A highly specific cyanide mediated proton transfer signalling (PTS) is exhibited by a simple diaminomalenonitrile (DAMN) derivative 1. By virtue of the functional groups on it, the chromophore offered a rigid anchoring on a silica surface via a simple dip method, while retaining the recognition behaviour. The PTS triggered a prompt dual-modal display i.e., chromogenic and fluorogenic. The signa...

The complexes [Ru(CN)4(HAT)]2-, [{Ru(CN)4}2(mu2-HAT)]4- and [{Ru(CN)4}3(mu3-HAT)]6- (HAT = hexaaza-triphenylene) contain four, eight and twelve externally-directed cyanide ligands, respectively; they show strongly solvatochromic and intense MLCT absorptions, and [3]6- forms a high-dimensionality cyanide-bridged coordination network with Nd(III), in which Ru --> Nd energy transfer results in sen...

Observations of comets and asteroids show that the Solar Nebula that spawned our planetary system was rich in water and organic molecules. Bombardment brought these organics to the young Earth’s surface, seeding its early chemistry. Unlike asteroids, comets preserve a nearly pristine record of the Solar Nebula composition. The presence of cyanides in comets, including 0.01% of methyl cyanide (C...

The cost of cyanide consumption and destruction can be a significant percentage of total operating costs on a gold plant, and unlike other operating costs, yields no economic “return”. The choice of the best strategy for handling cyanide in the tailings can therefore have a major influence on the economic health of a project. The economic impact of cyanide is different in every operation, but i...

Transport of air from the troposphere to the stratosphere occurs primarily in the tropics, associated with the ascending branch of the Brewer-Dobson circulation. Here, we identify the transport of air masses from the surface, through the Asian monsoon, and deep into the stratosphere, using satellite observations of hydrogen cyanide (HCN), a tropospheric pollutant produced in biomass burning. A ...