Ortho Effect in the Bergman Cyclization: Electronic and Steric Effects in Hydrogen Abstraction by 1-Substituted Naphthalene 5,8-Diradicals

We present a detailed theoretical study of geometries, electronic structure, and energies of transition states and intermediates completing the full Bergman cycloaromatization pathway of ortho-substituted enediynes with a focus on polar and steric contributions to the kinetics and thermodynamics of hydrogen abstraction. This study provides a rare unambiguous example of remote substitution that affects reactivity of a neutral reactive intermediate through an σ framework.

Nitrenes, diradicals, and ylides. Ring expansion and ring opening in 2-quinazolylnitrenes

Tetrazolo[1,5-a] quinazoline (9) is converted to 2-azidoquinazoline (10) on sublimation at 200 degrees C and above, and the azide-tetrazole equilibrium is governed by entropy. 2-Quinazolylnitrenes 11 and 27 and/ or their ring expansion products 14 and 29 can undergo type I (ylidic) and type II (diradicaloid) ring opening. Argon matrix photolysis of 9/10 affords 2-quinazolylnitrene (11), which has been characterized by ESR, UV, and IR spectroscopy. A minor amount of a second nitrene, formed by rearrangement or ring opening, is also observed. A diradical (19) is formed rapidly by type II ring opening and characterized by ESR spectroscopy; it decays thermally at 15 K with a half-life of ca. 47 min, in agreement with its calculated facile intersystem crossing (19T -> 19OSS) followed by facile cyclization/rearrangement to 1-cyanoindazole (21) (calculated activation barrier 1- 2 kcal/mol) and N-cyanoanthranilonitrile (22). 21 and 22 are the isolated end products of photolysis. 21 is also the end product of flash vacuum thermolysis. An excellent linear correlation between the zero-field splitting parameter D (cm(-1)) and the spin density F on the nitrene N calculated at the B3LYP/EPRIII level is reported (R-2 = 0.993 for over 100 nitrenes). Matrix photolysis of 3-phenyltetrazolo[1,5-a] quinazoline (25) affords the benzotriazacycloheptatetraene 29, which can be photochemically interconverted with the type I ring opening product 2-isocyano-alpha-diazo-alpha- phenyltoluene (33) as determined by IR and UV spectroscopy. The corresponding carbene 37, obtained by photolysis of 33, was detected by matrix ESR spectroscopy.

Photochemical, photophysical, and theoretical studies on cyclobutanethiones..alpha.-Cleavage reactions

Photophysics and photochemistry of cyclobutanethiones 1-5 have been studied with the view to generalize the a-cleavage reactions of cyclobutanethiones. The above cyclobutanethiones possess a unit intersystem crossing efficiency from S1 to T1, a high self-quenching rate (-4 X lo9 M-' s-'), and a short triplet lifetime (<0.50 ws). Photolysis of 1-5 yields in benzene a product resulting from 1,3-transposition and in methanol two cyclic thioacetals.The origin of these products is traced to the triplet excited state. A mechanistic scheme involving a-cleavage as the primary photoprocess and diradicals and thiacarbenes as intermediates has been formulated to rationalize the formation of thioacetals and rearranged products. The proposed mechanistic scheme is supported by UHF MIND013 calculations performed on four model systems, cyclobutanethiones and 1,3-cyclobutanedithiones 18-21. These calculations indicate that formation of diradical is favored thermodynamically and kinetically for systems analogous to 19 and 21, while rearrangement to thiacarbene is likely only for those similar to 21.

Effect of configuration and conformation on the spin multiplicity in xylylene type biradicals

The singlet-triplet splitting energy gap DeltaE(S.T) = E-S - E-T is calculated for the ortho-, meta-, and para-xylylenes and their heteroatomic analogous by means of AM1-CI approach. It is shown that when the radical centers R-.(R-.=H2C.-,H2N.+- or HN.-) are twisted sufficiently Tar out of conjugation with the benzene ring, DeltaE(S.T) tends to zero or is negative, i.e, ortho-, meta-, and para-phenylenes turn into weak ferromagnetic or antiferromagnetic coupling unit, while they are strong ferromagnetic (meta-isomers) or antiferromagnetic (ortho-, para-isomers) coupling units under planar conformation. It is suggested that serious twisted conformation is not recommended candidate for the design of novel high-spin molecules with stable high-spin ground states by ortho- or para-phenylene coupling unit.

A rule to design high spin molecules with hetero-spin centers

The series of biradicals with m-phenylene coupling unit and hetero-spin centers were calculated compared with those possessing home-spin centers using AM1-CI method. A simple rule was proposed to design high spin molecules with ferromagnetic coupling unit and hetero-spin centers. Two neutral (or charged) hetero-spin centers resulted in high spin ground state, one neutral and another charged hetero-spin centers correspond to low spin ground state. The latter was ascribed to the huge splitting of two partially occupied molecular orbitals.

Using triazine as coupling unit for intramolecular ferromagnetic coupling of multiradicals

Novel high spin tri-, tetra-, pentaradicals, composed of triazine coupling units and cationic amino radical spin centers (+ . NH) under various configurations and linkages, are predicted from AM1-CI calculations. It is found that for charged planar multiradicals the stability of high spin ground states depends on both the molecular configuration and the number of end groups. Generally, cyclic 1,3-bridged charged multiradicals (S less than or equal to 5/2) possess more stable high spin ground states than their isomers under the branched 1,3,5,-bridged configuration. Therefore, it is suggested that in the design of planar high spin molecules with stable high spin ground states, less end groups and all the supposed spin centers and/or the coupling units should be under the same structural situation. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Extent and limitations of density functional theory in describing magnetic systems

The performance of density-functional theory to solve the exact, nonrelativistic, many-electron problem for magnetic systems has been explored in a new implementation imposing space and spin symmetry constraints, as in ab initio wave function theory. Calculations on selected systems representative of organic diradicals, molecular magnets and antiferromagnetic solids carried out with and without these constraints lead to contradictory results, which provide numerical illustration on this usually obviated problem. It is concluded that the present exchange-correlation functionals provide reasonable numerical results although for the wrong physical reasons, thus evidencing the need for continued search for more accurate expressions.

The cyclopropene pyrolysis story

Cyclopropene is the last of the small strained ring hydrocarbons to have its thermal decomposition subjected to intensive investigation. This critical review describes the nearly 40 year history of this investigation largely by gas kinetic methods with chromatographic analysis. These studies have revealed that cyclopropenes can decompose by a variety of mechanisms involving diradicals, vinylcarbenes and vinylidenes. Much detailed information has been obtained about the reactivity of these intermediates which has wider implications for thermal hydrocarbon pyrolysis. Theory has also played a important role. Cyclopropene itself has been shown to be an intermediate in the allene A propyne rearrangement. The story itself illustrates how the evolution of mechanistic understanding has been anything but straightforward. (68 references.).

Applications of Photoinduced Electron Transfer Chemistry: Photoremovable Protecting Groups and Carbon Dioxide Conversion

Traditional organic chemistry has long been dominated by ground state thermal reactions. The alternative to this is excited state chemistry, which uses light to drive chemical transformations. There is considerable interest in using this clean renewable energy source due to concerns surrounding the combustion byproducts associated with the consumption of fossil fuels. The work presented in this text will focus on the use of light (both ultraviolet and visible) for the following quantitative chemical transformations: (1) the release of compounds containing carboxylic acid and alcohol functional groups and (2) the conversion of carbon dioxide into other useable chemicals. Chapters 1-3 will introduce and explore the use of photoremovable protecting groups (PPGs) for the spatiotemporal control of molecular concentrations. Two new PPGs are discussed, the 2,2,2-tribromoethoxy group for the protection of carboxylic acids and the 9-phenyl-9-tritylone group for the protection of alcohols. Fundamental interest in the factors that affect C–X bond breaking has driven the work presented in this text for the release of carboxylic acid substrates. Product analysis from the UV photolysis of 2,2,2-tribromoethyl-(2′-phenylacetate) in various solvents results in the formation of H–atom abstraction products as well as the release of phenylacetic acid. The deprotection of alcohols is realized through the use of UV or visible light photolysis of 9-phenyl-9-tritylone ethers. Central to this study is the use of photoinduced electron transfer chemistry for the generation of ion diradicals capable of undergoing bond-breaking chemistry leading to the release of the alcohol substrates. Chapters 4 and 5 will explore the use of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) as a catalyst for the photochemical reduction of carbon dioxide. Previous experiments have demonstrated that NHCs can add to CO2 to form stable zwitterionic species known as N-heterocylic-2-carboxylates (NHC–CO2). Work presented in this text illustrate that the stability of these species is highly dependent on solvent polarity, consistent with a lengthening of the imidazolium to carbon dioxide bond (CNHC–CCO2). Furthermore, these adducts interact with excited state electron donors resulting in the generation of ion diradicals capable of converting carbon dioxide into formic acid.