Renato Contreras

Quantitative characterization of the global electrophilicity power of common diene/dienophile pairs in Diels-Alder reactions

Abstract The global electrophilicity power, ω, of a series of dienes and dienophiles commonly used in Diels–Alder reactions may be conveniently classified within a unique relative scale. Useful information about the polarity of transition state structures expected for a given reaction may be obtained from the difference in the global electrophilicity power, Δω, of the diene/dienophile interacting pair. Thus the polarity of the process can be related with non-polar (Δω small, pericyclic processes) and polar (Δω big, ionic processes) mechanisms.

A direct evaluation of regional Fukui functions in molecules

Abstract A simple formalism to obtain regional Fukui functions is presented. The model is based on an exact relationship between this local reactivity descriptor and the frontier molecular orbitals. Within this approach, it becomes possible to define an orbital Fukui function that directly yields the condensed-to-atom quantity. By this procedure, we avoid additional calculations of the anion or cation associated with the molecule, thereby maintaining the spin multiplicity of the system. It is shown that our proposed definition of the Fukui function mainly contains symmetry information about the molecular system. The proposed methodology is tested against several benchmark model reactions that are well documented in the experimental and theoretical literature.

On the condensed Fukui function

A critical comparison among recently proposed methods for evaluating the condensed Fukui function neglecting relaxation effects is presented. The sign of the condensed Fukui function is discussed and arguments for a positive definite condensed Fukui function are given. Our numerical calculations in two series of molecules show that: (i) the condensed Fukui function can give, in general, valuable information about the site selectivity in chemical reactions and systematization in a family of molecules. In particular, it has been shown that the selectivity towards protonation in anilines and derivatives molecules can be correctly assessed by the electrophilic Fukui function described in this paper. Within this approach non-negative values for the condensed Fukui function are obtained for the relevant protonation sites in these polyfunctional systems; and (ii) the solvent effects on the condensed Fukui function are negligible, confirming a recently presented theoretical prediction.

Quantitative characterization of the global electrophilicity pattern of some reagents involved in 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions

Abstract The global electrophilicity power, ω, of a series of dipoles and dipolarophiles commonly used in 1,3-dipolar cycloadditions may be conveniently classified within a unique relative scale. The effects of chemical substitution on the electrophilicity of molecules have been evaluated using a representative set of electron-withdrawing and electron-releasing groups for a series of dipoles including nitrone, nitrile oxide and azide derivatives. The absolute scale of electrophilicity is used to rationalize the chemical reactivity of these species as compared to the static reactivity pattern of the reagents involved in the Diels–Alder reactions.

Sigma–pi separation of the electron localization function and aromaticity

The electron localization function (ELF) has been separated in its sigma and pi components. The topological analysis of the new ELFsigma and ELFpi functions has been used to quantify the concept of resonance. The highest bifurcation values of these functions describe in a correct way the aromaticity of classical ring molecules and some new aromatic compounds as B6CO6, Al4(2-), and N5-. In the case of Al4(2-), an important sigma delocalization contribution has been found, which is in agreement with previous interpretation.

Self consistent field theory of solvent effects representation by continuum models: introduction of desolvation contribution

We examine the representation of solvent effects by continuum models in the frame of the Reaction Field Theory. Particular attention is devoted to the problem raised by the adaptation of the current methods of Quantum Chemistry in the Self Consistent Field approximation especially at a semiempirical level.A critical examination of the literature in the field shows that, for the main part, the proposed methods suffer from theoretical internal incoherence.As an illustration of this study, we propose an extension of the generalized Born formula which is able to account for the desolvation effects produced by the specific neighborhood of each center of the solvated species.

Experimental and theoretical studies on the nucleofugality patterns in the aminolysis and phenolysis of S-aryl O-aryl thiocarbonates.

The reactions of S-phenyl, S-(4-chlorophenyl), and S-(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorophenyl) 4-nitrophenyl thiocarbonates (9, 11, and 16, respectively) with a series of secondary alicyclic (SA) amines and those of S-(4-methylphenyl) 4-nitrophenyl thiocarbonate (8) and compounds 9 and 11 with a series of phenols are subjected to a kinetic investigation in 44 wt % ethanol-water, at 25.0 degrees C and an ionic strength of 0.2 M. The reactions were followed spectrophotometrically. Under nucleophile excess, pseudo-first-order rate coefficients (k(obsd)) were found. For all these reactions, plots of k(obsd) vs. free amine or phenoxide anion concentration at constant pH are linear, the slope (k(N)) being independent of pH. The Brønsted-type plots (log k(N) vs. pK(a) of the conjugate acids of the nucleophiles) for the aminolysis of 9, 11, and 16 are linear with slopes beta = 0.85, 0.90, and 0.67, respectively. The two former slopes are consistent with a stepwise mechanism, through a zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate, which breaking to products is rate determining. The latter beta value is consistent with a concerted mechanism. The Brønsted-type plots for the phenolysis of thiocarbonates 8, 9, and 11 are linear with slopes beta = 0.62, 0.70, and 0.69, respectively. These beta values and the absence of curvature at pK(a) = 7.5 confirm a concerted mechanism. In all these reactions, except those of 16, the main nucleofuge is 4-nitrophenoxide, being the thio benzenethiolate the minor nucleofuge. For the reactions of thiocarbonate 16 the main nucleofuge is pentafluorobenzenethiolate whereas little 4-nitrophenoxide was found. The reactions of two SA amines with S-(3-chlorophenyl) 4-nitrophenyl thiocarbonate (10) were subjected to product analysis, showing 60% 4-nitrophenoxide and 40% 3-chlorobenzenethiolate. The study is completed with a theoretical analysis based on the group electrophilicity index, a reactivity descriptor that may be taken as a measure of the ability of a group or fragment to depart from a molecule with the bonding electron pair. The theoretical analysis is in accordance with the experimental results obtained and predicts relative nucleofugalities of O-aryl vs. S-aryl groups in a series of diaryl thiocarbonates not experimentally evaluated to date.

Quantum Mechanical Continuum Solvation Models for Ionic Liquids

The quantum mechanical SMD continuum universal solvation model can be applied to predict the free energy of solvation of any solute in any solvent following specification of various macroscopic solvent parameters. For three ionic liquids where these descriptors are readily available, the SMD solvation model exhibits a mean unsigned error of 0.48 kcal/mol for 93 solvation free energies of neutral solutes and a mean unsigned error of 1.10 kcal/mol for 148 water-to-IL transfer free energies. Because the necessary solvent parameters are not always available for a given ionic liquid, we determine average values for a set of ionic liquids over which measurements have been made in order to define a generic ionic liquid solvation model, SMD-GIL. Considering 11 different ionic liquids, the SMD-GIL solvation model exhibits a mean unsigned error of 0.43 kcal/mol for 344 solvation free energies of neutral solutes and a mean unsigned error of 0.61 kcal/mol for 431 water-to-IL transfer free energies. As these errors are similar in magnitude to those typically observed when applying continuum solvation models to ordinary liquids, we conclude that the SMD universal solvation model may be applied to ionic liquids as well as ordinary liquids.

A theoretical analysis of the gas-phase protonation of hydroxylamine, methyl-derivatives and aliphatic amino acids

Hydroxylamines and aliphatic amino acids present two active sites towards electrophilic attack by a proton, namely, the amino nitrogen and hydroxylic oxygen atoms. Site reactivity may be described in terms of local descriptors of chemical reactivity defined in the context of the density functional theory formulation of Parr, Pearson and Yang (DFT–PPY). We report a DFT–PPY analysis of site reactivity in hydroxylamine, methyl-derivatives of hydroxylamine and the aliphatic amino acids glycine, alanine and valine, using a simple formulation of the regional or condensed-to-atom k (fk−) Fukui function. A satisfactory qualitative correlation between this local descriptor of site reactivity and the experimental proton affinities is found. The nitrogen center appears as the preferential site of protonation. Enhancement of the site basicity at the nitrogens may be probed by variations of the Fukui function ΔfN−, with reference to the ammonia molecule; the correlation between proton affinity and the Fukui function difference is closely related to a local hard and soft acids and bases principle.

Mechanistic pathways of aromatic nucleophilic substitution in conventional solvents and ionic liquids

Solvation effects on the reaction mechanism of the title reactions have been kinetically evaluated in 21 conventional solvents and 17 ionic liquids. Solvent polarity affects the catalyzed and non-catalyzed SNAr pathways differently. The ambiphilic character of water and formamide, which act as a hydrogen bond donor/acceptor, induces nucleophilic activation at the nitrogen center of the nucleophile. The ionic liquid EMIMDCN appears to be the best solvent for the SNAr route probably due to the high polarizability of the dicyanamide anion.