Kinetic–thermodynamic correlation of conformational changes in ammonium complexes of a flexible naphthocage

Abstract

Conformational changes in non-covalent complexes are of fundamental importance to many chemical and biological processes. Yet, these low-energy structural changes are usually fast and difficult to monitor, which poses challenges in their detailed kinetic understanding. The correlation between kinetics and thermodynamics of the conformational change of a model supramolecular system featuring a flexible naphthocage and quaternary ammonium guests is described in this work. Guest binding initially locks the host in two major conformations, which then equilibrates over time to the more stable conformer. The overall rate of the system to attain conformational equilibrium is found to inversely correlate with the thermodynamic stability of the host–guest complexes, and hence not only can the kinetic parameters of the conformational exchange be predicted from the easily obtainable thermodynamic data, but the kinetic profile can also be rationalized by using the structural properties of the different guests.