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The random mobility of charge carriers is a main factor causing the low photocatalytic efficiency of g-C3N4. Thus, the controllable migration of charge carriers is a rational strategy to suppress the charge recombination and facilitate charge separation. Herein, an ethylenediamine modified g-C3N4 displays improved photocatalytic activity. The excellent charge separation efficiency is confirmed to be a key factor for the enhancement. The observation from TEM image after photo-deposited Pt nanoparticles and DFT calculations verify the accumulation of electrons on some area of surface. The increased -NH2 groups significantly tune the electronic structure of g-C3N4 after modification. The generation of midgap state also affect the charge separation. Our reports provide a simple method to manage the migration of charge carriers and enables electrons directional transfer, which suppress the recombination and improve the photocatalytic activity.

We report the first disubstituted hetero-ten-vertex closo cluster [(CrGe9)Cr2(CO)13]4− with three adjacent Cr(CO)n units adopting both η5 and η1 coordination modes, which was synthesized through the reaction of “KGe1.67” with (MeCN)3Cr(CO)3 and Cr(CO)6 in ethylenediamine (en) solution. In contrast to the η1-Cr atoms forming localized two-center two-elelctron (2c-2e) Cr-Ge bonds, the hetero atom η5-Cr exhibits versatile bonding mechanisms including three 5c-2e and five 8c-2e delocalized bonds which account for Huckel aromaticity. Intricate multi-center bonding patterns delineate the multiple local σ-aromatic characters of the title cluster displaying explicit spherical aromaticity.

Water-soluble pillar[5]arenes are a class of typical macrocycles and have aroused tremendous attention for its easy to modify, abundant host-guest properties and extensive applications. However, up to now, all the reported water-soluble pillar[5]arenes acted as the host molecules, whereas they failed to be postsynthetically modified, which seriously impeded the development of the pillar[5]arene-based supramolecular chemistry. In this work, a new water-soluble pillar[5]arene, pillar[4]arene[1]quinone, was designed and synthsized with eight quaternary ammonium groups as well as a quinone units. Such a new water-soluble pillar[4]arene[1]quinone was capable of forming 1:1 stable complex with sodium 1-octanesulfonate in aqueous solution. Since the 1,4-quinone unit of WP[4]Q[1] could react with ethylenediamine (EDA) to form a conjugated quinoxaline structure, so pillar[4]arene[1]quinone could apply to the facile fluorescence turn-on sensing of EDA in aqueous solution, organic solvent and air.

Herein, Cu2S as the outer shell is grown on CdS nanorods (NRs) to construct rod-shell nanostructures (CdS/Cu2S) by a rapid, scalable and facile cation exchange reaction. The CdS NRs are firstly synthesized by a hydrothermal route, in which thiourea as the precursor of sulfur and ethylenediamine (EDA) as the solvent. And then, the outer shells of CdS NRs are successfully exchanged by Cu2S via a cation exchange reaction. The obtained CdS/Cu2S rod-shell NRs exhibit much enhanced activity of hydrogen production (640.95 μmol h−1 g−1) in comparison with pure CdS NRs (74.1 μmol h−1 g−1) and pure Cu2S NRs (0 μmol h−1 g−1). The enhanced photocatalytic activity of CdS/Cu2S rod-shell NRs owns to the following points: i) the photogenerated electrons generated by CdS quickly migrate to Cu2S without any barrier due to rod-shell structure by the in-situ cation exchange reaction, a decreased carrier recombination is achieved; ii) Cu2S as outer shells broaden the light absorption range of CdS/Cu2S rod-shell NRs into visible or even NIR light, which can produce more electrons and holes. This work inspires people to further study the rod-shell structured photocatalyst through the cation exchange strategy to further solar energy conversion.

SnS thin films were electrodeposited on glass substrates coated with indium tin oxide (ITO) from an aqueous solution of tin chloride (SnCl2) and sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) as precursors. In order to obtain stoichiometric layers, ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (C10H16N2O8, EDTA) or triethanolamine (C6H15NO3, TEA) were added to the solution as chelating agents. The X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD) confirms the nature of the polycrystalline samples as the α-SnS orthorhombic structure. The optical characterization shows, on the one hand, the direct band gap’s nature and on the other hand, its shift dependence on the chelator’s kind. Strong absorption with a coefficient greater than 104 cm−1 was observed. This makes electrodeposited SnS, a material with very interesting characteristics that allows it to be used as the absorber layer in solar cells. Hence, we were interested in the simulation of based solar cells output characteristics. Numerical simulation, using 1D-SCAPS software, of the photocurrent provides power conversion efficiency (PCE) approaching 27% when adding EDTA.

An ecofriendly microwave pyrolysis tactic was employed to synthesize N-doped fluorescent carbon nanodots (N-CNDs) using Gum ghatti and ethylenediamine as a carbon and nitrogen source. The fabricated N-CNDs exhibits high stability in water medium and emits bright blue fluorescence with the quantum yield of 23%. We further established N-CNDs as an excellent visual and selective fluorescent-based nanoprobe for mercury ions (Hg2+ ions) detection. The limit of detection was found to be 4.6 nM. When metal ion chelator ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) was added into the N-CNDs + Hg2+ ions system, the fluorescence was reverted effectively. Moreover, the fluorescent quenching principle of N-CNDs + Hg2+ ions system follows the static quenching mechanism. Finally, the Gum ghatti derived N-CNDs was efficiently applied in environmental water samples like tap and mineral water to determine mercury ions.

Building compatible surface on perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) for applications like sensing analytes in aqueous medium is highly challenging and if achieved by simple means can revolutionize disease diagnostics. The present work reports the surface engineering of CsPbBr3 QDs via "simple ligand exchange process" to achieve water-compatible QDs towards detection of biomolecules. The monodentate oleic acid ligand in CsPbBr3 QDs is exchanged with dicarboxylic acid containing (bidentate) ligands such as folic acid (FA), ethylenediamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA), succinic acid (SA) and glutamic acid (GA) to develop an efficient water-compatible PQD-ligand system. optical and theoretical studies showed the existence of a stronger binding between the perovskite and succinic acid ligand as compared to oleic acid (OA) and all other ligands. Replacement of OA with SA and retention of crystal structure is validated using spectroscopic and microscopic tools. It is observed that SA ligands facilitate better electronic coupling with PQDs and show significant improvement in fluorescence and stability. Further N-Hydroxy succinimide (NHS), which is a well-known compound to activate carboxyl groups, is used to bind onto SA PQDs as multidentate ligand, to form water stable PQDs. SA PQDs react with NHS (in water) to form multidentate ligand passivated PQDs that show very high photoluminescence (PL) as compared to OA PQDs in toluene. This also results in the formation of an NHS ester that allows bioconjugation with PQDs. This simple probe in water is further utilized for sensing a highly hydrophilic bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein as a model target to demonstrate the potential and effectiveness of this process to create compatible QDs for the successful conjugation of biomolecules. Although the focus of this work is to demonstrate bioconjugation and not achieving higher sensitivity levels, the intrinsic sensing level of these compatible QDs towards BSA shows a detection limit of 51.47 nM, which is above par with other reports in literature.

A reversible amine-carbamate approach has been developed to reduce the use of antisolvents such as water in the coagulation of biopolymers from ionic liquid (IL) solution and thus improve the economy of IL recycle. Cellulose and chitin were recovered from 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([C2mim][OAc]) solution by introducing the miscible amines triethanolamine (TEA), ethylenediamine (EDA), or butylamine (BA) and bubbling CO2 at 40 °C and atmospheric pressure through the solutions to form carbamate salts in situ which resulted in biopolymer coagulation. BA gave the best results because of its low boiling point and low viscosity, which benefited both biopolymer recovery and IL recycle. Cellulose films and fibers could be formed by extrusion of an MCC/[C2mim]‐[OAc] solution into a coagulating bath comprised of a 1:1 M mixture of [C2mim][OAc] and butylammonium butylcarbamate (BA-carbamate). The cellulose, IL, amine, and CO2 were easily separated, although the cellulose recovered required some water washings to remove traces of IL. Up to 96.5% of the [C2mim][OAc] could be recovered, 76.2% from the coagulation bath and 20.2% from the water washings. The recycled IL was suitable for another cycle of cellulose dissolution and extrusion and 84.6% of the IL used for the second cycle was recovered. Although further work is needed, not the least of which will be reducing the amount of water needed for washing steps, some promising features of this process point the way for new directions for more economically viable IL recycling processes in biomass treatment with ILs.

In this paper, CeVO4 nanostructures were produced with controlled hydrothermal method using hydrazine, cerium nitrate, and ammonium vanadate as reactants. Reaction control was performed utilizing hydrazine and ethylenediamine as new reactants. Other effective parameters such as solvent and surfactant were also carefully studied and optimized. The products were then identified through XRD, EDS, FTIR, FESEM, and BET analyses. FESEM results showed that by adjusting the concentration of ethylenediamine, hydrazine, and PVP surfactant, a rod-shaped morphology with suitable porosity could be created. Due to the high potential of CeVO4 in electrochemical processes, it was first employed for electrochemical storage of hydrogen. The amount of hydrogen storage in nanostructures produced with rod-shaped morphology was about 2575 mAh/g, which is very significant compared to products obtained with sodium hydroxide with spherical morphology.

In the current investigation, the incorporation of ethylenediamine (EDA)-modified ZIF-8 (zeolitic imidazolate framework) nanostructures into the chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol (CS/PVA) membrane adsorbents was explored for the elimination of reactive green 19 (RG) from aqueous solutions. Characterization of the synthesized EDA-modified ZIF-8 nanostructures and the membranes was carried out using XRD, SEM, BET and ATR-FTIR analyses. The CHN calculated the deacetylation degree of chitosan as 93%. To attain the maximum removal efficiency, three affecting operational parameters, including pH, adsorbent dosage, and initial concentration of dye, were optimized using the central composite design technique. The optimal conditions were resulted as; pH of 4, the adsorbent mass of 0.047 g, and the initial concentration of 70 mg L−1. Afterwards, the isothermal, kinetic, and thermodynamic studies were done under the optimal conditions attained. The outcomes displayed that the equilibrium and rate of reactive green 19 adsorption on the CS/PVA/EDA-modified ZIF-8 membrane surface obeyed the Freundlich isotherm and the pseudo-second order kinetic model, respectively. The adsorption capacity was found as 144.61 mg g−1. Furthermore, the entropy change (ΔS) and the enthalpy change (ΔH) for the adsorption were equal to 0.28 (kJ mol−1 K−1) and 4.83 (kJ mol−1), respectively. Negative values of ΔG° confirmed the spontaneity of the adsorption. Molecular dynamic simulation results showed that the interaction energies of CS/PVA/EDA-modified ZIF-8 membrane + RG system surpassed that of the CS/PVA + RG, which was in agreement with the adsorption performance results.

In this work, three Nitrogen-functionalized graphene (NGs): amino-graphene (G-NH2), graphene-ethanolamine (G-EA), and graphene ethylenediamine (G-EDA) have been synthesized and tested as hole transport layers (HTL) for perovskite solar cells (PSCs) applications. Among the evaluated graphene-based derivatives, the PSCs fabricated with graphene-ethylenediamine (G-EDA) showed best power conversion efficiency of 12.9%. The enhanced PCE of G-EDA based PSCs as compared to other NGs are attributed to the uniform coverage, faster hole transportation, and a template for larger perovskite crystal growth. Moreover, the PCE of the PSCs fabricated with G-EA and G-EDA based HTLs remain stable even after 200 h of light-soaking.

Background Amine degradation products are very important for industrials not only leads to amine losses but also contribute to operational problems such as high corrosion effects. In this research, a new quantitative method has been developed for the analysis of 2-methylaminoethanol (MAE) and tris(2-hydroxyethylethyl)ethylenediamine (THEED) in the diethanolamine solution by cation-exchange chromatography. Methods The mobile phase was optimized for the interference-free determination of THEED and MAE. For THEED, the final composition was included 8 mmol L−1 HNO3 and 15% (v/v) acetonitrile. The linear range of the calibration curve was achieved in the range of 0.5 to 1000 ppm with the correlation coefficient of 0.9998. The relative standard deviation was 3.89%. Also, the mobile phase was optimized for MAE determination. The optimal composition was 1.45 mmol L−1 of HNO3, 0.15 mmol L−1 of 18-crown-6, and 3.4 mmol L−1 of dipicolinic acid. The mobile phase also was contained 0.75% (v/v) of acetonitrile. Significant Findings The linear range of the calibration curve was from 0.1 to 200 ppm with a correlation coefficient of 0.9999, and the relative standard deviation is 0.46%. Very low detection limits including 0.03 and 0.17 ppm were found for MAE and THEED respectively. Acceptable precisions, below the 3.89%, were accomplished by the method. The proposed method was used for the determination of desired compounds in the real natural gas sweetening solution.

During the preparation of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ (Bi2212) superconducting thin films by sol-gel method, the complexing agent and sintering conditions can significantly influence the quality and the performance of thin film. In this study, Bi2212 thin films were prepared on single crystal SrTiO3 (001) substrate, and the phase purity, crystallinity, surface morphology and transport properties were studied particularly with different sintering temperature and time, complexing agent and its ratio to metal ions. Due to relatively low carbon content, tartaric acid (TA) as a complexing agent improved the film quality and transport properties compared with the traditional ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA). When the complex ratios of TA to metal ions was 1:1, Bi2212 thin films exhibited good epitaxial properties, a high Bi2212 phase purity and a low surface roughness of 12.74 nm. Simultaneously, under these preparation condition, Bi2212 superconducting thin film showed a higher Tc, onset of 93.28 K.

Based on that hydrogen energy is widely used in fuel cells, we focus our interests on the design and research of new complexes that catalyze the reaction in both directions, such as hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs) and hydrogen oxidation reactions (HORs). A highly efficient catalyst for both hydrogen evolution and oxidation, based on a nickel(II) complex, [Ni-en-P2](ClO4)2, has been designed and provided by the reaction of Ni(ClO4)2 with N,N′-bis[o-(diphenylphosphino)benzylidene]ethylenediamine (en-P2) in our group. Its structure has been determined by X-ray diffraction. [Ni-en-P2](ClO4)2 can electro-catalyze hydrogen evolution both from acetic acid and a neutral buffer (pH 7.0) with a turnover frequency (TOF) of 204 and 1327 mol of hydrogen per mole of catalyst per hour (H2/mol catalyst/h) under an overpotential (OP) of 914.6 mV and 836.6 mV, respectively. [Ni-en-P2](ClO4)2 also can electro-catalyze hydrogen oxidation with a TOF of 111.7 s−1 under an OP of 330 mV. The results can be attributed to that [NiII-en-P2](ClO4)2 has three good reversible redox waves at 1.01 (NiIII/II), −0.79 (NiII/I) and −1.38 V (NiI/0) versus Fc+/0, respectively. We hope these findings can afford a new method for the design of electrocatalysts for both H2 evolution and H2 oxidation.

Highly efficient and selective adsorption materials for the removal and recycling of U(VI) from radioactive wastewater or seawater are increasingly in demand due to the severe scarcity of strategic uranium sources for nuclear engineering. In this study, a three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical reduced graphene oxide/ethylenediamine scaffold (3D rGOE) was constructed using a direct-ink-writing-based 3D printing method. This technique contained orderly aligned microstructures, good hydrophilicity, mechanical robustness, and a high specific surface area. The optimized 3D rGOE structure obtained by multiscale and rational chemical modification exhibited a significantly higher U(VI) adsorption capacity (908 mg/g at pH = 5.8) compared to other previously reported amino/graphene-oxide-based composites. Additionally, the 3D rGOE mostly retained its high adsorption capacity (decay rate

In this paper, a method of extracting phenols from coal tar by amines aqueous solution was proposed. The effects of various amines on the extraction properties of phenols in coal tar were researched from the views of molecular structure. The parameters such as molar ratio, concentration, extraction time and temperature for the extraction of coal tar by the monoethanolamine and ethylenediamine aqueous solution were examined. The results show that the organic amine with more amino groups, hydroxyl structure and strong electronegativity exhibited better extraction performance. Under the optimal conditions, the extraction yields of phenols in coal tar by the monoethanolamine or ethylenediamine aqueous solution are above 80%, and the recovery yields of amines reach 99%. Furthermore, the probable geometries of complexes formed by the combination of phenols and organic amines were calculated by density function theory. In addition, several thermodynamic models were evaluated through comparing the relative deviation of simulation results by ASPEN PLUS to the experimental ones, which provide feasibility thermodynamic models for the simulation of extraction process. The present work affords a mild, efficient and green approach for the extraction of phenols from coal tar by an aqueous solution of amines in industry application.

Chitosan is a promising substitute for heavy metal ion adsorbents. However, traditional pure chitosan adsorbents have certain disadvantages that limit their application. In this paper, a ‘top modification’ strategy was used to enhance the capturing ability of chitosan adsorbents. A chitosan aerogel was prepared via physical crosslinking and then enhanced by immersion in ethylenediamine tetraacetic anhydride solution. Finally, an enhanced chitosan aerogel was obtained, and analyses were used to describe its structure, adsorption properties and mechanism. Results showed that both the porous structure and the combined complexations dramatically improved the capturing ability of the chitosan aerogel for heavy metal ions. The theoretical adsorption capacities of the enhanced aerogel for Cu2+, Pb2+ and Cd2+ reached 108.14, 143.73 and 84.62 mg/g, respectively. Due to their environmental friendliness, good adsorption performance, easy separation and reusability, enhanced aerogels have become viable solutions to removing heavy metal pollutants from aquatic systems.

Nanostructured phenolic resin-based carbon aerogels with an extensive network structure are regarded as ideal energy storage materials for supercapacitors. However, the initial bulk form and low capacitance of previously reported porous carbon aerogels are problematic for practical use. Phenolic resin-based porous carbon spheres were synthesized by a simple hydrothermal process using ammonia, ethylenediamine or hexylenediamine as a catalyst. The porous carbon spheres were investigated by SEM, BET, XPS, etc. It was found that the number of ammonium groups, length of the alkyl chain and processing temperature play vital roles in determining the pore structure, size and uniformity of the carbon spheres. NH4+ is necessary to obtain the carbon spheres and but changing the other parameters has no obvious effect on their crystal structure. The sample prepared at a hydrothermal temperature of 80 °C using ammonia as the catalyst has the highest specific capacitance of 233.8 F g−1 at a current density of 1.0 A g−1. It has an excellent capacitance retention of 98% after 10,000 charge/discharge cycles at 7 A g−1, indicating its good cycling stability and rate capability. This result shows that a higher specific surface area, porosity and defect density are probably the crucial factors in improving the electrochemical capacitance.

In this study, for the first time we reported a low-cost and straightforward method to modify the polysulfide electrolyte using amine additives including aromatic amines (1,8-naphthalenediamine, 1,5-naphthalenediamine), linear amines (ethylenediamine, diethylamine, ethylamine, tert-butylamine, and butylamine), thiourea, and urea in the polysulfide electrolyte system to improve the CdS/CdSe QDSSCs performance. The photovoltaic data showed that the highest power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) were obtained for 1,5-naphthalenediamine amongst aromatic amine groups, diethylamine amidst linear amine groups and thiourea. The best-measured PCE was 3.42% (JSC = 18.98 mA·cm−2, VOC = 0.50 V, FF = 0.36) at AM1.5, which was due to presence of thiourea additive in the polysulfide electrolyte. The results of data revealed that the interaction between thiourea additive, TiO2, and redox couple in the electrolyte solution caused to a molecular complex formation, increase the electron lifetime (τ), JSC and, ultimately, improve the PCE value compared to other additives under investigation in this study.

A series of Ni/ZrO2 catalysts was prepared by the impregnation method with modification of the morphology of ZrO2 support as well as the impregnation procedure and tested for CO2 methanation. The catalysts supported on the ZrO2 nanosheets displayed superior catalytic performance as compared with that on ZrO2 nanoparticles, which could be mainly attributed to the abundant oxygen vacancies promoting the adsorption and dissociation of CO2 molecules as well as the high dispersion of Ni species. With the introduction of ethylenediamine (En) in the impregnation procedure, the resulting Ni-15En/ZrO2-1.5 catalyst showed the optimal activity with CO2 conversion of 86% significantly higher than Ni/ZrO2-0 of 44% and Ni/ZrO2-1.5 of 79% at 0.5 MPa and 300 °C. The excellent performance was attributed to increased moderately basic sites for CO2 adsorption in ZrO2 nanosheets, as well as the enhanced dispersion of nickel caused by the complexation of Ni ions with En, which inhibited the aggregation of nickel particles in the subsequent thermal treatments. In conclusion, the synergistic effects of the morphology of ZrO2 nanosheets as well as the chelating behavior of En contributed to the enhanced performance of Ni-15En/ZrO2-1.5 in the CO2 methanation reaction. The strategy shows good prospects for controlling the size of active metals, especially those that were dispersed on the surface of the two-dimensional (2D) metal oxide materials.

In recent years, developing excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorbers with small thickness and large bandwidth is an effective strategy to deal with the seriously EMW interferes in military and civil field. The morphology of absorbers has profound effects on their EMW absorption performance. Herein, ethylenediamine (EDA) was applied to EMW absorbing field as morphology control agent for the first time (as far as we know) for the synthesis of nickel cobaltate (NiCo2O4) absorber, and the effect of EDA content on the morphology and EMW absorbing performance was also investigated elaborately. As a bidentate ligand and structure-directing reagent, EDA controlled the morphology of NiCo2O4 by reducing the rate of nucleation and crystal growth through the complexation with metal ions, and adjusting the growth rate of different facets through the selective binding of amino to certain surfaces. The study found that the morphology of NiCo2O4 changed from three-dimensional urchin-like structures to two-dimensional nanosheets with the increase of EDA content, and meanwhile the dielectric loss property decreased, which led to decline in EMW attenuation properties. The urchin-like NiCo2O4 absorber at a molar ratio of 0.5 (EDA: metal ions) exhibited optimum absorption properties with a small thickness of 1.70 mm and large effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of 5.81 GHz (12.19–18 GHz). The excellent EMW absorbing properties mainly originate from remarkable dipole polarization induced by oxygen vacancies and lattice defects, interface polarization stemming from the interfaces of NiCo2O4 fibers, and multiple reflections and scattering in its unique urchin-like structures. This work provides a simple method for absorber with controlled morphologies, and also expands the family members of Co-based ferrite with outstanding absorbing performance.

Manganese oxides of different crystalline structures: α-MnO2, δ-MnO2, α,γ-MnO2 and Mn2O3; were treated with the organic compounds picolinic acid, ethylenediamine and pyridine; and were applied as catalysts in the chemical water oxidation reaction using Ce(IV) ammonium nitrate as sacrificial oxidant. The treatment led to modifications in the oxides properties, such as reduction of the particle size, increase of surface area and partial reduction of Mn4+ to Mn3+ for the Mn(IV) oxides, or of Mn3+ to Mn2+ for Mn2O3, because of favored interactions of the organic molecules with the lattice planes with higher d spacing. Oxygen evolution reaction (OER) tests showed the superior catalytic activity of the treated Mn(IV) oxides, for instance α,γ-MnO2-en presented TOF five times higher than pure α,γ-MnO2. The increase in surface area as well as the higher Mn3+ content caused by the treatment of the Mn(IV) oxides were correlated with the improvement in the OER catalytic activity.

1T-MoS2 exhibits superior eletroconductivity and electrocatalytic activity in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) over 2H–MoS2. But its thermodynamic instability severely hinders its practical application. This paper develops a highly active and stable triphasic 1T/2H–MoS2/graphene heterostructure through a facile one-step hydrothermal route with the assistance of a small organic molecule, ethylenediamine, as the structure-directing reagent. The novel triphasic heterostructure is fabricated by vertically stacking lateral 1T/2H–MoS2 heterojuctions on graphene. The stability of the 1T phase is associated with the strain effects in the lateral 1T/2H–MoS2 heterojunctioned nanosheets and the electron coupling effects in the vertical 1T/2H–MoS2/graphene 2D/2D heterostructure. The content of 1T phase in 1T/2H–MoS2/graphene can be regulated by adjusting the preparation temperature. The optimized 1T/2H–MoS2/graphene hybrid contains 40.5% 1T phase and exhibits outstanding HER performance with a low overpotential of 143 mV at current density of 10 mA cm-2, a small Tafel slope of 64 mV dec-1 and excellent durability in acid electrolyte. This work highlights a new strategy to utilize structure-directing reagents for fabricating highly efficient MoS2-based electrocatalysts.

Expanding the interlayer spacing of the Ti3C2Tx MXene structure is realized by intercalation of ethylenediamine (EDA), which is anchored on the surface of Ti3C2Tx sheets by one side amino groups with N–Ti coordination bonds. The EDA-Ti3C2Tx intercalation compound has a high specific surface area of 59.2 m2 g−1 with mainly mesopores. The EDA-Ti3C2Tx possesses the low charge transfer resistances of ∼0.32/0.28 Ω in 1/3 M H2SO4 aqueous electrolytes, respectively. A large specific capacitance of 486.2 F g−1 (1312.7 F cm−3) is obtained for EDA-Ti3C2Tx at a scan rate of 2 mV s−1 in 1 M H2SO4 electrolyte, showing its high capacitance property. A good specific capacitance of 249.4 F g−1 (673.4 F cm−3) is retained at larger scan rate of 100 mV s−1, indicating its significantly high rate capability. Higher specific capacitances of 563.3 (1520.9), 522.1 (1409.7), 485.1 (1309.8), 436.2 (1177.7), 356.2 (961.7) and 290.6 F g−1 (784.6 F cm−3) are achieved for EDA-Ti3C2Tx at the scan rates of 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 mV s−1, respectively, in 3 M H2SO4 electrolyte. The cyclic retention of EDA-Ti3C2Tx after 10,000 cycles reaches 89.7% at 10 A g−1 in 3 M H2SO4 electrolyte, showing the excellent cyclic stability.

For the first time, corrosion of a Pd anode was detected during electrolysis in a weakly alkaline aqueous solution of ethylenediamine. The kinetics and mechanism of the process were investigated by the methods of cyclic voltammetry and gravimetry. Scanning electron microscopy showed corrosion of the Pd anode and deposition of Pd on the cathode surface, while the formation of colloidal Pd in the working solution was identified by transmission electron microscopy.

This work focuses on the preparation of CdSe nanostructures as they have attracted more interest in recent years due to their size and morphology dependent properties. CdSe nanoparticles have been prepared through solvothermal method using Cadmium nitrate and sodium biselenite as precursors and ethylenediamine as solvent. The effect of reaction time on the properties of CdSe especially on the morphology and size have been investigated and reported. With increase in the reaction time, the sizes of the particles are found to increase considerably. The XRD pattern also confirms the improvement in the crystallinity of the prepared samples with increase in reaction temperature. The TEM results show the formation of nanorods like structures in the sample prepared at higher temperature for longer hours.

Aqueous solutions of tertiary amines are promising absorbents for CO2 capture, as they are typically characterized by a high absorption capacity, low heat of reaction, and low corrosivity. However, tertiary amines also exhibit very low kinetics of CO2 absorption, which has made them unattractive options for large-scale utilization. Here, a series of novel nanoporous carbonaceous promoters (NCPs) with different properties were synthesized, characterized, and used as rate promoters for CO2 absorption in aqueous N, N-diethylethanolamine (DEEA) solutions. To prepare a DEEA–NCP nanofluid, NCPs were dispersed into aqueous 3 mol·L−1 DEEA solution using ultrasonication. The results revealed that among microporous (GC) and mesoporous (GS) carbonaceous structures functionalized with ethylenediamine (EDA) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) molecules, the GC–EDA promoter exhibited the best performance. A comparison between DEEA–GC–EDA nanofluid and typical aqueous DEEA solutions highlighted that the GC-EDA promoter enhances the rate of CO2 absorption at 40 °C by 38.6% (36.8–50.7 kPa·min−1) and improves the equilibrium CO2 absorption capacity (15 kPa; 40 °C) by 13.2% (0.69–0.78 mol of CO2 per mole of DEEA). Moreover, the recyclability of DEEA–GC–EDA nanofluid was determined and a promotion mechanism is suggested. The outcomes demonstrate that NCP–GC–EDA in tertiary amines is a promising strategy to enhance the rate of CO2 absorption and facilitate their large-scale deployment.

In this paper, a controlled hydrothermal method was employed to synthesize spherical-like Zn3V3O8 nanostructures. Reaction control was performed using hydrazine and ethylenediamine as new reactants. Other effective parameters such as solvent and surfactant were also carefully investigated and optimized, and the products were then identified by EDS, XRD, FTIR, and FESEM analyses. XRD results showed that Zn3V3O8 was formed using hydrazine while ZnO was the main product in the presence of NaOH, which is commonly utilized to produce metal oxides. SEM images showed that by adjusting the concentration of ethylenediamine and hydrazine, the morphology could be controlled by aggregating the nanoparticles to form uniform spherical structures with appropriate porosity. Owing to the high potential of Zn3V3O8 in electrochemical processes, it was used for electrochemical hydrogen storage for the first time, which exhibited a high power of 3325 m Ah/g after 20 cycles.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have drawn a growing research interest for applications in a wide range of scientific and industrial arenas. However, a limited effort has been reported in the area of gas separation processes and particularly the carbon dioxide capture. This study introduces a novel set of DESs that were prepared by complexing ethylenediamine (EDA), monoethanolamine (MEA), tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), triethylenetetramine (TETA) and diethylenetriamine (DETA) as hydrogen bond donors to monoethanolamide hydrochloride (EAHC) salt as a hydrogen bond acceptor. The absorption capacity of CO2 was evaluated by exploiting a method based on measuring the pressure drop during the absorption process. The solubility of different DESs was studied at a temperature of 313.15 K and initial pressure of 0.8 MPa. The DES systems 1EAHC:9DETA, 1EAHC:9TETA and 1EAHC:9TEPA achieved the highest CO2 solubility of 0.6611, 0.6572 and 0.7017 mol CO2·(mole DES)−1 respectively. The results showed that CO2 solubility in the DESs increased with increasing the molar ratio of hydrogen bond donor. In addition, the CO2 solubility increased as the number of amine groups in the solvent increases, therefore, increasing the alkyl chain length in the DESs, resulted in increasing the CO2 solubility. FTIR analysis confirms the DES synthesis since no new functional group was identified. The FTIR spectra also revealed the carbamate formation in DES-CO2 mixtures. In addition, the densities and viscosities of the synthesized DESs were also measured. The CO2 initial investigation of reported DESs shows that these can be potential alternative for conventional solvents in CO2 capture processes.

The photocatalyst is a crucial factor in determining solar-to-H2 efficiency for solar-driven water splitting. Here, the FeP/CdS well-defined heterostructure was elaborately designed and successfully constructed in-situ to achieve efficient water splitting by using a simple and green solvothermal approach. In the synthetic process, the ethylenediamine plays an important role in the construction of intimate contact interface between FeP and CdS. This good quality FeP/CdS heterostructure can efficiently promote charge separation and transportation, and therefore the charge recombination of CdS was significantly suppressed. As a result, the as-synthesized FeP/CdS heterostructure showed excellent photocatalytic performance under visible-light irradiation with an optimal hydrogen evolution rate of 37.92 mmol g−1 h−1 and an apparent quantum yield of 31.50% at 420 nm far exceeding that of pristine CdS by more than 122 folds. This rate, to the best of our knowledge, outperforms other similar catalytic systems.

Due to the low consumption of chemicals, the absence of toxic residual side products, the procedure simplicity and time-saving aspects, gamma irradiation offers advantages over the classical chemical protocols. We successfully employed gamma irradiation in order to introduce N-atoms in Graphene Quantum Dots (GQDs). By irradiating GQDs water dispersions in the presence of isopropyl alcohol and ethylenediamine, at doses of 25, 50 and 200 kGy, we attached amino groups onto GQDs in a single synthetic step. At the same time, a chemical reduction is achieved, too. Selected conditions induced incorporation of N-atoms within GDQs atomic lattice (around 3 at%), at all applied doses. Additionally, the C-atoms percentage was highly increased, from 63 to 79 at % or higher. The zeta potential of dots changed from −34.6 to +9.1 mV, due to the modification of functionalizing groups localized at the surface. Produced chemical changes lead to the desired alteration of the GQDs optical properties, such as an increased photoluminescence intensity, a higher photoluminescence quantum yields (from 2.07 to 18.40%) and a narrowing of the spectral features in the emission spectra. The ability of gamma-irradiated GQDs to quench free radical species was investigated and positively assessed; additionally, non-enzymatic optical detection of Cu(II) ions using GQDs as a sensor was studied and the detection limits areherein reported. These results suggest that GQDs can be potentially applied as smart photoluminescent sensors for metal cations. This is the peer-reviewed version of the article: S. Jovanović, Slađ. Dorontić, D. Jovanović, G. Ciasca, M. Budimir, A. Bonasera, M. Scopelliti, O. Marković, B. Todorović Marković, Gamma irradiation of graphene quantum dots with ethylenediamine: Antioxidant for ion sensing, Ceramics International (2020), 46, 15, 23611-23622 DOI: [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2020.06.133] The published version: [http://cer.ihtm.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/3593]

Ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid (EDDS) is a promising chelating agent for the remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soil. In general, EDDS is produced through a chemical method. In this study, we report an efficient biotechnological approach for EDDS production using an immobilized enzyme. We expressed the EDDS lyase in E. coli and obtained 19.8 g/L of EDDS through a reaction catalyzed by crude enzymes, containing EDDS lyase and fumarase. After performing metal affinity chromatography-mediated purification, we thoroughly eliminated the fumarase activity, which could result in the unnecessary formation of malate. Then, the purified EDDS lyase was immobilized on a glutaraldehyde-activated amino carrier, and the immobilized enzyme was used in 11 batches (864.5 h). After optimization, 209.3 g/L EDDS was obtained in a 100 mL reaction system, resulting in 20.2 g of EDDS product with a purity of 99.8 % after isolation. The yields of reaction and isolation were 94.0 % and 91.8 %, respectively. In conclusion, this study describes a promising bioproduction process for industrial-level EDDS production.

A novel N-doped SiO2@SiC core shell has been synthesized and functionalized with amino groups. Then, amino hybrid of tungsten oxide was supported on the surface of functionalized SiO2@SiC core shell by immobilization of tungsten complex and coordination of ethylenediamine to tungsten centers. Then, the catalytic activities of prepared hybrids were investigated in oxidative desulfurization of model fuels. To evaluate the role of silicon carbide support, silica nanospheres also were functionalized and its catalytic performance was compared. The results indicate that the SiC catalyst shows higher catalytic activity (99.9%, 160 min) compared to the SiO2 analogue (61%, 160 min).

In this study we synthesized Pd(0) nanoparticles with nearly 20 nm size using p(3-Sulfopropyl acrylate) (p(SPA)) hydrogel as support material. Pd@p(SPA) containing Pd (0) nanoparticles with nearly homogeneous distribution was characterized structurally with TEM, XRD, XPS and elemental mapping. The Pd@p(SPA) was used for the catalytic hydrolysis reaction of ethylenediamine bisborane (EDAB). A series of reactions were completed by changing parameters like the catalyst amount, EDAB concentration and temperature. The Pd@p(SPA) was determined to have turnover frequency (TOF) value of 354 mol H2.molPd(0)−1.h−1 at 30 °C for the hydrolysis reaction of EDAB. The activation parameters for the reaction were Ea = 67.79 kJmol-1, ΔH# = 65.15 kJmol-1 and ΔS# = -103.26 Jmol−1K−1. Pd@p(SPA) also had excellent reusability for the hydrolysis of EDAB. Even after ten reaction cycles, Pd@p(SPA) had 87% catalytic activity. At the same time after four months of storage in an aqueous medium, Pd@p(SPA) still had 100% catalytic activity.

In this study, the hydrogen generation from the catalytic hydrolysis of the ethylenediamine bisborane (EDAB) was performed. For this purpose, the p(sulfopropyl acrylate potassium salt-co-2-acrylamido-2-methylpropansulfonic acid sodium salt)@Ag(0) (p(SPA-co-AMPS)@Ag) catalyst was prepared. Later the p(SPA-co-AMPS)@Ag containing Ag(0) particles with nanodimensions was used as catalyst in EDAB hydrolysis. Our study is the first in the literature from this aspect, and investigated in detail the effect of catalyst amount, reactive concentration, temperature and dry or swollen nature of the catalyst on the EDAB hydrolysis. At the end of the reaction series, the hydrolysis reaction of EDAB with p(SPA-co-AMPS)@Ag catalyst was determined to have activation energy (Ea) of 43.24 kJmol-1. Additionally, the turn over frequency (TOF) was 0.560 mol H2(mol Ag(0).min)−1 at 30 °C. The p(SPA-co-AMPS)@Ag catalyst had perfect reusability with 95% of initial activity after the 5th use for the hydrogen generation from EDAB.

In this study, p(AAm-co-TACYC) hydrogels were synthesized using TACYC crosslinker. The p(AAm-co-TACYC) hydrogel was used for preparation of Cu(0) nanoparticles as support material. The p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu was prepared by chemical reduction of Cu2+ ions in the p(AAm-co-TACYC) networks and was structurally characterized in detail. Later the catalytic activity of p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu was investigated for hydrogen production from AB and EDAB hydrolysis. Detailed kinetic studies were performed for both hydrogen storage materials. The p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu was a more active catalyst for the EDAB hydrolysis reaction. The Ea values of p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu for the AB and EDAB hydrolysis reactions were determined as 68.36 kJ mol−1 and 39.07 kJ mol−1, respectively. In addition to the perfect catalytic activity of p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu, it had good reusability. After ten consecutive uses for AB and EDAB hydrolysis, the p(AAm-co-TACYC)@Cu still had 88% and 85% of initial activity, respectively.

A co-assembly approach has been developed to controllably fabricate N-doped hollow mesoporous carbon spheres (N-HMCS) with different morphologies. Cetyl-3-methyl ammonium bromide and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) are applied to co-assemble with polybenzoxazines (phenol/formaldehyde/ethylenediamine (PB) resin) through electrostatic interaction. The utilization of ethylenediamine (EDA) is to introduce nitrogen into N-HMCS and catalyze hydrolysis of the silica precursor and polymerization of PB. The increasing amount of EDA leads to different morphologies of N-HMCS, changing from irregular particle aggregates to hollow spheres with increasing in diameter by controlling the hydrolysis rate of TEOS. In addition, pre-polymerization of phenol/formaldehyde oligomer is another key factor for the formation of N-HMCS, which is proved by the irregular porous particles obtained by direct assembly of phenol, formaldehyde and EDA. The different morphologies in N-HMCS show variable electrochemical performance when using as electrode materials in supercapacitor. Typically, N-HMCS with regular spherical morphology, small diameter and thin shell shows better performance, proving its excellent prospects in energy storage.

SO3H-carbocatalysts with nitrogen functionalities were prepared using the carbonization of polybenzoxazine derived from four different amines (aniline, ethylenediamine, triethylenetetramine, and tetraethylenepentamine) and then sulfonation. The obtained SO3H-carbocatalysts underwent catalytic testing for furfural oxidation with H2O2 to produce succinic acid. The effects of nitrogen functionalities were reported for the first time. The results showed that all carbon samples exhibited a microporous characteristic with comparable textural properties and contained various nitrogen functionalities (N-6, N-5, N-Q, and N-X). After sulfonation, the SO3H-carbocatalyst prepared from tetraethylenepentamine-based polybenzoxazine had the highest amount of sulfonic acid groups (1.45 mmol g−1) and a high nitrogen content (4.23%), providing a maximum succinic acid yield of 93.0% within a rapid reaction time of 60 min under the optimized conditions. This was higher than from Amberlyst-type catalysts and SO3H-carbocatalyst without nitrogen functionalities and was ascribed to the synergistic activity of the sulfonic acid groups and nitrogen functionalities. The XPS spectra and computational study confirmed that such nitrogen functionalities, especially N-5, are capable of forming hydrogen bonding with furfural, facilitating the formation of an intermediate compound and thereby enhancing the catalytic efficiency. However, after four cycles, the succinic acid yield decreased to 40% due to leaching of the sulfonic acid groups.

In this study, Ru(0) nanoparticles supported in 2-hydroxyethyl starch-p-(2-Acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid) interpenetrating polymeric network (HES-p(AMPS) IPN) were synthesized as hydrogel networks containing hydroxyethyl starch, which is a natural polymer with oxygen donor atoms. The structure and morphology of the prepared HES-p(AMPS) IPN hydrogel and Ru@HES-p(AMPS) IPN catalyst were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Ru@HES-p(AMPS) IPN was used as catalyst for hydrogen production from the hydrolysis of ethylenediamine bisborane (EDAB). The activation parameters for the hydrolysis reaction of EDAB catalyzed by Ru@HES-p(AMPS) IPN were calculated as Ea = 38.92 kJ mol−1, ΔH# = 36.28 kJ mol−1, and ΔS# = −111.85 J mol−1 K−1, respectively. The TOF for the Ru@HES-p(AMPS) IPN catalyst was 2.253 mol H2 (mol Ru(0) min)−1. It was determined that Ru@HES-p(AMPS) IPN, a reusable catalyst, still had 81.5% catalytic activity after the 5th use.

Carbon dots (CDs) were synthesized from p-aminophenol and ethylenediamine via one-step under mild condition and used as a sensitive fluorescent nanoprobe for the activity determination of N-acetyl-β- d -glucosaminidase (NAG). In this assay, p-nitrophenol was in situ produced from p-nitrophenyl-β-D-N-acetyl-glucosaminide, which was exclusively hydrolyzed by NAG. The UV absorption peak of p-nitrophenol (maximum at 400 nm) overlapped the excitation peak of CDs with maximum wavelength at 415 nm, which caused the fluorescence decline of CDs based on inner filter effect. The activity of NAG was determined by the fluorescence changes. The assay is highly sensitive to NAG with a low detection limit of 0.75 U L−1 (K = 3) and showed a good linear relationship in the range from 1 to 45 U L−1. This CDs nanoprobe was successfully applied for the determination of NAG activity in human serum and urine samples.

Carbon dots (CDs) with multi-color emissive properties and a high photoluminescent quantum yield (PLQY) have attracted great attention recently due to their potential applications in chemical, environmental, biological and photo-electronic fields. Solvent-dependent effect in photoluminescence provides a facial and effective approach to tune the emission of CDs. In this study, green emissive nitrogen-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) are synthesized from p-hydroquinone and ethylenediamine through a simple hydrothermal method. The as-prepared N-CDs possess a robust excitation-independent green luminescence and a high PLQY of up to 15.9%. Further spectroscopic characterization indicates that the high PLQY is achieved by the balance of nitrogen doping states and the surface passivation extent in CDs. The N-CDs also exhibit solvent-dependent multi-color emissive property and distinct PLQY in different solvents (the maximum can reach up to 25.3%). Furthermore, the as-prepared N-CDs are applied as fluorescence probes to detect acetone and H2O2 in water. This method has exhibited a low detection limit of acetone (less than 0.1%) and a quick and linear response to the H2O2 with the concentration from 0 to 120 μmol/L. This work broadens the knowledge of applying CDs as probes in the bio and chemical sensing fields.

The nanospheres and nanofibers of CdS were prepared by simple chemical precipitation method using a mixture of water:butanol:ethylenediamine solvents. The effect of either water or butanol as solvents and the volume ratio of butanol:ethylenediamine on the morphology, crystallinity, electronic and surface properties of CdS were investigated. The obtained CdS nanospheres or nanofibers were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. An evolution from nanospheres to nanofibers depending on the relative fraction of solvent and chemical species was observed, which was driven by the formation of Cd-complexes and S-polymerized precursors. The chemical composition and surface properties of CdS nanostructures as function of the butanol:ethylenediamine solvent ratio used for the synthesis were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron and infrared spectroscopies. The correlations between the morphology, crystallinity, electronic and surface properties with the photocatalytic activity of CdS was investigated in the blue-photoassisted reduction of 4-Nitrophenol using hydrazine as sacrificial electron donors (SED´s). The impact the others SED´s in the presence of citric acid on the increasing of photoactivity of CdS as function of created shallow energetic states was investigated by photoelectrochemical characterization.

Zinc sulphide (ZnS) nanostructures have been prepared by solvothermal method using ethylenediamine (EDA) as solvent and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as surfactant. The prepared nanostructures were characterized spectroscopically. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging was done to investigate changes in morphology of ZnS nanostructures prepared with different molar ratios. A distorted square pyramidal geometry with sulfur atoms around the zinc ions was revealed from X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrograph. Absorbance studies indicate significant blue shift. Enhanced luminescence depicted by photoluminescence (PL) studies predicts applications in optical devices.

Amine functionalized silicas have frequently been investigated as potential aldol reaction catalysts. However, active site leaching due to hydrolysis cannot be avoided, limiting the long-term stability of these catalysts in aqueous aldol reactions. Therefore, novel catalysts based on an organic resin have been developed starting from a suspension polymerized poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate (PEGMA) hydrogel with poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (PEGDMA) as cross-linker. Amine functionalization was performed by chlorination of the terminal hydroxyl groups in the resulting PEGMA resin and subsequent nucleophilic substitution with an amine precursor, i.e., ethylenediamine (EDA), N,N′-dimethylethylenediamine (DED), or methylamine (MA). The successful synthesis of the catalysts was confirmed by 13C NMR, FT-IR, and elemental CHN analysis. Performance evaluation in a batch reactor for the aqueous aldol reaction of acetone with 4-nitrobenzaldehyde resulted in a turnover frequency (TOF) of the PEGMA-EDA catalyst amounting to 6.3 ± 0.4 · 10−4 s−1, which is of the same order of magnitude as that of the corresponding state-of-the-art amine functionalized silica evaluated using hexane as solvent. The PEGMA-DED catalyst exhibited a somewhat lower TOF of 3.1 ± 0.2 · 10−4 s−1, while the PEGMA-MA catalyst did not exhibit any turnover, indicating that the secondary amine in the backbone of the active site in the PEGMA-EDA catalyst is inactive. Continuous-flow evaluation of the PEGMA-EDA catalyst in a packed-bed reactor indicated that, as opposed to a primary amine functionalized silica catalyst, a stable catalytic activity as a function of time on stream could be achieved for at least 8 h and, hence, that no deactivation has occurred in this timeframe.

This article reports the effect of different transition metal complexes derived from hexaminecobalt(III) chloride metal complex on the dielectric properties of polyaniline (PANI) nanocomposites. The simple hexaminecobalt(III) chloride metal complex is modified prior to its incorporation into the PANI matrix through photo-substitution route in which some of the amine ligands of the metal complex are photochemically substituted by different organic ligands like 1, 10 phenenthroline, pyrazine, ethylenediamine and imidazole. The filler photo-substituted metal complex containing organic ligands impact the interfacial region between the polymer and filler in such a way, that the effective dielectric constant and ac-conductivity increases in all nanocomposite as compared to pristine PANI. The effect being more pronounced in case of easily polarisable large sized conjugated organic groups.

The objective of the research is to develop a new method for removal of organic sulfur in liquid fuels. Cobalt and copper salen (salen=N, N’-bis(salicylidene)ethylenediamine) complexes were simultaneously encapsulated in zeolite NaY by using the flexible ligand method, and employed as catalysts in the oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) with molecular oxygen as the oxidant. The material was substantiated by UV–Vis spectroscopy, thermo-gravimetric and differential-thermal analyses, X-ray powder diffraction as well as scanning electron microscope. Effect of various parameters including reaction temperature, initial concentration of DBT, molar ratio of Cu to Co and recycle of the material were investigated. The prepared bimetal material showed much higher activity than single metal salen complexes CusalenY and CosalenY due to the synergetic effect of Cu2+ and Co2+. The desulfurization process was mainly governed by the activation of molecular oxygen using (Cu-Co)salenY. The results prove the feasibility of the proposed desulfurization process for industrial application.

Activated carbon (AC) was prepared from waste tea (WT) and the obtained product, WTAC, was modified with ethylenediamine (MWTAC). Unmodified and modified WTAC samples were characterized in terms of structural, morphological and chemical properties. Carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorptions from pure CO2 and swine farm biogas of WT, WTAC and MWTAC were investigated to determine the effect of activation and modification as well as the effect of methane in real swine farm biogas on the CO2 adsorption performances. The adsorption capacities of pure CO2 on the WT, WTAC and MWTAC were 15.39, 87.42 and 108.97 mg/g, respectively, while the adsorption capacities of 40% CO2 from swine farm biogas were 4.22, 60.64 and 78.98 mg/g, respectively, indicating that modified AC leads to a higher CO2 adsorption capacity. In addition, density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the adsorption energies for graphene + CO2, unmodified AC + CO2 and modified AC + CO2 models were −7.53, −50.74 and −65.21 kJ/mol, respectively, indicating the modified AC model led to a higher adsorption than that of the unmodified AC and graphene models, owning to hydrogen bond and dispersion interactions between the CO2 molecule and more active atoms on the surface of the modified AC model.

In this article, Nitrogen-doped carbon dots (NCDs) were used as a fluorescent probe for the detection of total serum proteins. NCDs were synthesized by microwave-assisted method using citric acid as the carbon source and ethylenediamine as passivating agent. The strong intensity of fluorescence emission was observed at λex/λem ≈ 350/460 nm. The particles are found to be uniformly spherical with an average dimension of 10 nm. The fluorescence intensity of NCDs increased linearly with the addition of bovine serum albumin (BSA) concentrations from 0.5 g/dL to 15 g/dL. The role of interfering agents was investigated and found that NCDs were sensitive to BSA specifically.

Chemical fixation of CO2 into C1 source, as a general approach, can effectively alleviate the emission of greenhouse gases. Whereas, the challenge posed by the need for efficient catalysts with high catalytic active sites still exists. In this work, we reported a series of new hexavanadate clusters, [(C6H6ON)2(C2H8N2)2(CH3O)6VIV6O8] (V6-1), [(C6H6ON)2(C3H10N2)2(CH3O)6VIV6O8] (V6-2), [(C6H6ON)2(C6H14N2)2(CH3O)6VIV6O8] (V6-3) and [(C6H6ON)2(C4H11N2O)2(CH3O)4VIV6O8] (V6-4), assembled by 2-aminophenol and four different kinds of Lewis bases (LB), ethanediamine(en), 1,2-diaminopropane, 1,2-cyclohexanediamine and N,N′-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediamine(ben) together. Among them, the basic unit {V6} cluster featured Z-shaped configuration represents a bran-new example of hexanuclear vanadium clusters. Remarkably, the catalytic tests demonstrated that V6-1 as catalyst displays high catalytic activity in the cycloaddition for the CO2 fixation into cyclic carbonates by virtue of open V sites. As expected, for oxidative desulfurization of sulfides, V6-1 also exhibits satisfied catalytic effectiveness. Furthermore, the recycling test confirmed that catalyst V6-1 may be a bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst with great promise for both CO2 cycloaddition and oxidative desulfurization reactions.

In the work, we propose an efficient one-pot approach for synthesis of a new type of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs). That can be successfully realized by using tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) and N-[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]ethylenediamine (TSD) as the silica precursors and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as the structure-directing agent through a facile assembly process. The as-synthesized MSNs possess a spherical morphology with about 230 nm, a relatively high surface area of 133 m2/g, and a hierarchical pore size distribution. When applied as the sorbents, the amine-functioned MSNs demonstrate the enhanced adsorption capacity for CO2 capture (at 1 bar, 15 vol% CO2, up to 80.5 mg/g at 75 °C), high selectivity, and good cycling durability, benefiting from the suitable modification of polyethyleneimine.