Synthesis and Characterization of Functionalized Ionic Liquids for Thermal Storage

A series of imidazolium-based ionic liquids were synthesized by introducing functional groups in the imidazolium cation to develop new phase change materials. The structures of these ionic liquids were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance; the quantum calculation was performed based on density functional theory by Gaussian 09 to determine the number of hydrogen bonds among the ions. The heat of fusion, heat capacity, and thermal storage density of the ionic liquids were investigated by DSC; in addition, the thermal stability was determined by TGA. The thermal analysis results indicate that new functionalized ionic liquids have excellent thermal stability with decomposition temperatures higher than 475 K. In addition, the heat of fusion, heat capacity, and thermal storage density of the functionalized ionic liquids increased on average by 34, 86.5, and 100%, respectively, compared with alkyl chain ionic liquids with the same carbon numbers. These superior properties are attributed to the additional hydrogen bonds in the functionalized ionic liquids

Additional file 5: Table S2. of Genome-wide identification and characterization of the NF-Y gene family in grape (vitis vinifera L.)

Primers for quantitative real-time PCR analysis of grape NF-Y genes expressions in this study. (PDF 96 kb

Enhanced Photoresponsive Properties of Perovskite Films on Metal Oxide LaAlO₃ Substrates

We report enhanced photoresponsive properties of planar-type perovskite films fabricated by spin-coating method on metal oxide LaAlO₃ substrates. The reliable <i>I</i>_light/<i>I</i>_dark ratio (>10⁴), responsivity (70 mA/W), detectivity (1.5 × 10¹⁰ Jones), and photoresponsive time (0.26 ms) of films on LaAlO₃ substrates are achieved. These results are caused by the abundant La vacancies at the surface of LaAlO₃ substrates after the plasma treatment, which would form the build-in electric field at the interface and meanwhile induce the sub-band gap photoluminescence. Thus, the photon-generated carrier separation and density are increased. Our results pave a way for promoting photoresponsive properties by the interface effect and create an opportunity for future high-performance photodetectors based on perovskites

Additional file 2: Figure S2. of Genome-wide identification and characterization of the NF-Y gene family in grape (vitis vinifera L.)

Exon-intron structures of grape NF-Y genes. Rectangles indicate exons, and broken lines represent introns. (PDF 219 kb

Additional file 4: Figure S3. of Genome-wide identification and characterization of the NF-Y gene family in grape (vitis vinifera L.)

Expression levels of VvNF-Ys and total sugar content in different grape varieties. VvNF-YAs (a), VvNF-YBs (b) and VvNF-YCs (c) are divided into three groups. Soluble sugars were extracted from five grape varieties (S1–S5) and then analyzed by HPLC with water as eluent. The total content was relatively stable in three successive years (unpublished data), so values for 1 year are given as reference. Black broken lines denote transcript levels of NF-Y genes, and blue broken lines indicate total sugar content in grape berries. (PDF 224 kb

Influence of Calcium(II) and Chloride on the Oxidative Reactivity of a Manganese(II) Complex of a Cross-Bridged Cyclen Ligand

Available data from different laboratories have confirmed that both Ca²⁺ and Cl^– are crucial for water oxidation in Photosystem II. However, their roles are still elusive. Using a manganese­(II) complex having a cross-bridged cyclen ligand as a model, the influence of Ca²⁺ on the oxidative reactivity of the manganese­(II) complex and its corresponding manganese­(IV) analogue were investigated. It has been found that adding Ca²⁺ can significantly improve the oxygenation efficiency of the manganese­(II) complex in sulfide oxidation and further accelerate the oxidation of sulfoxide to sulfone. Similar improvements have also been observed for Mg²⁺, Sr²⁺, and Ba²⁺. A new monomeric manganese­(IV) complex having two <i>cis</i>-hydroxide ligands has also been isolated through oxidation of the corresponding manganese­(II) complex with H₂O₂ in the presence of NH₄PF₆. This rare <i>cis</i>-dihydroxomanganese­(IV) species has been well characterized by X-ray crystallography, electrochemistry, electron paramagnetic resonance, and UV–vis spectroscopy. Notably, using the manganese­(IV) complex as a catalyst demonstrates higher activity than the corresponding manganese­(II) complex, and adding Ca²⁺ further improves its catalytic efficiency. However, adding Cl^– decreases its catalytic activity. In electrochemical studies of manganese­(IV) complexes with no chloride ligand present, adding Ca²⁺ positively shifted the redox potential of the Mn^IV/Mn^III couple but negatively shifted its Mn^V/Mn^IV couple. In the manganese­(II) complex having a chloride ligand, adding Ca²⁺ shifted both the Mn^IV/Mn^III and Mn^V/Mn^IV couples in the negative direction. The revealed oxidative reactivity and redox properties of the manganese species affected by Ca²⁺ and Cl^– may provide new clues to understanding their roles in the water oxidation process of Photosystem II

Efficient Conversion of α‑Angelica Lactone into γ‑Valerolactone with Ionic Liquids at Room Temperature

γ-Valerolactone, which can be produced from lignocellulosic biomass, has drawn increasing attention recently because of its benign properties and versatile functions. However, the temperature employed for its production is relatively high. In order to save energy, herein, a new transformation process of α-angelica lactone to γ-valerolactone was carried out by using a series of room-temperature ionic liquids as solvents in a batch-type reactor. Among these ionic liquids, [Bmim]­PF₆ showed the best performance on the selective hydrogenation at 60 °C with a reaction time of 20 min. Interestingly, it was found that the reaction can also take place at a temperature as low as room temperature with complete conversion and nearly 100% selectivity, which greatly reduces the energy required for the production of γ-valerolactone. The reaction system of ionic liquid/catalyst showed good reusability. There was no obvious decrease in conversion and selectivity after 10 uses. Furthermore, the kinetics of the catalytic hydrogenation reaction of α-angelica lactone was studied to elucidate the reaction profile. Systematic kinetics experiments were carried out by varying the reaction temperature from 20 to 100 °C at 4.0 MPa, and the simulated data fits well with the first-order reaction law

Hemispherand-Strapped Calix[4]pyrrole: An Ion-pair Receptor for the Recognition and Extraction of Lithium Nitrite

The hemispherand-strapped calix[4]­pyrrole (<b>1</b>) acts as an ion pair receptor that exhibits selectivity for lithium salts. In organic media (CD₂Cl₂ and CD₃OD, v/v, 9:1), receptor <b>1</b> binds LiCl with high preference relative to NaCl, KCl, and RbCl. DFT calculations provided support for the observed selectivity. Single crystal structures of five different lithium ion-pair complexes of <b>1</b> were obtained. In the case of LiCl, a single bridging water molecule between the lithium cation and chloride anion was observed, while tight contact ion pairs were observed in the case of the LiBr, LiI, LiNO₃, and LiNO₂ salts. Receptor <b>1</b> proved effective as an extractant for LiNO₂ under both model solid–liquid and liquid–liquid extraction conditions

High Expression of Derlin-1 Is Associated with the Malignancy of Bladder Cancer in a Chinese Han Population

<div><p>Derlin-1 is overexpressed in various types of solid tumors and has an important function in cancer progression. However, its expression pattern in and association with the clinicopathological characteristics of human bladder cancer remain unclear. In the present study, 3 pairs of fresh samples of bladder cancer tissue and paracancerous tissue were first detected by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) to screen for differentially expressed proteins. Following bioinformatics analysis and assessments by qRT-PCR and western blotting, Derlin-1 was selected as a candidate protein and was then validated in samples from patients with bladder cancer by immunohistochemistry and western blotting. The results showed that the bladder cancer tissues exhibited higher levels of Derlin-1 expression than the paracancerous tissues (P < 0.05). Positive expression of Derlin-1 was significantly correlated with tumor stage, histological grade, and lymph node metastasis (P < 0.001) but was not correlated with other clinicopathological parameters including patient age (P = 0.758) and gender (P = 0.831). Besides, Derlin-1 was highly expressed in BC cell lines (um-uc-3 and T24), and the interference of Derlin-1 could reverse EMT progression, inhibit the tumor migration and invasion in T24 cells. Further, patients with positive Derlin-1 expression had shorter overall survival than those with negative expression (P < 0.001). Taken together, our results demonstrated that Derlin-1 was overexpressed in bladder cancer and was associated with the malignancy of bladder cancer.</p></div

Derlin-1 protein expression in normal mucosa and bladder cancer.

<p>(A) Representative graphic of western blot analysis of Derlin-1 protein expression in bladder cancer tissues (T) and paracancerous tissues (N) from four patients. (B) Statistical result. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01.</p