Palladium catalyzed Suzuki C-C couplings in an ionic liquid: nanoparticles responsible for the catalytic activity

A new family of functionalized ligands derived from norborn-5-ene-2,3-dicarboxylic anhydride has been used in Suzuki C-C cross-couplings between aryl boronic acids and aryl bromide derivatives in [BMI][PF(6)] (BMI=1-n-butyl-3-methyl-imidazolium), using palladium acetate as catalytic precursor. High conversions and yields are obtained when amine ligands containing hydroxy groups are involved. TEM analyses after catalysis show the formation of small nanoparticles, in contrast to the agglomerates observed when nanoparticles are intentionally preformed, with a consequent decrease in the catalytic activity in the latter case. Some tests, including the correlation effect between solvent and ligand, are carried out to try to identify the true nature of the catalyst. All the results obtained suggest that formation of nanoparticles is required to lead to a catalytically active system.     

A Look at BMOϕ(ω) through Carleson Measures

As Fefferman and Stein showed, there is a tight connection between Carleson measures and BMO functions. In this work we extend this type of results to the more general scope of the BMO_ϕ(ω) spaces. As a byproduct a weighted version of the Triebel-Lizorkin space is introduced, which turns out to be isomorphic to BMO(ω) as in the unweighted case.     

A comprehensive survey of stille-type Csp-Csp single bond forming processes in the synthesis of retinoic acid and analogs

The synthesis of the retinoid skeleton has been exhaustively explored using the Stille coupling for the formation of the side-chain single bonds. On employing the experimental catalytic conditions developed by Farina [Pd₂(dba)₃, AsPh₃, NMP] we have modified the electronic and steric requirement of the coupling parters, alkenyl stannanes and electrophiles (alkenyl iodides and triflates). The comprehensive survey afforded appropriately matched components for every bond formation considered. Moreover, from the comparison of the reactivities of different coupling partners with different degrees of steric hindrance, the sensitivity of the Stille coupling to steric effects was confirmed. Besides providing a variety of building blocks for retinoid synthesis, the study highlights some trends that might be useful for the application of the Stille reaction to the synthesis of unsubstituted conjugated polyenes.     

Purge and trap/thermal desorption device for the determination of dimethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide

A method is described for the determination of dimethylselenide and dimethyldiselenide using a purge-and-trap/thermal desorption device (PT/TD) coupled to a capillary column gas chromatograph with a six-way Valco valve. The system is constructed in such a way that it allows also on-column injections of the volatile compounds in organic solvents for external calibration purposes without the need to disassemble the PT/TD. The influence of the purge flow, purge time and volume of sample, on the purge efficiency of the PT system is studied. Desorption time and temperature are optimised for the TD mode of operation. Atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) and flame photometric detection (FPD) have been used for the final determination of the volatile compounds. The figures of merit achieved with both detectors are reported.     

Aggregation Behavior of Pyridinium-Based Ionic Liquids in Aqueous Solution

Aggregation of the ionic liquids 1-butylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate, 1-butylpyridinium triflate, 1-butyl-2-methylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate, 1-butyl-3-methylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate, 1-butyl-4-methylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate, 1-butyl-3-methylpyridinium dicyanamide, and 1-octyl-3-methylpyridinium tetrafluoroborate in aqueous solution has been characterized at 298.15 K through density, ρ, speed of sound, u, and conductivity, σ, measurements. In addition, apparent molar volumes, V _φ , and isentropic compressibilities, κ _s , have been calculated from the experimental data. To characterize the formation of aggregates, the critical aggregation concentration of the ionic liquids, cac, the degree of ionization of the aggregates, β, and the standard Gibbs energy of aggregation, DG_m^°\Delta G_{\mathrm{m}}^{\circ}, have been obtained, with good agreement between results derived from the different methods. The dependence on the structural variation of these ions has been analyzed by comparing the results obtained for this series of ionic liquids.     

Proficiency testing in analytical chemistry, microbiology and laboratory medicine: working discussions on current practice and future directions

A summary of the working group (WG) discussions on proficiency testing (PT) and external quality assessment (EQA) held at the Eurachem Workshop, Rome, 5–7 October 2008 is provided. The eight WG’s covered a range of issues concerned with current practice and future directions; how frequently should laboratories participate in PT/EQA? (WG1); developments in PT/EQA within the EU—what is required in future? (WG2); what issues do developing countries face with regards to PT/EQA? (WG3), what issues are specific to microbiology PT/EQA? (WG4); what new fields are emerging for PT/EQA? (WG5); what will be the impact of the new ISO/IEC 17043 standard? (WG6); do current PT/EQA schemes meet the needs of participants? (WG7); and what are the issues that affect the quality of proficiency test items? (WG8). Delegates with different backgrounds were on each WG in order to capture a range of views and experience from a number of different sectors. Working group representatives included PT/EQA providers, participants in PT/EQA schemes and end users of PT results such as accreditation bodies and regulatory authorities, from countries around the world.     

Fast chromatographic method for the determination of dyes in beverages by using high performance liquid chromatography—Diode array detection data and second order algorithms

A fast chromatographic methodology is presented for the analysis of three synthetic dyes in non-alcoholic beverages: amaranth (E123), sunset yellow FCF (E110) and tartrazine (E102). Seven soft drinks (purchased from a local supermarket) were homogenized, filtered and injected into the chromatographic system. Second order data were obtained by a rapid LC separation and DAD detection. A comparative study of the performance of two second order algorithms (MCR-ALS and U-PLS/RBL) applied to model the data, is presented. Interestingly, the data present time shift between different chromatograms and cannot be conveniently corrected to determine the above-mentioned dyes in beverage samples. This fact originates the lack of trilinearity that cannot be conveniently pre-processed and can hardly be modelled by using U-PLS/RBL algorithm. On the contrary, MCR-ALS has shown to be an excellent tool for modelling this kind of data allowing to reach acceptable figures of merit. Recovery values ranged between 97% and 105% when analyzing artificial and real samples were indicative of the good performance of the method. In contrast with the complete separation, which consumes 10 mL of methanol and 3 mL of 0.08 mol L⁻¹ ammonium acetate, the proposed fast chromatography method requires only 0.46 mL of methanol and 1.54 mL of 0.08 mol L⁻¹ ammonium acetate. Consequently, analysis time could be reduced up to 14.2% of the necessary time to perform the complete separation allowing saving both solvents and time, which are related to a reduction of both the costs per analysis and environmental impact.     

Dinuclear cyano-bridged CoIII-FeII complexes as precursors for molecular mixed-valence complexes of higher nuclearity

The preparation and characterization of a series of trinuclear mixed-valence cyano-bridged Co(III)-Fe(II)-Co(III) compounds derived from known dinuclear [[L(n)Co(III)(mu-NC)]Fe(II)(CN)(5)](-) complexes (L(n)() = N(5) or N(3)S(2) n-membered pendant amine macrocycle) are presented. All of the new trinuclear complexes were fully characterized spectroscopically (UV-vis, IR, and (13)C NMR). Complexes exhibiting a trans and cis arrangement of the Co-Fe-Co units around the [Fe(CN)(6)](4-) center are described (i.e., cis/trans-[{L(n)Co(III)(mu-NC)](2)Fe(II)(CN)(4)](2+)), and some of their structures are determined by X-ray crystallography. Electrochemical experiments revealed an expected anodic shift of the Fe(III/II) redox potential upon addition of a tripositively charged [Co(III)L(n)] moiety. The Co(III/II) redox potentials do not change greatly from the di- to the trinuclear complex, but rather behave in a fully independent and noncooperative way. In this respect, the energies and extinction coefficients of the MMCT bands agree with the formal existence of two mixed-valence Fe(II)-CN-Co(III) units per molecule. Solvatochromic experiments also indicated that the MMCT band of these compounds behaves as expected for a class II mixed-valence complex. Nevertheless, its extinction coefficient is dramatically increased upon increasing the solvent donor number.