Theoretical studies of the geometries of H2GeLiCl and its insertion reaction with R-H (R = F,OH, NH2)

The geometries and insertion reactions of germylene derivative H₂GeLiCl with R-H (R = F, OH, NH₂) have been investigated at the B3LYP/6-311+G^* level of theory. The potential barriers of the three reactions are 93.5, 151.3, and 194.1 kJ/mol, including the zero-point vibration energy corrections, respectively. The mechanisms of all the three reactions are identical, i.e., an intermediate has been located during the insertion reaction. The intermediate could dissociate to substituted germylene and LiCl as a barrier process. Correspondingly, the reaction free energies for the three reactions are −7.4, 49.9, and 64.4 kJ/mol, respectively.