Electron beam coater for reduction of charging in ice-embedded biological specimens using Ti(88)Si(12) alloy.

Biological macromolecules embedded in vitreous ice are known to suffer from charging while being imaged in an electron transmission cryomicroscope. We developed an electron beam coater that deposits conductive films onto the surface of frozen-hydrated specimens. The conductive films help to dissipate charge during electron irradiation of poorly conductive ice-embedded biological samples. We observed significant reduction in charging of ice-embedded catalase crystals suspended over holes in a holey carbon film after coating them with a 30-A-thick layer of an amorphous alloy, Ti(88)Si(12). Images of the crystals after coating showed diffraction spots of up to 3 A resolution.     

An improved cryogen for plunge freezing

The use of an alkane mixture that remains liquid at 77 K to freeze specimens has advantages over the use of a pure alkane that is solid at 77 K. It was found that a mixture of methane and ethane did not give a cooling rate adequate to produce vitreous ice, but a mixture of propane and ethane did result in vitreous ice. Furthermore, the latter mixture produced less damage to specimens mounted on a very thin, fragile holey carbon substrate.     

Polyaniline composites: improving the electrochemical properties by template synthesis

We have been exploring the idea of using the heterogeneous porosity of inorganic (sol-gel silica) and organic (poly(vinylidene fluoride)) films as a template for the preparation of polyaniline composites. The large size pore distribution (~2.5–800 nm) in both template matrices results in a part of the polyaniline growing more ordered than in films synthesized without spatial restriction. Small-angle X-ray scattering and scanning electron microscopy experiments were done to determine the extreme values of the pore diameters. Using other experimental techniques, including cyclic voltammetry, UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy, electrochemical impedance and chronopotentiometry, we concluded that the electrochemical properties of polyaniline, such as oxidation and reduction charges, diffusion coefficient and charge-discharge capacity, are improved in these composites. Electronic Publication     

Effect of black carbon particles on the efficiency of water droplet freezing

Black carbon particles emitted by natural and anthropogenic sources of combustion are potential nuclei of ice formation of cirri in troposphere. The freezing of the ensembles of water microdroplets containing black carbon particles of different origins, including those modified with organic substances, is studied. Ice-forming ability is shown to be predetermined by the density and sizes of black carbon agglomerates, as well as the chemistry and wettability of their surface. Ice formation is most efficient in dispersions of black carbon particles that are stable with respect to sedimentation and have a uniform distribution of particles over the droplet volume. In the presence of oxygen-containing groups on the particle surface, freezing temperature increases. The efficiency of the ice formation decreases in the presence of noticeable amounts of water-soluble substances on the particle surface. The maximum freezing ability is inherent in ensembles of water droplets containing hydrophilic particles. Characteristics ensuring a high ice forming ability of nuclei are determined.     

Depositional ice nucleation on monocarboxylic acids: effect of the O:C ratio

The heterogeneous ice nucleation efficiency of a series of thin C3-C6 monocarboxylic acid films between 180 and 200 K has been investigated using a Knudsen cell flow reactor. At each temperature, the critical ice saturation ratio for depositional nucleation as well as the effective contact angle was found to be strongly dependent on the chemical nature of the film. For the organic acids used in this study, increasing the O:C ratio lowered the supersaturation required for the onset of heterogeneous ice nucleation and decreased the effective angle of contact. This could be the result of an increase in surface hydrophilicity, which allows the film to better adsorb a metastable, icelike layer of water that serves as a template for the new phase of ice. These ice nucleation results are in excellent agreement with ice nucleation on laboratory generated α-pinene secondary organic aerosol as well as on predominantly organic particles collected in Mexico City.     

Exceptional superhydrophobicity and low velocity impact icephobicity of acetone-functionalized carbon nanotube films

We present a simple method to produce carbon nanotube-based films with exceptional superhydrophobicity and impact icephobicity by depositing acetone-treated single-walled carbon nanotubes on glass substrates. This method is scalable and can be adopted for any substrate, both flexible and rigid. These films have indicated a high contact angle, in the vicinity of 170°, proved both by static and dynamic analysis processes. The dynamic evaporation studies indicated that a droplet deposited on the treated films evaporated in the constant contact angle mode for more than 80% of the total evaporation time, which is definitely a characteristic of superhydrophobic surfaces. Furthermore, the acetone-functionalized films showed a strong ability to mitigate ice accretion from supercooled water droplets (-8 °C), when the droplets were found to bounce off the films tilted at 30°. The untreated nanotube films did not indicate similar behavior, and the supercooled water droplets remained attached to the films' surfaces. Such studies could be the foundation of highly versatile technologies for both water and ice mitigation.     

Novel ice structures in carbon nanopores: pressure enhancement effect of confinement

We report experimental results on the structure and melting behavior of ice confined in multi-walled carbon nanotubes and ordered mesoporous carbon CMK-3, which is the carbon replica of a SBA-15 silica template. The silica template has cylindrical mesopores with micropores connecting the walls of neighboring mesopores. The structure of the carbon replica material CMK-3 consists of carbon rods connected by smaller side-branches, with quasi-cylindrical mesopores of average pore size 4.9 nm and micropores of 0.6 nm. Neutron diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry have been used to determine the structure of the confined ice and the solid-liquid transition temperature. The results are compared with the behavior of water in multi-walled carbon nanotubes of inner diameters of 2.4 nm and 4 nm studied by the same methods. For D(2)O in CMK-3 we find evidence of the existence of nanocrystals of cubic ice and ice IX; the diffraction results also suggest the presence of ice VIII, although this is less conclusive. We find evidence of cubic ice in the case of the carbon nanotubes. For bulk water these crystal forms only occur at temperatures below 170 K in the case of cubic ice, and at pressures of hundreds or thousands of MPa in the case of ice VIII and IX. These phases appear to be stabilized by the confinement.     

Selective conversion of methane to aromatic hydrocarbons on large crystallite zeolite catalysts with mesoporous structure

Large crystallite mesoporous MFI (ZSM-5) zeolite was synthesized by using carbon nano-powder as a secondary template. The surface properties, morphological and phase composition of the synthesized material and of the commercial ZSM-5 (Zeolyst) zeolite were studied by nitrogen porosimetry, XRD and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that the volume of mesopores volume increases with development of a secondary mesoporosity in the structure of zeolite. The obtained zeolite supports were used to prepare molybdenum-containing catalysts for the methane aromatization by solid phase preparation technique. Based on the XPS data, molybdenum particles in these catalysts are characterized by more uniform size distribution. The formation of a secondary pore structure restrains the carbon deposit formation as well as increases the methane conversion and the yield of the aromatic compounds.     

Impact of film thickness on the morphology of mesoporous carbon films using organic-organic self-assembly

Mesoporous polymer and carbon thin films are prepared by the organic-organic self-assembly of an oligomeric phenolic resin with an amphiphilic triblock copolymer template, Pluronic F127. The ratio of resin to template is selected such that a body-centered cubic (Im3m) mesostructure is formed in the bulk. However, well-ordered mesoporous films are not always obtained for thin films (<100 nm), and this behavior is found to be directly correlated with the initial phenolic resin to template ratio. Furthermore, the symmetry of ordered phases is highly dependent on the number of layers of spheres in the film: Monolayers and bilayers are characterized by hexagonal close-packed (HCP) symmetry, while films with approximately 5 layers of spheres exhibit a mixture of HCP and face-centered orthorhombic (FCO) structures. Ultrathick films having more than 30 layers of spheres are similar to the bulk body-centered cubic symmetry with a preferential orientation of the closest-packed (110) plane parallel to the substrate. Film thickness and initial composition of the carbonizable precursors in the template are critical factors in determining the morphology of mesoporous carbon films. These results provide insight into why difficulties have been reported in producing ultrathin ordered mesoporous carbon films using cooperative organic-organic self-assembly.     

用于透射电子显微镜表征的单层纳米晶/聚合物复合薄膜的制备

为了提高纳米晶的TEM表征质量, 通过在水/气两相界面上铺展纳米晶/聚合物复合单层膜的方法, 制备了质量较高的TEM样品. 对于水相纳米晶采用表面活性剂再包覆的方法, 将其转移到油相. 与传统制样方法(尤其是水相合成纳米晶)相比, 嵌入聚合物膜中的纳米晶更容易分散(受到空间位阻与分子间弱相互作用等因素的影响), 并且聚合物膜可以自支持在空的铜网上, 从而提高了TEM照片的清晰度. 研究了系统中聚合物、纳米晶、表面活性剂和溶剂的种类及配比关系对于样品和成像质量的影响, 结果表明, 该方法对各种金属及半导体纳米晶的TEM表征具有一定的普适性.     

Recent developments with light-exposure apparatus and measurement of radiation of their light sources

New techniques and devices which were recently developed in order to avoid various drawbacks of current light-exposure apparatus are introduced. The spectral distribution of the open flame carbon arc approximates more closely to that of sunlight by modifications of the filter system.The life of carbon arcs was lengthened more than two fold. The long-life xenon arc lamp minimized the reduction in output of radiation.The slanted holder improved the locational variance of radiation falling on a specimen.The instrumental methods for measuring light dosage are explained.     

双峰孔分布薄壁中孔碳的便捷制备

以廉价的γ-氧化铝为模板制备薄壁中孔碳材料,且可在制备过程中方便地对碳材料的孔结构、微孔率等参数进行调控.以原位聚合的酚醛树脂为碳源取代蔗糖,简化了制备流程.制得的碳材料不仅可以较好地复制氧化铝模板的孔结构,且比表面积比以蔗糖为碳源的样品显著提高.在此基础上,选用模板堆积孔径与模板自身直径差异较大的长棒状氧化铝为模板,成功地以一种模板、经过一次聚合-碳化过程制备出了具有双峰孔分布(PSD)结构的薄壁碳材料,两个峰分别位于4 nm附近的较小中孔区和13 nm附近的较大中孔区.此外,所得碳材料的比表面积(>1800 m2·g-1)和孔容(>4.5 cm3·g-1)均很高,而微孔率却较低,具有优异的中孔特性.将所得碳材料用作电化学电容器的电极,电容可达200 F·g-1,且当电流密度从0.1 A·g-1升至1.0 A·g-1时,比电容仅衰减10%,表现出良好的电容性能.     

Natural nanomaterial as hard template for scalable synthesizing holey carbon naonsheet/nanotube with in-plane and out-of-plane pores for electrochemical energy storage

By tuning the structure of hard template kaolinite, we have achieved a template directed synthesis of holey carbon nanosheet/nanotube material. This carbon nanomaterial with in-plane and out-of-plane pores has shown promising electrochemical energy storage capacity.     

Realization of Walnut‐Shaped Particles with Macro‐/Mesoporous Open Channels through Pore Architecture Manipulation and Their Use in Electrocatalytic Oxygen Reduction

Herein we report a simple dual‐soft‐template approach to prepare walnut‐shaped macro‐/mesoporous polydopamine particles with diameter of ca. 270 nm, highly accessible bicontinuous channels and wide pore size distribution from ca. 20 nm to ca. 95 nm. This approach provides great opportunities to tailor the soft template‐directed assembly processes and generate various polydopamine particles with controllable mesophase curvature. Walnut‐shaped mesoporous carbon particles with large open mesochannels in the range of ca. 13 nm to ca. 50 nm can be fabricated by subsequent thermal treatment under nitrogen atmosphere. Lastly, we demonstrate that the as‐derived walnut‐shaped carbon particles manifest enhanced electrocatalytic performance for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline electrolyte.     

Imaging thin films of nanoporous low-k dielectrics: comparison between ultramicrotomy and focused ion beam preparations for transmission electron microscopy.

Ultramicrotomy, the technique of cutting nanometers-thin slices of material using a diamond knife, was applied to prepare transmission electron microscope (TEM) specimens of nanoporous poly(methylsilsesquioxane) (PMSSQ) thin films. This technique was compared to focused ion beam (FIB) cross-section preparation to address possible artifacts resulting from deformation of nanoporous microstructure during the sample preparation. It was found that ultramicrotomy is a successful TEM specimen preparation method for nanoporous PMSSQ thin films when combined with low-energy ion milling as a final step. A thick, sacrificial carbon coating was identified as a method of reducing defects from the FIB process which included film shrinkage and pore deformation.     

AAO模板法生长碳纳米管阵列及形成机理研究

采用阳极刻蚀法制备得到多孔氧化铝模板(AAO)，通过在二茂铁苯溶液中浸润而后热解的方法，得到内壁附着纳米铁颗粒的AAO模板。用化学气相沉积(CVD)法在AAO模板孔内生长出两端开口的碳纳米管(CNTs)阵列。仅用盐酸浸泡就可除去CNTs表面上的催化剂颗粒，得到高纯的CNTs阵列。高分辨透射电镜(HRTEM)和拉曼图谱(Raman)表明CNTs具有很低的石墨化结构。通过对CNTs形貌和形成过程的剖析，认为AAO模板孔道的导向作用以及模板孔内壁催化剂铁颗粒大小分布不均是形成低石墨化碳纳米管的主要原因。     

Electrochemically controlled release based on nanoporous conducting polymers

An electrochemically controlled drug release system based on nanoporous polypyrrole (PPy) films was developed. Pyrrole and a model drug, fluorescein, were electrochemically copolymerized on glassy carbon (GC) electrodes modified with self-assembled multilayer polystyrene (PS) nanobeads, and PPy films incorporated with fluorescein as dopants were formed among the interstitial spaces of the tightly packed PS nanobead template. After the removal of the PS hard template, nanoporous PPy films incorporated with the drug fluorescein were obtained. Due to the porous morphology and huge surface area, the efficiency of the prepared PPy films in electrochemically releasing incorporated fluorescein was about nine times higher than that of conventional PPy films.     

Carbon-free Cu_2ZnSn(S,Se)_4 film prepared via a non-hydrazine route

The kesterite Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4(CZTSSe) is an ideal candidate for light harvesting materials in earth-abundant low-cost thinfilm solar cells(TFSC). Although the solution-based processing is a most promising approach to achieve low-cost solar cells with high power conversion efficiency, the issues of poor crystallinity and carbon residue in CZTSSe thin films are still challenging. Herein, a non-hydrazine solution-based method was reported to fabricate highly crystallized and carbon-free kesterite CZTSSe thin films. Interestingly, it was found that the synthetic atmosphere of metal organic precursors have a dramatic impact on the morphology and crystallinity of CZTSSe films. By optimizing the processing parameters, we were able to obtain a kesterite CZTSSe film composed of compact large crystal grains with trace carbon residues. Also, a viable reactive ion etching(RIE) processing with optimized etching conditions was then developed to successfully eliminate trace carbon residues on the surface of the CZTSSe film.     

Preparation of core-shell molecularly imprinted polymer via the combination of reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization and click reaction

In this paper, we demonstrated an efficient and robust route to the preparation of well-defined molecularly imprinted polymer based on reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization and click chemistry. The alkyne terminated RAFT chain transfer agent was first synthesized, and then click reaction was used to graft RAFT agent onto the surface of silica particles which was modified by azide. Finally, imprinted thin film was prepared in the presence of 2,4-dichlorophenol as the template. The imprinted beads were demonstrated with a homogeneous polymer films (thickness of about 2.27 nm), and exhibited thermal stability under 255°C. The as-synthesized product showed obvious molecular imprinting effects towards the template, fast template rebinding kinetics and an appreciable selectivity over structurally related compounds.