Micro-droplet Trapping and Manipulation: Understanding Aerosol Better for a Healthier Environment

Understanding the physicochemical properties and heterogeneous processes of aerosols is key not only to elucidate the impacts of aerosols on the atmosphere and humans but also to exploit their further applications, especially for a healthier environment. Experiments that allow for spatially control of single aerosol particles and investigations on the fundamental properties and heterogeneous chemistry at the single-particle level have flourished during the last few decades, and significant breakthroughs in recent years promise better control and novel applications aimed at resolving key issues in aerosol science. Here we propose graphene oxide (GO) aerosols as prototype aerosols containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and GO can behave as two-dimensional surfactants which could modify the interfacial properties of aerosols. We describe the techniques of trapping single particles and furthermore the current status of the optical spectroscopy and chemistry of GO. The current applications of these single-particle trapping techniques are summarized and interesting future applications of GO aerosols are discussed.     

Layer-by-layer sensor architecture of polymers and nanoparticles for electrochemical detection of uric acid in human urine samples

Excessive uric acid levels in the human body (hyperuricemia) are the main causes of kidney stones and diabetes. In this study, a layer-by-layer arrangement of polymers and nanocomposites is used as a new electrode sensing material for rapid and direct electrochemical determination of uric acid (UA). The electrode surface architecture was constructed by the incorporation of poly (amidoamine) dendrimer with 0.5 generation (poly (amidoamine) [PAMAM] [D-G0.5]) of multiwalled carbon nanotube-silver nanoparticles (MWCNT-AgNP) and a poly (neutral-red) (poly [NR]) polymer. The PAMAM (D-G0.5)/MWCNT-AgNP/poly (NR)-coated electrode has a good electrocatalytic activity for the determination of UA using cyclic voltammetry and showed remarkable enhancement in current response at a low-oxidation potential (0.3 V). Under optimal conditions, the developed electrochemical sensor showed an excellent and wide linear range for the determination of UA (i.e. 0.016 μM–2500 μM), and the limit of detection was found to be 0.005 μM. The modified sensor system demonstrated excellent sensitivity and selectivity toward the detection of UA in the presence of interfering substances, which are commonly found in urine and human fluid samples. Furthermore, the developed sensor has represented both reproducibility and excellent stability for the UA determination in real samples (human urine).     

Cerium oxide-catalyzed multicomponent condensation approach to spirooxindoles in water

An efficient and facile green synthesis of spirooxindole derivatives bearing pyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole moiety has been achieved via a \(\mathrm{CeO}_{2}\)-NPs catalyzed four-component reaction in water. The protocol offers an environmentally benign and effective approach to highly functionalized and biologically interesting spiro[indoline-3,4\(^\prime \)-pyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole] derivatives. The synthesized compounds exhibit potent antioxidant and antibacterial activities.     

Rational Development of Guanidinate and Amidinate Based Cerium and Ytterbium Complexes as Atomic Layer Deposition Precursors: Synthesis,Modeling, and Application

Owing to the limited availability of suitable precursors for vapor phase deposition of rare-earth containing thin-film materials, new or improved precursors are sought after. In this study, we explored new precursors for atomic layer deposition (ALD) of cerium (Ce) and ytterbium (Yb) containing thin films. A series of homoleptic tris-guanidinate and tris-amidinate complexes of cerium (Ce) and ytterbium (Yb) were synthesized and thoroughly characterized. The C-substituents on the N-C-N backbone (Me, NMe₂, NEt₂, where Me=methyl, Et=ethyl) and the N-substituents from symmetrical iso-propyl (iPr) to asymmetrical tertiary-butyl (tBu) and Et were systematically varied to study the influence of the substituents on the physicochemical properties of the resulting compounds. Single crystal structures of [Ce(dpdmg)₃] 1 and [Yb(dpdmg)₃] 6 (dpdmg=N,N'-diisopropyl-2-dimethylamido-guanidinate) highlight a monomeric nature in the solid-state with a distorted trigonal prismatic geometry. The thermogravimetric analysis shows that the complexes are volatile and emphasize that increasing asymmetry in the complexes lowers their melting points while reducing their thermal stability. Density functional theory (DFT) was used to study the reactivity of amidinates and guanidinates of Ce and Yb complexes towards oxygen (O₂) and water (H₂O). Signified by the DFT calculations, the guanidinates show an increased reactivity toward water compared to the amidinate complexes. Furthermore, the Ce complexes are more reactive compared to the Yb complexes, indicating even a reactivity towards oxygen potentially exploitable for ALD purposes. As a representative precursor, the highly reactive [Ce(dpdmg)₃] 1 was used for proof-of-principle ALD depositions of CeO₂ thin films using water as co-reactant. The self-limited ALD growth process could be confirmed at 160 °C with polycrystalline cubic CeO₂ films formed on Si(100) substrates. This study confirms that moving towards nitrogen-coordinated rare-earth complexes bearing the guanidinate and amidinate ligands can indeed be very appealing in terms of new precursors for ALD of rare earth based materials.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Silver–PVA Nanocomposite for Sensor and Antibacterial Applications

Silver–polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanocomposite is synthesized by a simple chemical reduction method in aqueous media and characterized by various techniques such as UV–Visible spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. The morphology of the obtained silver nanoparticles is spherical in shape with an average diameter of 24 nm. The prepared silver–PVA nanocomposite is demonstrated to detect the concentration of heavy metal contaminant cadmium in water based on linear change in surface plasmon resonance absorption strength. The antibacterial tests show the inhibiting action of this nanocomposite against pathogenic bacteria Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (gram negative), Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus (gram positive), which are found commonly in water. These observed optical and antibacterial properties, suggest the possible utilization of prepared silver–PVA nanocomposite in the water purification application.     

A simultaneous TG-DTG-DSC-quadrupole mass spectrometric study

Mechanistic aspects of the thermal decomposition of benzyl-triethyl-ammonium tetrafluoroborate (BTEATFB) employing simultaneous TG-DSC coupled with a quadrupole mass spectrometer are considered in this work. The experiments were conducted in an inert atmosphere of helium. The decomposition of BTEATFB proceeds through several competing mechanisms. While nucleophilic substitution reaction occurs through the formation of a tertiary amine and plays an important role in the initial stages of the decomposition, and the probability of Hoffman elimination also exists.     

Recent advances in the synthetic chemistry of 1,5-benzothiazepines: A minireview

Benzothiazepine, a prominent “drug prejudice core”, is a heterocyclic moiety of immense importance due to its presence in a wide range of bioactive compounds. They act as a primary “biolinker” in diverse synthetic routes to obtain bioactive molecules and serve as important templates in synthetic and medicinal chemistry. They are known to possess a plethora of pharmacological activities, which include Ca²⁺ channel blockers, CNS acting agents, anti-HIV, ACE inhibitors, antimicrobial, antifungal, anticancer. Their promising behaviour as drug molecules led the scientific community to develop novel, mild, green, and highly efficient synthetic routes for their synthesis. The conventional synthesis generally involved the condensation of chalcones with 2-aminothiophenol in the presence of acid/base with high-temperature heating, mostly resulting in poor yields or mixtures. However, recent trends are replacing these conditions with mild and green conditions through organocatalysis or other methodologies. In this review, an attempt has been made by authors to summarize (a) Recent developments in the synthetic strategies of 1,5-benzoathiazepines and its derivatives (b) Conventional methods for the synthesis of 1,5-benzothiazepines including progress in the green chemistry routes (c) Applications of various metals and organocatalysts to achieve the enantioselective synthesis of title compounds.     

Intraspecific competition of predator for prey with variable rates in protected areas

Nonlinear Dynamics - In this present study, we systematically explore the periodicity (almost periodic nature) of a dynamical system in time-varying environment, which portrays a special case of...     

Ca(Ⅱ)、Mg(Ⅱ)和 Zn(Ⅱ)与丙二醇-水混合体系中L-多巴的二元配合物的生成平衡

在303 K恒温条件下,以NaCl为电解质保持离子强度为0.16 mol.L-1,用pH滴定法研究了M(Ⅱ)-Dopa(多巴)二元配合物在0~60%(V/V)的丙二醇(PG)-水体系中的生成平衡。在PG-水体系中,Ca(Ⅱ)和Mg(Ⅱ)的典型配合物为MLH,ML2,ML2H和ML2H2,而Zn髤的典型配合物为ML,MLH,ML2,ML2H和ML2H2。根据静电和非静电力解释了稳定常数随介质的介电常数而变化的倾向。还讨论了在不同组成的丙二醇(PG)-水体系中配合物物种随pH值变化的情况。