Calculation of the electronic properties of metal dimers

The low-energy excitation spectra of metal dimers are determined by solving exactly a realistic many-body Hamiltonian with inter- and intra-atomic Coulomb interactions. Our results for Cu₂ and Ag₂ are in very good agreement with the excitation energies derived from recent photodetachment experiments. The characteristics of the many-body excited states in these clusters are briefly discussed.     

Inductively-coupled plasma/atomic emission spectrometry of sulfur with a vacuum scanning spectrometer and its application to the analysis of coal liquefaction catalysts

Inductively-coupled plasma/atomic emission spectrometry with a high-resolution vacuum scanning monochromator is described for the determination of sulfur at 180.734 nm. The behavior of the signal-to-background ratio is investigated as functions of RF power, argon gas flow rate and observation height above the load coil. Under the operating conditions selected, the detection limit is 3 μg l^?1. The Se I 196.090-nm line is chosen as internal standard, because the S/Se line pair exhibited the least change with carrier gas flow rate and acid concentration of solution. Sulfur in NiMo and CoMo/ Al₂O₃ catalysts used for coal liquefaction is determined as S(II) and S(VI) species. The total amount of the species agreed well with the sulfur value obtained by the conventinal combustion method.     

Hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometric determination of ultratraces of selenium and tellurium in cow milk

A sensitive procedure has been developed for selenium and tellurium determination in milk by hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HG-AFS) after microwave-assisted sample digestion. The method provides sensitivity values of 1591 and 997 fluorescence units ng⁻¹ ml⁻¹ with detection limits of 0.005 and 0.015 ng ml⁻¹ for Se and Te, respectively. The application of the developed methodology to the analysis of cow milk samples of the Spanish market evidenced the presence of concentration ranges from 11.1 to 26.0 ng ml⁻¹ for Se, and from 1.04 to 9.7 ng ml⁻¹ for Te having found a good comparability with data obtained after dry-ashing of samples.     

Catalytic Titrations of Silver(I) Using an Iodide-Catalyzed Mn(IV)-As(III) Indicator Reaction in the Presence of Sulfuric Acid with Detecting the End-Point by Methods with Two Polarized Electrodes

Catalytic bipotentiometric and biamperometric methods for determining silver(I) with the use of the new manganese(IV)-arsenic(III) indicator reaction catalyzed by iodide ions in the presence of sulfuric acid have been developed. The effects of the sulfuric acid concentration of some ionic species, of the mole ratio of manganese(IV) to arsenic(III) in the solution titrated, and of the titrand temperature, as well as of the current and potential difference, respectively, used for polarization of the indicator electrodes on the conditions for determinations of silver(I) of various concentrations were investigated. The error in the determination of 1.0 g/cm³ silver(I) do not exceed 2%, and the precision of the results is high for both methods.     

Enantioselective Synthesis: Steric and electronic effects of the substrates upon stereoselectivity in the gold(I)-catalyzed aldol reaction with chiral ferrocenylamine ligands,preliminary communication

Enantioselectivity in the gold(I)-catalyzed aldol reaction with chiral ferrocenylamine ligands is strongly dependent upon both the steric and electronic effects of the substrates. In the reaction of pyridine-2-, 3-, and 4-carbaldehydes with ethyl 2-isocyanoacetate, surprisingly and significantly different enantioselectivities were observed in the formation of the cis- and trans-dihydro-oxazoles that must be due to electronic rather than steric effects. The first example of double stereodifferentiation in the gold(l)-catalyzed aldol reaction is reported.     

Electron Probe Microanalysis of HfO2 Thin Films on Conductive and Insulating Substrates

Quantitative electron probe microanalysis of highly insulating materials is a complicated problem, partially solved by coating samples with grounded thin conductive layers or using novel scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques, such as low-voltage and/or variable pressure SEM. In this work, some problems of quantitative X-ray microanalysis of thin HfO₂ films, in particular the possibility to determine mass thickness correlated to the density of the layer material, are discussed. For comparison, Al₂O₃, Ta₂O₅ and TiO₂ films grown onto both semiconductive Si and insulating quartz substrates were also analysed. All the films studied were synthesized by atomic layer deposition method.     

Revealing structural effects: electrochemical reactions of butanols on platinum

Spectroelectrochemical studies on the reactivity of butanol isomers on Pt electrodes in perchloric acid medium led to the observation of structural effects that result from the different arrangements of atoms in the organic molecules. The use of differential electrochemical mass spectrometry (DEMS) to detect volatile products showed that all four isomers react on the electrode, though different product yields were observed for each compound. In spite of the differences in the electrochemical behaviour of the butanol isomers, a series of general processes accounts for the results obtained. The formation of strongly adsorbed residues by a dehydration process leading to the formation of a C=C bond was proposed for all isomers. Electroreduction of the adsorbates produces C(4) and C(3) alkanes, and the latter reveal the existence of a fragmentation process. The C(4) hydrocarbons can be formed by hydrogenation of these residues and by hydrogenolysis of alcohol molecules in the bulk solution which react at the electrode with adsorbed hydrogen. On the other hand, CO(2) is formed during electrooxidation of the adsorbed species. Partial-oxidation products containing a carbonyl group were detected from 0.2 M solutions of 1-butanol, isobutyl alcohol and sec-butyl alcohol. The tertiary alcohol tert-butyl alcohol only reacts in its adsorbed state.     

Polyfluorothiolate derivatives of rhodium(I). Crystal and molecular structure of [Rh(μ-SC6HF4)(C8H12)]2

Summary The thiolato-bridged dinuclear compounds [Rh(-SR)-(COD)]₂, where R=p-C₆HF₄ (1),p-C₆H₄F (2) and CF₃ (3), are obtained from the chloro-bridged analogue by ligand exchange.Compound (1) crystallizes in the space group P₁ with a=9.740(3)Å, b=11.642(4)Å, c=13.997(6)Å, =103.87(3)°, =106.98(3)° and =105.10(2)°; z=2. In this dinuclear molecule both Rh atoms have a square planar coordination sharing one edge, namely the two sulphur bridging atoms. The Rh—Rh separation of 2.96 Å is consistent with at most a very weak metal-metal interaction. Upon addition of CO the dimeric [Rh(-SR)(CO)₂]₂ (4), (5) and (6) are obtained, but addition of PPh₃ affords the monomeric species [Rh(SR)(PPh₃)-(COD)] (7), (8) and (9). Reactions of the dimeric tetracarbonyl derivatives with PPh₃ vary with the nature of R; [Rh(-SR)(PPh₃)(CO)]₂ is obtained when R=p-C₆H₄F (10) and CF₃ (11) but monomeric [Rh(SR)-(PPh₃)(CO)₂] (12) is produced when R=p-C₆HF₄. The latter mononuclear compounds, with R=p-C₆H₄F (13) and CF₃ (14), are also formed by reaction of [Rh(SR)-(PPh₃)(COD)] with CO.     

Evolution of self-assembled silica-tetrapropylammonium nanoparticles at elevated temperatures

The time evolution of silica nanoparticles in solutions of tetrapropylammonium (TPA) has been studied using a combination of small-angle scattering, conductivity, and pH measurements to provide the first comprehensive analysis of nanoparticle structural and compositional changes at elevated temperatures. We have found that silica-TPA nanoparticles subjected to hydrothermal treatment (70-90 degrees C) grow via an Ostwald ripening mechanism with growth rates that depend on both pH and temperature. Small-angle X-ray (SAXS) and neutron (SANS) scattering confirm that the core-shell structure of the particles, initially present at room temperature, is maintained during heating, but an evolution toward sphericity is evidenced especially at high values of pH. SAXS absolute intensity calculations were utilized to calculate the changes in nanoparticle composition and concentration over time. These changes along with the conductivity and pH measurements and SANS contrast matching studies indicate that, upon heating, TPA becomes embedded in the core of nanoparticles giving rise to more zeolitic-looking nanomaterials.     

Coulometric redox titrations of some biologically active thiols with iodine in methanol and bromine in acetic acid

The possibility of coulometric titrations of cysteine, 2-thio-uracil, 6-mercaptopurine, and 6-thioguanine with iodine and bromine in methanol and with bromine in acetic acid has been investigated. Conditions have been found for the direct titration of the test substances with iodine in methanol based on their 1-electron oxidation to the corresponding disulphides and for their direct and indirect determination with bromine in acetic acid based on their 6-electron oxidation to the corresponding sulphonic acids.On leave from Department of Analytical Chemistry, Charles University, Prague, Czechoslovakia