| Abstract: | All-electron ab initio Hartree–Fock (RHF ) calculations have been carried out to investigate the keto/enol equilibrium of phloroglucinol. The calculations predict that the enol form of phloroglucinol, 1,3,5-benzenetriol, is by far the most stable of the two. This is confirmed by NMR spectra taken on phloroglucinol. A comparison of the keto enol form transformation of phloroglucinol with that of the phenol system shows that the keto form of phloroglucinol, 1,3,5-cyclohexanetrion, is more abundant in the phloroglucinol system, and the keto form of phenol, 2,4-cyclohexadien-1-on, in the phenol system. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |
