Subtle Alignment of Organic Semiconductors at the Donor/Acceptor Heterojunction Facilitates the Photoelectric Conversion Process

Chinese Journal of Polymer Science - The aligned molecular packing structure is vital to the anisotropic charge transport in conjugated polymer and small molecule thin films. However, how this...     

Electrochemically Assisted Cycloaddition of Carbon Dioxide to Styrene Oxide on Copper/Carbon Hybrid Electrodes: Active Species and Reaction Mechanism

A novel electrochemically assisted cycloaddition process is proposed, in which highly efficient coupling of CO₂ with styrene oxide (SO) can be achieved to form styrene carbonate (SC) as a high-value-added product. A series of Cu catalysts with different morphologies and chemical states were fabricated on carbon paper (CP) by using in-situ electrodeposition, and the sample with nano-dendrimer structure was found to exhibit a relatively high activity of 74.8 % SC yield with 92.7 % SO conversion under gentle reaction conditions, thus showing its potential for practical applications. The relatively high electrochemically active surface area and charge transfer ability of dendrimer-like Cu benefited the electrochemical reaction. In particular, the Cu²⁺ species that were formed in situ during the reaction played a vital role in enhancing the activity and selectivity of the proposed Cu/CP hybrid catalyst. Cu²⁺ atoms served as active sites that can not only electrochemically activate CO₂ but also facilitate the ring opening of SO. Mechanistic analysis suggested that the reaction followed electrochemical and liquid-phase heterogeneous paths, which provide a new green and sustainable route for efficient utilization of CO₂ resources for fine chemical electrosynthesis.     

MOFs-derived hierarchical porous carbon confining the monodisperse Ni and defective WOx for efficient and stable hydrogenolysis of cellulose to ethylene glycol

The one-pot catalytic conversion of cellulose into ethylene glycol (EG) is an attractive way of biomass utilization. However, low-cost, efficient, and stable catalysts are the premise and research challenges of industrial application. Herein, the magnetic recyclable W–Ni@C catalyst was synthesized by in-situ pyrolysis of Ni-MOFs impregnated with ammonium metatungstate. Compared with the Ni-W bimetallic catalysts prepared by the impregnation method and the sol–gel method, the W–Ni@C catalyst for cellulose hydrogenolysis reaction can achieve a higher ethylene glycol yield (67.1% vs 43.3% and 42.6%) and 100% of cellulose conversion rate. The uniformly dispersed Ni nanoparticles and abundant defective WO_x were formed in a reductive atmosphere generated in pyrolysis of Ni-MOFs, which was indispensable for the hydrogenolysis of cellulose into EG. Besides, the hierarchical porous carbon derived from organic ligands in Ni-MOFs reduces the mass transfer resistance while confining Ni nanoparticles and WO_x to prevent their leaching, effectively enhancing the stability of the W–Ni@C catalyst. Therefore, the remarkable catalytic performance, the simple and effective recovery method as well as satisfying stability would make W–Ni@C become a promising catalyst for the conversion of cellulose to EG.

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Selective C-alkylation Between Alcohols Catalyzed by N-Heterocyclic Carbene Molybdenum

The first implementation of a molybdenum complex with an easily accessible bis-N-heterocyclic carbene ligand to catalyze β-alkylation of secondary alcohols via borrowing-hydrogen (BH) strategy using alcohols as alkylating agents is reported. Remarkably high activity, excellent selectivity, and broad substrate scope compatibility with advantages of catalyst usage low to 0.5 mol%, a catalytic amount of NaOH as the base, and H₂O as the by-product are demonstrated in this green and step-economical protocol. Mechanistic studies indicate a plausible outer-sphere mechanism in which the alcohol dehydrogenation is the rate-determining step.     

GaN单晶衬底上同质外延界面杂质的研究

氮化镓单晶衬底上的同质外延具有显著的优势,但是二次生长界面上的杂质聚集一直是困扰同质外延广泛应用的难题,特别是对电子器件会带来沟道效应,对激光器应用会影响谐振腔中的光场分布。本文通过金属有机化合物化学气相沉积(MOCVD)生长的原位处理,实现了界面杂质聚集的有效抑制。研究发现,界面上的主要杂质是C、H、O和Si,其中C、H、O可以通过原位热清洗去除;界面Si聚集的问题主要是由衬底外延片保存过程中暴露空气带来的,其次是氮化镓衬底中Si背底浓度,在外延过程中,生长载气对氮化镓单晶衬底不稳定的N面造成刻蚀,释放的杂质元素会对二次生长界面产生影响,本文较系统地阐明了界面杂质的形成机制,并提出了解决方案。     

Molecular Bridging Enables Isolated Iron Atoms on Stereoassembled Carbon Framework To Boost Oxygen Reduction for Zinc-Air Batteries

Realizing the synergy between active site regulation and rational structural engineering is essential in the electrocatalysis community but still challenging. Here, a matrix-confined co-pyrolysis strategy based on molecular bridging is demonstrated to realize highly dispersed Fe atoms on stereoassembled carbon framework. Both polyacrylonitrile matrix and organic linker from metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) provide sufficient N-anchoring sites for the generation of Fe−N₄ moieties. A high Fe loading of 2.9 wt.% is readily achieved based on the scalable approach without post-treatment. Owing to the presence of highly exposed Fe−N−C sites and well-tuned pore structures, isolated Fe atoms on porous carbon nanofiber framework (Fe−SA/NCF) exhibits decent oxygen reduction activity and stability in alkaline conditions via a near four-electron path, demonstrating superior performance as air cathode for zinc-air batteries (ZABs) to commercial Pt/C catalyst.     

Improved Reversible Zinc Storage Achieved in a Constitutionally Crystalline-Stable Mn(VO3)2 Nanobelts Cathode

Rechargeable zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are potential for grid-scale applications owing to their safety, low price, and available sources. The development of ZIBs cathode with high specific capacity, wide operating voltage window and stable cyclability is urgently needed in next-generation commercial batteries. Herein, we report a structurally crystalline-stable Mn(VO₃)₂ nanobelts cathode for ZIBs prepared via a facile hydrothermal method. The as-synthesized Mn(VO₃)₂ exhibited high specific capacity of 350 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 A g⁻¹, and maintained a capacity retention of 92 % after 10,000 cycles at 2 A g⁻¹. It also showed good rate performance and obtained a reversible capacity of up to 200 mAh g⁻¹ after 600 cycles at 0.2 A g⁻¹ under −20 °C. The electrochemical tests suggest that Mn(VO₃)₂ nanobelts impart fast Zn²⁺ ions migration, and the introduction of manganese atoms help make the structures more indestructible, leading to a good rate performance and prolonged cycle lifespan.     

二维胶体玻璃中玻色峰与结构无序度的关联

本文从实验上研究了胶体玻璃在相同面密度下随着体系结构无序程度的增加, 振动态密度和玻色峰的变化规律. 通过调制两种不同粒径的温敏性水凝胶的数量比来改变体系的无序程度. 通过分析无序体系的声子模式得到体系的振动特性. 研究发现, 随着无序度的增加, 态密度在低频区域增强、玻色峰增高、玻色峰的峰值向低频区域移动. 不同无序程度的样品引起玻色峰的低频声子模式都表现出准局域的特点, 且低频准局域声子模式与样品中无序结构存在关联.     

Iron(III)‐Selective Chelation‐Enhanced Fluorescence Sensing for In Vivo Imaging Applications

A “turn‐on” pattern Fe³⁺‐selective fluorescent sensor was synthesized and characterized that showed high fluorescence discrimination of Fe³⁺ over Fe²⁺ and other tested ions. With a 62‐fold fluorescence enhancement towards Fe³⁺, the probe was employed to detect Fe³⁺ in vivo in HeLa cells and Caenorhabditis elegans, and it was also successfully used to elucidate Fe³⁺ enrichment and exchange infected by innexin3 (Inx3) in hemichannel‐closed Sf9 cells.