Synthesis, interface (Au/M2Pc2/p-Si), electrochemical and electrocatalytic properties of novel ball-type phthalocyanines

The phthalodinitrile derivative (3) was prepared by the reaction of 4,4'-(octahydro-4,7-methano-5H-inden-5-ylidene)bisphenol (1) and 4-nitrophthalonitrile (2) with dry DMF as the solvent in the presence of the base K(2)CO(3) by the method of nucleophilic substitution of an activated nitro group in an aromatic ring. The template reaction of 3 with the corresponding metal salts gave the novel bi-nuclear ball-type metallophthalocyanines, MPcs {M = Co (4), Cu (5), Zn (6)}. Newly synthesized compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, UV-vis, FT-IR (ATR), MALDI-TOF mass and (1)H-NMR spectroscopy techniques. The electronic spectra exhibit an intense π→π* transition of characteristic Q and B bands of the Pc core. The dielectric properties and interface between the spin coated films of 4-6 and a p-type silicon substrate have been studied by fabricating metal-insulator-semiconductor capacitors. The results indicated that the frequency dependence of the dielectric permittivity, ε'(ω), exhibits non-Debye type relaxation for all the temperatures investigated. The ac conductivity results indicated that the conduction mechanism can be explained by a hopping model at low temperatures (<430 K) and a free band conduction mechanism at high temperatures (≥430 K). The density of interface state calculations on these novel compounds showed that the combination of Au/4/p-Si is a promising structure with a high dielectric constant and a low interface trap density suitable for metal-oxide-semiconductor devices. The electrochemical properties of the Pc complexes were examined by cyclic voltammetry, differential voltammetry and controlled potential coulometry on platinum in non-aqueous media. The complexes showed ring-based and/or metal-based mixed-valence behaviours as a result of the remarkable interaction between the two Pc rings and/or metal centres. The mixed-valence splitting values for the complexes suggested that the mixed valence species are considerably stable. The Vulcan XC-72(VC)/Nafion(Nf)/4 modified glassy carbon electrode showed much a higher catalytic performance towards oxygen reduction than those of VC/Nf/5 and VC/Nf/6 modified ones.     

Fatty acid composition and chemotaxonomic evaluation of species of Stachys

The fatty acid composition of the seed oil of 23 Stachys taxa was analysed by GC/MS. The main compounds were found to be linoleic (27.1-64.3%), oleic (20.25-48.1%), palmitic (4.3-9.1%), stearic (trace to 5.2%) and 6-octadecynoic (2.2-34.1%) acids. The latter compound could be used as a chemotaxonomic marker of the genus Stachys. A cluster analysis was performed for comparison and characterisation of the seed oil from Stachys species.     

Fabrication and characterization of bismuth oxide–holmia nanofibers and nanoceramics

In this article, a novel and simple method to produce both boron doped and undoped holmia stabilized bismuth oxide nanoceramic materials has been put forward. Boron doped and undoped poly (vinyl alcohol)/bismuth–holmia acetate nanofibers were produced using the electrospinning technique and were calcined at 850 °C afterward in order to obtain nanopowder. The characteristics of the nanofibers were investigated with FT-IR, XRD, and SEM. XRD analyses showed that boron undoped holmia stabilized bismuth oxide nanopowders have the face-centered cubic structure (δ-phase), and that the incorporation of boron atoms into the composite prevents the nucleus formation and turns the structure into a more amorphous glassy form. The SEM micrographs of the fibers showed that the addition of boron results in the formation of cross-linked bright-surfaced fibers. The average fiber diameters for electrospun boron doped and undoped PVA/Bi–Ho acetate nanofibers were calculated using the ImageJ software as 102 nm and 171 nm, respectively.     

Solid or liquid? Solidification of a nanoconfined liquid under nonequilibrium conditions

There has been a long-standing debate about the physical state and possible phase transformations of confined liquids. In this report, we show that a model-confined liquid can behave both as a Newtonian liquid with very little change in its dynamics and as a pseudosolid, depending solely on the rate of approach of the confining surfaces. Thus, the confined liquid does not exhibit any confinement-induced solidification in thermodynamic equilibrium. Instead, solidification is induced kinetically when the two confining surfaces are approached with a minimum critical rate. This critical rate is surprisingly slow (on the order of 6 A/s), explaining the frequent observation of confinement-induced solidification.     

Synthesis, characterization, and electrical, electrochemical and gas sensing properties of a novel ball-type four t-butylcalix[4]arene bridged binuclear zinc(II) phthalocyanine

1,3 dimethoxy-4-t-butylcalix[4]arene has been used to synthesize a novel ball-type dimeric zinc(II) phthalocyanine, [Zn2Pc2(tbca)4] that exhibits mixed-valence behaviour and non-Arrhenius type dependence of conductivity.     

Synthesis of new anthracene derivatives

An efficient synthesis is described for hexabromoanthracenes 3 and 4 by direct bromination of 9,10-dibromoanthrecene 2. Whereas base-induced elimination of hexabromide 3 with t-BuOK gave 2,3,9,10-tetrabromoanthracene 5, the reaction of hexabromide 4 with DBU afforded 1,3,9,10-tetrabromoanthracene 6 as the sole product. Tetrabromide 5 was also obtained by aromatization of 1,4-dinitroxy-2,3,9,10-tetrabromo-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroanthracene 17. Efficient and convenient synthetic routes are described for the preparation of dinotroxy 17, dimethoxy 23, and dihydroxides 18 and 19 with silver-induced substitution of hexabromides 3 and 4. The hydroxy compounds 19 and 18 were converted to diepoxide 20 and monoepoxide 21, respectively, with sodium methoxide. Base-promoted aromatization of dimethoxide 23 afforded dibromomonomethoxides 26 and 27. Bromoanthracenes and isomeric arene oxides constitute valuable precursors for the preparation of functionalized substituted anthracene derivatives that are difficult to prepare by other routes.     

Inserting two atoms into a single optical micropotential

We recently demonstrated that strings of trapped atoms inside a standing wave optical dipole trap can be rearranged using optical tweezers [Y. Miroshnychenko, Nature 442, 151 (2006)]. This technique allows us to actively set the interatomic separations on the scale of the individual trapping potential wells. Here, we use such a distance-control operation to insert two atoms into the same potential well. The detected success rate of this manipulation is 16(-3)(+4)%, in agreement with the predictions of a theoretical model based on our experimental parameters.     

Radical Cyclization Reactions via Manganese(III) Acetate Leading to 2‐Thienyl‐Substituted Dihydrofuran Compounds

The 2‐thienyl‐substituted 4,5‐dihydrofuran derivatives 3 – 8 were obtained by the radical cyclization reaction of 1,3‐dicarbonyl compounds 1a – 1f with 2‐thienyl‐substituted conjugated alkenes 2a – 2e by using [Mn(OAc)₃] (Tables 1–5). In this study, reactions of 1,3‐dicarbonyl compounds 1a – 1e with alkenes 2a – 2c gave 4,5‐dihydrofuran derivatives 3 – 5 in high yields (Tables 1–3). Also the cyclic alkenes 2d and 2e gave the dihydrobenzofuran compounds, i.e., 6 and 7 in good yields (Table 4). Interestingly, the reaction of benzoylacetone (=1‐phenylbutane‐1,3‐dione; 1f ) with some alkenes gave two products due to generation of two stable carbocation intermediates (Table 5).     

Preparation of novel heterogeneous catalysts by adsorption of a cationic tetrapyrrole on to bentonite: equilibrium, kinetics, and thermodynamics

Abstract  

Adsorption of an octacationic tetrapyrrole, octakis(2-trimethylammoniumethylsulfanyl)porphyrazinatocobalt octaiodide (QCoPz), from aqueous solutions on to negatively charged bentonite was investigated. Effects of temperature, dye concentration, solid concentration, and contact time on adsorption were determined. Zeta potential and ion-release measurements were also used as supporting experiments. Experimental data were analyzed using four adsorption kinetic models; a pseudo second-order kinetic model resulted in better correlation with experimental results than the others. Experimental equilibrium data were analyzed by non-linear regression using five adsorption isotherm models with two, three, or four terms. Free energies, enthalpies, and entropies for the adsorption process were determined. The results indicated that adsorption of QCoPz on bentonite was exothermic and spontaneous in nature. FT-IR spectroscopy of the composite and its desorptive behavior were also investigated to identify the mechanism of adsorption. The novel QCoPz–bentonite composites obtained are likely to be used in “green chemistry” and in a wide range of optical and/or catalytic applications, especially those crucially important in the petroleum and pulp/paper industries for waste water cleaning (destruction of mercaptans, sulfides, phenol, and halogenated aromatics, etc.) and removal of bad odor.     

Analysis of differential equations of fractional order

This paper provides a robust convergence checking method for nonlinear differential equations of fractional order with consideration of homotopy perturbation technique. The differential operators are taken in the Caputo sense. Some theorems to prove the existence and uniqueness of the series solutions are presented. Results show that the proposed theoretical analysis is accurate.