Hierarchical porous silica materials with a trimodal pore system using surfactant templates

Porous silica exhibiting a hierarchically ordered trimodal pore system with a well-defined reverse opal microstructure and bimodal mesoporosity in the walls has been prepared by using polystyrene latex spheres, a novel block copolymer and an ionic liquid surfactant as templates. The resulting materials exhibit hierarchical order at three length scales (small mesopores: 2-3 nm; large mesopores: 11-12 nm; macropores: 360 nm).     

Mechanism of Reppe's nickel-catalyzed ethyne tetramerization to cyclooctatetraene: a DFT study

In this B3 LYP model study, homoleptic nickel(0) ethyne complexes have been predicted as the catalyst resting state for the title reaction. Ethyne ligand coupling of Ni(C(2)H(2))(3) yields monoethyne nickelacyclopentadiene in the rate-determining step. Ethyne coordination is followed by insertion of an ethyne ligand into the Ni--C sigma bond. A highly strained monoethyne trans-nickelacycloheptatriene is formed. This trans intermediate is unable to reductively eliminate benzene without prior isomerization to a cis-structure. Instead, it rapidly collapses to a nickelacyclononatetraene. Ethyne coordination induces reductive elimination to the cyclooctatetraene complex Ni(eta(2)-C(2)H(2))(eta(2)-C(8)H(8)), followed by facile ligand exchange. Other ethyne coupling pathways have been computed to be less favored. The cyclooctatetraene ligand binds significantly weaker to nickel(0) than ethyne, both for mononuclear, and for dinuclear species. For this reason, C--C bond formation steps at Ni(2)(micro-cot) fragments have been predicted to feature prohibitively high overall reaction barriers.     

Si-E (E = N, O, F) bonding in a hexacoordinated silicon complex: new facts from experimental and theoretical charge density studies

The concept of hypervalency in molecules, which hold more than eight valence electrons at the central atom, still is a topic of constant debate. There is general interest in silicon compounds with more than four substituents at the central silicon atom. The dispute, whether this silicon is hypervalent or highly coordinated, is enlightened by the first experimental charge density determination and subsequent topological analysis of three different highly polar Si-E (E = N, O, F) bonds in a hexacoordinated compound. The experiment reveals predominantly ionic bonding and much less covalent contribution than commonly anticipated. For comparison gas-phase ab initio calculations were performed on this compound. The results of the theoretical calculations underline the findings of the experiment.     

Purification and characterization of a laccase from the white-rot fungus Trametes multicolor

The wood-degrading fungus Trametes multicolor secretes several laccase isoforms when grown on a simple medium containing copper in the millimolar range for stimulating laccase synthesis. The main isoenzyme laccase II was purified to apparent homogeneity from the culture supernatant by using anion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration. Laccase II is a monomeric glycoprotein with a molecular mass of 63 kDa as determined by sodium dodecylsulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, contains 18% glycosylation, and has a pI of 3.0. It oxidizes a variety of phenolic substrates as well as ferrocyanide and iodide. The pH optimum depends on the substrate employed and shows a bell-shaped pH activity profile with an optimum of 4.0 to 5.0 for the phenolic substrates, while the nonphenolic substrates ferrocyanide and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) show a monotonic pH profile with a rate decreasing with increasing pH.     

Preparation and Characterization of New C2‐ and C1‐Symmetric Nitrogen,Oxygen, Phosphorous,and Sulfur Derivatives and Analogs of TADDOL. Part II

TADDOL (=α,α,α′,α′‐Tetraaryl‐1,3‐dioxolane‐4,5‐dimethanol) and the corresponding dichloride are converted to TADDAMINs (=(4S,5S)‐2,2,N,N′‐tetramethyl‐α,α,α′,α′‐tetraphenyl‐1,3‐dioxolan‐4,5‐dimethanamines) (Scheme 2) and ureas, 12 – 15 , and to TADDOP derivatives with seven‐membered O? P? O ester rings (Schemes 3 and 4). Cl/P‐Replacement via the Michaelis? Arbuzov reaction (Scheme 7) on mono‐ and dichlorides, derived from TADDOL, are described. It was not possible to obtain phosphines with the P‐atom attached to the benzhydrylic C‐atom of the TADDOL skeleton (Schemes 6 and 7). The X‐ray crystal structures (Figs. 1 and 2) of ten of the more than 30 new TADDOL derivatives are discussed. Full experimental details are presented.     

Ionic liquids for the convenient synthesis of functional nanoparticles and other inorganic nanostructures

Ionic liquids are a new class of organic solvents with high polarity and a preorganized solvent structure. Very polar reactions can be carried out in these liquid in the absence of or with a controlled amount of water, and crystalline nanoparticles can be synthesized conveniently at ambient temperatures. The pronounced self-organization of the solvent is used in the synthesis of self-assembled, highly organized hybrid nanostructures with unparalleled quality. The extraordinary potential of ionic liquids in materials synthesis is described in this minireview and a physicochemical explanation is given.