DFT Study of Charge Effect on the Odd-even Oscillatory Behavior in Stabilities for Gold Clusters

The comparative study of charge effect on the size-dependence stabilities of gold clusters Aunz(n = 2~12, z = 0/±1) in gas phase is performed at the M06-L/Lanl2 dz level. The lowest-energy structures charged by –1, 0 and +1 are optimized. The result shows that the geometries of the clusters with over 7 atoms tend to be cake-like. From the two- to three-dimensional geometries, the oscillatory behaviors are exhibited in the structural and electronic properties with the most pronounced in energy gap. The amplitude for the positive clusters is bigger than both the neutral and negative clusters. The neutral clusters with even number of even-coordinated atoms are more stable than the neighbors with odd number of even-coordinated atoms, as is completely reversed for the charged clusters. The oscillatory behaviors for the charged clusters are opposite to that for the neutral clusters, as is attributed to the electron-paired effect.     

激光溅射金属等离子体与醇类分子束反应的研究：产物离子对分子束状态的依赖性

The gas phase reactions of metal plasma with alcohol clusters were studied by time of flight mass spectrometry （TOFMS） using laser ablation-molecular beam （LAMB） method. The significant dependence of the product cluster ions on the molecular beam conditions was observed. When the plasma acted on the low density parts of the pulsed molecular beam, the metal-alcohol complexes M^＋An （M=Cu, Al, Mg, Ni and A=C2H5OH, CH3OH） were the dominant products, and the sizes of product ion clusters were smaller. While the plasma acted on the high density part of the beam, however, the main products turned to be protonated alcohol clusters H^＋An and, as the reactions of plasma with methanol were concerned, the protonated water-methanol complexes H3O^＋（CH3OH）n with a larger size （n≤12 for ethanol and n≤24 for methanol）. Similarly, as the pressure of the carrier helium gas was varied from 1 × 10^5 to 5 × 10^5 Pa, the main products were changed from M^＋An to H^＋An and the sizes of the clusters also increased. The changes in the product clusters were attributed to the different formation mechanism of the output ions, that is, the M^＋An ions came from the reaction of metal ion with alcohol clusters, while H^＋An mainly from collisional reaction of electron with alcohol clusters.     

A Density Functional Theory Study of the Hydrates of 2NH_3:H_2SO_4 and Its Implications for the Formation of Atmosphere Particles

Density functional theory was used at the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) level of theory to study the hydrates of 2NH3:H2SO4:nH2O for n = 0～4. Neutrals of the most stable clusters, when n = 0 and 1, spontaneously formed and were determined to be hydrogen-bonded molecular complexes of monomeric species. Double ions (clusters containing a NH4+ cation and a HSO4- anion) or even ternary ions (clusters with two NH4+ cations and one SO42- anion) spontaneously formed in the most stable clusters of 2NH3:H2SO4:nH2O (n = 2, 3, 4). The energetics of binding and incremental association was also calculated. Double ions are not energetically favorable until 2NH3:H2SO4:2H2O because of the about equal free energies for forming the neutral (the most stable) and double ion (the second stable) isomers. The free energy of incremental association from free H2O and 2NH3:H2SO4:nH2O has a maximum at n = 2 at room temperature with ΔG ≈ -2 kcal/mol. The comparison of incremental association energies between 2NH3:H2SO4:nH2O, NH3:H2SO4:nH2O and H2SO4:nH2O clusters revealed that NH3 plays an important role in the atmospheric particle nucleation.     

高岭土基质与重金属的相互作用

The phase transformation of kaolin in the presence of 1%～5% vanadium had been investigated. The results indicated that vanadium mullite emerged at 660～700℃which was at least 400℃ lower than conventional mullite formation temperature, and a chemical reaction between kaolin and vanadium took place obviously. The reaction of vanadium mullite formation could be described as a process of low melting vanadium kaolin eutectic transition.In addition, the unit cell volume of vanadium mullite was found increased with the increment of vanadium content, which could be deduced that vanadium incorporated into mullites' framework and was therefore passivated. Furthermore, in comparison with hydro kaolin, modified kaolin—PAL and CLS reacted fast with vanadium to form more mullite and CLS could even reacted with nickel to form a rather stable compound of NiAl 10 O 16 , and therefore protected zeolite in cracking catalysts against the heavy metal poisoning effectively.     

Theoretical Investigation of Structures,Bonding and Electronic Properties for the Complexes of 6-Mercaptopurine and Ag_8 Clusters

The Ag clusters have been investigated widely theoretically and experimentally. In particular, it has recently shown that the neutral Ag_8 clusters embedded in an argon matrix have a strong fluorescence signal. As we can know, the metal clusters may have important effects on the structures and properties of biomolecules. More and more attention is paid to the interaction between nanomaterials and biomolecules. In this work, the B3LYP method in density functional theory was used on the complexes between the 6-mercaptopurine(6MP) and Ag_8 clusters combined with 6-311++G** as well as LANL2DZ base sets. The geometries of all the complexes were optimized with full degree of freedom and the structures, chemical bonds, orbital properties as well as Mulliken charges for ten possible complexes were analyzed based on the same theory level. In addition, the influence of temperature and pressure on the stabilities of the four complexes was further explored using standard statistical thermodynamic methods ranging from 50 to 500 K and at 100 kPa or 100 bar. The results show that the complex Ag_8-6 MP-7-5 can be the most stable one among the investigated complexes, in which the Ag(11) atom interacts with the S(10) atom forming the strong chemical bond. The Mulliken charges also show that the Ag–S chemical bond is formed and the related charge has transferred. Additionally, the temperature and pressure can significantly influence the stability of the four stable complexes.     

水与正丁醇二元体系最低共沸混合物的热容

Molar heat capacities of n-butanol and the azeotropic mixture in the binary system [water （x=0.716） plus n-butanol （x=0.284）] were measured with an adiabatic calorimeter in a temperature range from 78 to 320 K. The functions of the heat capacity with respect to thermodynamic temperature were estabhshed for the azeotropic mixture. A glass transition was observed at （111.9±1.2） K. The phase transitions took place at （179.26±0.77） and （269.69±0.14） K corresponding to the solid-hquid phase transitions of n-butanol and water, respectively. The phase-transition enthalpy and entropy of water were calculated. A thermodynamic function of excess molar heat capacity with respect to temperature was estabhshed, which took account of physical mixing, destructions of self-association and cross-association for n-butanol and water, respectively. The thermodynamic functions and the excess thermodynamic ones of the binary systems relative to 298.15 K were derived based on the relationships of the thermodynamic functions and the function of the measured heat capacity and the calculated excess heat capacity with respect to temperature.     

Effects of Temperature and Energy on Stability of Oligomeric Enzyme Probed on Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry

Escherichia coli 3-Deoxy-D-manno-octulosonate 8-phosphate（KDO8P） synthase catalyzed the condensation reaction between D-arabinose 5-phosphate（A5P） and phosphoenolpyruvate（PEP） to form KDO8P and inorganic phosphate（Pi）. The noncovalent tetrameric association ofKDO8P synthase was observed and dissociated in gas phase by means of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry under the very ＂soft＂ conditions. The results indicate that PEP-bound enzyme generated abundant tetrameric species as well as monomeric species at the ＂soft＂ conditions, whereas, the unbound enzyme favored the formation of a dimeric species. The mass spectra of the mixture of the enzyme with one of substrates, PEP, and A5P or one of products, KDO8P and Pi show that the complex of the unbound enzyme with PEP or Pi was prone to the formation of a monomeric species, whereas, that of the unbound enzyme with A5P or KDO8P was similar to the unbound enzyme. The intensity of the dimeric species increased with the increase of temperature at a collision voltage of 10 V. Taken together, the results presented here suggest that mass spectrometry will be a powerful tool to explore subtile conformational changes and/or subunit-subunit interactions of multiprotein assembly induced by ligand-binding and/or the changes of environmental conditions.     

Deformation temperature and lamellar thickness dependency of Form I to Form III phase transition in syndiotactic polypropylene during tensile stretching

Phase transition from form Ⅰ to form Ⅲ in syndiotactic polypropylene crystallized at different conditions during tensile deformation at different temperatures was investigated by using in situ synchrotron wide angle X-ray diffraction technique. In all cases, the occurrence of this phase transition was observed. The onset strain of this transition was found to be crystalline thickness decided by crystallization temperature and drawing temperature dependent. The effect of drawing temperature on this phase transition is understood by the changes in mechanical properties with temperature. Moreover, crystalline thickness dependency of the phase transition reveals that this form Ⅰ to from Ⅲ phase transition occurs first in those lamellae with their normal along the stretching direction which have not experienced stress induced melting and recrystallization.     

Deformation Temperature and Lamellar Thickness Dependency of FormⅠto Form Ⅲ Phase Transition in Syndiotactic Polypropylene during Tensile Stretching

Phase transition from form Ⅰto form Ⅲ in syndiotactic polypropylene crystallized at different conditions during tensile deformation at different temperatures was investigated by using in situ synchrotron wide angle X-ray diffraction technique. In all cases, the occurrence of this phase transition was observed. The onset strain of this transition was found to be crystalline thickness decided by crystallization temperature and drawing temperature dependent. The effect of drawing temperature on this phase transition is understood by the changes in mechanical properties with temperature. Moreover, crystalline thickness dependency of the phase transition reveals that this form I to from III phase transition occurs first in those lamellae with their normal along the stretching direction which have not experienced stress induced melting and recrystallization.     

Impact of modeling set selection on near infrared quantitative modelEI北大核心CSCD

In this study,Meconopsis integrifolia（Maxim.）Franch. was taken as the research object. The effects of the number,content range and standard deviation（SD）of the modeling set on near infrared（NIR）qualitative and quantitative model performance were discussed using root mean square error（RMSE）and related coefficient（R） values as evaluation indexes. The results showed that the model effect first decreased,then increased,and finally tended to be stable with the increase of the number of samples.The model worked best at the modeling number of 120,and tended to be stable basically when the sample number reached 240. As a result,the content had no effect on the model performance under the same number of modeling set,but the model worked better when the content range was wide. The influence analysis of SD to model indicated that within the same sample concentration,the SD value of the sample set was not directly related to the model effect. When it came to the same sample number with different SD,the performance of the model increased with the increase of SD values. In conclusion,this study indicated that in NIR modeling,the model performance was not enhanced with the increasing of sample number. When selecting modeling samples,the content range of the samples should be as wide as possible,and there should be a certain degree of dispersion. © 2023, Youke Publishing Co.,Ltd. All rights reserved.     

Density Functional Theory Study on (Cl2GaN3)n(n=1–4) Clusters

The molecular geometries, vibrational properties, and thermodynamic properties of the clusters (Cl₂GaN₃)_n(n=1–4) have been predicted at the B3LYP/6‐311+G* level. The optimized clusters (Cl₂GaN₃)_n (n=2–4) all possess cyclic structures containing Ga N_α Ga linkages. The relationships between geometrical parameters and oligomerization degree n are discussed. The gas‐phase structures of the trimers prefer to exist in boat‐twisting conformation. As for the tetramer, the S₄ symmetry structure is the most stable. The infrared spectra are obtained and assigned by vibrational analysis. Thermodynamic properties derived from the infrared spectra on the basis of statistical thermodynamic principles are linearly correlated with the oligomerization degree n as well as the temperature. Meanwhile, thermodynamic analysis of the gas‐phase reaction suggests that the oligomerization is exothermic and favorable under high temperature.     

INORGANIC RINGS AND CLUSTERS AS SINGLE-SOURCE PRECURSORS TOWARD STOICHIOMETRY CONTROLLED SYNTHESIS OF MATERIALS: GAS PHASE CHEMISTRY IN COMMAND

Potential of the inorganic rings and clusters as single-source precursors to 13–15 binary materials and composites is examined employing quantum-chemical methods. Importance of the gas phase association reactions during MOCVD processes from organometallic and hydride precursors is emphasized. Generation of the gas phase [HMYH]_n clusters (M = Al,Ga,In; Y = N,P,As) with large oligomerization degree (n ≥ 30) is thermodynamically favorable even at high temperature conditions (1000 K) for all M,Y pairs. High stability of the N-containing clusters makes mixed metal oligomer imidometallanes excellent single-source precursors for the stoichiometry-controlled MOCVD of 13–15 composites.     

Density functional theory study on (F2AlN3) n (n = 1–4) clusters

Possible geometrical structures and relative stabilities of (F₂AlN₃) _n (n = 1–4) clusters were studied using density functional theory at the B3LYP/6-311+G* level. The optimized clusters (F₂AlN₃) _n (n = 2–4) possess cyclic structure containing Al–N_α–Al linkages, and azido in azides has linear structure. The IR spectra of the optimized (F₂AlN₃) _n (n = 1–4) clusters have three vibrational sections, the whole strongest vibrational peaks lie in 2218–2246 cm⁻¹, and the vibrational modes are N₃ asymmetric stretching vibrations. Trends in thermodynamic properties with temperature and oligomerization degree n are discussed, respectively. A study of their thermodynamic properties suggests that monomer 1A forms the most stable clusters (2A, 3A, and 4B) can occur spontaneously in the gas phase at temperatures up to 800 K.     

Theoretical investigation of gas phase ethanol–(water)n (n = 1–5) clusters and comparison with gas phase pure water clusters (water)n (n = 2–6)

Various properties (such as optimal structures, structural parameters, hydrogen bonds, natural bond orbital charge distributions, binding energies, electron densities at hydrogen bond critical points, cooperative effects, and so on) of gas phase ethanol–(water)_n (n = 1–5) clusters with the change in the number of water molecules have been systematically explored at the MP2/aug‐cc‐pVTZ//MP2/6‐311++G(d,p) computational level. The study of optimal structures shows that the most stable ethanol‐water heterodimer is the one where exists one primary hydrogen bond (O? H…O) and one secondary hydrogen bond (C? H …O) simultaneously. The cyclic geometric pattern formed by the primary hydrogen bonds, where all the molecules are proton acceptor and proton donor simultaneously, is the most stable configuration for ethanol–(water)_n (n = 2–4) clusters, and a transition from two‐dimensional cyclic to three‐dimensional structures occurs at n = 5. At the same time, the cluster stability seems to correlate with the number of primary hydrogen bonds, because the secondary hydrogen bond was extremely weaker than the primary hydrogen bond. Furthermore, the comparison of cooperative effects between ethanol–water clusters and gas phase pure water clusters has been analyzed from two aspects. First of all, for the cyclic structure, the cooperative effect in the former is slightly stronger than that of the latter with the increasing of water molecules. Second, for the ethanol–(water)₅ and (water)₆ structure, the cooperative effect in the former is also correspondingly stronger than that of the latter except for the ethanol–(water)₅ book structure. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Theoretical study on the structures and properties of (Br2AlN3) n (n = 1–4) clusters

To look for the single-source precursors, the structures and properties of (Br₂AlN₃) _n (n = 1–4) clusters are studied at the B3LYP/6-311+G* level. The optimized (Br₂AlN₃) _n (n = 2–4) clusters all possess cyclic structures containing Al-N_α-Al linkages. The relationships between the geometrical parameters and the oligomerization degree n are discussed. The gas-phase structures of the trimers prefer to exist in the boat-twisting conformation. As for the tetramer, the most stable isomers have the S ₄ symmetry structure. The IR spectra are obtained and assigned by the vibrational analysis. The thermodynamic properties are linearly related with the oligomerization degree n as well as with the temperature. Meanwhile, the thermodynamic analysis of the gas-phase reaction suggests that the oligomerization be exothermic and favorable under high temperature.     

Spontaneous gas-phase generation of needle-shaped clusters which violate the isolated square rule: a facile road to GaN nanorods?

Structures and thermodynamic properties of the imidogallanes [HGaNH](n) with high oligomerization degrees n = 7-16 and related amido-imido compounds have been investigated theoretically at the B3LYP level of theory with all-electron pVDZ and effective core potential LANL2DZ(d,p) basis sets. Needle-shaped oligomers which violate the "isolated square rule" were found to be more stable than cage isomers. The needle-shape oligomer with n = 16 is predicted to be exceptionally stable at low temperatures. Octamer and hexamer clusters dominate the gas phase at higher temperatures. The highest oligomerization degree of the spontaneous cluster formation has been estimated. It is concluded that generation of the gas-phase [HGaNH](n) clusters with oligomerization degree n >or= 60 is viable. This makes these species possible intermediates involved in the gas-phase generation of GaN nanoparticles. A case study of methyl-substituted analogues suggests that formation of the gaseous [MeGaNH](n) oligomers is even more favorable compared to that of [HGaNH](n). We predict that spontaneous growth of GaN oligomers is favorable thermodynamically. Laser-assisted generation of GaN nanorods at low-temperature conditions appears to be feasible.     

Peculiar All‐Metal σ‐Aromaticity of the [Au2Sb16]4− Anion in the Solid State

Gas‐phase clusters are deemed to be σ‐aromatic when they satisfy the 4n+2 rule of aromaticity for delocalized σ electrons and fulfill other requirements known for aromatic systems. While the range of n values was shown to be quite broad when applied to short‐lived clusters found in molecular‐beam experiments, stability of all‐metal cluster‐like fragments isolated in condensed phase was previously shown to be mainly ascribed to two electrons (n=0). In this work, the applicability of this concept is extended towards solid‐state compounds by demonstrating a unique example of a storable compound, which was isolated as a stable [K([2.2.2]crypt)]⁺ salt, featuring a [Au₂Sb₁₆]^4? cluster core possessing two all‐metal aromatic AuSb₄ fragments with six delocalized σ electrons each (n=1). This discovery pushes the boundaries of the original idea of Kekulé and firmly establishes the usefulness of the σ‐aromaticity concept as a general idea for both small clusters and solid‐state compounds.     

Inception of Acetic Acid/Water Cluster Growth in Molecular Beams

The influence of carboxylic acids on water nucleation in the gas phase has been explored in the supersonic expansion of water vapour mixed with acetic acid (AcA) at various concentrations. The sodium‐doping method has been used to detect clusters produced in supersonic expansions by using UV photoionisation. The mass spectra obtained at lower acid concentrations show well‐detected Na⁺?AcA(H₂O)_n and Na⁺?AcA₂(H₂O)_n clusters up to 200 Da and, in the best cooling expansions, emerging Na⁺?AcA_m(H₂O)_n signals at higher masses and unresolved signals that extend beyond m/e values >1000 Da. These signals, which increase with increasing acid content in water vapour, are an indication that the cluster growth taking place arises from mixed water–acid clusters. Theoretical calculations show that small acid–water clusters are stable and their formation is even thermodynamically favoured with respect to pure water clusters, especially at lower temperatures. These findings suggest that acetic acid may play a significant role as a pre‐nucleation embryo in the formation of aerosols in wet environments.     

Computational design and structure-property relationship studies on (I2GaN3) n (n = 1–4) clusters

To look for the single-source precursors, density functional theory calculations were performed to study structures, IR spectra, and stabilities of the possible isomers for the clusters (I₂GaN₃) _n (n = 1–4). It is found that the optimized (I₂GaN₃) _n (n = 2–4) clusters all possess cyclic structure containing Ga-N_α-Ga linkages, and azido group in azides has linear structure. Trends in geometrical parameters with the oligomerization degree n are discussed. The IR spectra are obtained and assigned by vibrational analysis. Thermodynamic properties are linearly correlated with the oligomerization degree n as well as the temperature. Mean-while, the oligomerizations can occur spontaneously at 298.2 K.     

Bare Clusters Derived from Protein Templates: Au25+, Au38+ and Au102+

A discrete sequence of bare gold clusters of well‐defined nuclearity, namely Au₂₅⁺, Au₃₈⁺ and Au₁₀₂⁺, formed in a process that starts from gold‐bound adducts of the protein lysozyme, were detected in the gas phase. It is proposed that subsequent to laser desorption ionization, gold clusters form in the gas phase, with the protein serving as a confining growth environment that provides an effective reservoir for dissipation of the cluster aggregation and stabilization energy. First‐principles calculations reveal that the growing gold clusters can be electronically stabilized in the protein environment, achieving electronic closed‐shell structures as a result of bonding interactions with the protein. Calculations for a cluster with 38 gold atoms reveal that gold interaction with the protein results in breaking of the disulfide bonds of the cystine units, and that the binding of the cysteine residues to the cluster depletes the number of delocalized electrons in the cluster, resulting in opening of a super‐atom electronic gap. This shell‐closure stabilization mechanism confers enhanced stability to the gold clusters. Once formed as stable magic number aggregates in the protein growth medium, the gold clusters become detached from the protein template and are observed as bare Au_n⁺ (n=25, 38, and 102) clusters.