Synthesis and Thermal Decomposition of Mn-Al Layered Double Hydroxides

In this paper, the synthesis and thermal decomposition behavior of hydrotalcite-like Mn-Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) have been investigated. First, the Mn-Al LDH was synthesized by the coprecipitation method using various anions such as Cl⁻, CO²⁻₃, NO⁻₃, SO²⁻₄ or dicarboxylic acids (DCA). The single phase of the Mn-Al LDH was obtained when Cl⁻, NO⁻₃ or DCA was used as a guest anion. In the case of CO²⁻₃ or SO²⁻₄, the solid products included MnCO₃ or shigaite as a by-product. The crystallinity of the Cl/Mn-Al LDH was greatly influenced by a drying temperature and that the crystallinity of the Cl/Mn-Al LDH dried at room temperature was found to rise about 6 times in comparison with that dried at 333 K. The DCA/Mn-Al LDH was found to have an expanding LDH structure, supporting that the LDH basal layers were bridged by the intercalated DCA anion. Then, the thermal decomposition of the DCA/Mn-Al LDH has been examined, and the intercalated DCA was found to be decomposed at lower temperature than DCA itself. The oxidation number of Mn ion rose with increasing the heat treatment temperature and was +2.70 with crystallizing Mn₃O₄ after being heated at 973 K. The thermal decomposition of guest DCA was thought to be accelerated by the strong catalytic action of Mn ion in the host hydroxide basal layers.     

Deoxygenation of sugar trifluoromethanesulfonates by sodium metal in liquid ammonia and by photolysis

Several trifluoromethanesulfonyl(TFMS) derivatives of sugars were prepared and treated with sodium in liquid ammonia or subjected to ultraviolet irradiation. Three 3-$\text{O}$-TFMS derivatives gave the corresponding 3-deoxy compounds, but a 2-$\text{O}$-TFMS derivative gave a branched-chain sugar.     

Synthesis,magnetic properties,and electronic spectra of Bis(beta-diketonato)chromium(III) and nickel(II) complexes with a chelated imino nitroxide radical: X-ray structures of [Cr(acaMe)(2)(IM2py)]PF(6) and [Ni(acac)(2)(IM2py)

Two new series of each of four Cr(III) and Ni(II) imino nitroxide complexes with various kinds of beta-diketonates, [Cr(beta-diketonato)(2)(IM2py)]PF(6), and [Ni(beta-diketonato)(2)(IM2py)] (IM2py = 2-(2'-(pyridyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-1-oxy)) have been synthesized, and their structures and magnetic and optical properties have been examined. The X-ray analysis demonstrated that a IM2py ligand coordinated to Cr(III) and Ni(II) acts as a five-membered bidentate chelate. The variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurements indicated the antiferromagnetic and ferromagnetic interaction of Cr(III) and Ni(II) with IM2py, respectively, giving a variety of the magnetic coupling constant J values with varying the beta-diketonato ligands. The UV-vis shoulders around (19-20) x 10(3) and (17-18) x 10(3) cm(-)(1) for the Cr(III) and Ni(II) complexes, respectively, characteristic of the IM2py complexes were assigned to the metal-ligand charge-transfer transitions, Cr(t(2g))-SOMO(pi*) and Ni(e(g))-SOMO(pi*) MLCT in terms of the resonance Raman spectra and the variable-temperature absorption spectra. The absorption components centered around (13-14) x 10(3) cm(-1) for the Cr(III) and Ni(II) complexes were due to the formally spin-forbidden d-d transition within the t(2g) and e(g) subshells, associated with the intensity enhancement. The spectroscopic behavior with varying the beta-diketonato ligands is discussed in connection with the antiferromagnetic or ferromagnetic coupling constant J values on the basis of the exchange mechanism along with the coligand effect.     

84% catalyst activity of water-assisted growth of single walled carbon nanotube forest characterization by a statistical and macroscopic approach

We propose a statistical and macroscopic analysis to estimate the catalyst activity of water-assisted growth (super-growth) of single-walled nanotubes (SWNT) and to characterize SWNT forests. The catalyst activity was estimated to be 84% (+/-6%), the highest ever reported. The SWNT forest was found to be a very sparse material where SWNTs represent only 3.6% of the total volume. This structural sparseness is believed to play a critical role in achieving highly efficient growth.     

Area density and regularity for soap film-like surfaces spanning graphs

For a given boundary Γ in Rⁿ consisting of arcs and vertices, with two or more arcs meeting at each vertex, we treat the problem of estimating the area density of a soap film-like surface Σ spanning Γ. Σ is assumed locally to minimize area, or more generally, to be strongly stationary for area with respect to Γ. We introduce a notion of total curvature (Γ) for such graphs, or nets, Γ. We show that 2π times the area density of Σ at any point is less than or equal to (Γ). For n=3, these density estimates imply, for example, that if (Γ)≤3.649π, then the only possible singularities of a piecewise smooth (M,0,δ)-minimizing set Σ are curves, along which three smooth sheets of Σ meet with equal angles of 120^°. Second author supported in part by NSF grant 00-71862.     

Retroperitoneal ancient schwannoma presenting as an adrenal incidentaloma: CT and MR findings

A 35-year-old woman was referred to our institution for additional examinations to evaluate bilateral suprarenal masses incidentally found on abdominal ultrasonographic images obtained during an annual medical health checkup. Our computed tomographic scans showed bilateral and well-circumscribed low-density suprarenal masses, while MRI revealed the tumors to be heterogeneous with low intensity on T₁-weighted images and high intensity on T₂-weighted images. A laparoscopic adrenalectomy was performed under the suspicion of a malignant tumor, such as a malignant fibrous histiocytoma. Pathologic findings indicated a retroperitoneal ancient schwannoma of two histologic types: Antoni A and Antoni B. We considered that elucidation of the characteristic features of a schwannoma would provide helpful preoperative information for diagnosis.     

Optimum hole-opening condition for Cisplatin incorporation in single-wall carbon nanohorns and its release

We enclosed cisplatin (CDDP), an anticancer drug, inside single-wall carbon nanohorns (SWNH) with holes opened by being heated from room temperature to a target temperature (475-580 degrees C) in flowing dry air, with an increase rate of 1 degrees C/min. The optimum target temperature was found to be 500 degrees C, in terms of the least amount of CDDP deposited outside the SWNH, when the quantity of CDDP encapsulated inside the SWNH was 12 wt %. The incorporated CDDP was slowly released from the SWNH in phosphate buffer saline, and the released quantity was 80%, which was greatly improved from the previous value of 15%. This indicated that a CDDP-containing SWNH could become more potentially useful for biological applications.     

Electronic interplay on illuminated aqueous carbon nanohorn-porphyrin ensembles

Tetracationic water-soluble porphyrin (H(2)P(4+)) has been immobilized by pi-pi stacking interactions onto the skeleton of carbon nanohorns (CNH), without disrupting their pi-electronic network. The stable aqueous solution of the CNH-H(2)P(4+) nanoensemble was examined by both electron microscopy and spectroscopic techniques. The efficient fluorescence quenching of the H(2)P(4+) moiety in the CNH-H(2)P(4+) nanoensemble was probed by steady-state as well as time-resolved fluorescence emission spectroscopy, suggesting charge separation from the photoexcited H(2)P(4+) to CNH. In the presence of methyl viologen dication (MV(2+)) and a hole trap, accumulation of the reduced species of methyl viologen was observed by the photoillumination of CNH-H(2)P(4+), suggesting that the electron migration from the initially formed charge-separated state takes place. Transient absorption spectroscopy gave further insights on the transient species such as the charge-separated state (CNH(*-))-(H(2)P(4+))(*+), which was consumed in the presence of MV(2+) and hole shifter, leaving the reduced methyl viologen.