High-Rate CO2 Electrolysis to Formic Acid over a Wide Potential Window: An Electrocatalyst Comprised of Indium Nanoparticles on Chitosan-Derived Graphene

Realizing industrial-scale production of HCOOH from the CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) is very important, but the current density as well as the electrochemical potential window are still limited to date. Herein, we achieved this by integration of chemical adsorption and electrocatalytic capabilities for the CO₂RR via anchoring In nanoparticles (NPs) on biomass-derived substrates to create In/X−C (X=N, P, B) bifunctional active centers. The In NPs/chitosan-derived N-doped defective graphene (In/N-dG) catalyst had outstanding performance for the CO₂RR with a nearly 100 % Faradaic efficiency (FE) of HCOOH across a wide potential window. Particularly, at 1.2 A ⋅ cm⁻² high current density, the FE of HCOOH was as high as 96.0 %, and the reduction potential was as low as −1.17 V vs RHE. When using a membrane electrode assembly (MEA), a pure HCOOH solution could be obtained at the cathode without further separation and purification. The FE of HCOOH was still up to 93.3 % at 0.52 A ⋅ cm⁻², and the HCOOH production rate could reach 9.051 mmol ⋅ h⁻¹ ⋅ cm⁻². Our results suggested that the defects and multilayer structure in In/N-dG could not only enhance CO₂ chemical adsorption capability, but also trigger the formation of an electron-rich catalytic environment around In sites to promote the generation of HCOOH.     

Heavy Metallic and Organometallic Ions Scavenging Using Silica‐Based Adsorbent Functionalized with Ligands Containing Sulfur and Nitrogen Elements

A variety of silica‐based solid phases, whose surfaces are functionalized with ligands containing sulfur and nitrogen elements, are used as self‐supporting adsorbents for environmental remediation evaluation and potential separation application. Each adsorbent is tested for its ability to scavenge five metallic ions: Hg²⁺, Cu²⁺, Cd²⁺, Mn²⁺, Pb²⁺, and two organometallic ions: ethylmercury and phenylmercury, from independent homoionic solutions at both neutral and acidic pH values. The results indicate that the percentage of these ions scavenged by a given adsorbent varies, and is found to be highly related to the structural environment in the vicinity of the sulfur and nitrogen elements on the ligand. It is believed that the scavenging of metallic ions is a result of the complexation formation between the metallic ions and the ligands containing sulfur and nitrogen elements, and is not due to the irreversible association chemistry with the sulfur or nitrogen element itself. In the case of organometallic ions, a π‐π interaction is thought to be involved in the adsorption with ligands containing an aromatic moiety in addition to the aforementioned forces. The time needed to reach the maximum percent of adsorption decreases as the amount of adsorbent increases. The longer the adsorption time, the higher percent of ion is removed. Other factors, such as the temperature and the acidity in the liquid phase of the matrix affect the percentage of ions scavenged as well.     

Some remarks on sufficient conditions for nonsmooth functions

We discuss some results of the paper Recht (1993) in which the author states first-order sufficient conditions for a local minimum in a nonsmooth setting using some kind of generalized derivatives. It will be shown that part of the results has to be improved. Moreover, it is shown that an extension to infinite-dimensional spaces is impossible.     

1H NMR确证6-氟-5(或7)-氯-3-苯基-4-(1H)-喹啉酮衍生物的结构

作者合成了6-氟-3-(取代)苯基-4-(¹H)-喹啉酮的5-氯衍生物与7-氯衍生物,二者极性差异小,难于分离,以混合物形式存在.所合成的化合物均未见文献报道,本文通过¹H NMR上的化学位移、积分面积以及偶合常数确证了混合物中两组份的结构.     

Synthesis and characterization of copolymers of β-cyclodextrin derivatives

Cyclodextrins (CDs) are cyclic oligosaccharides made up of d-glucose units connected by 1,4-glucosidic linkages. β-CD is a cyclical starch derivative containing seven glucopyranose units. β-CD derivatives have characteristic property of larger surface area, robust mechanical strength, high surface to volume ratio, electrical and optical properties for analyte determination, good dispersion, easy removal of the template, surface modification, functionalization and handling capacity. In this work, an attempt is made to prepare succinyl-β-CD-acrylamide (S-β-CD-AA) copolymer and β-CD-malic anhydride (β-CD-MAH) copolymer. For the synthesis of S-β-CD-AA, S-β-CD derivative is prepared and further, acrylamide (AA) along with cross-linker undergoes free radical copolymerization for the formation of gel like product. The degree of succinylation (DS) of β-CD derivative is estimated. S-β-CD-AA copolymer showed potential swelling, and deswelling characteristic. Another copolymer is prepared from β-CD malic anhydride derivative. Further, the derivative is treated with cellulose and ethylene diamine tetra acetate (EDTA) to form β-CD-MAH copolymer. The two derivatives are characterized by several techniques. Thermal stability of these copolymers is estimated with the help of thermogravimetric analysis. The basic characterization of the presence of functional groups is done using UV–visible spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. The elemental analysis helped to estimate C, H, N, S in the synthesized compounds. The surface morphology characterization is done with the help of scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction analysis helped in determination of crystal structure of β-CD-MAH. β-CD derivatives prepared may be potential candidate to prepare inclusion complex, in drug delivery, drug loading and several similar applications.