Evolution of downsized crescent-shaped dune in wind tunnel experiment

The migration of a downsized crescent-shaped dune was investigated in a wind tunnel experiment.Quantified upwind influx and vertical oscillation of the sand bed were introduced to modulate the saturation level of the sand flux above the dune surface to affect dune evolution.The evolution was recorded by top-view photography and then abstracted as the evolution of self-defined characteristic quantities using a digital image processing algorithm.The results showed that,in contrast to the case for spanwise quantities,the evolution of streamwise quantities corresponds to a linear increase in the modulation magnitude more positively and in a monotonic and convergent manner.In contrast with quantities on the windward face,the changes in quantities with respect to the horns were nonmonotonic with time and almost uncorrelated with the variation in modulation strength,which reveals the distinctiveness of leeside evolution.     

Dual template method to prepare hierarchical porous carbon nanofibers for high-power supercapacitors

Hierarchical porous carbon nanofibers serving as electrode materials are prepared through carbonization and hydrofluoric acid treatment of polyacrylonitrile-based electrospinning involving dual templates. The hierarchical porous structures are synergistically tailored by varying template contents in the spinning solution. The carbon nanofibers prepared from the electrospinning of polyacrylonitrile containing 15/15 wt.% polymethylmethacrylate/tetraethyl orthosilicate exhibit the largest specific surface area (699 m² g^?1) and microporous volume (0.196 cm³ g^?1). In 6 M KOH electrolyte, a symmetrical supercapacitor equipped with the hierarchical porous carbon nanofibers demonstrates its high-end specific capacitance of 170 F g^?1, superior rate capability, and high-power density output up to 14.7 kW kg^?1. Cycling evolution indicates capacitance fading is only 5.8 % of initial capacitance at a current density of 1 A g^?1 even after 8,000 cycles. The excellent electrochemical performances of the carbon nanofiber are mainly ascribed to the optimized pore size distributions of both micropores and mesopores and the unique hierarchical pore structures possessed by abundant micropores.     

Modeling on an ecological food chain with recycling

We propose two nutrient-phytoplankton models with instantaneous and time delayed recycling, investigate the dynamics and examine the responses to model complexities. Instead of the familiar specific uptake rate and growth rate functions, we assume only that the nutrient uptake and phytoplankton growth rate functions are positive, increasing and bounded above. We use geometrical and analytical methods to find conditions for the existence of none, one, or at most two positive steady states and analyze the stability properties of each of these equilibria. With the variation of parameters, the system may lose its stability and bifurcation may occur. We study the occurrence of Hopf bifurcation and the possibility of stability switching. Numerical simulations illustrate the analytical results and provide further insight into the dynamics of the models, biological interpretations are given.     

Synthesis and photovoltaic properties of conjugated side chains polymers with different electron‐withdrawing and donating end groups

A series of novel low band gap polymers containing conjugated side chains with 4,7‐dithien‐5‐yl‐2,1,3‐benzodiathiazole and different electron‐withdrawing end groups of aldehyde ( PT‐DTBTCHO ), 2‐ethylhexyl cyanoacetate ( PT‐DTBTCN ), 1,3‐diethyl‐2‐thiobarbituric acid ( PT‐DTBTDT ), and electron‐donating end group of 2‐methylthiophene ( PT‐DTBTMT ) have been designed and synthesized. All polymers exhibit good solubility in common organic solvents, film‐forming ability, and thermal stability. These conjugated polymers show the broad ultraviolet‐visible absorption and the narrow optical band gaps in the range of 1.65–1.90 eV. Through changing the end group of conjugated side chains, the photophysical properties and energy levels of the polymers were tuned effectively. Bulk heterojunction solar cells based on the blend of these polymers and (6,6)‐phenyl‐C₆₁‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC₆₁BM) reached the best power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.72%. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Palladium-catalyzed cycloaromatization polymerization of enediynes

Bergman cyclization has shown great promise in constructing conjugated polymers.However,the application of this reaction in polymer science is still limited due to the harsh reaction condition and ill-defined structure of the achieved polymers.To this end,the cycloaromatization polymerization of enediynes catalyzed by a series of transition metal catalysts is investigated in this work,by taking advantage of the coordination chemistry of the enediyne with the transition metal complexes.According to the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR),Fourier transform infrared (FTIR),ultraviolet-visble (UV-Vis) spectroscopies and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis,the cycloaromatization polymerization of enediynes proceeds under milder conditions and in a more controlled manner in the presence of palladium(Ⅱ) complexes,giving structurally regulated conjugated polymers in high yields.     

Reversible solubilisation through hydrogen-bond-mediated assembly

A novel approach was developed to improve the solubility of non-soluble compounds by introducing solubilising molecules peripherally through hydrogen-bond-mediated assembly. The solubilisation process can be reversed by adding competing hydrogen bonding moieties and removing the solubilising molecules. This method may potentially facilitate device fabrication.     

Design and Synthesis of a Ruthenium(II) Complex-Based Luminescent Probe for Highly Selective and Sensitive Luminescence Detection of Nitric Oxide

Nitric oxide (NO) is one of the most important intercellular signaling molecules, and plays important roles in various biological systems. In this work, a unique Ru^II complex, tris[(5-(4-methylamino-3-aminobenzylamino)-1,10-phenanthroline)] ruthenium(II) hexafluorophosphate [Ru(MAA-phen)₃][PF₆]₂, has been designed and synthesized as a luminescent probe for the detection of NO in aqueous media. The complex itself is almost non-luminescent, but can specifically react with NO under the aerobic conditions to afford its highly luminescent triazole derivative in aqueous media, [Ru(MTA-phen)₃]²⁺ (MTA-phen: methyl-trazolebenzylamino-1,10-phenanthroline), accompanied by a 302-fold increase in luminescence intensity at 598 nm with a 130 nm Stokes shift. The luminescence response of [Ru(MAA-phen)₃]²⁺ to NO is rapid, highly specific without interferences of other reactive oxygen/nitrogen species, and highly stable against the pH changes in the range of pH 4.5–9.5. These features enable [Ru(MAA-phen)₃]²⁺ to be used as a probe for the highly selective and sensitive luminescence detection of NO in weakly acidic, neutral, and weakly basic media.