The solvation properties of nitric oxide

Literature values for the partition of nitric oxide between the gas phase a nd water and between the gas phase and organic solvents have been combined to yield water-solvent partition coefficients. Analysis of the gas-solvent and water-solvent partition coefficients using the solvation equations of A braham shows that nitric oxide is only a very weak hydrogen-bond base. The various solvation descriptors of Abraham for nitric oxide can be obtained, and are shown to be similar to other inorganic gases; the descriptors can b e used to predict a large number of physicochemical properties of nitric ox ide. A key property of nitric oxide is the lipophilicity, as the water-octa nol partition coefficient, that we calculate to be quite small at 0.74 (log P-oct), about the same as that for argon or nitrogen.