Gas-Phase and Microsolvated Glycine Interacting with Boron Nitride Nanotubes : a B3LYP-D2* Periodic Study

The adsorption of glycine (Gly) both in gas-phase conditions and in a microsolvated state on a series of zig-zag (n,0) single-walled boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs, n = 4, 6, 9 and 15) has been studied by means of B3LYP-D2* periodic calculations. Gas-phase Gly is found to be chemisorbed on the (4,0), (6,0) and (9,0) BNNTs by means of a dative interaction between the NH2 group of Gly and a B atom of the BNNTs, whose computed adsorption energies are gradually decreased by increasing the tube radius. On the (15,0) BNNT, Gly is found to be physisorbed with an adsorption driving force mainly dictated by π-stacking dispersion interactions. Gly adsorption in a microsolvated environment has been studied in the presence of seven water molecules by progressively microsolvating the dry Gly/BNNT interface. The most stable structures on the (6,0), (9,0) and (15,0) BNNTs present the Gly/BNNT interface fully bridged by the water solvent molecules; i.e., no direct contact between Gly and the BNNTs takes place, whereas on the (4,0) BNNT the most stable structure presents a unique direct interaction between the COO− Gly group and a B atom of the nanotube. Further energetic analyses indicate that the (6,0), (9,0) and (15,0) BNNTs exhibit a low water affinity, which favors the Gly/water interactions upon BNNT coadsorption. In contrast, the (4,0) BNNT has been found to show a large water affinity, bringing the replacement of adsorbed water by a microsolvated glycine molecule as an unfavorable process

Computational assessment of the impact of Cu(II) and Al(III) on β-amyloid fibrils : Binding sites, structural stability, and possible physiological implications

One of Alzheimer's disease major hallmarks is the aggregation of β-amyloid peptide, a process in which metal ions play an important role. In the present work, an integrative computational study has been performed to identify the metal-binding regions and determine the conformational impact of Cu(II) and Al(III) ion binding to the β-amyloid (Aβ) fibrillary structure. Through classical and Gaussian accelerated molecular dynamics, it has been observed that the metal-free fiber shows a hinge fan-like motion of the S-shaped structure, maintaining the general conformation. Upon metal coordination, distinctive patterns are observed depending on the metal. Cu(II) binds to the flexible N-terminal region and induces structural changes that could ultimately disrupt the fibrillary structure. In contrast, Al(III) binding takes place with the residues Glu22 and Asp23, and its binding reinforces the core stability of the system. These results give clues on the molecular impact of the interaction of metal ions with the aggregates and sustain their non-innocent roles in the evolution of the illness

Formation of interstellar complex organic molecules on water-rich ices triggered by atomic carbon freezing

The reactivity of interstellar carbon atoms (C) on the water-dominated ices is one of the possible ways to form interstellar complex organic molecules (iCOMs). In this work, we report a quantum chemical study of the coupling reaction of C ($^3$P) with an icy water molecule, alongside possible subsequent reactions with the most abundant closed shell frozen species (NH$_3$, CO, CO$_2$ and H$_2$), atoms (H, N and O), and molecular radicals (OH, NH$_2$ and CH$_3$). We found that C spontaneously reacts with the water molecule, resulting in the formation of $^3$C-OH$_2$, a highly reactive species due to its triplet electronic state. While reactions with the closed-shell species do not show any reactivity, reactions with N and O form CN and CO, respectively, the latter ending up into methanol upon subsequent hydrogenation. The reactions with OH, CH$_3$ and NH$_2$ form methanediol, ethanol and methanimine, respectively, upon subsequent hydrogenation. We also propose an explanation for methane formation, observed in experiments through H additions to C in the presence of ices. The astrochemical implications of this work are: i) atomic C on water ice is locked into $^3$C-OH$_2$, making difficult the reactivity of bare C atoms on the icy surfaces, contrary to what is assumed in astrochemical current models; and ii) the extraordinary reactivity of $^3$C-OH$_2$ provides new routes towards the formation of iCOMs in a non-energetic way, in particular ethanol, mother of other iCOMs once in the gas-phase

Metal coordination determines the catalytic activity of IrO2 nanoparticles for the oxygen evolution reaction

Acord transformatiu CRUE-CSICH2 production through water electrolysis is a promising strategy for storing sunlight energy. For the oxygen evolution reaction, iridium oxide containing materials are state-of-the-art due to their stability in acidic conditions. Moreover, precious metal content can be reduced by using small nanoparticles that show high catalytic activities. We performed DFT calculations on a 1.2 nm large IrO2 Wulff-like stoichiometric nanoparticle model (IrO2) with the aim of determining the factors controlling the catalytic activity of IrO2 nanoparticles. Results show that at reaction conditions tetra- and tricoordinated iridium centers are not fully oxidized, the major species being IrO(OH) and IrO(OH)2, respectively. Although the computed overpotential show that all centers present relatively similar reactivities, low coordinated iridium centers tend to be more active than the pentacoordinates sites of the well-defined facets. These low coordination sites are likely more abundant on amorphous nanoparticles, which could be one of the factors explaining the higher catalytic activity observed for non-crystalline materials

Computational assessment of the impact of Cu(II) and Al(III) on β-amyloid42 fibrils: Binding sites, structural stability, and possible physiological implications

One of Alzheimer’s disease major hallmarks is the aggregation of β-amyloid peptide, a process in which metal ions play an important role. In the present work, an integrative computational study has been performed to identify the metal-binding regions and determine the conformational impact of Cu(II) and Al(III) ion binding to the β-amyloid (Aβ42) fibrillary structure. Through classical and Gaussian accelerated molecular dynamics, it has been observed that the metal-free fiber shows a hinge fan-like motion of the S-shaped structure, maintaining the general conformation. Upon metal coordination, distinctive patterns are observed depending on the metal. Cu(II) binds to the flexible N-terminal region and induces structural changes that could ultimately disrupt the fibrillary structure. In contrast, Al(III) binding takes place with the residues Glu22 and Asp23, and its binding reinforces the core stability of the system. These results give clues on the molecular impact of the interaction of metal ions with the aggregates and sustain their non-innocent roles in the evolution of the illness

Electroinduced crosslinking of triphenylamine-based polybenzoxazines

Altres ajuts: acord transformatiu CRUE-CSICPolybenzoxazines attract much attention as good phenolic resins due to their interesting and useful properties. Recently, benzoxazine monomers have been employed as crosslinking agents to enhance the properties of different types of polymers by being used as additives to a secondary cure process. In this paper, we propose a new electroinduced approach to increase the crosslinking density of electroactive polybenzoxazines through the design of new monomers that contain triphenylamine groups as electrodimerization points. The use of electrochemical techniques means the crosslinking process can be monitored and also the electrochemical reaction process upon polybenzoxazine oxidation either in solution or ionogel matrixes can be disclosed. These studies lay the foundations for the design of smart polybenzoxazines that could undergo dual-cure mechanisms at low electrochemical potential values