X-ray Study of Alkanediols on Graphite

Phase behavior of heptanamide adsorbed on a graphite substrate

In this letter, the phase behavior of a saturated alkylamide, heptanamide (C(7)), adsorbed on the surface of graphite using synchrotron X-ray diffraction is presented. The diffraction patterns indicate that heptanamide undergoes a solid-solid phase transition in the monolayer at 330 K from pgg symmetry at lower temperatures to p2 symmetry at high temperatures. Other alkylamides with similar carbon chain lengths do not show this phase change, making the C(7) homologue unusual.

Crystalline structures of alkylamide monolayers adsorbed on the surface of graphite

Synchrotron X-ray and neutron diffraction have been used to determine the two-dimensional crystalline structures of alkylamides adsorbed on graphite at submonolayer coverage. The calculated structures show that the plane of the carbon backbone of the amide molecules is parallel to the graphite substrate. The molecules form hydrogen-bonded dimers, and adjacent dimers form additional hydrogen bonds yielding extended chains. By presenting data from a number of members of the homologous series, we have identified that these chains pack in different arrangements depending on the number of carbons in the amide molecule. The amide monolayers are found to be very stable relative to other closely related alkyl species, a feature which is attributed to the extensive hydrogen bonding present in these systems. The characteristics of the hydrogen bonds have been determined and are found to be in close agreement with those present in the bulk materials.

Thermal properties and mixing state of diol-water mixtures studied by calorimetry, large-angle X-ray scattering, and NMR relaxation

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) has been performed on aqueous mixtures of three diols, which involve a linear carbon chain, HO-(CH 2) n -OH ( n = 3, 4, and 5), over the whole mole fraction range of diols. The DSC results have shown the alkyl chain parity for the freezing process of the aqueous mixtures: aqueous mixtures of 1,3-propanediol (PrD) and 1,5-pentanediol (PeD) are kept in the supercooled state or vitrified over a wide mole fraction range, while those of 1,4-butanediol (BuD) are easily crystallized. The structure of PrD-water mixtures has been elucidated by using the large-angle X-ray scattering (LAXS) technique. It has been suggested that the structural change of PrD-water mixtures occurs at PrD mole fractions of x PrD = 0.4 and 0.8: in the range of x PrD < or = 0.4 where the tetrahedral-like structure of water predominates, in the range of 0.4 < x PrD < 0.8 where both PrD and water structures coexist, and in the range of x PrD > or = 0.8 where the inherent structure of PrD is mainly formed. (17)O and (1)H NMR relaxation measurements have been made on aqueous mixtures of ethylene glycol (EG, n = 2), PrD, and BuD to clarify the dynamics of H 2 (17)O and diol molecules. The (17)O NMR relaxation rates have suggested that the rotational motion of water molecules is gradually retarded in the diol-water mixtures with increasing diol content and that the restriction of the motion is more remarkable in the order of EG < PrD < BuD. On the basis of all the results, together with comparison with those of methanol-water, ethanol-water, and 1-propanol-water mixtures previously reported, the mixing state of diol-water mixtures has been discussed at the molecular level.

Thermodynamic investigation of the adsorption of amides on graphite from their liquids and binary mixtures

We report a thermodynamic investigation of the adsorption of saturated and unsaturated (cis- and trans-) alkyl amides onto the surface of graphite from their pure liquids and from binary mixtures. We identify the formation of solid monolayers of the amides at temperatures when the bulk materials are liquid. The extent of this presolidification is much more extensive than other related materials, indicating that these amide layers are significantly more stable. The monolayer stability is found to be greatest for saturated amides. In addition, the stability of unsaturated amides is extremely sensitive to the location of the double bonds in the alkyl chain of the molecules, and trans isomers are found to be more stable than cis. We also address the preferential adsorption and mixing behavior of amide mixtures and amides mixed with other species coadsorbed onto graphite from binary solution. The results indicate that the amide molecules appear to be adsorbed with their principal axis parallel to the graphite surface and that amides are found to be strongly preferentially adsorbed with respect to alkanes. Interestingly the amides appear to mix rather better than might have been expected. There is also evidence of a number of other transitions in the adsorbates.