4th order derivative spectrophotometric determination of quinine in soft drinks

A method is developed for the 4rd order derivative spectrophotometric determination of down to 1–6 g/ml of quinine. This method has been applied to its determination in soft drinks. Comparison are made between this method and a spectrofluorimetric method.     

Polyurethane Molecular Stamps for the in situ Synthesis of DNA Microarray

Fabrication of polyurethane molecular stamps (PU stamps) based on polypropylene glycol (PPG) and toluene dissocyanate (TDI), using 3,3′-dichloro-4,4′-methylenedianiline (MOCA) as the crosslinker ,is reported. It was shown from the contact angle measurement that PU stamps surface has good affinity with acetonitrile,guaranteeing the well distribution of DNA monomers on patterned stamps. Laser confocal fluorescence microscopy images of oligonucleotide arrays after hybridization confirmed polyurethane is an excellent material for molecular stamps when ransferring polar chemicals and conducting rections on interfaces by stamping.     

Influence of Grain Size, Oxygen Stoichiometry, and Synthesis Conditions on the γ-Fe2O3 Vacancies Ordering and Lattice Parameters

The soft chemistry method has been used to synthesize γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles: various synthesis temperature were applied to obtain nanometric powders with crystallite size in the 9-14 nm range. Powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrophotometry, surface area measurements, and electron microscopy (TEM, SEM). It is clearly shown that these nanometric powders are very well crystallized as indicated by XRD and IR spectra which present substructural bands attributed to vacancies ordering (P4₁32). Based on these model materials and in the crystallite size range studied here, cell parameter appears to be not linked to crystallite size. It rather depends both on hydroxide adsorption and chemical composition.     

Reglochemistry in Electrophilic Reactions of Propanedlthio-Substituted Allylic Anions Influenced by the γ-Substituents

The dienyl anion 1f, generated from metallation of 2-(1,3-pentadienyl)-1,3-dithianc with n-BuLi in THF, reacted exclusively at the C-1 position (α-site) with alkylating agents and ketones, but it showed some tendency toward the C-3 position (γ-site) in the reactions with benzyl bromide and aliphatic aldehydes. No reaction at the C-5 position (?-site) was observed in any studied case. Examination of the related propanedithio-substituted allylic anions having various γ-substituents revealed that the regiochemistry was remarkably influenced by the γ-substituents and the attacking electrophiles. The electronic effect according to the principle of hard and soft acids and bases is proposed to account for the observed regiochemistry, while the steric factor was minor. Two trienes, obtained by alkylations of the dienyl anion 1f with 4-bromo-1-butene and 5-pentenyl methanesulfonate, were applicable to intramolecular Diels-Alder reactions to give bicyclic compounds.     

Degradation of plasticized PVC for biomedical disposable device under soft x‐ray irradiation

Plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) used for biomedical disposable devices was studied in the non‐sterilized state after different exposure times to soft x‐ray irradiation in a commercial photoelectron spectrometer (Al Kα, 15 kV/300 W; Mg Kα, 12 kV/240 W) by XPS surface analysis. The detailed spectra of C 1s, Cl 2p and O 1s have been recorded and processed. Irradiation with soft x‐rays induces a clear decrease of the total Cl 2p intensity, an increase of total C 1s intensity and a doubling of the O 1s intensity after 45 min of irradiation with Al Kα (300 W). Irradiation with Mg Kα (240 W) is slightly less damaging. These results can be interpreted with the classical PVC degradation model, e.g. bond cleavage with the formation of HCl gas, although the Cl 2p high‐resolution spectra reveal the formation of an additional side‐product, probably CaCl₂. For further studies of plasticized PVC using XPS surface analysis it can be concluded that a complete analysis of a polymer sample should not take >10 min of x‐ray exposure in order to avoid notable polymer degradation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ionoskins: Nonvolatile,Highly Transparent,Ultrastretchable Ionic Sensory Platforms for Wearable Electronics

The primary technology of next‐generation wearable electronics pursues the development of highly deformable and stable systems. Here, nonvolatile, highly transparent, and ultrastretchable ionic conductors based on polymeric gelators [poly(methyl methacrylate‐ran‐butyl acrylate), PMMA‐r‐PBA] and ionic liquids (IL) are proposed. A crucial strategy in the molecular design of polymer gelators is copolymerization of PMMA and IL‐insoluble low glass transition temperature (T_g) polymers that can be deformed and effectively dissipate applied strains. Highly stretchable (elongation limit ≈850%), mechanically robust (elastic modulus ≈3.1 × 10⁵ Pa), and deformation durable (recovery ratio ≈96.1% after 500 stretching/releasing cycles) gels are obtained by judiciously adjusting the molecular characteristics of polymer gelators and gel composition. An extremely simple “ionic” strain sensory platform is fabricated by directly connecting the stretchable gel and a digital multimeter, exhibiting high sensitivity (gauge factor ≈2.73), stable operation (>13 000 cycles), and nonvolatility (>10 d in air). Moreover, the skin‐type strain sensor, referred to as ionoskin, is demonstrated. The gels are attached to a part of the body (e.g., finger, elbow, knee, or ankle) and various human movements are successfully monitored. The ionoskin renders the opportunity to achieve wearable ubiquitous electronics such as healthcare devices and smart textile systems.     

Controllable Stiffness Origami “Skeletons” for Lightweight and Multifunctional Artificial Muscles

Flexible, material‐based, artificial muscles enable compliant and safe technologies for human–machine interaction devices and adaptive soft robots, yet there remain long‐term challenges in the development of artificial muscles capable of mimicking flexible, controllable, and multifunctional human activity. Inspired by human limb's activity strategy, combining muscles' adjustable stiffness and joints' origami folding, controllable stiffness origami “skeletons,” which are created by laminar jamming and origami folding of multiple layers of flexible sandpaper, are embedded into a common monofunctional vacuumed‐powered cube‐shaped (CUBE) artificial muscle, thereby enabling the monofunctional CUBE artificial muscle to achieve lightweight and multifunctionality as well as controllable force/motion output without sacrificing its volume and shape. Successful demonstrations of arms self‐assembly and cooperatively gripping different objects and a “caterpillar” robot climbing different pipes illustrate high operational redundancy and high‐force output through “building blocks” assembly of multifunctional CUBE artificial muscles. Controllable stiffness origami “skeletons” offer a facile and low‐cost strategy to fabricate lightweight and multifunctional artificial muscles for numerous potential applications such as wearable assistant devices, miniature surgical instruments, and soft robots.     

Plasmonic‐Assisted Graphene Oxide Films with Enhanced Photothermal Actuation for Soft Robots

Carbon‐based materials are widely used as light‐driven soft actuators relying on their thermal desorption or expansion. However, applying a passive layer in such film construction greatly limits the actuating efficiency, e.g., bending amplitude and speed. In this work, a dual active layer strengthened bilayer composite film made of graphene oxide (GO)–polydopamine (PDA)–gold nanoparticles (Au NPs)/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is developed. In this film, the conventional passive layer is replaced by another AuNPs‐enhanced thermal responsive layer. When applying NIR light exposure, the whole film deforms controllably resulting from the water loss in the GO–PDA–Au NPs layer and thermal expansion in the PDMS layer. Benefiting from the dual active bilayer mechanism, the thin film's actuating efficiency is dramatically improved compared with that of conventional methods. Specifically, the bending amplitude is enhanced up to 173%, and the actuating speed is improved to 3.5‐fold. The soft actuator can act as an artificial arm with high actuating strength and can be used as a wireless gripper. Moreover, the film can be designed as soft robots with various locomotion modes including linear, rolling, and steering motions. The developed composite film offers new opportunities for biomimetic soft robotics as well as future applications.     

High‐Performance Ionic‐Polymer–Metal Composite: Toward Large‐Deformation Fast‐Response Artificial Muscles

As promising candidates in the field of artificial muscles, ionic‐polymer–metal composites (IPMCs) still cannot simultaneously provide large deformations and fast responses, which has limited their practical applications. In this study, to overcome this issue, a Nafion‐based IPMC with high‐quality metal electrodes is fabricated via novel isopropanol‐assisted electroless plating. The IPMC exhibits a large tip displacement (35.3 mm, 102.3°) under a low direct‐current driving voltage and ultrafast response (>10 Hz) under an alternating‐current (AC) voltage. Furthermore, the simultaneous integration of a large deformation and fast response can be achieved by the IPMC under a high‐frequency (19 Hz) AC voltage, where the largest bending amplitude is 5.9 mm and the highest bending speed reaches 224.2 mm s^?1 (596.2° s^?1). Additionally, the lightweight IPMC exhibits a decent load capacity and can lift objects 20 times heavier. The outstanding performances of the Nafion IPMC are demonstrated by mimicking biological motions such as petal opening/closing, tendril coiling/uncoiling, and high‐frequency wing flapping. This study paves the way for the fabrication of lightweight actuators with simultaneous large displacements and fast responses for promising applications in biomedical devices and bioinspired robotics.     

Surface modification of III–V semiconductors: chemical processes and electronic properties

The possibilities of controlling the surface electronic properties of III–V semiconductors by varying the adsorption chemistry are analyzed. Variations of the adsorption process parameters and the adsorbate reactivity are able to affect the surface atomic and electronic structure of the semiconductor. The adsorbate reactivity is considered within the framework of the density functional theory using the reactivity indices. The easiest way to affect the reactivity of a particular adsorbate is to create a solvation shell around it, as is possible in both liquid solutions and the gas phase (microsolvation). Solvation of ions before their adsorption by different solvents affects considerably the relative nucleophility of the central atom in the ion, which results in a different charge transfer mechanism from the surface states on adsorption, and thus, in a different modification of the surface electronic structure of the semiconductor. The effect of halogen, sulfur and metal atoms reactivity on the electronic structure of the resulting adsorbate-covered surface of III–V semiconductor is discussed.