Aqueous Phase Bromination by Micellar Solution of Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate (SDS): An Undergraduate Chemistry Experiment

Background: Bromination is a key reaction in chemical industry, since the organobromines find application in diverse fields like pharmaceuticals, dyes, fire retardants and as intermediates in chemical synthesis. Objective: To carry out green, in-situ bromination of acetanilide in aqueous medium using micellar SDS as catalyst. Methods: Bromination of acetanilide in-situ using potassium bromide as a non-corrosive source of bromine, ceric ammonium nitrate as oxidant, micellar solution of sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) as catalyst and water as solvent. Results: p-Bromoacetanilide was prepared in excellent yields, at room temperature, using green chemistry principles. Conclusion: The presented method provides a fast and environmentally safe route for the preparation of p-bromoacetanilide from acetanilide. It avoids the use of volatile, corrosive, and hazardous substances like liquid bromine and acetic acid. The use of water makes it safer and free from hazardous organic solvents. This reaction can be suitably adopted at the undergraduate level and may find use in the synthesis of commercially important bromo compounds.

Synthesis of PdNi Bimetallic Nanoparticles and Their Composites in Reverse Micelles

In this work, results of the synthesis of bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) based on transition metals Pd, Ni, and Fe reduced by quercetin in reverse-micellar solution (RMS) of Н2О/AOT/isooctane are presented. Using fluorescence spectroscopy, the formation of bimetallic structure of PdcoreNishell NP is shown and a synergetic enhancement of optical absorbance is revealed in the plasmon resonance spectra at the wavelength values intrinsic for monometallic NPs. Investigation of the adsorption of bimetallic NPs on the surface of γ-alumina proves the advantage of palladium-containing particles with Fecore/Pdshell obtained as a result of targeted reduction of palladium in RMS on the surface of large Fe NPs, which appears in the increase in the adsorption effectiveness of such a structure due to stronger binding with the carrier surface. This approach decreases the amount of expensive metal during production of palladium nanocomposites through a significant decrease in production costs.

Applying of Chitosan-TiO2 Nanocomposites for Photocatalytic Degradation of Anthracene and Pyrene

In this work, chitosan-TiO2 nanocomposites (NСs CS-TiO2) were developed for the photocatalytic degradation of some representatives of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by laser ablation method and their sizes were determined by dynamic laser light scattering (DLLS). Anthracene and pyrene in micellar solution were used as representatives of PAHs. The effect of TiO2 in the composition of prepared nanocomposites on the photodegradation of PAHs in model environments under UV irradiation was studied. The method of solid-phase luminescence (SPL) was used to estimate the decrease in PAHs concentrations. Based on the results of the studies carried out, pseudo-first order photodegradation kinetics were plotted. The efficiency of using the nanocomposites for the photocatalytic degradation of anthracene and pyrene was proved.