Recent Advances of AIE-Active Conjugated Polymers: Synthesis and Application

Conjugated polymers (CPs) have long been recognized as an important class of materials. The highly conjugated backbone of the CPs will facilitate the rapid exciton migration and result in amplification of fluorescence signals. However, CPs are likely to aggregate and form excimers in solid states, directly leading to the fluorescence quenching, namely aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ), hence inhibiting their prospective utilizations in a large degree. Since the effect of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) is opposite to that of notorious ACQ, the AIE has raised great attention from scientists. CPs with AIE or aggregation-enhanced emission (AEE) features may help to solve the ACQ problem and meanwhile impart polymers with new properties and practical applications. In this review, we summarize the recent progress on the preparation of CPs with AIE or AEE characteristics, where AIE-active luminogens are located at polymer backbones or pendants. Their potential applications including fluorescent sensors, biological probes, and active layers for the fabrication of light-emitting diodes are also described.     

Comment on “Extending Hirshfeld‐I to bulk and periodic materials”

In recent years, several methods have been developed that partition the electron density among atoms using spherically symmetric atomic weights. D. E. P. Vanpoucke, P. Bultinck, and I. Van Driessche (J. Comput. Chem. 2012, doi: 10.1002/jcc.23088) recently reported a periodic implementation of the Hirshfeld‐I method that uses a combination of Becke‐style and uniform integration grids and modified atomic reference densities to compute net atomic charges in periodic materials. Herein, this method is discussed in the context of earlier periodic implementations of the Hirshfeld‐I method, the Iterated Stockholder Atoms method, and the density derived electrostatic and chemical method.     

Upgrading Solid Digestate from Anaerobic Digestion of Agricultural Waste as Performance Enhancer for Starch-Based Mulching Biofilm

Developing a green and sustainable method to upgrade biogas wastes into high value-added products is attracting more and more public attention. The application of solid residues as a performance enhancer in the manufacture of biofilms is a prospective way to replace conventional plastic based on fossil fuel. In this work, solid digestates from the anaerobic digestion of agricultural wastes, such as straw, cattle and chicken manures, were pretreated by an ultrasonic thermo-alkaline treatment to remove the nonfunctional compositions and then incorporated in plasticized starch paste to prepare mulching biofilms by the solution casting method. The results indicated that solid digestate particles dispersed homogenously in the starch matrix and gradually aggregated under the action of a hydrogen bond, leading to a transformation of the composites to a high crystalline structure. Consequently, the composite biofilm showed a higher tensile strength, elastic modulus, glass transition temperature and degradation temperature compared to the pure starch-based film. The light, water and GHG (greenhouse gas) barrier properties of the biofilm were also reinforced by the addition of solid digestates, performing well in sustaining the soil quality and minimizing N₂O or CH₄ emissions. As such, recycling solid digestates into a biodegradable plastic substitute not only creates a new business opportunity by producing high-performance biofilms but also reduces the environmental risk caused by biogas waste and plastics pollution.     

Bright White‐Light Emission from a Single Organic Compound in the Solid State

White‐light‐emitting materials and devices have attracted enormous interest because of their great potential for various lighting applications. We herein describe the light‐emitting properties of a series of new difunctional organic molecules of remarkably simple structure consisting of two terminal 4‐pyridone push–pull subunits separated by a polymethylene chain. They were found to emit almost “pure” white light as a single organic compound in the solid state, as well as when incorporated in a polymer film. To the best of our knowledge, they are the simplest white‐light‐emitting organic molecules reported to date.     

PET Imaging of Bacterial Infections with Fluorine‐18‐Labeled Maltohexaose

A positron emission tomography (PET) tracer composed of ¹⁸F‐labeled maltohexaose (MH¹⁸F) can image bacteria in vivo with a sensitivity and specificity that are orders of magnitude higher than those of fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸FDG). MH¹⁸F can detect early‐stage infections composed of as few as 10⁵ E. coli colony‐forming units (CFUs), and can identify drug resistance in bacteria in vivo. MH¹⁸F has the potential to improve the diagnosis of bacterial infections given its unique combination of high specificity and sensitivity for bacteria.     

A Single‐Atom Manipulation Approach for Synthesis of Atomically Mixed Nanoalloys as Efficient Catalysts

Synthesis of well‐defined atomically mixed alloy nanoparticles on desired substrates is an ultimate goal for their practical application. Herein we report a general approach for preparing atomically mixed AuPt, AuPd, PtPd, AuPtPd NAs(nanoalloys) through single‐atom level manipulation. By utilizing the ubiquitous tendency of aggregation of single atoms into nanoparticles at elevated temperatures, we have synthesized nanoalloys on a solid solvent with CeO₂ as a carrier and transition‐metal single atoms as an intermediate state. The supported nanoalloys/CeO₂ with ultra‐low noble metal content (containing 0.2 wt % Au and 0.2 wt % Pt) exhibit enhanced catalytic performance towards complete CO oxidation at room temperature and remarkable thermostability. This work provides a general strategy for facile and rapid synthesis of well‐defined atomically mixed nanoalloys that can be applied for a range of emerging techniques.     

Emission Quenching in Tetraphenylfuran Crystal: Why This Propeller-Shaped Molecule Does Not Emit in the Condensed Phase

Due to their substantial fluorescence quantum yields in the crystalline phase, propeller-shaped molecules have recently gained significant attention as potential emissive materials for optoelectronic applications. For the family of cyclopentadiene derivatives, light-emission is highly dependent on the nature of heteroatomic substitutions. In this paper, we investigate excited state relaxation pathways in the tetraphenyl-furan molecule (TPF), which in contrast with other molecules in the family, shows emission quenching in the solid-state. For the singlet manifold, our calculations show nonradiative pathways associated with C-O elongation are blocked in both vacuum and the solid state. A fraction of the population can be transferred to the triplet manifold and, subsequently, to the ground state in both phases. This process is expected to be relatively slow due to the small spin-orbit couplings between the relevant singlet-triplet states. Emission quenching in crystalline TPF seems to be in line with more efficient exciton hopping rates. Our simulations help clarify the role of conical intersections, population of the triplet states and crystalline structure in the emissive response of propeller-shaped molecules.     

原子吸收光谱法测定冬枣叶茶中的8种金属元素

采用湿法对沾化冬枣叶茶样进行消化处理,利用火焰原子吸收光谱法测定了茶中K、Na、Ca、Mg、Fe、Mn、Cu、Zn的含量.结果表明,该法的加标回收率为95.2%～104.2%,RSD≤3.35%.该法操作简单,结果准确,为开发和利用冬枣叶茶提供了一定的科学依据.     

Anion detection by aggregation-induced enhanced emission (AIEE) of urea-functionalized tetraphenylethylenes

Substituted tetraphenylethylenes (TPEs) have been prepared that feature four alkyl or aryl urea groups arrayed along the periphery. Exposure of these TPEs to monovalent anions (halide, carboxylate, nitrate, and azide) resulted in enhanced fluorescence emission attributed to aggregation of the TPE molecules via urea-anion hydrogen bonding. Emission enhancement correlated with anion basicity, with fluoride ion eliciting the largest fluorescence response. Increased fluorescence emission could also be detected visually in solutions viewed under UV light. This study demonstrates the feasibility of TPE-based fluorescent anion sensors/detectors, and it is envisioned that additional design modifications may afford anion-selective fluorescent sensors.