The non-bonding carbone lone pair in geometrically-constrained antimony and bismuth carbodiphosphorane complexes readily complexed AuCl to afford rare examples of geminal bimetallic carbone coordination featuring a main-group metal.

A family of 6-X-2-hydroxyprydine/pyridone (6-X-2-HOpy/pyridone) Cu(II) compounds, [Cu(6-X-2-HOpy)₂Cl₂] (1 X = F; 2 X = Cl) and [(6-X-2-pyridone)CuCl(μ-Cl)]₂ (3 X = Cl; 4 X = Br), has been prepared. Solution-based infrared spectra displayed a correlation between tautomeric state, primarily driven by halogen identity, and coordination mode with neutral nitrogen coordination mode favored as Br ≪ Cl < F. The tautomeric state of 6-Cl-2-HOpy is influenced by metal ion concentration (M) with lactam concentration increasing as M increases. Compound 1 has F–F contacts less than the sum of the van der Waals radii but falls outside of the typical halogen bonding angle parameters, R–X•••Y = R–Y•••X = 138.2°. Compounds 1 and 2 exhibit weak antiferromagnetic exchanges, fit with a one-dimensional quantum Heisenberg antiferromagnetic linear chain (1D-QHAF) model and J/k_B = −1.99(1) K and −0.92(7) K, respectively. Compounds 3 and 4 exhibit a dominating ferromagnetic exchange and an antiferromagnetic exchange and were qualitatively fit to a ferromagnetic linear chain with an interchain interaction model. This model does not accurately represent the physical parameters of the system and was used to show that both exchanges exist and are nontrivial.

Substitution of a C=C bond by an isoelectronic B–N bond is a well-established strategy to alter the electronic structure and stability of acenes. BN-substituted acenes that possess narrow energy gaps have attractive optoelectronic properties. However, they are susceptible to air and/or light. Here we present the design, synthesis and molecular structures of fully π-conjugated cationic BN-doped acenes stabilized by carbodicarbene ligands. They are luminescent in the solution and solid states and show high air and moisture stability. Compared with their neutral BN-substituted counterparts as well as the parent all-carbon acenes, these species display improved quantum yields and small optical gaps. The electronic structures of the azabora-anthracene and azabora-tetracene cations resemble higher-order acenes while possessing high photo-oxidative resistance. Investigations using density functional theory suggest that the stability and photo-physics of these conjugated systems may be ascribed to their cationic nature and the electronic properties of the carbodicarbene.

Polyethylene is a promising low-cost alternative precursor material for carbon fiber production, but it has yet to show mechanical properties near or surpassing polyacrylonitrile-derived carbon fibers. The high molecular weight and order of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) may offer a pathway to realizing this promise by enabling long-range graphitic structure formation and superior mechanical properties. The tension applied during the precursor stabilization process is crucial to maintaining the shape of the fibers during the conversion process, but no published study has yet probed the relationship between sulfonation tension and carbon fiber microstructure and mechanical properties. In this work, a logarithmic sweep of tensile stress was applied to UHMWPE fibers during the stabilization process followed by carbonization. Increasing tension significantly reduced fiber shrinkage, resulted in straighter fibers with less severe kink bands, and greatly improved the mechanical properties of the fibers. Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction revealed that in all cases the carbon fibers were largely amorphous, but increasing tension resulted in increased size and alignment of the turbostratic crystallites with the fiber axis. Large voids were present in the sample fibers, so the Griffith-Irwin relation was employed to predict the potential ultimate tensile strength of the fibers with voids reduced to sizes comparable to commercially produced fibers. This work demonstrates the importance of tension applied during the stabilization of polyethylene fibers for carbon fiber production and establishes a framework for achieving high mechanical properties from these precursors.