Synthesis and Characterization of the Orthorhombic Sn3O4 Polymorph

An unexplored tin oxide crystal phase (Sn₃O₄) was experimentally synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method. After tuning the often-neglected parameters for the hydrothermal synthesis, namely the degree of filling of the precursor solution and the gas composition in the reactor head space, an unreported X-ray diffraction pattern was discovered. Through various characterization studies, such as Rietveld analysis, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and first-principles calculations, this novel material was characterized as orthorhombic mixed-valence tin oxide with the composition Sn^II₂Sn^IVO₄. This orthorhombic tin oxide is a new polymorph of Sn₃O₄, which differs from the reported conventional monoclinic structure. Computational and experimental analyses showed that orthorhombic Sn₃O₄ has a smaller band gap (2.0 eV), enabling greater absorption of visible light. This study is expected to improve the accuracy of hydrothermal synthesis and aid the discovery of new oxide materials.     

Structural characterization of poly(diethylsiloxane) in the crystalline, liquid crystalline and isotropic phases by solid-state 17O NMR spectroscopy and ab initio MO calculations

The structure of poly(diethylsiloxane) (PDES) has been characterized using solid-state NMR of (17)O. The sample studied had a weight-average molecular weight of 2.45 x 10(5). The sample was prepared by utilizing the cationic ring-opening polymerization of (17)O-enriched hexacyclotrisiloxane. Solid-state NMR of (17)O-enriched PDES was measured on the low-temperature beta(1) phase, the high-temperature beta(2) phase, the two-phase system consisting of the liquid crystal and isotropic liquid phase and the isotropic phase. From these data, the molecular structure and dynamics of PDES in the various phases were characterized via the chemical shifts of (17)O, and electric field gradient parameters were determined from NMR and ab initio molecular orbital (MO) calculations. In addition to the solid-state NMR of (1)H, (13)C and (29)Si previously reported on these samples, knowledge of the dynamic behavior of PDES as inferred from the NMR of (17)O in the present study was enhanced significantly. Further, the potential of combining the experimental NMR of (17)O with ab initio MO calculations to characterize the dynamics of polymers containing oxygen is demonstrated.     

氟催化废弃硅基还原剂与CO2还原转化反应

CO2是最重要的可再生碳源之一.为了将CO2转化为有用的有机化合物,我们研究了二种模型硅基"废"材料—乙硅烷和硅粉的反应活性.在这些反应中,氟盐的催化活性最高,在常压、在质子源水和硅基还原剂的存在下,CO2可转化为甲酸.原位NMR和动力学分析表明,含氢硅烷和五配位的硅物种分别是反应中间物和活性物种.     

Synthesis of a partially benzylated derivative of the anhydro-d-altro-heptulose found in Coriaria japonica A

A partially benzylated derivative of the anhydro-d-altro-heptulose found in Coriaria japonica A, which is a synthetically useful unit, was successfully synthesized from a d-mannose derivative by a novel synthetic approach involving an intramolecular O-ketopyranosylation.     

Self‐Sorting of Two Hydrocarbon Receptors with One Carbonaceous Ligand

Non‐directional van der Waals forces in biological and synthetic supramolecular systems play important roles in molecular assembly, particularly in determining the distances of the interacting species. The van der Waals forces are normally used in combination with other directional forces and are considered to play a secondary role in achieving specificity and fidelity in molecular recognition. Using an ideal supramolecular system consisting solely of hydrogen and carbon atoms, we found that the van der Waals interactions enable the high‐fidelity sorting of two homomeric receptors during ligand‐induced assembly. The self‐sorting occurred in a narcissistic manner by repulsion of a competing diastereoisomeric receptor from the assembly. The structure–sorting relationship study with enantiomers further revealed the dominant role of the van der Waals forces in shape recognition for high‐fidelity self‐sorting.     

Recognition of Multiple Methyl Groups on Aromatic Rings by a Polyaromatic Cavity

The methyl group is a small substituent, usually showing relatively weak or no interactions with other functional groups and metal ions. Herein, we present the recognition of the number of methyl groups on synthetic and natural aromatic compounds (i.e., benzene and xanthine derivatives, respectively) by the 1 nm‐sized polyaromatic cavity of a coordination capsule in water. Detailed competitive encapsulation experiments as well as X‐ray crystallographic analysis revealed that multiple guest–host CH₃–polyaromatic interactions in the confined nanospace are key driving forces for the high selectivity.     

Palladium‐Catalyzed Asymmetric Benzylic Alkylation of Active Methylene Compounds with α‐Naphthylbenzyl Carbonates and Pivalates

A Pd/(R)‐H₈‐BINAP‐catalyzed asymmetric benzylic alkylation of active methylene compounds has been developed. The reaction proceeds without the use of an external base, and the starting racemic diarylmethyl carbonates are converted into the optically active coupling products which contain the benzylic chiral stereocenter by a dynamic kinetic asymmetric transformation (DYKAT). Additionally, with suitable carbonates bases, the same palladium catalysis allows the corresponding pivalates to be adopted in the same DYKAT process.     

Molecular structure and thickness dependence of chain orientation in aromatic polyimide films

Degrees of orientation of main chains and imide rings were quantitatively estimated for spin‐coated films of six kinds of aromatic polyimides (PIs) using polarized attenuated total reflection (ATR)/Fourier transform infrared (FT‐IR) spectroscopy. The degrees of chain orientation parallel to the film planes are significantly larger for the PIs having rigid structures than those having flexible structures, and the introduction of side groups decrease the degrees of chain orientation. In contrast, the rotational orientations of imide rings are almost isotropic for all PI films. Moreover, the film thickness dependences of the degrees of orientation were investigated for two kinds of rigid‐rod PIs having bulky trifluoromethyl ( CF₃) side groups in their diamine moieties. The degrees of chain orientation slightly decrease as the film thickness increases, whereas the rotational orientation of imide rings is independent of the film thickness. The degrees of chain orientation on the substrate sides significantly differ from the atmospheric sides of PI films. This difference was generated during thermal imidization because of tensile stress originated from the mismatch in thermal expansion coefficients between the substrates and the PI films. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 2109–2120, 2005     

Enhancement of Chiroptical Responses of trans-Bis[(β-iminomethyl)naphthoxy]platinum(II) Complexes with Distorted Square Planar Coordination Geometry

The relationship between the coordination geometry and photophysical properties of trans-bis[(β-iminomethyl)naphthoxy]platinum(II) was investigated both experimentally and theoretically. A series of platinum(II) complexes with differently substituted iminomethyl groups were synthesized, and their photophysical properties were examined in solution, in the crystalline, and in the PMMA film-dispersed state, respectively (PMMA=poly(methyl methacrylate)). These complexes showed structure-dependent emission spectra, in which the color of the luminescence in the crystalline state varied over a range of about 40 nm depending on the specific bowl-shaped molecular structure. The chiral complexes with (R,R)- and (S,S)-configurations were found to have structure-dependent chiroptical properties both in solution and the PMMA film-dispersed state such that the intensity of circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) were enhanced with bulky cyclic substituents at the nitrogen atoms. A theoretical study using density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent (TD)-DFT calculations revealed that the enhancement of chiroptical responses is due to the amplification of the magnetic dipole moment caused by the distortion of the square planar geometry.