n-Propyl cyanide and isocyantde: rotational and structural isomerization

Ab initio calculations with an STO-3G basis and geometry optimization have been performed on n-propyl cyanide and isocyanide in four rotational conformations, trans, cis, and gauche, with, in the latter case, two different dihedral angles, 90° and 120° from the trans position, being employed. The trans and gauche 120° isomers are predicted to be the most stable for both the cyanide and isocyanide, and the cyanide—isocyanide energy difference is calculated to be approximately 22 kcal mole^?1 for each rotational isomer. The results of a population analysis are employed to discuss the electronic structures of the cyanide, isocyanide, and the isomerization process.     

Acetale von 1,2,3,4-Tetraoxobutan: Herstellung und Struktur von rac- und meso-2,3,3,4,4,5-Hexamethoxy-tetrahydrofuran

Acetals of 1,2,3,4-tetraoxobutane: preparation and structure determination of rac- and meso-2,3,3,4,4,5-hexamethoxy-tetrahydrofuran Oxidation of 3,4-dimethoxyfuran with 2 equiv. of bromine at ?75° in the presence of triethylamine and methanol leads to a mixture of rac- and meso-2,3,3,4,4,5-hexamethoxy-tetrahydrofuran (cf. Scheme 1, 4 and 5 ). The structure of the crystalline rac-compound has been determined by X-ray analysis.     

A conformational study of aromatic imide compounds. Part 2. Compounds containing diphenyl sulfide,diphenyl sulfone,and diphenylmethane moieties

An attempt was made to estimate the dihedral angles, φ, ψ, ω₁, and ω₂, of bis(4-hydroxyphthalimide)s (BHPI) and bis(phenylphthalimide)s (BPI) having diphenyl sulfide, diphenyl sulfone, or diphenylmethane linkages at the center of molecules using solid–state ¹³C CP/MAS NMR and ab initio nuclear shielding calculations. The TOSS and TOSS & DD pulse sequences were performed in the NMR measurements to obtain exact chemical shifts of each carbon. Total energies were calculated using the B3LYP/6-31G(d) level of theory, and shielding constants were calculated using the RHF/6-31G(d) level of theory for diphenyl sulfide, diphenyl sulfone, diphenylmethane with varying angles of φ, ψ from 0 to 180° at intervals of 10°. It was clarified that the –S– and –SO₂– linkages lead asymmetrical conformations with different ω₁ and ω₂ or with different φ and ψ for BHPIs and BPIs. In contrast, the compounds having –CH₂– linkages have symmetrical conformations. The dihedral angle of imide ring and phenylene ring (ω) are in the range of 40–90°, and the dihedral angles (φ,ψ) distribute in the stable regions of the energy surfaces ranging from 40 to 90°.     

Polymerization of olefins with a novel dinuclear ansa-zirconocene catalyst having a biphenyl bridge

Both the rac- and meso-dinuclear ansa-zirconocene catalysts (μ-C₁₂H₈{[SiPh(Ind)₂]ZrCl₂}₂) were prepared by a coupling reaction between 2 equiv of diindenylphenylchlorosilane (rac- and meso-isomers) and 1 equiv of p-dilithiobiphenyl in diethyl ether at −80°C, followed by a successive reaction with ZrCl₄ · 2THF in THF at −78°C. Polymerizations of ethene and propene were conducted in a 1 dm³ high-pressure glass reactor equipped with a mechanical stirrer at 60, 80, 100, 120, and 150°C using methylalumoxane (MAO) as cocatalyst and toluene or decahydronaphthalene as the solvent. Copolymerization of ethene and 1-octene was also checked in brief. For ethene polymerization, the meso-catalyst was found to be more active, which displayed an extremely high activity to give linear polyethene with a high molecular weight and a narrow molar mass distribution (MMD). The apparent activity increased monotonously with rising polymerization temperature from 60°C up to 150°C, indicating that the active species are stable even at a high temperature. On the other hand, both the rac- and meso-catalysts showed very poor activities for propene polymerization. However, copolymerization of ethene and 1-octene proceeded at a high speed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J. Polym. Sci. A Polym. Chem. 36: 2269–2274, 1998     

rac‐ and meso‐3,3′‐Bis(3,5‐di­methyl­phenyl)‐3H,3′H‐2,2′‐biindenyl­idene‐1,1′(2H,2′H)‐dione

In the rac isomer of the title compound, C₃₄H₂₈O₂, the two C—Ph_{di­methyl­phenyl} bond axes make an angle of 58.7 (1)°. There is no short contact between the two 3,5‐di­methyl­phenyl rings, although the dihedral angle between them is 4.93 (7)°. The meso isomer has a center of symmetry at the middle of the C=C bond, and the two C—Ph_{di­methyl­phenyl} bond axes are antiparallel to one another.     

Homo‐ and Heteronuclear meso,meso‐(E)‐Ethene‐1,2‐diyl‐Linked Diporphyrins: Preparation,X‐ray Crystal Structure,Electronic Absorption and Emission Spectra and Density Functional Theory Calculations

Homo‐ and heteronuclear meso,meso‐(E)‐ethene‐1,2‐diyl‐linked diporphyrins have been prepared by the Suzuki coupling of porphyrinylboronates and iodovinylporphyrins. Combinations comprising 5,10,15‐triphenylporphyrin (TriPP) on both ends of the ethene‐1,2‐diyl bridge M₂10 (M₂=H₂/Ni, Ni₂, Ni/Zn, H₄, H₂Zn, Zn₂) and 5,15‐bis(3,5‐di‐tert‐butylphenyl)porphyrinato‐nickel(II) on one end and H₂, Ni, and ZnTriPP on the other ( M₂11 ), enable the first studies of this class of compounds possessing intrinsic polarity. The compounds were characterized by electronic absorption and steady state emission spectra, ¹H NMR spectra, and for the Ni₂ bis(TriPP) complex Ni₂10 , single crystal X‐ray structure determination. The crystal structure shows ruffled distortions of the porphyrin rings, typical of Ni^II porphyrins, and the (E)‐C₂H₂ bridge makes a dihedral angle of 50° with the mean planes of the macrocycles. The result is a stepped parallel arrangement of the porphyrin rings. The dihedral angles in the solid state reflect the interplay of steric and electronic effects of the bridge on interporphyrin communication. The emission spectra in particular, suggest energy transfer across the bridge is fast in conformations in which the bridge is nearly coplanar with the rings. Comparisons of the fluorescence behaviour of H₄10 and H₂Ni10 show strong quenching of the free base fluorescence when the complex is excited at the lower energy component of the Soret band, a feature associated in the literature with more planar conformations. TDDFT calculations on the gas‐phase optimized geometry of Ni₂10 reproduce the features of the experimental electronic absorption spectrum within 0.1 eV.     

Ethylene/1‐hexene copolymerization with tetramethyldisiloxane‐bridged bis(indenyl) metallocenes

Ethylene/1‐hexene copolymerizations with disiloxane‐bridged metallocenes, rac‐ and meso‐1,1,3,3‐tetramethyldisiloxanediyl‐bis(1‐indenyl)zirconium dichloride (rac‐ 1 , meso‐ 1 ) activated by modified methylaluminoxane were performed to investigate the influence of conformational dynamics on comonomer selectivity. Although ¹H NOESY (nuclear Overhauser and exchange spectroscopy) analysis indicated that the most stable conformation for the meso isomer in solution was that in which both indenes project over the metal coordination site, this isomer showed higher 1‐hexene selectivity in copolymerization (r_e = 140 ± 30, r_h = 0.024 ± 0.004) than the rac isomer with only one indene over the coordination site (r_e = 240 ± 20, r_h = 0.005 ± 0.001). The meso isomer showed high 1‐hexene selectivity, a high product of reactivity ratios (r_er_h = 3.3 ± 0.5) and produced copolymers that could be separated into fractions with different ethylene content suggesting that the active species exhibited multisite behavior and populated conformations with different comonomer selectivities during the copolymerization. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 3323–3331, 2004     

Experimental and theoretical characterization of the aromatization, epimerization, and fragmentation reactions of bi-2H-azirin-2-yls prepared from 1,4-diazidobuta-1,3-dienes

1,4‐Diazidobuta‐1,3‐dienes (Z,Z)‐ 10 , 17 , and 21 were photolyzed and thermolyzed to yield the pyridazines 13 , 20 , and 23 , respectively. To explain these aromatic final products, the generation of highly strained bi‐2H‐azirin‐2‐yls 12 , 19 , and 22 and their valence isomerization were postulated. In the case of meso‐ and rac‐ 22 , nearly quantitative formation from diazide 21 , isolation as stable solids, and complete characterization were possible. On the thermolysis of 22 , aromatization to 23 was only a side reaction, whereas equilibration of meso‐ and rac‐ 22 and fragmentation, which led to alkyne 24 and acetonitrile, dominated. Prolonged irradiation of 22 gave mainly the pyrimidine 25 . The change of the configuration at C‐2 of the 2H‐azirine unit was observed not only in the case of bi‐2H‐azirin‐2‐yls 22 but also for simple spirocyclic 2H‐azirines 29 at a relatively low temperature (75 °C). The fragmentation of rac‐ 22 to give alkyne 24 and two molecules of acetonitrile was also studied by high‐level quantum chemical calculations. For a related model system 30 (methyl instead of phenyl groups), two transition states TS‐ 30 – 31 of comparable energy with multiconfigurational electronic states could be localized on the energy hypersurface for this one‐step conversion. The symmetrical transition state complies with the definition of a coarctate mechanism.     

From Planar Toward Tetrahedral Copper(Il) Complexes: Structural and Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Studies of Substituent Steric Effects in an Extended Class of Pyrrolate-Imine Ligands

A series (1a-1h) of crystalline bis-pyrrolate-imine copper(II) complexes was isolated in good yield (typically 60-90%) by reaction of the Schiff base 2-N-(R)-pyrrolecarbaldimine (where R is an alkyl group of variable steric capacity) with a copper(II) salt and base in methanol or water. For new complexes 1f-1h, pyrrolate-imine coordination is inferred by loss of ν(N-H) and a shift (ca. 40 cm^?1) to lower energy for ν(C=N) in the infrared spectra relative to free Schiff base. The X-ray crystal structures of 1f, where R = benzyl, and 1g, where R = diphenylmethyl, show trans geometry of the pyrrolate-imine moieties around Cu(II). The distortion from planarity of the CuN₄ coordination sphere, defined as the dihedral angle between the two chelating N(imine)-Cu-N(pyrrolate) planes, is 33.13(5)° for 1f and 29.3° for 1g. X-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra for 1a-1h in glassy solutions (ca. 100 K) are approximately axial, with an inverse correlation between A _z and g _z . At room temperature in fluid solution there is an inverse correlation between A _iso and g _iso. Plots of A _z , A _iso, g _z , or g _iso as a function of the dihedral angles between the ligand planes in 1f and 1g, as well as the previously characterized 1a (R = H) and 1d (R = tert-butyl) were used to determine the dihedral angles of the four complexes of unknown geometry. A red-shift in the ligand field bands in the electronic absorption spectra in chloroform also correlates with increasing dihedral angle. For each of these correlations, the data point for the diphenylmethyl derivative 1g deviates slightly from the line based on the other complexes; this is attributed to crystal packing forces causing a smaller dihedral angle for 1g in the crystal than in solution.     

An ab initio study of the p,π interaction: IV. Interaction of an ether oxygen atom with a carbonyl group

RHF/6-311G(d) calculations were performed for the H₃COCOH molecule with full geometry optimization and at varied angles of rotation of the methoxy group about the C-O bond, with all the other geometric parameters optimized. The molecule can exist in two stable conformations with the dihedral angle O¹C¹O²C² of 0.00° and 179.99°. The influence of the rotation angle on the population of the p _y orbital of the carbonyl oxygen atom in compounds with different types of the adjacent bond is essentially similar. The results obtained are inconsistent with the concept of the p,π conjugation involving the p _y orbitals of the planar molecular fragment (orbitals whose symmetry axes are perpendicular to this fragment).     

Oxydative Aryl-Aryl-Verknüpfung von 6,6′,7,7′-Tetramethoxy-1,1′,2,2′,3,3′,4,4′-octahydro-1,1′-biisochinolin-Derivaten

Oxidative Aryl-Aryl-Coupling of 6,6′,7,7′-Tetramethoxy-1,1′,2,2′,3,3′,4,4′-octahydro-1,1′-biisoquinoline Derivatives We describe the synthesis of 2 by intramolecular oxidative coupling of 1, 1′-biisoquinoline derivatives 1 (Scheme 1). This heterocyclic system can be considered as a union of two apomorphine molecules and may thus exhibit dopaminergic activity. - The readily available tetrahydrobiisoquinoline 6 was methylated to 11 (Scheme 4) and reduced (with NaBH₃CN) to rac- 7 and (catalytically) to meso- 7 (Scheme 3). Reduction of 11 with NaBH₄ and of the biurethane rac- 9 with LiAlH₄/AlCl₃ afforded meso- and rac- 10 , respectively (Scheme 4). Demethylation of 6 , meso- 10 , meso- and rac- 7 led to 12 , meso- 14 , meso- and rac- 13 , respectively (Scheme 5). The latter two phenols were converted with chloroformic ester to the hexaethoxycarbonyl derivatives meso- and rac- 15 and subsequently saponified to the biurethanes meso- and rac- 16 , respectively (Scheme 5). - In order to assure proximity of the two aromatic rings, the ethano-bridged derivatives meso- and rac- 18 were prepared by condensing meso- and rac- 7 with oxalic ester and reducing the oxalyl derivatives meso- and rac- 17 with LiAlH₄/AlCl₃, respectively (Scheme 6). The ¹H-NMR, spectra at different temperatures showed that rac- 18 populated two conformers but rac- 17 only one, all with C₂-symmetry, and that meso- 17 as well as meso- 18 populated two enantiomeric conformers with C₁-symmetry. Whereas both oxalyl derivatives 17 were fairly rigid due to the two amide groupings, the ethano derivatives 18 exhibited coalescence temperatures of -20 and 30°. - The intramolecular coupling of the two aromatic rings was successful under ‘non-phenolic oxidative’ conditions with the tetramethoxy derivatives 7, 10 and 18 , the rac-isomers leading to the desired dibenzophenanthrolines, the meso-isomers, however, mostly to dienones (Scheme 9): With VOF₃ and FSO₃H in CF₃COOH/CH₂Cl₂ rac- 7 was converted to rac- 19 , rac- 18 to rac- 21 and rac- 10 to a mixture of rac- 20 and the dienone 23b of the morphinane type. Under the same conditions meso- 10 was transformed to the dienone 23a of the morphinane type, whereas meso- 18 yielded the dienone 24 of the neospirine type, both in lower yields. The analysis of the spectral data of the six coupling products offers evidence for their structures. With the demethylation of rac- 20 and rac- 21 to rac- 25 and rac- 26 , respectively, the synthetic goal of the work was reached, but only in the rac-series (Scheme 10). - In the course of this work two cleavages of octahydro-1,1′-biisoquinolines at the C(1), C(1′)-bond were observed: (1) The biurethanes 9 and 16 in both the meso- and rac-series reacted with oxygen in CF₃COOH solution to give the 3,4-dihydroisoquinolinium salts 27 and 28 ; the latter was deprotonated to the quinomethide 30 (Scheme 11). (2) Under the Clarke-Eschweiler reductive-methylation conditions meso- and rac- 7 were cleaved to the tetrahydroisoquinoline derivative 32 .     

Conformational analysis—CXVII : Methyl ethyl disulfide. Molecular mechanics and molecular orbital calculations

The conformation of methyl ethyl disulfide was investigated by molecular mechanics calculations using a recently developed force field for sulfur-containing alkanes. The results indicate that in the gas phase the molecule exists predominantly in two conformations, both with the CSSC dihedral angle gauche (84°), and the SSCC dihedral angle either gauche (72°) or trans (179°), and the methyl protons staggered. Ab initio molecular orbital calculations using an STO-3G basis set were employed to corroborate that these two conformations are of roughly equal stability, and that the next most stable conformation (by 0.6 kcal/mole) has the SSCC dihedral angle gauche (295°) with the terminal methyls proximal. In contrast to earlier CNDO/2 (spd) predictions, the SSCC cis conformer is the least stable, and no sizable attractive S?HC nonbonded interactions are discerned. Reasons for this are traced to a failure of the CNDO/2 method, which is especially serious when d orbitals are included in the basis set (spd) and the rigid rotor approximation is used. The present results are found to be consistent with recent electron diffraction, IR, Raman spectroscopic and X-ray diffraction data. The conformation of diethyl disulfide was also investigated by molecular mechanics calculations, and again gauche and trans SSCC arrangements are predicted to be preferred.     

Ab initio studies of structural features not easily amenable to experiment. 38. Structural and conformational investigations of propanoic, 2-methylpropanoic,and butanoic acid

The structures and conformational energies of several conformations of propanoic acid, 2-methylpropanoic acid, and butanoic acid were determined by geometrically unconstrained ab initio gradient geometry refinement on the 4-21G level. The O?C? C? C torsional potentials of propanoic acid and butanoic acid are found to be practically identical. There are energy minima at 0° and 120°, and maxima in the 60° region and at 180°. In 2-methylpropanoic acid there are energy minima at H? C? C?O dihedral angles of 0° and 120°, and maxima at 60° and 180°. The exact positions of the maxima and minima of the H? C? C?O torsional potential of 2-methylpropanoic acid are found to be predictable from propanoic acid rotational-potential parameters. Some conformationally dependent, local geometry trends are discussed.     

Ab initio studies of structural features not easily amenable to experiment. 25. Conformational analysis of methyl propanoate and comparison with the methyl ester of glycine

The molecular geometries of three conformations of methyl propanoate (MEP) (C? C? C?O torsions of 0°, 120°, and 180°) and the potential-energy surfaces of MEP (C? C? C?O torsions) and of the methyl ester of glycine (MEG) (N? C? C?O torsions) have been determined by ab initio gradient calculations at the 4-21G level. MEP has conformational energy minima at 0° and 120° of the C? C? C?O torsion, while the 60–90° range and 180° are energy maxima. For MEG there are two minima (at 0° and 180°) and one barrier to N? C? C?O rotation in the 60–90° range. The N? C? C?O barrier height is about twice as high (4 kcal/mol) as the C? C? C?O barrier. The 180° N? C? C?O minimum is characteristically wide and flat allowing for considerable flexibility of the N? C? C?O torsion in the 150–210° range. This flexibility could be of potential importance for polypeptide systems, since the N? C? C?O angles of helical forms are usually found in this region. The molecular structures of the methyl ester group CH₃OC(?O)CHRR′ in several systems are compared and found to be rather constant when R ? H and R′ ? H, CH₃, CH₃CH₂; or when R ? NH₂ and R′ ? H, CH₃, or CH(CH₃)₂.     

The conformational dependence of vicinal 13C13C spin–spin coupling constants in alicyclic compounds

A series of alicyclic compounds with dihedral angles of 0°, 60°, 90°, 120° and 180° between a ¹³C-labelled carbon atom and a carbon atom separated by three bonds from the label has been synthesized. The vicinal ¹³C¹³C spin coupling constants were measured, and from the results a Karplus-type relationship between ¹³C¹³C spin coupling and dihedral angle is proposed.     

Conformational analysis of highly extended poly(ethylene terephthalate) chains by Monte Carlo calculations

The conformational disorder compatible with the highly extended chains found in mesomorphic poly(ethylene terephthalate) has been studied by Monte Carlo calculations on model oligomers confined inside cylindrical tubes. The distribution of torsional angles for such extended chains is characterized by O C C O bonds being always in the trans domain, while the C O C C bonds show an approximately similar probability of being found in trans and gauche states, the probability maxima being centered at 90° and −90° in the latter cases. At variance with the torsional angles of the O C C O and the ester bonds, always very close to 180°, the distributions for all other torsional angles show flat and broad probability maxima, indicating the possibility of substantial deviations from the average value inside each domain. This is also true for the fictitious O C˙˙˙C O bonds across the phenylene rings, for which a nearly trans geometry is preferred in extended conformations.     

Electron diffraction study of molecular structure of mebicar

The structure of the mebicar molecule has been studied by gas-phase electron-diffractometry using quantum chemical calculations. An eclipsed conformation along the C-C bond (torsion angle ?(H-C-C-H) = 10°) and flattened semi-chair conformations of cyclic fragments have been found. The bond lengths (r _g ) and angles (∠α) show the following average values: r(C-C) 1.576(3) Å, r(C-N) 1.460(3) Å, r(C(O)-N) 1.390(4) Å, r(C=O) 1.211(5) Å, r(C-H) 1.090(5) Å, ∠CCN 103.0(5)°, ∠CNC(O) 112.2(1)°, ∠CNC 122.4(1)°. The dihedral angle between the cyclic fragments is 116.6°.     

Conformational Analysis of Open-Chain 1,2:3,4-Diepoxides: Comparison of crystal structures,NMR data,and molecular-orbital calculations

Several pairs of diastereoisomeric open-chain 1,2:3,4-diepoxides with different substitution patterns were prepared (see 3–9 ). As far as possible, crystal structures were determined to corroborate the relative configurations and to give insight into the solid-state conformations of these compounds. The comparison with our earlier molecular-orbital calculations and with ¹H-NMR measurements shows that the solid-state conformations of eight out of the nine open-chain 1,2:3,4-diepoxides, whose crystal structures had been determined, correspond to minima on the calculated energy profiles for these compounds or for closely related derivatives. In solution, highly substituted diepoxides of the erythro-series (e- 6 , e- 7 , e- 9 ) seem to prefer the same conformation as in the crystal. The solution conformations of all other diepoxides differ from the arrangement in the solid state.     

Crystal structures of two (5,5,7,12,12,14‐hexamethyl‐1,4,8,11‐tetraazacyclotetradecane)iron(III) complexes

Reported in this contribution are the synthesis and crystal structures of two new Fe^III complexes of 5,5,7,12,12,14‐hexamethyl‐1,4,8,11‐tetraazacyclotetradecane (HMC), namely, dichlorido(5,5,7,12,12,14‐hexamethyl‐1,4,8,11‐tetraazacyclotetradecane)iron(III) chloride, [FeCl₂(C₁₆H₃₆N₄)]Cl or cis‐[FeCl₂(rac‐HMC)]Cl ( 1 ), and dichlorido(5,5,7,12,12,14‐hexamethyl‐1,4,8,11‐tetraazacyclotetradecane)iron(III) tetrachloridoferrate, [FeCl₂(C₁₆H₃₆N₄)][FeCl₄] or trans‐[FeCl₂(meso‐HMC)][FeCl₄] ( 2 ). Single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction studies revealed that both 1 and 2 adopt a pseudo‐octahedral geometry, where the macrocycles adopt folded and planar geometries, respectively. The chloride ligands in 1 are cis to each other, while those in 2 have a trans configuration. The relevant bond angles in 1 deviate substantially from an ideal octahedral coordination geometry, with the angles between the cis substituents varying from 81.55 (5) to 107.56 (4)°, and those between the trans‐ligating atoms varying from 157.76 (8) to 170.88 (3)°. In contrast, 2 adopts a less strained configuration, in which the N—Fe—N angles vary from 84.61 (8) to 95.39 (8)° and the N—Fe—Cl angles vary from 86.02 (5) to 93.98 (5)°.