Structural,Magnetic and Catalytic Properties of a New Vacancy Ordered Perovskite Type Barium Cobaltate BaCoO2.67

A new vacancy ordered, anion deficient perovskite modification with composition of BaCoO_2.67 (Ba₃Co₃O₈□₁) has been prepared via a two-step heating process. Combined Rietveld analysis of neutron and X-ray powder diffraction data shows a novel ordering of oxygen vacancies not known before for barium cobaltates. A combination of neutron powder diffraction, magnetic measurements, and density functional theory (DFT) studies confirms G-type antiferromagnetic ordering. From impedance measurements, the electronic conductivity of the order of 10⁻⁴ S cm⁻¹ is determined. Remarkably, the bifunctional catalytic activity for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is found to be comparable to that of Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O_3–y, confirming that charge-ordered anion deficient non-cubic perovskites can be highly efficient catalysts.     

Enzymatic Conversion of Flavonoids using Bacterial Chalcone Isomerase and Enoate Reductase

Flavonoids are a large group of plant secondary metabolites with a variety of biological properties and are therefore of interest to many scientists, as they can lead to industrially interesting intermediates. The anaerobic gut bacterium Eubacterium ramulus can catabolize flavonoids, but until now, the pathway has not been experimentally confirmed. In the present work, a chalcone isomerase (CHI) and an enoate reductase (ERED) could be identified through whole genome sequencing and gene motif search. These two enzymes were successfully cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli in their active form, even under aerobic conditions. The catabolic pathway of E. ramulus was confirmed by biotransformations of flavanones into dihydrochalcones. The engineered E. coli strain that expresses both enzymes was used for the conversion of several flavanones, underlining the applicability of this biocatalytic cascade reaction.     

Replacement of the Cobalt Center of Vitamin B12 by Nickel: Nibalamin and Nibyric Acid Prepared from Metal-Free B12 Ligands Hydrogenobalamin and Hydrogenobyric Acid

The (formal) replacement of Co in cobalamin ( Cbl ) by Ni^II generates nibalamin ( Nibl ), a new transition-metal analogue of vitamin B₁₂. Described here is Nibl , synthesized by incorporation of a Ni^II ion into the metal-free B₁₂ ligand hydrogenobalamin ( Hbl ), itself prepared from hydrogenobyric acid ( Hby ). The related Ni^II corrin nibyric acid ( Niby ) was similarly synthesized from Hby , the metal-free cobyric acid ligand. The solution structures of Hbl , and Niby and Nibl , were characterized by spectroscopic studies. Hbl features two inner protons bound at N2 and N4 of the corrin ligand, as discovered in Hby . X-ray analysis of Niby shows the structural adaptation of the corrin ligand to Ni^II ions and the coordination behavior of Ni^II. The diamagnetic Niby and Nibl , and corresponding isoelectronic Co^I corrins, were deduced to be isostructural. Nibl is a structural mimic of four-coordinate base-off Cbls , as verified by its ability to act as a strong inhibitor of bacterial adenosyltransferase.     

Chlorophyll‐Derived Yellow Phyllobilins of Higher Plants as Medium‐Responsive Chiral Photoswitches

The fall colors are signs of chlorophyll breakdown, the biological process in plants that generates phyllobilins. Most of the abundant natural phyllobilins are colorless, but yellow phyllobilins (phylloxanthobilins) also occur in fall leaves. As shown here, phylloxanthobilins are unique four‐stage photoswitches. Which switching mode is turned on is controlled by the molecular environment. In polar media, phylloxanthobilins are monomeric and undergo photoreversible Z/E isomerization, similar to that observed for bilirubin. Unlike bilirubin, however, the phylloxanthobilin Z isomers photodimerize in apolar solvents by regio‐ and stereospecific thermoreversible [2+2] cycloadditions from self‐assembled hydrogen‐bonded dimers. X‐ray analysis revealed the first stereostructure of a phylloxanthobilin and its hydrogen‐bonded self‐templating architecture, helping to rationalize its exceptional photoswitch features. The chemical behavior of phylloxanthobilins will play a seminal role in identifying biological roles of phyllobilins.     

Towards a synthetic model of the photosynthetic water oxidizing complex: [Mn3O4(O2CMe)4(bpy)2] containing the [MnIV3(mu-O)4]4+ core

The 3 MnIV title compound has been prepared and characterized by X-ray crystallography and magnetochemistry; the complex contains a [Mn(mu-O)2Mn(mu-O)2Mn]4+ core and possesses an S = 3/2 ground state.     

Reactivity of the hydrido/nitrosyl radical MHCl(NO)(CO)(P(i)Pr(3))(2), M = Ru, Os

The reaction of equimolar NO with the 16 electron molecule RuHCl(CO)L(2) (L = P(i)Pr(3)) proceeds, via a radical adduct RuHCl(CO)(NO) L(2), onward to form RuCl(NO)(CO)L(2) (X-ray structure determination) and RuHCl(HNO)(CO)L(2), in a 1:1 mole ratio. The HNO ligand, bound by N and trans to hydride, is rapidly degraded by excess NO. The osmium complex behaves analogously, but the adduct has a higher formation constant, permitting determination of its IR spectrum; both MHCl(CO)(NO)L(2) radicals are characterized by EPR spectroscopy, and DFT calculations on the Ru system show it to have a "half-bent" Ru-N-O unit with the spin density mainly on nitrogen. DFT (PBE) energies rule out certain possible mechanistic steps for forming the two products. A survey of the literature leads to the hypothesis that NO should generally be considered as a (neutral) Lewis base (2-electron donor) when it binds to a 16 electron complex which is resistant to oxidation or reduction, and that the resulting N-centered radical has a M-N-O angle of approximately 140 degrees, which distinguishes it from NO(-) (bent at <140 degrees ) and from NO(+) (>170 degrees ).     

Molecular hydrogen in a-si:H

It is demonstrated that in high quality hydrogenated amorphous silicon films nearly 40% of the contained hydrogen is in the form of hydrogen molecules individually trapped in the amorphous equivalent of tetragonal T sites. The majority of these molecular hydrogens are in the less-clustered component of the contained hydrogen. These results could have major implications for the understanding of light-induced defects and hydrogen mobility.