Photophysical and structural impact of phosphorylated anions associated to lanthanide complexes in water

A new ligand, LC, bis-[(6'-carboxy-2,2'-bipyridine-6-yl)]phenylphosphine oxide, in which the tridentate 6-carboxy-2,2'-bipyridyl arms are directly linked to a phenylphosphine oxide fragment, has been synthesized. The corresponding [Ln.LC]Cl.xH2O complexes (Ln = Eu, x = 4, and Tb, x = 3) were isolated from solutions containing equimolar amounts of LC and hydrated LnCl3 salts and characterized by elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, and infrared spectroscopy. The interactions of the Eu complex with various anions (AMP(2-), ADP3-, ATP,4- HPO4(2-), and NO3-) were studied by titration experiments, using UV-vis, luminescence spectroscopy, and excited-state lifetime measurements. The results are in keeping with strong interactions with the ADP3-, ATP4-, and phosphate anions in TRIS/HCl buffer (0.01 M, pH = 7.0), as revealed by the determination of the conditional stepwise association constants. These values are higher than the one determined for ligand LB, bis[(6'-carboxy-2,2'-bipyridine-6-methyl-yl)]-n-butylamine (Delta log K approximately 1-2). The interaction of complexes [Ln.LB]+ and [Ln.LC]+ with nitrate, monohydrogenophosphate, methyl phosphate (MeP2-), methyldiphosphate (MeDP3-), and methyltriphosphate (MeTP4-) anions was investigated by means of quantum mechanical (QM) calculations. The results, combined with data on the photophysical impact of the sequential competitive binding of anions to the Eu complexes in water, suggest that LB is too flexible to ensure a good coordination pocket, while the molecular structure of ligand LC stabilizes both the formation of the lanthanide complexes and its adducts with ATP.     

N-K near-edge x-ray-absorption fine structures of acetonitrile in gas phase

The dynamic processes of N(1s) core-hole excitation in gas-phase CH3CN molecule have been studied at both Hartree-Fock and hybrid density-functional theory levels. The vibrational structure is analyzed for fully optimized core-excited states. Frank-Condon factors are obtained using the linear coupling model for various potential surfaces. It is found that the vibrational profile of the N-K absorption can be largely described by a summation of two vibrational progressions: a structure-rich profile of nu(CN) stretching mode and a large envelope of congestioned vibrational levels related to the strong (-C-CN) terminal bending bond. Excellent agreement between theoretical and experimental spectra is obtained.     

Simulations of the active transport of a neutral solute based on a kinase-channel-phosphatase topology

Simulations of coupled interactions involving two opposite enzymatic reactions, solute diffusions, and electrostatic interactions between membrane charges and charged solutes were conducted under a fixed kinase-channel-phosphatase (KCP) topology oriented from the outside to the inside of a porous membrane structure. Depending on the kinase and phosphatase locations, we recently demonstrated that an active transport of a phosphorylated substrate may occur via the opposite topology, that is, a PCK topology. The present analysis demonstrates that, under a KCP membrane topology, which also behaves as a specific ATP-dependent transporter, the active transport of a neutral substrate may occur. This analogous active transport appears to be dependent on the phosphatase location and on the membrane surface potentials. A broad analysis of the role played by the main parameters taken into account in the model was conducted in order to define precisely the physico-chemical conditions and the membrane topology needed for the highest active transports within the shortest time.     

Existence of generic homoclinic tangencies for henon mappings

It is an open question whether there is a strange attractor for the Henon mapping. We show that for certain maps close to the Henon map there are strange attractors.     

Trimeric perfluoro-ortho-phenylenemercury: a versatile Lewis acidic host

Trimeric perfluoro-ortho-phenylenemercury (1) constitutes one of the simplest trifunctional Lewis acidic hosts. In addition to cooperative effects arising from the proximity of the mercury(II) centers, the electron-withdrawing properties of the backbone and the accessibility of the electrophilic sites lead to the facile complexation of neutral and electron rich substrates. The planarity of the structure as well as its overall polarizability compounded with relativistic effects at mercury also permits the occurrence of non-covalent interactions and accounts for the tendency of this compound to form cofacial dimers. Collectively, the Lewis acidic properties of 1 as well as its ability to engage in non-covalent interactions can be held responsible for its ability to form extended binary supramolecular stacks with arenes. The photoluminescence observed in some of these supramolecular complexes corresponds to the phosphorescence of the aromatic substrate and indicate the occurrence of a mercury heavy atom effect.     

Energetic and topological analyses of the oxidation reaction between Mo(n) (n = 1, 2) and N2O

The interaction between molybdenum, atom, and dimer, with nitrous oxide has been investigated using density functional theory. The analysis of the potential energy surfaces for both reactions has revealed that a single molybdenum atom can activate the N--O bond of N2O requiring a small activation energy. However, the presence of several intersystem crossings between three different spin states, namely, septet, quintet and triplet states, seems to be the major constraint to the Mo + N2O reaction. Contrarily, the low-lying excited states (triplet and quintet) do not participate in the reaction between the molybdenum dimer and N2O. The latter reaction fully evolves on the singlet spin surface. Three different regions have been distinguished along the pathway: formation of an adduct complex, formation of an inserted compound, and the N2 detachment. The connection between the two first regions has been characterized by the formation of a special complex in which the N--O bond is so weakened that it could be considered as a first step in the insertion process. It has been shown that the topological changes along the pathways provide a clear explanation for the geometrical changes that occur along the reaction pathway. In summary, the detachment of the N2 molecule is found to be kinetically an effective process for both reactions, owing to the high exothermicity and consequently to the high internal energy of the insertion intermediates. However, in the case of Mo atom, the reaction should be a slow process due to the presence of spin-forbidden transitions. These results fully agree with previous experimental works.     

Separation of silver from waste waters by ion-exchange resins and concentration by microbial cells

Summary Waste waters of film processing plants are rich with silver. Part of the silver is regenerated electrochemically, but the rest (0.5 g) remains in waste waters and is sent to sewers. This is a bad politic from both the environmental (toxic waste waters) and the economical point of view (a waste of silver). In this work, the silver was isolated by ion-exchange resins and then concentrated by microorganisms. For exchange of silver, Ionenaustauscher I, II and IV were used. The batch method was used to obtain a static equilibrium. Silver elution from exchangers is based on silver transformation to a stable cation or anion complex. By varying the ligands, pH and eluent concentrations, optimum elution is found at 1 mol/l Na₂S₂O₃, 1 mol/l NH₃, 2 mol/l HNO₃ and 1 mol/l (NH₂)₂CO. The concentration of silver in the eluent is about 50 mg/l. The silver ion uptake from solutions after ion exchange by mixed bacterial culture isolated from photographic waste water drain and pure bacterial cultures Escherichia coli 3009 and Bacillus subtilis 3053. was studied. Experiments were carried out in submerse culture at pH 7 with different Ag⁺ concentrations (4, 8 and 40 mg/l) on a rotary shaker (100 rpm) at 37°C. At the lower Ag⁺ concentrations a good growth and simultaneous removal of Ag⁺ from the solutions was achieved. At Ag⁺ concentration of 40 mg/l growth and removal of Ag⁺ by mixed and pure culture differed significantly. Thus mixed bacterial culture grew well and at the same time removed efficiently Ag⁺ (approximately 90%) from medium. Pure bacterial cultures on the contrary were unable to grow at 40 mg/l Ag⁺, though their biomass showed to be an effective biosorbent for Ag⁺ (approximately 80% of Ag⁺ removal).     

Synthesis of 3-substituted-4-hydroxyquinoline N-oxides from the Baylis-Hillman adducts of o-nitrobenzaldehydes

The reaction of the Baylis-Hillman adducts 1b-f derived from o-nitrobenzaldehydes in trifluoroacetic acid in the presence of triflic acid (0.2 equiv.) afforded 3-substituted-4-hydroxyquinoline N-oxides 2b-e and 2a in good to moderate yields. The reaction mechanism was evidenced by the experiment with 1f, the Baylis-Hillman adduct of 2-nitrobenzaldehyde N-tosylimine, as the one involving N-hydroxyisoxazoline as the key intermediate.     

Quantitative Non-Covalent Functionalization of Carbon Nanotubes

We report a convenient method for quantitative non-covalent functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) with phthalocyanine (Pc) compounds, in which a surface coverage of 49% was achieved. The effect of several process parameters on the functionalization process was elucidated. Firstly, as-produced SWNT gave the largest extent of functionalization compared with purified SWNT and as-produced multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT). Secondly, the extent of functionalization was sensitive to the specific molecular structures of the Pc compounds. Finally, in terms of solvent selection, dimethylformamide (DMF) was found to give the largest extent of functionalization, which is then followed by chloroform (CHCl₃) and 1,2-dichlorobenzene (ODCB). The method reported in this paper provides new insights on the interactions between Pc molecules and carbon nanotubes and paves the way for rational control of the degree of functionalization, which is an important step from the perspective of carbon nanotube applications. Electronic supplementary material Supplementary material for this article is avilable at and is accessible for authorised users.