Hydrothermal synthesis, structure, Raman spectroscopy, and self-irradiation studies of Cm(IO3)3

The study of curium iodate, Cm(IO₃)₃, was undertaken as part of a systematic investigation of the 4f- and 5f-elements’ iodates. The reaction of ²⁴⁸CmCl₃ with aqueous H₅IO₆ under mild hydrothermal conditions results in the reduction of IO₆⁵⁻ to IO₃⁻ anions, and the subsequent formation of Cm(IO₃)₃ single crystals. Crystallographic data are: (193 K, MoKα, ): monoclinic, space group P2₁/c, , , , β=100.142(2)°, V=811.76(14), Z=4, R(F)=2.11%, for 119 parameters with 1917 reflections with I>2σ(I). The structure consists of Cm³⁺ cations bound by iodate anions to form [Cm(IO₃)₈] units, where the local coordination environment around the curium centers can be described as a distorted dodecahedron. There are three crystallographically unique iodate anions within the structure; two iodates bridge between three Cm centers, and one iodate bridges between two Cm centers and has a terminal oxygen atom. The bridging of the curium centers by the iodate anions creates a three-dimensional structure. Three strong Raman bands with comparable intensities were observed at 846, 804, and 760 cm⁻¹ and correspond to the I-O symmetric stretching of the three crystallographically distinct iodate ions. The Raman profile suggests a lack of inter-ionic vibrational coupling of the I-O stretching, while intra-ionic coupling provides symmetric and asymmetric components that correspond to each iodate site. Repeated collection of X-ray diffraction data for a crystal of Cm(IO₃)₃ over a period of time revealed a gradual expansion of the unit cell from self-irradiation. After 71 days, the new parameters were: , , , β=100.021(2)°, V=818.3(2).     

Coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering: Spectroscopy and microscopy

In this review the basis, recent developments and applications of coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) in the fields of spectroscopy and microscopy are dialed with. The nonlinear susceptibility of the investigated molecule induced by pump and Stokes laser beams employed in the CARS technique is discussed. The relation between the nonlinear susceptibility, the different CARS laser intensities and the phase matching condition between them is also presented. The structure of CARS spectrum is analyzed as a function of the physical characteristics of the different employed lasers. This includes laser half widths, interference effects, cross-coherence and saturation of the resultant CARS signal by stimulated Raman scatter process (SRS). The different broadening mechanisms for CARS spectral line such as pressure and Doppler broadening are demonstrated. The recent progress in CARS for the in situ reaction flame diagnosis due to its suitability for detection of vibrational-rotational excited gas molecules present in the electronic ground state is discussed. CARS diagnosis for liquid- and solid-phases including the progress in polymeric materials is considered. The applications of CARS microscopy are reviewed in the view of its recent advances to study chemical and biological systems.     

Characterization and discrimination of pollen by Raman microscopy

The chemical characterization and discrimination of allergy-relevant pollen (common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), white birch (Betula pendula), English oak (Quercus robur), and European linden (Tilia cordata)) has been studied by Raman microscopy. Spectra were obtained at different excitation wavelengths (514, 633, and 780 nm) and various methods were examined to minimize the strong fluorescence background. The use of a He–Ne laser (633 nm) for excitation yields high-quality single pollen Raman spectra, which contain multiple bands due to pollen components such as carotenoids, proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids. Multivariate classification, i.e. principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis, demonstrated the validity of the approach for discrimination between different pollen species.     

Raman Spectroscopy of Aqueous ZnSO4 Solutions under Hydrothermal Conditions: Solubility, Hydrolysis, and Sulfate Ion Pairing

Raman spectra have been measured for aqueous ZnSO₄ solutions under hydrothermal conditions at steam saturation to 244°C; solubility has been recorded as a function of temperature from 25 to 256°C. The high-temperature Raman spectra contained two polarized bands, which suggest that a second sulfato complex, possibly bidentate, is formed in solution, in addition to the 1:1 zinc(II) sulfato complex, which is the only ion pair identified at lower temperatures. Under hydrothermal conditions, it was possible to observe the hydrolysis of the zinc(II) aquo ion by measuring the relative intensity of bands due to SO ₄ ^2– and HSO ₄ ^– according to the equilibrium reaction Zn(OH₂)₆]²⁺ + SO ₄ ^2– [Zn(OH₂)₅OH]⁺ + HSO ₄ ^– The precipitate in equilibrium with the solution at 210°C could be characterized as ZnSO₄ · H₂O (gunningite) by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman and infrared spectroscopy. At 244°C the equilibrium precipitate could be identified as ZnSO₄ (zincosite).     

Hydrothermal synthesis,crystal structure and antibacterial studies of nickel(II) and manganese(II) complexes with ciprofloxacin

Hydrothermal treatments of ciprofloxacin with Ni(NO₃)₂·6H₂O and Mn(ClO₄)₂·6H₂O yield two metal complexes: [Ni(H-cip)₂(H₂O)₂](NO₃)₂·2H₂O (1) and [Mn(H-cip)₂(H₂O)₂] (ClO₄)₂·2H₂O (2), confirmed by elemental analysis, IR and single crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. Complexes 1 and 2 were screened for antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureas, E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginos and Candidaalbicans.     

Reactions of transition-metal carbonyls with anhydrous HF

The reactions of a wide range of transition-metal carbonyls with anhydrous HF are described. In particular, Ru₃(CO)₁₂, Os₃(CO)₁₂ and Ir₄(CO)₁₂ give the solution stable [Ru₃(CO)₁₂H]⁺, [Ru(CO)₅H]⁺, [Os₃(CO)₁₂H]⁺, [Os(CO)₅H]⁺ and [Ir₄(CO)₁₂H₂]²⁺ respectively, which have been characterised by a combination of ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy.     

High angular-resolution automated visible-wavelength scanning angle Raman microscopy

A scanning angle (SA) Raman microscope with 532-nm excitation is reported for probing chemical content perpendicular to a sample interface. The instrument is fully automated to collect Raman spectra across a range of incident angles from 20.50 to 79.50° with an angular spread of 0.4 ± 0.2° and an angular uncertainty of 0.09°. Instrumental controls drive a rotational stage with a fixed axis of rotation relative to a prism-based sample interface mounted on an inverted microscope stage. Three benefits of SA Raman microscopy using visible wavelengths, compared to near infrared wavelengths are: (i) better surface sensitivity; (ii) increased signal due to the frequency to the fourth power dependence of the Raman signal, and the possibility for resonant enhancement; (iii) the need to scan a reduced angular range to shorten data collection times. These benefits were demonstrated with SA Raman measurements of thin polymer films of polystyrene or a diblock copolymer of polystyrene and poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl). Thin film spectra were collected with a signal-to-noise ratio of 30 using a 0.25 s acquisition time.     

Confocal fluorescence and Raman microscopy in industrial research

 Modern chemical and pharmaceutical industrial research benefits from improved spectroscopic tools. New developments in confocal fluorescence and Raman microscopy lead to an increase in sensitivity, selectivity and speed of microscopic imaging and fluctuation analysis resulting in a better understanding of structure–property relationships essential for targeted development. In this paper we report on the application of fluorescence and Raman microscopy for characterizing the morphology of polymeric multiphase solid-state samples and on new developments in the corresponding correlation spectroscopies for the characterization of the dynamics of complex colloidal systems in the liquid state. In the case of fluorescence new technological opportunities are gained by two-photon excitation. Received: 5 February 1998 Accepted: 16 February 1998     

Raman spectroscopic and DSC studies of diglycine-perchlorate (DGPCl)

Single crystals of diglycine perchlorate (DGPCl) and deuterated diglycine perchlorate (DDGPCl) are synthesized and studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Raman spectroscopy. DSC data indicated that both DGPCl and DDGPCl undergo a reversible first-order phase transition (solid-solid) at −11.5 °C and −9.3 °C, respectively. The Raman spectra of DGPCl and DDGPCl obtained at ambient temperature are analyzed to infer on the strength of hydrogen bonding in this compound relative to the parent compounds. The occurrence of NH stretching frequency at higher value in DGPCl in comparison with glycine suggests presence of a weak N–H?O hydrogen bond in DGPCl than in glycine. The lower isotropic melting temperature of DGPCl as compared to that of glycine is understood on the basis of the relative strength of hydrogen bonding in these compounds.     

Hydrothermal processing of waste pine wood into industrially useful products

An ongoing major outbreak of mountain pine beetle in Western Canada has provided a clear opportunity to utilize waste pinewood as a source of renewable energy. Therefore hydrothermal processing of waste pinewood as a feedstock for bio-oil and biochar production using subcritical and supercritical water technology was carried out in semi-batch mode to investigate the effect of pressure (200–400 bar) and temperature (300–400 °C) on the yield and composition of bio-oil. The pinewood samples have very high cellulose and hemicellulose content but low ash content and are thus a formidable feedstock for bioenergy production. The optimum conditions for the hydrothermal processing of the pinewood in a tubular reactor were found to be 400 °C and 250 bars with respect to biochar and bio-oil yield based on the highest calorific value analysis. Detailed characterization of bio-oil and biochar was performed using GCMS, NMR, SEM, calorific value, and elemental analysis, respectively. The critical components of bio-oil were found to be phenols, methoxyphenols, hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF), and vanillin, whereas as compared to the raw pine wood, the biochar was considerably lower H:C and O:C ratios than those of the unprocessed pinewood. The analyses of bio-oil by means of GCMS and ¹H NMR showed that it was mainly composed of heterocyclic compounds, phenols, aldehydes and acids.     

Optical and Raman studies of Zn1-xMgxO ceramic pellets

The undoped and Mg-doped ZnO ceramics have been successfully synthesized using the conventional solid state sintering method. The doping effect of MgO content on the structural properties of ZnO/MgO composites has been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. The XRD patterns reveal that all the samples are polycrystalline and have a prominent hexagonal crystalline structure with (002) and (101) as preferred growth directions. The formation of the hexagonal ZnMgO alloy phase and the segregation of MgO-cubic phase took place for an MgO composition x ≥ 20 wt%. This finding is in good agreement with the Raman spectroscopy measurements which prove the existence of multiple-order Raman peaks originating from ZnO-like and MgO phonons. The band gap energy and the carrier concentration of ZnO pellets were found to be dependent upon the Mg doping whose values vary from 3.287 to 3.827 eV and from 1.6 × 10¹⁷ to 5.2 × 10²⁰ cm⁻³, respectively.     

Surface-enhanced Raman studies of bradykinin using colloidal gold

In this paper, bradykinin (BK), an endogenous peptide hormone, which is involved in a number of physiological and pathophysiological processes was deposited onto the colloidal Au nanoparticles. The surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) was used to determine the adsorption mode of BK under different environmental conditions, including: excitation wavelengths (514.5 nm and 785.0 nm), pH of aqueous sol solutions (from pH = 3 to pH = 11), and size of the colloidal nanoparticles (10, 20, and 50 nm). The metal surface plasmon of the colloidal suspended Au nanoparticles was examined by ultraviolet-visible (UV–vis) spectroscopy. The results showed that the C-terminal part of BK plays a crucial role in the adsorption process onto the colloidal suspended Au particles. The Phe^5/8 and Arg⁹ residues of BK mainly participate in the interactions with the colloidal Au nanoparticles. At acidic pH of the solution (pH = 3), the BK COO⁻ terminal group through the both oxygen atoms strongly binds to the Au nanoparticles. The Phe⁵/Phe⁸ rings adopt tilted orientation with respect to the colloidal Au nanoparticles with diameters of 10 and 20 nm. As the particle size increases to 50 nm, the flat orientation of the Phe ring(s) with respect to the Au nanoparticles is observed.     

A Raman microscopy study of stress transfer in high-performance epoxy composites reinforced with polyethylene fibers

Raman spectroscopy is shown to be a very powerful method for the study of stress transfer in epoxy composite materials reinforced with high-performance polyethylene (PE) fibers. We found that the stress transfer length as determined by Raman spectroscopy is substantially shorter for a plasma-treated fiber than for an untreated one. A shorter stress transfer length indicates stronger interactions between fiber and matrix. Furthermore, the stress transfer length was higher for a PE fiber/epoxy matrix cured at a higher temperature.     

Hydrothermal synthesis of yttria stabilized ZrO2 nanoparticles in subcritical and supercritical water using a flow reaction system

Yttria stabilized zirconia nanoparticles have been prepared by hydrothermal flow reaction system under subcritical and supercritical conditions. ZrO(NO₃)₂/Y(NO₃)₃ mixed solutions were used as starting materials. Reaction temperature was 300–400 °C. Reaction time was adjusted to 0.17–0.35 s. Based on the residual Zr and Y concentrations, the complete conversion of zirconium was achieved irrespective of pH and hydrothermal temperature, whereas the conversion of yttrium increased with an increase in pH and hydrothermal temperature. Stoichiometric solid solution was achieved at pH>8. XRD results revealed that tetragonal zirconia can be formed regardless of yttrium content, where the tetragonality was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. The average particle size estimated from BET surface area was around 4–6 nm. Dynamic light scattering particle size increased with the solution pH owing to the aggregation of primary particles. TG-DTA analyses revealed that weight losses for adsorbed water and hydroxyl groups decreased with hydrothermal temperature.     

NMR and Raman spectral studies of ammonium hydrogen selenites single crystals

The chemical composition and peculiarities of the structure of a salt that precipitates from aqueous solution of NH₄HSeO₃ at the 25 °C was studied by NMR and Raman spectroscopy methods using the single crystal samples with different heavy water contents. It was proved that this salt is actually monohydrate of hydrogen selenite, NH₄HSeO₃H₂O but not trihydrate of pyroselenite, (NH₄)₂Se₂O₅3H₂O as was assumed previously based on the data cited in the literature.     

Density functional theory and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy studies on endocrine-disrupting chemical,dimethyl phthalate

A method to monitor endocrine-disrupting chemical contamination phthalate esters (PAEs) by surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectroscopy has been investigated. The molecular structure and assignment of the vibrations of dimethyl phthalate (DMP), forming short chains in PAEs, has been studied by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The structure of DMP with the dihedral angles of 1C-6C-11C-13O and 4C-5C-18C-20O being 133.78° and −24.00°, respectively, has the lowest energy. Theoretical vibrational frequencies using B3LYP/6-31 + G(d) (after scaling) show excellent agreement with the experimental normal Raman spectrum. In the region 200–1800 cm⁻¹, SERS spectra of DMP were measured using ordered gold nanosubstrates. All except the weak signals in the normal Raman spectrum of DMP were successfully enhanced. These results demonstrate that SERS technology could be developed as a rapid method for screening of DMP.     

Raman Spectroscopy-Based Assessment of the Liquid Water Content in Snow

In snow, water coexists in solid, liquid and vapor states. The relative abundance of the three phases drives snow grain metamorphism and affects the physical properties of the snowpack. Knowledge of the content of the liquid phase in snow is critical to estimate the snowmelt runoff and to forecast the release of wet avalanches. Liquid water does not spread homogeneously through a snowpack because different snow layers have different permeabilities; therefore, it is important to track sudden changes in the amount of liquid water within a specific layer. We reproduced water percolation in the laboratory, and used Raman spectroscopy to detect the presence of the liquid phase in controlled snow samples. We performed experiments on both fine- and coarse-grained snow. The obtained snow spectra are well fitted by a linear combination of the spectra typical of liquid water and ice. We progressively charged snow with liquid water from dry snow up to soaked snow. As a result, we exploited continuous, qualitative monitoring of the evolution of the liquid water content as reflected by the fitting coefficient c.