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At least 361 records · Page 20

NOx formation from the combustion of monodisperse n-heptane sprays doped with fuel-nitrogen additives

A series of experiments with simulated synthetic fuels were conducted in order to investigate the effect of droplet size on the conversion of fuel-nitrogen to NOx. Pyridine and pyrrole were added to n-heptane as nitrogen-containing additives and burned as monodisperse fuel droplets under various operating conditions in a spray combustion facility. The experimental results indicate that under stoichiometric and fuel-rich conditions, reducing the droplet size increases the efficiency of fuel-N conversion to NOx. This observation is associated with improved oxidation of the pyrolysis fragments of the additive by better oxygen penetration through the droplet flame zone. The dominant reactions by which fuel-N is transformed to NOx were also considered analytically by a premixed laminar flame code. The calculations are compared to the small droplet size results.

Sarv, Hamid↗

Iptycene synthesis: A new method for attaching a 2,3-anthracene moiety to the 9,10-positions of another anthracene moiety - Exceptional conditions for a Lewis acid catalyzed Diels-Alder reaction

An efficient three-step method for appending a 2,3-anthracene moiety to the 9,10-positions of an existing anthracene moiety is described. The first step uses excess 1,4-anthraquinone (3 equiv) and aluminum chloride (6 equiv) to obtain the anthracene-quinone cycloadduct (omission of the AlCl3 resulted in no adduct). The resulting diketone was reduced to the corresponding diol (excess LiAlH4), which was dehydrated to the arene with phosphorus oxychloride and pyridine. Specific examples include the preparation of heptipycene 8 from pentiptycene 6 (66 percent overall yield) and a similar conversion of 8 to the noniptycene 13 (75 percent overall yield). The methodology led to a markedly improved synthesis of tritriptycene 9 and the first synthesis of undecaiptycene 14.

Chen, Yong-Shing↗

A commercialized, continuous flow fiber optic sensor for trichloroethylene and haloforms

Purus, Inc. has commercialized a fiber optic chemical sensor using technology developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and licensed from The University of California. The basis for the sensor is the development of color within a reagent when exposed to an analyte. The sensor consists of an optrode, reagent delivery and recover system, fiber optic transmitter-receiver, controller, and display. Reagent is pumped through the optrode. Analyte diffuses across a gas permeable membrane and reacts with the reagent to form a colored product. The colored product is detected by measuring the absorbance of light from a 568 nm diode. Reagents are currently available for TCE and trihalomethanes. Initial reagent chemistry is based on the Fujiwara alkaline pyridine reaction. The optrode contacts only gas streams, but the volatility of the current analytes also allows measurements of aqueous streams, without being affected by aqueous interferents that are non-volatile. Sensitivity of the sensor has been demonstrated to 5 ppb aqueous solutions and 0.1 ppmv in flowing gas streams.

Wells, James C.↗

Oligomerization of mononucleotides on montmorillonite: A potential approach to the prebiotic synthesis of RNA

The condensation of the 5'-phosphorimidazolide of adenosine (ImpA) on montmorillonite in a pH 8 aqueous solution yields oligomers containing up to 10 monomer units. The regiospecificity of 3',5'-phosphodiester bond formation is enhanced by addition of 10% diadenosine pyrophosphate (AppA) to the reaction mixture. A series of activated derivatives of 5'-AMP was prepared to investigate the effect of the leaving group on oligomer formation. The benzimidazole and p-dimethylamino-pyridine derivatives gave the best yields of oligomers. Factors important for oligomer formation is discussed.

Ferris, James P.↗

Trans-Bis(acetato-o)bis(4-methylpyridine-N)copper(II)

The structure of trans-bis(acetato-O)bis(4-methyl- pyridine-N)copper(II), (Cu(C2H302)(sub 2)(C6H7N)(sub 2)), re- ported herein, represents a monomeric parent acetate complex with a distorted square-planar arrangement of acetate and 4-methylpyridine ligands around the Cu atom with the following distances and angles: Cu-N = 2.027 (4) and Cu-O1 = 1.950 (3) A; O1-Cu-N = 89.1 (2) and O1 -Cu-N' = 90.9 (2)deg. The Cu atom resides on a center of inversion. The most important dihedral angles are the angle between the 4-methylpyridine plane and the acetate plane (O1, O2, C21 and C22), 78.2 deg and the angle between the 4-methylpyridine ring and the coordination plane (Cu, N, O1), 31.6 deg.

Jedrzejas, Marek J.↗

Synthesis of Substituted 2,3,5,6-tetraarylbenzo(1,2-b:5,4-b')difurans

A series of substituted 2,3,5,6-tetraarylbenzo(l,2-b:5,4-b')difurans 1 was synthesized. This synthesis is based upon the photocyclization of 2,5-dibenzoylresorcinol dibenzyl ethers to the corresponding tetrahydrobenzo(1,2-b:5,4-b')difurans. Treatment of the photoproducts with methanesulfonyl chloride in pyridine afforded 1 in overall yields ranging from 30-72%. A number of these compounds have high fluorescence quantum yields (of phi(sub f) = 0.76-0.90), and their fluorescence spectra exhibit large solvatochromic shifts. These compounds may be suitable for use as fluorescent probes.

Abdul-Aziz, Mahmoud↗

The Organic Content of the Tagish Lake Meteorite

The Tagish Lake meteorite felt last year on a frozen take in Canada and may provide the most pristine material of its kind. Analyses have now shown this carbonaceous chondrite to contain a suite of soluble organic compounds (approximately 100 parts per million) that includes mono- and dicarboxylic acids, dicarboximides, pyridine carboxylic acids, a sulfonic acid, and both aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons. The insoluble carbon exhibits exclusive aromatic character, deuterium enrichment, and fullerenes containing 'planetary' helium and argon. The findings provide insight into an outcome of early solar chemical evolution that differs from any seen so far in meteorites.

Pizzarello, Sandra↗

Chemical Storage of Data

We investigate the possibility of storing data using H and F on a polymer to signify 0 and 1 bits. We show that the difference between the B-F and B-H interaction energies for either C5H5B or C3H3N2B is only slightly larger than the variation in B-F interaction energy with type of neighboring atoms. Pyridine (C5H5N) and (CH3)3P=O have a much larger difference in the H and F interaction energies. (CH3)3P=O may be better suited as a surface probe, because the interaction with neighboring data sites should be smaller.

Bauschlicher, Charles W., Jr.↗

Differentiating Between H and F or H and CN on C(III) or Si(III) Surfaces

A Sc tipped probe molecule yields a larger difference for the probe-H vs probe-F interaction energies than our previously studied, electron-rich pyridine (C5H5N) and (CH3)3PO probes. However, the electron-deficient Sc tipped probe does not eliminate the probe-nearest data neighbor interaction problem associated with the C(III) surface. The difference in the probe-H and probe-F interaction energies is smaller for Si(III) than C(III), making it more difficult to differentiate between these two atoms on Si(III). The larger lattice constant for Si(III) significantly reduces the data atom-data atom interaction energy as well as the probe-neighbor interaction energies. This means that the H/CN system which is not practical for C(III) due to the CN-CN repulsion, is possible for Si(III). The difference in the probe-H and probe-CN interaction energies is very large for the H/CN data storage system, making this the best system studied to date. This system could be used on C(III) if a hydrogen 'fence' is built around each data site, which corresponds to using only one quarter of the surface sites for data storage.

Bauschlicher, Charles W.↗

Tholins: Can They Provide a Substrate, Carbon and Nitrogen for Plant Production?

Tholin is a word coined to describe the entire class of complex organic solids produced in laboratory experiments where pre-biotic gaseous chemicals are subject to bombardment by high energy. The atomic composition of Titan tholin produced from 10 percent CH4 and 90 percent N2 in a simulation of Titan atmosphere irradiated by charged particles trapped in the magnetosphere of Saturn gave 67 percent C and 33 percent N. Hydrolysis of Titan tholin with 6N HCl produced a racemic mixture of biological and non-biological amino acids that was confirmed by GC/MS. Other tholins, that revealed the presence of amino acids, were UV tholin produced under possible primitive Earth conditions by irradiation of a mixture of gases (CH4, C2H6, NH3, H2S and liquid H2O) with long-wavelength ultraviolet light, representing the most abundant useful energy source for prebiological organic synthesis; Spark tholin in a crude simulation of Jupiter atmosphere using electrical discharge through a mixture of CH4, NH3, and H2O vapor. Pyrolytic GC/MS of Titan tholin produced more than one hundred organic compounds including saturated and unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons, substituted polycyclic aromatics, nitriles, amines, pyrroles, pyrazines, pyridines, pyrimidines, and the purine, adenine. Similar rich pyrolytic products were obtained with UV as well as Spark tholins. A range of two to four ring PAHs (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) in Spark as well as Titan tholins, some with one to four alkylation sites, were identified by two-step laser desorption/multiphoton ionization mass spectrometry and also confirmed by the synchronous fluorescence technique. Previous studies have demonstrated the potential for use of tholins as a source of carbon and energy by microbes. This paper describes studies that evaluate the potential for using different types of tholins as (a) a substrate for growing plants and (b) a source of carbon and nitrogen for plants. The data are interpreted in terms of the potential for using such tholins to grow plants for food in extraterrestrial habitats and also to speculate on the possibilities of abiotic evolution of plants.

Wignarajah, Kanapathipillai↗

Dissociative Ionization of Aromatic and Heterocyclic Molecules

Space radiation poses a major health hazard to humans in space flight. The high-energy charged particles in space radiation ranging from protons to high atomic number, high-energy (HZE) particles, and the secondary species they produce, attack DNA, cells, and tissues. Of the potential hazards, long-term health effects such as carcinogenesis are likely linked to the DNA lesions caused by secondary electrons in the 1 - 30 eV range. Dissociative ionization (DI) is one of the electron collision processes that can damage the DNA, either directly by causing a DNA lesion, or indirectly by producing radicals and cations that attack the DNA. To understand this process, we have developed a theoretical model for DI. Our model makes use of the fact that electron motion is much faster than nuclear motion and assumes DI proceeds through a two-step process. The first step is electron-impact ionization resulting in a particular state of the molecular ion in the geometry of the neutral molecule. In the second step the ion undergoes unimolecular dissociation. Thus the DI cross section sigma(sup DI)(sub a) for channel a is given by sigma(sup DI)(sub a) = sigma(sup I)(sub a) P(sub D) with sigma(sup I)(sub a) the ionization cross section of channel a and P(sub D) the dissociation probability. This model has been applied to study the DI of H2O, NH3, and CH4, with results in good agreement with experiment. The ionization cross section sigma(sup I)(sub a) was calculated using the improved binary encounter-dipole model and the unimolecular dissociation probability P(sub D) obtained by following the minimum energy path determined by the gradients and Hessians of the electronic energy with respect to the nuclear coordinates of the ion. This model is used to study the DI from the low-lying channels of benzene and pyridine to understand the different product formation in aromatic and heterocyclic molecules. DI study of the DNA base thymine is underway. Solvent effects will also be discussed.

Huo, Winifred M.↗

A constitutively activated mutant of human soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC): implication for the mechanism of sGC activation

Heterodimeric alphabeta soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC) is a recognized receptor for nitric oxide (NO) and mediates many of its physiological functions. Although it has been clear that the heme moiety coordinated by His-105 of the beta subunit is crucial for mediating the activation of the enzyme by NO, it is not understood whether the heme moiety plays any role in the function of the enzyme in the absence of NO. Here we analyze the effects of biochemical and genetic removal of heme and its reconstitution on the activity of the enzyme. Detergent-induced loss of heme from the wild-type alphabeta enzyme resulted in several-fold activation of the enzyme. This activation was inhibited after hemin reconstitution. A heme-deficient mutant alphabetaCys-105 with Cys substituted for His-105 was constitutively active with specific activity approaching the activity of the wild-type enzyme activated by NO. However, reconstitution of mutant enzyme with heme and/or DTT treatment significantly inhibited the enzyme. Mutant enzyme reconstituted with ferrous heme was activated by NO and CO alone and showed additive effects between gaseous effectors and the allosteric activator 5-cyclopropyl-2-[1-(2-fluoro-benzyl)-1H-pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridin-3-yl]-pyrim idin-4-ylamine. We propose that the heme moiety through its coordination with His-105 of the beta subunit acts as an endogenous inhibitor of sGC. Disruption of the heme-coordinating bond induced by binding of NO releases the restrictions imposed by this bond and allows the formation of an optimally organized catalytic center in the heterodimer.

Non-NASA Center↗

Preferential inhibition of the plasma membrane NADH oxidase (NOX) activity by diphenyleneiodonium chloride with NADPH as donor

The cell-surface NADH oxidase (NOX) protein of plant and animal cells will utilize both NADH and NADPH as reduced electron donors for activity. The two activities are distinguished by a differential inhibition by the redox inhibitor diphenyleneiodonium chloride (DPI). Using both plasma membranes and cells, activity with NADPH as donor was markedly inhibited by DPI at submicromolar concentrations, whereas with NADH as donor, DPI was much less effective or had no effect on the activity. The possibility of the inhibition being the result of two different enzymes was eliminated by the use of a recombinant NOX protein. The findings support the concept that NOX proteins serve as terminal oxidases for plasma membrane electron transport involving cytosolic reduced pyridine nucleotides as the natural electron donors and with molecular oxygen as the electron acceptor.

Non-NASA Center↗

Impregnated metal-polymeric functional beads

Amine containing polymeric microspheres such as polyvinyl pyridine are complexed with metal salts or acids containing metals such as gold, platinum or iron. After reduction with sodium borohydride, the salt is reduced to finely divided free metal or metal oxides, useful as catalysts. Microspheres containing covalent bonding sites can be used for labeling or separating proteins.

Rembaum, Alan↗

Photochemical preparation of olefin addition catalysts

Novel polymer supported catalysts are prepared by photo-irradiation of low valent transition metal compounds such as Co.sub.2 (CO).sub.8, Rh.sub.4 (CO).sub.12 or Ru.sub.3 (CO).sub.12 in the presence of solid polymers containing amine ligands such as polyvinyl pyridine. Hydroformylation of olefins to aldehydes at ambient conditions has been demonstrated.

Gray, Harry B.↗

Impregnated metal-polymeric functional beads

Amine containing polymeric microspheres such as polyvinyl pyridine are complexed with metal salts or acids containing metals such as gold, platinum or iron. After reduction with sodium borohydride, the salt is reduced to finely divided free metal or metal oxides, useful as catalysts. Microspheres containing covalent bonding sites can be used for labeling or separating proteins.

Rembaum, Alan↗