Calculated Activation Barriers Research Articles

Catalytic combustion of dichloromethane over NaFAU and HFAU zeolites: a combined experimental and theoretical study

The catalytic combustion of dichloromethane (DCM) was examined over NaFAU and HFAU zeolites by experimental and theoretical studies. The reactions yielded carbon monoxide, hydrogen chloride, water, and methyl chloride as major products. The order of reaction was one with respect to DCM concentration, and the activation energy and pre-exponential factors were determined. Insight into the mechanism of catalytic combustion of DCM was gained by the B3LYP/6-31G(d, p) method using the 15T (T = Si or Al tetrahedral) cluster model of FAU zeolite. The results revealed that the combustion of DCM was catalyzed by FAU zeolite via the stepwise mechanism involving adsorption, dechlorination, hydrolysis, and oxidation steps in humid air. NaFAU was found to be more active than HFAU because it facilitated the adsorption and dechlorination steps, which was in agreement with the experimental result. The transformation between NaFAU and HFAU requires low activation energy (∆E = 19.2 kJ mol−1). The calculated activation barriers for the dechlorination and hydrolysis steps over NaFAU and HFAU were 82.1 and 124.2 kJ mol−1, respectively. Dechlorination of DCM was predicted to be the rate-determining step. The calculated apparent activation barrier for the combustion of DCM over NaFAU was 86.0 kJ mol−1, which was consistent with the experimental value of 84.8 kJ mol−1.

Theoretical Study of Li Migration in Lithium–Graphite Intercalation Compounds with Dispersion-Corrected DFT Methods

Structural, energetic, electronic, and defect properties of lithium–graphite intercalated compounds (LiC6n (n = 1, 2)) are investigated theoretically with periodic quantum-chemical methods. Calculated properties obtained with a gradient-corrected density functional theory (DFT) method and a dispersion-corrected DFT method (DFT-D3-BJ) are compared. The DFT-D3-BJ method gives better agreement with experiment for the structural parameters and Li intercalation energy compared to the uncorrected DFT approach, showing that interlayer interactions due to the van der Waals forces play an effective role in graphite and LiC6n compounds. In agreement with the literature, the calculated density of states (DOS) show that graphite is metallic with a low DOS at the Fermi level, whereas LiC6n compounds have a high DOS at the Fermi level. Between the considered point defects, VLi and Lii, the energy needed to form Li point defects is smaller if solid Li is used as reference. A moderate relaxation is observed for the atoms surrounding the Li defect. Competing pathways for Li diffusion in LiC6n compounds are investigated using the climbing-image nudged elastic band approach. Two different mechanisms for Li diffusion are observed, the vacancy mechanism and the Frenkel mechanism. For both cases, Li migration pathways along the ab plane and along the c crystallographic axis are investigated. A large activation barrier along the c crystallographic direction indicates that Li does not diffuse in the c direction. The calculated activation barriers for Li diffusion in the ab plane are consistent with previous experimental investigations.

A QM/MM study on the reaction pathway leading to 2‐Aceto‐2‐hydroxybutyrate in the catalytic cycle of AHAS

The reaction between the intermediate 2-hydroxyethyl-thiamin diphosphate (HEThDP(-) ) and 2-ketobutyrate, in the third step of the catalytic cycle of acetodydroxy acid synthase, is addressed from a theoretical point of view by means of hybrid quantum/molecular mechanical calculations. The QM region includes one molecule of 2-ketobutyrate, the HEThDP(-) intermediate, and the residues Arg 380 y Glu 139; whereas the MM region includes the rest of the protein. The study includes potential energy surface scans to identify and characterize critical points on it, transition state search and activation barrier calculations. The results show that the reaction occurs via a two-step mechanism corresponding to the carboligation and proton transfer in the first stage; and the product release in the second step.

Theoretical studies of the hydration reactions of stabilized Criegee intermediates from the ozonolysis of β-pinene

A theoretical study was performed of the reactions of the stabilized Criegee intermediates (sCIs) of β-pinene with H2O and its dimer. Due to the large size of the biogenic sCIs, the transition states of the hydration reactions were explored with the Monte Carlo Transition State Search Program (MCTSSP), which integrated the Monte Carlo sampling technique with a transition state optimization method. The computations were performed with the M06-2X/6-311+G(2d,p) and B3LYP/6-311+G(2d,p) levels of theory. The relative energies showed that the results of the M06-2X functional are in good agreement with the results of the DF-MP2 and CCSD(T) methods. Both the reactions of the β-pinene-sCI with H2O and the β-pinene-sCI with (H2O)2 were found to be strongly exothermic. Activation barrier calculations indicate that the sink reaction with the water dimer may proceed significantly faster than the reaction with the water monomer despite the low concentration of water dimers in the atmosphere. Therefore, the reaction of sCIs with water vapor that includes large water clusters rather than single water molecules should be studied.

Electrochemical, spectroscopic and theoretical studies of a simple bifunctional cobalt corrole catalyst for oxygen evolution and hydrogen production

Six cobalt and manganese corrole complexes were synthesized and examined as single-site catalysts for water splitting. The simple cobalt corrole [Co(tpfc)(py)2] (1, tpfc = 5,10,15-tris(pentafluorophenyl)corrole, py = pyridine) catalyzed both water oxidation and proton reduction efficiently. By coating complex 1 onto indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes, the turnover frequency for electrocatalytic water oxidation was 0.20 s(−1) at 1.4 V (vs. Ag/AgCl, pH = 7), and it was 1010 s(−1) for proton reduction at −1.0 V (vs. Ag/AgCl, pH = 0.5). The stability of 1 for catalytic oxygen evolution and hydrogen production was evaluated by electrochemical, UV-vis and mass measurements, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), which confirmed that 1 was the real molecular catalyst. Titration and UV-vis experiments showed that the pyridine group on Co dissociated at the beginning of catalysis, which was critical to subsequent activation of water. A proton-coupled electron transfer process was involved based on the pH dependence of the water oxidation reaction catalyzed by 1. As for manganese corroles 2–6, although their oxidizing powers were comparable to that of 1, they were not as stable as 1 and underwent decomposition at the electrode. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations indicated that water oxidation by 1 was feasible through a proposed catalytic cycle. The formation of an O–O bond was suggested to be the rate-determining step, and the calculated activation barrier of 18.1 kcal mol(−1) was in good agreement with that obtained from experiments.

In Silico Studies in Probing the Role of Kinetic and Structural Effects of Different Drugs for the Reactivation of Tabun-Inhibited AChE

We have examined the reactivation mechanism of the tabun-conjugated AChE with various drugs using density functional theory (DFT) and post-Hartree-Fock methods. The electronic environments and structural features of neutral oximes (deazapralidoxime and 3-hydroxy-2-pyridinealdoxime) and charged monopyridinium oxime (2-PAM) and bispyridinium oxime (Ortho-7) are different, hence their efficacy varies towards the reactivation process of tabun-conjugated AChE. The calculated potential energy surfaces suggest that a monopyridinium reactivator is less favorable for the reactivation of tabun-inhibited AChE compared to a bis-quaternary reactivator, which substantiates the experimental study. The rate determining barrier with neutral oximes was found to be ∼2.5 kcal/mol, which was ∼5.0 kcal/mol lower than charged oxime drugs such as Ortho-7. The structural analysis of the calculated geometries suggest that the charged oximes form strong O…H and N…H hydrogen bonding and C-H…π non-bonding interaction with the tabun-inhibited enzyme to stabilize the reactant complex compared to separated reactants, which influences the activation barrier. The ability of neutral drugs to cross the blood-brain barrier was also found to be superior to charged antidotes, which corroborates the available experimental observations. The calculated activation barriers support the superiority of neutral oximes for the activation of tabun-inhibited AChE compared to charged oximes. However, they lack effective interactions with their peripheral sites. Docking studies revealed that the poor binding affinity of simple neutral oxime drugs such as 3-hydroxy-2-pyridinealdoxime inside the active-site gorge of AChE was significantly augmented with the addition of neutral peripheral units compared to conventional charged peripheral sites. The newly designed oxime drug 2 appears to be an attractive candidate as efficient antidote to kinetically and structurally reactivate the tabun-inhibited enzyme.

Cyclopalladation and Reactivity of Amino Esters through CH Bond Activation: Experimental, Kinetic, and Density Functional Theory Mechanistic Studies

The orthopalladation, through C-H bond activation, of a large number of amino esters and amino phosphonates derived from phenylglycine, and having different substituents at the aryl ring and the C-α atom, as well as on the N-amine atom, has been studied. The experimental observations indicated an improvement in the yields of the orthopalladated compounds when the N-amine and/or the C-α atom are substituted, when compared with the unsubstituted methyl phenylglycinate derivatives. In contrast, substitutions at the aryl ring do not promote significant changes in the orthometalation results. Furthermore, the use of hydrochloride salts of the amino esters has also been shown to have a remarkably favorable effect on the process. All these observations have been fully quantified at different temperatures and pressures by a detailed kinetic study in solution in different solvents and in the presence and absence of added Brønsted acids and chloride anions. The data collected indicate relevant changes in the process depending on these conditions, as expected from the general background known for cyclopalladation reactions. An electronic mechanism of the orthopalladation has been proposed based on DFT calculations at the B3LYP level, and a very good agreement between the trends kinetically measured and the theoretically calculated activation barriers has been obtained. The reactivity of the new orthopalladated amino phosphonate derivatives has been tested and it was found that their halogenation, alkoxylation and carbonylation resulted in formation of the corresponding functionalized ortho-haloaminophosphonates, ortho-alkoxyaminophosphonates and oxoisoindolinylphosphonates.

Mechanistic investigation of methanol to propene conversion catalyzed by H-beta zeolite: a two-layer ONIOM study

Two-layer ONIOM calculations have been carried out to study methanol to propene (MTP) conversion reactions catalyzed by H-beta zeolite. On the basis of the so-called side-chain hydrocarbon pool (HCP) mechanism, this work proposes the complete catalytic cycle pathway for the MTP reaction. The cycle starts from the methylation of pentamethylbenzene (PMB), which leads to the formation of hexamethylbenzenium ion (hexaMB(+)). Subsequent steps involving deprotonation, methylation, an internal H-shift, and a unimolecular CH₃-shift are required to produce propene and ethene. The calculated activation barriers and reaction energy data indicate that propene is the more favored product, rather than ethene, from both kinetic and thermodynamic perspectives, which is consistent with experimental observations. In addition, the calculations suggest that the activation barriers of the reaction steps decrease in the order: internal H-shift > methylation > unimolecular CH₃-shift ≥ deprotonation. In the methylation step, methylation of the exocyclic double bond is easier than methylation of the ring carbons on the aromatic benzene derivative.

Internal Activation Strain and Oxygen Mobility in a Thermally Stable Layered Fe3+ Oxide

The behavior of the layered Fe3+ perovskite superstructure with composition Ba1.7Ca2.4Y0.9Fe5O13 (BCYF) as an intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cell (IT-SOFC) cathode is investigated by an integrated modeling, secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), processing, and electrochemistry approach. Electronic structure calculations identify the defect chemistry and energetics of the multiple diffusion pathways possible in the superstructure. This reveals a wide distribution of activation energies with the favorable pathways corresponding to transport along the layers. In contrast, interlayer oxygen transport paths require higher activation barriers, whose limiting step corresponds to incorporation of oxide ion vacancies in the Ca2Fe2O5 sub-block of the structure with tetrahedrally coordinated Fe3+ ions, with a calculated activation barrier of 1.46 eV. The latter is similar to the diffusion barrier of 1.41 eV evaluated by direct SIMS measurement on polycrystalline BCYF samples. The experimentally determined oxygen tracer diffusion coefficients (D*) vary by a factor of 4 depending on selected location, confirming the anisotropic nature of the oxygen ion migration. The random orientations of the grains in the polycrystal also result in highly anisotropic oxygen surface exchange properties. and the surface exchange coefficient, k*, shows a 4-fold difference from 1.2 × 10–8 to 2.9 × 10–9 cm s–1 at 587 °C, depending on the grain-sized region selected. Enhanced ceramic processing lowers the area specific resistance (ASR) to 0.10 Ω cm2 at 750 °C, with a wide electrochemically active zone of 30–60 μm. The low calculated activation energies for in-plane oxygen transport are explained by the presence of structural strains between the component units of the layer superstructure that increase the equilibrium energy of the mobile ions, which we define as internal activation strain. The observation of good surface activity and bulk diffusion performance, limited by microstructure in the current ceramic samples, indicates that BCYF is a potential candidate for IT-SOFC cathode applications, open to property optimization by textural control.

Mechanistic Aspects Regarding the Elimination of H2O2 from C(4a)-Hydroperoxyflavin. The Role of a Proton Shuttle Required for H2O2 Elimination

DFT calculations presented for C(4a)-hydroperoxyflavin (C(4a)-FLHOOH) at the B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level suggest a new mechanism for the elimination of H2O2. The calculated activation barrier for a concerted four-centered elimination (ΔE(‡) = 32.86 kcal/mol) strongly suggests that in the absence of interactions with the local environment a spontaneous elimination is not feasible. A proton shuttle from the N5 hydrogen to the proximal oxygen of the OOH moiety involving three water molecules has an activation barrier that is reduced to 17.11 kcal/mol. Calculations that utilize CH3OH to model the role of a local Thr or Ser residue shows that an alcohol functionality hydrogen bonded to the N5 H-atom can catalyze the elimination of H2O2 with a free energy of activation of 21.5 kcal/mol. Interaction of amines and amide residues (CH3NH2 and CH3(C═O)NH2) with the N5 locus of C(4a)-hydroperoxyflavin markedly reduce the activation barrier for H2O2 elimination relative to the concerted pathway. Proton transfer from a COOH group (ΔG(‡) = 8.36 kcal/mol) or the NH2 group of a positively charged Arg model (ΔG(‡) = 9.99 kcal/mol) to the proximal oxygen of the OOH moiety of C(4a)-FLHOOH in the TS for H2O2 elimination strongly enhances elimination of H2O2.

Adsorption and decomposition of NH3 on Ir(111): A density functional theory study

The adsorption and decomposition of NH3 on Ir(111) have been studied using the density functional theory calculations. The recombinative nitrogen desorption has also been investigated. The configurations and stability of NHx(x=0–3) species have been performed using frequency analysis. The corresponding reaction energies, the activation energies and the structure of the transition states have been determined and analyzed in detail. Including the zero point energy correction, the calculated activation barrier energy for NHx(x=1–3) dehydrogenation is between 0.94eV and 1.05eV, and that for the recombination desorption of N2 is 1.55eV, which indicates that the N2 recombinative desorption is the rate-limiting step for the NH3 decomposition on Ir(111). The NH3 desorption energy (0.82eV) is lower than the NH3 dehydrogenation barrier, which indicates that the ammonia rather desorbs than dissociates from a thermodynamic point of view, consistent with the experimental results. But the competition between desorption and dissociation can be controlled in practice via the applied pressure and temperature.

New Class of Molecular Conductance Switches Based on the [1,3]-Silyl Migration from Silanes to Silenes.

On the basis of first-principles density functional theory calculations, we propose a new molecular photoswitch which exploits a photochemical [1,3]-silyl(germyl) shift leading from a silane to a silene (a Si=C double bonded compound). The silanes investigated herein act as the OFF state, with tetrahedral saturated silicon atoms disrupting the conjugation through the molecules. The silenes, on the other hand, have conjugated paths spanning over the complete molecules and thus act as the ON state. We calculate ON/OFF conductance ratios in the range of 10–50 at a voltage of +1 V. In the low bias regime, the ON/OFF ratio increases to a range of 200–1150. The reverse reaction could be triggered thermally or photolytically, with the silene being slightly higher in relative energy than the silane. The calculated activation barriers for the thermal back-rearrangement of the migrating group can be tuned and are in the range 108–171 kJ/mol for the switches examined herein. The first-principles calculations together with a simple one-level model show that the high ON/OFF ratio in the molecule assembled in a solid state device is due to changes in the energy position of the frontier molecular orbitals compared to the Fermi energy of the electrodes, in combination with an increased effective coupling between the molecule and the electrodes for the ON state.

Computational Study of the Initial Stage of Diborane Pyrolysis

The rate constants for the association of two boranes to form diborane are investigated using several methods. The most sophisticated method is the variable reaction coordinate-variational transition state theory (VRC-VTST) which has been developed to handle reactions with no enthalpic barriers. The calculated rate constant of 8.2 × 10(-11) cm(3)·molecule(-1)·s(-1) at 545 K is in good agreement with experiment. The rate constant was also computed using conventional VTST with the G4 composite method. Two variations of the multistep mechanisms for diborane pyrolysis are presented. One is initiated by the step B2H6 ⇄ 2 BH3 while the other begins with 2 B2H6 ⇄ B3H9 + BH3 as the initial elementary step. Both variations are 3/2 order in diborane and have the same activation energy (G4, 28.65 kcal/mol at 420 K). In contrast, the traditional mechanism involving a B3H9 intermediate with C3v symmetry has a higher activation energy (33.37 kcal/mol). The two variations involve a C2-symmetry penta-coordinate B3H9 structure that, while an electronic minimum, is not a stationary point on the free energy path between B2H6 + BH3 → B3H7 + H2. While the calculated activation barrier is higher than the recently determined experimental barrier, the variation in reported values is large (22.0-29.0 kcal/mol). We discuss possible sources of disagreement between experiment and theory.

Theoretical study on the dissociative adsorption of CH4 on Pd-doped Ni surfaces

Density functional theory (DFT) was employed to predict the most stable structure of Pd-doped Ni(111), Ni(100), and Ni(211) surfaces, and the activity for CH4 dissociation on pure and Pd-doped Ni surfaces. We predict that the thermodynamically most stable structures are the surface-doped Pd/Ni surfaces, where a surface Ni atom is replaced by a Pd atom; subsurface-doped Pd/Ni surfaces are thermodynamically unstable. Of the surface-adsorbed Pd/Ni surfaces, only the Pd/Ni(211) surface is thermodynamically stable. From the calculated adsorption energies of CH4 dissociation intermediates (CH4, CH3, CH, C and H) on surface-doped Pd/Ni surfaces, we find Pd-doping to reduce the adsorption energy for all species except for CH4. In addition, from the calculated activation barriers for CH4 and CH dissociations, we predict CH4 and CH to dissociate predominately on Ni(211) and Pd/Ni(211) step surfaces, followed by the broad Ni(100) and Pd/Ni(100) surfaces. Pd-doping raises the activation barriers for CH4 and CH dissociations. For the most active Ni(211) surface, Pd-doping causes the CH dissociation step to have a higher activation barrier than the CH4 dissociation step, which changes the rate limiting step, and helps reduce carbon deposition.

Glycolaldehyde Monomer and Oligomer Equilibria in Aqueous Solution: Comparing Computational Chemistry and NMR Data

A computational protocol utilizing density functional theory calculations, including Poisson-Boltzmann implicit solvent and free energy corrections, is applied to study the thermodynamic and kinetic energy landscape of glycolaldehyde in solution. Comparison is made to NMR measurements of dissolved glycolaldehyde, where the initial dimeric ring structure interconverts among several species before reaching equilibrium where the hydrated monomer is dominant. There is good agreement between computation and experiment for the concentrations of all species in solution at equilibrium, that is, the calculated relative free energies represent the system well. There is also relatively good agreement between the calculated activation barriers and the estimated rate constants for the hydration reaction. The computational approach also predicted that two of the trimers would have a small but appreciable equilibrium concentration (>0.005 M), and this was confirmed by NMR measurements. Our results suggest that while our computational protocol is reasonable and may be applied to quickly map the energy landscape of more complex reactions, knowledge of the caveats and potential errors in this approach need to be taken into account.

Computational Study of the Reactivity of Bisphenol A-3,4-quinone with Deoxyadenosine and Glutathione

Bisphenol A is a monomer used in the production of polycarbonate plastics, epoxy resins, and flame retardants. It is an endocrine disruptor with a variety of other effects, including genotoxicity. Oxidative metabolism of bisphenol A yields electophilic bisphenol A-3,4-quinone (BPAQ), which may cause genotoxicity. To determine the genotoxic potential of bisphenol A, the mechanism of the reaction between the BPAQ and deoxyadenosine (dA) was studied in detail. The most probable reaction pathway was determined using quantum chemical methods. Our results demonstrate that the rate limiting step is Michael addition between BPAQ and dA, the main product being the unstable N7-modified adduct that rapidly undergoes depurination. In addition, our calculations provide strong evidence for protonation of the adducts prior to depurination, which indicates pH dependence of the reaction. The calculated activation barrier for Michael addition is 28.7 kcal/mol, indicating that the reaction with dA is very slow. Comparison with the activation energy of 23.1 kcal/mol for the corresponding deoxyguanosine reaction indicates that most of the DNA damage by BPAQ will occur at the guanine site. The detoxification reactions with glutathione compete with reactions between BPAQ and DNA. The calculated free energy of activation for the reaction with glutathione is significantly lower than that for the corresponding reaction with dA. This indicates that BPAQ will preferably react with glutathione and will only react with DNA when the level of glutathione in the cell is low.

Selective Hydrogenation of α,β‐Unsaturated Aldehydes and Ketones using Novel Manganese Oxide and Platinum Supported on Manganese Oxide Octahedral Molecular Sieves as Catalysts

AbstractThe selective hydrogenation of α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes and ketones has been studied using ketoisophorone and cinnamaldehyde as model substrates using manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieve (OMS‐2) based catalysts. For the first time, OMS‐2 has been shown to be an efficient and selective hydrogenation catalyst. High selectivities for either the CC or CO double bond at ≈100 % conversion were achieved by using OMS‐2 and platinum supported on OMS‐2 catalysts. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations showed that the dissociation of H2 on OMS‐2 was water assisted and occurred on the surface Mn of OMS‐2(0 0 1) that had been modified by an adsorbed H2O molecule. The theoretically calculated activation barrier was in good agreement with the experimentally determined value for the hydrogenation reactions, indicating that H2 dissociation on OMS‐2 is likely to be the rate‐determining step. A significant increase in the rate of reaction was observed in the presence of Pt as a result of the enhancement of H2 dissociative adsorption and subsequent reaction on the Pt or spillover of the hydrogen to the OMS‐2 support. The relative adsorption strengths of ketoisophorone and cinnamaldehyde on the OMS‐2 support compared with the Pt were found to determine the product selectivity.

17O-Dynamic NMR and DFT Investigation of Bis(acyloxy)iodoarenes

Bis(acetoxy)iodobenzene and related acyloxy derivatives of hypervalent I(III) were studied by variable temperature solution-state 17O-NMR and DFT calculations. The 17O-NMR spectra reveal a dynamic process that interchanges the oxygen atoms of the acyloxy groups. For the first time, coalescence events could be detected for such compounds, allowing the determination of activation free energy data which are found to range between 44 and 47 kJ/mol. The analysis of the 17O linewidth measured for bis(acetoxy)iodobenzene indicates that the activation entropy is negligible. DFT calculations show that the oxygen atom exchange arises as a consequence of the [1,3]-sigmatropic shift of iodine. The calculated activation barriers are in excellent agreement with the experimental results. Both the 17O-NMR and DFT studies show that the solvent and chemical alterations, such as modification of the acyl groups or para- substitution of the benzene ring, hardly affect the energetics of the dynamic process. The low I-O Wiberg bond index (0.41–0.42) indicates a possible explanation of the invariance of both the energy barrier and the 17O chemical shift with para-substitution.

Oxygen Vacancy-Assisted Coupling and Enolization of Acetaldehyde on CeO2(111)

The temperature-dependent adsorption and reaction of acetaldehyde (CH(3)CHO) on a fully oxidized and a highly reduced thin-film CeO(2)(111) surface have been investigated using a combination of reflection-absorption infrared spectroscopy (RAIRS) and periodic density functional theory (DFT+U) calculations. On the fully oxidized surface, acetaldehyde adsorbs weakly through its carbonyl O interacting with a lattice Ce(4+) cation in the η(1)-O configuration. This state desorbs at 210 K without reaction. On the highly reduced surface, new vibrational signatures appear below 220 K. They are identified by RAIRS and DFT as a dimer state formed from the coupling of the carbonyl O and the acyl C of two acetaldehyde molecules. This dimer state remains up to 400 K before decomposing to produce another distinct set of vibrational signatures, which are identified as the enolate form of acetaldehyde (CH(2)CHO¯). Furthermore, the calculated activation barriers for the coupling of acetaldehyde, the decomposition of the dimer state, and the recombinative desorption of enolate and H as acetaldehyde are in good agreement with previously reported TPD results for acetaldehyde adsorbed on reduced CeO(2)(111) [Chen et al. J. Phys. Chem. C 2011, 115, 3385]. The present findings demonstrate that surface oxygen vacancies alter the reactivity of the CeO(2)(111) surface and play a crucial role in stabilizing and activating acetaldehyde for coupling reactions.

Solvolysis of a Series of Cisplatin‐Like Complexes – Comparison between DNA‐Biosensor and Conductivity Data

The kinetics of solvolysis in pure dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and water/DMSO or water/dimethylformamide (DMF) mixtures of a series of variously N-methylated ethylenediamine (en*) derivatives, cis-[PtCl2(en*)], were studied by using an electrochemical biosensor consisting of DNA immobilized on the surface of screen-printed electrodes, by conductivity measurements, and by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and ESI-MS techniques. The pattern of the kinetics was found to have significant differences between solvents, especially between the strongly coordinating DMSO and the weakly coordinating DMF co-solvent, employed to increase the solubility of the complexes under study. In particular, cisplatin and cis-[PtCl2(en*)] show rapid solvolysis in the former but significantly slower in the latter, which indicates that the affinity of the Pt core for the S-donor atoms of DMSO overcomes the effect of its steric hindrance. In order to probe these reactions in more detail, density functional theory (DFT) calculations of activation barriers to solvolysis by both pure DMSO and H2O were performed.