Monte Carlo Calculations of Polymer Adsorption at the Entrance of Cylindrical Pores in Flat Adsorbing Surfaces

The influence of surface interactions on the conformation of flexible polymers partially confined inside narrow cylindrical pores in a flat surface is studied above the critical adsorption energy in a good solvent. We use a static configurational bias computational sampling method to calculate the adsorption free energy and the radius of gyration components parallel and perpendicular to the pore axis as a function of the polymer center of mass position at different degrees of confinement. We find strong free‐energy minima just in front of the pore entry for all degrees of confinement studied. At the location of the free‐energy minimum, polymers are partially adsorbed inside the pore and on the outer solid surface and adopt “drawing pin”‐like conformations. A distinct maximum in the average loop length at the pore entry indicates that the polymer bridges the pore entry of small pores.     

NaBH4处理LaCuZnX(X=Zr、Al、Zr+Al)(类)钙钛矿型催化剂及其CO2加氢合成甲醇性能的研究

采用共沉淀法分别制备了不同F-T组分(Fe、Co、Ni)改性的KCuZrO_2催化剂,并用于催化CO加氢合成异丁醇。通过BET、XRD、TEM、XPS、H_2-TPR、CO-TPD以及in-situ DRIFTS对催化剂进行了表征。结果显示,F-T组分的加入促进了乙醇和丙醇的形成,但是对异丁醇选择性影响不同。结果表明,Fe促进了催化剂中各组分的分散,活性组分Cu在催化剂表面发生了富集,提高了H_2/CO活化吸附;另外,KFeCuZrO_2的催化剂表面含有较多的C_1物种,有利于乙醇和丙醇进一步发生β-加成反应得到异丁醇,而Co和Ni改性的催化剂上缺少足够的C_1物种,因此,异丁醇的选择性并未明显增加。Co的引入对催化剂结构以及Cu的分散影响不大,但是Co改性后催化剂性能有所下降,其原因是催化剂发生了失活;Ni添加后催化剂比表面积有所减小,且催化剂表面Cu/Zr物质的量比也降低到0.19,催化剂粒径增大,Cu-Zr之间相互作用减弱,异丁醇选择性降低。     

MOF衍生碳基电催化剂限域催化O2还原和CO2还原反应

化石燃料的大量消耗和环境的逐渐恶化导致迫切需要开发和探索有效的能源转换和存储技术. 电化学是各种能源转换装置的基础和关键. 设计和合成具有高催化活性的非贵金属基和非金属基催化剂是最好的选择. 金属有机骨架(MOF)衍生的碳基材料具有比表面积大、 孔隙率高的特点, 可以选择性地限制不同类型的金属. 因此, MOF衍生碳作为催化剂载体使用时具有良好的限域效应, 有利于提高催化剂的活性和稳定性. 本文综合评述了MOF衍生材料在催化反应中的限域效应, 并介绍了MOF衍生碳基材料在氧还原反应(ORR)和二氧化碳还原反应(CO₂RR)电催化方面的最新进展, 揭示了MOF碳基材料在电催化反应中的构效关系. 最后, 讨论了MOF衍生的碳基材料在ORR和CO₂RR电催化中的挑战和机遇, 以及未来可能的解决方案.     

分子动力学模拟纳米尺寸限制体系下氩溶液中I2的振动能量弛豫

利用平衡态分子动力学方法(EMD)模拟了纳米尺寸限制球壳内I2在Ar溶液中的振动能量转移. 计算并讨论了I2振动能量弛豫时间T1随球壳半径、溶剂密度的变化规律. 通过分子间相互作用分析, 在原子、分子水平上, 揭示了随着球壳半径的减小, T1呈逐渐增大趋势的原因. 结果表明, 球壳的几何限制效应和表面作用对受限溶液密度分布的影响较大, 从而导致溶质振动弛豫的显著变化. 此外, 非限制体系模拟显示, 非平衡态分子动力学(NEMD)方法可以得到与平衡态分子动力学方法较一致的振动能量弛豫时间T1.     

Experimental isotherms of HCl on H2O ice under stratospheric conditions: connections between bulk and interfacial thermodynamics

The adsorption of HCl on the surface of H(2)O ice has been measured at temperatures and pressures relevant to the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. The measured HCl surface coverage is found to be at least 100 times lower than currently assumed in models of chlorine catalyzed ozone destruction in cold regions of the upper atmosphere. Measurements were conducted in a closed system by simultaneous application of surface spectroscopy and gas phase mass spectrometry to fully characterize vapor/solid equilibrium. Surface adsorption is clearly distinguished from bulk liquid or solid phases. From 180 to 200 K, submonolayer adsorption of HCl is well described by a Bragg-Williams modified Langmuir model which includes the dissociation of HCl into H(+) and Cl(-) ions. Furthermore, adsorption is consistent with two distinct states on the ice substrate, one in which the ions only weakly adsorb on separate sites, and another where the ions adsorb as an H(+)-Cl(-) pair on a single site with adsorption energy comparable to the bulk trihydrate. The number of substrate H(2)O molecules per adsorption site is also consistent with the stoichiometry of bulk hydrates under these conditions. The ionic states exist in equilibrium, and the total adsorption energy is a function of the relative population of both states. These observations and model provide a quantitative connection between the thermodynamics of the bulk and interfacial phases of HCl/H(2)O, and represent a consistent physicochemical model of the equilibrium system.     

Structure and dynamics of nanoscale electrical double layer

Electrical double layer (EDL) at substrate–solution interface plays essential roles in basic electrochemistry, energy conversion, desalination and separation, stochastic single-entity sensing, and other applications. The EDL structure generally refers to the inhomogeneous distribution of solution ions at the interfacial region. Dynamic changes in the EDL structure due to the transport of charges at the nanometer scale are the physicochemical origin of recently resolved novel nanotransport phenomena. High surface area materials and devices are potentially advantageous for better applications by providing more accessible interfaces. It is of high importance to emphasize that interfacial structures are indications of capacity, while the efficiency is often related to dynamics. This review discusses emerging transport phenomena under steady-state conditions and the transient deviations in prototype channel-type nanopores as unit elements for porous electrodes/membranes. The fundamental governing mechanism and structure–function correlations will be discussed in the context of energy harvesting and storage, desalination and phase transition, and resistive pulse sensing at the nanometer scale toward single-event/entity resolutions.     

Confinement-induced phase transition and hysteresis in colloidal forces for surfactant layers on hydrophobic surfaces

In this paper we consider surfactant solutions near a pair of interfaces. It is well-known that strong lateral interactions between surfactant molecules give rise to a step in the adsorption isotherm. In a self-consistent field theory, such a step in the adsorbed amount shows up as a van der Waals loop. The consequence of such a loop for surface force experiments is analyzed. From adsorption isotherms at fixed confinement we extract the relevant adsorbed amounts for a fixed chemical potential as a function of the confinement. A cusped structure is found for the relation between the interaction energy and the slit width: there is a confinement-induced first-order phase transition. The corresponding interaction curve has a kink at the binodal slit distance. Metastable branches as well as an unstable branch (bracketed by the two spinodal points) are presented. The metastability is expected to give rise to force hysteresis in, e.g., atomic force microscope or surface force apparatus experiments, distinctly different from those due to mechanical instabilities of the cantilever system.     

Catalytic dehydration of ethanol using transition metal oxide catalysts

The aim of this work is to study catalytic ethanol dehydration using different prepared catalysts, which include Fe(2)O(3), Mn(2)O(3), and calcined physical mixtures of both ferric and manganese oxides with alumina and/or silica gel. The physicochemical properties of these catalysts were investigated via X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), acidity measurement, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption at -196 degrees C. The catalytic activities of such catalysts were tested through conversion of ethanol at 200-500 degrees C using a catalytic flow system operated under atmospheric pressure. The results obtained indicated that the dehydration reaction on the catalyst relies on surface acidity, whereas the ethylene production selectivity depends on the catalyst chemical constituents.     

Depth profiling in surface regions of oxidized metal alloys by low energy PIXE

As a nondestructive technique for depth profiling of elements the PIXE-method was applied to determine the concentration profile of elements in the near surface of oxidized metal alloys. The outer region of about 1 m was investigated using low energy protons for X-ray excitation. A set of X-ray yield measurements was carried out at proton energies of 150 to 300 keV. The unfolding of the X-ray yields was performed by calculation of proton energy loss, X-ray production cross section and X-ray attenuation.     

An infrared and inelastic neutron scattering spectroscopic investigation on the interaction of eta-alumina and methanol

The industrially important interaction of methanol with an eta-alumina catalyst has been investigated by a combination of infrared spectroscopy (diffuse reflectance and transmission) and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) spectroscopy. The infrared and INS spectra together show that chemisorbed methoxy is the only surface species present. Confirmation of the assignments was provided by a periodic DFT calculation of methoxy on eta-alumina (110). The thermal conversion of adsorbed methoxy groups to form dimethylether was also followed by INS, with DFT calculations assisting assignments. An intense feature about 2600 cm(-1) was observed in the diffuse reflectance spectrum. This band is poorly described in the extensive literature on the alumina/methanol adsorption system and its observation raised the possibility of a new surface species existing on this particular catalyst surface. INS measurements established that the 2600 cm(-1) feature could be assigned to a combination band of the methyl rock with the methyl deformation modes. This assignment was reinforced by an analysis of the neutron scattering intensity at a particular energy as a function of momentum transfer, which confirmed this particular adsorbed methoxy feature to arise from a second order transition. Similar behaviour was observed in the model compound Al(OCH3)3. The anomalous infrared intensity of the 2600 cm(-1) peak in the diffuse reflectance spectrum is a consequence of the different absorption coefficients of the C-H stretch and the combination mode. The implications for catalyst studies are discussed.     

基于限域特性的电催化剂调控

The development of highly efficient and low-cost electrocatalysts is important for both hydrogen- and carbon-based energy technologies. The electronic structure and coordination features, particularly the coordination environment and the amount of low-coordination atoms, of the catalyst are key factors that determine their catalytic activity and stability in a particular reaction. The regulation and rational design of catalytic materials at the molecular and atomic levels are crucial to achieving precise chemical synthesis at the atomic scale. Recently, significant efforts have been made to engineer coordination features and electronic structures by reducing the particle size, tuning the composition of the edges, and exposing specific planes of crystals. Among these representative strategies, the methods based on the confinement effect are most effective for achieving precise chemical synthesis with atomic precision at the molecular and atomic levels. Under molecular or atomic scale confinement, the physicochemical properties are largely altered, and the chemical reactions as well as the catalytic process are completely changed. The unique spatial and dimensional properties of the confinement regulate the molecular structure, atomic arrangement, electron transfer, and other properties of matter in space. It not only adjusts the coordination environments to control the formation mechanism of active centers, but also influences the structural and electronic properties of electrocatalysts. Therefore, the adsorption of catalytic intermediates is altered, and consequently, the catalytic activity and selectivity are changed. In a confined reaction, usually in suitable nano-reactors, the physicochemical properties of reaction products, such as the state of matter, solubility, dielectric constant, and molecular orbital, are finely modulated. Thus, the catalysts produced by confinement significantly differ from those produced in an open system. For example, atomic-layered metals with low coordination can be produced in a two-dimensional confined space. The nitrogen configurations of nitrogen-doped graphene can also be regulated in two-dimensional or three-dimensional confined systems. Herein, the confinement-induced methods, specifically the method used for atomic regulation, are reviewed, such as the control of molecular configuration, the modification of the coordination structure, and the alteration of charge transfer. Applications in the field of fuel cells and material energy conversion are also reviewed. In the next stage, it is important to conduct in-depth investigations of the constructed confinement environment by selecting different substrates for the regulation and rational design of confined catalytic materials. The investigation of the derived properties of the catalyst after release from the confinement is crucial for the development of uncommon catalytic properties.     

圆柱形纳米孔道内受限溶液I2/Ar的分子动力学模拟研究

利用分子动力学模拟方法, 考察了受限于圆柱形纳米孔道内I2/Ar溶液的振动传能及扩散动力学. 计算得到了溶质振动弛豫时间T1、溶剂轴向扩散系数Dz随孔道半径变化的规律. 结果表明: T1随着孔道半径的增大而减小; 而Dz随着孔道半径的增大而增大; 与预期的一致, 随着孔道半径的增大, 孔道的限制作用逐渐减小, T1与Dz趋近于相应的非受限溶液体相值. 此外, 通过考察溶质、溶剂与孔道的相互作用, 在原子、分子层次上揭示了限制作用对传能与传质影响的机制.     

一种评估阳离子交换吸附活化能的方法

Ion exchange adsorption is an important physicochemical process at solid/liquid interfaces. In this study, an approach was established to estimate the activation energy of cation exchange reaction on the charged surface, considering Hofmeister effects. The experimental results showed that Hofmeister effects strongly affect the ionic adsorption equilibrium on the charged particle surface. The position of the adsorbed counterion in the diffuse layer was predicted according to the established model, and the ion exchange activation energies for different bivalent cations were estimated via the cation exchange experiments. The activation energy decreases with increasing ion concentration, and the adsorption saturation of cations is a function of the activation energy at different concentrations. The established model of cation exchange adsorption in the present study has universal applicability in solid/liquid interface reactions.     

高效医学传感钙钛矿材料研究进展

卤化物钙钛矿材料作为一种新型半导体材料，具有优异的光电转换特性、能级结构可调、易于加工、结构和尺寸以及形貌可调、改性后优异的生物相容性等优点，在医学检测传感器中具有广阔的应用前景。本综述讨论了钙钛矿材料在生物医学传感领域的研究进展，钙钛矿医学传感器能通过光电转换、全光转换、电催化等多种物理或化学机制实现传感，具有可灵活选择的器件结构、性能指标和信号传递方式，用于人体代谢物质、神经递质、癌症相关物质和药物等医学物质的检测。钙钛矿医学传感器将为未来的医工多学科融合提供新希望，加快医工融合发展。     

Application of neutron activation analysis to the study of element concentration and exchange in fossil bones

It has long been known that a variety of elements are introduced into voids in the structure of bone during fossilization. Visual examination of the cross-section of many bones in the early stages of fossilization reveal a staining which is most intense near the outer surface. This suggests that concentration gradients must exist for elements entering the bone. To investigate this possibility quantitatively, we have determined elemental concentrations in such bones as a function of depth below the outer surface. Using a SLOWPOKE reactor, we have analysed a number of samples of bone taken from secondary deposits of river sediments in the Old Crow region of the Yukon Territory, Canada. Our preliminary work indicates the decrease in concentration with depth into the cortex for previously recognized post-mortal elements such as U, F, Ba, Mn and Fe. Our measurements show that V, Sc, and Co also vary in this way and can be included in this group. As the hollow central shafts of bones are approached, concentrations increase again. Bones found in the Old Crow region display a variety of surface staining ranging from almost white through red to brown and black. There is a strong correlation between Fe and less positive relations between F and Ba, and staining. Highest Mn concentrations occur at the surfaces of light-coloured bones in which the staining is restricted to the outer 1 mm. Because of the wide range of concentrations which exist amont post-mortal elements in these bones, correlations among these elements can be studied. Manganese and barium, for example, are correlated within each bone, but the correlation patterns differ from bone to bone. These relationships must reflect the nature of the chemical processes associated with the deposition of the elements within the bones. A comparison of these patterns show that some of the bones have been exposed to more than one set of environmental conditions. This data thus provides a way of studying these processes in bones in which the introduction of elements from the environment has not completely and uniformly filled all the available voids.     

Excitonic Chemiluminescence in Si and CdSe Nanocrystals Induced by their Interaction with Ozone

The results of a systematic study of spectral and kinetic patterns of ozone‐adsorption‐induced luminescence (AL) in nanostructured Si and, for the first time, in colloidal CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) are reported and compared with photoluminescence (PL) of the same structures. The common excitonic nature of light emission under ozone chemisorption and photoexcitation is confirmed by excellent coincidence of AL and PL emission bands. This coincidence is maintained during correlated quenching of AL and PL emission caused by nonradiative defects generated under ozone adsorption. A possible mechanism for energy conversion is proposed in the framework of an exothermic oxidation reaction of core materials caused by ozone. The significant role of the quantum confinement effect differentiates the observed phenomenon from well‐known chemiluminescence in molecular systems. This research establishes a physicochemical basis for the development of a gas sensor with high selectivity to ozone. Also, our findings may be useful for testing core–shell colloidal QDs with ozone.     

Surfaces and interfaces in short-period GaAs/AlAs superlattices

Photoelectron spectroscopy, in particular the angular resolved photoemission excited by ultraviolet radiation (ARUPS), provides the most direct experimental information about the electron structure of crystals, both of the bulk and of the low-index surfaces. The sensitivity of the method, as well as its difficulties, when applied to GaAs/AlAs superlattices are described. The new periodicity of these man-made crystals in the direction of their growth (e.g., in the layer-by-layer growth in molecular beam epitaxy), is responsible for opening of the new energy gaps (so-called minigaps) in the electron energy bands of crystals forming the superlattice. In addition to the well-known confinement of electrons at the valence and conduction band edges in long-period superlattices, the electron confinement to the interfaces has also been found in the vicinity of minigaps in short-period superlattices. The role of this confinement in the intensities of electrons photoemitted from superlattice surfaces is discussed. Superlattices with different thicknesses in the topmost layers represent systems with a simple change of the surface atomic structure. The predictions of one-dimensional models about a change of the surface-state energy within the band gap with a change of crystal potential termination are tested for the ideally terminated (1 0 0) surface of a very thin superlattice (GaAs)₂(AlAs)₂. The results of the energy distributions of photoemitted electrons, calculated in the one-step model of photoemission, show that the ARUPS experimental observation of surface-state shifts should be possible, at least in larger minigaps. The results indicate the possibility of a straightforward tuning of the electronic structure of the superlattice surface by geometrical means.     

Textures in polygonal arrangements of square nanoparticles in nematic liquid crystal matrices

A systematic analysis of defect textures in faceted nanoparticles with polygonal configurations embedded in a nematic matrix is performed using the Landau-de Gennes model, homeotropic strong anchoring in a square domain with uniform alignment in the outer boundaries. Defect and textures are analyzed as functions of temperature T, polygon size R, and polygon number N. For nematic nanocomposites, the texture satisfies a defect charge balance equation between bulk and surface (particle corner) charges. Upon decreasing the temperature, the central bulk defects split and together with other -1/2 bulk defects are absorbed by the nanoparticle's corners. Increasing the lattice size decreases confinement and eliminates bulk defects. Increasing the polygon number increases the central defect charge at high temperature and the number of surface defects at lower temperatures. The excess energy per particle is lower in even than in odd polygons, and it is minimized for a square particle arrangement. These discrete modeling results show for first time that, even under strong anchoring, defects are attached to particles as corner defects, leaving behind a low energy homogeneous orientation field that favors nanoparticle ordering in nematic matrices. These new insights are consistent with recent thermodynamic approaches to nematic nanocomposites that predict the existence of novel nematic/crystal phases and can be used to design nanocomposites with orientational and positional order.     

Surface and bulk properties of two anionic amphiphilic penicillins in a selective solvent

The surface physicochemical properties of two anionic penicillins-cloxacillin and dicloxacillin-in mixed ethanol-water solvent were investigated by surface tension and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The data were analyzed according to the treatment of the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory to study the stability of the systems. The aim of the study is to obtain information about the effects of ethanol on the surface activity, bulk properties, and aggregate stability of these amphiphilic drugs, keeping in mind that both penicillins have the same counterion, and the difference in their structures is only a Cl atom in the phenyl ring that makes dicloxacillin more hydrophobic. The surface tension data show a minimum area per molecule increment with ethanol concentration that is related to the variation of the dielectric constant with the alcohol. Dicloxacillin has lower values of the standard Gibbs energies of adsorption than does cloxacillin, which gives this drug a more marked escaping tendency from the aqueous environment to the air-water monolayer. DLS data was fitted to an exponential function for cloxacillin at any drug or alcohol concentration in the range of concentrations studied that indicates that the system can be modeled as an ergodic system of dilute diffusing monodisperse particles. Dicloxacillin DLS data at an ethanol concentration of 5% (v/v) had to be fitted at a sum of an exponential and a stretched exponential function, which indicates that, besides the drug aggregates, a small population of penicillin clusters with longer relaxation times is present. The stability curves predicted by the DLVO theory, for both penicillins, indicate the predominance of electrostatic repulsion, leading to a stable system over the drug-ethanol concentration range studied, but the height of the reduced pair interaction potential energy barrier decreases with ethanol concentration, thus it is expected to undergo a transition from a stable dispersion to a coagulated one.     

Highly efficient plastic substrate dye-sensitized solar cells using a compression method for preparation of TiO(2) photoelectrodes

The efficiency of a plastic-substrate dye-sensitized solar cell was much improved by a new method consisting of a press method without heat treatment, light confinement effect of TiO(2) film and water-based TiO(2) paste; this device shows the highest light-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency based on plastic-substrate dye-sensitized solar cells, 7.4% under 100 mW cm(-2) (1 sun) AM1.5 illumination.