Preparation of Polyaniline/Au0 Nanocomposites Modified Electrode and Application for Hydrazine Detection

The PANI/Au₀ nanocomposite films were successfully prepared on glassy carbon electrode (GCE) using a simple alternate adsorption of water soluble polyaniline (PANI) and . The growth of the films was monitored by UV? Vis spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. was in‐situ reduced in the film due to the redox interaction between PANI and , without extra reductant. The ultrafine Au nanoparticles with the size of 2–4 nm were observed by transmission electron spectroscopy. The existence of zero‐valence Au nanocrystals (Au₀) was confirmed by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X‐ray Diffraction and FTIR. PANI in the nano‐structured PANI/Au₀ composite films displayed a good redox activity in neutral pH solution. The as‐obtained PANI/Au₀/GCE presents an excellent electrocatalytic activity to hydrazine oxidation, and the mechanism of hydrazine oxidation was studied. The calibration curve on (PANI/Au₀)₅/GCE was obtained in the concentration range of 0.01–6 mM with the detection limit of 1 µM (S/N>3). The modified electrode has a great potential for hydrazine sensor application due to its ease of fabrication, good reproducibility and high stability.     

Syntheses and Crystal Structures of Two New Pentaborates Templated by Transition-Metal Complexes

Two new pentaborates [M(dap)₃][B₅O₆(OH)₄]₂·H₂O (M = Co (1) and Ni (2); dap = 1,2-diaminopropane) have been hydrothermally synthesized. Both structures were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction and further characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, thermogravimetric analysis and photoluminescence spectroscopy. Two compounds are isostructural and consist of isolated pentaborate [B₅O₆(OH)₄]^? anions and [M(dap)₃]²⁺ complex cations. The anionic [B₅O₆(OH)₄]^? groups are linked by extensive hydrogen bonds to form a 3-D supramolecular framework with large channels, in which the transition-metal complex templates are located. The luminescent properties of 1 and 2 were studied, and blue luminescence occurs with an emission maximum at 405 and 408 nm upon excitation at 332 and 328 nm respectively. Crystal data: 1, monoclinic, space group P2₁/c (No. 14), a = 9.7159(5) Å, b = 29.3372(19) Å, c = 11.5121(6) Å, β = 103.286(5)°, V = 3193.6(3) ų, Z = 4; 2, monoclinic, space group P2₁/c, a = 9.7264(4) Å, b = 29.3810(16) Å, c = 11.5185(6) Å, β = 103.249(4)°, V = 3204.0(3) ų, Z = 4.     

Synthesis,Structural Characterization and Properties of Two Strontium Borates Constructed from Oxo Boron Clusters

Two strontium borates Sr₂[B₆O₉(OH)₄] (1) and Sr₂B₅O₉(OH)·H₂O (2), with acentric structures have been synthesized under hydro/solvothermal conditions. Compound 1 is reported for the first time in the strontium borates system, and it crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2₁ with unit cell parameters a = 6.8445(5) Å, b = 8.7033(6) Å, c = 8.4632(6) Å, β = 100.581(6)°, V = 495.58(6) ų and Z = 2. Its structure consists of unusual borate layers of 3, 11-membered rings, which are interconnected via Sr–O ionic bonds and hydrogen bonds to generate a 3D supramolecular network. Compound 2 is a known strontium borate, crystallizing in the monoclinic space group C ₂ with a = 10.161 (13) Å, b = 7.965(4) Å, c = 6.393(11) Å, β = 128.0(2)°, V = 407.7(14) ų and Z = 2. Second-harmonic generation measurements on the powder samples reveal that 1 and 2 exhibits good SHG efficiency about 1.5 and 2 times that of KDP (KH₂PO₄) powder respectively.     

Controllable Release and High‐Efficiency Collection of Hydrogen Peroxide: Application on the Quantitative Investigation of Biomolecule Oxidation Induced by Reactive Oxygen Species

Hydrogen peroxide and hydroxyl radical, both important members of the reactive oxygen species (ROS) family, can cause serious oxidative damages in biological systems. In order to proclaim and prevent oxidation stress, researches on the biomolecule oxidation induced by H₂O₂ or OH^. are in crucial need. However, due to the high reactivity of ROS, traditional methods are difficult to achieve the in situ quantitative investigations on those reactions involving ROS. In this work, using scanning electrochemical microscopy technique (SECM) in a tip generation‐substrate collection mode (TG‐SC), the controllable release and the high‐efficiency collection of electrogenerated H₂O₂ were achieved. Compared to ex situ fluorescence method, SECM improved the collection efficiency approximately two times larger. Based on it, SECM combined with surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was employed to in situ monitor the protein oxidation (taking Cu₁₂⁺? MT as a model) induced by H₂O₂. OH^., which was generated from the interaction between H₂O₂ and Cu₁₂⁺? MT, can attack the peptide chain and induced the unrepairable protein oxidation damage. The whole process was quantitatively characterized by SPR, and the linear relationship between SPR dip shift and the amounts of released H₂O₂ was successfully built. Our work proves that the combined SECM‐SPR technique can realize the in situ quantitative determinations of the biomolecule oxidation induced by ROS, which affords an avenue for further elucidation on the mechanisms of oxidation stress in organisms.     

A density functional theory study of gold clusters supported on layered double hydroxides

The geometrical structure and electronic properties of a series of Au _N (N = 1–8) clusters supported on a Mg²⁺, Al³⁺-containing layered double hydroxides (MgAl–LDH) are investigated using density functional theory. The Au clusters are supported on two typical crystal faces of the LDH platelet, the basal {0001} and the lateral $ \{ 10\,\bar{1}\,0\} $ crystal face, respectively, corresponding to the top and edge site of monolayer MgAl–LDH lamella for the sake of simplicity. It is revealed that an increase in the charge transfer from the LDH lamella to the Au _N clusters at the edge site rather than clusters on the top surface, demonstrating a preferential adsorption for Au _N clusters at the edge of LDH lamella. Moreover, the calculated adsorption energy of the Au _N clusters on the LDH lamella increases with the cluster size, irrespective of the adsorption site. The investigation on the interaction between O₂ and Au _N clusters on the LDH lamella is further carried out for understanding the catalytic oxidation properties of the LDH-supported Au catalyst. The formation of reactive O₂ ^? species, a necessary prerequisite in catalytic oxidation of CO, by O₂ bridging two Au atoms of Au _N clusters indicates that the LDH-supported Au catalyst has the required characteristics of a chemically active gold catalyst in CO oxidation.     

Design and synthesis of pyromellitic diimide‐based donor–acceptor conjugated polymers for photovoltaic application

Three of conjugated polymers based on pyromellitic diimide (PMDI) as the acceptor unit and thienothiophene (TT) as the donor unit were successfully synthesized by Stille coupling. The effect of the side chain length and thiophene π‐bridge on the polymers' optical and electrochemical properties was investigated. Electrochemical characterization indicated that these polymers have deep highest occupied molecular orbital energy levels between ?5.7 and ?5.8 eV. Polymer solar cells were fabricated by using these PMDI‐based polymers as the donor and [6,6]‐phenyl‐C61‐butyric acid methyl ester as the acceptor. The polymer P1 whose PMDI unit was functionalized with 2‐ethylhexyl side chain shows the higher short‐circuit current (J_sc) and fill factor (FF) compared with that of P2 with a 2‐octyldodecyl side chain on the PMDI unit. The results also illustrate that the insertion of a thiophene π‐bridge between PMDI and TT (the polymer P3) leads to the broader absorption and better photovoltaic performance. The best performance was obtained from the cell based on the polymer P3 with a power conversion efficiency of 0.43% under the illumination of AM 1.5 G, 100 mW/cm². Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Aluminum hypophosphite in combination with expandable graphite as a novel flame retardant system for rigid polyurethane foams

The main aim of this work was to investigate the synergistic effect of expandable graphite (EG) and aluminum hypophosphite (AHP) on the flame retardancy of rigid polyurethane foams (RPUFs). A series of flame retardant RPUF containing EG and AHP were prepared by one‐shot and free‐rise method. The flame retardant, thermal degradation, and combustion properties of RPUF hybrids were characterized through limiting oxygen index (LOI) test, vertical burning (UL‐94) test, thermogravimetric analysis and microscale combustion calorimeter. The LOI and UL‐94 results showed that the RPUF sample with 10 wt% EG and 5 wt% AHP passed UL‐94 V‐0 rating and reached a relatively high LOI value of 28.5%, which is superior over other EG/AHP ratios in RPUF at the equivalent filler loading. Microscale combustion calorimeter results revealed that the incorporation of EG and AHP into RPUF reduced the peak heat release rate and total heat release, thus decrease the fire risk of RPUF significantly. Incorporation of EG and AHP improved the thermal stability of RPUF as observed from the thermogravimetric analysis results and also enhanced the thermal resistance of char layer at high temperature from scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Moreover, it could be seen from thermogravimetric analysis/infrared spectrometry spectra that the addition of EG and AHP significantly decreased the combustible gaseous products such as hydrocarbons and ethers. Finally, the synergistic mechanism in flame retardancy was discussed and speculated. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Surface Induced Dissociation Yields Quaternary Substructure of Refractory Noncovalent Phosphorylase B and Glutamate Dehydrogenase Complexes

Ion mobility (IM) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) coupled with native MS are useful for studying noncovalent protein complexes. Collision induced dissociation (CID) is the most common MS/MS dissociation method. However, some protein complexes, including glycogen phosphorylase B kinase (PHB) and L-glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) examined in this study, are resistant to dissociation by CID at the maximum collision energy available in the instrument. Surface induced dissociation (SID) was applied to dissociate the two refractory protein complexes. Different charge state precursor ions of the two complexes were examined by CID and SID. The PHB dimer was successfully dissociated to monomers and the GDH hexamer formed trimeric subcomplexes that are informative of its quaternary structure. The unfolding of the precursor and the percentages of the distinct products suggest that the dissociation pathways vary for different charge states. The precursors at lower charge states (+21 for PHB dimer and +27 for GDH hexamer) produce a higher percentage of folded fragments and dissociate more symmetrically than the precusors at higher charge states (+29 for PHB dimer and +39 for GDH hexamer). The precursors at lower charge state may be more native-like than the higher charge state because a higher percentage of folded fragments and a lower percentage of highly charged unfolded fragments are detected. The combination of SID and charge reduction is shown to be a powerful tool for quaternary structure analysis of refractory noncovalent protein complexes, as illustrated by the data for PHB dimer and GDH hexamer.

Microcalorimetric investigation on antibacterial activity of the peptide from Plutella xylostella

The antibacterial activities of a kind of novel peptide from Plutella xylostella (pxCECA1) on methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) growth were investigated by microcalorimetry. The heat flow power–time curves of MRSA and E. coli growth in the presence of pxCECA1 were recorded using the 3114/3115 Thermal Activity Monitor Air Isothermal Calorimeter based on ampoule mode at 37 °C. Some parameters including growth rate constant k, maximum power output P _max, total heat output Q_t, generation time t _g, growth inhibitory ratio I, and half-inhibitory concentration of the drugs IC₅₀ were obtained to elucidate the antibacterial activity of pxCECA1. The results showed that k, P _max, and Q _t decreased, but I and t _g increased or delayed with the increase in pxCECA1 concentration. The IC₅₀ of pxCECA1 on E. coli was 6.122 μg mL^?1 and MRSA was 7.809 μg mL^?1. It could be concluded that pxCECA1 had stronger inhibitory effect on E. coli than MRSA. In vivo test was simultaneously performed using an E. coli and MRSA infection model to validate the antibacterial activity of pxCECA1. The results revealed that pxCECA1 with broad spectrum antimicrobial activities hopefully represented a class of promising substitute of antimicrobial agents.     

Electrospinning synthesis and photocatalytic property of CaFe2O4/MgFe2O4 heterostructure for degradation of tetracycline

CaFe₂O₄/MgFe₂O₄ nanowires with heterostructure had been successfully synthesized by electrospinning method. The obtained samples were systematically characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X‐Ray diffraction (XRD), UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectra (UV‐Vis DR) and Environment scanning electron microscopy (ESEM). The novel CaFe₂O₄/MgFe₂O₄ nanowires exhibit an enhanced photocatalytic activity for degrading of tetracycline (TC) under visible light. Compared with bare CaFe₂O₄ or MgFe₂O₄ samples, the prepared CaFe₂O₄/MgFe₂O₄ (Ca:Mg:Fe = 3:2:10) composited nanowires show the best photocatalytic performance with a degradation efficiency of 40% after 150 min reaction time. This enhancement is attributed to the heterostructure of CaFe₂O₄/MgFe₂O₄ nanowires, which effectively repress the recombination of photo‐generated electrons and holes. Based on heterostructure and energy band positions, the enhancement of mechanism under visible‐light enhances the photocatalytic activity.