Author Archive

NJC poster prize winner at the 19th ISPPCC

Many congratulations to Johannes H. Klein of Würzburg University in Germany who was the NJC poster prize winner at the 19th International Symposium on the Photophysics and Photochemistry of Coordination Compounds held in Strasbourg last week.

Poster prize winner Johannes H. Klein (left) receiving his award from Marie Cote (right), deputy editor, NJC

Johannes, who works in Prof. Christoph Lambert’s group, won for his poster entitled “Photoinduced Charge Transfer Properties of Donor and Acceptor Substituted Iridium(III)-Complexes”. He was presented with a glossy certificate, and receives a one-year subscription to the journal. Why not find out more about Johannes’s research by visiting the Lambert Group homepage.

The meeting brought together over 250 participants from all over the world, featured 16 plenary and invited lectures by internationally distinguished scientists, and over 40 contributed talks, covering the most recent developments on topics including:

  • Photophysics
  • Light emitting molecular materials
  • Biosystems
  • Light driven systems for energy purposes
  • Coordination photochemistry



  • Many congratulations again from the NJC editorial office to Johannes on his award, and to the organizers of this conference for making it another great event for the photochemistry and photophysics community.

    Why not submit your next article to NJC today!

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    Exploring the nanoscale properties of spin crossover materials

    In this collaborative work from the universities of Toulouse and Montpellier (France), Lionel Salmon, Azzedine Bousseksou and co-workers have built on their development of synthetic routes to spin crossover compound (SCO) nanoparticles, to investigate the structure-property relashionships of the various nano-objects morphologies, be it as dispersed colloids, fibrous structures or nanoparticle powders.

    Amongst other findings, their work now shows that the cooperativity of spin crossover transition does not require that the complex is in solid state, and that even ultra-small (down to 3 nm) spin crossover nanoparticles can exhibit a cooperative transition, offering interesting perspectives for practical applications of SCO compounds.

    Interested in reading further? Why not download the full article now, FREE to access for a period of 4 weeks!

    Synthesis of spin crossover nano-objects with different morphologies and properties
    Alexey Tokarev, Lionel Salmon, Yannick Guari, Gábor Molnár and Azzedine Bousseksou
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20218A, Paper

    This article will be part of the themed issue of NJC honouring the life and work of Prof. Didier Astruc, on the occasion of his 65th birthday – Coming soon.

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    Meet Our Authors – July 2011

    We are pleased to present a selection of our authors from this July issue of NJC, who have kindly taken some time outside their research to answer a few questions for us…

    Our first author is Richard G. Compton, Professor of Chemistry and Aldrichian Praelector at Oxford University (UK), whose research interests focus on Electrochemistry, Electroanalysis, Room Temperature Ionic Liquids and Nanoelectrochemistry. In their paper, Richard and his team report on the deposition of palladium nanoparticles onto carbon nanotubes and the use of the resulting high area nanocomposite as an electrode material for hydrogenolysis reactions. Such reactions are carried out without the need for hydrogen gas – rather the active hydrogen is electrolytically loaded into the palladium nanoparticles from bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide dissolved in a room temperature ionic liquid solvent. Thus, explains Richard, the method is highly convenient and represents an excellent example of the synergic use of nanoelectrochemistry and of ionic liquids to create an electrosynthetic route to replace a traditional chemical method.

    Palladium nanoparticle-modified carbon nanotubes for electrochemical hydrogenolysis in ionic liquids
    Yao Meng, Leigh Aldous, Ben S. Pilgrim, Timothy J. Donohoe and Richard G. Compton
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1369-1375, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20070D

    On choosing NJC to publish this work, Richard comments that “we have always found NJC to provide an excellent service, most especially in terms of the quality and constructive nature of the referees reports. In addition the speed and professionalism of all our interactions with the journal have been invariably excellent.”

    Ouside the lab, Richard and his group visit the Lamb and Flag pub in St Giles, Oxford to socialise, reflect and drink lager. “In fact the pub is owned (and run as a freehouse) by St John’s College where I teach and all profits are recycled in the form of graduate studentships. So our drinking actually contributes to those who will undertake research in the future!” he explains.


    Our next author is Dr. Kumaresh Ghosh, Associate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Kalyani, India, whose research thematics cover molecular recognition and supramolecular chemistry, with a special emphasis on the design of chemosensors for neutral, cationic and anionic substrates. In their NJC article, Kumaresh and his coworkers intended to use simple molecules with hydrogen bonding information in designing chemosensors for anions of biological significance. They have used ortho- phenylenediamine in the design of a simple molecular sensor that is able to effectively sense and recognize fluorometrically phosphate group containing anionic substrates involving hydrogen bonds and pi-pi interactions in a cooperative fashion. “Stimulus came from our previous effort in the same direction using benzimidazolium motif”, comments Kumaresh. The authors chose NJC as ‘it is a journal of high impact and provides a shared platform where scientists of different areas can express their research views.”

    A new ortho-phenylenediamine-based cleft for selective sensing of H2PO4- and ATP
    Kumaresh Ghosh and Indrajit Saha
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1397-1402
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20116F

    When asked of an alternative career path if not a scientist, Kumaresh wonders: “This is a difficult question. I like organic chemistry very much. I always enjoy designing molecules of special interest. Obviously, if I could not be a scientist, I would try to do something creative.”

    Now we meet Dr. Jean-Marc Escudier, CNRS researcher at the Université Paul Sabatier in Toulouse, France, whose research interests focus on Nucleic Acids Chemistry. Jean-Marc and his team aim at exploring new fields in nucleic acid chemistry, and of particular interest, the control of the shape and structure of the sugar/phosphate backbone, its impact on secondary structure formation ability and finally the possible modulation of protein/nucleic acids complex formation. This prompted their article published this month in NJC:

    α,β-D-CNA featuring canonical and noncanonical α/β torsional angles behaviours within oligonucleotides
    Arnaud Boissonnet, Christelle Dupouy, Pierre Millard, Marie-Pierre Durrieu, Nathalie Tarrat and Jean-Marc Escudier
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1528-1533
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20086K

    On choosing the journal, Jean-Marc commented that NJC deserves the attention of the CNRS researchers (Editor’s note: NJC is owned by the CNRS and published monthly by the RSC) and moreover ‘it very recently published a themed issue on our topic of interest’*, he says.

    Outside the lab, Jean-Marc enjoys free-riding on his mountain bike, on single downhill tracks, and would have liked to become an artist, especially a musician, if not a scientist.

    Closing this month’s selection, we are pleased to present Dr. Giacomo Saielli, Researcher at the CNR Institute on Membrane Technology, in Padova, Italy. Giacomo’s research focuses on Ionic Liquid Crystals and computational NMR. In the recent years, Giacommo and his coworkers have been interested in viologen salts because of their many important properties both as materials (e.g. they form ionic liquid crystal phases) as well as for their molecular properties in solution, particularly anions recognition. As a step further, they wondered
    whether the easy modulation of the oxidation state could be used for the recognition of neutral species as well, such as fullerenes. As shown in their NJC article, the results of the theoretical investigation strongly support this hypothesis.

    DFT study of the interaction free energy of π–π complexes of fullerenes with buckybowls and viologen dimers
    Girolamo Casella and Giacomo Saielli
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1453-1459, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20117D

    “We appreciate RSC journals and we were looking for a general chemistry forum: NJC appeared as the natural choice”, says Giacommo. In his spare time, Giacommo enjoys reading and would appreciate life as a farmer somewhere in beautiful Tuscany, if not a scientist!
    We warmly thank our July authors for sharing their views and chemistry with us!

    If you have had a recent NJC publication and are interested in featuring in our ‘meet our authors’ entries, then please get in touch with us at the NJC Editorial Office.

    *NJC recently published a themed-issue on Biophosphates, guest-edited by Barbara Nawrot and Jean-Pierre Majoral, covering amongst others the chemical synthesis and mechanistic studies of nucleotides and oligo- nucleotides, inhibitors of enzymes associated with cancer and gene expression inhibitors, models for structural studies, nucleic acid analogs as tools for the investigation of metabolic processes and potential therapeutics…. Why not have a look now it now: NJC 2010 Issue 5

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    Top Ten most accessed NJC articles in May

    This month sees the following articles in NJC that are in the top ten most accessed, including a Focus and three Perspective articles:

    Preparation of graphene-TiO2 composites with enhanced photocatalytic activity
    Kangfu Zhou, Yihua Zhu, Xiaoling Yang, Xin Jiang and Chunzhong Li
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 353-359, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00623H, Paper

    MOFs, MILs and more: concepts, properties and applications for porous coordination networks (PCNs)
    Christoph Janiak and Jana K. Vieth
    New J. Chem., 2010, 34, 2366-2388, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00275E , Perspective

    Organic composite nanomaterials: energy transfers and tunable luminescent behaviors
    Chuang Zhang, Yong Sheng Zhao and Jiannian Yao
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 973-978, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20012G, Focus

    Synthesis of [2]-, [3]-, and [4]rotaxanes whose axis contains two bidentate and two tridentate chelates
    Jean-Paul Collin, Stéphanie Durot, Jean-Pierre Sauvage and Yann Trolez
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20213H, Letter

    Facile synthesis and morphology evolution of magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in different polyol processes
    Changming Cheng, Fangjie Xu and Hongchen Gu
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1072-1079, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00986E, Paper

    A novel reaction-based, chromogenic and turn-on fluorescent chemodosimeter for fluoride detection
    Clément Padié and Kirsten Zeitler
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 994-997, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00937G, Letter

    Synthesis of nearly monodispersed metal oxide nanoparticles in water
    Sandip Kumar Pahari, Narottom Sutradhar, Apurba Sinhamahapatra, Provas Pal and Asit Baran Panda
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20221A, Paper

    Microfluidic devices as tools for mimicking the in vivo environment
    Karina Ziółkowska, Radosław Kwapiszewski and Zbigniew Brzózka
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 979-990, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ00709A, Perspective

    An easy access to styrenes: trans aryl 1,3-, 1,4- and 1,5-dienes, and 1,3,5-trienes by Hiyama cross-coupling catalyzed by palladium nanoparticles
    Tanmay Chatterjee, Raju Dey and Brindaban C. Ranu,
    New J. Chem., 2011, 35, 1103-1110, DOI: 10.1039/C0NJ01019G , Paper

    Designing light harvesting antennas by luminescent dendrimers
    Vincenzo Balzani, Giacomo Bergamini, Paola Ceroni and Enrico Marchi
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article, DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20142E, Perspective

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    Forming the first sugars with formose reactions

    While studying the formose reaction under hydrothermal conditions, scientists in Germany may have replicated the formation of the first sugars on prebiotic Earth.

    In the formose reaction, formaldehyde undergoes self-condensation to give a mixture of sugars. The precursors are simple compounds so scientists have speculated that the reaction could have played a role in the origin of biomolecules. But, the reaction normally takes place under alkaline conditions in the presence of a catalyst.

    Daniel Kopetzki and Markus Antonietti from the Max-Planck-Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam carried out the reaction at high temperature and pressure – 200 degrees Celsius and 100 bar – to emulate conditions that would have been present in hydrothermal vents and on prebiotic Earth. They found that the sugars were produced under these conditions, too, without a catalyst or alkaline conditions.

    Hydrothermal synthesis could provide greener synthesis methods as well as information about the origin of life © NOAA

    ‘The origin of life has been studied for well over a century but if we mean to define it as the emergence of a self-reproducing complex chemistry that is capable of evolving and sustaining itself, it is still utterly unknown,’ says Sandra Pizzarello who studies prebiotic catalysis at Arizona State University, US. ‘Darwin was among the first to touch upon the theme and foretold our current working hypothesis – that biological evolution was preceded and may have its roots in abiotic chemical evolution.’

    ‘We do not claim that this reaction did contribute to the formation of the first biomolecules,’ says Kopetzki, ‘but the research is of interest, as it is unclear how life emerged and therefore important to explore plausible pathways.’

    So far, model systems have not shown the selectivity and specificity of life’s molecules. ‘This work reminds us of this again and points out that hydrothermal conditions might not be useful either,’ says Pizzarello.

    Kopetzki says that the findings could be applied to green synthesis. ‘Water at high temperature is a beneficial solvent. Our experiments have shown that catalysts can be simplified under such conditions,’ he says. ‘Saving catalysts by employing high temperature and simple salts adds another sustainable feature.’

    Amaya Camara-Campos


  • Interested? Why not read the full article now:
  • Hydrothermal formose reaction
    Daniel Kopetzki and Markus Antonietti , New J. Chem., 2011
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20191C, Paper

  • This NJC article is part of this month’s news on Chemistry World. Access the magazine and keep up-to-date with the world of chemistry!
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    Meet the team at 19th ISPPCC


    NJC is proud to be sponsoring the 19th International Symposium on the Photophysics and Photochemistry of Coordination Compounds – taking place in Strasbourg (France) from 3rd to 7th July 2011.

    We are also delighted to be able to sponsor a Poster prize and a Scholarship for students which will be awarded at the conference.



    The meeting will be featuring 16 plenary and invited lectures by internationally distinguished scientists, and over 40 contributed talks, covering the most recent developments on topics including:

  • Photophysics
  • Light emitting molecular materials
  • Biosystems
  • Light driven systems for energy purposes
  • Coordination photochemistry

  • Marie Cote, NJC Deputy Editor



    I will be in attendance so please do have a chat with me if you are also there, I’d love to hear from you!

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    Zinc complexes as antimicrobial wound dressings

    Scientists in the UK have made metal-containing thin films that can be incorporated into wound dressings or on surfaces to kill microbes and bacteria in hospitals.

    Andrew Johnson, at the University of Bath, and colleagues created the antimicrobial films from zinc and copper Schiff-base complexes incorporating ligands made by reacting aldehydes with primary amines, which they then deposited onto polypropylene fabric commonly used in nappies and bandages.

    The team found that the copper and zinc complexes were good at killing microbes, and when tested against Staphylococcus aureus (which, amongst other things, causes impetigo – a bacterial skin infection – and toxic shock syndrome) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (causes inflammation and sepsis), they were found to be highly effective, limiting bacterial growth for up to 16 hours. Techniques to reduce the prevalence of these particular bacteria are needed as they are known for their antibiotic resistance.

    The zinc complex was found to be particularly successful, but the reason for this is not yet known. Johnson and his team speculate that it may be due to the toxicity of the Zn2+ ion and at higher levels may be due to transmetallation, in which the complex exchanges zinc for other vital metals in bacterial cells.

    Antimicrobial zinc-based Schiff complexes could be deposited onto polypropylene fabric commonly used in nappies

    Silver is a commonly used antimicrobial metal, but it is expensive so Johnson has spotted an advantage for his zinc and copper-based materials: ‘As only a small amount of the zinc monomer is required to deposit the films, it should be easy to scale up for industry and, most importantly, it will be cheap.’ Another advantage is that the ‘coatings are a post production treatment, so from a commercial perspective, we are not changing the manufacturing process for commodity bulk items such as bandages,’ he adds.

    Ivan Parkin, an expert in antimicrobial coatings from University College London, UK, comments that: ‘The ability to inhibit bacterial growth on surfaces is very important.’ He adds that the work provides an indication of a new possible route to achieving this goal. However, he says: ‘It should be noted that on the treated sample, bacterial growth to the level of 106 was still seen, so complete kill has not been achieved.’

    Johnson’s team now hopes to improve their films to apply them to medical devices such as catheters, wound dressings and personal care items. In particular, they are working with the paediatrics burns unit for the south-west of England at Frenchay Hospital, Bristol, to further develop their materials into advanced wound dressings for burn victims.

    Holly Sheahan

  • Interested? Why not read the full article now:
  • Plasma deposited metal Schiff-base compounds as antimicrobials
    Neil Poulter, Matthew Donaldson, Geraldine Mulley, Luis Duque, Nicholas Waterfield, Alex G. Shard, Steve Spencer, A. Tobias A. Jenkins and Andrew L. Johnson, New J. Chem., 2011
    DOI: 10.1039/c1nj20091g

  • This NJC article is part of this month’s news on Chemistry World. Access the magazine and keep up-to-date with the world of chemistry!
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    Novel rotaxane receptor for selective anion recognition

    Scientists in the UK have designed a novel meta-xylenediamide macrocycle containing rotaxane anion host.

    Following on their pioneering work in the area, the team led by Paul Beer at Oxford University demonstrates a unique guest binding effect in which the interlocked host is able to bind chloride and bromide anions selectively, vs. more basic oxoanions such as dihydrogen phosphate and acetate. Their research highlights how only the monoatomic halides are able to enter the rotaxane cavity, while the larger oxoanions bind to the periphery.

    Researchers in a number of ‘supramolecular fields’, such as host-guest chemistry, anion binding, self-assembly, or molecular machines, will be interested in this high-impact chemistry.

    Why not take a look at it now! Highly rated by the reviewers and the editorial office alike, this ‘Hot Article’ will be FREE to access for a period of 4 weeks.

    A meta-xylenediamide macrocycle containing rotaxane anion host system constructed by a new synthetic clipping methodology, Nicholas H. Evans, Christopher J. Serpell and Paul D. Beer
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20109C

    This article will also be part of the themed issue of NJC honouring the life and work of Prof. Didier Astruc, on the occasion of his 65th birthday – Coming out this Autumn.

  • Don’t miss this high-profile issue – sign up to the journal e-alert now!

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  • Hot Article: multirotaxanes molecular shuttles

    While a relatively large number of [2]-rotaxanes, in which a ring is threaded by an axle, have been reported in the literature, [3]-rotaxanes (where two macrocyclic rings are able to move along the axis on which they are threaded in a controlled fashion) and [4]-rotaxanes (where 3 macrocycles are threaded on the axle) still prove a real synthetic challenge.

    In this NJC Letter, the group of J.-P. Sauvage (Strasbourg, France) provide insights on the successful preparation of multirotaxanes, and synthesize a [2]-, a [3]- and a [4]-rotaxane in the same reaction.


    …Interested?

  • Find out how, and read on the synthetic route envisioned by this leading group by accessing the full article now!

  • Article FREE to access until 20th June.

    Synthesis of [2]-, [3]-, and [4]rotaxanes whose axis contains two bidentate and two tridentate chelates, Jean-Paul Collin, Stéphanie Durot, Jean-Pierre Sauvage and Yann Trolez
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20213H

    This article will be part of the themed issue of NJC honouring the life and work of Prof. Didier Astruc, on the occasion of his 65th birthday – Coming soon.

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  • Ureidocytosine modules for bis-functionalised polymeric assemblies

    In this NJC ‘Hot Article’, Prof. Helen Hailes and co-workers at University College London, UK, highlight the synthesis and self-assembly of a novel two donors (D) and two acceptors (A) (DDAA) quadruple-hydrogen bonded dimer. The newly disclosed system uses a ureidocytosine module, the advantage being that it can readily be functionalised at N-1 and N-9, enabling the introduction of alternative moieties such as polymers or fluorescent groups at different positions in the arrays.

  • Researchers in synthetic, supramolecular, materials chemistry … this article will be of interest to you!
    Why not read more and access the full text now, FREE to download until June 20th 2011.


    Quadruple hydrogen bonded cytosine modules: N-1 functionalised arrays, Valerie G. H. Lafitte, Abil E. Aliev, Elisabetta Greco, Kason Bala, Peter Golding and Helen C. Hailes
    New J. Chem., 2011, Advance Article
    DOI: 10.1039/C1NJ20162J

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