Two‐Step Spin Transition in a 1D FeII 1,2,4‐Triazole Chain Compound

A thermochromic 1D spin crossover coordination (SCO) polymer [Fe(βAlatrz)₃](BF₄)₂ ? 2 H₂O ( 1? 2 H₂O), whose precursor βAlatrz, (1,2,4‐triazol‐4‐yl‐propionate) has been tailored from a β‐amino acid ester is investigated in detail by a set of superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID), ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer, differential scanning calorimetry, infrared, and Raman measurements. An hysteretic abrupt two‐step spin crossover (T_1/2^↓=230 K and T_1/2^↑=235 K, and T_1/2^↓=172 K and T_1/2^↑=188 K, respectively) is registered for the first time for a 1,2,4‐triazole‐based Fe^II 1D coordination polymer. The two‐step SCO configuration is observed in a 1:2 ratio of low‐spin/high‐spin in the intermediate phase for a 1D chain. The origin of the stepwise transition was attributed to a distribution of chains of different lengths in 1? 2 H₂O after First Order Reversal Curves (FORC) analyses. A detailed DFT analysis allowed us to propose the normal mode assignment of the Raman peaks in the low‐spin and high‐spin states of 1? 2 H₂O. Vibrational spectra of 1? 2 H₂O reveal that the BF₄^? anions and water molecules play no significant role on the vibrational properties of the [Fe(βAlatrz)₃]²⁺ polymeric chains, although non‐coordinated water molecules have a dramatic influence on the emergence of a step in the spin transition curve. The dehydrated material [Fe(βAlatrz)₃](BF₄)₂ ( 1 ) reveals indeed a significantly different magnetic behavior with a one‐step SCO which was also investigated.     

Spectroscopic characterization of mineral crystals produced by the bacterium Azospirillum brasilense

The results of spectroscopic structural and trace elemental analyses of mineral crystals produced by the soil nitrogen-fixing bacterium Azospirillum brasilense cultivated in a synthetic medium are presented and discussed. The mineral formed is shown to have a structure close to struvite (MgNH₄PO₄ × 6H₂O; ASTM file No. 15-762) with some differences which may be attributed to the presence of isomorphic admixtures of other cations (struvite is known to have a variety of forms). AAS/AES and ion chromatography analyses for a number of biologically important microelements and their role in the formation of the crystal structure, as well as some questions related to biomineralization are also discussed.     

Influence of ultrathin poly-(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) film supports on the electrodeposition and electrocatalytic activity of discrete platinum nanoparticles

Coating a carbon electrode surface, specifically highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) with an ultrathin film of poly-(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), PEDOT, provides a support on which a high density of uniformly dispersed Pt nanoparticles (NPs) can readily be formed by electrodeposition. The NPs tend to be much smaller, have a higher surface coverage, better dispersion and show a much lower tendency to aggregate, than Pt NPs produced under identical electrochemical conditions on HOPG alone. The electrocatalytic activity of the NPs was investigated for methanol (MeOH) and formic acid (HCOOH) oxidation. Significantly, for similarly prepared particles, Pt NP-PEDOT arrays exhibited higher catalytic activity (in terms of current density, based on the Pt area), towards MeOH oxidation, by an order of magnitude, and towards HCOOH oxidation at high potentials, than Pt NPs supported on native HOPG. These findings can be rationalised in terms of the enhanced oxidation of adsorbed CO, a key reaction intermediate and a catalyst poison. This research provides strong evidence that employing conducting polymers, such as PEDOT, as a support substrate, can greatly improve particular catalytic reactions, allowing for better catalyst utilisation in fuel cell technology.

     

Vapor-liquid and vapor-liquid-liquid equilibria of carbon dioxide/n-perfluoroalkane/n-alkane ternary mixtures

Perfluoroalkanes have numerous applications (e.g., in the medical field and the chemical industry), and their high affinity for carbon dioxide makes them attractive as surfactants and cosolvents. Although research in this area has grown in the past few years, very little phase-equilibrium data is available in the open literature for these systems. In this work, we present, for the first time, predictions of vapor-liquid and vapor-liquid-liquid equilibria of binary and ternary systems of carbon dioxide/n-perfluoroalkane/n-alkane. Our results are based on the SAFT-VR EOS (statistical associating fluid theory of variable range, equation of state), and we study the influence of temperature, pressure, composition, and chain length on the phase diagram. The predicted phase diagrams are based on temperature-independent binary interaction parameters, and no ternary parameters are introduced. Comparisons to the available experimental and molecular simulation data show that the predicted diagrams should provide a good representation of the phase equilibria.     

A spectroelectrochemical approach to the electrodeposition of bismuth film electrodes and their use in stripping analysis

UV-vis reflection spectroelectrochemistry has proven to be a very useful multiresponse technique to evaluate the quality of bismuth films obtained by electrochemical deposition on glassy carbon electrodes (GCEs). Bismuth films have recently emerged as a promising and environmental friendly alternative to mercury electrodes for stripping analysis. Spectroelectrochemical measurements, carried out in a flow cell, allowed us to follow in situ the electrodeposition and stripping of bismuth and cadmium. Electrochemical and spectroscopic responses individually have led to successfully quantify the amount of cadmium in test solutions.     

Calorimetric measurements of diluted spin crossover complexes [FexM1−x(btr)2(NCS)2]·H2O with M = Zn and Ni

Motivated by the application of the First Order Reversal Curve (FORC) technique to obtain a distribution of like spin domains in the spin crossover complexes [Fe_xM_1−x(btr)₂(NCS)₂]·H₂O with M^II = Zn and Ni, we have performed Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) experiments. We have measured the heat capacity in the heating and cooling modes and then calculated the enthalpy and the entropy variations at the phase transition. In the framework of an Ising-like model, we have converted the experimental thermal hysteresis into terms of physical parameters related to these compounds. We have also performed a statistical analysis of these parameters and concluded that the correlation between them increases with the dilution degree of these spin crossover complexes.     

Optical fiber spectroelectrochemical device for detection of catechol at press-transferred single-walled carbon nanotubes electrodes

A new long-optical-pathway spectroelectrochemical cell for absorptometric measurements in the UV–Vis region was developed. This cell consists of two optical fibers brought face to face and fixed on the working electrode support. As a proof of concept, the spectroelectrochemical cell was applied to the determination of catechol using a press-transferred single-walled carbon nanotube film as the working electrode. Voltabsorptometry was demonstrated to be very helpful in understanding the mechanism of catechol oxidation. The experiments showed that the main oxidation product is o-benzoquinone, but other soluble side products are also observed. Multivariate calibration explains the selection of 390 nm as the best wavelength for the univariate absorptometric determination of catechol, avoiding the interference of oxidation side products. Catechol was quantified using both the electrochemical and the spectroscopic signal, demonstrating that this hybrid technique is an autovalidated analytical method. Dual detection of catechol was also carried out using amperometric spectroelectrochemistry. Finally, spectroelectrochemistry was used to quantify catechol in the presence of hydroquinone.     

Layer-by-layer electrosynthesis of Pt–Polyaniline nanocomposites for the catalytic oxidation of methanol

A new composite material based on the electrochemical generation of a layer-by-layer structure of polyaniline (PANI) and Pt particles has been prepared. The number of layers and the nature of the external layer (PANI or Pt) determine the electrocatalytic performance of the composite for the oxidation of methanol. We demonstrate that the layer-by-layer approach to form the nanocomposite and modification of the Pt particles with a layer of PANI leads to substantially higher catalytic efficiency.     

Coordination preference and magnetic properties of FeII assemblies with a bis-azole bearing 1,2,4-triazole and tetrazole

With a new bis-azole molecular fragment (Htt) bearing 1,2,4-triazole and tetrazole, a mononuclear complex [Fe(tt)₂(H₂O)₄]·2H₂O (1), a trinuclear complex [Fe₃(tt)₆(H₂O)₆]·2H₂O (2) and a 1D coordination polymer [Fe(tt)(Htt)₂]BF₄·2CH₃OH (3) were obtained by varying reaction conditions. Htt acts either as an anionic or neutral ligand depending upon the reaction medium and pH. Thermal variation of spin states of 1–3 were investigated in the range 77–300?K by ⁵⁷Fe M?ssbauer spectroscopy. 1 totally remains in high-spin state over the entire temperature range whereas no spin crossover was evidenced in 2. Nearly 1:1 high-spin and low-spin population ratio is found in 3, which remains constant over the entire temperature range investigated.