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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 325 records · Page 18
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Revealing electronic state-switching at conical intersections in alkyl iodides by ultrafast XUV transient absorption spectroscopy

Conical intersections between electronic states often dictate the chemistry of photoexcited molecules. Recently developed sources of ultrashort extreme ultraviolet (XUV) pulses tuned to element-specific transitions in molecules allow for the unambiguous detection of electronic state-switching at a conical intersection. Here, the fragmentation of photoexcited iso-propyl iodide and tert-butyl iodide molecules (i-C 3 H 7 I and t-C 4 H 9 I) through a conical intersection between 3 Q 0 / 1 Q 1 spin-orbit states is revealed by ultrafast XUV transient absorption measuring iodine 4d core-to-valence transitions. The electronic state-sensitivity of the technique allows for a complete mapping of molecular dissociation from photoexcitation to photoproducts. In both molecules, the sub-100 fs transfer of a photoexcited wave packet from the 3 Q 0 state into the 1 Q 1 state at the conical intersection is captured. The results show how differences in the electronic state-switching of the wave packet in i-C 3 H 7 I and t-C 4 H 9 I directly lead to differences in the photoproduct branching ratio of the two systems.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2019

Molecular insight into the lower critical solution temperature transition of aqueous alkyl phosphonium benzene sulfonates

Abstract Ionic liquid (IL)-water mixtures can exhibit a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) transition, but changes in long-range order and local molecular environment during this transition are not comprehensively understood. Here we show that in IL-H 2 O LCST mixtures, the IL forms loosely held aggregate structures that grow in size leading up to a critical temperature, whereas the aggregation of a fully miscible aqueous mixture, obtained by minor chemical modification of the anion, decreases with increasing temperature. Radial distribution functions from molecular dynamics simulations support the observation of aggregation phenomena in the IL-H 2 O mixtures. A local molecular structure of the ions is derived from multi-dimensional NMR experiments in conjunction with reported molecular dynamics simulations. In addition to considerable shifts of water’s hydrogen bonding network in the fully miscible phase, by NMR we observe the anion’s protons response to the intermolecular thermal environment and the intramolecular environment and find that the responses are determined by the sulfonate ionic functional group.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Synthesis and Characterization of Potassium Aryl- and Alkyl-Substituted Silylchalcogenolate Salts

Treatment of either triphenyl(chloro)silane or tert-butyldiphenyl(chloro)silane with potassium metal in THF, followed by addition of 18-crown-6, affords [K(18-crown-6)][SiPh 3 ] (1) and [K(18-crown-6)][SiPh 2 t Bu] (2), respectively, as the reaction products in high yield. Compounds 1 and 2 were fully characterized including by multi-nuclear NMR and IR spectroscopies. Addition of elemental chalcogen to either 1 or 2, results in facile chalcogen insertion into the potassium-silicon bond to afford the silylchalcogenolates, [K(18-crown-6)][E– SiPh2R] (E = S, R = Ph (3); Se, R = Ph (4); E = Te, R = Ph (5); E = S, R = t Bu (6); E = Se, R = t Bu (7); E = Te, R = t Bu (8)), in moderate to good yield. The silylchalcogenolates reported herein were characterized by multi-nuclear NMR and IR spectroscopies, and their solid-state molecular structures were determined by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. Importantly, the reported compounds crystallize as discrete monomers in the solid-state, a structural feature not previously observed in silylchalcogenolates, providing well-defined access routes into systematic metal complexation studies.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

CO 2 capture in ionic liquid 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate: A concerted mechanism without carbene

Ionic liquids (ILs) provide a promising medium for CO 2 capture. Recently, the family of ILs comprising imidazolium-based cations and acetate anions, such as 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate (EMI + OAc - ), has been found to react with CO 2 and form carboxylate compounds. N-Heterocyclic carbene (NHC) is widely assumed to be responsible by directly reacting with CO 2 though NHC has not been detected in these ILs. Herein, a computational analysis of CO 2 capture in EMI + OAc - is presented. Quantum chemistry calculations predict that NHC is unstable in a polar environment, suggesting that NHC is not formed in EMI + OAc - . Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations indicate that an EMI + ion “activated” by the approach of a CO 2 molecule can donate its acidic proton to a neighboring OAc - anion and form a carboxylate compound with the CO 2 molecule. Analysis of this termolecular process indicates that the EMI + -to-OAc - proton transfer and the formation of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium-2-carboxylate occur essentially concurrently. Based on these findings, a novel concerted mechanism that does not involve NHC is proposed for CO 2 capture.

Yan, Fangyong↗
DOE OSTI2022

Controlled monodefluorination and alkylation of C(sp 3 )–F bonds by lanthanide photocatalysts: importance of metal–ligand cooperativity

The controlled functionalization of a single fluorine in a CF 3 group is difficult and rare. Photochemical C–F bond functionalization of the sp 3 -C–H bond in trifluorotoluene, PhCF 3 , is achieved using catalysts made from earth-abundant lanthanides, (Cp Me4 ) 2 Ln(2-O-3,5- t Bu 2 -C 6 H 2 )(1-C{N(CH) 2 N( i Pr)}) (Ln = La, Ce, Nd and Sm, Cp Me4 = C 5 Me 4 H). The Ce complex is the most effective at mediating hydrodefluorination and defluoroalkylative coupling of PhCF 3 with alkenes; addition of magnesium dialkyls enables catalytic C–F bond cleavage and C–C bond formation by all the complexes. Mechanistic experiments confirm the essential role of the Lewis acidic metal and support an inner-sphere mechanism of C–F activation. Computational studies agree that coordination of the C–F substrate is essential for C–F bond cleavage. The unexpected catalytic activity for all members is made possible by the light-absorbing ability of the redox non-innocent ligands. The results described herein underscore the importance of metal–ligand cooperativity, specifically the synergy between the metal and ligand in both light absorption and redox reactivity, in organometallic photocatalysis.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Chain architecture and micellization: A mean-field coarse-grained model for poly(ethylene oxide) alkyl ether surfactants

Microscopic modeling of surfactant systems is expected to be an important tool to describe, understand, and take full advantage of the micellization process for different molecular architectures. Here, we implement a single chain mean field theory to study the relevant equilibrium properties such as the critical micelle concentration (CMC) and aggregation number for three sets of surfactants with different geometries maintaining constant the number of hydrophobic and hydrophilic monomers. The results demonstrate the direct effect of the block organization for the surfactants under study by means of an analysis of the excess energy and entropy which can be accurately determined from the mean-field scheme. Our analysis reveals that the CMC values are sensitive to branching in the hydrophilic head part of the surfactant and can be observed in the entropy-enthalpy balance, while aggregation numbers are also affected by splitting the hydrophobic tail of the surfactant and are manifested by slight changes in the packing entropy.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

The microwave assisted synthesis of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide as potential corrosion inhibitor toward carbon steel in 1 M HCl solution saturated with carbon dioxide

Injection of corrosion inhibitor into the fluid current of oil and gas pipelines is an effective way to mitigate corrosion rate on the inner-surface parts of pipelines, especially carbon steel pipelines. In this research, two alkylimidazolium ionic liquids, 1-decyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (IL1) and 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (IL2) have been synthesized and studied as a potential corrosion inhibitor towards carbon steel in 1 M HCl solution saturated with carbon dioxide. IL1 and IL2 were synthesized using microwave assisted organic synthesis (MAOS) method. Mass Spectrometry analysis of IL1 and IL2 showed molecular mass [M-H+] peak at 223.2166 and 251.2484, respectively. The FTIR,{sup 1}H-NMR and {sup 13}C-NMR spectra confirmed that IL1 and IL2 were successfully synthesized. Corrosion inhibition activity of IL1 and IL2 were determined using weight loss method. The results showed that IL1 and IL2 have the potential as good corrosion inhibitors with corrosion inhibition efficiency of IL1 and IL2 are 96.00% at 100 ppm (343 K) and 95.60% at 50 ppm (343 K), respectively. The increase in the concentration of IL1 and IL2 tends to improve their corrosion inhibition activities. Analysis of the data obtained from the weight loss method shows that the adsorption of IL1 and IL2 on carbon steel is classified into chemisorption which obeys Langmuir’s adsorption isotherm.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Infrared laser spectroscopy of the n -propyl and i -propyl radicals: Stretch-bend Fermi coupling in the alkyl CH stretch region

The n -propyl and i -propyl radicals were generated in the gas phase via pyrolysis of n -butyl nitrite [CH 3 (CH 2 ) 3 ONO] and i -butyl nitrite [(CH 3 ) 2 CHCH 2 ONO], respectively. Nascent radicals were promptly solvated by a beam of He nanodroplets, and the infrared spectra of the radicals were recorded in the CH stretching region. Several previously unreported bands are observed between 2800 and 3150 cm –1 . The CH stretching modes observed above 3000 cm –1 are in excellent agreement with CCSD(T) anharmonic frequencies computed using second-order vibrational perturbation theory. However, between 2800 and 3000 cm –1 , the spectra of n - and i -propyl radicals become congested and difficult to assign due to the presence of multiple anharmonic resonance polyads. To model the spectrally congested region, Fermi and Darling-Dennison resonances are treated explicitly using “dressed” Hamiltonians and CCSD(T) quartic force fields in the normal mode representation, and the agreement with experiment is less than satisfactory. Computations employing local mode effective Hamiltonians reveal the origin of the spectral congestion to be strong coupling between the high frequency CH stretching modes and the lower frequency CH n bending/scissoring motions. The most significant coupling is between stretches and bends localized on the same CH 2 /CH 3 group. As a result, spectral simulations using the local mode approach are in excellent agreement with experiment.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Tandem catalysis for the production of alkyl lactates from ketohexoses at moderate temperatures

Significance Retro-aldol reactions of biomass-derived monosaccharides enable the production of a number of industrially relevant, renewable platform chemicals (e.g., C 2 –C 4 α-hydroxy carboxylic acids, acrylic acid, and esters thereof; and ethylene and propylene glycol). Here, we show a set of retro-aldol catalysts that can perform these reactions at significantly lower temperatures (∼100 °C) than previously reported, and demonstrate that these catalysts enable the key retro-aldol step when used in combination with a 1,2-hydride shift catalyst to create a reaction cascade that converts ketohexoses to lactic acid. The use of moderate temperatures enables numerous desirable features such as lower pressure and significantly less catalyst deactivation.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Fourfold alkyl wrapping of a copper(II) porphyrin thwarts macrocycle π–π stacking in a compact supramolecular package

Porphyrins are valuable constituents in optoelectronic, catalytic, and other applications, yet control of intermolecular π–π stacking is invariably essential to attain the desired properties. Superstructures built onto the porphyrin, often via meso -aryl groups, can afford facial encumbrance that suppresses π–π stacking, although some molecular designs have provided insufficient facial coverage and many have entailed cumbersome syntheses. In this study, a copper(II) porphyrin bearing four meso substituents, namely, {10,20-bis[2,6-bis(octyloxy)phenyl]-5,15-dibromoporphinato}copper(II), [Cu(C 64 H 82 Br 2 N 4 O 4 )], was prepared by metalation of the corresponding free-base porphyrin and was characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystal structure reveals a dihedral angle of 111.1 (2)° for the plane of the meso -aryl group relative to the plane of the porphyrin, with both aryl groups tilted in the same direction. Each of the four octyloxy groups exhibits a gauche conformation for the –OCH 2 CH 2 – unit but is extended with four or five anti (–CH 2 CH 2 –/H) conformations thereafter, causing each octyl group to span the dimension of the macrocycle. In a global frame of reference where the two Br atoms define the north/south poles and the two aryl groups are at antipodes on the equator, two octyl groups of one aryl unit project over the northern hemisphere (covering pyrroles A and B ), whereas those of the other aryl unit project over the southern hemisphere (covering pyrroles C and D ). Together, the four octyl groups ensheath the two faces of the porphyrin in a self-wrapped assembly. The closest approach of the Cu atom to an octyl methylene C atom (position 6) is 3.5817 (18) Å, the mean separations of neighboring porphyrin planes are 8.059 (4) and 4.693 (8) Å along the a and c axes, respectively, and the center-to-center distances between the Cu atoms of neighboring porphyrins are 10.2725 (4), 12.2540 (6), and 12.7472 (6) Å along the a , b , and c axes, respectively. The Hirshfeld surface analysis and two-dimensional (2D) fingerprint plots provide information concerning contact interactions in the supramolecular assembly of the solid crystal.

Chemistry↗