11th International Conference on Materials Chemistry (MC11) – oral abstract deadline Friday 7 December

Submit an oral abstract for The 11th International Conference on Materials Chemistry (MC11), the flagship event of the RSC’s Materials Chemistry Division – deadline Friday 7th December.

This cutting edge international research conference is organised around four exciting and diverse areas of the application of materials chemistry:

  • Energy Materials – including all aspects of Materials Chemistry related to energy generation, conversion and storage.
  • Environmental Materials – the design, synthesis and applications of materials that facilitate processes to provide a sustainable environment.
  • Biomaterials – materials for tissue engineering and healthcare, green biomaterials and advanced synthesis methods of biomaterials.
  • Electronic, Magnetic and Optical Materials – encompassing inorganic, organic, hybrid and nano materials, soft matter and interfaces.

Why take part in MC11?

There are over 100 opportunities for oral presentations over four parallel sessions. So you can share your own research with the more than 400 expected participants during the four-day event. There will also be plenty of opportunity for discussion during poster session receptions, lunches and coffee breaks, all taking place in the dedicated conference centre.

If you take part in this conference you will have the benefit of hearing and networking with an excellent line-up of plenary and keynote speakers, all experts in their fields.

All academic and industrial scientists working on the chemistry, physics and materials science of functional materials, including students, are encouraged to be there. Visit www.rsc.org/mc11 for full details.

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Hot paper: Topotactic synthesis of layered double hydroxide nanorods

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are a family of layered materials with composition [M1-xz+Mx3+(OH)2]a+(Xn)a/n.mH2O. LiAl-X LDHs are a class of LDHs that have been extensively investigated due to their many applications as absorbents or in photochemistry. They can be synthesised in two ways; direct intercalation by treatment of gibbsite, bayerite or nördstrandite and hydrothermal treatment of a hydrated alumina gel with LiOH.

In this hot paper, The O’Hare group at the University of Oxford describe the first topotactic synthesis of rod-like LDH particles through that simultaneous intercalation of Li+ cations and X anions (X = Cl, and Br). Nanorods of LiAl-X were synthesised by intercalation of LiX into a rod-like morphology of gibbsite. The authors find that LiAl-X-rod can undergo further anion exchange intercalation with cyclamate into LiAl-Cl-rod.

Topotactic synthesis of layered double hydroxide nanorods
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 23064.  DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34670b
(free to read for a short time)

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Helping good bacteria reach their target: Journal of Materials Chemistry article in Chemistry World

Probiotic yoghurt drink

Probiotic bacteria are added to food such as yoghurt drinks to aid the digestive system. © Shutterstock

Most probiotic bacteria that are added to foods, such as yoghurt, to aid the digestive system are not reaching their intended target in the intestine. Instead, the majority are being destroyed in the stomach before they can do any good. Now, UK scientists have come up with a coating to overcome this problem.

Probiotics are bacteria that naturally live in the small and large intestine. They provide health benefits by producing nutrients, compete with pathogenic bacteria for binding sites and stimulate the immune system.

Read the full article in Chemistry World

Layer-by-layer coating of alginate matrices with chitosan–alginate for the improved survival and targeted delivery of probiotic bacteria after oral administration
Michael T. Cook,  George Tzortzis,  Vitaliy V. Khutoryanskiy and Dimitris Charalampopoulos
J. Mater. Chem. B, 2013, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2TB00126H

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Hot paper: PVA hybrid nanocomposites containing cellulose nanocrystals and silver nanoparticles

The bacteria Gluconacetobacter xylinus produces cellulose that is highly crystalline and has a high degree of polymerisation. The cellulose can be converted into rod-like nanocrystals which have very high modulus and strength. A variety of nanocomposites can be prepared by incorporating cellulose nanocrystals with polymers to give materials with excellent properties. Silver nanoparticles are well known to improve the anti-bacterial properties of polymer materials.

Scientists in India have prepared a hybrid nanocomposite from the combination of cellulose nanocrystals and silver nanoparticles as reinforcing fillers for the polymer PVA. Both the nanocrystals and the silver nanoparticles improved the mechanical properties of the PVA films. The nanocrystals increased the modulus and tensile strength of the films, while the nanoparticles decreased the brittleness of the films. These effects could be useful in making more biocompatible materials for applications such as in tissue engineering.

Augmented properties of PVA hybrid nanocomposites containing cellulose nanocrystals and silver nanoparticles
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 22433.  DOI: 10.1039/c2jm35235d
(free to read for a short time)

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Hot paper: imprinting photonic crystalline polymer matrices via multiple UV polymerisations

Cholesteric liquid crystals (CLCs) show selective reflection due to their helical structures. They are formed by the introduction of chiral elements into liquid crystals molecules or by doping of nematic liquid crystals with chiral dopants. Photoresponsive chiral dopants are increasing being used to fabricate tuneable CLCs.

In this hot paper, Liu and colleagues use an imprinting method which used multiple UV-induced polymerisations. A helical polymer matrix was imprinted in the presence of a CLC. Desirable Bragg reflections were found, without any added liquid crystals or chiral compounds.

Fabrication and characterization of imprinted photonic crystalline polymer matrices via multiple UV polymerizations
J. Mater.  Chem., 2012, 22, 22446.  DOI: 10.1039/c2jm35151j
(free to read for a short time)

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Top 10 most-read Journal of Materials Chemistry articles in September

This month sees the following Journal of Materials Chemistry articles that are in the top ten most accessed for September :

Carbon nanodots: synthesis, properties and applications 
Haitao Li ,  Zhenhui Kang ,  Yang Liu and Shuit-Tong Lee  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34690g 

Green synthesis of Fe3O4 nanoparticles embedded in a porous carbon matrix and its use as anode material in Li-ion batteries 
Marcos Latorre-Sanchez ,  Ana Primo and Hermenegildo Garcia  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21373-21375 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34978g 

Methods of graphite exfoliation 
Minzhen Cai ,  Daniel Thorpe ,  Douglas H. Adamson and Hannes C. Schniepp  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34517j 

Hierarchical SnO2–Fe2O3 heterostructures as lithium-ion battery anodes 
Yanli Wang ,  Jingjie Xu ,  Hao Wu ,  Ming Xu ,  Zheng Peng and Gengfeng Zheng  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21923-21927 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm35255a

Facile synthesis of MoS2/graphene nanocomposite with high catalytic activity toward triiodide reduction in dye-sensitized solar cells 
Chia-Jui Liu ,  Sheng-Yen Tai ,  Shu-Wei Chou ,  Ya-Chu Yu ,  Kai-Di Chang ,  Shuei Wang ,  Forest Shih-Sen Chien ,  Jeng-Yu Lin and Tsung-Wu Lin  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21057-21064 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm33679k 

Co3S4 hollow nanospheres grown on graphene as advanced electrode materials for supercapacitors 
Qinghong Wang ,  Lifang Jiao ,  Hongmei Du ,  Yuchang Si ,  Yijing Wang and Huatang Yuan  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21387-21391 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34714h 

Open-circuit voltage in organic solar cells 
Boyuan Qi and Jizheng Wang  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm33719c 

Strategies for chemical modification of graphene and applications of chemically modified graphene 
Jingquan Liu ,  Jianguo Tang and J. Justin Gooding  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 12435-12452
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm31218b 

Design of benzodithiophene-diketopyrrolopyrrole based donor–acceptor copolymers for efficient organic field effect transistors and polymer solar cells 
Jianyu Yuan ,  Xiaodong Huang ,  Fengjiao Zhang ,  Jialing Lu ,  Zhichun Zhai ,  Chongan Di ,  Zuoquan Jiang and Wanli Ma
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 22734-22742 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34004f 

Liquid crystalline hexa-peri-hexabenzocoronene-diketopyrrolopyrrole organic dyes for photovoltaic applications 
Wallace W. H. Wong ,  Jegadesan Subbiah ,  Sreenivasa R. Puniredd ,  Balaji Purushothaman ,  Wojciech Pisula ,  Nigel Kirby ,  Klaus Müllen ,  David J. Jones and Andrew B. Holmes  
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21131-21137 
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34394k 

Why not take a look at the articles today and blog your thoughts and comments below.

New for 2013: the Journal of Materials Chemistry brand will continue as three journals, each focusing on an area of materials chemistry, divided by the intended applications of the materials studied. Find out more

Fancy submitting an article to Journal of Materials Chemistry? Then why not submit to us today!

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Hot paper: a CdSe nanocrstyal/C60-liquid composite

Combination of inorganic nanocrystals (NCs) and organic molecules into composites have shown a variety of novel optical and electronic properties. Many of these properties arise from the inter-phase energy transfer from the excited NCs to a semiconducting matrix.

In this hot paper, Nakanishi and co-workers report the fabrication of a composite material of CdSe NCs embedded in an alkylated room temperature liquid C60 derivate. The photoelectrochemical and optical properties of the composite are investigated. It is found that the optical properties can be tuned by selection of the NC phase. Electronic band alignment between the NCs and the C60 matrix enable inter-phase charge transfer, resulting in a long-lived charge transfer state. The composite shows potential for use in sensing applications and photoelectrochemical processes.

CdSe Nanocrystal/C60-liquid composite material with enhanced photoelectrochemical performance
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 22370.  DOI: 10.1039/c2jm35294j
(free to read for a short time)

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Hot paper: Chemoselective functionalization of biomaterials

It is widely accepted that biomimetic culture systems should replicate natural tissues as closely as possible to promote optimal cell proliferation, migration, differentiation and survival. These systems are important for biomedical applications such as tissue engineering, biosensors and the development of cellular models of disease. There are many techniques (e.g. microcontact printing, photo- and nanolithography, inkjet printing and photoimmobilisation) that can spatially deposit bioactive molecules for the patterning and guidance of cells. These techniques can suffer from poor cytocompatibility and spatial resolution.

Work by De Bank’s group at the University of Bath reported in this hot paper describes the patterning of biomaterial matrices with multiple bioactive molecules using a caged aldehyde linker. This approach removes any possible unwanted reactivity with functional groups commonly found in biological systems. The authors report that the caged linker can be coupled to many different biomaterials and readily undergoes photolysis in aqueous media. It is suggested that this general approach will have applications in advancing many areas – tissue modelling, tissue engineering, biosensors and regenerative medicine.

A photocleavable linker for the chemoselective functionalization of biomaterials
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21878. DOI: 10.1039/c2jm35173k
(free to read for a short time)

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Hot paper: Fabrication of ZnO nanodisc arrays using nanoimprint lithography

Fabrication of ZnO nanodisc arrays is reported using nanoimprint lithography (NIL) mold obtained sub-100 nm pattern resolution by Srinivasan, Krishnamoorthy and co-workers.

ZnO nanostructures have many applications such as use in LEDs, gas sensors and semiconducting devices. Controlling the densities, geometric attributes and batch to batch reproducibility of nanostructured ZnO can be a challenge. In this hot paper, a generic process is described, using block copolymer assisted NIL, to produce high-resolution NIL molds for the production of ZnO nanodiscs. The authors also investigate the charge storage properties of the produced ZnO nanodiscs.

Macroscopic high density nanodisc arrays of zinc oxide fabricated by block copolymer self-assembly assisted nanoimprint lithography
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21871. DOI: 10.1039/c2jm33444e

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Hot paper: Bismuth acceptor doped barium titanate nanocrystal formulations

A thin film nanocomposite dielectric that can be prepared by deposition of Bi-doped BaTiO3 nanocrystals on to a polymer is reported by O’Brien and colleagues.

In this hot paper, the authors use a novel approach to synthesise bismuth acceptor doped nanocrystals, Ba(TixBi1-x)O3. The nanocrystals can be synthesised at low temperatures via a solvothermal method and are highly crystalline. The nanocomposite containing these nanocrystals, showed improved dielectric performance over BaTiO3 and in particular highly desirable capacitor characteristics.

Comprehensive dielectric performance of bismuth acceptor doped BaTiO3 based nanocrystal thin film capacitors

J. Mater. Chem., 2012, 22, 21862
DOI: 10.1039/c2jm34044e
(free to read for a short time)

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