SOLVAY GmbH

4-Ethoxy-1,1,1-trifluoro-3-buten-2-one (ETFBO) serves as a trifluoromethyl-containing building block for the preparation of trifluoromethyl-substituted thiophenes, furans, pyrrols, and piperazines. Key steps are an addition–elimination reaction to ETFBO followed by the thiazolium-catalyzed Stetter reaction. The scope of this chemistry was demonstrated in a new synthetic approach towards the COX-2 selective, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug Celebrex® (celecoxib).

We report on the application of the Car-Parrinello mol. dynamics method (CPMD) to the interaction of water ensembles with Pd(100) model surfaces.Periodic Pd₅₀O₈ and Pd₁₈O₂ slabs covered with nine and 18 water mols., resp., were employed to analyze the balance of adsorbate-adsorbate and adsorbate-surface interactions as a function of water ensemble size, in the limiting cases of a clean surface and high surface coverage with at. oxygen.Our simulations suggest that 'liquid' water mols. are distributed, for the most part, randomly on Pd(100) at 300 K, with a characteristic intermol. distance distribution in distinct regions of the water/metal interface.The structure of low-mobility local water clusters which stay close to the surface resembles that of earlier proposals based on thin film experimentsIn addition, our results corroborate the exptl. finding that a high surface coverage with oxygen reduces the water-Pd interaction compared to that on the clean solid.

Thermal management of elec. vehicles is faced with challenges, as batteries need to be kept at a defined temperature range between 15 and 35 °C in order to function at peak performance throughout the life of a vehicle.The manufacture of such battery cooling systems involves controlled atm. brazing technol. using noncorrosive flux.OEMs develop different battery cooler designs that require adapted fluxing methods.In this paper, selected cases of fluxing and brazing challenges in the manufacturing of battery cooling systems will be presented.Brazing experts will provide guidelines for fluxing and brazing of battery coolers.