The combination of X-ray diffraction and nuclear quadrupole resonance studies of crystals

(14)N NQR, relaxation and molecular dynamics of the explosive TNT

Multiple pulse sequences are widely used for signal enhancement in NQR detection applications. Since the various (14)N NQR relaxation times, signal decay times and frequency of each NQR line have a major influence on detection sequence performance, it is important to characterise these parameters and their temperature variation, as fully as possible. In this paper we discuss such measurements for a number of the ν+ and ν- NQR lines of monoclinic and orthorhombic TNT and relate the temperature variation results to molecular dynamics. The temperature variation of the (14)N spin-lattice relaxation times T1 is interpreted as due to hindered rotation of the NO2 group about the C-NO2 bond with an activation energy of 89 kJ mol(-1) for the ortho and para groups of monoclinic TNT and 70 kJ mol(-1) for the para group of orthorhombic TNT.

14N quadrupole resonance and 1H T1 dispersion in the explosive RDX

The explosive hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-s-triazine (CH2-N-NO2)3, commonly known as RDX, has been studied by 14N NQR and 1H NMR. NQR frequencies and relaxation times for the three ν+ and ν- lines of the ring 14N nuclei have been measured over the temperature range 230-330 K. The 1H NMR T1 dispersion has been measured for magnetic fields corresponding to the 1H NMR frequency range of 0-5.4 M Hz. The results have been interpreted as due to hindered rotation of the NO2 group about the N-NO2 bond with an activation energy close to 92 kJ mol(-1). Three dips in the 1H NMR dispersion near 120, 390 and 510 kHz are assigned to the ν0, ν- and ν+ transitions of the 14NO2 group. The temperature dependence of the inverse line-width parameters T2∗ of the three ν+ and ν- ring nitrogen transitions between 230 and 320 K can be explained by a distribution in the torsional oscillational amplitudes of the NO2 group about the N-NO2 bond at crystal defects whose values are consistent with the latter being mainly edge dislocations or impurities in the samples studied. Above 310 K, the 14N line widths are dominated by the rapid decrease in the spin-spin relaxation time T2 due to hindered rotation of the NO2 group. A consequence of this is that above this temperature, the 1H T1 values at the quadrupole dips are dominated by the spin mixing time between the 1H Zeeman levels and the combined 1H and 14N spin-spin levels.

Coordination of carbonyl and carboxyl oxygen atoms with phosphorus in the presence of hydrogen bonding. P-O donor action

A series of phosphorus compounds 1-5 containing carbonyl or carboxyl groups was obtained and subjected to X-ray analysis. Syntheses of the phosphoranes 1 and 5 were effected by oxidation reactions using potassium permaganate, while the phosphine oxide 2 was obtained by oxidation with hydrogen peroxide. The readily available phosphines 3 and 4 were included in the study. The structures revealed that P-O coordination occurred for 1-3 in the presence of extensive hydrogen bonding and led to trigonal bipyramidal geometries. A similar structure was observed for 4 in the absence of hydrogen bonding. (31)P chemical shifts indicate retention of the basic coordination geometries in solution. Consideration of the chirality of the phosphoranes 1 and 5 leads to a pair of mirror images that are possible in solution but exist in preferred isomeric forms in the crystalline state. Evaluation of the energies of two competing bonding types indicated a range for P-O coordination above and below the hydrogen bond energy. The results suggest that phosphoryl transfer enzyme mechanisms should benefit by taking into account donor interactions to phosphorus by residues at active sites in addition to the inclusion of hydrogen bonding interactions.

Molecular Structures of Three-, Four-, and Five-Coordinate Phosphorus Compounds Containing Salicylate Ligands(1)

The new cyclic compound 2,2'-sulfurylbis(4-methyl-6-tert-butylphenyl) methyl 2-benzoate phosphite, O(2)S[(t-Bu)MeC(6)H(4)O](2)(OC(6)H(4)CO(2)Me)P (3), containing a salicylate ligand was synthesized from 2,2'-sulfurylbis(4-methyl-6-tert-butylphenyl) chlorophosphite and methyl salicylate in the presence of triethylamine in ether solution. X-ray analyses of bis(methyl salicylate-O)phenylphosphine, (OC(6)H(4)CO(2)Me)(2)PPh (1), and bis(methylsalicylato-O)phenyl(tetrachlorophenylene-1,2-dioxy)phosphorane, (O(2)C(6)Cl(4))(OC(6)H(4)CO(2)Me)(2)PPh (2), as well as that for 3 were obtained. The phosphane 1 has a pseudo trigonal bipyramidal (TBP) structure due to coordination of a carbonyl oxygen atom at an axial site. The cyclic phosphorane 2 and the phosphite 3 lack any coordination from salicylate ligands. This results in a TBP geometry and a pyramidal geometry respectively for 2 and 3. Comparisons with X-ray structures for carboxylate-containing phosphorus compounds exhibiting oxygen coordination show the formation of four- and five-membered cyclic systems. Thus, 1 appears to be the first example of formation of a six-membered ring via carbonyl oxygen coordination. Reference is made to the tyrosyl-tRNA synthetase system where it is proposed that carbonyl oxygen atom coordination is a likely occurrence in the transition state on the basis of the analysis presented in this work.