Electrical, electrochemical, and optical characterization of ceria films

Acceptor-doped ceria has been recognized as a promising intermediate temperature solid oxide fuel cell electrode/electrolyte material. For practical implementation of ceria as a fuel cell electrolyte and for designing model experiments for electrochemical activity, it is necessary to fabricate thin films of ceria. Here, metal-organic chemical vapor deposition was carried out in a homemade reactor to grow ceria films for further electrical, electrochemical, and optical characterization. Doped/undoped ceria films are grown on single crystalline oxide wafers with/without Pt line pattern or Pt solid layer. Deposition conditions were varied to see the effect on the resultant film property. Recently, proton conduction in nanograined polycrystalline pellets of ceria drew much interest. Thickness-mode (through-plane, z-direction) electrical measurements were made to confirm the existence of proton conductivity and investigate the nature of the conduction pathway: exposed grain surfaces and parallel grain boundaries. Columnar structure presumably favors proton conduction, and we have found measurable proton conductivity enhancement. Electrochemical property of gas-columnar ceria interface on the hydrogen electrooxidation is studied by AC impedance spectroscopy. Isothermal gas composition dependence of the electrode resistance was studied to elucidate Sm doping level effect and microstructure effect. Significantly, preferred orientation is shown to affect the gas dependence and performance of the fuel cell anode. A hypothesis is proposed to explain the origin of this behavior. Lastly, an optical transmittance based methodology was developed to obtain reference refractive index and microstructural parameters (thickness, roughness, porosity) of ceria films via subsequent fitting procedure.

Reactivity of titanocene methylidene with metal halides, alkene sulfides, and alkene oxides

Titanocene metallacyclobutanes show a wide variety of reactivites with organic and inorganic reagents. Their reactions include methylene transfer to organic carbonyls, formation of enolates, electron transfer from activated alkyl chlorides, olefin metathesis, ring opening polymerization. Recently, preparations of heterobinuclear µ-methylene complexes were reported. In this thesis, mechanistic, synthetic, and structural studies of the heterobinuclear µ-methylene complexes will be described. Also, the reaction of titanocene methylidene trimethylphosphine complex with alkene sulfide and styrene sulfide will be presented.

Heterobinuclear µ-methylene-µ-methyl complexes C_(p2)Ti(µ-CH_2)( µ-CH_3)M(1,5-COD) have been prepared (M = Rh, Ir). X-ray crystallography showed that the methyl group of the complex was bonded to the rhodium and bridges to the titanium through an agostic bond. The ^(1)H,^(13)CNMR, IR spectra along with partial deuteration studies supported the structure in both solution and solid state. Activation of the agostic bond is demonstrated by the equilibration of the µ-CH_3 and µ-CH_2 groups. A nonlinear Arrhenius plot, an unusually large kinetic isotope effect (24(5)), and a large negative activation entropy (-64(3)eu) can be explained by the quantum-mechanical tunneling. Calculated rate constants with Bell-type barrier fitted well with the observed one. This equilibration was best explained by a 4e-4c mechanism (or σ bond metathesis) with the character of quantum-mechanical tunneling.

Heterobinuclear µ-methylene-µ-phenyl complexes were synthesized. Structural study of C_(p2)Ti(µ-CH_(2))(µ-p-Me_(2)NC_(6)H_(4))Rh(l,5-COD) showed that the two metal atoms are bridged by the methylene carbon and the ipso carbon of the p-N,N-dimethylarninophenyl group. The analogous structure of C_(p2))Ti(µ-CH_(2))(µ-o-MeOC_(6)H_(4))Rh(1,5-COD) has been verified by the differential NOE. The aromaticity of the phenyl group observed by ^(1)H NMR, was confirmed by the comparison of the C-C bond lengths in the crystallographic structure. The unusual downfield shifts of the ipso carbon in the ^(13)C NMR are assumed to be an indication of the interaction between the ipso carbon and electron-deficient titanium.

Titanium-platinum heterobinuclear µ-methylene complexes C_(p2)Ti(µ-CH_(2))(µ -X)Pt(Me)(PM_(2)Ph) have been prepared (X= Cl, Me). Structural studies indicate the following:(1) the Ti-CH2 bond possesses residual double bond character, (2) there is a dative Pt→Ti interaction which may be regarded as a π back donation from the platinum atom to the 'Ti=CH_(2)'' group, and (3) the µ-CH_3 group is bound to the titanium atom through a three-center, two-electron agostic bond.

Titanocene (η^(2)-thioformaldehyde)•PMe_3 was prepared from C_(p2)Ti=CH_(2)•PMe_3 and sulfur-containing organic compounds (e.g. alkene sulfide, triphenylphosphine sulfide) including elemental sulfur. Mechanistic studies utilizing trans-styrene sulfide-d_1 suggested the stepwise reaction to explain equimolar mixture of trans- and cis-styrene-d_1 as by-products. The product reacted with methyl iodide to produce cationic titanocene (η_(2)-thiomethoxymethyl) complex. Complexes having less coordinating anion like BF_4 or BPh_4 could be obtained through metathesis. Together with structural analyses, the further reactivities of the complexes have been explored.

The complex C_(p2)TiOCH_(2)CH(Ph)CH_2 was prepared from the compound C_(p2)Ti=CH_(2)-PMe_3 and styrene oxide. The product was characterized with ^(1)H-^(1)H correlated 2-dimensional NMR, selective decoupling of ^(1)H NMR, and differential NOE. Stereospecificity of deuterium in the product was lost when trans-styrene oxide-d_1 was allowed to react. Relative rates of the reaction were measured with varying substituents on the phenyl ring. Better linearity (r = -0.98, p^(+) = -0.79) was observed with σ_(p)^(+)than σ(r = -0.87, p = -1.26). The small magnitude of p^+ value and stereospecificity loss during the formation of product were best explained by the generation of biradicals, but partial generation of charge cannot be excluded. Carbonylation of the product followed by exposure to iodine yields the corresponding β-phenyl γ-lactone.

I. Spectroscopic evidence for slow vibrational relaxation in excited electronic states of diatomics in rare gas solids. II. Static crystal field effects in the electronic spectra of isotopically mixed benzene crystals

Part I

Studies of vibrational relaxation in excited electronic states of simple diatomic molecules trapped in solid rare-gas matrices at low temperatures are reported. The relaxation is investigated by monitoring the emission intensity from vibrational levels of the excited electronic state to vibrational levels of the ground electronic state. The emission was in all cases excited by bombardment of the doped rare-gas solid with X-rays.

The diatomics studied and the band systems seen are: N₂, Vegard-Kaplan and Second Positive systems; O₂, Herzberg system; OH and OD, A ²Σ⁺ - X²II_i system. The latter has been investigated only in solid Ne, where both emission and absorption spectra were recorded; observed fine structure has been partly interpreted in terms of slightly perturbed rotational motion in the solid. For N₂, OH, and OD emission occurred from v' > 0, establishing a vibrational relaxation time in the excited electronic state of the order, of longer than, the electronic radiative lifetime. The relative emission intensity and decay times for different v' progressions in the Vegard-Kaplan system are found to depend on the rare-gas host and the N₂ concentration, but are independent of temperature in the range 1.7°K to 30°K.

Part II

Static crystal field effects on the absorption, fluorescence, and phosphorescence spectra of isotopically mixed benzene crystals were investigated. Evidence is presented which demonstrate that in the crystal the ground, lowest excited singlet, and lowest triplet states of the guest deviate from hexagonal symmetry. The deviation appears largest in the lowest triplet state and may be due to an intrinsic instability of the ³B_1u state. High resolution absorption and phospho- rescence spectra are reported and analyzed in terms of site-splitting of degenerate vibrations and orientational effects. The guest phosphorescence lifetime for various benzene isotopes in C₆D₆ and sym-C₆H₃D₃ hosts is presented and discussed.

Functionalization of Si(111) surfaces and the formation of mixed monolayers for the covalent attachment of molecular catalysts in photoelectrochemical devices

The functionalization of silicon surfaces with molecular catalysts for proton reduction is an important part of the development of a solar-powered, water-splitting device for solar fuel formation. The covalent attachment of these catalysts to silicon without damaging the underlying electronic properties of silicon that make it a good photocathode has proven difficult. We report the formation of mixed monolayer-functionalized surfaces that incor- porate both methyl and vinylferrocenyl or vinylbipyridyl (vbpy) moieties. The silicon was functionalized using reaction conditions analogous to those of hydrosilylation, but instead of a H-terminated Si surface, a chlorine-terminated Si precursor surface was used to produce the linked vinyl-modified functional group. The functionalized surfaces were characterized by time-resolved photoconductivity decay, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electro- chemical, and photoelectrochemical measurements. The functionalized Si surfaces were well passivated, exhibited high surface coverage and few remaining reactive Si atop sites, had a very low surface recombination velocity, and displayed little initial surface oxidation. The surfaces were stable toward atmospheric and electrochemical oxidation. The surface coverage of ferrocene or bipyridine was controllably varied from 0 up to 30% of a monolayer without loss of the underlying electronic properties of the silicon. Interfacial charge transfer to the attached ferrocene group was relatively rapid, and a photovoltage of 0.4 V was generated upon illumination of functionalized n-type silicon surfaces in CH₃CN. The immobilized bipyridine ligands bound transition metal ions, and thus enabled the assembly of metal complexes on the silicon surface. XPS studies demonstrated that [Cp∗Rh(vbpy)Cl]Cl, [Cp∗Ir(vbpy)Cl]Cl, and Ru(acac)₂vbpy were assembled on the surface. For the surface prepared with iridium, x-ray absorption spectroscopy at the Ir L_III edge showed an edge energy and post-edge features virtually identical to a powder sample of [Cp∗Ir(bipy)Cl]Cl (bipy is 2,2 ́-bipyridyl). Electrochemical studies on these surfaces confirmed that the assembled complexes were electrochemically active.

Wastewater Electrolysis Cell for Environmental Pollutants Degradation and Molecular Hydrogen Generation

This study proposes a wastewater electrolysis cell (WEC) for on-site treatment of human waste coupled with decentralized molecular H₂ production. The core of the WEC includes mixed metal oxides anodes functionalized with bismuth doped TiO₂ (BiO_x/TiO₂). The BiO_x/TiO₂ anode shows reliable electro-catalytic activity to oxidize Cl- to reactive chlorine species (RCS), which degrades environmental pollutants including chemical oxygen demand (COD), protein, NH4⁺, urea, and total coliforms. The WEC experiments for treatment of various kinds of synthetic and real wastewater demonstrate sufficient water quality of effluent for reuse for toilet flushing and environmental purposes. Cathodic reduction of water and proton on stainless steel cathodes produced molecular H2 with moderate levels of current and energy efficiency. This thesis presents a comprehensive environmental analysis together with kinetic models to provide an in-depth understanding of reaction pathways mediated by the RCS and the effects of key operating parameters. The latter part of this thesis is dedicated to bilayer hetero-junction anodes which show enhanced generation efficiency of RCS and long-term stability.

Chapter 2 describes the reaction pathway and kinetics of urea degradation mediated by electrochemically generated RCS. The urea oxidation involves chloramines and chlorinated urea as reaction intermediates, for which the mass/charge balance analysis reveals that N₂ and CO₂ are the primary products. Chapter 3 investigates direct-current and photovoltaic powered WEC for domestic wastewater treatment, while Chapter 4 demonstrates the feasibility of the WEC to treat model septic tank effluents. The results in Chapter 2 and 3 corroborate the active roles of chlorine radicals (Cl•/Cl₂^-•) based on iR-compensated anodic potential (thermodynamic basis) and enhanced pseudo-first-order rate constants (kinetic basis). The effects of operating parameters (anodic potential and [Cl^-] in Chapter 3; influent dilution and anaerobic pretreatment in Chapter 4) on the rate and current/energy efficiency of pollutants degradation and H₂ production are thoroughly discussed based on robust kinetic models. Chapter 5 reports the generation of RCS on Ir_0.7Ta_0.3O_y/Bi_xTi_1-xO_z hetero-junction anodes with enhanced rate, current efficiency, and long-term stability compared to the Ir_0.7Ta_0.3O_y anode. The effects of surficial Bi concentration are interrogated, focusing on relative distributions between surface-bound hydroxyl radical and higher oxide.

Enhanced Thermoelectric Performance at the Superionic Phase Transitions of Mixed Ion-Electron Conducting Materials

The quality of a thermoelectric material is judged by the size of its temperature de- pendent thermoeletric-figure-of-merit (zT ). Superionic materials, particularly Zn₄Sb₃ and Cu₂Se, are of current interest for the high zT and low thermal conductivity of their disordered, superionic phase. In this work it is reported that the super-ionic materials Ag₂Se, Cu₂Se and Cu_1.97Ag_0.03Se show enhanced zT in their ordered, normal ion-conducting phases. The zT of Ag₂Se is increased by 30% in its ordered phase as compared to its disordered phase, as measured just below and above its first order phase transition. The zT ’s of Cu₂Se and Cu_1.97Ag_0.03Se both increase by more than 100% over a 30 K temperatures range just below their super-ionic phase transitions. The peak zT of Cu₂Se is 0.7 at 406 K and of Cu_1.97Ag_0.03Se is 1.0 at 400 K. In all three materials these enhancements are due to anomalous increases in their Seebeck coefficients, beyond that predicted by carrier concentration measurements and band structure modeling. As the Seebeck coefficient is the entropy transported per carrier, this suggests that there is an additional quantity of entropy co-transported with charge carriers. Such co-transport has been previously observed via co-transport of vibrational entropy in bipolaron conductors and spin-state entropy in Na_xCo₂O₄. The correlation of the temperature profile of the increases in each material with the nature of their phase transitions indicates that the entropy is associated with the thermodynamcis of ion-ordering. This suggests a new mechanism by which high thermoelectric performance may be understood and engineered.

Homo- and Heteronuclear Transition Metal Complexes Supported by Multinucleating Ligands

This dissertation is mainly divided into two sub-parts: organometallic and bioinorganic/materials projects. The approach for the projects involves the use of two different multinucleating ligands to synthesize mono- and multinuclear complexes. Chapter 2 describes the synthesis of a multinucleating tris(phosphinoaryl)benzene ligand used to support mono-nickel and palladium complexes. The isolated mononuclear complexes were observed to undergo intramolecular arene C¬–H to C–P functionalization. The transformation was studied by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography, and represents a rare type of C–H functionalization mechanism, facilitated by the interactions of the group 10 metal with the arene π–system.

Chapter 3 describes the construction of multinickel complexes supported by the same triphosphine ligand from Chapter 2. This chapter shows how the central arene in the ligand’s triarylbenzene framework can interact with dinickel and trinickel moieties in various binding modes. X-ray diffraction studies indicated that all compounds display strong metal–arene interactions. A cofacial triangulo nickel(0) complex supported by this ligand scaffold was also isolated and characterized. This chapter demonstrates the use of an arene as versatile ligand design element for small molecular clusters.

Chapter 4 presents the syntheses of a series of discrete mixed transition metal Mn oxido clusters and their characterization. The synthesis of these oxide clusters displaying two types of transition metals were targeted for systematic metal composition-property studies relevant to mixed transition metal oxides employed in electrocatalysis. A series of heterometallic trimanganese tetraoxido cubanes capped with a redox-active metal [MMn₃O₄] (M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu) was synthesized starting from a [CaMn₃O₄] precursor and structurally characterized by X-ray crystallography and anomalous diffraction to conclusively determine that M is incorporated at a single position in the cluster. The electrochemical properties of these complexes were studied via cyclic voltammetry. The redox chemistry of the series of complexes was investigated by the addition of a reductant and oxidant. X-ray absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopies were also employed to evaluate the product of the oxidation/reduction reaction to determine the site of electron transfer given the presence of two types of redox-active metals. Additional studies on oxygen atom transfer reactivities of [MMn₃O₄] and [MMn₃O₂] series were performed to investigate the effect of the heterometal M in the reaction rates.

Chapter 5 focuses on the use of [CoMn₃O₄] and [NiMn₃O₄] cubane complexes discussed in Chapter 4 as precursors to heterogeneous oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts. These well-defined complexes were dropcasted on electrodes with/without heat treatment, and the OER activities of the resulting films were evaluated. Multiple spectroscopic techniques were performed on the surface of the electrocatalysts to gain insight into the structure-function relationships based on the heterometallic composition. Depending on film preparation, the Co-Mn-oxide was found to change metal composition during catalysis, while the Ni-Mn oxide maintained the NiMn3 ratio. These studies represent the use of discrete heterometallic-oxide clusters as precursors for heterogeneous water oxidation catalysts.

Appendix A describes the ongoing effort to synthesize a series of heteromultimetallic [MMn₃X] clusters (X = O, S, F). Complexes such as [ZnMn₃O], [CoMn₃O], [Mn₃S], and [Mn₄F] have been synthesized and structurally characterized. An amino-bis-oxime ligand (PRABO) has been installed on the [ZnMn₃O] cluster. Upon the addition of O₂, the desymmetrized [ZnMn₃O] cluster only underwent an outer-sphere, one-electron oxidation. Efforts to build and manipulate other heterometallic [MMn₃X] clusters are still ongoing, targeting O₂ binding and reduction. Appendix B summarizes the multiple synthetic approaches to build a [Co₄O₄]-cubane complex relevant to heterogeneous OER electrocatalysis. Starting with the tricobalt cluster [LCo₃(O₂CR)₃] and treatment various strong oxidants that can serve as oxygen atom source in the presence Co²⁺ salt only yielded tricobalt mono–oxo complexes. Appendix C presents the efforts to model the H-cluster framework of [FeFe]-hydrogenase by incorporating a synthetic diiron complex onto a protein-supported or a synthetic ligand-supported [Fe₄S₄]-cluster. The mutant ferredoxin with a [Fe₄S₄]-cluster and triscarbene ligand have been characterized by multiple spectroscopic techniques. The reconstruction of an H-cluster mimic has not yet been achieved, due to the difficulty of obtaining crystallographic evidence and the ambiguity of the EPR results.

Fast numerical methods for mixed, singular Helmholtz boundary value problems and Laplace eigenvalue problems - with applications to antenna design, sloshing, electromagnetic scattering and spectral geometry

This thesis presents a novel class of algorithms for the solution of scattering and eigenvalue problems on general two-dimensional domains under a variety of boundary conditions, including non-smooth domains and certain "Zaremba" boundary conditions - for which Dirichlet and Neumann conditions are specified on various portions of the domain boundary. The theoretical basis of the methods for the Zaremba problems on smooth domains concern detailed information, which is put forth for the first time in this thesis, about the singularity structure of solutions of the Laplace operator under boundary conditions of Zaremba type. The new methods, which are based on use of Green functions and integral equations, incorporate a number of algorithmic innovations, including a fast and robust eigenvalue-search algorithm, use of the Fourier Continuation method for regularization of all smooth-domain Zaremba singularities, and newly derived quadrature rules which give rise to high-order convergence even around singular points for the Zaremba problem. The resulting algorithms enjoy high-order convergence, and they can tackle a variety of elliptic problems under general boundary conditions, including, for example, eigenvalue problems, scattering problems, and, in particular, eigenfunction expansion for time-domain problems in non-separable physical domains with mixed boundary conditions.