Theoretical and experimental approaches to the effects of solvation on the small internal rotational potential of benzal fluoride

Abstract

The internal rotational potential for benzal fluoride is computed at various levels of molecular orbital theory, including correlation-gradient, MP2 (frozen core) methods. The perturbations of the potential caused by solvents are calculated with the Onsager model (ellipsoidal cavity with l = 6 in the multipole expansion) as well as with the self-consistent isodensity – polarizable continuum model (SCI–PCM). Analysis of the 1H and 19F nuclear magnetic resonance spectra in cyclohexane-d12 and acetone-d6 solutions yields long-range spin–spin coupling constants from which the expectation values of [Formula: see text] can be derived. These expectation values can be compared with those calculated from the theoretical internal rotational potential. Reasonable agreement is found for potentials obtained from MP2/6-31G* approaches in both solvent models. Long-range coupling constants between 19F and 13C nuclei are also reported and provide very rough checks of the [Formula: see text] values. For the isolated molecule an additivity scheme based on the potential for benzyl fluoride reproduces much of the potential for benzal fluoride except for a deviation caused by the rather larger relative magnitude of the fourfold component in the latter. The minimum in the potential for benzal fluoride occurs for a torsional angle, [Formula: see text] of 90° corresponding to a conformation in which the C—H bond of the side chain lies in a plane perpendicular to the phenyl plane and is rationalized on the basis of electrostatic forces. The conformations of minimum energy for the benzyl and benzal fluorides and chlorides are compared and contrasted. The magnitudes of the internal potentials of the fluorides are only a little larger than thermal energies at 300 K and can become smaller than the latter in soludon. Key words: NMR spectroscopy, of benzal fluoride; spin–spin coupling constants, long range in benzal fluoride; solvent effects, on internal rotational potential in benzal fluoride; molecular orbital computations, structure, internal rotational potential, and its solvent perturbations in benzal fluoride; benzal fluoride, 1H, 19F, and 13C NMR on, internal rotational potential, MO computations.