Mordenite-incorporated PVA–PSSA membranes as electrolytes for DMFCs

Composite membranes with mordenite (MOR) incorporated in poly vinyl alcohol (PVA)–polystyrene sulfonic acid (PSSA) blend tailored with varying degree of sulfonation are reported. Such a membrane comprises a dispersed phase of mordenite and a continuous phase of the polymer that help tuning the flow of methanol and water across it. The membranes on prolonged testing in a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) exhibit mitigated methanol cross-over from anode to the cathode. The membranes have been tested for their sorption behaviour, ion-exchange capacity, electrochemical selectivity and mechanical strength as also characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis. Water release kinetics has been measured by magnetic resonance imaging (NMR imaging) and is found to be in agreement with the sorption data. Similarly, methanol release kinetics studied by volume-localized NMR spectroscopy (point resolved spectroscopy, PRESS) clearly demonstrates that the dispersion of mordenite in PVA–PSSA retards the methanol release kinetics considerably. A peak power-density of 74 mW/cm² is achieved for the DMFC using a PVA–PSSA membrane electrolyte with 50% degree of sulfonation and 10 wt.% dispersed mordenite phase. A methanol cross-over current as low as 7.5 mA/cm² with 2 M methanol feed at the DMFC anode is observed while using the optimized composite membrane as electrolyte in the DMFC, which is about 60% and 46% lower than Nafion-117 and PVA–PSSA membranes, respectively, when tested under identical conditions.     

Lenalidomide,an antineoplastic drug,and its hemihydrate

The crystal structures of lenalidomide [systematic name: (RS)‐3‐(4‐amino‐1‐oxoisoindolin‐2‐yl)piperidine‐2,6‐dione], C₁₃H₁₃N₃O₃, (I), an antineoplastic drug, and its hemihydrate, C₁₃H₁₃N₃O₃·0.5H₂O, (II), have been determined by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction analysis. The overall conformation of the molecule defined by the orientation of the two ring portions, viz. pyridinedione and isoindolinone, is twisted in both structures. The influence of the self‐complementary pyridinedione ring is seen in the crystal packing of both structures through its involvement in forming hydrogen‐bonded dimers, although alternate dione O atoms are utilized. An extensive series of N—H...O hydrogen bonds link the dimers into two‐dimensional supramolecular arrays built up from infinite chains. The water molecule in (II) has a cohesive function, connecting three lenalidomide molecules by hydrogen bonds. The significance of this study lies in the analysis of the interactions in these structures and the aggregations occurring via hydrogen bonds in the hydrated and dehydrated crystalline forms of the title compound.     

Solid-state NMR and computational chemistry study of mononucleotides adsorbed to alumina

Solid-state NMR spectroscopy and ab initio computational chemistry are used to determine the structure of the complex formed upon adsorption of the mononucleotide 2'-deoxyadenosine 5'-monophosphate (dAMP) to the surface of a mesoporous alumina. In this multi-technique approach, rotational-echo double-resonance NMR results reveal that the phosphate group of dAMP interacts predominantly with octahedrally coordinated aluminum species at the surface, and therefore, adsorption is modeled with both mono- and bidentate sorption of the nucleotide phosphate group with octahedral aluminum. 31P chemical shielding tensors are calculated from the structure of the lowest energy conformations, and these results are compared to tensor values extracted from analysis of spinning-sideband patterns in the experimental 31P cross-polarization magic-angle-spinning NMR spectrum. The chemical shift anisotropy and asymmetry parameter indicate that the binding is via a monodentate, inner-sphere complex.     

Synthesis and Crystal Structure Studies of Novel Bioactive Heterocycle: 7-Chloro-5-Cyclopropyl-9-Methyl-10-(2-Piperidin-1-yl-Ethyl)-5,10-Dihydro-4,5,6,10-Tetraaza-Dibenzo[a,d] Cyclohepten-11-One

Abstract  The compound, 7-chloro-5-cyclopropyl-9-methyl-10-(2-piperidin-1-yl-ethyl)-5,10-dihydro-4,5,6,10-tetraaza-dibenzo[a, d] cyclohepten-11-one, C₂₂H₂₆N₅ClO, crystallizes in the triclinic space group Pī with cell parameters a = 8.918(7) ?, b = 9.297(7) ?, c = 14.184(8) ?, V = 1095.98(1) ?³ and Z = 2. The final residual factor R ₁ = 0.0451. The structure exhibits intermolecular hydrogen bonds. The 2-piperidin-1-yl-ethyl ring adopts a chair conformation. The starting material used to synthesize the title compound is the intermediate compound of well known anti-HIV drug Nevirapine hence the title compound is having biological importance and hence this crystal structure will helps to structural characterization of the molecule and also for the molecular modeling it will helps for biological study. Graphical Abstract  The title compound 7-chloro-5-cyclopropyl-9-methyl-10-(2-piperidin-1-yl-ethyl)-5,10-dihydro-4,5,6,10-tetraaza-dibenzo[a, d] cyclohepten-11-one was synthesized by condensation of 7-chloro-5-cyclopropyl-9-methyl-5,10-dihydro-4,5,6,10-tetraaza-dibenzo[a, d] cyclohepten-11-one with 1-(2-chloro-ethyl)-piperidine hydrochloride in presence of anhydrous powdered potassium carbonate as base using N,N-dimethyl formamide as solvent and its crystal structure determined. The title compound derived from bioactive molecule and it is also having biological importance hence this crystal structure will helps for the structural characterization and the biological study of the novel molecule.      

Carbon-supported Pd-Co as cathode catalyst for APEMFCs and validation by DFT

Carbon supported PdCo catalysts in varying atomic ratios of Pd to Co, namely 1 : 1, 2 : 1 and 3 : 1, were prepared. The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) was studied on commercial carbon-supported Pd and carbon-supported PdCo nanocatalysts in aqueous 0.1 M KOH solution with and without methanol. The structure, dispersion, electrochemical characterization and surface area of PdCo/C were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Cyclic Voltammetry (CV), respectively. The electrochemical activity for ORR was evaluated from Linear Sweep Voltammograms (LSV) obtained using a rotating ring disk electrode. The catalysts were evaluated for their electrocatalytic activity towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in Alkaline Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (APEMFCs). PdCo(3 : 1)/C gives higher performance (85 mW cm(-2)) than PdCo(1 : 1)/C, PdCo(2 : 1)/C and Pd/C. The maximum electrocatalytic activity for ORR in the presence of methanol was observed for PdCo(3 : 1)/C. First principles calculations within the framework of density functional theory were performed to understand the origin of its catalytic activity based on the energy of adsorption of an O(2) molecule on the cluster, structural variation and charge transfer mechanism.     

Patterning of antibodies using flexographic printing

Antibodies were patterned onto flexible plastic films using the flexographic printing process. An ink formulation was developed using high molecular weight polyvinyl alcohol in carbonate-bicarbonate buffer. In order to aid both antibody adhesion and the quality of definition in the printed features, a nitrocellulose coating was developed that was capable of being discretely patterned, thus increasing the signal-to-noise ratio of an antibody array. Printing antibody features such as dots, squares, text, and fine lines were reproduced effectively. Furthermore, this process could be easily adapted for printing of other biological materials, including, but not limited to, enzymes, DNA, proteins, aptamers, and cells.     

Energy flux equalization: An open boundary condition for non-linear free surface flows

In the simulation of non-linear free surface flows in a finite domain a major concern is with the radiation condition to be applied at the ‘open’ boundary. No general theoretical radiation conditions are known to exist. In this paper a new open boundary condition is formulated based on energy flux equalization between the non-linear inner domain and a linear outer domain. The non-linear flow in the inner domain is solved numerically using a semi-Lagrangian procedure. The energy flux arriving at the open boundary is removed using a new open boundary condition which acts as a linear wave absorber. For the cases studied the performance of this boundary condition is found to be quite good.     

First passage time on a multifurcating hierarchical structure

Asymptotic behaviour of the moments of the first passage time (FPT) on a one-dimensional lattice holding a multifurcating hierarchy of teeth is studied. There is a transition from ordinary to anomalous diffusion when the parameter controlling the relative sizes of the teeth, is varied with respect to the furcating number of the hierarchy. The scaling behaviour of the moments of FPT with the linear dimensions of the lattice segment indicates that in the anomalcus phase the probability density of the FPT is multifractal.