Surface and Catalytic Properties of K/V Catalysts Coating on Porous Al2O3 Substrate

The morphology of different ratio K/V catalysts supported on porous α‐alumina substrate was investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Changes in the particle size distribution, pore size distribution were analyzed respectively using AFM software. In addition, their catalytic activities and compositions for carbon oxidation were studied by x‐ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and temperature‐programmed reactions (TPR). As a result, with the increase of K concentration, the mean particle size gradually increased and the mean pore size decreased. According to the catalytic activity studies, the catalytic activity of the KVO₃ and K₃V₅O₁₄ phases are more effective than KCl.     

Modification of Surface Forces by Metal Ion Adsorption

Abstract

Sorption of ions may lead to variations in interparticle forces and, thus, changes in the stability of colloidal particles. Chemical interactions between metal ions and colloidal particles modify the molecular structure of the surface, the surface charge, and the electrical potential between colloidal particles. These modifications to the surface and to the electrical double layer due to metal ion sorption are reflected in the interaction force between a particle and another surface, which is measured in this study by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Specifically, AFM is used to investigate the sorption of copper ions from aqueous solutions by silica particles. The influence of metal ion concentration and solution ionic strength on surface forces is studied under transient conditions. Results show that as the metal ion concentration is decreased, charge reversal occurs and a longer period of time is required for the system to reach equilibrium. The ionic strength has no significant effect on sorption kinetics. Furthermore, neither metal concentration nor ionic strength exhibits any effect on sorption equilibria, indicating that for the experimental conditions used in this study, the surface sites of the silica particle are fully occupied by copper ions.     

Anodic stripping voltammetry of antimony at unmodified carbon electrodes

Antimony is an element of significant environmental concern, yet has been neglected relative to other heavy metals in electroanalysis. As such very little research has been reported on the electroanalytical determination of antimony at unmodified carbon electrodes. In this paper we report the electrochemical determination of Sb(III) in HCl solutions using unmodified carbon substrates, with focus on non-classical carbon materials namely edge plane pyrolytic graphite (EPPG), boron doped diamond (BDD) and screen-printed electrodes (SPE). Using differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry, EPPG was found to give a considerably greater response towards antimony than other unmodified carbon electrodes, allowing highly linear ranges in nanomolar concentrations and a detection limit of 3.9?nM in 0.25?M HCl. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the response from EPPG was 100 times greater than for glassy carbon (GC). Unmodified GC gave a comparable response to previous results using the bare substrate, and BDD gave an improved, yet still very high limit of detection of 320?nM compared to previous analysis using an iridium oxide modified BDD electrode. SPEs gave a very poor response to antimony, even at high concentrations, observing no linearity from standard additions, as well as a major interference from the ink intrinsic to the working electrode carbon material. Owing to its superior performance relative to other carbon electrodes, the EPPG electrode was subjected to further analytical testing with antimony. The response of the electrode for a 40?nM concentration of Sb(III) was reproducible with a mean peak current of 1.07?µA and variation of 8.4% (n?=?8). The effect of metals copper, bismuth and arsenic were investigated at the electrode, as they are common interferences for stripping analysis of antimony.     

Evolution of coercivity and its angular dependence in CoFe nanostructures subjected to field cooling

Evolution of coercivity and its angular dependence in CoFe nanostructures subjected to field cooling has been investigated in this work. Spherical CoFe grains with an average diameter of 30 nm were grown on a silicon substrate using electron beam evaporation. Further, the as‐deposited sample was subjected to field cooling. The morphology and topography of the sample before and after field cooling were characterized by atomic force microscopy and SEM. Magnetic force microscopy indicated that there is a good uniformity of magnetization throughout the sample after field cooling. Vibrating sample magnetometer measurements indicate that the coercivity in CoFe nanostructures is dependent on shape of the nanostructures. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Adsorption and Corrosion Inhibition Behavior of Schiff Base-Based Cationic Gemini Surfactant on Mild Steel in Formic Acid

The adsorption and corrosion inhibition behavior of synthesized Schiff base-based cationic gemini surfactant bis[p-(N,N,N-tetradecyldimethylammonium bromide)benzylidene]thiourea (14-S-14) on mild steel in 20% formic acid in the temperature range of 30°C to 60°C was evaluated using weight loss measurements, solvent analysis of iron ions and potentiodynamic polarization measurements. The synthesized inhibitor was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), and thin layer chromatography (TLC). The surface morphology of the corroded mild steel specimen was evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDAX), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Thermodynamic/kinetic parameters were calculated to elaborate the adsorption and corrosion inhibition mechanism of the inhibitor. The inhibition efficiency of the compound was found to vary with inhibitor concentration, immersion time, and temperature. The adsorption of the compound on the steel surface was found to obey Langmuir adsorption isotherm.      

Experimental and Theoretical Studies on Synthesized Compounds as Corrosion Inhibitor for Mild Steel in Hydrochloric Acid Solution

Imidazole derivatives, namely, 1-((1-(piperazinomethyl)-1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)methyl)-2-phenylhydrazine (PBIP), and 1-((1-(morpholinomethyl)-1H-benzoimidazol-2-yl)methyl)-2-phenylhydrazine (MBIP) were synthesized and investigated as inhibitors for mild steel corrosion in 15% HCl solution using weight loss, potentiodynamic polarization, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. It was found that the inhibition efficiency of both the inhibitors increases with increase in concentration of inhibitors and decreases with increase in temperature. The inhibitors, PBIP and MBIP, show corrosion inhibition efficiency of 92.6% and 91.4% at 300 ppm concentration, respectively, at 303 K. Polarization studies showed that both the studied inhibitors were of mixed type in nature. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were performed for surface study of uninhibited and inhibited mild steel samples. The semi-empirical AM1 method was employed for theoretical calculations.     

A structural analysis of ultrathin barrier (In)AlN/GaN heterostructures for GaN-based high-frequency power electronics

Metal–organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) is one of the best growth methods for GaN-based materials as well-known. GaN-based materials with very quality are grown the MOCVD, so we used this growth technique to grow InAlN/GaN and AlN/GaN heterostructures in this study. The structural and surface properties of ultrathin barrier AlN/GaN and InAlN/GaN heterostructures are studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements. Screw, edge, and total dislocation densities for the grown samples have been calculated by using XRD results. The lowest dislocation density is found to be 1.69 × 10⁸ cm⁻² for Sample B with a lattice-matched In_0.17Al_0.83N barrier. The crystal quality of the studied samples is determined using (002) symmetric and (102) asymmetric diffractions of the GaN material. In terms of the surface roughness, although reference sample has a lower value as 0.27 nm of root mean square values (RMS), Sample A with 4-nm AlN barrier layer exhibits the highest rough surface as 1.52 nm of RMS. The structural quality of the studied samples is significantly affected by the barrier layer thickness. The obtained structural properties of the samples are very important for potential applications like high-electron mobility transistors (HEMTs).     

The development of platinum-rhodium alloy coatings on SS304 using a pulse/direct electrodeposition technique and their application to antibacterial activity

The current research focused on the development of Platinum–Rhodium alloy coating (Pt– Rh) on SS304 and its applications in antibacterial studies. Electrodeposition is considered to be one of the most suitable methods because it enhances the therapeutic effects of noble metals (Pt–Rh alloy). The electrodeposited coating is an economical and time-saving alternative to existing coating methods. The newly developed Pt–Rh coating was investigated using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and an atomic force microscope (AFM). Using the agar Petri plate and broth culture method, the antibacterial effect of the platinum-rhodium alloy was investigated against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive bacteria such as Staphylococcus saprophytes, Bacillus Subtilis, and Enterococcus faecalis. The Pt–Rh alloy coated samples obtained by Direct current (DC) and Pulse coating (PC 50% and PC 75%) were examined for antibacterial study. The PC 75% Pt–Rh alloy coating exhibits significant antibacterial activity, demonstrating a maximum zone of inhibition while leaving the rest of the coated samples by DC and PC 50% duty cycles. The study also found that when the concentration of Pt–Rh solution rises from 5 μL to 15 μL, so does the antibacterial activity. The findings of the study showed that electrodeposited platinum-rhodium alloy metal ions may be handy bacteriostatic in the coming years.     

Revealing the Cell Entry Dynamic Mechanism of Single Rabies Virus Particle

The rabies virus is a neurotropic virus that causes fatal diseases in humans and animals. Although studying the interactions between a single rabies virus and the cell membrane is necessary for understanding the pathogenesis, the internalization dynamic mechanism of single rabies virus in living cells remains largely elusive. Here, we utilized a novel force tracing technique based on atomic force microscopy(AFM) to record the process of single viral entry into host cell. We revealed that the force of the rabies virus internalization distributed at (65±25) pN, and the time was identified by two peaks with spacings of (237.2±59.1) and (790.3±134.4) ms with the corresponding speed of 0.12 and 0.04 μm/s, respectively. Our results provide insight into the effects of viral shape during the endocytosis process. This report will be meaningful for understanding the dynamic mechanism of rabies virus early infection.     

“学习提示”模块在新版有机化学教材中的应用

一本好的有机化学教材应该对教师教学和学生自学有很好的辅助和引导作用。如何使学生从浩如烟海的内容中发现重点、难点,并做到有效掌握和融会贯通,是教材编写者需要重点考虑的问题。笔者将教学经验融入到有机化学教材改革实践,在新版教材中加入了原创的“学习提示”板块,用简练、更通俗易懂的语言对一些重要、较难理解的或是容易混淆的知识点进行辅助讲解、串联总结。笔者认为该板块可以起到协助学生理解知识难点、厘清易混淆概念、将关联知识融会贯通以及激发学生科研兴趣等作用。本文用一些实例对这一模块的编写构思、内容和预期成效进行了介绍。