Glass transition and miscibility in blends of two semicrystalline polymers: Poly(aryl ether ketone) and poly(ether ether ketone)

Binary melt‐blended mixtures of two aryl ether ketone polymers (i.e., a new poly(aryl ether ketone) (code name PK99) and poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK), have been studied. Polymer miscibility in glassy amorphous (or melt) domains has been demonstrated for the binary blend comprising of two aryl‐ether‐ketone‐type semicrystalline polymers. Composition‐dependent, single T_g was observed within full composition range in the PK99/PEEK blends, and the narrow T_g breadth also suggests that the scale of mixing was fine and uniform. To better resolve any possible overlapping T_g's, physical aging was imposed on a comparison set of blend samples for the purpose of improving detectability of overlapped multiple transitions if existing. The result still showed one single T_g. The relative sharp T_g and lack of cloud point transition suggest that the scale of molecular intermixing is good. Phase homogeneity was further confirmed using optical and scanning electron microscopy. The X‐ray diffractograms suggest that isomorphism does not exist in the PK99/PEEK blends and that the crystal forms of the respective polymers remain distinct and unchanged by the miscibility in the amorphous region. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 1485–1494, 1999     

Lithiation of a Silyl Ether: Formation of an ortho‐Fries Hydroxyketone

A hydroxy‐directed alkylation of an N,N‐diethylarylamide using CIPE‐assisted α‐silyl carbanions (CIPE=complex‐induced proximity effect) has been developed using a simple reagent combination of LDA (lithium diisopropylamide) and chlorosilane. A study of the mechanism, and the application of the procedure to an anionic Snieckus–Fries rearrangement for a highly efficient synthesis of the potent phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K) inhibitor LY294002, are reported.     

Dynamic Coupling at the Ångström Scale

While momentum transfer from active particles to their immediate surroundings has been studied for both synthetic and biological micron‐scale systems, a similar phenomenon was presumed unlikely to exist at smaller length scales due to the dominance of viscosity in the ultralow Reynolds number regime. Using diffusion NMR spectroscopy, we studied the motion of two passive tracers—tetramethylsilane and benzene—dissolved in an organic solution of active Grubbs catalyst. Significant enhancements in diffusion were observed for both the tracers and the catalyst as a function of reaction rate. A similar behavior was also observed for the enzyme urease in aqueous solution. Surprisingly, momentum transfer at the molecular scale closely resembles that reported for microscale systems and appears to be independent of swimming mechanism. Our work provides new insight into the role of active particles on advection and mixing at the Ångström scale.     

Effect of ionic strength, pH and polymer concentration on the separation of DNA fragments in the presence of electroosmotic flow

DNA separations in the presence of electroosmotic flow (EOF) using poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) solutions have been demonstrated. During the separations, PEO entered capillaries filled with Tris-borate (TB) free buffers by EOF and acted as sieving matrices. We have found that ionic strength and pH of polymer and free solutions affect the bulk EOF and resolution differently from that in capillary zone electrophoresis. The EOF coefficient increases with increasing ionic strength of the free TB buffers as a result of decreases in the adsorption of PEO molecules. In contrast, the bulk EOF decreases with increasing the ionic strength of polymer solutions using capillaries filled with high concentrations of free TB buffers. Although resolution values are high due to larger differential migration times between any two DNA fragments in a small bulk EOF using 10 mM TB buffers, use of a capillary filled with at least 100 mM TB free buffers is suggested for high-speed separations. On the side of PEO solutions, 1.5% PEO solutions prepared in 100 to 200 mM TB buffers are more proper in terms of resolution and speed. The separation of DNA markers V and VI was accomplished less than 29 min in 1.5% PEO solutions prepared in 100 mM TB buffers, pH 7.0 at 500 V/cm using a capillary filled with 10 mM free TB buffers, pH 7.0.     

Sodium hydroxide as pretreatment and fluorosurfactant-capped gold nanoparticles as sensor for the highly selective detection of cysteine

A sensor for detecting cysteine (Cys) in a solution of fluorosurfactant (FSN)-capped gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) has been developed. Under acidic conditions, FSN-capped AuNPs are aggregated in the presence of homocysteine (HCys) and Cys but not in the presence of cysteinylglycine, glutathione, and gamma-glutamycysteine. When adding NaOH to a solution of HCys, the five-membered ring transition state is formed through intramolecular hydrogen abstraction. By contrast, it is difficult for Cys to form a four-membered ring transition state after Cys has been pretreated with NaOH. As a result, the HCys-induced aggregation of the FSN-capped AuNPs is suppressed because the five-membered ring transition state exhibits relatively larger steric hindrance and has stronger interaction with the FSN molecules. Thus, we can discriminate between Cys and HCys on the basis of different aggregation kinetics. Under the optimum condition, the selectivity of the probe for Cys in aqueous solutions is remarkably high over the other aminthiols. Note that HCys and Cys have very similar structure and pK(a) value. We have validated the applicability of our method through the analyses of Cys in urine samples. It is believed that this approach has great potential for the detection of Cys in biological samples.     

Enhanced Four-Electron Oxygen Reduction Selectivity of Clamp-Shaped Cobalt(II) Porphyrin(2.1.2.1) Complexes

The molecular structure, electrochemistry, spectroelectrochemistry and electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) features of two Co^II porphyrin(2.1.2.1) complexes bearing Ph or F₅Ph groups at the two meso-positions of the macrocycle are examined. Single crystal X-ray analysis reveal a highly bent, nonplanar macrocyclic conformation of the complex resulting in clamp-shaped molecular structures. Cyclic voltammetry paired with UV/Vis spectroelectrochemistry in PhCN/0.1 M TBAP suggest that the first electron addition corresponds to a macrocyclic-centered reduction while spectral changes observed during the first oxidation are consistent with a metal-centered Co^II/Co^III process. The activity of the clamp-shaped complexes towards heterogeneous ORR in 0.1 M KOH show selectivity towards the 4e⁻ ORR pathway giving H₂O. DFT first-principle calculations on the porphyrin catalyst indicates a lower overpotential for 4e⁻ ORR as compared to the 2e⁻ pathway, consistent with experimental data.     

Investigating sorption-driven dissolved organic matter fractionation by multidimensional fluorescence spectroscopy and PARAFAC

Soil organic matter is involved in many ecosystem processes, such as nutrient supply, metal solubilization, and carbon sequestration. This study examined the ability of multidimensional fluorescence spectroscopy and parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) to provide detailed chemical information on the preferential sorption of higher-molecular-weight components of natural organic matter onto mineral surfaces. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) from soil organic horizons and tree leaf tissues was obtained using water extracts. The suite of fluorescence spectra was modeled with PARAFAC and it was revealed that the DOM extracts contained five fluorescing components: tryptophan-like (peak location at excitation <255 nm:emission 342 nm), tyrosine-like (276 nm:312 nm), and three humic-substance-like components (<255 nm:456 nm, 309 nm:426 nm, <255 nm:401 nm). In general, adsorption onto goethite and gibbsite increased with increasing DOM molecular weight and humification. PARAFAC analysis of the pre- and post-sorption DOM indicated that the ordering of sorption extent was humic-like components (average 91% sorption) > tryptophan-like components (52% sorption) > tyrosine-like components (29% sorption). This differential sorption of the modeled DOM components in both the soil organic horizon and leaf tissue extracts led to the fractionation of DOM. The results of this study demonstrate that multidimensional fluorescence spectroscopy combined with PARAFAC can quantitatively describe the chemical fractionation process due to the interaction of DOM with mineral surfaces.     

Formation of the serine octamer: Ion evaporation or charge residue

The mechanism of formation for clusters of serine generated by electrospray ionization is hypothesized to play a critical role in determining their ultimate properties. Under carefully manipulated electrospray source conditions, two distinct and well-separated distributions of clusters can be observed. The characteristics of the two cluster populations are consistent with different formation mechanisms, namely ion evaporation and charge residue. Upon further inspection, it is proposed that the magic number intensity, homochiral selectivity, and unique formation of the serine octamer are best explained within the context of the ion evaporation mechanism. As a consequence, solution phase properties of the octamer become important, particularly in relation to interface effects present on the surface of the charged droplet. In contrast, other clusters of serine, including the B form of the octamer, are probably generated by the charge residue mechanism and may have no connection to condensed phase phenomena.     

Evaluation of electron-withdrawing group effects on heme binding in designed proteins: implications for heme a in cytochrome c oxidase

Heme a, the metalloporphyrin cofactor unique to cytochrome c oxidases, differs from the more common heme b by two chemical modifications, a C-2 hydroxyethylfarnesyl group and a C-8 formyl group. To elucidate a role of the C-8 formyl group, we compare the heme affinity, spectroscopy, and electrochemistry of a heme a mimic, Fe(diacetyldeuterioporphyrin IX) or Fe(DADPIX), with heme b, Fe(protoporphryrin IX) or Fe(PPIX), incorporated into a designed heme protein. The [Delta7-H3m]2 protein ligand, or maquette, selected for this study contains two equivalent bis-(3-methyl-L-histidine) heme binding sites within a four-alpha-helix bundle scaffold. The spectroscopic data on Fe(PPIX) and Fe(DADPIX) bound to [Delta7-H3m]2 demonstrate that these complexes are excellent synthetic analogues for natural cytochromes b and a, respectively. Comparison of the spectroscopic, electrochemical, and equilibrium thermodynamic data measured for the Fe(PPIX)-[Delta7-H3m]2 maquette with the previously reported Fe(PPIX)-[Delta7-His]2 complex demonstrates that changing the heme axial ligands to 3-methyl-L-histidine from L-histidine does not alter the resulting heme protein properties significantly in either oxidation state. Heme binding studies demonstrate that [Delta7-H3m]2 binds two ferrous Fe(DADPIX) or Fe(PPIX) moieties with similar dissociation constant values. However, in the ferric state, the data show that [Delta7-H3m]2 only binds a single Fe(DADPIX) and that one 2500-fold weaker than oxidized Fe(PPIX). The data demonstrate that the 4.6 kcal mol(-1) weakened affinity of [Delta7-H3m]2 for oxidized Fe(DADPIX) results in the majority of the 160 mV, 3.7 kcal mol(-1), positive shift in the heme reduction potential relative to Fe(PPIX). These data indicate that a role of the formyl group on heme a is to raise the iron reduction potential, thus making it a better electron acceptor, but that it does so by destabilizing the affinity of bis-imidazole sites for the ferric state.     

Mechanistic implications of nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling of aldehydes and chiral 1,6-enynes

[reaction: see text]. A study of nickel-catalyzed reductive coupling reactions of aldehydes and chiral 1,6-enynes has provided evidence for three distinct mechanistic pathways that govern regioselectivity in this transformation. In the absence of a phosphine additive, high regioselectivity and high diastereoselectivity are obtained as a direct result of coordination of both the alkyne and the olefin to the metal center during the C-C bond-forming step.