新型非对称二苯并[b,f][1,5]二氮杂环辛四烯的合成

以两种不同取代的2-氨基二苯甲酮为原料,氯苯为溶剂,BF3-Et2O为脱水剂,通过分子间脱水一步环化缩合制备非对称二苯并[b,f][1,5]二氮杂环辛四烯衍生物。运用HPLC监控反应过程,优化合成工艺,得到最佳反应条件为:等物质的量的两种不同取代2-氨基二苯甲酮和BF3-Et2O,在氯苯中回流反应12 h。化合物4a^4c为新化合物,其结构经1H NMR,13C NMR和MS(ESI)表征。     

Studies on coherent and incoherent spin dynamics that control the magnetic field effect on photogenerated radical pairs

Since 1970s, magnetic field effects (MFEs) on photogenerated radical pairs have been the centre of focus in the field of spin chemistry. The MFE attributes to quantum mechanical interconversion between the singlet and triplet radical pair states and subsequent spin-selective recombination reactions. In this New View article, the author picks up two hot topics studied during the last two decades, which are (i) so-called low field effect (LFE) and (ii) 2J-resonance MFE on fixed distance donor–acceptor linked molecules. In both of the topics, quantum mechanical explanations are given referring to recent reports, and some novel calculations have been carried out for bridging theoretical and experimental data for long-lived radical pairs. For the first topic, time domain calculations of coherent state mixing have been carried out for elucidation of hyperfine (HF) structure dependence of the LFE. For the second topic, Monte Carlo simulations of the torsional motion of polyaromatic linker unit have been carried out for the demonstration of fast decoherence in such rigid molecules. From these considerations, future possibilities of MFE studies on photo-functional materials and biomolecules have been indicated.     

Dynamical Analysis of a New Chaotic Fractional Discrete-Time System and Its Control

This article proposes a new fractional-order discrete-time chaotic system, without equilibria, included two quadratic nonlinearities terms. The dynamics of this system were experimentally investigated via bifurcation diagrams and largest Lyapunov exponent. Besides, some chaotic tests such as the 0–1 test and approximate entropy (ApEn) were included to detect the performance of our numerical results. Furthermore, a valid control method of stabilization is introduced to regulate the proposed system in such a way as to force all its states to adaptively tend toward the equilibrium point at zero. All theoretical findings in this work have been verified numerically using MATLAB software package.     

Controllable Preparation of Plasmonic Gold Nanostars for Enhanced Photothermal and SERS Effects

Gold nanostars(Au NSs) are asymmetric anisotropic nanomaterials with sharp edge structure. As a promising branched nanomaterial, Au NS has excellent plasmonic absorption and scattering properties. In order to tune the plasmonic photothermal and surface-enhanced Raman scattering(SERS) activity of Au NSs to obtain the desired characteristics, the effects of reagents on the local surface plasmon resonance(LSPR) bands of Au NSs were studied and the morphology and size were regulated. Nanoparticles with different sharp edges were synthesized to make their local plasmon resonance mode tunable in the visible and near-infrared region. The effects of the number and sharpness of different tips under the control of AgNO₃ on the photothermal response of Au NSs and the SERS activity and their mechanism were discussed in detail. The results show that as the length of the branch tip becomes longer and the sharpness increases, the plasmonic photothermal effect of Au NSs is strengthened, and the photothermal conversion efficiency is the highest up to 40% when the length of Au NSs is the longest. Au NSs with high SERS activity are used for the Raman detection substrate. Based on this property, the quantitative detection of the pesticide thiram is achieved.     

Inactivation of foodborne pathogens based on synergistic effects of ultrasound and natural compounds during fresh produce washing

Ultrasound has potential to be used for disinfection, and its antimicrobial effectiveness can be enhanced in presence of natural compounds. In this study, we compared the antimicrobial effects of ultrasound at 20 kHz (US 20 kHz) or 1 MHz (US 1 MHz) in combination with carvacrol, citral, cinnamic acid, geraniol, gallic acid, lactic acid, or limonene against E. coli K12 and Listeria innocua at a constant power density in water. Compared to the cumulative effect of the individual treatments, the combined treatment of US 1 MHz and 10 mM citral generated >1.5 log CFU/mL additional inactivation of E. coli K12. Similarly, combined treatments of US 1 MHz and 2 mM carvacrol (30 min), US 20 kHz and 2 mM carvacrol, 10 mM citral, or 5 mM geraniol (15 min) generated >0.5–2.0 log CFU/mL additional inactivation in L. innocua. The synergistic effect of citral, as a presentative compound, and US 20 kHz treatment was determined to be a result of enhanced dispersion of insoluble citral droplets in combination with physical impact on bacterial membrane structures, whereas the inactivation by US 1 MHz was likely due to generation of oxidative stress within the bacteria. Combined ultrasound and citral treatments improved the bacterial inactivation in simulated wash water in presence of organic matter or during washing of inoculated blueberries but only additive antimicrobial effects were observed. Findings in this study will be useful to enhance fresh produce safety and shelf-life and design other alternative ultrasound based sanitation processes.     

Multifunctional Sulfur-Hyperdoped Silicon Nanoparticles with Engineered Mid-Infrared Sulfur-Impurity and Free-Carrier Absorption

Si nanoparticles (NPs), which are innovative promising light-harvesting components of thin-film solar cells and key-enabling biocompatible theranostic elements of infrared-laser and radiofrequency hyperthermia-based therapies of cancer cells in tumors and metastases, are significantly advanced in their near/mid-infrared band-to-band and free-carrier absorption via donor sulfur-hyperdoping during high-throughput facile femtosecond-laser ablative production in liquid carbon disulfide. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy and Raman microscopy reveal their mixed nanocrystalline/amorphous structure, enabling the extraordinary sulfur content of a few atomic percents and very minor surface oxidation/carbonization characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. A 200-nm thick layer of the nanoparticles exhibits near−mid-infrared absorbance, comparable to that of the initial 380-micron thick n-doped Si wafer (phosphor-dopant concentration ≈10¹⁵ cm⁻³), with the corresponding extinction coefficient for the hyperdoped NPs being 4–7 orders higher over the broadband spectral range of 1–25 micrometers. Such ultimate, but potentially tunable mid-IR structured, multi-band absorption of various sulfur-impurity clusters and smooth free-carrier absorption are break through advances in mid-infrared (mid-IR) laser and radiofrequency (RF) hyperthermia-based therapies, as envisioned in the RF-heating tests, and in fabrication of higher-efficiency thin-film and bulk photovoltaic devices with ultra-broad (UV−mid-IR) spectral response.     

Dinuclear gold (I)-di-N-heterocyclic carbene complexes: syntheses,structure, density functional theory calculation and photoluminescence study

The synthesis and characterizations for a series of dinuclear gold (I)-di-NHC complexes, 1–8 through the trans-metalation method of their respective silver (I)-di-NHC complexes, i–viii are reported (where NHC = N-heterocyclic carbene). The successful complexation of a series of unusual non-symmetrical and symmetrical di-NHC ligands, 3,3'-(ethane-1,2-diyl)-1-alkylbenzimidazolium-1'-butylbenzimidazolium (with alkyl = methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl, hexyl, heptyl, benzyl) with the gold (I) ions are suggested by elemental analysis, Fourier transform-infrared, ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR data. The ¹³C-NMR spectra of 1–8 show a singlet sharp peak in the range of 190.00–192.00 ppm, indicating the presence of a carbene carbon that bonded to the gold (I) ion. From single crystal X-ray diffraction data, the structure of complex 6 with the formula of [di-NHC-Au (I)]₂·2PF₆ is obtained [where NHC = 3,3'-(ethane-1,2-diyl)-1-hexylbenzimidazolium-1'-butylbenzimidazolium]. The photophysical study in solid state of 6 displays an intense photoluminescence with a strong emission maxima, λ_em = 480 nm, upon excitation at 340 nm at room temperature. Interestingly, the emission maximum at 77 K shows a structural character with a strong peak at 410 nm, a medium at 433 nm and a weak at 387 nm, accompanied by a tail band to about 500 nm.     

Controlled synthesis of ZnO nanoparticles from a Zn(II) coordination polymer: Structural characterization,optical properties and photocatalytic activity

A zinc coordination polymer derived from pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylate (PDC), {[Zn₂(PDC)₂]}_n, was successfully prepared via conventional, sonication and microwave-irradiation methods. The composition and characteristics of the obtained coordination polymers (CPs) were investigated by elemental analysis, TGA/DTA, X-ray diffraction and spectroscopic techniques. The so obtained CPs were heat-treated in the air at 600 °C for 2 h to produce ZnO of nanosized particles (NPs). It is of interest to note that the synthesis approach of the precursor greatly affects both the nanoparticle size and the structure of the resulting ZnO NPs. Moreover, the smallest particle size was associated with the sample derived from the ultrasonically prepared precursor. TEM analysis revealed that all samples have sphere-like morphologies. Structural analysis of the prepared ZnO samples was conducted and compared using Rietveld analysis of their PXRD patterns. Optical band gap calculations based on analysis of the UV–vis spectra of ZnO samples using Tauc's power law were achieved. The highest band gap of 3.63 eV was observed for ZnO sample obtained from the ultrasonically prepared precursor. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs for the removal of Eosin Y color was monitored. The highest removal efficiency was recorded for ZnO originated from the ultrasonically synthesized precursor. Enhancement of removal efficiency that reached 98% was attained in only a period of 8 min. Its recycling test showed that it can be reused without structural changes over four cycling experiments.     

Promotion of a quality standard for Porana sinensis Hemsl. based on the efficacy-oriented Effect-Constituent Index

Multicompound determination for the quality control of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) may often be inadequate, since these compounds may not be associated with, or fully represent, the clinical effects of TCM. Moreover, the individual contributions of each constituent to the pharmacological effect are often not considered. In China, Porana sinensis is widely used as a substitute for Erycibe sources to treat joint pain and rheumatoid arthritis. The existing quality control methods for P. sinensis neither consider the individual contributions of various compounds nor control the actual quality associated with different clinical efficacies. In the present study, a novel efficacy-oriented approach, named the effect-constituent index (ECI), was established for P. sinensis. Analyses of the spectrum–effect relationship and components in rat plasma were conducted to systematically and scientifically select quality markers. Quantitative analysis of multicomponents via a single marker method was introduced to enhance the practical application value of the established ECI. The established ECI shows a good ability to distinguish and predict the bioeffect-based quality of P. sinensis. The present study also provides a reference for the establishment and application of ECI as a quality control method for TCMs.     

Optimization of extraction and quantification technique for phenolics content of garlic (Allium sativum): An application for comparative phytochemical evaluation based on cultivar origin

A range of conventional, i.e. maceration, percolation, ultrasonic assisted, Soxhlet and Soxtec extraction (STE), to advanced extraction techniques of accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) was utilized for the first time in order to optimize the extract yield and recovery of phenolics—gallic acid (GA), rutin (RT) and quercetin (QT)—quantified via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography with diode array detector (UHPLC–DAD). The effect of solvents (n-hexane, dichloromethane and methanol) and temperature (60, 80 and 100°C) upon extraction yield, phenolic content and antioxidant activity (DPPH, ABTS and DPPH) was studied, and the method was validated in commercial food samples from Saudi Arabia, China and India. A high extract yield with percentage recovery was observed for STE (1221.10 mg/5 g; 24.42%) and ASE techniques (91.50 mg/1 g; 9.15%) in methanol at 100°C. UHPLC–DAD showed retention times (min) of 0.67, 1.93 and 1.90 for GA, RT and QT, respectively in the shortest runtime of 3 min. The yield for phenolics was higher for STE/ASE (ppm): 15.27/15.29 (GA), 85.24/37.56 (RT) and 52.20/33.40 (QT), respectively. In terms of antioxidant activities, low IC₅₀ values (μg/ml) of 1.09/1.18 (DPPH), 2.11/5.32 (ABTS) and 4.35/7.88 (phenazine methosulfate–nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) were observed for STE and ASE, respectively. Multivariate analysis for STE showed a significant (P = 0.000) correlation for extraction type vs. extract yield and phenolics content; however, there was no significance for antioxidant activities vs. extraction type. ASE showed a positive correlation for solvent vs. extraction yield, phenolics and antioxidant activity; however, there was no correlation for extraction yield and DPPH activity. Principal component analysis for STE showed a major variability (52.02%) for extraction yield and phenolics in PC1 followed by PC2 (38.30%) for antioxidant activities. For ASE, PC1 (48.68%) showed a positive correlation for solvent vs. extraction yield and phenolics while PC2 (33.12%) showed a positive correlation for temperature and antioxidant activities. STE and ASE were the optimized extraction techniques for the garlic food sample while a significant effect of solvent and temperature was observed upon extraction yield, phenolics and antioxidant activity.