Efficient low-temperature oxidation of carbon-cluster anions by SO2

Carbon-cluster anions, CN-, are very reactive toward SO2 (sticking probability of 0.012 +/- 0.005 for C27- at 25 degrees C), in contrast to their inertness toward other common atmospheric gases and pollutants. In flow reactor experiments at ambient temperature and near atmospheric pressure, primary adsorption of SO2 by the carbon cluster anions, N = 4-60, yields CNSO2- or CN-1S-. The inferred elimination of neutral CO2 is also detected as meta-stable decay in collision-induced dissociation. At higher temperatures, the reaction of SO2 with nascent carbon clusters yields CN-1SO- as well as undetected CO. The size-dependent initial reactivity reflects the previously established structural transitions (i.e., from chain to cyclic to cage structures). Such carbon clusters are formed in sooting flames and may act as nuclei for the formation of primary soot particles and serve as models for the local structural features of active soot particle sites for black-carbon soot. The facile generation of reactive carbon-sulfide and -sulfinate units may therefore have implications for understanding the health and environmental effects attributed to the coincidence of soot and SO2.     

In situ observations of water production and distribution in an operating H2/O2 PEM fuel cell assembly using 1H NMR microscopy

Proton NMR imaging was used to investigate in situ the distribution of water in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell operating on H2 and O2. In a single experiment, water was monitored in the gas flow channels, the membrane electrode assembly, and in the membrane surrounding the catalysts. Radial gradient diffusion removes water from the catalysts into the surrounding membrane. This research demonstrates the strength of 1H NMR microscopy as an aid for designing fuel cells to optimize water management.     

Fluorescence-dip infrared spectroscopy and predissociation dynamics of OH A 2Sigma+ (v = 4) radicals

Fluorescence-dip infrared spectroscopy, an UV-IR double-resonance technique, is employed to characterize the line positions, linewidths, and corresponding lifetimes of highly predissociative rovibrational levels of the excited A (2)Sigma(+) electronic state of the OH radical. Various lines of the 4 <--2 overtone transition in the excited A (2)Sigma(+) state are observed, from which the rotational, centrifugal distortion, and spin-rotation constants for the A (2)Sigma(+) (v = 4) state are determined, along with the vibrational frequency for the overtone transition. Homogeneous linewidths of 0.23-0.31 cm(-1) full width at half maximum are extracted from the line profiles, demonstrating that the N = 0 to 7 rotational levels of the OH A (2)Sigma(+) (v = 4) state undergo rapid predissociation with lifetimes of < or =23 ps. The experimental linewidths are in near quantitative agreement with first-principles theoretical predictions.     

Modularity of two double covers of $${\pmb {\mathbb {P}}}^5$$ P 5 branched along 12 hyperplanes

The Ramanujan Journal - For two varieties of dimension 5 constructed as double covers of $$\mathbb {P}^5$$ branched along the union of 12 hyperplanes, we prove that the number of points...     

Nanocrystalline iron oxide aerogels as mesoporous magnetic architectures

We have developed crystalline nanoarchitectures of iron oxide that exhibit superparamagnetic behavior while still retaining the desirable bicontinuous pore-solid networks and monolithic nature of an aerogel. Iron oxide aerogels are initially produced in an X-ray-amorphous, high-surface-area form, by adapting recently established sol-gel methods using Fe(III) salts and epoxide-based proton scavengers. Controlled temperature/atmosphere treatments convert the as-prepared iron oxide aerogels into nanocrystalline forms with the inverse spinel structure. As a function of the bathing gas, treatment temperature, and treatment history, these nanocrystalline forms can be reversibly tuned to predominantly exhibit either Fe(3)O(4) (magnetite) or gamma-Fe(2)O(3) (maghemite) phases, as verified by electron microscopy, X-ray and electron diffraction, microprobe Raman spectroscopy, and magnetic analysis. Peak deconvolution of the Raman-active Fe-O bands yields valuable information on the local structure and vacancy content of the various aerogel forms, and facilitates the differentiation of Fe(3)O(4) and gamma-Fe(2)O(3) components, which are difficult to assign using only diffraction methods. These nanocrystalline, magnetic forms retain the inherent characteristics of aerogels, including high surface area (>140 m(2) g(-1)), through-connected porosity concentrated in the mesopore size range (2-50 nm), and nanoscale particle sizes (7-18 nm). On the basis of this synthetic and processing protocol, we produce multifunctional nanostructured materials with effective control of the pore-solid architecture, the nanocrystalline phase, and subsequent magnetic properties.     

Binary collision simulations of ion transmission through silicon single crystal films

Abstract

Computer simulation studies of the energy distribution of transmitted ions such as alpha-particles, He-, and B-ions through crystalline silicon, using the enhanced binary-collision cascade simulator MARLOWE, will be reviewed. The enhancement includes an additional electronic-energy loss (EEL) model which takes into account explicitly both the target electron density variation via the structure factors and the electron density of the projectile. Investigations of the stopping power for He ions and protons in silicon, at intermediate- and high-energies, based on the adapted EEL model and a velocity-dependent effective charge will be presented. The overall agreement between the calculated and experimentally determined stopping power data and the simulated and measured transmission spectra will be demonstrated. Effects of energy-loss straggling, core-electron contribution to the energy loss at high-energies and charge-state effects at low energies on the transmission spectra will also be discussed.     

Multicomponent Organic Metal Halide Hybrid with White Emissions

Zero‐dimensional (0D) organic metal halide hybrids, in which organic and metal halide ions cocrystallize to form neutral species, are a promising platform for the development of multifunctional crystalline materials. Herein we report the design, synthesis, and characterization of a ternary 0D organic metal halide hybrid, (HMTA)₄PbMn_0.69Sn_0.31Br₈, in which the organic cation N‐benzylhexamethylenetetrammonium (HMTA⁺, C₁₃H₁₉N₄⁺) cocrystallizes with PbBr₄^2?, MnBr₄^2?, and SnBr₄^2?. The wide band gap of the organic cation and distinct optical characteristics of the three metal bromide anions enabled the single‐crystalline “host–guest” system to exhibit emissions from multiple “guest” metal halide species simultaneously. The combination of these emissions led to near‐perfect white emission with a photoluminescence quantum efficiency of around 73 %. Owing to distinct excitations of the three metal halide species, warm‐ to cool‐white emissions could be generated by controlling the excitation wavelength.