Synthesis,NMR, and X-ray crystallographic analysis of C-hydrazino-C-carboxycarboranes: versatile ligands for the preparation of BNCT and BNCS agents and (99m)Tc radiopharmaceuticals

Protected hydrazine derivatives of ortho-, meta-, and para-carboranes were synthesized in good to excellent yields by reacting the mono-lithio salts of the respective carboranes with di-tert-butyl azodicarboxylate (DBAD). Subsequent deprotonation of the remaining carborane CH group, followed by the addition of CO(2)(g), resulted in the formation of bifunctional C-hydrazino-C-carboxycarboranes in good to excellent overall yields. Crystal structures of the monosubstituted ortho-carborane, 1-[(N,N'((tert-butyloxy)carbonyl)hydrazino)]-1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane (8) [a = 21.213(6) A, b = 10.498(3) A, c = 9.866(2) A, alpha = gamma = 90 degrees, beta = 90.529(4) degrees ] and the bifunctional para-carborane 1-[(N,N'((tert-butyloxy)carbonyl)hydrazino)]-1,12-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane-12-carboxylic acid (3) [a = 12.744(10) A, b = 12.875(9) A, c = 14.767(9) A, alpha = beta = gamma = 90 degrees ] were obtained. Intermolecular hydrogen bonding was a dominant packing feature in both structures. The reported compounds represent a unique class of bifunctional carboranes that can be used in peptidomimetic research and as synthons to prepare novel radiopharmaceuticals and boron neutron capture therapy/boron neutron capture synovectomy (BNCT/BNCS) agents.     

Accelerated Hantzsch electrospray synthesis with temporal control of reaction intermediates

Complex chemical reactions can occur in electrosprayed droplets on the millisecond time scale. The Hantzsch synthesis of 1,4-dihydropyridines was studied in this way using on-line mass spectral analysis to optimize conditions and characterize the product mixture. Changing the distance between the nanospray source and the MS inlet allowed exploration of reaction progress as a function of droplet time-of-flight. Desolvation of the charged microdroplets is associated with transformation from starting material to intermediates and eventually to product as the distance is increased. Results of the on-line experiments require a termination step that discontinuously completes the desolvation process and allows the generated gaseous ions to be used to characterize the state of the system at a particular time. The intermediates seen correspond to those known to occur in the bulk solution-phase reaction. Off-line collection of the sprayed reaction mixture allowed the recovery of 250 mg h^–1 of desired reaction product from a single sprayer, permitting characterization by NMR and other standard methods. A thin film version of the accelerated reaction is described and it could be controlled through the temperature of the collection surface.     

Two-photon transitions in quadrupolar and branched chromophores: experiment and theory

A combined experimental and theoretical study is conducted on a series of model compounds in order to assess the combined role of branching and charge symmetry on absorption, photoluminescence, and two-photon absorption (TPA) properties. The main issue of this study is to examine how branching of quadrupolar chomophores can lead to different consequences as compared to branching of dipolar chromophores. Hence, three structurally related pi-conjugated quadrupolar chromophores symmetrically substituted with donor end groups and one branched structure built from the assembly of three quadrupolar branches via a common donor moiety are used as model compounds. Their photophysical properties are studied using UV-vis spectroscopy, and the TPA spectra are determined through two-photon excited fluorescence experiments using femtosecond pulses in the 500-1000 nm range. Experimental studies are complemented by theoretical calculations. The applied theoretical methodology is based on time-dependent density functional theory, the Frenkel exciton model, and analysis in terms of the natural transition orbitals of relevant electronic states. Theory reveals that a symmetrical intramolecular charge transfer from the terminal donating groups to the middle of the molecule takes place in all quadrupolar chromophores upon photoexcitation. In contrast, branching via a central electron-donating triphenylamine moiety breaks the quadrupolar symmetry of the branches. Consequently, all Frank-Condon excited states have significant asymmetric multidimensional charge-transfer character upon excitation. Subsequent vibrational relaxation of the branched chromophore in the excited state leads to a localization of the excitation and fluorescence stemming from a single branch. As opposed to what was earlier observed when dipolar chromophores are branched via the same common electron-donating moiety, we find only a slight enhancement of the maximum TPA response of the branched compound with respect to an additive contribution of its quadrupolar branches. In contrast, substantial modifications of the spectral shape are observed. This is attributed to the subtle interplay of interbranch electronic coupling and asymmetry caused by branching.     

Wetting in oil/water/surfactant systems

The behaviour of oils at aqueous interfaces is ubiquitous to many industrially and biologically relevant processes. In this review we consider modifications to the wetting properties of oils at the air/water, oil/water and solid/liquid interfaces in the presence of surfactants. First-order wetting transitions can be induced in a wide range of oils by varying the aqueous surfactant concentration, leading to the formation of mixed monolayers at the interface. In certain cases, these mixed monolayers display novel surface freezing behaviour, including the formation of unusual bilayer structures, which further modifies the properties of the interface. The effects of surfactant on line tension at the three-phase contact line and differences between the air/liquid and liquid/liquid interfaces are discussed.     

Allowed and forbidden d-d transitions in poly(3,5-dimethylpyrazolyl)methane complexes of nickel(II)

Absorption spectra of four nickel(II) complexes with poly(pyrazolyl)methane ligands are presented in the NIR-VIS-UV region and the band system corresponding to the lowest-energy spin-allowed and spin-forbidden transitions is analyzed. A quantitative theoretical model involving coupled electronic states provides precise energies for the lowest-energy triplet and singlet excited states and allows comparisons between complexes with a variable number of nitrogen and oxygen ligator atoms. Singlet energies between 12,840 and 13,000 cm(-1) are determined for heteroleptic complexes. These energies are in an intermediate range between those for homoleptic complexes with either nitrogen or oxygen ligator atoms with singlet states at approximately 12,000 and 14,000 cm(-1), respectively. The new theoretical approach is compared to the traditional ligand-field parameters obtained from the maxima of the broad, spin-allowed absorption bands.     

Magnetic resonance tensors in Uracil: Calculation of 13C, 15N, 17O NMR chemical shifts, 17O and 14N electric field gradients and measurement of 13C and 15N chemical shifts

The experimental ¹³C NMR chemical shift components of uracil in the solid state are reported for the first time (to our knowledge), as well as newer data for the ¹⁵N nuclei. These experimental values are supported by extensive calculated data of the ¹³C, ¹⁵N and ¹⁷O chemical shielding and ¹⁷O and ¹⁴N electric field gradient (EFG) tensors. In the crystal, uracil forms a number of strong and weak hydrogen bonds, and the effect of these on the ¹³C and ¹⁵N chemical shift tensors is studied. This powerful combination of the structural methods and theoretical calculations gives a very detailed view of the strong and weak hydrogen bond formation by this molecule. Good calculated results for the optimized cluster in most cases (except for the EFG values of the ¹⁴N3 and ¹⁷O4 nuclei) certify the accuracy of our optimized coordinates for the hydrogen nuclei. Our reported RMSD values for the calculated chemical shielding and EFG tensors are smaller than those reported previously. In the optimized cluster the 6-311+G** basis set is the optimal one in the chemical shielding and EFG calculations, except for the EFG calculations of the oxygen nuclei, in which the 6-31+G** basis set is the optimal one. The optimal method for the chemical shielding and EFG calculations of the oxygen and nitrogen nuclei is the PW91PW91 method, while for the chemical shielding calculations of the ¹³C nuclei the B3LYP method gives the best results.     

On the optimum choice of weight functions in a class of variational calculations

Summary We consider the variational solution of a particular class of second order differential equations and show that expansions in terms of Chebychev and a range of ultraspherical polynomials lead to operator matrices that are asymptotically diagonal, and that hence their convergence properties can be completely characterised using a previously developed analysis. For a given class of weight functions bounds are given on the convergence of the coefficients and of the weighted mean square error, in terms of the analyticity properties of the coefficients in the differential equation. These bounds are used to discuss the optimum choice of weight function for such a calculation.     

Modulation of NMR spin echoes in coupled systems

A new theoretical approach to NMR spin echoes is described. The xy magnetizations which correspond to the lines in the spectrum are dealt with directly, by the use of the angular momentum properties of Liouville space. This simplifies the calculations for the AB spin systems and opens the way to larger systems.