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Two types of cyclopentadithiophene dyes with different linking modes with an N-annulated perylene (NP) donor were designed and synthesized. These new dyes were applied in Co(II)/(III) based dye-sensitized solar cells and an efficiency up to 7.8% could be obtained for peri-NP linked CPD-1. The effect of the linking mode on the material properties and device performance was discussed.

Understanding guest diffusion in nanoporous host–guest systems is crucial in the efficient design of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) for chemical separation and drug delivery applications. In this work, we investigated the effect of molecule length on the diffusion rate in the zeolitic imidazolate framework 8 (ZIF-8), trying to find a simple and straightforward variable to characterize the complicated guest diffusion. We found that, counter-intuitively, long guest molecules can diffuse as quickly as short molecules; the diffusion coefficient of ethyl acetate for example is of the same order of magnitude as ethane and ethanol, as excludes the existence of a simple relationship between molecule length and diffusion rate. This phenomenon is explained by a study of the contributions of intra- and inter-cage movement to overall transport. Steric confinement limits the degrees of freedom of long guest molecules, shortening their residence time and increasing the efficiency of radial diffusion. In contrast, shorter molecules meander within MOF cages, reducing transport. Furthermore, the energy barrier of inter-cage transport also does not exhibit a simple dependence on a guest molecule length, attributing to the effect of the type of functional group on diffusion. Guests over varying lengths were investigated by using theoretical methods, revealing that the guest diffusion in ZIF-8 depends on the number of contiguous carbon atoms in a molecule, rather than its overall length. Thus, we proposed simple criteria to predict arbitrary guest molecule diffusivity in ZIF-8 without time-consuming experimentation.

Three new N-annulated perylene (NP) substituted porphyrin dyes WW-7–WW-9 with different linking modes and accepting groups were synthesized and applied in Co(II)/(III) based dye sensitized solar cells (DSCs). The bay-linked porphyrins WW-7 and WW-8 exhibited moderate power conversion efficiency (PCE = 4.4% and 4.8%, respectively), while the peri-linked porphyrin dye WW-9 showed a PCE up to 9.2% which is slightly lower than that of our reference dye WW-6. Detailed physical measurements (optical and electrochemical), DFT calculations, and photovoltaic characterizations were performed to understand how the structural changes affect their light-harvesting ability, molecular orbital profile, energy level alignment, and eventually the photovoltaic performance. It turned out that the lower efficiencies of the cells based on WW-7 and WW-8 could be ascribed to the weak π-conjugation between the bay-substituted NP and phenylethynyl substituted porphyrin unit. The introduction of a benzothiadiazole acceptor at the anchoring group has induced a significant red shift of the IPCE action spectra of WW-8 and WW-9, by about 90 nm and 50 nm as compared to that of WW-7 and WW-6, respectively. However, less efficient electron injection was observed. Our studies gave some insight into the important role of electronic interactions between different components when one designs a dye for high-efficiency DSCs.

This article describes the invention of a class of effective reagents [(phen)2Cu](O2CRF) (1) for the decarboxylative perfluoroalkylation of aryl and heteroaryl halides. Treatment of copper tert-butyloxide with phenanthroline ligands, with subsequent addition of perfluorocarboxylic acids afforded air-stable copper(i) perfluorocarboxylato complexes 1. These complexes reacted with a variety of aryl and heteroaryl halides to form perfluoroalkyl(hetero)arenes in moderate to high yields. Computational studies suggested that the coordination of the second phen ligand may reduce the energy barrier for the decarboxylation of perfluorocarboxylate to facilitate perfluoroalkylation.

Density functional theory calculations and 2D 1H-13C HETCOR solid state NMR spectroscopy prove that CO2 can be used to probe, by its own reactivity, different types of N-donor surface ligands on SBA15-supported Zr(IV) hydrides: [≡(Si-O-)(≡Si-N=)[Zr]H] and [≡(Si-NH-)(≡Si-X-)[Zr]H2] (X=O or NH). Moreover, [≡(Si–O-)(≡Si-N=)[Zr]H] activates CO2 more efficiently than the other complexes and leads to the formation of a carbimato Zr formate.

A new family of cobalt complexes (CoCl2-H, CoCl2-Me, CoCl2-iPr, CoBr2-H, CoBr2-Me, CoBr2-iPr, CoI2-H, CoI2-Me, and CoI2-iPr) supported by a PN3 ligand (6-(N,N′-di-t-butylphosphino)-2-pyrazol-yl-aminopyridine) have been prepared and fully characterized by FT-IR, elemental analysis, and X-ray analysis. The X-ray analysis reveals a trigonal bipyramidal conformation in the solid state for all representative complexes, CoCl2-H, CoBr2-H, CoBr2-iPr and CoI2-Me. The cobalt center is chelated by the PN3 ligand through the pyridinyl nitrogen, the pyrazol nitrogen and the phosphorus donor, with a long Co–P bond distance indicating a labile character. On activation with AlEt2Cl, Al2Et3Cl3, MAO, [Ph3C]+[B(C6F5)4]−/AliBu3 or AliBu3, cis-1,4 selective butadiene polymerization was achieved with up to 98.6% selectivity. The polymerization results show that the cis-1,4 selectivity is influenced by the steric hindrance, increasing with the bulkiness of the substituent groups (CoX2-iPr > CoX2-Me > CoX2-H) at the 3,5-positions of the pyrazole moiety, together with a slight decrease in activity. The activity changes in the order CoCl2L ≈ CoBr2L > CoI2L (for the same ligand L) when MAO is used as the activator, while the high level of cis-1,4 selectivity is maintained. It is possible to switch the selectivity from cis-1,4 to syndiotactic-1,2 by adding PPh3.

The concept of using a thermoresponsive ionic liquid (IL) with an upper critical solution temperature (UCST) as a draw solute in forward osmosis (FO) was successfully demonstrated here experimentally. A 3.2 M solution of protonated betaine bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide ([Hbet][Tf2N]) was obtained by heating and maintaining the temperature above 56 °C. This solution successfully drew water from high-salinity water up to 3.0 M through FO. When the IL solution cooled to room temperature, it spontaneously separated into a water-rich phase and an IL-rich phase: the water-rich phase was the produced water that contained a low IL concentration, and the IL-rich phase could be used directly as the draw solution in the next cycle of the FO process. The thermal stability, thermal-responsive solubility, and UV-vis absorption spectra of the IL were also studied in detail.

A series of oxazadisilinane compounds were prepared and used as Bronsted bases to form a series of 21 siloxane protic ionic liquids (Si-PILs) with four different acids. This new family of Si-PILs were well characterized and examined to catalyze esterification reactions.

Summary Chiral phosphoric acid-catalyzed highly enantioselective formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction of azoalkenes with 3-vinylindoles has been established. Under mild conditions, the projected cycloaddition proceeded smoothly, affording a variety of 2,3-dihydropyrroles in high yields and excellent enantioselectivities, and also in a diastereospecific manner. As opposed to the common 4-atom synthons in the previous literature reports, azoalkenes served as 3-atom synthons. Besides, the observed selectivity was supported by primary theoretical calculation. The unique chemistry of azoalkenes disclosed herein will empower asymmetric synthesis of nitrogen-containing ring structural motifs in a broader context., Graphical Abstract, Highlights • Chiral phosphoric acid catalyzed formal [3 + 2] cycloaddition reaction • 2,3-Dihydropyrroles were enantioselectively synthesized • Azoalkenes served as 3-atom synthons, Organic Chemistry; Organic Synthesis; Physical Organic Chemistry

Nonoxidative dehydrogenation of methanol to methyl formate over a CuMgO-based catalyst was investigated. Although the active site is metallic copper (Cu0), the best reaction conditions were obtained by tuning the ratio of Cu/Mg and doping the catalyst with 1 wt % of Pd to achieve a very specific activity for methyl formate synthesis. On the basis of the CO2 temperature-programmed desorption study, the basic strength of the catalyst plays a role in the efficient conversion of methanol to methyl formate via dehydrogenation. These CuMgO-based catalysts show excellent thermal stability during the reaction and the regeneration processes. Approx. 80% methanol conversion with constant selectivity to methyl formate was achieved even after 4 rounds of usage for a total reaction time exceeding 200 h, indicative of their potential for practical applications.

In contrast to the conventional strategy of modifying the reactivities and selectivities of the transition metal and organocatalysts by varying the steric and electronic properties of organic substituent groups, we hereby demonstrate a novel approach that the sigma (σ) nucleophilicity of the imine arm can be significantly enhanced in a pseudodearomatized PN

A terminal nickel hydroxide complex (PN3P)Ni(OH) (3) bearing the 2nd generation phosphorus-nitrogen PN3P-pincer ligand has been synthesized and structurally characterized. As a nucleophile, 3 reacts with CO to afford the hydroxycarbonyl complex 4, (PN3P)Ni(COOH). 3 can also activate CO2 and CS2 to produce nickel bicarbonate (PN3P)Ni(OCOOH) (5) and bimetallic dithiocarbonate [(PN3P)NiS]2CO (6) respectively, as well as to promote aryl isocyanate and isothiocyanate insertion into the Ni-OH bond to give the corresponding (PN3P)NiEC(O)NHAr complexes (E = O, 7; E = S, 8). In addition, 3 catalyzes the nitrile hydration to various amides with well-defined intermediates (PN3P)Ni-NHC(O)R (R = Me, 9; R = Ph, 10).

The first example of cobalt-catalyzed selective hydrogenation of nitriles to secondary imines is reported. The results demonstrate the significantly different selectivity compared with the previously reported cobalt catalytic system during the nitrile hydrogenation. A variety of aromatic and aliphatic nitriles are hydrogenated to the corresponding secondary imines.

A simple and efficient catalyst, benzimidazole (BIMH)-modified copper foil, is developed to enhance the selective conversion of CO2 to C2/C3 products. The overall faradaic efficiency (FE) for CO2 reduction reaches 92.1% and the undesired hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is lowered to a FE of 7% at -1.07 VRHE.

A dearomatized PN3P*-nickel hydride complex has been prepared using an oxidative addition process. The first nickel-catalyzed hydrosilylation of CO2 to methanol has been achieved, with unprecedented turnover numbers. Selective methylation and formylation of amines with CO2 were demonstrated by such a PN3P*-nickel hydride complex, highlighting its versatile functions in CO2 reduction.

In the context of boundary conformal field theory, we investigate whether the boundary trace anomaly can depend on marginal directions in the presence of supersymmetry. Recently, it was found that a graphene-like non-supersymmetric conformal field theory with a four-dimensional bulk photon and a three-dimensional boundary electron has two boundary central charges that depend on an exactly marginal direction, namely the gauge coupling. In this work, we supersymmetrize this theory, paying special attention to the boundary terms required by supersymmetry. We study models with 4, 8, and 16 Poincar\'e supercharges in the bulk, half of which are broken by the boundary. In all cases, we find that at all orders in perturbation theory, the gauge coupling is not renormalized, providing strong evidence that these theories are boundary conformal field theories. Moreover, the boundary central charges depend on the coupling. One possible exception to this dependence on marginal directions is that the difference between the two charges is coupling independent at one-loop in the maximally supersymmetric case. In our analysis, a possible boundary Chern-Simons term is incorporated by a bulk $\theta$-term., Comment: 47 pages; v2: footnotes and references added

Although chemical bath of TiCl4 treatment has been used to serve as a compact layer for planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs), uneven TiO2 particle sizes and chlorine residual would decrease the device performance. In this study, we modify the TiCl4 treatment process through well-controlled the kinetics grown of TiO2 nanoparticle, leading to a uniform and ultrathin TiO2 blocking layer. A dense and pinholeless TiO2 blocking layer is crucial for high-performance PSCs because of its effective charge extraction and elimination of carrier shunting path. The as-fabricated devices using modified process of TiO2 blocking layer exhibit the best power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.89% with an average PCE of 17.5%. Scanning electron microscopy and cyclic voltammetry analysis of TiO2 blocking layer reveal that this process improved surface uniformity and the carrier blocking capability.

The catalytic oxidation of cis-2-butene and propylene with molecular oxygen in the presence of a well-defined surface coordination compound, (≡SiO)2Mo(═O)2, affords acetaldehyde. Using a cis-2-butene/O2 feed at 350–400 °C, the reaction yields a conversion of approximately 10% and an acetaldehyde selectivity of approximately 70%. This performance is maintained up to an experimental time of 20 h in a continuous flow reactor. The Mo(bis-oxo) surface compound was fully characterized by multiple spectroscopic techniques as well as surface microanalysis. The results from quantum mechanics calculations indicate that the reaction proceeds via [2 + 2] cycloaddition/cycloelimination steps with the formation of metalla-oxacyclobutane intermediates, analogous to the Chauvin mechanism in olefin metathesis.

Glaulactams A–C (1–3), which possess a novel skeleton, as well as the known compound daphmanidin B (4), were isolated from the leaves of Daphniphyllum glaucescens and separated using ion-exchange chromatography aided by NMR fingerprinting. Their structures, including their absolute configurations, were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses and time-dependent density-functional-theory-calculated electronic circular dichroism spectra; the data were subsequently analyzed to gain insight into the respective biogenetic relationships between the isolates, which exhibited anti-H1N1 and immunosuppressive activities.

A 2nd generation PN3P-pincer azido nickel complex (PN3P)Ni(N3) reacts with isocyanides to afford monosubstituted carbodiimides under irradiation, presumably via a transient nitrido intermediate. The resulting species can further generate unsymmetrical carboddimides and the PN3P nickel halide complex, accomplishing a synthetic cycle for a complete nitrogen atom transfer reaction.

Axially chiral molecules are among the most valuable substrates in organic synthesis. They are typically used as chiral ligands or catalysts in asymmetric reactions. Recent progress for the construction of these chiral molecules is mainly focused on the transition-metal-catalyzed transformations. Here, we report the enantioselective NHC-catalyzed (NHC: N-heterocyclic carbenes) atroposelective annulation of cyclic 1,3-diones with ynals. In the presence of NHC precatalyst, base, Lewis acid and oxidant, a catalytic C–C bond formation occurs, providing axially chiral α-pyrone−aryls in moderate to good yields and with high enantioselectivities. Control experiments indicated that alkynyl acyl azoliums, acting as active intermediates, are employed to atroposelectively assemble chiral biaryls and such a methodology may be creatively applied to other useful NHC-catalyzed asymmetric transformations., Axially chiral compounds are commonly found in nature. Here, the authors show the highly enantioselective construction of axially chiral biaryls via an N-heterocyclic carbenes-catalyzed [3+3] atroposelective annulation of ynals with cyclic 1,3-diones.

An efficient N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-catalyzed vinylogous Michael addition of deconjugated butenolides was developed. In the presence of 5 mol % of the NHC catalyst, both γ-alkyl- and aryl-substituted deconjugated butenolides undergo vinylogous Michael addition with various α, β-unsaturated ketones, esters, or nitriles to afford γ,γ-disubstituted butenolides containing adjacent quaternary and tertiary carbon centers in good to excellent yields with excellent diastereoselectivities. In this process, the free carbene is assumed to act as a strong Brønsted base to promote the conjugate addition.

A well-defined PN3-Ru pincer complex (5) bearing a redox-active bipyridine ligand with an aminophosphine arm has been established as an effective and stable molecular electrocatalyst for CO2 reduction to CO and HCOOH with negligible formation of H2 in a H2O/MeCN mixture. Done in a pince: A PN3-Ru pincer complex (see figure) has been found to show high activity and stability as a molecular electrocatalyst for CO2 reduction to CO and HCOOH in MeCN/H2O.

N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-catalyzed vinylogous Mukaiyama aldol reaction of ketones was developed. Under the catalysis of 5 mol% NHC, α-keto esters and α-trifluoromethyl ketones reacted with 2-(trimethysilyloxy)furan efficiently to produce γ-substituted butenolides containing adjacent quaternary and tertiary carbon centers in high yields with good diastereoselectivities.

Push–pull type porphyrin-based sensitizers have become promising candidates for high-efficiency dye sensitized solar cells (DSCs). It is of importance to understand the fundamental structure-physical property-photovoltaic performance relationships by varying the donor and acceptor moieties. In this work, two new porphyrin-based sensitizers, WW-7 and WW-8, were synthesized and compared with the known sensitizer YD20. All the three dyes have the same porphyrin core and acceptor group (ethynylbenzoic acid) but their donor groups vary from the triphenylamine in YD20 to meso-diphenylaminoanthracene in WW-7 to N-phenyl carbazole in WW-8. Co(II/III)-based DSC device characterizations revealed that WW-7 showed enhanced light harvesting ability in comparison to YD20 with improved incident photon-to-collected electron conversion efficiencies (IPCEs). As a result, WW-7 displayed much higher short circuit current (Jsc: 13.54 mA cm−2) and open-circuit voltage (Voc: 0.829 V), with a power conversion efficiency (η) as high as 7.7%. Under the same conditions, YD20 cell exhibited a power conversion efficiency of 6.6% and the dye WW-8 showed even lower efficiency (η = 4.6%). Detailed physical measurements and theoretic calculations were conducted to understand the difference and reveal how three different donor structures affect their molecular orbital profile, light-harvesting ability, energy level alignment, and eventually the photovoltaic performance.

N-heterocyclic carbenes have been utilised as highly efficient nucleophilic organocatalysts to mediate vinylogous Mukaiyama/Michael reactions of 2-(trimethylsilyloxy)furan with enones to afford γ-substituted butenolides in 44–99 % yield with 3:1–32:1 diastereoselectivity.

Incomplete oxidation of (N-di-tert-butylphosphino)-6-(2-methyl-2′H-benzoimidazole)-2-aminepyridine dichlorocobalt (PN3CoCl2) in DMF results in a unique co-crystal I formed with three parts including DMF, unit A and unit B complex with Co1 and Co2, respectively (PN3 ligand in unit A: (N-di-tert-butylphosphino)-6-(2′-methyl-2′H-benzoimidazole)-2-aminepyridine, and O PN3 ligand in unit B: (N-di-tert-butylphosphinoxide)-6-(2′-methyl-2′H-benzoimidazole)-2-aminepyridine), with 1:1:1 molar ratio. Co1 and Co2 complexes both display a five-coordinated distorted-square-pyramidal geometry around the metal center. The Co1 center is coordinated with PN3 ligand via two N atoms from pyridine, benzoimidazole moiety as well as one P atom, and the Co2 center is coordinated with the oxidized ligand O PN3 via two N atoms from pyridine, benzoimidazole moiety as well as one O atom from DMF molecule, while the oxidized phosphine moiety (O P) being excluded from the coordination sphere. Activated with AlEt2Cl, the co-crystallized complexes I are able to actively convert butadiene to polybutadiene, affording cis-1,4 polybutadiene with cis-1,4 unit up to 95.5–97.8% and number average molecular weight of cal. 105 g/mol. The high cis-1,4 selectivity and monomodal GPC curve of resultant polymer imply that the identical active species generated from two distinctive cobalt centers.

Tridentate complexes Cr(III)Cl3L, [L = 2,6-bis(dimethyl-2-oxazolin-2-yl) pyridine], Fe(III)Cl3L, Fe(II)Cl2L and Co(II)Cl2L have been prepared and fully characterized. The solid structures of Cr(III)Cl3L, Fe(III)Cl3L and Co(II)Cl2L have been revealed by single crystal X-ray diffraction, and the Cr(III)Cl3L and Fe(III)Cl3L complexes both exhibit a distorted octahedral geometry, while the Co(II)Cl2L complex has a trigonal bipyramidal conformation. Four complexes have been examined in regioselective polymerization of butadiene in combination with MAO in toluene at room temperature. The trans-1,4, cis-1,4 enchainment of resultant polybutadiene are controlled by the metal center. Activated by MAO, complex Cr(III)Cl3L produces high level of trans-1,4 selectivity (trans-1,4 up to 93.3%) with moderate polymer yield, complexes Fe(III)Cl3L and Fe(II)Cl2L both show equal cis-1,4 and trans-1,4 with minor 1,2 selectivity (

The straightforward synthesis of 3,5-di(triphenylethylenyl) BODIPYs 1-3 from the condensation of 2-(triphenylethylenyl) pyrrole with aryl aldehydes are surprisingly found to produce side products that are hydrogenated at one of the two triphenylethylene substituents. It was also observed that the subsequent Scholl type reaction of 1 resulted in a "1,2-migratory shift" of one triphenylethylene substituent in addition to a ring closing reaction. Preliminary investigations, including DFT calculations and isolation of intermediates, were conducted to study these unusual observations on BODIPY chemistry.

There exists a strong demand to replace expensive noble metal catalysts with cheap metal sulfides or phosphides for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Recently metal phosphides such as NixP, FeP and CoP have been considered as promising candidates to replace Pt cathodes. Here we report that the nanocrystalline CoP nanosheet assembly on carbon cloth can be formed by a two-step process: electrochemical deposition of Co species followed by gas phase phosphidation. The CoP catalyst in this report exhibits a Tafel slope of 30.1 mV/dec in 0.5 M H2SO4 and 42.6 mV/dec in 1 M KOH. The high HER performance of our CoP catalysts is attributed to the rugae-like morphology which results in a high double-layer capacitance and high density of active sites, estimated as 7.77×1017 sites/cm2.

Three meso-ester boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes have been synthesized and functionalized with aggregation-induced emission (AIE)-active tetraphenylethene or triphenylethene moieties. It was found that functionalizing at the different positions of the BODIPY core resulted in the final dye having different emission properties in response to aggregation: from aggregation-induced quenching (ACQ) to being AIE active. X-ray crystallographic analysis was thus performed to provide an explanation for these differences.

Work on a new class of PN 3 -pincer ligands for metal–ligand cooperative catalysis is reviewed. While the field of the pyridine-based PN 3 -transition metal pincer complexes is still relatively young, many important applications of these complexes have already emerged. In several cases, the PN 3 -pincer complexes for metal–ligand cooperative catalysis result in significantly improved or unprecedented activities. The synthesis and coordination chemistry of PN 3 -pincer ligands are briefly summarized first to cover the synthetic routes for their preparation, followed by a focus review on their applications in catalysis. A specific emphasis is placed on the later section about the role of PN 3 -pincer ligands’ dearomatization–rearomatization steps during the catalytic cycles. The mechanistic insights from density functional theory (DFT) calculations are also discussed.

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21162022, 21428302) and Shihezi University (Nos. 2011ZRKXTD04, 2012ZRKXJQ06).

Two soluble and stable dianthraceno[a,e]pentalenes with two (DAP1) and six (DAP2) phenyl substituents were synthesized. Both compounds possess a small energy band gap and show amphoteric redox behaviour due to intramolecular donor-accepter interactions. X-ray crystallographic analysis revealed that DAP2 has a closely packed structure with multi-dimensional [C-H···π] interactions although there are no π-π interactions between the dianthraceno[a,e]pentalene cores. As a result, solution-processed field effect transistors based on DAP2 exhibited an average hole mobility of 0.65 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1). Under similar conditions, DAP1 showed an average field effect hole mobility of 0.001 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1).

A Pd-catalyzed single-step C-H arylation of dioxythiophene derivatives bearing unprotected reactive functional groups (-OH, -COOH, -N3) in a phosphine-free manner has been developed. Various dioxythiopene-based oligoarenes with extended π-conjugation are obtained with good yields (up to 90%). These oligoarenes display suitable optical properties (absorption and emission maxima, quantum yields) and contain reactive functional groups suitable for further conjugations with bioactive molecules. This new methodology is step economical (fewer synthetic steps) and environmentally friendly (no toxic metal-containing by-products) and the oligoarenes synthesized are potentially applicable for bio-labeling, bioimaging, and biosensing.

The kinetics and mechanism of the polymerization of isobutylene catalyzed by FeCl3·ether complexes in hexane at 0 °C were investigated. The polymerization rates increased in the diisopropyl ether< 2-chloroethyl ethyl ether < bis(2-chloroethyl) ether order, attributed to electronic effects. The polymerization rates increased with increasing initiator and catalyst concentrations. The first order plots, however, deviated from the linear suggesting that the cation concentration decreases with time. The previously proposed mechanism is inadequate to explain this finding. The decrease in the polymerization rate with time is explained by the low solubility of the H+ROR′FeCl4− complexes that precipitate during polymerization. Based on mechanistic studies the revised mechanism now also includes the equilibrium H+ROR′FeCl4− HCl + FeCl3·ROR′.

Phosphine-catalyzed highly enantioselective γ-additions of 5H-thiazol-4-ones and 5H-oxazol-4-ones to allenoates have been developed for the first time. With the employment of amino-acid derived bifunctional phosphines, a wide range of substituted 5H-thiazol-4-one and 5H-oxazol-4-one derivatives bearing heteroatom (S or O)-containing tertiary chiral centers were constructed in high yields and excellent enantioselectivities. The reported method provides facile access to enantioenriched tertiary thioethers/alcohols. The mechanism of the γ-addition reaction was investigated by performing DFT calculations, and the hydrogen bonding interactions between the Bronsted acid moiety of the phosphine catalysts and the "C 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 1111111111111111111111111111111111 1111111111111111111111111111111111 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 1111111111111111111111111111111111 1111111111111111111111111111111111 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000000000 O" unit of the donor molecules were shown to be crucial in asymmetric induction.

Characterizing molecule diffusion in nanoporous matrices is critical to understanding the novel chemical and physical properties of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). In this paper, we developed a theoretical model to rapidly and accurately compute the diffusion rate of guest molecules in a zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8). The ideal gas or equilibrium solution diffusion model was modified to contain the effect of host framework via introducing the possibility of guests passing through the framework gate. The only input in our model is the energy barrier of guests passing through the MOF's gate. Molecular dynamics (MD) methods were employed to gather the guest density profile, which then was used to deduce the energy barrier values. This produced reliable results that require a simulation time of 5 picoseconds, which is much shorter when using pure MD methods (in the nanosecond scale). Also, we used density functional theory (DFT) methods to obtain the energy profile of guests passing through gates, as this does not require specification of a force field for the MOF degrees of freedom. In the DFT calculation, we only considered one gate of MOFs each time; as this greatly reduced the computational cost. Based on the obtained energy barrier values we computed the diffusion rate of alkane and alcohol in ZIF-8 using our model, which was in good agreement with experimental test results and the calculation values from a standard MD model. Our model shows the advantage of obtaining accurate diffusion rates for guests in MOFs for a lower computational cost and shorter calculation time. Thus, our analytic model calculation is especially attractive for high-throughput computational screening of the dynamic performance of guests in a framework.

A novel amino-borane complex inside a stable metal organic framework was synthesized for the first time. It releases hydrogen at a temperature of 78 °C with no volatile contaminants and can be well reused. Its application as a size-selective reduction material in organic synthesis was also demonstrated.

There is a strong demand to replace expensive Pt catalysts with cheap metal sulfides or phosphides for hydrogen generation in water electrolysis. Earth-abundant Fe can be electroplated on carbon cloth (CC) to form high surface area rugae-like FeOOH assembly. Subsequent gas phase phosphidation converts the FeOOH to FeP or FeP2 and the morphology of the crystal assembly is controlled by the phosphidation temperature. FeP prepared at 250 °C presents lower crystallinity and that prepared at higher temperatures of 400 °C and 500 °C possesses higher crystallinity, but lower surface area. The phosphidation at 300 °C produces nanocrystalline FeP and preserves the high-surface area morphology; thus, it exhibits the highest HER efficiency in 0.5 M H2SO4, i.e., the required overpotential to reach 10 and 20 mA cm(-2) is 34 and 43 mV, respectively. These values are lowest among the reported non-precious metal phosphides on CC. The Tafel slope for FeP prepared at 300 °C is around 29.2 mV dec(-1), which is comparable to that of Pt/CC; this indicates that the hydrogen evolution for our best FeP is limited by the Tafel reaction (same as Pt). Importantly, the FeP/CC catalyst exhibits much better stability in a wide-range working current density (up to 1 V cm(-2)), suggesting that it is a promising replacement of Pt for HER.

Bisindeno-annulated pentacenes 3a and 3b were synthesized by a simple regio-selective, FeCl3-mediated Scholl reaction from the corresponding 6,13-diaryl pentacene precursors. The fusion of two indeno-units dramatically changes the electronic properties and chemical reactivity of pentacene and the obtained compounds exhibited exceptionally high photo-stability in the solution, with a half-life time of 11.2 (3a) and 32.0 (3b) days under ambient light and air conditions. Ordered molecular packing with a small π-π stacking distance was observed in the single crystals of 3a and 3b. Our research provides a promising strategy to access stable higher order acenes with controlled molecular order.

A neutral complex PN(3)P-Rh(I)Cl (2) was prepared from a reaction of the PN(3)P pincer ligand (1) with [Rh(COD)Cl]2 (COD = 1,5-cyclooctadiene). Upon treatment with a suitable base, H-H and C(sp(2))-H activation reactions can be achieved through the deprotonation/reprotonation of one of the N-H arms and dearomatization/rearomatization of the central pyridine ring with the oxidation state of Rh remaining I.

A convenient and efficient synthetic method for the construction of morpholine and piperazine derivatives in moderate to good yields was established. The reaction proceeds smoothly with 1.0 mol% gold catalyst loading. A plausible mechanism involving the cascade cyclization and isomerizations to produce the six-membered ring was proposed and supported by deuterium labeling experiments.

Chromium (III) complexes, Cr1, [2,6-(tBu2PNH)2C5H4N]CrCl3; Cr2, [2,6-(Ph2PNH)2C5H4N]CrCl3; Cr3, [2-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N]CrCl3 THF; Cr4, [6-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N-2-CH2NEt2]CrCl3; Cr5, [6-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N-2-C3H2N2]CrCl3; Cr6, [6-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N-2-(3,5-Me2)C3H2N2]CrCl3; Cr7, [6-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N-2-(3,5-iPr2)C3H2N2]CrCl3; Cr8, [6-(tBu2PNH)C5H4N-2-(3,5-Ph2)C3H2N2]CrCl3, bearing a family of neutral PN3-type pincer ligands have been prepared. The molecular structure of Cr2 was further elucidated by the X-ray crystallographic analysis, showing an octahedral geometry. Treatment of these complexes with MAO or alkylaluminum led to catalysts with moderate activities (about 105 g (PE)/Cr(mol) h) for ethylene polymerization, affording exclusively linear low molecular weight solid PE without any detectable oligomers. Among Cr1–Cr8, the highest activity was achieved for Cr1/MAO at room temperature with production of PE with highest molecular weight, indicating that replacement of both tBu groups in Cr1 with Ph groups, or one PtBu2 with the N (imine) arm, resulted in a lower catalytic activity and lower Mw.

NiAgPd nanoparticles are successfully synthesized by in-situ reduction of Ni, Ag and Pd salts on the surface of carbon. Their catalytic activity was examined in ammonia borane (NH3BH3) hydrolysis to generate hydrogen gas. This nanomaterial exhibits a higher catalytic activity than those of monometallic and bimetallic counterparts and a stoichiometric amount of hydrogen was produced at a high generation rate. Hydrogen production rates were investigated in different concentrations of NH3BH3 solutions, including in the borates saturated solution, showing little influence of the concentrations on the reaction rates. The hydrogen production rate can reach 3.6–3.8 mol H2 molcat−1 min−1 at room temperature (21 °C). The activation energy and TOF value are 38.36 kJ/mol and 93.8 mol H2 molcat−1 min−1, respectively, comparable to those of Pt based catalysts. This nanomaterial catalyst also exhibits excellent chemical stability, and no significant morphology change was observed from TEM after the reaction. Using this catalyst for continuously hydrogen generation, the hydrogen production rate can be kept after generating 6.2 L hydrogen with over 10,000 turnovers and a TOF value of 90.3 mol H2 molcat−1 min−1.

We consider the structure of current and stress tensor two-point functions in conformal field theory with a boundary. The main result of this paper is a relation between a boundary central charge and the coefficient of a displacement operator correlation function in the boundary limit. The boundary central charge under consideration is the coefficient of the product of the extrinsic curvature and the Weyl curvature in the conformal anomaly. Along the way, we describe several auxiliary results. Three of the more notable are as follows: (1) we give the bulk and boundary conformal blocks for the current two-point function; (2) we show that the structure of these current and stress tensor two-point functions is essentially universal for all free theories; (3) we introduce a class of interacting conformal field theories with boundary degrees of freedom, where the interactions are confined to the boundary. The most interesting example we consider can be thought of as the infrared fixed point of graphene. This particular interacting conformal model in four dimensions provides a counterexample of a previously conjectured relation between a boundary central charge and a bulk central charge. The model also demonstrates that the boundary central charge can change in response to marginal deformations., 75 pages, 4 figures; v2: references added. v3: comments on anomalous dimension and references added. v4: minor corrections, published version