Formation and properties of the Fe<Subscript>8</Subscript>V<Subscript>10</Subscript>W<Subscript>16–x</Subscript>Mo<Subscript>x</Subscript>O<Subscript>85</Subscript> type solid solution

Solid solution phases of a formula Fe₈V₁₀W_16–xMo_xO₈₅ where 0≤x≤4, have been obtained, possessing a structure of the compound Fe₈V₁₀W₁₆O₈₅. It was found on the base of XRD and DTA investigations that these solution phases melted incongruently, with increasing the value of x, in the temperature range from 1108 (x=0) to 1083 K (x=4) depositing Fe₂WO₆ and WO₃. The increase of the Mo⁶⁺ ions content in the crystal lattice of Fe₈V₁₀W₁₆O₈₅ causes the lattice parameters a=b contraction with cbeing almost constant. IR spectra of the Fe₈V₁₀W_16–xMo_xO₈₅ solid solution phases have been recorded.     

Polymorphism in yttrium molybdate Y2Mo3O12

Yttrium molybdate (Y₂Mo₃O₁₂) has been prepared by non-hydrolytic sol–gel chemistry. The phase evolution upon heating was investigated using in situ and ex situ heat treatments combined with powder X-ray diffraction. This method has led to the isolation of two orthorhombic phases with different atomic connectivity. Yttrium adopts 6- and 7-coordinate sites in the Pbcn and Pba2 structures, respectively. Cocrystallization of both phases was observed in a narrow temperature range, suggesting that crystallization kinetics play a major role in phase formation. It was found that the Pba2 phase is the stable polymorph below 550 °C, and converts to Pbcn at higher temperatures.     

The Structure of Gaseous Carbon Tetraiodide from Electron Diffraction and All Carbon Iodides,CIn (n = 1–4), and Their Dimers,C2I2n (n = 1–3) from High-Level Computation. Any Other Carbon-Iodide Species in the Vapor?

The geometry of a series of carbon iodides have been determined, CI₄ by gas-phase electron diffraction and CI _n (n = 1–4) and C₂I_2n (n = 1–3) by high-level quantum chemical calulations. The bond length of the tetrahedral CI₄ molecule from electron diffraction is (r _g):2.157(10) Å. The indication of about 20% I₂ in the vapor suggests partial decomposition and it has been thoroughly investigated what other carbon iodide species might be present beside CI₄. There is no appreciable amount of either of the dimeric species in the vapor phase, in spite of the suggestion from thermodynamics. On the other hand, the electron diffraction data are compatible with the presence of about 18% of either of the monomeric free radicals, CI₃ or CI₂, beside CI₄ and I₂. Possible reasons for these observations are discussed. Our correlated level computations, in agreement with other high level computations, found the singlet ¹A₁ state to be the ground state for CI₂. This is in contrast with a recent photoelectron spectroscopic study according to which the triplet state is the ground state though with a large margin of error (1 ± 3 kcal/mol energy difference). The computed singlet-triplet separation strongly depends on the level of the computation, but it is at least 9 kcal/mol. Geometrical parameters, singlet-triplet separations, and dipole moments have been calculated for the CX₂ series (X = F, Cl, Br, I, H) and their variations are discussed. The thermodynamic stability of different carbon iodide species has also been investigated.     

Electrochemical characteristics of Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9|La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ + Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 half-cell

The analysis of the medium temperature half-cell Ce_0.8Gd_0.2O_1.9|70 wt% La_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3- (LSCO) + 30 wt % Ce_0.8Gd_0.2O_1.9 (CGO) has been made by electrochemical impedance, cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The shape of complex impedance plots depends on temperature and cathodic polarisation of the electrode. Nyquist (Z, Z-) plots were fitted by equivalent circuit taking into account the electrolyte properties (at very high frequencies), charge transfer process at grain boundaries (at high frequencies), and medium and low frequency O₂ reduction process at the cathode surface and inside the porous cathode material. Two different time constants have been obtained for the cathode process, i.e. for electroreduction of oxygen. It was found that the addition of CGO into the cathode material (LSCO) only somewhat decreases the surface catalytic activity but the noticeably higher low-frequency resistance (i.e. mainly diffusion-like mass transfer resistance R_D) values at lower temperatures have been calculated. It was found that the mainly bulk diffusion-limited process at T773 K deviates toward the kinetically mixed process (diffusion + charge transfer) with increasing temperature.     

Ab initio studies on several species of the formula X3YO and X3YOH

Ab initio molecular orbital calculations using both minimal and extended basis sets have been applied to two isoelectronic sets of molecules. One set corresponds to the 18 electron species H₃NO, H₃CO^– and H₃COH while the second set contains the 42 electron fluorinated molecules F₃NO, F₃CO^– and F₃COH. The geometries of these molecules have been optimized, using both the minimal STO-3G and the extended 4-31G basis sets. These comparative calculations reveal that the 4-31G basis produced structural parameters in much better agreement with experiment. The effect of includingd-orbitals in the basis set was also investigated. For the fluorinated oxides it has been found that the optimized 4-31G structures were only slightly altered by the addition ofd-orbitals. For H₃NO, on the other hand, the inclusion ofd-orbitals considerably shortens the N-O bond distance. Both H₃NO and CF₃OH, which are unknown experimentally, are theoretically predicted to be capable of existence. The electronic structures of these molecules have also been examined using electronic partitioning according to the Mulliken scheme.     

The structures,binding energies and vibrational frequencies of Ca3 and Ca4 — An application of the CCSD(T) method

Summary The Ca₃ and Ca₄ metallic clusters have been investigated using state-of-the-artab initio quantum mechanical methods. Large atomic natural orbital basis sets have been used in conjunction with the singles and doubles coupled-cluster (CCSD) method, a coupled-cluster method that includes a perturbational estimate of connected triple excitations, denoted CCSD(T), and the multireference configuration interaction (MRCI) method. The equilibrium geometries, binding energies and harmonic vibrational frequencies have been determined with each of the methods so that the accuracy of the coupled-cluster methods may be assessed. Since the CCSD(T) method reproduces the MRCI results very well, cubic and quartic force fields of Ca₃ and Ca₄ have been determined using this approach and used to evaluate the fundamental vibrational frequencies. The infrared intensities of both thee mode of Ca₃ and thet ₂ mode of Ca₄ are found to be small. The results obtained in this study are compared and contrasted with those from our earlier studies on small Be and Mg clusters.Dedicated to Prof. Klaus Ruedenberg on the occasion of his 70th birthday     

Sol-gel coatings of BaO-TiO2-SiO2 compositions

New alkali resistant BaO-TiO₂-SiO₂ coatings have been developed via the sol-gel process. In the solutions and in the gels (T<300°C) an infrared absorption band at 930 cm^–1 gives the possible evidence of mixed Si-O-Ti bonds, which have not been found in the system SiO₂-TiO₂-ZrO₂. Baking the films at about 500°C for less than 1 h leads to stable layers with negligible residual carbon contents. Compositions near 20 BaO-40 TiO₂-40 SiO₂ showed the best performance.     

Synthesis, structural and electrical characterizations of DySr5Ni2.4Cu0.6O12−δ

A new compound DySr₅Ni_2.4Cu_0.6O_12−δ has been prepared by sol gel method and annealed at 1473 K in 1 atm of Ar gas flow. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) is used for phase identification. The sample shows to adopt the K₂NiF₄-type structure based on tolerance factor calculation. XRD analysis using the Rietveld method was carried out and it was found that DySr₅Ni_2.4Cu_0.6O_12−δ (Dy_0.33Sr_1.67Ni_0.8Cu_0.2O_4−δ′) compound crystallizes in tetragonal symmetry with space group I4/mmm (Z=2). The lattice parameters are found to be at room temperature a=3.7696(5) Å and c=12.3747(2) Å. The final reliability indices were: R_B=5.219% and χ²=3.47. Four probe electrical resistivity measurements were performed versus temperature in the range 294–579 K. A semiconducting behaviour over the whole range of temperature, with a conductivity maximum of 0.4 S cm⁻¹ is observed at 510 K.     

Novel Synthesis of 3,3-Bis-(4-chromone-3-ylmethyl)-chroman-4-ones

3-Hydroxymethylchromones have been found to undergo a novel transformation in the presence of Cs₂CO₃ in toluene or xylene as solvent to afford “trimeric” chromones, 3,3-bis-(4-chromone-3-ylmethyl)-chroman-4-ones. The structure of the trimer has also been confirmed by single-crystal x-ray diffraction study.

Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications® to view the free supplemental file.     

Study of the selectivity of a V2O5?ZrO2 catalyst for partial oxidation ofo-xylene at high temperatures

It has been established that at high temperatures (above 450°C) the V₂O₅−ZrO₂ catalyst exhibits a higher selectivity in the oxidation ofo-xylene to phthalic anhydride than does the conventional V₂O₅−TiO₂(a) catalyst. The catalyst selectivity is found to increase with respect to partial oxidation ofo-xylene, the valuable by-product maleic anhydride being obtained. Studies by different physicochemical methods have shown that V₂O₅−ZrO₂ undergoes no significant phase and structural changes under high-temperature conditions.     

Vibrational frequencies and force constants of N2O4 in complexes with molecules of different solvents determined by Raman spectra andAb initio calculation

The Raman spectra of N₂O₄ solutions in organic solvents have been recorded. The frequencies ofv ₁,v ₂, andv ₃ bands of N₂O₄ increase with increasing solvent electron-donor properties. Especially large changes ofv ₃ N-N stretching band have been observed (254.5 cm^–1 in n-hexane, 276.5 cm^–1 in 1,4-dioxane). The ab initio calculations have shown that the interaction between N₂O₄ and electron-donor molecules causes an increase of N-N and N-O stretching and O-N-O bending force constants of N₂O₄ in agreement with the results of Raman study.     

Stabilitäten von As(V) in Chlorokomplexen

The temperature dependent behaviour of PCl₄AsCl₆, PCl₄SbCl₆ and AsCl₄SbCl₆ has been investigated byRaman spectroscopy. The As(V) containing complexes decompose into homogeneous molecular melts consisting of AsCl₃, Cl₂ and PCl₅, respectively. In PCl₄SbCl₆ PCl₄ ⁺ and SbCl₆ ^– complex ions were found in the solid as well as in the molten state.

     

Silica‐Supported Sodium Hydrogen Sulfate Catalyzed Facile Transformation of p‐Hydroxybenzyl Alcohols to p‐Hydroxybenzyl Ethers and Thioethers

Abstract

The heterogeneous catalyst, silica‐supported sodium hydrogen sulfate (NaHSO₄ · SiO₂) has been found to be highly efficient in carrying out the transformation of p‐hydroxybenzyl alcohols at room temperature to p‐hydroxybenzyl ethers and thioethers in very high yields.     

Encapsulation of Pd(II) by N4 and N2O2 macrocyclic ligands: their use in catalysis and biology

New macrocyclic Schiff base Pd(II) compounds were synthesized by treating N₄ and N₂O₂ macrocycles with palladium chloride in a 1 : 1 ratio. The resulting macrocyclic compounds were characterized by elemental, IR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, mass, molar conductance, magnetic susceptibility, electronic spectra, and thermal analysis. These compounds were used as catalysts in the development of an efficient catalytic method for reduction of organic substrates having nitro, olefinic, acetylenic, and aldehyde groups under mild reaction conditions. The biological activities of all the macrocycles and macrocyclic Pd(II) compounds have been tested against gram positive (Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus) and gram negative (Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumonia) bacteria and found to be more active than commercially available antibacterial drugs like Streptomycin and Ampicillin.     

Electronic structures of the boron cage molecules B4H4, B4Cl4 and B4F4

Ab initio calculations have been performed on B₄H₄, B₄Cl₄ and B₄F₄ in order to aid our understanding of the bonding in these compounds, which is presumably based on a tetrahedral boron cage. This cage has only 8 electrons and so is less than that expected on the basis of the usual framework electron counting rules. Basis sets with polarisation functions were used at the SCF, CI and CPF levels of theory to confirm that the T _d structures are indeed more stable than the D _4h ones. Davidson-Roby population analyses were able to show that many factors, including 3-centre 2-electron bonding and backbonding from the ligand to the boron cage, are of importance in determining the relative stability of the three compounds, of which B₄Cl₄ is the only one that has yet been observed experimentally.     

Conversion ofn-hexane over Pt?Sn/γ-Al2O3 catalyst

Conversion ofn-hexane has been applied as a test reaction to study differences between the series of Pt−Sn/γ-Al₂O₃ catalysts obtainedvia different methods of preparation. Preliminary results of catalytic experiments have been compared with some changes occurring on the catalysts surfaces as the results of the preparation technique applied. It has been found that catalysts with the second metal (Sn) introduced to the support by the coprecipitation technique were much more stable in comparison to the catalysts where the tin component has been added by the impregnation method, however, we have not observed large differences in catalytic activity.     

Inter-cation interaction in partial dynamic structure factors S ξη(k,ω) and electrical properties of molten AgI–RbI system

Phonon propagation in molten RbAg₄I₅ is discussed based on the partial dynamic structure factors S _ξη( k ,ω), which are obtaisned by molecular dynamics (MD) simulation using pair potentials considering the effect of polarisability of ions. The longitudinal acoustic (LA) and transverse acoustic (TA) modes have been observed in molten RbAg₄I₅, which are found to be propagated mainly by the different ions: LA mode by I ions and TA mode by Ag ions. The origin of the TA phonon mode is attributed to the cation–cation interaction. The electrical properties, the electron density of states, the band structure, etc., are also examined by ab initio calculation. The hybridisation of electronic states between ions is enhanced by the existence of Rb ion.     

A pseudopotential study of the hydrogen bond in H2O·H2S,H2S·H2S and H2O·H2Se systems

Intermolecular potential energy curves for the hydrogen bonded systems H₂O·H₂S, H₂O·H₂Se and H₂S·H₂S were calculated with nonempirical pseudopotentials using optimized-in-molecules basis sets augmented by polarization functions. The H₂O·H₂O interaction energy curve has been also considered as a test case. The present results for H₂O·H₂S and H₂S·H₂S indicate much weaker intermolecular interactions than those found in previous ab initio calculations. The H₂O·H₂Se interaction was found to be quite similar to H₂O·H₂S.This work was partly supported by the Polish Academy of Sciences within the Project PAN-09, 7.1.1.1On leave from Quantum Chemistry Laboratory, Dept. of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093. Warsaw, Poland     

Electrochemical characteristics of La0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ, Pr0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ and Gd0.6Sr0.4CoO3-δ on Ce0.85Sm0.15O1.925 electrolyte

Cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry and electro-chemical impedance have been used for the analysis of the following medium temperature half-cells: Ce_0.85Sm_0.15O_1.925| La_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ, Ce_0.85Sm_0.15O_1.925| Pr_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ and Ce_0.85Sm_0.15O_1.925| Gd_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ. The influence of the atomic mass of the A–site cation in the perovskite cathode on the oxygen reduction kinetics has been discussed. The total polarisation resistance, obtained from the Z′′, Z′-plots, increases with the rise of atomic mass of the cation in the A-site position. Two different time constants have been obtained for the oxygen electroreduction process, and the replacement of La³⁺ by Gd³⁺ in the cathode material decreases somewhat the surface catalytic activity, but the noticeably higher low-frequency series resistance, i.e. mainly diffusion-like mass transfer resistance, values have been obtained. However, the mainly diffusion-limited process at T≤773 K for Gd_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ and the kinetically mixed process (diffusion + charge transfer) for Pr_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ and La_0.6Sr_0.4CoO_3-δ have been established. At higher temperature (T≥993 K) and more negative potentials, the O₂ reduction process is limited mainly by the heterogeneous charge transfer step. Presented at the fourth Baltic Conference on Electrochemistry, Greifswald, March 13–16, 2005.     

The system Ce–Zn–B at 800 °C

The isothermal section for the system Ce–Zn–B has been established at 800 °C using electron microprobe analysis and X-ray powder diffraction. No ternary compounds exist and mutual solid solubilities of binary phases are negligible. In the concentration range of 10.0–10.5 at% Ce two structural modifications have been confirmed: high temperature βCe₂Zn₁₇ above ∼750 °C with the Th₂Zn₁₇ type (R3?m, a=0.90916(4) nm, c=1.3286(1) nm) and low temperature αCeZn₇ (Ce_1−xZn_5+2x; x∼0.33) up to 750 °C for which we attributed the TbCu₇ type (P6/mmm, a=0.52424(2), c=0.44274(1) nm). The crystal structure of CeZn₇ was derived from the Rietveld refinement of X-ray powder intensities. Precise data on atom site distribution and positional parameters have been furthermore provided from X-ray single crystal refinements for two compounds, for which crystal structures hitherto have only been derived from X-ray diffraction photographs: Ce₃Zn₁₁ (Immm, a=0.45242(2) nm, b=0.88942(3) nm, c=1.34754(4) nm) and Ce₃Zn₂₂ (I4₁/amd; a=0.89363(2) nm, c=2.1804(5) nm).