Monitoring the Thiol/Thiophenol Molecule-Modulated Plasmon-Mediated Silver Oxidation with Dark-Field Optical Microscopy

Surface plasmon can trigger or accelerate many photochemical reactions, especially useful in energy and environmental industries. Recently, molecular adsorption has proven effective in modulating plasmon-mediated photochemistry, however the realized chemical reactions are limited and the underlying mechanism is still unclear. Herein, by using in situ dark-field optical microscopy, the plasmon-mediated oxidative etching of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), a typical hot-hole-driven reaction, is monitored continuously and quantitatively. The presence of thiol or thiophenol molecules is found essential in the silver oxidation. In addition, the rate of silver oxidation is modulated by the choice of different thiol or thiophenol molecules. Compared with the molecules having electron donating groups, the ones having electron accepting groups accelerate the silver oxidation dramatically. The thiol/thiophenol modulation is attributed to the modulation of the charge separation between the Ag NPs and the adsorbed thiol or thiophenol molecules. This work demonstrates the great potential of molecular adsorption in modulating the plasmon-mediated photochemistry, which will pave a new way for developing highly efficient plasmonic photocatalysts.     

Developing Flexible Quinacridone-Derivatives-Based Photothermal Evaporaters for Solar Steam and Thermoelectric Power Generation

Solar-driven interfacial vaporization by localizing solar-thermal energy conversion to the air−water interface has attracted tremendous attention. In the process of converting solar energy into heat energy, photothermal materials play an essential role. Herein, a flexible solar-thermal material di-cyan substituted 5,12-dibutylquinacridone (DCN−4CQA)@Paper was developed by coating photothermal quinacridone derivatives on the cellulose paper. The DCN−4CQA@Paper combines desired chemical and physical properties, broadband light-absorbing, and shape-conforming abilities that render efficient photothermic vaporization. Notably, synergetic coupling of solar-steam and solar-electricity technologies by integrating DCN−4CQA@Paper and the thermoelectric devices is realized without trade-offs, highlighting the practical consideration toward more impactful solar heat exploitation. Such solar distillation and low-grade heat-to-electricity generation functions can provide potential opportunities for fresh water and electricity supply in off-grid or remote areas.     

Biomass-derived dibasic acids to diesters with inorganic ligand-supported catalyst: synthesis,optimization, characterization

Research on Chemical Intermediates - Several attempts have been made to obtain aliphatic dicarboxylic diesters from esterification reaction to develop the biomass-derived platform molecules and...     

Elucidating the Nature of the External Acid Sites of ZSM-5 Zeolites Using NMR Probe Molecules

The identification of acid and nonacid species at the external surface of zeolites remains a major challenge, in contrast to the extensively-studied internal acid sites. Here, it is shown that the synthesis of zeolite ZSM-5 samples with distinct particle sizes, combined with solid-state NMR and computational studies of trimethylphosphine oxide (TMPO) adsorption, provides insight into the chemical species on the external surface of the zeolite crystals. ¹H–³¹P HETCOR NMR spectra of TMPO-loaded zeolites exhibit a broad correlation peak at δ_P ∼35–55 ppm and δ_H ∼5–12 ppm assigned to external SiOH species. Pore-mouth Brønsted acid sites exhibit ³¹P and ¹H NMR resonances and adsorption energies close to those reported for internal acid sites interacting with TMPO. The presence of an external tricoordinate Al-Lewis site interacting strongly with TMPO is suggested, resulting in ³¹P resonances that overlap with the peaks usually ascribed to the interaction of TMPO with Brønsted sites.     

Functional Groups Assisted Tunable Dielectric Permittivity of Guest-Free Zn-Based Coordination Polymers for Gate Dielectrics

The dielectric properties of coordination polymers has been a topic of recent interest, but the role of different functional groups on the dielectric properties of these polymers has not yet been fully addressed. Herein, the effects of electron-donating (R=NH₂) and electron-withdrawing (R=NO₂) groups on the dielectric behavior of such materials were investigated for two thermally stable and guest-free Zn-based coordination polymers, [Zn(L₁)(L₂)]_n ( 1 ) and [Zn(L₁)(L₃)]_n ( 2 ) [L₁=2-(2-pyridyl) benzimidazole (Pbim), L₂=5-aminoisophthalate (Aip), and L₃=5-nitroisophthalate (Nip)]. The results of dielectric studies of 1 revealed that it possesses a high dielectric constant (κ=65.5 at 1 kHz), while compound 2 displayed an even higher dielectric constant (κ=110.3 at 1 kHz). The electron donating and withdrawing effects of the NH₂ and NO₂ substituents induce changes in the polarity of the polymers, which is due to the inductive effect from the aryl ring for both NO₂ and NH₂. Theoretical results from density functional theory (DFT) calculations, which also support the experimental findings, show that both compounds have a distinct electronic behavior with diverse wide bandgaps. The significance of the current work is to provide information about the structure-dielectric property relationships. So, this study promises to pave the way for further research on the effects of different functional groups on coordination polymers on their dielectric properties.     

Stable Heterometallic Cluster‐Based Organic Framework Catalysts for Artificial Photosynthesis

A series of stable heterometallic Fe₂M cluster‐based MOFs ( NNU‐31‐M , M=Co, Ni, Zn) photocatalysts are presented. They can achieve the overall conversion of CO₂ and H₂O into HCOOH and O₂ without the assistance of additional sacrificial agent and photosensitizer. The heterometallic cluster units and photosensitive ligands excited by visible light generate separated electrons and holes. Then, low‐valent metal M accepts electrons to reduce CO₂, and high‐valent Fe uses holes to oxidize H₂O. This is the first MOF photocatalyst system to finish artificial photosynthetic full reaction. It is noted that NNU‐31‐Zn exhibits the highest HCOOH yield of 26.3 μmol g^?1 h^?1 (selectivity of ca. 100 %). Furthermore, the DFT calculations based on crystal structures demonstrate the photocatalytic reaction mechanism. This work proposes a new strategy for how to design crystalline photocatalyst to realize artificial photosynthetic overall reaction.     

Top-down synthesis of polyoxometalate-like sub-nanometer molybdenum-oxo clusters as high-performance electrocatalysts

The top-down fabrication of catalytically active molecular metal oxide anions, or polyoxometalates, is virtually unexplored, although these materials offer unique possibilities, for catalysis, energy conversion and storage. Here, we report a novel top-down route, which enables the scalable synthesis and deposition of sub-nanometer molybdenum-oxo clusters on electrically conductive mesoporous carbon. The new approach uses a unique redox-cycling process to convert crystalline Mo^IVO₂ particles into sub-nanometer molecular molybdenum-oxo clusters with a nuclearity of ∼1–20. The resulting molybdenum-oxo cluster/carbon composite shows outstanding, stable electrocatalytic performance for the oxygen reduction reaction with catalyst characteristics comparable to those of commercial Pt/C. This new material design could give access to a new class of highly reactive polyoxometalate-like metal oxo clusters as high-performance, earth abundant (electro-)catalysts.

The top-down synthesis and deposition of polyoxometalate-like clusters on porous carbon is reported together with the high electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reactivity of the composite.     

白光LED用近紫外光激发的蓝绿色荧光粉Sr5(PO4)3F∶Eu2+的光谱性能及助熔剂的影响

本文采用还原氛下的高温固相法合成了荧光粉Sr5(PO4)3F∶ Eu2+并对其性能进行了表征,同时研究了助熔剂硼酸对该荧光粉的影响.结果 表明:在1200℃还原氛下制得的荧光粉Sr5(PO4)3F∶ Eu2+,激发峰位于418 nm,发射峰位于524 nm,是能与近紫外光LED相匹配的蓝绿色荧光粉.Eu2的最佳掺杂浓度为15mo1;,对应的色坐标为(0.2871,0.4036).添加助熔剂H3BO3可以使荧光粉Sr5(PO4)3F∶Eu2+的合成温度由1200℃降低到1100℃,最佳掺杂浓度为5wt;,同时可以增加荧光粉的发光强度.     

Three-dimensional mixed convection flow with variable thermal conductivity and frictional heating

In this article,three-dimensional mixed convection flow over an exponentially stretching sheet is investigated.Energy equation is modelled in the presence of viscous dissipation and variable thermal conductivity.Temperature of the sheet is varying exponentially and is chosen in a form that facilitates the similarity transformations to obtain self-similar equations.Resulting nonlinear ordinary differential equations are solved numerically employing the Runge-Kutta shooting method.In order to check the accuracy of the method,these equations are also solved using bvp4c built-in routine in Matlab.Both solutions are in excellent agreement.The effects of physical parameters on the dimensionless velocity field and temperature are demonstrated through various graphs.The novelty of this analysis is the self-similar solution of the threedimensional boundary layer flow in the presence of mixed convection,viscous dissipation and variable thermal conductivity.     

单颗粒稀土纳米晶的三基色上转换发光

可调谐发光颜色的上转换荧光纳米粒子具有广阔的应用前景。本文设计并成功合成了结构紧凑的多层核-壳纳米颗粒。在不同波段激光的泵浦下,该颗粒中不同壳层分别产生红、绿、蓝3种颜色的上转换荧光。光谱测试结果表明,样品三基色发光的颜色纯度较好,并且可以实现全色域的颜色实时调节。此外,还测试了样品发光强度与泵浦功率之间的依赖关系,用于研究其中的上转换发光机理。这种在单颗粒水平上具有全色域可调发光的紧凑核-壳结构纳米晶体在多通道生物检测及成像、超高分辨率显示器件、高端防伪应用等领域显示出巨大的潜力。