Rearrangement of hexadecane molecules confined in the nanopores of a controlled pore glass using positron annihilation and differential scanning calorimetry

The solidification/melting of cetane confined in nine silica glasses with specific controlled pores (CPG) with different pore sizes (r _p ranging from 3.7–72 nm) has been studied. Samples with variable coefficient of filling of cetane were prepared and analyzed. Combining the indication of the evolving solidification heats (via differential scanning calorimetry, DSC) with the lifetime spectra of positron annihilation, the mechanism of filling of cetane molecules in the pores of the hosting silica glass matrices has been searched. Three independent solidification effects—three independent DSC peaks—were observed in each measuring cycle, namely one crystallization exotherm Rb of the bulk-cetane (if present) and two crystallization sub-peaks Rc1 and Rc2 of the confined cetane in the case of continuous cooling. The temperatures of both Rc1 and Rc2 effects decrease on decreasing the r _p of the CPG matrix. The mutual relation between Rc1 and Rc2 has been analyzed. The kinetics of all three steps of the solidification in the continuous-cooling as well as isothermal regimes have been specified.     

Onset of Chiral Adenine Surface Growth

The structure and stability of adenine crystals and thin layers has been studied by using scanning tunneling microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and density functional theory calculations. We have found that adenine crystals can be grown in two phases that are energetically quasi‐degenerate, the structure of which can be described as a pile‐up of 2D adenine planes. In each plane, the structure can be described as an aggregation of adenine dimers. Under certain conditions, kinetic effects can favor the growth of the less stable phase. These results have been used to understand the growth of adenine thin films on gold under ultra‐high vacuum conditions. We have found that the grown phase corresponds to the α‐phase, which is composed of stacked prochiral planes. In this way, the adenine nanocrystals exhibit a surface that is enantiopure. These results could open new insight into the applications of adenine in biological, medical, and enantioselective or pharmaceutical fields.     

Synthesis,Photophysics and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Stilbenoid Pyrimidine‐Based Dyes Bearing Methylenepyran Donor Groups

The nonlinear properties and the photophysical behavior of two π‐conjugated chromophores that incorporate an electron‐deficient pyrimidine core (A) and γ‐methylenepyrans as terminal donor (D) groups have been thoroughly investigated. Both dipolar and quadrupolar branching strategies are explored and rationalized on the basis of the Frenkel exciton model. Even though a cooperative effect is clearly observed if the dimensionality is increased, the nonlinear optical (NLO) response of this series is moderate if one considers the nature of the D/A couple and the size of the chromophores (as measured by the number of π electrons). This effect was attributed to a disruption in the electronic conjugation within the dyes’ scaffold for which the geometry deviates from planarity owing to a noticeable twisting of the pyranylidene end‐groups. This latter structural parameter also has a strong influence on the excited‐state dynamics, which leads to a very efficient fluorescence quenching.     

Determination of phenolic whitening agents in cosmetics by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography with amperometric detection

A sensitive method for simultaneous determination of six phenolic whitening agents,including arbutin, phenol,resorcinol,hydroquinone,kojic acid,and salicylic acid in cosmetics has been developed using micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography with amperometric detection（MECC-AD）.Effects of several factors,such as the pH value and concentration of running buffer,potential applied to the working electrode,separation voltage,and injection time were investigated to obtain optimum conditions for separation and detection.With a 75 cm long fused-silica capillary tube,well-defined separation of six phenolic compounds was achieved in 10mmol/L SDS/40 mmol/L H₃BO₃-Na₂B₄O₇ running buffer（pH 9.0）.Good linear relationship was obtained for each analyte over three orders of magnitude with correlation coefficients（r2） between 0.9985 and 0.9994,and the detection limit（S/N=3） ranged from 0.04μg/mL to 0.45μg/mL The proposed method has been successfully applied for the determination of phenolic whitening agents in real cosmetic samples with satisfactory results,providing an alternative monitoring method for cosmetics safety regulation.     

Solvent effects on oxygen atom transfer reaction between manganese(V)-oxo corrole and alkene

Pseudo-first order reaction rate constants of 5,10,15-tris（pentafluorophenyl）corrole Mn（V）-oxo (F₁₅CMn（V）-oxo),5,15-bis（pentafluorophenyl）-10-（phenyl）corrole Mn（V）-oxo(F₁₀CMn（V）-oxo),5,15- bis（phenyl）-10-（pentafluorophenyl）corrole Mn（V）-oxo（F₅CMn（V）-oxo） and 5,10,15-tris（phenyl）corrole Mn（V）-oxo（F₀CMn（V）-oxo） with a series of alkene substrates in different solvents were determined by UV-vis spectroscopy.The results indicated that the oxygen atom transfer pathway between Mn（V）-oxo corrole and alkene is solvent-dependent.     

In vitro study of the interaction of cysteine with a thiazide diuretic (hydrochlorothiazide) at different ph by voltammetric and spectroscopic techniques

The interaction of cysteine (RSH) with a thiazide diuretic, hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) was characterized by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and square-wave voltammetry in Britton-Robinson (B-R) buffer solution (with pH 5, 7 and 9). On the square-wave voltamogram of cysteine, the reduction peak current of mercurous cysteine thiolate (Hg₂(RS)₂) decreased and its peak potential shifted to more positive values with the addition of HCTZ. This results showed that the RSH interacted with HCTZ. The stoichiometry of HCTZ-RSH molecular complex was determined by voltammetric data with the result of 1: 1. By using linear regression analysis of the voltammetric data at pH 5, 7 and 9, the apparent formation constants of HCTZ-RSH complex were calculated to be 9.54 × 10³, 2.80 × 10⁴ and 2.55 × 10⁴ M^?1, respectively. At the same time, this interaction was also supported by UV-Vis spectroscopic measurements. According to the voltammetric and spectroscopic results, it was suggested that the interaction mode between RSH and HCTZ molecules might be a combination of hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds.     

Preparation of Silver Nanoparticles‐Based Sensors for the Electrochemical Detection of Thiourea in Leaching Solutions of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment

Waste of electrical and electronic equipment is an interesting secondary resource of base and precious metals. Particularly the use of thiourea‐leaching in acidic medium was proposed for noble metals recovery. In this work, a novel and easy‐to‐use electrochemical sensor was developed, aimed to test thiourea from leaching solutions containing significant thiourea and copper amounts. The sensor was constructed using silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) deposited on screen‐printed electrodes. Its performance was studied in a synthetic leaching solution; changes in the overall surface charge of AgNPs resulting in changes in the charge‐transfer resistance for the copper ions were evaluated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.     

Electrochemical Characterization of Egyptian Blue Pigment in Wall Paintings Using the Voltammetry of Microparticles Methodology

The solid state voltammetric response of Egypt blue, Han blue and ploss blue pigments upon attachment to graphite electrodes in contact with aqueous phosphate buffer at pH 7.0 is studied by voltammetry of microparticles and scanning electrochemical microscopy. Such voltammetric responses, combined with those for synthetic specimens consisting of binary mixtures of the pigment and SiO₂ or CaCO₃ as well as ternary ones of CaCO₃ and SiO₂ mixtures allow for the identification of the pigment and the support in samples from wall paintings using different electrochemical parameters, in particular upon performing the Tafel and modified Tafel analysis of voltammetric peaks. Identification of Egypt blue in microsamples of murals from a Roman archaeological site in Castulo (Jaén, Spain) is discussed.     

Spectroscopic Identification of Cyclic Imide b2-Ions from Peptides Containing Gln and Asn Residues

In mass-spectrometry based peptide sequencing, formation of b- and y-type fragments by cleavage of the amide C–N bond constitutes the main dissociation pathway of protonated peptides under low-energy collision induced dissociation (CID). The structure of the b ₂ fragment ion from peptides containing glutamine (Gln) and asparagine (Asn) residues is investigated here by infrared ion spectroscopy using the free electron laser FELIX. The spectra are compared with theoretical spectra calculated using density functional theory for different possible isomeric structures as well as to experimental spectra of synthesized model systems. The spectra unambiguously show that the b₂-ions do not possess the common oxazolone structure, nor do they possess the alternative diketopiperazine structure. Instead, cyclic imide structures are formed through nucleophilic attack by the amide nitrogen atom of the Gln and Asn side chains. The alternative pathway involving nucleophilic attack from the side-chain amide oxygen atom leading to cyclic isoimide structures, which had been suggested by several authors, can clearly be excluded based on the present IR spectra. This mechanism is perhaps surprising as the amide oxygen atom is considered to be the better nucleophile; however, computations show that the products formed via attack by the amide nitrogen are considerably lower in energy. Hence, b₂-ions with Asn or Gln in the second position form structures with a five-membered succinimide or a six-membered glutarimide ring, respectively. b₂-Ions formed from peptides with Asn in the first position are spectroscopically shown to possess the classical oxazolone structure.