A conceptual DFT study of hydrazino peptides: Assessment of the nucleophilicity of the nitrogen atoms by means of the dual descriptor Δf(r)

Hydrazinopeptides are pseudopeptide molecules containing a NN bond. To understand the compared reactivity as a nucleophile of the two nitrogen atoms included in this moiety with respect to the surrounding rest of the molecule, a conceptual DFT study is carried on with the analysis of the dual descriptor Δf(r) in a series of molecules, at the B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level. The dual descriptor is a tool based on the Principle of Maximal Hardness within the framework of conceptual DFT which characterises the nucleophilic and electrophilic areas within a molecule.