Process Engineering Considerations of Electrochemical Storage

Thermodynamically, electric storages can be generally characterized as a type of regenerative machines able to operate in a work and a power machine mode. A consideration of the concentration term of the Nernst equation already shows a first principal difference between batch and flow processes, because the reaction coordinate depends on time for batch processes and on the flow coordinate for flow processes. Ionic substances may be stored within a volume surrounding the electrodes or on the surface of the electrodes itself. The volume concentrations of the reactants are thus a determining parameter of electrochemical storage beside voltage and the ratio of released electrons per reacting reference substance. Surface storage allows only batch processes while volume storage allows batch and flow processes. This characterization identifies the benefits of certain reactions regarding mass and volume related energy density in a simple way at a very early stage of development. It also allows a simple calculation of possible discharging times.     

Photovoltaic textile structure using polyaniline/carbon nanotube composite materials

In this paper, an investigation of flexible electrodes for photovoltaic textile structures utilizing polymer‐based organic materials is presented. The composite structure consisting of a blend of water dispersible carbon nanotube:polyaniline (CNT:PANI) components with poly(3,4 ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) was applied to be used as the hole collecting electrode in photovoltaic textile applications. Both photovoltaic textiles and conventional solar cells were fabricated by using a blend of poly(3‐hexylthiophene‐2,5‐diyl) (P3HT):(6,6)‐phenyl C61‐butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). All devices were characterized by measuring current versus voltage characteristics under AM 1.5 conditions. The nanoscale morphology of the photovoltaic structures was investigated using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy.     

Development of Electrical Discharge Machinable ZTA Ceramics with 24 vol% of TiC,TiN, TiCN,TiB2 and WC as Electrically Conductive Phase

In order to develop ED‐machinable ceramics with high strength, toughness and wear resistance, ZTA was chosen as matrix material. A dispersion of 24 vol% electrically conductive phase (TiC, TiN, TiCN, TiB₂ and WC) was added. These composites were hot pressed for 1 h at 60 MPa and temperatures ranging from 1475°C to 1550°C. Mechanical and electrical properties were investigated. The influence of the electrically conductive phase on the surface quality after EDM was analyzed. The mechanical properties and machining quality were found to depend significantly on the type of conductive phase added. Machining of a complex shaped ZTA‐TiC component was demonstrated.     

Oxidative Alkene Cleavage by Chemical and Enzymatic Methods

The cleavage of alkenes to the corresponding carbonyl products is a widely employed method in organic synthesis, especially to introduce oxygen functionalities into molecules, remove protecting groups and tailor large molecules. Chemical methods available for alkene cleavage include, for instance, ozonolysis, several metal‐based variants (KMnO₄, OsO₄, RuO₄, etc.), electrochemical alternatives, singlet oxygen, hypervalent iodine and organic molecules in combination with oxygen. Furthermore, several enzymatic methods for alkene cleavage have been described to establish safe, mild and selective oxidation methods. Various heme and non‐heme iron‐dependent enzymes catalyse the alkene cleavage at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure in an aqueous buffer, showing good chemo‐ and regioselectivities in selected cases. Quite recently some Cu‐, Mn‐ and Ni‐dependent enzymes have been identified for this reaction. This review gives an overview of the different chemical and enzymatic methods available for the cleavage of alkenes.

     

Asymmetric Synthesis of 3‐Substituted Cyclohexylamine Derivatives from Prochiral Diketones via Three Biocatalytic Steps

Prochiral bicyclic diketones were transformed to a single diastereomer of 3‐substituted cyclohexylamine derivatives via three consecutive biocatalytic steps. The two chiral centres were set up by a C C hydrolase (6‐oxocamphor hydrolase) in the first step and by an ω‐transaminase in the last step. The esterification of the intermediate keto acid was catalysed by a lipase in the second step if possible. For two substrates the C C hydrolytic step as well as the esterification could be run simultaneously in a one‐pot cascade in an organic solvent. In one example, the reaction mixture of the first two steps could be directly subjected to bio‐amination in an organic solvent without the need to change the reaction medium. Depending on the choice of the ω‐transaminase employed and the substrate the cis‐ as well as the trans‐diastereomers could be obtained in optically pure forms.