Synthesis,structure and characterization of [Mg7(μ3-OCH2CH2OMe)6(μ-OCH2CH2OMe)6][Al(n-Bu)4]2 – A cationic heptanuclear magnesium complex consisting of discrete cations and tetrabutylaluminate anions

Dibutylmagnesium (contaminated with Al(n-Bu)₃; n_Mg:n_Al ca. 1:0.2) was found to react with MeOCH₂CH₂OH followed by the addition of PhSCH(Me)Ph in the presence of 0.2 equiv n-butyllithium yielding [Mg₇(μ₃-OCH₂CH₂OMe)₆(μ-OCH₂CH₂OMe)₆][Al(n-Bu)₄]₂ (1) as the principal product (yield 40–45% referred to MeOCH₂CH₂OH). The single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the centrosymmetric cationic heptamagnesium complex is built up from seven edge-shared MgO₆ octahedra. The [Al(n-Bu)₄]⁻ anions adopt approximately a tetrahedral AlC₄ symmetry. ¹H, ¹³C and ²⁷Al NMR spectroscopic measurements showed that in THF solution the structures both of the heptamagnesium complex and the tetrabutylaluminate anion are preserved and that there are no cation–anion interactions reducing the symmetry. The ²⁷Al resonance (151.6 ppm) was found to be very sharp (w_1/2 = 5 Hz), the coupling constant ¹J(²⁷Al,¹³C) amounts to 72.3 Hz.     

Effect of sorbed methanol, current, and temperature on multicomponent transport in nafion-based direct methanol fuel cells

The CO2 in the cathode exhaust of a liquid feed direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) has two sources: methanol diffuses through the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) to the cathode where it is catalytically oxidized to CO2; additionally, a portion of the CO2 produced at the anode diffuses through the MEA to the cathode. The potential-dependent CO2 exhaust from the cathode was monitored by online electrochemical mass spectrometry (ECMS) with air and with H2 at the cathode. The precise determination of the crossover rates of methanol and CO2, enabled by the subtractive normalization of the methanol/air to the methanol/H2 ECMS data, shows that methanol decreases the membrane viscosity and thus increases the diffusion coefficients of sorbed membrane components. The crossover of CO2 initially increases linearly with the Faradaic oxidation of methanol, reaches a temperature-dependent maximum, and then decreases. The membrane viscosity progressively increases as methanol is electrochemically depleted from the anode/electrolyte interface. The crossover maximum occurs when the current dependence of the diffusion coefficients and membrane CO2 solubility dominate over the Faradaic production of CO2. The plasticizing effect of methanol is corroborated by measurements of the rotational diffusion of TEMPONE (2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidone N-oxide) spin probe by electron spin resonance spectroscopy. A linear inverse relationship between the methanol crossover rate and current density confirms the absence of methanol electro-osmotic drag at concentrations relevant to operating DMFCs. The purely diffusive transport of methanol is explained in terms of current proton solvation and methanol-water incomplete mixing theories.     

Mechanism of carotenoid singlet excited state energy transfer in modified bacterial reaction centers

Ultrafast transient laser spectroscopy has been used to investigate carotenoid singlet excited state energy transfer in various Rhodobacter (Rb.) sphaeroides reaction centers (RCs) modified either genetically or chemically. The pathway and efficiency of energy transfer were examined as a function of the structures and energies of the donor and acceptor molecules. On the donor side, carotenoids with various extents of pi-electron conjugation were examined. RCs studied include those from the anaerobically grown wild-type strain containing the carotenoid spheroidene, which has 10 conjugated carbon-carbon double bonds; the GA strain containing neurosporene, which has nine conjugated double bonds; and aerobically grown wild-type cells, as well as aerobically grown H(M182)L mutant, both containing the carbonyl-containing carotenoid spheroidenone, which has 11 conjugated double bonds. By varying the structure of the carotenoid, we observed the effect of altering the energies of the carotenoid excited states on the rate of energy transfer. Both S(1)- and S(2)-mediated carotenoid-to-bacteriochlorophyll energy transfer processes were observed. The highest transfer efficiency, from both the S(1) and S(2) states, was observed using the carotenoid with the shortest chain. The S(1)-mediated carotenoid-to- bacteriochlorophyll energy transfer efficiencies were determined to be 96%, 84%, and 73% for neurosporene, spheroidene, and spheroidenone, respectively. The S(2)-mediated energy transfer efficiencies follow the same trend but could not be determined quantitatively because of limitations in the time resolution of the instrumentation. The dependence of the energy transfer rate on the energetics of the energy transfer acceptor was verified by performing measurements with RCs from the H(M182)L mutant. In this mutant, the bacteriochlorophyll (denoted B(B)) located between the carotenoid and the RC special pair (P) is replaced by a bacteriopheophytin (denoted phi(B)), where the Q(X) and Q(Y) bands of phi(B) are 1830 and 1290 cm(-1), respectively, higher in energy than those of B(B). These band shifts associated with phi(B) in the H(M182)L mutant significantly alter the spectral overlap between the carotenoid and phi(B), resulting in a significant decrease of the transfer efficiency from the carotenoid S(1) state to phi(B). This leaves energy transfer from the carotenoid S(2) state to phi(B) as the dominant channel. Largely because of this change in mechanism, the overall efficiency of energy transfer from the carotenoid to P decreases to less than 50% in this mutant. Because the spectral signature of phi(B) is different from that of B(A) in this mutant, we were able to demonstrate clearly that the carotenoid-to-P energy transfer is via phi(B). This finding supports the concept that, in wild-type RCs, the carotenoid-to-P energy transfer occurs through the cofactor located at the B(B) position.     

Polynuclear lanthanide complexes of a series of bridging ligands containing two tridentate N,N',O-donor units: structures and luminescence properties

A set of three potentially bridging ligands containing two tridentate chelating N,N',O-donor (pyrazole-pyridine-amide) donors separated by an o, m, or p-phenylene spacer has been prepared and their coordination chemistry with lanthanide(III) ions investigated. Ligand L(1) (p-phenylene spacer) forms complexes with a 2:3 M:L ratio according to the proportions used in the reaction mixture; the Ln(2)(L(1))(3) complexes contain two 9-coordinate Ln(III) centres with all three bridging ligands spanning both metal ions, and have a cylindrical (non-helical) 'mesocate' architecture. The 1:1 complexes display a range of structural types depending on the conditions used, including a cyclic Ln(4)(L(1))(4) tetranuclear helicate, a Ln(2)(L(1))(2) dinuclear mesocate, and an infinite one-dimensional coordination polymer in which metal ions and bridging ligands alternate along the sequence. ESMS studies indicate that the 1:1 complexes form a mixture of oligonuclear species {Ln(L(1))}(n) in solution (n up to 5) which are likely to be cyclic helicates. In contrast, ligands L(2) and L(3) (with o- and m-phenylene spacers, respectively) generally form dinuclear Ln(2)L(2) Ln(III) complexes in which the two ligands may be arranged in a helical or non-helical architecture about the two metal ions. These complexes also contain an additional exogenous bidentate bridging ligand, either acetate or formate, which has arisen from hydrolysis of solvent molecules promoted by the Lewis-acidity of the Ln(III) ions. Luminescence studies on some of the Nd(III) complexes showed that excitation into ligand-centred pi-pi* transitions result in the characteristic near-infrared luminescence from Nd(III) at 1060 nm.     

The NMR spectra of porphyrins—19: 13C and proton NMR spectra of metal-free porphyrins with the Type-IX substituent orientation,and of their zinc(II) complexes

The ¹³C and proton NMR spectra of six porphyrins bearing the substituent orientation characteristic of the natural “Type-IX” arrangement are reported and assigned. Significant concentration effects in the spectra of the free base porphyrins, together with the broadening of the C_α (and occasionally C_β) carbon resonances due to NH tautomerism caused a significant loss of data in these spectra. However, the spectra of the corresponding zinc(II) porphyrins (with addition of excess pyrrolidine) show that both these extraneous effects are completely removed to give well-resolved spectra with accurately reproducible chemical shifts. These spectra are assigned and an analysis of the chemical shifts allows the deduction of substituent chemical shift (SCS) parameters for the peripheral substituents at the beta and meso carbons. There is no global effect of these beta substituents, the beta carbon SCS being confined to the immediate pyrrole ring, and the meso carbon SCS to the two adjacent pyrrole rings. The SCS parameters are analyzed and it is shown how they can be used to predict the peripheral and meso carbon chemical shifts of any porphyrin bearing the substituents discussed.     

Excited-state dynamics of fac-[ReI(L)(CO)3(phen)]+ and fac-[ReI(L)(CO)3(5-NO2-phen)]+ (L = imidazole, 4-ethylpyridine; phen = 1,10-phenanthroline) complexes

The nature and dynamics of the lowest excited states of fac-[Re(I)(L)(CO)(3)(phen)](+) and fac-[Re(I)(L)(CO)(3)(5-NO(2)-phen)](+) [L = Cl(-), 4-ethyl-pyridine (4-Etpy), imidazole (imH); phen = 1,10-phenanthroline] have been investigated by picosecond visible and IR transient absorption spectroscopy in aqueous (L = imH), acetonitrile (L = 4-Etpy, imH), and MeOH (L = imH) solutions. The phen complexes have long-lived Re(I) --> phen (3)MLCT excited states, characterized by CO stretching frequencies that are upshifted relative to their ground-state values and by widely split IR bands due to the out-of-phase A'(2) and A"nu(CO) vibrations. The lowest excited states of the 5-NO(2)-phen complexes also have (3)MLCT character; the larger upward nu(CO) shifts accord with much more extensive charge transfer from the Re(I)(CO)(3) unit to 5-NO(2)-phen in these states. Transient visible absorption spectra indicate that the excited electron is delocalized over the 5-NO(2)-phen ligand, which acquires radical anionic character. Similarly, involvement of the -NO(2) group in the Franck-Condon MLCT transition is manifested by the presence of an enhanced nu(NO(2)) band in the preresonance Raman spectrum of [Re(I)(4-Etpy)(CO)(3)(5-NO(2)-phen)](+). The Re(I) --> 5-NO(2)-phen (3)MLCT excited states are very short-lived: 7.6, 170, and 43 ps for L = Cl(-), 4-Etpy, and imH, respectively, in CH(3)CN solutions. The (3)MLCT excited state of [Re(I)(imH)(CO)(3)(5-NO(2)-phen)](+) is even shorter-lived in MeOH (15 ps) and H(2)O (1.3 ps). In addition to (3)MLCT, excitation of [Re(I)(imH)(CO)(3)(5-NO(2)-phen)](+) populates a (3)LLCT (imH --> 5-NO(2)-phen) excited state. Most of the (3)LLCT population decays to the ground state (time constants of 19 (H(2)O), 50 (MeOH), and 72 ps (CH(3)CN)); in a small fraction, however, deprotonation of the imH.+ ligand occurs, producing a long-lived species, [Re(I)(im.)(CO)(3)(5-NO(2)-phen).-]+.     

Electron tunneling through sensitizer wires bound to proteins

We report a quantitative theoretical analysis of long-range electron transfer through sensitizer wires bound in the active-site channel of cytochrome P450cam. Each sensitizer wire consists of a substrate group with high binding affinity for the enzyme active site connected to a ruthenium-diimine through a bridging aliphatic or aromatic chain. Experiments have revealed a dramatic dependence of electron transfer rates on the chemical composition of both the bridging group and the substrate. Using combined molecular dynamics simulations and electronic coupling calculations, we show that electron tunneling through perfluorinated aromatic bridges is promoted by enhanced superexchange coupling through virtual reduced states. In contrast, electron flow through aliphatic bridges occurs by hole-mediated superexchange. We have found that a small number of wire conformations with strong donor–acceptor couplings can account for the observed electron tunneling rates for sensitizer wires terminated with either ethylbenzene or adamantane. In these instances, the rate is dependent not only on electronic coupling of the donor and acceptor but also on the nuclear motion of the sensitizer wire, necessitating the calculation of average rates over the course of a molecular dynamics simulation. These calculations along with related recent findings have made it possible to analyze the results of many other sensitizer-wire experiments that in turn point to new directions in our attempts to observe reactive intermediates in the catalytic cycles of P450 and other heme enzymes.     

Synthesis and characterization of crosslinked polydiacetylene and its two-component interpenetrating polymer networks

The synthesis of crosslinked polydiacetylenes and its two-component interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) was carried out utilizing its polar and flexible substituent groups. Polydiacetylenes were crosslinked by the formation of allophanate linkages utilizing urethane groups in the substituent groups of the polydiacetylenes. Elemental analysis, DSC, TMA, solvent resistance, and IR spectra are presented as evidence for the formation of crosslinked polydiacetylenes. IPNs of polydiacetylenes and an epoxy resin (diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A) were synthesized by using simultaneous and sequential methods of synthesis. A study of phase morphology of the simultaneous and sequential IPNs was carried out using electron microscopy, TMA, and DSC.