Gas-phase reactivity of the O=P(OCH3)2+ phosphonium ion with aliphatic esters in a quadrupole ion trap. Spontaneous elimination of ketenes

Ion-molecule reactions between the O=P(OCH(3))(2) (+) phosphonium ions and five aliphatic esters (methyl acetate, methyl propionate, methyl 2-methylpropionate, methyl butyrate and ethyl acetate) were performed in a quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer. The O=P(OCH(3))(2) (+) phosphonium ions, formed by electron ionization from neutral trimethyl phosphite, were found to react with aliphatic esters to give an adduct ion [RR'CHCOOR", O=P(OCH(3))(2)](+), which loses spontaneously a molecule of ketene CH(2)=CO or substituted ketenes RR'C=CO. Isotope-labeled methyl acetate was used to elucidate fragmentation mechanisms. The potential energy surface obtained from B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) calculations for the reaction between O=P(OCH(3))(2) (+) and methyl acetate is described.     

Hybrid Slater–Gaussian-type 1s orbitals for the 1∑ ground state of H2 and He

Introduction of noninteger powers of r (or the elliptical coordinate ξ) in the definition of the 1s AO is shown to give better approximate wave-functions for the ground states of H₂ and He than other functions of comparable complexity. This trend is examined for various definitions of hybrid Slater–Gaussian orbitals using a limited CI . The best optimized single-term expansion energy is only 0.000160 a.u. above the “SCF limit” for H₂ at R = 1.4 a.u. and 0.000382 a.u. for He at R = 1.3 a.u.     

Understanding the Reshaping of Fluorinated Polyester Vitrimers by Kinetic and DFT Studies of the Transesterification Reaction

Vitrimers are a third class of polymers gathering the mechanical properties and solvent resistance of 3D thermosets and the reprocessability of thermoplastics. This unique behaviour is due to the triggering of certain covalent exchange reactions that allow the network to rearrange upon application of a stimulus. The constitutive feature of vitrimers is the adoption of a glass-like viscosity during the rearrangement of the network, often due to an associative mechanism for the exchange reaction. Transesterification networks are one of the most studied type of vitrimers that usually require the incorporation of a catalyst, implying the associated drawbacks. Following up on a recent report on catalyst-free transesterification vitrimers in which the ester functions are particularly reactive thanks to the presence of fluorine atoms in α- or β-position, parallel DFT calculations and an experimental kinetic study on model molecules are presented in order to quantitatively assess the effect of neighbouring fluorinated groups on the transesterification reaction rate.     

Oxidation of methyl and ethyl butanoates

This paper describes an experimental and modeling study of the oxidation of methyl and ethyl butanoates in a shock tube. The ignition delays of these two esters mixed with oxygen and argon for equivalence ratios from 0.25 to 2 and ester concentrations of 0.5% and 1% were measured behind a reflected shock wave for temperatures from 1250 to 2000 K and pressures around 8 atm. To extend the range of studied temperatures in the case of methyl butanoate, two sets of measurements were also made in a jet‐stirred reactor at 800 and 850 K, at atmospheric pressure, at residence times varying between 1.5 and 9 s and for equivalence ratios of 0.5 and 1. Detailed mechanisms for the combustion of methyl and ethyl butanoates have been automatically generated using a version of EXGAS software improved to take into account these oxygenated reactants. These mechanisms have been validated through comparison of simulated and experimental results in both types of reactor. The main reaction pathways have been derived from reaction flux and sensitivity analyses performed at different temperatures. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 42: 226–252, 2010     

High-throughput approaches for the discovery and optimization of new olefin polymerization catalysts

The discovery of new olefin polymerization catalysts is currently a time-intensive trial-and-error process with no guarantee of success. A fully integrated high-throughput screening workflow for the discovery of new catalysts for polyolefin production has been implemented at Symyx Technologies. The workflow includes the design of the metal-ligand libraries using custom-made computer software, automated delivery of metal precursors and ligands into the reactors using a liquid-handling robot, and a rapid primary screen that serves to assess the potential of each metalligand-activator combination as an olefin polymerization catalyst. "Hits" from the primary screen are subjected to secondary screens using a 48-cell parallel polymerization reactor. Individual polymerization reactions are monitored in real time under conditions that provide meaningful information about the performance capabilities of each catalyst. Rapid polymer characterization techniques support the primary and secondary screens. We have discovered many new and interesting catalyst classes using this technology.     

Quadrupole splitting and ground state in FeS and NiS (Fe)

From a Mössbauer study of an oriented single crystal of Ni_0.996S (2% Fe⁵⁷) at 298 K (above the metal-insulator transition at 230 K) the sign of the quadrupole splitting in Fe⁵⁷ is determined to be positive; this contrasts with a negative sign found for FeS and Fe_0.93S. A tentative model is presented that is consistent with these results and with magnetic anisotropy data.     

Caracterisation d'une variete amorphie de FeF3 : Etude thermique,magnetique et Mossbauer

Amorphous FeF₃ has been prepared by fast vaporisation of the bulk material and condensation : it has been characterized by X-ray diffraction and differential thermal analysis. Strong antiferromagnetic interactions, but low spin-freezing temperature are observed. The magnetic arrangment is speromagnetic. The spin glass behaviour is questionable; the Mössbauer study reveals an electric field gradient distribution which, in average, has no definite sign.     

Synthesis of diindolocarbazoles by Cadogan reaction: route to ladder oligo(p-aniline)s

Symmetric and nonsymmetric diindolocarbazoles were successfully synthesized for the first time by a Cadogan ring closure using N-alkyl-2,7-disubstituted carbazole precursors. Cyclization reaction on N-alkyl-2,7-di(2'-nitrophenyl) carbazole derivatives is not regioselective and produced a separable mixture of symmetric and nonsymmetric diindolocarbazoles. A carbazole derivative with methyl protective groups at the 1- and 8-positions was therefore used to obtain a symmetric ladder oligo(p-aniline) (compound 22). Optical and electrochemical properties of compound 22 indicate that its neutral semiconducting form is stable in air. This novel class of electroactive ladder oligomers should create new opportunities in micro- and nanoelectronics.     

Decomposition Numbers and Canonical Bases

We obtain some simple relations between decomposition numbers of quantized Schur algebras at an nth root of unity (over a field of characteristic 0). These relations imply that every decomposition number for such an algebra occurs as a decomposition number for some Hecke algebra of type A. We prove similar relations between coefficients of the canonical basis of the q-deformed Fock space representation of . It follows that these coefficients can all be expressed in terms of those of the global crystal basis of the irreducible subrepresentation generated by the vacuum vector. As a consequence, using the works of Ariki and Varagnolo and Vasserot, it is possible to give a new proof of Lusztig"s character formula for the simple U _v (sl _r )-modules at roots of unity, which does not involve representations of of negative level.