Modeling of a counterflow plasma reactor

Modeling of a counterflow plasma reactor is presented, using liquid injection for the synthesis of fine particles. An experimental reactor has been developed in this laboratory, and feasibility has been demonstrated for synthesizing advanced ceramic powders. The flow field calculations show two major recirculating regions which are of importance for increasing the particles' residence time inside of the reactor. In addition, the temperature within these recirculation zones remains relatively uniform. For simulation, water droplet trajectories have been calculated for droplets produced by an injection probe. It is shown that the droplets in a size range below 50 m in diameter will follow the streamlines and evaporate completely within a short traveling distance. This finding suggests that this reactor configuration provides a favorable environment for the synthesis of fine particles using liquid precursors.     

In situ gamma ray-initiated polymerization to stabilize surface micelles

Surfactant molecules containing hydrophobic long alkyl chains and hydrophilic groups can organize into various micellar structures both in bulk solution and at interface. However, because of the dynamical nature of surfactant micelles, efforts directed at fixing their structures in bulk solution by polymerization have met with limited success. Herein, we report a unique and simple method of stabilizing surface micelles of a low molecular weight surfactant 11-acryloyloxyundecyltriethylammonium bromide (AUTEAB) through in situ intramicellar polymerization on the mica surface. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) observations show that the cylindrical micellar structure formed by AUTEAB monomers at the mica/water interface is preserved after the in situ polymerization, and the stability of the polymerized surface micelles is greatly enhanced compared with that of the unpolymerized ones.     

Determination of sophoridine and related lupin alkaloids using tris(2,2′-bipyridine)ruthenium electrogenerated chemiluminescence

Electrogenerated chemiluminescences (ECLs) based on tris(2,2′-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) (Ru(bpy)₃²⁺) and lupin alkaloids, for instance, sophoridine (SRI), matrine (MT), sophoranol (SR) and sophocarpine (SC) in an aqueous alkaline buffer solution (pH 9.0) are studied. The light emission is mainly caused by an electro-oxidation reaction between tertiary amino group on the alkaloid compounds and Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ in a thin layer flow cell equipped with a glassy carbon disc electrode (22.1 mm²) at the potential of +1.50 V (versus Ag/AgCl). The luminescence wavelength of 610 nm confirmed that ECL is caused by Ru(bpy)₃^2+∗ to its ground state. ECL intensities of these lupin alkaloids are affected by the substituent character, three-dimensional conformation of hydrogen on β-carbon atom. Ionization potentials taken from calculation data further confirm the experimental results. In addition, the factors affecting the determination and HPLC separation of the four alkaloids are also investigated.     

Electrochemical and surfaced-enhanced Raman spectroscopic investigation of CO and SCN- adsorbed on Au(core)-Pt(shell) nanoparticles supported on GC electrodes

Core-shell Au-Pt nanoparticles were synthesized by using a seed growth method and characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and UV-vis spectroscopy. Au(core)-Pt(shell)/GC electrodes were prepared by drop-coating the nanoparticles on clean glassy carbon (GC) surfaces, and their electrochemical behavior in 0.5 M H2SO4 revealed that coating of the Au core by the Pt shell is complete. The electrooxidation of carbon monoxide and methanol on the Au(core)-Pt(shell)/GC was also examined, and the results are similar to those obtained on a bulk Pt electrode. High quality surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra of both adsorbed CO and thiocyanate were observed on the Au(core)-Pt(shell)/GC electrodes. The potential-dependent SERS features resemble those obtained on electrochemically roughened bulk Pt or Pt thin films deposited on roughened Au electrodes. For thiocyanate, the C-N stretching frequency increases with the applied potential, yielding two distinctly different dnu(CN)/dE. From -0.8 to -0.2 V, the dnu(CN)/dE is ca. 50 cm(-1)/V, whereas it is 90 cm(-1)/V above 0 V. The bandwidth along with the band intensity increases sharply above 0 V. At the low-frequency region, Pt-NCS stretching mode at 350 cm(-1) was observed at the potentials from -0.8 to 0 V, whereas the Pt-SCN mode at 280 cm(-1) was largely absent until around 0 V and became dominant at more positive potentials. These potential-dependent spectral transitions were attributed to the adsorption orientation switch from N-bound dominant at the negative potential region to S-bound at more positive potentials. The origin of the SERS activity of the particles is briefly discussed. The study demonstrates a new method of obtaining high quality SERS on Pt-group transition metals, with the possibility of tuning SERS activity by varying the core size and the shell thickness.     

High-Resolution Infrared-Vacuum Ultraviolet Photoion and Pulsed Field Ionization-Photoelectron Methods for Spectroscopic Studies of Neutrals and Cations

We show that by scanning the frequency of a single mode infrared (IR) optical parametric oscillator (IR-OPO) laser to excite the molecular species of interest and fixing the frequency of a vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) laser to photoionize the IR excited species, high-resolution IR spectra of polyatomic neutrals can be obtained with high sensitivity. The fact that this IR-VUV-photoion (IR-VUV-PI) method is based on VUV photoionization probe, and thus, allows the identification of the neutral IR absorber, makes it applicable for IR spectroscopy measurements of isotopemers, radicals, and clusters, which usually exist as impure samples. The highly resolved IR-VUV-PI measurements achieved using the single mode IR-OPO laser have made possible the selection of single rovibrational states of CH3X (X=Br and I), C2H4, and C3H4 for VUV-pulsed field ionization-photoelectron (VUV-PFI-PE) measurements, resulting in rovibrationally resolved photoelectron spectra for these polyatomic molecules. These experiments show that the signal-to-noise ratios of the IR-VUV-PI and IR-VUV-PFI-PE spectra obtained by employing the high-resolution IR-OPO laser are significantly higher than those observed in previous IR-VUV-PI and IR-VUV-PFI-PE studies using a low-resolution IR-OPO laser. Further improvement in sensitivity of IR-VUV-PI and IR-VUV-PFI-PE measurements by using the collinear arrangement of IR-VUV lasers and molecular beam is discussed.     

人工智能助力当代化学研究

以机器学习为代表的人工智能在当代的科学研究中正在发挥越来越重要的作用.不同于传统的计算机程序,机器学习人工智能可以通过对大量数据的反复分析和自身模型的优化,即"学习"过程,从而在大量的数据中寻找客观事物的相互联系,形成具有更好预测和决策能力的新模型,做出合理的判断.化学研究的特点恰恰是机器学习人工智能的强项.化学研究经常要面对十分复杂的物质体系和实验过程,从而很难通过化学物理原理进行精准的分析和判断.人工智能可以挖掘化学实验中产生的海量实验数据的相关性,帮助化学家做出合理分析预测,大大加速化学研发过程.本文介绍了当代人工智能方法及用其解决化学问题基本原理,并通过具体案例展示了人工智能辅助解决不同化学研发问题的方法以及对应的机器学习算法.将人工智能运用在化学科学的尝试正处于蓬勃上升期,人工智能已经初步展示出对化学研究的强大助力,希望本文能帮助更多的国内的化学工作者了解和运用这一有力的工具.     

Molecular Beam Epitaxy Growth and Electronic Structures of Monolayer GdTe_3

GdTe_3 is a layered antiferromagnetic(AFM) metal with charge density wave(CDW).We grew monolayer(ML)GdTe_3 on graphene/6H-SiC(0001) substrates by molecular beam epitaxy.The electronic and magnetic structures are studied by scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy,quasi-particle interference(QPI) and first-principles calculations.Strong evidence of CDW persisting at the two-dimensional(2D) limit is found.Band dispersions and partially gapped energy bands near the Fermi surface are revealed by the QPI patterns.By density functional theory +U calculations,AFM order with stripe pattern is found to be the magnetic ground state for ML GdTe_(3).These results provide fundamental understanding and pave the way for further investigation of GdTe_3 at the 2D limit.     

A Combined Experimental and Computational Study on the Adsorption Sites of Zinc-Based MOFs for Efficient Ammonia Capture

Ammonia (NH₃) is a common pollutant mostly derived from pig manure composting under humid conditions, and it is absolutely necessary to develop materials for ammonia removal with high stability and efficiency. To this end, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have received special attention because of their high selectivity of harmful gases in the air, resulting from their large surface area and high density of active sites, which can be tailored by appropriate modifications. Herein, two synthetic metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), 2-methylimidazole zinc salt (ZIF-8) and zinc-trimesic acid (ZnBTC), were selected for ammonia removal under humid conditions during composting. The two MOFs, with different organic linkers, exhibit fairly distinctive ammonia absorption behaviors under the same conditions. For the ZnBTC framework, the ammonia intake is 11.37 mmol/g at 298 K, nine times higher than that of the ZIF-8 framework (1.26 mmol/g). In combination with theoretical calculations, powder XRD patterns, FTIR, and BET surface area tests were conducted to reveal the absorption mechanisms of ammonia for the two materials. The adsorption of ammonia on the ZnBTC framework can be attributed to both physical and chemical adsorption. A strong coordination interaction exists between the nitrogen atom from the ammonia molecule and the zinc atom in the ZnBTC framework. In contrast, the absorption of ammonia in the ZIF-8 framework is mainly physical. The weak interaction between the ammonia molecule and the ZIF-8 framework mainly results from the inherent severely steric hindrance, which is related to the coordination mode of the imidazole ligands and the zinc atom of this framework. Therefore, this study provides a method for designing promising MOFs with appropriate organic linkers for the selective capture of ammonia during manure composting.     

Effects of Fatty Alcohols with Different Chain Lengths on the Performance of Low pH Biomass-Based Foams for Radioactive Decontamination

Compared with polymers and nanoparticles, fatty alcohols can not only increase the stability of foam, but also maintain better foamability at pH < 2, which is beneficial to reduce waste liquid and increase decontamination efficiency for radioactive surface pollution. However, different fatty alcohols have different hydrophobic chain lengths. The effects of fatty alcohols with different chain lengths on the performance of decontamination foam were studied at pH < 2, to assist in the selection of suitable fatty alcohols as foam stabilizers. Combined with betaine surfactant and phytic acid, biomass-based foams were synthesized using fatty alcohols with different chain lengths. When the hydrophobic tail groups of the fatty alcohol and the surfactant were the same, the foam showed the best performance, including the lowest surface tension, the highest liquid film strength, the greatest sag-resistance and the best stability. However, when the hydrophobic tail groups were different, the space between adjacent surface active molecules was increased by thermal motion of the excess terminal tail segments (a tail-wagging effect), and the adsorption density reduced on the gas-liquid interface, leading to increased surface tension and decreased liquid film strength, sag-resistance and stability. The use of decontamination foam stabilized by fatty alcohols with the same hydrophobic group as the surfactant was found to increase the decontamination rate of radioactive uranium pollution from 64 to over 90% on a vertical surface.