Mechanistic Insight into the NN Bond‐Cleavage of Azo‐Compounds that was Induced by an Al?Al‐bonded Compound [L2−AlII?AlIIL2−]

An α‐diimine‐stabilized Al? Al‐bonded compound [L^2?Al^II? Al^IIL^2?] (L=[{(2,6‐iPr₂C₆H₃)NC(Me)}₂]; 1 ) consists of dianionic α‐diimine ligands and sub‐valent Al²⁺ ions and thus could potentially behave as a multielectron reductant. The reactions of compound 1 with azo‐compounds afforded phenylimido‐bridged products [L^?Al^III(μ₂‐NPh)(μ₂‐NAr)Al^IIIL^?] ( 2 – 4 ). During the reaction, the dianionic ligands and Al²⁺ ions were oxidized into monoanions and Al³⁺, respectively, whilst the [NAr]^2? imides were produced by the four‐electron reductive cleavage of the N?N double bond. Upon further reduction by Na, the monoanionic ligands in compound 2 were reduced to the dianion to give [(L^2?)₂Al^III₂(μ₂‐NPh)₂Na₂(thf)₄] ( 5 ). Interestingly, when asymmetric azo‐compounds were used, the asymmetric adducts were isolated as the only products (compounds 3 and 4 ). DFT calculations indicated that the reaction was quite feasible in the singlet electronic state, but the final product with the triplet‐state monoanionic ligands could result from an exothermic singlet‐to‐triplet conversion during the reaction process.     

Evaluation of Electron Population Terms for 〈rSe−3〉4p, 〈rS−3〉3p,and 〈rO−3〉2p: How Do HOMO and LUMO Shrink or Expand Depending on Nuclear Charges?

Electron population terms are evaluated for N=Se, S, and O. Calculations are performed on HOMO and LUMO constructed by pure atomic 4p(Se), 3p(S), and 2p(O) orbitals, employing the 6-311+G(3d) and/or 6-311(++)G(3df,3pd) basis sets at the HF, MP2, and DFT (B3 LYP) levels. Se(4+), Se(2+), Se(0), and Se(2-) with the O(h) symmetry are called G(A: Se) and HSe(+), H(2)Se, and HSe(-) with the C(infinityh) or C(2v) symmetry are named G(B: Se), here [G(A+B: Se) in all]. HOMO and LUMO in G(A+B: N) (N=Se, S, and O) satisfy the conditions of the calculations for . The (4p), (3p), and (2p) values correlate well with the corresponding MO energies (epsilon(N)) for all calculation levels employed. Plots of (HOMO) and (LUMO) versus Q(N) (N=Se, S, and O) at the HF and MP2 levels are analyzed as two correlations. However, the plots at the DFT level can be analyzed as single correlation. A regression curve is assumed for the analysis. Behaviors of clarify how valence orbitals shrink or expand depending on Q(N). The applicability of is examined to establish a new method that enables us to analyze chemical shifts with the charge effect separately from others. A utility program derived from the Gaussian 03 (NMRANAL-NH03G) is applied to evaluate and examine the applicability to the NMR analysis.     

Multicenter Homogeneous Dendritic Catalysts: The Higher the Generation,the Better the Reactivity and Selectivity? – A Comparative Study of the Catalytic Efficiency of Dendrimeric [1,1′‐Binaphthalene]‐2,2′‐diol‐Derived Catalysts

The G0 and G1 generations of optically active, multicenter 1,1′‐binaphthalene‐based dendritic ligands 4 and 5 constructed on a rigid oligo(arylene) framework were prepared by divergent synthesis. Their corresponding aluminum complexes 1 and 2 , respectively, were shown to possess slightly better reactivity and enantioselectivity than those of a monomeric 1,1′‐binaphthalene catalyst 3 in the Diels–Alder reaction between cyclopentadiene and 3‐[(E)‐but‐2‐enoyl]‐oxazolidin‐2‐one.     

Superacidic or Not…︁? Synthesis,Characterisation, and Acidity of the Room‐Temperature Ionic Liquid [C(CH3)3]+ [Al2Br7]−

The room‐temperature ionic liquid (RT‐IL) [C(CH₃)₃]⁺ [Al₂Br₇]^? (m.p. 2 °C) was generated by bromide abstraction from tert‐butyl bromide with the Lewis acid aluminum bromide in the absence of solvent. The crystal structure of the tert‐butyl cation salt was determined by X‐ray diffraction. NMR, IR, and Raman spectroscopy, as well as quantum‐chemical and thermodynamic calculations, confirm the composition of this RT‐IL. Thus, one may consider this RT‐IL to be a readily accessible (and on a large scale) cationic Brønsted acid (protonated isobutene) with the potential for further reactivity. Based on the new absolute Brønsted acidity scale, we calculated an absolute pH_abs value of 171 for liquid bulk [C(CH₃)₃]⁺ [Al₂Br₇]^?. This value is about as acidic as 100 % sulfuric acid (pH_abs=171) and, thus, on the edge of superacidity.     

Synthese und Kristallstruktur von Cu9Ti2[B2O5]2[BO3]2O6 — ein Kupfertitanboratpyroboratoxid?

Synthesis and Crystal Structure of Cu₉Ti₂[B₂O₅]₂[BO₃]₂O₆ — a Copper Titanium Borate Pyroborate Oxide? The new compound Cu₉Ti₂[B₂O₅]₂[BO₃]₂O₆ was prepared by a B₂O₃ flux-technique and crystallizes in a triclinic and completely novel structure type. X-ray investigations on single crystals led to the space group C–P1 (Nr. 2); a = 7.246(4) Å; b = 10.637(5) Å; c = 11.436(6) Å; α = 104.53(5)°; β = 96.25(4)°; γ = 90.36(3)°; Z = 2. The metal distribution is ordered. Ti^IV-sites are distorted octahedraly coordinated by oxygen-ions. The copper oxygen polyhedra are distorted square planar or pyramidal respectively. The structure contains isolated planar BO₃-units, nearly planar pyroborate groups and oxygen which is not coordinated to boron.     

Is the HO4− Anion a Key Species in the Aqueous‐Phase Decomposition of Ozone?

The role of the HO₄^? anion in atmospheric chemistry and biology is a matter of debate, because it can be formed from, or be in equilibrium with, key species such as O₃ + HO^? or HO₂ + O₂^?. The determination of the stability of HO₄^? in water therefore has the greatest relevance for better understanding the mechanism associated with oxidative cascades in aqueous solution. However, experiments are difficult to perform because of the short‐lived character of this species, and in this work we have employed DFT, CCSD(T) complete basis set (CBS), MRCI/aug‐cc‐pVTZ, and combined quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) calculations to investigate this topic. We show that the HO₄^? anion has a planar structure in the gas phase, with a very large HOO? OO bond length (1.823 Å). In contrast, HO₄^? adopts a nonplanar configuration in aqueous solution, with huge geometrical changes (up to 0.232 Å for the HOO? OO bond length) with a very small energy cost. The formation of the HO₄^? anion is predicted to be endergonic by 5.53±1.44 and 2.14±0.37 kcal mol^?1 with respect to the O₃ + HO^? and HO₂ + O₂^? channels, respectively. Moreover, the combination of theoretical calculations with experimental free energies of solvation has allowed us to obtain accurate free energies for the main reactions involved in the aqueous decomposition of ozone. Thus, the oxygen transfer reaction (O₃ + OH^? → HO₂ + O₂^?) is endergonic by 3.39±1.80 kcal mol^?1, the electron transfer process (O₃ + O₂^? → O₃^? + O₂) is exergonic by 31.53±1.05 kcal mol^?1, supporting the chain‐carrier role of the superoxide ion, and the reaction O₃ + HO₂^? → OH + O₂^? + O₂ is exergonic by 12.78±1.15 kcal mol^?1, which is consistent with the fact that the addition of small amounts of HO₂^? (through H₂O₂) accelerates ozone decomposition in water. The combination of our results with previously reported thermokinetic data provides some insights into the potentially important role of the HO₄^? anion as a key reaction intermediate.     

Linking Deltahedral Zintl Clusters with Conjugated Organic Building Blocks: Synthesis and Characterization of the Zintl Triad [R‐Ge9‐CHCH?CHCH‐Ge9‐R]4−

The accessibility of triads with deltahedral Zintl clusters in analogy to fullerene–linker–fullerene triads is another example for the close relationship between fullerenes and Zintl clusters. The compound {[K(2.2.2‐crypt)]₄[RGe₉‐CHCH CHCH‐Ge₉R]}(toluene)₂ (R=(2Z,4E)‐7‐amino‐5‐aza‐hepta‐2,4‐dien‐2‐yl), containing two deltahedral [Ge₉] clusters linked by a conjugated (1Z,3Z)‐buta‐1,3‐dien‐1,4‐diyl bridge, was synthesized through the reaction of 1,4‐bis(trimethylsilyl)butadiyne with K₄Ge₉ in ethylenediamine and crystallized after the addition of 2.2.2‐cryptand and toluene. The compound was characterized by single‐crystal structure analysis as well asNMR and IR spectroscopy.     

The Electronic Structure of the Al3− Anion: Is it Aromatic?

Multiconfigurational high‐level electronic structure calculations show that the ${{\rm Al}{{- \hfill \atop 3\hfill}}}$ ring‐like cluster anion has three close low‐lying electronic states of different spin, all of them having strong multiconfigurational character. The aromaticity of the cluster has, therefore, been studied by means of total electron delocalization and normalized multicenter electron delocalization indices evaluated from the multiconfigurational wave functions of each state. The lowest‐lying singlet and triplet states are found to be highly aromatic, whereas the next lowest‐lying state, the quintet state, has much less, though non‐negligible, aromatic character.     

Heme Fe?SO2− intermediates in sulfite reduction: Contrasts with Fe?OO2− species from oxygen–oxygen bond activating systems

Sulfite reductase (SiR) catalyzes a six electron and six proton reduction of sulfite to sulfide. Similarly to the cytochrome P450 (cytP450) family, the active site in SiR contains a (partially reduced) heme bound axially to a cysteinate ligand—though with an extra Fe₄S₄ cluster. Fe(III) SO²⁻, Fe(III) SOH⁻, and Fe(III) SO(H₂) intermediates have been proposed for the catalytic cycle of SiR, leading to a formally Fe(V)S species—akin to the widely accepted reaction mechanism in cytP450. Here, density functional theory (DFT) data is reported for of such FeSO(H₂) intermediates. The Fe(III) SO²⁻ models display relatively high energies for homolytic bond breaking compared to their isomeric oxygen‐bound Fe(III) OS²⁻ models, and thus offer a better alternative in terms of avoiding radical side products able to induce enzyme suicide. This could be due to the fact that the (iron‐bound) sulfur is more active from a redox standpoint compared to oxygen, thus permitting the departing oxygen to maintain a redox‐inert state. Di‐protonation of the oxygen is computed to lead to a compound I type Fe(IV)S coupled to a porphyrin radical anion—consistent with an intermediate previously observed by x‐ray crystallography.