Chromone and phenanthrene alkaloids from Dennettia tripetala

Dennettine, a new 2,6-dimethoxychromone and three known phenanthrene alkaloids (uvariopsine, stephenanthrine and argentinine) in addition to the phenolic and known compound vanillin were isolated from the roots of Dennettia tripetala. Their structures were determined by physical and spectroscopical one dimensional (1D) and 2D-NMR analysis, including heteronuclear multiple bond correlation and nuclear Overhauser enhancement spectroscopy.     

Chemical composition and herbicidal activity of the essential oil from a Cistus ladanifer L. population from Spain

The essential oil composition of Cistus ladanifer grown in central Spain was analysed by gas chromatography and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, revealing it to be rich in oxygenated compounds, with trans-pinocarveol (20.00%), bornyl acetate (7.03%) and terpinen-4-ol (6.37%) as the main monoterpene compounds. Viridiflorol (13.59%) and ledol (4.36%) were the main constituents of the oxygenated sesquiterpene fraction. Large amounts of α-pinene (4.70%) were found in the hydrocarbonated fractions. To study its possible use as a natural herbicide, the oil was tested in?vitro against Amaranthus hybridus, Portulaca oleracea, Chenopodium album, Conyza canadensis and Parietaria judaica, completely inhibiting A. hybridus germination, and nearly blocking C. canadensis and P. judaica germination at all concentrations assayed. In P. oleracea, the oil showed less effect, inhibiting its germination at the higher doses studied. It did not control C. album germination. Regarding seedling length, the oil had strong phytotoxic activity, being effective at all concentrations tested.     

Hydrodechlorination of Organochlorinated Aliphatic Compounds Over Nickel Catalysts

The hydrodechlorination of six important organochlorinated pollutants over Ni catalysts (Raney and supported) was studied. Reactions were carried out in discontinuous microreactors, at 300°C and 50 bar. Tested catalysts showed significant activities, especially for the CCl₄ hydrodechlorination.     

Herbicidal activity of Peumus boldus and Drimys winterii essential oils from Chile

The essential oil composition of Peumus boldus and Drimys winterii was analyzed by means of capillary GC-FID and GC-MS. More than 96% of the total oil components (43 and 54 compounds, respectively) were identified, with ascaridole (51.17 ± 9.51), p-cymene (16.31 ± 2.52) and 1,8-cineole (14.45 ± 2.99) as the main compounds in P. boldus and g-eudesmol (21.65 ± 0.41), followed of elemol (12.03 ± 0.34) and terpinen-4-ol (11.56 ± 1.06) in D. winterii. The herbicidal activity was tested against Amaranthus hybridus and Portulaca oleracea. P. boldus essential oil was the most phytotoxic against both weeds, inhibiting seed germination and seedling growth at all concentrations assayed (0.125-1 μL/mL). D. winterii essential oil did not show any effect on A. hybridus germination and only affected P. oleracea germination at the highest concentration. The results suggest the possible use of the essential oil from P. boldus as a natural herbicide.     

Regeneration of Pd/Al2O3 catalysts used for tetrachloroethylene hydrodechlorination

The deactivation of the Pd/Al₂O₃ catalyst used for the hydrodechlorination of tetrachloroethylene (TTCE) is caused by both the carbonaceous deposits and by the hydrogen chloride produced in the reaction. In this work, several regeneration procedures have been tested, concluding that the best procedure is the leaching with ammonia, followed by calcinations and reduction. This procedure leads to an important recovery of the initial activity. The catalyst regenerated with this treatment is even less prone to deactivation that the fresh catalyst.     

Ammonia Oxidation over Conventional Combustion Catalysts

The combustion of ammonia in air over different conventional oxidation catalysts has been studied in the present work. The final oxidation product is NO, although N₂O is also formed at intermediate temperatures. The environmentally desirable product, N₂, is only appreciably yielded over iron oxides catalysts.