Molecular interactions intermolecular potential

The only feasible procedure at the moment is molecular dynamics computer simulation, which can be used since most systems are currently essentially controlled by classical dynamics even though the intermolecular potentials are often quantum mechanical in origin. There are indeed many intermolecular potentials available which are remarkably reliable for most liquids, and even for liquid mixtures, of scientific and technical importance. However potentials for the design of membranes and of the interaction of fluid molecules with membranes on the atomic scale are less well developed. 

In a classical simulation a force-field has to be provided. Experience with molecular liquids shows that surprisingly good results can be obtained with intermolecular potentials based on site-site short-range interactions and a number of charged sites... 

Caldwell J, Dang LX, Kollman PA (1990) Implementation of nonadditive intermolecular potentials by use of molecular-dynamics - development of a water water potential and water ion cluster interactions. J Am Chem Soc 112(25) 9144—9147... 

This Chapter has outlined several different approaches to the computational determination of solution properties. Two of these address solute-solvent interactions directly, either treating the effects of individual solvent molecules upon the solute explicitly or by means of a reaction field due to a continuum model of the solvent. The other procedures establish correlations between properties of interest and certain features of the solute and/or solvent molecules. There are empirical elements in all of these methods, even the seemingly more rigorous ones, such as the parameters in the molecular dynamics/Monte Carlo intermolecular potentials, Eqs. (16) and (17), or in the continuum model s Gcavitation and Gvdw, Eqs. (40) and (41), etc. 

The molecular approach, adopted throughout this book, starts from the statistical mechanical formulation of the problem. The interaction free energies are identified as correlation functions in the probability sense. As such, there is no reason to assume that these correlations are either short-range or additive. The main difference between direct and indirect correlations is that the former depend only on the interactions between the ligands. The latter depend on the maimer in which ligands affect the partition function of the adsorbent molecule (and, in general, of the solvent as well). The argument is essentially the same as that for the difference between the intermolecular potential and the potential of the mean force in liquids. 

Spherical nonpolar molecules obey an interaction potential which has the characteristic shape shown in Fig. 2. At large values of the separation r it is known that the potential curve has the shape — r 6, and at short distances the potential curve rises exponentially the exact shape of the bottom part of the curve is not very well known. Numerous empirical equations of the form of Eq. (78) have been suggested for describing the molecular interaction given pictorially in Fig. 2. The discussion here is restricted to the two most important empirical functions. A rather complete summary of the contributions to intermolecular potential energy and empirical intermolecular potential energy functions used in applied statistical mechanics may be found in (Hll, Sec. 1.3) ... 

A system of an ionic amphiphile contains in its simplest form three entities the solvent water, an amphiphilic ion, and a hydrophilic counterion. The properties of the total system can then be understood as the effects of the mutual interactions between these three species. A comprehensive treatment of all the interactions on a molecular level is not at present feasible. However, the development of methods for determining intermolecular potentials and for making statistical mechanical simulations292-294 should change this in the not too distant future. 

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