PNNL

Abstract

Photoelectron spectra of singly-charged dicarboxylate anions HO2C(CH2)nCO2 - (n = 1 – 10) are obtained at two different temperatures (300 and 70 K) at 193 nm. The electron binding energies of these species are observed to be much higher than the singly-charged monocarboxylate anions, suggesting the singly-charged dicarboxylate anions are cyclic due to strong intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the terminal –CO2H and –CO2 - groups. The measured electron binding energies are observed to depend on the chain length, reflecting the different –CO2H…-O2C– hydrogen bonding strength as a result of strain in the cyclic conformation. A minimum binding energy is found at n = 5, indicating that its intramolecular hydrogen bond is the weakest. At 70 K, all spectra are blue-shifted relative to the room temperature spectra with the maximum binding energy shift occurring at n = 5. These observations suggest that the cyclic conformation of HO2C(CH2)5CO2 - (a ten-membered ring) is the most strained among the ten anions. The present study shows that the –CO2H…-O2C– hydrogen bonding strength is different among the ten anions and it is very sensitive to the strain in the cyclic conformations.