skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Attention:

The NSF Public Access Repository (PAR) system and access will be unavailable from 11:00 PM ET on Thursday, June 12 until 2:00 AM ET on Friday, June 13 due to maintenance. We apologize for the inconvenience.


Title: Photolysis Products of Fluorinated Pharmaceuticals: A Combined Fluorine Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Mass Spectrometry Approach
Abstract The aqueous photolysis of four pharmaceuticals with varying fluorinated functional groups was assessed under neutral, alkaline, advanced oxidation, and advanced reduction conditions with varying light sources. Solar simulator quantum yields were 2.21 × 10−1 mol Ei−1for enrofloxacin, 9.36 × 10−3 mol Ei−1for voriconazole, and 1.49 × 10−2 mol Ei−1for flecainide. Florfenicol direct photolysis was slow, taking 150 h for three degradation half‐lives. Bimolecular rate constants between pharmaceuticals and hydroxyl radicals were 109to 1010 M−1 s−1. Using a combined quantitative fluorine nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (19F‐NMR) and mass spectrometry approach, fluorine mass balances and photolysis product structures were elucidated. Enrofloxacin formed a variety of short‐lived fluorinated intermediates that retained the aryl F motif. Extended photolysis time led to complete aryl F mineralization to fluoride. The aliphatic F moiety on florfenicol was also mineralized to fluoride, but the resulting product was a known antibiotic (thiamphenicol). For voriconazole, the two aryl Fs contributed more to fluoride production compared with the heteroaromatic F, indicating higher stability of the heteroaromatic F motif. The two aliphatic CF3moieties in the flecainide structure remained intact under all conditions, further supporting the stability of these moieties found in per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances under a variety of conditions. The advanced treatment conditions generating hydroxyl radicals or hydrated electrons accelerated the degradation, but not the defluorination, of flecainide. The combination of19F‐NMR and mass spectrometry proved powerful in allowing identification of fluorinated products and verifying the functional groups present in the intermediates and products. The results found in the present study will aid in the understanding of which fluorinated functional groups should be incorporated into pharmaceuticals to ensure organofluorine byproducts are not formed in the environment and help determine the water‐treatment processes that effectively remove specific pharmaceuticals and more generally fluorinated motifs.Environ Toxicol Chem2023;00:1–12. © 2023 The Authors.Environmental Toxicology and Chemistrypublished by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2304963
PAR ID:
10477585
Author(s) / Creator(s):
 ;  ;  ;  
Publisher / Repository:
Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry
ISSN:
0730-7268
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. Peracetic acid (PAA) is a widely used disinfectant, and combined UV light with PAA (i.e. UV/PAA) can be a novel advanced oxidation process for elimination of water contaminants. This study is among the first to evaluate the photolysis of PAA under UV irradiation (254 nm) and degradation of pharmaceuticals by UV/PAA. PAA exhibited high quantum yields (Φ254nm = 1.20 and 2.09 mol·Einstein−1 for the neutral (PAA0) and anionic (PAA-) species, respectively) and also showed scavenging effects on hydroxyl radicals (k•OH/PAA0 = (9.33±0.3)×108 M−1·s−1 and k•OH/PAA- = (9.97±2.3)×109 M−1·s−1). The pharmaceuticals were persistent with PAA alone but degraded rapidly by UV/PAA. The contributions of direct photolysis, hydroxyl radicals, and other radicals to pharmaceutical degradation under UV/PAA were systematically evaluated. Results revealed that •OH was the primary radical responsible for the degradation of carbamazepine and ibuprofen by UV/PAA, whereas CH3C(=O)O• and/or CH3C(=O)O2• contributed significantly to the degradation of naproxen and 2-naphthoxyacetic acid by UV/PAA in addition to •OH. The carbon-centered radicals generated from UV/PAA showed strong reactivity to oxidize certain naphthyl compounds. The new knowledge obtained in this study will facilitate further research and development of UV/PAA as a new degradation strategy for water contaminants. 
    more » « less
  2. null (Ed.)
    C–F functionalizations that provide C–C bonds are challenging synthetic transformations, due in part to the large C–F bond strength, short bond length, nonpolarizable nature, the production of fluoride, and the regioselectivity-in the case of multifluorinated substrates. However, commercially available highly fluorinated arenes possess great synthetic potential because they already possess the C–F bonds in the desired locations that would be difficult to selectively fluorinate. In order to take advantage of this potential, selective C–F functionalizations must be developed. Herein, we disclose conditions for the photocatalytic reductive alkylation of highly fluorinated arenes with ubiquitous and unactivated alkenes. The mild reaction conditions provide for a broad functional group scope, and the reaction is remarkably efficient using just 0.25 mol% catalyst. Finally, we demonstrate the utility of the strategy by converting highly fluorinated arenes to elaborate (hetero)arenes that contain 2–5 C aryl –F bonds via synergistic use of photocatalysis and S N Ar chemistry. 
    more » « less
  3. ABSTRACT Triplet arylnitrenes may provide direct access to aryl azo‐dimers, which have broad commercial applicability. Herein, the photolysis ofp‐azidostilbene (1) in argon‐saturated methanol yielded stilbene azo‐dimer (2) through the dimerization of tripletp‐nitrenostilbene (31N). The formation of31Nwas verified by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and absorption spectroscopy (λmax ~ 375 nm) in cryogenic 2‐methyltetrahydrofuran matrices. At ambient temperature, laser flash photolysis of1in methanol formed31N(λmax ~ 370 nm, 2.85 × 107 s−1). On shorter timescales, a transient absorption (λmax ~ 390 nm) that decayed with a similar rate constant (3.11 × 107 s−1) was assigned to a triplet excited state (T) of1. Density functional theory calculations yielded three configurations for T of1, with the unpaired electrons on the azido (TA) or stilbene moiety (TTw, twisted and TFl, flat). The transient was assigned to TTwbased on its calculated spectrum. CASPT2 calculations gave a singlet–triplet energy gap of 16.6 kcal mol−1for1 N; thus, intersystem crossing of11Nto31Nis unlikely at ambient temperature, supporting the formation of31Nfrom T of1. Thus, sustainable synthetic methods for aryl azo‐dimers can be developed using the visible‐light irradiation of aryl azides to form triplet arylnitrenes. 
    more » « less
  4. After a brief introduction highlighting the challenges of fluorine chemistry and the latest developments in the field, this Perspective will discuss how a combination of fluorine and fluorous chemistry together with fluorinated reagents helped to bridge between organic, molecular, macromolecular, supramolecular and biological sciences to create functions in the laboratory of the corresponding author. The reactivity of fluoride as a leaving group is best illustrated by SNAr reactions when it helped to demonstrate single electron transfer-mediated side reactions and through molecular design replaced activated aryl fluorides with aryl chlorides in the synthesis of poly(etherketone)s. Subsequently it was demonstrated how Ni(II) sigma complexes provided an orthogonal approach to the Suzuki-type cross-coupling of arylfluorides, other halides and all aryl C–O based electrophiles. Fluorinated reagents facilitated cylotrimetrization vs cyclotetramerization of bis(methoxy)benzyl chloride and alcohol and the synthesis of the simplest molecular liquid crystals. Triflic acid, methyl triflate facilitated the most tolerant living polymerizations including of cyclic siloxanes, functional vinyl ethers and oxazolines to generate self-organizable dendronized polymers while fluorine, trifluoromethyl and trifluoromethoxy groups facilitated disassembly and reassembly of liquid crystal polyethers and poly(p-phenylenes). Fluorinated stereocenters accessed the first heterochiral recognition in side-chain liquid crystal poly(vinyl ether)s and their model compounds. Alkali metal triflates mediated self-organization of supramolecular nonfluorinated and fluorinated self-assembling minidendrons, dendrons, dendrimers and self-organizable dendronized polymers. The role of fluorinated alkyl groups and of alkali metal triflates in the self-assembly, disassembly and isomorphic replacement analysis, of supramolecular helical columns, of the assembly of helical cogwheel coat and of spherical supramolecular dendrimers forming Frank-Kasper periodic and quasiperiodic arrays was highlighted. A brief discussion of fluorinated amino acids, peptides and peptoids and their potential role in the self-assembly and functions resulted from dendritic dipeptides followed by a discussion of semifluorinated amphiphilic Janus dendrimers as models of biological membranes, including for cell fusion and fission, concludes this Perspective. 
    more » « less
  5. Abstract A continuous gas–liquid flowing film reactor with a nanosecond‐pulsed power supply was utilized for the degradation of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) as assessed by fluoride (F) formation. PFOA, 50 mg/L, dissolved in deionized water was supplied at 2 ml/min with an argon carrier gas. The liquid phase was analyzed for Fusing ion chromatography. The power supply pulse frequency (f) was varied between 0.25‐ and 10‐kHz using a constant 16‐kV input voltage and 40‐ns pulse width. The highest Fproduction rate (), 1.57 × 10−8 mol/s, occurred at 5 kHz whereas the highest efficiency of Fproduction (), 9.12 × 10−9 mol/J, was found at 0.25 kHz. 
    more » « less