Pyrrole and Pyridine in the Water EnvironmentEffect of Discrete and Continuum Solvation Models

Properties of pyrrole and pyridine molecules upon different hydrations were investigated through density functional theory. Complexes of studied molecules with a cluster of 50 water molecules were considered, and the polarizable continuum model of solvation (PCM) was also taken into account. For comparative purposes, all mentioned calculations were repeated for single pyrrole and pyridine molecules and their complexes with one water molecule. Aromaticities of solvated pyrrole and pyridine rings were studied using several geometric- and electronic-based aromaticity criteria. Special attention was paid to studying the properties of formed hydrogen bonds between pyrrole or pyridine and either a single water molecule or several water molecules of the cluster. Overall, a comprehensive description of two very important heterocyclic compounds, that is, pyrrole and pyridine, in both discrete and continuum water solutions, is extensively presented.