Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
will.enable.the.design.of.more.eficient.techniques.for.their.removal..For.example,.
exposure.to.arsenic.(As).occurs.through.anthropogenic.and.natural.sources.[4-9]..
Arsenic.has.adverse.effects.on.human.health.through.poisoning.leading.to.the.for-
mation.of.cancer.[10,11]..Many.tissues.such.as.the.skin,.gut,.lungs,.blood.vessels,.
and.heart.are.damaged.via.exposure.to.As.[12]..Arsenic.is.known.to.damage.chro-
mosomes.. Arsenic. in. the. environment. may. occur. naturally. in. deep-water. wells..
There. are. 40,000. cases. of. arsenicosis. in. Bangladesh. and. health. experts. expect.
that.there.will.be.2.5.million.additional.cases.within.the.next.50.years..Drinking.
As-free.water.is.currently.the.only.way.to.prevent.this.disease..A.detailed.under-
standing.of.the.As.ion.interaction.with.water.molecules.can.help.in.the.design.of.
better.and.more.eficient.processes.for.the.removal.of.this.metal.ion.from.natural.
waters.
From. the. perspective. of. catalysis,. metal. ions. and. their. complexes. with. organic.
compounds.can.be.good.catalysts.because.of.their.ability.to.change.oxidation.states.
or. to. adsorb. other. substances. on. their. surfaces. and. activate. them. during. chemi-
cal.processes.[13-15]..For.example,.the.Haber.process.uses.iron.(Fe).as.a.catalyst.
for. producing. ammonia. via. the. reaction. between. hydrogen. and. nitrogen:. N
2
(g). +.
3H
2
(g).
.2NH
3
(g)..Another.example.is.the.chemical.reaction.between.persulfate.
and.iodide.ions,.S
2
O
2−
.+.2I
−
.→.2SO
2−
.+.I
2
,.which.is.extremely.slow.in.aqueous.solu-
tions.without.the.Fe.catalyst.[16,17].
The. production. of. liquid. fuels. from. biomass. resources. is. attractive. due. to. the.
desire.to.ind.a.renewable.fuel.supply.and.the.need.to.reduce.carbon.emissions.into.
the. atmosphere.. Metal. catalysts. have. an. important. role. to. play. in. the. conversion.
of.biomass.to.liquid.transportation. fuels..Recent.experimental.studies.have.shown.
that.sugar.alcohols.can.be.converted.to.lighter.alkanes.using.metal.catalysts.[18,19]..
Processes. that. produce. liquid. alkanes. via. aqueous. phase. processing. of. biomass-
derived. carbohydrates. using. metal. catalysts. provide. a. renewable. source. for. trans-
portation. fuel.. An. improved. understanding. of. metal. catalysts. for. carbohydrate. to.
alkane.conversion.in.aqueous.solutions.could.help.in.the.design.of.more.eficient.and.
economical. processes. for. obtaining. biofuels. from. carbohydrate. complexes.. Thus,.
detailed.knowledge.of.carbohydrates.and.metal.catalysts.in.water.is.required,.which,.
in.turn,.requires.knowledge.of.the.hydration.properties.of.the.metal.catalyst.and.its.
impact. on. the. solution. environment. that. affects. the. conformation. and. structure-
function.relationships.of.carbohydrates.in.aqueous.solution.[2,3].
As.discussed.above,.metal.complexes.and.metal.ions.play.important.roles.in.many.
important. areas.. However,. a. fundamental. understanding. of. metal. ions. in. aqueous.
solution.and.of.the.nature.of.the.solution.environment.in.the.vicinity.of.metal.ions.is.
largely.unknown..A.detailed.molecular-level.understanding.of.metal.ion.structure-
function.relationships.in.aqueous.solution.and.the.impact.of.the.nature.of.the.solution.
environment. on. the. structure,. coordination. chemistry,. and. hydration. properties. of.
the.metals.can.aid.in.the.design.and.synthesis.of.more.eficient.catalysts,.therapeu-
tics,.drugs,.biomarkers,.and.nanocomplexes,.leading.to.processes.that.are.beneicial.
to.human.health,.to.the.environment,.and.to.the.economy.
The. title. of. this. chapter. is. deceptively. simple.. Our. knowledge. of. the. chemis-
try. of. these. solutions. is. extremely. limited.. One. reason. lies. in. the. small. size. and.
fast. dynamics. of. these. systems,. which. makes. experimental. measurements. and.
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