Free energy calculations using flexible-constrained, hard-constrained and non-constrained molecular dynamics simulations.

A comparison of different treatments of bond-stretching interactions in molecular dynamics simulation is presented. Relative free energies from simulations using rigid bonds maintained with the SHAKE algorithm, using partially rigid bonds maintained with a recently introduced flexible constraints algorithm, and using fully flexible bonds are compared in a multi-configurational thermodynamic integration calculation of changing liquid water into liquid methanol. The formula for the free energy change due to a changing flexible constraint in a flexible constraint simulation is derived. To allow for a more direct comparison between these three methods, three different pairs of models for water and methanol were used: a flexible model (simulated without constraints and with flexible constraints), a rigid model (simulated with standard hard constraints), and an alternative flexible model (simulated with flexible constraints and standard hard constraints) in which the ideal or constrained bond lengths correspond to the average bond lengths obtained from a short simulation of the unconstrained flexible model. The particular treatment of the bonds induces differences of up to 2 % in the liquid densities, whereas (excess) free energy differences of up to 5.7 (4.3) kJ mol(-1) are observed. These values are smaller than the differences observed between the three different pairs of methanol/water models: up to 5 % in density and up to 8.5 kJ mol(-1) in (excess) free energy.