Published papers

© 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim Boron-doped diamond (BDD) represents a powerful and innovative electrode material. In particular, in combination with fluorinated solvents such as 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP), the system exhibits the largest known electrochemical window of approximately 5 V in protic media. Furthermore, the anodic treatment allows the direct formation of oxyl radicals, which are known to exhibit specific reactivity. The electrochemical dehydrogenative phenol-phenol cross-coupling is a versatile and useful transformation to non-symmetric biphenols. This electro-organic conversion can be divided into two regimes: initial oxidation at the anode and the electrolyte-controlled follow-up reaction. This work intends to provide an answer about the influence of BDD electrodes on oxidation reactions in electrosynthesis. Depending on the electro-organic transformation, the support material of BDD, its boron content, and its fabrication method have a significant influence on the electrosynthetic efficiency.

We report the temperature dependent (100-300 K) conductivity of Berlin green and Prussian blue powders. The method of electronic conduction in vacuum dried Berlin green is identified as hopping of localized electrons and vacuum dried Prussian blue is reaffirmed as an insulator. The assignment of the conduction mechanism is based upon fits to the experimental data, and the different conductivities of the two samples can be understood in terms of both molecular and simple crystalline energy levels of the solids.

The magnetic properties of layered double hydroxides (LDH) containing transition metal ions can still develop, compared with layered metal hydroxide salts which exhibit structure-dependent magnetism. In this article, we report the preparation of a hybrid magnet composed of Co-Ni LDH and n-alkylsulfonate anions (Co-Ni-CnSO3 LDH). As Co-Ni LDH is anion-exchangeable, we can systematically control the interlayer spacing by intercalating n-alkylsulfonates with different carbon numbers. The magnetic properties were examined with temperature- and field-dependent magnetization measurements. As a result, we have revealed that the coercive field depends on the basal spacing. It is suggested that increasing the basal spacing varies the competition between the in-plane superexchange interactions and long-range out-of-plane dipolar interactions. Moreover, a jump in the coercive field at around 20 Å of the basal spacing is assumed to be the modification of the magnetic ordering in Co-Ni-CnSO3 LDH.

© 2019 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim An electrochemical pinacol coupling reaction of acetophenone using a boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode has been reported. This transformation is driven by the one-electron reduction of acetophenone on the BDD cathode, followed by an intermolecular radical coupling. Owing to the BDD's outstanding electrochemical properties, the pinacol-type compound has been obtained in good conversion yield. The roles of a supporting electrolyte and solvent were addressed; (1) lithium ions contribute to increase in the reactivity of the radical intermediate. (2) Addition of water promotes the electron transfer process at the BDD surface. The reaction is relatively tolerant to para-substituted acetophenone derivatives. Since electric current is directly employed as reducing reagents to generate a radical intermediate, the reaction is metal-free, sustainable, and inherently safe.

© 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. New Fe(III) compounds from qsal ligand, [Fe(qsal) 2 ](CH 3 OSO 3 ) (1) and [Fe(qsal) 2 ](CH 3 SO 3 )·CH 3 OH (3), along with known compound, [Fe(qsal) 2 ](CF 3 SO 3 ) (2), were obtained as large well-shaped crystals (Hqsal = N-(8-quinolyl)salicylaldimine). The compounds 1 and 2 were in the low-spin (LS) state at 300 K and exhibited a cooperative spin crossover (SCO) transition with a thermal hysteresis loop at higher temperatures, whereas 3 was in the high-spin (HS) state below 300 K. The optical conductivity spectra for 1 and 3 were calculated from the single-crystal reflection spectra, which were, to the best of our knowledge, the first optical conductivity spectra of SCO compounds. The absorption bands for the LS and HS [Fe(qsal) 2 ] cations were assigned by time-dependent density functional theory calculations. The crystal structures of 1 and 2 consisted of a common one-dimensional (1D) array of the [Fe(qsal) 2 ] cation, whereas that of 3 had an unusual 1D arrangement by π-stacking interactions which has never been reported. The crystal structures in the high-temperature phases for 1 and 2 indicate that large structu

The coercivity of magnetic nanoparticles is enhanced by the exchange coupling effect at the interface of ferrimagnetic and antiferromagnetic self-assembled monolayers.

A straightforward electro-conversion of cumene into acetophenone has been reported using boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes.This particular conversion is driven by the addition reaction of a cathodically generated hydroperoxide anion to an anodically generated cumyl cation, where the BDD’s wide potential window enables the direct anodic oxidation of cumene into the cumyl cation. Since electricity is directly employed as the oxidizing and reducing reagents, the present protocol is easy to use, suitable for scale-up, and inherently safe.

A heterostructure of diamagnetic magnesium-aluminium layered double hydroxides (Mg-Al LDHs) and photomagnetic cobalt-iron Prussian Blue analogue (Co-Fe PBA) was designed, synthesized and then designated as LDH-PB. The cyanide-bridged Co-Fe PBA was two-dimensionally intercalated into the Mg-Al LDH template by the stepwise anion exchange method. LDH-PB showed ferrimagnetic properties with in-plane antiferromagnetic exchange interactions, as well as small photo-induced magnetization by visible light illumination due to the low dimensional structures and the characteristic photo-induced electronic states of the mixed valence of FeIII(low spin, S = 1/2)-CN-CoII(high spin, S = 3/2)-NC-FeII (low spin, S = 0).

© 2018 American Chemical Society. A series of [FeII(L)2](BF4)2 compounds were structurally and physically characterized (L = 2,6-bis(2-methylthiazol-4-yl)pyridine). A crystal structure phase transformation from dihydrate compound 1 to anhydrous compound 3 through partially hydrated compounds 2 and 2′ upon dehydration was found. Compounds 1 and 3 exhibited a gradual spin crossover (SCO) conversion, whereas compounds 2 and 2′ demonstrated two-step and one-step abrupt SCO transitions, respectively. An X-ray single-crystal structural analysis revealed that one-dimensional and two-dimensional Fe cation networks linked by π stacking and sulfur-sulfur interactions were formed in 1 and 3, respectively. A thermodynamic analysis of the magnetic susceptibility for 1, 2′, and 3 suggests that the enthalpy differences may govern SCO transition behaviors in the polymorphic compounds 2′ and 3. A structural comparison between 1 and 3 indicates that the SCO behavior variations and crystal structure transformation in the present [FeII(L)2](BF4)2 compounds can be interpreted by the relationship between the lattice enthalpies mainly arising from Coulomb interactions between the Fe cations and

The mononuclear ferric compound Fe(H-5-Cl-thsa-Me)(5-Cl-thsa-Me) ·H2O (1) was synthesized and characterized using powder/single-crystal X-ray diffraction, Mössbauer spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and magnetic susceptibility measurements. This photo-responsive compound shows reversible, two-step spin-crossover behaviour. Moreover, dielectric anomalies were observed during the spin transitions, demonstrating the multifunctional properties of compound 1. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

A simple fabrication, scalable to centimeter scale, of a permeable membrane made of block copolymer containing molecular transport channels is demonstrated by coating photo-crosslinkable liquid-crystalline block copolymer, consisting of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and poly(methacrylate) (PMA) bearing stilbene (Stb) mesogens in the side chains (PEO(114)-b-PMA(Stb)(52)), onto a sacrificial cellulose acetate film substrate. After thermal annealing, perpendicularly aligned and hexagonally arranged PEO cylindrical domains with a surface density of 10(11) cm(-2) were formed and then fixed efficiently by photo-crosslinking the stilbene moieties in the PMA(Stb) domains by [2 + 2] dimerization. The fully penetrating straight PEO cylindrical domains across the 480-nm-thick membrane were well-defined and visualized as molecule-transport channels. After exfoliated by removal of the cellulose acetate layer, the membrane could be transferred onto another substrate by either scooping or a horizontal lifting method. Throughout the processes, the fully penetrating PEO channels across the membrane are preserved to open at both ends. A simple permeation experiment demonstrates that rhodamine dyes permeate efficiently through the PEO cylindrical channels of the annealed membrane but not across a non-annealed one.

© 2018 The Royal Society of Chemistry. A stereoselective and electrocatalytic coupling reaction of isoeugenol has been reported for the first time in a 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol (HFIP)/boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode system. This particular C-C bond formation and diastereoselectivity is driven by a solvate interaction between the radical species and another isoeugenol molecule. Due to an electrocatalytic cycle, only understoichiometric amounts of charge are necessary. Since electric current is directly employed as the oxidant, the reaction is metal and reagent-free. In addition, the electrolysis can be conducted in a very simple undivided beaker-type cell under constant current conditions. Therefore, the protocol is easy to use, suitable for scale-up, and inherently safe.

A novel star-shaped high-spin Fe(III) tetranuclear cluster was unexpectedly obtained by the reaction of an [Fe-III(phsal)(2)](-) anion with an Fe(III) coordination cation (H(2)phsal: N-(2-hydroxyphenyl)salicylaldimine). Despite a star-shaped Fe(III) tetranuclear structure similar to reported Fe(III) single molecule magnets, the present compound exhibited a bulk antiferromagnetic transition at 0.6 K due to a magnetic exchange coupling through intercluster pi-stacking interactions.

An aptamer sensor can be prepared by just dipping a diamond electrode in a DNA solution.

Copyright © 2020 American Chemical Society. The development of a simple detection method with high sensitivity is essential for the diagnosis and surveillance of infectious diseases. Previously, we constructed a sensitive biosensor for the detection of pathological human influenza viruses using a boron-doped diamond electrode terminated with a sialyloligosaccharide receptor-mimic peptide that could bind to hemagglutinins involved in viral infection. Circulation of influenza induced by the avian virus in humans has become a major public health concern, and methods for the detection of avian viruses are urgently needed. Here, peptide density and dendrimer generation terminated on the electrode altered the efficiency of viral binding to the electrode surface, thus significantly enhancing charge-transfer resistance measured by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The peptide-terminated electrodes exhibited an excellent detection limit of less than one plaque-forming unit of seasonal H1N1 and H3N2 viruses. Furthermore, the improved electrode was detectable for avian viruses isolated from H5N3, H7N1, and H9N2, showing the potential for the detection of all subtypes of influenza A virus, including new subtypes. The peptide-based electrochemical architecture provided a promising approach to biosensors for ultrasensitive detection of pathogenic microorganisms.