Proton Tunneling in Heterodimers of Carboxylic Acids: A Rotational Study of the Benzoic Acid-Formic Acid Bimolecule

Tunneling effects have been measured in the pulsed jet Fourier transform microwave spectra of two isotopologues of the benzoic acid-formic acid bimolecule. The tunneling splittings are originated by the concerted proton transfer of the two carboxylic hydrogens. From the values of these splittings for the OH-OH and OD-OD species, it has been possible to model/size the barrier to the concerted double proton transfer.

On the weak O-H···halogen hydrogen bond: a rotational study of CH3CHClF···H2O

We measured the molecular beam Fourier transform microwave spectra of six isotopologues of the 1 : 1 adduct of CH(3)CHClF with water. Water prefers to form an O-H···F rather than an O-H···Cl hydrogen bond. This is just the contrary of what was observed in the chlorofluoromethane-water adduct, where an O-H···Cl link was formed (W. Caminati, S. Melandri, A. Maris and P. Ottaviani, Angew. Chem., Int. Ed., 2006, 45, 2438). The water molecule is linked with an O-H···F bridge to the fluorine atom, with r(F···H(w)) = 2.14 Å, and with two C-H···O contacts to the alkyl hydrogens with r(C(1)-H(1)···O(w)) = 2.75 Å and r(C(2)-H(2)···O(w)) = 2.84 Å, respectively. Besides the rotational constants, the quadrupole coupling constants of the chlorine atom have been determined. In addition, information on the internal dynamics has been obtained.