Quasi-Grotthuss mechanism in a nonporous sulphate

The transportation of the proton,the smallest ion in nature,is rudimentary in chemical and biological reactions[1,2],such as photosynthesis[3],enzyme catalysis[4],and Brensted acid/base reactions[5],and currently even imperative in some devices,namely proton exchange membrane fuel cells(PEMFCs)[6,7].The processes of these elementary reactions,like proton transfer,appear to be astonishingly analogous.

Hydrogen-bonding-driven self-assembly nonporous adaptive crystals for the separation of benzene from BTX and cyclohexane

Benzene is a volatile organic compound that can seriously harm human health,while it can serve as a precursor to produce chemicals of more complex structures in chemical industry.Capturing benzene using adsorbents is of great importance for human health,when the separation of hydrocarbons including benzene from crude oil was referred to as one of the“seven chemical separations to change the world”.In this work,we reported the efficient and selective separation of benzene from BTX and cyclohexane by hydrogen bonding self-assembly nonporous adaptive crystals AdaOH for the first time under mild and user-friendly conditions.Separation of benzene and cyclohexane(v/v=1:1)can be achieved by AdaOH with a purity of benzene up to 96.8%.Separation of BTX(v/v;benzene:toluene:o-xylene:m-xylene:pxylene=1:1:1:1:1)can be achieved by AdaOH with a purity of benzene increased from 20%to 82.9%.Our results suggest that separation of benzene using the activated AdaOH as a non-porous adaptive crystal for selectively and efficiently capturing benzene can solve the challenge in separation of benzene from other chemicals such as cyclohexane in chemical industry,and can be helpful for removal of benzene that is released from the vehicles to air.The advantages of commercially availability,easy preparation,high separation efficiency and selectivity for benzene might endow this material with enormous potential for practical uses in areas like petrochemical industry.

Size control of monodisperse nonporous silica particles by seed particle growth

Monodisperse nonporous silica particles were prepared by sol-precipitation via seed particle growth method, and the particle size, which varied from 1.0 to 4.7 μm, was strictly controlled in our experiment, The formation of secondary particles, which resulted in a multimodaI distribution of particle size, was suppressed by changing tetraethoxysilane （TEOS） concentration and reaction temperature. Furthermore, the effect of adding small amounts of electrolyte to the hydrolysis mixture was examined.

Hexnut[12]arene and its derivatives: Synthesis, host-guest properties, and application as nonporous adaptive crystals

Hexnut[12]arene(HN[12])and its derivatives,a new class of sixfold macrocyclic arenes,were designed and synthesized in reasonable yield by a one-pot reaction at room temperature using dimethoxymethane as a methylene source.HN[12],which bears a large,symmetric,and rigid cavity,was easily functionalized at both the methylene bridges and the hydroquinone units.A water-soluble fluorescent HN[12]was synthesized and used as a host to encapsulate benzyl viologen dichloride in water with a high binding affinity of(3.4±0.2)×10^(6)M^(-1).The nonporous adaptive crystal(NAC)of HN[12]was found to capture not only inorganic molecules(iodine)but also trace amounts of large organic molecules(basic fuchsine)from water,which greatly expands the scope of NACs for adsorption.

High-Performance n-Hexane Purification by Nonporous Adaptive Crystals of Leaning Pillar[6]arene

The production of high-purity n-hexane under mild conditions is of great significance in both the petrochemical industry and synthetic chemistry.Here,we report an easy-to-operate and energy-efficient n-hexane purification strategy using nonporous adaptive crystals of perethylated leaning pillar[6]arene(EtLP6).Adaptive EtLP6 crystals preferentially absorb n-hexane over other branched or cyclic C6 alkanes with similar boiling points.This selectivity arises from the different thermodynamic stabilities and variabilities of EtLP6 crystalloids loaded with n-hexane and other C6 alkanes.Moreover,the reversible transformations between the nonporous guest-free and n-hexane-containing structures make the EtLP6 crystals highly recyclable.