Synthesis and electrochemical properties of individual isomers of isocyanurate-substituted bis-organodiazadihomofullerenes

The reactions of fullerene C₆₀ with isocyanurate-substituted azides afforded individual regioisomers of bis-adducts. The structures of the regioisomers depend on the structure of the organic fragment in azide and are determined primarily by the bulkiness of this fragment. Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 4, pp. 672–677, April, 2006.     

Deoxygenation of some α-dicarbonyl compounds by tris(diethylamino)phosphine in the presence of fullerene C60

The reactions of such cyclic α-diketones as acenaphthenequinone, aceanthrenequinone, and N-alkylisatins, with hexaethyltriaminophosphine in the presence of the fullerene C(60), lead to the formation of methanofullerene derivatives under mild conditions. This process proceeds via deoxygenation of the dicarbonyl compound by the P(III) derivative and is likely to involve the intermediate formation of α-ketocarbenes. The structure of some methanofullerenes has been confirmed by NMR and XRD. The electrochemical behavior of the methanofullerenes was also investigated.     

In vivo quantitative NMR imaging of fruit tissues during growth using Spoiled Gradient Echo sequence

Nondestructive studies of physiological processes in agronomic products require increasingly higher spatial and temporal resolutions. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) imaging is a non-invasive technique providing physiological and morphological information on biological tissues. The aim of this study was to design a robust and accurate quantitative measurement method based on NMR imaging combined with contrast agent (CA) for mapping and quantifying water transport in growing cherry tomato fruits. A multiple flip-angle Spoiled Gradient Echo (SGE) imaging sequence was used to evaluate the intrinsic parameters maps M₀ and T₁ of the fruit tissues. Water transport and paths flow were monitored using Gd^3 +/[Fe(CN)₆]^3 −/D − mannitol nanoparticles as a tracer. This dynamic study was carried out using a compartmental modeling. The CA was preferentially accumulated in the surrounding tissues of columella and in the seed envelopes. The total quantities and the average volume flow of water estimated are: 198 mg, 1.76 mm³/h for the columella and 326 mg, 2.91 mm³/h for the seed envelopes. We demonstrate in this paper that the NMR imaging technique coupled with efficient and biocompatible CA in physiological medium has the potential to become a major tool in plant physiology research.     

Exploring acetylene chemistry in superbasic media: A theoretical study of the effect of water on vinylation and ethynylation reactions with acetylene in KOH/DMSO and NaOH/DMSO systems

A rapidly developing approach adding new dimensions to acetylene chemistry relying on employment of high basicity media such as alkali metal hydroxide suspensions in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) has been, for the first time, investigated theoretically using ab initio models. Extending our recently introduced model of superbase catalysis with a nondissociated KOH (or NaOH) participation, we present here a model for a superbasic reaction center with the first solvation shell explicitly included. The alkali metal hydroxides in a DMSO solution were found to form KOH·5DMSO and NaOH·4DMSO complexes that are stabilized due to the interligand interaction. Our present MP2/6‐311++G**//B3LYP/6‐31+G* computations show that 1 and 2 water molecules can build themselves into the MOH close surrounding without substantially perturbing the DMSO ligands and easily travel between different insertion positions. Our results predict that the activation energies in the series of reactions of nucleophilic addition to a triple bond with water, methanol, methanethiol, sodium hydrosulfide, and acetone in the presence of dihydrated complexes should be larger than those obtained with the participation of monohydrated ones, which is in fair agreement with the experimental findings. The present model also explains an increase in the ethynylation reaction yield in the presence of water by suppression of the competitive enolization reaction.     

Synthesis of cyano-bridged magnetic nanoparticles using room-temperature ionic liquids

A principally new exploit of ionic liquids as an alternative reaction medium in the synthesis of cyano-bridged coordination-polymer nanoparticles is reported. Stable colloid solutions containing nanoparticles of cyano-bridged molecule-based magnets, M)[Fe(CN)6]2/[RMIM][BF4] (M2+=Ni, Cu, Co) and Fe4[Fe(CN)6]3/[RMIM][BF4] (R=1-butyl (BMIM), 1-decyl (DMIM)), were prepared in the corresponding 1-R-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [RMIM][BF4], which acts as both a stabilising agent and a solvent. By varying the length of the N-alkyl chain on the imidazolium cation of [RMIM]+ and the temperature, the growing process can be controlled to produce nanoparticles of different sizes. By studying the magnetic properties of frozen colloids it is shown that the relaxation of magnetisation is strongly influenced by interparticle interactions, which leads to the appearance of spin-glass-like dynamics in these systems.     

A High‐Temperature Molecular Ferroelectric Zn/Dy Complex Exhibiting Single‐Ion‐Magnet Behavior and Lanthanide Luminescence

Multifunctional molecular ferroelectrics are exciting materials synthesized using molecular chemistry concepts, which may combine a spontaneous electrical polarization, switched upon applying an electric field, with another physical property. A high‐temperature ferroelectric material is presented that is based on a chiral Zn²⁺/Dy³⁺ complex exhibiting Dy³⁺ luminescence, optical activity, and magnetism. We investigate the correlations between the electric polarization and the crystal structure as well as between the low‐temperature magnetic slow relaxation and the optical properties.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ab initio</Emphasis> quantum-chemical study of the reaction mechanisms of acetylene in superbasic media. Noncatalytic vinylation of methanol

The reaction profile of noncatalytic vinylation of methanol with acetylene was studied by ab initio quantum-chemical calculations for the gas phase and by calculations using a combined model that took into account the solvent (DMSO) effect. The reaction occurs via the formation of a prereaction complex of the methoxide ion with acetylene; at this stage, the acetylene molecule is already activated with respect to the proton. The observed stereospecific trans-addition in methanol vinylation in the gas phase and solution is provided by the lower activation barrier corresponding to the E structure of the acetylene molecule in the transition state and barrier-free protonation of the carbanion intermediate.     

Neutron diffraction and theoretical DFT studies of two dimensional molecular-based magnet K2[Mn(H2O)2]3[Mo(CN)7]2.6H2O

Exchange mechanisms and magnetic structure in the two-dimensional cyano-bridged molecule-based magnet K2[Mn(H2O)2]3[Mo(CN)7]2.6H2O have been investigated by a combination of neutron diffraction studies on both single crystal and powder samples and theoretical DFT calculations. The experimental spin density has been deduced from a new refinement of previously obtained polarized neutron diffraction (PND) data which was collected in the ordered magnetic state at 4 K under a saturation field of 3 T performed in the C2/c space group, determined by an accurate re-evaluation of the X-ray structure. Positive spin populations were observed on the two manganese sites, and negative spin populations were observed on the molybdenum site, which provides evidence of antiferromagnetic Mo3+-Mn2+ exchange interactions through the cyano bridge. The experimental data have been compared to the results of DFT calculations. Moreover, theoretical studies reveal the predominance of the spin polarization mechanism in the Mo-C-N-Mn sequence, with the antiferromagnetic nature of the interaction being due to the overlap between the magnetic orbitals relative to manganese and molybdenum in the cyano bridging region. The magnetic structure of K2[Mn(H2O)2]3[Mo(CN)7]2.6H2O has been solved at low temperature in zero field by powder neutron diffraction measurements. The structure was found to be ferrimagnetic where the manganese and molybdenum spins are aligned along the axis in opposite directions.