In this RUI project funded by the Chemical Structure, Dynamics and Mechanisms Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Brian K. Ohta of Villanova University will investigate the chemical structure of various halonium ions, positively charged molecules that contain a halogen atom bonded to two carbon atoms. Specifically, he will determine whether they exist as a single symmetric ion or in a rapid equilibrium of multiple asymmetric ions. The overall approach is to use isotopic perturbation of equilibrium to determine whether a halonium ion, generated under superacidic conditions, adopts a symmetric or asymmetric structure. In conjunction with the experimental determination of their symmetry, a combination of experimental and computational techniques will be used to understand the factors that influence the symmetry of halonium ions.
The symmetry of halonium ions broadly impacts the understanding of how the subtle structural features of high-energy reactive intermediates can influence chemical reactions. The project emphasizes the training of undergraduate and postdoctoral researchers through an investigation that requires synthetic, spectroscopic, and computational techniques to study fundamental reaction mechanisms.
