Protein adsorption in porous adsorbent particles: A multiscale modeling study on inner radial humps in the concentration profiles of adsorbed protein induced by nonuniform ligand density distributions

Recently published results determined from molecular dynamics (MD) modeling and simulation studies have shown that the spatial distribution of the density of immobilized charged ligands in ion‐exchange porous adsorbent particles is most likely nonuniform and the adsorbent particles also exhibit local nonelectroneutrality. In this work, the functional forms of the nonuniform spatial distributions of the density of the immobilized ligands in four different porous adsorbent media that were determined by MD studies were employed in a macroscopic continuum model describing the transport and adsorption of a single protein in the porous particles of the four different adsorbent media. The results clearly show that inner radial humps in the concentration profiles of the adsorbed protein can occur when the spatial distribution of the density of the immobilized ligands in the porous adsorbent particles is nonuniform and also has local maxima or minima along the radial direction in the particle. The results also indicate that the rate at which the equilibrium condition is approached depends significantly on the functional form of the spatial distribution of the density of the immobilized ligands. When adsorption equilibrium has been reached, the concentration profile of the adsorbed protein exhibits the shape of the spatial distribution of the density of the immobilized ligands. The results suggest that the technique of confocal scanning laser microscopy could be used to measure the concentration profile of an adsorbed protein at equilibrium and this measurement could provide the spatial distribution of the density of the immobilized ligands, and such measurements could also be used for quality control of the adsorbent medium. The results in this work have also implications in the modeling, design, analysis, and quality control of systems involving biocatalysis. Furthermore, the results clearly indicate that it is very important to study the dynamic behavior of an adsorption system having a nonuniform spatial distribution in the density of the immobilized charged ligands and where (i) both monovalent and multivalent interactions between the single charged adsorbate and the immobilized charged ligands occur and (ii) the values of the pH and ionic strength are such that the electrophoretic effects are active.     

Study of CO adsorption on perfect and defective pyrite(100)surfaces by density functional theory

First-principles calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) have been used to study the adsorption of CO molecule on the perfect and defective FeS 2 (100) surfaces. The defective Fe 2 S(100) surfaces are caused by sulfur deficiencies. Slab geometry and periodic boundary conditions are employed with partial relaxations of atom positions in calculations. Two molecular orientations, Cand O-down, at various distinct sites have been considered. Total energy calculations indicated that no matter on perfect or deficient surfaces, the Fe position is relatively more favored than the S site with the predicted binding energies of 120.8 kJ/mol and 140.8 kJ/mol, respectively. Moreover, CO was found to be bound to Fe atom in vertical configuration. The analysis of density of states and vibrational frequencies before and after adsorption showed clear changes of the C–O bond.     

CO诱导的FeO(111)/Ru(0001)负载Au原子吸附位和电荷的改变

采用密度泛函理论研究了CO气氛对FeO(111)/Ru(0001)负载Au原子吸附位、电荷及其稳定性的影响. 首先考察了FeO(111)单层薄膜在Ru(0001)表面上的界面结构. 研究发现,表面莫尔超晶胞内的HCP区域有最小的Fe-O层间距(rumpling),且Fe和O原子均与衬底Ru形成化学键. Au原子在FeO/Ru(0001)上最稳定的吸附在HCP区域的Fe-bridge位. 其中,Au原子诱导两个Fe原子从O原子层的下面翻转到其上面,形成两个Au-Fe键,且Au带负电. 当把体系暴露在CO气氛下后,CO能诱导Au原子从原来最稳定的Fe-bridge位转移到其邻近的O-top位,伴随着Au的电荷从负变到正,形成非常稳定的Au⁺-CO羰基物. 结果表明,反应气氛对负载金属催化剂的化学状态及其稳定性的影响很大; 同时也强调了反应条件下催化剂原位表征的重要性.     

Determination of the surface area of Pd and nanometric Au aggregates supported on a micrometric solid support by thiol adsorption and GC-MS

A new sensitive and specific method to measure gold and palladium surface areas using alkanethiol adsorption coupled with analysis by gas chromatography with mass spectrometry detection has been developed. The effectiveness of the method was tested with metallic samples having a known surface area. The results have also been compared with BET specific surface area measurements. The results obtained with both methods show a good correlation.     

Solid phase extraction and spectrophotometric determination of mercury by adsorption of its diphenylthiocarbazone complex on an alumina column

A simple method has been developed for the preconcentration of mercury based on the adsorption of its diphenylthiocarbazone complex on a neutral alumina column. The influence of acidity, eluting agents, stability of the column, sample volume and interfering ions has been investigated in detail. The adsorbed complex could be eluted using environmentally benign polyethylene glycol (PEG 400) and the concentration of mercury was determined by visible spectrophotometry at a wavelength maximum of 520nm. A detection limit of 4microgL(-1) could be achieved and the developed procedure was successfully applied for the determination of mercury in spiked water samples and city waste incineration ash (CRM176). The preconcentration factor attainable for quantitative recovery (>95%) of mercury(II) was 100 for a 1000mL sample volume.     

Controlled rearrangement of adsorbed undecanol films on mica surfaces induced by an atomic force microscopy tip

An undecanol film adsorbed on a mica surface was found to rearrange and spread in a position-controlled way induced by a tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) probe. AFM images of varying scanning times showed that before forming an ordered monolayer the undecanol molecules were adsorbed on the mica surface in the disordered and disorganized status. With the proceeding of scanning, these undecanol molecules gradually formed an ordered and flat film. Such behavior was caused by the formation of a stable film and had never been reported for other alcohols.     

A solution study on the local and global structure changes of cytochrome c: an unfolding process induced by urea

The local and global structural changes of cytochrome c induced by urea in aqueous solution have been studied using X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). According to the XAS result, both the native (folded) protein and the unfolded protein exhibit the same preedge features taken at Fe K-edge, indicating that the Fe(III) in the heme group of the protein maintains a six-coordinated local structure in both the folded and unfolded states. Furthermore, the discernible differences in the X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) of these two states are attributed to a possible spin transition of the Fe(III) from a low-spin state to a high-spin state during the unfolding process. The perseverance of six-coordination and the spin transition of the iron are reconciled by a proposed ligand exchange, with urea and water molecules replacing the methionine-80 and histidine-18 axial ligands, respectively. The SAXS result reveals a significant morphology change of cytochrome c from a globular shape of a radius of gyration R(g) = 12.8 A of the native protein to an elongated ellipsoid shape of R(g) = 29.7 A for the unfolded protein in the presence of concentrated urea. The extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) data unveil the coordination geometries of Fe(III) in both the folded and unfolded state of cytochrome c. An initial spin transition of Fe(III) followed by an axial ligand exchange, accompanied by the change in the global envelope, is proposed for what happened in the protein unfolding process of cytochrome c.     

Effect of adsorption site, size, and composition of Pt/Au bimetallic clusters on the CO frequency: a density functional theory study

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to investigate the C-O stretching frequency changes when a CO molecule was adsorbed to Pt/Au clusters of 2-4 atoms. Our calculations show that the adsorption site is the most sensitive quantity to the C-O stretching frequency shifts. All the bridge site adsorptions yield a CO frequency band of 1737-1927 cm-1 with the CO bond distance of 1.167-1.204 A regardless of cluster composition and size, and all the atop site adsorptions yield a CO frequency band of 2000-2091 cm-1 with the CO bond distance of 1.151-1.167 A. More detailed analysis of the two frequency bands shows that each band may consist of two emerging subbands with the lower frequencies corresponding to the CO adsorption to Pt atoms and the higher frequencies to the CO adsorption to Au atoms. The insensitivity of the CO frequency shift to the cluster size indicates that the trend discussed here for small clusters may be used to interpret the experimental observations for nanoparticles. Our results also illustrated that the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy measurement may be used as a sensitive tool to identify adsorption sites of the Pt/Au nanoparticles using CO adsorption as the probe.     

Real-space observation of local anisotropic correlation between buckled dimers on Si(100) induced by a bidentate adsorbed molecule

The anisotropic correlation between buckled dimers on Si(100) was investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy. A bidentate ligand molecule was used to pin two neighboring dimers at 300 K. The chemically pinned dimer induces antiferromagnetic interaction along the dimer rows. Observed results agree well with Monte-Carlo simulations semi-quantitatively.     

Carbon dioxide activation by surface excess electrons: an EPR study of the CO2- radical ion adsorbed on the surface of MgO

The CO2- radical anion has been generated at the surface of MgO by direct electron transfer from surface trapped excess electrons and characterized by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Both 13C and 17O hyperfine structures have been resolved for the first time, leading to a detailed mapping of the unpaired electron spin density distribution over the entire radical anion. The magnetic equivalence of the two O nuclei has been ascertained allowing a side-on adsorption structure at low-coordinate Mg2+ ions to be proposed for the surface stabilized radical.     

Direct observation of the kinetically relevant site of CO hydrogenation on supported Ru catalyst at 700 K by time-resolved FT-IR spectroscopy

Time-resolved FT-IR spectra of carbon monoxide hydrogenation over alumina-supported ruthenium particles were recorded on the millisecond time scale at 700 K using pulsed release of CO and a continuous flow of H(2)-N(2) (ratio 0.067 or 0.15, 1 atm total pressure). Adsorbed carbon monoxide was detected along with gas phase products methane (3016 and 1306 cm(-1)), water (1900-1300 cm(-1)), and carbon dioxide (2348 cm(-1)). Aside from adsorbed CO, no other surface species were observed. The rate of formation of methane is 2.5 +/- 0.4 s(-1) and coincides with the rate of carbon dioxide growth (3.4 +/- 0.6 s(-1)), thus indicating that CH(4) and CO(2) originate from a common intermediate. The broad band of adsorbed carbon monoxide has a maximum at 2010 cm(-1) at early times (36 ms) that shifts gradually to 1960 cm(-1) over a period of 3 s as a result of the decreasing surface concentration of CO. Kinetic analysis of the adsorbed carbon monoxide reveals that surface sites absorbing at the high frequency end of the infrared band are temporally linked to gas phase product growth. Specifically, a (linear) CO site at 2026 cm(-1) decays with a rate constant of 2.9 +/- 0.1 s(-1), which coincides with the rise constant of CH(4). This demonstrates that the linear CO site at 2026 cm(-1) is the kinetically most relevant one for the rate-determining CO dissociation step under reaction conditions at 700 K.     

IR and theoretical studies of monocarbonyl Ni complexes formed by adsorption of CO at low pressure on silica-supported Ni(II) ions

This work reports on the reactivity of coordination vacancies of Ni(II) ions grafted onto the tridentate silica support (Ni(II)(3c) ions) with respect to CO used as a probe molecule. The adsorption of CO at 77 K in the 0.3 to 3.5 Pa CO pressure range is studied by FTIR on two samples differing in the dispersion of nickel. Quantum chemical calculations by the DFT method are performed to investigate, using a cluster approach, the binding of Ni to silica and, after CO adsorption, the geometry of the resulting carbonyl Ni complexes. Silica is modeled by using clusters composed of three types of monodentate ligands, SiO(-), SiOSi and/or SiOH, found on the surface of silica. This work is devoted to the monocarbonyl complexes. Whatever the sample, only one type of monocarbonyl is formed from Ni(II)(3c) ions. It is shown that the charge of the silica cluster is the major parameter influencing the CO IR frequency whereas the nature and the size of the silica cluster do not affect the CO bond length, confirming that local electrostatic interactions predominate. Only the 1- charged silica cluster Si(5)O(3)(-), composed of SiO(-), 2SiOSi fragments, respectively, reproduces the Ni[bond]O distances derived from EXAFS for the Ni(II)(3c) grafted site and gives CO frequencies in good agreement with the experimental values. It is shown that CO is stabilized by a magnetic transition from the (3)Ni(2+) triplet to the (1)Ni(2+) singlet state occurring upon adsorption.     

Comparison of nitrogen adsorption at 77 K on non-porous silica and pore wall of MCM-41 materials by means of density functional theory

Nitrogen adsorption on a surface of a non-porous reference material is widely used in the characterization. Traditionally, the enhancement of solid-fluid potential in a porous solid is accounted for by incorporating the surface curvature into the solid-fluid potential of the flat reference surface. However, this calculation procedure has not been justified experimentally. In this paper, we derive the solid-fluid potential of mesoporous MCM-41 solid by using solely the adsorption isotherm of that solid. This solid-fluid potential is then compared with that of the non-porous reference surface. In derivation of the solid-fluid potential for both reference surface and mesoporous MCM-41 silica (diameter ranging from 3 to 6.5 nm) we employ the nonlocal density functional theory developed for amorphous solids. It is found that, to our surprise, the solid-fluid potential of a porous solid is practically the same as that for the reference surface, indicating that there is no enhancement due to surface curvature. This requires further investigations to explain this unusual departure from our conventional wisdom of curvature-induced enhancement. Accepting the curvature-independent solid-fluid potential derived from the non-porous reference surface, we analyze the hysteresis features of a series of MCM-41 samples.     

Anomalous IR properties of nanostructured films created by square wave potential on an array of Pt microelectrodes: an in situ microscope FTIRS study of CO adsorption

Thin films of different nanostructures on an array of nine Pt microelectrodes were prepared by applying a square wave potential treatment for different times (tau). It has been measured from the cyclic voltammetric studies that the relative surface roughness of the films was increased slightly and reached a maximal value of about 2.5. SEM studies demonstrated that with the increase of tau, the growth of island-shaped Pt crystallites on the films led to the formation of plumelike crystallites that can reach about 2-3.5 microm in length when tau exceeded 70 min. In situ microscope FTIR reflection spectroscopic studies illuminated that CO adsorbed on the array yielded different anomalous IR features. With the increase of tau, the direction of the CO L band (linearly bonded CO) was transformed from the negative-going direction (normal IR adsorption) to bipolar (Fano-like spectral line shape) and finally to the positive-going direction (abnormal IR adsorption). The intensity of the CO L band was enhanced significantly and a maximal enhancement factor of about 33 was measured when tau was 40 min; the center of the CO L band and the Stark tuning rate also showed regular changes. This study demonstrated that specific nanostructures of Pt thin films can be prepared through a square wave potential treatment for different times and revealed the intrinsic relationship between anomalous IR properties and surface nanostructures of the thin films.     

Infrared spectroscopic study of stereo-controlled poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) with an extended chain conformation induced by adsorption on a gold surface

Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNiPAM) compounds with various diad tacticities were prepared, and the molecular interaction properties in a thin film deposited on a gold surface were analyzed using infrared spectroscopy. The intramolecular and intermolecular interactions were found to depend on the tacticity, and only atactic (diad ratio 46 %) PNiPAM exhibits poor molecular interaction even in the bulk sample. On the other hand, the same series of compounds dissolved in an acetone solution were spread on a gold surface to form a thin film. In the dissolution process, the polymer molecules are relaxed via solvation, and they are bound to the gold surface by a molecular interaction to form a submonolayer thin film. In the thin film, the molecular interaction with the gold surface via the N–H group was monitored in the infrared spectra only for a nearly isotactic (m?=?90) PNiPAM by an apparent shift of the N–H stretching vibration band. This shift was confirmed by changing the degree of hydrophilicity of the gold surface: a larger shift is found on a gold surface with stronger hydrophilicity. As a result, the conformation of a nearly isotactic molecule is found to be extended by the interaction with the gold surface, which works to immobilize the molecule.     

New approach to characterise physicochemical properties of solid substrates by inverse gas chromatography at infinite dilution. II. Study of the transition temperatures of poly(methyl methacrylate) at various tacticities and of poly(methyl methacrylate) adsorbed on alumina and silica

A simple device was developed for in-vial liquid-liquid extraction using a polymer membrane (nonporous polypropylene) to separate an aqueous sample from an organic extractant. The membrane consisted of tubing with an internal diameter of 6 mm and a wall thickness of 0.05 mm, which was heat-sealed at the lower end and filled with 500 microl hexane. This membrane bag was incorporated into a conventional 20 ml headspace vial suitable for a multi-purpose sampler (MPS 2, Gerstel, Mülheim, Germany) directly interfaced to a gas chromatograph with a mass-selective detector. The sampler enabled the extraction vial to be mixed at a defined temperature with subsequent large-volume injection of the organic extract taken from the membrane bag. The method was evaluated using several triazines, 2,4-dichloroaniline, alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane and phenanthrene as model compounds. Extraction parameters such as temperature, agitation speed, and extraction time were optimised. Recoveries of 60-90% were achieved after 30 min extraction. By increasing the injection volume to 100 microl, detection limits of 1-10 ng/l were determined.