A density-functional theory investigation of 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole-5-one dimers and crystal

Density-functional method with different basis sets was applied to the study of the highly efficient and low sensitive explosive 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole-5-one (NTO) in both gaseous dimer and its bulk state. The binding energies have been corrected for the basis set superposition errors. Six stable dimers (II-VII) were located. The corrected binding energy of the most stable dimer VII is predicted to be -53.66 kJ/mol at the B3LYP/6-311++G(**) level. It was found that the structures of the more stable dimers (V-VII) are through the hydrogen bonding interaction between the carbonyl oxygen and the azole hydrogen of 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole-5-one. The changes of Gibbs free energies (DeltaG) in the processes from the monomer to the dimers at 298.15 K are 8.51, 0.90, 0.35, -8.74, -10.67, and -11.06 kJ/mol for dimers from II to VII, respectively. Dimers V-VII, possessing cyclic structures, can be spontaneously produced from the isolated monomer at room temperature. The lattice energy is -156.14 kJ/mol, and this value becomes to -150.43 kJ/mol when a 50% correction of the basis set superposition error was adopted. The frontier bands are quite flat. Judged from the value of band gap of 4.0 eV, it may be predicted that 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole-5-one is an insulator. Most atoms in NTO, with the exception of C(5) atom and the nitro atoms, make up the upper valence bands. In contrast, the lower conduction bands mainly consist of the nitro N and O atoms. The population of the C-NO(2) bond is much less than those of the other bonds and the detonation may be initiated by the breakdown of this bond.