All citations are to Inorg. Chem., 2018, 57
1. M. T. Frohlich, K. J. Anderson, A. Ugrinov, and P. Boudjouk (pages 14463 – 14666) report the synthesis of Si6Cl12, which is a strong enough Lewis acid to abstract halogens from carbon-halogen bonds. Draw the Lewis structure of this anion and predict all of the bond angles. Hint: the Si atoms form a ring. Give the point group.
2. A. Li, X. Zhang, Z. Xie, Z. Chang, Z. Zhou, and X.-H. Bu (pages 14476 – 14479) investigated catalysts for lithium/oxygen batteries. In these batteries the underlying redox reaction is thought to be Li + O2 → Li2O2, where the oxygen source is air. One of the problems is that carbon dioxide in air can cause Li2CO3 to form in an acid/base reaction, as well. Balance both reactions.
3. A. Naim, Y. Bouhadja, M. Cortijo, E. Duverger-Nédellec, H. D. Flack, E. Freysz, P. Guionneau, A. Iazzolino, A. O. Hamouda, P. Rosa, O. Stefanczyk, A. Valentin-Pérez, and M. Zeggar (pages 14501 – 14512) measured a variety of optical properties of [Fe(phen)3]2+. Give the systematic name, the point group, the LFSE in units of Dq and P, and the magnetic moment in units of Bohr-magnetons of this complex.
4. D. Wen, H. Kato, M. Kobayashi, S. Yamamoto, M. Mitsuishi, K. Fujii, M. Yashima, and M. Kakihama (pages 14524 – 14531) synthesized as series of cerium compounds including Sr4.4Ce2.6EuZnO12. Determine the oxidation state and electron configuration of each ion in the oxide given that Eu is found as Eu3+.
5. N. Bartalucci, L. Belpassi, F. Marchetti, G. Pampaloni, S. Zacchini, and G. Ciancaleoni (pages 14554 – 14563) calculated the molecular orbital properties of compounds related to pentachlorophenylisocyanideniobate(V). An isocyanide has the atom sequence of C-N-C6Cl5 and is a neutral ligand. Write the Lewis structure for the phenylisocyanide. One of the reasons that this class of complexes is interesting is that there is evidence of backbonding from the metal into the isocyanide ligand. Explain why this must be a controversial hypothesis.
6. C. Jiang, M. Peng, A. M. Srivastava, L. Li, and M. G. Brik (pages 14705 – 14714) doped Mn4+ into CsNaGeF6. Write the Lewis structure, estimate the bond angles, and give the point group for the anion. Which cationic site would you expect the Mn4+ to occupy? Explain your reasoning. Determine the LFSE (in units of Dq and P) and the magnetic moment (in units of Bohr-magnetons) for Mn4+ at that site.
7. A. R. Jupp, T. C. Johnstone, and D. W. Stephan (pages 14764 – 14771) explored a way to measure Lewis acidity known as the Global Electrophilicity Index. Their calculations predict that the Lewis acid strength of the boron halides increases from fluoride to iodide, i.e. BI3 > BBr3 > BCl3 > BF3. Is this consistent with elementary periodic properties? Why or why not?
8. R. F. Brissos, P. Clavero, A. Gallen, A. Grabulosa, L. A. Barrios, A. B. Caballero, L. Korrodi-Gregório, R. Pérez-Tomás, G. Muller, V. Soto-Cerrato, and P. Gamez (pages 14786 – 14797) studied some ruthenium complexes that may be used as anticancer drugs. An example is η6-benzenebichlorotrimethylphosphineruthenium(II). Is this complex stable by the EAN rule? What is the point group?
9. K. Matsumoto, Y. Haruki, S. Sawada, S. Yamada, T. Konno, and R. Hagiwara (pages 14882 – 14889) showed that the pentafluorosulfide anion, SF5–, had C4v symmetry when crystallized with glyme. Is this structure consistent with a VSEPR prediction? Why or why not?
10. G. Jia and J. Du (pages 14961 – 14966) grew nanowires of CuInTe2, which act as semiconductors. What are the oxidation states and ground state term symbols for each atom in the compound? Elemental analysis indicated that the Cu was slightly substoichiometric. Does this suggest a p-type or n-type semiconductor? Explain your reasoning.