Intermolecular triple proton and deuteron transfer in crystalline 3,5-dimethylpyrazole studied by NMR, NQR and X-ray methods

A combination of {sup 13}C, {sup 15}N magnetic resonance, {sup 14}N quadrupole double resonance, and x-ray studies of solid 3,5-dimethylpyrazole between 270 and 350 K has shown that the NH...N hydrogen bond units present in the crystal are dynamically disordered, so that each nitrogen atom is on average attached to half a hydrogen atom. The molecules form discrete hydrogen-bonded cyclic trimers, in which the hydrogen atoms move in a double minimum potential energy surface which is symmetrical, to within experimental error. The experimental evidence in this temperature range is consistent with disorder by means of correlated triple hydrogen jumps with an activation energy of 45 kJ mol{sup {minus}1}. There is a large kinetic hydrogen (HHH)/deuterium (DDD) isotope effort of >20 at 299 K and equal to 8 at 347 K.