Impact of REACH legislation on the production and importation of CMR (carcinogen, mutagen and reproductive) and explosive chemicals in Italy from 2011 to 2015.

On 1 June 2007, the European Commission issued the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) to protect both the environment and human health. We analyzed the impact of REACH in the Italian market considering the presence of chemicals, their diversity, importation and production during the period 2011-2015, with particular attention to products with toxic or explosive properties. There was a reduction of the chemicals on the market, in terms of tons but also the absolute numbers of types of compounds.

Exchange equilibria of carboxylate-terminated ligands at PbS nanocrystal surfaces.

Ligand exchange reactions are commonly used to alter the surface chemistry of metal chalcogenide quantum dots; however, a lack of quantifiable data for these processes limits the rational functionalization of nanomaterials. Here, we quantify the X-type ligand exchange reaction between carboxylate-terminated ligands on PbS quantum dots via1H NMR spectroscopy. Using spectroscopic handles of both the native and exchange ligand, bound and free forms of each have been quantified as a function of exchange ligand concentration.

Results of a round-robin exercise on read-across.

A round-robin exercise was conducted within the CALEIDOS LIFE project. The participants were invited to assess the hazard posed by a substance, applying in silico methods and read-across approaches. The exercise was based on three endpoints: mutagenicity, bioconcentration factor and fish acute toxicity.

Growth and Post-Deposition Treatments of SrTiO3 Films for Dye-Sensitized Photoelectrosynthesis Cell Applications.

Sensitized SrTiO3 films were evaluated as potential photoanodes for dye-sensitized photoelectrosynthesis cells (DSPECs). The SrTiO3 films were grown via pulsed laser deposition (PLD) on a transparent conducting oxide (fluorine-doped tin oxide, FTO) substrate, annealed, and then loaded with zinc(II) 5,10,15-tris(mesityl)-20-[(dihydroxyphosphoryl)phenyl] porphyrin (MPZnP). When paired with a platinum wire counter electrode and an Ag/AgCl reference electrode these sensitized films exhibited photocurrent densities on the order of 350 nA/cm(2) under 0 V applied bias conditions versus a normal hydrogen electrode (NHE) and 75 mW/cm(2) illumination at a wavelength of 445 nm.

Structural and energetic properties of acetonitrile-Group IV (A & B) halide complexes.

We have conducted an extensive computational study of the structural and energetic properties of select acetonitrile-Group IV (A & B) tetrahalide complexes, both CH3CN-MX4 and (CH3CN)2-MX4 (M = Si, Ge, Ti; X = F, Cl). We have also examined the reactivity of CH3CN with SiF4, SiCl4, GeCl4, and TiCl4, and measured low-temperature IR spectra of thin films containing CH3CN with SiF4, GeCl4, or TiCl4. The six 1:1 complexes fall into two general structural classes.