Preparing L‐α‐Glycerophosphocholine in a Phase‐Transfer Catalytic Reaction: Kinetic Study

The transesterification of phosphatidylcholine with methanol was successfully carried out using a promising solvent methyl tert‐butyl ether instead of traditional ether, and the reaction was dramatically enhanced in the presence of tetrabutylammonium hydroxide as the phase‐transfer catalyst. Kinetics of the reaction including the effects of the reaction conditions on the conversion of phosphatidylcholine and the apparent rate constant (k_app) were investigated in detail. On the basis of the experimental evidence, the transesterification mechanism was proposed and a kinetic model was developed, and the experimental data were well described by the pseudo–first‐order equation.     

Incremental Tuning Up of Fluorous Phenazine Acceptors

In a simple, one‐step direct trifluoromethylation of phenazine with CF₃I we prepared and characterized nine (poly)trifluoromethyl derivatives with up to six CF₃ groups. The electrochemical reduction potentials and gas‐phase electron affinities show a direct, strict linear relation to the number of CF₃ groups, with phenazine(CF₃)₆ reaching a record‐high electron affinity of 3.24 eV among perfluoroalkylated polyaromatics.     

In Situ Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(aryleneethynylene)‐Grafted Reduced Graphene Oxide

Using highly soluble bromo‐functionalized reduced graphene oxide (RGBr) as a key graphene template for surface‐directing Sonogashira–Hagihara polymerization, a novel soluble poly(arylene‐ethynylene)‐grafted reduced graphene oxide, hereafter abbreviated as PAE‐g‐RGO, was prepared in situ. The entirely different electron distribution of LUMO and HOMO of PAE‐g‐RGO suggested the existence of a charge‐transfer (CT) state (PAE^.?–RGO^.+). The negative ΔG_CS value (?2.57 eV) indicates that the occurrence of the charge separation via ¹RGO* in o‐DCB is exothermic and favorable. Upon irradiation with 365 nm light, the light‐induced electron paramagnetic resonance (LEPR) spectrum of PAE‐g‐RGO showed a decrease in the spin‐state density owing to photoinduced intramolecular electron transfer events in this system. A sandwich‐type Al/PAE‐g‐RGO/ITO device showed representative bistable electrical switching behavior. The nonvolatile memory performance was attributed to the CT‐induced conductance changes, which was supported by molecular computation results and conductive atomic force microscopy (C‐AFM) images.     

Proton transfer-assisted host–guest complexation between a difunctional pillar[5]arene and amine-based guests

Proton transfer from a difunctional pillar[5]arene containing two carboxylic acid moieties to amine-based guests occurs in the host–guest complexation. The binding affinities are enhanced effectively due to the existence of electrostatic interactions.     

A filter method for nonlinear semidefinite programming with global convergence

In this study, a new filter algorithm is presented for solving the nonlinear semidefinite programming. This algorithm is inspired by the classical sequential quadratic programming method. Unlike the traditional filter methods, the sufficient descent is ensured by changing the step size instead of the trust region radius. Under some suitable conditions, the global convergence is obtained. In the end, some numerical experiments are given to show that the algorithm is effective.     

Stimuli-triggered phase transfer of polymer-inorganic hybrid hairy particles between two immiscible liquid phases

Polymer brush-grafted particles (i.e., hairy particles) capable of undergoing direct, especially reversible, phase transfer from one liquid phase to another immiscible liquid phase in response to environmental changes have received growing interest due to their great potential in a wide variety of applications. This article is intended to review recent exciting advances in stimuli-triggered phase transfer of hairy particles in liquid-liquid biphasic systems. We start with a discussion of the mechanism of particle transfer across a liquid-liquid interface and progress to the synthesis of polymer brushes grafted on particles and the transfer of hairy particles between two immiscible liquid phases induced by various external stimuli, including temperature, pH, ionic strength, light, and solvents. The applications of thermally triggered phase transfer of hairy particles in catalysis (thermoregulated phase transfer catalysis) are discussed, followed by a summary and our perspective on future development. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2014 , 52, 1600–1619