Tying together the ultrastructural modifications of wood fibre induced by pulping processes with the mechanical properties of paper

The composition and ultrastructural arrangement of cell wall polymers in wood fibres have determining influence on the properties of wood derived materials. It is therefore important to improve our understanding of the relationship between fibres organisation, the modifications induced by pulping treatments, and the resulting paper sheet mechanical properties. The different treatments to which fibres are subjected during the manufacturing of pulps and papers induce morphological and micro-structural alterations due to the removal of wall constituents and of microfibrillar elements. The impact of pulping processes on fibres was investigated at the ultrastructural scale of transmission electron microscopy. Particular attention was given to the effects of beating in refiners at various intensities on the ultrastructure of fibres. The most characteristic effects consisted of delaminations, microfibril disorganisation, and even fractures, of varying importance depending on the intensity of the mechanical refining. The consequences of internal alterations and surface modifications of the fibres were examined in relation to the paper sheet mechanical properties. Correlations between the type of alteration observed in the fibres and its possible impact on a given paper mechanical property are suggested. With similar approaches, the effects of drying and recycling were studied.     

Stereoselectivity of (−)-(1<Emphasis Type="Italic">R</Emphasis>,2<Emphasis Type="Italic">S</Emphasis>)-2-methylamino-1-phenylpropan-1-ol preparation

Stereoselectivity of reductive amination of (R)-1-hydroxy-1-phenylpropan-2-one by methylamine was studied. From the four isomers possible, only two are produced by this reaction. These are marked as (−)-(1R,2S)-ephedrine (desired product) and (+)-(1S,2R)-ephedrine. The reaction stereoselectivity depends both on the type of the catalyst and reaction conditions. The most suitable type is the supported platinum. However, this catalyst rapidly deactivates. With a decreasing activity of Pt catalyst, the stereoselectivity decreases. It is also decreased during the production of the second liquid phase (water) in the reaction mixture.     

The effect of amino acid deletions and substitutions in the longest loop of GFP

Background  

The effect of single and multiple amino acid substitutions in the green fluorescent protein (GFP) from Aequorea victoria has been extensively explored, yielding several proteins of diverse spectral properties. However, the role of amino acid deletions in this protein -as with most proteins- is still unknown, due to the technical difficulties involved in generating combinatorial in-phase amino acid deletions on a target region.     

Formation of a stable cyano-bridged dinuclear iron cluster following oxidation of the superoxide reductases from Treponema pallidum and Desulfovibrio vulgaris with K(3)Fe(CN)(6)

Superoxide reductases catalyze the monovalent reduction of superoxide anion to hydrogen peroxide. Spectroscopic evidence for the formation of a dinuclear cyano-bridged adduct after K(3)Fe(CN)(6) oxidation of the superoxide reductases neelaredoxin from Treponema pallidum and desulfoferrodoxin from Desulfovibrio vulgaris was reported. Oxidation with K(3)Fe(CN)(6) reveals a band in the near-IR with lambda(max) at 1020 nm, coupled with an increase of the iron content by almost 2-fold. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy provided additional evidence with CN-stretching vibrations at 2095, 2025-2030, and 2047 cm(-)(1), assigned to a ferrocyanide adduct of the enzyme. Interestingly, the low-temperature electronic paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra of oxidized TpNlr reveal at least three different species indicating structural heterogeneity in the coordination environment of the active site Fe ion. Given the likely 6-coordinate geometry of the active site Fe(3+) ion in the ferrocyanide adduct, we propose that the rhombic EPR species can serve as a model of a hexacoordinate form of the active site.     

Water Activities, Osmotic and Activity Coefficients and Some Correlation of Aqueous Mixtures of Alkaline-Earth and Ammonium Nitrates, NH4NO3-Y(NO3)2-H2O with Y ≡ Ba2+, Mg2+ and Ca2+ at T = 25 °C

The thermodynamic properties of the mixed aqueous electrolyte of ammonium and alkaline earth metal nitrates have been studied using the hygrometric method at 25?°C. The water activities of these {yNH₄NO₃+(1?y)Y(NO₃)₂}(aq) systems with Y ≡ Ba²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺ were measured at total molalities ranging from 0.10 mol?kg^?1 to saturation for different NH₄NO₃ ionic-strength fractions of y=0.20, 0.50 and 0.80. These data allow the calculation of osmotic coefficients. From these measurements, the ionic mixing parameters are determined and used to calculate the solute activity coefficients in the mixtures at different ionic-strength fractions. The results of these ternary solution measurements are compared with those for binary solutions of the alkaline earth nitrates of magnesium, calcium and barium with ammonium nitrates. The behavior of the aqueous electrolyte solutions containing mixtures of barium or calcium or magnesium with ammonium nitrates are correlated and show that ionic interactions are more important for the system containing Mg²⁺ than for Ca²⁺ or Ba²⁺. The trends are mainly due to the effects of the ionic size, polarizability and the hydration of the ions in these solutions.     

Efficient synthesis of 3H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridines from malononitrile and 5-amino-4-(cyanoformimidoyl)imidazoles

1-Aryl-5-amino-4-(cyanoformimidoyl)imidazoles 2 were reacted with malononitrile under mild experimental conditions and led to 3-aryl-5,7-diamino-6-cyano-3H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridines 5, when the reaction was carried out in the presence of DBU, or to 3-aryl-5-amino-6,7-dicyano-3H-imidazo[4,5-b]pyridines 3, in its absence. Both reactions evolved from the adduct formed by nucleophilic attack of the malononitrile anion to the carbon of the cyanoformimidoyl substituent. A 5-amino-1-aryl-4-(1-amino-2,2-dicyanovinyl)imidazole 4 was isolated when this reaction was carried out in the presence of DBU. The structure of compound 4 was confirmed by spectroscopic methods and by reaction with triethyl orthoformate and with acetic anhydride, leading respectively to 9-aryl-6-(cyanomethylidene)purines 11 and 12. Imidazole 2b was also reacted with ethyl acetoacetate, a carbon acid with a pK(a) comparable to that of malononitrile. Similar reaction conditions were used and the product isolated was a 6-carbamoyl-1,2-dihydropurine 10, showing that a different mechanism was operating in this case.     

Anomalous NMR behavior of meso compounds with remote stereogenic centers on addition of chiral shift reagent or chiral solvating agent

A problem has arisen in using chiral shift reagents (CSR) and chiral solvating agents (CSA) to determine meso and racemic forms of diastereoisomers in which the stereogenic centers of the molecules are separated by achiral spacers. It is found that NMR signals of both meso and racemic forms of diastereoisomers may exhibit doubling on addition of CSR/CSA, which means that unequivocal assignments cannot be made without characterizing the effects for separate meso and racemic forms; this is particularly important for additions of CSR/CSA at relatively low concentrations, which always result in the splitting of some NMR signals of diastereoisomers. The phenomenon is demonstrated in the (31)P NMR spectra of meso and racemic forms of three spermine-bridged gem-disubstituted cyclotriphosphazatrienes, 1a-c, and compared with analogous achiral molecules, the per-substituted spermine-bridged cyclotriphosphazatrienes 2a-d. As expected, only one set of (31)P NMR signals was observed for the achiral compounds 2a-d, even on addition of CSA. Two sets of (31)P NMR ABX multiplets corresponding to meso and racemic diastereoisomers were observed for compounds 1a-c; on addition of CSA, the signals of at least one of the multiplets for each compound separated into more than the expected groups of three lines with an intensity distribution of 2:1:1. To understand this phenomenon, the meso and racemic forms of 1a and 1b and the meso form of 1c have been separated and characterized by X-ray crystallography. On addition of CSA to the racemic forms of 1a and 1b, the (31)P NMR spectrum shows the expected doubling of signals, but, unexpectedly, the same is observed for each of the meso forms of 1a-c. Analogous results using both CSA and CSR have been obtained for the meso and racemic forms of the diastereoisomeric piperazine-bridged macrocyclic-phosphazene compound, 3, whereas no effect was observed for the two meso forms of the doubly bridged macrocyclic-phosphazene compound 4. The phenomenon of doubling of the (31)P NMR signals of the meso form of singly bridged cyclotriphosphazatrienes, 1a-c and 3, is explained by consideration of the equilibrium in solution of independent complexation of a chiral ligand with molecules that have two chiral cyclophosphazene moieties separated by an achiral spacer group. The results show that the stereogenicity of such diastereoisomeric molecules in solution cannot be characterized unequivocally by NMR measurements on addition of either CSR or CSA.     

Organometallic gold(I)-pentafluorophenyl-P,O, As,S, TPA,dppm, dppe,dppa-coordinating-phosphines: synthesis and detailed spectroscopic characterisation

[Au(C₆F₅)(tht)], which on reaction with P, O, S-coordinating phosphines in CH₂Cl₂ medium leads to [Au(C₆F₅)(X)] [X = PPh₃ H, (1a), oMe, (1b), pMe, (1c), mMe, (1d), AsPh₃ (2), OPPh₃ (3), SPPh₃ (4), dppm, dppe, dppa = diphenylphosphino-methane,-ethane,-ammine(5, 6, 7), TPA = 135-tetraaza-7-phosphino adamentane(8), Py4H (9a), 4Bu (9b), 4Ac (9c), tht = tetrahydrothiophen, C₆F₅ is the pentafluorophenyl ring]. The maximum molecular peak of the corresponding molecule is observed in the ESI mass spectrum. I.r. spectra of the complexes show –C = C– and C₆F₅ stretching near at 1610 and 1510, 955, 800 cm⁻¹. The ¹H-n.m.r. spectra as well as ³¹P- (¹H)n.m.r. suggest solution stereochemistry, proton movement, phosphorus proton interaction. ¹³C-n.m.r. spectrum reflect the carbon skeleton in the molecule. In the ¹H–¹H COSY spectrum of the present complexes and contour peaks in the ¹H–¹³C-HMQC spectrum, assign the solution structure and stereoretentive conformation in each step.     

Spectroscopic studies of bridged binuclear complexes of Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II)

Binuclear cobalt(II), nickel(II), copper(II) and zinc(II) complexes of general composition [M₂L^1-2(μ-Cl)Cl₂] · nH₂O with the Schiff-base ligands (where L¹H and L²H are the potential pentadentate ligands derived by condensing 2,6-diformyl-4-methylphenol with 4-amino-3-antipyrine and 2-hydroxy-3-hydrazinoquinoxiline, respectively) have been synthesized and characterized. Analytical and spectral studies support the above formulation. ¹H-NMR and IR spectra of the complexes suggest they have an endogenous phenoxide bridge, with chloride as the exogenous bridge atom. The electronic spectra of all the complexes are well characterized by broad d–d and a high intensity charge-transfer transitions. The complexes are chloro-bridged as evidenced by two intense far-IR bands centered around 270–280 cm⁻¹. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show that complexes are antiferromagnetic in nature. The compounds show significant growth inhibitory activity against fungi Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans and moderate activity against bacteria Bacillus cirroflagellosus and Pseudomonas auresenosa.