Glucofuranose derivatives as a library for designing and investigating low molecular mass organogelators

We designed and synthesized a class of saccharide-based gelators having three free OH groups in the glucofuranose fragment. The gelating abilities of fourteen compounds were examined to systematically study the influence of the hydrophobic fragment connected to the C2′ carbon. Also the correlation between the saccharide crystal structure and its gelating properties was examined, showing limited usefulness in this particular case. SEM observations were carried out in order to investigate the hierarchical structure of xerogels and changes depending on different gel concentration.     

Stable organogels derived from triazines functionalized with chiral α-amino acid derivatives

Triazines functionalized with three stereogenic α-amino-acidic appendages having at least one amide or hydroxamate function give highly stable organogels in haloalkanes and aromatic solvents, and their gelating ability depends on both structural and stereochemical properties.     

含偶氮苯基团的三枝状凝胶因子的合成和凝胶性质研究

设计合成了一种中心为三乙基氨基,酰胺基作为氢键连接基团,柔性的烷基链连接偶氮苯基团的含多种分子间弱相互作用的三枝状有机凝胶因子1.由于偶氮苯基团处于分子的外缘,在THF溶液中,凝胶因子1表现出良好的光致变色行为.凝胶性能测试中,分子间存在氢键作用、π-π相互作用等使得该化合物在醇类、有机酸类和乙腈等极性溶剂中极易形成稳定的有机凝胶.在少数的非极性溶剂,如正己烷和环己烷中也可以形成稳定凝胶,并且随着溶剂极性的不同,凝胶形貌呈现出规则的纤维状或带状结构.     

超声作用对超分子水凝胶结构及性能的影响

采用一种简便方法,以戊二酸酐和3-羟基2-氨基吡啶合成了一种新的凝胶因子3-羟基-2-[N-(羧丙基羰基)氨基]吡啶(简称SWG),并采用IR、1H-NMR和元素分析确认其结构.红外光谱中2576cm-1和1906cm-1峰的出现证明羧基与吡啶基间形成了氢键.于20°C的超声仪中冷却1.5wt%的SWG水溶液,在1min内形成了超分子水凝胶.基于扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、示差扫描量热仪(DSC)及凝胶-溶液破坏温度(Tgel)分析表明,在凝胶化过程中,SWG自组装形成纤维状网络结构.随着超声功率由200W增加到500W,纤维宽度由8μm逐渐减小到2μm,凝胶网络密度逐渐增大,可冻结水含量逐渐增加,Tgel从60℃增加到70℃.因此,通过改变超声功率可有效控制凝胶的结构及性能.进一步增加SWG的浓度,可使纤维宽度及网络密度均增加,并导致凝胶的Tgel升高.采用多晶X射线衍射仪(XRD)分析表明,在凝胶形成过程中,SWG分子自组装出现明显的择优取向.     

贯通孔道网络结构大孔Al2O3催化材料的制备

采用模板法制备了具有贯通孔道网络结构的大孔Al2O3催化材料. 为确保模板材料的体积分数低于74%时Al2O3孔道的贯通, 设计并实现了模板聚苯乙烯(PS)微球先胶凝再与催化材料Al2O3纳米颗粒复合的制备路线. 通过PS微球悬浮液的流变性表征凝胶状态的形成. 实验结果表明, 加入适当浓度的硝酸铝溶液后PS微球悬浮液出现了由溶胶向凝胶的转变. 通过扫描电镜对大孔Al2O3催化材料的孔道结构进行表征, 结果表明, 与有序大孔材料相比大孔催化材料中孔配位数有所降低, 骨架厚度提高且具有贯通的孔道网络结构. 大孔结构抗压强度实验表明, 随着模板PS微球质量分数的降低, 机械强度明显提高.     

Metal coordination as a tool for controlling the self-assembling and gelation properties of novel type cholic amide-phenanthroline gelating agent

(3α,7α,12α)-Trihydroxy-N-[1,10-phenanthrolin-5-yl]-5β-cholan-24-amide was found to be a powerful gelating agent for methanol-water in gelator to solvent ratio starting from 0.1% in absence of metal ion. Formation of phenanthroline-zinc (II) 2:1 complex changes dramatically gelating properties; when stored, it dissolves into clear solution without Tyndall effect and this solution, when heated to ca. 70°C reversibly forms a gel again, without chemical change as proven by NMR spectrometry. Structures of the gels of cholic amide-phenanthroline and its Zn²⁺ complex were studied by SEM.     

Hydrogels from the Assembly of SAA/Elastin-Inspired Peptides Reveal Non-Canonical Nanotopologies

Peptide-based hydrogels are of great interest in the biomedical field according to their biocompatibility, simple structure and tunable properties via sequence modification. In recent years, multicomponent assembly of peptides have expanded the possibilities to produce more versatile hydrogels, by blending gelating peptides with different type of peptides to add new features. In the present study, the assembly of gelating P5 peptide SFFSF blended with P21 peptide, SFFSFGVPGVGVPGVGSFFSF, an elastin-inspired peptides or, alternatively, with FF dipeptide, was investigated by oscillatory rheology and different microscopy techniques in order to shed light on the nanotopologies formed by the self-assembled peptide mixtures. Our data show that, depending on the added peptides, cooperative or disruptive assembly can be observed giving rise to distinct nanotopologies to which correspond different mechanical properties that could be exploited to fabricate materials with desired properties.     

Supramolecularly Knitted Tethered Oligopeptide/Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotube Organogels

A facile polymerization of an allyl‐functionalized N‐carboxyanhydride (NCA) monomer is utilized to construct an A‐B‐A‐type triblock structure containing β‐sheet‐rich oligomeric peptide segments tethered by a poly(ethylene oxide) chain, which are capable of dispersing and gelating single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) noncovalently in organic solvents, resulting in significant enhancement of the mechanical properties of polypeptide‐based organogels.     

Electrochemical and spectroscopic characterization of surface sol-gel processes

(3-Mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MTS) forms a unique film on a platinum substrate by self-assembly and sol-gel cross-linking. The gelating and drying states of the self-assembled MTS sol-gel films were probed by use of electrochemical and spectroscopic methods. The thiol moiety was the only active group within the sol-gel network. Gold nanoparticles were employed to detect the availability of the thiol group and their interaction further indicated the physicochemical states of the sol-gel inner structure. It was found that the thiol groups in the open porous MTS aerogel matrix were accessible to the gold nanoparticles while thiol groups in the compact MTS xerogel network were not accessible to the gold nanoparticles. The characteristics of the sol-gel matrix change with time because of its own irreversible gelating and drying process. The present work provides direct evidence of gold nanoparticle binding with thiol groups within the sol-gel structures and explains the different permeability of "aerogel" and "xerogel" films of MTS on the basis of electrochemical and spectroscopic results. Two endogenous species, hydrogen peroxide and ascorbic acid, were used to test the permeability of the self-assembled sol-gel film in different states. The MTS xerogel film on the platinum electrode was extremely selective against ascorbic acid while maintaining high sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide in contrast to the relatively high permeability of ascorbic acid in the MTS aerogel film. This study showed the potential of the MTS sol-gel film as a nanoporous material in biosensor development.     

N-alkyl perfluoroalkanamides as low molecular-mass organogelators

A new class of low molecular-mass organogelators (LMOGs), N-alkyl perfluoroalkanamides, F(CF(2))(n)CONH(CH(2))(m)H, is described. The molecules are designed to exploit the incompatibilities of their three molecular parts, and the results demonstrate that this strategy can be used to tune molecular aggregation and gel stability. The gelating properties of these LMOGs have been examined in a wide variety of organic liquids (including alkanes, alcohols, toluene, n-perfluorooctane, CCl(4), and DMSO) as a function of the N-alkyl and perfluoroalkyl chain lengths by X-ray diffraction, polarizing optical microscopy, infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The gels are thermally reversible and require generally very low concentrations (<2 wt %) of LMOG. Several of the gels are stable for very long periods at room temperature. The incompatibility of the fluorocarbon and hydrocarbon segments causes the LMOGs to aggregate, probably into lamellae within the fibrils that constitute the basic unit of the gel networks. The SANS studies show that the cross-sections of fibers in the gel networks of LMOGs with shorter perfluoroalkyl chains are much larger than those with longer ones. Comparisons with the gelating properties of some analogous esters (F(CF(2))(n)CO(2)(CH(2))(m)H) and diblock perfluoroalkylalkanes (F(CF(2))(n)(CH(2))(m)H) indicate that additional ordering within the aggregate units is enforced by the intermolecular H bonding among amide groups that is evidenced by IR spectroscopy. Analyses of these results and structure/solvent correlations are provided.     

Insights into the Gelating Abilities of Ricinelaidic Acid and its Ammonium Salts: How do Stereochemistry,Charge, and Chain Lengths Control Gelation of a Long‐Chain Alkenoic Acid?

The gelating abilities of ricinelaidic acid (d ‐REA), the trans‐isomer of ricinoleic acid (d ‐RA), and a series of its alkylammonium and alkane‐α,ω‐diammonium salts have been examined in a wide range of organic liquids. The gelation efficiency of the trans acid is much better than that of the cis, although neither is as efficient as is the completely saturated molecular gelator analogue, (R)‐12‐hydroxystearic acid (d ‐12HSA). The formation of ammonium salts also improves the gelation ability of d ‐REA in high polarity liquids. The gelating properties are highly dependent upon the chain length of the alkyl group of the alkylammonium salts, but not very dependent on the chain length of the alkane‐α,ω‐diammonium salts. Structural insights from Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and powder X‐ray diffraction indicate that the absence or presence of unsaturation, the incorporation of (charged) ammonium centers, and the different chain lengths of the alkylammonium salts lead to different packing arrangements and different strengths of H‐bonding interactions within the gel assemblies of the d ‐REA derivatives. Insights into the relationships among the various systematic structural changes to d ‐REA and the properties of their aggregated structures, including the gel states, are provided.     

Bile acid alkylamide derivatives as low molecular weight organogelators: systematic gelation studies and qualitative structural analysis of the systems

A series of amino- and hydroxyalkyl amides of bile acids have been synthesized and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), (1)H and (13)C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), as well as electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) measurements. The ability of the synthesized molecules to promote gel formation was systematically investigated. Out of 396 combinations formed by 11 compounds and 36 different solvents, 22 gel-containing systems were obtained with 1% (w/v) gelator concentration. Apart from one exception, the gelator compounds were lithocholic acid derivatives. This challenges the general trend of bile acid-based physical gelators, according to which the gelation ability of lithocholic acid derivatives is poor. A correlation between the values of Kamlet-Taft parameters and solvent preferences for gelators was observed. The morphologies of the solid and gel structures studied with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed variability from fibers to spherical microscale aggregates, the latter of which are unique among bile acid-based organogels. The gels exhibited more complex behavior than was previously established with bile acid derivatives, judging by the microscale diversity present in gelating and non-gelating systems and the tendency for polymorphism. This study underlines the importance of both the molecular and colloidal scale aspects of the gelation phenomenon.     

Ionic liquid infused starch-cellulose derivative based quasi-solid dye-sensitized solar cell: exploiting the rheological properties of natural polymers

Cellulose - Starch and cellulose have long been used in various industrial applications as gelating agents. In this work, the intrinsic adhesive properties of these biopolymers are exploited for...     

Light‐Powered Self‐Healable Metallosupramolecular Soft Actuators

Supramolecular functional materials able to respond to external stimuli have several advantages over their classical covalent counterparts. The preparation of soft actuators with the ability to respond to external stimuli in a spatiotemporal fashion, to self‐repair, and to show directional motion, is currently one of the most challenging research goals. Herein, we report a series of metallopolymers based on zinc(II)–terpyridine coordination nodes and bearing photoisomerizable diazobenzene units and/or solubilizing luminescent phenylene–ethynylene moieties. These supramolecular polymers act as powerful gelating agents at low critical gelation concentrations. The resulting multiresponsive organogels display light‐triggered mechanical actuation and luminescent properties. Furthermore, owing to the presence of dynamic coordinating bonds, they show self‐healing abilities.     

硅酸及其盐的研究(Ⅺ)——单硅酸胶凝作用的温度效应和活化能

用H₃PO₄、HAc和HCl为胶凝剂,在较广pH范围内,研究0°、20°、30°、40°、50°和70℃等不同温度对单硅酸胶凝作用的影响,并求出活化能。所得结果表明:活化能随胶凝剂的种类和硅酸溶液的pH不同而不同。但也发现硅酸浓度不同时,活化能也有所不同。若总盐浓度恒定,则活化能不变。用硅酸聚合理论的有关概念,对所得结果作了解释。     

Investigation on the assembled structure-property correlation of supramolecular hydrogel formed from low-molecular-weight gelator

The investigation on structure-property correlation is important for understanding the gelating mechanism of supramolecular hydrogels. In this paper, a low-molecular-weight hydrogelator (termed as gelator 1) prepared from 1,2,4,5-benzene tetracarboxylic acid (BTA) and 4-hydroxy pyridine (PHP) was able to gel water effectively. The influence of environmental stimulation, such as cooling speed and ultrasonic treatment, on the structure of the assembling fibers and the macroscopic properties of the gels was investigated via multiple techniques. The results indicated that the fiber size decreased as increasing the cooling speed and the smallest fibers were obtained under ultrasonic treatment. As the fibers became smaller, the gel with higher T(gel), lower bonded water content and higher dynamic modulus was obtained. Therefore it is possible to control the gel performances via the environmental stimulation. The relationship between the assembled structure and properties is helpful for understanding the gel formation mechanism and makes the gels suitable for different applications.     

Tunable two-component saccharide-based gels: The effect of the co-operation of two glucofuranose-based compounds having different gelating abilities

Addition of 1,2-O-(ethane-1,2-diyl)-α-d-glucofuranose, which is originally a poor organogelator, can support the gelating abilities of good glucofuranose-based organogelators. The properties of such two-component gels can be tuned by changing the proportion of the saccharides. The saccharide's ability to form two-component gels can be explained on the basis of its crystal structure, particularly, the way in which sugar molecules stack (or not) into hydrogen bond-based chains and the architecture of these chains. The thermal stability of the obtained two-component gels was characterised by measuring its T _gel temperature. SEM and XRD techniques were used to characterise the xerogels.

Addition of poor gelator increases the thermal stability of the gel formed by good gelator     

Samarium Based High Surface Area Perovskite Type Oxides SmFe1-XAlXO3 (X=0.00, 0.50, 0.95).Part I, Synthesis and Characterization of Materials

High specific surface area (ssa) perovskite type solids based on samarium (SmFe_1-xAl_xO₃, x = 0.00, 0.50, 0.95) were prepared using hexadecyltrimethyl-ammonium bromide C16TAB as a precursor and gelating agent. The structure of perovskite is fully developed at 600oC for the SmFeO3 solid but not for the other materials. The ssa of the solids varies (33.5 m²g^-1 - 1 m²g^-1) depending on composition and calcination temperature.     

New Hydrogen Bonded Supramolecular Hydrogels Formed through Gelating Two Isomeric Building Units Simultaneously

Supramolecular hydrogels formed from small organic molecules (gelators) in water have gained much attention these years due to their scientific interests and potential applications1. However, most of the gelators possesses rather complicated structures an…     

Morphology control of liquid crystalline composite gels based on molecular self-assembling kinetics

Liquid crystalline composite gels consisting of a low molecular mass gelator and a low molecular mass liquid crystal were prepared by two types of gelation method (continuous cooling and isothermal gelating), which provide different molecular self-assembling kinetics of the low molecular mass gelator as gelation proceeds. Optical microscopy and atomic force microscopy revealed that numerous fine strands of the one-dimensionally assembled low molecular mass gelators were formed in the composite gels for both the continuous cooling method and the isothermal gelating method. However, the thinner strands were more homogeneously dispersed in the isothermal gelation product at an appropriate temperature, than in the continuous cooling process. This difference in dispersion state of the strands was shown (by polarizing optical microscopy) to have a significant influence on the molecular alignment of the low molecular mass liquid crystal in the liquid crystalline composite gel. The electro-optical response and light scattering-transmitting switching, of the liquid crystalline composite gel in an applied electric field was extremely dependent on the morphology of the gelators. High contrast light switching was achieved for the composite prepared by isothermal gelation. The response time of electro-optical switching was less than 100 µs under 30 V_rms.