Preparation and characterization of high-rate and long-cycle LiFePO4/C nanocomposite as cathode material for lithium-ion battery

Olivine LiFePO₄/C nanocomposite cathode materials with small-sized particles and a unique electrochemical performance were successfully prepared by a simple solid-state reaction using oxalic acid and citric acid as the chelating reagent and carbon source. The structure and electrochemical properties of the samples were investigated. The results show that LiFePO₄/C nanocomposite with oxalic acid (oxalic acid: Fe²⁺= 0.75:1) and a small quantity of citric acid are single phase and deliver initial discharge capacity of 122.1 mAh/g at 1 C with little capacity loss up to 500 cycles at room temperature. The rate capability and cyclability are also outstanding at elevated temperature. When charged/discharged at 60 °C, this materials present excellent initial discharge capacity of 148.8 mAh/g at 1 C, 128.6 mAh/g at 5 C, and 115.0 mAh/g at 10 C, respectively. The extraordinarily high performance of LiFePO₄/C cathode materials can be exploited suitably for practical lithium-ion batteries.     

Facile synthesis of α-difluoromethyl α-propargylamines from CF2H-substituted N-tert-butanesulfinyl ketimines

Stereoselective approach for preparation ofα-difluoromethylα-propargylamines has been developed.1,2-Addition of lithium acetylides to diverse chiral difluoromethylated（S）-N-tert-butanesulfinyl ketimines by using Ti（OⁱPr）₄ as catalyst and THF as solvent afforded N-tert-butanesulfinamides in good to excellent yields（51-93%） and good diastereoselectivities（dr.85:15 to 93:7）.The N-tert -butanesulfinyl group can be readily cleaved under mild acidic condition（4 mol/L HCl in dioxane） to provide the correspondingα-difiuoromethylα-propargylamine in excellent yields（90-95%）.     

Design, synthesis and primary activity of thiomorpholine derivatives as DPP-IV inhibitors

Thirteen thiomorpholine-bearing compounds were designed and synthesized as dipeptidyl peptidase IV（DPP-IV） inhibitors, with natural and non-natural L-amino acids as the starting materials.Their structures were characterized by ¹H NMR,¹³C NMR and HR-MS.The target compounds were screened for the DPP-IV inhibition,and the preliminary SAR result was obtained.Particularly, compounds 4c,4d and 4f with good DPP-IV inhibition in vitro were further evaluated through a mouse oral glucose tolerance test （OGTT）.The preliminary result showed the potential value for further studies on those thiomorpholine-bearing compounds as DPP-IV inhibitors.     

UPTAKE KINETICS AND INTRACELLULAR LOCALIZATION OF HYPOCRELLIN PHOTOSENSITIZERS FOR PHOTODYNAMIC THERAPY: A CONFOCAL MICROSCOPY STUDY

Hypocrellins are naturally occurring compounds with photosensitizing properties in biological systems. We have prepared synthetic derivatives of hypocrellin B, which have promise as photosensitizers in the clinical application of photodynamic therapy. The intracellular localization and uptake kinetics of hypocrellin B and several selected hypocrellin congeners were determined semiquantitatively by fluorescence confocal microscopy in monolayer cultures of EMT6/Ed murine tumor cells. Each compound had unique uptake kinetics. Although no compound tested to date has demonstrated nuclear labeling, most could be detected in lysosomes, Golgi, endoplasmic reticulum and, to a minor extent, in cellular membranes. No two compounds gave identical labeling distributions. The differences are assumed to originate in physicochemical properties characteristic of each compound, which may ultimately impact upon the primary modality of phototoxicity.     

Synthesis,characterization and visible-light photocatalytic activity of TiO2–SiO2 composite modified with zinc porphyrins

Three types of silica gel supported titanium dioxide particles immobilizing Zn(II) carboxylphenyl porphyrins appending p-CH₃, p-H and p-Cl phenyl substituents (designated as ZnMP–TiO₂–SiO₂, ZnPP–TiO₂–SiO₂ and ZnCP–TiO₂–SiO₂, respectively) have been synthesized and characterized using SEM, XRD, IR, AFS, DRS, UV–Vis, XPS and TG. The photodegradation of α-terpinene in aqueous suspension was used to determine the photocatalytic activity of TiO₂–SiO₂ samples which had been impregnated with Zn(II) porphyrins, as sensitizers. The experimental results confirmed that the photocatalytic activitys of these composites are much higher than those of the nonmodified TiO₂–SiO₂ under visible light irradiation and follow the order of ZnMP–TiO₂–SiO₂ > ZnPP–TiO₂–SiO₂ > ZnCP–TiO₂–SiO₂.     

Particle size effects of carbon sources on electrochemical properties of LiFePO<Subscript>4</Subscript>/C composites

Carbon-coated LiFePO₄ cathode materials were prepared by a solid-state method incorporating different sizes of polystyrene (PS) spheres as carbon sources. In scanning electron microscope images, small PS spheres appear more effective at preventing aggregation of LiFePO₄ particles. From transmission electron microscopy images, it was found that the LiFePO₄ particles were completely uniformly coated with 5-nm carbon layer when the carbon source was 0.22 μm PS spheres. When the size of PS sphere was increased to 2.75 μm, a network of carbon was formed and wrapped around the LiFePO₄ to create a conductive web. Raman spectroscopy and four-point probe conductivity measurement showed that using larger sizes of PS spheres as carbon sources leads to greater conductivity of LiFePO₄/C. The LiFePO₄ precursor sintered with 0.22 μm PS spheres delivered an initial discharge capacity of 145 mAh g^?1 at a 0.2 C rate, but it only sustained 289 cycles at 80% capacity. When the diameter of PS spheres was increased to 2.75 μm, the discharge capacity of LiFePO₄/C decreased, but the cycle life reached 755 cycles, the highest number in this work probably due to the network formation of carbon wrapping around LiFePO₄ particles.     

Identification of a new flavone glycoside from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Codonopsis nervosa</Emphasis>

A new flavone glycoside, luteolin 7-O-[(6″′-caffeoyl)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 6)]-β-D-glucopyranoside (1), was isolated from Codonopsis nervosa, along with three other known compounds, luteolin 7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (2), luteolin 7-O-gentiobioside (3), and tangshenoside VI (4). Their structures were determined on the basis of 1D and 2D NMR, IR, and HR-ESI-MS.