Normal mode calculation and IR band assignments of A-type zeolite

Normal mode calculation of A-type zeolite was carried out with the potential energy functions obtained from the constraint method. Mass-weighted cartesian coordinates and the pseudo-lattice method were used. The assignments of IR absorption bands were made with the calculated normal modes, by using the calculated absorption intensities of the modes and the degrees of contribution of the internal coordinates to the modes. The force constants of internal coordinate motions within the framework were also calculated and are compared with the empirical values.     

Controllable synthesis, structures of amidecrownophane-type macrocycles and their binding ability toward anions

Amidecrownophane-type macrocycles with different number of hydroxy groups were prepared in quantitative yields by control of the conditions of thermal reaction with the aim to examine the role of hydroxy groups in anion recognition. It was proved that the hydroxy group played a critical role in anion binding for this type of macrocycles and the anion binding affinity could be tuned by different number of hydroxy groups. Further exploration clarified the presence of intramolecular hydrogen-bonding and exhibited the major effect on their anion binding potential.     

Amphiphilic polymer electrolytes consisting of PVC‐g‐POEM comb‐like copolymer and LiCF3SO3

An amphiphilic comb‐like copolymer consisting of a poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) backbone and poly((oxyethylene)₉ methacrylate) (POEM) side chains, PVC‐graft‐POEM was synthesized via atom transfer radical polymerization. This comb copolymer was complexed with LiCF₃SO₃ to form a solid polymer electrolyte. FTIR and FT‐Raman spectroscopy indicate that lithium salts are dissolved in the ion conducting POEM domains of microphase‐separated graft copolymer up to 10 wt % of salt concentration. Microphase‐separated structure of the materials and the selective interaction of lithium ions with POEM domains were revealed by transmission electron microscopy, wide angle X‐ray scattering, and differential scanning calorimetry. The maximum ionic conductivity of 4.4 × 10^?5 S/cm at room temperature was achieved at 10 wt % of salt concentration, above which salts are present as less mobile species such as ion pairs and higher order ionic aggregates, as characterized by FT‐Raman spectroscopy. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 47: 1443–1451, 2009     

Highly sensitive fluorescent sensor targeting CuCl2 based on thiophene attached anthracene compound (TA)

A novel thiophene attached anthracene (TA) based fluorescent compound was designed and synthesized. The TA showed a high quantum yield (Qy = 0.34) in regard to fluorescence. We applied this TA compound to detect specific metal compound and found that it could identify CuCl₂ from other metals through dramatic fluorescence change at λ_max = 460 nm. It showed strong quenching fluorescence property with CuCl₂ while with other metal compounds it exhibited strong blue fluorescence emission. UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy clearly demonstrated that the quenching property of TA at λ_max = 460 nm was due to overlapping of the fluorescence peak of TA at λ_max = 460 nm and the absorption band of CuCl₂ (from 190 nm to 525 nm). Binding constant (K′), which was 0.0895 mM^?2, indicated a complexation ratio between TA and CuCl₂ as 1:2 and this interaction induced quenching property.     

Synthesis of dihydroxyoligophenylenes containing π-deficient or π-excess hetero-aromatic rings and their solvatochromic behavior

Dihydroxyoligophenylenes (HO-ArPh(m)-OHs) with 9,9-dihexyl-2,7-fluorene (Ar=Flu), 2,5-dioctyloxy-1,4-benzene (Ar=Dob), pyridine (Ar=Py), or thiophene (Ar=Th) rings were synthesized by the Suzuki coupling reaction. Absorption maxima (λ_max) of HO-ArPh(m)-OHs shifted progressively toward long wavelengths due to the expansion of the π-conjugation system with an increase in the number of benzene rings. Deprotonation of the OH groups of HO-ArPh(m)-OHs by treatment with NaH caused a bathochromic shift of λ_max. The bathochromic shift of the deprotonated species increased with the donor numbers (DNs) of the solvents. The emission peak positions of NaO-ArPh(m)-ONas depended on the DNs of the solvents; therefore, the emission color could be tuned by changing the solvent.     

Mesoporous Nickel–Alumina Catalysts for Hydrogen Production by Steam Reforming of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

Recent progress on the mesoporous nickel–alumina catalysts for hydrogen production by steam reforming of liquefied natural gas (LNG) was reported in this review. A number of mesoporous nickel–alumina composite catalysts were prepared by a single-step surfactant-templating method using cationic, anionic, and non-ionic surfactant as structure-directing agents for use in hydrogen production by steam reforming of LNG. For comparison, nickel catalysts supported on mesoporous aluminas were also prepared by an impregnation method. The effect of preparation method and surfactant identity on physicochemical properties and catalytic activities of mesoporous nickel–alumina catalysts in the steam reforming of LNG was investigated. Regardless of preparation method and surfactant identity, nickel oxide species were finely dispersed on the surface of mesoporous nickel–alumina catalysts through the formation of surface nickel aluminate phase. However, nickel dispersion and nickel surface area of mesoporous nickel–alumina catalysts were strongly affected by the preparation method and surfactant identity. It was found that nickel surface area of mesoporous nickel–alumina catalyst served as one of the important factors determining the catalytic performance in hydrogen production by steam reforming of LNG. Among the catalysts tested, a mesoporous nickel–alumina composite catalyst prepared by a single-step non-ionic surfactant-templating method exhibited the best catalytic performance due to its highest nickel surface area.     

Rapid method for the determination of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin in Gochujang using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography

A sensitive and specific heating block method coupled with ultra-HPLC (u-HPLC) was developed for the analysis of capsaicin in Gochujang and validated by comparing with a conventional HPLC (AOAC Method 995.03). The method validation parameters yielded good results, including linearity, precision, accuracy, and recovery. The u-HPLC separation was performed on a reversed C18 column (50 x 2 mm id, particle size 2 microm), followed by fluorescence detection (excitation 280 nm, emission 325 nm). Methanol was used as the extracting solvent, and the amount of sample taken was approximately 0.2 g; the optimum amount of extraction solvent and extraction time were 15 mL and 1 h, respectively. The recovery of capsaicin in Gochujang was more than 93%, and the LOD and LOQ of the u-HPLC analysis were 0.05 and 0.16 microg/g for capsaicin and 0.05 and 0.16 microg/g for dihydrocapsaicin. The calibration graphs for capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin were linear from 0.2 to 10.0 microg/mL for u-HPLC. The interday and intraday precisions (RSD values) were < 6.27%.     

A High-Order Immersed Boundary Method for Acoustic Wave Scattering and Low-Mach Number Flow-Induced Sound in Complex Geometries

A new sharp-interface immersed boundary method based approach for the computation of low-Mach number flow-induced sound around complex geometries is described. The underlying approach is based on a hydrodynamic/acoustic splitting technique where the incompressible flow is first computed using a second-order accurate immersed boundary solver. This is followed by the computation of sound using the linearized perturbed compressible equations (LPCE). The primary contribution of the current work is the development of a versatile, high-order accurate immersed boundary method for solving the LPCE in complex domains. This new method applies the boundary condition on the immersed boundary to a high-order by combining the ghost-cell approach with a weighted least-squares error method based on a high-order approximating polynomial. The method is validated for canonical acoustic wave scattering and flow-induced noise problems. Applications of this technique to relatively complex cases of practical interest are also presented.