Characterisation of zeolitic materials with a HEU-type structure modified by transition metal elements: definition of acid sites in nickel-loaded crystals in the light of experimental and quantum-chemical results

Nickel-loaded HEU-type zeolite crystals have been obtained by well-known synthetic procedures and characterised by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), scanning-electron microscopy/ energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), FT-IR, diffuse reflectance UV/ Vis spectroscopy (DR(UV/Vis)S) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements as non-homoionic and non-stoichiometric substances containing exchangeable hydrated Ni2+ ions in the micropores and nickel hydroxide phases supported on the surface. Thermogravimetric analysis/differential gravimetry (TGA/DTG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) demonstrated that full dehydration below approximately 400 degrees C follows a clearly endothermic process, whereas at higher temperatures the zeolite is amorphised and finally partially recrystallised to Ni(Al,Si) oxides, detected by powder X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). The solid acidity of NiHEU, initially determined by temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) of ammonia to be 8.93 mgg(-1) NH3, is attributed to the weak acid sites (fundamentally Lewis sites) resolved at approximately 183 degrees C, and to the strong acid sites (essentially Br?nsted sites) resolved at approximately 461 degrees C in the TPD pattern. A more sophisticated study based on in situ/ex situ FT-IR with in situ/ex situ 27Al MAS NMR and pyridine (Py) as a probe molecule, revealed that the Lewis acid sites can be attributed primarily to Ni2+ ions, whereas the Br?nsted ones can probably be associated with the surface-supported nickel hydroxide phases. The spectroscopic measurements in conjunction with powder XRD and 29Si MAS NMR data strongly suggest that distorted Al tetrahedra are formed during the dehydration process and Py chemisorption/complexation (NiHEU-Py), whereas the crystal structure is remarkably well preserved in the rehydrated material (NiHEU-Py/R). The structural, electronic, energetic and spectroscopic properties of all possible nickel(II) aqua and dihydroxy complexes absorbed in the zeolite micropores or supported on the zeolite surface were studied theoretically by density functional theory (DFT). The computed proton affinity, found to be in the range 182.0-210.0 kcalmol(-1), increases with increasing coordination number of the aqua and dihydroxy nickel(II) complexes.     

Competitive paths for methanol decomposition on Pt(111)

Periodic, self-consistent, Density Functional Theory (PW91-GGA) calculations are used to study competitive paths for the decomposition of methanol on Pt(111). Pathways proceeding through initial C-H and C-O bond scission events in methanol are considered, and the results are compared to data for a pathway proceeding through an initial O-H scission event [Greeley et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 7193]. The DFT results suggest that methanol decomposition via CH(2)OH and either formaldehyde or HCOH intermediates is an energetically feasible pathway; O-H scission to CH(3)O, followed by sequential dehydrogenation, may be another realistic route. Microkinetic modeling based on the first-principles results shows that, under realistic reaction conditions, C-H scission in methanol is the initial decomposition step with the highest net rate. The elementary steps of all reaction pathways (with the exception of C-O scission) follow a linear correlation between the transition state and final state energies. Simulated HREELS spectra of the intermediates show good agreement with available experimental data, and HREELS spectra of experimentally elusive reaction intermediates are predicted.     

On the existence of weak solutions of semilinear elliptic equations and systems with Hardy potentials

Let $\mathrm{\Omega }?{\mathbb{R}}^N$ ($N\ge 3$) be a bounded $C^2$ domain and $\delta (x)=\mathrm{dist}(x,?\mathrm{\Omega })$. Put $L_{\mu }=\mathrm{\Delta }+\frac{\mu }{{\delta }^2}$ with $\mu >0$. In this paper, we provide various necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of weak solutions to

$?L_{\mu }u=u^p+\tau \text{in }\mathrm{\Omega },u=\nu \text{on }?\mathrm{\Omega },$

where $\mu >0$, $p>0$, τ and ν are measures on Ω and ?Ω respectively. We then establish existence results for the system

$\{\begin{array}{cc}\hfill & ?L_{\mu }u=?v^p+\tau \text{in }\mathrm{\Omega },\hfill \\ \hfill & ?L_{\mu }v=?u^{\stackrel{?}{p}}+\stackrel{?}{\tau }\text{in }\mathrm{\Omega },\hfill \\ \hfill & u=\nu ,v=\stackrel{?}{\nu }\text{on }?\mathrm{\Omega },\hfill \end{array}$

where $?=\pm 1$, $p>0$, $\stackrel{?}{p}>0$, τ and $\stackrel{?}{\tau }$ are measures on Ω, ν and $\stackrel{?}{\nu }$ are measures on ?Ω. We also deal with elliptic systems where the nonlinearities are more general.     

Iridium‐Based Cubic Nanocages with 1.1‐nm‐Thick Walls: A Highly Efficient and Durable Electrocatalyst for Water Oxidation in an Acidic Medium

We report a highly active and durable water oxidation electrocatalyst based on cubic nanocages with a composition of Ir₄₄Pd₁₀, together with well‐defined {100} facets and porous walls of roughly 1.1 nm in thickness. Such nanocages substantially outperform all the water oxidation electrocatalysts reported in literature, with an overpotential of only 226 mV for reaching 10 mA cm^?2_geo at a loading of Ir as low as 12.5 μg_Ir cm^?2 on the electrode in acidic media. When benchmarked against a commercial Ir/C electrocatalyst at 250 mV of overpotential, such a nanocage‐based catalyst not only shows enhancements (18.1‐ and 26.2‐fold, respectively) in terms of mass (1.99 A mg^?1_Ir) and specific (3.93 mA cm^?2_Ir) activities, but also greatly enhanced durability. The enhancements can be attributed to a combination of multiple merits, including a high utilization efficiency of Ir atoms and an open structure beneficial to the electrochemical oxidation of Ir to the active form of IrO_x.     

On the Mathematical Properties of Distributed Approximating Functionals

This work investigates some mathematical properties of the Distributed Approximating Functionals (DAFs). We prove that certain classes of DAFs yield Unity Approximations. Two distinct classes which serve as examples are the Hermite-DAFs and the Sinc-class DAFs. Detailed proofs are given. A wavelet generator is constructed using the Continuous Wavelet Transform with repect to the scale parameter. Taking the Gaussian function as the scaling function, a numerical experiment is carried out demonstrating the use of the resulting wavelet for edge detection.     

New type dithiolene complex based on 4,5-(1,4-dioxane-2,3-diyldithio)-1,3-dithiol ligand: Synthesis,experimental and theoretical investigation

A new Nickel complex with an extended multisulfur dithiolene ligand Ni(edodddt)₂ (edodddt = 2,3,4α,8α-tetrahydro-dithiine [2,3-b] [1,4] dioxo-6,7-dithiolene) has been synthesized and characterized by electrochemical measurements, IR, UV–Vis and NMR spectroscopy. Its crystal structure was resolved by X-ray diffraction on a single crystal. DFT calculations were made in order to compare the results with the experimental findings and gain an insight of the properties of this new dithiolene complex.