Dichloro­[(6R,7S,8S,14S)‐(–)‐sparteine‐κ2N,N′]mercury(II)

In the title compound, [HgCl₂(C₁₅H₂₆N₂)], the chiral alkaloid (6R,7S,8S,14S)‐(−)‐l ‐sparteine acts as a bident­ate ligand, with two Cl⁻ ligands occupying the remaining coordination sites, producing a distorted tetra­hedron. The N—Hg—N plane is twisted by 81.1 (2)° from the Cl—Hg—Cl plane. The mid‐point of the N⋯N line does not lie exactly on the Cl—Hg—Cl plane but is tilted towards one of the N atoms by 0.346 Å. Similarly, the mid‐point of the Cl⋯Cl line is tilted toward one of the Cl atoms by 0.163 Å. The packing structure shows that the complex is stabilized by two inter­atomic Cl⋯H contacts involving both Cl atoms and the methyl­ene or methine H atoms of the (−)‐sparteine ligand.     

Di­chloro­[(6R,7S,8S,14S)‐(–)‐sparteine‐κ2N,N′]­nickel(II)

In the title compound, [NiCl₂(C₁₅H₂₆N₂)], the chiral alkaloid (6R,7S,8S,14S)‐(−)‐l ‐sparteine acts as a bidentate ligand, with two chloride ligands occupying the remaining coordination sites, producing a slightly distorted tetrahedron. The N—Ni—N plane in the title complex is twisted by 81.31 (11)° from the Cl—Ni—Cl plane. Other distortions of the tetrahedron are discussed.     

Effectiveness of a multi-channel volumetric air receiver for a solar power tower

In this study, the heat transfer performance of a multi-channel volumetric air receiver for a solar power tower was numerically analyzed. The governing equations, including the solar radiation heat flux, conduction, convection and radiation heat transfer for a single channel, were solved on the basis of valid related references and a methodology that can predict the temperature distribution of the receiver wall and the heat transfer fluid for specific dimensions and input conditions. Furthermore, a mathematical model of the effectiveness of the receiver was derived from an analysis of the temperature profiles of the wall and the heat transfer fluid. The receiver effectiveness as an appropriate criterion to assess economic feasibility regarding geometric size was investigated, as it would be applied to the design process of the receiver. The main parameters for the thermal performance simulations described in this paper are the air mass flow rate, receiver length and the influence of these parameters on the heat transfer performance from the viewpoint of receiver efficiency and effectiveness.     

Coordination-chemistry control of proton conductivity in the iconic metal-organic framework material HKUST-1

HKUST-1, a metal-organic framework (MOF) material containing Cu(II)-paddlewheel-type nodes and 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate struts, features accessible Cu(II) sites to which solvent or other desired molecules can be intentionally coordinated. As part of a broader investigation of ionic conductivity in MOFs, we unexpectedly observed substantial proton conductivity with the "as synthesized" version of this material following sorption of methanol. Although HKUST-1 is neutral, coordinated water molecules are rendered sufficiently acidic by Cu(II) to contribute protons to pore-filling methanol molecules and thereby enhance the alternating-current conductivity. At ambient temperature, the chemical identities of the node-coordinated and pore-filling molecules can be independently varied, thus enabling the proton conductivity to be reversibly modulated. The proton conductivity of HKUST-1 was observed to increase by ~75-fold, for example, when node-coordinated acetonitrile molecules were replaced by water molecules. In contrast, the conductivity became almost immeasurably small when methanol was replaced by hexane as the pore-filling solvent.     

Combined Alkali‐Organoammonium Structure Direction of High‐Charge‐Density Heteroatom‐Containing Aluminophosphate Molecular Sieves

The charge density mismatch concept was applied to the synthesis of high‐charge‐density silicoaluminophosphate SAPO‐69 (OFF) and SAPO‐79 (ERI) and zincoaluminophosphate PST‐16 (CGS), PST‐17 (BPH), PST‐19 (SBS), and ZnAPO‐88 (MER) molecular sieves. Combined alkali‐organoammonium structure direction in these systems is thus enabled. Structure direction is treated from the perspective of stabilizing an ionic framework, the relationships between reaction charge density (OH^?/H₃PO₄), alkali and organoammonium content, and ionicity of tetrahedral framework atoms in successful structure direction are presented.     

A microfluidic biomaterial

We report on the incorporation of microfluidic structure within a high-water-content hydrogel [4% (w/v) calcium alginate]. We used the microfluidic network to control the chemical environment within the hydrogel and demonstrated higher rates of delivery and extraction of solutes than was achievable by diffusion alone.     

Very high third-order nonlinear optical activities of intrazeolite PbS quantum dots

Zeolite-intercalated semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have long been proposed to give very high third-order nonlinear optical (3NLO) responses. However, measurements of their 3NLO responses have not been possible due to the lack of methods to prepare optically transparent QD-incorporating zeolite films supported on optically transparent substrates and to confine QDs only within zeolite interiors. We found that the zeolite-Y films grown on indium-tin-oxide-coated glass plates (Ygs) remain firmly bonded to the substrates during ion exchange with Pb2+ ions, drying, and formation of PbS QDs by treating Pb2+ ions with H2S. A series of Ygs encapsulating different numbers (n = 0, 8, 14, 23, and 33) of PbS in a unit cell [(PbS)n-Yg] were prepared. The PbS QDs were expelled by adsorbed moisture to the external surfaces, and the expelled QDs formed large QDs. Coating of the (PbS)n-Ygs with octadecyltrimethoxysilane results in effective confinement of the QDs within the internal pores. The zeolite-encapsulated PbS QDs showed remarkably high 3NLO activities at 532 and 1064 nm which are unparalleled by other PbS QDs dispersed in other matrixes.     

Comparison of reversed-phase liquid chromatographic methods for the separation of new quinolones

Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography is widely used in the analysis of drug substances and their metabolites. The interaction of quinolones with residual silanol in a silica-based C18 stationary phase causes peak broadening and bad peak shapes and makes it hard to resolve the peak separations. This unusual interaction is studied and finally can be removed by masking the residual silanol of a silica-based C18 stationary phase, then good peak separation is achieved. We have chosen four new quinolones and ciprofloxacin and improved the peak shapes by optimizing the pH of the eluent and the quantity of the additive (N,N-dimethyloctylamine, approximately 0-40 mM) in the monomeric C18 stationary phase. The elution behavior of quinolones in the polymeric C18 stationary phase is compared with that in the monomeric C18 stationary phase under the same eluent condition. Good peak symmetry and a high plate number are achieved by this technique, which are hardly obtained with the conventional silica-based C18 stationary phase. Based on these results, we present data of the influence of the eluent composition such as pH, buffer, and additive concentration on the peak shape.     

Persistence of layer motifs in the crystal structures of [1,4-bis-(2-methoxy-2-carbonylethyl)piperazinium (2’)] chloride and [1,4-bis-(2-amidoethyl)piperazinium (2’)] perchlorate

Two structures of the closely related piperazinium salts, [1,4-bis-(2-methoxy-2-carbonylethyl)piperazinium (2+)] chloride (1) and [1,4-bis-(2-amidoethyl)piperazinium (2+)] perchlorate (2) reveal the persistence of a layer structure, interspersed with anions, held in place by N–H···Cl, C–H···O and C–H···Cl interactions in the case of 1, and N–H···O and C–H···O interactions in the case of 2. Compound 1 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P-1 with a=6.7667(6) ?, b = 6.9467(6) ?, c=9.3880(18) ?, α=105.845(9)°, β=99.896(16)°, γ=103.600(9)°, and Z=1. Compound 2 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2₁/c with a = 9.0930(8) ?, b=10.0525(11) ? c=10.2104(13) ?, β=114.279(9)°, and Z=2.