Theoretical and structural studies of lithium cyclic amide conformations. Monomers and aggregates

Abstract

High level ab initio calculations on the conformations of unsolvated and solvated lithium piperidide, 1, and lithium morpholide, 2, were carried out. It was found that both monomers exhibit a global minimum for a chair structure with a planar nitrogen, and 2 shows an additional stable pseudo boat conformation. Dimers and amine–lithium amide mixed aggregates were also calculated including discrete solvation; the role of aggregation is clearly shown both by the changes in geometries and in the stabilization energies. Semiempirical calculations carried out on a recently synthesized tetrameric mixed aggregate give a geometry very similar to the structure determined by X-ray diffraction. The present calculations very usefully confirm the likelihood of mixed aggregates of morpholine–lithium morpholide predicted by the carbonylation reactions and not attainable in solid forms.