Acetylene as Potential Hydrogen-Bond Proton Acceptor

Ab initio calculations are used to assess the ability of the CC triple bond in acetylene to act as proton acceptor to donor molecules HF, HCl, HCN and HCCH. The strength of the interaction energy varies from 3 kcal/mol for the strongest of these complexes FH⋯HCCH, to 1 kcal/mol for the weakest (HCCH)2. The X–H bond of all donors undergoes the elongation characteristic of H-bonds, along with the red shift of its stretching frequency. In addition, electron density is transferred from the proton-acceptor molecule to the donor, and the bridging H becomes more positive. However, the magnitudes of these density shifts are larger than might be expected from a conventional H-bond. Opposite to a H-bond, the proton-accepting C atom loses density. Decomposition of the total interaction energy indicates the dominant role played by Coulombic attraction, as in a H-bond, but the exchange repulsion, charge transfer, and polarization terms are disproportionately larger than is typically seen in true H-bonds