Kinetics of thermal decomposition of alkaline phosphates

Summary The thermal behavior of KH₂PO₄, NaH₂PO₄ and Na₂HPO₄ under non-isothermal conditions using TG method with different heating rates was studied. The values of the reaction rate were processed by means of Friedmans differential-isoconversional method. A dependence of the activation energy vs. conversion was observed. Therefore a procedure based on the compensation effect (suggested by Budrugeac and Segal) was applied. A less speculative data processing protocol was offered by the non-parametric kinetics method suggested by Serra, Nomen and Sempere. Three steps were observed by non-isothermal heating: a dehydration, a dimerization and a polycondensation. The differences in the intimate reaction mechanism are determined by the initial number of water molecules.     

Interaction of gas phase atomic hydrogen with Pt(111):Direct evidence for the formation of bulk hydrogen species

Employing hot tungsten filament to thermal dissociate molecular hydrogen,we generated gas phase atomic hydrogen under ultra-high vacuum(UHV)conditions and investigated its interaction with Pt(111) surface.Thermal desorption spectroscopy(TDS)results demonstrate that adsorption of molecular hy- drogen on Pt(111)forms surface Had species whereas adsorption of atomic hydrogen forms not only surface Had species but also bulk Had species.Bulk Had species is more thermal-unstable than surface Had species on Pt(111),suggesting that bulk Had species is more energetic.This kind of weakly- adsorbed bulk Had species might be the active hydrogen species in the Pt-catalyzed hydrogenation reactions.     

An Easy One-Pot Procedure for the Synthesis of <Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-Sulfonyl Phosphorous Ylides and Sulfonyl Iminophosphoranes

Summary. Reaction of triphenylphosphine and an electron deficient acetylenic ester in the presence of strong N–H acid such as alkyl and aryl sulfamides or acetamide produces phosphorous ylides at room temperature in CH₂Cl₂. The aryl sulfamide phosphoranes undergo a smooth transformation reaction in boiling toluene and produce iminophosphoranes.     

Identification of the function of gene lndM2 encoding a bifunctional oxygenase-reductase involved in the biosynthesis of the antitumor antibiotic landomycin E by Streptomyces globisporus 1912 supports the originally assigned structure for landomycinone

The angucycline antibiotic family of the landomycins displays potent antitumor activity. To elucidate early post polyketide synthase (PKS) tailoring steps of the landomycin E biosynthetic pathway in Streptomyces globisporus 1912, the mutant S. globisporus M12 was prepared through gene replacement experiment of lndM2. It encodes an enzyme with putative oxygenase and reductase domains, according to sequencing of the gene and its counterpart lanM2 from S. cyanogenus S136 landomycin A biosynthetic gene cluster. The isolation of the novel shunt products 11-hydroxytetrangomycin and 4-hydroxytetrangomycin along with the well-known angucyclines tetrangomycin and tetrangulol from the culture of S. globisporus M12 provides evidence for the involvement of lndM2 in the early biosynthetic pathway of the landomycins, in particular in the formation of the alicyclic 6-hydroxy function of the landomycin aglycon. We therefore propose LndM2 to be responsible for both hydroxylation of the 6-position and its subsequent reduction. These reactions are necessary before the glycosylation reactions can occur. The results are in agreement with the originally published structure of landomycin but do not support the recently suggested revised structure.     

Host-guest complexes of crown ethers with HN-proton-donor molecules

Crown ethers were reacted with HN-proton-donor molecules to obtain crystalline molecular host-guest complexes. It was found that complexes with crown ethers of different structure are formed, depending on the linear dimensions and mode of steric shielding of active centers of the proton-donor molecules.Translated from Zhurnal Obshchei Khimii, Vol. 74, No. 12, 2004, pp. 2030–2033.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Wang, Ganin.This revised version was published online in April 2005 with a corrected cover date.     

Molecular Beam Mass Spectrometry System for Characterization of Thermal Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition

A molecular beam mass spectrometry system for in situ measurement of the concentration of gas phase species including radicals impinging on a substrate during thermal plasma chemical vapor deposition (TPCVD) has been designed and constructed. Dynamically controlled substrate temperature was achieved using a variable thermal contact resistance method via a backside flow of an argon/helium mixture. A high quality molecular beam with beamtobackground signal greater than 20 was obtained under film growth conditions by sampling through a small nozzle (75 m) in the center of the substrate. Mass discrimination effects were accounted for in order to quantify the species measurements. We demonstrate that this system has a minimum detection limit of under 100 ppb. Quantitative measurements of hydrocarbon species (H, H₂, C, CH₃, CH₄, C₂H₂, C₂H₄) using Ar/H₂/CH₄ mixtures and silicon species (Si, SiH, SiH₂, SiCl, SiCl₂, Cl, HCl) using Ar/H₂/SiCl₄ mixtures were obtained under thermal plasma chemical vapor deposition conditions.     

Polystyrene/thermoplastic starch blends with different plasticizers

Conventional plastics has a large impact in increasing the environment’s pollution. That’s why the interest has turned towards novel partially and completely biodegradable polymers. In this work, blends of polystyrene and thermoplastic starch with glycerol and Buriti (Mauritia flexuosa L.) oil as plasticizers were prepared. Samples were analyzed using TG/DTG and DSC techniques. The TG results indicated that the blends with Buriti oil are thermally more stable than those with glycerol. The DSC analysis that Buriti oil provides a higher degree of plasticization of PS, compared to the blends plasticized using glycerol under the studied conditions.     

Synthesis and structural characterization of a fully conjugated macrocyclic tetraaza(14)-membered Schiff base and its bivalent metal complexes

A novel 14-membered macrocyclic Schiff base derived from 3-cinnamalideneacetoacetanilide and o-phenylenediamine acts as a tetradentate and strongly conjugated ligand to form a cationic solid complex with CuCl₂/NiCl₂/CoCl₂/ZnCl₂. The ligand and the complexes were characterized by the usual spectral and analytical techniques. The main i.r. band of the macrocyclic Schiff base was compared to that of its metal complexes. The C=N bands are shifted to the lower wave number. The cyclic voltammogram of the copper complex shows that the macrocyclic ligand is able to stabilize the copper(III) oxidation state. The e.s.r. spectra of the copper complex in DMSO solution at room temperature and liquid N₂ temperature were recorded and their salient features thoroughly discussed. The antimicrobial screening tests were also recorded and gave good results in the presence of metal ions in the ligand system.     

The Role of Carnitine Acyltransferases in the Maintenance of Cell Function

Summary. Carnitine acyltransferases catalyse equilibria between acyl-CoA esters and the respective acylcarnitines. Therefore, they act not only as pathway enzymes, but also as modulators of acyl-CoA concentrations within individual sub-cellular compartments. Because acyl-CoA esters are potent biologically active metabolites, carnitine acyltransferase activities are potentially able to affect a diverse range of physiological processes, ranging from insulin secretion, to appetite control, and insulin sensitivity of tissues. The distinctive subcellular distributions of the different types of carnitine acyltransferases also enables them to participate in the transfer of acyl moieties across intracellular membranes, and of particular acylcarnitine esters across the plasma membrane and into the plasma. Pharmacological strategies that make use of these properties to improve cell function are discussed.