Kinetic carbon-13 and deuterium isotope effects are calculated for the SN2 reaction of CH3I with CN-. The normal vibrational frequencies of CH3I, the transition state I · · · CH3 · · · CN, and the corresponding isotope substituted reactants and transition states are evaluated from the force constants by solving the secular equation on an IBM 7094 computer.Values for 7 force constants of the planar CH3 moiety in the transition state (with an sp2 C atom) are obtained by comparison with suitable stable molecules. The stretching force constants related to the bonds being broken or newly formed (fCC, fCC and the interaction between these two stretches, /12) are chosen in such a way that either a zero or imaginary value for νʟ≠ will result. Agreement between calculated and experimental methyl-C13 isotope effects (k12/ k13) can be obtained only in sample calculations with sufficiently large values of f12 which lead to imaginary νʟ≠ values. Furthermore, the difference between fCI and fCC must be small (in the order of 1 mdyn/Å). The bending force constants, fHCI and fHCC, exert relatively little influence on k12/k13. They are important for the D isotope effect, however. As soon as experimental data on kH/kD are available it will be possible to derive a value for fHCC in the transition state if fHCI is kept constant at 0.205 mdynA, and if fCI, fCC and f12 are held in a reasonable order of magnitude. There is no agreement between experimental and calculated cyanide-C13 isotope effects. Possible explanations are discussed. — Since fCI and fCC cannot differ much it must be concluded that the transition state is relatively “symmetric”, with approximately equal amounts of bond making and bond breaking.
Transition between [R]- and [S]-Stereoisomers without Bond Breaking