The Active Sites of a Rod‐Shaped Hollandite DeNOx Catalyst

The identification of catalytically active sites (CASs) in heterogeneous catalysis is of vital importance to design and develop improved catalysts, but remains a great challenge. The CASs have been identified in the low‐temperature selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides by ammonia (SCR) over a hollandite manganese oxide (HMO) catalyst with a rod‐shaped morphology and one‐dimensional tunnels. Electron microscopy and synchrotron X‐ray diffraction determine the surface and crystal structures of the one‐dimensional HMO rods closed by {100} side facets and {001} top facets. A combination of X‐ray absorption spectra, molecular probes with potassium and nitric oxide, and catalytic tests reveals that the CASs are located on the {100} side facets of the HMO rods rather than on the top facets or in the tunnels, and hence semi‐tunnel structural motifs on the {100} facets are evidenced to be the CASs of the SCR reaction. This work paves the way to further investigate the intrinsic mechanisms of SCR reactions.     

Conjugated polymer nanoparticles with aggregation induced emission characteristics for intracellular Fe3+ sensing

In this article, a novel zwitterionic conjugated polyelectrolyte containing tetraphenylethene unit was synthesized via Pd‐catalyzed Sonogashira reaction. The resulting polymer (P2), which exhibited typical aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) properties, was weakly fluorescent in dilute DMSO solution and showed bright fluorescence emissions when aggregated in DMSO/water mixtures or fabricated into conjugated polymer nanoparticles (CPNs). The nanoparticles from P2 could be prepared by reprecipitation method with an average diameter around 23 nm. Notably, the cell‐staining efficiencies of lipid‐P2 nanoparticles could be enhanced with lipid encapsulation and these nanoparticles were endocytosed via caveolae‐mediated and clathrin‐mediated endocytosis pathways. Furthermore, the lipid‐P2 nanoparticles with low cytotoxicity, high photostability and efficient cell staining ability could be employed for in vitro detection of Fe³⁺ ions in A549 cells. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 1686–1693     

Covalently Assembled Dipeptide Nanospheres as Intrinsic Photosensitizers for Efficient Photodynamic Therapy in Vitro

Monodispersed diphenylalanine‐based nanospheres with excellent biocompatibility are fabricated through a facile covalent reaction‐induced assembly. Interestingly, the nanospheres exhibit red autofluorescence. Most importantly, such assembled dipeptide nanospheres can serve as intrinsic photosensitizer to convert O₂ to singlet oxygen (¹O₂). Thus, photodynamic therapy in vitro can be achieved effectively. The versatile strategy could be extended to other biomolecules containing a primary amine group for the fabrication of potential intrinsic photosensitizers.     

A Hexagonal Covalent Porphyrin Framework as an Efficient Support for Gold Nanoparticles toward Catalytic Reduction of 4‐Nitrophenol

A hexagonal porphyrin‐based porous organic polymer, namely, CPF‐1, was constructed by 3+2 ketoenamine condensation of the C₂‐symmetric porphyrin diamine 5,15‐bis(4‐aminophenyl)‐10,20‐diphenylporphyrin and 1,3,5‐triformylphloroglucinol. This material exhibits permanent porosity and excellent thermal and chemical stability. CPF‐1 can be employed as a superior supporting substrate to immobilize Au nanoparticles (NPs) as a result of the strong interactions between Au NPs and the CPF support. An Au@CPF‐1 hybrid was synthesized by an interfacial solution infiltration method with NaBH₄ as reducing agent. Au NPs (5 nm) grew on CPF‐1 and were distributed without aggregation. Moreover, Au@CPF‐1 exhibits superior catalytic activity compared to many other reported Au‐based catalysts for the reduction of 4‐nitrophenol in the presence of NaBH₄. In addition, Au@CPF‐1 has excellent stability and recyclability, and it can be reused for three successive reaction cycles without loss of activity. The dense distribution of phenyl rings on the channel walls of the CPF support can reasonably be regarded as the active sites that adsorb the 4‐nitrophenol molecule through hydrogen‐bonding and C?H ??? π interactions, as was confirmed by the X‐ray structure of model compound DAPP‐Benz.     

m‐Methoxy Substituents in a Tetraphenylethylene‐Based Hole‐Transport Material for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Three tetrapheynlethylene derivatives (N,N‐di(4‐methoxyphenyl)aminophenyl‐substituted tetraphenylethylene; TPE‐4DPA) with different methoxy positions (pp‐, pm‐, and po‐) have been synthesized and characterized. The methoxy groups can control the oxidation potential of the materials, and the electronic properties of the derivatives were affected by the position of the methoxy substituents. These compounds were synthesized in a facile and cost‐effective way, and were applied as hole‐transport materials in perovskite solar cells. The corresponding cell performances were compared with respect to their structure modifications, and it was found that the derivative with m‐OMe substituents showed the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 15.4 %, with a J_sc value of 20.04 mA cm^?2, a V_oc value of 1.07 V, and a fill factor (FF) value of 0.72, which is higher than the p‐OMe and o‐OMe substituents. Moreover, the PCE of pm‐TPE‐4DPA is comparable with that of the state‐of‐the‐art 2,2′,7,7′‐tetrakis(N,N′‐di‐p‐methoxyphenylamine)‐9,9′‐spirobifluorene under identical conditions.