Enhancing the superconducting transition temperature of BaSi2 by structural tuning

We present a joint experimental and theoretical study of the superconducting phase of the layered binary silicide BaSi(2). Compared with the AlB(2) structure of graphite or diboridelike superconductors, in the hexagonal structure of binary silicides the sp(3) arrangement of silicon atoms leads to corrugated sheets. Through a high-pressure synthesis procedure we are able to modify the buckling of these sheets, enhancing the superconducting transition temperature from 6 to 8.9 K when the silicon planes flatten out. By performing ab initio calculations based on density-functional theory we explain how the electronic and phonon properties are strongly affected by changes in the buckling. This mechanism is likely present in other intercalated layered superconductors, opening the way to the tuning of superconductivity through the control of internal structural parameters.     

Mechanochemical Synthesis of Urea Adducts with Long Chain Alkyl Derivatives

The adducts of urea and solid alkyl derivatives can beobtained mechanochemically in good yields. Theproducts synthesized by grinding the solid reagentshave identical IR spectra and XRD powder patterns tothose obtained by crystallization from ethanolicsolutions.     

Chromium(VI) oxide oxidation of non‐ethoxylated and ethoxylated alcohols for determination by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A new derivatization procedure to increase the sensitivity of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI‐MS) to non‐ethoxylated and ethoxylated alcohols was investigated. The analytes were oxidized with chromium(VI) oxide and the resulting carboxylic and ethoxy‐carboxylic acids were isolated by extraction with ethyl acetate; the extracts were alkalinized and infused into the ESI‐MS system working in the negative‐ion mode. The yields of the combined oxidation‐extraction were ca. 100% for non‐ethoxylated fatty alcohols dissolved in acetone and they decreased moderately in samples containing increasing amounts of water (e.g., a 75% yield was obtained with 50% water). Ethoxylated alcohols with more than two ethylene oxide units resulted in yields of ca. 60%. Low limits of detection (LODs) were obtained when the procedure was applied to the analysis of body‐care products and cosmetics containing fatty alcohols, e.g., in a varicose‐vein cream, the LODs were 25 µg cetyl alcohol and 7.5 µg stearyl alcohol (detected as palmitic acid and stearic acid, respectively) per gram of sample. High molecular mass alcohols were also detected in seawater after pre‐concentration by solid‐phase extraction. Thus, the proposed method is particularly valuable for use in industrial samples having complex matrices and in environmental samples and it is competitive with other methods for the analysis of trace amounts of fatty alcohols. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stereoselective enzymatic synthesis of monoglucosyl-myo-inositols with in vivo anti-inflammatory activity

The monoglucosyl-inositols α-d-glucopyranosyl-(1→4)-4d-myo-inositol 3 and α-d-glucopyranosyl-(1→1)-1d-myo-inositol 4 were synthesized by a combined enzymatic transglucosylation and hydrolysis strategy, using cyclodextrin glucosyl transferase (CGTase) from Thermoanaerobacter sp., followed by hydrolysis with Aspergillus niger glucoamylase. The glucosides were separated by preparative HPLC and fully characterized by extensive 1D and 2D NMR studies. The structure of the regioisomer 4 was confirmed by X-ray crystallography of its perbenzoylated derivative 4a. Both isomers demonstrated in vivo anti-inflammatory activity at comparative levels to corticosterone on mouse ear oedema induced by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and in rat hind paw oedema induced by carrageenan.     

The Solution Conformation of Lactal and ITS Hexa-O-Acetyl Derivative

Abstract

The conformation of lactal (1) in D₂O and DMSO-d₆ has been investigated by employing NMR techniques and molecular mechanics calculations. The glucal ring shows a ⁴ H₅ conformation in deuterium oxide and DMSO-d₆. In contrast, the glucal ring of the hexa-O-acetyl derivative (2) in CDCl₃ can be described as an equilibrium between the ⁴ H₅ and ⁴ H₅ forms. The disaccharide 1 has a restricted flexibility with the Φ angle oscillating about -105 ± 30° and the Ψ angle varying about -145 ± 30°. Compound 2 shows a similar conformational behaviour.     

On the Gauss curvature of maximal surfaces in the 3-dimensional Lorentz-Minkowski space

Partially supported by DGICYT Grant PB 90-0014-C03-02.     

Distributional Modes for Scalar Field Quantization

We propose a mode-sum formalism for the quantization of the scalar field based on distributional modes, which are naturally associated with a slight modification of the standard plane-wave modes. We show that this formalism leads to the standard Rindler temperature result, and that these modes can be canonically defined on any Cauchy surface.     

Reactivity with Amines of Bis(cyanamide) and Bis(cyanoguanidine) Complexes of the Iron Triad

Treatment of bis(cyanamide) [M(N≡CNEt₂)₂L₄](BPh₄)₂ and bis(cyanoguanidine) [M{N≡CN(H)C(NH₂)=NH}₂L₄](BPh₄)₂ complexes [M = Fe, Ru, Os; L = P(OEt)₃] with an excess of amine RNH₂ (R = nPr, iPr) affords mixed‐ligand complexes with cyanamide and amine [M(NH₂R)(N≡CNEt₂)L₄](BPh₄)₂ ( 1a – 5a ) and [M(NH₂R){N≡CN(H)C(NH₂)=NH}L₄](BPh₄)₂ ( 1b , 2b ). The complexes were characterized by spectroscopy and X‐ray crystal structure determination of [M(NH₂iPr)(N≡CNEt₂){P(OEt)₃}₄](BPh₄)₂ [M = Ru ( 3a ), Os ( 5a )].     

The Synthesis of Some Fused Pyrazolo‐1,4‐Naphthoquinones

New fused pyrazolo‐1,4‐naphthoquinones were prepared from the reaction of hydrazines with 6‐(4‐methyl‐3‐pentenyl)‐1,4‐naphthoquinone. The reaction was extended to hydroxylamine to afford the corresponding isoxazolo‐1,4‐napthoquinone compound.