Femtosecond Diffuse-Reflectance Spectroscopy of Various Commercially Available TiO2 Powders

The transient absorption properties of several commercially available TiO₂ photocatalysts were investigated by femtosecond diffuse-reflectance spectroscopy. Using femtosecond diffuse-reflectance spectroscopy, the quantities and rates of the initial trapping processes of holes and electrons generated by the photoexcitation of TiO₂ photocatalysts were investigated. It was found that the total amounts of trapped electrons for the pure-anatase and pure-rutile TiO₂ became smaller with increasing particle size, but increased again when the particles’ diameters were larger than 50 nm. The anatase–rutile mixed TiO₂ photocatalysts were found to have smaller amounts of trapped electrons compared with pure-anatase and pure-rutile TiO₂ photocatalysts. The lifetimes of trapped holes of various TiO₂ photocatalysts were also investigated, and it was found that the lifetimes were proportional to the anatase–rutile mixed ratios.     

Complexability of o-bisguanidinobenzenes with arsenic and phosphoric acids in solution and solid states, and the potential use of their immobilized derivatives as solid base ligands for metal salts and arsenic acid

The role of o-bisguanidinobenzenes (BGBs) as new Brønsted base ligands for arsenic and phosphoric acids was examined. In solution state, complexation was evaluated by Job’s plot in ¹H NMR experiment, indicating a 1:1 complex formation, whereas in solid state crystalline structures of complexes obtained were addressed by X-ray crystallographic analysis and/or solid state ¹³C NMR experiment, in which 1:2 complexes between the BGB and the acid components were normally formed. Based on these results, Merrifield and Hypogel^® resin-anchored BGBs were designed and prepared as the corresponding polymer-supported host ligands. Evaluation of their coordination ability with metal salts (ZnCl₂ and CoCl₂) and arsenic acid in aqueous media by ICP-MS showed that the latter Hypogel^® resin-anchored BGBs acted as effective immobilized base ligands.     

Sesquifulvalene Trapping as a [12+2] Adduct with Tetracyanoethylene

Sesquifulvalene (1) is a substance of considerable theoretical interest¹ which is expected to have a significant contribution to its structure from the dipolar resonance form 1b,² and hence an exceptionally low bond order for the central double bond. Although a wide variety of annelated and otherwise substituted sesquifulvalenes have been prepared and characterized,³ the parent substance has proved remarkably elusive. Very recently, a preparation of 1 in crystalline form has been reported, based upon elimination of an acetoxy-11,12-dihydrosesquifulvalene derivative.⁴     

Synthesis and Metal Complex Formation of a Bis(terpyridine) Derivative with a Phenylacetylene Framework

A new bis(terpyridine) derivative with a phenylacetylene framework was synthesized via a stepwise terpyridine construction strategy. The addition of ZnCl₂ to a solution of the bis(terpyridine) in chloroform resulted in UV/vis and ¹H NMR spectral changes because of complex formation.     

Optical properties of highly planar diketopyrrolopyrrole derivatives fixed by coordinate bonds

Diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) derivatives bearing 2-pyridyl groups were synthesized, which could serve as anionic N,N′-chelate ligands consisting of two nitrogen atoms of the lactam moieties and the pyridyl groups. Coordination of the DPP ligand to boron and platinum yielded the corresponding DPP complexes. Their crystal structures exhibited coplanar structures between the DPP core and the 2-pyridyl groups, which indicated extended π-conjugation. The maximum absorption wavelength of the DPP complexes was longer than that of the corresponding DPP ligands. The choice of the introduced element affects the optical properties of the DPP complexes; the platinum complex has a longer absorption wavelength than the boron complex. The theoretical calculation revealed that these absorptions can be attributed to the π–π* transition. The introduction of the coordinating elements predominantly lowers the band gap. In addition, the substituent on the 2-pyridyl group can also modulate the energy levels.     

Systematic Tuning and Switching of Neutral and Ionic Phases in a Donor–Acceptor Chain Compound by Doping with Less‐Active Donors and by Pressure Application

The temperature‐induced stepwise neutral–ionic (N–I) phase transition in the covalently bonded donor–acceptor chain compound [Ru₂(2,3,5,6‐F₄PhCO₂)₄DMDCNQI] ? 2(p‐xylene) (2,3,5,6‐F₄PhCO₂^?=2,3,5,6‐tetrafluorobenzoate; DMDCNQI=2,5‐dimethyl‐N,N′‐dicyanoquinodiimine) was systematically tuned over a wide temperature range using two techniques: 1) A chemical technique based on doping with a less‐active donor unit [Ru₂^II,II(F₅PhCO₂)₄] (F₅PhCO₂^?=pentafluorobenzoate), thereby providing an isostructural doped series [{Ru₂^II,II(2,3,5,6‐F₄PhCO₂)₄}_1?x{Ru₂^II,II(F₅PhCO₂)₄}_xDMDCNQI] ? 2(p‐xylene), with x=0.06, 0.10, 0.21, and 0.24; and 2) a physical technique, which was the application of hydrostatic pressure to the doped compounds. The stepwise N–I transition observed in the original compound was systematically varied in terms of the viewpoints of both transition temperature and transition features (stepwise or monotonic) dependent on the amount of dopants x. Application of pressure efficiently tuned the N–I transitions, with the oxidation phases being dramatically modified by applying only weak pressure up to 4 kbar. Even in cases that led to N–I transitions in small domains of the chains at ambient pressure, the application of pressure caused an expansion of the domains that enabled N–I transitions, finally leading to a complete change in the oxidation state of the chains, from neutral to ionic, accompanied by a change from a paramagnetic state to a ferrimagnetically ordered state.     

Octacyanidorhenate(V) Ion as an Efficient Linker for Hysteretic Two-Step Iron(II) Spin Crossover Switchable by Temperature,Light, and Pressure

A two-step hysteretic Fe^II spin crossover (SCO) effect was achieved in programmed layered Cs{[Fe(3-CNpy)₂][Re(CN)₈]}⋅H₂O ( 1 ) (3-CNpy=3-cyanopyridine) assembly consisting of cyanido-bridged Fe^II-Re^V square grid sheets bonded by Cs⁺ ions. The presence of two non-equivalent Fe^II sites and the conjunction of 2D bimetallic coordination network with non-covalent interlayer interactions involving Cs⁺, [Re^V(CN)₈]³⁻ ions, and 3-CNpy ligands, leads to the occurrence of two steps of thermal SCO with strong cooperativity giving a double thermal hysteresis loop. The resulting spin-transition phenomenon could be tuned by an external pressure giving the room-temperature range of SCO, as well as by visible-light irradiation, inducing an efficient recovery of the high-spin Fe^II state at low temperatures. We prove that octacyanidorhenate(V) ion is an outstanding metalloligand for induction of a cooperative multistep, multiswitchable Fe^II SCO effect.