Isothermal titration calorimetry as a new tool to investigate chiral interactions at crystal surfaces

In this communication we describe for the first time the use of isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) to measure the energetics of adsorption of enantiomers from aqueous onto chiral crystal surfaces. Our results demonstrate that ITC can be used to measure chiral interactions at crystal surfaces.     

Differential scanning calorimetry: A powerful tool for the characterization of thermoplastics

The use of differential scanning calorimetry for examining the thermal behaviour of thermoplastics is described. Applications which are discussed include the measurement of specific heat, glass transition phenomena, melting and crystallization characteristics and thermal stability. The value of the results is demonstrated by means of a few examples in each area of application.     

Raman microspectroscopic mapping: a tool for the characterisation of polymer surfaces

Raman mapping by point illumination of polymer surfaces is discussed with examples taken from the plasma treatment of polypropylene (PP) and subsequent grafting of polystyrene (PS). Maps can be constructed for surface properties such as crystallinity, blend components and distribution of grafted PS. The Raman sampling volume was estimated for confocal operation using a 50x objective lens.     

Thermodynamics of the sorption of organic vapors in a carbosilane dendrimer and a hyperbranched polymer

Fluorinated derivatives of the carbosilane G6 dendrimer and the hyperbranched polymer of the same chemical structure are synthesized and characterized via the method of inverse gas chromatography. For various organic compounds (n-alkanes, aromatic hydrocarbons, partially fluorinated and perfluorinated organic compounds), the following thermodynamic parameters of their interaction with the above polymers are defined: solubility coefficient S, the sorption enthalpy, the partial molar enthalpy of mixing, the Flory-Huggins parameter, and the solubility parameter. The thermodynamic behavior of vapors in the dendrimer is similar to that in the hyperbranched polymer. For a dendrimer and a hyperbranched polymer, a linear correlation between the logarithm of S and T _cr ² is established, where T _cr is the critical temperature of a probe. For both polymers, the partial enthalpy of mixing of n-alkanes is shown to be independent of the dimensions of the probe molecules. This behavior is typical of the vapor sorption in linear polymers at temperatures above the glass transition temperature.     

Transferred plasma jet as a tool to improve the wettability of inner surfaces of polymer tubes

The wettability of the inner surfaces of vinyl, polyurethane, and silicone tubes was modified using an atmospheric pressure plasma jet operated in argon. A specific plasma jet configuration, transferred plasma jet, developed at Sao Paulo State University was utilized. It has been shown that it is possible to homogeneously alter the inner wall wettability of 1-m-long tubes, while providing safe plasma source usage for the operator. The water contact angle for three tube materials, i.e., vinyl, polyurethane, and silicone, changed from 98°, 86°, and 109° to 55°, 45°, and 40°, respectively.     

High field NMR,a powerful new analytical tool

The use of high fields in NMR spectroscopy can result in extra fine structure in the spectrum as a consequence of alignment of the molecules by the magnetic field of the spectrometer. The new information available provides a powerful tool in the analysis of structure and interactions of molecules in liquid solution.     

Theoretical analysis of sorption of a binary solvent in a polymer phase. I. Occurrence and character of inversion in preferential sorption

Osmotic and sorption equilibria in the system polymer–binary solvent can be represented with advantage in coordinates (u₁, v₃), where v₃ is the volume fraction of the polymer and u₁ gives the composition (volume fraction) of the binary solvent in the polymer phase. The coexistence lines and osmotic isobars are plotted; the former are used to read the preferential sorption ε of one of the solvent components in the polymer. The newly formulated equilibrium condition for the preferential sorption is applied to the Flory–Huggins theory extended by the ternary interaction parameter χ_T. This is used as a starting point for analyzing the conditions under which inversion of preferential sorption takes place, i.e., the sign of ε changes. The existence of inversion and the course of the inversion line in the v₃ versus u₁ plot are affected in a decisive manner by the extent to which the effect of the mutual interaction of solvent components prevails over the effect of the relative difference between their molar volumes and of the difference in strength of their interaction with the polymer. The effect of the ratio of molar volumes upon the preferential sorption increases with the concentration of the polymer, so that for v₃ not too far from unity the component having the smaller molecule is necessarily sorbed preferentially. If, therefore, both types of small molecules are not of the same size, the inversion vanishes for large v₃ even in systems where it actually occurs if v₃ is small. On the contrary, the same effect can in other cases have as its consequence an inversion at moderate values of v₃, even if it does not appear as v₃ approaches zero; a similar effect can also be produced by a nonzero value of the interaction parameter χ_T. The neighborhood of the inversion line can have a “divergent” or a “convergent” character, depending on whether the component being preferentially sorbed is that present in excess. The former case is observed with negative and the latter for the positive values of the binary solvent–solvent interaction parameter χ₁₂. The inversion with the divergent neighborhood has not yet been confirmed experimentally, owing to the small number of systems investigated.     

Raman optical activity: a powerful technique to investigate essential oil components

The theory and some applications of Raman Optical Activity (ROA) towards terpene analysis are presented. With this technique, vibrational optical activity from chiral molecules can be measured providing their absolute configuration. This short review provides data obtained for pinene, verbenone, menthol, camphor, carenes and related molecules. The ROA technique seems to be a powerful tool which permits correlation between the properties of biocompounds and their structure.     

Influence of the organic compounds addition in the polymer free volume,gas sorption and diffusion

Three low molecular compounds were added to a glassy polymer, poly(amino-ether) resin, in order to change its free volume and to study the subsequent effect in transport properties. Free volume characterization was carried out using the positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy technique. Two electrobalances were used to obtain carbon dioxide sorption kinetic. Diffusion coefficient variation is in good agreement with the additive antiplasticizer character, i.e. the reduction of the free volume fraction. However, solubility is affected by other variables too, as the balance of the interactions between penetrant, additive and polymer as well as the effect of coming closer the sorption temperature to the glass transition temperature in the sorption mode.     

A new tool for an old job: Using fixed cell scanning calorimetry to investigate dilute aqueous solutions

The development of fixed twin cell temperature scanning calorimeters has enabled the more efficient determination of heat capacities of dilute aqueous solutions with a precision comparable to that of the Picker flow heat capacity calorimeters developed nearly 40 years ago. Experiments require less than 0.5 cm³ of solution, and results can be obtained routinely over the temperature range (278 to 395) K at pressures up to a few bars. Multiple scanning of samples by both increasing and decreasing temperature allows assessment of instrument drift, solute stability, and reproducibility of results. Chemical calibration is essential to take full advantage of the precision and sensitivity of the calorimeters. The calorimetric output is a direct measure of the difference in heat capacity per unit volume of a solution and of a reference liquid, usually water. Thus, densities of the solution and reference liquid are needed to transform the results into heat capacities per unit mass of solution. Examples of solutes that have been investigated include a variety of inorganic and organic compounds that dissolve to give simple ionic or neutral species, or that produce complexes or species that exist in equilibrium distributions that can change as the temperature is scanned. Appropriate selection of the results from experiments on combinations of solutes allows calculation of standard state (zero concentration) thermodynamic quantities for chemical processes and reactions over the ranges of temperature scanned at the solution compositions investigated. Results for a few specific systems are presented and discussed for some representative classes of solutes that have been investigated in our laboratory since 1998.     

Use of a magnetic suspension microbalance to measure organic vapor sorption for evaluating the impact of polymer converting process

A gravimetric analyzer consisting of a magnetic suspension balance was set up to study the sorption kinetics of benzaldehyde in various forms of polypropylene (PP), including resin, sheet and thermoformed container. Instrument noise was determined throughout the experiments over a maximum of 4000 min or until equilibrium was reached. The sorption of benzaldehyde by PP resin exhibited Fickian sorption kinetics at low vapor activities (0.1–0.5). However, at high vapor activities (0.7 and 0.9), a two-stage sorption involving Fickian diffusion during the initial sorption, followed by a protracted polymer relaxation, which enhanced the sorption capacity, was observed. The converting process of PP resin into sheets and thermoformed containers had a significant impact on the benzaldehyde sorption profile. Benzaldehyde exhibited a much higher solubility in extruded sheet and thermoformed container than in the resin.     

The application of the reaction calorimetry to investigate reactions involving unstable compounds

The RC1 calorimeter revealed itself a suitable instrument to obtain information about safety and mechanisms involved in the reaction between cyclohexanecarboxylic acid (AEB) and oleum. A previous hypothesis about the existence of an unstable intermediate was confirmed and its heat of formation was calculated. The heat of sulphonation related to undesirable by-products production and the heat of protonation of AEB with H₂SO₄ were also evaluated. Therefore, it was possible to distinguish the reactions involved in the process and, through their thermal behaviour, to determine the limit conditions to avoid the by-products formation.

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Zusammenfassung Das RC1 Kalorimeter erwies sich als ein geeignetes Instrument, um Informationen über Sicherheit und Mechanismen bei der Reaktion von Cyclohexancarbonsäure (AEB) und Oleum zu gewinnen. Eine bereits bestehende Hypothese über die Existenz eines instabilen Zwischenproduktes konnte bestätigt und dessen Bildungswärme berechnet werden. Weiterhin wurde auch die Sulphonierungswärme bezogen auf die Entstehung von unerwünschten Nebenprodukten und die Protonierungswärme von AEB durch H₂SO₄ ermittelt. Es ist deshalb möglich, die einzelnen Reaktionen innerhalb dieses Prozesses über ihr thermisches Verhalten voneinander zu unterscheiden, um die Grenzbedingungen zur Vermei-dung der Bildung von Nebenprodukten zu ermitteln.

     

Non-bonded organo-mineral interactions and sorption of organic compounds on soil surfaces: a model approach

Molecular mechanics and molecular dynamics calculations have been performed on organo-mineral composites that model the sorption of high-molecular-weight humic polymers on mineral surfaces and the sorption of low-molecular-weight organic contaminants on both mineral and organic surfaces in soil. Muscovite mica was chosen as a mineral model; an oxidized topological lignin-carbohydrate complex was chosen as a humic model; benzene, sodium benzoate, atrazine, and DDT represent different classes of contaminants. Sorption energies were estimated based on molecular mechanics calculations. Flexible linear polymers undergo drastic conformational changes when approaching the mineral surface, to ensure a gain in the interaction energy that outweighs a loss in the conformational energy proper. Therefore, the gas-phase conformation composi tion of environmental organic polymers is not directly related to their spatial organization in soil composites. Molecular dynamics simulation suggests high stability of the organic polymer coatings of mineral surfaces in the environment. Low-molecular-weight organic molecules demonstrate much less affinity for the mineral surface, which implies unhindered exchanges between the surface and its near environment. Ionizable compounds, e.g. salts of organic acids, are different, because they can form strong associations with a mineral surface through cation bridges. Sorption energies are compound-specific and depend on the sorbate-sorbent orientation. The calculations suggest some preference for the edges of a model muscovite sheet in comparison with the basal oxygen surface as a sorption site. Coating of mineral surfaces with organic polymers does not hinder the sorption of organic molecules except in the special case of organic ions.     

Defect-engineered surfaces to investigate the formation of self-assembled molecular networks

Herein we report the impact of covalent modification (grafting), inducing lateral nanoconfinement conditions, on the self-assembly of a quinonoid zwitterion derivative into self-assembled molecular networks at the liquid/solid interface. At low concentrations where the compound does not show self-assembly behaviour on bare highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), close-packed self-assembled structures are visualized by scanning tunneling microscopy on covalently modified HOPG. The size of the self-assembled domains decreases with increasing the density of grafted molecules, i.e. the molecules covalently bound to the surface. The dynamics of domains are captured with molecular resolution, revealing not only time-dependent growth and shrinkage processes but also the orientation conversion of assembled domains. Grafted pins play a key role in initiating the formation of on-surface molecular self-assembly and their stabilization, providing an elegant route to study various aspects of nucleation and growth processes of self-assembled molecular networks.

We showcase the use of covalently modified HOPG for the investigation of domain size controlled 2D self-assembly, nucleation and growth kinetics, molecular adsorption/desorption thermodynamics, and tip-induced selective recrystallization.     

Probing polymer surfaces and interfaces using sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy - a powerful nonlinear optical technique

Sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy has been proved to be a powerful technique which substantially impacts on many research areas in surface and interfacial sciences. This paper reviews the recent progress of applying this nonlinear optical technique in the studies of polymer surfaces and interfaces. The theoretical background of SFG is introduced first. Current applications of SFG in polymer science are then described in more detail to demonstrate the significance of this technique. Finally, a short summary is presented on this relatively new but widely applicable spectroscopic technique.     

High resolution scanning tunneling microscopy studies of quasicrystal surfaces: an efficient tool to investigate quasiperiodic atomic structures

High resolution scanning tunneling microscopy (HRSTM) images of i-Al–Pd–Mn reveal wide flat terraces along the 5-fold (5f) direction with quasiperiodic atomic arrangements that are consistent with the expected structure of the dense pure aluminum planes of the bulk material as defined by 6D-models. This makes encouraging the exploration by HRSTM of a QC surface to better understand its 3D real quasiperiodic atomic structure.     

The Pauson-Khand reaction, a powerful synthetic tool for the synthesis of complex molecules

There are still some synthetic chemists who hesitate to use metal-mediated or -catalysed reactions. The Pauson-Khand reaction (PKR) is a powerful transformation that has now been sufficiently well developed to be routinely considered when planning a synthesis, especially of polycyclic complex molecules. This tutorial review aims to encourage the use of this process explaining the best ways of performing a PKR both in the stoichiometric and the catalytic version, showing the scope of the process and its limitations. Additionally, asymmetry can be introduced in the reaction using several strategies, which will be discussed. The most recent examples of the synthetic applications of the PKR in natural product synthesis will give the reader an idea of the great usefulness of this reaction.