Interaction of methane molecules

Potential‐energy curves for CH4·CH4 have been calculated using the SCF LCAO MO method. Six different mutual orientations of the molecules have been considered and several basis sets have been employed. An analytical potential has been fitted to the computed energy values and used in a Monte Carlo calculation to yield a spherically averaged CH4·CH4 potential. The potential, if corrected for dispersion interaction, agrees fairly well with that derived from thermophysical data. At short distances it disagrees with the potentials derived from scattering experiments which, however, are also incompatible with the experimental potential for large distances.