Mesoporous electrode material from alumina-stabilized anatase TiO2 for lithium ion batteries

A mesoporous electrode material whose structure is composed of anatase nanocrystals stabilized by alumina is reported. Powder X-ray diffraction shows the anatase phase only, but micro-Raman spectroscopy shows that the materials have a core-shell morphology with grains of bulk anatase covered by a thin rutile layer on the surface. This structure is unique when compared to analogous materials stabilized by zirconia (PNNL-1). Nitrogen adsorption isotherms demonstrate a monotonous increase in surface area and mesopore volume with increasing Al content. Thin film electrodes from these materials were characterized by lithium insertion electrochemistry. Cyclic voltammograms exhibit significant differences in Li accommodation in Al-free and Al-stabilized materials.     

Metal chelates of heterocyclic nitrogen-containing ketones,Part XXII. Spectroscopic studies on rhodium(III) complexes of phenyl-2-picolylketone-2-pyridyl hydrazone

Summary Mono, bis and tris complexes of rhodium(III) with phenyl-2-picolylketone-2-pyridyl hydrazone (PPKPyH) have been characterized. In every case, the imino-proton of PPKPyH shows marked acidity associated with the coordination to rhodium(III). Electronic spectra show that all complexes are octahedral. The B-values suggest a strong covalency in the metal-ligand -bond and the Dq-values indicate a medium-strong ligand field. The magnetic susceptibility indicates that PPKPyH forms low-spin complexes with rhodium(III).¹H n.m.r. spectra show that the tris(ligand) complexes arecis isomers. I.r. spectra show that the ligand is neutral or monobasic tridentate or bidentate. Far i.r. studies show that [Rh(PPKPyH)X₃] · 2 H₂O (X = Cl, Br or I) aremer isomers. The effect of pH variation on the rection products is also discussed.     

Assessment of Lewis-Acidic Surface Sites Using Tetrahydrofuran as a Suitable and Smart Probe Molecule

Measuring the Lewis-acidic surface sites in catalysis is problematic when the material‘s surface area is very low (S_BET ≤1 m² ⋅ g⁻¹). For the first time, a quantitative assessment of total acidic surface sites of very small surface area catalysts (MoO₃ as pure and mixed with 5–30 % CdO (wt/wt), as well as CdO for comparison) was performed using a smart new probe molecule, tetrahydrofuran (THF). The results were nearly identical compared to using another commonly used probe molecule, pyridine. This audition is based on the limited values of the surface area of these samples that likely require a relatively moderate basic molecule as THF with pK_b=16.08, rather than strong basic molecules such as NH₃ (pK_b=4.75) or pyridine (pK_b=8.77). We propose mechanisms for the interaction of vapour phase molecules of THF with the Lewis-cationic Mo and Cd atoms of these catalysts. Besides, dehydration of isopropyl alcohol was used as a probe reaction to investigate the catalytic activity of these catalysts to further support our findings in the case of THF in a temperature range of 175–300 °C. A good agreement between the obtained data of sample MoO₃-10 % CdO, which is characterised by the highest surface area value, the population of Lewis-acidic sites and % selectivity of propylene at all the applied reaction temperatures was found.     

Computational Design,Synthesis and Application of a New Selective Molecularly Imprinted Polymer for Electrochemical Detection

A computational approach was developed to find a suitable functional monomer to design a new molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP), based on which methacyrlic acid (MAA) was selected as a functional monomer to synthesize the molecular imprinted and non‐imprinted polymers. All calculations were carried out using Gaussian 03 software based on the application of Hartree?Fock (HF) method with 6‐31G (d) basis set. The performance of the MIPs prepared with different ratios of MAA was then evaluated using equilibrium rebinding assays. The MIP with the highest binding capacity was chosen as recognition material for the fabrication of new PVC sensors and their responses were compared with each other and with previously reported modifiers in literature. The addition of the ionic surfactant (TFPB) was found to have a synergistic effect on the response mechanism of the electrodes. The results of the MIP modified sensors show that they provide an improved electrode slope, wider pH range and a highly extended life time reaching 7 months compared to 2–4 weeks in case of traditional ion‐exchangers reported in literature, besides, being successfully applied for measurements in biological samples.     

A facile synthesis of novel triazoloquinoxahnones and triazinoquinoxalinones

A series of 1-aryl-s-triazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-4-ones, 3 , were synthesized via the pyrolysis of the corresponding hydrazones, 6 . Thus, the cyclodehydrogenation occurred by refluxing them in an inert solvent (e.g. ethylene glycol) to give the triazoloquinoxalin-4-ones in a satisfactory yield. Using DMSO as a solvent for the above transformation afforded as a minor by-product an S-ylid. In contrast to earlier findings, annelation of a six-membered ring was successful and achieved through the pyrolysis of the pyruvate hydrazones derived of the quinoxalin-4-ones at ?230° to give the as-triazino[4,3-a]quinoxalin-5-ones, 4 . The reaction of 5 with acetylacetone afforded 3-(3′,5′-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)-2(1H)-quinoxalinone, 10 . The structural assignments for the new compounds were based on their elemental analysis and spectroscopic data as well as an independent synthesis.     

Optical nanosensor design with uniform pore geometry and large particle morphology

Appropriate design of nanosensors for optically selective, sensitive sensing systems is needed for naked-eye detection of pollutants for environmental cleanup of toxic heavy-metal ions. Mesostructured materials with two- or three-dimensional (2D or 3D) geometries and large particle morphologies show promise as probe carriers, and can therefore be used to reproducibly fabricate uniformly packed nanosensors. This is the first report on the effects of significant key properties of the mesostructured carriers, such as morphology, geometry, and pore shape, on the functionality of optical nanosensor designs. Such mesostructured sensors with superior physical characteristics can be used as components in sensing systems with excellent stability and sensitivity, and with rapid detection response. The nanosensor design can enhance the selectivity even at low concentrations of the pollutant target ions (nanomolar level). Among the nanosensors developed here, the large pore-surface grains of highly ordered 3D monoliths (HOM) exhibited a high adsorption capability of the Pyrogallol Red probe and high accessibility to analyte ion transport, leading to possible naked-eye detection of Sb(III) ions at concentrations as low as 10(-9) mol dm(-3) and at a wide detection range of 0.5 ppb to 3 ppm. A key finding in our study was that our mesostructured nanosensor designs retained highly efficient sensitivity without a significant increase in kinetic hindrance, despite the slight decrease of the specific activity of the electron acceptor/donor strength of the probe functional group after several regeneration/reuse cycles. The results, in general, indicate that large-scale reversibility of optical nanosensors is feasible in such metal-ion sensing systems.     

Synthesis of 1,2,4-Triazol-3-ylmethyl-, 1,3,4-Oxa-, and -Thiadiazol-2-ylmethyl-1H-[1,2,3]-triazolo[4,5-d]pyrimidinediones

1-Carbethoxymethyl-4,6-dimethyl-1H-[1,2,3]triazolo[4,5-d]pyrimidine-5,7(4H,6H)-dione was synthesized and treated with hydrazine hydrate to give the corresponding hydrazide. The latter hydrazide was treated either with phenylisothiocyanate or with carbon disulfide/alc. KOH to afford the corresponding thiosemicarbazide and oxadiazole derivatives. Alkylation of 2-mercapto-1,3,4-oxadiazole with dimethyl sulfate or ethyl chloroacetate gave the corresponding 2-methylthio-, and 2-ethylthioglycolate derivatives. Formation of 1,3,4-thiadiazole, 5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole, and 1,3,4-oxadiazole were carried out by treating of the latter thiosemicarbazide with conc. H₂SO₄, NaOH/HCl, and HgO. Treating of 5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole with ethyl chloroacetate afforded the thioglycolate ester. Hydrolysis of the latter with hydrazine hydrate afforded the hydrazide derivatives. Condensation of these hydrazides with monosaccharide aldoses gave the corresponding sugar hydrazones. The novel compounds were tested for antiviral activity against hepatitis B virus and showed moderate activities.     

Substituted γ-lactones: On the structural elucidation of the reaction products from 4-aroyl-3-hydroxy-2(5H)-furanones and 1,2-diamines

The reaction pathway of 4-aroyl-3-hydroxy-2(5H)-furanones 1 with diamines depends on the nature of the amine as well as on the applied reaction conditions. Thus, the reaction of 1a-d with 5,6-diamino-1,3-dimethyluracil 5 led to the formation of two isomeric Schiff bases 7a-d and 8a-d . Conversely type 1 compounds reacted with 4,5-diaminopyrimidine 9 or 2,3-diaminopyridine 10 to form the mono acid-base adducts 11a and 11b respectively. When type 1 compounds were reacted with aliphatic diamines 13a-d or p-phenylenediamine and p-xylenediamine, respectively also an immediate formation of acid-base adducts 15a-f was observed. The reaction of a number of O-methylated type 1 compounds with 1,2-ethylenediamine afforded the novel seven-membered ring compounds 18a-d in good yields. The analogous reaction of O-alkylated 1a with o-phenylenediamine 2 or 2,3-diaminonaphthalene gave the expected tricyclic ring systems 19 or 20 .     

Synthesis,reactions, and antioxidant activity of 3-(pyrrol-1-yl)-4,6-dimethyl selenolo[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives

Ethyl 4,6-dimethyl-3-(pyrrol-1-yl) selenolo[2,3-b]pyridine-2-carboxylate (2) was synthesized by the reaction of previously prepared ethyl 3-amino-4,6-dimethyl selenolo[2,3-b]pyridine-2-carboxylate (1) with 2,5-dimethoxytetrahydrofuran in acetic acid. The pyrrolyl ester (2) was converted into the corresponding carbohydrazide 3 which reacted with acetyl acetone, aromatic aldehydes, carbon disulfide in pyridine, and sodium nitrite to afford the corresponding dimethyl pyrazolyl 4, arylidene carbohydrazides 5a–d, oxadiazolyl thiole 6, and caboazide compound 8, respectively. The carboazide 8 reacted with different alcohols and amines to give the corresponding carbamates 9a–c and the aryl urea derivatives 10a–d. Heating of carboazide 8 in dry xylene afforded the pyridoselenolo-pyrrolopyrazinone 11. The latter compound was used as a versatile starting precursor for synthesis of other pyridoselenolo-pyrrolopyrazine compounds. The newly synthesized compounds and their derivatives were characterized by elemental analysis and spectroscopy (IR, ¹H-NMR, and mass spectra). Some of the newly synthesized pyrrolyl selenolopyridine compounds showed remarkable antioxidant activity compared to ascorbic acid.     

High-performance nanostructured bio-based carbon electrodes for energy storage applications

Cellulose - Polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based carbon precursor is a well-established and researched material for electrodes in energy storage applications due to its good physical properties and...