Structure and size of complete hydration shells of metal ions and inorganic anions in aqueous solution.

The structures of nine hydrated metal ions in aqueous solution have been redetermined by large angle X-ray scattering to obtain experimental data of better quality than those reported 40-50 years ago. Accurate M-O and M-(O-H)⋯O distances and M-O(H)⋯O bond angles are reported for the hydrated magnesium(II), aluminium(III), manganese(II), iron(II), iron(III), cobalt(II), nickel(II), copper(II) and zinc(II) ions; the subscripts I and II denote oxygen atoms in the first and second hydration sphere, respectively. Reported structures of hydrated metal ions in aqueous solution are summarized and evaluated with emphasis on a possible relationship between M-O-O bond angles and bonding character.

On the prospects of longtermism.

This article objects to two arguments that William MacAskill gives in What We Owe the Future in support of optimism about the prospects of longtermism, that is, the prospects of positively influencing the longterm future. First, it grants that he is right that, whereas humans sometimes benefit others as an end, they rarely harm them as an end, but argues that this bias towards positive motivation is counteracted by the fact that it is practically easier to harm than to benefit. For this greater easiness makes it likely both that accidental effects will be harmful rather than beneficial and that the means or side-effects of the actions people perform with the aim of benefiting themselves and those close to them will tend to be harmful to others.

Coordination chemistry effects of the space-demanding solvent molecule ,'-dimethylpropyleneurea.

Crystallographic investigations of eight homoleptic ,'-dimethylpropyleneurea (dmpu) coordinated metal ions in the solid state, [Mg(dmpu)]I (1), [Ca(dmpu)]I (2), [Ca(dmpu)](ClO) (3), [Ca(dmpu)](CFSO) (4), [Sr(dmpu)](CFSO) (5), [Ba(dmpu)](CFSO) (6), [Sc(dmpu)]I (7), and [Pr(dmpu)]I(I) (8), and the complex [CoBr(dmpu)] (9) as well as the structures of the dmpu coordinated calcium, strontium, barium, scandium(III) and cobalt(II) ions and the cobalt(II) bromide complex in dmpu solution as determined by EXAFS are reported. The methyl groups in the dmpu molecule are close to the oxygen donor atom, causing steric restrictions, and making dmpu space-demanding at coordination to metal ions. The large volume required by the dmpu ligand at coordination contributes to crowdedness around the metal ion with often lower coordination numbers than for oxygen donor ligands without such steric restrictions.

Disordered Crystal Structure and Anomalously High Solubility of Radium Carbonate.

Radium-226 carbonate was synthesized from radium-barium sulfate (RaBaSO) at room temperature and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) techniques. XRPD revealed that fractional crystallization occurred and that two phases were formed─the major Ra-rich phase, Ra(Ba)CO, and a minor Ba-rich phase, Ba(Ra)CO, crystallizing in the orthorhombic space group (no. 62) that is isostructural with witherite (BaCO) but with slightly larger unit cell dimensions.

P K-Edge XANES Calculations of Mineral Standards: Exploring the Potential of Theoretical Methods in the Analysis of Phosphorus Speciation.

Phosphorus K-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy is a technique routinely employed in the qualitative and quantitative analysis of phosphorus speciation in many scientific fields. The data analysis is, however, often performed in a qualitative manner, relying on linear combination fitting protocols or simple comparisons between the experimental data and the spectra of standards, and little quantitative structural and electronic information is thus retrieved. Herein, we report a thorough theoretical investigation of P K-edge XANES spectra of NaHPO·HO, AlPO, α-Ti(HPO)·HO, and FePO·2HO showing excellent agreement with the experimental data.

Sorption of Bisphenol A as Model for Sorption Ability of Organoclays.

The arrangement of bisphenol A molecules into organoclays and their interactions with the intercalated surfactant were studied. The organoclays were prepared via solid-state intercalation of four cationic surfactants, such as dodecyltrimethyl-, tetradecyltrimethyl-, hexadecyltrimethyl-, and didodecyldimethyl-ammonium, as bromide salts, at different loading levels into the interlayers of two natural clays. The natural clays, the prepared organoclays, and the spent organoclays were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy.

The Impossibility of a Moral Right to Privacy.

This paper clarifies and defends against criticism our argument in that there is no moral right to privacy. A right to privacy is conceived as a right that others do not acquire information about us that we reserve for ourselves and selected others. Information acquisition itself is distinguished from the means used to acquire it and the uses to which the information is put.

Synthesis and structural characterisation of solid titanium(IV) phosphate materials by means of X-ray absorption and NMR spectroscopy.

Solid titanium phosphate, TiP, materials hold great promise for wastewater treatment for removal of metal ions and complexes. A series of TiP materials, synthesised at mild conditions and short reaction times, have been structurally characterised using solid-state X-ray absorption spectroscopy, phosphorus and titanium K edge XANES and EXAFS, and P and Ti NMR spectroscopy. The titanium K edge EXAFS data of α-Ti(HPO)·HO (α-TiP) revealed octahedral coordination of oxygens around titanium.

Bismuth(III) Forms Exceptionally Strong Complexes with Natural Organic Matter.

The use of bismuth in the society has steadily increased during the last decades, both as a substitute for lead in hunting ammunition and various metallurgical applications, as well as in a range of consumer products. At the same time, the environmental behavior of bismuth is largely unknown. Here, the binding of bismuth(III) to organic soil material was investigated using extended X-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS) and batch experiments.

What is special about conscientious objection?

The deliverances of our conscience are heartfelt, but not necessarily reason-based, moral convictions that concern our own behaviour. The fact that conscientious objections to a regulation, like a prohibition or obligation, express a heartfelt conviction that it is morally wrong to comply or morally permissible not to comply with the regulation provides a moral reason to respect the conviction because failing to do so is likely to cause objectors considerable suffering. But for conscientious objections to succeed in justifying exempting objectors from complying with the regulation, the suffering caused by forcing compliance must outweigh the suffering produced by exempting them from compliance.

Investigation of the Deactivation and Reactivation Mechanism of a Heterogeneous Palladium(II) Catalyst in the Cycloisomerization of Acetylenic Acids by XAS .

A well-studied heterogeneous palladium(II) catalyst used for the cycloisomerization of acetylenic acids is known to be susceptible to deactivation through reduction. To gain a deeper understanding of this deactivation process and to enable the design of a reactivation strategy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) was used. With this technique, changes in the palladium oxidation state and coordination environment could be studied in close detail, which provided experimental evidence that the deactivation was primarily caused by triethylamine-promoted reduction of palladium(II) to metallic palladium nanoparticles.

Elusive Coordination of the Ag Ion in Aqueous Solution: Evidence for a Linear Structure.

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) has been employed to study the coordination of the Ag ion in aqueous solution. The conjunction of extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) and X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) data analysis provided results suggesting the preference for a first shell linear coordination with a mean Ag-O bond distance of 2.34(2) Å, different from the first generally accepted tetrahedral model with a longer mean Ag-O bond distance.

EXAFS Study on the Coordination Chemistry of the Solvated Copper(II) Ion in a Series of Oxygen Donor Solvents.

The structures of the solvated copper(II) ion in water and nine organic oxygen donor solvents with similar electron-pair donor ability, but with different space-demanding properties at coordination, have been studied by EXAFS. -Dimethylpropyleneurea and -tetramethylurea are sufficiently space demanding at coordination to make the axial positions not accessible, resulting in square-planar copper(II) solvate complexes with an intense green color. The mean Cu-O bond distances in these two solvate complexes are 1.

Hydration of Oxometallate Ions in Aqueous Solution.

The strength of hydrogen bonding to and structure of hydrated oxometallate ions in aqueous solution have been studied by double difference infrared (DDIR) spectroscopy and large-angle X-ray scattering (LAXS), respectively. Anions are hydrated by accepting hydrogen bonds from the hydrating water molecules. The oxygen atom of the permanganate and perrhenate ions form weaker and longer hydrogen bonds to water than the hydrogen bonds in bulk water (i.

Utilitarianism and the pandemic.

There are no egalitarians in a pandemic. The scale of the challenge for health systems and public policy means that there is an ineluctable need to prioritize the needs of the many. It is impossible to treat all citizens equally, and a failure to carefully consider the consequences of actions could lead to massive preventable loss of life.

In Situ Structural Determination of a Homogeneous Ruthenium Racemization Catalyst and Its Activated Intermediates Using X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy.

The activation process of a known Ru-catalyst, dicarbonyl(pentaphenylcyclopentadienyl)ruthenium chloride, has been studied in detail using time resolved in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The data provide bond lengths of the species involved in the process as well as information about bond formation and bond breaking. On addition of potassium tert-butoxide, the catalyst is activated and an alkoxide complex is formed.

Highly Porous Amorphous Calcium Phosphate for Drug Delivery and Bio-Medical Applications.

Amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) has shown significant effects on the biomineralization and promising applications in bio-medicine. However, the limited stability and porosity of ACP material restrict its practical applications. A storage stable highly porous ACP with Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of over 400 m/g was synthesized by introducing phosphoric acid to a methanol suspension containing amorphous calcium carbonate nanoparticles.

The duty to be morally enhanced.

We have a duty to try to develop and apply safe and cost-effective means to increase the probability that we shall do what we morally ought to do. It is here argued that this includes biomedical means of moral enhancement, that is, pharmaceutical, neurological or genetic means of strengthening the central moral drives of altruism and a sense of justice. Such a strengthening of moral motivation is likely to be necessary today because common-sense morality having its evolutionary origin in small-scale societies with primitive technology will become much more demanding if it is revised to serve the needs of contemporary globalized societies with an advanced technology capable of affecting conditions of life world-wide for centuries to come.

A low transition temperature mixture for the dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction of pesticides from surface waters.

This paper illustrates the development of a procedure based on the use of a low transition temperature mixture (LTTM) for the dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) of fungicides, insecticides and acaricides from surface waters. The LTTM preparation involves the heat-mixing of choline chloride and acetylsalicylic acid in a molar ratio 1:2 (ChCl(ASA)). The resulting mixture appears as a clear viscous liquid at room-temperature, denser than water (1.

The Meaning of Life, Equality and Eternity.

We present an analysis of a notion of the meaning of life, according to which our lives have meaning if we spend them intentionally producing what has value for ourselves or others. In this sense our lives can have meaning even if a science-inspired view of the world is correct, and they are only transient phenomena in a vast universe. Our lives are more or less meaningful in this sense due to the difference in value for ourselves and others we intentionally create while leading them.

Chemical equilibria of aqueous ammonium-carboxylate systems in aqueous bulk, close to and at the water-air interface.

Previous studies have shown that the water-air interface and a number of water molecule layers just below it, the surface region, have significantly different physico-chemical properties, such as lower relative permittivity and density, than bulk water. The properties in the surface region of water favor weakly hydrated species as neutral molecules, while ions requiring strong hydration and shielding of their charge are disfavored. In this study the equilibria NH(aq) + RCOO(aq) ⇌ NH(aq) + RCOOH(aq) are investigated for R = CH, n = 0-8, as open systems, where ammonia and small carboxylic acids in the gas phase above the water surface are removed from the system by a gentle controlled flow of nitrogen to mimic the transport of volatile compounds from water droplets into air.

The evolution of moral progress and biomedical moral enhancement.

In The Evolution of Moral Progress Allen Buchanan and Russell Powell advance an evolutionary explanation of moral progress by morality becoming more 'inclusivist'. We are prepared to accept this explanation as far as it goes, but argue that it fails to explain how morality can become inclusivist in the fuller sense they intend. In fact, it even rules out inclusivism in their intended sense of moral progress, since they believe that human altruism and prosocial attitudes are essentially parochial.

On solvated tin(iv) ions and the coordination chemistry of high-valent d metal ions.

A very slow oxidation of dimethylsulfoxide (dmso) solvated tin(ii) ions in solution results in the formation of a crystalline, structurally determined compound, [CH3Sn(OS(CH3)2)5](ClO4)3, whereas a similar reaction in N,N-dimethylthioformamide (dmtf) forms a crystalline solid with a proposed binuclear [Sn2(SH)2(SCHN(CH3)2)8]6+ entity but whose exact formula remains undetermined. Both solids precipitate with time in their respective mother liquids and constitute the first two tin(iv) and even tetravalent d10 metal ion solvate complexes ever reported. An EXAFS study showed that the structure of the [CH3Sn(OS(CH3)2)5]3+ complex is identical in solid state and dmso solution.

Chemoenzymatic Dynamic Kinetic Resolution of Primary Benzylic Amines using Pd -CalB CLEA as a Biohybrid Catalyst.

Herein, we report on the use a biohybrid catalyst consisting of palladium nanoparticles immobilized on cross-linked enzyme aggregates of lipase B of Candida antarctica (CalB CLEA) for the dynamic kinetic resolution (DKR) of benzylic amines. A set of amines were demonstrated to undergo an efficient DKR and the recyclability of the catalysts was studied. Extensive efforts to further elucidate the structure of the catalyst are presented.