Density functional theory study on the insertion reaction mechanism of dibromocarbene with formaldehyde

The insertion reaction mechanism of CBr2 with CH3CH2O has been studied by using the B3LYP/6-311G(d) and CCSD(T)/6-311 G(d) at single point. The geometries of reactions, transition state and products were completely optimized. All the transition state is verified by the vibrational analysis and the internal reaction coordinate (IRC) calculations. The results show that reaction (1) is the dominant reaction path, which proceeds via two steps: i) two reactants form an intermediate (IM1), which is an exothermal reaction of 8.62 kJ center dot mol(-1) without energy barrier; ii) P1 is obtained via the TS1 and the H-shift, in which the energy barrier is 44.53 kJ center dot mol-1. The statistical thermodynamics and Eyring transition state theory with Wigner correction are used to study the thermodynamic and kinetic characters of this reaction in temperature range from 100 to 2200 K. The results show that the appropriate reaction temperature ranges from 200 to 1900 K at 1.0 atm, in which the reaction has a bigger spontaneity capability, equilibrium constant (K) and higher rate constant (k).