Empirically Fitted Parameters for Calculating pKa Values with Small Deviations from Experiments Using a Simple Computational Strategy.

Two empirically fitted parameters have been derived for 74 levels of theory. They allow fast and reliable pKa calculations using only the Gibbs energy difference between an acid and its conjugated base in aqueous solution (ΔGs(BA)). The parameters were obtained by least-squares fits of ΔGs(BA) vs experimental pKa values for phenols, carboxylic acids, and amines using training sets of 20 molecules for each chemical family.

Searching for Computational Strategies to Accurately Predict pKas of Large Phenolic Derivatives.

Twenty-two reaction schemes have been tested, within the cluster-continuum model including up to seven explicit water molecules. They have been used in conjunction with nine different methods, within the density functional theory and with second-order Møller-Plesset. The quality of the pKa predictions was found to be strongly dependent on the chosen scheme, while only moderately influenced by the method of calculation.