Electrochemiluminescence Platforms Based on Small Water‐Insoluble Organic Molecules for Ultrasensitive Aqueous‐Phase Detection

Highly efficient detection in the aqueous phase for water‐insoluble organic molecule probes is challenging. The bright aggregated‐state electrochemiluminescence (ECL) of 1,1‐disubstituted 2,3,4,5‐tetraphenylsiloles by a co‐reactant approach was discovered, and a heterogeneous aggregation‐induced emission ECL (HAIE‐ECL) was constructed at the electrode surface, showing very high ECL efficiency (37.8 %) and selective recognition for industrially important DNBP plasticizer with a low detection limit of 0.15 nm in the water phase. A mechanistic study indicates that ECL is mainly generated due to the high electron affinity of siloles and restriction of the intramolecular motions caused by their propeller‐like noncoplanar structures. This system realizes the sensing of organic‐based ECL in the water phase by solving the crucial problems of water insolubility and aggregation‐caused quenching (ACQ), and demonstrates potential for further application because of its design and high efficiency.     

Thermal study of NaP zeolite with different morphologies

NaP zeolites samples with different morphologies were successfully synthesized and their thermal behaviors were fully characterized by in situ HT-XRD, IR spectrum, and TG-DSC techniques. It was found that the cubic zeolite NaP phase underwent the same phase transitions, despite their different morphologies. During the whole heating process, they first underwent a minor phase transition into the tetragonal phase at 200 °C. Then they were gradually converted into the phillipsite phase between 400 and 700 °C. Finally, a very stable NaAlSiO₄ nepheline phase formed when the calcination temperature reached 800 °C, which would be kept even after the sample was cooled to room temperature. Although samples with different morphologies had similar phase transitions, they did have different thermal stability as proved by the TG-DSC study.     

Expedient Synthesis of Core Disaccharide Building Blocks from Natural Polysaccharides for Heparan Sulfate Oligosaccharide Assembly

The complex sulfation motifs of heparan sulfate glycosaminoglycans (HS GAGs) play critical roles in many important biological processes. However, an understanding of their specific functions has been hampered by an inability to synthesize large numbers of diverse, yet defined, HS structures. Herein, we describe a new approach to access the four core disaccharides required for HS/heparin oligosaccharide assembly from natural polysaccharides. The use of disaccharides rather than monosaccharides as minimal precursors greatly accelerates the synthesis of HS GAGs, providing key disaccharide and tetrasaccharide intermediates in about half the number of steps compared to traditional strategies. Rapid access to such versatile intermediates will enable the generation of comprehensive libraries of sulfated oligosaccharides for unlocking the “sulfation code” and understanding the roles of specific GAG structures in physiology and disease.     

农林废弃生物质吸附材料在水污染治理中的应用

环境污染问题已经成为人类社会可持续发展的巨大挑战之一,化工、冶炼及核燃料循环过程等排放的废水中含大量重金属离子、有机物及放射性核素等,若未经处理即排放会给环境带来了极大的危害。吸附法的效率高、操作简单、低成本且无副产物、可循环利用及无二次污染等优点使其成为废水处理的重要方法之一。由于农林废弃生物质成本低、来源丰富、绿色环保且可再生,以其为原料制备的吸附材料被广泛研究。本文主要针对以农林废弃生物质为原料制备的生物炭、纤维素及木质素为研究对象, 综述了生物炭的制备及改性方法、天然纤维素及木质素的改性方法及其在水污染治理中的应用现状。从原材料、制备工艺、改性方法等方面总结分析了吸附材料的性能对水中污染物吸附的影响,提出了生物质基吸附材料在水污染治理应用中所存在的问题,并展望了未来的发展方向。     

金属-有机骨架及其功能材料在食品和水有害物质预处理中的应用

食品安全问题是关系人民生命健康和经济社会和谐发展的重大问题。食品类样品残存的痕量有毒有害物质对人体健康产生潜在危害。因此,需要高效的吸附材料用于食品类样品预处理及检测。金属-有机骨架材料(metal-organic frameworks, MOFs) 是一类新型的多孔功能材料,具有高孔隙度、高比表面积、结构可设计与调控、孔径可调及良好的化学和热稳定性等优点。MOFs的早期研究主要集中在结构及功能化设计方面,近年来MOFs及其功能材料在各领域的潜在应用逐渐成为新的研究热点。MOFs具有高度发达的孔隙结构,易通过功能化改变材料表面性质,不同的金属元素和配体种类,以及配位方式的多样化特性,极大地丰富固相萃取的固定相材料种类。尤其是在复杂基质样品预处理中,MOFs及其功能材料表现出强富集能力、强抗基质干扰能力、优异的选择性以及环境友好等优势。本文综述了近几年MOFs及其功能材料在食品和水样品中有害物质预处理方面的研究进展,并对这类材料应用在食品安全分析方面的发展进行了展望。     

Distinguishable multi-substance detection based on three-channel NIR fluorescent probe in physiology and pathology of living cells and zebrafish

Mitochondria is the main organelle for the production of reactive sulfur species (RSS), such as homocysteine (Hcy), cysteine (Cys), glutathione (GSH) and sulfur dioxide (SO₂). These compounds participate in a large number of physiological processes and play an extremely important role in maintaining the balance of life systems. Abnormal concentration and metabolism are closely related to many diseases. Due to their similarities in chemical properties, it is challenging to develop a single fluorescent probe to distinguish them simultaneously. Here, we synthesized the probe PI-CONBD with three fluorophores, NBD-Cl and benzopyranate as the reaction sites of GSH/Cys/Hcy and SO₂, respectively. Three biothiols all could cleavage ether bond to release benzopyrylium and coumarin moiety, which emitted red and blue fluorescence, but Cys/Hcy also could do intramolecular rearrangement after nucleophilic substitution, resulting in yellow fluorescence. Thus the probe can distinguish Cys/Hcy and GSH. Subsequently, only SO₂ could quench red fluorescence by adding CC of benzopyrylium. The probe also could localize well in mitochondria by oxonium ion for all kinds of cells. The probe not only could detect above sulfur-containing active substances of intracellular and extracellular but also monitor the level of them under oxidative stress and apoptosis process in living cells and zebrafish.     

Preparation of Meltable Aromatic Polyimides and Their Adhesive Properties

A series of molecular-weight-controlled aromatic polyimides based on 4,4′-oxydiphthalic anhydride (ODPA), 1,4-bis(4-amino-2-trifluoromethylphenoxy)benzene (6FAPB) and 3,3′-diaminodiphenylsulfone (3,3′-DDS) were synthesized in the presence of phthalic anhydride (PA) as an end-capping agent. The effect of molecular weight on the solubility, melt viscosity, thermal and mechanical properties of the polyimides was investigated. Experimental results demonstrated that the polyimides exhibit good solubility in most polar aprotic solvents and in some common organic solvents, such as DMSO and THF. Homogeneous and stable polyimide solutions with solid contents as high as 40–45 wt% were prepared. High-quality polyimide films were obtained by casting the polyimide solutions onto glass plates and baking them at a relatively low temperature. The polyimide films exhibited outstanding thermal and mechanical properties. The rheological behavior of the polyimides depends on their molecular weight. The adhesive properties of polyimide films bonded to stainless steel at different temperatures were evaluated by the lap shear strength (LSS) test. The polyimides with moderate molecular weight exhibited better adhesive properties. The LSS of polyimide films at ambient and elevated temperatures increased with increasing bonding temperature, which is attributed to the better flow and wetting of the polymer melts during the bonding process.     

Synthesis and characterization of hydrophilicity-controlled poly(arylene ether sulfone) copolymers with phenolphthalein-based carboxylic acid groups for separation membrane applications

Abstract

Hydrophilicity-controlled poly(arylene ether sulfone) copolymers with phenolphthalein-based carboxylic acid groups (PES-COOH-X) were synthesized via direct copolymerization by adjusting the feed molar ratio. The chemical structures of the obtained copolymers were confirmed by ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The copolymers showed good solubility in common aprotic solvents and exhibited excellent mechanical properties. The water contact angles of the obtained copolymers could be reduced by approximately 52% from 92.1° to 44.2° with increasing content of phenolphthalein-derived monomer, 2-[bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)methyl] benzoic acid (PPH-COOH), in the feed molar ratio. A series of PES-COOH-X membranes was prepared via a conventional immersion precipitation phase inversion method. The effects of the monomer feed molar ratio on the morphology, hydrophilicity, pure water flux, and water uptake of the prepared membranes were investigated. The results showed that the pure water flux of the PES-COOH-X membranes was significantly enhanced by almost a factor of two as compared to the pristine PES membrane. From the water contact angle data, it was identified that the hydrophilicity of the membranes was increased rapidly with increasing PPH-COOH content in the membranes. These hydrophilicity-controlled poly(arylene ether sulfone) copolymers may be considered as good candidates for separation membrane materials.     

Effects of different rootstocks on cadmium accumulation of grafted Cyphomandra betacea seedlings

ABSTRACT

To study whether grafting can reduce the heavy metal uptake of Cyphomandra betacea, C. betacea seedlings were grafted onto three different rootstocks (eggplant, Solanum nigrum, and tomato) and planted in cadmium (Cd)contaminated soil. Compared with ungrafted seedlings, S. nigrum rootstock increased the biomass of different organs of C. betacea seedlings, while eggplant and tomato rootstocks decreased it or had no significant effect. Chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and total chlorophyll contents of C. betacea seedlings were ranked as follows: S. nigrum rootstock > ungrafted > eggplant rootstock > tomato rootstock. The three rootstocks had no significant effects on the superoxide dismutase activity of C. betacea seedlings. Solanum nigrum rootstock enhanced the peroxidase and catalase activities and soluble protein content of C. betacea seedlings, while the other rootstocks reduced or had no significant influence on these parameters. The three rootstocks increased the Cd content of aboveground organs of C. betacea seedlings as follows: S. nigrum rootstock > eggplant rootstock > tomato rootstock > ungrafted. Grafting onto S. nigrum rootstock can therefore promote the growth of C. betacea; however, all rootstocks investigated in this study promote Cd uptake in C. betacea and thus cannot be used in Cd-contaminated areas.     

Epoxidation of styrene with molecular oxygen catalyzed by a novel oxovanadium(IV) catalyst containing two different kinds of ligands

A novel type of oxovanadium(IV) 8‐hydroxyquinoline (8‐Q) complex and oxovanadium(IV) acetylacetonate (acac) complex were synchronously anchored on to amino‐modified SBA‐15 (named VO(acac:8‐Q)‐SBA‐15) and examined as a catalyst for styrene oxidation. The structure of the synthesized catalyst was characterized by means of X‐ray diffraction (XRD), FT‐IR, diffusion reflection UV–visible, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP‐AES), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and thermogravimetric analysis (TG). Characterizations with FT‐IR, diffusion reflection UV‐visible, ICP‐AES and TG suggested the incorporation of oxovanadium(IV) complex in amino‐modified SBA‐15. XRD and SEM results indicated that SBA‐15 remained intact throughout the grafting procedure. It was found that VO(acac:8‐Q)‐SBA‐15 catalyst was more active than single‐ligand catalysts VO(acac)₂‐SBA‐15 and VO(8‐Q)₂‐SBA‐15 and that the product selectivity varied in cases of different oxidants. The catalyst VO(acac:8‐Q)‐SBA‐15 with two different ligands showed high yield of styrene oxide (45.8%) and good recoverability when using air as oxidant. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.