Reversible Switching CuII/CuI Single Sites Catalyze High-rate and Selective CO2 Photoreduction

Herein, we first design a model of reversible redox-switching metal–organic framework single-unit-cell sheets, where the abundant metal single sites benefit for highly selective CO₂ reduction, while the reversible redox-switching metal sites can effectively activate CO₂ molecules. Taking the synthetic Cu-MOF single-unit-cell sheets as an example, synchrotron-radiation quasi in situ X-ray photoelectron spectra unravel the reversible switching Cu^II/Cu^I single sites initially accept photoexcited electrons and then donate them to CO₂ molecules, which favors the rate-liming activation into CO₂^δ−, verified by in situ FTIR spectra and Gibbs free energy calculations. As an outcome, Cu-MOF single-unit-cell sheets achieve near 100 % selectivity for CO₂ photoreduction to CO with a high rate of 860 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ without any sacrifice reagent or photosensitizer, where both the activity and selectivity outperform previously reported photocatalysts evaluated under similar conditions.     

Mechanism of N-octadecyl-N1-maleoyl-L-phenylalanine self-assembled into supramolecular structures

N-Octadecyl-N1-maleoyl-L-phenylalanine （ODMA-L-Phe） was synthesized through the condensation, deprotection and acid- ylation reaction of BOC-L-phenylalanine, octadecylamine and maleic anhydride. ODMA-L-Phe can self-assemble in some organic solvents and turned them into thermally reversible physical supramolecular organogels. The morphology of ODMA-L-Phe aggregates was characterized by polarized optical microscopy （POM） and field emission scanning electron microscope （FE-SEM）. The aggregates of ODMA-L-Phe were needle-like fibrils with diameters of approximately 100-200 nm. The mechanism of ODMA- L-Phe self-assembly in organic solvents was investigated using XH NMR and circular dichroism （CD）. The results indicated that hydrogen bonding was one of the main driving forces for the self-assembly of ODMA-L-Phe.     

Differential and Integral Isoconversional Non‐linear Methods and Their Application to Energetic Materials. III. Non‐isothermal Decomposition Reaction Kinetics of Benzotrifuroxan

The thermal behaviour and decomposition reaction kinetics of benzotrifuroxan (BTF) were determined by TG and DSC techniques. The kinetic parameters of the exothermic decomposition reaction in a temperature programmed mode (the apparent activation energy Ea and pre-exponential factor A) were calculated by a single non-isothermal DSC curve. The E values calculated using the Kissinger and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa equations and integral isoconversional non-linear equations were used to check the validity of activation energy by a single non-isothermal DSC curve. The results show that the kinetic model function in integral form and the values of Ea and A of the decomposition reaction of BTFare , 109.95 kJ•mol－1 and 108.16 s－1, respectively. The values of ∆S≠, ∆H≠ and ∆G≠ of this reaction are －93.15 J•mol－1•K－1, 150.72 kJ•mol－1 and 153.15 kJ•mol－1, respectively. The critical temperature of thermal explosion of BTF is 257.33 ℃.     

Trends in speciation analysis of vanadium in environmental samples and biological fluids--a review

A comprehensive review is presented addressing recent trends in the speciation and determination of vanadium in environmental and biological sample matrices, including important analytical aspects such as sample clean up, pre-concentration and method development. Methodology based on both separation and spectroscopic techniques for the determination of vanadium speciation is discussed. A brief outline of analytical principles, together with an overview of the recent developments and applications of vanadium speciation determination is included. The newer methods for detecting metal ions including hyphenated spectroscopic techniques and sample preparation schemes are also discussed.     

Coordination mechanism,characterization, and photoluminescence properties of spinel ZnAl<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> nanoparticles prepared by a modified polyacrylamide gel route

Single-phase ZnAl₂O₄ nanoparticles with the spinel structure were successfully synthesized using a modified polyacrylamide gel method according to the atomic ratio of Zn to Al = 1: 1.8. The as-prepared samples were characterized by means of X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), differential scanning calorimetry analysis (DSC), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. XRD patterns show that the pure phase of ZnAl₂O₄ is obtained after heating the xerogel at 900°C for 5 h in air. The SEM images reveal that the ZnAl₂O₄ nanoparticles have a narrow particle size distribution and the average particle size is around 45 nm. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra demonstrate the single phase ZnAl₂O₄ nanoparticles have an emission peak located at 469 nm when excited by 350 nm light. The phase structure, coordination mechanism, and luminescence properties have been discussed on the basis of the experimental results.     

Specific detection of cysteine and homocysteine: recognizing one-methylene difference using fluorosurfactant-capped gold nanoparticles

Aggregation of fluorosurfactant-capped gold nanoparticles could be induced selectively by cysteine and homocysteine and, when solution ionic strength was low, the kinetics of homocysteine-induced aggregation of large size nanoparticles (approximately 40 nm) was much faster than that induced by cysteine, leading to specific detection of homocysteine in the presence of excess cysteine.     

Nonionic surfactant-capped gold nanoparticles as postcolumn reagents for high-performance liquid chromatography assay of low-molecular-mass biothiols

Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) have been stabilized with nonionic surfactant ligands, i.e., Brij 35, and their aggregation could be induced rapidly and selectively by biologically active low-molecular-mass thiols including sulphydryl-containing amino acids (cysteine and homocysteine) and small peptides (glutathione, cysteinylglycine, and glutamylcysteine). A new postcolumn detection method has been developed for high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay of these small biothiols based on the analyte-induced aggregation of the GNPs. Compared with conventional thiol-reactive probes, the GNP colloids are easier to prepare, much more stable in aqueous solution over a wide pH range and at ambient temperature, and exhibit relatively high selectivity toward small biothiols. The analysis of human urine samples demonstrated that the proposed method is promising in HPLC assay of the small thiol molecules in biological fluids.     

Gold nanoparticle-modified ITO electrode for electrogenerated chemiluminescence: well-preserved transparency and highly enhanced activity

Although it is desirable to use transparent indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass substrates as working electrodes for electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL), their applications in ECL studies of the Ru(bpy)32+ (bpy, 2,2'-bipyridine)/tri-n-propylamine (TPrA) system have been limited because of the large overpotential of TPrA oxidation and the instability of the ITO surface at high anodic potentials. Here, we describe a simple method to achieve high ECL activity using ITO electrodes modified with gold nanoparticles (GNPs). The GNPs have been capped with fluorosurfactant ligands (i.e., Zonyl FSO). Much more facile TPrA oxidation was achieved by using the modified electrode, and an intense low-oxidation-potential (LOP) ECL signal was observed at approximately 0.88 V versus SCE. The electrode transmittance drop upon modification was generally less than 5% over the visible spectrum when small-sized GNPs (approximately 4 nm) were employed. The well-preserved transparency and highly enhanced activity make the modified electrode promising for ECL studies.     

New Diterpenoid Alkaloids from Delphinium Souliei Franch

Inourpreviouspapers'-',wehavereportedtheisolationandelucidationofaseriesofnewditerpenoidalkaloidsfromDelphinillnlsolllieiFranch.ContinuedphytochemcalinvestigationsontheconstituentsofthisplanthaveledtotheisolationoftwoothernewditerpenoidalkaloidssoulineE(l)andsoulineF(2).SoulineE(2.6mg)wasobtainedascolorlesscrystals,mpf77-78'C(fromethanol).[a]."8.0(c=0.05,CHCI;).itsmolecularformulaC,=H;,NO,wasderivedfromHkEIMS(M-f361.2613,cafe.361.2608).TheiHnmrspectrum(400MHz)exhibitedthefollowingsign…