Nile Red and Nile Blue: Applications and Syntheses of Structural Analogues

Nile red and Nile blue are highly fluorescent and photostable organic dyes from the benzo[a]phenoxazine family. They have been used as histological stains for imaging lysosomes and lipids in vitro. The dyes’ high quantum yields and solvent‐dependent optical properties make them ideal scaffolds for the development of pH probes and local polarity indicators. Reviews of the literature in this area are scarce with only one review ever published in 2006. It has been 10 years since and the field has evolved. This review aims to expand upon topics covered by the previous reviewers and to report on recent advances in the literature. As authors, we hope to convey a sense of scope and to spark renewed interest in this useful niche of dye chemistry.     

From Molecular Conformation to Phospholipid Bilayer Organization

Abstract

The structure and the dynamics of D-erythrostearoyl sphingomyelin has been studied by the variable temperature wide-line ³¹P and high-resolution ¹C CP MAS NMR apectroscopy. The results indicate the formation of the highly ordered, relaxed gelphase, and are interpreted based on the conformation of D-erytgrosphingomylin in the unaggregated state.     

A simple and an efficient strategy to synthesize multi-component nanocomposites for biosensor applications

We demonstrate that core–shell multi-component nanocomposites can be grown in situ at room temperature by a novel one-step approach without adding any reductant and stabilizer. We have presented a one-step method for the synthesis of multi-component nanocomposites in water solution, the multi-component nanocomposites could be produced directly and quickly in an in situ wet-chemical reaction. Here, Au–polypyrrole (PPy)/Prussian blue (PB) nanocomposites have been synthesized successfully under the same circumstance. With the addition of pyrrole monomers into mixture solutions, the autopolymerization of pyrrole into PPy and AuCl₄⁻ was reduced to elemental Au instantaneously as well as simultaneously. At the same time, PB produced along with elemental Au serving as a catalyst. Furthermore, we investigated the performance of Au–PPy/PB nanocomposites as amperometric sensor toward the reduction of H₂O₂, which displayed high sensitivity, fast response and good stability. The peak current of H₂O₂ increased linearly with the concentration of H₂O₂ in the range from 2.5 × 10⁻⁹ to 1.2 × 10⁻⁶ M, and the low detection limit of 8.3 × 10⁻¹⁰ M (S/N = 3) was obtained. Therefore, this work provides a new pathway to design and fabricate novel multi-component nanocomposites, which have unique characteristics and hold great applications in the fields of sensors, electrocatalysis and others.     

Flow Injection Spectrophotometric Determination of N-Acetylcysteine and Captopril Employing Prussian Blue Generation Reaction

A novel flow injection procedure to determine N-acetylcysteine and captopril in pharmaceutical formulations is proposed. The flow procedure developed was based on oxidation of the analytes by Fe(III) in acidic medium and subsequent reaction of the Fe(II) generated with excess hexacyanoferrate(III) to produce soluble Prussian blue (KFe[Fe(CN)₆]) measured at 700 nm. Detection limits of 1.0 × 10^?5 mol L^?1 and 3.0 × 10^?5 mol L^?1 for N-acetylcysteine and captopril, respectively, were found. The sample throughput was 70 h^?1 for both analytes and the results obtained were in agreement at a 95% confidence level with those obtained using reference methods.     

碳纳米管制备蓝光石墨烯量子点及其在柔性有机存储器上的应用

通过化学裁剪法打开碳纳米管获得了粒径一致、性能稳定、具有蓝色荧光的石墨烯量子点。该方法属于化学溶液法，具有成本低廉、工艺简单、条件易控等优势。将该样品与半导体聚合物按一定比例混溶，通过旋涂技术形成基于石墨烯量子点掺杂的聚合物复合薄膜，进而制成柔性存储器。该柔性可弯曲存储器具有低驱动电压、接近10³的ON/OFF 比率、较好的循环次数，较好的重复性和稳定性。该研究结果为柔性有机存储器领域的研究展开了新的方向。     

An Efficient One‐Pot,Four‐Component Synthesis of {[(1H‐1,2,3‐Triazol‐4‐yl)methoxy]phenyl}‐1H‐pyrazolo[1,2‐b]phthalazine‐5,10‐dione Derivatives

The 1‐{[(1H‐1,2,3‐Triazol‐4‐yl)methoxy]phenyl}‐1H‐pyrazolo[1,2‐b]phthalazine‐5,10‐dione derivatives 5 were synthesized by a simple and efficient method, i.e., by the four‐component, one‐pot condensation reaction of phthalohydrazide 4 , a (propargyloxy)benzaldehyde 1 , an active methylene compound 3 (malononitrile or ethyl cyanoacetate), and an azide 2 in the presence of Cu(OAc)₂/sodium L ‐ascorbate as catalyst and 1‐methyl‐1H‐imidazolium trifluoroacetate ([Hmim](CF₃COO)) as an ionic‐liquid medium in good to excellent yields (Scheme 1).     

Theoretical investigation on reverse intersystem crossing from upper triplet to lowest singlet: A “hot exciton” path for blue fluorescent OLEDs

Nowadays, blue fluorescent organic light-emitting diodes (FOLEDs) have attracted considerable attention from both academia and industry. According to spin statistics, electrical excitation results in the formation of ∼25% singlet excitons and ∼75% triplet excitons (signifying ~75% energy loss), which triggered wide-ranging efforts to harvest as many triplet excitons as possible. The materials that can convert triplet excitons into singlet excitons from the high-lying excited triplet states (referred as “hot exciton” channel) to realize high efficiency were reported, which can also efficaciously avoid the accumulation of triplet excitons in T₁ state. In this study, by means of density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT, we have theoretically investigated the electronic and photophysical properties of 16 newly designed molecules with donor-bridge-acceptor framework to search for the blue FOLED materials exploiting the “hot exciton” path. Important properties, such as singlet-triplet energy gaps, absorption and emission parameters, and reverse intersystem crossing rates (k_RISC), of five target molecules were studied. The calculated results demonstrate that thiophene-diphenylamine (k_RISC up to 1.03 × 10⁸ seconds⁻¹) may have promising potential as blue FOLED materials by virtue of the “hot exciton” effect.     

Methylene Blue/Multiwall Carbon Nanotube Modified Electrode for the Amperometric Determination of Hydrogen Peroxide

A novel amperometric sensor based on the incorporation of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) into a poly(methylene blue) (PMB) film immobilized on carbon composite electrodes is described. Cyclic voltammetry indicated that at a surface covered by a MWCNT/PMB layer the cathodic reduction of hydrogen peroxide is facilitated and occurs already at 0.0 V versus SCE. The effect of the order of deposition of PMB and MWCNT, as well as its loading, on electrochemical behaviour was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The influence of the various immobilised platforms on the electrocatalytic performance towards hydrogen peroxide was also examined.     

可见光光催化剂AgNbO3：柠檬酸络合法制备及其性能

以草酸铌铵和硝酸银为反应物,采用柠檬酸络合法成功的制备了钙钛矿型化合物AgNbO3可见光光催化剂,并运用X射线衍射、紫外-可见漫反射、扫描电镜、透射电镜和X射线光电子能谱等手段对催化剂进行了表征。同时以可见光为照射光源,以有机染料亚甲基蓝为模拟探针,考察其光催化性质。结果表明800℃所制备的样品具有最佳的光催化性能,其主要降解途径是以脱甲基的形式进行的,与固相法合成的样品相比,柠檬酸络合法所制备的样品具有较好的光催化性能。     

Insight from adsorption properties of Xylidyl Blue embedded hydrogel for effective removal of uranyl: Experimental and theoretical approaches

Applications of a hybrid material consisting of polyacrylamide (PAA) and Xylidyl Blue (XB) for the removal of uranyl ions from aqueous solutions has been investigated with all details. Adsorption experiments were performed at batch mode and constant temperature. Experimental parameters affecting adsorption process such as pH, initial uranyl concentration, time and temperature were studied on the removal of the uranyl ions. The isotherms assays were carried out with synthetic solutions and adsorption data were evaluated by using Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin–Radushkevich (D–R) isotherm models. Morphological and chemical characterizations of new synthesized material were investigated by UV-VIS-NIR spectroscopy and SEM/EDX techniques and pH_pzc experiments. The results of the kinetic experiments are consistent with pseudo-second-order models and intra-particle diffusion models with a slightly better fit to the latter. Equilibrium was achieved within 3 h. The value of rate constant for adsorption process was calculated as 1.055 mol⁻¹ kg min⁻¹ at 318 K. The calculated thermodynamic parameters (ΔG°, ΔH° and ΔS°) indicated that the adsorption of uranyl ions onto XB@PAA was feasible, spontaneous and endothermic nature under the studied temperature. The developed material has also a potential as a sensor because its color turn from pink to red by adsorption of uranyl ions.