Room temperature molten salts as lithium battery electrolyte

In the present study, are reported investigations obtained with the room temperature molten salt (RTMS) ethyl-methyl-imidazolium bis-(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)-imide (EMI-TFSI) in order to use it as solvent in lithium battery. The thermal stability, viscosity, conductivity and electrochemical properties are presented. A solution of 1m lithium bis-(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)-imide (LiTFSI) in EMI-TFSI has been used to test the electrolyte in a battery with LiCoO₂ and Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ as respectively cathode and anode materials. Cycling and power measurements have been obtained. The results have been compared with those obtained with a molten salt formulated with a different anion, BF₄⁻ and with a conventional liquid organic solvent EC/DMC containing LiTFSI. The 1m LiTFSI/EMI-TFSI electrolyte provides the best cycling performance: a capacity up to 106 mAh g⁻¹ is still delivered after 200 cycles, with 1C rate at 25 °C.     

Low‐Temperature Chemical Synthesis of High‐Purity Diacylglycerols (DAG) from Monoacylglycerols (MAG)

A chemical method was developed for low‐temperature synthesis of DAG from MAG followed by an easy purification procedure in order to obtain high‐purity DAG. Solvent‐assisted and solvent‐free reaction conditions were used, combined with different catalysts (sodium methoxide, p‐toluenesulfonic acid, methanesulfonic acid, and sulfuric acid). All reactions were performed at 35 and 70 °C. By increasing both acidity and polarity of the catalyst the equilibrium shifts towards the formation of DAG. When using sulfuric acid in solvent‐assisted condition at 70 °C, 88 % conversion was obtained after 20 min of reaction (77 % w/w DAG in the reaction mixture after evaporation of the solvent). After purifying by means of column chromatography, 96 % pure DAG were obtained. The overall yield of DAG was 81 %.     

Sustainable Oxidative Cleavage of Vegetable Oils into Diacids by Organo-Modified Molybdenum Oxide Heterogeneous Catalysts

Exploiting vegetable oils to produce industrially valuable diacids via an eco‐friendly process requires an efficient and recyclable catalyst. In this work, a novel catalytic system based on organo‐modified molybdenum trioxide was synthesized by a green hydrothermal method in one simple step, using Mo powder as precursor, hydrogen peroxide, and amphiphilic surfactants cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and tetramethylammonium bromide (TMAB) as capping agents. The synthesized materials were first characterized by different techniques including XRD, SEM, TGA, and FT‐IR. Interestingly, various morphologies were obtained depending on the nature of the surfactants and synthetic conditions. The synthesized catalysts were employed in oxidative cleavage of oleic acid, the most abundant unsaturated fatty acid, to produce azelaic and pelargonic acids with a benign oxidant, H₂O₂. Excellent catalytic activities resulting in full conversion of initial oleic acid were obtained, particularly for CTAB‐capped molybdenum oxide (CTAB/Mo molar ratio of 1:3) that gave 83 and 68% yields of production of azelaic and pelargonic acids, respectively. These are the highest yields that have been obtained for this reaction by heterogeneous catalysts up to now. Moreover, the CTAB‐capped catalyst could be conveniently separated from the reaction mixture by simple centrifugation and reused without significant loss of activity up to at least four cycles.     

Adsorption of a weakly charged polymer on an oppositely charged colloidal particle: Monte Carlo simulations investigation

Monte Carlo simulations were used to investigate the conformational and electrical properties of isolated weak polyelectrolytes in the presence of an oppositely charged particle. Titrations curves were calculated to get an insight into the role of pH on the degree of ionization and conformation of isolated chains. The effect of ionic concentration and polyelectrolyte length on the titration curves was also investigated. The complex formation between the isolated polyelectrolyte and the oppositely charged particle was considered at different pH and ionic concentration values. The adsorption/desorption limit was calculated and the effect of the polyelectrolyte adsorption on the titration curves investigated. In particular, it was demonstrated that the presence of an oppositely charged particle clearly increases the degree of ionization of the weak polyelectrolyte and that ionic concentration plays a subtle role by increasing/reducing both the attractive energy between the polyelectrolyte and the particle and the polyelectrolyte degree of ionization.     

Organic phase PPO biosensor based on hydrophilic films of electropolymerized polypyrrole

We described herein, the construction of an organic phase enzyme electrode (OPEE) via polyphenol oxidase (PPO) entrapment within a hydrophilic polypyrrole film electrogenerated from on a new bispyrrolic derivative (1) containing a long hydrophilic spacer. The so-called “adsorption step procedure” was adopted for the preparation of the organic phase PPO biosensor. The amperometric detection of catechol was carried out in anhydrous chloroform at −0.2 V versus Ag/AgCl. The electroanalytical parameters of the biosensor strongly depend on its configuration and on the hydration state of the enzyme matrix. The best sensitivity obtained for catechol in chloroform was 15.6 mA M⁻¹ cm⁻².     

Microwave-Assisted Synthesis of the Flexible Iron-based MIL-88B Metal–Organic Framework for Advanced Energetic Systems

The 3D metal–organic framework (MOF), MIL-88B, built from the trivalent metal ions and the ditopic 1,4-Benzene dicarboxylic acid linker (H₂BDC), distinguishes itself from the other MOFs for its flexibility and high thermal stability. MIL-88B was synthesized by a rapid microwave-assisted solvothermal method at high power (850 W). The iron-based MIL-88B [Fe₃.O.Cl.(O₂C–C₆H₄–CO₂)₃] exposed oxygen and iron content of 29% and 24%, respectively, which offers unique properties as an oxygen-rich catalyst for energetic systems. Upon dispersion in an organic solvent and integration into ammonium perchlorate (AP) (the universal oxidizer for energetic systems), the dispersion of the MOF particles into the AP energetic matrix was uniform (investigated via elemental mapping using an EDX detector). Therefore, MIL-88B(Fe) could probe AP decomposition with the exclusive formation of mono-dispersed Fe₂O₃ nanocatalyst during the AP decomposition. The evolved nanocatalyst can offer superior combustion characteristics. XRD pattern for the MIL-88B(Fe) framework TGA residuals confirmed the formation of α-Fe₂O₃ nanocatalyst as a final product. The catalytic efficiency of MIL-88B(Fe) on AP thermal behavior was assessed via DSC and TGA. AP solely demonstrated a decomposition enthalpy of 733 J g^?1, while AP/MIL-88B(Fe) showed a 66% higher decomposition enthalpy of 1218 J g^?1; the main exothermic decomposition temperature was decreased by 71 °C. Besides, MIL-88B(Fe) resulted in a decrease in AP decomposition activation energy by 23% and 25% using Kissinger and Kissinger–Akahira–Sunose (KAS) models, respectively.

     

Agarose-based hydrogel as an electrografting cell

An agarose gel was used as an electrochemical cell to graft vinylic polymer layers on conductive surfaces by electro-initiated radical electrografting of various water-soluble and hydrophobic vinylic monomers in the presence of diazonium ions. The process was followed by in situ electrochemical measurements and the resulting grafted layer was characterized by infrared (IRRAS) and photoelectron (XPS) spectroscopy. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Survey of the Chemical Defence Potential of Diatoms: Screening of Fifty Species for α,β,γ,δ-unsaturated aldehydes

In recent years a negative influence of diatom-derived ,,,-unsaturated aldehydes (PUA) on the reproductive success of copepods and invertebrates has been suggested. Since adverse chemical properties of diatoms would question the traditional view of the marine food web, this defense mechanism has been investigated in detail, but the PUA-release by test organisms has only been determined in a few cases. The observed effects were nevertheless frequently discussed from a general point of view often leading to contradictory conclusions. We have examined the PUA-production of 50 diatom species (71 isolates) in order to provide a basis for the interpretation of laboratory and field results on the influence of diatom food on the reproductive success of their consumers. PUA-production is species and strain dependent. Thirty-six percent of the investigated species (38% of the cultivated isolates) release ,,,-unsaturated aldehydes upon cell disruption in concentrations from 0.01 to 9.8 fmol per cell. Thalassiosira rotula and Thalassiosira pacifica, major spring-bloom forming diatoms isolated from Roscoff (Bretagne, English Channel, France) and Puget Sound (Washington, USA) were among the PUA-producing strains.     

Comparison of low‐temperature processes for oil and coenzyme Q10 extraction from mackerel and herring

Among the fat fish species available from Eastern Quebec (Canada), whole Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) and herring (Clupea harengus) represent abundant fishery resources which are currently under‐utilized. They have relatively high contents of oil and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in their tissues, which could be valuable for nutraceutical applications. Therefore, two low‐temperature extraction processes were compared for the recovery of oil and CoQ10 from these resources, such as enzymatic hydrolysis using Protamex? and supercritical CO₂ (SCO₂) using fish lyophilizates. The results revealed that highest yields of oil and CoQ10 were obtained using the enzymatic hydrolysis process with mackerel. Whatever the process used, CoQ10 concentrations were higher in herring oil, due mainly to a more selective extraction of CoQ10 over that of the oil. The highest CoQ10 recovery rates (extraction efficiencies) were obtained using the enzymatic hydrolysis process with both types of fish, but also the SCO₂ process with herring under some conditions. For mackerel, the lower CoQ10 recovery rates obtained from the SCO₂ process were explained by its more important matrix effect. An economic assessment of both processes revealed that the enzymatic hydrolysis extraction process would be the most promising for up‐scaling the recovery of oil and CoQ10 from these resources.     

Synthesis and in vitro evaluation of alpha-GalCer epimers

alpha-GalCer (also known as KRN7000) is an immunomodulatory glycolipid that is known to potently activate invariant natural killer T (NKT) cells upon CD1d-mediated stimulation. Because Th1 and Th2 cytokines, which are released after alpha-GalCer presentation, antagonize each other's effects, alpha-GalCer analogues that induce a biased Th1/Th2 response are highly awaited. In this context, we report the synthesis and in vitro evaluation of alpha-Gal-D-xylo-Cer and two alpha-Gal-L-lyxo-Cer analogues, one with the natural acyl chain, the other with a truncated chain.