First Total Synthesis of N‐(3‐Guanidinopropyl)‐2‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐2‐oxoacetamide

The first total synthesis of the α‐oxo amide‐based natural product, N‐(3‐guanidinopropyl)‐2‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐2‐oxoacetamide ( 3 ), isolated from aqueous extracts of hydroid Campanularia sp., has been achieved. The α‐oxo amide 12 , prepared via the oxidative amidation of 1‐[4‐(benzyloxy)phenyl]‐2,2‐dibromoethanone ( 9a ) with 4‐{[(tert‐butyl)(dimethyl)silyl]oxy}butan‐1‐amine ( 10a ), has been used as the key intermediate in the total synthesis of 3 as HBr salt. On the way, an expeditious total synthesis of polyandrocarpamide C ( 2c ), isolated from marine ascidian Polyandrocarpa sp., was carried out in four steps.     

Synthesis and In Vitro Antimicrobial Screening of New Azetidin‐2‐ones of 5‐Ethyl Pyridine‐2‐ethanol

A new series of azetidinones is described in this paper; Schiff base ( 4a , 4b , 4c , 4d , 4e , 4f , 4g , 4h , 4i , 4j , 4k , 4l , 4m , 4n , 4o ) were synthesized from 4‐[2‐(5‐ethylpyridin‐2‐yl)ethoxy]benzaldehyde, which was used to synthesize azetidinones ( 5a , 5b , 5c , 5d , 5e , 5f , 5g , 5h , 5i , 5j , 5k , 5l , 5m , 5n , 5o ), ( 6a , 6b , 6c , 6d , 6e , 6f , 6g , 6h , 6i , 6j , 6k , 6l , 6m , 6n , 6o ), and ( 7a , 7b , 7c , 7d , 7e , 7f , 7g , 7h , 7i , 7j , 7k , 7l , 7m , 7n , 7o ). The structures of the synthesized compounds were assigned on the basis of elemental analysis, IR, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR spectral data. All the products were screened against different strains of bacteria and fungi. Most of the monosubstituted and disubstituted chloro groups are more effective to both bacterial and fungal species in comparison with the standard drugs.     

Finite difference scheme of a model for nonlinear wave-wave interaction in ionic media

In the paper, the coupled 1D nonlinear Schr?dinger system (CNLS) is considered as the model equation for wave-wave interaction in ionic media. A finite difference scheme is derived for the model equations. A new six-point scheme, which is equivalent to the multi-symplectic integrator, is derived. The numerical simulation is also presented for the model equations.     

Lagrange multiplier method with penalty for elliptic and parabolic interface problems

The basic requirement for the stability of the mortar element method is to construct finite element spaces which satisfy certain criteria known as inf-sup (well known as LBB, i.e., Ladyzhenskaya-Babu?ka-Brezzi) condition. Many natural and convenient choices of finite element spaces are ruled out as these spaces may not satisfy the inf-sup condition. In order to alleviate this problem Lagrange multiplier method with penalty is used in this paper. The existence and uniqueness results of the discrete problem are discussed without using the discrete LBB condition. We have also analyzed the Lagrange multiplier method with penalty for parabolic initial-boundary value problems using semidiscrete and fully discrete schemes. We have derived sub-optimal order of estimates for both semidiscrete and fully discrete schemes. The results of numerical experiments support the theoretical results obtained in this article.     

Reliability of hybrid functionals in predicting band gaps

We show that orbital energies from existing hybrid functionals do not give reliable band gaps. Even if a functional yields a good bulk gap, it in general does not provide accurate gaps in different structural configurations, e.g., surfaces or nanostructures. For example, none of the popular hybrid functionals adequately describe the surface-state gap of the Si(111)-(2 × 1) surface. For graphene nanoribbons, some hybrid functionals give good optical gaps (neglecting strong excitonic effects), but not quasiparticle gaps. In both cases, there are strong variations from different hybrid functionals.     

Similarity of the signatures of the initial stages of phase separation in metastable and unstable polymer blends

Time-resolved small angle neutron scattering was used to probe the initial stages of liquid-liquid phase separation in both critical and off-critical binary polymer blends, and the critical (q(c)) and most probable (q(m)) wave vectors were identified for several quench depths. For the critical blend, the Cahn-Hilliard-Cook theory provides a framework for analyzing the data and explains the observed decrease in q(m) with time. For the off-critical blend, q(m) is independent of quench time, regardless of whether the quench is metastable or unstable.     

Auto-combustion synthesis and properties of Ce0.85Gd0.15O1.925 for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells electrolyte

A typical composition of the system Ce_1 − xGd_xO_2 − δ with x = 0.15 (CGO15) has been synthesized by auto-combustion method. DTA/TGA of the precursor compound indicated the completion of reaction at about 270 °C. Greater than 95% of the theoretical density has been achieved by sintering at 1300 °C for 10 h. Single phase formation in as-burnt stage has been confirmed by its powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern. The structural morphology was studied employing bright field transmission electron micrograph (BFTEM) and high resolution transmission electron micrograph (HRTEM). BFTEM image indicates that particles are highly agglomerated and appear to be dispersed in amorphous matrix. Also BFTEM image reveals that the average particle size is 26 ± 5 nm. The presence of amorphous phase in as-prepared ash was also confirmed by HRTEM and selected area diffraction (SAD). The scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of the thermally etched system shows grains having an average size of 400 nm. Impedance measurements have been made in the frequency range 1 Hz to 1.3 MHz between 200 and 500 °C and the total conductivity was measured. An enhanced conductivity value is observed which may make this system suitable for application as a solid electrolyte material for intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs).     

Nanoparticle shape anisotropy dictates the collective behavior of surface-bound ligands

We report on the modification of the properties of surface-confined ligands in nanoparticle systems through the introduction of shape anisotropy. Specifically, triangular gold nanoprisms, densely functionalized with oligonucleotide ligands, hybridize to complementary particles with an affinity that is several million times higher than that of spherical nanoparticle conjugates functionalized with the same amount of DNA. In addition, they exhibit association rates that are 2 orders of magnitude greater than those of their spherical counterparts. This phenomenon stems from the ability of the flat, extended facets of nonspherical nanoparticles to (1) support more numerous ligand interactions through greater surface contact with complementary particles, (2) increase the effective local concentration of terminal DNA nucleotides that mediate hybridization, and (3) relieve the conformational stresses imposed on nanoparticle-bound ligands participating in interactions between curved surfaces. Finally, these same trends are observed for the pH-mediated association of nanoparticles functionalized with carboxylate ligands, demonstrating the generality of these findings.     

Molecular explanation for why talc surfaces can be both hydrophilic and hydrophobic

While individual water molecules adsorb strongly on a talc surface (hydrophilic behavior), a droplet of water beads up on the same surface (hydrophobic behavior). To rationalize this dichotomy, we investigated the influence of the microscopic structure of the surface and the strength of adhesive (surface-water) interactions on surface hydrophobicity. We have shown that at low relative humidity, the competition between adhesion and the favorable entropy of being in the vapor phase determines the surface coverage. However, at saturation, it is the competition between adhesion and cohesion (water-water interactions) that determines the surface hydrophobicity. The adhesive interactions in talc are strong enough to overcome the unfavorable entropy, and water adsorbs strongly on talc surfaces. However, they are too weak to overcome the cohesive interactions, and water thus beads up on talc surfaces. Surprisingly, even talc-like surfaces that are highly adhesive do not fully wet at saturation. Instead, a water droplet forms on top of a strongly adsorbed monolayer of water. Our results imply that the interior of hydrophobic zeolites suspended in water may contain adsorbed water molecules at pressures much lower than the intrusion pressure.