Nanofiltration Performance of Poly(p-xylylene) Nanofilms with Imidazole Side Chains

Herein, we report the nanofiltration performance of poly(p-xylylene) thin films with imidazole side chains that were deposited onto commercial polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membranes using a chemical vapor deposition process. The resulting thin films with a few tens of nanometers exhibited water permeation under a pressure difference of 0.5 MPa and selectively rejected water-soluble organic dyes based on their molecular sizes. Additionally, thin flaky ZIF-L crystals (Zn(mim)2·(Hmim)1/2·(H2O)3/2) (Hmim = 2-methylimidazole) formed on the surface of imidazole-containing poly(p-xylylene) films, and the composite films demonstrated the ability to adsorb methylene blue molecules within the cavities of ZIF-L.

Breaking paracyclophane: the unexpected formation of non-symmetric disubstituted nitro[2.2]metaparacyclophanes

Substituted [2.2]metaparacyclophanes are amongst the least studied of the simple cyclophanes. This is undoubtedly the result of the lengthy syntheses of these compounds. We report the simple synthesis of a rare example of a non-symmetric [2.2]metaparacyclophane. Treatment of [2.2]paracyclophane under standard nitration conditions gives a mixture of 4-nitro[2.2]paracyclophane, 4-hydroxy-5-nitro[2.2]metaparacyclophane and a cyclohexadienone cyclophane.

The synthesis of planar chiral pseudo-gem aminophosphine pre-ligands based on [2.2]paracyclophane

We have synthesized three pseudo-gem [2.2]paracyclophane-derived P,N-ligands and report preliminary activity studies for the amination of aryl bromides and chlorides.

The synthesis of substituted amino[2.2]paracyclophanes

Amino[2.2]paracyclophanes can be prepared by direct amination of bromo[2.2]paracyclophanes or more generally by a formylation–oxime formation–oxidation–Lossen-like rearrangement sequence.

An Asymmetric Variant of the Bischler–Möhlau Indole Synthesis

Enantiomerically enriched planar chiral indoles were prepared by an asymmetric variant of the Bischler–Möhlau synthesis. Cinchonine was used as a ‘traceless’ resolving reagent, allowing the formation of readily separable quaternary ammonium salts that were the key intermediates in the indole synthesis. The condensation of the ammonium salt and various substituted anilines was achieved under microwave irradiation; this reduced reaction times and minimised racemisation. The utility of the indoles was demonstrated by their transformation into monophosphane ligands that were capable of coupling challenging substrates in the Suzuki–Miyaura reaction.

An Enantiomerically Pure Pyridine NC-Palladacycle Derived from [2.2]Paracyclophane

An enantiomerically pure planar chiral pyridine-based palladacycle was prepared from [2.2]paracyclophane in just four steps. The palladacycle shows potential in catalysis, mediating the Suzuki coupling of an aryl chloride. It also permits the ortho bromination of [2.2]paracyclophane, a reaction that can be hard to achieve selectively.