A Theoretical Study on the Relationship between Nucleophilicity and Ionization Potentials in Solution Phase

Characteristics of new pyrrolic derivatives and their oligomers using DFT and TD-DFT calculations

CONTEXT

This article is based on the study of pyrrolic derivatives and their oligomers. Knowing that, pyrrolic derivatives are widely studied on an industrial scale. The aim of this work is to find pyrrolic derivatives having the same physicochemical characteristics such as the pyrrolic edifice. Six derivatives were studied by substituting the hydrogens in the β position of the pyrroles with the following radicals: -CHO, -Cl, -CN, -NO, and -OH. The study was carried out theoretically using ab initio and density functional of theory (DFT) methods. In the first step, molecules of four units were taken into consideration in order to make the comparison between them. This comparison showed that the majority of molecules exhibited high intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) compared to the molecule composed of four pyrrolic units (OP4), and also exhibited strong nucleophilic and electrophilic characteristics. Natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis has shown continuous ICT mechanisms for certain molecules. The studied derivatives showed good solvation in several solvents compared to OP4. The molecules substituted by the radicals -CHO, -CN, -OH, and -NO generated several peaks in the excited states, which is the opposite case for the other molecules with a single peak. The effects of chain elongation revealed exponential equations generated by the two parameters energy gaps (ΔEH-L) and maximum wavelengths (λmax) as a function of the number of units (n). These equations were used to predict the maximum and minimum values of the above parameters for more elongated oligomers.

METHOD

The software used to make the calculations is Gaussian 16. All geometries were calculated by B3LYP functional and 6-31++G(d,p) basis set. The electronic parameters ΔEH-L were calculated by the following functionals: B3LYP, CAM-B3LYP, LC-wPBE, LC-BLYP, wB97X, M062X, M06HF, and M11 in addition to the second-order Møller-Plesset method (MP2) while always keeping the basis set mentioned before. An effect of basis set variation was studied by the optimal functional in combination with the following basis sets: 6-31G(d,p), 6-31++G(d,p), cc-pVDZ, AUG-cc-pVDZ, 6-311G(d,p), 6-311++G(d,p), cc-pVTZ, and AUG-cc-pVTZ. The NBO study was carried out with the M06HF/6-31++G(d,p) functional using the NBO method. The solvation parameters were calculated by M06HF/6-31++G(d,p) in the presence of the implicit solvation model Solvation Model based on Density (SMD). The excited states were calculated by M06HF/6-31++G(d,p) by the implicit solvation model Conductor Polarizable Continuum Model (CPCM).

Connection between nuclear and electronic Fukui functions beyond frontier molecular orbitals

Based on the relationship between average local ionization energy Ī(r) and average local electron affinity Ā(r) with the electronic Fukui functions, i.e., f-(r) and f+(r), respectively, in this paper, we establish a connection between nuclear and electronic Fukui functions beyond frontier molecular orbitals. As a consequence of this connection, we obtain expressions of average nuclear Fukui functions interpreted as a variation of average nucleophilicity or electrophilicity (weighted by the electronic orbital Fukui functions) with respect to nuclear displacements, which goes beyond the highest occupied molecular orbital/or lowest unoccupied molecular orbital consideration. Furthermore, from this connection and considering the frontier molecular orbital approximation, we derive expressions of nuclear Fukui functions in terms of the atom-condensed electronic Fukui functions, which imply a locality in the chemical reactivity and could be used to study the variation of local nucleophilicity or electrophilicity with respect to nuclear displacements. Finally, this new way to interpret the nuclear Fukui function could be useful in the future to study the chemical reactivity related to molecular vibrations, internal rotations, bond dissociation, chemical reaction along the model of reaction coordinate, and so on.

Halogen Bond to Experimentally Significant N-Heterocyclic Carbenes (I, IMe2, IiPr2, ItBu2, IPh2, IMes2, IDipp2, IAd2; I = Imidazol-2-ylidene)

The subjects of the article are halogen bonds between either XCN or XCCH (X = Cl, Br, I) and the carbene carbon atom in imidazol-2-ylidene (I) or its derivatives (IR2) with experimentally significant and systematically increased R substituents at both nitrogen atoms: methyl = Me, iso-propyl = iPr, tert-butyl = tBu, phenyl = Ph, mesityl = Mes, 2,6-diisopropylphenyl = Dipp, 1-adamantyl = Ad. It is shown that the halogen bond strength increases in the order Cl < Br < I and the XCN molecule forms stronger complexes than XCCH. Of all the carbenes considered, IMes2 forms the strongest and also the shortest halogen bonds with an apogee for complex IMes2⋯ICN for which D0 = 18.71 kcal/mol and dC⋯I = 2.541 Å. In many cases, IDipp2 forms as strong halogen bonds as IMes2. Quite the opposite, although characterized by the greatest nucleophilicity, ItBu2 forms the weakest complexes (and the longest halogen bonds) if X ≠ Cl. While this finding can easily be attributed to the steric hindrance exerted by the highly branched tert-butyl groups, it appears that the presence of the four C-H⋯X hydrogen bonds may also be of importance here. Similar situation occurs in the case of complexes with IAd2.

Electrophilicity index revisited

This review aims to be a comprehensive, authoritative, critical, and accessible review of general interest to the chemistry community; because the electrophilicity index is a very useful global reactivity descriptor defined within a conceptual density functional theory framework. Our group has also introduced electrophilicity based new global and local reactivity descriptors and also new associated electronic structure principles, which are important indicators of structure, stability, bonding, reactivity, interactions, and dynamics in a wide variety of physico-chemical systems and processes. This index along with its local counterpart augmented by the associated electronic structure principles could properly explain molecular vibrations, internal rotations and various types of chemical reactions. The concept of the electrophilicity index has been extended to dynamical processes, excited states, confined environment, spin-dependent and temperature-dependent situations, biological activity, site selectivity, aromaticity, charge removal and acceptance, presence of external perturbation through solvents, external electric and magnetic fields, and so forth. Although electrophilicity and its local variant can adequately interpret the behavior of a wide variety of systems and different physico-chemical processes involving them, their predictive potential remains to be explored. An exhaustive review on all these aspects will set the tone of the future research in that direction.

DFT Study of Some Copper Complexes and Their Detection Limit

A theoretical investigation was probed to shed light on the correlation between low detection limit (LOD) in AdSV technique and metal trace complexes stability energy. The study was conducted by means of DFT calculations of copper traces complexation by using three different organic molecules as chelating agents, such as: morin, red pyrogallol and thymolphtalexone. The quantum chemistry calculations were carried out at the B3LYP/6-31G(d) level implemented in Gaussian 09 program package. The results of the electrophilicity index ω indicate that all the studied molecules have a tendency to exchange electron with copper. The negative values of free energy G and enthalpy H show that the complexation reactions are spontaneous in nature and exothermic. According to DFT calculations, copper-red pyrogallol complex with better detection limit (0.07 ng•mL-1) has the lowest total energy (-5100.213 a.u.). Thus, there is a very strong relationship between the total energy of the three complexes and their detection limits in AdSV technique. Hence, the more stable complex has the better detection limit value.

How the Nature of an Alpha-Nucleophile Determines a Brønsted Type-Plot and Its Reaction Pathways. An Experimental Study

The reactions between 2-chloro-5-nitro pyrimidine with a serie of α-nucleophile derivatives were kinetically evaluated. The kinetic study was carried out in aqueous media and the data shown an unusual split on the Brønsted type-plot, opening a controversial discussion based on reactivities and possible reaction pathways. These split Brønsted type-plots are discussed over the hypothetical transition state (TS) structures associated to concerted or stepwise mechanisms with emphasis on hydrogen bond interactions between electrophile/nucleophile pair able to determine the reactivities and the plausible reaction routes.

A machine learning approach for predicting the nucleophilicity of organic molecules

Nucleophilicity provides important information about the chemical reactivity of organic molecules. Experimental determination of the nucleophilicity parameter is a tedious and resource-intensive approach. Herein, we present a novel machine learning protocol that uses key structural descriptors to predict the nucleophilicities of organic molecules, which agree well with the experimental values. A data driven approach was used where quantum mechanical molecular and thermodynamic descriptors from a wide range of structurally diverse nucleophiles and relevant solvents were extracted and modelled using advanced algorithms against the experimentally available nucleophilicity values. Despite the structural diversity of nucleophiles, we are able to achieve statistically robust models with a high predictive power using tree-based and neural network algorithms trained on an in-house developed unique dataset consisting of 752 nucleophilicity values and 27 molecular descriptors.

Precise Introduction of the -CHnX3-n (X = F, Cl, Br, I) Moiety to Target Molecules by a Radical Strategy: A Theoretical and Experimental Study

Addition of halomethyl radicals to form bioactive molecules has recently become an efficient strategy. The reaction has a bottleneck, however, which is the effective and selective generation of the proper halomethyl ^•CH_nX_3-n radical by combining CH_nX_4-n with a carbon radical. Understanding the reactivity and selectivity of carbon radicals in the hydrogen atom transfer (HAT) and halogen atom transfer (XAT) reactions of CH_nX_4-n is key to the development of such an attractive method. With the help of the emerging data-driven strategy, DFT calculations were used to explore various correlations. For selectivity, the relative energy barriers between HAT and XAT reactions (ΔG^⧧_H - ΔG^⧧_X) correlate reasonably well with the three parameters ΔG_H, ΔG_X, and IP, and the correlation studies reveal that the calculated IP_inver and the experimental ΔBDE can be used to conveniently predict the selectivity. Predicted selectivities are consistent with experimental determinations. This work not only provides a possibility for selecting carbon radicals with the known or easily obtained physicochemical data but also demonstrates that the informatic workflow such as generating data and identifying correlations has potential applications in mining reaction rules.

Electrochemical α-Arylation of Ketones via Anodic Oxidation of In Situ Generated Silyl Enol Ethers

An electrochemical procedure for the α-arylation of ketones has been developed. The method is based on the generation and one-pot anodic oxidation of silyl enol ethers in the presence of the arene. This strategy avoids isolation of the silyl enol intermediate and the utilization of external supporting electrolytes. Intermolecular arylations, which had not been reported so far, are possible when electron-rich arenes are utilized as coupling partners. The method has been demonstrated for a wide variety of aryl ketones and activated arenes, with moderate to good yields (up to 69%) obtained. Mechanistic insights and a theoretical rationale that explains the ketone α-arylation versus dimerization selectivity are also presented.

Nucleophilicity Prediction via Multivariate Linear Regression Analysis

The concept of nucleophilicity is at the basis of most transformations in chemistry. Understanding and predicting the relative reactivity of different nucleophiles is therefore of paramount importance. Mayr’s nucleophilicity scale likely represents the most complete collection of reactivity data, which currently includes over 1200 nucleophiles. Several attempts have been made to theoretically predict Mayr’s nucleophilicity parameters N based on calculation of molecular properties, but a general model accounting for different classes of nucleophiles could not be obtained so far. We herein show that multivariate linear regression analysis is a suitable tool for obtaining a simple model predicting N for virtually any class of nucleophiles in different solvents for a set of 341 data points. The key descriptors of the model were found to account for the proton affinity, solvation energies, and sterics.

How Do Aromatic Nitro Compounds React with Nucleophiles? Theoretical Description Using Aromaticity, Nucleophilicity and Electrophilicity Indices

In this study, we present a complete description of the addition of a model nucleophile to the nitroaromatic ring in positions occupied either by hydrogen (the first step of the S_NAr-H reaction) or a leaving group (S_NAr-X reaction) using theoretical parameters including aromaticity (HOMA), electrophilicity and nucleophilicity indices. It was shown both experimentally and by our calculations, including kinetic isotope effect modeling, that the addition of a nucleophile to the electron-deficient aromatic ring is the rate limiting step of both S_NAr-X and S_NAr-H reactions when the fast transformation of σ^H-adduct into the products is possible due to the specific reaction conditions, so this is the most important step of the entire reaction. The results described in this paper are helpful for better understanding of the subtle factors controlling the reaction direction and rate.

Predicting the chemical reactivity of organic materials using a machine-learning approach

Stability and compatibility between chemical components are essential parameters that need to be considered in the selection of functional materials in configuring a system. In configuring devices such as batteries or solar cells, not only the functionality of individual constituting materials such as electrodes or electrolyte but also an appropriate combination of materials which do not undergo unwanted side reactions is critical in ensuring their reliable performance in long-term operation. While the universal theory that can predict the general chemical reactivity between materials is long awaited and has been the subject of studies with a rich history, traditional ways proposed to date have been mostly based on simple electronic properties of materials such as electronegativity, ionization energy, electron affinity and hardness/softness, and could be applied to only a small group of materials. Moreover, prediction has often been far from accurate and has failed to offer general implications; thus it was practically inadequate as a selection criterion from a large material database, i.e. data-driven material discovery. Herein, we propose a new model for predicting the general reactivity and chemical compatibility among a large number of organic materials, realized by a machine-learning approach. As a showcase, we demonstrate that our new implemented model successfully reproduces previous experimental results reported on side-reactions occurring in lithium–oxygen electrochemical cells. Furthermore, the mapping of chemical stability among more than 90 available electrolyte solvents and the representative redox mediators is realized by this approach, presenting an important guideline in the development of stable electrolyte/redox mediator couples for lithium–oxygen batteries.

Stability and compatibility between chemical components are essential parameters that need to be considered in the selection of functional materials in configuring a system.

Activation of Electrophile/Nucleophile Pair by a Nucleophilic and Electrophilic Solvation in a SNAr Reaction

Nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions of 4-chloroquinazoline toward aniline and hydrazine were used as a model system to experimentally show that a substrate bearing heteroatoms on the aromatic ring as substituent is able to establish intramolecular hydrogen bond which may be activated by the reaction media and/or the nature of the nucleophile.

Applications of the Conceptual Density Functional Theory Indices to Organic Chemistry Reactivity

Theoretical reactivity indices based on the conceptual Density Functional Theory (DFT) have become a powerful tool for the semiquantitative study of organic reactivity. A large number of reactivity indices have been proposed in the literature. Herein, global quantities like the electronic chemical potential μ, the electrophilicity ω and the nucleophilicity N indices, and local condensed indices like the electrophilic P k + and nucleophilic P k - Parr functions, as the most relevant indices for the study of organic reactivity, are discussed.

Understanding the Highly Varying pKa of Arylamines. A Perspective from the Average Local Ionization Condensed-to-Atom Framework

The highly varying experimental pKa values for 36 arylamines spanning 7 orders of magnitude is carefully examined. Within this framework, a valence condensed-to-atom model for the average ionization energy is introduced and tested. The theoretical approach is connected to orbital Fukui functions directly mapped into semilocal or regional site-specific responses. It is revealed that the average local ionization energies associated with the amino nitrogen atom is linearly correlated to the basicity of the substituted arylamines, properly reproducing the experimental ordering of basicity. The condensed-to-atom descriptor exhibits a high predictive power, providing a new direct reactivity evaluation of significant value.

New 1-(3-nitrophenyl)-5,6-dihydro-4H-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a][1,5]benzodiazepines: synthesis and computational study

Triazole derivatives constitute an important group of heterocyclic compounds have have been the subject of extensive study in the recent past. These compounds have shown a wide range of biological and pharmacological activities. In this work, new fused tricyclic 1-(3-nitrophenyl)-5,6-dihydro-4H-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a][1,5]-benzodiazepines have been synthesized by the thermal cyclization of N'-(2,3-dihydro-1H-1,5-benzodiazepin-4-yl)-3-nitrobenzohydrazides. After screening ethanol, toluene and 1-butanol as solvents, butanol-1 was found to be the best choice for the cyclization reaction in order to obtain the highest yields of tricyclic derivatives. The chemical structures of the synthesized compounds were elucidated by the analysis of their IR, 1H- and 13C-NMR spectral data. For tentative rationalization of the reaction processes, the global and local reactivity indices of certain compounds, taking part in the reaction pathway, were assessed by means of quantum mechanical calculations using the conceptual density functional theory (DFT) approach. This work could be useful for the synthesis of new heterocyclic compounds bearing a fused triazole ring.

Philicity and Fugality Scales for Organic Reactions

Theoretical scales of reactivity and selectivity are important tools to explain and to predict reactivity patterns, including reaction mechanisms. The main achievement of these efforts has been the incorporation of such concepts in advanced texts of organic chemistry. In this way, the modern organic chemistry language has become more quantitative, making the classification of organic reactions an easier task. The reactivity scales are also useful to set up a number of empirical rules that help in rationalizing and in some cases anticipating the possible reaction mechanisms that can be operative in a given organic reaction. In this review, we intend to give a brief but complete account on this matter, introducing the conceptual basis that leads to the definition of reactivity indices amenable to build up quantitative models of reactivity in organic reactions. The emphasis is put on two basic concepts describing electron-rich and electron-deficient systems, namely, nucleophile and electrophiles. We then show that the regional nucleophilicity and electrophilicity become the natural descriptors of electrofugality and nucleofugality, respectively. In this way, we obtain a closed body of concepts that suffices to describe electron releasing and electron accepting molecules together with the description of permanent and leaving groups in addition, nucleophilic substitution and elimination reactions.

On-Water Reactivity and Regioselectivity of Quinones in C–N Coupling with Amines: Experimental and Theoretical Study

A study about the oxidative coupling of some representative carbo- and heterocyclic non-symmetrical quinones with aryl- and alkylamines, was carried out comparing dichloromethane and water as reaction mediums. We found that the on-water reactions gave better or, at worst, the same results as a conventional organic medium like dichloromethane. Descriptors derived from conceptual density functional theory and approaches of electrostatic nature, such as the molecular electrostatic potential, were used to explain the observed chemical reactivity and regioselectivity. Further, the on-water conditions were used to obtain 24 new aminoquinones with potential biological activity.

Site activation effects promoted by intramolecular hydrogen bond interactions in SNAr reactions

The nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction of benzohydrazide derivatives towards 2-chloro-5-nitropyrimidine is used as model system to experimentally and theoretically show that intramolecular hydrogen-bond formation operates as a perturbation that elicits a dual response at the reaction center of the transition state (TS) structure.

Reactivity indices profile: a companion tool of the potential energy surface for the analysis of reaction mechanisms. Nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions as test case

We herein report on the usefulness of the reactivity indices profiles along a reaction coordinate. The model is tested to fully describe the reaction mechanism of the title reactions. Group nucleophilicity and electrophilicity profiles help describe the bond-breaking/bond-formation processes and the intramolecular electron density reorganization. The reactivity indices' profile analysis is consistently complemented with hydrogen bonding (HB) effects along the reaction coordinate: the final outcome of the reaction is determined by the stage at which the HB complex can be formed. Transition-state structures located for six reactions studied, including the charged nucleophile thiocyanate, show that the main stabilizing interaction is that formed between the hydrogen atom of the nucleophile and the o-NO(2) group. This result discards the role of HB interaction between the nucleophile and the leaving group previously proposed in the literature.

EFFECT OF LEWIS ACID CATALYSTS ON THE POSITIONAL SELECTIVITY OF THE ELECTROPHILIC AROMATIC SUBSTITUTION ON α-SUBSTITUTED THIOPHENES: A CONCEPTUAL DFT INVESTIGATION

The α′/β regioselectivity of the electrophilic aromatic substitution of some thiophene α-substituted derivatives ( R = CHO, COMe or CO2Me ), catalyzed and not catalyzed by the Lewis acid, AlCl3 , has been investigated by means of the local nucleophilicity index, recently proposed by Pérez et al. [J Mol Struct: Theochem895: 86, 2009]. The quantum chemistry calculations, carried out at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory, show that the α′-substitution is preferred in absence of the catalyst, while the β-substitution is more favored in the presence of the catalyst. The theoretical results, predicted using DFT-based reactivity indices, are in good agreement with the experimental outcomes.

Understanding local electrophilicity/nucleophilicity activation through a single reactivity difference index

A local reactivity difference index R(k) is shown to be able to predict the local electrophilic and/or nucleophilic activation within an organic molecule. Together with the electrophilic and/or nucleophilic behavior of the center k given by the sign, the magnitude of the R(k) index accounts for the extent of the electronic activation, a behavior that allows for the use of the R(k) index as a measure of the molecular reactivity especially in polar processes.

Solution reaction design: electroaccepting and electrodonating powers of ions in solution

By considering a first-order variation in electroaccepting and electrodonating powers, ω±, induced by a change from gas to aqueous solution phase, the solvent effect on ω± for charged ions is examined. The expression of electroaccepting and electrodonating powers in the solution phase, ω±s, is obtained through establishing the quantitative relationship between the change of the ω± due to the solvation and the hydration free energy. It is shown that cations are poorer electron acceptors and anions are poorer electron donors in solution compared to those in gas phase. We have proven that the scaled aqueous electroaccepting power, ω+s, of cations can act as a good descriptor of the reduction reaction, which is expected to be applied in the design of solution reactions.

The nucleophilicity N index in organic chemistry

The nucleophilicity N index (J. Org. Chem. 2008, 73, 4615), the inverse of the electrophilicity, 1/ω, and the recently proposed inverse of the electrodonating power, 1/ω⁻, (J. Org. Chem. 2010, 75, 4957) have been checked toward (i) a series of single 5-substituted indoles for which rate constants are available, (ii) a series of para-substituted phenols, and for (iii) a series of 2,5-disubstituted bicyclic[2.2.1]hepta-2,5-dienes which display concurrently electrophilic and nucleophilic behaviors. While all considered indices account well for the nucleophilic behavior of organic molecules having a single substitution, the nucleophilicity N index works better for more complex molecules. Unlike, the inverse of the electrophilicity, 1/ω, (R(2) = 0.71), and the inverse of the electrodonating power, 1/ω⁻ (R(2) = 0.83), a very good correlation of the nucleophilicity N index of twelve 2-substituted-6-methoxy-bicyclic[2.2.1]hepta-2,5-dienes versus the activation energy associated with the nucleophilic attack on 1,1-dicyanoethylene is found (R(2) = 0.99). This comparative study allows to assert that the nucleophilicity N index is a measure of the nucleophilicity of complex organic molecules displaying concurrently electrophilic and nucleophilic behaviors.