Zinc titanate films are converted into porous anatase showing a 12-fold increase in rate compared to non-porous titania films.

We describe here experiments which demonstrate the selective phospho-transfer from a plausibly prebiotic condensed phosphorus (P) salt, pyrophosphite [H2P2O5 2−; PPi(III)], to the phosphate group of 5′-adenosine mono phosphate (5′-AMP). We show further that this P-transfer process is accelerated both by divalent metal ions (M2+) and by organic co-factors such as acetate (AcO−). In this specific case of P-transfer from PPi(III) to 5′-AMP, we show a synergistic enhancement of transfer in the combined presence of M2+ & AcO−. Isotopic labelling studies demonstrate that hydrolysis of the phosphonylated 5′-AMP, [P(III)P(V)-5′-AMP], proceeds via nuceophilic attack of water at the Pi(III) terminus.

There has been a resurgence of interest in metal carbodiimides in recent years and in this paper we will present a route to the synthesis of one of these phases, zinc carbodiimide, previously known as zinc cyanamide, in the form of a sub-micron thin film. This was achieved using aerosol assisted chemical vapor deposition from a solution of zinc acetate and urea in methanol, with the carbodiimide ion being formed from the decomposition of the urea molecule. Thin film synthesis was achieved over a deposition temperature range of 375 °C to 500 °C, with a minimum ratio of urea to zinc acetate of 2:1 and a maximum of 5:1 established as viable for film formation. The presence of zinc carbodiimide was confirmed using energy dispersive X-ray analysis, infra-red spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffraction, where it was found to crystallize in the I4 ̅ 2d space group with lattice parameters a = 8.777 Å and c = 5.407 Å. This work represents the first example of the synthesis of a ZnNCN thin film, or indeed any metal carbodiimide thin film, using a chemical vapor deposition technique.3

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