Tautomeric equilibria in solutions of 1-methyl-2-phenacylbenzimidazoles

Tautomeric equilibrium, proton affinity and mass spectrometry fragmentation of flexible hydrogen-bonded precursors and rigid [Formula: see text] fluorescent dyes

The stability of two groups of conformationally locked molecules, similar in topology, but differing only by the type of the bridge rigidifying their structure, is studied. The series of the less-rigid 2-phenacylheterocyclic compounds and their stiff difluoroboranyl derivatives are investigated for the determination of the effect of [Formula: see text]/S/O replacement in a five-membered heterocyclic ring and the presence of a strong electron-donating group on the tautomeric equilibrium, protonation affinity, and fragmentation pattern observed in the structural elucidation by means of mass spectrometry technique. The results of the [Formula: see text]B97X-D/6-311++G(d,p) calculations, the topological analysis of electron density as well as the experimental MS measurements show the importance of the number of heteroatoms, their properties, and location in the molecule for the rational design of the systems of desired stable tautomers or the favorable protonation sites. The obtained data allow for the understanding of the fundamentals of the novel highly fluorescent difluoroborates fragmentation behavior, vital for their structural elucidation with the application of high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry methods.

Substituent and Solvent Polarity on the Spectroscopic Properties in Azo Derivatives of 2-Hydroxynaphthalene and Their Difluoroboranes Complexes

Novel fluorescent dyes such as difluoroborane complexes of 1-phenylazonaphthalen-2-ol derivatives were successfully synthesized and characterized with a focus on the influence of a substituent and a solvent on the basic photophysical properties. ¹H, ¹¹B, ¹³C, ¹⁵N, and ¹⁹F nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of substituted 1-phenylazonaphthalen-2-ol difluoroboranes and their parent azo dyes were recorded and discussed. The absorption and emission properties of synthesized compounds were investigated in solvents of varying polarity. They were found to be fluorescent despite the presence of the azo group. The azo group rotation was blocked by complexing with -BF₂ to get a red shift in absorption. Solvent-dependent spectral properties of compounds were investigated using Lipper-Mataga and Bakhshiev plot. The calculated DFT energies and Frontier Molecular Orbitals calculations of the studied compounds were proved to be consistent with the experimental observations.

Tautomeric Equilibria in Solutions of 2-Phenacylbenzimidazoles

Detailed NMR spectral analysis of DMSO-d6 solutions of the series of substituted 2-phenacylbenzimidazoles (ketimine form, K) reveals two from three tautomeric forms. Integrals of the 1H NMR signals are used in establishing the molar ratio of tautomers. The experimental analyses are supported by quantum-chemical calculations, which satisfactorily reproduced the experimental trends. Although the reported semiempirical quantum-chemical calculations show that enaminone E, i.e., 2-(1,3-dihydro-2H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-ylidene)-1-phenylethan-1-one, was thermodynamically most stable, the results of MP2 ab initio calculations reveal the following order of stability: ketimine > enolimine > enaminone (substituents do not affect this sequence). 13C CPMAS NMR spectral data reveal that in the crystalline state the enolimine tautomer O is predominant in the p-CH3 and p-NO2 substituted congeners.