Wibe A. de Jong

Performance of coupled cluster theory in thermochemical calculations of small halogenated compounds

Atomization energies at 0 K and heats of formation at 298 K were obtained for a collection of small halogenated molecules from coupled cluster theory including noniterative, quasiperturbative triple excitations calculations with large basis sets (up through augmented septuple zeta quality in some cases). In order to achieve near chemical accuracy (±1 kcal/mol) in the thermodynamic properties, we adopted a composite theoretical approach which incorporated estimated complete basis set binding energies based on frozen core coupled cluster theory energies and (up to) five corrections: (1) a core/valence correction; (2) a Douglas–Kroll–Hess scalar relativistic correction; (3) a first-order atomic spin–orbit correction; (4) a second-order spin–orbit correction for heavy elements; and (5) an approximate correction to account for the remaining correlation energy. The last of these corrections is based on a recently proposed approximation to full configuration interaction via a continued fraction approximant for c...

Structures and binding enthalpies of M+(H2O)n clusters, M=Cu, Ag, Au

Structures and incremental binding enthalpies were determined for the M+(H2O)n ionic clusters, M=Cu, Ag, Au; n=1–4 (5 for Cu) using correlated ab initio electronic structure methods. The effects of basis set expansion and high-level correlation recovery were found to be significant, in contrast to alkali and alkaline earth cation/water complexes, where correlation of the d electrons is unimportant. The use of a systematic sequence of one-particle basis sets permitted binding enthalpies in the complete basis set limit to be estimated. Overall, the best theoretical binding enthalpies compared favorably with the available experimental data for copper and silver. No experimental data is available for gold/water clusters. The largest deviation was noted for Ag+(H2O)2, where theory predicts an incremental binding enthalpy of 28 kcal/mol and experiment measures ∼25 kcal/mol. However, the uncertainty associated with one of the two experimental values is quite large (±3 kcal/mol) and almost encompasses the theoret...

Optical Rotation Calculated with Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory: The OR45 Benchmark

Time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) computations are performed for 42 organic molecules and three transition metal complexes, with experimental molar optical rotations ranging from 2 to 2 × 10(4) deg cm(2) dmol(-1). The performances of the global hybrid functionals B3LYP, PBE0, and BHLYP, and of the range-separated functionals CAM-B3LYP and LC-PBE0 (the latter being fully long-range corrected), are investigated. The performance of different basis sets is studied. When compared to liquid-phase experimental data, the range-separated functionals do, on average, not perform better than B3LYP and PBE0. Median relative deviations between calculations and experiment range from 25 to 29%. A basis set recently proposed for optical rotation calculations (LPol-ds) on average does not give improved results compared to aug-cc-pVDZ in TDDFT calculations with B3LYP. Individual cases are discussed in some detail, among them norbornenone for which the LC-PBE0 functional produced an optical rotation that is close to available data from coupled-cluster calculations, but significantly smaller in magnitude than the liquid-phase experimental value. Range-separated functionals and BHLYP perform well for helicenes and helicene derivatives. Metal complexes pose a challenge to first-principles calculations of optical rotation.

Utilizing High Performance Computing for Chemistry: Parallel Computational Chemistry

Parallel hardware has become readily available to the computational chemistry research community. This perspective will review the current state of parallel computational chemistry software utilizing high-performance parallel computing platforms. Hardware and software trends and their effect on quantum chemistry methodologies, algorithms, and software development will also be discussed.

Third-order Douglas-Kroll relativistic coupled-cluster theory through connected single, double, triple, and quadruple substitutions: Applications to diatomic and triatomic hydrides

Coupled-cluster methods including through and up to the connected single, double, triple, and quadruple substitutions have been derived and implemented automatically for sequential and parallel executions by an algebraic and symbolic manipulation program TCE (TENSOR CONTRACTION ENGINE) for use in conjunction with a one-component third-order Douglas-Kroll approximation for relativistic corrections. A combination of the converging electron-correlation methods, the accurate relativistic reference wave functions, and the use of systematic basis sets tailored to the relativistic approximation has been shown to predict the experimental singlet-triplet separations within 0.02 eV (0.5 kcal/mol) for five triatomic hydrides (CH2, NH2+, SiH2, PH2+, and AsH2+), the experimental bond lengths (re or r0) within 0.002 angstroms, rotational constants (Be or B0) within 0.02 cm(-1), vibration-rotation constants (alphae) within 0.01 cm(-1), centrifugal distortion constants (De) within 2%, harmonic vibration frequencies (omegae) within 8 cm(-1) (0.4%), anharmonic vibrational constants (xomegae) within 2 cm(-1), and dissociation energies (D0(0)) within 0.02 eV (0.4 kcal/mol) for twenty diatomic hydrides (BH, CH, NH, OH, FH, AlH, SiH, PH, SH, ClH, GaH, GeH, AsH, SeH, BrH, InH, SnH, SbH, TeH, and IH) containing main-group elements across the second through fifth rows of the periodic table. In these calculations, spin-orbit effects on dissociation energies, which were assumed to be additive, were estimated from the measured spin-orbit coupling constants of atoms and diatomic molecules, and an electronic energy in the complete-basis-set, complete-electron-correlation limit has been extrapolated in two ways to verify the robustness of the results: One assuming Gaussian-exponential dependence of total energies on double through quadruple zeta basis sets and the other assuming n(-3) dependence of correlation energies on double through quintuple zeta basis sets.

Equatorial and apical solvent shells of the UO22+ ion

First principles molecular dynamics simulations of the hydration shells surrounding UO(2)(2+) ions are reported for temperatures near 300 K. Most of the simulations were done with 64 solvating water molecules (22 ps). Simulations with 122 water molecules (9 ps) were also carried out. The hydration structure predicted from the simulations was found to agree with very well-known results from x-ray data. The average U=O bond length was found to be 1.77 A. The first hydration shell contained five trigonally coordinated water molecules that were equatorially oriented about the O-U-O axis with the hydrogen atoms oriented away from the uranium atom. The five waters in the first shell were located at an average distance of 2.44 A (2.46 A, 122 water simulation). The second hydration shell was composed of distinct equatorial and apical regions resulting in a peak in the U-O radial distribution function at 4.59 A. The equatorial second shell contained ten water molecules hydrogen bonded to the five first shell molecules. Above and below the UO(2)(2+) ion, the water molecules were found to be significantly less structured. In these apical regions, water molecules were found to sporadically hydrogen bond to the oxygen atoms of the UO(2)(2+), oriented in such a way as to have their protons pointed toward the cation. While the number of apical waters varied greatly, an average of five to six waters was found in this region. Many water transfers into and out of the equatorial and apical second solvation shells were observed to occur on a picosecond time scale via dissociative mechanisms. Beyond these shells, the bonding pattern substantially returned to the tetrahedral structure of bulk water.

Indirect Dynamics in a Highly Exoergic Substitution Reaction

The highly exoergic nucleophilic substitution reaction F(-) + CH3I shows reaction dynamics strikingly different from that of substitution reactions of larger halogen anions. Over a wide range of collision energies, a large fraction of indirect scattering via a long-lived hydrogen-bonded complex is found both in crossed-beam imaging experiments and in direct chemical dynamics simulations. Our measured differential scattering cross sections show large-angle scattering and low product velocities for all collision energies, resulting from efficient transfer of the collision energy to internal energy of the CH3F reaction product. Both findings are in strong contrast to the previously studied substitution reaction of Cl(-) + CH3I [Science 2008, 319, 183-186] at all but the lowest collision energies, a discrepancy that was not captured in a subsequent study at only a low collision energy [J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2010, 1, 2747-2752]. Our direct chemical dynamics simulations at the DFT/B97-1 level of theory show that the reaction is dominated by three atomic-level mechanisms, an indirect reaction proceeding via an F(-)-HCH2I hydrogen-bonded complex, a direct rebound, and a direct stripping reaction. The indirect mechanism is found to contribute about one-half of the overall substitution reaction rate at both low and high collision energies. This large fraction of indirect scattering at high collision energy is particularly surprising, because the barrier for the F(-)-HCH2I complex to form products is only 0.10 eV. Overall, experiment and simulation agree very favorably in both the scattering angle and the product internal energy distributions.

Variable denticity in carboxylate binding to the uranyl coordination complexes

Tris-carboxylate complexes of uranyl [UO2]2+ with acetate and benzoate were generated using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, and then isolated in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. Wavelength-selective infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) of the tris-acetato uranyl anion resulted in a redox elimination of an acetate radical, which was used to generate an IR spectrum that consisted of six prominent absorption bands. These were interpreted with the aid of density functional theory calculations in terms of symmetric and antisymmetric −CO2 stretches of the monodentate and bidentate acetate, CH3 bending and umbrella vibrations, and a uranyl O—U—O asymmetric stretch. The comparison of the calculated and measured IR spectra indicated that the predominant conformer of the tris-acetate complex contained two acetate ligands bound in a bidentate fashion, while the third acetate was monodentate. In similar fashion, the tris-benzoate uranyl anion was formed and photodissociated by loss of a benzoate radical, enabling measurement of the infrared spectrum that was in close agreement with that calculated for a structure containing one monodentate and two bidentate benzoate ligands.

Infrared spectroscopy of discrete uranyl anion complexes

The Free-Electron Laser for Infrared Experiments (FELIX) was used to study the wavelength-resolved multiple photon photodissociation of discrete, gas-phase uranyl (UO22+) complexes containing a single anionic ligand (A), with or without ligated solvent molecules (S). The uranyl antisymmetric and symmetric stretching frequencies were measured for complexes with general formula [UO2A(S)n]+, where A was hydroxide, methoxide, or acetate; S was water, ammonia, acetone, or acetonitrile; and n = 0-3. The values for the antisymmetric stretching frequency for uranyl ligated with only an anion ([UO2A]+) were as low or lower than measurements for [UO2]2+ ligated with as many as five strong neutral donor ligands and are comparable to solution-phase values. This result was surprising because initial DFT calculations predicted values that were 30-40 cm(-1) higher, consistent with intuition but not with the data. Modification of the basis sets and use of alternative functionals improved computational accuracy for the methoxide and acetate complexes, but calculated values for the hydroxide were greater than the measurement regardless of the computational method used. Attachment of a neutral donor ligand S to [UO2A]+ produced [UO2AS]+, which produced only very modest changes to the uranyl antisymmetric stretch frequency, and did not universally shift the frequency to lower values. DFT calculations for [UO2AS]+ were in accord with trends in the data and showed that attachment of the solvent was accommodated by weakening of the U-anion bond as well as the uranyl. When uranyl frequencies were compared for [UO2AS]+ species having different solvent neutrals, values decreased with increasing neutral nucleophilicity.

Coupled cluster calculations for static and dynamic polarizabilities of C60

New theoretical predictions for the static and frequency dependent polarizabilities of C60 are reported. Using the linear response coupled cluster approach with singles and doubles and a basis set especially designed to treat the molecular properties in external electric field, we obtained 82.20 and 83.62 A3 for static and dynamic (λ=1064 nm) polarizabilities. These numbers are in a good agreement with experimentally inferred data of 76.5±8 and 79±4 A3 [R. Antoine et al., J. Chem. Phys.110, 9771 (1999); A. Ballard et al., J. Chem. Phys.113, 5732 (2000)]. The reported results were obtained with the highest wave function-based level of theory ever applied to the C60 system.