Syntheses and Crystal Structures of Two Metal Succinates Modified by Bipyridines

Two new metal succinates modified by rigid bipyridines, Cd(4, 4′‐bpy)(C₄H₄O₄)·1/4H₂O ( 1 ) and Cu(2, 2′‐bpy)(C₄H₄O₄)_0.5(NO₃)(H₂O) ( 2 ) (bpy = bipyridine), have been synthesized by hydrothermal reactions and structurally determined. Complex 1 crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Cmca with the cell parameters a = 11.696(2), b = 15.554(2), c = 15.874(3) Å, α = β = γ = 90.00°, V = 2888(3) ų, Z = 8. Complex 2 crystallizes in the triclinic space group with a = 7.077(1), b = 9.838(2), c = 10.461(2) Å, α = 71.941(3)°, β = 73.078(3)°, γ = 74.502(3)°, V = 649.8(2) ų, Z = 2. In complex 1 , a 2‐D network was formed by Cd‐succinato bonding. The 2‐D networks are pillared by 4, 4′‐bpy ligands, forming a 3‐D grid framework. The 2‐fold interpenetration of the resulting 3‐D frameworks completes the molecular structure. In complex 2 , the Cu^II atom adopts a distorted octahedral in which the Cu^II atoms are bridged by two H₂O molecules into an infinite zigzag chain, [Cu₂(H₂O)₂(C₄H₄O₄)]_n. The neighboring chains are further linked by π‐π stacking interactions into a 2‐D network, and the interlayer hydrogen bonds lead to the final 3‐D crystal structure.     

Displaced π–π stacking and hydrogen bonds in 3‐bromo‐N‐(2‐hydroxy‐1,1‐di­methyl­ethyl)­benz­amide

The mol­ecules of the title compound, C₁₁H₁₄BrNO₂, are assembled into a two‐dimensional network by a combination of hydrogen bonds and stacking interactions. The phenyl rings are stacked along the c direction by displaced π–π interactions, forming a lipophilic layer. The aliphatic amide residues are interconnected along [100] by O—H⋯O, N—H⋯O and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming hydro­philic layers.     

Polymeric (μ2‐nitrato‐κ2O:O′)(μ2‐nitrato‐κ2O:O)(μ4‐pyridinium‐4‐thiol­ato‐κ4S:S:S:S)­disilver(I)

The title compound, [Ag₂(NO₃)₂(C₅H₅NS)]_n, was obtained from the reaction of silver nitrate with bis(4‐pyridyl) disufide (4‐PDS) in a mixture of ethanol and water, which suggests that the di­sulfide bond of 4‐PDS can be cleaved under mild conditions. The structure of the title compound is a two‐dimensional infinite array in which the asymmetric unit contains two Ag atoms, a pyridinium‐4‐thiol­ate mol­ecule and two nitrate groups. Each pyridinium‐4‐thiol­ate mol­ecule acts as a μ₄ bridge, linking four Ag atoms, with Ag—S bond distances of 2.4870 (19), 2.5791 (19), 2.5992 (19) and 2.848 (2) Å. The Ag⋯Ag distances lie in the range 2.889 (2)–3.049 (1) Å.     

Effect of Surface‐Hydroxylated CdS Nanoparticles on the Morphological Transformation of Polystyrene‐block‐Poly(ethylene oxide) Thin Films

Summary: Polystyrene‐block‐poly(ethylene oxide) (SEO) block copolymer thin films, in which CdS clusters have been sequestered into the PEO domains of the SEO block copolymers, are found to induce the morphological transformation of PEO from cylinders to spheres, as shown by using atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). This transformation is caused by the presence of hydrogen‐bonding interactions between surface‐hydroxylated CdS and PEO, as confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies.

Morphological transformation of PEO cylinders into CdS/PEO spheres by hydrogen‐bonding interactions between surface‐hydroxylated CdS and PEO.     

Enantioseparation of amino acid derivatives on an immobilized network polymer derived from L-tartaric acid

Seven structurally related amino acid derivatives were successfully enantioseparated by HPLC with a commercially available column containing a chiral immobilized network polymer derived from L-tartaric acid. The experiments were carried out under normal-phase conditions. All the solutes could be baseline separated using n-hexane/2-propanol (95/5) as eluent at a flow rate of 1 ml/min at 25 degrees C, with reasonable retention time (<12 min). The effects of the polar alcohol modifier (type and content) in the mobile phase and the column temperature on the enantioseparation were studied. Apparent thermodynamic parameters were also calculated from the plots of ln alpha or ln k' versus 1/T. Some mechanistic aspects of chiral recognition were discussed with respect to the structures of the solutes. It was found that the enantioseparations are all enthalpy driven, and the N-acyl groups of the solutes have significant influence on the chiral recognition.     

Investigation of the effects of Au-colloid modification on cobalt hexacyanoferrate film growth and mass transport by electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance

The growth of cobalt hexacyanoferrate (CoHCF) films on bare and Au-colloid-modified electrodes in nitrate or sulfate solutions was monitored by electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance. The average efficiency of CoHCF film growth for Au colloid modified electrodes is 23 and 12 ng cm(-2) s(-1) in KNO3 and K2SO4 solutions, respectively, while those values for the bare gold electrode are 15 and 9 ng cm(-2) s(-1), respectively. In K2SO4 solution, the apparent molar masses for the Au-colloid-modified electrode at lower and higher potential is 58.4 and 37.3 g mol(-1), respectively, which is larger than those for the bare gold electrode (51.7 and 26.3 g mol(-1), respectively). The respective results were also obtained in KNO3 solution. Furthermore, the difference of the apparent molar masses at lower and higher potential for Au-colloid-modified electrodes is smaller than that for bare gold electrodes in the same electrolyte. Additionally, the mechanism of charge propagation is dependent on different anions in electrolyte solutions at higher potentials where the second redox reaction of CoHCF occurs. Therefore, the existence of Au colloids can accelerate CoHCF film growth and weaken the effect of anions on mass transport.     

Inclusion-water-cluster in a three-dimensional superlattice of gold nanoparticles

Three-dimensional particle crystals made of dicarboxylic thiolate (MSA)-stabilized gold nanoparticles were formed at an air/water interface. FTIR spectra of this supracrystal showed that three well-resolved peaks existed from 3400 to 3550 cm-1 just falling in a region of OH stretching vibrational mode. Precise analysis showed that all these peaks originated from the water cluster included in the interstice of a particle crystal.     

Crystal engineering of a versatile building block toward the design of novel inorganic-organic coordination architectures

Six novel inorganic-organic coordination supramolecular networks based on a versatile linking unit 4-pyridylthioacetate (pyta) and inorganic Co(II), Cu(II), Ag(I), Zn(II), Mn(II) and Pb(II) salts have been prepared in water medium and structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Reaction of CoCl(2).6H(2)O with Hpyta afforded a neutral mononuclear complex [Co(pyta)(2)(H(2)O)(4)](1), which exhibits a two-dimensional (2-D) layered architecture through intermolecular O-HO interactions. Reaction of CuCl(2.2H(2)O with Hpyta yielded a neutral one-dimensional (1-D) coordination polymer [[Cu(pyta)(2)(H(2)O].0.5H(2)O](n)(2) consisting of rectangle molecular square units, which show a three-dimensional (3-D) supramolecular network through S...S and O-H...O weak interactions. However, when AgNO(3), Zn(OAc)(2).2H(2)O or MnCl(2).4H(2)O salts were used in the above self-assembled processes, the neutral 2-D coordination polymers [Ag(pyta)](n)(3), [[Zn(pyta)(2)].4H(2)O](n)(4) or [[Mn(pyta)(2)(H(2)O)]](n)(5) with different topologies were obtained, respectively. While substituting the transition metal ions used in 1-5 with Pb(OAc)(2).3H(2)O, a one-dimensional coordination polymer [Pb(pyta)(2)](n)(6), which shows a novel 2-fold interpenetrating 2-D supramolecular architecture through weak SS interactions, was isolated. It is interesting to note that the building block pyta anion exhibits different configurations and coordination modes in the solid structures of complexes 1-6. These results indicate that the versatile nature of this flexible ligand, together with the coordination preferences of the metal centers, play a critical role in construction of these novel coordination polymers or supramolecules. The spectral and thermal properties of these new materials have also been investigated.     

Developing novel activity-based fluorescent probes that target different classes of proteases

In this article, we report the design and synthesis of a group of novel activity-based probes that target different protease sub-classes based on their substrate specificities, rather than their enzymatic mechanisms. The feasibility of our approach has been demonstrated by using representative members of the different protease sub-classes.