Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)The principal component analyses (PCA) were applied in investigations of alpha-substituent effects on C-13 NMR chemical shifts of the total of 169 aliphatic compounds represented by 13 organic classes: (a) carbonyl: acetones, acetophenones, camphors and cyclohexanones; (b) carboxyl: acetic acids, methyl-, ethyl- and phenyl-acetates, ethyl thioacetates, and N,N-diethylacetamides; and (c) unsaturated compounds: cyanides, oximes, and propenes. The effects of twelve alpha-substituents: F, Cl, Br, I, CMe, OEt, SMe, SEt, NMe2, NEt2, Me and Et were considered. In PCA matrix construction the experimentally C-13 NMR data for functional carbon and alpha-carbon atoms, and theoretically (ab initio) obtained data were used, and two type of PCA results were generated and discussed. In the first PCA score analysis, the division in three compound groups (a-c) was obtained principally because of variations in the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energies and partial charges on functional carbon atoms. The second PCA results showed division of analyzed compounds in groups of substituents according to heteroatom present (O, N. S, C or H) principally due to the differences in partial charges on alpha-carbon atoms as detected in the first principal component (PC), as well as, in molecular orbital coefficient of alpha-carbon atoms according to the second PC loading values. The halogen derivatives were treated as outliers in this PCA. Thus, knowing the structure of the Y-CH2-X Compound and calculating few theoretical (ab initio) parameters, four in our case, one could be able to predict the functional and alpha-carbon NMR chemical shifts with high accuracy based on PCA scores considering two principal component models and PC1 versus PC2 plots. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.933416991519Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)FAPESP [05/59649-0, 04/14584-5, 98/01239-5]