Interface-controlled synthesis of CeO2(111) and CeO2(100) and their structural transition on Pt(111)

Ceria-based catalytic materials are known for their crystal-face-dependent catalytic properties. To obtain a molecular-level understanding of their surface chemistry, controlled synthesis of ceria with well-defined surface structures is required. We have thus studied the growth of CeO_x nanostructures (NSs) and thin films on Pt(111). The strong metal-oxide interaction has often been invoked to explain catalytic processes over the Pt/CeO_x catalysts. However, the Pt-CeO_x interaction has not been understood at the atomic level. We show here that the interfacial interaction between Pt and ceria could indeed affect the surface structures of ceria, which could subsequently determine their catalytic chemistry. While ceria on Pt(111) typically exposes the CeO₂(111) surface, we found that the structures of ceria layers with a thickness of three layers or less are highly dynamic and dependent on the annealing temperatures, owing to the electronic interaction between Pt and CeO_x. A two-step kinetically limited growth procedure was used to prepare the ceria film that fully covers the Pt(111) substrate. For a ceria film of ~3–4 monolayer (ML) thickness on Pt(111), annealing in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) at 1000 K results in a surface of CeO₂ (100), stabilized by a c-Ce₂O₃(100) buffer layer. Further oxidation at 900 K transforms the surface of the CeO₂(100) thin film into a hexagonal CeO₂(111) surface.     

Sulfobetaine derivatives of thiacalix[4]arene: synthesis and supramolecular self-assembly of submicron aggregates with AgI cations

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Catalytic asymmetric synthesis of Leukotriene B4

Leukotriene B₄ 1 was prepared from two chiral synthons 8 and 14. The chiral secondary alcohols of 8 and 14 were constructed by BINOL/Ti(OiPr)₄ catalyzed enantioselective alkynylzinc addition to aldehydes.     

3,4-Epoxyperfluorooxolane in the synthesis of new fluorine-containing furo[3,4-b]quinoxaline derivatives

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Synthesis of 2-(polyfluoromethyl)pyrimido-[1,2-a]benzimidazole-4-carbaldehyde derivatives

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The synthesis of 1-biphenyl-4-alkyl-[1,2,3]-triazoles and their mesomorphic behaviour

A series of 1-biphenyl-4-alkyl-[1,2,3]-triazole-based liquid crystal compounds were synthesised via a fast and efficient microwave mediated ‘Click Reaction’ and their phase behaviour is presented. Most of the 1-(3-fluorobiphenyl)-4-alkyl-[1,2,3]-triazole compounds exhibited a smectic A phase with relatively low transition temperatures compared to previously examined aryl-triazole-based mesogens. Small angle X-ray scattering measurement indicated the existence of deep smectic phase for some cases. Structural variations gave rise to different phase behaviour in these triazole-based compounds.     

Integrating non-precious-metal cocatalyst Ni3N with g-C3N4 for enhanced photocatalytic H2 production in water under visible-light irradiation

Photocatalytic H₂ production via water splitting in a noble-metal-free photocatalytic system has attracted much attention in recent years. In this study, noble-metal-free Ni₃N was used as an active cocatalyst to enhance the activity of g-C₃N₄ for photocatalytic H₂ production under visible-light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). The characterization results indicated that Ni₃N nanoparticles were successfully loaded onto the g-C₃N₄, which accelerated the separation and transfer of photogenerated electrons and resulted in enhanced photocatalytic H₂ evolution under visible-light irradiation. The hydrogen evolution rate reached ～305.4 μmol h^?1 g^?1, which is about three times higher than that of pristine g-C₃N₄, and the apparent quantum yield (AQY) was ～0.45% at λ = 420. Furthermore, the Ni₃N/g-C₃N₄ photocatalyst showed no obvious decrease in the hydrogen production rate, even after five cycles under visible-light irradiation. Finally, a possible photocatalytic hydrogen evolution mechanism for the Ni₃N/g-C₃N₄ system is proposed.     

Ni nanoparticles as electron-transfer mediators and NiSx as interfacial active sites for coordinative enhancement of H2-evolution performance of TiO2

The development of efficient photocatalytic H₂-evolution materials requires both rapid electron transfer and an effective interfacial catalysis reaction for H₂ production. In addition to the well-known noble metals, low-cost and earth-abundant non-noble metals can also act as electron-transfer mediators to modify photocatalysts. However, as almost all non-noble metals lack the interfacial catalytic active sites required for the H₂-evolution reaction, the enhancement of the photocatalytic performance is limited. Therefore, the development of new interfacial active sites on metal-modified photocatalysts is of considerable importance. In this study, to enhance the photocatalytic evolution of H₂ by Ni-modified TiO₂, the formation of NiS_x as interfacial active sites was promoted on the surface of Ni nanoparticles. Specifically, the co-modified TiO₂/Ni-NiS_x photocatalysts were prepared via a two-step process involving the photoinduced deposition of Ni on the TiO₂ surface and the subsequent formation of NiS_x on the Ni surface by a hydrothermal reaction method. It was found that the TiO₂/Ni-NiS_x photocatalysts exhibited enhanced photocatalytic H₂-evolution activity. In particular, TiO₂/Ni-NiS_x(30%) showed the highest photocatalytic rate (223.74 μmol h^?1), which was greater than those of TiO₂, TiO₂/Ni, and TiO₂/NiS_x by factors of 22.2, 8.0, and 2.2, respectively. The improved H₂-evolution performance of TiO₂/Ni-NiS_x could be attributed to the excellent synergistic effect of Ni and NiS_x, where Ni nanoparticles function as effective mediators to transfer electrons from the TiO₂ surface and NiS_x serves as interfacial active sites to capture H⁺ ions from solution and promote the interfacial H₂-evolution reaction. The synergistic effect of the non-noble metal cocatalyst and the interfacial active sites may provide new insights for the design of highly efficient photocatalytic materials.     

An efficient protocol for synthesis of novel polyheterocyclic chromeno pyrimido[1,2-b]indazolone derivatives using [Et3NH][HSO4] as a reusable catalyst under solvent-free conditions

A convenient and highly efficient method for the synthesis of novel polyheterocyclic chromeno pyrimido[1,2-b]indazolone derivatives via a three-component condensation of 1H-indazol-3-amine, aldehydes and 4-hydroxycoumarin catalyzed by Bronsted acid ionic liquid [Et₃NH][HSO₄] under solvent-free reaction conditions is presented. This ionic liquid is air and water stable and easy to prepare from amine and acid. The main advantages of this protocol includes short reaction time, excellent yield, easy work-up, operational simplicity, a wide range of functional group tolerance and column chromatography-free method. The catalyst can be recovered and reused for at least four runs without any significant impact on the product yields.     

Rational design of ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn2S4 nanocomposites as efficient noble-metal-free photocatalyst for hydrogen evolution under visible light

The NiS/CQDs nanocomposite (CQDs represents carbon quantum dots), with a mass ratio of NiS/CQDs to be 1.19:1 based on the ICP result, was obtained via a facile hydrothermal method from a mixture of CQDs, Ni(OAc)₂ and Na₂S. The self-assembly of ZnIn₂S₄ microspheres on the surface of NiS/CQDs was realized under microwave conditions to obtain a ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite. The as-obtained NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite was fully characterized, and its photocatalytic hydrogen evolution under visible light irradiation was investigated. The ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite showed superior photocatalytic activity for hydrogen evolution than ternary CQDs/NiS/ZnIn₂S₄, which was obtained by deposition of NiS in the preformed CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄. The superior photocatalytic performance of ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ is ascribed to the introduction of CQDs, which act as a bridge to promote the vectorial transfer of photo-generated electrons from ZnIn₂S₄ to NiS. This result suggests that the rational design and fabrication of ternary CQDs-based systems are important for the efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. This study provides a strategy for developing highly efficient noble-metal-free photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution using CQDs as a bridge to promote the charge transfer in the nanocomposite.     

New approaches to the synthesis of benzo[h]pyrroloisoquinoline derivatives

An effective strategy for the synthesis of benzo[h]pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinoline derivatives has been developed. The process can be described as a one-pot domino reaction that consists of an initial Michael addition, intramolecular cyclization, and subsequent transformations leading to the formation of the desired products. A wide range of structurally diverse hydrogenated benzo[h]pyrrolo[2,1-a]isoquinolines were obtained in 34–98% yield. This strategy represents an efficient catalyst-free procedure that allows the synthesis of previously inaccessible compounds.     

Ho改性的Mn-Ce/TiO2催化剂低温脱硝性能的评价和表征

作为引起酸雨、光化学烟雾、雾霾等大气污染问题的主要根源,氮氧化物(NOx)的防治已成为亟待解决的问题.选择性催化还原技术作为最成熟有效的脱硝技术,目前已经被广泛应用于各燃煤电厂.低温脱硝催化剂具有优秀的低温活性,使得脱硝装置可以安放在脱硫装置和除尘装置下游,受到了学者广泛的研究.目前低温脱硝催化剂的研究主要是对催化剂进行改性以提高催化剂的性能,已有许多研究报道了Sn、Ni、Co、Zr、Cr、Ni等对催化剂的改性影响.Ho作为一种改性元素被应用于光催化领域,能提高TiO2的光催化能力.但Ho应用于脱硝领域的研究鲜有报道,其氧化物具有酸性位点有助于脱硝反应,因此研究Ho对低温SCR催化剂的改性作用具有重要意义.本文采用浸渍法制备Ho掺杂的Mn-Ce/TiO2催化剂,研究了Ho的掺杂对于Mn-Ce/TiO2催化剂低温脱硝性能的影响,同时还研究了烟气中的SO2和H2O对催化剂活性的影响,并利用XPS、XRD、H2-TPR、NH3-TPD等表征方法从物理性质和化学性质两方面对Ho改性的影响机理进行了研究.研究发现,Ho的掺杂能提高Mn-Ce/TiO2催化剂的脱硝能力,有助于催化剂N2选择性的提高.分析表明,Ho的掺杂有助于催化剂比表面积的提升,且能提高催化剂的酸性,有利于催化剂对NH3的吸附,从而提高催化剂的性能.XPS表征结果表明Ho掺杂后的催化剂具有更高的化学吸附氧浓度和较高的Mn4+/Mn3+比例, 使得脱硝反应更容易进行.改性后催化剂的抗水抗硫实验结果表明,Ho的掺杂能够提高催化剂的抗水抗硫性能.XRD结果表明,抗水抗硫实验后催化剂表面形成了硫酸铵盐,硫酸铵盐的形成会堵塞催化剂表面的活性位,限制脱硝反应的进行,从而影响催化剂的脱硝活性.同时,400°C下进行再生实验后的催化剂活性有所恢复,但是未能达到抗水抗硫实验前的活性,表明在抗水抗硫实验中催化剂表面形成了除硫酸铵盐以外的其他硫酸盐类.结合XPS和XRD表征结果,推断生成的盐类物质为硫酸锰和硫酸铈,从而导致再生后的催化剂的脱硝活性无法恢复到最初的活性水平.由此可以看出,硫酸盐的形成是催化剂在含硫气氛中失活的主要原因.     

Tetramethylguanidine (TMG)-catalyzed reductive spirocyclization of tryptamine derivatives with formic acid as a C1 synthon

A reductive spirocyclization of tryptamine derivatives with formic acid as a C1 building block has been achieved via dearomatization. The reaction was catalyzed by a commercially available and cost-effective organic base, tetramethylguanidine (TMG). A variety of spiroindolenines were obtained in high yields under mild conditions.     

C-I共掺杂多孔g-C3N4光催化分解水制氢

氢气是一种可替代传统燃料的理想清洁能源,利用光催化技术分解水制氢是制取氢气的有效途径之一.无机半导体光催化材料具有较高的活性和稳定性,且原料丰富,易加工改性.目前针对光催化技术的应用,大量的研究工作都集中在开发可见光响应光催化剂,以提高对可见光的利用率.同时,非金属聚合物半导体因其特殊的光电性质,在光催化应用研究中越来越受到关注,如庚嗪基微孔聚合物(HMP)和共价三嗪基骨架(CTF).石墨相碳化氮(g-C3N4)是一种典型非金属二维聚合物半导体,被认为是一种非常有价值的光催化材料.然而,其较低的光生电子的传输效率限制了其实际应用,因此诸多研究对g-C3N4的物理化学结构进行优化,如半导体耦合、共聚合、纳米结构设计和掺杂.非金属掺杂是一种有效的方法,由于原子电负性差异引起的电荷分离可有效改善载流子传输效率,且保持半导体的非金属性质.通过O,B,P和S等掺杂可以扩大可见光响应范围,并调节能带位置以改善光催化活性.除了常见的单一非金属掺杂,金属和非金属元素或多非金属元素共掺杂的办法同样可提高g-C3N4的光催化性能.本工作通过两步法对双氰胺、尿素和碘化1-乙基-3-甲基咪唑的混合物直接热聚合,合成C-I共掺杂的多孔g-C3N4,其在可见光照射下表现出较高的产氢活性和稳定性.采用X射线衍射(XRD)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、荧光光谱(PL)和电化学实验等方法对多孔掺杂g-C3N4结构进行详细表征和分析.在助催化剂Pt和电子牺牲剂(三乙醇胺)存在的条件下,采用可见光(>400 nm)照射分解水产氢的方法评价其光催化活性.结果表明,后热处理和碘离子液掺杂对g-C3N4材料的结构和性能具有较大影响.C-I共掺杂和后热处理使催化剂产物颗粒尺寸减小,形成多孔片层状紧密堆积,比表面积和孔隙率显著增加,吸收带边发生蓝移.后热处理使样品层间距减小,聚合度增加,有利于电荷传输,C-I共掺杂后出现更多的缺陷,但没有改变其层状堆积的特性.XPS结果表明,样品中碘元素以I-和I5+的形式存在,改性后催化剂C/N比明显增加,sp2芳环N含量增加,表面氨基含量降低,表明后热处理和C-I共掺杂没有改变多孔g-C3N4的基本骨架,共轭结构更加完善.PL和光电流结果表明,改性后样品的PL强度均显著降低,并且随着掺杂量的增加而逐渐降低,表明共掺杂可抑制光生电荷的复合.电化学测试结果表明,后热处理和C-I共掺杂的样品界面电荷转移电阻降低,导电率和电荷迁移率增加,从而有助于提高光催化性能.光解水产氢性能测试表明,后热处理和C-I共掺杂有利于催化剂产氢速率的提高,改性后CNIN0.2的产氢速率达168.2μmol/h,是纯氮化碳的9.8倍.经过多次循环测试,其产氢性能保持稳定而没有显著下降,表明其产氢稳定性较好.     

Chemical deactivation of Cu-SAPO-18 deNOx catalyst caused by basic inorganic contaminants in diesel exhaust

Contaminants (K, Na, Ca, and Mg) were introduced into Cu-SAPO-18 via incipient wetness impregnation to investigate their effect on the selective catalytic reduction of NO_x with NH₃ (NH₃-SCR) over Cu-SAPO-18. After the introduction of contaminants into Cu-SAPO-18, the quantity of acidic sites and Cu²⁺ species in catalyst decreases owing to the replacement of H⁺ and Cu²⁺ by K⁺, Na⁺, Ca²⁺, and Mg²⁺. Furthermore, the loss of isolated Cu^{2+ induces the generation of CuO and CuAl₂O₄-like phases, which causes further loss in the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of the catalyst. Consequently, the deNO_x performance of the contaminated Cu-SAPO-18 catalysts drops. Such decline in NH₃-SCR performance becomes more pronounced by increasing the contaminant contents from 0.5 to 1.0 mmol/g_catal. In addition, the deactivation influence of the contaminants on Cu-SAPO-18 is presented in the order of K> Na > Ca > Mg, which is consistent with the order of reduction of acidic sites. To a certain degree, the effect of the acidic sites on the deactivation of Cu-SAPO-18 might be more significant than that of isolated Cu2+ and the catalyst framework. Moreover, kinetic analysis of NH₃-SCR was conducted, and the results indicate that there is no influence of contaminants on the NH₃-SCR mechanism.}     

Chiral tetraoxacalix[2]arene[2]triazine-based organocatalysts for Enantioselective Aldol reactions

Novel efficient chiral tetraoxacalix[2]arene[2]triazine-based organocatalysts have been designed and synthesized from the reaction of tetraoxacalix[2]arene[2]triazine with R/S-phenylethylamine or R/S-1-naphthylethylamine for the Aldol reaction of acetone with aromatic aldehydes to furnish the Aldol adducts in 71–92% yields with excellent enantioselectivities (78–99%).     

Design,synthesis and biological evaluation of 5-(2-(4-(substituted benzo[d]isoxazol-3-yl)piperazin-1-yl)acetyl)indolin-2-one and 5-(2-(4-substitutedpiperazin-1-yl)acetyl)indolin-2-one analogues as novel anti-tubercular agents

A series of thirty-six novel 5-(2-(4-(benzo[d]isoxazol-3-yl)piperazin-1-yl)acetyl)indolin-2-one and 5-(2-(4-substitutedpiperazin-1-yl)acetyl)indolin-2-one analogues were synthesized, characterized and screened for their in vitro anti-tubercular activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv strain. These compounds exhibited minimum inhibitory concentration between 1.56 and 50 μg/mL. Among these derivatives, compounds 10c, 10d, 10j, 10o and 10v (MIC 6.25 μg/mL) displayed moderate activity, while compounds 10e, 10l, 10q, 10w,10x, 12d, 12e and 12i (MIC 3.12 μg/mL) showed good anti-tubercular activity and compounds 10f, 10k, 10p, 10r, 12f, 12j and 12k (MIC 1.56 μg/mL) exhibited excellent anti-tubercular activity. In addition, MTT assay was accomplished on the active analogues of the series against mouse macrophage (RAW 264.7) cells to evaluate the cytotoxic effect of the newly synthesized compounds and selectivity index of the compounds was determined.     

Synthesis of novel MnOx@TiO2 core-shell nanorod catalyst for low-temperature NH3-selective catalytic reduction of NOx with enhanced SO2 tolerance

In this study, a MnO_x@TiO₂ core-shell catalyst prepared by a two-step method was used for the low-temperature selective catalytic reduction of NO_x with NH₃. The catalyst exhibits high activity, high stability, and excellent N₂ selectivity. Furthermore, it displays better SO₂ and H₂O tolerance than its MnO_x, TiO₂, and MnO_x/TiO₂ counterparts. The prepared catalyst was characterized systematically by transmission electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman, BET, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, NH₃ temperature-programmed desorption and H₂ temperature-programmed reduction analyses. The optimized MnO_x@TiO₂ catalyst exhibits an obvious core-shell structure, where the TiO₂ shell is evenly distributed over the MnO_x nanorod core. The catalyst also presents abundant mesopores, Lewis-acid sites, and high redox capability, all of which enhance its catalytic performance. According to the XPS results, the decrease in the number of Mn⁴⁺ active centers after SO₂ poisoning is significantly lower in MnO_x@TiO₂ than in MnO_x/TiO₂. The core-shell structure is hence able to protect the catalytic active sites from H₂O and SO₂ poisoning.     

Asymmetric synthesis of tert-butyl ((1R,4aR,8R,8aR)-1-hydroxyoctahydro-1H-isochromen-8-yl)carbamate

The asymmetric synthesis of methyl (E)-4-((1R,2S,3R)-3-amino-2-((E)-2-methoxycarbonyl-eten-1-yl)cyclohexyl)but-2-enoate 14 has been achieved from dimethyl (2E,7E)-nona-2,7-dienedioate 2. A key step is the asymmetric synthesis of 1-hydroxyoctahydro-1H-isochromene derivative 5 whose X-ray analysis corroborated the stereochemistry of the new stereocenters. The asymmetric synthesis of the isochromenyl acetate derivative 11 shows the potential of this methodology for fused cyclohexanic system heterocyclic synthesis.     

超临界水热合成过渡金属改性铈基催化剂应用于CO-SCR脱硝研究

氮氧化物(NOx)作为煤炭燃烧过程主要污染物之一, 可直接或间接引起如光化学烟雾、酸沉降、平流层臭氧损耗和全球气候变化等大气环境污染问题. NOx的选择性催化还原技术(SCR)被认为是目前处理固定源NOx的最有效方法之一. 由于燃煤工业锅炉烟气中还有1%~3%的CO, 远高于NOx的0.02%~0.04%, 因此, 以CO为还原剂进行CO-SCR脱硝具有现实意义, 它可在反应过程中同时消除CO和NO两种有害气体, 但对催化剂的活性及抗毒性提出更高要求. CeO2作为一种常用的稀土材料, 因具有良好的储放氧能力而广泛应用于SCR反应中. 过渡金属改性可进一步改善CeO2的物化性能, 从而可能达到CO-SCR的应用要求.本文利用超临界水热技术合成了MOx-CeO2(M = Co, Fe, Cu)固溶体催化剂, 并利用X射线衍射(XRD), 氢气程序升温还原(H2-TPR), 傅里叶变换原位红外(DRFTIR)等探究了催化剂在CO-SCR反应中的催化活性与作用机制. CO-SCR反应活性测试表明, CuO-CeO2催化剂活性明显优于FeOx-CeO2和CoOx-CeO2催化剂, 在126 ℃ NO去除率即可达到90%; 其N2选择性也可在179 ℃时达到90%. 为了进一步探究MOx-CeO2(M = Co, Fe, Cu)催化剂的CO-SCR反应途径,本文随后进行了系列原位DRFTIR实验, 发现NO在三种催化剂表面均能被高效吸附, 其吸附态中间产物主要为双齿硝酸根, 桥式硝酸根, 桥式硝基和亚硝酰基等. 另外, 在CuO-CeO2催化剂表面还存有螯合硝基和单齿硝酸根. CO在催化剂表面主要以COx, 碳酸根和羧酸根等形式存在. 值得注意的是, 在CuO-CeO2表面, CO因吸附于Cu+而形成Cu+-CO, 在2100 cm-1左右形成明显的特征峰. 当催化剂表面吸附CO至饱和后再通入NO发现, CO的吸附特征峰逐渐被NO的特征吸附峰取代; 而当NO被吸附至饱和后再通入CO, NO的特征峰则不出现明显变化. 这表明NO和CO在催化剂表面存在竞争吸附, NO可能优先于CO吸附在催化剂表面. 当NO和CO同时通入红外反应仓时发现, 在CoOx-CeO2和FeOx-CeO2催化剂表面只观察到NO的吸附峰, 而在CuO-CeO2催化剂表面观察到Cu+-CO的特征峰, 说明在CO-SCR反应过程中, CO可以在Cu+表面被有效吸附,其与吸附于CeO2表面的NO物种反应生成N2和CO2, 遵循Langmuir-Hinshelwood反应机理. 而在CoOx-CeO2和FeOx-CeO2催化剂表面, 因NO的竞争吸附, 使得二者主要遵循Eley-Rideal反应机理.