Dark Energy with Phantom Crossing and the H0 Tension

We investigate the possibility of phantom crossing in the dark energy sector and the solution for the Hubble tension between early and late universe observations. We use robust combinations of different cosmological observations, namely the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), local measurement of Hubble constant (H0), Baryon Acoustic Oscillation (BAO) and SnIa for this purpose. For a combination of CMB+BAO data that is related to early universe physics, phantom crossing in the dark energy sector was confirmed at a 95% confidence level and we obtained the constraint H0=71.0−3.8+2.9 km/s/Mpc at a 68% confidence level, which is in perfect agreement with the local measurement by Riess et al. We show that constraints from different combinations of data are consistent with each other and all of them are consistent with phantom crossing in the dark energy sector. For the combination of all data considered, we obtained the constraint H0=70.25±0.78 km/s/Mpc at a 68% confidence level and the phantom crossing happening at the scale factor am=0.851−0.031+0.048 at a 68% confidence level.     

密度泛函理论方法研究填料表面对聚合物摩擦化学的影响

采用超声分散法制备出氧化铝、高岭土、氧化硅/聚四氟乙烯复合材料, 使用线性往复摩擦磨损试验机对比三种复合材料的摩擦学性能. 结果表明 质量分数10%的氧化铝、高岭土能将聚四氟乙烯的磨损率降低约4个数量级, 而氧化硅仅能降低约3个数量级. 对金属对偶表面形成的转移膜的形貌和化学成分进行分析发现 氧化铝、高岭土/聚四氟乙烯在金属对偶面上形成了高度羧酸盐化的转移膜. 用密度泛函理论对三种填料表面上碳氟分子吸附过程进行模拟, 结果显示氧化铝、高岭土表面的路易斯酸性位点促进了碳氟分子的脱氟过程, 产生了更多的羧酸螯合物的中间产物; 氧化硅缺少路易斯酸性位点, 因此不能促进高度羧酸盐化的转移膜形成.     

Controlling thermomechanical behavior of semicrystalline hydrogenated polynorbornene through the cis- to trans-cyclopentylene ratio

Though polynorbornene synthesized by ring-opening metathesis polymerization has an intrinsically all-cis configuration of the cyclopentylene backbone rings, a fraction of these rings can be epimerized to the trans configuration during hydrogenation over suitable catalysts. By varying the method of hydrogenation, semicrystalline hydrogenated polynorbornenes (hPNs) with trans levels between 0 and 36% were obtained. With increasing trans content, the glass transition temperature, melting point, and enthalpy of melting decrease modestly. By contrast, the temperature at which the hPN crystal transitions into a rotationally disordered polymorph varies strongly with trans content, ranging from 126 °C (all-cis) to 71 °C at 27% trans; at trans contents of 34% and above, no rotationally-ordered phase is observed at any temperature. The room-temperature Young's modulus shows no dependence on trans content, while the yield stress drops by 20% at 1% trans content and slowly decreases further with additional epimerization. The temperature dependence of the Young's modulus differs for trans-containing versus all-cis polymers, while the temperature dependence of the yield stress is set by the polymorph type (rotationally ordered vs. disordered).     

Spectroscopic properties and bond dissociation energies of PbX,PbX±, PbX2 and PbX2± (X ​= ​F,Cl, Br,I)

Ab initio calculations have been performed to investigate some of the spectroscopic properties, like geometry, frequency, electron affinity, ionization potential and finally adiabatic bond dissociation energies (BDEs) of lead monohalides, lead dihalides and their ions viz. PbX, PbX^±, PbX₂, $\mathrm{P}\mathrm{b}{\mathrm{X}}_{\mathrm{2}}^{\pm }$ (X ?= ?F, Cl, Br, I) in their ground state at the QCISD(T)//MP2 level of theory using correlation consistent basis sets. For the validation of MP2 optimized geometry and frequency, we further obtained geometry and frequency of all the neutral and ionic systems using QCISD(T) method with the same basis sets. The BDEs of PbX₂ molecules are calculated using the BDEs of $\mathrm{P}\mathrm{b}{\mathrm{X}}_{\mathrm{2}}^{\pm }$ ions and taking ionization potential and electron affinity of various systems. The calculated values are found in good agreement with the available data. Most of the data for ionic systems are reported first time in literature.     

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.     

Lanthanide SMMs Based on Belt Macrocycles: Recent Advances and General Trends

Enhancement of axial magnetic anisotropy is the central objective to push forward the performance of Single-Molecule Magnet (SMM) complexes. In the case of mononuclear lanthanide complexes, the chemical environment around the paramagnetic ion must be tuned to place strongly interacting ligands along either the axial positions or the equatorial plane, depending on the oblate or prolate preference of the selected lanthanide. One classical strategy to achieve a precise chemical environment for a metal centre is using highly structured, chelating ligands. A natural approach for axial-equatorial control is the employment of macrocycles acting in a belt conformation, providing the equatorial coordination environment, and leaving room for axial ligands. In this review, we present a survey of SMMs based on the macrocycle belt motif. Literature systems are divided in three families (crown ether, Schiff-base and metallacrown) and their general properties in terms of structural stability and SMM performance are briefly discussed.     

Processing of lignocellulosic polymer wastes using microwave irradiation

Lignin and mixed lignocellulosic natural polymer wastes have been accumulated in landfills over the past hundred years. These wastes should be processed to produce added- value chemicals and materials. This mini-review presents a brief literature survey related to state-of-the-art methods developed recently by the world research community to solve the problem of rational conversion of lignocellulosic polymer wastes, including production of hydrogen, synthesis gas, phenols, and monomers. The focus is made on microwave and plasma technologies used for lignocellulosic wastes processing.