Herringbone and Helical Self-Assembly of π-Conjugated Molecules in the Solid State through CH/π Hydrogen Bonds

Self-organization of organic molecules through weak noncovalent forces such as CH/π interactions and creation of large hierarchical supramolecular structures in the solid state are at the very early stage of research. The present study reports direct evidence for CH/π interaction driven hierarchical self-assembly in π-conjugated molecules based on custom-designed oligophenylenevinylenes (OPVs) whose structures differ only in the number of carbon atoms in the tails. Single-crystal X-ray structures were resolved for these OPV synthons and the existence of long-range multiple-arm CH/π interactions was revealed in the crystal lattices. Alignment of these π-conjugated OPVs in the solid state was found to be crucial in producing either right-handed herringbone packing in the crystal or left-handed helices in the liquid-crystalline mesophase. Pitch- and roll-angle displacements of OPV chromophores were determined to trace the effect of the molecular inclination on the ordering of hierarchical structures. Furthermore, circular dichroism studies on the OPVs were carried out in the aligned helical structures to prove the existence of molecular self-assembly. Thus, the present strategy opens up new approaches in supramolecular chemistry based on weak CH/π hydrogen bonding, more specifically in π-conjugated materials.     

Temperature Dependence of the Back-Stress in Shear for Glassy Polycarbonate

Summary: Back-stress is the equilibrium stress and represents conditions under which relaxation events in the material stop and the material can carry an applied load indefinitely without a change in strain. In most models for glassy polymers, back-stress plays a central role since relaxation in materials is closely related to the distance of the current conditions from equilibrium. A number of these models that are commonly used for modeling glassy polymers use a modeling structure similar to large deformation plasticity. The flow rule for the plastic strain in these models are directly connected to the “over-stress,” a properly invariant difference between the stress and the back-stress. The importance of correctly evaluating the back-stress to use in these models is clear. For this class of models, the authors have recently developed a method for directly calculating the back-stress under shear deformations. This method is based on evaluating the slope of the stress-strain response under conditions of similar elastic and plastic strain, but different strain rates. Since plastic flow goes to zero at equilibrium, the back-stress can be found by locating points of zero plastic strain rate. Using the proposed method, the back-stress in glassy polycarbonate has been evaluated under shear in isothermal tests going from room temperature to 120 °C, just below the glass transition temperature for polycarbonate. The proposed method provided a full map of the back-stress for polycarbonate over a large range of shear strain and temperature.     

Bayesian latent variable regression via Gibbs sampling: methodology and practical aspects

Bayesian latent variable regression (BLVR) aims to utilize all available information for empirical modeling via a Bayesian framework. Such information includes prior knowledge about the underlying variables, model parameters and measurement error distributions. This paper improves upon the existing optimization‐based BLVR (BLVR‐OPT) method [1] by developing a sampling‐based Bayesian latent variable regression (BLVR‐S) method that relies on Gibbs sampling. Use of the sampling‐based framework not only provides point estimates, but its ability to generate samples that represent the posterior distribution of the unknown variables, also readily provides error bounds. Features and advantages of this method are demonstrated via examples based on simulated data and real Near‐Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy data. Practical aspects of Bayesian modeling such as determining when the extra computation may be worth the effort are addressed by an empirical study of the effects of the amount of training data and signal to noise ratio (SNR). The benefits of BLVR seem to be most significant when the number of measurements is limited and when noise in output variables is relatively large. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Organoantimony compounds : VIII. Cleavage of Sb—O—Sb bonds in μ—oxybis(triphenyl -chloroantimony) and triphenylantimony oxide by methanol and acetylacetone

SbOSb bonds in (Ph₃ClSb)₂O and PH₃SbO are cleaved readily by methanol and acetylacetone. The reactions provide convenient synthetic routes for Ph₃Sb(OMe)Cl, Ph₃Sb(OMe)₂, Ph₃Sb(acac)Cl, and Ph₃Sb(acac)OH. Characterization of these compounds by infrared, Raman, and ¹H NMR spectral measurements is reported.     

Organobismuth compounds : V. Preparation,characterization, and properties of triphenylbismuth diazide and dicyanide

Triphenylbismuth diazide and the dicyanide have been prepared and characterized. Previously reported triphenylbismuth hydroxide cyanide has been shown to be triphenylbismuth dicyanide. A trigonal bipyramidal structure is indicated for both the compounds on the basis of their infrared and laser Raman spectra. The molecular weight and conductance data for the diazide in acetone are also in accord with a molecular structure. The dicyanide is, however, decomposed in solution into diphenylbismuth cyanide and benzonitrile. Thermal decomposition of the solid dicyanide and the diazide has also been studied. The possibility of the conversion of the diazide and the dicyanide into the corresponding dicyanate has been explored. Unlike transition metal azides, the triphenylbismuth diazide does not react with CO. Triphenylbismuth dicyanide could also not be converted into the corresponding dicyanate by reaction with either HgO or MnO₂. Reaction with HgO afforded triphenylbismuth oxide and the reaction with MnO₂ gave uncharacterized products.     

Simultaneous determination of nitrogen and lithium by thermal neutron activation analysis

The determination of lithium and nitrogen in a variety of materials by thermal neutron activation is described. The nuclear reactions used are ¹⁴N(n,p)¹⁴C and ⁶ Li(n,α)³H. Radionuclides. ¹⁴C and ³H for counting are isolated by fusion of the irradiated sample in a vacuum system. Data are presented on lithium and nitrogen concentrations in several terrestrial standards. The new method allows reliable measurements on 10–50-mg samples.     

Highly Efficient Non‐Palladium‐Catalyzed Controlled Synthesis and X‐ray Analysis of Functionalized 1,2‐Diaryl‐, 1,2,3‐Triaryl‐, and 1,2,3,4‐Tetraarylbenzenes

A general, two‐step, highly efficient synthesis of 1,2‐diaryl‐, 1,2,3‐triaryl‐, and 1,2,3,4‐tetraarylbenzenes from simple stitching of α‐oxo‐ketene‐S,S‐acetals and active methylene compounds via a lactone intermediate is described. This procedure offers easy access to highly functionalized arylated benzenes that contain sterically demanding groups in good to excellent yields. The novelty of the procedure lies in the construction of aromatic compounds with the desired conformational flexibility along the molecular axis in a transition‐metal‐free environment through easily accessible precursors. Crystal analysis of these arylated benzene scaffolds showed that the peripheral aryl rings are arranged in a propeller‐like fashion with respect to the central benzene ring. Examination of the crystal packing in the structure of a 1,2,3,4‐tetraarylbenzene revealed an N???π interaction between molecules related by a two‐fold screw axis running in the direction of the a axis. Interestingly, the repeating array of N???π interactions around the axis of this 1,2,3,4‐tetraarylbenzene forces the molecules into a helical pattern.     

Chiral separation of labetalol stereoisomers in human plasma by capillary electrophoresis

A newly derivatized cyclodextrin [octakis-(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-gamma-cyclodextrin] was investigated as a chiral selector in capillary zone electrophoresis in a study of the chiral separation of labetalol stereoisomers. Heptakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-beta-cyclodextrin (HDAS-beta-CD) and octakis(2,3-diacetyl-6-sulfato)-gamma-cyclodextrin (ODAS-gamma-CD) were shown to be effective in separating labetalol stereoisomers. Optimal separating conditions of the four stereoisomers of labetalol were achieved with 10 mM HDAS-beta-CD and 10 mM ODAS-gamma-CD in an acidic pH buffer of low molarity. Data illustrating the effects of capillary length and cyclodextrin concentration on the separation are presented. The longer capillary length and high voltage enabled the baseline separation of all isomers in less than 15 min. The optimized method was applied to the analysis of human control plasma containing labetalol utilizing solid-phase extraction (SPE) in the 96-well format.