Polymerization behaviors of racemic and chiral amphiphilic monomers in organized bilayer membranes of lamellar liquid crystalline phase

A racemic amphiphilic monomer, n‐dodecyl glyceryl itaconate (DGI), forms bilayer membranes in water in the presence of small amount of ionic cosurfactant and shows iridescent color. A chiral DGI, S‐DGI, also shows an iridescent property, but with a rather red shift in the color, which can be ascribed to the increased packing density of the monomer in the bilayer membranes. Chrial DGI has a more compact packing density than racemic one owing to closer distance between the monomer molecules; the conversion rate, however, is slower than that of racemic one when H₂O₂ is used as an initiator. When the initiator is changed to an amphiphilic one, 4‐(2‐hydroxyethoxy) phenyl‐(2‐hydroxy‐2‐propyl) ketone (Irgacure 2959), the chiral DGI shows even a little faster conversion rate than that of racemic one. The NMR chemical shift results of protons in benzene ring show that the molecules of Irgacure 2959 insert into the bilayer membranes. The molecular weights of the corresponding polymers prove that the initiation by H₂O₂ is restricted compared to that by Irgacure 2959. It is concluded that the decelerated polymerization behavior of chiral DGI initiated by H₂O₂ is a result of limited diffusion of the initiator into the lamellar bilayer structures. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 4891–4900, 2007     

Natural Operators Lifting Vector Fields to Bundles of Weil Contact Elements

Let A be a Weil algebra. The bijection between all natural operators lifting vector fields from m-manifolds to the bundle functor K ^A of Weil contact elements and the subalgebra of fixed elements SA of the Weil algebra A is determined and the bijection between all natural affinors on K ^A and SA is deduced. Furthermore, the rigidity of the functor K ^A is proved. Requisite results about the structure of SA are obtained by a purely algebraic approach, namely the existence of nontrivial SA is discussed.     

Photoinduced chemical reactions on natural single crystals and synthesized crystallites of mercury(II) sulfide in aqueous solution containing naturally occurring amino acids

Photoirradiation at >300 nm of aqueous suspensions of several natural crystal specimens and synthesized crystallites of mercury(II) sulfide (HgS) induced deaminocyclization of optically active or racemic lysine into pipecolinic acid (PCA) under deaerated conditions. This is the first example, to the best of our knowledge, of photoinduced chemical reactions of natural biological compounds over natural minerals. It was found that the natural HgS crystals had activity higher than those of synthesized ones but lower than those of other sulfides of transition metals, e.g., CdS and ZnS, belonging to the same II-IV chalcogenides. In almost all of the photoreactions, decompostion of HgS occurred to liberate hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S) and Hg(2+), and the latter seemed to have undergone in-situ reductive deposition on HgS as Hg(0) after a certain induction period (24-70 h) during the photoirradiation, as indicated by the darkened color of the suspensions. The formation of PCA, presumably through combination of oxidation of lysine and reduction of an intermediate, cyclic Schiff base, could also be seen after a certain induction time of the Hg(0) formation. This was supported by the fact that the addition of small amount of Hg(2+) (0.5 wt % of HgS) increased the PCA yield by almost 2-fold. We also tried to elucidate certain aspects of the plausible stereochemical reactions in relation to the chiral crystal structure of HgS. Although, in some experiments, slight enantiomeric excess of the product PCA was observed, the excess was below or equal to the experimental error and no other supporting analytical data could not be obtained; we cannot conclude the enantiomeric photoproduction of PCA by the natural chiral HgS specimen.     

Photocatalytic Organic Syntheses: Selective Cyclization of Amino Acids in Aqueous Suspensions

Photocatalytic reactions occurring at semiconductor particles/solution interfaces can be applied to organic syntheses. In this review article, examples of photocatalytic syntheses of cyclic amino acids by suspended semiconductor particles, e.g., titanium(IV) oxide or cadmium(II) sulfide are introduced and interpreted. Different from the photocatalytic decomposition of pollutants under aerobic conditions, selective conversion of organic compounds can be driven by the photocatalytic reactions under deaerated conditions.     

PHOTOOXYGENATION OF METHYL LINOLEATE SENSITIZED BY PORPHYRINS AND DYES IN ACETONITRILE SOLUTION AND AQUEOUS EMULSION SYSTEMS

Photooxygenation reaction of an unsaturated fatty acid ester, methyl linoleate (methyl 9- cis. 12- cis -octadecadienoate, ML-H), sensitized by porphyrins and several types of dyes has been studied in aqueous emulsion and acetonitrile solution under air at 40°C. The oxygen (O₂) uptake proceeded slowly in the absence of sensitizers upon irradiation of an aqueous emulsion and an acetonitrile solution of ML-H (20 m M ) at ℷ_ex > 290 nm (11.4 and 6.1 μmol h^-1, respectively). The rate of O₂ uptake was enhanced by a catalytic amount (0.1 m M ) of porphyrins and dyes; hematoporphyrin (HP), zinc tetrakis(N-methyl-4-pyridiniumyi)porphyrin (ZnTMPyP), methylene blue (MB), rose bengal (RB), acridine orange (AO), and acriflavine (AF). In both systems, the sensitized photooxidation of ML-H by O₂ proceeded equimolarly to produce isomeric mixture of C9 and C13 hydroperoxides having the trans,cis and trans,trans conjugated diene configurations, independent of the types of the sensitizers used. The yield ratio of trans,trans/ trans,cis products in the MB-sensitized photooxygenation in acetonitrile and aqueous emulsion were almost equal (0.32 and 0.35. respectively). The sensitizing activity of the sensitizers, as measured by the quantum yield of O₂ uptake, increased in the order: MB (≃ 0) < ZnTMPyP < RB < HP < AF < AO in the aqueous emulsion and AO < AF < HP < RB = MB in the acetonitrile solution. The order in homogeneous acetonitrile solution was interpreted by the sensitizing ability of the dyes to produce singlet oxygen, while that in heterogeneous aqueous emulsion was correlated to the lipophilicity of dyes as well as the singlet-oxygen-producing ability.     

Facile Insertion of Carbon Dioxide into Cu2(μ‐H) Dinuclear Units Supported by Tetraphosphine Ligands

Reactions of meso‐bis[(diphenylphosphinomethyl)phenylphosphino]methane (dpmppm) with Cu^I species in the presence of NaBH₄ afforded di‐ and tetranuclear copper hydride complexes, [Cu₂(μ‐H)(μ‐dpmppm)₂]X ( 1 ) and [Cu₄(μ‐H)₂(μ₄‐H)(μ‐dpmppm)₂]X ( 2 ) (X=BF₄, PF₆). Complex 1 undergoes facile insertion of CO₂ (1 atm) at room temperature, leading to a formate‐bridged dicopper complex [Cu₂(μ‐HCOO)(dpmppm)₂]X ( 3 ). The experimental and DFT theoretical studies clearly demonstrate that CO₂ insertion into the Cu₂(μ‐H) unit occurred with the flexible dicopper platform. Complex 2 also undergoes CO₂ insertion to give a formate‐bridged complex, [Cu₄(μ‐HCOO)₃(dpmppm)₂]X, during which the square Cu₄ framework opened up to a linear tetranuclear chain.     

Photocatalytic reduction of nitrobenzenes to aminobenzenes in aqueous suspensions of titanium(IV) oxide in the presence of hole scavengers under deaerated and aerated conditions

Photocatalytic reduction of nitrobenzenes to corresponding aminobenzenes in aqueous suspensions of titanium(IV) oxide (TiO(2)) containing hole scavengers under various conditions was examined. In photocatalytic reduction of m-nitrobenzenesulfonic acid (m-NBS) in the presence of formic acid (FA) under deaerated conditions, m-aminobenzenesulfonic acid (m-ABS) was produced almost quantitatively in acidic suspensions and high efficiency (>99%) in FA utilization as a hole scavenger was achieved. No re-oxidation of m-ABS occurred in acidic conditions both in the presence and absence of FA. The high yield of m-ABS was explained by strong ability of FA as a hole scavenger and possible repulsion of the reduced functional group (ammonium group, -NH(3)(+)) from the protonated, i.e., positively charged TiO(2) surface in acidic suspensions avoiding re-oxidation of m-ABS. Using TiO(2) samples of various physical properties, which had been synthesized by a solvothermal method and post-calcination at various temperatures, effects of physical properties of the TiO(2) samples on m-ABS yield were also investigated. A linear correlation between the amount of m-NBS adsorbed and the m-ABS yield was observed, suggesting that ability of TiO(2) for m-NBS adsorption is one of the key factors for effective photocatalytic reduction of m-NBS to m-ABS. This photocatalytic system can be applied for reduction of aminonitrobenzenes to corresponding diaminobenzenes (DAB) in the presence of oxalic acid as a hole scavenger. High yields of m-ABS and DAB were achieved even when the reactions were performed in the presence of oxygen.     

Size-selective photocatalytic reactions by titanium(IV) oxide coated with a hollow silica shell in aqueous solutions

A novel core-shell composite photocatalyst, commercially available titanium(IV) oxide (TiO(2)) particles directly incorporated into a hollow amorphous silica shell, was fabricated by successive coating of TiO(2) with a carbon layer and a silica layer followed by heat treatment to remove the carbon layer. The composite induced efficient photocatalytic reactions when relatively small substrates were used, such as methanol dehydration and decomposition of acetic acid, without any reduction in the intrinsic activity of original TiO(2), but did not exhibit efficient photocatalytic activity for decomposition of large substrates, methylene blue and polyvinyl alcohol. The unique size-selective properties of the composites are due to their structural characteristics, i.e., the presence of a pore system and a void space in the silica shell and between the shell and medial TiO(2) particles, respectively. The loading of alkylsilyl groups on the surface of the composite led to highly photostable floatability: the floated sample also induced efficient photocatalytic reaction for decomposition of acetic acid while retaining floatation at the gas/water interface.     

Germanium – the superior dopant in n‐type GaN

We present an experimental study about the influence of Si and Ge doping in GaN with focus on the occurring strain levels and overall crystalline quality. Extremely high quality samples were examined by means of Raman spectroscopy, demonstrating effective, n‐type doping concentrations up to the 5 × 10¹⁹ cm^–3 regime. By studying the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the E₂(high) Raman mode with rising doping concentration, Ge is approved as the by far superior dopant if compared to Si. Even elevated nominal Ge concentrations yield corresponding FWHM values of just 3 cm^–1, a most competitive value even for bare bulk GaN samples. At the same time, the biaxial, compressive stress that is introduced by such high Ge doping amounts to just 0.2 GPa, in clear contrast to the particular case of silicon. Here, even moderate doping levels lead to tensile stress up to 1 GPa and consequently to a serious degeneration of the overall crystal quality as approved by our Raman analysis. Additionally, the examined high doping concentrations enable the observation of longitudinal optical phonon plasmon (LPP) modes in the Raman spectra, which serve as a direct tool for the determination of the effective doping concentration. A careful analysis of the LPP coupling at cryogenic and room temperature yields within the error interval identical free carrier concentrations in all germanium doped samples, pointing towards an energetically shallow nature of the dopant. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Electric-field-induced changes in absorption and emission spectra of CdS nanoparticles doped in a polymer film

Electric-field-induced changes in absorption and emission spectra of colloidal CdS nanoparticles ranging in size from 1.0 to 5.0 nm in diameter have been measured by using electric field modulation spectroscopy. The analysis of the electroabsorption spectra indicates that the dipole moment in the first exciton state becomes larger with increasing particle size. The presence of the large dipole moment following photoexcitation into the first exciton band suggests that the CdS nanoparticles have large CT character in the first exciton state. The quantum yields both of the exciton emission and of the trap emission are markedly reduced by application of an electric field. On the basis of the direct measurements of the field-induced change in emission decay profile, it is suggested that the field-induced de-enhancement of these emission yields results from the field-induced decreases both in lifetime and in initial population of each emitting state. It is also found that the emission intensity of CdS nanoparticles increases under the UV light irradiation in air and decreases in a vacuum condition and that fluorescence lifetime in the former case is longer than that in the latter. This enhancement and de-enhancement process in emission intensity is almost reversible at least in several cycles.