Odd carbon long linear chains HC2n+1H (n = 4-11): properties of the neutrals and radical anions

The optimized geometries, adiabatic electron affinities, vertical electron affinities, vertical electron detachment energies (for the anions), and IR-active vibrational frequencies have been predicted for the long linear carbon chains HC(2)(n)()(+1)H (n = 4-11). The B3LYP density functional combined with DZP and TZ2P basis sets was used in this theoretical study. These methods have been extensively calibrated versus experiment for the prediction of electron affinities (Chem. Rev. 2002, 102, 231). The computed physical properties are discussed and compared with the even carbon chains HC(2)(n)()H. The predicted electron affinities form a remarkably regular sequence: 2.12 eV (HC(9)H), 2.42 eV (HC(11)H), 2.66 eV (HC(13)H), 2.85 eV (HC(15)H), 3.01 eV (HC(17)H), 3.14 eV (HC(19)H), 3.25 eV (HC(21)H), and 3.35 eV (HC(23)H). These electron affinities are as much as 0.4 eV higher than those for analogous even carbon chains. The predicted structures display an intermediate cumulene-polyacetylene type of bonding, with the inner carbons appearing cumulenic and the outer carbons polyacetylenic.     

A metabonomic investigation of hepatotoxicity using diffusion-edited 1H NMR spectroscopy of blood serum

It has been shown extensively, that chemometric investigations of 1H NMR spectra of rat urine taken from animals dosed with model toxins produce characteristic patterns of metabolic responses and that this permits the identification of biomarkers of toxic response and regeneration. To date, metabonomic methods have been mainly optimised for urine which contains mainly low molecular weight moieties, and thus a conventional 1-dimensional 1H NMR pulse sequence is an efficient means of obtaining information-rich data. In the case of biofluids such as blood plasma or serum, which contain a wide range of macromolecules the resonances of which can overlap with peaks from small molecule metabolites, the information giving rise to sample classification can be concealed in a conventional NMR spectrum andthis presents a different analytical challenge in terms of chemometric analysis of spectral profiles. Here, the use of other types of NMR data have been investigated and it is shown that by using spectra where the peak intensities are edited according to their molecular diffusion coefficients, it is possible to improve differentiation of control animals and those treated with the model hepatotoxin, alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate (ANIT). By using diffusion-edited spectroscopy, plasma lipid moieties are less attenuated than those from small endogenous metabolites and thus the toxin-induced changes to the lipoprotein profiles are more easily detectable.     

Controlled synthesis of ternary II-II'-VI nanoclusters and the effects of metal ion distribution on their spectral properties

The reaction of [(3,5-Me(2)-C(5)H(3)N)(2)Zn(ESiMe(3))(2)] (E = Se, Te) with cadmium(II) acetate in the presence of PhESiMe(3) and P(n)Pr(3) at low temperature leads to the formation of single crystals of the ternary nanoclusters [Zn(x)()Cd(10)(-)(x)()E(4)-(EPh)(12)(P(n)()Pr(3))(4)] [E = Se, x = 1.8 (2a), 2.6 (2b); Te, x = 1.8 (3a), 2.6 (3b)] in good yield. The clusters [Zn(3)Hg(7)Se(4)(SePh)(12)(P(n)()Pr(3))(4)] (4) and [Cd(3.7)Hg(6.3)Se(4)(SePh)(12)(P(n)()Pr(3))(4)] (5) can be accessed by similar reactions involving [(3,5-Me(2)-C(5)H(3)N)(2)Zn(SeSiMe(3))(2)] or [(N,N'-tmeda)Cd(SeSiMe(3))(2)] (1) and mercury(II) chloride. The metal silylchalcogenolate reagents are efficient delivery sources of {ME(2)} in cluster synthesis, and thus, the metal ion content of these clusters can be readily moderated by controlling the reaction stoichiometry. The reaction of cadmium acetate with [(3,5-Me(2)-C(5)H(3)N)(2)Zn(SSiMe(3))(2)], PhSSiMe(3), and P(n)()Pr(3) affords the larger nanocluster [Zn(2.3)Cd(14.7)S(4)(SPh)(26)(P(n)()Pr(3))(2)] (6). The incorporation of Zn(II) into {Cd(10)E} (E = Se, Te) and Zn(II) or Cd(II) into {Hg(10)Se} nanoclusters results in a significant blue shift in the energy of the first "excitonic" transition. Solid-state thermolysis of complexes 2 and 3 reveals that these clusters can be used as single-source precursors to bulk ternary Zn(x)Cd(1)(-)(x)E materials as well as larger intermediate clusters and that the metal ion ratio is retained during these reactions.     

Effects of ionic strength and surface charge on protein adsorption at PEGylated surfaces

PEGylated Nb2O5 surfaces were obtained by the adsorption of poly(L-lysine)-g-poly(ethylene glycol) (PLL-g-PEG) copolymers, allowing control of the PEG surface density, as well as the surface charge. PEG (MW 2 kDa) surface densities between 0 and 0.5 nm(-2) were obtained by changing the PEG to lysine-mer ratio in the PLL-g-PEG polymer, resulting in net positive, negative and neutral surfaces. Colloid probe atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to characterize the interfacial forces associated with the different surfaces. The AFM force analysis revealed interplay between electrical double layer and steric interactions, thus providing information on the surface charge and on the PEG layer thickness as a function of copolymer architecture. Adsorption of the model proteins lysozyme, alpha-lactalbumin, and myoglobin onto the various PEGylated surfaces was performed to investigate the effect of protein charge. In addition, adsorption experiments were performed over a range of ionic strengths, to study the role of electrostatic forces between surface charges and proteins acting through the PEG layer. The adsorbed mass of protein, measured by optical waveguide lightmode spectroscopy (OWLS), was shown to depend on a combination of surface charge, protein charge, PEG thickness, and grafting density. At high grafting density and high ionic strength, the steric barrier properties of PEG determine the net interfacial force. At low ionic strength, however, the electrical double layer thickness exceeds the thickness of the PEG layer, and surface charges "shining through" the PEG layer contribute to protein interactions with PLL-g-PEG coated surfaces. The combination of AFM surface force measurements and protein adsorption experiments provides insights into the interfacial forces associated with various PEGylated surfaces and the mechanisms of protein resistance.     

Bi- and poly-metallic cyanide-bridged complexes of the redox-active cyanomanganese nitrosyl unit [Mn(CN)(PR3)(NO)(eta-C5H4Me)

Cationic nitrile complexes and neutral halide and cyanide complexes, with the general formula [MnL1L2(NO)(eta-C5H4Me)]z, undergo one-electron oxidation at a Pt electrode in CH2Cl2. Linear plots of oxidation potential, Eo', vs. nu(NO) or the Lever parameters, EL, for L1 and L2, allow Eo' to be estimated for unknown analogues. In the presence of TlPF6, [MnIL'(NO)(eta-C5H4Me)] reacts with [Mn(CN)L(NO)(eta-C5H4Me)] to give [(eta5-C5H4Me)(ON)LMn(mu-CN)MnL'(NO)(eta5-C5H4Me)][PF6] which undergoes two reversible one-electron oxidations; DeltaE, the difference between the potentials for the two processes, differs significantly for stable cyanide-bridged linkage isomers. Novel pentametallic complexes such as [Mn[(mu-NC)Mn(CNBut)(NO)(eta5-C5H4Me)]4(OEt2)][PF6]2 and [Mn[(mu-NC)Mn(CNXyl)(NO)(eta5-C5H4Me)]4(NO3-O,O')][PF6], containing a trigonal bipyramidal and a distorted octahedral Mn(II) centre, respectively, result either from slow decomposition of the binuclear cyanide-bridged species or from the reaction of anhydrous MnI2 with four equivalents of [Mn(CN)L(NO)(eta5-C5H4Me)] in the presence of TlPF6.     

Laser control of product electronic state: desorption from alkali halides

We demonstrate laser control of the electronic product state distribution of photodesorbed halogen atoms from alkali halide crystals. Our general model of surface exciton desorption dynamics is developed into a simple method for laser control of the relative halogen atom spin-orbit laser desorption yield. By tuning the excitation laser photon energy in a narrow region of the absorption threshold, the yield of excited state chorine atoms, Cl(2P(1/2)), can be made to vary from near 0 to 80% for KCl and from near 0 to 50% for NaCl relative to the total yield of Cl atoms. We describe the physical properties necessary to obtain a high degree of product state control and the limitation induced when these requirements are not met. These results demonstrate that laser control can be applied to solid state surface reactions and provide strong support for surface exciton-based desorption models.     

Rapid, easy cyanation of aryl bromides and chlorides using nickel salts in conjunction with microwave promotion

We report here a fast, easy, and efficient method for the preparation of aryl nitriles from aryl bromides and chlorides. The methodology for aryl bromides involves the use of either Ni(CN)(2) or NaCN and NiBr(2). With aryl chlorides, a mix of NaCN and NiBr(2) is used and the reaction proceeds via the in situ formation of the corresponding aryl bromide. The reaction can be performed in air and is complete within 10 min.     

Path integral Monte Carlo approach for weakly bound van der Waals complexes with rotations: algorithm and benchmark calculations

A path integral Monte Carlo technique suitable for the treatment of doped helium clusters with inclusion of the rotational degrees of freedom of the dopant is introduced. The extrapolation of the results to the limit of infinite Trotter number is discussed in detail. Benchmark calculations for small weakly bound (4)He(N)--OCS clusters are presented. The Monte Carlo results are compared with those of basis set calculations for the He--OCS dimer. A technique to analyze the orientational imaginary time correlation function is suggested. It allows one to obtain information regarding the effective rotational constant for a doped helium cluster based on a model for the rotational Hamiltonian. The renormalization of the effective rotational constant for (4)He(N)--OCS clusters derived from the orientational imaginary time correlation function is in good agreement with experimental results.     

Imaging the binding ability of proteins immobilized on surfaces with different orientations by using liquid crystals

We report an investigation of the binding ability of a protein immobilized on surfaces with different orientations but in identical interfacial microenvironments. The surfaces present mixed self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of 11-[19-carboxymethylhexa(ethylene glycol)]undecyl-1-thiol, 1, and 11-tetra(ethylene glycol) undecyl-1-thiol, 2. Whereas 2 is used to define an interfacial microenvironment that prevents nonspecific adsorption of proteins, 1 was activated by two different schemes to immobilize ribonuclease A (RNase A) in either a preferred orientation or random orientations. The binding of the ribonuclease inhibitor protein (RI) to RNase A on these surfaces was characterized by using ellipsometry and the orientational behavior of liquid crystals. Ellipsometric measurements indicate identical extents of immobilization of RNase A via the two schemes. Following incubation of both surfaces with RI, however, ellipsometric measurements indicate a 4-fold higher binding ability of the RNase A immobilized with a preferred orientation over RNase A immobilized with a random orientation. The higher binding ability of the oriented RNase A over the randomly oriented RNase A was also apparent in the orientational behavior of nematic liquid crystals of 4-cyano-4'-pentylcyanobiphenyl (5CB) overlayed on these surfaces. These results demonstrate that the orientations of proteins covalently immobilized in controlled interfacial microenvironments can influence the binding activities of the immobilized proteins. Results reported in this article also demonstrate that the orientational states of proteins immobilized at surfaces can be distinguished by examining the optical appearances of liquid crystals.     

Surface energy of solid catalysts measured by inverse gas chromatography

The time separation of experimental surface energy on Pt-Rh bimetallic catalysts, together with the time-independent rate constants for adsorption and desorption of O(2), CO, and CO(2) on them, is described, applying the reversed-flow version of inverse gas chromatography. The standard free energy of adsorption DeltaG(z.plims;) and its probability density function over time, together with the geometrical mean of the London parts of the total surface free energy (gamma(L)(1)gamma(L)(2))(1/2) of the adsorbed probe and the solid surface, accompanied by the relevant probability density functions over time are also calculated. The time-resolved phenomena lead to quite varying values of DeltaG(z.plims;), (gamma(L)(1)gamma(L)(2))(1/2), and the distribution functions as time passes, their maximum values being given by the catalyst containing a Pt:Rh = 3:1 weight ratio of the active phase for all adsorbed gases. The conclusion is reached that the surface energy measured as described can be used as a good measure for catalyst characterization.