One‐Pot Cooperation of Single‐Atom Rh and Ru Solid Catalysts for a Selective Tandem Olefin Isomerization‐Hydrosilylation Process

Realizing the full potential of oxide‐supported single‐atom metal catalysts (SACs) is key to successfully bridge the gap between the fields of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. Here we show that the one‐pot combination of Ru₁/CeO₂ and Rh₁/CeO₂ SACs enables a highly selective olefin isomerization‐hydrosilylation tandem process, hitherto restricted to molecular catalysts in solution. Individually, monoatomic Ru and Rh sites show a remarkable reaction specificity for olefin double‐bond migration and anti‐Markovnikov α‐olefin hydrosilylation, respectively. First‐principles DFT calculations ascribe such selectivity to differences in the binding strength of the olefin substrate to the monoatomic metal centers. The single‐pot cooperation of the two SACs allows the production of terminal organosilane compounds with high regio‐selectivity (>95 %) even from industrially‐relevant complex mixtures of terminal and internal olefins, alongside a straightforward catalyst recycling and reuse. These results demonstrate the significance of oxide‐supported single‐atom metal catalysts in tandem catalytic reactions, which are central for the intensification of chemical processes.     

Dihydrogen Adduct (Co–H2) Complexes Displaying H-Atom and Hydride Transfer

The prototypical reactivity profiles of transition metal dihydrogen complexes (M-H₂) are well-characterized with respect to oxidative addition (to afford dihydrides, M(H)₂) and as acids, heterolytically delivering H⁺ to a base and H⁻ to the metal. In the course of this study we explored plausible alternative pathways for H₂ activation, namely direct activation through H-atom or hydride transfer from the σ-H₂ adducts. To this end, we describe herein the reactivity of an isostructural pair of a neutral S= and an anionic S=0 Co-H₂ adduct, both supported by a trisphosphine borane ligand (P₃^B). The thermally stable metalloradical, (P₃^B)Co(H₂), serves as a competent precursor for hydrogen atom transfer to ^tBu₃ArO^⋅. What is more, its anionic derivative, the dihydrogen complex [(P₃^B)Co(H₂)]¹⁻, is a competent precursor for hydride transfer to BEt₃, establishing its remarkable hydricity. The latter finding is essentially without precedent among the vast number of M-H₂ complexes known.     

Optical tweezers applied to a microfluidic system

We will demonstrate how optical tweezers can be combined with a microfluidic system to create a versatile microlaboratory. Cells are moved between reservoirs filled with different media by means of optical tweezers. We show that the cells, on a timescale of a few seconds, can be moved from one reservoir to another without the media being dragged along with them. The system is demonstrated with an experiment where we expose E. coli bacteria to different fluorescent markers. We will also discuss how the system can be used as an advanced cell sorter. It can favorably be used to sort out a small fraction of cells from a large population, in particular when advanced microscopic techniques are required to distinguish various cells. Patterns of channels and reservoirs were generated in a computer and transferred to a mask using either a sophisticated electron beam technique or a standard laser printer. Lithographic methods were applied to create microchannels in rubber silicon (PDMS). Media were transported in the channels using electroosmotic flow. The optical system consisted of a combined confocal and epi-fluorescence microscope, dual optical tweezers and a laser scalpel.     

Improved protein identification efficiency by mass spectrometry using N-terminal chemical derivatization of peptides from Angiostrongylus costaricensis, a nematode with unknown genome

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI), Peptide Mass Fingerprinting (PMF) and MALDI-MS/MS ion search (using MASCOT) have become the preferred methods for high-throughput identification of proteins. Unfortunately, PMF can be ambiguous, mainly when the genome of the organism under investigation is unknown and the quality of spectra generated is poor and does not allow confident identification. The post-source decay (PSD) fragmentation of singly charged tryptic peptide ions generated by MALDI-TOF/TOF typically results in low fragmentation efficiency and/or complex spectra, including backbone fragmentation ions (series b and y), internal fragmentation etc. Interpreting these data either manually and/or using de novo sequencing software can frequently be a challenge. To overcome this limitation when studying the proteome of adult Angiostrongylus costaricensis, a nematode with unknown genome, we have used chemical N-terminal derivatization of the tryptic peptides with 4-sulfophenyl isothiocyanate (SPITC) prior to MALDI-TOF/TOF MS. This methodology has recently been reported to enhance the quality of MALDI-TOF/TOF-PSD data, allowing the obtainment of complete sequence of most of the peptides and thus facilitating de novo peptide sequencing. Our approach, consisting of SPITC derivatization along with manual spectra interpretation and Blast analysis, was able to positively identify 76% of analyzed samples, whereas MASCOT analysis of derivatized samples, MASCOT analysis of nonderivatized samples and PMF of nonderivatized samples yielded only 35, 41 and 12% positive identifications, respectively. Moreover, de novo sequencing of SPITC modified peptides resulted in protein sequences not available in NCBInr database paving the way to the discovery of new protein molecules.     

Sample preparation for chromatography: an African perspective

Africa as a continent has its unique challenges for analytical chemists in sample preparation for chromatographic analyses. The areas of agriculture, environment, food and health provide formidable challenges when it comes to method development, for example, drought can result in inadequate supplies of good quality water. The testing of water quality necessitates the development of assay methods that can be employed to not only determine the quantities of pesticides associated with malaria and tsetse fly eradication programmes, but also to monitor mycotoxins or neurotoxins. Urbanisation has also meant that endocrine disruptors such as phthalate esters need to be monitored. This review will profile some of the activities by analytical chemists practising in the African continent, who seek to address some of the challenges in sample preparation for chromatographic analyses.     

Tuning Human Serum Albumin (HSA) Hydrogels through Albumin Glycation

The changes of technological properties of albumin-based hydrogels induced by increasing degrees of post-translational modification of the protein are reported. Maillard-type modification of amino acids arginine and lysine of albumin is achieved through glyoxal as an α-dicarbonyl compound. The degrees of modification are fine-tuned using different molar ratios of glyoxal. Hydrogels are thermally induced by heating highly concentrated precursor solutions above the protein's denaturation temperature. While the post-translational modifications are determined and quantified with mass spectrometry, continuous-wave (CW) electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy shed light on the protein fatty acid binding capacity and changes thereof in solution and in the gel state. The viscoelastic behavior is characterized as a measure of the physical strength of the hydrogels. On the nanoscopic level, the modified albumins in low concentration solution reveal lower binding capacities with increasing degrees of modification. On the contrary, in the gel state, the binding capacity remains constant at all degrees of modifications. This indicates that the loss of fatty acid binding capacity for individual albumin molecules is partially compensated by new binding sites in the gel state, potentially formed by modified amino acids. Such, albumin glycation offers a fine-tuning method of technological and nanoscopic properties of these gels.     

Electrospinning of a functional perfluorinated block copolymer as a powerful route for imparting superhydrophobicity and corrosion resistance to aluminum substrates

Superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces with excellent corrosion resistance were successfully prepared by electrospinning of a novel fluorinated diblock copolymer solution. Micro- and nanostructuration of the diblock copolymer coating was obtained by electrospinning which proved to be an easy and cheap electrospinning technology to fabricate superhydrophobic coating. The diblock copolymer is made of poly(heptadecafluorodecylacrylate-co-acrylic acid) (PFDA-co-AA) random copolymer as the first block and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) as the second one. The fluorinated block promotes hydrophobicity to the surface by reducing the surface tension, while its carboxylic acid functions anchor the polymer film onto the aluminum surface after annealing at 130 °C. The PAN block of this copolymer insures the stability of the structuration of the surface during annealing, thanks to the infusible character of PAN. It is also demonstrated that the so-formed superhydrophobic coating shows good adhesion to aluminum surfaces, resulting in excellent corrosion resistance.     

Real‐time Probing the Formation of [M(2,2‐bipyridine)2(NO3)3] (M = Ce,La, Tb) Complexes and Influence of Synthesis Parameters

Despite the strong technological importance of lanthanide complexes, their formation processes are rarely investigated. This work is dedicated to determining the influence of synthesis parameters on the formation of [Ce(bipy)₂(NO₃)₃] as well as Ce³⁺‐ and Tb³⁺‐substituted [La(bipy)₂(NO₃)₃] (bipy = 2,2′‐bipyridine) complexes. To this end, we performed in situ luminescence measurements, synchrotron‐based X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, infrared spectroscopy (IR), and measured pH value and/or ion conductivity during their synthesis process under real reaction conditions. For the [Ce(bipy)₂(NO₃)₃] complex, the in situ luminescence measurements initially presented a broad emission band at 490 nm, assigned to the 5d→4f Ce³⁺ ions within the ethanolic solvation shell. Upon the addition of bipy, a red shift to 700 nm was observed. This shift was attributed to the changes in the environment of the Ce³⁺ ions, indicating their desolvation and incorporation into the [Ce(bipy)₂(NO₃)₃] complex. The induction time was reduced from 8 to 3.5 min, by increasing the reactant concentration by threefold. In contrast, [La(bipy)₂(NO₃)₃] crystallized within days instead of minutes, unless influenced by high Ce³⁺ and Tb³⁺ concentrations. Monitoring and controlling the influence of the reaction parameters on the structure of emissive complexes is important for the development of rational synthesis approaches and optimization of their structure‐related properties like luminescence.     

Bis(phosphino)borates: a new family of monoanionic chelating phosphine ligands

The reaction of dimethyldiaryltin reagents Me(2)SnR(2) (R = Ph (1), p-MePh (2), m,m-Me(2)Ph (3), p-(t)BuPh (4), p-MeOPh (5), p-CF(3)Ph (6)) with BCl(3) provided a high-yielding, simple preparative route to the corresponding diarylchloroboranes R(2)BCl (R = Ph (10), p-MePh (11), m,m-Me(2)Ph (12), p-(t)BuPh (13), p-MeOPh (14), p-CF(3)Ph (15)). In some cases, the desired diarylchloroborane was not formed from an appropriate tin reagent Me(2)SnR(2) (R = o-MeOPh (7), o,o-(MeO)(2)Ph (8), o-CF(3)Ph (9)). The reaction of lithiated methyldiaryl- or methyldialkylphosphines with diarylchloroboranes or dialkylchloroboranes is discussed. Specifically, several new monoanionic bis(phosphino)borates are detailed: [Ph(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (25); [(p-MePh)(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (26); [(p-(t)BuPh)(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (27); [(p-MeOPh)(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (28); [(p-CF(3)Ph)(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (29); [Cy(2)B(CH(2)PPh(2))(2)] (30); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P[p-(t)BuPh](2))(2)] (31); [(p-MeOPh)(2)B(CH(2)P[p-(t)BuPh](2))(2)] (32); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P[p-CF(3)Ph](2))(2)] (33); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P(BH(3))(Me)(2))(2)] (34); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P(S)(Me)(2))(2)] (35); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P(i)Pr(2))(2)] (36); [Ph(2)B(CH(2)P(t)Bu(2))(2)] (37); [(m,m-Me(2)Ph)(2)B(CH(2)P(t)Bu(2))(2)] (38). The chelation of diarylphosphine derivatives 25-33 and 36 to platinum was examined by generation of a series of platinum dimethyl complexes. The electronic effects of substituted bis(phosphino)borates on the carbonyl stretching frequency of neutral platinum alkyl carbonyl complexes were studied by infrared spectroscopy. Substituents remote from the metal center (i.e. on boron) have minimal effect on the electronic nature of the metal center, whereas substitution close to the metal center (on phosphorus) has a greater effect on the electronic nature of the metal center.