Molecular Salt Effects in the Gas Phase: Tuning the Kinetic Basicity of [HCCLiCl]− and [HCCMgCl2]− by LiCl and MgCl2

A combination of gas‐phase ion–molecule reaction experiments and theoretical kinetic modeling is used to examine how a salt can influence the kinetic basicity of organometallates reacting with water. [HC?CLiCl]^? reacts with water more rapidly than [HC?CMgCl₂]^?, consistent with the higher reactivity of organolithium versus organomagnesium reagents. Addition of LiCl to [HC?CLiCl]^? or [HC?CMgCl₂]^? enhances their reactivity towards water by a factor of about 2, while addition of MgCl₂ to [HC?CMgCl₂]^? enhances its reactivity by a factor of about 4. Ab initio calculations coupled with master equation/RRKM theory kinetic modeling show that these reactions proceed via a mechanism involving formation of a water adduct followed by rearrangement, proton transfer, and acetylene elimination as either discrete or concerted steps. Both the energy and entropy requirements for these elementary steps need to be considered in order to explain the observed kinetics.     

Radical Formation in the Gas‐Phase Ozonolysis of Deprotonated Cysteine

Although the deleterious effects of ozone on the human respiratory system are well‐known, many of the precise chemical mechanisms that both cause damage and afford protection in the pulmonary epithelial lining fluid are poorly understood. As a key first step to elucidating the intrinsic reactivity of ozone with proteins, its reactions with deprotonated cysteine [Cys?H]^? are examined in the gas phase. Reaction proceeds at near the collision limit to give a rich set of products including 1) sequential oxygen atom abstraction reactions to yield cysteine sulfenate, sulfinate and sulfonate anions, and significantly 2) sulfenate radical anions formed by ejection of a hydroperoxy radical. The free‐radical pathway occurs only when both thiol and carboxylate moieties are available, implicating electron‐transfer as a key step in this reaction. This novel and facile reaction is also observed in small cys‐containing peptides indicating a possible role for this chemistry in protein ozonolysis.     

Gas phase synthesis, structure and unimolecular reactivity of silver iodide cluster cations, Ag(n)I(m)(+) (n = 2-5, 0 < m < n)

Multistage mass spectrometry (MS(n)) experiments reveal that gas phase silver iodide cluster cations, Ag(n)I(m)(+), are readily built up in a stepwise fashion via ion-molecule reactions between mass selected silver (Ag(3)(+) and Ag(5)(+)) or silver hydride (Ag(2)H(+) and Ag(4)H(+)) cluster cations and allyl iodide, in contrast to their reactions with methyl iodide, which solely result in ligation of the clusters. The stoichiometries of these clusters range from 1 < or = n < or = 5 and 1 < or = m < or = 4, indicating the formation of several new subvalent silver iodide clusters. Collision induced dissociation (CID) experiments were carried out on each of these clusters to shed some light on their possible structures. The products arising from CID of the Ag(n)I(m)(+) clusters are highly dependent on the stoichiometry of the cluster. Thus the odd-electron clusters Ag(4)I(2)(+) and Ag(5)I(+) fragment via loss of a silver atom. In contrast, the even-electron cluster ions all fragment via loss of AgI. In addition, Ag(2)I(2) loss is observed for the Ag(4)I(3)(+) and Ag(5)I(2)(+) clusters, while loss of Ag(3)I(3) occurs for the stoichiometric Ag(5)I(4)(+) cluster. DFT calculations were carried out on these Ag(n)I(m)(+) clusters as well as the neutrals associated with the ion-molecule and CID reactions. A range of different isomeric structures were calculated and their structures are described. A noteworthy aspect is that ligation of these silver clusters by I can have a profound effect on the geometry of the silver cluster. For example, D(3h) Ag(3)(+) becomes C(2v) Ag(3)I(+), which in turn becomes C(2h) Ag(3)I(2)(+). Finally, the DFT predicted thermochemistry supports the different types of reaction channels observed in the ion-molecule reactions and CID experiments.     

Letter: Silver mediated ester bond formation in the gas phase: substrate structure is important

The silver acetate cation CH(3)CO(2)Ag(2)(+) reacted with allyl iodide via C-O bond coupling to produce Ag(2)I(+) and allyl acetate, but only underwent adduct formation with methyl iodide, highlighting the importance of substrate on reactivity. DFT calculations predicted the reaction with allyl iodide to be exothermic by 0.48 eV, and suggested that intermediates in the reaction benefit from multiple interactions between the allyl and iodide moieties of allyl iodide and the two silver atoms in CH(3)CO(2)Ag(2)(+).     

A weight-function approach for determining watershed initial conditions for combustion waves

In many generic combustion models, one finds that a combustionwave will develop with a specific wave speed. However, thereare possible initial temperature profiles which do not evolveinto such waves, but rather die out to the ambient temperature.There can exist, in some models, a clear distinction betweenthose initial conditions that do evolve into combustion wavesand those that do not; this is sometimes referred to as thewatershed initial condition. When fuel consumption is consideredto be negligible, analytical methods can be used to obtain theexact watershed. In this paper, we consider the problem of determiningpseudo-watersheds and ascertaining the relationship betweenthese pseudo-watersheds and the exact watersheds. In the processa novel weight-function approach for infinite spatial domainsis developed.