Comprehensive and High-throughput Electrolysis of Water and Urea by 3–5 nm Nickel and Copper Coordination Polymers

Metal-organic coordination polymers (CP) have attracted the scientific attention for electrochemical water oxidation as it has the similar coordination structure like natural photosynthetic coordinated complex. However, the harsh synthesis conditions and bulky nature pose a major challenge in the field of catalysis. Herein, 3–5 nm CP particles synthesized at room temperature using aqueous solutions of Ni²⁺/Cu²⁺ and 2,5-dihydroxyterepthalic acid as precursor were applied for alkaline water and urea electrolysis. The overpotential required is only 300 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² by Nano-Ni CP for water oxidation, with turnover frequency (TOF) of 21.4 s⁻¹ which is around 8 times higher than its bulk-counterpart. Overall water and urea splitting were achieved with Nano-Cu (−) ∥ Nano-Ni (+) couple on Ni foam at 1.69 and 1.52 V to achieve 10 mA cm⁻², respectively. High electrochemical surface area (ECSA), high TOF, and enhanced mass diffusion are found to be the key parameters responsible for the state-of-the-art water and urea splitting performances of nano-CPs as compared to their bulk counterparts.     

Synthesis,spectroscopic and X-ray structural study of [<Emphasis Type="Italic">trans</Emphasis>-di(4-aminobenzoato)bis(ethylenediamine) cobalt(III)] 4-aminobenzoate tetrahydrate

The title compound was synthesized by mixing the separately dissolved trans-dichlorobis(ethylenediamine)cobalt(III) chloride and sodium 4-aminobenzoate in aqueous medium in 1:3 molar ratio and recrystallizing the product obtained, from hot water. Elemental analyses and spectroscopic techniques (IR, UV/visible, ¹H and ¹³C NMR) were used for characterizing the complex salt. X-ray structure determination revealed an ionic structure consisting of [Co(en)₂(C₇H₆NO₂)₂]⁺ cation, (C₇H₆NO₂)⁻ anion and four lattice water molecules. The complex salt crystallizes in the triclinic space group P with cell dimensions a = 9.985(1) Å, b = 11.522(1) Å, c = 14.233(1) Å, α = 80.20(1)^∘, β = 72.80(1)^∘, γ = 86.43(1)^∘, Z = 2, V = 1541.3(2) ų, R₁ = 0.0291, and wR₂ = 0.0751.     

Acetylation of beta-cyclodextrin surface-functionalized cellulose dialysis membranes with enhanced chiral separation

The enhanced enantiomeric separation of racemic phenylalanine solution has been demonstrated by the membrane-based chiral resolution method using an acetylated beta-cyclodextrin-immobilized cellulose dialysis membrane. Beta-cyclodextrin (CD) was first immobilized onto the surface of commercial cellulose dialysis membranes, followed by the acetylation reaction through the treatment of the membranes with acetic anhydride to form the chiral selective acetylated beta-cyclodextrin-immobilized cellulose dialysis membrane. The acetylated CD-immobilized membrane exhibits enantioselectivity in the range of 1.26-1.33 depending on the acetylation time. The improvement in enantioselectivity after acetylation was mainly attributed to the better discrimination ability of acetylated CD and the decrease in membrane pore size. Molecular modeling simulations indicate that the acetylation of hydroxyl groups would result in a CD conformation with torus distortions and would create higher steric hindrance for penetrants. As a result, compared to the original CD, the acetylated CD may have less effective binding but better discrimination of enantiomers. The energy drop is only 3 kcal/mol between different enantiomers before and after the binding of phenylalanine with an unmodified CD. The energy drop increases to 10 kcal/mol if acetylated CD is employed as the chiral selector, showing stronger characteristics for chiral selection.     

3‐Amino‐4′‐methyl­‐5‐ethylbi­phenyl‐2,4‐dicarbo­nitrile and 3‐amino‐4′‐(N,N‐diethyl­amino)‐5‐ethyl­bi­phenyl‐2,4‐dicarbo­nitrile

In the title compounds, C₁₇H₁₅N₃ and C₂₀H₂₂N₄, the methyl derivative crystallizes with two mol­ecules in the asymmetric unit, while the N,N‐diethyl­amino derivative crystallizes with one mol­ecule per asymmetric unit. The bi­phenyl twist angle for both mol­ecular structures is approximately 45°. The molecular packing is stabilized by N—H?N hydrogen bonds.