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Salts are ionic compounds composed of cations and anions, either of which may be capable of undergoing an acid or base ionization reaction with water. Aqueous salt solutions, therefore, may be acidic, basic, or neutral, depending on the relative acid-base strengths of the salt’s constituent ions. For example, dissolving the ammonium chloride in water results in its dissociation, as described by the equation:
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Synthesis and Characterization of Amphiphilic Gold Nanoparticles
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Why can a gold salt react as a base?

Mariarosa Anania1, Lucie Jašíková1, Juraj Jašík1

  • 1Department of Organic Chemisty, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Hlavova 2030/8, Prague 2, 12843, Czech Republic. roithova@natur.cuni.cz.

Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry
|September 8, 2017
PubMed
Summary

Gold salts act as bases in water, converting acetone into digold acetonyl complexes. This transformation is facilitated by the formation of digold hydroxide intermediates, crucial for gold chemistry research.

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Area of Science:

  • Organometallic Chemistry
  • Inorganic Chemistry

Background:

  • Gold complexes are typically not considered bases in aqueous solutions.
  • Understanding the reactivity of gold complexes in solution is crucial for developing new catalytic processes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the basicity of gold salts in aqueous solutions.
  • To explore the transformation of acetone into digold acetonyl complexes using gold salts.
  • To elucidate the mechanism of digold complex formation and reactivity.

Main Methods:

  • Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) for kinetic studies.
  • Delayed reactant labeling method for mechanistic investigations.
  • Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations for theoretical insights.

Main Results:

  • Gold salts [(L)AuX] demonstrate basicity in aqueous media.
  • Acetone is converted to digold acetonyl complexes [(L)2Au2(CH2COCH3)]+ without external bases.
  • Digold hydroxide complexes [(L)2Au2(OH)]+ are key intermediates, stabilized by dual gold atom interaction.
  • Reaction rates are favored by polar solvents, with negligible counter-ion effects.

Conclusions:

  • Gold salts can function as bases in aqueous solutions, enabling novel organic transformations.
  • The formation of digold hydroxide is essential for synthesizing digold acetonyl complexes.
  • DFT calculations confirm the stability of digold intermediates due to aurophilic interactions.