Synthesis of well‐defined star‐shaped poly(ε‐caprolactone)/poly(ethylbene glycol) amphiphilic conetworks by combination of ring opening polymerization and “click” chemistry

Well‐defined star‐shaped hydrophobic poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) and hydrophilic poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) amphiphilic conetworks (APCNs) have been synthesized via the combination of ring opening polymerization (ROP) and click chemistry. Alkyne‐terminated six arm star‐shaped PCL (6‐s‐PCLx‐C?CH) and azido‐terminated PEG (N₃‐PEG‐N₃) are characterized by ¹H NMR and FT‐IR. The swelling degree of the APCNs is determined both in water and organic solvent. This unique property of the conetworks is dependent on the nanophase separation of hydrophilic and hydrophobic phases. The morphology and thermal behaviors of the APCNs are investigated by SEM and DSC respectively. The biocompatibility is determined by water soluble tetrazolium salt reagents (WST‐1) assay, which shows the new polymer networks had good biocompatibility. Through in vitro release of paclitaxel (PTX) and doxorubicin (DOX), the APCNs is confirmed to be promising drug depot materials for sustained hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 407–417     

Enhanced antifungal activities of four Zn(II) complexes based on uniconazole

Four Zn(II) complexes, [Zn L ₂(SO₄)]_n ( 1 ), [Zn L ₄(H₂O)₂]?2(NO₃)?4EtOH ( 2 ), [Zn L ₂Cl₂]? L ( 3 ), and [Zn L ₂Br₂]? L ( 4 ) ( L  = uniconazole), were synthesized using a hydrothermal method and characterized by elemental analysis, FT‐IR spectroscopy, and single‐crystal XRD. Complex 1 formed a one‐dimensional polymer chain. However, complexes 2 ‐ 4 were obtained as zero‐dimensional mononuclear coordination compounds. The antifungal activities of these complexes were then evaluated against four selected fungi using the mycelial growth rate method. The resulting data indicate that all complexes show better antifungal activities than their ligands and mixtures. In addition, the interactions between the metal salts of complexes 1 ‐ 4 and uniconazole seem to be synergistic. Furthermore, the polymer chain structure of complex 1 significantly enhanced the bioactivity, especially against Botryosphaeria ribis ( I ). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were carried out to help explain the enhanced bioactivity after the formation of Zn(II) complexes. The resulting data show that the HOMO–LUMO energy gaps of complexes 1 ‐ 4 (0.0578, 0.0946, 0.1053, and 0.1245 eV) are smaller than that of the free ligand (0.1247 eV) and correlate with the antifungal activity of the zinc complexes.     

Sulfur and Nitrogen Codoped Carbon Tubes as Bifunctional Metal‐Free Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction and Hydrogen Evolution in Acidic Media

Invited for the cover of this issue is the group of Qiang Wu and Zheng Hu at Nanjing University. The image depicts sulfur and nitrogen codoped carbon tubes as bifunctional metal‐free electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction and hydrogen evolution in acidic media. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.201601535 .     

Beam emittance investigation in high brightness injector using different driver laser profiles

Beam emittance plays an important role in any accelerator, and it is a main parameter to judge the performance of an accelerator. Emittance optimization is an indispensable part in conditioning and operation of the facility. For a laser-driven high brightness injector, different time structure of the laser pulse has different effects on transverse emittance. In order to compare Gaussian and flat-top laser pulse, systematic simulations of 500 pC have been done. From the simulation results, one can see that flat-top pulse laser will yield smaller minimal transverse beam size and transverse beam emittance than Gaussian pulse laser.     

Sorption equilibria of CO2 on silica-gels in the presence of water

The sorption equilibria of carbon dioxide on three types of silica gel (SG) with different pore size distributions in the presence of water were studied experimentally using a volumetric method at 275?K with pressures from 0 to 3.7?MPa. Both the pore size distribution of the silica gel and the quantity of pre-sorbed water impact the formation of the CO₂ hydrates. For wet silicon gel A(SG-A) with water loading ratio of 0.75, the highest CO₂ sorption was about 2.5?mmol of CO₂ per gram of dry sorbent at 275?K. Similarly, the highest sorption was about 2.7?mmol for wet SG-B with R _w =0.81. However, CO₂ hydrate did not form on the wet surface of SG-C due to its large pore sizes.