Effect of thickness of CdTe/Ge heterojunction photodetectors on optoelectronic properties

The influence of the thickness of CdTe/n-Ge heterojunction photodetectors on I–V curves was studied experimentally and theoretically. The thicknesses of the CdTe thin films were 110, 130, 150, and 200 nm. The power intensity of illumination was 150 mW/cm². Increasing the thickness led to an increase in photocurrent.     

Performance improvement of PDMS/PES membrane by adding silicalite-1 nanoparticles: separation of xenon and krypton

The polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) mixed matrix membrane with dispersed phase of nanozeolite silicalite-1 has been synthesized on polyethersulphone (PES) as a support, and its performance in the gas separation of xenon and krypton has been studied. For this purpose, nanozeolite silicalite-1 is synthesized by the hydrothermal clear solution method and is characterized by XRD and SEM analysis. In this research, the separation performance of MMM has also been compared with the polymeric PDMS membrane. Furthermore, the effect of feed pressure and loading percentage of nanozeolite in the polymeric matrix are evaluated. The results indicate that the addition of nanozeolite to the polymeric matrix improves its separation performance, and that the changes of the feed pressure have no major effect. The average permeability of the krypton and xenon gases through the PDMS polymeric membrane is calculated as 1.25 × 10^?9 and 1.78 × 10^?9 cm mol/(cm² s kPa), respectively, while by adding only 5 wt% of nanosilicalite-1 to the polymeric matrix of the membrane, this amount increased to 1.82 × 10^?9 and 8.07 × 10^?9 cm mol/(cm² s kPa), respectively. In addition, the presence of nanosilicalite-1 as the filler leads to an increase in the selectivity of xenon to krypton up to 4.38.     

The Oxidation of Thiocyanate to Polythiocyanic Acid Using Peroxydisulfate in Aqueous Solution

Abstract

The oxidation of thiocyanate to polythiocyanic acid by peroxydisulfate was carried out in an aqueous solution at room temperature. The primary step is the decomposition of peroxydisulfate into sulfate-free radicals. At room temperature in the presence of peroxydisulfate as a oxidizing agent, HSCN polymerizes to (HSCN)_n. The oxidation of thiocyanate in an aqueous solution is often complicated, but here we obtained the polythiocyanic acid as a major product. The products were characterized by elemental analysis, IR, UV- visible, H-NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray powder diffraction.     

The Efficient Synthesis of 3,4-Dihydropyrimidin-2-(1H)-Ones and Their Sulfur Derivatives with H2SO4 Immobilized on Activated Charcoal

Abstract

Various 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2-(1H)-ones (DHPMs) and their sulfur derivatives were efficiently synthesized by a one-pot cyclocondensation reaction of aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes, β-dicarbonyl compounds and urea (or thiourea) in the presence of sulfuric acid immobilized on activated charcoal (133% w/w). The reactions were carried out in refluxing n-hexane-acetonitrile (2.5:0.5 mL) within 5–150 min to give 3,4-dihydropyrimidinones (or thiones) in high to excellent yields (81–97%).     

Absolute Rate Constants in Free-Radical Polymerization. III. Determination of Propagation and Termination Rate Constants for Styrene and Methyl Methacrylate

A spatially intermittent polymerization (SIP) reactor has been used for determination of absolute rate constants in photo-initiated, free-radical polymerization of styrene (STY) and methyl methacrylate (MMA). Experimental data are reported in the temperature range 15-30°C and in the high molecular weight region for MMA and STY. Additional experimental data are reported at 30° C and various lower molecular weights for STY which indicate that the propagation rate constant K is independent of polymer molecular weight, and K is dependent on molecular weight, especially at low molecular weight, approaching an approximately constant value at high molecular weight.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Organosoluble Poly(imide-ether)s with Bulky 2,3-Diaryl Imidazole Moiety: Study Physical,Thermal and Optical Properties

Two new symmetrical diamines were designed and synthesized having different functional groups such as a pair of phenyl ether linkages, 2,3-diaryl substituted imidazole rings and CF₃ groups as pendant, and characterized by FT-IR, ¹H and ¹³C-NMR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. A series of new fluorescent poly(imide-ether)s (PIEs) was prepared by polymerization of the diamines with commercial tetracarboxylic dianhydrides such as pyromellitic dianhydride and 3,3′,4,4′-benzophenone tetracarboxylic dianhydride. The resulting PIEs were amorphous and had intrinsic viscosity [η] in the range of 0.42–0.51 dL/g. The weight average molecular weights (Mw) of these polymers were measured by GPC and were in the range of 28658–35595 g/mol with molecular weight distribution (MWD) of 2.12–2.27. These polymers were readily soluble in a variety of organic solvents and formed low-colored and flexible thin films with cut-off wavelength (λ₀) in the range of 385–420 nm, and all PIEs films exhibited high optical transparency. They also possessed good thermal stability with 10% weight loss temperatures (T_10%) in the range 486–537°C in N₂. The glass transition temperatures (T_g) of PIEs are in the range 251–324°C. These polymers showed fluorescence emission in film and in solution at 459–476 nm with the quantum yields in the range 4–12%.     

A simple accurate model for prediction of deflagration temperature of energetic compounds

A novel general method is introduced to predict deflagration temperature of organic energetic compounds containing at least –NNO₂, –ONO₂, or –CNO₂ groups. Deflagration temperature is an important safety parameter in working with dangerous energetic compounds and their environmental problems. It is shown that the contribution of some molecular structure parameters can be used to interpret thermal decomposition of an energetic compound. For 86 energetic materials (corresponding to 102 measured values) with different molecular structures, the new correlation has the root mean square (rms) and the average deviations of 23.8 and 19.0 K, respectively. The new method is also tested for some energetic compounds with complex molecular structures, e.g., two new organic energetic molecules N,N′-bis(1,2,4-triazol-3yl)-4,4′-diamino-2,2′,3,3′,5,5′,6,6′-octanitroazobenzene (BTDAONAB) and 2,4,6-trinitrophloroglucinol.     

Organically modified montmorillonite and chitosan–phosphotungstic acid complex nanocomposites as high performance membranes for fuel cell applications

Nanocomposite membranes based on polyelectrolyte complex (PEC) of chitosan/phosphotungstic acid (PWA) and different types of montmorillonite (MMT) were prepared as alternative membranes to Nafion for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) applications. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) revealed an electrostatically fixed PWA within the PEC membranes, which avoids a decrease in proton conductivity at practical condition. Various amounts of pristine as well as organically modified MMT (OMMT) (MMT: Cloisite Na, OMMT: Cloisite 15A, and Cloisite 30B) were introduced to the PEC membranes to decrease in methanol permeability and, thus, enhance efficiency and power density of the cells. X-ray diffraction patterns of the nanocomposite membranes proved that MMT (or OMMT) layers were exfoliated in the membranes at loading weights of lower than 3 wt.%. Moreover, the proton conductivity and the methanol permeability as well as the water uptake behavior of the manufactured nanocomposite membranes were studied. According to the selectivity parameter, ratio of proton conductivity to methanol permeability, the PEC/2 wt.% MMT 30B was identified as the optimum composition. The DMFC performance tests were carried out at 70 °C and 5 M methanol feed and the optimum membrane showed higher maximum power density as well as acceptable durability compared to Nafion 117. The obtained results indicated that owing to the relatively high selectivity and power density, the optimum nanocomposite membrane could be considered as a promising polyelectrolyte membrane (PEM) for DMFC applications.     

Non-covalently lactose imprinted polymers and recognition of saccharides in aqueous solutions

The aim of this work was to prepare lactose imprinted polymer and study of its selectivity for the recognition of different mono- and disaccharides. A series of molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) against lactose were synthesized and their binding properties were compared with a Blank non-imprinted polymer. Methacrylamide (MAAM) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate were used as functional monomer and cross-linker, respectively. Dimethylsulfoxide was also applied as polymerization solvent. Different lactose:MAAM ratios were applied and optimized MIP was selected in a conventional batch adsorption study. The dissociation constant and maximum binding sites of polymer were determined using the Scatchard analysis. The selectivity of MIP for different mono- and disaccharides was also evaluated. The results indicated that the shape of cavity and orientation of functional monomers in binding sites and the spatial arrangement of hydroxyl groups in saccharide structure were responsible for the selectivity of lactose imprinted polymer.