Rapid qualitative profiling and quantitative analysis of Juglandis Mandshuricae Cortex and seven flavonoids by ultra-high performance liquid chromatography–quadrupole/orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry

Juglandis Mandshuricae Cortex is the bark of Juglans mandshurica Maxim., which has been used as a folk medicine plant in China and India. In this study, an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography–quadrupole/orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry method was developed to clarify and quantify the chemical profiling of Juglandis Mandshuricae Cortex rapidly. A total of 113 compounds were characterized. Among them, seven flavonoids were simultaneously quantified in 15 min, including myricetin, myricetrin, taxifolin, kaempferol, quercetin, quercitrin, and naringenin. The method was validated for accuracy, precision, and the limits of detection and quantification. All calibration curves showed a good linear relationship (r > 0.9990) within test ranges. The intra- and inter-day relative standard deviations were less than 2.16%. Accuracy validation showed that the recovery was between 95.6 and 101.3% with relative standard deviation values below 2.85%. The validated method was successfully applied to determine the contents of seven flavones in Juglandis Mandshuricae Cortex from seven sources and the contents of these places were calculated respectively. This method provides a theoretical basis for further developing the medicinal value of Juglandis Mandshuricae Cortex.     

Enhanced thermoelectric performance of PEDOT:PSS films via ionic liquid post-treatment

Thermoelectric(TE)energy harvesting can effectively convert waste heat into electricity,which is a crucial technology to solve energy concerns.As a promising candidate for energy conversion,poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate)(PEDOT:PSS)has gained significant attention owing to its easy doping,high transparency,and solution processability.However,the TE performance of PEDOT:PSS still needs to be further enhanced.Herein,different approaches have been applied for tuning the TE properties:(i)direct dipping PEDOT:PSS thin films in ionic liquid;(ii)post-treatment of the films with concentrated sulfuric acid(H₂SO₄),and then dipping in ionic liquid.Besides,the same bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)amide(TFSI)anion and different cation salts,including 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium(EMIM+)and lithium(Li+),are selected to study the influence of varying cation types on the TE properties of PEDOT:PSS.The Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity of the PEDOT:PSS film treated with H2SO4EMIM:TFSI increase simultaneously,and the resulting maximum power factor is 46.7μW·m^-1·K^-2,which may be attributed to the ionic liquid facilitating the rearrangement of the molecular chain of PEDOT.The work provides a reference for the development of organic films with high TE properties.     

First-principles study of the co-effect of carbon doping and oxygen vacancies in ZnO photocatalyst

Although tuning band structure of optoelectronic semiconductor-based materials by means of doping single defect is an important approach for potential photocatalysis application,C-doping or oxygen vacancy(Vo)as a single defect in ZnO still has limitations for photocatalytic activity.Meanwhile,the influence of co-existence of various defects in ZnO still lacks sufficient studies.Therefore,we investigate the photocatalytic properties of ZnOx C0.0625(x=0.9375,0.875,0.8125),confirming that the co-effect of various defects has a greater enhancement for photocatalytic activity driven by visible-light than the single defect in ZnO.To clarify the underlying mechanism of co-existence of various defects in ZnO,we perform systematically the electronic properties calculations using density functional theory.It is found that the coeffect of C-doping and Vo in ZnO can achieve a more controllable band gap than doping solely in ZnO.Moreover,the impact of the effective masses of ZnO_xC_0.0625(x=0.9375,0.875,0.8125)is also taken into account.In comparison with heavy Vo concentrations,the light Vo concentration(x=0.875)as the optimal component together with C-doping in ZnO,can significantly improve the visible-light absorption and benefit photocatalytic activity.     

阳离子交换皂石黏土在基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱分析中的应用

将一种人工合成的无机聚合物——蒙脱石皂石黏土（smectite，Sm）应用于基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱分析（matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry, MALDI-TOF-MS），以检测糖类化合物。 将传统的有机基质2，4，6-三羟基苯乙酮（trihydroxyacetophenone, THAP）与阳离子交换后的皂石黏土混合制备成新型复合基质，应用于糖类化合物的检测。通过比较不同的制样方法，测定不同分子直径的糖类化合物，发现由于受复合基质晶面间距的限制，只有小分子糖类化合物能进入晶面间隙充分接触有机基质并被离子化，从而实现对小分子糖类化合物的选择性检测。     

On the $$\bar\partial$$ -problem and dressing method for the complex vector modified KdV equation

Theoretical and Mathematical Physics - Starting from a $$5\times 5$$ local matrix $$\bar\partial$$ -problem, we successfully use the $$\bar\partial$$ -dressing method to derive a hierarchy of...     

Study on propagation efficiency and fidelity of subthreshold signal in feed-forward hybrid neural network under electromagnetic radiation

Nonlinear Dynamics - The hybrid neural model provides a computationally effective and biophysics-based neuron behavior model, which maintains its simplicity by incorporating the dynamics...     

Ultrahigh Loading Copper Single Atom Catalyst for Palladium-free Wacker Oxidation

Wacker oxidation is an industry-adopted process to transform olefins into value-added epoxides and carbonyls. However, traditional Wacker oxidation involves the use of homogeneous palladium and copper catalysts for the olefin addition and reductive elimination. Here, we demonstrated an ultrahigh loading Cu single atom catalyst(14% Cu, mass fraction) for the palladium-free Wacker oxidation of 4-vinylanisole into the corresponding ketone with N-methylhydroxylamine hydrochloride as an additive under mild conditions. Mechanistic studies by ¹⁸O and deuterium isotope labelling revealed a hydrogen shift mechanism in this palladium-free process using N-methylhydroxylamine hydrochloride as the oxygen source. The reaction scope can be further extended to Kucherov oxidation. Our study paves the way to replace noble metal catalysts in the traditional homogeneous processes with single atom catalysts.     

A perimeter-based angle measure in Minkowski planes

Measuring angles in the Euclidean plane is a well-known topic, but for general normed planes there exists a variety of different concepts. These can be of a special kind, e.g. also preserving special orthogonality types. But these concepts are no angle measures in the sense of measure theory since they are not additive. This motivates us to define a new angle measure for normed planes that is in fact a measure in the sense of measure theory. Furthermore, we look at related types of rotation and reflection.     

Isolated resonances and nonlinear damping

We analyze isolated resonance curves (IRCs) in single-degree-of-freedom systems possessing nonlinear damping. Through the combination of singularity theory and the averaging method, the onset and merging of IRCs, which coincide to isola and simple bifurcation singularities, respectively, can be analytically predicted. Numerical simulations confirm the accuracy of the analytical developments. Another important finding of this paper is that we unveil a geometrical connection between the topology of the damping force and IRCs. Specifically, we demonstrate that extremas and zeros of the damping force correspond to the appearance and merging of IRCs. Considering a damping force possessing several minima and maxima confirms the general validity of the analytical result. It also evidences a very complex scenario for which different IRCs are created, co-exist and then merge together to form a super IRC which eventually merges with the main resonance peak.     

Parametrix for the localization of the Bergman metric on strictly pseudoconvex domains

We give the parameter version of a localization theorem for the Bergman metric near the boundary points of strictly pseudoconvex domains. The approximation theorem for square integrable holomorphic functions on such domains in the spirit of Graham-Kerzman is proved in the hereby paper, as well.