Structure and electrons in mayenite electrides

One major goal in materials chemistry is to find inexpensive compounds with improved capabilities. Stable inorganic electrides, derived from nanoporous mayenite [Ca12Al14O32]O, are a new family that has very interesting properties such as electronic conductivity combined with transparency. However, an intriguing fundamental problem is to understand the structures of these cubic materials and to characterize their free-electron loadings. Here we report an accurate structural study for three members of the series [Ca12Al14O32]O(1-delta)e(2delta) (delta = 0, 0.15, and 0.45), from single-crystal low-temperature synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The complex structural disorder imposed by the presence of the oxide anions into the mayenite cages has been unravelled. Furthermore, the final electron density map for delta = 0.45 black mayenite has shown electron density localized into the center of the cages, which is the first experimental proof of their electride nature. The reported structural findings challenge theorists to improve predictive models in this new family of materials.     

Multifunctional lanthanum tetraphosphonates: flexible, ultramicroporous and proton-conducting hybrid frameworks

A new flexible ultramicroporous solid, La(H(5)DTMP)·7H(2)O (1), has been crystallized at room temperature using the tetraphosphonic acid H(8)DTMP, hexamethylenediamine-N,N,N',N'-tetrakis(methylenephosphonic acid). Its crystal structure, solved by synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction, is characterised by a 3D pillared open-framework containing 1D channels filled with water. Upon dehydration, a new related crystalline phase, La(H(5)DTMP) (2) is formed. Partial rehydration of 2 led to La(H(5)DTMP)·2H(2)O (3). These new phases contain highly corrugated layers showing different degrees of conformational flexibility of the long organic chain. The combination of the structural study and the gas adsorption characterization (N(2) and CO(2)) suggests an ultramicroporous flexible framework. NO isotherms are indicative of a strong irreversible adsorption of NO within the pores. Impedance data indicates that 1 is a proton-conductor with a conductivity of 8 × 10(-3) S cm(-1) at 297 K and 98% of relative humidity, and an activation energy of 0.25 eV.     

Ruthenium-cluster-mediated activation of all bonds of a methyl group of 6,6'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine and 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline: transformation of the latter into a 2-alkenyl-9-methyl-1,10-phenanthroline ligand

The treatment of [Ru3(CO)12] with 6,6'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridine (Me2bipy) or 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline (Me2phen) in THF at reflux temperature gives the trinuclear dihydride complexes [Ru3(mu-H)2(mu3-L1)(CO)8] (L1 = HCbipyMe 1 a, HCphenMe 1 b), which result from the activation of two C-H bonds of a methyl group. The hexa-, hepta-, and pentanuclear derivatives [Ru6(mu3-H)(mu5-L2)(mu-CO)3(CO)13] (L2 = CbipyMe 2 a, CphenMe 2 b), [Ru7(mu3-H)(mu5-L2)(mu-CO)2(CO)16] (L2 = CbipyMe 3 a, CphenMe 3 b), and [Ru5(mu-H)(mu5-C)(mu-L3)(CO)13] (L3 = bipyMe 4 a, phenMe 4 b) can also be obtained by treating 1 a and 1 b with [Ru3(CO)12]. Compounds 2 a and 2 b have a basal edge-bridged square-pyramidal metallic skeleton with a carbyne-type C atom capping the four Ru atoms of the pyramid base. The structures of 3 a and 3 b are similar to those of 2 a and 2 b, respectively, but an additional Ru atom now caps a triangular face of the square-pyramidal fragment of the metallic skeleton. The most interesting feature of 2 a, 2 b, 3 a, and 3 b is that their carbyne-type C atoms were originally bound to three hydrogen atoms in Me2bipy or Me2phen and, therefore, they arise from the unprecedented activation of all three C-H bonds of C-bound methyl groups. The pentanuclear compounds 4 a and 4 b contain a carbide ligand surrounded by five Ru atoms in a distorted trigonal-bipyramidal environment. They are the products of a series of processes that includes the activation of all bonds (three C-H and one C-C) of organic methyl groups, and are the first examples of complexes having carbide ligands that arise from C-bonded methyl groups. The alkenyl derivatives [Ru5(mu5-C)(mu-p-MeC6H4CHCHphenMe)(CO)13] (5 b), [Ru5(mu-H)(mu5-C)(mu-p-MeC6H4CHCHphenMe)(p-tolC2)(CO)12] (6 b), and [Ru5(mu-H)(mu5-C)(mu-PhCHCHphenMe)(PhC2)(CO)12] (7 b) have been obtained by treating 4 b with p-tolyl- and phenylacetylene, respectively. Their heterocyclic ligands contain an alkenyl fragment in the position that was originally occupied by a methyl group. Therefore, these complexes are the result of the formal substitution of an alkenyl group for a methyl group of 2,9-dimethyl-1,10- phenanthroline.     

Prediction and observation of isostructurality induced by solvent incorporation in multicomponent crystals

The crystal structures of two pharmaceutical molecules-carbamazepine and its 10,11-dihydro derivative-with acetic acid have been successfully predicted by computational methods. While the crystalline structure of the former was known a priori, no structural information was available for the latter. Possible crystal structures were generated in silico before any experimental work was performed. Although the crystal structures of the pure drug molecules are very different, incorporation of acetic acid in their crystal lattices results in isomorphic products.     

Pseudolattice theory of charge transport in ionic solutions: Corresponding states law for the electric conductivity

A statistical mechanical framework for charge transport in ionic liquid–solvent mixtures based on the existence of a statistical lattice structure (pseudolattice) throughout the whole range of concentration is reported. The ion distribution is treated in a mean-field Bragg–Williams-like fashion, and the ionic motion is assumed to take place through hops between cells of two different types separated by non-random-energy barriers of different heights depending on the cell type. Assuming non-correlated ion transport, the electrical conductivity is shown to have a maximum, arising from the competition between the concentration of charge carriers in the bulk medium and their mobilities in the pseudolattice. An explicit expression for the concentration at which this maximum occurs is given in terms of microscopic parameters, and the electrical conductivity normalized by its maximum value (κ/κ_max) is shown to follow rather closely a universal corresponding states law in concentration space when represented against the ionic concentration scaled by its value at the conductivity maximum (?_α/?_max). Ion–ion and ion–solvent interactions are explicitly considered combining the path probability method for charge transport in solid electrolytes and the Bragg–Williams approximation for interparticle interactions, and their impact on the deviations of experimental data from the universal behavior of non-correlated transport analyzed. The theoretical predictions are shown to satisfactorily predict experimental values of electrical conductivity of aqueous solutions of conventional electrolytes and of mixtures of room temperature molten salts with typical solvents.