Total Synthesis,Stereochemical Assignment,and Field‐Testing of the Sex Pheromone of the Strepsipteran Xenos peckii

The sex pheromone of the endoparasitoid insect Xenos peckii (Strepsiptera: Xenidae) was recently identified as (7E,11E)‐3,5,9,11‐tetramethyl‐7,11‐tridecadienal. Herein we report the asymmetric synthesis of three candidate stereostructures for this pheromone using a synthetic strategy that relies on an sp³–sp² Suzuki–Miyaura coupling to construct the correctly configured C7‐alkene function. Comparison of ¹H NMR spectra derived from the candidate stereostructures to that of the natural sex pheromone indicated a relative configuration of (3R*,5S*,9R*). Chiral gas chromatographic (GC) analyses of these compounds supported an assignment of (3R,5S,9R) for the natural product. Furthermore, in a 16‐replicate field experiment, traps baited with the synthetic (3R,5S,9R)‐enantiomer alone or in combination with the (3S,5R,9S)‐enantiomer captured 23 and 18 X. peckii males, respectively (mean±SE: 1.4±0.33 and 1.1±0.39), whereas traps baited with the synthetic (3S,5R,9S)‐enantiomer or a solvent control yielded no captures of males. These strong field trapping data, in combination with spectroscopic and chiral GC data, unambiguously demonstrate that (3R,5S,9R,7E,11E)‐3,5,9,11‐tetramethyl‐7,11‐tridecadienal is the X. peckii sex pheromone.     

Zn or O? An Atomic Level Comparison on Antibacterial Activities of Zinc Oxides

For the first time, the influence of different types of atoms (Zn and O) on the antibacterial activities of nanosized ZnO was quantitatively evaluated with the aid of a 3D‐printing‐manufactured evaluation system. Two different outermost atomic layers were manufactured separately by using an ALD (atomic layer deposition) method. Interestingly, we found that each outermost atomic layer exhibited certain differences against gram‐positive or gram‐negative bacterial species. Zinc atoms as outermost layer (ZnO?Zn) showed a more pronounced antibacterial effect towards gram‐negative E. coli (Escherichia coli), whereas oxygen atoms (ZnO?O) showed a stronger antibacterial activity against gram‐positive S. aureus (Staphylococcus aureus). A possible antibacterial mechanism has been comprehensively discussed from different perspectives, including Zn²⁺ concentrations, oxygen vacancies, photocatalytic activities and the DNA structural characteristics of different bacterial species.     

Adaptive integral sliding mode control with payload sway reduction for 4-DOF tower crane systems

Nonlinear Dynamics - An adaptive integral sliding mode control (AISMC) method with payload sway reduction is presented for 4-DOF tower cranes in this paper. The designed controller consists of...     

Spin–Orbit Charge-Transfer Intersystem Crossing (ISC) in Compact Electron Donor–Acceptor Dyads: ISC Mechanism and Application as Novel and Potent Photodynamic Therapy Reagents

Spin–orbit charge-transfer intersystem crossing (SOCT-ISC) is useful for the preparation of heavy atom-free triplet photosensitisers (PSs). Herein, a series of perylene-Bodipy compact electron donor/acceptor dyads showing efficient SOCT-ISC is prepared. The photophysical properties of the dyads were studied with steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopies. Efficient triplet state formation (quantum yield Φ_T=60 %) was observed, with a triplet state lifetime (τ_T=436 μs) much longer than that accessed with the conventional heavy atom effect (τ_T=62 μs). The SOCT-ISC mechanism was unambiguously confirmed by direct excitation of the charge transfer (CT) absorption band by using nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance (TREPR) spectroscopy. The factors affecting the SOCT-ISC efficiency include the geometry, the potential energy surface of the torsion, the spin density for the atoms of the linker, solvent polarity, and the energy matching of the ¹CT/³LE states. Remarkably, these heavy atom-free triplet PSs were demonstrated as a new type of efficient photodynamic therapy (PDT) reagents (phototoxicity, EC₅₀=75 nm ), with a negligible dark toxicity (EC₅₀=78.1 μm ) compared with the conventional heavy atom PSs (dark toxicity, EC₅₀=6.0 μm, light toxicity, EC₅₀=4.0 nm ). This study provides in-depth understanding of the SOCT-ISC, unveils the design principles of triplet PSs based on SOCT-ISC, and underlines their application as a new generation of potent PDT reagents.     

Acridone-Based Host Materials for Green Phosphorescent and Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescent OLEDs with Low-Efficiency Roll-Offs

By linking the carbazole unit to the nitrogen atom of acridone through phenyl or pyridyl, two compounds, named 10-(4-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)phenyl)acridin-9(10H)-one (AC-Ph-Cz) and 10-(5-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)pyridin-2-yl)acridin-9(10H)-one (AC-Py-Cz) were designed and synthesized. These two materials, characterized with highly twisted and rigid structure, good thermal stability, and balanced carrier-transporting properties, were employed as host materials for green phosphorescent and thermally activated delayed fluorescent organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). The carbazole group, despite its small contribution to the highest occupied molecular orbitals (HOMOs) of these two materials, plays an essential role as an intramolecular host in energy delivering and improving the hole transporting ability of these two hosts. The incorporation of the electron-deficient pyridyl group as a linking group slightly improves the electron transporting capability of AC-Py-Cz. The green phosphorescent OLED (PhOLED) based on AC-Py-Cz exhibited excellent device performance with a turn-on voltage of 2.5 V, a maximum power efficiency and an external quantum efficiency (η_ext) of 89.8 lm W⁻¹ and 25.2 %, respectively, benefitting from the better charge-balancing ability of AC-Py-Cz host due to the presence of the pyridyl bridge. More importantly, all the devices based on these two hosts showed low efficiency roll-off at high brightness due to the suppressed non-radiative transition in the emitting layer. In particular, the AC-Py-Cz-hosted green PhOLED exhibited an efficiency roll-off of 1.6 % from the maximum next at a high brightness of 1000 cd m⁻² and a roll-off of 15.9 % at an extremely high brightness of 10000 cd m⁻². This study manifests that acridone-based host materials have great potential in fabricating OLEDs with low efficiency roll-off.     

Discovering the Intrinsic Causes of Dendrite Formation in Zinc Metal Anodes: Lattice Defects and Residual Stress

Developing a highly stable and dendrite-free zinc anode is essential to the commercial application of zinc metal batteries. However, the understanding of zinc dendrites formation mechanism is still insufficient. Herein, for the first time, we discover that the interfacial heterogeneous deposition induced by lattice defects and epitaxial growth limited by residual stress are intrinsic and critical causes for zinc dendrite formation. Therefore, an annealing reconstruction strategy was proposed to eliminate lattice defects and stresses in zinc crystals, which achieve dense epitaxial electrodeposition of zinc anode. The as-prepared annealed zinc anodes exhibit dendrite-free morphology and enhanced electrochemical cycling stability. This work first proves that lattice defects and residual stresses are also very important factors for epitaxial electrodeposition of zinc in addition to crystal orientation, which can provide a new mechanism for future researches on zinc anode modification.     

Robust and Wide Temperature-Range Zinc Metal Batteries with Unique Electrolyte and Substrate Design

Rechargeable zinc metal batteries are promising for large-scale energy storage. However, their practical application is limited by harsh issues such as uncontrollable dendrite growth, low Coulombic efficiency, and poor temperature tolerance. Herein, a unique design strategy using γ-valerolactone-based electrolyte and nanocarbon-coated aluminum substrate was reported to solve the above problems. The electrolyte with extremely low freezing point and high thermal stability enables the symmetric cells with long cycle life over a wide temperature range (−50 °C to 80 °C) due to its ability to regulate zinc nucleation and preferential epitaxial growth. Besides, the nanocarbon-coated aluminum substrate can also promote a higher Coulombic efficiency over a wide temperature range in contrast to the low Coulombic efficiency of copper substrates with significant irreversible alloying reactions because this unique substrate with excellent chemical stabilization can homogenize the interfacial electron/ion distribution. The optimized zinc metal capacitors can operate stably under various temperature conditions (2000 cycles at 30 °C with 66 % depth of discharge and 1200 cycles at 80 °C with 50 % depth of discharge). This unique electrolyte and substrate design strategy achieves a robust zinc metal battery over a wide temperature range.