Catalytic enantioselective domino oxa-michael/aldol condensations: asymmetric synthesis of benzopyran derivatives

The first direct organocatalytic asymmetric domino oxa-Michael/aldol condensation reaction is presented. The unprecedentedly simple, chiral, pyrrolidine-catalyzed asymmetric domino reactions between salicylic aldehyde derivatives and alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes proceed with high chemo- and enantioselectivities to give the corresponding chromene-3-carbaldehyde derivatives in high yields and with ee values of 83-98%.     

Ce2Ti2SiO9 – das erste Titanat‐Silicat mit Cer – Präparation,Charakterisierung und Struktur

Ce₂Ti₂SiO₉ – the First Titanate‐Silicate with Cerium – Preparation, Characterization, and Structure Ce₂Ti₂SiO₉ was synthesized by chemical vapour transport in a temperature gradient (1050 °C → 900 °C) using Ce₂Ti₂O₇ as precursor and ammoniumchloride as transport agent. SiO₂ was provided from the wall of the used silica tubes. The chemical composition of the crystals was determined by EDX and EELS analysis. The structure of Ce₂Ti₂SiO₉ was determined and refined to R1 = 0.025, _wR2 = 0.067, respectively. The monoclinic phase crystallizes in the space group C2/m (No. 12) with a = 16.907(3) Å, b = 5.7078(8) Å, c = 7.574(2) Å, β = 111.38(2)° and Z = 4. Ti is octahedral, Si is tetrahedral surrounded by oxygen. Ce(1) is coordinated by eight, Ce(2) by ten oxygen atoms. There are edge connected chains of Ti(1)–O‐octahedra parallel [010] which are connected along [001] with each other by Ti(2)–O‐octahedra‐pairs and Si–O‐tetrahedra.     

Identification of Triplet States in Carotenoids by Intracavity Absorption Spectroscopy and Measurements of Delayed Fluorescence

Owing to the low quantum yield of phosphorescence , triplet states of carotenoids have been very difficult to identify. These states can be characterized by intracavity absorption spectroscopy, which allows the direct measurement of the spin-forbidden singlet–triplet transitions in low concentrated solutions, and by delayed fluorescence measurements.     

Determination of Fibre Pore Structure: Influence of Salt,pH and Conventional Wet Strength Resins

It has been shown, in the present investigation, that the two methods used to investigate the pore size distribution of unbleached chemical pulps, i.e. inverse size exclusion chromatography (ISEC) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), give different average pore radius for the pores inside the fibre wall. This is due to the way in which these experiments are performed and the sensitivity of the methods to different types of pores in the cell wall. It was also shown that the two methods gave different results when changing the pH and the ionic strength of the pulp suspension. The pore radius, as detected with ISEC, decreased with both increasing ionic strength and decreasing pH, indicating a loose structure of the exterior of the fibrillar network. However, the pore radius as detected with NMR, was virtually unaffected when increasing the ionic strength, indicating a very rigid structure of the interior of the fibre wall. Decreasing pH though, lead to a decrease in pore radius indicating that upon protonation of the carboxylic groups in the fibre wall, the electrostatic repulsion is diminished and the average pore radius decreases. The NMR technique was also used to study wet strength aid penetration into the fibre wall. It was shown that wet strength aids with a small molecular weight, penetrated the fibre wall, as detected by a decrease in pore radius. It was also shown that addition of different wet strength aids increased the tensile index of the sheet and decreased the fibre strength, measured as zero span-strength of the sheets.     

Artificial glycosyl phosphorylases

alpha- and beta-Cyclodextrin 6(A),6(D)-diacids (1 and 2), beta-cyclodextrin-6-monoacid (14), beta-cyclodextrin 6(A),6(D)-di-O-sulfate (16) and beta-cyclodextrin-6-heptasulfate (19) were synthesised. Acids 1, 2 and 14 were made from perbenzylated alpha- or beta-cyclodextrin, by diisobutylaluminum hydride (DIBAL)-promoted debenzylation, oxidation and deprotection. Addition of molecular sieves was found to improve the debenzylation reaction. Sulfates 16 and 19 were made by sulfation of the appropriately partially protected derivatives and deprotection. Catalysis of 4-nitrophenyl glycoside cleavage by these cyclodextrin derivatives was studied. Compounds 1, 2 and 16 were found to catalyse the reaction, with the catalysis following Michaelis-Menten kinetics and depending first order on the phosphate concentration. In a phosphate buffer (0.5 M, 59 degrees C, pH 8.0), K(M) varied from 2-10 mM and the k(cat)/k(uncat) ratio from 80-1000 depending on the stereochemistry of the substrate and the catalyst, with 2 being the best catalyst and with the sulfated 16 also displaying catalytic ability. The monoacid 14 and the heptasulfate 19 were not catalytic.     

Separation of phytosterol oxidation products by combination of different polarity gas chromatography capillary columns

The number of characterized phytosterol oxidation products (POPs) from both ring- and side-chain structures has increased during recent decades, resulting in difficulties in the separation of POPs on different gas chromatography (GC) capillary columns. The main objective of this study was to separate a mixture of 29 purified and characterized oxidation products from sito-, campe- and stigmasterol using GC capillary columns with different polarity. For the first time in the area of POPs analysis, the separation efficiency of the combination of two capillary GC columns with different polarities was investigated. A non-polar 5% phenyl coated (DB5-MS) and a mid-polar 35% phenyl coated (DB35-MS) column was combined with a pressfit connector. The main improvement was enhanced base line separation for many of the analyzed POPs, compared with the separations achieved using the individual columns. However, three pairs of POPs co-eluted: 24-hydroxysitosterol/campesterol-5beta,6beta-epoxide, stigmasterol-5beta,6beta-epoxide/campesterol-5alpha,6alpha-epoxide and stigmasterol-5alpha,6alpha-epoxide/campestanetriol.     

Design of pi-conjugated organic materials for one-dimensional energy transport in nanochannels

Various end-substituted distyrylbenzenes have been synthesized to serve as guest molecules in inclusion compounds to promote efficient energy transport along one-dimensional channels. Their optical and photophysical properties have been characterized at both experimental and theoretical levels. All molecules display a large transition dipole moment between the ground state and lowest excited state and hence a short radiative lifetime (on the order of 1-2 ns). They also exhibit a large spectral overlap between the emission and absorption spectra, which enables efficient energy transport between molecules arranged in a head-to-tail configuration in nanochannels. Hopping rates on the order of 10(12) s(-1) are calculated at a full quantum-chemical level; this is much larger than the radiative lifetimes and opens the way for energy migration over large distances. Changes in the nature of the terminal substituents are found to modulate the optical properties weakly but to impact significantly the energy transfer rates.     

Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Characterisation and Estimation of the Hamaker Constant of Cellulose

Calculations of Hamaker constants using Lifshitz theory require the availability of accurate dielectric data, especially in the visible-ultraviolet region. We present spectroscopic ellipsometry data on well-defined cellulose films of a limited thickness range (100–140 layers) deposited on an oxidised and hydrophobised silicon substrate. The spectral data, representing measurements from a perpendicular orientation to the fibre deposition direction, was used for estimates of the necessary spectral parameters, i.e. the oscillator strengths and characteristic frequencies in the UV-range. Our calculations show that cellulose has a relatively low Hamaker constant in air (58 zJ) and water (8.0 zJ). The implications for the surface energy estimates of cellulose and colloidal interactions between cellulose and various types of fillers and coating colours are indicated.