Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 27, 2026
Versatile CO2 Transformations into Complex Products: A One-pot Two-step Strategy
Published on: November 9, 2019
Covalency hinders AnO2(H2O)(+)→ AnO(OH)2(+) isomerisation (An = Pa-Pu)
1School of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL, UK. nikolas.kaltsoyannis@manchester.ac.uk.
Abstract:
The enthalpies of the reactions AnO2(+)→ AnO(+) + O and AnO2(+) + H2O → AnO2(H2O)(+), and those of the isomerisation of the latter to AnO(OH)2(+), have been calculated for An = Pa-Pu. The data match previous experimental and computational values very closely, and the computed enthalpy for the isomerisation of PaO2(H2O)(+) to PaO(OH)2(+), requested by the authors of Inorg. Chem., 2015, 54, 7474, is found to be 0.8 kJ mol(-1). The NPA, NBO and QTAIM approaches are used to probe covalency in the An-Oyl bond of AnO2(H2O)(+), and all metrics agree that these bonds become increasingly covalent as the 5f series is crossed, providing rationalisation for the increasingly endothermic isomerisation reactions. QTAIM analysis indicates that the An=O and An-OH bonds in the oxide hydroxide isomers also become increasingly covalent as the 5f series is crossed.
Related Concept Videos
01:08Covalent Bonds
When two atoms share electrons to complete their valence shells, they create a covalent bond. An atom's electronegativity—the force with which shared electrons are pulled towards an atom—determines how the electrons are shared. Molecules formed with covalent bonds can be either polar or nonpolar. Atoms with similar electronegativities form nonpolar covalent bonds; the electrons are shared equally. Atoms with different electronegativities share electrons unequally,...
01:29Covalent Bonds
02:34Structural Isomerism
Isomers are different chemical species that have the same chemical formula. Structural isomerism of coordination compounds can be divided into two subcategories, the linkage isomers and coordination-sphere isomers.
Linkage isomers occur when the coordination compound contains a ligand that can bind to the transition metal center through two different atoms. For example, the CN− ligand can bind through the carbon atom or through the nitrogen atom. Similarly, SCN− can...
02:36Regioselectivity and Stereochemistry of Hydroboration
Hydroboration proceeds in a concerted fashion with the attack of borane on the π bond, giving a cyclic four-centered transition state. The –BH2 group is bonded to the less substituted carbon and –H to the more substituted carbon. The concerted nature requires the simultaneous addition of –H and –BH2 across the same face of the alkene giving syn stereochemistry.
01:20Aldehydes and Ketones with Water: Hydrate Formation
The formation of hydrates is a reversible reaction. Hydrate formation is influenced by steric and electronic factors accompanying the alkyl substituents on the carbonyl group: The rate of hydrate formation increases with a decrease in the number of alkyl groups attached to the carbonyl carbon. Hence,...
02:01Isomerism in Alkenes
An isomer is called cis-2-butene when the methyl groups are on the same side of the double bond, and the other stereoisomer, in which methyl groups are on the opposite side of the double bond, is called trans-2-butene. The cis and trans stereoisomers are not...