Salt flux crystal growth of the titanyl arsenate NaTiO[AsO4]

Abstract  

The titanyl arsenate NaTiO[AsO₄] was synthesized in the form of colourless lath-shaped crystals from arsenic and titanium dioxide in a NaCl/KCl flux at 850 °C. NaTiO[AsO₄] crystallizes with the monoclinic low-temperature form LT-CaTiO[SiO₄], space group P2₁/c. The structure was refined from single crystal diffractometer data: a = 6.7170(9), b = 8.7707(12), c = 7.2447(10) ?, β = 114.77(1)°, wR2 = 0.0559, 789 F ² values, and 74 variables. NaTiO[AsO₄] is characterized by a topology common to a wide range of oxide structures of stoichiometry AMOXO₄. It consists of parallel chains of trans-corner-sharing TiO₆ octahedra, cross-linked by isolated AsO₄ tetrahedra.     

Copper-catalyzed enantioselective synthesis of trans-1-alkyl-2-substituted cyclopropanes via tandem conjugate addition-intramolecular enolate trapping

Cu-TolBINAP-catalyzed conjugate addition of Grignard reagents to 4-chloro-α,β-unsaturated esters, thioesters, and ketones leads to 4-chloro-3-alkyl-substituted thioesters and ketones in up to 84% yield and up to 96% ee upon protonation of the corresponding enolates at low temperature. Tandem conjugate addition-enolate trapping, however, yields trans-1-alkyl-2-substituted cyclopropanes in up to 92% yield and up to 98% ee. The versatility of this reaction is illustrated by the formation of key intermediates for the formal syntheses of cascarillic acid and grenadamide.     

NosA catalyzing carboxyl-terminal amide formation in nosiheptide maturation via an enamine dealkylation on the serine-extended precursor peptide

The carboxyl-terminal amide group has been often found in many bioactive peptide natural products, including nosiheptide belonging to the over 80 entity-containing thiopeptide family. Upon functional characterization of a novel protein NosA in nosiheptide biosynthesis, herein we report an unusual C-terminal amide forming strategy in general for maturating certain amide-terminated thiopeptides by processing their precursor peptides featuring a serine extension. NosA acts on an intermediate bearing a bis-dehydroalanine tail and catalyzes an enamide dealkylation to remove the acrylate unit originating from the extended serine residue.     

Production of color centers in PMMA by ultrashort laser pulses

We report here the creation of color centers in commercial, transparent PMMA samples by ultrashort pulses from a Ti:Sapphire laser emitting at 800 nm, with spatial control. Although the 800 nm photon energy is not sufficient to ionize the polymer, the centers are created following a multiphotonic absorption that causes the ionization. We propose that the free electrons quivering motion on the pulse electric field displaces atoms from its equilibrium positions, creating free radicals and double bonds that coalesce into color centers. The absorption and emission spectra of the centers were measured, but a dose-like curve could not be built due to the presence of damages created along with the centers that scatter the excitation and emission lights due to the commercial sample's poor optical quality.     

3-吡咯烷基苯并蒽酮的电子结构和光谱性质

苯并蒽酮衍生物在新型荧光材料、非线性光学材料和液晶显示材料等领域有较大的应用前景.本文采用量子化学方法优化了3-吡咯烷基苯并蒽酮的基态几何结构和第一单重激发态的几何结构,并与X射线晶体衍射实验值进行了对比.利用含时密度泛函理论(TD-DFT)的不同泛函,计算了3-吡咯烷基苯并蒽酮在气相和溶剂中的吸收和发射光谱,考察了它的电子结构和光谱特征,并分析了不同泛函、基组以及溶剂效应对吸收和发射光谱的影响.计算结果表明:3-吡咯烷基苯并蒽酮的最强吸收和发射光谱都是具有π→π*跃迁特征的电荷转移(CT)态;泛函B3LYP能较好地重现实验吸收能;而对于具有分子内电荷转移特征的激发态,泛函MPWK能较好地重现实验发射能.溶剂效应的计算表明,不同极性的溶剂对3-吡咯烷基苯并蒽酮的吸收光谱和发射光谱的影响较小.理论预测的光谱与实验结果一致.     

Theoretical prediction of fast 3D AC electro-osmotic pumps

AC electro-osmotic (ACEO) pumps in microfluidics currently involve planar electrode arrays, but recent work on the underlying phenomenon of induced-charge electro-osmosis (ICEO) suggests that three-dimensional (3D) geometries may be exploited to achieve faster flows. In this paper, we present some new design principles for periodic 3D ACEO pumps, such as the "fluid conveyor belt" of ICEO flow over a stepped electrode array. Numerical simulations of these designs (using the standard low-voltage model) predict flow rates almost twenty times faster than existing planar ACEO pumps, for the same applied voltage and minimum feature size. These pumps may enable new portable or implantable lab-on-a-chip devices, since rather fast (mm s(-1)), tuneable flows should be attainable with battery voltages (<10 V).     

PegPhos: a monodentate phosphoramidite ligand for enantioselective rhodium-catalysed hydrogenation in water

A BICOL derived monodentate phosphoramidite ligand gives ee's up to 89% in the enantioselective Rh-catalysed hydrogenation of N-acyl dehydroalanine using water as the solvent.     

Functional perovskite hybrid of polyacetylene ammonium and lead bromide: Synthesis, light emission, and fluorescence imagining

A highly photoresponsive perovskite hybrid containing an electroactive organic component (H1) was fabricated. A disubstituted polyacetylene (PA) with a hidden amino functionality (P3) was synthesized, hydrolysis and quaternization of which afforded the desired PA ammonium salt (P5). Mixing P5 with lead bromide readily yielded H1, which was stable, soluble, and film-forming. The inorganic framework induced the polymer chains to align in an ordered fashion, which helped to populate the chain segments with long conjugation lengths. The hybrid emitted a blue light (457 nm) in a high quantum yield (62%), thanks to the enhanced electronic conjugation, the weakened interaction between the layer-segregated chains, and the efficient energy transfer from the inorganic sheets to the organic layers. P3 exhibited a half-discharge time as short as approximately 0.7 s, representing the first example of an efficient photoconductive disubstituted PA. While stable to normal light illumination, H1 was rapidly bleached upon exposure to high-power UV irradiation, enabling facile generation of two-dimensional luminescent photopatterns. After the UV irradiation, the emissions of P9 and P9/H12 were enhanced and weakened, respectively, proving that the inorganic perovskite framework works as a photocatalyst for accelerating the bleaching process of the conjugated PA chains.