<Emphasis Type="Italic">Brønsted</Emphasis> Acids in Ionic Liquids: Fundamentals,Organic Reactions,and Comparisons

Summary. A background for studying acids in various solvents is developed, emphasizing the importance of knowing to what extent a solvent conducts electricity and is therefore ionized, the dissociation equilibria of common molecular solvents and the acidic and basic species generated by solvent leveling. Acidity measurements in the atypical solvent water are discussed and the common method of expressing acidity in other systems – by Hammett values – is introduced. Representative examples of reactions involving Br?nsted acids in ionic liquids are presented and attention paid to the questions of speciation and acidity values. It is found that the gas phase proton affinity of a base is often a better guide to the acidity of its conjugate acid in an ionic liquid than is the dissociation constant of the said acid in water.     

Effects of petroleum resins on asphaltene aggregation and water-in-oil emulsion formation

Asphaltenes from four crude oils were fractionated by precipitation in mixtures of heptane and toluene. Solubility profiles generated in the presence of resins (1:1 mass ratio) indicated the onset of asphaltene precipitation occurred at lower toluene volume fractions (0.1–0.2) than without resins. Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) was performed on solutions of asphaltene fractions in mixtures of heptane and toluene with added resins to determine aggregate sizes. Water-in-oil emulsions of asphaltene–resin solutions were prepared and separated by a centrifuge method to determine the vol.% water resolved. In general, the addition of resins to asphaltenes reduced the aggregate size by disrupting the π–π and polar bonding interactions between asphaltene monomers. Interaction of resins with asphaltenic aggregates rendered the aggregates less interfacially active and thus reduced emulsion stability. The smallest aggregate sizes observed and the weakest emulsion stability at high resin to asphaltene (R/A) ratios presumably corresponded to asphaltenic monomers or small oligomers strongly interacting with resin molecules. It was often observed that, in the absence of resins, the more polar or higher molecular weight asphaltenes were insoluble in solutions of heptane and toluene. The addition of resins dissolved these insolubles and aggregate size by SANS increased until the solubility limit was reached. This corresponded approximately to the point of maximum emulsion stability. Asphaltene chemistry plays a vital role in dictating emulsion stability. The most polar species typically required significantly higher resin concentrations to disrupt asphaltene interactions and completely destabilize emulsions. Aggregation and film formation are likely driven by polar heteroatom interactions, such as hydrogen bonding, which allow asphaltenes to absorb, consolidate, and form cohesive films at the oil–water interface.     

A short,three-component total synthesis of 12-hydroxyeicosa-5,8,14(Z), 10(E)-tetraenoic acid (12-HETE) via the corresponding ketone

A highly effective synthesis of (±)-12-HETE (1) from the components 2, 3 and 6 is described which employs a new class of cuprate reagents.     

On the mathematical formulation and interpretation of LACO MO theory

The mathematical basis of LCAO MO theory is studied, both within the Hartree-Fock approximation and in more exact formulations. The basic LCAO expansion for molecular orbitals ¦> in terms of atomic orbitals ¦x> is conveniently written ¦> = ¦x> S ^–1 B where S is the overlap matrix for atomic orbitals and B is the matrix of atomic orbital-molecular orbital overlaps. It is suggested that matrices P and Q, defined by P=B B and Q=BnB where n is the matrix of molecular orbital occupation numbers, are appropriate to the interpretation of molecular calculations in terms of atomic orbital components, electronic populations and the degree of bonding. Implications for Hartree-Fock calculations are investigated.     

Single-molecule nanopore sensing of actin dynamics and drug binding

Actin is a key protein in the dynamic processes within the eukaryotic cell. To date, methods exploring the molecular state of actin are limited to insights gained from structural approaches, providing a snapshot of protein folding, or methods that require chemical modifications compromising actin monomer thermostability. Nanopore sensing permits label-free investigation of native proteins and is ideally suited to study proteins such as actin that require specialised buffers and cofactors. Using nanopores, we determined the state of actin at the macromolecular level (filamentous or globular) and in its monomeric form bound to inhibitors. We revealed urea-dependent and voltage-dependent transitional states and observed the unfolding process within which sub-populations of transient actin oligomers are visible. We detected, in real-time, filament-growth, and drug-binding at the single-molecule level demonstrating the promise of nanopore sensing for in-depth understanding of protein folding landscapes and for drug discovery.

Nanopipettes were used for real-time investigation into actin dynamics and drug binding at single-molecule resolution, showing promise for a better understanding of the mechanism of protein–protein interactions and drug discovery.     

The molecular structure of gaseous bis(hexamethydisilylamido)mercury(II), Hg{N(Si(CH3)3)2}2, as determined by electron diffraction

Gaseous bis(hexamethydisilylamido)mercury(II), Hg{N(SiMe₃)₂)₂}₂, has been studied by electron diffraction at a nozzle temperature of ca 390 K.

The diffraction data are consistent with a model consisting only of monomers. By assuming the NHgN chain to be linear and the HgHSi₂ fragments to be planar, an equilibrium conformer with a staggered Si₂NHgNSi₂ skeleton of D_ad-symmetry may be brought into a nice agreement with the observed diffraction data. The relatively large value of the vibrational amplitude of the inter-ligand SiSi distance, 0.26(12) A, indicates that the ligands undergo large amplitude vibrations about the NHgN axis. Steric considerations as well as the magnitude of the rotational barrier as estimated from the diffraction data (ca. 2 kcal mol⁻¹) show that this motion is hindered. A model with an eclipsed, co-planar Si₂NHgNSi₂ backbone of D_adsymmetry could not satisfactorily be brought into agreement with the observed diffraction data.

The values of some relevant key-parameters are: r_a(Hg---N) = 2.01(2) A, r_a(Si---N) = 1.732(9) A, r_a(Si---C) = 1.883(6) A;HgNSi = 116.0(1.0)°, SiNSi = 128.0(2.0)°, NSiC= 111.8(1.2)° and SiCH = 111.0(2.0)°. The trimethylsilyl groups are twisted 25(3)° away from their references positions typified by one Si---C bond of each such group eclipsing the adjacent Hg---N bond, in such a way that the overall symmetry of the model is lowered from D_ad to S₄.     

Artificial metalloenzymes: The powerful alliance between protein scaffolds and organometallic catalysts

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The absolute stereochemistry of grenadamide

3-(2S-Heptylcycloprop-1S-yl)propanoic acid 2-phenylethanamide was synthesised from cis-cyclopropan-1,2-dimethanol via enzymatic desymmetrisation of the dibutyrate; it gave identical NMR spectroscopic data to those reported for grenadamide but had an equal and opposite absolute rotation, indicating that the latter is the 2R,1R-enantiomer.     

Metal Cyanide Ions Mx(CN)y]+,- in the gas phase: M = Fe,Co, Ni,Zn, Cd,Hg, Fe + Ag,Co + Ag

The generation of metal cyanide ions in the gas phase by laser ablation of M(CN)(2) (M = Co, Ni, Zn, Cd, Hg), Fe(III)[Fe(III)(CN)(6)] x xH(2)O, Ag(3)[M(CN)(6)] (M = Fe, Co), and Ag(2)[Fe(CN)(5)(NO)] has been investigated using Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Irradiation of Zn(CN)(2) and Cd(CN)(2) produced extensive series of anions, [Zn(n)(CN)(2n+1)](-) (1 < or = n < or = 27) and [Cd(n)(CN)(2n+1)](-) (n = 1, 2, 8-27, and possibly 29, 30). Cations Hg(CN)(+) and [Hg(2)(CN)(x)](+) (x = 1-3), and anions [Hg(CN)(x)](-) (x = 2, 3), are produced from Hg(CN)(2). Irradiation of Fe(III)[Fe(III)(CN)(6)] x xH(2)O gives the anions [Fe(CN)(2)](-), [Fe(CN)(3)](-), [Fe(2)(CN)(3)](-), [Fe(2)(CN)(4)](-), and [Fe(2)(CN)(5)](-). When Ag(3)[Fe(CN)(6)] is ablated, [AgFe(CN)(4)](-) and [Ag(2)Fe(CN)(5)](-) are observed together with homoleptic anions of Fe and Ag. The additional heterometallic complexes [AgFe(2)(CN)(6)](-), [AgFe(3)(CN)(8)](-), [Ag(2)Fe(2)(CN)(7)](-), and [Ag(3)Fe(CN)(6)](-) are observed on ablation of Ag(2)[Fe(CN)(5)(NO)]. Homoleptic anions [Co(n)(CN)(n+1)](-) (n = 1-3), [Co(n)(CN)(n+2)](-) (n = 1-3), [Co(2)(CN)(4)](-), and [Co(3)(CN)(5)](-) are formed when anhydrous Co(CN)(2) is the target. Ablation of Ag(3)[Co(CN)(6)] yields cations [Ag(n)(CN)(n-1)](+) (n = 1-4) and [Ag(n)Co(CN)(n)](+) (n = 1, 2) and anions [Ag(n)(CN)(n+1)](-) (n = 1-3), [Co(n)(CN)(n-1)](-) (n = 1, 2), [Ag(n)Co(CN)(n+2)](-) (n = 1, 2), and [Ag(n)Co(CN)(n+3)](-) (n = 0-2). The Ni(I) species [Ni(n)(CN)(n-1)](+) (n = 1-4) and [Ni(n)(CN)(n+1)](-) (n = 1-3) are produced when anhydrous Ni(CN)(2) is irradiated. In all cases, CN(-) and polyatomic carbon nitride ions C(x)N(y)(-) are formed concurrently. On the basis of density functional calculations, probable structures are proposed for most of the newly observed species. General structural features are low coordination numbers, regular trigonal coordination stereochemistry for d(10) metals but distorted trigonal stereochemistry for transition metals, the occurrence of M-CN-M and M(-CN-)(2)M bridges, addition of AgCN to terminal CN ligands, and the occurrence of high spin ground states for linear [M(n)(CN)(n+1)](-) complexes of Co and Ni.