Protonation of 4 H-Pyran-4-one and its Sulfur Analogues. MNDO Study

The molecular and electronic structure of 4H-pyran-4-one and its mono- and disubstituted sulfur analogues (1-4) are studied by the MNDO method. The salient structural features are qualitatively reproduced and the trend of changes of geometric parameters is in good agreement with experiment. The charge distributions exhibit strong polarization due to the large π-electron drift toward the exo-heteroatom. The protonated conjugated acids are considered too. It is found that exo-heteroatom protonation is favoured by 60-80 kcal/mol over the attachment of the proton to the intraring heteroatom. This is in accordance with experimental evidence. It is rationalized by the higher electron density centered on the exo-heteroatom and the appreciable increase in aromatic cyclic conjugation taking place upon the exo-protonation.