Sulfonated copolymers with SO3H and COOH groups for the hydrolysis of polysaccharides

Sulfonated copolymers for the hydrolysis of polysaccharidesHydrolysis of polysaccharides in unused biomass offers a sustainable method to produce glucose and other chemicals derived from it.

In an effort to make the process more commercially viable, scientists at Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, China, have designed and synthesized efficient catalysts for the hydrolysis of starch and cellulose based on copolymers of poly(acrylic acid) and poly(styrene sulfonic acid). The random copolymer PAA-r-PSSH gave the highest glucose yield among the prepared catalysts which the team attribute to the synergic effect of the SO3H and COOH groups in the polymer chain.

Read the article for free until 30th December (free registration required):

Sulfonated copolymers with SO3H and COOH groups for the hydrolysis of polysaccharides
Xiutao Li, Yijun Jiang, Li Shuai, Lili Wang, Lingqian Meng and Xindong Mu
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM12954F

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

– Russell Johnson, Development Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

Sulfonated copolymers with SO3H and COOH groups for the hydrolysis of polysaccharides
Xiutao Li, Yijun Jiang, Li Shuai, Lili Wang, Lingqian Meng and Xindong Mu
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM12954F
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Graphene-wrapped nanosilicon for high performance Li-ion batteries

Graphene-wrapped nanoparticlesChinese scientists have used graphene sheets to wrap silicon nanoparticles to make nanocomposites which resemble bath lilies.

Zi-Feng Ma and co-workers, from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, have assessed the performance of the novel bath lily-like graphene sheet-wrapped silicon (GS-Si) nanocomposites as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. They showed that the GS-Si nanocomposites exhibit a high reversible capacity of 1525mAh g1 and superior cycling stability.  Conventional graphite anodes display a theoretical specific capacity of only 372 mAh g-1, making it a weak candidate for anodes of Li-ion batteries.

The GS-Si nanocomposites were synthesised using a spray-drying technique which requires “no surfactant, no filtration or washing processes and no high vacuum conditions.” The authors believe that the procedure is safe and environmentally friendly and can be scaled up for the mass production of graphene-based composite materials.

The obtained GS-Si composite possesses an open nano/micro-structure, in which nanosized Si particles are uniformly dispersed and wrapped in the graphene sheet (GS) matrix. “The GS not only constitutes a good conducting network, but also provides enough void spaces to accommodate the volume change of Si and prevent the aggregation of nano-Si particles during cycling, ” explains Ma et al.

Find out more about graphene sheet-wrapped nanocomposites by downloading the full article for free until December 2012.

Communication: A novel bath lily-like graphene sheet-wrapped nano-Si composite as a high performance anode material for Li-ion batteries
Yu-Shi He, Pengfei Gao, Jun Chen, Xiaowei Yang, Xiao-Zhen Liao, Jun Yang and Zi-Feng Ma
RSC Adv., 2011, 1, 958-960

– Kathleen Too, Deputy Editor, RSC Advances

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Hot Paper: Graphene supported Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles with core-shell structures and superior peroxidase-like activities

Chen et al., 2011Au@Pd bimetallic nanoparticles were successfully dispersed on graphene by a simple one step reducing method.

The bimetallic nanoparticles show superior catalytic activity over the monometallic counterparts. Including the Au core minimizes the use of more expensive Pd precursors and plays an important role in enhancing the catalytic activity arising from the strong catalytic bimetallic electronic ligand interactions. The composition and shell thickness of the nanoparticles is controlled by loading different amounts of the metallic precursors. Interested to know more? Read the article for free until 16th December…

Graphene supported Au-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles with core-shell structures and superior peroxidase-like activities
Hongyu Chen, Yang Li, Fengbao Zhang, Guoliang Zhang and Xiaobin Fan
J. Mater. Chem., 2011, 21, 17658-17661
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM13356J

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

– Russell Johnson, Development Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Journal of Environmental Monitoring

JEM 2011, Issue 11 front coverThe research of Xiang Li and Jiamin Chen from Fudan University features on the front cover the Journal of Environmental Monitoring.

The futuristic image on the outside front cover image highlights their work on solid-phase microextraction (SPME) analysis of PAHs in fog.  Polluted fog is a serious problem in Shanghai, where the study took place, and this research should provide a basis for better understanding of PAHs in fog-rain events.

Characterization of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in fog–rain events
Xiang Li, Pengfei Li, Lili Yan, Jianmin Chen, Tiantao Cheng and Shifen Xu
J. Environ. Monit., 2011, 13, 2988-2993
DOI: 10.1039/C1EM10543D

– Francesca Burgoyne, Development Editor, Journal of Environmental Monitoring

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Hot Article: Nanoparticles that capture, kill and remove pathogens

Nanoparticles for pathogen removalResearchers combined silver nanoparticles and iron oxide to make nanoparticles with Ag@Fe2O3 yolk–shell structure.

After functionalization of the surface with glucose, these magnetic nanoparticles show high capture efficiency of bacteria and potent antibacterial activity because of Ag cores.

Interested to know more? Read the article for free until 7 December (free registration required)

Communication: Multifunctional Ag@Fe2O3 yolk–shell nanoparticles for simultaneous capture, kill, and removal of pathogen
Zhanhua Wei, Zijian Zhou, Meng Yang, Chenghong Lin, Zhenghuan Zhao, Dengtong Huang, Zhong Chen and Jinhao Gao
J. Mater. Chem., 2011, 21, 16344-16348
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM13691G

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter

– Russell Johnson, Development Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

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Hot Communication: Chameleon clothes for quantitative oxygen imaging

A chameleon cloth that changes colour in response a drop in oxygen concentration could be used to warn of oxygen deficient areas say Chinese scientists.

The colour of the cloth gradually changes from red to purple to blue as the oxygen concentration increases. The light, soft and flexible cotton cloth could be easily included in clothes to make wearable sensors the team say.

Chameleon clothes

Read the full paper for free until 8th December:

Communication: Chameleon clothes for quantitative oxygen imaging
Xu-dong Wang, Ting-yao Zhou, Xin-hong Song, Yaqi Jiang, Chaoyong James Yang and Xi Chen
J. Mater. Chem., 2011, 21, 17651-17653
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM14162G

This paper was also featured in Chemistry World.

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

– Russell Johnson, Development Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

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PCCP: a focus on Asia

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics (PCCP) is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Katsuhiko Ariga and Professor Seong Keun Kim as Associate Editors of the journal.

Professor ArigaProfessor Ariga is the Director of Supermolecules Group at the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Japan. His research covers supermolecular chemistry and surface science, including the boundaries between organic chemistry, physical chemistry, biochemistry, and materials chemistry.

Professor KimProfessor Kim
is head of the Molecular Reaction Dynamics Laboratory at Seoul National University, Korea. He uses spectroscopic, microscopic, and computational methods to investigate a wide range of subjects from molecular physics and nanoscience to cell biology.

PCCP is committed to publishing the best research from Asia in the broad fields of physical chemistry, chemical physics and biophysical chemistry. We also have many leading Asian scientists on our international Editorial and Advisory Boards: Professors Asuka Fujii, Yasuhiro Iwasawa, Yoshiyasu Matsumoto, Zhong-Qun Tian, Li-jun Wan, Wenchuan Wang and Xueming Yang, as well as Yuan Tseh Lee on our Honorary Board.

On behalf of Professors Ariga and Kim and all our Editorial Board, we invite you to submit your best work to PCCP.

PCCP and the Royal Society of Chemistry have strong links with scientists in Asia and we now have RSC offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Toyko.

So you can see for yourself the quality of work appearing in PCCP, we have selected some recent Perspective review articles from authors all across Asia which are available to read for free for a limited period.

Operation of micro and molecular machines: a new concept with its origins in interface science
Katsuhiko Ariga, Shinsuke Ishihara, Hironori Izawa, Hong Xia and Jonathan P. Hill
DOI: 10.1039/C0CP02040K

From nanocrystal synthesis to functional nanostructure fabrication: laser ablation in liquid
P. Liu, H. Cui, C. X. Wang and G. W. Yang
DOI: 10.1039/B918759F

Understanding underlying processes in formic acid fuel cells
Sunghyun Uhm, Hye Jin Lee and Jaeyoung Lee
DOI: 10.1039/B909525J

Supramolecular nanoarchitectures for light energy conversion
Taku Hasobe
DOI: 10.1039/B910564F

Ionic liquids in surface electrochemistry
Hongtao Liu, Yang Liu and Jinghong Li
DOI: 10.1039/B921469K

Nonbonding interactions of organic halogens in biological systems: implications for drug discovery and biomolecular design
Yunxiang Lu, Yong Wang and Weiliang Zhu
DOI: 10.1039/B926326H

Static, rheological and mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites studied by computer modeling and simulation
Jun Liu, Liqun Zhang, Dapeng Cao and Wenchuan Wang
DOI: 10.1039/B913511A

Ionicity in ionic liquids: correlation with ionic structure and physicochemical properties
Kazuhide Ueno, Hiroyuki Tokuda and Masayoshi Watanabe
DOI: 10.1039/B921462N

For more information and news visit our website, or follow us on Twitter.

We invite you to be a part of this success, submit your research today.

– Jane Hordern, Deputy Editor, PCCP

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Polystyrene fiber mats could soak up oil spills

Nanoscale ‘HOT’ article

Scientists from China have synthesized novel polystyrene (PS) fibrous mats consisting of highly porous fibers which show much higher oil absorption capacities compared to the commercially available polypropylene fibers.

PS fibersThe authors say that such regulation of micro- and nanostructures of the PS fibers will widen the range of their applications in self-cleaning materials, ultra-high sensitivity sensors, tissue engineering and ion exchange materials.

Read the Nanoscale article today:

Subtle regulation of the micro- and nanostructures of electrospun polystyrene fibers and their application in oil absorption
Jinyou Lin, Bin Ding, Jianmao Yang, Jianyong Yu and Gang Sun
Nanoscale, 2012, DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10895F

– Jane Hordern, Deputy Editor, Nanoscale

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Hot Paper: Yellow to Red: A soft porous crystal with mechanofluorochromism

Construction of soft porous crystal with silole derivativeA soft porous crystal which changes its fluorescence in response to mechanical grinding and heat has been developed by scientists in China.

Applying mechanical force changes the organic crystal’s fluorescence from yellow through to cherry red. Heating the crystal reverses this. The team say this mechanofluorochromism is caused by the crystal going through multiple structural transformations.

Read the full paper for free until 5th December:

Construction of soft porous crystal with silole derivative: strategy of framework design, multiple structural transformability and mechanofluorochromism
J. Mei, J. Wang, A. Qin, H. Zhao, W. Yuan, Z. Zhao, H. H. Y. Sung, C. Deng, S. Zhang, I. D. Williams, J. Z. Sun and B. Z. Tang
J. Mater. Chem., 2012, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C1JM12673C

To keep up-to-date with all the latest research, sign up for the journal’s e-alerts or RSS feeds or follow Journal of Materials Chemistry on Twitter.

– Russell Johnson, Development Editor, Journal of Materials Chemistry

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RSC reception in Beijing

In order to celebrate the collaboration in publishing between the RSC and Chinese chemists, the RSC hosted a reception at Wenjing Hotel on 19 October 2011. Many top Chinese chemists attended, such as:

  • Professor Yongqiang Tu
  • Professor Lei Jiang
  • Professor Zhenfeng Xi
  • Professor Guobao Xu
  • Professor Tao Yi
  • Professor Xinghai Shen
  • Professor Wenhua Sun
  • Professor Chanjuan Xi

They were joined by RSC representatives Dr Emma Wilson, Dr Sarah Thomas, Dr Liz Davies, Dr Chunxiao Zheng, Ms Fangjie Chen, Ms Naixi Can and Dr Daping Zhang.  It was a wonderful evening and we hope you enjoy the pictures below!

RSC reception Beijing

Respected scientists and RSC representatives enjoying the reception in Beijing

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