Determination of PEGylation homogeneity of polyethylene glycol-modified canine uricase

Polyethylene glycol-modified canine uricase (PEG-UHC) was prepared by modifying the ε-amino group of lysine residues on the canine uricase (UHC) protein to near-saturation with 5 kDa monomethoxyl-polyethylene glycol succinimide (mPEG-SPA-5k). In order to accurately determine the PEGylation uniformity of PEG-UHC, CZE, 3–8% gradient gel SDS-PAGE, and imaging CIEF (iCIEF) analyses were compared. CZE could not effectively separate PEG-UHC proteins with different degrees of modification, 3–8% gradient gel SDS-PAGE could separate PEG-UHC into seven gel bands; however, most of the gel bands were smeared or blurred, and the separation of PEG-UHC samples by iCIEF was significantly better than that by 3–8% gradient gel SDS-PAGE. Under denatured conditions, iCIEF separated 12 pI peaks, and could also accurately quantify the relative monomer PEG-UHC content. More than 85% of the total monomeric PEG-UHC was conjugated with 7–12 PEG molecules; of this 85%, approximately 40% was conjugated with 9–10 PEG molecules. These results demonstrated that iCIEF exhibits good potential for determining the PEGylation homogeneity of PEGylated protein drugs.     

Microalgae separation by inertia-enhanced pinched flow fractionation

To improve the accuracy and efficiency of ships’ ballast water detection, the separation of microalgae according to size is significant. In this article, a method to separate microalgae based on inertia-enhanced pinched flow fractionation (iPFF) was reported. The method utilized the inertial lift force induced by flow to separate microalgae according to size continuously. The experimental results show that, as the Reynolds number increases, the separation effect becomes better at first, but then stays unchanged. The best separation effect can be obtained when the Reynolds number is 12.3. In addition, with the increase of the flow rate ratio between sheath fluid and microalgae mixture, the separation effect becomes better and the best separation effect can be obtained when the flow rate ratio reaches 10. In this case, the recovery rate of Tetraselmis sp. is about 90%, and the purity is about 86%; the recovery rate of Chlorella sp. is as high as 99%, and the purity is about 99%. After that, the separation effect keeps getting better but very slowly. In general, this study provides a simple method for the separation of microalgae with different sizes, and lays a foundation for the accurate detection of microalgae in the ballast water.     

Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy of advanced reduced-activation alloy (ARAA) in cold‐worked conditions

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - The defects due to cold-rolling deformation in the advanced reduced-activation alloy (ARAA) have been analyzed using positron annihilation...     

A series of coordination polymers constructed from mixed ligands for highly selective luminescence sensing of Fe3+ ions

Transition Metal Chemistry - Four coordination polymers, namely {[Cd2(1,4-NDC)2(dbp)2]·DMF}n (1), {[Cd(1,4-NDC)(dbp)(H2O)]}n (2), {[Zn(2,6-NDC)(dbp)(H2O)]}n (3), and...     

Effects of precursor concentration on the physicochemical properties of ambient-pressure-dried MTES based aerogels with using pure water as the only solvent

Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology - This work presents a facile synthesis approach of methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) based aerogels using pure water as the only solvent, and the effects of...     

高可见光催化降解污染物和产氢活性的Z型N-掺杂K4Nb6O17/g-C3N4异质结

随着人口增长和全球工业化进程加快,人们饱受环境污染和能源短缺问题的困扰.半导体光催化技术作为一种高效、可持续、环境友好、有潜力的新技术,在环境净化和能源开发方面有着广阔的应用前景.到目前为止,人们已开发出多种半导体光催化剂,并广泛应用于污染物降解、氢气制备和二氧化碳还原等领域.其中,化合物K4Nb6O17具有典型的层状结构、合适的电子能带结构、结构易改性以及良好的电荷传输性能等特点,在光催化领域得到了广泛研究.然而,单纯K4Nb6O17仍存在光响应范围窄、光生载流子复合率高等问题,限制了K4Nb6O17的进一步应用.因此,需要对K4Nb6O17进行改性,拓宽其光吸收范围,提高其光生载流子分离效率,从而提高其光催化活性.本研究通过简单焙烧法制备Z型N-掺杂K4Nb6O17/g-C3N4(KCN)异质结光催化剂,其中石墨相氮化碳(g-C3N4)在复合材料中质量比约为50%.层状K4Nb6O17层板的电子结构通过N掺杂进行调控,拓宽其光响应范围,使其具有可见光响应;同时,形成的g-C3N4位于N-掺杂K4Nb6O17的外层以及内层空间,在这两种组分之间形成异质结,有利于提高光生载流子的分离效率.荧光光谱、时间分辨荧光光谱和光电化学测试表明,N掺杂和异质结的形成有利于增强光生电子-空穴对的传输和分离效率.通过在可见光照射下降解罗丹明B(RhB)和产氢来评估材料的光催化性能.相比g-C3N4(8.24μmol/h)和Me-K4Nb6O17(~1.30μmol/h),KCN复合材料光催化产氢效率(~16.91μmol/h)得到了极大提高,并显示出极好的光催化产氢稳定性能.对于光催化降解RhB体系,KCN复合材料也显示出较好的光催化活性和稳定性,并能很好地将RhB矿化.鉴于KCN复合材料具有较小的比表面积(9.9 m^2/g)且无孔结构,认为比表面积对光催化活性影响较小.因此,与单组分相比,KCN复合材料光催化产氢和RhB降解活性都得到了极大提高,活性的增强主要归功于N掺杂和异质结形成的协同效应,其中N掺杂可以拓宽光捕获能力,异质结形成可提高电荷载流子的分离效率.电子自旋共振(ESR)谱表明,在KCN降解RhB体系中,超氧自由基(·O2^?)、羟基自由基(·OH)和空穴(h^+)作为主要活性物质都参与了反应.结合实验结果可以推测KCN复合材料满足了Z型光催化体系,该体系具有高效的光生载流子分离效率和较高的氧化还原能力.     

Application of the Redox-Transmetalation Procedure to Access Divalent Lanthanide and Alkaline-Earth NHC Complexes**

Divalent lanthanide and alkaline-earth complexes supported by N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands have been accessed by redox-transmetalation between air-stable NHC-AgI complexes and the corresponding metals. By using the small ligand 1,3-dimethylimidazol-2-ylidene (IMe), two series of isostructural complexes were obtained: the tetra-NHC complexes [LnI₂(IMe)₄] (Ln=Eu and Sm) and the bis-NHC complexes [MI₂(IMe)₂(THF)₂] (M=Yb, Ca and Sr). In the former, distortions in the NHC coordination were found to originate from intermolecular repulsions in the solid state. Application of the redox-transmetalation strategy with the bulkier 1,3-dimesitylimidazol-2-ylidene (IMes) ligand yielded [SrI₂(IMes)(THF)₃], while using a similar procedure with Ca metal led to [CaI₂(THF)₄] and uncoordinated IMes. DFT calculations were performed to rationalise the selective formation of the bis-NHC adduct in [SrI₂(IMe)₂(THF)₂] and the tetra-NHC adduct in [SmI₂(IMe)₄]. Since the results in the gas phase point towards preferential formation of the tetra-NHC complexes for both metal centres, the differences between both arrangements are a result of solid-state effects such as slightly different packing forces.     

Implications of Nitrogen Doping on Geometrical and Electronic Structure of the Fullerene Dimers

Because of its unsaturated bonds, C₆₀ is susceptible to polymerize into dimers. The implications of nitrogen doping on the geometrical and electronic structure of C₆₀ dimers have been ambiguous for years. A quarter‐century after the discovery of azafullerene dimer (C₅₉N)₂, we reported its single crystallographic structure in 2019. Herein, the unambiguous crystal structure information of (C₅₉N)₂ is elucidated specifically, revealing that the inter‐cage C—C single bond length of (C₅₉N)₂ is comparable with that of an ordinary C(sp³)‐C(sp³) single bond, and that the most stable conformer of (C₅₉N)₂ is gauche‐conformer with a dihedral angle of 66°. To amend the structural deviations, geometrical structure of (C₅₉N)₂ is optimized by a B3LYP‐D3BJ function, which is proved to be more consistent with its single crystal structure than those by the commonly used B3LYP function. Moreover, the calculation method is also suitable for other representative fullerene dimers, such as (C₆₀)₂ and its divalent anion. Additionally, the dissociation of (C₅₉N)₂ at 473 K under mass spectrometric conditions suggests the inter‐cage C—C bond is relatively weaker than an ordinary C—C single bond, which can be explained by the interaction energies of inter‐cages.     

The Chemical Bond: When Atom Size Instead of Electronegativity Difference Determines Trend in Bond Strength

We have quantum chemically analyzed element−element bonds of archetypal H_nX−YH_n molecules (X, Y=C, N, O, F, Si, P, S, Cl, Br, I), using density functional theory. One purpose is to obtain a set of consistent homolytic bond dissociation energies (BDE) for establishing accurate trends across the periodic table. The main objective is to elucidate the underlying physical factors behind these chemical bonding trends. On one hand, we confirm that, along a period (e. g., from C−C to C−F), bonds strengthen because the electronegativity difference across the bond increases. But, down a period, our findings constitute a paradigm shift. From C−F to C−I, for example, bonds do become weaker, however, not because of the decreasing electronegativity difference. Instead, we show that the effective atom size (via steric Pauli repulsion) is the causal factor behind bond weakening in this series, and behind the weakening in orbital interactions at the equilibrium distance. We discuss the actual bonding mechanism and the importance of analyzing this mechanism as a function of the bond distance.     

Catalytic transfer hydrogenation of biomass-derived furfural to furfuryl alcohol with formic acid as hydrogen donor over CuCs-MCM catalyst

Catalytic transfer hydroge nation(CTH) of furfural(FF) to furfu ryl alcohol(FFA) has received great intere st in recent years.He rein,Cu-Cs bimetallic supported catalyst,CuCs(2)-MCM,was developed for the CTH of FF to FFA using formic as hydrogen donor.CuCs(2)-MCM achieved a 99.6% FFA yield at an optimized reaction conditions of 170℃,1 h.Cu species in CuCs(2)-MCM had dual functions in catalytically decomposing formic acid to generate hydrogen and hydrogenating FF to FFA.The doping of Cs made the size of Cu particles smaller and improved the dispersion of the Cu active sites.Impo rtantly,the Cs species played a favorable role in enhancing the hydrogenation activity as a promoter by adjusting the surface acidity of Cu species to an appropriate level.Correlation analysis showed that surface acidity is the primary factor to affect the catalytic activity of CuCs(2)-MCM.