Chemoselective photoredox fluorination is an appealing approach to access fluorinated fine chemicals such as active pharmaceutical ingredients, but most of the known procedures currently lack time-resolved mechanistic insights. We use nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and density functional theory (DFT) calculations to elucidate the elementary steps after irradiation in a photocatalytic fluorination procedure that we reported previously. Time-resolved optical spectroscopy suggests that direct reaction only occurs between the photoexcited anthraquinone (AQN) and Selectfluor®. We have observed spectroscopic evidence of a novel transient AQN–Selectfluor® species for the first time. Further studies by DFT calculations suggest that the AQN–Selectfluor® triplet exciplex formed by photoirradiation is responsible for initiating and sustaining the fluorination reaction.

Full-dimensional quantum dynamical calculations are carried out to study the mode specificity, bond selectivity, and isotopic branching ratio of the Cl + HOD reaction on an accurate global potential energy surface. Total reaction cross sections have been computed for several low-lying vibrational states of HOD. Our results confirm the experimental observed vibrationally promoted bond cleavage, in which the breaking of the OH(OD) bond is strongly enhanced by the OH(OD) excitation. These results are rationalized by the recently proposed sudden vector projection model. In addition, the OH/OD branching ratio as a function of energy is investigated and rationalized by a reorientation effect.

Reaction dynamics and mode specificity in the H2 + NH2 → H + NH3 reaction are investigated in full dimensionality on a recent ab initio based global potential energy surface. Integral cross sections from several low-lying vibrational states of both reagents have been calculated under the centrifugal sudden or J-shifting approximations, using an initial state selected time-dependent wave packet method. This nine-dimensional system provides an ideal proving ground to test our recently proposed Sudden Vector Projection (SVP) model. Our results indicate that vibrational excitation of H2 enhances the reactivity. On the other hand, excitation of either the symmetric or antisymmetric stretching mode of NH2 inhibits the reaction, while excitation of its bending mode has a negligible effect. Furthermore, all vibrational modes are less effective than translational energy in promoting the reaction. These mode-specific features are rationalized with the SVP model.

Reaction dynamics and mode specificity in the H2 + NH2 → H + NH3 reaction are investigated in full dimensionality on a recent ab initio based global potential energy surface. Integral cross sections from several low-lying vibrational states of both reagents have been calculated under the centrifugal sudden or J-shifting approximations, using an initial state selected time-dependent wave packet method. This nine-dimensional system provides an ideal proving ground to test our recently proposed Sudden Vector Projection (SVP) model. Our results indicate that vibrational excitation of H2 enhances the reactivity. On the other hand, excitation of either the symmetric or antisymmetric stretching mode of NH2 inhibits the reaction, while excitation of its bending mode has a negligible effect. Furthermore, all vibrational modes are less effective than translational energy in promoting the reaction. These mode-specific features are rationalized with the SVP model.

Chemoselective photoredox fluorination is an appealing approach to access fluorinated fine chemicals such as active pharmaceutical ingredients, but most of the known procedures currently lack time-resolved mechanistic insights. We use nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and density functional theory (DFT) calculations to elucidate the elementary steps after irradiation in a photocatalytic fluorination procedure that we reported previously. Time-resolved optical spectroscopy suggests that direct reaction only occurs between the photoexcited anthraquinone (AQN) and Selectfluor®. We have observed spectroscopic evidence of a novel transient AQN–Selectfluor® species for the first time. Further studies by DFT calculations suggest that the AQN–Selectfluor® triplet exciplex formed by photoirradiation is responsible for initiating and sustaining the fluorination reaction.