Selective reduction of aromatic nitro compounds over recyclable hollow fiber membrane‐supported Au nanoparticles

Guanidylated poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide) (GPPO) hollow fiber membrane (HFM) supported Au nanoparticles are prepared by a simple adsorption‐reduction of Au³⁺ with sodium borohydride as a reducing agent and polyvinyl pyrrolidone as a dispersant. The novel heterogeneous catalyst shows high catalytic activity for the reduction of various aromatic nitro compounds in an aqueous medium at room temperature and can be easily reused for several runs, for example, for the reduction of nitrobenzene, the yield reaches up to 92% even after 10 cycles, indicating the potential application of GPPO HFM as a catalysts support material for sustainable chemistry. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 41268     

The Impact of PAHs Contamination on the Physicochemical Properties and Microbiological Activity of Industrial Soils

The aim of this article is the study of the potential relationships between PAHs contamination, physicochemical parameters, and microbial activity in industrial soils. The research was based on two series of measurements. The first was conducted in June 2013 and the second in November 2013. Samples used in study were collected from the area of fuel handling and a loading station, located in the Silesia region of Poland. All collected samples were characterized by the following analytical procedures: PAHs content analysis, the basic physical and chemical parameters determinations (pH, CEC, humic acids content, TC, TN, TP) and microbial activity analysis. The obtained results were also subjected to statistical analysis, based on the Pearson's correlation coefficient calculations.

Results collected during described above procedure show that: the PAHs content was highly positively correlated with C and N contents (p < 0.001) and moderately correlated with humic acids and P contents (p < 0.01). This phenomenon confirms the thesis that the increase of soil organic matter content promotes accumulation of hydrophobic organic compounds such as PAHs. Microbiological analysis shows that bacteria from the mesophilic group are most resistant to PAHs contamination. This information indicates that the organisms belonging to this group should be considered as potentially useful in the soil bioremediation processes.     

Asymmetric Contribution of Aromatic Interactions Stems from Spatial Positioning of the Interacting Aryl Pairs in β‐Hairpins

Isolated aromatic interactions in designed octapeptide β‐hairpin scaffolds display a near‐universal T‐shaped face‐to‐edge geometry in all positional permutations, with the exception of aryl‐Trp interactions. The heterogeneous asymmetric indole ring of Trp competes for a “shielding” face geometry, which lowers the scaffold stability in FtE aryl‐Trp pairs. Assessment of the contributions of aryl pairs (in the absence of solvent‐driven interactions) to the overall β‐hairpin structure reveals the superiority of Trp‐Phe and Trp‐Tyr contributions over the well‐established scaffold stabilization by Trp‐Trp.     

Preparation and characterization of chitosan films,crosslinked with symmetric aromatic dianhydrides to achieve enhanced thermal properties

This study has developed a new generation of crosslinked chitosan‐based films using symmetric aromatic dianhydrides as crosslinking agents. The formation of the dianhydride‐crosslinked chitosan hydrogel films was confirmed using Fourier transform infrared and solid‐state ¹³C NMR spectral analyses. The films obtained from these derivatives were characterized by their thermal, swelling and hydrophilic properties. The results showed that introducing a cyclic imide moiety into the chitosan matrices played a significant role in enhancing the thermal properties of these chitosan films. It was found that even at high levels of substitution, thermal stability of the studied chitosan derivatives was improved, in spite of a reduction in crystallinity. Heterocyclic imide linkages produced networks that were insoluble in both acidic and alkaline media but allowed swelling in aqueous media. An increase in the hydrophobicity of the chitosan film surfaces was observed after introduction of the cyclic imide moiety. These engineered films produced noteworthy results concerning their thermal and swelling properties. There is a need to further investigate these films for drug delivery and biomaterials applications. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry     

木质素在超临界甲醇和乙醇溶剂中液化过程分析

通过研究木质素分别在超临界甲醇和乙醇溶剂中的液化过程，分析反应温度（260～340℃）及反应时间（0～120min）对木质素在两种溶剂中的转化率、生物油收率及其组分差异的影响。实验表明，木质素在超临界乙醇中的转化率及产物收率均高于甲醇。当反应温度340℃，反应时间60min，木质素在超临界乙醇中的转化率和生物油收率比在甲醇中分别提高了16.23%和11.54%，残渣收率降低了16.23%。通过GC-MS和FTIR对生物油和残渣分析，发现生物油组分中芳香族化合物相对含量较高，在甲醇和乙醇溶剂中分别达到66.13%和58.84%；随着反应时间的延长，甲醇溶剂中残渣的醚键官能团逐渐增强，而在乙醇溶剂中则先增强后减弱。分析认为在木质素降解过程中，超临界乙醇和甲醇均可产生氢自由基作为供氢体，攻击木质素及其大分子片段中的官能团，同时使液化产物中的活性片段减活，减弱重聚合反应，从而更利于芳烃产物的生成。而甲醇在液化过程中容易与木质素断键产生的苯酚中间体发生脱氢缩合反应，通过醚键聚合产生长链芳香族化合物，形成残渣，降低生物油收率。     

Mechanism of smoke suppression by melamine in rigid polyurethane foam

The smoke suppression of rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF) modified by melamine was investigated based on three sections: the condensed phase, the carbon layer, and the gas phase. In the condensed phase, the results of thermogravimetry, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) N1S spectrum, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated that melamine could suppress the degradation of RPUF by reacting with the aromatic hydrocarbons. It also reduced the smoke generation because the volatilizable aromatic hydrocarbons were the principal smoke precursors in a fire. In the carbon layer, the decrease from 38.50% to 24.76% of the inner layer oxygen content identified by XPS full‐spectrum and C1S spectrum indicated that melamine could prevent oxygen from transferring into the inner foam by the formation of an enhanced surface carbon layer, and the enhanced carbon layer could also block the release of smoke precursors. In the gas phase, the content of total aromatic hydrocarbons declined to 59.12% according to pyrolysis gaseous chromatography mass spectroscopy and indicated that melamine could reduce the smoke precursors. The results of smoke density chamber and cone calorimeter tests revealed that the addition of the melamine could decrease the smoke density of burning RPUF. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of various hydrocarbons on micellar growth

The effect of aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons on surfactant micellar growth has been investigated by viscosity measurements at 40°C. Aqueous and aqueous KBr (0.1 M) solutions of 0.1 M cetylpyridinium bromide (CPB) showed that the viscosity behavior changed substantially in the presence of KBr. This is attributed to favorable conditions produced by KBr that assist micellar growth by addition of hydrocarbons. Reasons for the effectiveness of the solubilized hydrocarbons are suggested and supported by theoretical arguments. The causes of viscosity decrease at higher aromatic hydrocarbon concentrations are also explained. Micellar growth with soluble aromatic/aliphatic hydrocarbons could also be initiated if a moderate salt concentration is present in CPB micellar solutions. The chainlength, solubilization site, and molar volume of the soluble hydrocarbons all affect the bulk viscosity of the solution. Such surfactant and hydrocarbon combinations may find use in micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration of benzene and its derivatives, but it should be kept in mind that micellar shape may change and be more curved at higher benzene derivative concentrations.     

聚苯硫醚/热致性液晶聚芳酯的流变性及其纤维的性能研究

将自制热致性液晶聚芳酯(PEE)与聚苯硫醚(PPS)共混,通过熔融纺丝制备了PPS/PEE纤维。采用高压毛细管流变仪研究了PPS/PEE共混物的流变行为,利用扫描电子显微镜观察了PPS/PEE纤维的形态结构,通过差示扫描量热仪、热重分析仪、X射线衍射仪等表征了PEE的含量对PPS/PEE纤维热性能及结晶行为的影响。结果表明:PEE的加入大幅度降低了PPS树脂的表观黏度,减小了其对剪切速率的敏感性,提高了PPS基体的结晶速率,加快了其结晶过程,在一定程度上提高了PPS纤维的热稳定性;PEE在共混纤维中起到异相成核剂的作用,对PPS的晶型没有影响;PEE与PPS相容性较差,PEE以大尺寸微纤的形式分布于基体中。     

液化石油气芳构化技术综述

综述了国内外液化石油气芳构化技术,分析了各种液化石油气芳构化技术的特点,并指出,液化石油气芳构化技术在关注催化剂活性和稳定性的同时,还应关注催化剂选择性和副产物综合利用。     

移动床混合C4制芳烃工艺研究

移动床液化气芳构化工艺是以液化气中C4组分为原料,在固定床芳构化工艺的基础上开发出的一种新工艺,与固定床相比可降低能耗,提高产品质量。在移动床反应器上考察了反应温度和进料空速对液化气C4组分制芳烃反应的影响,结果表明:生产混合芳烃(BTX)时,最佳反应条件:温度:480～500℃,进料空速:0.5～1.0 h-1。