed of static, exchange, polarization and absorption terms) is employed to calculate the total (elastic and inelastic) electron-atom scattering cross sections from the corresponding atomic wave function at the Hartree-Fock level. The total cross sections (TCS) for electron scattering by their corresponding molecules (C₂H₂, C₂H₄, C₂H₆, C₃H₆, C₃H₈ and C₄H₈) are firstly obtained by the use of the additivity rule over an incident energy range of 10–1000 eV. The qualitative molecular results are compared with experimental data and other calculations wherever available, good agreement is obtained in intermediate-and high-energy region.     

Ionization efficiencies of C3H6, C4H8, C6H12, C2H6O,and C3H8O isomers

Ionization efficiencies of 14 organic compounds have been measured in the wavelength region from 105 to 134nm using an ionization chamber. The compounds examined are cyclopropane, propylene, l-butene, isobutene, cis-and trans-2-butenes, cyclohexane, 1-hexane, tetramethylethylene, ethyl alcohol, dimethyl ether, n-, and iso-propyl alcohol, and ethyl methyl ether. The ionization efficiencies of cyclopropane and cyclohexane monotonically increase with increasing photon energy, but those for the others show a peak or a shoulder in the wavelength region of the present work.     

Rotational spectrum and carbon-13 hyperfine structure of the C3H, C5H, C6H, and C7H radicals

By means of Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy of a supersonic molecular beam, we have detected the singly substituted carbon-13 isotopic species of C(5)H, C(6)H, and C(7)H. Hyperfine structure in the rotational transitions of the lowest-energy fine structure component ((2)Pi(12) for C(5)H and C(7)H, and (2)Pi(32) for C(6)H) of each species was measured between 6 and 22 GHz, and precise rotational, centrifugal distortion, Lambda-doubling, and (13)C hyperfine coupling constants were determined. In addition, resolved hyperfine structure in the lowest rotational transition (J = 32-->12) of the three (13)C isotopic species of C(3)H was measured by the same technique. By combining the centimeter-wave measurements here with previous millimeter-wave data, a complete set of (13)C hyperfine coupling constants were derived to high precision for each isotopic species. Experimental structures (r(0)) have been determined for C(5)H and the two longer carbon-chain radicals, and these are found to be in good agreement with the predictions of high-level coupled-cluster calculations. C(3)H, C(5)H, and C(7)H exhibit a clear alternation in the magnitude and sign of the (13)C hyperfine coupling constants along the carbon-chain backbone. Because the electron spin density is nominally zero at the central carbon atom of C(3)H, C(5)H, and C(7)H, and at alternating sets of carbon atoms of C(5)H and C(7)H, owing to spin polarization, almost all of the (13)C coupling constants at these atoms are small in magnitude and negative in sign. Spin-polarization effects are known to be important for the Fermi-contact (b(F)) term, but prior to the work here they have generally been neglected for the hyperfine terms a, c, and d.     

Structure, stability, and spectra of C9H3, C11H3, and C13H3 radicals

Density functional theory has been used to investigate the geometries, vibrational frequencies, rotational constants, and dipole moments of the C(9)H(3), C(11)H(3), and C(13)H(3) radicals. Vertical electronic transition energies of C(9)H(3), C(11)H(3), and C(13)H(3) are calculated by the time-dependent density functional theory. Present results show that the most stable arrangements of C(9)H(3), C(11)H(3), and C(13)H(3) are H(2)C(9)H, H(2)C(11)H, and H(2)C(13)H with a C(2v) symmetry, respectively. Such lowest-energy isomers have an obvious single and triple bond alternation carbon chain. Their isomers HC(4)(HC)C(4)H, HC(4)[C(C(2)H)]C(4)H, and C(C(4)H)(3) are predicted to have vibrational frequencies and vertical excitation energies in good agreement with experimental observations. HC(4)(HC)C(4)H, HC(4)[C(C(2)H)]C(4)H, and C(C(4)H)(3) have similar trigonal structure, which gives rise to the remarkably similar spectroscopic features as obtained experimentally. On the basis of present calculations, the isomers HC(4)(HC)C(4)H, HC(4)[C(C(2)H)]C(4)H, and C(C(4)H)(3) of C(9)H(3), C(11)H(3), and C(13)H(3) radicals are most likely the carriers of the observed spectra.     

Kinetics of Depletion of Electronically Excited Ti Atom by CH4, C2H2, C2H4 and C2H6

The kinetics of depletion of ground state Ti(a³F) and electronically excited state Ti(a⁵F) upon interactions with CH₄, C₂H₂, C₂H₄, and C₂H₆ are studied in a fast-flow reactor at a He pressure of 0.70 Torr. No depletion of ground state Ti(a³F) was observed upon interaction with all hydrocarbons studied here. Two alkanes, CH₄ and C₂H₆, were also quite inert for depletion of the excited state Ti(a⁵F), On the other hand, C₂H₂ and C₂H₄ deplete the excited state Ti(a⁵F) very efficiently. Rate constants were determined to be (266 ± 86) and (476 ± 88) × 10^?12 cm³s^?1 for Ti(a⁵F) + C₂H₄ and Ti(a⁵F) + C₂H₂, respectively. These large rate constants compared with the ground state Ti were explained by an electron donor-acceptor interaction model that works in the interaction between C₂H₄ or C₂H₂ and the excited state with unfilled 4s orbital.     

Isotropic C6, C8 and C10 interaction coefficients for CH4, C2H6, C3H8, n-C4H10 and cyclo-C3H6

The non-empirical generalized Kirkwood, Unsöld, and the single-Δ Unsöld methods (with double-zeta quality SCF wave-functions) are used to calculate isotropic dispersion (and induction) energy coefficients C_2n, with n ? 5, for interactions involving ground state CH₄, C₂H₆, C₃H₈, n-C₄H₁₀ and cyclo-C₃H₆. Results are also given for the related multipole polarizabilities α_l, multipole sums S₁/(0) and S₁(?1) which are evaluated using sum rules, and the permanent multipole moments. for l = 1 (dipole) to l = 3 (octupole). Estimates of the reliability of the non-empirical methods, for the type of molecules considered, are obtained by a comparison with accurate literature values of α₁S₁(?1) and C₆. This, and the asymptotic properties of the multipolar expansion of the dispersion energy, the use to discuss recommended representation for the isotropic long range interaction energies through R^?10 where R is the intermolecular separation.     

GF Calculations for some tricyclic molecules: C3H6, C3H4, C2H4NH,C2H4O and C2H4S

We have functions expressed as antisymmetrized products of strongly orthogonal geminals have been evaluated for some three membered ring molecules. GF results are compared with previously computed SCF-MO results, obtained employing the same atomic basis. Transferability features of bonds and inner shells are shown.     

Stabilization Studies on Divalent Five‐Membered Rings C4H4C,C4H4Si,C4H4Ge,C4H4Sn,and C4H4Pb

Energy differences, ΔX_S‐t (X = E, H and G) (ΔX_S‐t = X_(singlet)‐X_(triplet)) between singlet (s) and triplet (t) states are calculated at B3LYP/6‐311++G (3df,2p). The DFT calculations show that the triplet state of C₄H₄C is a ground state with planar conformer respect to its corresponding nonplanar singlet state. Both singlet and triplet states of C₄H₄M (M = Si, Ge, Sn and Pb) have a planar conformer with the singlet ground state. Four isodesmic reactions are presented for determining the stability energies, SE. NICS calculations are carried out for C₄H₄M to determine the aromatic character.     

Accurate ab initio predictions of ionization energies of hydrocarbon radicals: CH2, CH3, C2H, C2H3, C2H5, C3H3, and C3H5

The ionization energies for methylene (CH2), methyl (CH3), ethynyl (C2H), vinyl (C2H3), ethyl (C2H5), propargyl (C3H3), and allyl (C3H5) radicals have been calculated by the wave-function-based ab initio CCSD(T)/CBS approach, which involves the approximation to the complete basis set (CBS) limit at the coupled-cluster level with single and double excitations plus a quasiperturbative triple excitation [CCSD(T)]. When it is appropriate, the zero-point vibrational energy correction, the core-valence electronic correction, the scalar relativistic effect correction, the diagonal Born-Oppenheimer correction, and the high-order correlation correction have also been made in these calculations. The comparison between the computed ionization energy (IE) values and the highly precise experimental IE values determined in previous pulsed field ionization-photoelectron (PFI-PE) studies indicates that the CCSD(T)/CBS method is capable of providing accurate IE predictions for these hydrocarbon radicals achieving error limits well within +/-10 meV. The benchmarking of the CCSD(T)/CBS IE predictions by the PFI-PE experimental results also lends strong support for the conclusion that the CCSD(T)/CBS approach with high-level energy corrections can serve as a valuable alternative for reliable IE determination of radicals, particularly for those radicals with very unfavorable Franck-Condon factors for photoionization transitions near their ionization thresholds.     

H. C. Brown

“As mentioned below, I had rough times and frustating moments during my first year at Purdue. However, nothing has been more frustating than the fact that the Nobel Committee has kept mistreating H. C. Brown. While there can be chemists who are worthy of all prizes except Nobel Prize, H. C. Brown is definitely not one of them.”     

Association rate constants for reactions between resonance-stabilized radicals: C3H3 + C3H3, C3H3 + C3H5, and C3H5 + C3H5

Reactions between resonance-stabilized radicals play an important role in combustion chemistry. The theoretical prediction of rate coefficients and product distributions for such reactions is complicated by the fact that the initial complex-formation steps and some dissociation steps are barrierless. In this paper direct variable reaction coordinate transition state theory (VRC-TST) is used to predict accurately the association rate constants for the self and cross reactions of propargyl and allyl radicals. For each reaction, a set of multifaceted dividing surfaces is used to account for the multiple possible addition channels. Because of their resonant nature the geometric relaxation of the radicals is important. Here, the effect of this relaxation is explicitly calculated with the UB3LYP/cc-pvdz method for each mutual orientation encountered in the configurational integrals over the transition state dividing surfaces. The final energies are obtained from CASPT2/cc-pvdz calculations with all pi-orbitals in the active space. Evaluations along the minimum energy path suggest that basis set corrections are negligible. The VRC-TST approach was also used to calculate the association rate constant and the corresponding number of states for the C(6)H(5) + H --> C(6)H(6) exit channel of the C(3)H(3) + C(3)H(3) reaction, which is also barrierless. For this reaction, the interaction energies were evaluated with the CASPT2(2e,2o)/cc-pvdz method and a 1-D correction is included on the basis of CAS+1+2+QC/aug-cc-pvtz calculations for the CH(3) + H reference system. For the C(3)H(3) + C(3)H(3) reaction, the VRC-TST results for the energy and angular momentum resolved numbers of states in the entrance channels and in the C(6)H(5) + H exit channel are incorporated in a master equation simulation to determine the temperature and pressure dependence of the phenomenological rate coefficients. The rate constants for the C(3)H(3) + C(3)H(3) and C(3)H(5) + C(3)H(5) self-reactions compare favorably with the available experimental data. To our knowledge there are no experimental rate data for the C(3)H(3) + C(3)H(5) reaction.     

Arrhenius parameters for the reactions CH3. + C4H10 → CH4 + C4H9. and C2H5. + C4H10 → C2H6 + C4H9.

Study of n-butane pyrolysis at high temperature in a flow system allows measurement of the sum of the rate constants of the initiation reactions and of the Arrhenius parameters of the reactions Established data for k₁/k₂ allow estimation of k₁ for 951°K and this, with recent thermochemical data, yields the result log k_?1 (l.mole s^?1) = 8.5, in remarkable agreement with a recent measurement [20] but over si×ty times smaller than conventional assumption. The product k₃k₄ (l.²mole^?2s^?2) is found to be associated with the Arrhenius parameters log (A₃A₄) = 21.90 ± 0.6 and (E₃ + E₄) = 38.3 ± 2.7 kcal/mole. These values are much higher than would be e×pected on the basis of low temperature estimates. Independent evaluation gives log A₄ = 10.5 ± 0.4 (l.mole^?1s^?1) and E₄ = 20.1 ± 1.7 kcal/mole, hence log A₃ = 11.4 ± 0.8 (l.mole^?1s^?1) and E₃ = 18.2 ± 3.2 kcal/mole. These values are shown to be entirely consistent with a wide range of results from pyrolytic studies, and it is argued that they further confirm the view that Arrhenius plots for alkyl radical–alkane metathetical reactions are strongly curved, in part due to tunneling and, appreciably, to other as yet unidentified effects. Since there is published evidence that metathetical reactions involving hydrogen atoms show even greater curvature, it is suggested that this may be a characteristic of many metathetical reactions.