Synthesis and Characterization of Liquid-Crystalline Tetraoxapentacene Derivatives Exhibiting Aggregation-Induced Emission

A series of new tetrakis(dialkoxyphenyl) dicyanotetraoxapentacene derivatives ( 1 a – c ) were prepared by reaction of the appropriate terphenyl diols with tetrafluoroterephthalonitrile in good yields. Compounds 1 b and 1 c , which bear hexyloxy and decyloxy side chains, exhibited columnar hexagonal mesophases, as shown by polarized optical microscopy, variable-temperature powder X-ray diffraction, and differential scanning calorimetry. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction of methoxy-substituted 1 a revealed that the dicyanotetraoxapentacene core is highly planar, consistent with the notion that these molecules are able to stack in columnar mesophases. A detailed photophysical characterization showed that these compounds exhibit aggregation-induced emission in solution, emission in nonpolar solvents, weak emission in polar solvents, and strong emission in the solid state both as powder and in thin films. These observations are consistent with a weakly emissive charge-transfer state in polar solvents and a more highly emissive locally excited state in nonpolar solvents.     

A Self-Assembled Cage with Endohedral Acid Groups both Catalyzes Substitution Reactions and Controls Their Molecularity

A self-assembled Fe₄L₆ cage complex internally decorated with acid functions is capable of accelerating the thioetherification of activated alcohols, ethers and amines by up to 1000-fold. No product inhibition is seen, and effective supramolecular catalysis can occur with as little as 5 % cage. The substrates are bound in the host with up to micromolar affinities, whereas the products show binding that is an order of magnitude weaker. Most importantly, the cage host alters the molecularity of the reaction: whereas the reaction catalyzed by simple acids is a unimolecular, S_N1-type substitution process, the rate of the host-mediated process is dependent on the concentration of nucleophile. The molecularity of the cage-catalyzed reaction is substrate-dependent, and can be up to bimolecular. In addition, the catalysis can be prevented by a large excess of nucleophile, where substrate inhibition dominates, and the use of tritylated anilines as substrates causes a negative feedback loop, whereby the liberated product destroys the catalyst and stops the reaction.     

Influence of the pH Value on the Hydrothermal Degradation of Fructose

The hydrothermal treatment of sugars features a promising technology for the production of fine and platform chemicals from renewable resources. In this work the hydrothermal decomposition of fructose was studied in a buffered medium at a pH range between 2.2 and 8.0. It is demonstrated that at lower pH values mainly 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), levulinic acid and humin are generated, while lactic acid and acetic acid are produced at higher pH values. The work shows that the use of moderate acidic conditions may have advantages for the hydrothermal HMF production over the use of strongly acidic conditions, as especially the degradation into levulinic acid is suppressed. Besides, this study deals with a rather complex reaction network, hence limitations and need for adaption of the kinetic model are discussed.     

Kinetics and mechanism of trichloroisocyanuric acid/NaNO2-triggered nitration of aromatic compounds under acid-free and Vilsmeier-Haack conditions

Kinetics and mechanism of nitration of aromatic compounds using trichloroisocyanuric acid (TCCA)/NaNO₂, TCCA-N,N-dimethyl formamide (TCCA-DMF)/NaNO₂, and TCCA-N,N-dimethyl acetamide (TCCA-DMA)/NaNO₂ under acid-free and Vilsmeier-Haack conditions. Reactions followed second-order kinetics with a first-order dependence on [Phenol] and [Nitrating agent] ([TCCA], [(TCCA-DMF)], or [(TCCA-DMA)] >> [NaNO₂]). Reaction rates accelerated with the introduction of electron-donating groups and retarded with electron-withdrawing groups, but did not fit well into the Hammett's theory of linear free energy relationship or its modified forms like Brown-Okamoto or Yukawa-Tsuno equations. Rate data were analyzed by Charton's multiple linear regression analysis. Isokinetic temperature (β) values, obtained from Exner's theory for different protocols, are 403.7 K (TCCA-NaNO₂), 365.8 K (TCCA-DMF)/NaNO₂, and 358 K (TCCA-DMA)/NaNO₂. These values are far above the experimental temperature range (303-323 K), indicating that the enthalpy factors are probably more important in controlling the reaction.     

The Lp dual Minkowski problem for p > 1 and q > 0

General $L_p$ dual curvature measures have recently been introduced by Lutwak, Yang and Zhang [24]. These new measures unify several other geometric measures of the Brunn–Minkowski theory and the dual Brunn–Minkowski theory. $L_p$ dual curvature measures arise from qth dual intrinsic volumes by means of Alexandrov-type variational formulas. Lutwak, Yang and Zhang [24] formulated the $L_p$ dual Minkowski problem, which concerns the characterization of $L_p$ dual curvature measures. In this paper, we solve the existence part of the $L_p$ dual Minkowski problem for $p>1$ and $q>0$, and we also discuss the regularity of the solution.     

Synthesis,Crystal Structure,and Selected Properties of [Au(S2CNH2)2]SCN: A Precursor for Gold Macro-Needles Consisting of Gold Nanoparticles Glued by Graphitic Carbon Nitride

A new preparation route is developed for the synthesis of needle-like crystals of [Au(S₂CNH₂)₂]SCN, which avoids disproportionation of the Au^I salt used as a starting material. In the crystal structure, the two crystallographically independent Au^III centers are in a square-planar environment of two S₂CNH₂ ligands. The Hirshfeld surface analysis reveals the presence of noncovalent intermolecular S⋅⋅⋅S interactions, which are essential for the spatial arrangement of the molecules. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations including dispersion and damping corrections result in a unit cell volume very close to the value determined experimentally. Thermal decomposition in an inert atmosphere generates black needles with lengths of up to 500 μm. X-ray powder diffraction and pair distribution function analyses demonstrate that the needles are composed of nanosized crystals with a volume-weighted average domain size of 20(1) nm. According to results of X-ray photoemission experiments, the black needles are covered by a nitrogen-rich carbon nitride with composition near (CN)₂N. ¹³C solid-state NMR investigations indicate that two different carbon species are present, with signals corresponding well to heptazine units as in melon and triazine units as in poly(triazin imide) type compounds. Scanning transmission electron microscopy tomography evidences that the needles are composed of slightly elongated nanoparticles.     

Cover Feature: How Many O-Donor Groups in Enterobactin Does It Take to Bind a Metal Cation? (Chem. Eur. J. 28/2019)

The E. coli siderophore enterobactin, the strongest Fe^III chelator known to date, forms hexacoordinate complexes with Si^IV, Ge^IV, and Ti^IV. Synthetic protocols have been developed to prepare non-symmetric enterobactin analogues with varying denticities. Various benzoic acid residues were coupled to the macrocyclic lactone to afford a diverse library of ligands. These enterobactin analogues were bound to Si^IV, Ge^IV, and Ti^IV, and the complexes were investigated through experimental and computational techniques. The binding behavior of the synthesized chelators enabled assessment of the contribution of each of the phenolic hydroxy groups in enterobactin to metal-ion complexation. It was found that at least four O-donors are needed for enterobactin derivatives to act as metal binders. Density functional theory calculations indicate that the strong binding behavior of enterobactin can be ascribed to a diminished translational entropy penalty, a common feature of the chelate effect, coupled with the structural arrangement of the three catechol moieties, which allows the triseryl base to be installed without distorting the preferred local metal-binding geometry of the catecholate ligands.     

Base-Pairing Properties of Double-Headed Nucleotides

Nucleotides that contain two nucleobases (double-headed nucleotides) have the potential to condense the information of two separate nucleotides into one. This presupposes that both bases must successfully pair with a cognate strand. Here, double-headed nucleotides that feature cytosine, guanine, thymine, adenine, hypoxanthine, and diaminopurine linked to the C2′-position of an arabinose scaffold were developed and examined in full detail. These monomeric units were efficiently prepared by convergent synthesis and incorporated into DNA oligonucleotides by means of the automated phosphoramidite method. Their pairing efficiency was assessed by UV-based melting-temperature analysis in several contexts and extensive molecular dynamics studies. Altogether, the results show that these double-headed nucleotides have a well-defined structure and invariably behave as functional dinucleotide mimics in DNA duplexes.     

Aminomethyl Transfer (Mannich) Reactions Between an O-Triethylsilylated Hemiaminal and Anilines,RnC6H5−nNH2 Leading to New Diamines,Triamines, Imines,or 1,3,5-Triazines Dependent upon Substituent R

The reactions of the Mannich reagent Et₃SiOCH₂NMe₂ ( 1 ) with a variety of anilines (mono-substituted RC₆H₄NH₂, R=H, 4-CN, 4-NO₂, 4-Ph, 4-Me, 4-MeO, 4-Me₂N; di-substituted R₂C₆H₃NH₂, R₂=3,5-(CH₃)₂, 3,5-(CF₃)₂; tri-substituted R₃C₆H₂NH₂, R₃=3,5-Me₂-4-Br and a “super bulky” aniline (Ar*NH₂) [Ar*=2,6-bis(diphenylmethyl)-4-tert-butylphenyl]) led to the formation of a range of products dependent upon the substituent. With electron-withdrawing substituents, previously unknown diamines, RC₆H₄NH(CH₂NMe₂) [R=CN ( 2 a ), NO₂ ( 2 b )] and R₂C₆H₃NH(CH₂NMe₂) [R₂=3,5-(CF₃)₂ ( 2 c) ] were formed. Further reaction of 2 a , b , c with 1 yielded the corresponding triamines RC₆H₄N(CH₂NMe₂)₂ (R=CN ( 3 a ), NO₂ ( 3 b ) and R₂C₆H₃N(CH₂NMe₂)₂, R₂=3,5-(CF₃)₂ ( 3 c ). The new polyamines were characterized by NMR spectroscopy, and for 2 a , 2 c _, and 3 c , by single crystal XRD. In the case of electron-donating groups, R=4-OMe, 4-NMe₂, 4-Me, 3,5-Me₂, 3,5-Me₂-4-Br, and for R=4-Ph, the reactions with 1 immediately led to the formation of the related 1,3,5-triazines, R=4-MeO ( 5 a ), 4-Me₂N ( 5 b ), 4-Me ( 5 c ), 3,5-Me₂ ( 5 d ), 3,5-Me₂-4-Br ( 5 e ), 4-Ph ( 5 f ), 4-Cl ( 5 g ). The “super bulky” aniline rapidly produced a single product, namely the corresponding imine Ar*N=CH₂ ( 4 ) which was also characterized by single crystal XRD. Imine 4 is both thermally and oxidatively stable. All reactions are very fast, thus based upon the presence of Si we are tempted to denote the reactions of 1 as examples of “Silick” chemistry.     

Data assimilation and pollution forecasting in Burgers' equation with model error function

This article presents a correction method for a better resolution of the problem of estimating and predicting pollution, governed by Burgers' equations. The originality of the method consists in the introduction of an error function into the system's equations of state to model uncertainty in the model. The initial conditions and diffusion coefficients, present in the equations for pollution and concentration, and also those in the model error equations, are estimated by solving a data assimilation problem. The efficiency of the correction method is compared with that produced by the traditional method without introduction of an error function.Three test cases are presented in this study in order to compare the performances of the proposed methods. In the first two tests, the reference is the analytical solution and the last test is formulated as part of the “twin experiment”.The numerical results obtained confirm the important role of the model error equation for improving the prediction capability of the system, in terms of both accuracy and speed of convergence.