Performance evaluation of PVdF gel polymer electrolytes

A series of gel polymer electrolytes containing PVdF as homo polymer, a mixture of 1:1 Ethylene Carbonate (EC) : Propylene Carbonate (PC) as plasticizer and lithium-bistrifluoromethane sulphone imide [imide — LiN (CF₃SO₂)₂] has been developed. Amounts of polymer (PVdF), plasticizer and the imide lithium salt have been varied as a function of their weight ratio composition in this regard. Dimensionally stable films possessing appreciable room temperature conductivity values have been obtained with respect to certain weight ratio compositions. However, conductivity data have been recorded at different possible temperatures, i.e., from 20 °C to 65 °C. XRD and DSC studies were carried out to characterize the polymer films for better amorphicity and reduced glass transition temperature, respectively. The electrochemical interface stability of the PVdF based gel polymer electrolytes over a range of storage period (24 h – 10 days) have been investigated using A.C. impedance studies. Test cells containing Li/gel polymer electrolyte (GPE)/Li have been subjected to undergo 50 charge-discharge cycles in order to understand the electrochemical performance behaviour of the dimensionally stable films of superior conductivity. The observed capacity fade of less than 20% even after 50 cycles is in favour of the electrochemical stability of the gel polymer electrolyte containing 27.5% PVdF −67.5 % EC+PC −5% imide salt. Cyclic voltammetry studies establish the possibility of a reversible intercalation — deintercalation process involving Li⁺ ions through the gel polymer electrolyte.     

Synthesis and Surface‐Spectroscopic Characterization of Photoisomerizable glyco‐SAMs on Au(111)

Photoisomerizable glyco‐SAMs (self‐assembled monolayers), utilizing synthetic azobenzene glycoside derivatives were fabricated. The ultimate goal of this project is to assay the influence of the 3D arrangement of sugar ligands on cell adhesion, and eventually make cell adhesion photoswitchable. However, it is a prerequisite for any biological study on the spatial conditions of carbohydrate recognition, that photoisomerization of the surface molecules can be verified. Here, we employed IRRAS and XPS to spectroscopically characterize glyco‐SAMs. In particular and unprecedented to date, we prove reversible E→Z→E isomerization of azobenzene glycoside‐terminated SAMs.     

A Comprehensive Review on Therapeutic Perspectives of Phytosterols in Insulin Resistance: A Mechanistic Approach

Natural products in the form of functional foods have become increasingly popular due to their protective effects against life-threatening diseases, low risk of adverse effects, affordability, and accessibility. Plant components such as phytosterol, in particular, have drawn a lot of press recently due to a link between their consumption and a modest incidence of global problems, such as Type 2 Diabetes mellitus (T2DM), cancer, and cardiovascular disease. In the management of diet-related metabolic diseases, such as T2DM and cardiovascular disorders, these plant-based functional foods and nutritional supplements have unquestionably led the market in terms of cost-effectiveness, therapeutic efficacy, and safety. Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder categoriszed by high blood sugar and insulin resistance, which influence major metabolic organs, such as the liver, adipose tissue, and skeletal muscle. These chronic hyperglycemia fallouts result in decreased glucose consumption by body cells, increased fat mobilisation from fat storage cells, and protein depletion in human tissues, keeping the tissues in a state of crisis. In addition, functional foods such as phytosterols improve the body’s healing process from these crises by promoting a proper physiological metabolism and cellular activities. They are plant-derived steroid molecules having structure and function similar to cholesterol, which is found in vegetables, grains, nuts, olive oil, wood pulp, legumes, cereals, and leaves, and are abundant in nature, along with phytosterol derivatives. The most copious phytosterols seen in the human diet are sitosterol, stigmasterol, and campesterol, which can be found in free form, as fatty acid/cinnamic acid esters or as glycosides processed by pancreatic enzymes. Accumulating evidence reveals that phytosterols and diets enriched with them can control glucose and lipid metabolism, as well as insulin resistance. Despite this, few studies on the advantages of sterol control in diabetes care have been published. As a basis, the primary objective of this review is to convey extensive updated information on the possibility of managing diabetes and associated complications with sterol-rich foods in molecular aspects.     

Design,synthesis, and antibacterial studies of potent pyrazolinyltriazoles

Research on Chemical Intermediates - A library of pyrazolinyltriazole hybrids (3a–l, 4a–l) was synthesized via azide–alkyne dipolar (Huisgen) cycloaddition of azidoacetyl...     

Evaluation of suitable methods to synthesize battery active LiNiO2

A detailed investigation has been made on the possibility of synthesizing LiNiO₂ through different methods using a variety of precursors and varying heat treating conditions with a view to identify a suitable method to synthesize LiNiO₂ and to understand the influence of synthesis method and the nature of the precursors towards the performance characteristics of LiNiO₂. In this regard, four different methods,viz., solid-state, organic precursors, solution combustion and microwave methods were adopted involving suitable combinations of lithium and nickel precursors. All the synthesized compounds were characterized for their phase purity (PXRD), local cation environment (FTIR), particle size, surface area, and electrochemical behavior (charge-discharge). Based on the results obtained especially from PXRD and charge-discharge studies, the “all-hydroxide” precursors of Li and Ni were found to be effective in yielding battery active LiNiO₂ as far as the solid-state and microwave-assisted methods are concerned. With regard to solution synthesis methods, citrate precursor and the combustion method involving hydrazine hydrate fuel were found to yield better performing LiNiO₂, compared to the rest of the combinations attempted in both categories. However, among the wet chemistry based solution methods the present study recommends solution combustion method with hydrazine hydrate as fuel to synthesize electrochemically active LiNiO₂ as it was found to exhibit a stable discharge capacity of 177 mAh/g at least up to 20 cycles.     

Evaluation of fuels for the synthesis of Li2CoMn3O8

Li₂CoMn₃O₈, a 5 V cathode material used in rechargeable lithium batteries, has been synthesized by adopting a novel technique of using fuels along with the nitrate reactants. The effect of the fuel on the synthesis of Li₂CoMn₃O₈ has been analyzed in terms of the physical and electrochemical properties of the final product formed by various methods such as solid-state carbonate fusion and the solution route using acetate and nitrate precursors. Powder X-ray diffraction FT IR spectrum, particle size, surface area and SEM analysis were carried out. The combustion method, also known as selfpropagating high temperature (SPHT) method, has been employed in the present study by using nitrate mixtures of the respective salts and a nitrogeneous fuel (urea or glycine) at a temperature of 300 °C for 3 hrs. The nitrate reactants without the addition of fuel gave only a deliquescent product even at elevated temperature (600 °C) thus indicating the necessity of fuels. Similar attempts using acetate reactants with and without the addition of nitrogeneous fuels were made separately in order to find out the necessity of fuel also in this case. The characterization of the product in terms of purity, single-phase formation and surface morphology suggested that the fuel played no role in the case of the acetate precursors. A comparative study was made on the products obtained by the acetate precursor, combustion method and the conventional carbonate method. Among the three methods, the combustion method with glycine as fuel yielded the spinel phase with high purity Li₂CoMn₃O₈ with superior electrochemical behavior both in terms of high cell voltage and good cycle life behavior.     

Stafia-1: a STAT5a-Selective Inhibitor Developed via Docking-Based Screening of in Silico O-Phosphorylated Fragments

We present a new approach for the identification of inhibitors of phosphorylation-dependent protein–protein interaction domains, in which phenolic fragments are adapted by in silico O-phosphorylation before docking-based screening. From a database of 10 369 180 compounds, we identified 85 021 natural product-derived phenolic fragments, which were virtually O-phosphorylated and screened for in silico binding to the STAT3 SH2 domain. Nine screening hits were then synthesized, eight of which showed a degree of in vitro inhibition of STAT3. After analysis of its selectivity profile, the most potent inhibitor was then developed to Stafia-1, the first small molecule shown to preferentially inhibit the STAT family member STAT5a over the close homologue STAT5b. A phosphonate prodrug based on Stafia-1 inhibited STAT5a with selectivity over STAT5b in human leukemia cells, providing the first demonstration of selective in vitro and intracellular inhibition of STAT5a by a small-molecule inhibitor.     

Electronic structure and structural stability of LaAl2 and LaAl3—A comparative study

The large structural stability regime of LaAl₂ and LaAl₃ as a function of pressure is investigated by the band structure calculations using the FP-LAPW method. An earlier experimental study has revealed that there is no structural phase transition at ∼35 and ∼30 GPa for LaAl₂ and LaAl₃, respectively. Our calculations indicate that in the density of states curve of LaAl₂, the Fermi level (E_F) lies in a slope between bonding maxima and antibonding minima. At high pressures the E_F moves slightly towards the valley, but this shifting does not affect its structural stability. In LaAl₃, the E_F falls in a flat region in the density of states and does not move even up to 33 GPa. The band dispersion curves for both the compounds show movement of bands under the influence of pressure. Some of them cross the Fermi level leading to so called Lifshitz transitions. However, it is seen that these electronic changes do not manifest into any volume anomaly in LaAl₃ under pressure. Our study clearly shows that the density of states behavior for LaAl₂ and LaAl₃ satisfies the Yamashita-Asano criterion for structural stability. The theoretical equations of state, bulk modulus and its pressure derivative values are compared with the experimental values.     

Investigations on temperature dependent structural evolution of NaPO3 glass

The understanding of molecular level structural information of phosphate glasses is very much essential. The unique microwave-absorbing ability of NaH₂PO₄·2H₂O was found to be very useful for preparing crystal and glassy sodium super ionic conductors (Nasicon's) as a component of batch mixtures. In this work NaPO₃ glass was prepared by both conventional melt quench and microwave heating from NaH₂PO₄·2H₂O as a starting material. The structure of NaPO₃ glass and their structural evolution upon heating through glass transition were probed by combination of complementary techniques like differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and thermo-Raman spectroscopy.This revised version was published online in November 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Iron doped lithium cobalt oxides as lithium intercalating cathode materials

Layered transition metal oxides of the formula LiMO₂ have good lithium insertion properties for which reason LiCoO₂ and LiNiO₂ have been exploited in practical lithium rocking chair batteries. Another member of the LiMO₂ series, LiFeO₂, should be an attractive cathode material considering the cheapness and environment-friendliness of iron compounds. Its rock-salt structure, however, does not allow significant amounts of lithium to be reversibly intercalated in its structure. Synthesis of layered LiFeO₂ and study of its lithium intercalating properties have been of limited success. Therefore, an attempt has been made here to study LiCo_1−yFe_yO₂ solid solutions (0 ≤ y ≤ 0.4) as prospective cathode materials. XRD, FTIR, Atomic absorption spectroscopy, Particle size and Surface area analysis were carried out in this regard towards the physical characterization of the entire series of LiCo_1−yFe_yO₂ compounds. The electrochemical discharge capacity of these materials is explained as a function of the iron content.