{"title":"Probing the Bioinorganic Chemistry of Cu(I) with 111Ag Perturbed Angular Correlation (PAC) Spectroscopy","authors":"Victoria Karner, Attila Jancso, Lars Hemmingsen","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11100375","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11100375","url":null,"abstract":"The two most common oxidation states of copper in biochemistry are Cu(II) and Cu(I), and while Cu(II) lends itself to spectroscopic interrogation, Cu(I) is silent in most techniques. Ag(I) and Cu(I) are both closed-shell d10 monovalent ions, and to some extent share ligand and coordination geometry preferences. Therefore, Ag(I) may be applied to explore Cu(I) binding sites in biomolecules. Here, we review applications of 111Ag perturbed angular correlation (PAC) of γ-ray spectroscopy aimed to elucidate the chemistry of Cu(I) in biological systems. Examples span from small blue copper proteins such as plastocyanin and azurin (electron transport) over hemocyanin (oxygen transport) to CueR and BxmR (metal-ion-sensing proteins). Finally, possible future applications are discussed. 111Ag is a radionuclide which undergoes β-decay to 111Cd, and it is a γ-γ cascade of the 111Cd daughter nucleus, which is used in PAC measurements. 111Ag PAC spectroscopy may provide information on the coordination environment of Ag(I) and on the structural relaxation occurring upon the essentially instantaneous change from Ag(I) to Cd(II).","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135967116","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Felix Lehnfeld, Tim Oswald, Rüdiger Beckhaus, Manfred Scheer
{"title":"Mono-Alkyl-Substituted Phosphinoboranes (HRP–BH2–NMe3) as Precursors for Poly(alkylphosphinoborane)s: Improved Synthesis and Comparative Study","authors":"Felix Lehnfeld, Tim Oswald, Rüdiger Beckhaus, Manfred Scheer","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11100377","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11100377","url":null,"abstract":"A new synthetic pathway to various mono-alkyl-substituted phosphinoboranes HRP–BH2–NMe3 has been developed. The new synthetic route starting from alkyl halides and NaPH2 followed by metalation and salt metathesis is performed in a one-pot procedure and leads to higher yields and purity of the resulting phosphinoboranes, as compared to previously reported routes. Additionally, the scope of accessible compounds could be expanded from short-chained linear alkyl substituents to longer-chained linear alkyl substituents as well as secondary or functionalized alkyl substituents. The reported examples include primary alkyl-substituted phosphinoboranes RHP-BH2-NMe3 (R = n-butyl, n-pentyl, n-hexyl; 1a–c), the secondary alkyl-substituted derivatives iPrPH-BH2-NMe3 (2), and the functionalized alkyl-substituted 4-bromo-butyl-phosphinoborane (BrC4H8)PH-BH2-NMe3 (3). Compounds 1a, 1c, and 2 were additionally used for preliminary polymerization reactions via a thermal and a transition metal-catalyzed pathway, revealing the formation of high-molecular-weight polymers under certain conditions. Detailed investigations on the influence of temperature, concentration, substituents and reaction time on the respective polymerization reactions were performed.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"12 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135967114","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Badrinath Dhakal, Brooke A. Corbin, Alberto Sosa Parada, Jonathan G. Sakai, Emily A. Felton, Lauren T. McDonald, Anthony J. Gross, Gary S. Nichol, Greg A. N. Felton
{"title":"Manganese(I) Diamine Electrocatalysts: Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction to Carbon Monoxide","authors":"Badrinath Dhakal, Brooke A. Corbin, Alberto Sosa Parada, Jonathan G. Sakai, Emily A. Felton, Lauren T. McDonald, Anthony J. Gross, Gary S. Nichol, Greg A. N. Felton","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090374","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090374","url":null,"abstract":"Novel organometallic complexes Mn(benzene-1,2-diamine)(CO)3Br, Mn-1, Mn(3-methylbenzene-1,2-diamine)(CO)3Br, Mn-2, and Re(benzene-1,2-diamine)(CO)3Cl, Re-1, have been synthesized and characterized by IR, UV/Vis, 1H-NMR, EA and HRMS. The structures of Mn-2 and Re-1 were confirmed by X-ray crystallography. The three novel compounds were studied for their electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide to carbon monoxide using cyclic voltammetry in acetonitrile solutions. Controlled potential electrolysis was used to obtain information on faradaic yield, with product formation being confirmed by GC. Using earth-abundant manganese, compounds Mn-1 and Mn-2 display turnover frequencies of 108 s−1 and 82 s−1, respectively, amid selective production of carbon monoxide (faradaic yields ~85%), with minimal co-production of dihydrogen (<2%), and low overpotential of 0.18 V. The rhenium congener, Re-1, displays no activity as an electrocatalyst for carbon dioxide reduction under identical conditions.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"59 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136235661","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Roberto Nolla-Saltiel, Ana M. Geer, Helen R. Sharpe, Cameron D. Huke, Laurence J. Taylor, Thomas G. Linford-Wood, Ashleigh James, Jamie Allen, William Lewis, Alexander J. Blake, Jonathan McMaster, Deborah L. Kays
{"title":"Organoruthenium Complexes Containing Phosphinodicarboxamide Ligands","authors":"Roberto Nolla-Saltiel, Ana M. Geer, Helen R. Sharpe, Cameron D. Huke, Laurence J. Taylor, Thomas G. Linford-Wood, Ashleigh James, Jamie Allen, William Lewis, Alexander J. Blake, Jonathan McMaster, Deborah L. Kays","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090372","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090372","url":null,"abstract":"Ruthenium complexes of phosphinocarboxamide ligands, and their use to form metallacycles using halide abstraction/deprotonation reactions are reported. Thus, [Ru(p-cym){PPh2C(=O)NHR}Cl2; R = iPr (1), Ph (2), p-tol (3)] and [Ru(p-cym){PPh2C(=O)N(R)C(=O)N(H)R}Cl2; R = Ph (4), p-tol (5)] were synthesized from [(p-cym)RuCl2]2 (p-cym = para-cymene) and phosphinocarboxamides or phosphinodicarboxamides, respectively. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction measurements on 1–5 reveal coordination to ruthenium through the phosphorus donor, with an intramolecular hydrogen bond between the amine-bound proton and a metal-bound chloride. Six-membered metallacycles formed by halide abstraction/deprotonation of complexes 4 and 5 afforded [Ru(p-cym){κ2-P,N-PPh2C(=O)N(R)C(=O)NR}Cl] [R = Ph (6), p-tol (7)]. These species exist as a mixture of two rotational isomers in solution, as demonstrated by NMR spectroscopy.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"45 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135107634","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Petra Humajová, Patrik Baliak, Ivan Landry Yumdjo Youmbissi, Alžběta Jebavá, Lenka Řezáčová, Přemysl Lubal
{"title":"The Analytical Application of Quenching Phenomena of CdTe Quantum Dot Nanoparticles","authors":"Petra Humajová, Patrik Baliak, Ivan Landry Yumdjo Youmbissi, Alžběta Jebavá, Lenka Řezáčová, Přemysl Lubal","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090373","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090373","url":null,"abstract":"This paper is devoted to the synthesis and application of CdTe quantum dot (QD) nanoparticles covered with organic ligands containing a thiol group, mostly mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) and glutathione (GSH). The simple one-step synthetic procedure was optimized to prepare greater quantities of nanoparticles for analytical purposes. The prepared CdTe QD nanoparticles were characterized by various analytical techniques, and their interaction with some metal ions (Cu(II), Pb(II), and Hg(II)) was studied by using luminescence spectroscopy in both steady-state and time-resolved modes. The mathematical analysis of the quenching effect of Cu(II) ions on the luminescence of CdTe QD nanoparticles shows that the static contribution is mostly responsible for the overall effect, but experimental conditions, such as pH, ionic strength, or the concentration of nanoparticles in aqueous solution, could also be important. The presence of metal ions in the form of a metal complex species could play an important role, and this phenomenon could be used to tune the selectivity of the quenching process. These findings have been utilized for the development of an analytical procedure for the detection and quantitative analysis of Cu(II) and Pb(II) ions in environmental water samples. In practice, this procedure could be easily implemented in a microplate format to increase throughput.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135107660","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dana Gingasu, Ovidiu Oprea, Gabriela Marinescu, Jose Maria Calderon Moreno, Daniela C. Culita, Silviu Preda, Vasile-Adrian Surdu
{"title":"Structural, Morphological, and Optical Properties of Single and Mixed Ni-Co Aluminates Nanoparticles","authors":"Dana Gingasu, Ovidiu Oprea, Gabriela Marinescu, Jose Maria Calderon Moreno, Daniela C. Culita, Silviu Preda, Vasile-Adrian Surdu","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090371","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090371","url":null,"abstract":"A series including single and mixed Ni-Co aluminates was obtained using the precursor method, with malic acid as a ligand. The malate precursors (polynuclear coordination compounds) were isolated and characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), Ultraviolet/Visible/Near Infrared (UV–Vis–NIR) spectroscopy, and thermal analysis. The UV–Vis–NIR spectra of the synthesized complex compounds highlighted the presence of Co2+ and Ni2+ in an octahedral environment. The thermal decomposition of these precursors led to Co1−xNixAl2O4 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 0.9, and 1) spinels. The effect of Ni2+ substitution on the structure, morphology, and optical properties of the obtained oxides was studied with the help of different characterization tools. XRD, FTIR, and Raman spectra evidenced the formation of the spinel phase. The size of the crystallites and the agglomeration degree of the particles decrease when the nickel content increases. The band gap (BG) value is not significantly influenced by the Ni substitution. The fluorescence spectra recorded for all samples show a similar pattern, but different intensities of the emission bands.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"21 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135351863","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amal BaQais, Mir Waqas Alam, Mohd Farhan, Ghazala Muteeb, Nassiba Allag, Shehla Mushtaq
{"title":"Probe-Sonicated Synthesis of CuO–ZnO Hybrid Nanocomposite for Photocatalytic and Supercapacitor Applications","authors":"Amal BaQais, Mir Waqas Alam, Mohd Farhan, Ghazala Muteeb, Nassiba Allag, Shehla Mushtaq","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090370","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090370","url":null,"abstract":"An ultrasound-assisted probe sonication route effectively prepared pure CuO and two-dimensional CuO-ZnO nanocomposites (NCs) for different ratios of CuO and ZnO, and the experimental and theoretical methods investigated the structural, photocatalytic, and electrochemical properties. The XRD (X-ray diffraction) patterns revealed a crystallite size (D) range of 25 to 31 nm for pure CuO and CuO-ZnO NCs. According to calculations, the sample’s optical energy bandgap value (Eg) for the NCs is between 1.72 and 2.15 eV. Under UV light irradiation, the photocatalytic discoloration of pure CuO and CuO-ZnO NCs on fast blue (FB) dye was assessed. Under the influence of UV light, the CuO with 10% ZnO composite degrades 83.4% of the dye, which is greater than pure CuO and other NCs. The electrochemical properties of the prepared NCs materials have been studied using cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The specific capacitance values were found to be 248 Fg−1, 301 Fg−1, 352 Fg−1, and 277 Fg−1 for CuO, CuO + 5% ZnO, CuO + 10% ZnO, and CuO + 15% ZnO, respectively, at 1 A/g current density. Galvanostatic charge–discharge tests for these designed NCs show excellent capacitance performance in supercapacitors applications. These innovative results could be considered for expanding novel resources to scale for dual applications in photocatalysis and supercapacitors.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"5 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135351869","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Synthesis of High-Crystallinity Mg-Al Hydrotalcite with a Nanoflake Morphology and Its Adsorption Properties for Cu2+ from an Aqueous Solution","authors":"Nai-Cai Xu, Dan-Dan Shi, Ying Zhang, Kai-Peng Zhong, Jing Liu, Qi Zhao, Qiang Gao, Shao-Ju Bian","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090369","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090369","url":null,"abstract":"A magnesium–aluminum-layered double hydroxide (Mg-Al LDH) with a nano-lamellar morphology was prepared by using a homogeneous precipitation and hydrothermal method, and a calcination product (Mg-Al LDO) of the Mg-Al LDH was also obtained in this work. The XRD, TEM, SEM, FTIR, N2 ad/desorption, and TG-DTG techniques were employed to characterize the microstructures, morphologies, and thermostability levels of these two materials in detail. The results showed that both the Mg-Al LDH and Mg-Al LDO had mesoporous structures and nanoplate morphologies, with diameters of 50~200 nm. The Mg-Al LDH was transformed into Mg-Al LDO at 773 K in an air atmosphere. The adsorption properties of the Mg-Al LDH were investigated systematically with a copper chloride solution as a simulated waste. The experimental results demonstrated that the pH value of the solution had an obvious influence on its Cu2+ adsorption capacity, and the optimal pH value was approximately 5.0. The adsorption kinetics results showed that the Mg-Al LDH had a rapid adsorption rate, and the equilibrium adsorption capacity was 62.11 mg/g. Additionally, the Cu2+ adsorption could be commendably described using a pseudo-second-order model, demonstrating that the adsorption behavior is regulated by chemical sorption. The adsorption thermodynamic results indicated that the adsorption process was spontaneous at temperatures above 318 K. Moreover, the ΔG0 values decreased as the temperature was raised, which indicated that a higher temperature can cause a greater impetus for Cu2+adsorption. In addition, the positive values of the ΔH0 indicated that the Cu2+ adsorption was endothermic, and the positive ΔS0 values revealed an increase in the confusion at the solid–liquid interface of the adsorbent.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"206 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135436063","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effects of Coloration of Spinel CoAl2O4 Cobalt Blue Pigments: Composition, Structure, and Cation Distribution","authors":"Weiran Zhang, Ziyu Li, Guohua Wu, Wei Wu, Hailan Zeng, Haiyun Jiang, Weili Zhang, Ruomei Wu, Qiong Xue","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090368","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090368","url":null,"abstract":"Cobalt blue ceramic pigments mainly consisting of CoAl2O4 are subject to the difficulty of color control. Here, a perspective is reported regarding research on the reasons for color change based on the control of the heat treatment and ratio of components. Macroscopically, the composition of pigment powders determines the color. Microscopically, the crystallite characters including size, cation distribution, and structure have an important effect on the color. The ingredient, structural, and color properties of the pigment powders are analyzed using thermo gravimetry–differential scanning calorimetry (TG–DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement, Rietveld refinement, energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), and colorimetry analysis. The color is proven to be associated with cation distribution, such as that of Co2+ and Co3+. It is indicated that high heating temperature, long heating time, and a large proportion of Al3+ can, respectively, induce the Co2+ and Al3+ in tetrahedral and octahedral sites.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"20 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134913029","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Room-Temperature Hydrogen-Sensitive Pt-SnO2 Composite Nanoceramics: Contrasting Roles of Pt Nano-Catalysts Loaded via Two Different Methods","authors":"Jieting Zhao, Jiannan Song, Xilai Lu, Menghan Wu, Zhiqiao Yan, Feng Chen, Wanping Chen","doi":"10.3390/inorganics11090366","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/inorganics11090366","url":null,"abstract":"Soluble noble metal salts are widely used for loading noble metals as nano-catalysts in many applications. In this paper, Pt-SnO2 composite nanoceramics were prepared from SnO2 nanoparticles and H2PtCl6 using two Pt loading methods separately: for the solution reduction method, a H2PtCl6 solution was added to a suspension of SnO2 and zinc powder to form Pt on SnO2 nanoparticles, and for the impregnation method, Pt was formed from H2PtCl6 in the course of sintering. Although a series of samples prepared using both Pt loading methods showed a solid response to H2 at room temperature, the ones prepared using the solution reduction method exhibited much better room-temperature hydrogen-sensing characteristics. For two samples of 0.5 wt% Pt and sintered at 825 °C, the response value for the sample prepared using the solution reduction method was 9700 to 1% H2–20% O2-N2, which was much larger than the value of 145 for the sample prepared using the impregnation method. Samples prepared using the two Pt loading methods have similar microstructures characterized via XRD, FESEM, EDS, TEM, and HRTEM. However, the residual chlorine content in those using the impregnation method was higher than those using the solution reduction method according to the analysis. It is proposed that the striking difference in room-temperature hydrogen sensing characteristics among samples prepared using these two different Pt loading methods separately resulted from their different chlorine removal processes. This study demonstrates the importance of a proper method for loading noble metals from their soluble salts as nano-catalysts in many applications.","PeriodicalId":13580,"journal":{"name":"Inorganics (Basel)","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136192800","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}