Probing the Water Stability Limits and Degradation Pathways of Metal–Organic Frameworks

A comprehensive model to describe the water stability of prototypical metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is derived by combining different types of theoretical and experimental approaches. The results provide an insight into the early stages of water-triggered destabilization of MOFs and allow detailed pathways to be proposed for the degradation of different MOFs under aqueous conditions. The essential elements of the approach are computing the pK_a values of coordinated water molecules and geometry relaxations. Variable-temperature and pH infrared spectroscopy techniques are used to corroborate the main findings. The model developed herein helps to explain stability limits observed for several prototypical MOFs, including MOF-5, HKUST-1, UiO-66, and MIL-101-Cr, in aqueous solutions, and thus, provides an insight into the possible degradation pathways in acidic and basic environments. The formation of a metal hydroxide through the autoprotolysis of metal-coordinated water molecules and the strength of carboxylate–metal interactions are suggested to be two key players that govern stability in basic and acidic media, respectively. The methodology presented herein can effectively guide future efforts, which are especially significant for in silico screening, for developing novel MOFs with enhanced aqueous stability.     

Synthesis of New Donor-Substituted Biphenyls: Pre-ligands for Highly Luminescent (C^C^D) Gold(III) Pincer Complexes

We herein report on new synthetic strategies for the preparation of pyridine and imidazole substituted 2,2’-dihalo biphenyls. These structures are pre-ligands suitable for the preparation of respective stannoles. The latter can successfully be transmetalated to K[AuCl₄] forming non-palindromic [(C^C^D)Au^III] pincer complexes featuring a lateral pyridine (D=N) or N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC, D=C’) donor. The latter is the first report on a pincer complex with two formally anionic sp² and one carbenic carbon donor. The [(C^C^D)Au^III] complexes show intense phosphorescence in solution at room temperature. We discuss the developed multistep strategy and touch upon synthetic challenges. The prepared complexes have been fully characterized including X-ray diffraction analysis. The gold(III) complexes’ photophysical properties have been investigated by absorption and emission spectroscopy as well as quantum chemical calculations on the quasi-relativistic two-component TD-DFT and GW/Bethe–Salpeter level including spin–orbit coupling. Thus, we shed light on the electronic influence of the non-palindromic pincer ligand and reveal non-radiative relaxation pathways of the different ligands employed.     

Variational integrators for open-loop and closed-loop optimal control of mechanical systems

Mechanical systems have structural properties, e.g. symplecticity, symmetry, and a specific energy behavior, which get lost in standard integration methods. Therefore, symplectic integration methods are used in simulation and control of mechanical systems. This paper combines two methods of the class of structure-preserving control methods, namely a recently developed feedback control method and open loop optimal control based on variational integrator discretization. The combination is applied to the benchmark example of a cart pendulum system. (© 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Coupling of deterministic and stochastic simulation methods for gas‐solid‐flows

A new simulation method is proposed coupling deterministic and stochastic methods by an adaptive domain decomposition based on local granular equilibrium rating. This method reduces the computational effort compared to the fully stochastic method by roughly an order of magnitude, without significant loss of accuracy. Furthermore with this method appropriate boundary conditions for the solid phase can easily be derived.     

Automated Parallel Temperature Optimization and Determination of Activation Energy for the Living Cationic Polymerization of 2‐Ethyl‐2‐oxazoline

Sixteen parallel polymerization reactions of 2‐ethyl‐2‐oxazoline have been performed at different temperatures in an automated synthesizer that allowed individual heating of each reactor. During the reactions samples were taken automatically, which were characterized by means of both online GPC and offline GC, in order to optimize the reaction temperature and to determine the activation energy of the polymerization.