The synthesis, characterization, and water oxidation activity of mononuclear ruthenium complexes with tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine (TPA), tris(6-methyl-2-pyridylmethyl)amine (Me(3)TPA), and a new pentadentate ligand N,N-bis(2-pyridinylmethyl)-2,2'-bipyridine-6-methanamine (DPA-Bpy) have been described. The electrochemical properties of these mononuclear Ru complexes have been investigated by both experimental and computational methods. Using Ce(IV) as oxidant, stoichiometric oxidation of water by [Ru(TPA)(H(2)O)(2)](2+) was observed, while Ru(Me(3)TPA)(H(2)O)(2)](2+) has much less activity for water oxidation. Compared to [Ru(TPA)(H(2)O)(2)](2+) and [Ru(Me(3)TPA)(H(2)O)(2)](2+), [Ru(DPA-Bpy)(H(2)O)](2+) exhibited 20 times higher activity for water oxidation. This study demonstrates a new type of ligand scaffold to support water oxidation by mononuclear Ru complexes.

There continues to be a persistent, widespread gender gap in multiple STEM disciplines at all educational and professional levels: from the self-reported interest of pre-school aged students in scientific exploration, to the percentages of tenured faculty in these 10 disciplines, more men than women express an interest in science, a confidence in their scientific abilities, and ultimately more men than women decide to pursue scientific careers. Reported herein is an intensive outreach effort focused on addressing this

Herein we report a robust and easy method for detecting cesium metal ion (Cs + ) in partially aqueous solutions using the fluorescence quenching of 2,4-bis[4-(N,N-dihydroxyethylamino)phenyl]squaraine. This squaraine dye was found to be both highly sensitive (low limits of detection) and selective (limited response to other metals) for cesium ion detection. The detection is likely based on the metal complexing to the dihydroxyethanolamine moieties, which disrupts the donor-acceptor-donor architecture and leads to efficient quenching.

Reactions in the sun: A simple homogeneous photocatalytic system for the oxidation of organic substrates that consists of RuII‐H2O complex as catalyst, [Ru(bpy)3]2+ as photosensitizer, and [Co(NH3)5Cl]2+ as electron acceptor, can efficiently and selectively catalyze the oxidation of alkene and alcohols in water by using sunlight as the driving force (see scheme).

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A series of electronically dissymmetric all‐organic macrocycles were synthesized using straightforward synthetic procedures. These macrocycles vary in the nature of the substituents, the geometry of the linkage that connects the electron‐deficient aromatic ring, the type of linkage, and the presence or absence of a heteroaromatic ring. These small structural variations impart significant differences in the performance of these macrocycles in binding benzo[a]pyrene, with binding constants up to 2.5 × 104 M–1 obtained. They also lead to significant differences in their ability to promote non‐covalent energy transfer from benzo[a]pyrene to a BODIPY fluorophore, with energy transfer efficiencies ranging from 32 % to 398 %. These differences can be explained using a variety of computational investigative techniques, which highlight the flexibility of the macrocycle architectures to accommodate benzo[a]pyrene and to promote close donor–acceptor interactions.

Herein we report the highly efficient and sensitive detection of hydrogen peroxide in both aqueous solution and in the vapor phase via fluorescence quenching (turn-off mechanism) of the amplified fluorescent conjugated polymer-titanium complex induced by hydrogen peroxide. Inter- and intra-polymer energy migration leads to extremely high sensitivity.

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