Indirect Interactions Between Proton Donors Separated by Several Hydrogen Bonds

Abstract

We expand the definition of our recently proposed proton conduction mechanism, the packed-acid mechanism, which occurs under conditions of concentrated proton donors. The original definition stated that acid-acid interactions, which help overcome the barrier of the rate-determining step, occur only when a hydrogen bond is formed directly between proton donors. Here, it is shown that proton donors can interact with each other even when the donors are separated via several H-bonds. The effect of these interactions on proton diffusivity is confirmed by ab initio calculations.