Experimental and theoretical studies show that neither CF3
+ nor FCO+ can be stabilized in the condensed phase
with presently known Lewis acids. In the case of ClCO+, stabilization with SbF6
- was also not possible, but
Sb3F15 possesses sufficient acidity to abstract a fluoride ion from ClFCO in the formation of ClCO+Sb3F16
-. This
salt was fully characterized, providing the first well-established proof for the existence of a halocarbonyl cation
in the condensed phase. Theoretical calculations and thermochemical cycles were used to corroborate our
experimental findings, demonstrating that is possible to predict correctly whether a molecule with three different
donor sites, such as ClFCO, will form an oxygen-coordinated donor−acceptor adduct or undergo either F- or
Cl- abstraction. Furthermore, a method is described for extending natural bond orbital (NBO) analyses to systems
containing two different types of competing, p(π) back-donating ligands.