Solvent effects on barrier to rotation of enaminonitriles using inversion transfer (1)H NMR spectroscopy and FTIR spectroscopy.

The barrier to rotation and hydrogen bonding interactions of 2,2-dicyano-1-(N,N'-dimethylamino)vinylbenzene (1) were studied in a range of solvents. The barrier to rotation of 1 in chloroform was 14.8 kcal/mol and increased by 1.7 kcal/mol in a protic solvent, trifluoroethanol. FTIR studies showed a shift in the cyano stretch of 1 to a higher wavenumber in trifluoroethanol, which is consistent with 1 participating in a hydrogen bonding interaction at the vinyl carbon (C(v)) of the enaminonitrile group.