复合光催化剂AgI/AgCl/h-BN的制备及光催化性能

以少层六方氮化硼纳米层状材料为载体,通过水溶性盐晶体模板法和离子交换法制备了h-BN稳定AgI/AgCl的三元复合体系。通过XRD、FT-IR、SEM、TEM等手段对样品的结构和形貌进行检测分析,利用UV-Vis DRS测试了样品的吸光性能。可见光光催化降解罗丹明B实验表明,光照24 min,AgI/AgCl/h-BN复合光催化材料对罗丹明B的降解率高达93%,远高于实验合成的大块AgCl、AgCl立方块、AgI/AgCl纳米腰果及文献报道的数值。并且三元材料循环利用4次后,对罗丹明B的降解率几乎保持不变。结合光电化学测试、活性物种捕获和电子自旋共振等实验结果,探讨了复合材料光催化活性和稳定性提高的机理。     

复合光催化剂AgI/AgCl/h-BN的制备及光催化性能

以少层六方氮化硼纳米层状材料为载体,通过水溶性盐晶体模板法和离子交换法制备了h-BN稳定AgI/AgCl的三元复合体系。通过XRD、FT-IR、SEM、TEM等手段对样品的结构和形貌进行检测分析,利用UV-Vis DRS测试了样品的吸光性能。可见光光催化降解罗丹明B实验表明,光照24 min,AgI/AgCl/h-BN复合光催化材料对罗丹明B的降解率高达93%,远高于实验合成的大块AgCl、AgCl立方块、AgI/AgCl纳米腰果及文献报道的数值。并且三元材料循环利用4次后,对罗丹明B的降解率几乎保持不变。结合光电化学测试、活性物种捕获和电子自旋共振等实验结果,探讨了复合材料光催化活性和稳定性提高的机理。     

Exploring point defects in hexagonal boron-nitrogen monolayers

A comprehensive theoretical study of selected point defects for a monolayer of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is presented. Two-dimensional structures were simulated through large h-BN molecular clusters and used to examine various defects, like: atom vacancies, atom substitutions, or distortions of the hexagonal lattice. Since carbon contaminations are very common in the h-BN technology, a particular attention has been paid to carbon impurities. The calculations of IR spectra for the doped molecular clusters reveal the presence of additional frequencies, which in many cases correspond to defect-bound modes. In particular, when two carbon atoms are close to each other, a localized stretching C C mode of a high intensity has been found, with a frequency value of about 100-200 cm^–1 higher than for collective BN stretch frequencies. Absorption UV-Vis spectra obtained from time-dependent density functional theory show that the inclusion of impurities results in an emergence of several low-energy electronic excitations, from which some are localized on a defect, while other are delocalized. Energies of these excitations are strongly dependent on the defect type, and they range from about 0.7 to 6.1 eV for the lowest excitations. Based on UV-Vis spectra we propose several candidates which could be responsible for the experimental 4 eV color band. These defects are built from two or four adjacent carbon atoms and have the lowest excitation ranging from 3.9 to 4.8 eV, which is strongly localized on the defect.     

Selective Oxygen and Hydrogen Functionalization of the h-BN/Rh(111) Nanomesh

We present detailed studies on the covalent adsorption of molecular oxygen and atomic hydrogen on the hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanomesh on Rh(111). The functionalization of this two-dimensional (2D) material was investigated under ultra-high vacuum conditions using synchrotron radiation-based in situ high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, temperature-programmed X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy. We are able to provide a deep insight into the adsorption behavior and thermal stability of oxygen and hydrogen on h-BN/Rh(111). Oxygen functionalization was achieved via a supersonic molecular beam while hydrogen functionalization was realized using an atomic hydrogen source. Adsorption of the respective species was observed to occur selectively in the pores of h-BN leading to spatially defined modification of the 2D layer. The adsorption of the observed molecular oxygen species was found to be an activated process that requires high-energy oxygen molecules. Upon heating to 700 K, oxygen functionalization was observed to be almost reversible except for small amounts of boron oxides evolving due to the reaction of oxygen with the 2D material. Hydrogen functionalization of h-BN/Rh(111) was fully reversed upon heating to about 640 K.     

A simple and green route to transparent boron nitride/PVA nanocomposites with significantly improved mechanical and thermal properties

A simple and green method is developed to prepare hexagonal boron nitride(h-BN)/poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) nanocomposites by using water as a common solvent of h-BN nanosheets and PVA.The obtained h-BN/PVA nanocomposites are highly transparent,and have significantly improved mechanical and thermal properties.They may outperform nano-clay and nano-alumina/PVA nanocomposites as flexible optoelectronic devices,optical windows and heat-releasing materials operated in oxidative or corrosive environment.     

Rapid Separation on Activated Charcoal of High Oligosaccharides in Honey

A novel, simple and rapid stability-indicating high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for pravastatin sodium (PRA) was successfully developed and validated for the assay of in tablets. Chromatographic separation was achieved isocratically on a C₁₈ column (150 mm × 4.6 mm) utilizing a mobile phase of methanol-phosphate buffer (pH 7; 0.02 M) (57:43, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL min⁻¹ with UV detection at 238 nm. A linear response (r = 0.9999) was observed in the range of 1–5 μg mL⁻¹. The method showed good recoveries (100.50%) and the relative standard deviation of intra and inter-day were 1.40%. The method can be used for both quality control assay of pravastatin in tablets and for stability studies as the method separates pravastatin from its degradation products and tablet excipients.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Determination of a new chromone from Aurantii Fructus Immaturus by DFT/GIAO method

Investigation of EtOAc fraction from the 95% ethanol extract of Aurantii Fructus Immaturus led to the isolation of one new chromone (1) and seven known flavonoids (2–8). Their structures were elucidated mainly by NMR and HR-ESI-MS, as well as on comparison with the reported NMR data. The final substituent pattern of 1 was defined by comparison of ¹³C NMR data calculated by DFT/GIAO with those of experimental NMR data.     

Separation optimization of quercetin,hesperetin and chrysin in honey by micellar liquid chromatography and experimental design

The chemometrics approach was applied for the separation optimization of flavonoid markers (quercetin, hesperetin and chrysin) in honey using micellar liquid chromatography (MLC). The investigated method combines SPE of flavonoids from honey using C₁₈ cartridge and their separation and quantification by micellar liquid chromatography. A two level full factorial design was carried out to evaluate the effect of four experimental factors including concentration of SDS, alkyl chain length of the alcohol used as the organic modifier (N), volume percentage of the organic modifier (V_m) and volume percentage of acetic acid (AcOH) in mobile phase on analytes retention times. Experiments for analytes retention times modeling and optimization of separation were performed according to central composite design. Multiple linear regression method was used for the construction of the best model based on experimental retention times. Pareto optimal method was used to find suitable compatibility between resolution and analysis time of analytes in honey. The optimum mobile phase composition for separation and determination of analytes in honey were [SDS]=0.124 mol/L; 7.8% v/v ethanol and 5.0% v/v AcOH. Limits of detection and linear range of flavonoid markers were 0.0079–0.0126, 0.05–50.0 mg/L, respectively.     

N2O reduction over hexagonal BN nanosheet: effects of Stone–Wales defect and carbon pair doping

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) adsorption on the pristine and Stone–Wales (SW)-defected hexagonal BN nanosheets were investigated using density functional calculations including dispersion correction. It was found that N₂O is weakly adsorbed on the pristine sheet (h-BN) through van der Waals interaction with adsorption energy of ?1.2 kcal/mol. SW-defected sheet was found to be more reactive toward N₂O molecule having no significant change in electronic properties. However, the formation of B–B and N–N bond pairs in SW-defected sheet can be avoided, if there is a C–C pair doped in sheet (C₂-SW-h-BN). In this case, a strong adsorption is found due to large adsorption energy (?23.7 kcal/mol) and short bond length compared to the SW-h-BN complex. Interestingly, it was indicated that the N₂O molecule could be reduced into the N₂ on the C₂-SW-h-BN.     

Structural stability and vibrational analysis of beryllium sulfide BeS from the bulk to the (n,0) nanotubes. An ab initio description

Beryllium sulfide (BeS) in different forms from molecule, bulk, monolayer (h-BeS), to the single-walled nanotube obtained by wrapping the h-BeS monolayer along the (n,0) hexagonal lattice vector for n varying from n = 6 to 64, has been examined. Density functional theory (DFT) with an all electron basis set and the hybrid DFT/B3LYP level have been applied to compute energetic and geometrical, electronic and vibrational, elastic and piezoelectric properties, where the trend towards the hexagonal monolayer (h-BeS) in the limit of large tube radius is obtained. The vibrational properties including Raman spectra and polarizabilities are evaluated via the Coupled Perturbed Hartree–Fock and Kohn–Sham (CPHF/KS) computational schemes. For the first time, the IR vibrational modes at higher tube diameter and their convergence to the h-BeS monolayer limit are reported where the vibrational and electronic contributions to both perpendicular and parallel components of polarizability tensor are additionally discussed. For the (n,0) BeS nanotube family, three ranges of IR active phonon modes are determined. The first one located in the 0–300 cm⁻¹frequency domain, goes regularly to zero when the tube diameter increases. Both the second (300–400 cm⁻¹) and the third (700–800 cm⁻¹) ones tend smoothly with different slope, towards the two optical vibrational modes of the h-BeS layer. These theoretical models can be extended to investigate further issues, such as the effect caused by the addition of a dopant, the influence of the substitutional fraction of nanotube atoms and the interaction of molecules outside and/or inside of the nanotube.     

Development of novel graphene-like layered hexagonal boron nitride for adsorptive removal of antibiotic gatifloxacin from aqueous solution

Graphene-like layered hexagonal boron nitride (g-BN) was prepared and characterized. The performance of using g-BN as an adsorbent for removal of fluoroquinolone antibiotic gatifloxacin (GTF) from aqueous solution was evaluated. g-BN showed an excellent adsorption capability with notable GTF adsorption ratio of more than 90%. Data of equilibrium adsorption of GTF onto g-BN at different temperatures were represented by Langmuir, Freundlich and Tempkin isotherm models, and Langmuir exhibited the best fitting with the maximum adsorption capacity of 88.5 mg·g^?1 at 288 K. GTF adsorption was insignificantly affected by solution pH. Competitive role of Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ in the solution inhibited the adsorption of GTF and decreased the adsorption capacity a bit. The adsorption process was spontaneous and exothermic. The adsorption was probably governed by π–π interaction between GTF and g-BN, and electrostatic interaction may also exist in the adsorption process.     

Enrichment of flavonoid-rich extract from Bidens bipinnata L. by macroporous resin using response surface methodology,UHPLC–Q-TOF MS/MS-assisted characterization and comprehensive evaluation of its bioactivities by analytical hierarchy process

The extract of Bidens bipinnata L. exhibited wide spectrum of bioactivities owing to the presence of flavonoids. In this study, a purification process was developed to enrich the flavonoid-rich extract from B. bipinnata L. (BBTF). AB-8 resin was selected for the purification of total flavonoids. Response surface methodology coupled with Box–Behnken design was employed to optimize the purification condition; it was optimized as pH 5.1, volume of ethanol 80 ml, flow rate of ethanol 1.8 bed volume per hour (BV/h) and concentration of ethanol 76.0%. The total flavonoid content of BBTF was 56.48% under the optimal conditions. The identification of flavonoids in BBTF was conducted using UHPLC–ESI-Q-TOF MS. A total of 14 compounds, including 12 flavonoids, were identified in BBTF. Finally, the in vitro antioxidant activities, α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitory activities of BBTF were comprehensively analyzed by an analytical hierarchy process. The results indicated that it exhibited higher bioactivities than the crude extract. These findings suggested that the optimized process could significantly enhance the purity of flavonoids and their bioactivities. This study showed a comprehensive analysis of a total flavonoid extract of B. bipinnata L. for the first time, which could provide a useful approach for its purification process and quality control as well as bioactivities.     

Component Analysis and Anti-Colorectal Cancer Mechanism via AKT/mTOR Signalling Pathway of Sanghuangporus vaninii Extracts

Sanghuangporus vaninii (Ljub.) L.W. Zhou & Y.C. Dai (SV) is a major cultivar of Sanghuang, which is well known as an excellent anti-tumour drug and reaches the mainstream market in China. Water, 60% ethanol and 95% ethanol were used to extract the drug, and three kinds of polar extracts were obtained separately. Compared with water extracts and 95% ethanol extracts, the 60% ethanol extract had the highest flavonoid content, and its polysaccharide content was greater than that in the 95% ethanol extract and lower than that in the water extract. Its essential components were phenolics whose majority were phenolic acids, flavonoids and phenylpropanoids. This extract has better inhibition effects on the proliferation of SW480 human colon cancer cells, inducing cell apoptosis and blocking G2/M period cells. It can significantly inhibit gene expression and reduce the activation of the AKT/mTOR signalling pathway. The anti-cancer activity of the 60% ethanol extract is satisfactory and may be a result of the combined effects of polysaccharides and flavonoids. The data suggest that the 60% ethanol extract can be used as an adjuvant for chemotherapy and as a potential anti-cancer agent with broad development prospects.     

Separation and purification of flavonoid from Taxus remainder extracts free of taxoids using polystyrene and polyamide resin

An efficient separation process of flavonoid from Taxus wallichiana var. mairei remainder extracts free of taxoids was developed in this study. AB‐8 macroporous resin and polyamide resin offered the fine adsorption capacity, and its adsorption rate at 30°C fitted well to the Langmuir and Freundich isotherms. Resin dynamic adsorption and desorption experiments were conducted to optimize the separation process of total flavonoids from T. wallichiana var. mairei remainder extracts free of taxoids. The optimum parameters for adsorption by AB‐8 resin were as follows: (1) the concentration of flavonoids in a sample solution of 5.61 mg/mL with a processing volume of 2 bed volume (BV) (60 mL); (2) for desorption, ethanol–water (80:20, v/v), with 6 BV as an eluent at a flow rate of 2 BV/h. After a one‐run treatment with AB‐8 resin, the content of flavonoids was increased 5.10‐fold from 4.05 to 20.65%. The optimum parameters for adsorption by polyamide resin were as follows: processing volume of 2 BV (30 mL); for desorption, ethanol–water (70:30, v/v), with 8 BV as an eluent at a flow rate of 2 BV/h. After one‐run treatment with polyamide resin, the content of total flavonoids increased from 20.65 to 65.21%. The method will provide a potential approach for large‐scale separation and purification of flavonoid for its wide pharmaceutical use.     

Ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry and chemometric analysis of licorice based on the simultaneous determination of saponins and flavonoids

Licorice is among the most popular herbal medicines and frequently used in traditional medicine, food products, and cosmetics. In China, only Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., Glycyrrhiza inflata Bat. and Glycyrrhiza glabra L. are officially used and are usually processed with honey prior to use. To maintain the quality of commercially available herbal products, a simple, rapid, and reliable ultra high performance liquid chromatography with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry was developed to investigate the major active constituents of commercially available licorice products. Nineteen components were accurately determined, including eight triterpenoid saponins, one triterpene, and ten flavonoids. Subsequently, multivariate statistical analysis methods were employed to further explore and interpret the experimental data. The results indicated that liquiritin apioside may be considered as a candidate index for the quality control of licorice as well as 18β‐glycyrrhizic acid and liquiritin. In addition, both 18β‐glycyrrhizic acid and licorice‐saponin G2 can be used for discrimination between crude and honey‐processed licorice. Furthermore, using 18β‐glycyrrhizic acid and liquiritin as markers, this work revealed that the quality of licorice products may have declined in recent years. This highlights the need for additional effort focused on good agricultural practice during the processing of licorice. In summary, this study provides a valuable reference for the quality assessment of licorice.     

X-ray spectroscopic study of the electronic structure of boron carbonitride films obtained by chemical vapor deposition on Co/Si and CoO<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>/Si substrates

Boron carbonitride films are synthesized by chemical vapor deposition from a mixture of triethylamine borane and ammonia on a metallic or oxidized cobalt sublayer sprayed over Si(100) substrates. Scanning electron microscopy shows that the surface of a BC _x N _y /Co/Si sample has a homogeneous fine-grained structure; filamentous entities are found on the surface of the BC _x N _y /CoO _x /Si sample. The electronic structure of the films is investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (NEXAFS). An analysis of the spectra shows that BC _x N _y films are composed of graphite and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) regions and complex BC _x N _y O _z components with B-C, N-C, B-O, N-O, and C-O bonds. The deposition of the BC _x N _y film on the oxidized Co sublayer results in an increase in the number of C-O, N-O, B-O, and C-N bonds and a decrease of the graphite and h-BN components and in the number of C-B bonds. The XPS data are used to estimate the surface elemental composition of the BC _x N _y /CoO _x /Si sample. It is found that the film consists of 66 at.% graphite component and 3 at.% h-BN; the proportion of complex C_0.46B_0.11N_0.05O_0.38 components is 31 at.%.     

Substrate‐induced formation of a recognition structure in a four‐polypeptide–lipid monolayer system

Poly(γ‐methyl L ‐glutamate)s with Ser, His, Asp, and Glu residues at the amino terminal as the serine protease catalytic site were prepared. The number‐average degree of polymerization of the polypeptides was 51. A dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine monolayer containing the polypeptides was formed at the air–water interface and was transferred onto gold‐deposited glass plates. The binding of N‐acetyltyrosine ethyl ester, a typical substrate of the serine protease, to the monolayer was characterized by surface plasmon resonance measurements. The four‐polypeptide–lipid monolayer system conditioned on an aqueous solution containing the substrate N‐acetyltyrosine ethyl ester exhibited Langmuir‐type binding of the substrate. Its binding constant of 6.1 × 10⁴ M⁻¹ was about 20 times larger than that observed for a monolayer prepared on pure water. The behavior may have arisen from a substrate‐induced rearrangement of the four kinds of polypeptides in the monolayer, forming a substrate‐binding structure similar to that found in serine protease. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 2186–2191, 2000     

胆碱与谷氨酸共价单层混合修饰玻碳电极的制作与表征及其测定亚硝酸根的分析应用

A choline and L-glutamic acid mixed monolayer covalently modified glassy carbon electrode (Ch-Glu/GCE) was fabricated and characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). It provided an excellent example of mixed covalent monolayer modification of carbon electrodes with alkanol and amino acid, and also a facile means for altering the interfacial architecture. The Ch-Glu/GCE displayed good catalytic activity toward the oxidation of nitrite anions. Differential pulse voltammetry was used for determination of nitrite at the Ch-Glu/GCE. The Ch-Glu/GCE showed higher capability for restraint of pollutions than a simple Ch modified electrode or a simple Glu modified electrode.     

Obtaining Bioactive Compounds from the Coffee Husk (Coffea arabica L.) Using Different Extraction Methods

Coffee husks (Coffea arabica L.) are characterized by exhibiting secondary metabolites such as phenolic compounds, which can be used as raw material for obtaining bioactive compounds of interest in food. The objective of this study is to evaluate different methods for obtaining the raw material and extracting solutions of bioactive compounds from coffee husks. Water bath and ultrasound-assisted extraction methods were used, using water (100%) or ethanol (100%) or a mixture of both (1:1) as extracting solutions and the form of the raw material was in natura and dehydrated. The extracts were evaluated by their antioxidant potential using DPPH radicals, ABTS, and iron reduction (ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP)), and later total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and condensed tannins were quantified the phenolic majority compounds were identified. It was verified that the mixture of water and ethanol (1:1) showed better extraction capacity of the compounds with antioxidant activity and that both conventional (water bath) or unconventional (ultrasound) methods showed satisfactory results. Finally, a satisfactory amount of bioactive compounds was observed in evaluating the chemical composition (total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, condensed tannins, as well as the analysis of the phenolic profile) of these extracts. Corroborating with the results of the antioxidant activities, the best extracting solution was generally the water and ethanol mixture (1:1) using a dehydrated husk and water bath as the best method, presenting higher levels of the bioactive compounds in question, with an emphasis on chlorogenic acid. Thus, it can be concluded that the use of coffee husk as raw material to obtain extracts of bioactive compounds is promising. Last, the conventional method (water bath) and the water and ethanol mixture (1:1) stood out among the methods and extracting solutions used for the dehydrated coffee husk.     

Rapid screening,separation, and detection of hydroxyl radical scavengers from total flavonoids of Ginkgo biloba leaves by chromatography combined with molecular devices

Hydroxyl radicals are the most reactive free radical of human body, a strong contributor to tissue damage. In this study, liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization mass spectrometry was applied to screen and identify hydroxyl radical scavengers from the total flavonoids of Ginkgo biloba leaves, and high‐performance counter current chromatography was used to separate and isolate the active compounds. Furthermore, molecular devices were used to determine hydroxyl radical scavenging activities of the obtained hydroxyl radical scavengers and other flavonoids from G. biloba leaves. As a result, six compounds were screened as hydroxyl radical scavengers, but only three flavonoids, namely, rutin, cosmos glycosides and apigenin‐7‐O‐Glu‐4’‐O‐Rha, were isolated successfully from total flavonoids by high‐performance counter current chromatography. The purities of the three obtained compounds were over 90%, respectively, as determined by liquid chromatography. Molecular devices with 96‐well microplates evaluation indicated that the 50% scavenging concentration values of screened compounds were lower than that of other flavonoids, they performed greater hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, and the evaluation effects were consistent with the liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry screening results. Therefore, chromatography combined with molecular devices is a feasible and an efficient method for systematic screening, identification, isolation, and evaluation of bioactive components in mixture of botanical medicines.