Andrés Reyes

Investigation of isotope effects with the nuclear-electronic orbital approach

This paper addresses fundamental issues that arise in the application of the nuclear-electronic orbital (NEO) approach to systems with equivalent quantum nuclei. Our analysis illustrates that Hartree-Fock nuclear wave functions do not provide physically reasonable descriptions of systems comprised of equivalent low-spin fermions or equivalent bosons. The physical basis for this breakdown is that the ionic terms dominate due to the localized nature of the nuclear orbitals. Multi-configurational wave functions that include only covalent terms provide physically reasonable descriptions of these types of systems. The application of the NEO approach to a variety of chemical systems is presented to elucidate the isotope effects on the geometries and electronic wave functions. Deuteration of hydrogen halides, water, ammonia, and hydronium ion decreases the bond length and the magnitude of negative partial atomic charge on the heavy atom. These results are consistent with experimental spectroscopic data. Deuteration at the beta position for formate anion and a series of amines increases the magnitude of negative partial atomic charge on the protonation site for the unprotonated species. This observation is consistent with the experimentally observed increase in basicity upon deuteration at the beta position for carboxylic acids and amines.

In Quest of Strong Be–Ng Bonds among the Neutral Ng–Be Complexes

The global minimum geometries of BeCN2 and BeNBO are linear BeN-CN and BeN-BO, respectively. The Be center of BeCN2 binds He with the highest Be-He dissociation energy among the studied neutral He-Be complexes. In addition, BeCN2 can be further tuned as a better noble gas trapper by attaching it with any electron-withdrawing group. Taking BeO, BeS, BeNH, BeNBO, and BeCN2 systems, the study at the CCSD(T)/def2-TZVP level of theory also shows that both BeCN2 and BeNBO systems have higher noble gas binding ability than those related reported systems. ΔG values for the formation of NgBeCN2/NgBeNBO (Ng = Ar-Rn) are negative at room temperature (298 K), whereas the same becomes negative at low temperature for Ng = He and Ne. The polarization plus the charge transfer is the dominating term in the interaction energy.

C5Li7+ and O2Li5+ as Noble‐Gas‐Trapping Agents

The noble-gas-trapping ability of the star-shaped C(5)Li(7)(+) cluster and O(2)Li(5)(+) super-alkali cluster is studied by using ab initio and density functional theory (DFT) at the MP2 and M05-2X levels with 6-311+G(d,p) and 6-311+G(d) basis sets. These clusters are shown to be effective noble-gas-trapping agents. The stability of noble-gas-loaded clusters is analyzed in terms of dissociation energies, reaction enthalpies, and conceptual DFT-based reactivity descriptors. The presence of an external electric field improves the dissociation energy.

A generalized any-particle propagator theory: prediction of proton affinities and acidity properties with the proton propagator.

We have recently extended the electron propagator theory to the treatment of any type of particle using an Any-Particle Molecular Orbital (APMO) wavefunction as reference state. This approach, called APMO/PT, has been implemented in the LOWDIN code to calculate correlated binding energies, for any type of particle in molecular systems. In this work, we present the application of the APMO/PT approach to study proton detachment processes. We employed this method to calculate proton binding energies and proton affinities for a set of inorganic and organic molecules. Our results reveal that the second-order proton propagator (APMO/PP2) quantitatively reproduces experimental trends with an average deviation of less than 0.41 eV. We also estimated proton affinities with an average deviation of 0.14 eV and the proton hydration free energy using APMO/PP2 with a resulting value of -270.2 kcal/mol, in agreement with other results reported in the literature. Results presented in this work suggest that the APMO/PP2 approach is a promising tool for studying proton acid/base properties.

Pharmacodynamic assessment of dihydroxyprogesterone acetophenide plus estradiol enanthate as a monthly injectable contraceptive

The pharmacodynamics of the combination of dihydroxyprogesterone acetophenide (DHPA) and estradiol enanthate (E2-EN) following its intramuscular administration at two doses were studied in 16 healthy women of reproductive age. Subjects were randomly allocated in two groups: group I (n = 9) received the combination DHPA 150 mg + E2-EN 10 mg on three consecutive monthly injections, while group II (n = 7) received half-dose of the same formulation. Ovarian function and endometrial bleeding patterns were investigated in all participants for one pre-treatment cycle, three treatment intervals and two post-treatment cycles. The results disclosed that ovulation was inhibited for at least 30 days following DHPA/E2-EN administration in all participants from both groups. The circulating estradiol levels 30 days after last injection were slightly elevated as compared with those observed in normal early follicular phase. Return to ovulatory cycles was documented within 90 days after treatment. The length of the bleeding-free intervals during treatment was shortened in both groups, particularly in group II. No significant changes in HDL-cholesterol levels were observed throughout the study. It is envisaged however, that large modification of the formulation and additional long-term safety studies will be required prior to its recommendation.

A generalized any particle propagator theory: Assessment of nuclear quantum effects on electron propagator calculations

In this work we propose an extended propagator theory for electrons and other types of quantum particles. This new approach has been implemented in the LOWDIN package and applied to sample calculations of atomic and small molecular systems to determine its accuracy and performance. As a first application of the method we have studied the nuclear quantum effects on electron ionization energies. We have observed that ionization energies of atoms are similar to those obtained with the electron propagator approach. However, for molecular systems containing hydrogen atoms there are improvements in the quality of the results with the inclusion of nuclear quantum effects. An energy term analysis has allowed us to conclude that nuclear quantum effects are important for zero order energies whereas propagator results correct the electron and electron-nuclear correlation terms. Results presented for a series of n-alkanes have revealed the potential of this method for the accurate calculation of ionization energies of a wide variety of molecular systems containing hydrogen nuclei. The proposed methodology will also be applicable to exotic molecular systems containing positrons or muons.

Secondary Hydrogen Isotope Effects on the Structure and Stability of Cation-π Complexes (Cation = Li+, Na+, K+ and π = Acetylene, Ethylene, Benzene)

Secondary hydrogen isotope effects on the geometries, electronic wave functions and binding energies of cation-pi complexes (cation = Li(+), Na(+), K(+) and pi = acetylene, ethylene, benzene) are investigated with NEO/HF and NEO/MP2 methods. These methods determine both electronic and nuclear wave functions simultaneously. Our results show that an increase of the hydrogen nuclear mass leads to the elongation of the cation-pi bond distance and the decrease in its binding energy. An explanation to this behavior is given in terms of the changes in the pi-molecule electronic structure and electrostatic potential induced by isotopic substitutions.

Turning symmetric an asymmetric hydrogen bond with the inclusion of nuclear quantum effects: The case of the [CN···H···NC]− complex

Nuclear quantum effects (NQE) on the geometry, energy, and electronic structure of the [CN·L·NC](-) complex (L = H, D, T) are investigated with the recently developed APMO/MP2 code. This code implements the nuclear molecular orbital approach (NMO) at the Hartree-Fock (HF) and MP2 levels of theory for electrons and quantum nuclei. In a first study, we examined the H/D/T isotope effects on the geometry and electronic structure of the CNH molecule at NMO/HF and NMO/MP2 levels of theory. We found that when increasing the hydrogen nuclear mass there is a reduction of the R(N-H) bond distance and an increase of the electronic population on the hydrogen atom. Our calculated bond distances are in good agreement with experimental and other theoretical results. In a second investigation, we explored the hydrogen NQE on the geometry of [CNHNC](-) complex at the NMO/HF and NMO/MP2 levels of theory. We discovered that while a NMO/HF calculation presented an asymmetric hydrogen bond, the NMO/MP2 calculation revealed a symmetric H-bond. We also examined the H/D/T isotope effects on the geometry and stabilization energy of the [CNHNC](-) complex. We noted that gradual increases in hydrogen mass led to reductions of the R(NN) distance and destabilization of the hydrogen bond (H-bond). A discussion of these results is given in terms of the hydrogen nuclear delocalization effects on the electronic structure and energy components. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first ab initio NMO study that reveals the importance of including nuclear quantum effects in conventional electronic structure calculations for an enhanced description of strong-low-barrier H-bonded systems.

Including nuclear quantum effects into highly correlated electronic structure calculations of weakly bound systems

An interface between the APMO code and the electronic structure package MOLPRO is presented. The any particle molecular orbital APMO code [González et al., Int. J. Quantum Chem. 108, 1742 (2008)] implements the model where electrons and light nuclei are treated simultaneously at Hartree-Fock or second-order Möller-Plesset levels of theory. The APMO-MOLPRO interface allows to include high-level electronic correlation as implemented in the MOLPRO package and to describe nuclear quantum effects at Hartree-Fock level of theory with the APMO code. Different model systems illustrate the implementation: (4)He2 dimer as a protype of a weakly bound van der Waals system; isotopomers of [He-H-He](+) molecule as an example of a hydrogen bonded system; and molecular hydrogen to compare with very accurate non-Born-Oppenheimer calculations. The possible improvements and future developments are outlined.

First principles investigation of hydrogen isotope effects in [XSO4–H–SO4X]− (X = H, K) complexes

Hydrogen isotope effects on geometries, total energies, nuclear and electronic wave functions of the [HO3SO–H–OSO3H]− and [KO3SO–H–OSO3K]− complexes are investigated with the NEO/HF method. This method determines both electronic and nuclear wave function simultaneously. A discussion of the isotope effects is provided and used to explain the hydrogen isotope effects on the phase transition temperatures in hydrogen bonded ferroelectric materials, K3H(SO4)2 and K3D(SO4)2.