Chemically modified proton‐conducting membranes based on sulfonated polyimides: Improved water stability and fuel‐cell performance

A series of branched/crosslinked sulfonated polyimide (B/C‐SPI) membranes were prepared and evaluated as proton‐conducting ionomers based on the new concept of in situ crosslinking from sulfonated polyimide (SPI) oligomers and triamine monomers. Chemical branching and crosslinking in SPI oligomers with 1,3,5‐tris(4‐aminophenoxy)benzene as a crosslinker gave the polymer membranes very good water stability and mechanical properties under an accelerated aging treatment in water at 130 °C, despite their high ion‐exchange capacity (2.2–2.6 mequiv g^?1). The resulting polymer electrolytes displayed high proton conductivities of 0.2–0.3 S cm^?1 at 120 °C in water and reasonably high conductivities of 0.02–0.03 S cm^?1 at 50% relative humidity. In a single H₂/O₂ fuel‐cell system at 90 °C, they exhibited high fuel‐cell performances comparable to those of Nafion 112. The B/C‐SPI membranes also displayed good performances in a direct methanol fuel cell with methanol concentrations as high as 50 wt % that were superior to those of Nafion 112. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3751–3762, 2006     

On the pagenumber of trivalent Cayley graphs

Book embedding of graphs is one of the graph layout problem. It is useful for the multiprocessor network layout or the fault-tolerant processor arrays. We show that the trivalent Cayley graphs proposed by Vadapalli and Srimani can be embedded in five pages, and show some additional results on cube-connected cycles.     

Thermochromic and solvatochromic zinc biladienones: dynamic equilibria of a metal complex having a flexible framework sensitive to environment

Dehydration of zinc biladienone was catalyzed by zinc acetate, while the reverse reaction was catalyzed by triethylamine. The transformation can be performed thermally without catalyst, and the ratio of the hydrated form to the dehydrated form depended on the solvents: the dehydrated form is favored in CHCl₃ and CH₂Cl₂, while the hydrated form is favored in hexane, pyridine, and DMF. Kinetic studies on the thermal transformation of zinc biladienone from its hydrated blue form to the dehydrated yellow-brown form were performed in toluene and THF. The rate law was half order with respect to the zinc biladienone concentration in toluene, while first order in THF, leading to a slow transformation in concentrated solution in toluene.     

Novel catalytic asymmetric sulfoxidation in water using the hypervalent iodine reagent iodoxybenzene

A new catalytic asymmetric oxidation of sulfides to sulfoxides in water using the hypervalent iodine(V) reagent iodoxybenzene (PhIO2) has been developed. This methodology is distinctly different from the previously reported use of cyclodextrins or biological catalysts and provides a new route to asymmetric sulfoxidation in water.     

Determination of molecular weight of native proteins by polyacrylamide gradient gel electrophoresis

An improved method for the estimation of molecular weights of native proteins by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, in 9 cm x 9 cm x 0.05 mm 4-20% T fabric reinforced gradient gels, is described. Plotting the logarithm of the relative mobilities of proteins versus gel concentrations produces lines whose slopes are related to molecular weights.     

A novel separation technique of diastereomeric esters of pyridylethanols by extraction: formal total synthesis of PNU-142721, HIV-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitor

The separation of diastereomeric esters derived from (±)-pyridylethanols and 3β-acetoxyetienic acid were achieved by an extraction technique using diethyl ether and aqueous hydrochloric acid. A formal total synthesis of PNU-142721 was effectively carried out to prepare the chiral, non-racemic synthon 1-furo[2,3-c]pyridin-5-yl-ethanol (1) by means of this technique. The structure optimized using MOPAC calculations on each diastereomer suggested the presence of intramolecular CH/π interaction in only the (S)-isomer of the diastereomers.     

Preparation and gas separation properties of zeolite T membrane

Zeolite T membranes were synthesized on tubular porous mullite tubes by hydrothermal synthesis. The membranes selectively permeated carbon dioxide from CO2/CH4 and CO2/N2 mixtures with high separation performances, which were due to combined effects of molecular sieving and competitive adsorption.     

Kinetics and mechanism of the first aquation stage for the [Cr(pic)3]0 and [Cr(pic)2(OH)]2 0 complexes in HClO4 solutions

Aquation of [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ and [Cr(pic)₂(OH)]₂ ⁰ in aqueous HClO₄ solutions leads to formation of the common product – [Cr(pic)₂(H₂O)₂]⁺. The first, reversible stage, the ring opening via Cr—N bond breaking in [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ is followed by the second, rate-determining step – one-end bonded pic ligand liberation. In the case of the [Cr(pic)₂(OH)]₂ ⁰ complex, the first faster stage produces the singly bridged dimer, which undergoes cleavage into the parent monomers in the second, much slower step. The subsequent aquation of [Cr(pic)₂(H₂O)₂]⁺ is extremely slow and leads to [Cr(pic)(H₂O)₄]²⁺ formation, which practically does not undergo further ligand substitution under the conditions applied. Kinetics of the first aquation stage for [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ and of the second step for [Cr(pic)₂(OH)]₂ ⁰ were studied spectrophotometrically in the 0.1–1.0 M HClO₄ range at I = 1.0 M. The observed pseudo-first order rate constant for [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ decreases with [H⁺] increase according to the rate law: k _obs = k ₁ + k _–1 Q ₁/[H⁺], where k ₁ and k _–1 are the rate constants of the forward and the reverse processes in the unprotonated substrate and Q ₁ is the protonation constant of the pyridine nitrogen atom. In the case of the [Cr(pic)₂(OH)]₂ ⁰ complex, the rate for the singly bridged dimer cleavage does not depend on [H⁺]. The activation parameters for the chelate-ring opening in [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ and for the singly bridged dimer cleavage have been determined and discussed. Some kinetic data of the slow, second aquation stage for the [Cr(pic)₃]⁰ complex and of the fast, first aquation stage for the doubly bridged dimer have been studied; for both reactions the rate increases linearly with the increase in [H⁺].