Direct polycondensation of nylon salts by polyphosphates and imidazole

Direct polycondensation of various nylon salts (salts of dicarboxylic acid and diamine) took place under mild conditions in the formation of polyamide in the presence of polyphosphates and organic bases. Among organic bases imidazole was the best in terms of polymer yields. The reactivity of the polyphosphates was arranged in following order: pyrophosphate ? tripolyphosphate > tetrapolyphosphate. Otimum reaction conditions were investigated in terms of solvents, temperatures, and concentration of monomers. A reaction mechanism was proposed for the phosphorylation reaction, due to polyphosphates, which led to the direct polycondensation of nylon salts.     

Thermally-Induced Phase Transitions in the Uniaxially-Oriented δ Form of Syndiotactic Polystyrene

The empty δ (δ_e) form of uniaxially-oriented syndiotactic polystyrene (sPS) samples were obtained by extracting the solvent molecules from the δ form of sPS and solvent complex in acetone and methanol. Temperature dependence of the X-ray fiber diagrams starting from the uniaxially-oriented δ_e and δ form has been measured successfully at various temperatures for the first time. The transition behavior was traced clearly by separating the equatorial and layer line reflections. The δ_e form transformed to the γ form via an intermediate form. The intermediate form is speculated to take disordered structure due to the empty cavities present in the δ_e form. Calorimetric studies showed an endotherm followed by an exotherm during this phase transition, which is consistant with such a speculation. On the other hand the δ form transformed to the γ form directly without passing through the intermediate form or δ_e form. During the δ to γ phase transition the solvent molecules evaporate through the columnar structure in a broad range of temperature, allowing the transition to occur smoothly.     

The influence of turbulence on a columnar vortex with axial flow

The interaction between a columnar vortex and external turbulence is investigated numerically. A q -vortex is immersed in an initially isotropic homogeneous turbulence field, which itself is produced numerically by a direct numerical simulation of decaying turbulence. The formation of turbulent eddies around the columnar vortex and the vortex-core deformations are studied in detail by visualizing the flow field. In the less-stable case with q = –1.5, small thin spiral structures are formed inside the vortex core. In the unstable case with q = –0.45, the linear unstable modes grow until the columnar vortex make one turn. Its growth rate agrees with that of the linear analysis of Mayer and Powell[1]. After two turns of the vortex, the secondary instability is excited, which causes collapse of the columnar q -vortex and the sudden appearance of many fine scale vortices. (© 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Total Synthesis and Complete Stereostructure of a Marine Macrolide Glycoside, (−)‐Lyngbyaloside B

We have described in detail the total synthesis of both the proposed and correct structures of (?)‐lyngbyaloside B, which facilitated the elucidation of the complete stereostructure of this natural product. Our study began with the total synthesis of 13‐demethyllyngbyaloside B, in which an esterification/ring‐closing metathesis (RCM) strategy was successfully used for the efficient construction of the macrocycle. We also established reliable methods for the introduction of the conjugated diene side chain and the l ‐rhamnose residue onto the macrocyclic framework. However, the esterification/RCM strategy proved ineffective for the parent natural product because of the difficulties in acylating the sterically encumbered C‐13 tertiary alcohol; macrolactionization of a seco‐acid was also extensively investigated under various conditions without success. We finally completed the total synthesis of the proposed structure of (?)‐lyngbyaloside B by means of a macrolactonization that involves an acyl ketene as the reactive species. However, the NMR spectroscopic data of our synthetic material did not match those of the authentic material, which indicated that the proposed structure must be re‐examined. Inspection of the NMR spectroscopic data of the natural product and molecular mechanics calculations led us to postulate that the configuration of the C‐10, C‐11, and C‐13 stereogenic centers had been incorrectly assigned in the proposed structure. Finally, our revised structure of (?)‐lyngbyaloside B was unambiguously verified through total synthesis.