Strong structuring arising from weak cooperative O-H···π and C-H···O hydrogen bonding in benzene-methanol solution.

ABSTRACT: Weak hydrogen bonds, such as O-H···π and C-H···O, are thought to direct biochemical assembly, molecular recognition, and chemical selectivity but are seldom observed in solution. We have used neutron diffraction combined with H/D isotopic substitution to obtain a detailed spatial and orientational picture of the structure of benzene-methanol mixtures. Our analysis reveals that methanol fully solvates and surrounds each benzene molecule. The expected O-H···π interaction is highly localised and directional, with the methanol hydroxyl bond aligned normal to the aromatic plane and the hydrogen at a distance of 2.30 Å from the ring centroid. Simultaneously, the tendency of methanol to form chain and cyclic motifs in the bulk liquid is manifest in a highly templated solvation structure in the pl

SUBMITTER: Di Mino C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10516861 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature