Theoretical determination of the standard enthalpies of formation of alkyl radicals using the concept of a complete set of homodesmotic reactions.

The complete sets of homodesmotic reactions (HDR) for 107 acyclic alkyl free radicals С4-С9 of normal and branched structure were constructed using the graph-theoretic representation and analysis of a tested compound. The absolute enthalpies of the studied compounds and HDR reference structures were calculated using the M062X/cc-pVTZ level of theory. Based on these data, the thermal effects of HDRs were calculated and then applied to determine the standard enthalpies of formation of the studied radicals using the known enthalpies of formation of reference structures. The dissociation energies of BDE C-H and C-CH3 bonds were also calculated. The effect of radical structure on the BDE value is discussed, and a new effect of stabilization of the radical center in the skewed conformation of free radical is established; this effect has not been previously described in the scientific literature.