Increasing the efficiency of silicon and aluminum extraction from Volclay by a water iteration treatment for the synthesis of MCM-41 nanomaterials

This work aims to reduce the prices of a wide range of nanomaterials which are unreachable in the industry by using natural sources as silicon and aluminum precursors. In a previous work, silicon and aluminum have been extracted from Volclay after applying the alkaline fusion process at 550 °C, and a water treatment of this fused clay by adopting a weight ratio (1:4, fusion mass:H₂O) to synthesize Al-MCM-41 nanomaterials. In this study, the weight ratio of fusion mass:H₂O was increased to 1:8 to synthesize a highly structurally ordered MCM-41 under the same reaction conditions. The Al-MCM-41 nanomaterials are investigated by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP–OES), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), N₂ adsorption–desorption measurements and scanning electron microscopy (ESEM). As a result, the increase in the weight ratio fusion mass:H₂O generates more silica and aluminum, which allows the formation of well-ordered MCM-41 nanomaterials with high pore volume (0.70 cm³/g), high surface area (1044 m²/g), and uniform mesoporous diameter (3.67 nm); as a consequence, the increase in the weight ratio fusion mass:H₂O leads to an increase in the mass of Al-MCM-41 (9.3 g for 1:8 compared to 5 g for 1:4), whereas the yield of production of mesoporous materials increases to 86%.     

The effect of Pt nanoparticles distribution on the removal of cyanide by TiO2 coated Al-MCM-41 in blue light exposure

With an aim to enhance the photocatalytic activity, Pt loaded TiO₂–Al-MCM-41 catalysts with high surface area were synthesized by a multistep route. The waste of the rice processing, rice husk (RH), was used as the precursor for the extraction of silica. The diffuse reflectance and photoluminescence spectroscopy revealed the extension of the absorption edge in the visible region and exciton trapping nature of the dispersed platinum. The structural analysis was carried out by XRD, whereas X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy identified the chemical states of the components of the synthesized powders. The BET surface area measurements revealed the reduction in the surface area and pore volume with the increasing platinum loading. TEM micrographs showed the uniform distribution of TiO₂ and Pt nanoparticles at the surface of Al-MCM-41. The photocatalytic efficiency of the synthesized powders as photocatalysts was obtained for the removal of 100 ppm CN⁻ from aqueous solution in fluorescent blue light exposure. Compared to unsupported TiO₂, the Pt-loaded catalysts exhibited substantially high activity for the removal of CN⁻. A plausible mechanism for the removal of cyanide ions was proposed. The catalysts showed excellent stability and reproducibility in the successive use.     

介孔分子筛MCM-41的硅烷化改性及吸附性能研究

高硅分子筛MCM-41具有均匀的中孔孔径分布、较大的比表面积(>900m2/g)[1-2],应用前景广阔.已在硅基分子筛的基础上合成了各种含有杂原子分子筛、金属氧化物分子筛、有机官能团分子筛[3-8].改变介孔MCM-41分子筛的表面组成可以较好地调节其吸附性能[9].本文以直接反应的方法用三甲基氯硅烷来修饰MCM-41.通过XRD、红外吸收光谱和比表面和孔隙率测定对样品进行了表征,并分别对改性前后样品进行了水与苯的吸附性能研究.     

Reaction of benzaldehyde with various aliphatic glycols in the presence of hydrophobic Al-MCM-41: A convenient synthesis of cyclic acetals

The reaction of benzaldehyde with aliphatic glycols was performed over Al-MCM-41 with various Si/Al ratios. The effects of various parameters like temperature, mole ratio, reaction time and catalyst amount on the formation of acetals were optimized. The mesoporous Al-MCM-41 (Si/Al ratio 36, 57, 81 and 108) were synthesized by hydrothermal method. The synthesized catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherm (BET), thermo gravimetric-differential thermal analysis (TGA-DTA) and TEM techniques. The acidity of the catalysts was measured by pyridine adsorption followed by FT-IR analysis. TEM analysis showed that the honeycomb-like regular arrangement of hexagonal pores on the molecular sieves. The highly hydrophobic Al-MCM-41 (108) showed higher activity than the other Si/Al ratios. The activity of the catalysts showed the following order Al-MCM-41 (108) > Al-MCM-41 (81) > Al-MCM-41 (57) > Al-MCM-41 (36). The hydrophobicity and nucleophilicity of the glycols highly influences the conversion of benzaldehyde, it followed the order; hexylene glycol (HG) > propylene glycol (PG) > ethylene glycol (EG). The results showed that mole ratio of 1:3 (aldehyde:glycol) gave higher yield than the other mole ratios.     

表面活性剂修饰对MCM-41负载离子液体吸附CO2影响的研究

以表面活性剂修饰的MCM-41为载体,采用浸渍法制备了负载离子液体[NH2p-mim][PF6]的二氧化碳吸附剂,考察了表面活性剂对离子液体在MCM-41上分散的影响以及所导致的CO2吸附性能的变化.利用红外光谱(FT-IR),X-射线衍射(XRD),高分辨透射电子显微镜(HRTEM),热重分析(TG)技术对所合成的负载型离子液体吸附剂进行了表征研究,并与其吸附CO2的性能变化、离子液体与表面活性剂相互作用方式等因素进行了关联.结果表明:MCM-41负载离子液体后对CO2的吸附性能略有提高,而经表面活性剂修饰的MCM-41负载离子液体后,对CO2的吸附容量较载体本身提高了2.5倍.这一方面是因为表面活性剂胶束改善了MCM-41上离子液体的分散性,另一方面是表面活性剂胶束对离子液体分子上电荷分布的影响,导致离子液体内部阴阳离子之间的相互作用减弱,从而引起离子液体中-NH2上N原子电子云密度增大,使其与CO2作用更容易.CO2在经表面活性剂修饰后的MCM-41负载离子液体[NH2p-mim][PF6]吸附剂上的吸附受扩散控制,其吸附-脱附CO2所需能量较小,经过5次吸附-脱附循环后,其吸附性能仍保持稳定.热重分析结果表明,经表面活性剂修饰后的MCM-41负载离子液体吸附剂在100℃下氮气气氛再生时不会发生性质改变.     

多种因素对于MCM-41固载钌基催化剂加氢性能的影响

The functionalized MCM-41 mesoporous bound ruthenium complex was synthesized and characterized usingelemental analysis,atomic absorption spectrophotometer,BET,XRD and FTIR.Hydrogenation of carbon dioxide toformic acid was investigated over these catalysts under supercritical CO_2 condition.The effect of reactant gas par-tial pressure,supports,solvents and ligands on the synthesis of formic acid was studied.These factors could influ-ence the catalyst activity,stability and reuse performance greatly and no byproduct was detected.These promisingcatalysts also offered the industrial advantages such as easy separation.     

PMo or PW heteropoly acids supported on MCM-41 silica nanoparticles: Characterisation and FT-IR study of the adsorption of 2-butanol

Mesoporous silica, prepared in basic conditions, has been loaded (20% weight) with 12-molybdophosphoric (PMo) or 12-tungstophosphoric (PW) acid and calcined at different temperatures ranging between 250 and 550 °C. The samples have been characterised by N₂ adsorption-desorption at −196 °C, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), UV-visible diffuse reflectance, Raman spectroscopy and temperature programmed reduction (TPR). The acidity and catalytic activity have been, respectively, examined by monitoring the adsorption of pyridine and 2-butanol by FT-IR spectroscopy. The results indicate that PW and PMo acids are highly dispersed on mesoporous silica MCM-41 spherical nanoparticles. While PMo retains its Keggin structure up to 550 °C, PW decomposes at this temperature into crystalline WO₃ and phosphorous oxides. In both cases, the morphology, hexagonal symmetry and long-range order observed for the support are preserved with calcination up to 450 °C. The Brönsted-type acid sites found in all samples, whose surface concentration decreases as the calcination temperature increases, are responsible for the selective formation of cis-butene detected upon adsorption of 2-butanol. The sample containing PW calcined at 450 °C also shows selectivity to methyl ethyl ketone.     

Hydroformylation of alkyl alkenes catalyzed by rhodium supported on MCM-41: The effect of H3PW12O40 on the catalytic activity and recycling

Heteropolyacids impregnated with rhodium(I) or (III) complexes were prepared and used as supported catalysts in the hydroformylation of alkyl alkenes. Two general types of catalysts were prepared and tested: rhodium(I) or (III) in the presence and in the absence of the heteropolyacid H₃PW₁₂O₄₀, 25H₂O (adopted as HPW₁₂) supported on MCM-41 (30 Å). 1-Octene was chosen as a model substrate. Different types of supported catalysts were tested in the hydroformylation of 1-octene and other alkyl alkenes. The effects of the temperature and the type of solvent on the reaction were studied. The results showed that the supported catalysts containing the heteropolyacid H₃PW₁₂O₄₀, 25H₂O (HPW₁₂) along with rhodium(I) or (III) gave higher catalytic activity. In addition, the recycling of the supported catalysts was studied and the results showed again the important effect of the presence of HPW₁₂ on the recycling of the rhodium catalysts.     

Synthesis, structure and magnetic properties of porous magnetic composite, based on MCM-41 molecular sieve with Fe3O4 nanoparticles

Porous magnetic composites were prepared by the synthesis of molecular sieve MCM-41 in the presence of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles with average diameter of 15 nm. Nanoparticles were captured by porous silica matrix MCM-41, which resulted in their incorporation, as it was confirmed by TEM, SEM and X-ray diffraction. The materials possessed high surface area (392-666 m² g⁻¹), high pore volume (0.39-0.73 cm³ g⁻¹) along with high magnetic response (M_S up to 28.4 emu g⁻¹ at 300 K). Calcination of samples resulted in partial oxidation of Fe₃O₄ to α-Fe₂O₃. The influence of nanoparticles content on sorption and magnetic properties of the composites was shown. No hysteresis was found for the samples at 300 K; at 5 K, H_C was in the range 370-385 G for non-calcinated samples and 350-356 G for calcinated ones.     

Heteropolyacid (H3PW12O40) supported MCM-41: An efficient solid acid catalyst for the green synthesis of xanthenedione derivatives

HPWA/MCM-41 mesoporous molecular sieves of appropriate ratios were prepared by loading HPWA on siliceous MCM-41 by the wet impregnation method. The prepared HPWA/MCM-41 materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and BET surface area and FT-IR measurements. The morphology of mesoporous materials was studied by TEM observation. The catalytic activity of the above materials was tested for the condensation of dimedone (active methylene carbonyl compound) and various aromatic aldehyes under liquid phase conditions at 90 °C. The products were confirmed by FT-IR, ¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR studies. HPWA supported MCM-41 catalysts catalyses efficiently the condensation of dimedone and aromatic aldehydes in ethanol and other solvents under liquid phase conditions to afford the corresponding xanthenedione derivatives. Activities of the catalysts follow the order: HPWA/MCM-41(20 wt.%) > HPWA/MCM-41(30 wt.%) > H₃PW₁₂O₄₀·nH₂O > HPWA/MCM-41(10 wt.%) > HPWA/SiO₂ (20 wt.%) > HM (12) > Hβ (8) > Al-MCM-41 (50). Various advantages associated with these protocols include simple workup procedure, short reaction times, high product yields and easy recovery and reusability of the catalyst.     

Study on the controllable synthesis of SH-MCM-41 mesoporous materials and their adsorption properties of the La3+, Gd3+ and Yb3+

Sulfhydryl MCM-41 (SH-MCM-41) mesoporous materials were prepared via a hydrothermal method, and -SH was successfully imported by a post-grafting method. The structure and surface properties of the materials were characterized using Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and Transmission Electron Microscopy analysis. The low concentrations of La³⁺, Gd³⁺ and Yb³⁺ adsorption on the material were investigated. This paper discusses the effects of system factors, such as pH and the solid-liquid ratio, on the performance of the adsorption process. The adsorption thermodynamics and kinetics were also explored. Experimental results indicated that the materials were in good order and had high specific surface area (956 m²/g) with an average pore diameter of 2.1 nm; the mercapto groups were successfully grafted onto a molecular sieve, and the best grafted amount was 1.46 × 10^?3 mol/g. The materials showed preferable adsorption of La³⁺, Gd³⁺ and Yb³⁺ with maximum adsorption capacities of 560.56 mg/g, 467.60 mg/g and 540.68 mg/g, respectively. The adsorption process can be described by the Freundlich isotherm model, and the adsorption data fits pseudo-second-order kinetics. After repeating the elution-regeneration cycle four times, the adsorption capacity of rare earth ions was mostly maintained, indicating that the adsorbent can be regenerated well and recycled to save costs. It has potential in practical application.     

Cerium effect on the phase structure, phase stability and redox properties of Ce-doped strontium ferrates

Nanostructured perovskite-type Sr_1−aCe_aFeO_3−x, (0?a<0.15) powders have been prepared by citrate-nitrate smoldering auto-combustion. Their phase structure and stability, surface and morphological properties, reduction behavior and interaction with oxygen have been investigated by X-ray Powder Diffraction combined with Rietveld Analysis, ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopies, N₂-adsorption method, Temperature Programmed Reduction and Oxidation experiments. Our results reveal that citrate-nitrate auto-combustion method is effective in obtaining single phase Sr_1−aCe_aFeO_3−x. The Sr_1−aCe_aFeO_3−x structure is cubic only for a?0.06, while for a<0.06 remains tetragonal. Moreover, for a?0.06 after semi-reductive treatment under inert gas, an expanded cubic phase is obtained instead of the brownmillerite-type structure, which is known to have ordered vacancies. Stabilization of octahedral Fe³⁺ by cerium doping appears to be the main factor in determining the structural properties of Sr_1−aCe_aFeO_3−x. The highest oxygen consumption for Ce-doped SrFeO₃ occurs for a=0.06. Preliminary impedance measurements show that Sr_0.94Ce_0.06FeO_3−x has the lowest area-specific resistance.     

The effect of high electric fields on the structure and dielectric properties of the B2 phase

Dielectric studies are presented of a banana-shaped compound that exhibits the antiferroelectric B₂ phase. Upon application and subsequent removal of strong electric fields the textures and dielectric properties of the phase drastically change. Most notable is the huge increase of the low frequency permittivity. This behaviour would suggest the induction of ferroelectricity by the electric field.     

The effect of high electric fields on the structure and dielectric properties of the B2 phase

Dielectric studies are presented of a banana-shaped compound that exhibits the antiferroelectric B₂ phase. Upon application and subsequent removal of strong electric fields the textures and dielectric properties of the phase drastically change. Most notable is the huge increase of the low frequency permittivity. This behaviour would suggest the induction of ferroelectricity by the electric field.     

The effect of molecular structure on the chiral random grain boundary phase

A chiral random grain boundary (RGB) phase was recently observed in a hockey-stick biphenyl-substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivative. In the RGB phase, achiral molecules self-assemble into randomly oriented blocks of chiral smectic layers and the motif of the unique microstructure is attributed to the similarity of hockey-stick molecules both to bent-core and to rod-like molecules. In order to explore the effect of molecular structure on the RGB phase in detail, we systematically change the molecular design. When the flexible tail decreases, the high-temperature Smectic A (SmA) phase is replaced by a nematic phase, showing a phase sequence of Iso-N-SmA-RGB-Cryst in 2-(4-dodecyloxyphenyl)-5-biphenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole. However, when we replace the 1,3,4-oxadiazole group by the 1,3,4-thiadiazole group, the bending angle increases in the 1,3,4-thiadiazole derivatives and the RGB phase disappears. Or when the length of the arm becomes short in naphthalene-substituted 1,3,4-oxadiazole, these molecules exhibited only normal rod-like molecules’ mesomorphism. These results will provide deep insights on the relationship of molecular structure and mesophase structural property.     

The effect of structure of oil phase, surfactant and co-surfactant on the physicochemical and electrochemical properties of bicontinuous microemulsion

Efforts were made to prepare bicontinuous microemulsions with ten different oil phases involving aliphatic, linear, and aromatic hydrocarbons as oil phases, two co-surfactants (n-butanol and n-pentanol) and two surfactants: cationic (CTAB) and anionic (SDS). Different weight percentages were employed for the preparation of cationic and anionic surfactant based microemulsions as reported in the literature. Out of the 40 compositions (10 oil phasesx2 co-surfactantsx2 surfactants) thus selected only 28 systems showed stable bicontinuous microemulsion phase. This behavior is explained on the basis of the structures of various constituents present in the microemulsions. Viscosity variations of stable bicontinuous microemulsions are found to depend mainly on the nature of co-surfactant. Conductivity behavior on the other hand depends mainly on the weight percentage and composition of aqueous phase. The solubility of pyrene in the oil phase determines the excimer formation and fluorescence behavior in microemulsions. The electron transfer property of both the water-soluble and the oil-soluble redox systems does not depend on the oil phase and the co-surfactant. The significance and importance of characterizing well defined bicontinuous microemulsions is thus highlighted.     

Study on the controllable synthesis of SH-MCM-41 mesoporous materials and their adsorption properties of the La3+, Gd3+ and Yb3+

SH-MCM-41 was examined in adsorption and desorption experiments to investigate the adsorption capacities of La³⁺, Gd³⁺ and Yb³⁺ and the reusability.     

The effect of temperature and solvent on the synthesis and properties of nylon 610 made from sebacyl bisketene

Polyamides were synthesized at ?60°, ?40°, ?20°, and 0°C from sebacyl bisketene and 1,6-hexamethylenediamine in either acetone or methylene chloride. At the lower reaction temperatures oligomers predominated in solution but at 0°C the product was crosslinked. The polyamides were subjected to m-cresol extraction at elevated temperatures for up to 14 days. The m-cresol soluble and insoluble fractions were characterized by weight, infrared spectroscopy, dilute solution viscosity, and gel permeation chromatography. Infrared analysis of the soluble and insoluble portions showed the degree of branching of the polyamide, identified the branching point at the secondary amide proton position, and gave an indication of the degree of branching required before insoluble products resulted. Dilute solution viscosity and gel permeation chromatography were used to demonstrate the existence of low molecular weight (M_w) oligomer species in the soluble portion. Differential scanning calorimetry experiments revealed that polyamides synthesized below their glass transition temperature would not crystallize which resulted in abnormal thermal characteristics. Annealing at elevated temperatures allowed crystallization to occur and the expected thermal character to develop.     

Multi-arm star polyisobutylenes: 2. The effect of synthesis conditions on the structure of star PIBs

Multi-arm star polyisobutylenes (^*-(PIB)_n) have been prepared by the “arm-first” method. This synthesis was accomplished by adding various linking agents (“core builders”) such as p- and m-divinylbenzene (DVB) and p- and m-diisopropenylbenzene (DIB) to living PIB® charges and thus obtaining a crosslinked aromatic core holding together a corona of well-defined arms. The products were characterized in terms of overall arm/core composition, molecular weight, and molecular weight distribution (M̄_w/M_n). The effect of reaction conditions (time, [linking agent]/[PIB], arm molecular weight) on the kinetics of the star formation and star structure were investigated. The multi-arm star nature of ^*-(PIB)_ns was proven directly by determining the molecular weight (by light scattering) of the intact products, selectively destroying the aromatic polyDVB (or polyDIB) core (“core-destruction”), and finally determining the molecular weight of the surviving aliphatic PIB arms. The synthetic strategy, overall kinetics, and observations during the preparation of star-PIBs were discussed. Among the critical parameters that determine product structures are the rate of crossover PIB^⊕ + DVB (or DIB) → PIB-DVB^⊕ (or PIB-DIB^⊕), the concentration of the linking agent DVB (or DIB), and the molecular weight of the PIB arm. Evidence for the formation of higher order stars (“secondary”, etc.) by star-star- coupling has been presented.     

A blue-green-emitting 3D supramolecular compound: synthesis,crystal structure and effect of solvents and temperature on the luminescent properties

A blue-green-emitting three-dimensional supramolecular compound (C₁₀O₂N₂H₈)(C₉O₇H₆) (1) was synthesised under hydrothermal conditions and structurally characterised by elemental analysis, IR spectrum, ¹H NMR and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystal belongs to triclinic system with P 1¯ space group. The crystal structure is stabilised by O–H…O, O–H…N hydrogen bonds and π–π interactions (π–π stacking distance is 3.282 Å). Compound 1 exhibits intense green luminescence in solid state at 298 K (λ_em = 546 nm). In addition, absorption and fluorescence characteristics of compound 1 have been investigated in different solvents (DMSO, CH₃CN and CH₃OH). The results show that compound 1 exhibits a large red shift in both absorption and emission spectra as solvent polarity increases (polarity: DMSO>CH₃CN>CH₃OH), indicating a change in dipole moment of compound 1 upon excitation. Although the emission spectra of compound 1 in CH₃OH are close to it in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), it is revealed that the luminescence behaviour of compound 1 depends not only on the polarity of environment but also on the hydrogen bonding properties of the solvent. Meanwhile, temperature strongly affects the emission spectra of compound 1. Emission peaks of compound 1 were blue shift at 77 K than those at 298 K in both solid state (ca. 142 nm) and solution (ca. 6–23 nm), which was due to the non-radiative transition decreases at low temperature. Moreover, the quantum yield and fluorescence lifetime of compound 1 were also measured, which increased with increasing polarity of solvent, lifetime in DMSO at 298 K (τ₁ = 0.92 μs, τ₂ = 8.71 μs) was the longest one in solvents (298 K: τ₁ = 0.87–0.92 μs, τ₂ = 7.50–8.71 μs; 77 K: τ₁ = 0.72–0.90 μs, τ₂ = 6.88–7.45 μs), which was also shorter than that in solid state (298 K: τ₁ = 1.13 μs, τ₂ = 7.50 μs; 77 K: τ₁ = 0.97 μs, τ₂ = 8.97 μs). This was probably because of the weak polarity environment of compound 1 in solid state.