Highly conductive, methanol resistant fuel cell membranes fabricated by layer-by-layer self-assembly of inorganic heteropolyacid

Layer-by-layer (LBL) self-assembly is a simple and elegant method of constructing organic-inorganic composite thin films from environmentally benign aqueous solutions. In this paper, we utilize this method to develop proton-exchange membranes for fuel cells. The multilayer film is constructed onto the surface of sulfonated poly(arylene ether ketone) (SPAEK-COOH) membrane by LBL self-assembly of polycation chitosan (CTS) and negatively charged inorganic particle phosphotungstic acid (VIA). The highly conductive inorganic nanoparticles ensure SPAEK-COOH-(CTS/PTA)(n) membranes to maintain high proton conductivity values up to 0.086 S cm(-1) at 25 degrees C and 0.24S cm(-1) at 80 degrees C, which are superior than previous LBL assembled electrolyte systems.

Conductive hybrids from water-borne conductive polyaniline and (3-glycidoxypropyl)trimethoxysilane

Free-standing conductive films of organic-inorganic hybrids were prepared employing the sol-gel process of (3-glycidoxypropyl)trimethoxysilane (GPTMS) and water-borne conductive polyaniline (cPANI) in water/ethanol solution. The hybrids displayed a percolation threshold for electrical conductivity at a volume fraction of 2.1% polyaniline (PANI); the maximum conductivity of the hybrids reached 0.6 S/cm. GPTMS showed good compatibility with water-borne cPANI during the sol-gel process, and freestanding conductive films were obtained at room temperature. Transmission electron microscopy images of the hybrids indicated that the cPANI was dispersed in the inorganic phase in nanoscale. Because of good confinement of cPANI chains in the inorganic network, water resistance of the hybrid films was significantly improved compared with that of pure cPANI; the electrical conductivity of the films kept stable for 6-7 days soaking in water, whereas it decreased sharply for 1 day soaking for the pure cPANI.

Application of ionic liquids in organic reactions

Room-temperature ionic liquids are good solvents for a wide of organic, inorganic and organometallic compounds. Typically consisting of nitrogen-containing organic cations and inorganic anions, they are easy to recycle, nonflammable, and have no detectable vapor pressure. More recently, ionic liquids have been found to be excellent solvents for a number of chemical reactions, e. g. hydrogenation, alkylation, epoxidation, Heck-vinylation, Suzuki cross-coupling reactions and enzyme catalyzed organic reactions. This paper focuses on the recent development of using ionic liquids as solvents for transition metal and enzyme catalyzed reactions.

Organic-phase enzyme electrode for phenolic determination based on a functionalized sol-gel composite

An amperometric biosensor for monitoring phenols in the organic phase was constructed by the silica sol-gel immobilization of tyrosinase on a glassy carbon electrode. The organic-inorganic hybrid materials with different sol-gel precursors and polymers were optimized, and the experimental conditions, such as the effect of the solvent, operational potential and enzyme loading were explored for the optimum analytical performance of the enzyme electrode. The biosensor can reach 95% of steady-state current in about 18 s, and the trend in the sensitivity of different phenols is as follows: catechol > phenol >p-cresol. In addition, the apparent Michaelis-Menten constants (K-m(app)) and the stability of the enzyme electrode were discussed. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.

Confined crystallization behavior of PEO in silica networks

Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and silica (SiO2) organic-inorganic hybrid materials have been synthesized by sol-gel approach. The crystallization behavior of PEO in silica networks has been investigated by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and scanning electron micrograph (SEM). The degree of PEO crystallinity in PEO/SiO2 hybrid networks reduces with the increase of SiO2. PEO is in amorphous state when the concentration of PEO is lower than 50 wt% in the hybrid materials. The melting points of PEO in the networks are lower than that of pure PEG, but the melting point of PEO in the networks almost has the same melting point. WAXD and SEM results show that the crystalline behavior of PEO in PEO/SiO2 hybrid system is sternly confined. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Crystallization behavior of PCL in hybrid confined environment

Poly(epsilon -caprolactone) (PCL) and silica (SiO2) organic-inorganic hybrid materials have been synthesized by the sol-gel method. The crystallization behavior of PCL in silica networks has been investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The degree of PCL crystallinity in PCL/SiO2 hybrid networks reduces with increase of SiO2. PCL is in an amorphous state when the concentration of PCL is lower than 40wt% in the hybrid system. The melting point of PCL in the networks is lower than, but close to that of pure PCL. WAXD and SEM results show that the crystalline behavior of PCL in PCL/SiO2 hybrid system is strictly confined. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

溶胶-凝胶光波导环形谐振腔的挥发性有机化合物传感特性

采用溶胶-凝胶法制作波导环形谐振腔, 讨论了环形谐振腔器件的传输特性。测量了在不同物质、不同体积分数的挥发性有机化合物(VOC)蒸气气氛下器件的传输光谱的敏感性。结果表明, 谐振波长随甲醇、乙醇、丙醇等醇类化合物, 以及丙酮、甲醛等蒸气体积分数的上升而向长波方向移动, 具有高的灵敏度, 且两者基本呈线性关系。其中, 对丙醇最敏感, 灵敏度达到1.403 pm/10-6。对甲烷和二甲苯也有微弱反应, 但是其灵敏度很低。也测量了水蒸气对传输谱特性的影响。观察到传输谱衬比度对不同挥发性有机化合物物质蒸气的不同敏

溶胶-凝胶条波导Sagnac环的乙醇蒸气传感特性

采用有机/无机混合溶胶-凝胶法制作条形光波导,并将条波导接入光纤Sagnac 环中,测量了输出光功率随环境气氛中乙醇蒸气体积分数变化的特性,表明在实验研究的范围内,输出信号与乙醇蒸气体积分数呈正弦变化。根据Sagnac环结构输出特性的基本关系,反映了溶胶-凝胶条波导在乙醇蒸气气氛下产生了双折射效应。观察到双折射相移与乙醇体积分数的亚线性关系。对实验数据拟合,计算了偏振相移的线性项和二次项系数,得到所制备的条波导的双折射对乙醇体积分数的响应为Δn≈4.4×10-2。测量了信号变化的时间演变特性,典型的上升和

低损耗有机无机混合溶胶凝胶波导的实验研究

利用有机无机混合的溶胶凝胶方法在硅基底上制备波导薄膜．采用正硅酸四乙酯和苯基三乙氧基硅烷作为反应先驱物，利用旋涂的方法成膜，对其折射率，传输损耗以及条形波导的光刻、刻蚀特性进行了研究．测量了波导薄膜折射率随成分变化的关系．实验表明，该方法工艺简单，可以获得具有较低损耗的波导薄膜．测试得到632．8nm波段的损耗系数为0．23dB／cm．采用ICP刻蚀工艺获得了较为平整的条形波导．

Synthesis and characterization of photorefractive polymer based on chemically hybridized CdS-PVK nanocomposite with a new azo chromophore

We report an organic/inorganic polymer composite based on the chemically hybridized photoconductor CdS-PVK nanocomposite doped with a new second-order optically nonlinear chromophore 1-n-butoxy-2-methyl-(4-p-nitrophenylazo)benzene (BMNPAB) and plasticizer 9-ethyl-carbazole (ECZ) to manifest a photorefractive (PR) effect. A detailed description of the synthesis and characterization of BMNPAB is presented. The poled film including PVK-10-CdS nanocomposite and BMNPAB exhibits a high second harmonic generation (SHG) coefficient of 31 pm/V The photoconductivity of PVK-CdS nanocomposite also was studied here. Two-beam coupling experiment clearly indicated an asymmetric optical energy exchange between two beams on the polymer composite at zero electrical field, and the two-beam coupling gain of 50.0 cm(-1) and diffraction efficiencv of 4.2% were obtained at 647.1 nm wavelength. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sensitivity to alcohols of a planar waveguide ring resonator fabricated by a sol-gel method

A planar waveguide ring resonator was fabricated by organic-inorganic hybrid sol-gel materials; its sensitivity to ethanol vapor was experimentally investigated. It was found that dips in the transmission spectrum of the device shifted to longer wavelengths with increasing the ethanol concentration, and its sensitivity showed a linear relation with the ethanol concentration, showing a coefficient of 1.13 pm/ppm. In addition, the transmission loss of the ring resonator decreased with increasing the ethanol concentration. The measured characteristics suggest that the device may be considered as one of the candidates of alcohol vapor sensors. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hybrid bulk heterojunction solar cells from a blend of poly(3-hexylthiophene) and TiO2 nanotubes

Hybrid bulk heterojunction solar cells based on blend of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and TiO2 nanotubes or dye(N719) modified TiO2 nanotubes were processed from solution and characterized to research the nature of organic/inorganic hybrid materials. Compared with the pristine polymer P3HT and TiO2 nanoparticles/P3HT solar cells, the TiO2 nanotubes/P3HT hybrid solar cells show obvious performance improvement, due to the formation of the bulk heterojunction and charge transport improvement. A further improvement in the device performance can be achieved by modifying TiO2 nanotube surface with a standard dye N719 which can play a role in the improvement of both the light absorption and charge dissociation. Compared with the non-modified TiO2 nanotubes solar cells, the modified ones have better power conversion efficiency under 100 mW/cm(2) illumination with 500W Xenon lamp. (C) 2008 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.

Photovoltaic effect of tin disulfide with nanocrystalline/amorphous blended phases

Tin disulfide (SnS2) nanocrystalline/amorphous blended phases were synthesized by mild chemical reaction. Both X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy measurements demonstrate that the as-synthesized particles presented very small size, with a diameter of only a few nanometers. The photoluminescence (PL) spectrum suggests efficient splitting of photo-generated excitons in poly[2-methoxy-5-(3',7'-dimethyloctyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene] (MDMO-PPV) and SnS2 hybrid films. Organic/inorganic hybrid solar cells comprising MDMO-PPV and SnS2 were prepared, giving photovoltage, photocurrent, fill factor and efficiency values of 0.702 V, 0.549 mA/cm(2), 0.385 and 0.148%, respectively, which suggests that this phase-blended inorganic semiconductor can also serve as a promising solar energy material. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electropolymerized poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) film on ITO glass and its application in photovoltaic device

Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiopliene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) films have been electrochemically polymerized in situ on ITO glass substrate in boron trifluoride diethyl etherate electrolyte (BFEE). Cyclic voltammograms show good redox activity and stability of the PEDOT films. These films had been directly used to fabricate organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells with the structure of ITO/PEDOT/ZnO:MDMC-PPV/Al. The solar cells made of electrochemically polymerized films exhibit higher energy conversion efficiencies compared with that prepared by the spin-coating method, and the highest value is 0.33%. This in-situ electropolymerized method effectively simplifies fabricating procedures and may blaze a facile and economical route for producing high-efficiency solar cells.

钙钛矿型有机－无机杂化半导体材料的合成及其发光性质的研究

有机-无机钙钛矿型杂化半导体材料结合了有机和无机材料优点，并在分子水平上自组装形成复合材料，具有独特的光、电、磁等性质，在许多领域具有潜在的应用。基于第四主族金属卤化物的杂化钙钛矿是本论文研究的主题，这一类杂化钙钛矿材料是一类独特的半导体材料，其光功能引起人们越来越多的重视。 为此，本论文通过选择不同的有机阳离子配体制备了新型的基于卤化铅的有机－无机杂化钙钛矿结构单晶材料和薄膜，对它们的发光性质进行了研究。利用N-(3-胺基丙基)咪唑和溴化铅在氢溴酸溶液中反应得到了罕见的(110)取向杂化钙钛矿(C6H13N3)2PbBr4 (monoclinic, P21/c)。所得到的杂化钙钛矿在吸收(392 nm)及发射(424 nm)光谱中均存在激子的特征峰。同时，由于N-(3-胺基丙基)咪唑的光活性，得到的杂化材料具有独特的发光性质，在无机层与有机层之间发生了能量传递，使得有机配体的峰位发生红移并且发光强度明显增加。利用CASTEP (Cambridge Serial Total Energy Package) 总能计算软件包对配合物及配体的能带结构进行了计算。结果证明了配体在杂化材料中发光的红移及激子与配体间的能量传递。另外，还发现了一个有机配体2-(2-氨基乙基)硫脲也能够与金属卤化物络合形成(110)取向的有机－无机杂化钙钛矿结构C3H11SN3PbBr4(monoclinic P21/c)，由于有机配体的不同，2-(2-氨基乙基)硫脲构筑的(110)取向杂化钙钛矿结构较N-(3-胺基丙基)咪唑构筑的(110)取向杂化钙钛矿结构有较大程度的扭曲变形，使得它们的发光性质有所不同。 邻-(胺基甲基)吡啶，间-(胺基甲基)吡啶，对-(胺基甲基)吡啶在相同条件下与溴化铅组装，得到0-D [(m-C6H10N2)2PbBr6] (orthorhombic, Pbca), 1-D [(o-C6H10N2)PbBr4] (monoclinic, P21/c), 2-D [p-(C6H10N2)PbBr4] (orthorhombic, Pbca) 等不同维数的溴化铅骨架。其中间-(胺基甲基)吡啶与溴化铅在酸性条件下形成稀有的0-D杂化钙钛矿；邻-(胺基甲基)吡啶在相同条件下形成2-D层状杂化钙钛矿；对-(胺基甲基)吡啶则得到共边八面体组成的一维链。证实了有机配体氢键和空间位阻对无机结构的形成起限制作用。得到的杂化钙钛矿化合物的无机层激子特征吸收峰分别位于428 nm(0-D)和431 nm(1-D)，无机层激子特征发射峰位于461 nm (0-D)和467 nm(1-D)。 由于甲基咪盐的特殊胺盐构型，我们选用甲基咪盐取代的吡啶作为有机阳离子配体来构筑基于溴化铅的杂化钙钛矿，分别为3-甲咪基吡啶和4-甲咪基吡啶。3-甲咪基吡啶与溴化铅在酸性条件下构筑未见文献报道的即共点又共边的Pb-Br八面体连成无机层网络的杂化结构(C6H13N3)PbBr4 (monoclinic, C2/c)。4-甲咪基吡啶与溴化铅在相同条件下构筑的是常见的(100)取向的杂化钙钛矿结构(C6H13N3)PbBr4(orthorhombic, Pbca)。通过两个不同的化合物在结构和光学性质上的对比，表明有机阳离子配体对无机层结构以及杂化钙钛矿材料光学性质的影响。 在氢溴酸溶液中，组胺与卤化铅自组装成(100)取向杂化钙钛矿(C5H10N3)PbBr4 (monoclinic, P21/c)，(C5H10N3)PbCl4 (monoclinic, P21/c)。得到由扭曲的共角八面体组成的钙钛矿片层。受有机配体空间位阻及氢键的影响，无机层发生一定的扭曲，从而导致激子吸收较(分别位于419 nm，339 nm)线形脂肪胺有一定程度的红移。荧光光谱中存在基于溴化铅，氯化铅杂化钙钛矿激子的特征发射峰。另外作为比较，另一个复杂的有机胺3-氨基-1,2,4-三唑，在同样的条件下与PbBr2进行组装得到的是无机组分为一曲折的链状一维结构的杂化结构(C2H2N4)PbBr3 (orthorhombic, Pna21)。 线形的二咪唑配体2,2΄-(二咪唑基-甲基)苯和4,4΄-(二咪唑基-甲基)对联苯，由于其空间位阻与氢键的影响，与卤化铅的组装得到链状骨架。2,2΄-(二咪唑基-甲基)苯与氯化铅构筑的无机骨架是由共边铅氯三角锥连成的一维链状结构(C7H8N2)PbCl3 (triclinic, P-1)；与溴化铅形成类似交替排布的层状结构(C7H8N2)PbBr3 (triclinic, P-1)。4,4΄-(二咪唑基-甲基)对联苯构筑的氯化铅骨架为新奇的由共点的铅氯四方锥组成的类隧道形链(C20H21N4)Pb2Cl6•H2O (triclinic, P-1)；构筑的溴化铅骨架为由共边的铅溴八面体组成的双链(C20H21N4)Pb2Br6 (monoclinic, C2/c)。形成配合物的发光为配体本身的π-π*跃迁发光。 所合成的杂化钙钛矿材料都具有较好的成膜性，利用简单的旋涂法即可得到质量较好的薄膜材料，有利于对其进行光电研究。