Enhancing the side-chain alkylation of toluene with methanol to styrene over the Cs-modified X zeolite by the assistance of basic picoline as a co-catalyst

Side-chain alkylation of toluene with methanol is a green pathway to realize the one-step production of styrene under mild conditions,but the low selectivity of styrene is difficult to be improved with by-products of ethylbenzene and xylene.In this study,a new way is introduced to improve the catalytic performance by means of assisting basic compounds as co-catalysts during the toluene side-chain alkylation with methanol to styrene.As a result,high activity of side-chain alkylation appears over the basic Cs-modified zeolite catalysts prepared by ion exchange and impregnation methods.This high performance should be mainly attributed to two co-catalysis actions:(1)the promotion of basic compounds for methanol dehydrogenation to formaldehyde as the intermediate for side-chain alkylation;(2)the suppression of the styrene transfer hydrogenation on basic Cs-modified zeolites to avoid the formation of ethylbenzene.Especially for Cs_(2)O/CsX-ex catalyst,the addition of 2%mol/mol 2-picoline in reaction mixture could achieve both 12.3%toluene conversion and 84.1%styrene selectivity.Whereas the higher concentration of 2-picoline(>6%mol/mol)caused an inhibition to the catalytic activity because the excessive basic compound poisoned the combined acid-base pathway required for the side-chain alkylation process.In addition,two possible side-chain alkylation reaction routes on Cs-modified zeolite under the different 2-picoline absorption were described.

MECHANICAL PERTURBATION INDUCED MOLECULAR ALIGNMENTS IN A SIDE-CHAIN LIQUID CRYSTALLINE POLYACETYLENE, POLY{10-[4-(4'-METHOXYPHENOXY-CARBOML)PHENOXYCARBONYL]-1-DECYNE}

A new liquid crystalline polyacetylene containing a phenyl benzoate mesogen (5) is synthesized,whose mesomorphic properties are found to be easily 'tunab1e' by simple mechanical perturbation. Thepolymerization of 10- [ 4 - (4' -methoxyphenoxycarbonyl )phenoxycarbonyl] - 1 -decyne (4 ) in itiated by theWCl_6-Ph_4Sn/dioxane complex yields polymer 5 with a M_w of 28400. The molecular structure of 5 ischaracterized by NMR, IR, and UV spectroscopy and its liquid crystalline behavior is investigated by DSC,POM, and XRD analysis. Upon mechanical perturbation, 5 exhibits unusual agitation-induced high-strengthdisclinations, shear-induced inversion walls, and solidification-induced banded textures. Such phenomenahave been observed in the main-chain liquid crystalline polymers with rigid backbones, but have seldom beenreported for the side-chain liquid crystalline polymers with flexible backbones, suggesting that the rigidpolyacetylene backbone of 5 plays a constructive role in inducing the novel molecular alignments.

Efficient small-molecule donor with improved structural order and molecular aggregation enabled by side-chain modification

Side-chain modification is a proven effective approach for morphology manipulation in organic solar cells(OSCs).However,in-depth analysis and investigation involving side-chain modification towards morphology improvement,including molecular microstructure,orientating packing and aggregation are urgent for all-small-molecule(ASM)systems.Herein,employing a fluorine-modified two-dimension benzodithiophene(BDT)as central unit,we contrastively synthesized two small-molecule donors,namely BDT-F-SR and BDT-F-R,each welding alkylthio side-chains on thienyl of central BDT unit and the other grafted non-sulfuric alkyl side-chains.As predicted,the synergetic side-chain modification of fluorination and alkyl changeover triggers diverse molecular dipole moments and orientations,resulting in different molecular energy levels,thermal stabilities,molecular planarity and order.Eventually,together with the preeminent small-molecule acceptor Y6,BDT-F-R-based ASM OSCs obtain enhanced power conversion efficiency(PCE)of 13.88%compared to BDT-F-SR-based devices(PCE of 12.75%)with more suitable phase-separation and balanced carrier mobilities.The contrast results reveal that alkyl sidechains seem to be a more satisfactory partner for fluorine-modified 2D BDT-based small-molecule donors compared to alkylthio pendants,and highlight the significance of subtle side-chain modification for molecular structural order fun-tuning and morphology control,laying the foundation for efficient ASM OSCs.

MORPHOLOGICAL AND KINETIC STUDIES OF PHASE TRANSITIONS OF A SIDE-CHAIN LIQUID CRYSTALLINE POLYMER

The morphological changes of a side-chain liquid-crystalline polymethacrylate during isotropization and liquid-crystallization transitions were studied by means of polarizing microscopy. These transitions were found to be composed of the initiation of a new phase at local places of the old phase matrix and the growth of the new phase: domains. The kinetics of the liquid-crystallization of the polymer from an isotropic melt to a smectic mesophase was also investigated. The isothermal process of the transition can be described by the Avrami equation. The values of the Avrami exponent were found to be around 2.6. which is lower than the value usually obtained for crystallization transition of polymers, but larger than that reported for liquid-crystallization transition of main-chain polymers. These results may indicate the difference in growth geometry of new phase during transition between crystallization and liquid-crystallization in general and between liquid-crystallization of main-chain and side-chain polymers. It was found that the liquid-crystallization of the used side-chain polymethacrylate may occur at small undercoolings with high transformation rate similar to that of main-chain polymers and small-molecule liquid crystals, while the crystallization of polymers can only proceed at large undercoolings. These phenomena can be explained by the idea that the surface free energy of nucleus during liquid-crystallization transition is less than that for crystallization, and evidence was obtained from analysis of the temperature dependence of the transformation rate.

The effect of intermolecular interactions on photoluminescence of a porphyrin side-chain polymer

Photoluminescence properties and exciton decay dynamics in a porphyrin side-chain polymer, poly[porphyrin acrylate- acrylonitrile （abbreviated p[（por）A-AN]）, have been investigated by femtosecond time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy. All the luminescences of p[（por）A-AN] films are due to the emissive decay of the photoexcited singlet excitons in the porphyrins. The luminescence efficiencies and lifetimes are increased for samples from pure films to dilute blend films. However, they are increased as the intrachain concentration of the porphyrin sidechain groups is decreased. The intrachain rotation motions of porphyrin sidechain groups result in the initial ultrafast luminescence decays, which are much faster than those due to the interchain interactions. All the samples show no significant red-shift and broadening of the transient luminescence spectra. The interchain and intrachain nonradiative exciton relaxation processes may play an important role in the luminescence dynamics in the p[（por）A-AN] films. The possible origin of different intrachain and interchain dynamic behaviours in p[（por）A-AN] films is discussed.

MORPHOLOGICAL STUDIES OF A THERMOTROPIC SIDE-CHAIN LIQUID CRYSTALLINE POLYMER DURING MESOPHASE TRANSITIONS

The morphological features of a side-chain liquid crystalline polymer during the mesophase transitions were investigated by using the DSC technique. The polymer used was polyacrylate with mesogens of three benzene rings attached to the main chain through a flexible spacer. A special two-phase texture was observed in the transition temperature range. Similar to main-chain liquid crystalline polymers the transition process of the side-chain liquid crystalline polymer was composed of an initiation of the new phase at local places of the old phase matrix and a growth process of the new phase domains.

A Novel Diamine,4'-Phenyiphenyi 4-(3",5"-Diaminobenzoyioxy)-benzoate and Longer Side-chain Polyimide

This is a part of our systematic research work on polyimides with mesogenic unit side chain. In this study, a new 4＇-phenylpbenyl 4-（3＂,5＂-diaminobenzoyloxy）benzoate and polyimide were synthesized, and characterized by FTIR, ^1H-NMR, inherent viscosity, mechanical properties, and solubility measurements. The diamine composed with mesogenic unit aryl ester groups and bipbenyl group with longer L/D ratio, was synthesized by two key steps. Firstly, the hydroxy group of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid was protected by acetoxy group for avoiding self- polymerization of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, and then selectively hydrolyzed after esterification of carboxyl. Secondly, a selective catalysis hydrogenation was adopted to prevent the aryl ester from deoxidation. Based on this diamine, a novel polyimide was prepared by polycondensation of 4＇-phenylphenyl 4-（3＂, 5＂-diaminobenzoyloxy）benzoate and 4-aminophenyl ether（ODA） with 4, 4＇-oxydiphthalic anhydride（ODPA） in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone （NMP）. The resulting polyimide with longer side chain showed better solubility and more regular structure. Its inherent viscosity is lower than that without side chains, but its modulus and strength not only maintained, even improved.

Polymer donors with hydrophilic side-chains enabling efficient and thermally-stable polymer solar cells by non-halogenated solvent processing

Polymer solar cells(PSCs)with high power conversion efficiency(PCE)and environment-friendly fabrication are the main requirements enabling their production in industrial scale.While the use of non-halogenated solvent processing is inevitable for the PSC fabrication,it significantly reduces the processability of polymer donors(PDS)and small-molecule acceptors(SMAs).This often results in unoptimized blend morphology and limits the device performance.To address this issue,hydrophilic oligoethylene glycol(OEG)side-chains are introduced into a PD(2EG)to enhance the molecular compatibility between the PD and L8-BO SMA.The 2EG PD induces higher crystallinity and alleviates phase separation with the SMA compared to the reference PD(PM7)with hydrocarbon side-chains.Consequently,the 2EG-based PSCs exhibit a higher PCE(15.8%)than the PM7-based PSCs(PCE=14.4%)in the ortho-xylene based processing.Importantly,benefitted from the reduced phase separation and increased crystallinity of 2EG PDS,the 2EG-based PSCs show enhanced thermal stability(84%of initial PCE after 120 h heating)compared to that of the PM7-based PSCs(60%of initial PCE after 120 h heating).This study demonstrates the potential of OEG side-chain-incorporated materials in developing efficient,stable,and eco-friendly PSCs.

Two-photon Pumped Up-conversion Lasing Properties of A Series of Organic Salts with Different Side-chains

The synthesis and upconverted fluorescent properties of a series of organic compounds with the structure: donor/bridge/acceptor, and different side-chains are reported. The results show that the compounds with different side-chains exhibit different two-photon induced fluorescent properties, although they have the same main donor/bridge/acceptor structure.

STUDY ON MAGNETIC FIELD-INDUCED 0RIENTATI0N OF A CHIRAL SIDE-CHAIN LIQUID CRYSTAL POLYACRYLATE USING INFRARED DICHROISM

Magnetic field-induced orientation of a chiral side chain liquid crystalline polyacrylate(P-11) was studied by using IR dichroism. For the investigated P-11, it has been shown thatthe magnetic alignment takes place over the entire temperature range between its meltingpoint and clearing point and the orientation level is strongly temperature-dependent, thedevelopment with time of the magnetic orieatation follows an exponeotial-type relation,and the smectic phase state influences the thermal relaxation process in the absence of themagnetic field.

Highly Fluorescent Semiconducting Two-Dimensional Conjugated Polymer Films Achieved by Side-Chain Engineering Showing Large Exciton Diffusion Length

Semiconducting two-dimensional conjugated polymers(2DCPs)with strong fluorescence emission have great potential for various optoelectronic applications.However,it is enormously challenging to achieve this goal due to the significant compact interlayerπ-πstacking-induced quenching effect in these systems.In this work,we found that highly fluorescent semiconducting 2DCPs can be prepared through an effective side-chain engineering approach in which interlayer spacers are introduced to reduce the fluorescence quenching effect.The obtained two truxene-based 2DCP films that,along with-C6H13 and-C_(12)H_(25)alkyl side chains as interlayer spacers both demonstrate superior fluorescence properties with a high photoluminescence quantum yield of 5.6%and 14.6%,respectively.These are among the highest values currently reported for 2DCP films.Moreover,an ultralong isotropic quasi-twodimensional exciton diffusion length constrained in the plane with its highest value approaching 110 nm was revealed by the transient photoluminescence microscopy technique,suggesting that theπ-conjugated structure in these truxene-based 2DCP films has effectively been extended.This work can enable a broad exploration of highly fluorescent semiconducting 2DCP films for more deeply fundamental properties and optoelectronic device applications.

Improvement of photovoltaic properties of benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b′]difuran-conjugated polymer by side-chain modification

The development of polymer solar cells(PSCs)for the donor materials based on benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b′]dithiophene(BDT)has significantly boosted the power conversion efficiency(PCE).However,the PCE of polymer donor materials for benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b′]difuran(BDF)-based lags far behind that of their BDT analogs.To further explore efficient copolymers based on BDF units,a two-dimensional(2D)side-chain strategy was proposed to investigate the atom-changing effects on the copolymer donors for the properties of electron and optical.In this study,we designed and synthesized three new BDF-based copolymer donor materials,named PBDF-C,PBDF-O,and PBDF-S.Owing to the balanced charge transport and favorable phase separation of PBDF-S:Y6,a high PCE of 13.4%,a short-circuit current(J sc)of 25.48 mA cm−2,an open-circuit voltage(V oc)of 0.721 V,and a fill factor(FF)of 72.6%was obtained.This research demonstrates that the BDF building block has great potential for constructing conjugated copolymer donors for high-performance PSCs and that 2D side-chain modification is a facile approach for designing high-performance BDF-based copolymer materials.

Revealing the spacing effect of neighboring side-chains in modulating molecular aggregation and orientation of M-series acceptors

Controlling the aggregation of small-molecule acceptors(SMAs)is essential to obtain an optimal morphology and to improve the photovoltaic performance of polymer solar cells(PSCs).However,reducing intermolecular aggregation of SMAs is usually accompanied by the disruption of compact molecular packing thereby leading to their decreased electron mobilities.Here,two novel M-series SMAs(MD1T and MD2T)based on ladder-type heterononacenes with neighboring side-chains separated by one or two thiophene rings are designed and synthesized.It is found that shortening the spacing of the neighboring side-chains of the SMAs can greatly alleviate the intermolecular aggregation and alter the molecular orientation from bimodal edge-on/face-on to predominant face-on while maintaining the compact molecular packing.As a result,a more favorable morphology with smaller domain sizes is formed for the MD1T-based blend films,which greatly improves the charge generation and charge transport for the corresponding PSCs.The best-performing MD1T-based device affords an efficiency of 12.43%,over seven times higher than that of the MD2T-based device.This work reveals the importance of the spacing between the neighboring side-chains in modulating the molecular aggregation and active layer morphology,and the obtained structure-performance relationships shall provide important guidance for designing highly efficient SMAs.

我国苯乙烯合成技术研究进展

苯乙烯是一种重要的有机化工产品,广泛应用于合成树脂和合成橡胶等领域。文章介绍了我国CO_(2)氧化乙苯脱氢、苯乙炔选择性加氢、甲苯和甲醇侧链烷基化等合成苯乙烯技术的研究进展,并提出了今后的发展建议。

醚氧-烷基间隔三离子侧链型PBI碱性膜研究

基于侧链接枝改性合成了一系列具有醚氧-烷基-醚氧链段间隔分布的三阳离子侧链型聚苯并咪唑膜(oat-PBI-x)。侧链中两段柔性的含醚链段有助于亲水通道和氢键网络的形成,促进OH-快速传递,而己烷基间隔段可打破侧链全亲水属性,有效抑制膜过度溶胀。在IEC为1.40 mmol/g时膜的综合性能达到最佳。80℃时电导率为144.4 mS/cm,拉伸强度保持在21 MPa,在80℃、1 mol/L KOH溶液中浸泡900 h后电导率保留率为91.7%。将其应用于H_(2)/O_(2)燃料电池,可在1549 mA/cm^(2)的高电流密度下达到611 mW/cm^(2)的峰值功率密度。

Recent developments in peptide ligation independent of amino acid side-chain functional group

Chemical synthesis of peptides and proteins has evolved into an indispensable tool for chemical biology. Peptide ligation is a straightforward technique for joining two short peptide fragments together via a native peptide bond to afford a larger natural peptide or protein. However, the junction sites are limited to several specific amino acids because most peptide ligations involve participation of the side-chain functional groups of the junction-site amino acids. To overcome such intrinsic limitations, "general"peptide ligations which do not rely on the side-chain functional group have been developed. This review summarized the recent developments in peptide ligations that are independent of side-chain functional group of ligation-junction-site amino acid.

采用量子力学方法研究带正电氨基酸分子复合物间非键作用的强度

非键作用是自然界中广泛存在的分子间作用,参与到生命体中最基本的蛋白质与核酸的相互作用等过程。该过程以氨基酸侧链与碱基的相互作用为主,因此准确预测氨基酸侧链与碱基等生物分子的相互作用具有十分重要的科学意义。选用量子力学方法计算了15个含氨基酸侧链的带正电堆积复合物的相互作用能,并与CCSD(T)/CBS方法计算结果进行比较。计算结果表明,SCS-CCSD/CBS方法的均方根偏差为0.06 kcal/mol,线性相关系数为0.999 8;SCS-MI-CCSD/CBS方法的均方根偏差为0.11 kcal/mol,线性相关系数为0.999 9;MP2.5/CBS方法的均方根偏差为0.13 kcal/mol,线性相关系数为0.999 3,验证了上述方法的可靠性。而后进一步使用MP2.5/CBS方法计算精氨酸、组氨酸和赖氨酸侧链与中性分子形成堆积复合物在不同距离下的相互作用能,进而构建并完善了带正电氨基酸分子与中性分子间非键作用强度的标准数据。

Synthesis and Properties of Hydroxide Conductive Polymers Carrying Dense Aromatic Side-chain Quaternary Ammonium Groups

A series of hydroxide conductive polymers QTBMs carrying dense aromatic side-chain quaternary ammonium groups has been synthesized by using a new monomer of 3,3＇-di（3＂,5＂-dimethylphenyl）-4,4＇-difluorodiphenyl sulfone and other commercial monomers via polycondensation reaction, and subsequent bromination, quaternization and alkalization. The chemical structures of the ionomers were confirmed by 1H- and 13C-NMR spectroscopy. Water uptake, swelling ratio, hydroxide conductivity, the number of bonded water per ammonium group （A）, volumetric ion exchange capacity （IECvwet）, mechanical and thermal properties, and chemical stability were systematically evaluated for the series of QTBMs membranes. QTBMs showed IECs ranging from 1.02 meq·g-1 to 2.11 meq·g-1; in particular, QTBM-60 membrane with the highest IEC （2.11 meq·g-1） had very high hydroxide ion conductivity of 131.9 mS·cm-1 at 80 ℃, which was attributed to the well assembled nano-channels with distinct phase separation evidenced by small-angle X-ray scattering （SAXS）. It was found that the hydrated QTBMs membranes were mechanically stable with moderate water uptakes and swelling ratios, high chemical stability under the harsh alkaline conditions. This work provides a facile way to prepare anion exchange membranes （AEMs） with high performances for the application in alkaline fuel cells.

Modulating morphology via side-chain engineering of fused ring electron acceptors for high performance organic solar cells

In this work, four fused ring electron acceptors(FREAs), 2F-C5, 2F-C6, 2F-C8 and 2F-C10, are developed to investigate the effect of side-chain size on the molecular properties and photovoltaic performance of FREA systematically. The elongation of side-chains in the FREAs not only improves their solubility in the processing solvent, but also enhances their miscibility with the donor PBDB-T. It helps the FREA diffuse into the donor PBDB-T during film-formation, thus leading to the decrease in domain size and domain purity from PBDB-T:2F-C5 to PBDB-T:2F-C10 blend films in sequence. The smaller domain size affords more D/A interfaces to benefit exciton dissociation and inhibit monomolecular recombination. However, severe bimolecular recombination occurs when the domain purity decreases to a critical point. Due to the dual function of the increment of side-chain length, both short-circuit current density(J_(SC)) and fill factor(FF) of devices exhibit an evolution of first increasing then decreasing from 2F-C5, 2F-C6, 2F-C8 to 2F-C10 based OSCs. The PBDB-T:2F-C8 based OSCs get a fine balance in morphology with moderate domain size as well as high domain purity simultaneously for the least charge carrier recombination, thus achieving the highest power conversion efficiency of 12.28% with the best J_(SC)(21.27 mA cm^(-2)) and FF(71.96%).

Multiple Effects Tailoring the Self-organization Behaviors of Triphenylene Side-chain Liquid Crystalline Polymers via Changing the Spacer Length

Long-alkyl tail triphenylene （TP） side-chain liquid crystalline polymers （SCLCPs） with different spacer length （P-m-TP, m = 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, which is the number of carbon atom in the flexible alkyl spacers） have been successfully synthesized via free radical polymerization. The differential scanning calorimetry （DSC）, polarized light microscopy （POM）, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy （UV- Vis）, wide-angle X-ray diffraction （WAXD） and small-angle X-ray scattering （SAXS） measurements were performed to investigate the influence of multiple effects on the self-organization behaviors of P-m-TP, including steric effect, decoupling effect and π-π stacking effect. The experimental results revealed that P-m-TP （m = 2, 3, 4） formed the columnar phase which was developed by the TP moieties and the main chain as a whole, suggesting that the side-chains had strong steric effect even though the number of spacer length （m） exceeded 4. In addition, the clearing points （Tis） of the polymers were above 300 ℃. When m = 6 and 8, the polymers displayed hexagonal columnar phase and exhibited the low Tis （91 and 80 ℃ respectively）, originating from the self-assembly of triphenylene due to the decoupling effect and π-π stacking effect. This work offers a viable and inspiring pathway to control the phase transition temperature and phase structure ofTP SCLCPs via simply tailoring the spacer length and increasing the alkyl tail length of TP.