Ultrafast Two-Dimensional Infrared Spectroscopy Resolves the Conformational Change of an Evans Auxiliary Induced by Mg(ClO4)2

Central-metal effect on intramolecular vibrational energy transfer of M(CO)5Br (M = Mn, Re) probed by two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy

Vibrational energy transfer in transition metal complexes with flexible structures in condensed phases is of central importance to catalytical chemistry processes. In this work, two molecules with different metal atoms, M(CO)₅Br (where M = Mn, Re), were used as model systems, and their axial and radial carbonyl stretching modes as infrared probes. The central-metal effect on intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution (IVR) in M(CO)₅Br was investigated in polar and nonpolar solvents. The linear infrared (IR) peak splitting between carbonyl vibrations increases as the metal atom changes from Mn to Re. The waiting-time dependent two-dimensional infrared diagonal- and off-diagonal peak amplitudes reveal a faster IVR process in Re(CO)₅Br than in Mn(CO)₅Br. With the aid of density functional theory (DFT) calculations, the central-metal effect on IVR time linearly correlates with the vibrational coupling strength between the two involved modes. In addition, the polar solvent is found to accelerate the IVR process by affecting the anharmonic vibrational potentials of a solute vibration mode.

A computational study on Lewis acid-catalyzed diastereoselective acyclic radical allylation reactions with unusual selectivity dependence on temperature and epimer precursor

In stereoselective radical reactions, it is accepted that the configuration of the radical precursor has no impact on the levels of stereoinduction, as a prochiral radical intermediate is planar, with two identical faces, independently of its origin. However, Sibi and Rheault (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2000, 122, 8873-8879) remarkably obtained different selectivities in the trapping of radicals originated from two epimeric bromides, catalyzed by chelating Lewis acids. The selectivity rationalization was made on the basis of different conformational properties of each epimer. However, in this paper we show that the two epimers have similar conformational properties, which implies that the literature proposal is unable to explain the experimental results. We propose an alternative mechanism, in which the final selectivity is dependent on different reaction rates for radical formation from each epimer. By introducing a different perspective of the reaction mechanism, our model also allows the rationalization of different chemical yields obtained from each epimer, a result not rationalized by the previous model. Adaptation to other radical systems, under different reaction conditions, is also possible.