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Synthesis

Chemistry In Pictures

Chemistry in Pictures: Fire in ice

by Craig Bettenhausen
May 28, 2019

Red crystals on a glass container resemble fire.
Credit: David Gygi

TEMPO, also known as (2,2,6,6-Tetramethylpiperidin-1-yl)oxyl, is an unusual substance. Its unpaired electron makes it a radical, but it is much more stable than most radicals in part because that unpaired electron is delocalized across two atoms. Because of its unusual properties, TEMPO has an array of applications, including in spectroscopy, catalysis, and the labeling of biological samples. David Gygi of Harvard University got these large TEMPO crystals by purifying the compound via sublimation.

Submitted by David Gygi

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