Multi-rotor internal rotations and conformational equilibria in oxiraneethanol and assignment of its vibrational spectra

The complex internal rotations and conformational equilibria in oxiraneethanol were investigated at the DFT-B3LYP/6-311G** level of theory. Four minima were predicted in the CCOH potential energy scans of the molecule to have relative energies of about 2 kcal/mol or less and all were calculated to have real frequencies upon full optimization of structural parameters and the calculation of the Gibb’s free-energies at the DFT level of calculation. At the DFT-B3LYP, the MP2 and the MP4(SDQ) levels of theory, the G1gg1 conformation, predicted to be the lowest energy conformation for oxiraneethanol, was in excellent agreement with the rotational microwave study. The equilibrium mixture was calculated to be about 47% G1gg1, 32% Cg1g, 15% Gg1t and 6% G1g1g at the B3LYP/6-311G** level of theory at 298.15 K. Solvent study corroborated the presence of the high energy Cg1g form in the liquid phase of oxiraneethanol. The vibrational frequencies of oxiraneethanol in its two stable forms were computed at the B3LYP level and vibrational assignments were made for the two lowest energy G1gg1 and Cg1g forms on the basis of calculated and experimental data of the molecule.