Benzooxirene. Ab initio calculations

Ab initio calculations have been performed on benzooxirene, the corresponding oxo carbene (“ketocarbene”), and the transition state linking the two. At the highest level used, QCISD(T)/6-31G^*//MP2(FULL)/6-1G^* with MP2(FULL)/ 6-31G^* zero point energy corrections, the relative energies of the oxirene, the transition state and the carbene are 0, 24.6, and −17.8 kJ mol⁻¹. Correlation energy effects are very important in this system: at the QCISD(T) level the oxirene lies above the carbene, as at the MP4 and HF levels, but at the MP2 level the ordering is reversed. Benzooxirene is probably slightly nonplanar: the HF/6-31G^* geometry is C_2v but the MP2(Fermi contact)/6-31G^* geometry is C_s with a 6-/3-ring coplanarity deviation of about 6.9 °, although in the MP2(FULL)/6-31G^* geometry this is reduced to about 3.1 °.     

Assignment of π → 3d rydberg transitions in ethylene around 9 eV using MCD and synchrotron radiation

Magnetic circular dichroism measurements on ethylene are reported over the region of the 3R₀₀ and 4R₀₀^? origins around 9 eV. The results show conclusively that each origin is a composite of two electronic transitions. The 3R₀₀ origin is assigned to the Rydberg transitions, ^tA₁ → ¹B₂(3dδ) + ¹B₃(3dδ). 4R₀₀^? is assigned as ¹A₁ → 3R₀₀ + ν₃(u).     

New serratane triterpenes from western white pine bark

Three new serratanes were isolated from the nonsaponifiable fraction of western white pine ($\text{Pinus monticola}$ Dougl.) bark. The compounds were shown to be 3β-methoxyserrat-14-ene-21α,30-diol ($\text{8a}$), 3β-methoxyserrat-14-ene-21α, 29-diol ($\text{9a}$), and 3β-methoxyserrat-14-ene-21β,30-diol ($\text{10a}$), by a combination of chemical, and spectral methods.     

Applications of array biosensor for detection of food allergens

Although food is a necessity, compounds within food products can be dangerous and life-threatening for people with food allergies. These allergy-causing compounds, such as proteins from eggs and milk, must be identified on the labels of commercial products. Unintentional contamination of food with these compounds occurs as a result of storage, manufacturing procedures, or cleaning procedures. A sensitive, specific, and rapid method to identify foods containing allergens is required by the food industry. The array biosensor, a rapid detection system, may provide a solution to this need. The array biosensor performs fluorescent immunoassays on the surface of a planar waveguide by first running samples, then fluorescently labeled antibodies, over a surface patterned with capture antibodies. An optical image is captured by a charged-coupled device camera and converted into fluorescence values. Signal intensity and spot location provide information on the compound and its concentration. The array biosensor has been successfully demonstrated for toxin, bacteria, and virus detection at low levels in under 20 min in food, clinical samples, and environmental matrixes. An assay for detection of ovalbumin as an indicator of egg contamination has been developed with limits of detection of 25 pg/mL in buffer and 1.3 ng/mL (13 ng/g) in non-egg pasta extract (buffer:pasta 10:1, v/w).     

Regio- and Stereochemical Aspects of the Palladium-Catalyzed Desilylation-Arylation of Substituted Vinylsilanes

The palladium-catalyzed desilylation-arylation of substituted vinylsilanes by p-iodoanisole in the presence of bidentate phosphine ligands is described. Apart from enhancing the rate of the reaction considerably, heteroatom-based functional groups in the vinylsilane moiety have a profound influence on the regiochemistry. A catalytic cycle for the chelation-controlled desilylation-arylation reaction involving five- and six-membered chelate rings is proposed.     

Photoinduced electron transfer in platinum(II) terpyridinyl acetylide complexes connected to a porphyrin unit

A series of six new dyads consisting of a zinc or magnesium porphyrin appended to a platinum terpyridine acetylide complex via a para-phenylene bisacetylene spacer are described. Different substituents on the 4' position of the terpyridinyl ligand were explored (OC7H15, PO3Et2, and H). The ground-state electronic properties of the dyads are studied by electronic absorption spectroscopy and electrochemistry, and they indicate some electronic interactions between the porphyrin subunit and the platinum complex. The photophysical properties of these dyads were investigated by steady-state, time-resolved, and femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy in N,N-dimethylformamide solution. Excitation of the porphyrin unit leads to a very rapid electron transfer (2-20 ps) to the nearby platinum complex followed by an ultrafast charge recombination, thus preventing any observation of the charge separated state. The variation in the rate of the photoinduced electron transfer in the series of dyads is consistent with Marcus theory. The results underscore the potential of the para-phenylene bisacetylene bridge to mediate a rapid electron transfer over a long donor-acceptor distance.     

Observation of the pi...H hydrogen-bonded ternary complex, (C(2)H(4))(2)H(2)O, using matrix isolation infrared spectroscopy

FTIR absorption spectra of water-containing ethene:Ar matrices, with compositions of ethene up to 1:10 ethene:Ar, have been recorded. Systematically increasing the concentration of ethene reveals features in the spectra consistent with the known 1:1 ethene:water complex, which subsequently disappear on further increase in ethene concentration. At high concentrations of ethene, new features are observed at 3669 and 3585 cm(-1), which are red-shifted with respect to matrix-isolated nu(3) and nu(1) O-H stretching modes of water and the 1:1 ethene:water complex. These shifts are consistent with a pi...H interaction of a 2:1 ethene:water complex of the form (C(2)H(4)...H-O-H...C(2)H(4)). The analogous (C(2)D(4))(2)H(2)O complex shows little shifting from positions associated with (C(2)H(4))(2)H(2)O, while the (C(2)H(4))(2)D(2)O isotopomer shows large shifts to 2722.3 and 2617.2 cm(-1), having identical nu(3)(H(2)O)/nu(3)(D(2)O) and nu(1)(H(2)O)/nu(1)(D(2)O) values when compared with monomeric water isotopomers. Features at 3626.1 and 2666.2 cm(-1) are also observed and are attributed to (C(2)H(4))(2)HDO. DFT calculations at the B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level for each isotopomer are presented, and the predicted vibrational frequencies are directly compared with experimental values. The interaction energy for the formation of the 2:1 ethene:water complex from the 1:1 ethene:water complex is also presented.     

Electron attachment on HI and DI in a uniform supersonic flow: thermalization of the electrons

In order to check the electron thermalization in the CRESU technique (Cinetique de Reaction en Ecoulement Supersonique Uniforme, e.g., "reaction kinetics in a uniform supersonic flow"), electron attachment on HI and DI has been studied in the 48-170 K range. Attachment to HI is exothermic and the reaction is expected to be fast and to proceed at a rate close to the capture limit. On the contrary, attachment to DI is slightly endothermic, and a strong positive temperature dependence of the measured rate coefficient is expected if the electrons are thermal. This dependence is not observed, and we conclude that the electrons are not in thermal equilibrium with the neutrals in the afterglow. A model, based on electron heating by superelastic collisions with the buffer gas, is proposed to explain this fact and implications for previously published results are discussed.