Facile synthesis and characterization of novel pseudo-hypercrosslinked resin

A kind of pseudo-hypercrosslinked polymer resin was firstly synthesized via a continuous Friedel-Crafts alkylation poly- merization of benzene, diphenyl and their dichloromethyl derivatives. And the micromorphology and adsorption properties of these resins were investigated. The results demonstrated that the novel resins have high-specific surface area （581.26-974.88 m^2/g）, high- pore volume （0.56-1.65 mL/g）, small average porous radius （1.93-3.67 nm） and excellent adsorption properties for small non-polar organic molecules.     

Facile synthesis and characterization of novel thermo-chromism cholesteryl-containing hydrogen-bonded liquid crystals

Two series of novel cholesteryl-containing H-bonded liquid crystals were prepared through facile self-assembly between cholesteryl isonicotinate(proton acceptor) exhibiting a monotropic cholesteric phase,and the 4-alkoxy-benzoic acid or 4-alkoxy cinnamic acid(proton donor).It was found that the increase of the conjugate length as well as the terminal length can contribute to enhance the interaction of molecules and thus significantly influenced the thermal behaviors of H-bonded LCs.The cholesteric reflec...     

Ordered mesoporous metal oxides: synthesis and applications

Great progress has been made in the preparation and application of ordered mesoporous metal oxides during the past decade. However, the applications of these novel and interesting materials have not been reviewed comprehensively in the literature. In the current review we first describe different methods for the preparation of ordered mesoporous metal oxides; we then review their applications in energy conversion and storage, catalysis, sensing, adsorption and separation. The correlations between the textural properties of ordered mesoporous metal oxides and their specific performance are highlighted in different examples, including the rate of Li intercalation, sensing, and the magnetic properties. These results demonstrate that the mesoporosity has a direct impact on the properties and potential applications of such materials. Although the scope of the current review is limited to ordered mesoporous metal oxides, we believe that the information may be useful for those working in a number of fields.     

Facile synthesis for ordered mesoporous gamma-aluminas with high thermal stability

The facile synthesis of highly ordered mesoporous aluminas with high thermal stability and tunable pore sizes is systematically investigated. The general synthesis strategy is based on a sol-gel process associated with nonionic block copolymer as templates in ethanol solvent. Small-angle XRD, TEM, and nitrogen adsorption and desorption results show that these mesoporous aluminas possess a highly ordered 2D hexagonal mesostructure, which is resistant to high temperature up to 1000 degrees C. Ordered mesoporous structures with tunable pore sizes are obtained with various precursors, different acids as pH adjustors, and different block copolymers as templates. These mesoporous aluminas have large surface areas (ca. 400 m2/g), pore volumes (ca. 0.70 cm3/g), and narrow pore-size distributions. The influence of the complexation ability of anions and hydro-carboxylic acid, acid volatility, and other important synthesis conditions are discussed in detail. Utilizing this simple strategy, we also obtained partly ordered mesoporous alumina with hydrous aluminum nitrate as the precursor. FTIR pyridine adsorption measurements indicate that a large amount of Lewis acid sites exist in these mesoporous aluminas. These materials are expected to be good candidates in catalysis due to the uniform pore structures, large surface areas, tunable pore sizes, and large amounts of surface Lewis acid sites. Loaded with ruthenium, the representative mesoporous alumina exhibits reactant size selectivity in hydrogenation of acetone, D-glucose, and D-(+)-cellobiose as a test reaction, indicating the potential applications in shape-selective catalysis.     

Facile synthesis of spiny mesoporous titania tubes with enhanced photocatalytic activity

We demonstrate here for the first time an original and facile approach to synthesizing a novel TiO(2) tube with a spiny mesoporous wall. The photocatalytic activity of the spiny mesoporous tube was greatly enhanced owing to the superior light reflecting ability of the tubular structure as well as the crosslinked spiny nanosheets.     

A novel template-free sol–gel synthesis of silica materials with mesoporous structures and zeolitic walls

Hierarchical porous materials with zeolite structures show great promise in catalysis due to combining the advantages of zeolites and mesoporous materials. Here a novel template-free sol–gel method is developed to synthesize hierarchical porous silica materials. This method involves solvothermal recrystallization of the xerogel converted from uniform silicalite-1 precursor sol via vacuum drying process. The zeolite sol and the solid samples were characterized by laser light scattering, XRD, N₂ adsorption/desorption isotherm, FTIR, SEM, TEM and thermal analysis technologies. The results show that we obtain two novel materials with different mesoporous structures and silicalite-1 walls by using different recrystallization media, one of which has irregular arrays of mesopores, the other possesses 3D wormhole mesoporous structure. We speculate that formation of different mesoporous structures results from different nucleation and growth process of materials     

Facile fabrication of mesoporous manganese oxides as advanced electrode materials for supercapacitors

Mesoporous manganese oxides (MnO₂) were synthesized via a facile chemical deposition strategy. Three kinds of basic precipitants including sodium carbonate (Na₂CO₃), sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) were employed to adjust the microstructures and surface morphologies of MnO₂ materials. The obtained MnO₂ materials display different microstructures. Great differences are observed in their specific surface area and porosity properties. The microstructures and surface morphologies characteristics of MnO₂ materials largely determine their pseudocapacitive behavior for supercapacitors. The MnO₂ prepared with Na₂CO₃ precipitant exhibits the optimal microstructures and surface morphologies compared with the other two samples, contributing to their best electrochemical performances for supercapacitors when conducted either in the single electrode tests or in the capacitor measurements. The optimal MnO₂ electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance (173 F g^–1 at 0.25 A g^?1), high-rate capability (123 F g^?1 at 4 A g^?1), and excellent cyclic stability (no capacitance loss after 5,000 cycles at 1 A g^?1). The optimal activated carbon//MnO₂ hybrid capacitor exhibits a wide working voltage (1.8 V), high-power and high-energy densities (1,734 W kg^?1 and 20.9 Wh kg^?1), and excellent cycling behavior (93.8 % capacitance retention after 10,000 cycles at 1 A g^?1), indicating the promising applications of the easily fabricated mesoporous MnO₂ for supercapacitors.     

Facile synthesis of a sulfonated carbon-silica-meso composite and mesoporous silica

In this study we report a novel and simple method for preparing a sulfonated carbon-silica-meso composite showing high acidity and porosity useful for transformation of bulky molecules, where glucose was used as a carbon source as well as a non-surfactant templating precursor and the resultant composite upon calcination yielded the mesoporous silica.     

Hydrothermal synthesis and characterization of two organically templated cadmium borophosphates with novel structures

Two organically templated cadmium borophosphates, (C(4)H(16)N(3))[CdClB(2)P(3)O(12)(OH)] (1) and (C(2)H(10)N(2))[CdB(2)P(3)O(12)(OH)] (2), were synthesized hydrothermally in the presence of structure-directing amines. Compound 1 has a complex layered structure (orthorhombic, Pbca (No. 61); a = 9.470(2), b = 12.307(3), c = 27.311(6) A; V = 3183 (1) A(3); Z = 8) with a 9MR channel system, while compound 2 (orthorhombic, Pbca (No. 61); a = 9.286(3), b = 12.459(3), c = 21.626(6) A; V = 2502(1) A(3); Z = 8) presents a 3-dimensional open framework structure of different types of intersecting channels. It is worth noting that both the Cl(-) anions and the organic templates play important and interesting roles in the formation of the structures.     

Facile synthesis and characterization of a novel thiophene-fused polycyclic aromatics based on pyrene

A novel large thiophene-fused polycyclic aromatics 1 based on pyrene 5 has been synthesized,and its structure was confirmed by ¹H NMR,¹³C NMR,MS,UV -vis and elemental analysis.The key steps of the synthesis involved the Stille cross-coupling reaction and followed by selectiveβ-βoxidative cyclization of pendant thienyl rings by FeCl₃ under mild conditions.     

General synthesis of mesoporous spheres of metal oxides and phosphates

Monodisperse and high-surface-area mesoporous inorganic spheres of various compositions including metal oxides, mixed oxides, and metal phosphates are prepared by templating mesoporous carbon spheres which are replicated from spherical mesoporous silica. Due to the rigid and thermally stable framework of carbon template, the crystalline phases of the obtained metal oxide spheres can be readily tailored by controlling crystalline temperatures. Moreover, the sphere morphologies can be changed from solid structure to hollow structure in some cases by changing the polarity of the precursor, due to the hydrophobic nature of carbon template.     

Direct electrochemistry of myoglobin based on bicontinuous gyroidal mesoporous carbon matrix

A strategy of protein entrapment within the bicontinuous gyroidal mesoporous carbon (BGMC) matrix is demonstrated to probe the direct electrochemistry of myoglobin. Large surface area and remarkable electro-catalytic properties of BGMC make it a suitable candidate for high loading of protein molecules and the promotion of heterogeneous electron transfer (ET). In contrast with carbon nanotubes and general carbon mesoporous materials, BGMC is of a relatively isotropic graphited structure and thus can more effectively enhance the heterogeneous ET. Furthermore, a series of BGMCs with different pore sizes (2–7 nm) is designed and synthesized to study the influence of pore size on the immobilization of redox proteins and on the electron transfer.     

Electrocatalytic oxidation of NADH based on bicontinuous gyroidal mesoporous carbon with low overpotential

The electrochemical oxidation of β-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) is studied at a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with bicontinuous gyroidal mesoporous carbon (BGMC). Due to the large surface area and remarkable electrocatalytic properties of BGMC, the BGMC/GCE exhibits potent electrocatalytic activity toward the electro-oxidation of NADH. A substantial decrease of 649 mV in the overpotential of NADH oxidation reaction is achieved compared with a bare GCE. The anodic peak currents increase steadily with the concentration of NADH in a broad range from 3.0 × 10^?6 to 1.4 × 10^?3 M with a low detection limit of 1.0 × 10^?6 M under the optimal condition.     

Container effect in nanocasting synthesis of mesoporous metal oxides

We report a general reaction container effect in the nanocasting synthesis of mesoporous metal oxides. The size and shape of the container body in conjunction with simply modifying the container opening accessibility can be used to control the escape rate of water and other gas-phase byproducts in the calcination process, and subsequently affect the nanocrystal growth of the materials inside the mesopore space of the template. In this way, the particle size, mesostructure ordering, and crystallinity of the final product can be systemically controlled. The container effect also explain some of the problems with reproducibility in previously reported results.     

Preparation and characterization of novel mesoporous ceria-titania

Synthesis of a novel thermally stable mesoporous ceria-titania phase using a neutral templating route is reported. The as-made inorganic-template hybrid mesostructured matrix showed a broad low-angle XRD peak characteristic of mesoporous materials. Careful thermal treatment of the matrix allowed the subsequent densification (of the pore walls) of the inorganic component and removal of the organic component so that a high-quality mesoporous ceria-titania was formed as observed by TEM analysis. The calcined material showed the formation of fluorite type structure of CeO(2) but no crystalline titania phase was observed. The mesoporous structure remained even after high-temperature treatment. The material had high surface area after calcination up to the temperature of 973 K, with well-dispersed ceria and titania components and negligible bulk oxide formation (from XRD, UV-vis, and XPS analysis). These novel mesoporous ceria-titania materials showed high performance for the removal of volatile organic compound (toluene). The toluene removal performance was further enhanced for Pt impregnated mesoporous ceria-titania.     

Facile synthesis and application of mesoporous silica coated magnetic carbon nanotubes

Mesoporous silica coated magnetic carbon nanotubes were prepared as a novel hybrid material for the first time, and the as-synthesized composites were successfully applied as absorbents for the fast removal of microcystins.     

Facile one‐pot synthesis and characterization of novel nanostructured organic dispersible polyaniline

Novel polyaniline (PANI) with nanotube, nanosheet, and nanofiber shapes was facilely synthesized by a self‐templating one‐pot process. Anilinium‐dodecylsulfate (DS) complex, obtained by mixing equivalent amounts of aniline and sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS), played a template‐like role in forming PANI nanostructures. It was found that the morphology and electrical conductivity of the PANI nanostructures changed with the amount of SDS and the reaction temperature. Nanotube‐shaped PANI synthesized at the temperature of anilinium‐DS complex formation in presence of SDS (concentration <0.12 M) showed high conductivity (12.9 S/cm). At higher temperature, the morphology changed to shape of a rose flower and electrical conductivity decreased to 3.95 S/cm. This suggested that both temperature and SDS concentration were key parameters for controlling the formation of the anilinium‐DS complex that acted as a template. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 1024–1029, 2009     

Facile one-pot synthesis of PEGylated monodisperse mesoporous silica nanoparticles with controllable particle sizes

In this work, we describe the one-pot synthesis of PEGylated mesoporous silica nanoparticles （MSNs） with uniform shape, tunable sizes, and narrow size distributions. The size of these nanoparticles can be controlled from 49 nm to 98 nm by simply varying the concentration oftriethanolamine during the base- catalyzed sol-gel reaction. Particles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption measurements. These PEGylated MSNs exhibited excellent long-term stability in biological media, which ensures their potential applications in drug delivery.