Electrochemical and chemical polymerization of acrylamide

The electrochemical and chemical polymerization of acrylamide (AA) has been studied. The electrolysis of the monomer in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) containing (C₄H₉)₄NClO₄ as the supporting electrolyte leads to polymer formation in both anode and cathode compartments. The cathodic polymer dissolves in the reaction mixture and the anodic polymer precipitates during the course of polymerization. A plausible mechanism for the anodic and cathodic initiation reaction has been given. The chemical polymerization of acrylamide that has been initiated by HClO₄ is analogous to its anodic polymerization. The polymer yield increases with an increase in concentration of the monomer and HClO₄. Raising the reaction temperature also enhances the polymerization rate. The overall apparent activation energy of the polymerization was determined to be ca. 19 kcal/mole. The copolymerization of acrylamide was carried out with methyl methacrylate (MMA) in a solution of HClO₄ in DMF. The reactivity ratios are r₁ (AA) = 0.25 and r₂ = 2.50. The polymerization with HClO₄ appears to be by a free radical mechanism. When the polymerization of acrylamide is carried out with HClO₄ in H₂O, a crosslinked water-insoluble gel formation takes place.     

Lithium AlPO<Subscript>4</Subscript> composite polymer battery with nanostructured LiMn<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> cathode

The borate ester plasticized AlPO₄ composite solid polymer electrolytes (SPE) have been synthesized and studied as candidates for lithium polymer battery (LPB) application. The electrochemical and thermal properties of SPE were shown to be suitable for practical LPB. Nanostructured LiMn₂O₄ with spherical particles was synthesized via ultrasonic spray pyrolysis technique and has shown a superior performance to the one prepared via conventional methods as cathode for LPB. Furthermore, the AlPO₄ addition to the polymer electrolyte has improved the polymer battery performance. Based on the AC impedance spectroscopy data, the performance improvement was suggested as being due to the cathode/polymer electrolyte interface stabilization in the presence of AlPO₄. The Li/composite polymer electrolyte/nanostructured LiMn₂O₄ electrochemical cell showed stable cyclability during the various current density tests, and its performance was found to be quite acceptable for practical utilities at ambient temperature and showed remarkable improvements at 60 °C compared with the solid state reaction counterpart.     

Conductivity and thermal behavior of proton conducting polymer electrolyte based on poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone)

The polymer electrolytes based on poly N-vinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and ammonium thiocyanate (NH₄SCN) with different compositions have been prepared by solution casting technique. The amorphous nature of the polymer electrolytes has been confirmed by XRD analysis. The shift in T_g values and the melting temperatures of the PVP-NH₄SCN electrolytes shown by DSC thermo-grams indicate an interaction between the polymer and the salt. The dependence of T_g and conductivity upon salt concentration have been discussed. The conductivity analysis shows that the 20 mol% ammonium thiocyanate doped polymer electrolyte exhibit high ionic conductivity and it has been found to be 1.7 × 10⁻⁴ S cm⁻¹, at room temperature. The conductivity values follow the Arrhenius equation and the activation energy for 20 mol% ammonium thiocyanate doped polymer electrolyte has been found to be 0.52 eV.     

Laser Raman and ac impedance spectroscopic studies of PVA: NH4NO3 polymer electrolyte

Ion conducting polymer electrolyte PVA:NH₄NO₃ has been prepared by solution casting technique and characterized using XRD, Raman and ac impedance spectroscopic analyses. The amorphous nature of the polymer films has been confirmed by XRD and Raman spectroscopy. An insight into the deconvoluted Raman peaks of υ₁ vibration of NO₃^? anion for the polymer electrolyte reveals the dominancy of ion aggregates at higher NH₄NO₃ concentration. From the ac impedance studies, the highest ion conductivity at 303 K has been found to be 7.5 × 10^?3 S cm^?1 for 80PVA:20NH₄NO₃. The conductivity of the polymer electrolytes has been found to depend on the degree of dissociation of the salt in the host polymer matrix. The combination of the above-mentioned analyses has proven worth while and in fact necessary in order to achieve better understanding of these complex systems.     

Synthesis and characterization of a one-dimensional polymeric copper(Ⅱ)-tetrathioporphyrazine

The title polymer PCuS4Pz was synthesized by reaction of 2,3-dicyano-5,6-dihydro-1,4-dithiin,pyromellitic dianhydride and urea with cuprous salt in optimized gentle method.The structure and properties of the PCuS4Pz were characterized by elemental analysis,X-ray powder diffraction,IR,UV-Vis,fluorescence and EPR spectra and variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility.The polymer is black sublimable crystallite and the degree of polymerization has been found to be n>4.The PCuS4Pz in H2SO4 exhibits intensive absorption bands at 236,342,656 and 767 nm and intensive fluorescence band at 410 nm or 464 nm under the excitation of the ultraviolet light of a determined wavelength at room temperature.It has been found that the polymer exhibits a weaker antiferromag-netic interaction (J=-2.cm-1,εff=1.68 B.M.) with an apparent spin S<1/2 in the ground state and its conductivity 298K is 1.01×10-5 S-cm-1 at 13.73 MPa.     

Role of plasticizer's dielectric constant on conductivity modification of PEO-NH4F polymer electrolytes

The addition of plasticizer to the polyethylene oxide (PEO)-ammonium fluoride (NH₄F) polymer electrolytes has been found to result in an increase in conductivity value and the magnitude of increase has been found to depend upon the dielectric constant of the plasticizer used. The addition of dimethylacetamide as a plasticizer with dielectric constant (?=37.8) higher than that of PEO (?∼5) results in an increase of conductivity by more than three orders of magnitude whereas the addition of diethylcarbonate as a plasticizer with dielectric constant (?=2.82) lower than that of PEO does not enhance the conductivity of PEO-NH₄F polymer electrolytes. The increase in conductivity has further been found to depend upon the concentration of plasticizer, the concentration of salt in the polymer electrolyte as well as on the dielectric constant value of the plasticizer used. The conductivity modification with the addition of plasticizer has been explained on the basis of dissociation of ion aggregates formed in PEO-NH₄F polymer electrolytes at higher salt concentrations.     

Singlet oxygen and photooxidation of polymers

The rates of accumulation of oxygen-containing species in photooxidation have been determined for a series of polymers such as polystyrene, polyisoprene, and polybutadiene in a wide range of singlet oxygen stationary concentrations in the polymers. An increase in singlet oxygen (¹O₂) concentration was achieved by introducing a dye which is a ¹O₂ donor into a polymer and by irradiating a sample with an additional source of light absorbed by the dye only. To decrease ¹O₂ concentration, 1,2,5-trimethyl-4-hydroxyphenylpiperidine, which is a quencher of ¹O₂, was introduced into a sample. The ¹O₂ stationary concentration in an oxidized polymer was measured via singlet oxygen oxidation of 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-oxypiperidine which leads to the formation of the corresponding nitroxyl radical. The photooxidation rate has been found to vary only slightly with ¹O₂ concentration, even when the concentration changes 10–25-fold. Thus, ¹O₂ does not participate appreciably in the process of polymer photooxidation. It may be due to the lowering of ¹O₂ reactivity toward unsaturated groups in the polymer matrix as compared with that in solution.     

Proton-conducting membranes: poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone) complexes with various ammonium salts

The present study focuses on the proton-conducting polymer electrolytes; poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone)–ammonium thiocyanate and poly (N-vinyl pyrrolidone)–ammonium acetate prepared by solution casting technique. The XRD analysis indicates the amorphous nature of the polymer electrolytes. The Raman spectra of the C=O vibration of pure polymer PVP at 1,663 cm^?1 has been appeared as doublet in the polymer electrolytes. The introduction of this new peak in the salt-doped polymer electrolytes may be due to interaction of the cation with the polymer. The room temperature ionic conductivity σ _303κ has been found to be high, 1.7?×?10^?4 S cm^?1 for 80 mol% PVP–20 mol% NH₄SCN and 1.5?×?10^?6 S cm^?1 for 75 mol% PVP–25 mol% CH₃COONH₄. The polymer electrolytes have been tested for their application in Zn–air battery.     

Hydrolytic degradation and thermooxidative stability of polyimides based on 3,5-diaminodiphenyl oxide and 2-methyl-3,5-diaminodiphenyl sulfide

For a number of new polyimides prepared from 3,5-diaminodiphenyl oxide, 2-methyl-3,5-diaminodiphenyl sulfide, and various dianhydrides of aromatic tetracarboxylic acids, the hydrolytic stability in DMF and 96% H₂SO₄ and the thermooxidative stability in the bulk have been studied. Hydrodynamic techniques have been employed to determine the molecular parameters of these polymers at various stages of degradation. It has been shown that the polymers under study form stable solutions in DMF but turn out to be unstable in 96% H₂SO₄ even at room temperature. Degradation accompanies dissolution of the polymer. The correlation between the chemical structure of polymer molecules and their hydrolytic stability in both solvents has been established. It has been demonstrated that the majority of the said polyimides are stable in the solid state at temperatures up to 400°C and marked degradation begins only above 500°C.     

Poly-N-methyliminotetrafluoro-1,4-phenylene

Poly-N-methyliminotetrafluoro-1,4-phenylene has been prepared. The polymer was insoluble in organic solvents, but dissolved in concentrated H₂SO₄. It started to melt at approximately 360°C with decomposition. The structure of the polymer is discussed on the basis of synthesized oligomers.     

Polymer wiring of insulating electrode materials: An approach to improve energy density of lithium-ion batteries

The poor electronic conductivity of LiFePO₄ has been one of the major issues impeding it from achieving high power and energy density lithium-ion batteries. In this communication, a novel polymer-wiring concept was proposed to improve the conduction of the insulating electrode material. By using a polymer with tethered “swing” redox active molecules (S) attached on a polymer chain, as the standard redox potential of S matches closely the Fermi level of LiFePO₄, electronic communication between the redox molecule and LiFePO₄ is established. Upon charging, S is oxidized at the current collector to S⁺, which then delivers the charge (holes) to the LiFePO₄ particles by intermolecular hopping assisted by a “swing” – type motion of the shuttle molecule. And Li⁺ is extracted. Upon discharging, the above process is just reversed. Preliminary studies with redox polymer consisting of poly (4-vinylpyridine) and phenoxazine moiety tethered with a C₁₂ alkyl chain have shown promising result with carbon-free LiFePO₄, where effective electron exchange between the shuttle molecule and LiFePO₄ has been observed. In addition, as the redox polymer itself could act as binder, we anticipate that the polymer-wiring concept would provide a viable approach to conducting-additive and binder free electrode for high energy density batteries.     

A linear rod-packing coordination polymer constructed from a non-linear dicarboxylate and the [Zn4O]6+ cluster

A 1-D coordination polymer, [Zn₄O(1,2-BDC)₃]_n (1,2-BDC?=?1,2-benezendicarboxyate), has been synthesized under solvothermal conditions and structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The coordination polymer contains [Zn₄O]⁶⁺ clusters with a central μ₄-oxygen tetrahedrally coordinated by four Zn²⁺ ions, which stack into a linear rod connected by 1,2-BDC units.     

A novel method to fabricate lithium-ion polymer batteries based on LiMn<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>/NG electrodes

A novel method to fabricate lithium-ion polymer batteries (LiPBs) has been developed. The LiPBs was fabricated without microporous polyolefin separators, taking spinel lithium manganese oxide (LiMn₂O₄) and natural graphite (NG) as the electrodes. The thicknesses of the cathodes and the anodes are 190 and 110 μm, respectively. The NG anode was coated with a microporous composite polymer film (20 μm thick) which composed of polymer and ultrafine particles. The coating process was effective and simple to be used in practical application, and ensured the composite polymer film to act as a good separator in the LiPB. The LiPBs assembled with the coated NG anodes and pristine LiMn₂O₄ cathodes presented better electrochemical performances than liquid lithium-ion battery counterparts, proving that the microporous composite polymer film can improve the performance of the coated NG anode. In this paper, the spinel LiMn₂O₄/(coated)NG-based LiPBs exhibited high rate capability, compliant temperature reliability, and significantly, excellent cycling performance under the elevated temperature (55°C).     

Gas permeability of polydimethylsiltrimethylene above and below the melting temperature of the crystalline phase

The gas-separation behavior of a semicrystalline polydimethylsiltrimethylene—one of the family of silmethylene rubbers—has been studied. The permeability of O₂, N₂, and CH₄ through this polymer at temperatures below and above the melting temperature of the crystalline phase has been investigated, and the activation energy of permeability has been calculated. The gas permeability of the semicrystalline polydimethylsiltrimethylene depends on the prehistory of the sample. At the melting temperature of crystals, the permeability coefficients of the tested gases increase sharply. The transition of the polymer from the semicrystalline state to the melt leads to an appreciable reduction in the activation energy of permeability.     

Effect of NiO nanofiller concentration on the properties of PEO-NiO-LiClO4 composite polymer electrolyte

Composite polymer electrolyte films comprising polyethylene oxide (PEO) as the polymer host, LiClO₄ as the dopant, and NiO nanoparticle as the inorganic filler was prepared by solution casting technique. NiO inorganic filler was synthesized via sol-gel method. The effect of NiO filler on the ionic conductivity, structure, and morphology of PEO-LiClO₄-based composite polymer electrolyte was investigated by AC impedance spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. It was observed that the conductivity of the electrolyte increases with NiO concentration. The highest room temperature conductivity of the electrolyte was 7.4?×?10^?4 S cm^?1 at 10 wt.% NiO. The observation on structure shows the highest conductivity appears in amorphous phase. This result has been supported by surface morphology analysis showing that the NiO filler are well distributed in the samples. As a conclusion, the addition of NiO nanofiller improves the conductivity of PEO-LiClO₄ composite polymer electrolyte.     

Structure and composition of the polymeric products of UO2SO4 extraction by benzene solutions of uranyl bis(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate

UO₂SO₄ extracts obtained from neutral aqueous solutions of this compound and benzene solutions of uranyl bis(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate have been studied by³¹P NMR and IR spectroscopy. It has been found that in the presence of donor-active additions L=TBP or DOSO the recurrent unit of the polymer (UO₂X₂)_p adds one or two UO₂SO₄ molecules to form {UO₂X₂·UO₂SO₄·2L} and {UO₂X₂·2UO₂SO₄·6L} units. The structure of these units has been established. It has been shown that the distribution of UO₂SO₄ molecules along the polymer chain is random. Institute of Catalysis, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences. Translated fromZhumal Struktumoi Khimii, Vol. 36, No. 4, pp. 682–689, July–August, 1995. Translated by L. Smolina     

Synthesis, characterization, properties and crystal structure of heterometallic 1D coordination polymers {[CuLZn·CuLZn(H2O)]·H2O}n

Copper-zinc heterometallic 1D chain coordination polymer has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, and IR spectra etc. The crystal structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. The title complex is 1D chain coordination polymer with the chemical formula {[CuLZn·CuLZn(H₂O)]·H₂O}_n, where H₄L=N-(2-hydroxybenzamido)-N′-(3-carboxylsalicylidene)ethylenediamine. Its structural unit is comprosed of two tetranuclear cycles formed by two dissymmetrical tetranuclear units. These units polymerized each other to form 1D chain coordination polymer.     

Synthesis and photoluminescence stability of non-conjugated polymers based on fluorene and benzoxazole

A kind of non-conjugated blue luminescent polymer based on fluorene and benzoxazole was synthesized via solution condensation polymerization from 2,2-bis(3-amino-4-hydroxyphenyl)-propane and 2,7-dicarboxyl-9,9-dioctyl-fluorene and was characterized with H NMR, FT-IR, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), UV-vis absorption and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The polymer displayed the maximum photoluminescence emission peak at 415 nm and showed high PL spectroscopic stability. The green-to-blue emission intensity ratio I_Green/I_Blue is only 0.073 even after thermal annealing at 150 °C for 30 h. After being exposed to UV light for 30 min, no bathochromic emission or obvious crosslink is observed. The common phenomenon of greenish blue emission of fluorene-based polymer around 525 nm has been effectively restrained in this polymer by introducing the isopropylidene group into the backbone of polymer.     

Synthesis, characterization, properties and crystal structure of heterometallic 1D coordination polymers {[CuLZn·CuLZn(H2O)]·H2O}n

Copper-zinc heterometallic 1D chain coordination polymer has been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, and IR spectra etc. The crystal structure was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. The title complex is 1D chain coordination polymer with the chemical formula {[CuLZn·CuLZn(H₂O)]·H₂O}_n, where H₄L=N-(2-hydroxybenzamido)-N′-(3-carboxylsalicylidene)ethylenediamine. Its structural unit is comprosed of two tetranuclear cycles formed by two dissymmetrical tetranuclear units. These units polymerized each other to form 1D chain coordination polymer.     

Aqueous two-phase systems: An efficient,environmentally safe and economically viable method for purification of natural dye carmine

Partition of the natural dye carmine has been studied in aqueous two-phase systems prepared by mixing aqueous solutions of polymer or copolymer with aqueous salt solutions (Na₂SO₄ and Li₂SO₄). The carmine dye partition coefficient was investigated as a function of system pH, polymer molar mass, hydrophobicity, system tie-line length and nature of the electrolyte. It has been observed that the carmine partition coefficient is highly dependent on the electrolyte nature and pH of the system, reaching values as high as 300, indicating the high potential of the two-phase extraction with ATPS in the purification of carmine dye. The partition relative order was Li₂SO₄ ? Na₂SO₄. Carmine molecules were concentrated in the polymer-rich phase, indicating an enthalpic specific interaction between carmine and the pseudopolycation, which is formed by cation adsorption along the macromolecule chain. When the enthalpic carmine–pseudopolycation interaction decreases, entropic forces dominate the natural dye-transfer process, and the carmine partitioning coefficient decreases. The optimization of the extraction process was obtained by a central composite face-centered (CCF) design. The CCF design was used to evaluate the influence of Li₂SO₄ and PEO 1500 concentration and of the pH on the partition coefficient of carmine. The conditions that maximize the partition of carmine into the top phase were determined to be high concentrations of PEO and Li₂SO₄ and low pH values within the ranges studied.