Concentration dependence of the critical viscoelastic properties of gelatin at the gel point

Gelatin gel properties have been studied through the evolution of the storage [G()] and the loss [G()] moduli during gelation or melting near the gel point at several concentrations. The linear viscoelastic properties at the percolation threshold follow a power-law G()G() and correspond to the behavior described by a rheological constitutive equation known as the Gel Equation. The critical point is characterized by the relation: tan = G/G = cst = tan ( · /2) and it may be precisely located using the variations of tan versus the gelation or melting parameter (time or temperature) at several frequencies. The effect of concentration and of time-temperature gel history on its variations has been studied. On gelation, critical temperatures at each concentration were extrapolated to infinite gel times. On melting, critical temperatures were determined by heating step by step after a controlled period of aging. Phase diagrams [T = f(C)] were obtained for gelation and melting and the corresponding enthalpies were calculated using the Ferry-Eldridge relation. A detailed study of the variations of A with concentration and with gel history was carried out. The values of which were generally in the 0.60–0.72 range but could be as low as 0.20–0.30 in some experimental conditions, were compared with published and theoretical values.     

Adsorption of ammonia on multilayer iron phthalocyanine

The adsorption of ammonia on multilayers of well-ordered, flat-lying iron phthalocyanine (FePc) molecules on a Au(111) support was investigated by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We find that the electron-donating ammonia molecules coordinate to the metal centers of iron phthlalocyanine. The coordination of ammonia induces changes of the electronic structure of the iron phthalocyanine layer, which, in particular, lead to a modification of the FePc valence electron spin.     

Variability of two essential oils of Kundmannia sicula (L.) DC., a traditional Algerian medicinal plant

The essential oils of the aerial parts of Kundmannia sicula (L.) DC collected from two Algerian localities, El Kala (near the coast) and Béjaia (from a meadow about 10 km from the coast), were analysed by GC and GC-MS. Although both samples showed similar overall chemical compositions, the major components of the Béjaia sample were identified as being spathulenol (14.8%), caryophyllene oxide (12.2%), salvial-4(14)en-1-one (10.1%), 1,5-epoxysalvial-4(14)ene (5.2%) and germacrene D (3.2%), while in the ElKala sample the main compounds were found to be salvial-4(14)en-1-one (16.4%), 1,5-epoxysalvial-4(14)ene (6.5%), chrysanthenyl acetate (5.2%) and alpha-amorphene (2.9%).     

Nickel(II) chain with alternating end-on/end-to-end single azido bridges: a combined structural, magnetic, and theoretical study

The reaction of a tridentate Schiff base LH (L-: 1,1,1-trifluoro-7-(dimethylamino)-4-methyl-5-aza-3-hepten-2-onato) with a Ni(II) salt in the presence of azide salt has led to a new alternating end-on (EO)/end-to-end (EE) azido-bridged Ni(II) chain of formula {[Ni2(micro1,1-N3)(micro1,3-N3)(L)2(MeOH)2]}n. Its originality lies in the presence of single EE and EO coordination modes for the azide. It crystallizes in the C2/c space group, a=21.570(7) A, b=10.79(1) A, c=16.154(5) A, beta=120.81(2) degrees, Z=4. The chain can be viewed as {Ni2(N3)(L)2(MeOH)2}+ dimeric units linked to each other in a zigzag pattern by the other azide. Magnetic susceptibility and magnetization measurements have been performed and revealed that the chain can magnetically be depicted as isolated {Ni2(N3)} units exhibiting antiferromagnetic interaction (JAF approximately -37 cm(-1)). Ab initio calculations confirmed the efficient magnetic coupling through the EE bridge and vanishingly small EO {Ni2(micro1,1-N3)} interactions.     

Effects of anionic surfactants on ligand-promoted dissolution of iron and aluminum hydroxides

We investigated the influence of the surfactants sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and rhamnolipid (RhL) on ligand-promoted dissolution of goethite (alpha-FeOOH) and boehmite (gamma-AlOOH) at pH 6. The siderophore desferrioxamine B (DFOB), its derivate desferrioxamine D (DFOD), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), and 8-hydroxyquinoline-5-sulfonic acid (HQS) were used as ligands. The rates of ligand-promoted dissolution of goethite were significantly increased in the presence of low concentrations of anionic surfactants (<80 microM SDS; <6 mg/L RhL). At higher surfactant concentrations, however, the effects of surfactants were negligible. The dissolution rates in the presence of surfactants were not correlated with adsorbed amounts of ligands. Three possible factors contributing to these observations were further investigated and discussed: (i) adsorbed surfactants may influence ligand adsorption by changes in the ligand's surface speciation, (ii) re-adsorption of Fe-DFOB or Fe-DFOD complexes may lead to an underestimation of siderophore-promoted dissolution rates at high surfactant concentrations, and (iii) co-adsorption of protons to goethite with SDS may influence the dissolution rates. However, our results show that none of these three factors can satisfactorily explain the observed effects of anionic surfactants on ligand-promoted dissolution rates of iron and aluminum hydroxides.     

A Chemical Probe for the ATAD2 Bromodomain

ATAD2 is a cancer‐associated protein whose bromodomain has been described as among the least druggable of that target class. Starting from a potent lead, permeability and selectivity were improved through a dual approach: 1) using CF₂ as a sulfone bio‐isostere to exploit the unique properties of fluorine, and 2) using 1,3‐interactions to control the conformation of a piperidine ring. This resulted in the first reported low‐nanomolar, selective and cell permeable chemical probe for ATAD2.     

Selected excitation for CAS-SDCI calculations

A new selected-configuration interaction method is proposed, based on the use of local orbitals. A corresponding code has been written, which is devoted to CI calculations of rather large systems (about 50-100 carbon-like atoms). Taking advantage of the locality, and then of the fact that interactions vanish when the distance is large, the dimension of the CI space is largely reduced. The determinants that would be created by long range excitations are expected to have a small weight in the wave function and are therefore eliminated. This selected excitation CI space is particularly suited for large molecules. It is tested on large polyene chains and on a transition metal complex. For large enough systems, the CPU time saving is important and, what is more noticeable, calculations that were impossible to perform without selection are feasible in this approach.     

Dehydrogenation of aromatic molecules under a scanning tunneling microscope: pathways and inelastic spectroscopy simulations

We have performed a theoretical study on the dehydrogenation of benzene and pyridine molecules on Cu(100) induced by a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). Density functional theory calculations have been used to characterize benzene, pyridine, and different dehydrogenation products. The adiabatic pathways for single and double dehydrogenation have been evaluated with the nudge elastic band method. After identification of the transition states, the analysis of the electronic structure along the reaction pathway yields interesting information on the electronic process that leads to H-scission. The adiabatic barriers show that the formation of double dehydrogenated fragments is difficult and probably beyond reach under the actual experimental conditions. However, nonadiabatic processes cannot be ruled out. Hence, in order to identify the final dehydrogenation products, the inelastic spectra are simulated and compared with the experimental ones. We can then assign phenyl (C6H5) and alpha-pyridil (alpha-C5H4N) as the STM-induced dehydrogenation products of benzene and pyridine, respectively. Our simulations permit us to understand why phenyl, pyridine, and alpha-pyridil present tunneling-active C-H stretch modes in opposition to benzene.     

Anomalous Light-Induced Spin-State Switching for Iron(II) Spin-Crossover Molecules in Direct Contact with Metal Surfaces

Light-induced spin-state switching is one of the most attractive properties of spin-crossover materials. In bulk, low-spin (LS) to high-spin (HS) conversion via the light-induced excited spin-state trapping (LIESST) effect may be achieved with a visible light, while the HS-to-LS one (reverse-LIESST) requires an excitation in the near-infrared range. Now, it is shown that those phenomena are strongly modified at the interface with a metal. Indeed, an anomalous spin conversion is presented from HS state to LS state under blue light illumination for Fe^II spin-crossover molecules that are in direct contact with metallic (111) single-crystal surfaces (copper, silver, and gold). To interpret this anomalous spin-state switching, a new mechanism is proposed for the spin conversion based on the light absorption by the substrate that can generate low energy valence photoelectrons promoting molecular vibrational excitations and subsequent spin-state switching at the molecule–metal interface.     

Ab initio derivation of multi-orbital extended Hubbard model for molecular crystals

From configuration interaction (CI) ab initio calculations, we derive an effective two-orbital extended Hubbard model based on the gerade (g) and ungerade (u) molecular orbitals (MOs) of the charge-transfer molecular conductor (TTM-TTP)I(3) and the single-component molecular conductor [Au(tmdt)(2)]. First, by focusing on the isolated molecule, we determine the parameters for the model Hamiltonian so as to reproduce the CI Hamiltonian matrix. Next, we extend the analysis to two neighboring molecule pairs in the crystal and we perform similar calculations to evaluate the inter-molecular interactions. From the resulting tight-binding parameters, we analyze the band structure to confirm that two bands overlap and mix in together, supporting the multi-band feature. Furthermore, using a fragment decomposition, we derive the effective model based on the fragment MOs and show that the staking TTM-TTP molecules can be described by the zig-zag two-leg ladder with the inter-molecular transfer integral being larger than the intra-fragment transfer integral within the molecule. The inter-site interactions between the fragments follow a Coulomb law, supporting the fragment decomposition strategy.