Investigation of Pd leaching from supported Pd catalysts during the Heck reaction

Palladium supported on amorphous silica, mercapto-functionalized silica, amine functionalized silica, and zeolite Y has been studied as a catalyst in the Heck reaction of iodobenzene with butyl acrylate in the presence of triethylamine base and dimethylformamide solvent. Trapping of soluble Pd with poly(4-vinylpyridine), hot filtration tests during the batchwise Heck reaction, and reaction tests of effluents from a fixed bed continuous reactor support the conclusion that leached Pd is the active phase in the Heck reaction for all of the catalysts tested. Two different paths of Pd leaching that depend on the chemical state of the Pd were elucidated in this study. Oxidative addition of aryl halide to reduced Pd caused leaching of samples containing metallic particles. However, for a zeolite Y sample containing unreduced cationic Pd, the presence of triethylamine base was required to leach Pd into solution. These two paths of Pd leaching are consistent with the generally accepted mechanism of the Heck reaction.     

Self-assembly approach toward magnetic silica-type nanoparticles of different shapes from reverse block copolymer mesophases

In the present study poly(isoprene-block-ethylene oxide), PI-b-PEO, block copolymers are used to structure iron oxide and silica precursors into reverse mesophases, which upon dissolution of the organic matrix lead to well-defined nanoparticles of spheres, cylinders, and plates based on the original structure of the mesophase prepared. The hybrid mesophases with sphere, cylinder, and lamellar morphologies containing the inorganic components in the minority phases are characterized through a combination of small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). After heat treatments the respective nanoparticles on mica surfaces are characterized by scanning force microscopy (SFM). X-ray diffraction (XRD) and superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer measurements are performed to demonstrate that the heat treatment leads to the formation of a magnetic gamma-Fe2O3 crystalline phase within the amorphous aluminosilicate. The results pave the way to functional, i.e., magnetic nanoparticles where the size, shape, and iron oxide concentration can be controlled opening a range of possible applications.     

Synthesis and molecular docking study of pyrazole clubbed oxazole as antibacterial agents

Research on Chemical Intermediates - We have developed a simple synthetic protocol for the preparation of novel 3-(3-(4-fluorophenyl)-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-5-arylisoxazoles. The structure of...     

Electron and positron impact excitation of hydrogen from the initially excited 22S state to 32S and 32P states

The total and differential cross sections for the electron and positron impact excitation of hydrogen from its initially excited metastable 2²S state to 3²S and 3²P states are reported. A distorted-wave approximation theory is used for the calculation. The angular correlation parameters, Ly and alignment angle are also reported for 2²S-3²P excitation. For comparison, similar first Born results are also obtained. Interesting features are noted on comparing our distorted wave results with the first Born results as well as with the other available results forn ²S andn ²P (n=2,3) excitations from the ground 1²S state of hydrogen.     

Absorption and fluorescence spectral studies of the interaction of sulpha drugs with α-cyclodextrin

The spectral characteristics of different drugs i.e. sulfanilamide, sulfanilic acid, sulfosalicylic acid dihydrate (SSAD) and sulfamethoxazole in aqueous α-cyclodextrin (CD) have been investigated at neutral pH. The formation of inclusion complexes of sulfa drugs with α-CD leads to the changes in fluorescence and absorption spectra which further enable the calculation of association constant of the bind processes by implementing the non-linear regression on the experimental data. The standard Gibbs energy ΔG was also calculated for the systems in which complex formation was observed. The α-CD study indicates that the sulpha drugs form 1:1 inclusion complex with α-CD.     

Importance of counterion reactivity on the deactivation of Co-salen catalysts in the hydrolytic kinetic resolution of epichlorohydrin

Possible modes of deactivation of Jacobsen's Co-salen catalyst during the hydrolytic kinetic resolution (HKR) of epichlorohydrin were explored by UV-vis spectroscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry, combined with recycling studies. Although an active Co(III)-salen catalyst deactivated substantially after multiple cycles without regeneration, the catalyst maintained its +3 oxidation state throughout the runs. Thus, deactivation of Co-salen during HKR was not the result of Co reduction. The mass spectrum of a deactivated material showed that catalyst dimerization does not account for the loss of activity. Results from various catalyst pretreatment tests, as well as from catalysts containing various counterions (acetate, tosylate, chloride, iodide) indicated that the rate of addition of the Co-salen counterions to epoxide forming Co-OH during the reaction correlated with deactivation. The extent of counterion addition to epoxide was influenced by the exposure time and the nucleophilicity of the counterion. An oligo(cyclooctene)-supported Co-OAc salen catalyst, which was 25 times more active than the standard Co-salen catalyst, was recycled multiple times with negligible deactivation.     

Deciphering Internal and External π-Conjugation in C3-Symmetric Multiple Azobenzene Connected Systems in Self-Assembly

Two tripodal C₃-symmetric photoswitchable molecular systems T1 and T2 are reported that have extended conjugation at external and internal positions using an acryl group. The influence of the extended π-bonds in their absorption properties, thermal relaxation of the photoisomers and their propensities in forming supramolecular self-assemblies have been explored through spectroscopy, and microscopic studies. In particular, the investigations on the self-assembly have been carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), polarized optical microscopy (POM), X-ray diffraction studies (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Remarkably, the position of the acryl group influences the behaviour of the two target molecules in supramolecular assembly, and also in the formation of photoresponsive organic hydrogels or microcrystals.     

Vibrational Spectroscopic Investigation,First Hyper Polarizability and Homo–Lumo Analysis of Tetrahydroxy-1,4Quinone Hydrate Using Density Functional Theory and Hartree-Fock Method

The FTIR and FT-Raman spectra of tetrahydroxy-1,4quinone hydrate have been recorded in the regions 4000–400 and 3500–50 cm^–1 respectively. Using the observed Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and FT-Raman data, a complete vibrational assignment and analysis of the fundamental modes of the compound has been carried out. The optimum molecular geometry, harmonic vibrational frequencies, infrared intensities and Raman scattering activities, were calculated by the density functional theory (DFT/B3LYP) and Hartree–Fock (HF) method with 6-311+G(d,p) basis set. The difference between the observed and scaled wavenumber values of most of the fundamental vibrations is very small. A detailed interpretation of the infrared and Raman spectra of tetrahydroxy-1,4quinone hydrate is also reported. The calculated HOMO and LUMO energies show that charge transfer occurs within the molecule.