Determination of orientation distribution function of anisotropic paramagnetic species by analysis of ESR spectra angular dependence

Novel Orientation-Sensitive Spin Probes for Graphene Oxide Membranes Study

Spin probe EPR spectroscopy is currently the only method to quantitatively report on the orientational ordering of graphene oxide membranes. This technique is based on the analysis of EPR spectra of a membrane containing stable radicals sorbed on oxidized graphene planes. The efficiency of the method depends on the spin probe structure; therefore, it is important to find stable paramagnetic substances that are most sensitive to the alignment of graphene oxide membranes. In the present work, three novel stable nitroxide radicals containing aromatic fragments with two nitrogen atoms were tested as spin probes to study graphene oxide membranes. The spin-Hamiltonian parameters of the radicals in graphite oxide powder and orientational order parameters of the probes inside graphene oxide membrane were determined. The sensitivity of one of these radicals to membrane orientational ordering was found to be higher than for any of spin probes used previously. A likely reason for this higher sensitivity is the presence of heteroatoms which can facilitate interaction between paramagnetic molecules and oxygen-containing groups on the inner surface of the membrane. The new high-sensitivity spin probe may significantly increase the potential of EPR spectroscopy for studying the internal structure of graphene oxide membranes.

Mechanical ordering of pigment crystallites in oil binder: can electron paramagnetic resonance reveal the gesture of an artist?

Is it possible to reconstruct the gesture of an ancient artist applying a paint layer, considering that the orientation distribution of crystallites of an inorganic pigment remains definitively imprinted on the support after drying of the layer? If the pigment contains paramagnetic transition metal ions whose magnetic interactions are themselves anisotropic, then the shape of the electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrum should reflect the distribution of grain orientations. We have demonstrated this effect in the case of Egyptian blue CaCuSi4 O10 , a pigment used for at least 3 millennia in antiquity, by reconstructing the probability density of crystallite orientations under various modes of application, such as brush painting, dabbing and droplet deposition.

Quantitative determination of the orientational ordering of the graphene oxide membranes by spin probe technique

The orientational alignment of the graphene oxide membranes was determined quantitatively using spin probe technique; the values of the orientational order parameters up to 6th rank were obtained. It was...

Insights from semi-oriented EPR spectroscopy studies into the interaction of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases with cellulose

Probing the detailed interaction between lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) and their polysaccharide substrates is key to revealing further insights into the mechanism of action of this class of enzymes on recalcitrant biomass. This investigation is somewhat hindered, however, by the insoluble nature of the substrates, which precludes the use of most optical spectroscopic techniques. Herein, we report a new semi-oriented EPR method which evaluates directly the binding of cellulose-active LPMOs to crystalline cellulose. We make use of the intrinsic order of cellulose fibres in Apium graveolens (celery) to orient the LPMO with respect to the magnetic field of an EPR spectrometer. The subsequent angle-dependent changes observed in the EPR spectra can then be related to the orientation of the g matrix principal directions with respect to the magnetic field of the spectrometer and, hence, to the binding of the enzyme onto the cellulose fibres. This method, which does not require specific modification of standard CW-EPR equipment, can be used as a general procedure to investigate LPMO-cellulose interactions.

Molecular orientational order of nitroxide radicals in liquid crystalline media

The orientational distribution of a set of stable nitroxide radicals in aligned liquid crystals 5CB (nematic) and 8CB (smectic A) was studied in detail by numerical simulation of EPR spectra. The order parameters up to the 10th rank were measured. The directions of the principal orientation axes of the radicals were determined. It was shown that the ordering of the probe molecules is controlled by their interaction with the matrix molecules more than the inherent geometry of the probes themselves. The rigid fused phenanthrene-based (A5) and 2-azaphenalene (A4) nitroxides as well as the rigid core elongated C11 and 5α-cholestane (CLS) nitroxides were found to be most sensitive to the orientation of the liquid crystal matrixes.

Triazene derivatives of (1,x-)diazacycloalkanes. Part VI. 3-({5,5-Dimethyl-3-[2-aryl-1-diazenyl]-1-imidazolidinyl}methyl)-4,4-dimethyl-1-[2-aryl-1-diazenyl]imidazolidines — Synthesis, characterization, and X-ray crystal structure

Reaction of a series of diazonium salts with a mixture of formaldehyde and 1,2-diamino-2-methylpropane affords the 3-({5,5-dimethyl-3-[2-aryl-1-diazenyl]-1-imidazolidinyl}methyl)-4,4-dimethyl-1-[2-aryl-1-diazenyl]imidazolidines (1a–1f) in excellent yield. The products have been characterized by IR and NMR spectroscopic analysis, elemental analysis, and X-ray crystallography. The X-ray crystal structure of the p-methoxycarbonyl derivative (1c) establishes without question the connectivity of these novel molecules, which can be described as linear bicyclic oligomers with two imidazolidinyl groups linked together by a one-carbon spacer. This is indeed a rare molecular building block. The molecular structure is corroborated by 1H and 13C NMR data, which correlates with the previously published data of compounds of types 5 and 6 derived from 1,3-propanediamine. The triazene moieties in the crystal of 1c display significant π conjugation, which gives the N—N bond a significant degree of double-bond character. This in turn causes restricted rotation around the N—N bond, which leads to considerable broadening of signals in both the 1H and 13C NMR spectra. The molecular ion of the p-cyanophenyl derivative (1b) was observed using electrospray mass spectrometry (ES + Na). The mechanism of formation of molecules of type 1 is proposed to involve diazonium ion trapping of the previously unreported bisimidazolidinyl methane (13).Key words: triazene, bistriazene, imidazolidine, synthesis, X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy.