Biproton transfer in associates of the formic acid molecule with H2O...YH systems (YH=H2O,HOF and HOOH)

An ab initio (STO-3G basis set) method is used to calculate the pathways and activation barriers of cooperative biproton migrations in the associates of the formic acid molecule with water and YH (YH=H₂O, HOF, and HOOH). The associate with YH=H₂O exhibits a cooperative triproton transfer with an activation barrier of 4.46 (C_s symmetry) or 3.08 kcal/mole (C₂ symmetry); in the systems with Y=HOF and HOOH, the biproton transfer is accompanied by synchronous shifts of two hydroxyl groups and has the activation barriers of 75.03 (C₂, Y=HOF), 75.74 (C_s, Y=HOF), and 89.62 kcal/mole (Y=HOOH). The hypothesis of stereochemical similarity for low-barrier cooperative processes in molecular associates is proposed. Scientific Research Institute of Physical and Organic Chemistry, Rostov State University. Translated fromZhurnal Strukturnoi Khimii, Vol. 37, No. 5, pp. 834–844, September–October, 1996. Translated by I. Izvekova     

Pathways of the reactions of nucleophilic addition of H2O and HF molecules to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the complex with formic acid:ab initio calculations

The gradient pathways of the reactions of nucleophilic addition of H₂O and HF molecules to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the XH…H₂CO…HC(O)OH complex (X=OH, F) were calculated by theab initio RHF/6-31G^**, MP2(fc)/6-31G^**, and MP2(full)/6-311++G^** methods. Both reactions proceed concertedly. The formation of H-bonded bimolecular pre-reaction complexes is the initial stage of the gas-phase reactions; at the same time, no indications of the formation of stable π-complexes were found on the potential energy surfaces of systems under study. The calculated energy barriers to the gasphase reactions exceed 40 kcal mol⁻¹, while those to reactions in the complex XH…H₂CO…HC(O)OH (X=OH, F) become more than halved. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2146–2154, November, 1998.     

Double proton migrations in the associates of formic acid with nitrous,nitric, orthophosphoric,and sulfuric acids

Mechanisms of the proton transfer in dimeric associates of formic acid with nitrous, nitric, orthophosphoric, and sulfuric acids were studied by theab initio (HF/6-31G^**) method. The mechanism of the cooperative (concerted or one-step) proton transfer was shown to occur in all cases. The calculated activation barriers of the proton transfer reactions for the associates investigated are equal to 19.9, 14.2, 13.3, and 10.7 kcal mol^–1, respectively.Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 9, pp. 2184–2189, September, 1996.     

Proton migrations in associates of two molecules of formic acid with one molecule of hydrazine or hydrogen peroxide

The mechanisms of the proton transfer in associates of two molecules of formic acid with one molecule of hydrazine or hydrogen peroxide were studied usingab initio (SCFj6-31G^**) method. The mechanism of cooperative (concerted, one-step) four-proton transfer is realized in the associate with the hydrazine molecule. The proton transfer occurs stepwisevia an intermediate in the associate with a hydrogen peroxide molecule. The calculated activation barriers to the proton transfer in the associates investigated are 34.7 kcal mol^–1 and 27.1 kcal mol^–1, respectively.Translated fromlzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2631–2635, November, 1996.     

Four-proton migrations in associates of two molecules of formic acid with two molecules of water or hydrogen fluoride

The mechanisms of proton transfer in associates of two molecules of formic acid with two molecules of water or hydrogen fluoride were studied usingab initio (SCF/6-31G^**) method. Cooperative (concerted, or one-step) four-proton transfer occurs in the associates studied. The structures of the transition states are in complete agreement with the previously proposed concept of stereochemical correspondence for cooperative reactions. The calculated energy barriers to cooperative proton transfer in the associates investigated are 32.9 and 24.2 kcal mol^–1, respectively.Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2636–2640, November, 1996.     

Double proton shifts in associates of formic acid with CH4, NH3, H2O,CH3F,NH2F,HOF, and HF molecules

The mechanisms of double synchronous proton transfer in associates of formic acid with solvent molecules of the HC(O)OHX (X = CH₄, NH₃, H₂O, or HF) and HC(O)OHFHY (Y = CH₃F, NH₂F, HOF, F₂, or HF) types have been studied by anab initio (SCF/3G) method. The calculated activation barriers of the reactions are 78.52, 17.72, 9.91, and 7.06 kcal mol^–1 in the former case and 120.1, 259.4, 228.7, 182.8, and 0.35 kcal mol^–1 in the latter case. In the latter case, simultaneously with the double transfer of protons, migration of two fluorine atoms along the chain of the associate occurs.Dedicated to Academician of the RAS N. S. Zefirov (on his 60th birthday).Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 9, pp. 1690–1700, September, 1995.The present work was carried out with financial support from the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (Project Nos. 93-03-4972 and 93-03-18692) and the International Science Foundation (Grant ISF RNJ 000).     

Pathways of the reaction of nucleophilic addition of ammonia to formaldehyde in the gas phase and in the complex with formic acid:ab initio calculations

The gradient pathways of the reaction of nucleophilic addition of ammonia to formaldehyde were calculated for free molecules and in the NH₃...H₂CO...HC(O)OH complex by theab initio RHF/6-31G^**, MP2(fc)/6-31G^**, and MP2(full)/6-311++G^** methods. Both reactions proceed concertedly. In the first case, the reaction successively passes through two transitional states with an energy barrier exceeding 35 kcal mol⁻¹. In the case of the complex with formic acid, the reaction follows a conventional pathway, although its activation barrier calculated by the RHF/6-31G^** and MP2(fc)/6-31G^** methods decreases to 12.6 and 3.8 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 1, pp. 13–20, January, 1998.     

SCF LCAO MO studies on the hydration of ions: The system F− · 2H2O

The energy surface of the dihydrated fluoride anion (F·2H₂O)^–1 is studied for a number of different geometry points near the equilibrium structure within the SCF LCAO MO framework, using an extended gaussian basis set to approximate the molecular wavefunctions. For the first and second hydration step of the fluoride anion the corresponding hydration energies are calculated to beB ₁ ^scf =24.1 kcal/mole andB ₂ ^SCF =20.8 kcal/mole (experimental measurements: 23.3 kcal/mole and 16.6 kcal/mole, respectively). The hydration energies and equilibrium bond distances obtained for the dihydrated fluoride anion (F·2H₂O)^– are compared with those found for the monohydrate (FHOH)^– and with corresponding results of the dihydrated lithium cation (Li · 2H₂O)⁺. The system (F·2H₂O)^– is taken as a very simple model to discuss some basic features of the hydration process of small ions and to study the influence of a negative ion on an adjacent hydrogen bond.We would like to thank our technical staff for valuable help in carrying out these calculations.     

Theoretical studies of O2−:(H2O)n clusters

The interaction of superoxide ion O₂^? with up to four water molecules [O₂^?: (H₂O)_n, n = 1, 2, 4] has been investigated using ab initio molecular orbital theory. The binding energy of O₂^?: H₂O is calculated to be ?20.6 kcal/mol in good agreement with gas phase experimental data. At the MP3/6-31G^* level the O₂^?:H₂O complex has a C_2v structure with a double (cyclic) hydrogen bond between O₂^? and H₂O. A C_s structure with a single hydrogen bond is only 0.7 kcal/mol less stable. Interaction of H₂O with the doubly occupied π^* orbital of O₂^? is preferred slightly over interaction with the singly occupied π^* orbital. Natural bond orbital analysis suggests that both electrostatic and charge transfer interactions are important in anionic complexes. The charge transfer occurs predominantly in the O₂^? → H₂O direction and is important in determining the relative stabilities of the different structures and states. Singly and doubly hydrogen-bonded structures for the O₂^?: (H₂O)₂ and O₂^?: (H₂O)₄ clusters were found to be similar in stability and the increase in binding of the cluster becomes smaller as each additional water molecule is added to the cluster.     

Thermochemische und kinetische Untersuchungen der endothermen Umbildungsreaktionen des Epsomits (MgSO4 · 7H2O)

Heterogeneous decompositions of MgSO₄ · 7H₂O (Epsomite) monocrystals were studied with thermal (DTA, DSC, TG) and thermo-optical methods. The polythermal reaction is controlled by nucleation of the reactant. This process has been considered by the Avrami-Erofe'ev equation: $$kt = [ - \ln (1 - \alpha )]^{{\raise0.7ex\hbox{$1$} \!\mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {1 3}}\right.\kern-\nulldelimiterspace}\!\lower0.7ex\hbox{$3$}}} $$ The plots and the slope which give the activation energyE+=23.5 kcal/mole (760 Torr N₂, 50–100°), are obtained from the Freeman-Carroll equation. The DSC technique was used to determine the heat of decomposition (ΔH=42.3 kcal/mole, 760 Torr N₂, 50–100°). The heat of transformation for the reaction 39–47° $$MgSO_4 \cdot 7H_2 O\xrightarrow{{39 - 47^ \circ }}MgSO_4 \cdot 6H_2 O + H_2 O$$ wasΔH=2.8 kcal/mole. The isothermal reaction (20°, 10^?6 Torr) is controlled by first-order kinetic.     

Aromatic stability energy studies on five-membered heterocyclic C4H4M (M = O, S, Se, Te, NH, PH, AsH and SbH): DFT calculations

Energetic, geometric and magnetic criteria were applied to examine the stability and/or aromatic character for the cyclic molecules C ₄ H ₄ M (M = O, S, Se, Te, NH, PH, AsH and SbH) at B3LYP/6-311++G^** and MP2/6-311++G^** levels of theory. The isodesmic reactions and nuclear independent chemical shifts (NICS) calculations were utilized to examine the molecules for energetic and magnetic criteria, respectively. The isodesmic reaction energies reveal that thiophene (C ₄ H ₄ S, ?23.269 kcal/mol) and pyrrole (C ₄ H ₄ NH, ?20.804 kcal/mol) have the greatest aromatic stabilization energies and tellurophene (C ₄ H ₄ Te, ?15.114 kcal/mol) and stibole (C ₄ H ₄ SbH, ?1.169 kcal/mol) have the lowest aromatic stabilization energies in their corresponding groups at MP2/6-311++G^**. The NICS calculations confirmed the results obtained through isodesmic reaction energies.     

A double self-consistent-field method for electron correlation: Applications to LiH,H2O,and cyclopropane

A computational procedure which introduces some electron correlation into quantum mechanical calculations is described. Diverse applications are given. Among these, the method gives values of 65.6 kcal/mole for the dissociation energy of LiH, 62.0 kcal/mole for the ring-opening energy of cyclopropane, and 9.123 × 15⁵ dynes/cm for the O–H stretching force constant of H₂O. These results, and others given, suggest that our procedure has great potential and provides a very economical method for introducing electron correlation into a wave-function.     

Inversion of Pyramidal Configuration of Pnictogenic Center in Diazapnictolenes

The possibility of pyramidal inversion in diazapnictolenes was investigated by methods ab initio MP2(full)/6-31G^** and density functional theory B3LYP/6-31G^**. The inversion of tricoordinate phosphorus in 2-fluoro-1,3,2-diazaphospholene and of arsenic in 2-fluoro-1,3,2-diazaarsolene requires low activation barriers (<15 kcal mol^-1) corresponding to the time scale of the NMR method.     

Ab initio valence-bond calculations of H2O

The first and second bond dissociation energies for H₂O have been calculated in anab initio manner using a multistructure valence-bond scheme. The basis set consisted of a minimal number of non-orthogonal atomic orbitals expressed in terms of gaussian-lobe functions. The valence-bond structures considered properly described the change in the molecular system as the hydrogen atoms were individually removed to infinity. The calculated equilibrium geometry for the H₂O molecule has an O-H bond length of 1.83 Bohrs and an HOH bond angle of 106.5°. With 49 valence-bond structures the energy of H₂O at this geometry was ?76.0202 Hartrees. The calculated equilibrium bond length for the OH radical was 1.86 Bohrs and the energy, using the same basis set, was ?75.3875 Hartrees. After correction for zero point energies the calculated bond dissociation energies are: H₂O → OH + H, D₁=75.38 kcal/mole and OH → O+H, D₂=54.79 kcal/mole.     

Tautomerism of xanthine: The second-order MØller-Plesset study

Four 9H and four 7H tautomers of DNA base xanthine were studied by the ab initio LCAO-MO method at the MP2/6-311G^**//HF/6-31G^** and MP2/6-31G^**//HF/6-31G^** approximations. All calculated structures are minima at the HF/6-31G^** potential energy surface with the dioxo 7H tautomer (A1) being the global minimum. The second most stable tautomer, dioxo-9H (B1) is by 9 kcal/mol less stable. For the A1 B1 transition the calculated MP2 energy gap corresponds to the equilibrium constant of 2 × 10^–7. Therefore, only the major tautomeric form A1 is predicted to be detectable in the gas phase. The 7H and 9H groups of tautomers are discussed separately. Within both groups, the dioxo form (A1-7H, B1-9H) is the most stable one and is succeeded by the 2-dihydroxy (A2, B2) form. However, while the energy difference between A1 and A2 is 10 kcal/mol, the energy difference between B1 a B2 is only 2 kcal/mol. The effect of polar environment was estimated by the SCRF method, using a spherical cavity, at the HF/6-31G^** level. These calculations did not change the gas phase stability order of the tautomers. However, the energy difference between A1 and B1 decreased from 9 kcal/mol at the HF/6-31G^** level to 4 kcal/mol at the SCRF HF/6-31G^** level.     

Ligand Exchange Processes on Solvated Beryllium Cations. IV [Be(H2O)2(imidazole‐based Chelate)]1)

The water exchange reaction of [Be(H₂O)₂(1H‐imidazole‐4,5‐dicarboxylate)] and [Be(H₂O)₂(1H‐imidazol‐3‐ium‐4,5‐dicarboxylate)]⁺ in water was studied by DFT calculations (RB3LYP/6‐311+G**) and identified as an associative interchange mechanism. The activation barriers for [Be(H₂O)₂(1H‐imidazole‐4,5‐dicarboxylate)] (16.6 kcal/mol) and [Be(H₂O)₂(1H‐imidazol‐3‐ium‐4,5‐dicarboxylate)]⁺ (13.8 kcal/mol) are similar to the barrier for [Be(H₂O)₄)]²⁺ and independent of the overall charge. NICS calculations show no indication that the aromaticity of the imidazole ring is affected during the water exchange process.     

Reaction HFCO + 2H2O — Calculated Mechanisms

Three possible reaction mechanisms of methanoyl fluoride with 2H₂O include a concerted and a stepwise hydrolysis of HFCO into HCOOH + HF, and a pure catalytic decomposition of HFCO into HF + CO. Among these, the two H₂O molecules acting as catalyst to decompose HFCO has the lowest calculated barrier, 25.1 kcal/mol with respect to the reactant‐adduct complex, whereas the barriers for the concerted and stepwise hydrolytic reactions in which one H₂O acts as a reactant and the other H₂O as catalyst are similar, 30.8 kcal/mol for concerted and 29.9 kcal/mol for stepwise. The formation of transoid HCOOH in the hydrolysis of HFCO is more favorable than cisoid HCOOH.     

Intramolecular nucleophilicS N 2 substitution at the tetrahedral carbon atom: Anab initio study

Pentacoordination of carbon atom in bicyclic organic compounds of the pentalene type was studied by theab initio RHF/6-31G^** and MP2(full)/6-31G^** methods. It was shown that intramolecularS _N 2 reactions with energy barriers within the energy scale of NMR spectroscopy can occur in systems in which a linear orientation of the attacking and leaving groups is realized. The barrier to the intramolecular nucleophilic substitution reaction in 2,3-dihydro-3-formylmethylenefuran is 36.9 (RHF) and 27.7 kcal mol⁻¹ (MP2) and decreases to 16.4 and 19.4 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively, in the case of diprotonation at the O atoms in this system. For model pentalene type compounds containing electron-deficient B atoms in the ring, theab initio calculations predict a further decrease in the barrier height (down to less than 10 kcal mol⁻¹). Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 7, pp. 1246–1256, July, 1999.     

SCF MO LCGO studies on the hydration of ions: The systems H+H2O,Li+H2O,and Na+H2O

The energy surfaces of the systems LiOH ₂ ⁺ and NaOH ₂ ⁺ are studied for a number of different geometries within the SCF MO LCAO framework, using a gaussian basis set to approximate the wavefunction. In the minimum energy geometry of both systems the positive ion is bound to the oxygen atom of the water molecule. The computed binding energies and bond distances are: B ^SCF(LiOH ₂ ⁺ ) = 36.0 kcal/mole, d(LiO) = 3.57 a.u., and B ^SCF(NaOH ₂ ⁺ ) = 25.2 kcal/mole, d(NaO) = 4.23 a.u., resp. The results are compared with those of H₃O⁺ and discussed in view of ion-solvent interaction in aquous solutions.It is a pleasure to thank our technical staff for the careful preparation of the input for the programs and for its enthusiastic and skilful assistance in running the computer.     

Rate coefficients at 297 K for proton transfer reactions with H2O. Comparisons with classical theories and exothermicity

Rate coefficients for proton transfer reactions of the type XH⁺ + H₂O → H₃O⁺ + X where X = H₂, CH₄, CO, N₂, CO₂ and N₂O and the type H₂O + X^? → XH + OH^? where X = H, NH₂ and C₂H₅NH have been measured at 297 K using the flowing afterglow technique. The results compare favourably with the predictions of the average-dipole-orientation theory. A trend is observed with exothermicity on a plot of (k_exp/k_ADO)_{298 K} versus ?ΔH_{298 K}⁰. The question is raised whether the relatively low probability observed for slightly exothermic proton transfer reactions is a consequence of reaction mechanism or results from the presence of a small activation energy barrier.