Carbohydrate-based nanostructured catalysts: applications in organic transformations

The requirement of green and sustainable materials to prepare heterogeneous catalysts has intensified for practical reasons over the past few decades. Carbohydrates are possibly the most plentiful and renewable organic materials in nature with inimitable physiochemical properties, plausible low-cost and large-scale production, and sustainability features could be exploited in the generation of nanostructured heterogeneous catalysts. This review article outlines the organic transformations catalyzed by diverse carbohydrate-based nanostructured catalysts in greener and environmentally friendly processes. Selected examples are highlighted for a variety of organic reactions exploiting the proposed catalysts’ reactivity and reusability, and interactions with the intrinsic nature of the applied carbohydrate supports; advantages and speculated challenges of the introduced catalysts are deliberated as well.     

Theoretical study on the mechanism for the excited-state double proton transfer process of an asymmetric Schiff base ligand

Excited-state double proton transfer (ESDPT) in the 1-[(2-hydroxy-3-methoxy-benzylidene)-hydrazonomethyl]-naphthalen-2-ol (HYDRAVH₂) ligand was studied by the density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory method. The analysis of frontier molecular orbitals, infrared spectra, and non-covalent interactions have cross-validated that the asymmetric structure has an influence on the proton transfer, which makes the proton transfer ability of the two hydrogen protons different. The potential energy surfaces in both S₀ and S₁ states were scanned with varying O-H bond lengths. The results of potential energy surface analysis adequately proved that the HYDRAVH₂ can undergo the ESDPT process in the S₁ state and the double proton transfer process is a stepwise proton transfer mechanism. Our work can pave the way towards the design and synthesis of new molecules.     

Current trends in the description of lanthanum strontium manganite oxygen electrode reaction mechanism in a high-temperature solid oxide cell

This review summarizes recent progress in understanding the oxygen reduction and evolution reactions at the lanthanum strontium manganite electrode of a high-temperature solid oxide cell. Information provided here is put into the perspective of the defect chemistry of lanthanum strontium manganite and its impact on the electrode reaction mechanisms itself. After summarizing recent views on the oxygen reduction reaction mechanism, the focus turns to the oxygen evolution reaction, which is significantly less treated in the literature. A combination of the information in the literature on both reactions was the basis for modified reaction mechanism of the oxygen evolution reaction to be proposed under consideration of recent experimental observations and theoretical findings.     

Effect of oxygen on regulation of properties of moderately boron-doped diamond films

Regulation of oxygen on properties of moderately boron-doped diamond films is fully investigated. Results show that, with adding a small amount of oxygen (oxygen-to-carbon ratio < 5.0%), the crystal quality of diamond is improved, and a suppression effect of residual nitrogen is observed. With increasing ratio of O/C from 2.5% to 20.0%, the hole concentration is firstly increased then reduced. This change of hole concentration is also explained. Moreover, the results of Hall effect measurement with temperatures from 300 K to 825 K show that, with adding a small amount of oxygen, boron and oxygen complex structures (especially B₃O and B₄O) are formed and exhibit as shallow donor in diamond, which results in increase of donor concentration. With further increase of ratio of O/C, the inhibitory behaviors of oxygen on boron leads to decrease of acceptor concentration (the optical emission spectroscopy has shown that it is decreased with ratio of O/C more than 10.0%). This work demonstrates that oxygen-doping induced increasement of the crystalline and surface quality could be restored by the co-doping with oxygen. The technique could achieve boron-doped diamond films with both high quality and acceptable hole concentration, which is applicable to electronic level of usage.     

Supramolecular Arrangement and DFT analysis of Zinc(II) Schiff Bases: An Insight towards the Influence of Compartmental Ligands on Binding Interaction with Protein

We report, for the first time, a detailed crystallographic study of the supramolecular arrangement for a set of zinc(II) Schiff base complexes containing the ligand 2,6-bis((E)-((2-(dimethylamino)ethyl)imino)methyl)-4-R-phenol], where R=methyl/tert-butyl/chloro. The supramolecular study acts as a pre-screening tool for selecting the compartmental ligand R of the Schiff base for effective binding with a targeted protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA). The most stable hexagonal arrangement of the complex [Zn − Me] (R=Me) stabilises the ligand with the highest FMO energy gap (ΔE=4.22 eV) and lowest number of conformations during binding with BSA. In contrast, formation of unstable 3D columnar vertebra for [Zn − Cl] (R=Cl) tend to activate the system with lowest FMO gap (3.75 eV) with highest spontaneity factor in molecular docking. Molecular docking analyses reported in terms of 2D LigPlot+ identified site A, a cleft of domains IB, IIIA and IIIB, as the most probable protein binding site of BSA. Arg144, Glu424, Ser428, Ile455 and Lys114 form the most probable interactions irrespective of the type of compartmental ligands R of the Schiff base whereas Arg185, Glu519, His145, Ile522 act as the differentiating residues with ΔG=−7.3 kcal mol⁻¹.     

基于TOPSIS模型的机场网络节点重要度评估

在机场网络中单个机场节点的失效往往会对其他的节点产生影响,特别是关键节点的失效会波及整个网络.准确客观的识别重要节点机场关乎整个机场网络的安全运营.本文分析了机场网络拓扑特性中的度、集聚系数和接近度指标,考虑了机场旅客吞吐量和所在城市人口等交通经济特性指标,使用熵权法确定权重的基础上,应用TOPSIS法构建综合评价体系模型,最后以华东地区机场网络为例进行节点重要度排序.结果表明与单一指标的评估结果相比,该方法更加全面客观的确定不同属性指标的权重,避免了不同指标取值的差异性,使评价更加全面,更符合机场网络实际运营情况.     

Analysis on First-stage Ignition of n-Heptane at Low Temperatures with a Lumped Skeletal Mechanism

Two-stage ignition exists in the low-temperature combustion process of n-heptane and the first-stage ignition also shows a negative temperature coefficient(NTC) phenomenon. To study key reactions and understand chemical principles affecting the first-stage ignition of n-heptane, a lumped skeletal mechanism with 62 species is obtained based on the detailed NUIGMech1.0 mechanism using the directed relation graph method assisted by sensitivity analysis and isomer lumping. The lumped mechanism shows good performance on ignition delay time under wide conditions. The study revealed that the temperature after the first-stage ignition is higher and a larger amount of fuel is consumed at lower initial temperatures. The temperature at the first-stage ignition is relatively insensitive to the initial temperature. Further sensitivity analysis and reaction path analysis carried out based on the lumped mechanism show that the decomposition of RO₂ to produce alkene and HO₂is the most important reaction to inhibit the first-stage ignitions. The chain branching explosion closely related to the first-stage ignition will be terminated when the rate constant for the RO₂ decomposition is larger than that of the isomerization of RO₂ to produce QOOH. The NTC behavior as well as other characteristics of the first-stage ignition can be rationalized from the competition between these two reactions.     

Mechanistic Investigation and Conductance Modulation of a Metal-Molecule-Metal Junction via Extra Acid Addition

One important prerequisite for the fabrication of molecular functional device strongly relies on the understanding the conducting behaviors of the metal-molecule-metal junction that can respond to an external stimulus. The model Lewis basic molecule 4,4′-(pyridine-3,5-diyl)dibenzonitrile (DBP), which can react with Lewis acid and protic acid, was synthesized. Then, the molecular conducting behavior of DBP, DBP-B(C₆F₅)₃, and DBP-TfOH (DBP-B(C₆F₅)₃, and DBP-TfOH were produced by Lewis acid and protonic acid treatment of DBP) was researched and compared. Given that their identical physical paths for DBP, DBP-B(C₆F₅)₃, and DBP-TfOH to sustain charge transport, our results indicate that modifying the molecular electronic structure, even not directly changing the conductive physical backbone, can tune the charge transporting ability by nearly one order of magnitude. Furthermore, the addition of another Lewis base triethylamine (of stronger alkaline than DBP), to Lewis acid-base pair reverts the electrical properties back to that of a single DBP junction, that is constructive to propose a useful but simple strategy for the design and construction of reversible and controllable molecular device based on pyridine derived molecule.     

射频等离子制备石墨烯负载Co3O4催化剂及其析氧性能研究

氢能的引入能有效提升配电网的供电可靠性,而电解水制氢是实现低碳转型的关键技术,开发高效的电解水催化剂势在必行。过渡金属氧化物储量大、催化活性高,是具有广阔应用前景的析氧反应催化剂。本文通过射频等离子体处理制备石墨烯上负载Co₃O₄析氧催化剂,XRD、Raman和XPS测试结果显示,二维结构石墨烯的引入加速表面电子迁移,增大了反应面积。等离子体处理促进了纳米粒子在石墨烯上的负载,利用等离子体刻蚀作用在催化剂表面制造出大量碳结构缺陷和氧空位结构,改善了活性位点分布,有效调控Co₃O₄电子结构,提高析氧催化活性。电化学测试表明,本文中合成的Co₃O₄@rGO在电流密度为50 mA·cm^-2时的过电位为410 mV,动力学反应速率较快,表现出优于商业IrO₂的析氧催化活性。