Surface film formation on graphite negative electrodes in rechargeable lithium batteries

The choice of solvent is quite important to obtain good protecting surface film on graphite negative electrodes in rechargeable lithium batteries. A subtle difference of the molecular structure of solvent greatly affects the easiness of surface film formation. In order to understand the solvent effects and to elucidate the mechanism of surface film formation, morphology changes of the basal plane of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite were studied using electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (EC‐STM). In this article, our recent results of EC‐STM observation in different solvent systems are reviewed.     

Fe(III) sequestering agents built on poly(ethylenimine) through crosslinkage of three molecules of a salicylate derivative preassembled by Fe(III) ion

Three molecules of 5-(bromoacetyl) salicylate ( 1 ) complexed to Fe(III) ion were crosslinked with poly(ethylenimine) (PEI) in DMSO by alkylation of amino groups of PEI with 1 , leading to the formation of Fe(Sal)₃PEI, a water-soluble polymer. Several other derivatives including the immobilized form were also prepared. Examination of the values of log K_f for the PEI derivatives indicated that each Fe(III) binding site in Fe(Sal)₃PEI contains three salicylate moieties. In addition, the log K_f revealed that the effective molarity (EM) of the salicylate groups contained in the Fe(III) binding site is ca. 1000M. The high EM value shows that the geometry of the coordination sphere is well conserved during the crosslinkage with PEI of 1 preassembled around Fe(III) ion. In view of the EM value and the pK_a values of salicylic phenols in apo(Sal)₃-PEI, the metal-free form, the three salicylate groups of each Fe(III) binding site appear to occupy proximal positions leading to effective cooperation in Fe(III) binding. Fast, strong, and selective binding of Fe(III) ion by the binding site comprising three salicylate moieties was demonstrated. In addition, rapid demetalation of the resulting complexes as well as chemical stability of the immobilized chelating agents built on PEI were achieved. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 35: 1197–1210, 1997     

Imaging of a pH-sensitive polymer brush on a porous membrane using atomic force microscopy in aqueous solution

Poly(methacrylic acid) was grafted on a nanoporous polycarbonate membrane using the glow-discharge method. Atomic force microscopy showed that the pore size is dependent upon pH in such a way that a low pH the graft chains are protonated and contracted to open the pore, whereas at high pH, the graft chains became extended, thus reducing the pore size. Water permeation through the graft membrane is regulated by the pH value. The permeation rate is low at high pH value and high at low pH. This phenomenon corresponds to the pore size.     

Synthesis and characterization of copoly(arylene sulfide)s

Copolymerizations of p-dichlorobenzene (DCB)/4-bromophenyl ether (BPE), DCB/4,4′-dibromobiphenyl (DBB), and DBB/BPE pairs with sodium sulfide under high temperature (270–290°C) utilizing N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP) as solvent were carried out to give C(DCB/BPE), C(DCB/DBB), and C(DBB/BPE) copolymers, respectively. The reactivity of dihaloaromatic monomers toward thiolate anion in the polycondensation reaction followed the order DBB > DCB > BPE. The reactivity gap between DBB and DCB toward thiolate anion seemed to be smaller than that between BPE and DCB, resulting in both high yield and high molecular weight in the C(DCB/DBB) copolymers compared to C(DCB/BPE) copolymers. The copolymerization of DBB/BPE pair with sodium sulfide, which has larger reactivity gap than the DCB/DBB or DCB/BPE pair, gave mixtures of PBS and PPSE homopolymers especially in the range of 50–80 mol % BPE in the feed. The C(DCB/DBB) and C(DCB/BPE) copolymers, however, exhibited random copolymer character in all comonomer ratios in the feed as evidenced by copolymer composition and DSC data. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2311–2317, 1999     

Temperature‐induced phase transition of poly(N‐n‐propylacrylamide‐co‐butyl methacrylate‐co‐N,N‐diethylaminoethyl methacrylate)

Terpolymers composed of N‐n‐propylacrylamide (NPAAm), butyl methacrylate (BMA), and N,N‐diethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DEAEMA) were prepared in an attempt to investigate the temperature‐induced phase transition and its mechanism. Poly(NPAAm) showed the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) around 24°C in water. With the incorporation of DEAEMA with NPAAm, the LCST change was characterized by an initial increase. However, the LCST was shifted to the lower temperature at the later stage. This might be explained in terms of hydrophilic/hydrophobic contribution of DEAEMA to the LCST. The swelling behavior of copolymer gel in the various solvents and spin‐lattice relaxation time (T₁) study by NMR strongly suggested the hydrophilic/hydrophobic contribution of DEAEMA to the LCST depending on the local environment. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 1407–1411, 1999     

A Novel Route to the Fused Maleic Anhydride Moiety of CP Molecules

A seven‐step cascade reaction —in which selective mesylation, epoxide formation, epoxide lysis, cyclization, reiterative oxidation, and nitrogen–oxygen exchange occur sequentially—facilitates the construction of the maleic anhydride moiety of CP molecules 1 and 2 (>93% yield per step). Unstable intermediates of this reaction sequence were detected, providing evidence for the proposed mechanism and resulting in the discovery of a new chemical entity.     

Poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) Derived from Poly(ionic liquid) for the Use as Hole‐Injecting Material in Organic Light‐Emitting Diodes

We report that poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) derived from poly(ionic liquid) (PEDOT:PIL) constitutes a unique polymeric hole‐injecting material capable of improving device lifetime in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). Imidazolium‐based poly(ionic liquid)s were engineered to impart non‐acidic and non‐aqueous properties to PEDOT without compromising any other properties of PEDOT. A fluorescent OLED was fabricated using PEDOT:PIL as a hole‐injection layer and subjected to a performance evaluation test. In comparison with a control device using a conventional PEDOT‐based material, the device with PEDOT:PIL was found to achieve a significant improvement in terms of device lifetime. This improvement was attributed to a lower indium content in the PEDOT:PIL layer, which can be also interpreted as the effective protection characteristics of PEDOT:PIL for indium extraction from the electrodes.

     

Naphthalimide-based fluorescent Zn chemosensors showing PET effect according to their linker length in water

We have developed naphthalimide-based fluorescent chemosensors that exhibit fluorescence enhancement upon binding Zn²⁺ ion in 10 mM HEPES buffer (pH 7.4) at 25 °C. The fluorescence enhancement was induced by a PET inhibition process in which electron transfer from the nitrogen lone pair electrons of the Dpa unit to naphthalimide was blocked upon the binding of the sensor to Zn²⁺. The longer the linker length (n = 1-3) of the sensor, the less the PET efficiency becomes. Among the sensors (1, 2, and 3) examined, 1 shows the highest selectivity and sensitivity for Zn²⁺ over other transition metal ions and alkali metal ions in water.     

Enhanced electrical conductivity of Ag-mercaptosuccinic acid-redoped polyaniline nanoparticles during thermal cycling above 200 °C

Ag-doped polyaniline (PANI) nanoparticles are prepared via doping-dedoping-redoping with the thiol group in mercaptosuccinic acid (MSA) providing the linkage between PANI molecules and Ag atoms. Ag-MSA-doped PANI maintains the electrical conductivity well above the room-temperature value of 3.0 S/cm up to 220 °C, reaching its maximum (9.0 S/cm) at 180 °C. In addition, Ag-MSA-doped PANI nanoparticles show remarkable stability against repeated thermal aging at 120 °C. The room-temperature conductivity, in fact, increases by a factor of ∼3 after 3 cycles of thermal aging. The enhanced stability against repeated thermal aging is attributed to the formation of uniformly distributed Ag nanoparticles within the PANI particles upon heating.     

Effect of the urethane group on treated clay surfaces for high-performance poly(butylene succinate)/montmorillonite nanocomposites

We successfully modified organic clays containing the urethane group by introducing a covalent bond between the silanol group on the clay side and the hydroxyl group of organic modifier in the silicate layer using 1,6-diisocyanatohexane (HDI), namely surface-treated montmorillonite (30BM), to increase both basal spacing and the favorable interaction between clay and polymer. The effect of the surface urethane modification of clay on poly (butylene succinate) (PBS)/30BM nanocomposites was studied. The results of transmission electron microscopy micrographs at a 10-nm resolution and X-ray diffraction measurements allowed us to examine the degree of the high exfoliation and the effect of surface urethane modification on clay dispersibility. As results of high exfoliation, PBS/30BM nanocomposites not only exhibited the high thermal properties, but also showed a remarkable increase in physical properties (e.g., tensile strength, Young's modulus, elongation at break) due to enhanced affinity between the clay and PBS matrix. Over all, the results suggest that wide gallery spacing and the predominant affinity between PBS and clay must be considered simultaneously to increase the degree of exfoliation and physical properties as key factors.