Table of contents

Various approaches to the formation of ordered structures of colloid particles are described. The emphasis is placed on the formation of such structures by nanoparticles at interfaces. A number of processes involving the so-called self-assembly of particles are considered. Examples of the formation of ordered structures (two- and three-dimensional colloid crystals) are given. The driving forces of the self-assembly of nanoparticles and the salient features of the physicochemical properties of ordered ensembles of such nanoparticles are analysed.

The results of recent studies in the field of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis of nanosized materials are surveyed. The possibilities of the synthesis of nanomaterials in the combustion mode are demonstrated. Examples of applications of the self-propagating high-temperature synthesis for the preparation of nanopowders, films and compact materials are given.

Methods for the preparation and various transformations of acetylenic derivatives of quinones, which are key intermediates in the synthesis of fused heterocyclic quinoid structures and some highly unsaturated compounds, are surveyed in detail.

Chemical transformations of chlorophyll and physicochemical properties of its derivatives are considered. These compounds can be used in the design of a new generation of chlorophyll- and porphyrin-based dyes environmentally more safe than currently used arene dyes and possessing renewable sources of raw materials. The first results on the use of chlorophyll derivatives for dyeing wool, acetate fibres and cotton are reported.

Attempts at using correlation analysis and the inductive constants for quantitative estimation of the reactivity of the solid surface and for predicting the character of surface reactions are discussed on the basis of the macromolecular concept of the structure of solids. The results of experimental studies of the reactivity of some solid oxides and single-crystal matrices, which confirm the good prospects of this approach, are presented.