Issue 34, 2018

Electron-withdrawing effects on the molecular structure of 2- and 3-nitrobenzonitrile revealed by broadband rotational spectroscopy and their comparison with 4-nitrobenzonitrile

Abstract

The rotational spectra of 2- and 3-nitrobenzonitrile were recorded via chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave spectroscopy in the frequency range of 2–8 GHz. These molecules each display large dipole moments, making them viable candidates for deceleration and trapping experiments with AC-electric fields. For both molecules, the main isotopologues and all isotopologues of the respective 13C-, 15N-, 18O-monosubstituted species in their natural abundance were assigned. These assignments allowed for the structural determination of 2- and 3-nitrobenzonitrile via Kraitchman's equations as well as a mass-dependent least-squares fitting approach. The experimentally determined structural parameters are then compared to those obtained from quantum-chemical calculations for these two molecules and 4-nitrobenzonitrile. Structural changes caused by steric interaction and competition for the electron density of the phenyl ring highlight how these strong electron-withdrawing substituents affect one another according to their respective positions on the phenyl ring.

Graphical abstract: Electron-withdrawing effects on the molecular structure of 2- and 3-nitrobenzonitrile revealed by broadband rotational spectroscopy and their comparison with 4-nitrobenzonitrile

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
08 Mar 2018
Accepted
31 Jul 2018
First published
03 Aug 2018

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2018,20, 22210-22217

Electron-withdrawing effects on the molecular structure of 2- and 3-nitrobenzonitrile revealed by broadband rotational spectroscopy and their comparison with 4-nitrobenzonitrile

J. B. Graneek, W. C. Bailey and M. Schnell, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2018, 20, 22210 DOI: 10.1039/C8CP01539B

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