Manipulating the Click Reactivity of Dibenzoazacyclooctynes: From Azide Click Component to Caged Acylation Reagent by Silver Catalysis

Strain-promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition using dibenzoazacyclooctyne (DBCO) is widely applied in copper-free bioorthogonal reactions. Reported here is the efficient acid-promoted rearrangement and silver-catalyzed amidation of DBCO, which alters its click reactivity robustly. In the switched click reaction, DBCO, as a caged acylation reagent, enables rapid peptide/protein modification after decaging facilitated by silver catalysts, rendering site-specific conjugation of an IgG antibody by a Fc-targeting peptide.     

电感耦合等离子发射光谱法测定铁基粉末冶金中的钙元素

利用电感耦合等离子发射光谱法（ICP-OES）测定铁基粉末冶金中的钙元素.通过调整酸度配比和消除干扰因素，采用外标法定量消除基体效应的影响，同时共存元素的干扰校正试验表明，样品中共存元素对待测元素无干扰影响.通过对样品消解进行前处理优化，结果表明:在样品中加入王水后在电热板上加热，消解后滴加双氧水，使用ICP-OES测定，能获得良好的定量结果.在0.5~10 mg/L范围内具有较好的线性关系，其线性相关系数为0.999 9，方法精密度的RSD为0.14%（n=10），加标回收率为98%~105%.方法具有经济、快速、简单且重现性好等特点，可以满足日常分析检测要求.     

In Situ Photocatalytically Heterostructured ZnOAg Nanoparticle Composites as Effective Cathode‐Modifying Layers for Air‐Processed Polymer Solar Cells

A heterostructured semiconductor–metal ZnO?Ag nanoparticle (NP) composite was constructed through a straightforward photocatalytic strategy by using UV irradiation of ZnO NPs and an aqueous solution of Ag precursor. The ZnO?Ag NP composites serve as an effective cathode‐modifying layer in polymer solar cells (PSCs) with increased short‐circuit current density owing to the light‐trapping effect, and improved optical and electrical conductivity properties compared with pure ZnO NPs. The Ag NPs, which are photodeposited in situ on ZnO NPs, can act as effective antennas for incident light to maximize light harvesting and minimize radiative decay or nonradiative losses, consequently resulting in the enhanced photogeneration of excitons in PSCs. Systematic photoelectron and ‐physical investigations confirm that heterostructured ZnO?Ag NPs can significantly improve charge separation, transport, and collection, as well as lower charge recombination at the cathode interface, leading to a 14.0 % improvement in air‐processed device power conversion efficiency. In addition, this processable, cost‐effective, and scalable approach is compatible with roll‐to‐roll manufacturing of large‐scale PSCs.     

功能化离子液体液化木粉及其酚醛复合材料

合成了氯代1-(2-羟乙基)-3-甲基咪唑离子液体[He MIM]Cl、溴代1-乙胺基-3-甲基咪唑离子液体[Ae MIM]Br和氯代1-羧乙基-3-甲基咪唑离子液体[Ce MIM]Cl 3种功能化咪唑离子液体,并分别进行了红外与氢核磁结构表征.然后用3种离子液体液化木粉,液化3 h后向体系直接加入苯酚、甲醛和氢氧化钠,制备酚醛复合材料,并采用FTIR、XRD、DSC和SEM对酚醛复合材料进行结构、性能与形貌测试,研究离子液体种类对木粉液化率及酚醛树脂性能的影响.结果表明,离子液体及其液化木粉产物制备的酚醛复合材料性能得到明显改善.[Ce MIM]Cl液化效果最好,90℃液化率高达24.6%,当[Ce MIM]Cl与木粉质量比为10∶1时,制备的酚醛复合材料的游离醛释放量由原来的3.64%降低到0.92%.离子液体[Ae MIM]Br能将酚醛复合材料的冲击强度由原来的0.93 k J/m2提高到6.96 k J/m2,而[Ae MIM]Br及其液化的木粉产物制备的酚醛复合材料拉伸强度从原来的3.28 MPa提高到9.70 MPa.     

Synthesis and crystal structure of the A6B5O18 perovskite-like compounds

New members of the A_nB_n−1O_3n perovskite-like family (Ba₅KNb₅O₁₈ and Sr₆Nb₄SnO₁₈ compounds) with n = 6 have been synthesized and studied by the X-ray powder diffraction. Their crystal structures were found to belong to the Ba₆Nb₄TiO₁₈-type with a = 0.57840(7) nm, c = 4.2532(5) nm and a = 0.5661(1) nm, c = 4.186(1) nm for Ba₅KNb₅O₁₈ and Sr₆Nb₄SnO₁₈, respectively. It was shown that Ba and K (A-atoms) are completely disordered in the crystal structure of Ba₅KNb₅O₁₈ compound. But Nb and Sn atoms (B-atoms) in the crystal structure of the Sr₆Nb₄SnO₁₈ compound are quite ordered with the preferred Sn⁺⁴ and Nb⁵⁺ cations localization in the center of perovskite-like block and on the boundaries of these blocks, respectively. Temperature and frequency dependencies of the real components of electric conductivity σ^I and dielectric permeability ɛ^I; specific electric conductivity at the direct current σ_dc have been obtained by the impedance spectroscopy method for Sr₆Nb₄SnO₁₈.     

N‐Phenyl‐substituted carbene precursors and their silver complexes: synthesis,characterization and antimicrobial activities

A series of unsymmetrically substituted N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) precursors ( 1a , 1b , 1c , 1d , 1e ) were synthesized from the reaction of N‐phenylbenzimidazole with various alkyl halides. These compounds were used to synthesize NHC–silver(I) complexes ( 2a , 2b , 2c , 2d , 2e ). The five new 1‐phenyl‐3‐alkylbenzimidazolium salts ( 1a , 1b , 1c , 1d , 1e ) and their NHC–silver complexes ( 2a , 2b , 2c , 2d , 2e ) were characterized by the ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR and FT‐IR spectroscopic methods and elemental analysis techniques. Also, the two NHC–silver complexes 2b and 2c were characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray crystallography, which confirmed the linear C―Ag―Cl arrangements. The antibacterial activities of the NHC precursor and NHC–silver complexes were tested against three Gram‐positive bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus) and three Gram‐negative bacterial strains (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) using the microdilution broth method. The NHC–silver complexes showed higher antibacterial activity than the NHC precursors. In addition, silver complexes 2a , 2b , 2c , 2d showed high antibacterial activity against the Gram‐positive bacteria L. monocytogenes and S. aureus compared to the standard, tetracycline. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sweet like chocolate

A new crystalline form of αβ‐d ‐lactose prepared by oven drying a concentrated aqueous solution of d ‐lactose is a lesson in the power of observation and the rigorous analysis of powder samples.     

Probing nanocolumnar silver nanoparticle/zinc oxide hierarchical assemblies with advanced surface plasmon resonance and their enhanced photocatalytic performance for formaldehyde removal

Recent advances in photocatalysis focus on the development of materials with hierarchical structure and on the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) phenomenon exhibited by metal nanoparticles (NPs). In this work, both are combined in a material where size‐controllable Ag‐NPs are uniformly loaded onto the hierarchical microporous and mesoporous and nanocolumnar structures of ZnO, resulting in Ag‐NP/ZnO nanocomposites. The embedded Ag‐NPs slightly decrease the hydrophobicity of fibrous ZnO, improve its wettability, and increase the absorption of formaldehyde (H₂CO) onto the photocatalyst, all of this resulting in excellent photodegradation of formaldehyde in aqueous solution. Besides, we found that Ag‐NPs with optimal size not only accelerate the charge transfer to the surface of ZnO, but also strengthen the SPR effect in the intercolumnar channels of fibrous ZnO particles combining with high concentration of photo‐generated radical species. The micro‐to‐mesoporous ZnO is like a nanoarray packed Ag‐NPs. With Ag‐NPs of diameter 2.5 < ? < 6.5 nm, ZnO exhibits the most superior photodegradation rate constant value of 0.0239 min^?1 with total formaldehyde removal of 97%. This work presents a new feasible approach involving highly sophisticated Ag‐NP/ZnO architecture combining the SPR effect and hierarchically ordered structures, which results in high photocatalytic activity for formaldehyde photodegradation.     

Fe3O4 – Glutathione stabilized Ag nanoparticles: A new magnetically separable robust and facile catalyst for aqueous phase reduction of nitroarenes

The heterostructured Ag nanoparticles decorated Fe₃O₄ Glutathione (Fe₃O₄‐Glu‐Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by sonicating glutathione (Glu) with magnetite and further surface immobilization of silver NPs on it. The ensuing magnetic nano catalyst is well characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), powder X‐ray diffraction (PXRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The prepared Fe₃O₄‐Glu‐Ag nanoparticles have proved to be an efficient and recyclable nanocatalyst with low catalyst loading for the reduction of nitroarenes and heteronitroarenes to respective amines in the presence of NaBH₄ using water as a green solvent which could be easily separated at the end of a reaction using an external magnet and can be recycled up to 5 runs without any significant loss in catalytic activity. Gram scale study for the reduction of 4‐NP has also being carried out successfully and it has been observed that this method can serve as an efficient protocol for reduction of nitroarenes on industrial level.     

Through-Space Spin Coupling in a Silver(II) Porphyrin Dimer upon Stepwise Oxidations: AgII⋅⋅⋅AgII,AgII⋅⋅⋅AgIII,and AgIII⋅⋅⋅AgIII Metallophilic Interactions

Metallophilic interactions between closed-shell metal ions are becoming a popular tool for a variety of applications related to high-end materials. Heavier d⁸ transition-metal ions are also considered to have a closed shell and can be involved in such interactions. There is no systematic investigation so far to estimate the structure and energy characteristics of metallophilic interactions in Ag^II/Ag^II (d⁹/d⁹), Ag^III/Ag^III (d⁸/d⁸), and mixed-valent Ag^II/Ag^III (d⁹/d⁸) complexes, which have been demonstrated in the present study. Both interporphyrinic and intermetallic interactions were investigated on stepwise oxidation by using a rigid ethene-bridged cis silver(II) porphyrin dimer and the results compared with those for highly flexible ethane-bridged analogues. By controlling the nature of chemical oxidants and their stoichiometry, both 1e and 2e oxidations were done stepwise to generate Ag^II/Ag^III mixed-valent and Ag^III/Ag^III porphyrin dimers, respectively. Unlike all other ethene-bridged metalloporphyrin dimers reported earlier, in which 2e oxidation stabilizes only the trans form, such an oxidation of silver(II) porphyrin dimer stabilizes only the cis form because of the metallophilic interaction. Besides silver(II) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(II) interactions in cis silver(II) porphyrin dimer, stepwise oxidations also enabled us to achieve various hitherto-unknown silver(II) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(III) and silver(III) ⋅⋅⋅ silver(III) interactions, which thereby allow significant modulation of their structure and properties. The strength of Ag ⋅⋅⋅ Ag interaction follows the order Ag^II/Ag^II (d⁹/d⁹)<Ag^II/Ag^III (d⁹/d⁸)<Ag^III/Ag^III (d⁸/d⁸). Single-crystal XRD, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ¹H NMR and EPR spectroscopy, and variable-temperature magnetic investigations revealed various oxidation states of silver and metallophilic interactions, which are also well supported by computational analysis.