The role played by salts in the formation of SBA-15, an in situ small-angle X-ray scattering/diffraction study

The influence of salts (NaCl, NaBr, and NaI) on the formation of mesoporous silica SBA-15 was studied in situ by small-angle X-ray scattering and diffraction. Pluronic P104 was used as structure director. The micellar properties and the dynamics of formation were clearly dependent on the presence of salt. It was also shown that the kinetics of mesophase formation, the initial value of the cell parameters, and the extent of long-range order were all influenced by salt additions. The observations are explained to primarily originate from the influence of the anions on the ethylene oxide part of the polymer, i.e., the corona region of the Pluronic micelles. Two effects are identified: a general ion effect causing dehydration of the ethylene oxide part and consequently inducing micellar growth, and a specific ion effect that counterbalances this. The study provides the basis for understanding the means by which addition of simple Na-salts influence the formation of mesoscopically ordered silicas synthesized using nonionic surfactants as structure directors, hence advancing the knowledge base toward a more rational design of mesoporous materials.     

In situ studies of monosaccharide gelation using the small-angle X-ray scattering time-resolved method

The process of gelation of one of the monosaccharides, alpha-galactose-based gelator, with benzene as a solvent, has been studied. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) synchrotron time-resolved measurements were performed throughout the gelation process. The obtained SAXS measurements were elaborated using such methods as the fractal analysis, Fourier transform to get distance distribution functions, and simulation of a cluster model. We obtained the picture of the mesostructure development from the sol state to the gel state. Our results indicate that the fractal-type aggregates exist in the sol and the process of gelation is accompanied by the structural transition. This transition causes the aggregates to become smaller and denser, and their shapes differ from those of the sol. The complex method of SAXS data treatment we established seems to be a useful tool also for further studies of monosaccharide gelation.     

Polysiloxane network formation observed by time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering

Time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering was observed on systems undergoing gelation. A polysiloxane network was used as a model system, where the polysiloxane network was formed by hydrosylation of VT-M with F4-C. The Flory-Stockmayer model for gelation was found to be satisfactory to describe the polysiloxane network formation. No inhomogeneous distribution of densely crosslinked region exists, and in this respect the gel formed by the polysiloxane network is homogeneous. The invariance of the correlation length ξ evaluated from the Lorenzian term suggests that the local network architecture would not change by gelation.     

The influence of additives on the X-ray induced aggregation of malate synthase monitoring of the aggregation processin situ by time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering

The X-ray induced aggregation of the sulfhydryl enzyme malate synthase in aqueous solution was monitoredin situ by time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering. Experiments were performed in the absence/presence of various additives: formate, superoxide dismutase, catalase, NaCl, acetyl-CoA, glyoxylate, malate, pyruvate, -ketobutyrate, oxaloacetate, glycollate, lactate. The scattering curves were measured as a function of the time of irradiation and were analysed in terms of radii of gyration, degrees of aggregation, distance distribution functions, and parameters derived therefrom. Irradiation in the absence of additives resulted in a strong aggregation of enzyme particles. Each of the additives impeded aggregation, however to a different extent. The OH scavenger formate reduced aggregation efficiently; less pronounced effects were registered for superoxide dismutase and/or catalase (the scavengers for and H₂O₂), and for NaCl. Very pronounced diminutions of the aggregation phenomena were provided by substrates or analogues; the efficiency of these substances as radioprotectors may be explained by their action as both scavengers and specific ligands. Based on these results some implications for the performance of conventional small-angle X-ray scattering experiments on biopolymers are derived.

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Der Einfluß von Zusätzen auf die röntgeninduzierte Aggregation der Malatsynthase. Registrierung des Aggregationsvorganges in situ mittels zeitaufgelöster Röntgenkleinwinkelstreuung

Zusammenfassung Die röntgeninduzierte Aggregation des Sulfhydrylenzyms Malatsynthase in wäßriger Lösung wurdein situ mittels zeitaufgelöster Röntgenkleinwinkelstreuung messend verfolgt. Streuexperimente wurden in An- bzw. Abwesenheit verschiedener Zusätze durchgeführt: Formiat, Superoxiddismutase, Catalase, NaCl, Acetyl-CoA, Glyoxylat, Malat, Pyruvat, -Ketobutyrat, Oxalacetat, Glycolat, Lactat. Die Streukurven wurden als Funktion der Bestrahlungsdauer registriert. Die Auswertung lieferte Streumassenradien, Aggregationsgrade, Abstandsverteilungsfunktionen, und daraus abgeleitete Parameter. Die Bestrahlung in Abwesenheit von Zusätzen verursachte eine starke Aggregation der Enzymteilchen. Jeder der Zusätze verminderte die Aggregation, wenn auch in unterschiedlichem Ausmaß. Der OH Fänger Formiat verringerte die Aggregation wirksam; weniger stark ausgeprägte Effekte ergaben sich für die bzw. H₂O₂ Fänger Superoxiddismutase bzw. Catalase und für NaCl. Substrate und Substratanaloge reduzierten das Ausmaß der Aggregation besonders wirkungsvoll; der Schutzeffekt dieser Substanzen kann durch ihre zweifache Wirkung als Fänger bzw. spezifische Liganden erklärt werden. Ausgehend von diesen Ergebnissen werden einige Schlußfolgerungen für die Durchführung üblicher Röntgenkleinwinkelexperimente an Biopolymeren abgeleitet.

     

A structural development of an organogel explored by synchrotron time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering

We investigated the gelation process of 12-hydroxystearic acid (12-HSA)/dodecane gel (turbid gel), 12-HSA/xylene and 12-HSA/toluene gels (transparent gels) by using time-resolved synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering technique. The fibers were developed via nucleation and growth mechanism, and the induction period was longer at higher temperatures. After the induction period, the fiber growth can be divided into two regimes. In the first stage, the scattering intensity increased with time without appearance of any crystalline peak, and in the second stage (001) peak appeared due to crystalline nucleation. In the former regime, the fibers grew with increasing the cross-sectional size, while in the latter regime, they grew with keeping it almost constant, i.e., with keeping the fiber thickness constant. The fiber thickness for the turbid gel (radius of the gyration R _c of ～100 Å) was thicker than that for the transparent gel (R _c of ～82 Å). The fractal dimensions of the fibrillar aggregates for the turbid gels (2.0–2.3) at various temperatures were larger than those for the transparent gels (1.4–1.6), suggesting that the structure of the former gels is more branching or more compact in comparison with the latter.     

Characterization of pore structure in metal-organic framework by small-angle X-ray scattering

MOF-5-like crystals were studied by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) to reveal, both quantitatively and qualitatively, their real structural details, including pore surface characteristics, pore shape, size distribution, specific surface area (SSA), spatial distribution, and pore-network structure. A combined SAXS and wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) experiment was conducted to investigate the variation of the pore structure with the MOF-5 crystalline phase produced at different cooling rates. The SSA of the MOF-5 crystals synthesized herein spanned a broad range from approximately 3100 to 800 m2/g. The real pore structures were divided into two regimes. In regime I the material consisted mainly of micropores of radius approximately 8 A as well as mesopores of radius 120 approximately 80 A. The structure in regime II was a fractal network of aggregated mesopores with radius >or=32 A as the monomer, reducing SSA and hydrogen uptake capacity at room temperature. The two regimes can be manipulated by controlling the synthesis parameters. The concurrent evolution of pore structure and crystalline phase during heating for solvent removal was also revealed by the in-situ SAXS/WAXS measurement. The understanding of the impact of the real pore structure on the properties is important to establish a favorable synthetic approach for markedly improving the hydrogen storage capacity of MOF-5.     

Early stages of fat crystallisation evaluated by low-field NMR and small-angle X-ray scattering

Low-field time-domain nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR; 20 MHz) is commonly used in the studies of fats in the form of solid fat content (SFC) measurements. However, it has the disadvantage of low sensitivity to small amounts of crystalline material (0.5%), thus often incorrectly determining crystallisation induction times. From spin–lattice relaxation rate measurements (R₁) during the isothermal crystallisation measurements of cocoa butter between 0.01 and 10 MHz using fast field cycling NMR, we learnt previously that the most sensitive frequency region is below 1 MHz. Thus, we focused on analysing our 10-kHz data in detail, by observing the time dependence of R₁ and comparing it with standard SFC_NMR and SFC determinations from small-angle X-ray scattering (SFC_SAXS). Although not reflecting directly the SFC, the R₁ at this low frequency is very sensitive to changes in molecular aggregation and hence potentially serving as an alternative for determination of crystallisation induction times. Alongside R₁, we also show that SFC_SAXS is more sensitive to early stages of crystallisation, that is, standard SFC_NMR determinations become more relevant when crystal growth starts to dominate the crystallisation process but fail to pick up earlier crystallisation steps. This paper thus demonstrates the potential of studying triacylglycerols at frequencies below 1 MHz for obtaining further understanding of the early crystallisation stages of fats and presents an alternative and complementary method to estimate SFC by SAXS.     

Initial stages of SBA-15 synthesis: an overview

This work presents an overview of the data obtained for SBA-15 synthesis under the reaction conditions using synchrotron based small angle X-ray scattering and small angle neutron scattering. Three major stages in the synthesis of SBA-15 materials proceeding according to the cooperative self-assembly mechanism have been identified, and the structures of the intermediates species have been established. Our in situ time-resolved neutron scattering experiments demonstrate that only spherical micelles of the templating agent are present in the synthesis mixture during the first stage of the reaction. According to the neutron scattering and X-ray scattering data, in the second stage of the reaction the formation of hybrid organic-inorganic micelles is accompanied with the transformation from spherical to cylindrical micelles, which takes place before the precipitation of the ordered SBA-15 phase. During the third stage, these micelles aggregate into a two-dimensional hexagonal structure, confirming that the precipitation takes place as the result of self-assembly of the hybrid cylindrical micelles. As the synthesis proceeds, the voids between the cylinders are filled with the silicate species which undergo condensation reactions resulting in cross-linking and covalent bonding, leading to the formation of highly ordered SBA-15 mesostructure. This work demonstrates that valuable structural information can be obtained from X-ray and neutron scattering characterisation of complex systems containing periodic phases with d-spacing values up to 30 nm, and that both techniques are powerful means for in situ monitoring of the formation of nanostructured materials.     

Investigation of humate-cetyltrimethylammonium complexes by small-angle X-ray scattering

The structural examination of the complexes formed between humic acid and cationic surfactants has environmental implications. A humic acid (HA) dissolved in 0.1 M NaOH (5 g/L) was reacted with a cationic surfactant (hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide or CTAB) at initial solution concentrations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 mM. The HA precipitated at CTAB concentrations of 20, 30, and 50 mM but the complexes were soluble at 40 mM and below 20 mM. The charge neutralization between humic acid anions and CTAB micelles and the subsequent charge reversal due to hydrophobic interactions explain the behavior of the HA-CTAB complexes. The HA solution (5 g/L), reaction products (supernatants and precipitates), and pure cationic surfactant solutions were studied by the small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) technique in order to determine the structure of HA-CTAB complexes. The scattering intensity (I(q)) of various HA-CTAB systems were recorded over a range of scattering vectors (q=0.053-4.0 nm(-1)). HA forms networks in an alkaline solution with a characterization length of 7.8 nm or greater. The HA-CTAB precipitates and the 50-mM CTAB solution gave d(100) and d(110) reflections of a hexagonal structure. The hexagonal array of cylindrical CTAB micelles has a lattice parameter of 5.01 nm in pure solution, and the parameter decreases in the order: 4.96, 4.91, and 4.85 nm for the precipitates of HA-CTAB (50, 30, and 20 mM, respectively), indicating that the structure of CTAB micelles was disturbed by the addition of HA. The molecular properties and behavior of HA in solution were discussed.     

Dynamic investigation of gold nanocrystal assembly using in situ grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering

Here we investigate the dynamic self-assembly pathway of ordered gold nanocrystal arrays during the self-assembly of gold nanocrystal micelles, with and without the presence of colloidal silica precursors, using grazing-incidence X-ray scattering performed at a synchrotron source. With silica precursors present, a lattice with rhombohedral symmetry is formed from the partial collapse of a face-centered cubic structure. In the absence of silica, a transient body-centered orthorhombic phase appears, which rapidly collapses into a glassy nanocrystal film. The appearance of face-centered and body-centered structures is consistent with a phase diagram for charged colloidal particles with assembly modulated via Coulomb screening.     

Growth of mesoporous silica nanoparticles monitored by time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering

Since the first development of surfactant-templated mesoporous silicas, the underlying mechanisms behind the formation of their structures have been under debate. Here, for the first time, time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering (tr-SANS) is applied to study the complete formation of mesoporous silica nanoparticles. A distinct advantage of this technique is the ability to detect contributions from the whole system, enabling the visualization not only of particle genesis and growth but also the concurrent changes to the coexistent micelle population. In addition, using contrast-matching tr-SANS, it is possible to highlight the individual contributions from the silica and surfactant. An analysis of the data agrees well with the previously proposed "current bun" model describing particle growth: Condensing silica oligomers adsorb to micelles, reducing intermicellar repulsion and resulting in aggregation to form initial particle nuclei. From this point, the growth occurs in a cooperative manner, with condensing silica filling the gaps between further aggregating micelles. The mechanistic results are discussed with respect to different reaction conditions by changing either the concentration of the silica precursor or the temperature. In doing so the importance of in situ techniques is highlighted, in particular, tr-SANS, for mechanism elucidation in the broad field of materials science.     

New insights into the initial steps of the formation of SBA-15 materials: an in situ small angle neutron scattering investigation

Time-resolved in situ SANS investigations have provided direct experimental evidence for the three initial steps in the formation of the SBA-15 mesoporous material: an induction period is followed by a shape transformation of the micelles from spherical to cylindrical ones followed by the precipitation of a two-dimensional hexagonal phase.     

X-ray small-angle scattering of bulk polyethylene

Summary On the basis of the assumption that bulk polyethylene is built up of parallel layers differing in electron density, the correlation function for the direction perpendicular to the layers is calculated from the experimental scattering curve at small angles. This function is compared with that calculated for a model consisting of alternating crystalline and amorphous layers. One scale factor and three parameters have to be adjusted to obtain good agreement. The scale factor accounts for the average periodicity in the direction perpendicular to the layers. The parameters are the crystalline fraction and the width of the distributions of the thicknesses of the crystalline and amorphous layers respectively. It is furthermore shown that especially the crystallinity thus found is not appreciably influenced by even relatively large deviations from the primary model.

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Zusammenfassung Ausgehend von der Annahme, daß aus der Schmelze erstarrtes Polyäthylen aus parallelen Schichten unterschiedlicher Elektronendichte zusammengesetzt ist, wird die Korrelationsfunktion für die Richtung, senkrecht zu den Schichten, aus der experimentellen Kleinwinkel-Streuungskurve berechnet. Diese Funktion wird mit derjenigen Funktion verglichen, welche für ein wechselweise aus kristallinen und amorphen Schichten bestehendes Modell berechnet worden ist. Es mußten zur Erreichung einer guten übereinstimmung ein Skalenfaktor und drei Parameter eingestellt werden. Im Skalenfaktor gelangt die mittlere Periodizität in der Richtung, senkrecht zu den Schichten zum Ausdruck. Die Parameter sind die Kristallinität und die Verteilungsbreite der Dicke der kristallinen, bzw. amorphen Schichten. Es wird ferner nachgewieser, daß vor allem die so ermittelte Kristallinität durch sogar relativ große Abweichungen vom primären Modell nur unwesentlich beeinflußt wird.

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With 6 figures in 7 details     

X-ray small-angle scattering of bulk polyethylene

Summary A previously described method for evaluating X-ray small-angle scattering curves was applied to a number of well-characterized polyethylene samples. The average thicknesses of the crystalline and amorphous layers were estimated by this method; furthermore, the mean square of the density fluctuations within the samples was determined from the integral small-angle scattering. From these data, combined with the overall densities of the samples, the densities of the crystalline and amorphous layers were calculated; these densities compare well with the figures generally assumed for a two-phase structure.The effects of molecular weight and cooling rate on the thicknesses of the crystalline and amorphous layers are noted, and the thicknesses of the crystalline layers are compared with the melting points of the samples.Finally, a discussion is given of the errors which may be involved ifBragg's law is applied to small-angle scattering curves.

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Zusammenfassung Eine bereits früher beschriebene Methode zur Bewertung von Röntgen-Kleinwinkelstreuungskurven wird auf eine Anzahl genau charakterisierter Polyäthylenproben angewandt. An Hand dieser Methode wird die mittlere Dicke der kristallinen und amorphen Schichten geschätzt; ferner wird an Hand der Integral-Kleinwinkelstreuung das mittlere Quadrat der Dichteschwankungen in den Proben bestimmt. Aus den so erhaltenen Unterlagen und Gesamtdichten der Proben werden die Dichten der kristallinen und amorphen Schichten berechnet; diese Werte entsprechen durchaus den im allgemeinen für eine Zweiphasenstruktur angenommenen Zahlen.Es wird der Einfluß von Molekulargewicht und Kühlgeschwindigkeit auf die Dicke der kristallinen und amorphen Schichten angegeben; außerdem werden die Dicken der kristallinen Schichten mit den Schmelzpunkten der Proben verglichen. Schließlich werden die Fehler erörtert, welche sich bei Anwendung desBragg-schen Gesetzes auf Kleinwinkelstreuungskurven ergeben.

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With 6 figures in 7 details and 2 tables     

Interaction of blockcopolymer micelles as probed by small-angle neutron and by small-angle X-ray scattering

 The analysis of the interaction of micelles formed by a blockcopolymer is given by means of small-angle X-ray (SAXS) and small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The blockcopolymer consists of poly(styrene) and poly(ethylene oxide) (molecular weight of each block: 1000 g/mol) and forms well-defined micelles (weight-association number: 400, weight-average diameter: 15.4 nm) in water. The internal structure has been studied previously (Macromolecules 29:4006 (1996)) by SAXS. There it has been shown that the micelles are spherical objects. The structure factor S(q) as a function of the scattering vector q (q=(4π/λ) sin (θ/2); λ: wavelength of the radiation in the medium; θ: scattering angle) can be extracted from both sets of small-angle scattering data (SANS: q≤0.4 nm^-1; SAXS: q≤0.6 nm^-1). It is shown that particle interaction in the present system can be described by assuming soft interaction which is modeled by a square-step potential. Received: 12 May 1997 Accepted: 9 July 1997     

Characterization of polystyrene networks by small-angle neutron scattering

Polystyrene networks prepared by anionic polymerization have been characterized by small-angle neutron scattering. Two kinds of systems have been examined: (A) networks with labelled branch points allowing characterization of the spatial distribution of crosslinking points; (B) networks containing a low proportion of chains labelled with perdeuterated polystyrene in order to characterize the conformation of individual elastic chains of the polymeric network. The dependence of the results on swelling and uniaxial extension is discussed.     

Time-resolved in situ small-angle X-ray scattering study of silica particle formation in nonionic water-in-oil microemulsions

The formation of silica particles by the ammonia-catalyzed hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) in the polyoxyethylene (5) nonylphenyl ether (NP-5)/cyclohexane/water microemulsion system was investigated by time-resolved small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). The SAXS data could be modeled as a combination of two species where one describes the silica-particle containing microemulsion droplets and the other the reverse droplets. The analysis allowed the determination of the evolution of the system of particles of silica and reverse droplets. A model of nucleation and growth of the silica particles is confirmed and the volume fraction versus time data for the silica particles is in agreement with first order kinetics with respect to TEOS concentration. Moreover to describe the long time evolution of the system, a correlation among the silica particles has been taken into account by introducing a structure factor with a local silica volume fraction eta = 0.1. This high local density is 2 orders of magnitude larger than the global silica fraction and can be explained in terms of depleting interaction.     

Spatial and temporal in situ evolution of the concentration profile during casein micelle ultrafiltration probed by small-angle X-ray scattering

Understanding the mechanisms involved in structural development in the vicinity of membrane constitutes a considerable challenge in the improvement of ultrafiltration process in industrial applications. In situ small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) performed with custom-made ultrafiltration cell has permitted the structural arrangement to be probed and concentration profiles to be obtained in deposited layers during frontal filtration of casein micelle suspension. SAXS allowed the structure of the accumulated layers of casein micelles between 280 microm and 1 mm from the membrane surface to be followed at length scales from a few nanometers to about 100 nm. These results have been combined with hydrodynamic measurements (permeation flux) and rheological investigations. Under frontal filtration, the time dependence of concentration at different distances from the membrane surface has been obtained. This temporal evolution is marked by an exponential increase of the concentration followed by a slower growth which has been associated with a change in the rheological behavior of the suspension from Newtonian to shear thinning behavior.