Photochemical Hydrogen Storage with Hexaazatrinaphthylene

When irradiated with violet light, hexaazatrinaphthylene (HATN) extracts a hydrogen atom from an alcohol forming a long-living hydrogenated species. The apparent kinetic isotope effect for fluorescence decay time in deuterated methanol (1.56) indicates that the lowest singlet excited state of the molecule is a precursor for intermolecular hydrogen transfer. The photochemical hydrogenation occurs in several alcohols (methanol, ethanol, isopropanol) but not in water. Hydrogenated HATN can be detected optically by an absorption band at 1.78 eV as well as with EPR (electron paramagnetic resonance) and NMR techniques. Mass spectrometry of photoproducts reveal di-hydrogenated HATN structures along with methoxylated and methylated HATN molecules which are generated through the reaction with methoxy radicals (remnants from alcohol splitting). Experimental findings are consistent with the theoretical results which predicted that for the excited state of the HATN-solvent molecular complex, there exists a barrierless hydrogen transfer from methanol but a small barrier for the similar oxidation of water.     

A DFT Study on the Binuclear Copper(I)-Catalyzed Synthesis Mechanism of 1,2,3-Triazolo[1,5-c]Pyrimidine via Interrupted Click and Ketenimine Rearrangement

In this paper, the mechanism of the full catalytic cycle for binuclear Cu(I)-catalyzed sulfonyl azide-alkyne cycloaddition reaction for the synthesis of triazolopyrimidines was rationalized by density functional theoretical (DFT) calculations. The computed reaction route consists of: (a) formation of dicopper intermediates, including C−H activation of terminal alkyne, 3+2 ring cycloaddition and ring-reducing reaction and transmetalation, (b) interrupted CuAAC reaction, including di-copper catalyzed ring-opening of 2H-azirines and C−C bond formation to generate the copper-triazoles and -ketenimines, (c) two-step C−N cross-coupling and following (d) multi-step hydrogen transfer by the hydrogen bonding chain of water to promote the C−N formation and another C−N cleavage through the removal of p-tolyl sulfonamides. Our DFT results indicate that the multi-step hydrogen transfer process is the rate-determining step along the potential energy surface profile. The explicit water model was used for systematic determination of barrier for C−C cross-coupling, C−N bond formation and cleavage, and p-tolylsulfonamide removal. A critical insight in the interrupted CuAAC reaction was proposed. Further prediction interprets H₂O hydrogen bond chain plays an important role in C−N bond formation and cleavage, and the removal of p-tolylsulfonamide. This may have fundamental guidance on the design of 1, 5-herterocyclic functionalized triazolopyrimidines via interrupted CuAAC rearrangement reaction, as well as hydrogen bond chain of water.     

Thermal- and Light-driven Metathesis Reactions Between Different Diselenides

Thermal- and light-driven diselenide metathesis reactions with different types of diselenides are investigated systematically. Their exchange reaction rates and equilibrium conversions are compared in the aspects of the different diselenide structures, activation conditions and solvents. As a result, the metathesis reactions between diselenide small molecules are demonstrated with high dynamic and sensitive features, which can be broadly tuned by varying the electron affinity and aromaticity of the diselenide substituents and external conditions(e.g., solvent, stimulus mode). The current work thus will not only advance our understanding on diselenide metathesis chemistry, but also promote concrete and impactful studies in selenium-containing materials.     

Delocalized \begin{document}$\pi_3^6$\end{document} Bond in OX\begin{document}$_2$\end{document} (X=Halogen) Molecules

OX\begin{document}$_2$\end{document} (X=halogen) molecules was studied theoretically. Calculation results show that delocalized \begin{document}$\pi_3^6$\end{document} bonds exist in their electronic structures and O atoms adopt the sp\begin{document}$^2$\end{document} type of hybridization, which violates the prediction of the valence shell electron pair repulsion theory of sp\begin{document}$^3$\end{document} type. Delocalization stabilization energy is proposed to measure the contribution of delocalized \begin{document}$\pi_3^6$\end{document} bond to energy decrease and proves to bring extra-stability to the molecule. These phenomena can be summarized as a kind of coordinating effect.     

A Mechanistic Switch in C-H Bond Activation by Elusive Fe\begin{document}$^\text{V}$\end{document}(O)(TAML) Reaction Intermediate: A Theoretical Study

The divergent behavior of C-H bond oxidations of aliphatic substrates compared to those of aromatic substrates shown in Gupta's experiment was mechanistically studied herein by means of density functional theory calculations. Our calculations reveal that such difference is caused by different reaction mechanisms between two kinds of substrates (the aliphatic cyclohexane, 2, 3-dimethylbutane and the aromatic toluene, ethylbenzene and cumene). For the aliphatic substrates, C-H oxidation by the oxidant Fe\begin{document}$^{\rm{V}}$\end{document}(O)(TAML) is a hydrogen atom transfer process; whereas for the aromatic substrates, C-H oxidation is a proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) process with a proton transfer character on the transition state, that is, a proton-coupled electron transfer process holding a proton transfer-like transition state (PCET(PT)). This difference is caused by the strong \begin{document}$\pi$\end{document}-\begin{document}$\pi$\end{document} interactions between the tetra-anionic TAML ring and the phenyl ring of the aromatic substrates, which has a "pull" effect to make the electron transfer from substrates to the Fe=O moiety inefficient.     

New Insight on Carbon Dioxide-Mediated Hydrogen Production**

A new approach to hydrogen production from water is described. This simple method is based on carbon dioxide-mediated water decomposition under UV radiation. The water contained dissolved sodium hydroxide, and the solution was saturated with gaseous carbon dioxide. During saturation, the pH decreased from about 11.5 to 7–8. The formed bicarbonate and carbonate ions acted as scavengers for hydroxyl radicals, preventing the recombination of hydroxyl and hydrogen radicals and prioritizing hydrogen gas formation. In the presented method, not yet reported in the literature, hydrogen production is combined with carbon dioxide. For the best system with alkaline water (0.2 m NaOH) saturated with CO₂ under UV-C, the hydrogen production amounted to 0.6 μmol h⁻¹ during 24 h of radiation.     

Galvanostatically Deposited PtNi Thin-Films as Electrocatalysts for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

The synthesis of hybrid platinum materials is fundamental to enable alkaline water electrolysis for cost-effective H₂ generation. In this work, we have used a galvanostatic method to co-deposit PtNi films onto polycrystalline gold. The surface concentrations of Ni (Γ_Ni) and Pt (Γ_Pt) were calculated from electrochemical measurements; the Γ_Pt/Γ_Ni ratio and electrocatalytic activity of these materials towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 1 M KOH show a strong dependence on the current density pulse applied during the electrodeposition. Analysis of the Tafel parameters hints that, on these deposits, HER proceeds through a Volmer-Heyrovsky mechanism. The galvanostatically deposited PtNi layers present a high current output per Pt gram, 3199 A g_Pt⁻¹, which is significantly larger compared to other PtNi-based materials obtained by more extended and more complex synthesis methods.     

Electrochemical hydrogen storage in porous carbons with acidic electrolytes: Uncovering the potential

Electrochemical hydrogen storage in porous carbon materials is emerging as a cost-effective hydrogen storage and transport technology with competitive power and energy densities. The merits of electrochemical hydrogen storage using porous conductive carbon-based electrodes are reviewed. The employment of acidic electrolytes in such storage systems is compared with alkaline electrolytes. The recent innovations of a proton battery for smaller-scale electricity storage, and a proton flow reactor system for larger (grid)-scale storage and bulk export of hydrogen produced from renewable energy, are briefly described. It is argued that such systems, along with variants proposed by others, all of which rely on electrochemical hydrogen storage in porous carbons, can contribute to the search for energy storage technologies essential for the transition to a zero-emission global economy.     

A Novel Fluorescence Probe for the Reversible Detection of Bisulfite and Hydrogen Peroxide Pair in Vitro and in Vivo

The detection of changes in the reactive oxygen species (ROS)/reactive sulfur species (RSS) couple is important for studying the cellular redox state. Herein, we developed a 1,8-naphthalimide-based fluorescence probe ( NI ) for the reversible detection of bisulfite (HSO₃⁻) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) in vitro and in vivo. NI has been designed with a reactive ethylene unit which specifically reacts with HSO₃⁻ by a Michael addition reaction mechanism, resulting in the quenching of yellow fluorescence at 580 nm and the appearing of green fluorescence at 510 nm upon excitation at 500 nm and 430 nm, respectively. The addition product ( NI−HSO₃ ) could be specifically oxidized to form the original C=C bond of NI , recovering the fluorescence emission and color. The detection limits of NI for HSO₃⁻ and NI−HSO₃ for H₂O₂ were calculated to be 2.05 μM and 4.23 μM, respectively. The reversible fluorescence response of NI towards HSO₃⁻/H₂O₂ couple can be repeated for at least five times. NI is reliable at a broad pH range (pH 3.0–11.5) and features outstanding selectivity, which enabled its practical applications in biological and food samples. Monitoring the reversible and dynamic inter-conversion between HSO₃⁻ and H₂O₂ in vitro and in vivo has been verified by fluorescence imaging in live HeLa cells, adult zebrafish and nude mice. Moreover, NI has been successfully applied to detect of HSO₃⁻ levels in food samples.     

BODIPY-based Fluorescent Probe for Fast Detection of Hydrogen Sulfide and Lysosome-targeting Applications in Living Cells

Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) is recognized as an endogenous gaseous signaling agent in many biological activities. Lysosomes are the main metabolic site and play a pivotal role in cells. Herein, we designed and synthesized two new fluorescent probes BDP-DNBS and BDP-DNP with a BODIPY core to distinguish H₂S. The sensing mechanism is based on the inhibition-recovery of the photo-induced electron transfer (PET) process. Through comparing the responsive behaviors of the two probes toward H₂S, BDP-DNBS showed a fast response time (60 s), low limit of detection (LOD, 51 nM), high sensitivity and selectivity. Moreover, the reaction mechanism was demonstrated by mass spectrometry and fluorescence off-on mechanism was proved by density functional theory (DFT). Significantly, confocal fluorescence imaging indicated that BDP-DNBS was successfully used to visualize H₂S in lysosomes in living HeLa cells.