Time‐resolved resonance Raman and density functional theory study of the photochemistry of 4‐benzoylpyridine in acetonitrile and 2‐propanol

A nanosecond time‐resolved resonance Raman (ns‐TR³) spectroscopic investigation of the intermolecular hydrogen‐abstraction reaction of the triplet state of 4‐benzoylpyridine (4‐BPy) in 2‐propanol solvent is reported. The TR³ results reveal a rapid hydrogen abstraction (<10 ns) by the 4‐BPy triplet state (nπ*) with the 2‐propanol solvent, leading to formation of a 4‐BPy ketyl radical and an associated dimethyl ketyl radical partner from the solvent. The recombination of these two radical species occurs with a time constant about 200 ns to produce a para‐N‐LAT (light absorbing transient). The structure, major spectral features, and identification of the ketyl radical and the para‐N‐LAT coupling complex have been determined and confirmed by comparison of the TR³ results with results from density functional theory (DFT) calculations. A reaction pathway for the photolysis of 4‐BPy in 2‐propanol deduced from the TR³ results is also presented. The electron‐withdrawing effect of the heterocyclic nitrogen for 4‐BPy on the triplet state makes it have a significantly higher chemical reactivity for the hydrogen abstraction with 2‐propanol compared to the previously reported corresponding benzophenone triplet reaction under similar reaction conditions. In addition, the 4‐BPy ketyl radical reacts with the dimethyl ketyl radical to attach at the para‐N atom position of the pyridine ring to form a cross‐coupling product such as 2‐[4‐(hydroxy‐phenyl‐methylene)‐4h‐pyridin‐1‐yl]‐propan‐2‐ol instead of attacking at the para‐C atom position as was observed for the corresponding benzophenone reaction reported in an earlier study. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparative study of p‐amino benzhydrazide and m‐amino benzhydrazide by free radicals and free electron transfer

The bimolecular electron transfer from p‐amino benzhydrazide (PABH) and its meta‐derivative (m‐amino benzhydrazide (MABH)) to specific one‐electron oxidant results in the formation of anilino radical. In case of PABH, reaction with ^?OH radicals results in the synchronous formation of adduct as well as anilino radical. The interesting observation is that the yield of the anilino radical increases with increase in pH. The effect of substitution also has a significant effect on the formation of adduct. In case of MABH, significant yield of anilino radical gets form on reaction with ^?OH radical. The free radical electron transfer from PABH and MABH to parent radical cation of non‐polar solvent also results in the formation of anilino radical only suggesting that the radical cation of PABH and MABH has short life time. The above results were supported by quantum chemical calculations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Factors affecting the dimerization of persistent nitrogen‐centered 1‐phenyl urazole radicals to tetrazanes

1‐Phenyl urazole radicals are persistent air‐stable nitrogen‐centered radicals that engage in an equilibrium with the corresponding N―N tetrazane dimers in solution. While the equilibrium typically weakly favors the dimer form, for some 1‐phenyl urazole radicals bearing substituents at the ortho position of the benzene ring, the equilibrium instead strongly favors the dimer form. With the recent surge of interest in the properties and potential applications of heterocyclic radicals, the factors that affect this equilibrium are important to determine. We examined the effect of the extent of ortho substitution (none, 1, or 2 substituents) on the equilibrium by experimentally using variable temperature ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance and UV‐visible spectroscopy in addition to supporting computational investigations at the (U)B3LYP/6‐311G(d,p) level of theory. We confirmed that the equilibrium generally favored the dimer in all cases. However, the equilibrium was more favorable towards dimer formation for urazole radicals substituted with 1 and 2 ortho substituents on the aromatic ring. The activation enthalpies for dissociation of singly substituted dimers were greater than that for dimers without ortho substituents, but lower than that for doubly substituted dimers. The greater preference for dimer formation for the ortho‐substituted urazole radicals is attributed to a greater enthalpic advantage for N―N bond formation. This advantage may be traced to a higher concentration of spin density on the urazole unit of the radicals and a lesser deformation energy required for N―N bond formation.     

Nature of the transient species formed in the pulse radiolysis of 4‐hydroxybenzyl alcohol in aqueous solutions: observation of equilibrium in the reaction of OH‐adducts with HPO ions

Reactions of ^. OH/O ^.? radicals, H‐atoms as well as specific oxidants such as N and Cl radicals with 4‐hydroxybenzyl alcohol (4‐HBA) in aqueous solutions have been investigated at various pH values using the pulse radiolysis technique. At pH 6.8, ^. OH radicals were found to react with 4‐HBA (k = 6 × 10⁹ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1) mainly by contributing to the phenyl moiety and to a minor extent by H‐abstraction from the ? CH₂OH group. ^. OH radical adduct species of 4‐HBA, i.e., ^. OH‐(4‐HBA) formed in the addition reaction were found to undergo dehydration to give phenoxyl radicals of 4‐HBA. Decay rate of the adduct species was found to vary with pH. At pH 6.8, decay was very much dependent on phosphate buffer ion concentrations. Formation rate of phenoxyl radicals was found to increase with phosphate buffer ion concentration and reached a plateau value of 1.6 × 10⁵ s^?1 at a concentration of 0.04 mol dm^?3 of each buffering ion. It was also seen that ^. OH‐(4‐HBA) adduct species react with HPO ions with a rate constant of 3.7 × 10⁷ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1 and there was no such reaction with H₂PO ions. However, the rate of reaction of ^. OH‐(4‐HBA) adduct species with HPO ions decreased on adding KH₂PO₄ to the solution containing a fixed concentration of Na₂HPO₄ which indicated an equilibrium in the H⁺ removal from ^. OH‐(4‐HBA) adduct species in the presence of phosphate ions. In the acidic region, the ^. OH‐(4‐HBA) adduct species were found to react with H⁺ ions with a rate constant of 2.5 × 10⁷ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1. At pH 1, in the reaction of ^. OH radicals with 4‐HBA (k = 8.8 × 10⁹ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1), the spectrum of the transient species formed was similar to that of phenoxyl radicals formed in the reaction of Cl radicals with 4‐HBA at pH 1 (k = 2.3 × 10⁸ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1) showing that ^. OH radicals quantitatively bring about one electron oxidation of 4‐HBA. Reaction of ^. OH/O ^.? radicals with 4‐HBA by H‐abstraction mechanism at neutral and alkaline pH values gave reducing radicals and the proportion of the same was determined by following the extent of electron transfer to methyl viologen. H‐atom abstraction is the major pathway in the reaction of O ^.? radicals with 4‐HBA compared to the reaction of ^. OH radicals with 4‐HBA. At pH 1, transient species formed in the reactions of H‐atoms with 4‐HBA (k = 2.1 × 10⁹ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1) were found to transfer electrons to methyl viologen quantitatively. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vibrational spectroscopy and DFT calculations of di‐amino acid peptides: α‐ and β‐N‐acetyl‐L‐Asp‐L‐Glu in the solid state

Experimental vibrational spectroscopic studies and density functional theory (DFT) calculations of the di‐amino acid peptide derivatives α‐ and β‐N‐acetyl‐L‐Asp‐L‐Glu have been undertaken. Raman and infrared spectra have been recorded for samples in the solid state. DFT simulations were conducted using the B3‐LYP correlation functional and the cc‐pVDZ basis set to determine energy minimized/geometry optimized structures (based on a single isolated molecule in the gaseous state). Normal coordinate calculations have provided vibrational assignments for fundamental modes, including their potential energy distributions. Significant differences are observed between α‐ and β‐N‐acetyl‐L‐Asp‐L‐Glu both in the computed structures and in the vibrational spectra. The combination of experimental and calculated spectra provide an insight into the structural and vibrational spectroscopic properties of di‐amino acid peptide derivatives. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reactivity of 2‐aryl‐1,3‐dithiane anions towards neopentyl,neophyl and phenyl iodides. New evidence for an SRN1 mechanism

The reactions of 2‐(4‐Z‐phenyl)‐1,3‐dithiane anions (Z = H, OMe, Cl, CN) with neopentyl, neophyl and phenyl iodides were studied in DMSO, taking into consideration the effect of the Z substituent on the dithiane anions reactivity as well as on the product distribution. These substitution reactions proceed by an S_RN1 mechanism with radicals and radical anions as intermediates. Two competitive pathways are possible for the radical anion of the substitution product, namely electron transfer (ET) to the substrate giving the substitution product and C–S bond fragmentation to yield a distonic radical anion. ET is the main pathway for the reactions between dithiane anions bearing electron‐donor substituents and neopentyl or its analogue iodides affording the substitution products in moderate yields (41–53%). Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of the chloro substituent position on the triplet reactivity of benzophenone derivatives: a time‐resolved resonance Raman and density functional theory study

A nanosecond time‐resolved resonance Raman (ns‐TR³) spectroscopic investigation of the photoreduction reactions and ability of several chloro‐substituted benzophenone (Cl‐BP) triplets is described. The TR³ results show that the 3‐chlorobenzophenone (3‐Cl‐BP), 4‐chlorobenzophenone (4‐Cl‐BP) and 4,4′‐dichlorobenzophenone (4,4′‐dichloro‐BP) triplets exhibit similar hydrogen abstraction ability with the parent BP triplet. In 2‐propanol, the 3‐Cl‐, 4‐Cl‐ and 4,4′‐dichloro‐diphenylketyl (DPK) radicals were observed and they appear to react with dimethylketyl radicals at the para‐position to form a light absorption transient species. These transient species were characterized with TR³ spectra, and identified with the help of results from density functional theory calculations. In an acetontitrile/water (MeCN:H₂O) 1:1 mixed solvent, these DPK radicals were also observed but with slower formation rates. However, the 2‐Cl‐DPK radical was observed to form with a lower yield and a significantly slower formation rate than the other chloro‐substituted benzophenones examined here in 2‐propanol under the same experimental conditions. These results reveal that the 2‐chloro substituent reduces the hydrogen abstraction ability of the substituted BP triplet, which was not as expected based on the assumption that the electron‐withdrawing group could increase its photoreduction ability. This unusual ortho effect of the chlorine substitution is briefly discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dichloromethane as solvent and reagent: a case study of photoinduced reactions in mixed phosphonium‐iodonium ylide

Several years ago the photoinduced reaction of mixed phosphonium‐iodonium ylides ( 1 ) with acetylenes ( 2 ) to give λ⁵‐phosphinolines ( 3 ) and substituted furans ( 4 ) was described. This reaction is one‐pot, metal‐free synthesis of heterocycles 3 and 4 with the yields of 40% to 80%. The reaction proceeds only in dichloromethane (DCM) at the high ylide concentrations (>0.01 mol/L). The product analysis by ³¹P NMR, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, UV‐vis spectrophotometry, and the dynamic light scattering study of the self‐aggregation of the ylide in DCM showed a dual role of the solvent in the photoinduced reactions of mixed phosphonium‐iodonium ylide: (i) at the low ylide concentrations (<0.01 mol/L), the conjugated photoinitiation of the chain reaction in DCM results in the formation of chlorine‐containing products and (ii) at the high ylide concentrations (>0.01 mol/L), the photolysis mechanism is determined by self‐organization of the ylide molecules to give large stable aggregates in DCM, in which the target heterocycles are synthesized. Two important issues follow from the study. First, the annulation reaction between mixed phosphonium‐iodonium ylide and acetylenes occurs only when the reactive intermediates are in close proximity to one other, and, second, DCM is not inert reagent in reactions occurring with participation of radicals and in one form or another can participate in photoinduced radical reactions of various solutes.     

Effect of irradiation on ethyl 2‐amino‐4,5,6,7‐tetrahydrobenzo[b]thiophene‐3‐carboxylate: an ESR study

Ethyl 2‐amino‐4,5,6,7‐tetrahydrobenzo[b]thiophene‐3‐carboxylate [C₁₁H₁₅NO₂S] was synthesized by the Gewald method. Its single crystals were grown from an alcohol/ethyl acetate solution at 15 °C and characterized using IR and ¹H‐NMR. These single crystals were irradiated for 72 h at 298 K by a ⁶⁰Co gamma source with a dose speed of 0.864 kGy/h. After irradiation, electron spin resonance (ESR) measurements were carried out to study radiation‐induced radicals in the temperature range from 120 to 450 K. Additionally, for the single crystal, ESR angular dependencies were measured in the xy, xz and yz planes of the substance. This irradiated single crystal was analyzed based on the ESR spectra. Analysis of the spectra revealed that the radical was formed by a C–H bond fission at the carbon end of the substance. It was also observed that the color of the sample changed after irradiation. The hyperfine and g parameters were determined from the experimental spectra. It was inferred from these results that the hyperfine parameters and g value exhibited anisotropic behavior. The average values of these parameters were calculated as follows: g = 2.0088, A_H1=H2 = 20.70 G, A_H3=H4 = 10.80 G, A_Ha = 4.59 G, A_Hb = 3.24 G and, A_N = 6.10 G. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

NMR,IR, and ESR spectroscopic investigation of reaction of α‐silylamines with carbon tetrachloride

This paper reports about high reactivity of α‐silylamines in the reaction with CCl₄. Unlike Et₃N, α‐silylamines rapidly react with CCl₄ upon irradiation with daylight to form α‐silylamine hydrochloride salts in 92–98% yields. The influence of structure of α‐silylamines and solvent on the degree of conversion was displayed. The interaction of α‐silylamines with CCl₄ was studied by NMR, ESR, and IR spectroscopy. C‐centered radicals of α‐silylamines were detected by ESR spectroscopy with spin traps (MNP, ND, and PBN) in reaction mixtures in CH₃CN and C₆H₆ and it show the radical character of this reaction. Both CH₃CN and C₆H₆ serve as solvents as well as reagents for this reaction. A mechanism of an interaction between α‐silylamines and CCl₄ is discussed. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pulse radiolysis studies of 2‐ and 3‐hydroxybenzyl alcohols: inhibition of dehydration of ·OH‐(hydroxybenzyl alcohols) adducts by H2PO4− ions

Reactions of ·OH/O ^.? radicals and H‐atoms as well as specific oxidants such as Cl₂^.? and N₃· radicals have been studied with 2‐ and 3‐hydroxybenzyl alcohols (2‐ and 3‐HBA) at various pH using pulse radiolysis technique. At pH 6.8, ·OH radicals were found to react quite fast with both the HBAs (k = 7.8 × 10⁹ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1 with 2‐HBA and 2 × 10⁹ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1 with 3‐HBA) mainly by adduct formation and to a minor extent by H‐abstraction from ? CH₂OH groups. ·OH‐(HBA) adduct were found to undergo decay to give phenoxyl type radicals in a pH dependent way and it was also very much dependent on buffer‐ion concentrations. It was seen that ·OH‐(2‐HBA) and ·OH‐(3‐HBA) adducts react with HPO₄^2? ions (k = 2.1 × 10⁷ and 2.8 × 10⁷ dm³ mol^?1 s^?1 at pH 6.8, respectively) giving the phenoxyl type radicals of HBAs. At the same time, this reaction is very much hindered in the presence of H₂PO ions indicating the role of phosphate ion concentration in determining the reaction pathway of ·OH adduct decay to final stable product. In the acidic region adducts were found to react with H⁺ ions. At pH 1, reaction of ·OH radicals with HBAs gave exclusively phenoxyl type radicals. Proportion of the reducing radicals formed by H‐abstraction pathway in ·OH/O ^.? reactions with HBAs was determined following electron transfer to methyl viologen. H‐atom abstraction is the major pathway in O ^.? reaction with HBAs compared to ·OH radical reaction. H‐atom reaction with 2‐ and 3‐HBA gave transient species which were found to transfer electron to methyl viologen quantitatively. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Use of N‐chloro‐N‐methyl‐p‐toluenesulfonamide in N‐chlorination reactions

Second‐order rate constants (k₂) were determined for the addition of ten nitrogenous organic compounds (benzylamine, 2,2,2‐trifluoethylamine chlorhidrate, methylamine chlorhidrate, glycine ethyl ester chlorhidrate, glycine, glycylglycine chlorhidrate, morpholine, pyperidine, pyperazine and dimethylamine) to the N‐chloro‐N‐methyl‐p‐toluenesulfonamide (NCNMPT) in the formation reaction of N‐chloramines in aqueous solution at 25 °C and ionic strength 0.5 M. The series of nucleophiles considered is structurally very varied and covers five pK_a units. The kinetic behaviour is similar for all compounds, being the elementary step the transfer of chlorine from the NCNMPT molecule to the nitrogen of the free amino group. These reactions were found first order in both reagents. The values of the rate constants indicate that the more basic amines produce N‐chloramines more readily. Rate constants for the nucleophilic attack are shown to correlate with literature data for some of these nitrogenous organic compounds in their reaction with N‐methyl‐N‐nitroso‐p‐toluenesulfonamide. Both reactions involve that the rate determining step is the attack of nitrogenous compounds upon electrophilic centre (Cl or else NO group). NCNMPT is a particularly interesting substrate, for which has not hitherto been published kinetic information, that allows us to assess the efficiency and the competitiveness of this reaction and compare it with other agents with a Cl⁺ atom. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

DFT study on abstraction reaction mechanism of oh radical with 2‐methoxyphenol

Reaction mechanism of 2‐methoxyphenol (2MP) (guaiacol) with OH radical has been performed using density functional theory methods BH&HLYP and MPW1K method with 6‐311++G(d,p) basis set. Single‐point energy calculations were done using CCSD(T)/6‐311++G(d,p). The theoretical results reveal that the hydrogen abstraction from methoxy group is found to be the dominant reaction channel with an energy barrier of 9.31 kcal/mol. Also, time‐dependent density functional theory calculations have been performed using BH&HLYP/6‐311++G(d,p) level of theory, and the results reveal that the reactions occur in ground state than the excited state. The results of reaction force profile indicate that structural rearrangements are most influential with high percentage than the relaxation process. The calculated theoretical rate constants (12.19 × 10^?11 cm³ molecule^?1 s^?1) are in good agreement with the experimental rate constant. The atmospheric lifetime of 2‐methoxyphenol with respect to OH radicals is 2.27 hours, which implies that OH radical plays an important role in the degradation of 2MP. The Wiberg bond index of the abstraction reaction reveals that the bond order is concerted, partially synchronic. The reactant‐like transition state satisfies Hammond postulate, which eventually results in an exothermic reaction, and the product‐like transition state reveals in endothermic nature.     

N‐Chlorination rate of five‐membered heterocyclic nitrogen compounds

The kinetics of N‐chlorination reaction of pyrrolidine, pyrrolidone, succinimide, 5,5,‐dimethyloxazolidine‐2,4‐dione, 5,5‐dimethylhydantoin and 1‐hydroximethyl‐5,5‐dimethylhydantoin with HOCl in aqueous solution were studied at 25 °C, constant ionic strength and under isolation conditions in a wide pH range. The set of compounds studied in this paper is characterized by having different functional groups and the same cyclic structure, consisting of a five‐member ring with a nitrogen atom in the ring, which is susceptible to be chlorinated. This series of compounds covers nine pK_a units, and the kinetic studies allow us to know, like, the presence of an amino, amide or imide group modify the reactivity of nitrogenous compound. Experimental data were fitted to the first‐order kinetic equation. All reactions were found to be of first order in both HOCl and nitrogenous compound concentration. Kinetics studies demonstrate that some of these compounds are hydrolyzed in alkaline medium. In each case, reaction mechanism in agreement with the experimental results is proposed. The results were compared with other compounds with similar cyclic structure (2‐oxazolidinone and proline). Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

4‐Phenyl‐1,2,4‐triazoline‐3,5‐dione in the ene reactions with cyclohexene, 1‐hexene and 2,3‐dimethyl‐2‐butene. The heat of reaction and the influence of temperature and pressure on the reaction rate

The values of the enthalpy (53.3; 51.3; 20.0 kJ mol^?1), entropy (?106; ?122; ?144 J mol^?1K^?1), and volume of activation (?29.1; ?31.0; ?cm³ mol^?1), the reaction volume (?25.0; ?26.6; ?cm³ mol^?1) and reaction enthalpy (?155.9; ?158.2; ?150.2 kJ mol^?1) have been obtained for the first time for the ene reactions of 4‐phenyl‐1,2,4‐triazoline‐3,5‐dione 1 , with cyclohexene 4 , 1‐hexene 6 , and with 2,3‐dimethyl‐2‐butene 8 , respectively. The ratio of the values of the activation volume to the reaction volume (?V^≠_corr/ΔV_{r ? n}) in the ene reactions under study, 1 + 4 → 5 and 1 + 6 → 7 , appeared to be the same, namely 1.16. The large negative values of the entropy and the volume of activation of studied reactions 1 + 4 → 5 and 1 + 6 → 7 better correspond to the cyclic structure of the activated complex at the stage determining the reaction rate. The equilibrium constants of these ene reactions can be estimated as exceeding 10¹⁸ L mol^?1, and these reactions can be considered irreversible. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kinetics and mechanisms of gas‐phase decarbonylation of α‐methyl‐trans‐cinamaldehyde and E‐2‐methyl‐2‐pentenal under homogeneous catalysis of hydrogen chloride

The kinetics of the gas‐phase elimination of α‐methyl‐trans‐cinamaldehyde catalyzed by HCl in the temperature range of 399.0–438.7 °C, and the pressure range of 38–165 Torr is a homogeneous, molecular, pseudo first‐order process and undergoing a parallel reaction to produce via (A) α‐methylstyrene and CO gas and via (B) β‐methylstyrene and CO gas. The decomposition of substrate E‐2‐methyl‐2‐pentenal was performed in the temperature range of 370.0–410.0 °C and the pressure range of 44–150 Torr also undergoing a molecular, pseudo first‐order reaction gives E‐2‐pentene and CO gas. These reactions were carried out in a static system seasoned reactions vessels and in the presence of toluene free radical inhibitor. The rate coefficients are given by the following Arrhenius expressions:

• Products formation from α‐methyl‐trans‐cinamaldehyde
• α‐methylstyrene :
• β‐methylstyrene :
• Products formation from E‐2‐methyl‐2‐pentenal
• E‐2‐pentene :

The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters for the thermal decomposition of α‐methyl‐trans‐cinamaldehyde suggest that via (A) proceeds through a bicyclic transition state type of mechanism to yield α‐methylstyrene and carbon monoxide, whereas via (B) through a five‐membered cyclic transition state to give β‐methylstyrene and carbon monoxide. However, the elimination of E‐2‐methyl‐2‐pentenal occurs by way of a concerted cyclic five‐membered transition state mechanism producing E‐2‐pentene and carbon monoxide. The present results support that uncatalyzed α‐β‐unsaturated aldehydes decarbonylate through a three‐membered cyclic transition state type of mechanism. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mass spectrometric study of the decomposition pathways of canonical amino acids and α‐lactones in the gas phase

The dissociation pathways of a gas‐phase amino acid with a canonical (non‐zwitterionic) α‐amino acid moiety are studied by using mass spectrometry. Investigation of the canonical amino acid moiety is possible because the ionized amino acid, a sulfonated phenylalanine, has a charge center that is separated from the amino acid, and dissociation occurs by charge‐remote fragmentation. The amino acid is found to dissociate only by loss of NH₃ upon collision‐induced dissociation to form a substituted α‐lactone. The dissociation is consistent with what has been observed previously upon pyrolysis of other α‐substituted carboxylic acids. Decarboxylation, which has also been reported previously for amino acid pyrolysis, is not observed, likely because the product would be a high‐energy, ammonium ylide. The resulting α‐lactone is found to undergo dissociation by decarbonylation to give an aldehyde, and by loss of CO₂. Decarboxylation is calculated to occur through a transition state involving hydride shift coupled with lactone ring‐opening. The transition state is found to be stabilized by the negative charge, and therefore, decarboxylation is more favorable for anions. The results show that remote ionic groups can be used as mostly inert charge carriers to enable mass spectrometry to be used to investigate the gas‐phase physical and chemical properties of different types of functional groups, including amino acids. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A 3‐state defect model for light‐induced degradation in boron‐doped float‐zone silicon

We report on a light‐induced bulk defect activation and subsequent deactivation in boron doped float‐zone silicon that can be described by a 3‐state model. During treatment at elevated temperature and illumination, a sample first converts from an initial high lifetime state into a degraded low lifetime state and then shows a recovery reaction leading to a third high lifetime state that is then stable under degradation conditions. Furthermore, it is shown that reverse reactions into the initial state appear to be possible both from the degraded as well as the regenerated state. An injection dependent analysis of lifetime data yields a defect capture cross section ratio of ～20 suggesting a positively charged defect. (© 2016 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Hydrolysis and retro‐aldol cleavage of ethyl threo‐2‐(1‐adamantyl)‐3‐hydroxybutyrate: competing reactions

The hydrolysis of ethyl threo‐2‐(1‐adamantyl)‐3‐hydroxybutyrate ( 1 ) and the parent ester ethyl 3‐hydroxybutyrate ( 4 ) has been studied experimentally and computationally. In the hydrolysis of threo‐ester 1 with 2 M NaOH, predominantly retro‐aldol product was observed, whereas the hydrolyzed product was present in a minor amount. When the reaction is carried out under the same conditions with the parent ester ethyl 3‐hydroxybutyrate ( 4 ), hydrolyzed product is exclusively observed. The competitive pathways, namely hydrolysis and the retro‐aldol reaction for 1 and 4 were investigated using DFT calculations in the both gas and solvent phase. The calculated results in the solvent phase at B3LYP/6–31 + G* level revealed that the formation of retro‐aldol products is kinetically preferred over the hydrolysis of threo‐ester 1 in the presence of a base. However, the parent ester 4 showed that the retro‐aldol process is less favored than the hydrolysis process under similar conditions. The steric effect imposed by the bulky adamantyl group to enhance the activation barriers for the hydrolysis of the ethyl threo‐2‐(1‐adamantyl)‐3‐hydroxybutyrate ( 1 ) was further supported by the calculations performed with tert‐butyl group at the α‐carbon atom of ethyl 3‐hydroxybutyrate ( 7 ). Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rule of five cyclizations in 5‐hexenyl radicals and photocycloadditions of 1,5‐hexadienes: effect of 4‐oxa substitution

The effect of 4‐oxa substitution on the regiochemistry and rate of 5‐hexenyl radical cyclizations was investigated, as a potential model for [2 + 2] photocycloadditions of 2‐acyl‐4‐oxa‐1,5‐hexadienes. Increasing the electron density in the alkene decreases the rate of cyclization in the 4‐oxa‐hexenyl radicals, relative to the all carbon analogs, but has little effect on the regioselectivity of the cyclization. The radical model does not reproduce the high degree of 1,6 closure, observed in the [2 + 2] photocycloadditions for 4‐oxa‐1,5‐hexadiene 1a . However, the radical model does reinforce the interpretation that ground state conformational effects, engendered by substitution remote from the reacting centers have important rate consequences for cyclization reactions. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.