The Pd2(DBA)3
solubility project
Dear Fellow Scientist,
There are debates in science. The global warming debate is of critical importance for the future of the planet. However, even much more mundane issues are important because they determine the integrity of what we do every day in our teaching and research. I have confronted such an issue in my research. Is it possible that a researcher could publish completely incorrect conditions for the solubility of a compound and have those conditions accepted in the Journal of the American Chemical Society? A well-known manufacturer of Pd2(DBA)3 and three research groups have come to a different conclusion than the published result. While integrity may be of less importance than global warming, there is a connection since the essence of science is an accurate representation of the facts. If you feel that the integrity of research is an important issue, it would be valuable if you would take a small amount of time to conduct a simple experiment.
The statement in dispute is that Pd2(DBA)3 is soluble in 10% THF/90% H2O. This can be tested in a very short time using a number of methods.
1. Basic observation (30 minutes): Add 100 microliters of a 4 millimolar solution of Pd2(DBA)3 in tetrahydrofuran (THF) to 900 microliters of H2O. Observe whether there is a formation of precipitate.
2. Solubility study (90 minutes): Add a 4 millimolar solution of Pd2(DBA)3 in tetrahydrofuran (THF) to create at 10% THF solution. Filter the precipitate and observe the color of the resulting solution. Obtain the spectrum in a 1 cm pathlength cuvette.
Please send your results to:
These results will be complied anonymously for presentation to the Journal of the American Chemical Society. The results will also be sent anonymously to all of the participants of the study.