Weak intermolecular interactions in gas-phase nuclear magnetic resonance

Gas-phase nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra demonstrating the effect of weak intermolecular forces on the NMR shielding constants of the interacting species are reported. We analyse the interaction of the molecular hydrogen isotopomers with He, Ne, and Ar, and the interaction in the He-CO(2) dimer. The same effects are studied for all these systems in the ab initio calculations. The comparison of the experimental and computed shielding constants is shown to depend strongly on the treatment of the bulk susceptibility effects, which determine in practice the pressure dependence of the experimental values. Best agreement of the results is obtained when the bulk susceptibility correction in rare gas solvents is evaluated from the analysis of the He-rare gas interactions, and when the shielding of deuterium in D(2)-rare gas systems is considered.     

Na[Li(NH2BH3)2]--the first mixed-cation amidoborane with unusual crystal structure

We describe the successful synthesis of the first mixed-cation (pseudoternary) amidoborane, Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)], with theoretical hydrogen capacity of 11.1 wt%. Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)] crystallizes triclinic (P1) with a = 5.0197(4) ?, b = 7.1203(7) ?, c = 8.9198(9) ?, α = 103.003(6)°, β = 102.200(5)°, γ = 103.575(5)°, and V = 289.98(5) ?(3) (Z = 2), as additionally confirmed by Density Functional Theory calculations. Its crystal structure is topologically different from those of its orthorhombic LiNH(2)BH(3) and NaNH(2)BH(3) constituents, with distinctly different coordination spheres of Li (3 N atoms and 1 hydride anion) and Na (6 hydride anions). Na[Li(NH(2)BH(3))(2)], which may be viewed as a product of a Lewis acid (LiNH(2)BH(3))/Lewis base (NaNH(2)BH(3)) reaction, is an important candidate for a novel lightweight hydrogen storage material. The title material decomposes at low temperature (with onset at 75 °C, 6.0% mass loss up to 110 °C, and an additional 3.0% up to 200 °C) while evolving hydrogen contaminated with ammonia.     

Tandem Catalysis Utilizing Olefin Metathesis Reactions

Since olefin metathesis transformation has become a favored synthetic tool in organic synthesis, more and more distinct non‐metathetical reactions of alkylidene ruthenium complexes have been developed. Depending on the conditions applied, the same olefin metathesis catalysts can efficiently promote isomerization reactions, hydrogenation of C=C double bonds, oxidation reactions, and many others. Importantly, these transformations can be carried out in tandem with olefin metathesis reactions. Through addition of one portion of a catalyst, a tandem process provides structurally advanced products from relatively simple substrates without the need for isolation of the intermediates. These aspects not only make tandem catalysis very attractive from a practical point of view, but also open new avenues in (retro)synthetic planning. However, in the literature, the term “tandem process” is sometimes used improperly to describe other types of multi‐reaction sequences. In this Concept, a number of examples of tandem catalysis involving olefin metathesis are discussed with an emphasis on their synthetic value.     

Eosin Y (EY) Photoredox‐Catalyzed Sulfonylation of Alkenes: Scope and Mechanism

Alkyl‐ and aryl vinyl sulfones were obtained by eosin Y (EY)‐mediated visible‐light photooxidation of sulfinate salts and the reaction of the resulting S‐centered radicals with alkenes. Optimized reaction conditions, the sulfinate and alkene scope, and X‐ray structural analyses of several reaction products are provided. A detailed spectroscopic study explains the reaction mechanism, which proceeds through the EY radical cation as key intermediate oxidizing the sulfinate salts.     

Sustainable concepts in olefin metathesis

Ruthenium-catalyzed olefin metathesis reactions represent an attractive and powerful transformation for the formation of new carbon-carbon double bonds. This area is now quite familiar to most chemists as numerous catalysts are available that enable a plethora of olefin metathesis reactions. Nevertheless, with the exception of uses in polymerization reactions, only a limited number of industrial processes use olefin metathesis. This is mainly due to difficulties associated with removing ruthenium from the final products. In this context, a number of studies have been carried out to develop procedures for the removal of the catalyst or the products of catalyst decomposition, however, none are universally attractive so far. This situation has resulted in tremendous activity in the area dealing with supported or tagged versions of homogeneous catalysts. This Review summarizes the numerous studies focused on developing cleaner ruthenium-catalyzed metathesis processes.     

Wet and Dry Forms of Bacterial Cellulose Synthetized by Different Strains of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gluconacetobacter xylinus</Emphasis> as Carriers for Yeast Immobilization

The present study aimed to explore and describe the properties of bacterial cellulose (BC) membranes obtained from three different strains of Gluconacetobacter xylinus for 72, 120, and 168 h, used as a carrier support for the immobilization of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The experiments also included the analysis of glucose consumption and alcohol production during the fermentation process displayed by yeasts immobilized on the BC surface. The results of the present study demonstrate that the number of immobilized yeast cells is dependent on the type of cellulose-synthesizing strain, cellulose form, and duration of its synthesis. The BC in the form of wet membranes obtained after 3 days of synthesis displayed the most favorable properties as a carrier for yeast immobilization. The immobilization of yeast cells on BC, regardless of its form, increased the amount of the produced alcohol as compared to free cells. The yeast cells immobilized in BC were able to multiply on its surface during the fermentation process.     

A simple and practical phase-separation approach to the recycling of a homogeneous metathesis catalyst

The air stable asarone-derived Ru carbene 16, a robust olefin metathesis catalyst, can be easily separated after reaction by deposition on silica gel and reused up to nine times. This procedure provides products of excellent purity with low Ru content.     

Extensive generalization of renormalized coupled-cluster methods

The recently developed completely renormalized (CR) coupled-cluster (CC) methods with singles, doubles, and noniterative triples or triples and quadruples [CR-CCSD(T) or CR-CCSD(TQ), respectively], which are based on the method of moments of CC equations (MMCC) [K. Kowalski and P. Piecuch, J. Chem. Phys. 113, 18 (2000)], eliminate the failures of the standard CCSD(T) and CCSD(TQ) methods at larger internuclear separations, but they are not rigorously size extensive. Although the departure from strict size extensivity of the CR-CCSD(T) and CR-CCSD(TQ) methods is small, it is important to examine the possibility of formulating the improved CR-CC methods, which are as effective in breaking chemical bonds as the existing CR-CCSD(T) and CR-CCSD(TQ) approaches, which are as easy to use as the CR-CCSD(T) and CR-CCSD(TQ) methods, and which can be made rigorously size extensive. This may be particularly useful for the applications of CR-CC methods and other MMCC approaches in calculations of potential energy surfaces of large many-electron systems and van der Waals molecules, where the additive separability of energies in the noninteracting limit is very important. In this paper, we propose different types of CR-CC approximations, termed the locally renormalized (LR) CCSD(T) and CCSD(TQ) methods, which become rigorously size extensive if the orbitals are localized on nointeracting fragments. The LR-CCSD(T) and LR-CCSD(TQ) methods rely on the form of the energy expression in terms of the generalized moments of CC equations, derived in this work, termed the numerator-denominator-connected MMCC expansion. The size extensivity and excellent performance of the LR-CCSD(T) and LR-CCSD(TQ) methods are illustrated numerically by showing the results for the dimers of stretched HF and LiH molecules and bond breaking in HF and H2O.