The electronic structure of benzvalene : Photoelectronspectroscopic studies

The photoelectron(PE)spectrum of tricyclo[3.1.0.0^2,6] hex-2-ene(benzvalene 1) has been recorded. The first four bands in the PE spectrum of 1 can be assigned to transitions to ²B₂, ²A₁, ²A₂ and ²B₁ states of 1¹. This assignment is discussed in terms of the results of semiempirical and ab initio calculations on 1. Furthermore the highest occupied MO's of 1 are derived qualitatively from an interaction diagram between a distorted bicyclobutane and an ethylene moiety.     

Steric and kinetic effects of changing solvent and reactant in grignard reactions: Conformationally mobile versus rigid δ-keto esters

trans-7α-carbomethoxy-decal-1-one (2) yields a mixture of the two oxy-esters 6 and 7 on reacting with MeMgX. Ratios $\text{6}\text{7}$ were measured for reactions performed in benzene (with X = I) and in THF (with X = Cl). The small variations of the ratios $\text{6}\text{7}$ as compared to those obtained in analogous experiments performed with methyl (2-oxo-cyclohexyl)-propionate 4 and methyl 4-methyl-5-oxo-hexanoate 5 suggest that conformational mobility plays a fundamental role in determining the variations of stereospecificity with varying the reaction conditions. Competitive Grignard reactions among 2,4 and 5 show that their reactivities are in the order 4>2>5 ($\text{K}{}_4\text{k}{}_2$ = 1.7; $\text{k}{}_5\text{k}{}_2$=0.8) when reactions are performed in benzene with X  I and 2>4>5 ($\text{k}{}_4\text{k}{}_2$= 0.56; $\text{k}{}_5\text{k}{}_2$=0.25) when reactions are performed in THF with X  C1. The experimental data are interpreted in terms of anchimeric assistance given by the ester group to the reactions of the keto group in conformationally mobile δ-keto esters. The occurrence of this effect depends on the reaction conditions which can favour, or not, folded transition states.     

Effect of homologous series of alkyl sulfate surfactants on the emulsion polymerization of styrene. I. Equal total concentrations

There is evidence in the literature that the rates of emulsion polymerization increase by a large factor as the alkyl chain length increases for a homologous series of surfactants. However, the area occupied by a surfactant molecule in a saturated monolayer at the polystryene/water interface is independent of chain length for alkyl sulfates so that, on the basis of Gardon's theory, equal rates of polymerization would be expected when equal concentrations of surfactants are used. There is a large increase in the number of polymer latex particles formed and in the rate of emulsion polymerization as the surfactant concentration is increased through the critical micelle concentration; this accounts for the large increases reported, because the lower members of the homologous series are below their critical micelle concentrations in most of the published studies. When a common concentration is chosen that is above the critical micelle concentration even for the lowest member of the series, only a relatively small increase in latex particle number and rate of emulsion polymerization with alkyl chain length of the surfactant is observed. This is attributable to an increase in the concentration of surfactant micelles. Good agreement with Gardon's theory is obtained when the concentration of micellar surfactant is used instead of the total surfactant concentration.     

Ionization and appearance potentials in organic chemistry. II—Appearance potentials and enthalpy differences for the stereoisomers of methylbicyclo[4.4.0]decanes

The ionization potentials for the stereoisomers of trans-fused 2- and 3-methylbicyclo[4.4.0]decanes and the appearance potentials for the ions at m/e 137 [M–CH₃]⁺, 109, 96, 95 and 82 were measured by the electron impact method. The ionization potentials and appearance potentials of the [M–CH₃]⁺ ions appeared to be equal for each of the epimers. Appearance potentials of the other ions were always lower for the less stable epimer. No quantitative correlation was observed between the difference in the appearance potentials for any ions and the differences in enthalpies of the ground states.     

Activation analysis with fast neutrons using a cyclotron

A systematic study of activation analysis with cyclotron-produced neutrons for (n, 2n), (n, p) and (n, α) reactions is presented. The limits of detection for elements of atomic number from 6 to 80 are given. The possibilities of optimization of irradiation conditions by the choice of the most suitable neutron spectrum are discussed. The potential of this fast neutron activation analysis method is compared with that of 14 MeV neutron activation analysis.     

Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Surfactant Microaggregates in the Apolar Medium of <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-Octane

Molecular dynamics simulation of reverse micelles of a cationic surfactant and water clusters in n-octane is performed. The main structural and thermodynamic characteristics of the systems are obtained. On average, the micelles have a spherical shape. The partial ion distribution densities virtually coincide, indicating the formation of stable ion pairs. The local profiles of the component distribution densities make it possible to establish that both water and oil slightly penetrate into the region where the hydrophobic portion of the surfactant is located. Separate cation-anion complexes dissolve in the aqueous cavity of a micelle. The hydration shells of the ions overlap; at the same time, the first hydration shell contains up to three water molecules. The energy contributions of each of the components to their force interaction are characterized in detail. The principal contribution to the internal energy for micelles is due to electrostatic interaction between the surfactant molecules. The local normal pressure is calculated, and its value is used to estimate the effective surface tension for the systems in question.__________Translated from Kolloidnyi Zhurnal, Vol. 67, No. 4, 2005, pp. 500–507.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Mudzhikova, Brodskaya.     

Thiophene conversion in the BIMF process

Catalytic conversion of an oil distillate with the added extra amounts of thiophene over a zeolite catalyst was studied. The rate of the catalyst deactivation was found to increase with the increase in the thiophene concentration in the feed. A possible pathway of the thiophene conversion is discussed.     

Effect of the homogeneity of the column set on the performance of a simulated moving bed unit. I. Theory

Although it is impossible to manufacture identical columns for use in a simulated moving bed (SMB) process, theoretical studies assume that all the columns in an SMB unit have identical characteristics. In practice, calculations in modeling and optimization studies are made with the average values of each column parameter set. In this report, the effects on SMB process performance caused by column-to-column fluctuations of the parameters are discussed. As a first step, we show how the differences in porosity of the columns may be taken into account with a revised set of separation conditions. Reductions in the purity of the extract and the raffinate streams are quantitatively related to the column-to-column fluctuations of the retention times of the two components arising from these porosity differences. For the sake of simplicity, the discussion first addresses the case of a four-column SMB operating under linear conditions. Then, the scope is extended to the cases of SMB units incorporating several columns in each section and to SMB units operating under nonlinear conditions.     

Spectral and electrochemical study of coordination molecules Cu4OX6L4: 3-Methylpyridine and 4-Methylpyridine Cu4OBrnCl(6−n)L4 complexes

The tetranuclear Cu₄OBr_nCl_(6-n)L₄ complexes, where L = 3-methylpyridine (3-Mepy), 4-methylpyridine (4-Mepy) and n=0–6 with trigonal bipyramidal coordination of copper(II) were prepared and their infrared and electronic absorption spectra as well as cyclic voltammograms in nitromethane solutions were measured. The polyhedra in Cu₄OBr_nCl_(6−n) (3-Mepy)₄ molecules are less distorted comparing with those of 4-Mepy analogues as indicated by infrared Cu₄O absorptions, far infrared Cu—Br, Cu—Cl, and Cu—N absorptions, d—d bands in electronic spectra and potentials, measured by cyclic voltammetry. The 3-Mepy complexes exhibit strong single infrared Cu₄O absorptions, while for related 4-Mepy complexes doubly split Cu₄O bands were observed. Two strongly overlapped d—d bands in electronic absorption spectra of the 3-and 4-Mepy complexes in nitromethane were resolved by Gaussian fitting. The 4-Mepy ligand produces slightly stronger ligand field than its 3-Mepy analogue. The maxima of high-energy d—d bands are in a linear correlation with the number of bromide ligands. The correlations for corresponding low-energy bands are considerably deviated from linearity. The halfwave potentials of the complexes in nitromethane correlate with both the number of bromides and the data of electronic absorption spectra suggesting that the reducing electron at the electrode process enters the half-filled d _{z 2} orbital of the copper(II) atom. The origin of a difference between the 3-and 4-Mepy complexes in their spectral and electrochemical properties is also discussed.     

Transuranic elements alpha-particle energy analysis using nuclear track in solids methodology

This paper presents a method for the energy analysis of alpha-particles emitted by transuranic elements via a novel technique using Nuclear Tracks. The method is based on the relationship between the energy deposited in the detection material and the diameter of the track, that is formed by chemical etching. The method involves CR-39 polycarbonate as the detector material, one-step chemical etching after irradiation, and a digital image analysis system for automatic reading of the track diameters. The experimental study included alpha-particles in the energy range 5.1 MeV to 5.8 MeV emitted by²³⁹Pu,²⁴¹Am and²⁴⁴Cm. The quantitative results provide a clear signature to identify each one of the emitters based on a characteristic track diameter.