The structure of the H3O+ (hydronium) ion

Near Hartree-Fock level ab initio molecular orbital calculations on H₃O⁺ and a minimum energy structure with θ(HOH) = 112.5° and r(OH) = 0.963 Å and an inversion barrier of 1.9 kcal/mole. By comparing these results to calculations on NH₃ and H₂O, where precise experimental geometries are known, we estimate the “true” geometry of isolated H₃O⁺ to have a structure with θ(HOH) = 110-112°, r(OH) = 0.97–0.98 Å and an inversion barrier of 2–3 kcal/mole. Our prediction for the proton affinity of water is ≈ 170 kcal/mole, which is somewhat smaller than the currently accepted value.