Micro-sized Sb2O3 octahedra fabricated via a PEG-1000 polymer-assisted hydrothermal route

The micro-sized Sb₂O₃ octahedra can be synthesized on a large scale via a simple PEG-1000 polymer-assisted hydrothermal route (PAHR) in the temperature range of 160-180 °C for 10-14 h. The structures, compositions, and morphologies of the as-synthesized products are derived from X-ray power diffraction pattern, X-ray photoelectron spectra, and field emission scanning electronic microscope. Meanwhile, the optical properties of the micro-sized Sb₂O₃ octahedra are studied by their photoluminescene spectroscopy and Raman spectrum. Furthermore, the possible growth mechanism of the micro-metered Sb₂O₃ octahedra is discussed on the basis of a series of supplementary experiments. And it has been found that PEG-1000, sodium tartrate, the reaction temperature, and the reaction time have considerable effects on the final morphology of Sb₂O₃, while the pH value has an influence on the formation of the Sb₂O₃ crystals.     

Systematic synthesis and characterization of single-crystal lanthanide orthophosphate nanowires

A simple hydrothermal method has been developed for the systematic synthesis of lanthanide orthophosphate crystals with different crystalline phases and morphologies. It has been shown that pure LnPO(4) compounds change structure with decreasing Ln ionic radius: i.e., the orthophosphates from Ho to Lu as well as Y exist only in the tetragonal zircon (xenotime) structure, while the orthophosphates from La to Dy exist in the hexagonal structure under hydrothermal treatment. The obtained hexagonal structured lanthanide orthophosphate LnPO(4) (Ln = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, and Dy) products have a wirelike morphology. In contrast, tetragonal LnPO(4) (Ln = Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, Y) samples prepared under the same experimental conditions consist of nanoparticles. The obtained hexagonal LnPO(4) (Ln = La --> Tb) can convert to the monoclinic monazite structured products, and their morphologies remained the same after calcination at 900 degrees C in air (Hexagonal DyPO(4) is an exceptional case, it transformed to tetragonal DyPO(4) by calcination), while the tetragonal structure for (Ho--> Lu, Y)PO(4) remains unchanged by calcination. The resulting LnPO(4) (Ln = La --> Dy) products consist almost entirely of nanowires/nanorods with diameters of 5-120 nm and lengths ranging from several hundreds of nanometers to several micrometers. Europium doped LaPO(4) nanowires were also prepared, and their photoluminescent properties were reported. The optical absorption spectrum of CePO(4) nanowires was measured and showed some differences from that of bulk CePO(4) materials. The possible growth mechanism of lanthanide phosphate nanowires was explored in detail. X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, electron diffraction, infrared absorption spectra, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, optical absorption spectra, and photoluminescence spectra have been employed to characterize these materials.     

Copper-exchanged LTA zeolite membranes with enhanced water flux for ethanol dehydration

Phase-pure and well-intergrown Cu-LTA membranes are developed through copper ions exchange of sodium ions in Na-LTA framework. For pervaporation of 90.0 wt% ethanol/10.0 wt% water mixtures, the Cu-LTA membrane shows much higher water flux than Na-LTA membranes due to the enhancement of the pore size after ions exchange.     

Mass spectral fragmentation of (S,S)-2-substituted 4,4-diphenyl-3,1-oxazabicyclo[3.3.0]octanes: ring contraction of pyrrolidine and 1,3-oxazolidine in mass spectrometry

The mass spectral behaviour of (S,S)-2-substituted 4,4-diphenyl-3,1-oxazabicyclo[3.3.0]octanes has been studied with the aid of mass-analyzed ion kinetic energy spectrometry and accurate mass measurements under fast atom bombardment (FAB) and electron impact (EI) ionization conditions. Under FAB ionization, all compounds show a tendency to form protonated aldehyde or benzophenone ions and to form protonated 1-azabicyclo[3.1.0]hexane ions, which can further lose an ethylene or cyclopropane from the pyrrolidine ring to produce protonated 1-azabicyclo[1.1.0]butane ions and 3H-azirine ions, respectively. Under EI ionization, a similar fragmentation to that under FAB ionization was observed. The title compounds also show a tendency to yield oxirane ions and oxirenium ions by loss of pyrrolidine and pyrrolidine plus H. Ring contractions of 1,3-oxazolidine by loss of an aldehyde or ketone and of pyrrolidine by loss of an ethylene or cyclopropane were observed under both FAB and EI ionization conditions.     

A new insight into the adsorption of bovine serum albumin onto porous polyethylene membrane by zeta potential measurements, FTIR analyses, and AFM observations

The mode of adsorption of bovine serum albumin (BSA) on porous polyethylene (PE) membrane was studied as a function of time and concentration, which may contribute to the surface coverage. An improved physical model for adsorption is initiated based on the results of the adsorptional and desorptional measurements, FTIR analysis, and AFM observations as well as streaming potential measurements. The results obtained indicate that the adsorptional mode depend on both time and concentration. It is shown that a critical concentration (about 1000 ppm here) exists in the adsorptional process. Below this concentration, the adsorption seems to be conducted in a normal side-on way but time elapse gives rise to greater conformational change than concentration increase; above this concentration, the aggregation of protein molecular plays a decisive role and the adsorption is in an aggregation way, which is similar to end-on, but a relative large gap between the adsorbed molecules exists due to aggregation. This conclusion is general and can be expected to apply in other globular protein-hydrophobic porous surface systems.     

The first mu3-oxalato-bridged copper complex with tridentate Schiff base ligand N-ethyl-N'-salicylidene-1,2-diaminoethane: synthesis,structure, and magnetic properties

The first mu(3)-oxalato-bridged copper(II) complex, [[Cu(3)(L)(3)(mu(3)-C(2)O(4))][Cu(L)(H(2)O)](ClO(4))(2)] x 0.5(H(2)O) x 0.5(CH(3)OH), where HL = N-ethyl-N'-salicylidene-1,2-diaminoethane, has been synthesized and characterized by variable-temperature magnetic susceptibility measurement. The complex exhibits ferromagnetic coupling between the oxalato-bridged copper atoms and antiferromagnetic coupling between the oxygen-bridged copper atoms.     

Synthesis, structure and X-ray excited luminescence of Ce-doped AREP2O7-type alkali rare earth diphosphates (A=Na, K, Rb, Cs; RE=Y, Lu)

The crystal structures of five new alkali rare earth diphosphates were obtained by Rietveld refinement of powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) profiles, including four alkali lutetium diphosphates ALuP₂O₇ (A=Na, K, Rb, Cs) and the low temperature phase of KYP₂O₇. The scintillation properties of Ce³⁺-doped AREP₂O₇ (A=Na, K, Rb, Cs; RE=Y, Lu) powder samples were studied under static and pulsed X-ray excitations, and featured outstanding scintillation properties with light yields 1–2 times of that of Bi₄(GeO₄)₃ and relatively short decay time of 20–28 ns. Considering the suitable emission wavelength range, large light yield, short decay time, and non-hygroscopic nature, Ce³⁺-doped AREP₂O₇-type alkali rare earth diphosphates are potential candidates for high-counting-rate scintillation applications.     

A study of carboxylic-modified mesoporous silica in controlled delivery for drug famotidine

A series of pure silica MSU and carboxylic-modified MSU materials were prepared. The formation of mesoporous silica materials with terminal carboxylic groups on pore surface was performed by the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis of cyano to carboxylic. Then their potential applications in controlled drug delivery carriers were investigated. Drug famotidine was selected as a model molecule out of the consideration of the terminal amino groups in its molecule. The adsorption experiments show significant adsorption of famotidine on the carboxylic-modified MSU materials. And, the functionalization level of carboxylic groups has been found to be the key factor affecting the adsorption capacities of the modified MSU materials for famotidine. Subsequently, three kinds of release fluids, including simulated gastric medium, simulated intestinal medium, and simulated body fluid, were used to test the famotidine release rate from the carboxylic-modified MSU material. Obvious delayed effect has been observed for the famotidine release from the carboxylic-modified mesoporous silica material under the in vitro assays.     

Biosorption of copper(II) and zinc(II) from aqueous solution by Pseudomonas putida CZ1

To study Pseudomonas putida CZ1, having high tolerance to copper and zinc on the removal of toxic metals from aqueous solutions, the biosorption of Cu(II) and Zn(II) by living and nonliving P. putida CZ1 were studied as functions of reaction time, initial pH of the solution and metal concentration. It was found that the optimum pH for Zn(II) removal by living and nonliving cells was 5.0, while it was 5.0 and 4.5, respectively, for Cu(II) removal. At the optimal conditions, metal ion biosorption was increased as the initial metal concentration increased. The adsorption data with respect to both metals provide an excellent fit to the Langmuir isotherm. The binding capacity of living cells is significantly higher than that of nonliving cells at tested conditions. It demonstrated that about 40-50% of the metals were actively taken up by P. putida CZ1, with the remainder being passively bound to the bacterium. Moreover, desorption efficiency of Cu(II) and Zn(II) by living cells was 72.5 and 45.6% under 0.1M HCl and it was 95.3 and 83.8% by nonliving cells, respectively. It may be due to Cu(II) and Zn(II) uptake by the living cells enhanced by intracellular accumulation.     

Melamine cyanurate-microencapsulated red phosphorus flame retardant unreinforced and glass fiber reinforced polyamide 66

A novel microencapsulated red phosphorus (RP) was prepared through the molecular self-assembly of melamine cyanurate (MCA). Compared with the conventional encapsulated RP, MCA-encapsulated RP (MERP) shows simpler and more environment-friendly preparation process higher thermal stability and lower moisture absorption. With MERP filled in unreinforced polyamide 66 (PA66) and glass fiber (GF) reinforced PA66, flame retardant materials with satisfactory flame retardancy and mechanical performance can be obtained. The influence of the MCA/RP ratio on the flame retardancy as well as the condensed phase of MERP flame retardant PA66 was investigated to reveal the nitrogen-phosphorus (N-P) synergistic flame retarding effects between MCA and RP.