Carbonic acid monoethyl ester as a pure solid and its conformational isomerism in the gas-phase

Determining internal coordinate sets for optimal representation of molecular vibration

Arising from the harmonic approximation in solving the vibrational Schrödinger equation, normal modes dissect molecular vibrations into distinct degrees of freedom. Normal modes are widely used as they give rise to descriptive vibrational notations and are convenient for expanding anharmonic potential energy surfaces as an alternative to higher-order Taylor series representations. Usually, normal modes are expressed in Cartesian coordinates, which bears drawbacks that can be overcome by switching to internal coordinates. Considering vibrational notations, normal modes with delocalized characters are difficult to denote, but internal coordinates offer a route to clearer notations. Based on the Hessian, normal mode decomposition schemes for a given set of internal coordinates can describe a normal mode by its contributions from internal coordinates. However, choosing a set of internal coordinates is not straightforward. While the Hessian provides unique sets of normal modes, various internal coordinate sets are possible for a given system. In the present work, we employ a normal mode decomposition scheme to choose an optimal set. Therefore, we screen reasonable sets based on topology and symmetry considerations and rely on a metric that minimizes coupling between internal coordinates. Ultimately, the Nomodeco toolkit presented here generates internal coordinate sets to find an optimal set for representing molecular vibrations. The resulting contribution tables can be used to clarify vibrational notations. We test our scheme on small to mid-sized molecules, showing how the space of definable internal coordinate sets can significantly be reduced.

Increase of Radiative Forcing through Midinfrared Absorption by Stable CO2 Dimers?

We performed matrix-isolation infrared (MI-IR) spectroscopy of carbon dioxide monomers, CO₂, and dimers, (CO₂)₂, trapped in neon and in air. On the basis of vibration configuration interaction (VCI) calculations accounting for mode coupling and anharmonicity, we identify additional infrared-active bands in the MI-IR spectra due to the (CO₂)₂ dimer. These bands are satellite bands next to the established CO₂ monomer bands, which appear in the infrared window of Earth’s atmosphere at around 4 and 15 μm. In a systematic carbon dioxide mixing ratio study using neon matrixes, we observe a significant fraction of the dimer at mixing ratios above 300 ppm, with a steep increase up to 1000 ppm. In neon matrix, the dimer increases the IR absorbance by about 15% at 400 ppm compared to the monomer absorbance alone. This suggests a high fraction of the (CO₂)₂ dimer in our matrix experiments. In atmospheric conditions, such increased absorbance would significantly amplify radiative forcings and, thus, the greenhouse warming. To enable a comparison of our laboratory experiment with various atmospheric conditions (Earth, Mars, Venus), we compute the thermodynamics of the dimerization accordingly. The dimerization is favored at low temperatures and/or high carbon dioxide partial pressures. Thus, we argue that matrix isolation does not trap the gas composition “as is”. Instead, the gas is precooled to 40 K, where CO₂ dimerizes before being trapped in the matrix, already at very low carbon dioxide partial pressures. In the context of planetary atmospheres, our results improve understanding of the greenhouse effect for planets of rather thick CO₂ atmospheres such as Venus, where a significant fraction of the (CO₂)₂ dimer can be expected. There, the necessity of including the mid-IR absorption by stable (CO₂)₂ dimers in databases used for modeling radiative forcing, such as HITRAN, arises.

Chemical Batteries with CO2

Efforts to obtain raw materials from CO2 by catalytic reduction as a means of combating greenhouse gas emissions are pushing the boundaries of the chemical industry. The dimensions of modern energy regimes, on the one hand, and the necessary transport and trade of globally produced renewable energy, on the other, will require the use of chemical batteries in conjunction with the local production of renewable electricity. The synthesis of methanol is an important option for chemical batteries and will, for that reason, be described here in detail. It is also shown that the necessary, robust, and fundamental understanding of processes and the material science of catalysts for the hydrogenation of CO2 does not yet exist.

Microwave-Assisted Synthesis of Organometallic Rhenium (I) Pentylcarbonato Complexes: New Synthon for Carboxylato, Sulfonato and Chlorido Complexes

Tricarbonylrhenium(I)(α-diimine) complexes are of importance because of their strong cytotoxic and fluorescence properties. Syntheses of such complexes were achieved through a two-step process. First, the pentylcarbonato complexes, fac-(CO)₃(α-diimine)ReOC(O)OC₅H₁₁ were synthesized through a microwave-assisted reaction of Re₂(CO)₁₀, α-diimine, 1-pentanol and CO₂ in a few hours. Second, the pentylcarbonato complexes are treated with carboxylic, sulfonic and halo acids to obtain the corresponding carboxylato, sulfonato and halido complexes. This is the first example of conversion of Re₂(CO)₁₀ into a rhenium carbonyl complex through microwave-assisted reaction.

Atmospheric Photo-oxidation of Diethyl Carbonate: Kinetics, Products, and Reaction Mechanism

The rate coefficient for the gas phase of diethyl carbonate with chlorine atoms has been determined at 298 K using a relative method, employing ethyl formate and ethyl acetate as reference compounds. The experimental value, (1.0 ± 0.2) × 10^-11 cm³ molecule^-1 s^-1, is in good correlation with the one estimated by the SAR (Structure-Activity Relationship) method. The photo-oxidation mechanism of diethyl carbonate initiated by chlorine atoms was also studied at 298 K and atmospheric pressure as a function of the oxygen partial pressure. The main products identified by infrared spectroscopy were CH₃CH₂OC(O)OCHO, CH₃CH₂OC(O)OCH₂CHO, CH₃CH₂OC(O)OC(O)CH₃, CO₂, CO, HCOOH, and CH₃COOH. The results reveal that the oxidation process occurs by the abstraction of a hydrogen atom from the methyl (43%) and methylene (57%) groups. The relative importance of each reaction path from the primary radicals formed in photo-oxidation and the identity of CH₃CH₂OC(O)OCHO, CH₃CH₂OC(O)OC(O)CH₃, and CH₃CH₂OC(O)OCH₂CHO were determined using computational methods. The activation energy of reaction paths for the main oxygenated radicals formed during photo-oxidation was determined using Gaussian09 Program.

Alpha-Carbonic Acid Revisited: Carbonic Acid Monomethyl Ester as a Solid and its Conformational Isomerism in the Gas Phase

In this work, earlier studies reporting α‐H₂CO₃ are revised. The cryo‐technique pioneered by Hage, Hallbrucker, and Mayer (HHM) is adapted to supposedly prepare carbonic acid from KHCO₃. In methanolic solution, methylation of the salt is found, which upon acidification transforms to the monomethyl ester of carbonic acid (CAME, HO‐CO‐OCH₃). Infrared spectroscopy data both of the solid at 210 K and of the evaporated molecules trapped and isolated in argon matrix at 10 K are presented. The interpretation of the observed bands on the basis of carbonic acid [as suggested originally by HHM in their publications from 1993–1997 and taken over by Winkel et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007 and Bernard et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2011] is inferior compared with the interpretation on the basis of CAME. The assignment relies on isotope substitution experiments, including deuteration of the OH‐ and CH₃‐ groups as well as ¹²C and ¹³C isotope exchange and on variation of the solvents in both preparation steps. The interpretation of the single molecule spectroscopy experiments is aided by a comprehensive calculation of high‐level ab initio frequencies for gas‐phase molecules and clusters in the harmonic approximation. This analysis provides evidence for the existence of not only single CAME molecules but also CAME dimers and water complexes in the argon matrix. Furthermore, different conformational CAME isomers are identified, where conformational isomerism is triggered in experiments through UV irradiation. In contrast to earlier studies, this analysis allows explanation of almost every single band of the complex spectra in the range between 4000 and 600 cm⁻¹.