Accumulation, Characterization and Reactivity of Chiral Ammonium-Carboxonium Dications in Superacid

The accumulation of chiral ammonium-oxocarbenium dications in superacid is evidenced by low-temperature NMR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis and confirmed by DFT calculations. Its potential for the diastereoselective remote hydrofunctionalization of non-activated alkene is also explored.

Non-isocyanate polyurethanes synthesized from terpenes using thiourea organocatalysis and thiol-ene-chemistry

The depletion of fossil resources as well as environmental concerns contribute to an increasing focus on finding more sustainable approaches for the synthesis of polymeric materials. In this work, a synthesis route towards non-isocyanate polyurethanes (NIPUs) using renewable starting materials is presented. Based on the terpenes limonene and carvone as renewable resources, five-membered cyclic carbonates are synthesized and ring-opened with allylamine, using thiourea compounds as benign and efficient organocatalysts. Thus, five renewable AA monomers are obtained, bearing one or two urethane units. Taking advantage of the terminal double bonds of these AA monomers, step-growth thiol-ene polymerization is performed using different dithiols, to yield NIPUs with molecular weights of above 10 kDa under mild conditions. Variation of the dithiol and amine leads to polymers with different properties, with Mn of up to 31 kDa and Tg's ranging from 1 to 29 °C.

Trimetallic Oxide Foam as an Efficient Catalyst for Fixation of CO2 into Oxazolidinone: An Experimental and Theoretical Approach

The excess anthropogenic CO₂ depletion via the catalytic approach to produce valuable chemicals is an industrially challenging, demanding, and encouraging strategy for CO₂ fixation. Herein, we demonstrate a selective one-pot strategy for CO₂ fixation into "oxazolidinone" by employing stable porous trimetallic oxide foam (PTOF) as a new catalyst. The PTOF catalyst was synthesized by a solution combustion method using transition metals Cu, Co, and Ni and systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), N₂ sorption, temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Due to the distinctive synthesis method and unique combination of metal oxides and their percentage, the PTOF catalyst displayed highly interconnected porous channels along with uniformly distributed active sites on its surface. Well ahead, the PTOF catalyst was screened for the fixation of CO₂ into oxazolidinone. The screened and optimized reaction parameters revealed that the PTOF catalyst showed highly efficient and selective activity with 100% conversion of aniline along with 96% selectivity and yield toward the oxazolidinone product at mild and solvent-free reaction conditions. The superiority of the catalytic performance could be due to the presence of surface active sites and acid-base cooperative synergistic properties of the mixed metal oxides. A doubly synergistic plausible reaction mechanism was proposed for the oxazolidinone synthesis experimentally with the support of DFT calculations along with bond lengths, bond angles, and binding energies. In addition, stepwise intermediate formations with the free energy profile were also proposed. Also, the PTOF catalyst displayed good tolerance toward substituted aromatic amines and terminal epoxides for the fixation of CO₂ into oxazolidinones. Very interestingly, the PTOF catalyst could be significantly reused for up to 15 consecutive cycles with stable activity and retention in physicochemical properties.

Organocatalyzed Phospha-Michael Addition: A Highly Efficient Synthesis of Customized Bis(acyl)phosphane Oxide Photoinitiators

Addition of the P-H bond in bis(mesitoyl)phosphine, HP(COMes)₂ (BAPH), to a wide variety of activated carbon-carbon double bonds as acceptors was investigated. While this phospha-Michael addition does not proceed in the absence of an additive or catalyst, excellent results were obtained with stoichiometric basic potassium or caesium salts. Simple amine bases can be employed in catalytic amounts, and tetramethylguanidine (TMG) in particular is an outstanding catalyst that allows the preparation of bis(acyl)phosphines, R-P(COMes)₂ , under very mild conditions in excellent yields after only a short time. All phosphines RP(COMes)₂ can subsequently be oxidized to the corresponding bis(acyl)phosphane oxides, RPO(COMes)₂ , a substance class belonging to the most potent photoinitiators for radical polymerizations known to date. Thus, a simple and highly atom economic method has been found that allows the preparation of a broad range of photoinitiators adapted to their specific field of application even on a large scale.

Flexible Screen-Printed Electrochemical Sensors Functionalized with Electrodeposited Copper for Nitrate Detection in Water

Nitrate (NO₃ ^-) contamination is becoming a major concern due to the negative effects of an excessive NO₃ ^- presence in water which can have detrimental effects on human health. Sensitive, real-time, low-cost, and portable measurement systems able to detect extremely low concentrations of NO₃ ^- in water are thus becoming extremely important. In this work, we present a novel method to realize a low-cost and easy to fabricate amperometric sensor capable of detecting small concentrations of NO₃ ^- in real water samples. The novel fabrication technique combines printing of a silver (Ag) working electrode with subsequent modification of the electrode with electrodeposited copper (Cu) nanoclusters. The process was tuned in order to reach optimized sensor response, with a high catalytic activity toward electroreduction of NO₃ ^- (sensitivity: 19.578 μA/mM), as well as a low limit of detection (LOD: 0.207 nM or 0.012 μg/L) and a good dynamic linear concentration range (0.05 to 5 mM or 31 to 310 mg/L). The sensors were tested against possible interference analytes (NO₂ ^-, Cl^-, SO₄ ^2-, HCO₃ ^-, CH₃COO^-, Fe²⁺, Fe³⁺, Mn²⁺, Na⁺, and Cu²⁺) yielding only negligible effects [maximum standard deviation (SD) was 3.9 μA]. The proposed sensors were also used to detect NO₃ ^- in real samples, including tap and river water, through the standard addition method, and the results were compared with the outcomes of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Temperature stability (maximum SD 3.09 μA), stability over time (maximum SD 3.69 μA), reproducibility (maximum SD 3.20 μA), and repeatability (maximum two-time useable) of this sensor were also investigated.

1,1-Diaminoazines as organocatalysts in phospha-Michael addition reactions

1,1-Diaminoazines can act as effective organocatalysts for the formation of phosphorus-carbon bonds between biphenylphosphine oxide and an activated alkene (Michael acceptor). These catalysts provide the P-C adducts at a faster rate and with relatively better yields in comparison to the organocatalysts employed earlier. The notable advantage is that 1,1-diaminoazines catalyse the reaction even in an aqueous medium with very good yields. Organocatalysis using 1,1-diaminoazines was also successfully carried out between dimethylphosphite and benzylidenemalononitrile under multicomponent conditions.

Free Radical Isomerizations in Acetylene Bromoboration Reaction

The experimentally motivated question of the acetylene bromoboration mechanism was addressed in order to suggest possible radical isomerization pathways for the syn-adduct. Addition-elimination mechanisms starting with a bromine radical attack at the "bromine end" or the "boron end" of the C=C bond were considered. Dispersion-corrected DFT and MP2 methods with the SMD solvation model were employed using three all-electron bases as well as the ECP28MWB ansatz. The rate-determining, elimination step had a higher activation energy (12 kcal mol-1) in case of the "bromine end" attack due to intermediate stabilization at both the MP2 and DFT levels. In case of the "boron end" attack, two modes of C-C bond rotation were followed and striking differences in MP2 vs. DFT potential energy surfaces were observed. Employing MP2, addition was followed by either a 180° rotation through an eclipsed conformation of vicinal bromine atoms or by an opposite rotation avoiding that conformation, with 5 kcal mol-1 of elimination activation energy. Within B3LYP, the addition and rotation proceeded simultaneously, with a 9 (7) kcal mol-1 barrier for rotation involving (avoiding) eclipsed conformation of vicinal bromines. For weakly bound complexes, ZPE corrections with MP2 revealed significant artifacts when diffuse bases were included, which must be considered in the Gibbs free energy profile interpretation.

Nucleofugality hierarchy, in the aminolysis reaction of 4-cyanophenyl 4-nitrophenyl carbonate and thionocarbonate. Experimental and theoretical study

Brønsted plot of the reaction of 9 with secondary alicyclic amines. The concave upward non-linear plot is in accordance with two parallel mechanistic pathways.

Noble-metal-free cobaloxime coupled with metal-organic frameworks NH2-MIL-125: A novel bifunctional photocatalyst for photocatalytic NO removal and H2 evolution under visible light irradiation

The novel bifunctional NH₂-MIL-125/Co(dmgH)₂ composite catalysts with several different Co(dmgH)₂ contents that can simultaneously achieve photocatalytic NO removal and hydrogen production were first prepared by a simple and convenient method. The corresponding physical and chemical properties of the composite catalysts were characterized by SEM, XRD, ESR, in situ DRIFTS, etc. The characterization results indicated that the noble-metal-free Co(dmgH)₂, which was much cheaper and more available than most noble-metals such as Pt, could be an effective co-catalyst to accelerate the separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs, further eventually enhancing the photocatalytic efficiency. Under visible-light irradiation for half an hour, the NO removal ratio of NH₂-MIL-125/Co(dmgH)₂ (3 wt%) increased by 22.7 % compared with the pristine NH₂-MIL-125 without Co(dmgH)₂ loading. In addition, it was found that Eosin Y dye-sensitized NH₂-MIL-125/Co(dmgH)₂ (3 wt%) was capable of promoting a hydrogen generation rate of 2195 μmol g^-1 h^-1 under visible light, which was 12.6 times greater than the original NH₂-MIL-125. This strategy was expected as an available way to fabricate noble-metal-free molecular complexes with metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) to enhance the photocatalytic NO removal and hydrogen production performance simultaneously.

Brine-Soluble Zwitterionic Copolymers with Tunable Adsorption on Rocks

Injection of aqueous fluids into reservoirs as an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) tool has been of great interest in petroleum engineering. EOR using viscous polymer solutions improves the volumetric sweep efficiency. However, significant polymer adsorption on reservoir rock surfaces is one of the greatest challenges in polymer-flooding EOR. We have synthesized and characterized five zwitterionic copolymers and studied their static adsorption on limestone surfaces in seawater at high temperatures and salinities. Our results indicate that polymer adsorption directly correlates to a small percentage of functional co-monomers on the polymer backbone. One particular copolymer shows negligible static adsorption on limestone surfaces.

Synthesis of biogenic chitosan-functionalized 2D layered MoS2 hybrid nanocomposite and its performance in pharmaceutical applications: In-vitro antibacterial and anticancer activity

A bacterial and viral infection causes life threatening diseases owing to the abuse of antibiotics and the development of antibiotic resistance microbes. Currently, biopolymers have been considered as the most promising materials in the medical field. Herein, the biogenic chitosan-functionalized MoS₂ nanocomposite was prepared by the hydrothermal method with the liquid exfoliation process. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results of chitosan-MoS₂ hybrid nanocomposite revealed that MoS₂ nanoparticle was found to be 42 nm with a hexagonal crystal structure. FTIR and Raman spectrum revealed that the nitrogen functionalities in the chitosan interacted with MoS₂ to form the nanocomposite. The XPS spectrum of chitosan-MoS₂ nanocomposite confirms that C, N, O, Mo, and S exist in the nanocomposite. Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and Differential thermal analysis (DTA) analysis showed that the chitosan-MoS₂ nanocomposite has higher thermal stability up to 600 °C. In the antibacterial application the chitosan-MoS₂ hybrid nanocomposite shows zones of inhibition against S. aureus as 22, 28, and 32 mm, and against E. coli as 26, 30, and 35 mm. In the anticancer analysis, chitosan-MoS₂ hybrid nanocomposites showed a maximum cell inhibition of 65.45% at 100 μg/mL^-1, resulting in the most significant MCF-7 cell inhibition.

Computational Investigation of the Selective Cleavage of Diastereotopic Cyclopropane Bonds in 5-Spirocyclopropane Isoxazolidines Rearrangement

The complete path of the Brandi-Guarna rearrangement of 5-spirocyclopropane isoxazolidines has been investigated by means of density functional theory calculations to rationalize the competing formation of tetrahydropyridones and enaminones by the determination of the minimum energy reaction paths. Our calculations confirm that the rearrangement is triggered by the homolysis of the isoxazolidine N-O bond followed by cleavage of one of the two C-CH₂ cyclopropane bonds as previously proposed by the Fabian group [ Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2001, 2001, 4223]. In addition, the results of this work suggest that in the presence of a stereogenic center at isoxazolidine C-4', the formation of a piperidinone or an enaminone as the final product depends on which of the two diastereotopic C-CH₂ bonds of cyclopropane is cleaved in the second step of the process. The result can be of great interest for the understanding of other processes involving the opening of a cyclopropane ring.

Advances in the use of CO2 as a renewable feedstock for the synthesis of polymers

Carbon dioxide offers an accessible, cheap and renewable carbon feedstock for synthesis. Current interest in the area of carbon dioxide valorisation aims at new, emerging technologies that are able to provide new opportunities to turn a waste into value. Polymers are among the most widely produced chemicals in the world greatly affecting the quality of life. However, there are growing concerns about the lack of reuse of the majority of the consumer plastics and their after-life disposal resulting in an increasing demand for sustainable alternatives. New monomers and polymers that can address these issues are therefore warranted, and merging polymer synthesis with the recycling of carbon dioxide offers a tangible route to transition towards a circular economy. Here, an overview of the most relevant and recent approaches to CO2-based monomers and polymers are highlighted with particular emphasis on the transformation routes used and their involved manifolds.

Diphenyl Carbonate: A Highly Reactive and Green Carbonyl Source for the Synthesis of Cyclic Carbonates

A practical, safe, and highly efficient carbonylation system involving a diphenyl carbonate, an organocatalyst, and various diols is presented herein and produces highly valuable cyclic carbonates. In reactions with a wide range of diols, diphenyl carbonate was activated by bicyclic guanidine 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD) as a catalyst, which successfully replaced highly toxic and unstable phosgene or its derivatives while maintaining the desired high reactivity. Moreover, this new system can be used to synthesize sterically demanding cyclic carbonates such as tetrasubstituted pinacol carbonates, which are not accessible via other conventional methods.