Tests of an exact-exchange-based density-functional theory on transition-metal complexes

We have compiled a benchmark set of mean ligand-removal enthalpies for 32 transition-metal complexes of relevance in organometallic and catalysis chemistry. Our recent exact-exchange-based density-functional model, DF07 (J. Chem. Phys. 2007, 127 (12), 124108), is assessed on this benchmark set along with other representative GGA, meta-GGA, and hybrid functionals. DF07 performs remarkably well, despite its exact-exchange foundation, indicating that it properly describes nondynamical correlation in transition-metal-ligand bonds.