An improved skmplex algorithm for dealing with boundary conditions

Two existing and one new method for dealing with boundaries in simplex optimization are tested on 2-, 3-, and 5-parameter test functions, each subject to five different boundary conditions. The performance of the new method is shown to be the most consistent over all conditions.     

Towards benign syntheses of bipyridines: versatile approach to supramolecular building blocks

Chiral and achiral bipyridines are readily accessible via a solvent-free Michael addition involving solid NaOH, followed by treatment with ammonium acetate in acetic acid, as a ‘one pot’ more benign protocol, affording pure products in high yield, typically >80%.     

Cyclometallated platinum(II) complexes: oxidation to, and C-H activation by, platinum(IV)

A series of cyclometallated phenylpyridine platinum(II) complexes have been synthesised with a systematic variation in both the phenylpyridine and the ancillary ligand. Oxidation of one of the cyclometallated species leads to a number of isomeric platinum(IV) complexes, all of which eventually isomerize to a single compound. The route to these new compounds has been demonstrated to involve an initial slow oxidation followed by a rapid C-H activation to give doubly cyclometallated complexes. The solid state structures of a number of both the platinum(II) and the platinum(IV) species have been solved; many of the structures exhibited extended interactions that result in complex three dimensional packing.     

Tunneling through weak interactions: comparison of through-space-, H-bond-, and through-bond-mediated tunneling

Results from ab initio electronic structure theory calculations on model systems allow for the detailed comparison of tunneling through covalently bonded contacts, hydrogen bonds, and van der Waals contacts. Considerable geometrical sensitivity as well as an exponential distance dependence of the tunneling is observed for tunneling through various nonbonded contacts. However, the fundamental result from the present study is that at most a modest difference is observed between tunneling mediated by H-bonds and tunneling mediated by van der Waals contacts at typical distances for each type of interaction. These results are considered in relation to the pathways model of Beratan and Onuchic, and implications for understanding long-range tunneling in biological systems are discussed.