On the centennials of the discoveries of the hydrogen bond and the structure of the water molecule: the short life and work of Eustace Jean Cuy (1897–1925)

The bent structure of the water molecule, and its hydrogen-bonding properties, arguably rank among the most impactful discoveries in the history of chemistry. Although the fact that the H—O—H angle must deviate from linearity was inferred early in the 20th century, notably from the existence of the electric dipole moment, it was not clear what that angle should be and why. One hundred years ago, a young PhD student at the University of California, Berkeley, Eustace J. Cuy, rationalized the V-shape structure of a water molecule using the Lewis theory of a chemical bond, i.e. a shared electron pair, and its tetrahedral stereochemistry. He was inspired, in part, by the proposal of a weak (hydrogen) bond in water by two colleagues at Berkeley, Wendell Latimer and Worth Rodebush, who published their classic paper a year earlier. Cuy went on to suggest that other molecules, notably H2S and NH3, have similar structures, and presciently predicted that this architecture has broader consequences for the structure of water as a liquid. This short, but brilliant paper has been completely forgotten, perhaps due to the tragic death of the author at the age of 28; the hydrogen-bond study is also rarely recognized. One of the most impactful publications on the structure of liquid water, a classic treatise published in 1933 by John Bernal and Ralph Fowler, does not mention either of the two pioneering papers. In this essay, the background for the two discoveries is described, including the brief history of Lewis's research on the nature of the chemical bond, and the history of the discovery of the hydrogen bond, which inspired Cuy to look at the structure of the water molecule. This is – to the best of the author's knowledge – the first biographical sketch of Eustace J. Cuy.

1,2-Dihydro-1,3,2-diazaborinine tautomer as an electron-pair donor in hydrogen-bonded complexes

Ab initio MP2/aug’-cc-pVTZ calculations have been carried out to investigate 1,2-dihydro-1,3,2-diazaborinine:HX complexes for HX = H+, HF, HCl, H2O, HCN, NH3, HCP, and HCCH. Most complexes are stabilized by linear, traditional hydrogen bonds except for those with H2O and NH3 which have bridging structures and nonlinear hydrogen bonds. H-atom transfer from N to B can occur in complexes with HF and HCl, with formation of a traditional F-H…N and a proton-shared Cl…H…N bond. The binding energies of the uncharged complexes range from 25 to 88 kJ.mol–1. Spin-spin coupling constants have been used to characterize these hydrogen-bonded complexes. Des calculs ab initio MP2/aug'-cc-pVTZ ont été effectués pour étudier les complexes 1,2-dihydro-1,3,2-diazaborinine:HX pour HX = H+, HF, HCl, H2O, HCN, NH3, HCP et HCCH. La plupart des complexes sont stabilisés par des liaisons hydrogène traditionnelles, linéaires, à l'exception de celles avec H2O et NH3 qui ont des structures pont et des liaisons hydrogène non linéaires. Le transfert de l'atome d'hydrogène de N à B peut se produire dans des complexes avec HF et HCl, avec formation d'une liaison F-H···N traditionnelle et d'une liaison Cl···H···N avec un proton comparti. Les énergies de liaison des complexes non chargés vont de 25 à 88 kJ·mol–1. Des constantes de couplage spin-spin ont été utilisées pour caractériser ces complexes à liaison l'hydrogène.

Ultrasound-Assisted Synthesis and DFT Calculations of the Novel 1D Pb (II) Coordination Polymer with Thiosemicarbazone Derivative Ligand and Its Use for Preparation of PbO Clusters

In the present work, using a sonochemical method, a new lead (II) coordination 1D polymer, [Pb(L)2(CH3COO)]n (L = pyridine-4-carbaldehyde thiosemicarbazone) (1) was prepared. It was characterized structurally with different spectroscopic methods, such as SEM, IR spectroscopy, XRD, and elemental analysis. The coordination compound becomes a stair-step one-dimensional polymer in solid mode. The lead (II) ions have the coordination number of six (PbNS3O2) with two oxygen atoms from acetate anion and three sulfur atoms and one nitrogen atom from organic ligand. It contains a stereo-chemically active lone electron pair and the hemidirected coordination sphere. The high-intensity ultrasound is considered a flexible, environmentally friendly, and easy synthetic tool for the coordination compounds. PbO clusters was achieved with thermolyzing 1 at 180 ˚C with oleic acid (as a surfactant). Furthermore, the size and morphology of the created PbO clusters were assessed via SEM. The estimated gap of HOMO and LUMO is 3.275 eV based on DFT calculations.

Synthesis, Electronic Structure and Anti-Cancer Activity of the Phenyl Substituted Pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazines

: Background: Synthesis of a series of 2-(dichloromethyl)pyrazolo[1,5- a][1,3,5]triazines was carried out and evaluated in vitro for their anticancer activity against a panel of 60 cell lines derived from nine cancer types. The joint quantum-chemical and experimental study of the influence of the extended πconjugated phenyl substituents on the electron structure of the pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazines as Pharmacophores were performed. It is shown that the decrease in the barriers to the rotation of phenyl substituents in compounds 1-7 possibly leads to an increase in the anti-cancer activity, which is in agreement with the change in the parameter biological affinity ϕ0. Analysis of the S0 → S1 electronic transitions (π→π*) of the pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazines shows that an increase in their intensity correlates with anti-cancer activity. Thus, the introduction of phenyl substituents increases the likelihood of investigated pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazines interacting with protein molecules (Biomolecule) by the π stacking mechanism. In both methyl and phenyl derivatives of pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazines, the second electronic transition includes the n-MO (the level of the lone electron pair in two-coordinated nitrogen atoms). The highest intensity of the η→π* electronic transition is observed in pyrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazine with pyridine residue, which does not exhibit anti-cancer activity, but exhibits antiviral activity [13]. It can be assumed that the possibility of the formation of [Pharmacophore-Biomolecule] complex by hydrogen bonding ([H-B]) mechanism with protein molecules increases.

A new proposal for the electronic structure of carbon monoxide

A new proposal for the electronic structure of carbon monoxide CO is presented. The approach involves the creation of an additional half-filled 2p orbital in the oxygen atom by the transfer of an electron from the filled 2p orbital to one of two half-filled hybridized <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> <mml:mi>s</mml:mi> <mml:msub> <mml:mi>p</mml:mi> <mml:mi>z</mml:mi> </mml:msub> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> orbitals in the carbon atom. The result is a triple bond comprising one sigma bond and two pi bonds between C and O strengthened by an ionic bond contribution. The proposed structure accounts for many unusual features of the molecule CO including the observed direction of the dipole moment, which is considered anomalous based on the concept of electronegativity of the constituent atoms as well as the increased bond dissociation energy compared with isoelectronic nitrogen <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:msub> <mml:mi>N</mml:mi> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:msub> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> . It also provides a basis for the CO molecule being a stable ligand combining with transition metals using the lone electron pair in the filled <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> <mml:mi>s</mml:mi> <mml:msub> <mml:mi>p</mml:mi> <mml:mi>z</mml:mi> </mml:msub> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> orbital of the carbon atom. The electron transfer mechanism is effectively applied to the isoelectronic compound boron monofluoride BF and predicts properties of the undetected isoelectronic molecule BeNe. Finally, the method proposes new electronic structures for the cyanide ion <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>C</mml:mi> <mml:msup> <mml:mi>N</mml:mi> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> which resolves the long-standing puzzle of “charge reversal” on the molecule and the carbon monofluoride ion <mml:math display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>C</mml:mi> <mml:msup> <mml:mi>F</mml:mi> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> .

Gravity revealed as electromagnetic force

The earth is fundamentally protons, electrons, and neutrons. The force of gravity on earth could simply be a phenomenon of those elements. Lacking is any analysis demonstrating how electric charge forces of protons and electrons, both repulsive and attractive, can give rise to a gravitational force so much weaker and only attractive. Here application of Coulomb's law of electric charges shows the force of gravity derives from the basic proton-electron charge force. Separation of electrons from protons within any atom results in infinitesimal force imbalances, either repulsive or attractive, with every external proton-electron pair. When such force imbalances are accumulated using a Monte Carlo probability simulation for all charge pair in a large mass like the earth, repulsive forces are shown to never entirely cancel attractive forces and a weak net attractive force always remains. Coulomb's law yields the same force between earth and an object at its surface as Newton's law of gravity, confirming that gravity is an electromagnetic force and not a unique force of its own. This research is a mathematical analysis, an application of basic scientific principles much like the computer modeling of a complex engineered system. It has been done with no need for new theories, new speculation, abstract reasoning, nor abstract mathematics.

Metal-Rich Metallaboranes: Synthesis, Structures and Bonding of Bi- and Trimetallic Open-Faced Cobaltaboranes

Synthesis, isolation, and structural characterization of unique metal rich diamagnetic cobaltaborane clusters are reported. They were obtained from reactions of monoborane as well as modified borohydride reagents with cobalt sources. For example, the reaction of [Cp*CoCl]2 with [LiBH4·THF] and subsequent photolysis with excess [BH3·THF] (THF = tetrahydrofuran) at room temperature afforded the 11-vertex tricobaltaborane nido-[(Cp*Co)3B8H10] (1, Cp* = η5-C5Me5). The reaction of Li[BH2S3] with the dicobaltaoctaborane(12) [(Cp*Co)2B6H10] yielded the 10-vertex nido-2,4-[(Cp*Co)2B8H12] cluster (2), extending the library of dicobaltadecaborane(14) analogues. Although cluster 1 adopts a classical 11-vertex-nido-geometry with one cobalt center and four boron atoms forming the open pentagonal face, it disobeys the Polyhedral Skeletal Electron Pair Theory (PSEPT). Compound 2 adopts a perfectly symmetrical 10-vertex-nido framework with a plane of symmetry bisecting the basal boron plane resulting in two {CoB3} units bridged at the base by two boron atoms and possesses the expected electron count. Both compounds were characterized in solution by multinuclear NMR and IR spectroscopies and by mass spectrometry. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses confirmed the structures of the compounds. Additionally, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed in order to study and interpret the nature of bonding and electronic structures of these complexes.

Was Pauling Mistaken about Metals?

Pauling described metallic bonds using resonance. The maximum probability domains in the Kronig–Penney model can show a picture of it. When the walls are opaque (and the band gap is large) the maximum probability domain for an electron pair essentially corresponds to the region between the walls: the electron pairs are localized within two consecutive walls. However, when the walls become transparent (and the band gaps closes), the maximum probability domain can be moved through the system without a significant loss in probability.