Abstract:
It is shown from an analysis of data on the structure and properties of tetrahalomethanes CX4, where X = Cl, Br, I, that their chemical behaviour in many respects depends on the energy accessibility of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital, which is the antibonding analogue of a bonding orbital of σ-type. This characteristic is responsible for, on the one hand, the occurrence of intramolecular interactions between halogen atoms and, on the other hand, their electrophilic properties in reactions with electron donors. The bibliography includes 183 references.