Synthesis of 8-aryl-1H-pyrazolo[4,3-e][1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a] pyrimidine-4(5H)-imine by using the Preyssler''s anion [NaP5W30O110] as a green and eco-friendly catalyst

Reaction of 6-hydrazino-1,5-diphenyl-1H-pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidine-4-imine with aromatic aldehyde in presence of Preyssler catalyst yielded 8-aryl-1H-pyrazolo[4,3-e][1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a] pyrimidine-4(5H)-imine. The performance of different form of Preyssler's anions including H₁₄[NaP₅W₃₀O₁₁₀], H₁₄-P₅, mixed-addenda H₁₄[NaP₅W₂₉ MoO₁₁₀], H₁₄-P₅Mo, silica supported H₁₄[NaP₅W₃₀O₁₁₀]/SiO₂ and H₁₄-P₅/SiO₂ have been investigated. The reaction results were compared with that of a conventional acid catalyst (H₂SO₄).     

Application of dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction with alcoholic solvents followed by HPLC–UV as a sensitive and efficient method for the extraction and determination of citalopram in biological samples using an experimental design

A sensitive and rapid method based on alcoholic-assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction followed by high-performance liquid chromatography for determination of citalopram in human plasma and urine samples was developed. The effects of six parameters (extraction time, stirring speed, pH, volume of extraction and disperser solvents, and ionic strength) on the extraction recovery were investigated and optimized utilizing Plackett–Burman design and Box–Behnken design, respectively. According to Plackett–Burman design results, the volume of disperser solvent, stirring speed, and extraction time had no effect on the recovery of citalopram. The optimized condition was a mixture of 172 µL of 1-octanol as extraction solvent and 400 µL of methanol as disperser solvent, pH of 10.3 and 1% w/v of salt in the sample solution. Replicating the experiment in optimized condition for five times, gave the average extraction recoveries equal to 89.42%. The detection limit of citalopram in human plasma was obtained 4 ng/mL, and the linearity was in the range of 10–1200 ng/mL. The corresponding values for human urine were 5.4 ng/mL with the linearity in the range of 10–2000 ng/mL. Relative standard deviations for inter- and intraday extraction of citalopram were less than 7% for five measurements. The proposed method was successfully implemented for the determination of citalopram in human plasma and urine samples.     

A convenient route toward one‐pot multicomponent synthesis of spirochromenes and pyranopyrazoles accelerated via quinolinic acid

In the present work, the catalytic activity of quinolinic acid (QUIN) was studied for the synthesis of spirochromene and pyranopyrazole derivatives from readily available materials. The salient features of these one‐pot multicomponent protocols are the clean reaction profile, easy isolation of products, no chromatographic separation techniques, high efficiency, short reaction time, and high yield of products plus using QUIN as a new, inexpensive, commercially available, and efficient organocatalyst.     

Molecular junction of n-thiophenes sandwiched between two Au (111) electrodes

In this work, the electron-transport properties of the molecular junction of oligothiophenes sandwiched between two Au (111) electrodes are studied based on the combination of the density functional theory and non-equilibrium Green’s function (NEGF) approach. From the calculation of electron properties, it is revealed that by increasing the number of thiophenes rings the (highest occupied molecular orbital-lowest unlocked molecular orbital) gap and the total energy decreases. Also, the transmission coefficient at zero voltage and the current–voltage curve for the thiophene molecules is calculated. The results indicate that the electrical conductivity and the value of band gap decrease exponentially with increasing the length of the molecules. Moreover, by simulating this molecular wire, we were able to obtain a current in the range of micro-amperes, which is a good current in the electronic application. However, it is known that the linear-response conductance is overestimated about an order of magnitude or more by the NEGF?+?DFT approach when semi-local approximate functional like PBE is used.     

A sol‐gel based solid phase microextraction fiber for the analysis of aliphatic alcohols in apple juices

A new fiber based on titania‐chitin sol‐gel coated on a silver wire for the headspace solid phase microextraction of aliphatic alcohols from apple juice samples was developed. The influences of fiber coating composition and microextraction conditions (extraction temperature, extraction time, and ionic strength of the sample matrix) on the fiber performance were investigated. Also, the influence of temperature and time on desorption of analytes from fiber were studied. Under the optimized conditions, a porous fiber with a high extraction capacity and good thermal stability (up to 250°C) was obtained. The proposed headspace solid‐phase microextraction‐GC method was successfully used for the analysis of aliphatic alcohols in apple juice and concentrate samples. The recovery values were from 92.8 to 98.6%. The RSD (n=5) for all analytes were below 7.8%.     

Proton Pump for O2 Reduction Catalyzed by 5,10,15,20‐Tetraphenylporphyrinatocobalt(II)

Oxygen reduction : A polarized water|1,2‐dichloroethane (DCE) interface acts as a proton pump for the [Co(tpp)] (TPP=5,10,15,20‐tetraphenylporphyrinato) catalyzed O₂ reduction by ferrocene (Fc) compounds to produce H₂O₂ (see figure; IT=ion transfer, ET=electron transfer). This system favours the collection of H₂O₂ by extraction immediately after its formation in DCE to the adjacent water phase.

     

Thermosensitive molecularly imprinted poly(1‐vinyl‐2‐pyrrolidone/methyl methacrylate/N‐vinylcaprolactam) for selective extraction of imatinib mesylate in human biological fluid

The efficiency of a molecularly imprinted polymer as a selective packing material for the solid‐phase extraction of imatinib mesylate sorption was investigated. The molecularly imprinted polymer was prepared using N,N′‐methylenebisacrylamide as a cross‐linker agent, N‐vinylcaprolactam as a thermo‐sensitive monomer, 1‐vinyl‐2‐pyrrolidone and methyl methacrylate as functional monomers, azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator and imatinib mesylate as a template. The drug‐imprinted polymer was identified by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, elemental analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that this polymer can be used for determination of trace levels of imatinib mesylate with a recovery percentage that could reach over 90%. Furthermore, the synthesized molecularly imprinted polymer indicated higher selectivity towards imatinib mesylate than other compounds. From isotherm study, the equilibrium adsorption data of imatinib mesylate by imprinted polymer were analyzed by Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin isotherm models. The developed method was used for determination of imatinib mesylate in human fluid samples by high performance liquid chromatography with excellent results.     

The first C(O)NHP(O)-based phosphoric triamide structure with an N‒H···π hydrogen bonding: A combination of X-ray crystallography and theoretical study to evaluate the strength of hydrogen bonds

The hydrogen bond pattern of N-(4-methoxybenzoyl)-N′,N″-bis(4-methylbenzyl)-phosphoric triamide, C₂₄H₂₈N₃O₃P, (I), was investigated. In the crystal structure, the molecules are aggregated through N_CP―H···O═P and N_P―H···O═C hydrogen bonds in a one-dimensional arrangement parallel to the c axis (N_CP is the nitrogen atom in the C(O)NHP(O) segment and N_P stands for the two other nitrogen atoms bonded to the P atom). There is also a novel N_P?H···π hydrogen bond in the crystal which extends the aggregation of the molecules to a two-dimensional array parallel to the bc plane. A Cambridge Structural Database (CSD, version 5.37, Feb 2016) analysis shows that the N―H···π hydrogen bond was not observed in any of 156 [RC(O)NH]P(O)[NR¹R² Allen, F. H.; Taylor, R. Chem. Soc. Rev. 2004, 33, 463-475.[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]]₂ (R¹ ≠ H, R² = H or ≠ H) phosphoric triamide structures reported so far. The theoretical calculations at the B3LYP/6-311G^** level of theory (DFT, AIM, and NBO) were performed to evaluate the strengths of N_CP―H···O═P, N_P―H···O═C and N_P―H···π hydrogen bonds, considering two-aggregate molecular assemblies containing these hydrogen bonds. The calculations on the title compound suggest that the intermolecular N_CP―H···O═P hydrogen bond is stronger than N_P―H···O═C and N_P―H···π interactions. The hydrogen bond strength was investigated by NBO, topological analysis, geometry calculation, Hirshfeld surface analysis and experimental spectroscopic results, which are in agreement with each other.     

Improved charge collection efficiency of hollow sphere/nanoparticle composite TiO2 electrodes for solid state dye sensitized solar cells

The photoanodes of solid state dye sensitized solar cells (ss-DSCs) embedded with different contents of TiO₂ hollow spheres (HSs) were prepared and the photovoltaic performances were systematically characterized. TiO₂ hollow spheres were synthesized by a facile sacrificial templating method, grounded and added in different ratios to TiO₂ nanoparticle (NP) paste, from which composite HS/NP electrodes were fabricated. The composite photoanodes include hollow spheres of 300–700 nm with enhanced light scattering characteristics in visible range which leads to improved light absorption in conventional thin film electrodes of ss-DSC. By optimizing the amount of HSs in the paste, 40% improvement in efficiency was obtained in comparison to ss-DSC utilized pure NP electrodes. By increasing the fraction of HSs in the electrode the current density increased by 56% (from 2.5 to 3.9 mA cm^?2). The improved photovoltaic performance of ss-DSC is primarily due to different morphology and altered charged trap distribution in HSs in comparison to NP which leads to significant enhancement in electron transport time and electron lifetime as well as charge collection efficiency and light absorption properties.