Promotion effect of adsorbed water/OH on the catalytic performance of Ag/activated carbon catalysts for CO preferential oxidation in excess H2

Activated carbon (AC) supported silver catalysts were prepared by incipient wetness impregnation method and their catalytic performance for CO preferential oxidation (PROX) in excess H₂ was evaluated. Ag/AC catalysts, after reduction in H₂ at low temperatures (≤200 °C) following heat treatment in He at 200 °C (He200H200), exhibited the best catalytic properties. Temperature-programmed desorption (TPD), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) results indicated that silver oxides were produced during heat treatment in He at 200 °C which were reduced to metal silver nanoparticles in H₂ at low temperatures (≤200 °C), simultaneously generating the adsorbed water/OH. CO conversion was enhanced 40% after water treatment following heat treatment in He at 600 °C. These results imply that the metal silver nanoparticles are the active species and the adsorbed water/OH has noticeable promotion effects on CO oxidation. However, the promotion effect is still limited compared to gold catalysts under the similar conditions, which may be the reason of low selectivity to CO oxidation in PROX over silver catalysts. The reported Ag/AC-S-He catalyst after He200H₂00 treatment displayed similar PROX of CO reaction properties to Ag/SiO₂. This means that Ag/AC catalyst is also an efficient low-temperature CO oxidation catalyst.     

Porous V2O5-SnO2/CNTs composites as high performance cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Vanadium pentoxide (V₂O₅) exhibits high theoretical capacities when used as a cathode in lithium ion batteries (LIBs), but its application is limited by its structural instability as well as its low lithium and electronic conductivities. A porous composite of V₂O₅-SnO₂/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) was prepared by a hydrothermal method and followed by thermal treatment. The small particles of V₂O₅, their porous structure and the coexistence of SnO₂ and CNTs can all facilitate the diffusion rates of the electrons and lithium ions. Electrochemical impedance spectra indicated higher ionic and electric conductivities, as compared to commercial V₂O₅. The V₂O₅-SnO₂/CNTs composite gave a reversible discharge capacity of 198 mAh·g^?1 at the voltage range of 2.05–4.0 V, measured at a current rate of 200 mA·g^?1, while that of the commercial V₂O₅ was only 88 mAh·g^?1, demonstrating that the porous V₂O₅-SnO₂/CNTs composite is a promising candidate for high-performance lithium secondary batteries.     

Sensitive detection of human breast cancer cells based on aptamer–cell–aptamer sandwich architecture

Breast cancer is one of the most critical threats to the health of women, and the development of new methods for early diagnosis is urgently required, so this paper reports a method to detect Michigan cancer foundation-7 (MCF-7) human breast cancer cells with considerable sensitivity and selectivity by using electrochemical technique. In this method, a mucin 1 (MUC1)-binding aptamer is adopted to recognize MCF-7 human breast cancer cells, while enzyme labeling is employed to produce amplified catalytic signals. The molecular recognition and the signal amplification are elaborately integrated by fabricating an aptamer–cell–aptamer sandwich architecture on an electrode surface, thus a biosensor for the detection of MCF-7 is fabricated based on the architecture. The detection range can be from 100 to 1 × 10⁷ cells, and the detection limit can be as low as 100 cells. The method is also cost-effective and conveniently operated, implying potential help for the development of early diagnosis of breast cancer.     

Novel B,O-chelated fluorescent probe for nitric oxide imaging in Raw 264.7 macrophages and onion tissues

A novel fluorescent probe based on B,O-chelated dipyrromethene chromophore in far-visible and near-infrared spectral region (600–900 nm), boron chelated 8-(3,4-diaminophenyl)-3,5-bis(2-hydroxyphenyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indancene (BOPB), has been first developed for nitric oxide (NO) imaging. BOPB, a turn-on fluorescent probe, can react with NO rapidly under physiological condition. The reaction product of BOPB with NO, BOPB-T, emits bright red fluorescence at 643 nm when excited at 622 nm. Meanwhile, BOPB-T displays high fluorescent quantum yield of 0.21 and good photostability. The selectivity for NO over other reactive oxygen/nitrogen species and ascorbic acid has been investigated and BOPB has good specificity for the detection of NO. MTT assay shows that the toxicity of BOPB (below 10 μM) to living cells can be neglected. Based on these investigations, BOPB has been used for NO imaging in Raw 264.7 cells and onion tissues. Meanwhile, mechanical injury to onion tissues results in a brighter fluorescence around the wound, which indicates that more NO has been produced in plant tissues in response to external stimuli. Our studies illustrate that BOPB has advantages of high sensitivity, low background interference and little photo damage on fluorescence imaging of NO.     

Torreyanoxane,a New 3,4‐Secoglutinane Triterpenoid Isolated from the Pulp of Torreya nucifera

Torreyanoxane, a novel 3,4‐secoglutinane triterpenoid, was isolated from the pulp of Torreya nucifera. The structure was determined on the basis of spectroscopic methods.     

Controlling the optimum surfactants concentrations for dispersing carbon nanofibers in aqueous solution

As a new nano-scale functional material, it is necessary to achieve a uniform distribution in the composites for gaining the CNFs’ excellent reinforcing effect. In this paper, CNFs were purified by the method of high temperature annealing treatment. Six surfactants, methylcellulose (MC), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), dodecylamine (DDA), N, N-dimethyl formamide (DMF) and cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) were used individually and combinatorially in a certain concentration to disperse the CNFs in aqueous solution. To achieve a good dispersion of the CNFs, a method utilizing ultrasonic processing was employed. The CNFs treated by the method of high temperature annealing treatment were characterized by differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetry analysis (TGA), and the ultrasonication-driven dispersion of CNFs in aqueous solutions were monitored by UVvis spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The experiments reveal that the method of high temperature annealing treatment purified the CNFs and the maximum achievable dispersion of CNFs corresponds to the maximum UV absorbance of the solution. All results show that the surfactants mixture of MC and SDS in a certain concentration of 0.4 and 2.0 g/L has the maximum dispersion effect on CNFs in aqueous solution, the optimum concentration ratio of MC, SDS, and CNFs was 2: 10: 1.     

Dioxygen Oxidation of Alcohols and Aldehydes Over a Cerium Dioxide-Ruthenium System

Treatment of cerium dioxide with small amounts of RuCl₃. 3H₂O allows the mild preparation of an efficient heterogeneous system for the dioxygen oxidation of various alcohols and aldehydes.     

A Convenient and Versatile Method for the Synthesis of Protected Guanidines

Aromatic, aliphatic and sterically hindered amines react smoothly with commercially available N, N'-bis-BOC-S-methylisothiourea 2 in the presence of mercury chloride to give the protected guanidine in good yield. It is particularly noteworthy that 2 can also be employed in a straightforward, two-step synthesis of monoaryl internal guanidines.     

Sulfamic Acid as an Effective Catalyst in Solvent‐Free Synthesis of β‐Enaminoketone Derivatives and X‐ray Crystallography of Their Representatives

Two types of β‐enaminoketone derivatives of 3‐(2‐oxo‐2‐arylethylidene)‐3,4‐dihydro‐1H‐quinoxalin‐2‐ones and 3‐(2‐oxo‐2‐arylethylidene)‐3,4‐dihydro‐benzo[1,4]oxazin‐2‐ ones were effectively and conveniently prepared in good to excellent yields under solvent‐free conditions via the catalysis of sulfamic acid in the corresponding condensations of o‐phenylenediamine and o‐aminophenol with ethyl 2,4‐dioxo‐4‐arylbutyrate respectively. The compounds were confirmed by IR, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR, and a representative was further determined by X‐ray crystallography.