A theoretical study of the structure and bonding of UOX4 (X = F, Cl, Br, I) molecules: the importance of inverse trans influence.

During nitroxide-mediated polymerization (NMP) in the presence of a nitroxide R2(R1)NO*, the reversible formation of N-alkoxyamines [P-ON(R1)R2] reduces significantly the concentration of polymer radicals (P*) and their involvement in termination reactions. The control of the livingness and polydispersity of the resulting polymer depends strongly on the magnitude of the bond dissociation energy (BDE) of the C-ON(R1)R2 bond. In this study, theoretical BDEs of a large series of model N-alkoxyamines are calculated with the PM3 method. In order to provide a predictive tool, correlations between the calculated BDEs and the cleavage temperature (T(c)), and the dissociation rate constant (k(d)), of the N-alkoxyamines are established. The homolytic cleavage of the N-OC bond is also investigated at the B3P86/6-311++G(d,p)//B3LYP/6-31G(d), level. Furthermore, a natural bond orbital analysis is carried out for some N-alkoxyamines with a O-C-ON(R1)R2 fragment, and the strengthening of their C-ON(R1)R2 bond is interpreted in terms of stabilizing anomeric interactions.     

Synthesis and structure of neutral π-arene complex (η6-C6H5Me)U(AlCl4)3

A new neutral -arene complex of trivalent uranium, (⁶-C₆H₅Me)U(AlCl₄)₃ (1), was obtained by the reductive Freidel-Crafts reaction. The crystal structure of 1 was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The U atom in 1 is bound to the C₆H₅Me group by the ⁶ mechanism and is linked to the three AICl₄ groups through two g-CI bridges. The coordination of the U atom is a distorted pentagonal bipyramid in which the center of the arene ring is in one apical position, and the bridging Cl atoms occupy the other vertices.Translated from Izvestiva Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 2, pp. 469–472, February, 1996.     

Simple route to secondary amides of phosphorylacetic acids and their use for extraction and sorption of actinides from nitric acid solutions

An efficient method for the synthesis of secondary alkylamides of phosphorylacetic acids (APA) was proposed. The method involves amidation of ethyl phosphorylacetates with primary aliphatic amines. The scope of reaction was determined. Reactions with ethylenediamine and 1,4-diaminobutane yield the corresponding bisamides; in the case of 1,3-diaminopropane, N-(3-aminopropyl)diphenylphosphorylacetamide or N,N-propylenebis(diphenylphosphorylacetamide) was obtained, depending on the reaction conditions. The extraction of americium(III) complexes and the sorption of uranium(VI) by sorbents with physically sorbed APA from nitric acid solutions were studied. There is no correlation between the partition coefficient of americium(III) and the structure of APA; in the sorption of uranium(VI), the degree of extraction depends on the complexone structure.__________Published in Russian in Izvestiya Akademii Nauk. Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2394–2402, November, 2004.     

Backbonding in Thorium(IV) and Uranium(IV) Diarsenido Complexes with tBuNC and CO

The coordination of tBuNC and CO with the diarsenido complexes (C₅Me₅)₂An(η²-As₂Mes₂), An=Th, U, has been investigated. For the first time, a comparison between isostructural complexes of Th^IV and U^IV has been possible with CO; density functional calculations indicated an appreciable amount of π backbonding that originates from charge transfer from an actinide-arsenic sigma bond. The calculated CO stretching frequencies in the Th^IV and U^IV diarsenido complexes are consistent with the experimental measurements, both show large shifts to lower frequency. We demonstrate that the π backbonding is crucial to explaining the red shifts of CO frequency upon An^IV complex formation. Interestingly, this interaction essentially correlates to the parallel orientation of π*(C−O) orbitals relative to the An−As bond.     

Beyond Biological Chelation: Coordination of f-Block Elements by Polyhydroxamate Ligands

The promise of polyhydroxamic acid ligands for the selective chelation of the f-block elements is becoming increasingly more apparent. The initial studies of polyhydroxamic acid siderophores showed the formation of highly stable complexes with Pu^IV, but a higher preference for Fe^III hindered effective applications. The development of synthetic routes toward highly pure and customizable ligands containing multiple hydroxamic acids allowed for the growth of new classes of compounds. Although the first round of these ligands focused on the incorporation of siderophore-like frameworks, the new synthetic strategies led to small molecules of various frameworks and even resins for applications in the field of f-block element separations and biological desorption. Unfortunately, a lack of consistent stability-constant data makes direct comparisons across this body of work difficult. More studies into the stability constants and separations of the f-block elements in a variety of pH ranges is necessary to truly realize the potential for polyhydroxamic acid ligands.     

ThH5: An Actinide-Containing Superhalogen Molecule

Thorium and its compounds have been widely investigated as important nuclear materials. Previous research focused on the potential use of thorium hydrides, such as ThH₂, ThH₄, and Th₄H₁₅, as nuclear fuels. Here, we report studies of the anion, ThH₅⁻, by anion photoelectron spectroscopy and computations. The resulting experimental and theoretical vertical detachment energies (VDE) for ThH₅⁻ are 4.09 eV and 4.11 eV, respectively. These values and the agreement between theory and experiment facilitated the characterization of the structure of the ThH₅⁻ anion and showed its neutral counterpart, ThH₅ to be a superhalogen. ThH₅⁻, which exhibits a C_4v structure with five Th−H single bonds, possesses the largest known H/M ratio among the actinide elements, M. The adaptive natural density partitioning (AdNDP) method was used to further analyze the chemical bonding of ThH₅⁻ and to confirm the existence of five Th−H single bonds in the ThH₅⁻ molecular anion.     

An Unprecedented Two‐Fold Nested Super‐Polyrotaxane: Sulfate‐Directed Hierarchical Polythreading Assembly of Uranyl Polyrotaxane Moieties

The hierarchical assembly of well‐organized submoieties could lead to more complicated superstructures with intriguing properties. We describe herein an unprecedented polyrotaxane polythreading framework containing a two‐fold nested super‐polyrotaxane substructure, which was synthesized through a uranyl‐directed hierarchical polythreading assembly of one‐dimensional polyrotaxane chains and two‐dimensional polyrotaxane networks. This special assembly mode actually affords a new way of supramolecular chemistry instead of covalently linked bulky stoppers to construct stable interlocked rotaxane moieties. An investigation of the synthesis condition shows that sulfate can assume a vital role in mediating the formation of different uranyl species, especially the unique trinuclear uranyl moiety [(UO₂)₃O(OH)₂]²⁺, involving a notable bent [O=U=O] bond with a bond angle of 172.0(9)°. Detailed analysis of the coordination features, the thermal stability as well as a fluorescence, and electrochemical characterization demonstrate that the uniqueness of this super‐polyrotaxane structure is mainly closely related to the trinuclear uranyl moiety, which is confirmed by quantum chemical calculations.