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    Membrane Functionalization in Pilot Scale: Roll‐to‐Roll Electron Beam System with Inline Contact Angle Determination
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Schulze, Agnes; Drößler, Lutz; Weiß, Steffen; Went, Marco; Abdul Latif, Amira; Breite, Daniel; Fischer, Kristina
    To increase the permeation performance and antifouling properties of polymer membranes, a one-step reaction using electron irradiation was developed. This process combines the surface activation of the membrane polymer and the simultaneous permanent immobilization of hydrophilic molecules. This technology can be applied to various polymers, flat sheet/hollow fiber membranes and all pore ranges. The roll-to-roll system developed for this enables all process steps including inline analysis for quality control of the membrane surface in a continuously operated system. © 2021 The Authors. Chemie Ingenieur Technik published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Four-Step Domino Reaction Enables Fully Controlled Non-Statistical Synthesis of Hexaarylbenzene with Six Different Aryl Groups*
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Grau, Benedikt W.; Dill, Maximilian; Hampel, Frank; Kahnt, Axel; Jux, Norbert; Tsogoeva, Svetlana B.
    Hexaarylbenzene (HAB) derivatives are versatile aromatic systems playing a significant role as chromophores, liquid crystalline materials, molecular receptors, molecular-scale devices, organic light-emitting diodes and candidates for organic electronics. Statistical synthesis of simple symmetrical HABs is known via cyclotrimerization or Diels–Alder reactions. By contrast, the synthesis of more complex, asymmetrical systems, and without involvement of statistical steps, remains an unsolved problem. Here we present a generally applicable synthetic strategy to access asymmetrical HAB via an atom-economical and high-yielding metal-free four-step domino reaction using nitrostyrenes and α,α-dicyanoolefins as easily available starting materials. Resulting domino product—functionalized triarylbenzene (TAB)—can be used as a key starting compound to furnish asymmetrically substituted hexaarylbenzenes in high overall yield and without involvement of statistical steps. This straightforward domino process represents a distinct approach to create diverse and still unexplored HAB scaffolds, containing six different aromatic rings around central benzene core. © 2021 The Authors. Angewandte Chemie International Edition published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Synthesis, Electronic Properties and Reactivity of [B12X11(NO2)]2− (X=F–I) Dianions
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2020) Asmis, Knut R.; Beele, Björn B.; Jenne, Carsten; Kawa, Sebastian; Knorke, Harald; Nierstenhöfer, Marc C.; Wang, Xue-Bin; Warneke, Jonas; Warneke, Ziyan; Yuan, Qinqin
    Nitro-functionalized undecahalogenated closo-dodecaborates [B12X11(NO2)]2− were synthesized in high purities and characterized by NMR, IR, and Raman spectroscopy, single crystal X-diffraction, mass spectrometry, and gas-phase ion vibrational spectroscopy. The NO2 substituent leads to an enhanced electronic and electrochemical stability compared to the parent perhalogenated [B12X12]2− (X=F–I) dianions evidenced by photoelectron spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and quantum-chemical calculations. The stabilizing effect decreases from X=F to X=I. Thermogravimetric measurements of the salts indicate the loss of the nitric oxide radical (NO.). The homolytic NO. elimination from the dianion under very soft collisional excitation in gas-phase ion experiments results in the formation of the radical [B12X11O]2−.. Theoretical investigations suggest that the loss of NO. proceeds via the rearrangement product [B12X11(ONO)]2−. The O-bonded nitrosooxy structure is thermodynamically more stable than the N-bonded nitro structure and its formation by radical recombination of [B12X11O]2−. and NO. is demonstrated. © 2020 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Compositional Patterning in Carbon Implanted Titania Nanotubes
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Kupferer, Astrid; Holm, Alexander; Lotnyk, Andriy; Mändl, Stephan; Mayr, Stefan G.
    Ranging from novel solar cells to smart biosensors, titania nanotube arrays constitute a highly functional material for various applications. A promising route to modify material characteristics while preserving the amorphous nanotube structure is present when applying low-energy ion implantation. In this study, the interplay of phenomenological effects observed upon implantation of low fluences in the unique 3D structure is reported: sputtering versus readsorption and plastic flow, amorphization versus crystallization and compositional patterning. Patterning within the oxygen and carbon subsystem is revealed using transmission electron microscopy. By applying a Cahn–Hilliard approach within the framework of driven alloys, characteristic length scales are derived and it is demonstrated that compositional patterning is expected on free enthalpy grounds, as predicted by density functional theory based ab initio calculations. Hence, an attractive material with increased conductivity for advanced devices is provided. © 2021 The Authors. Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Synthesis of Modified Poly(vinyl Alcohol)s and Their Degradation Using an Enzymatic Cascade
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2023) von Haugwitz, Gerlis; Donnelly, Kian; Di Filippo, Mara; Breite, Daniel; Phippard, Max; Schulze, Agnes; Wei, Ren; Baumann, Marcus; Bornscheuer, Uwe T.
    Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a water-soluble synthetic vinyl polymer with remarkable physical properties including thermostability and viscosity. Its biodegradability, however, is low even though a large amount of PVA is released into the environment. Established physical-chemical degradation methods for PVA have several disadvantages such as high price, low efficiency, and secondary pollution. Biodegradation of PVA by microorganisms is slow and frequently involves pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ)-dependent enzymes, making it expensive due to the costly cofactor and hence unattractive for industrial applications. In this study, we present a modified PVA film with improved properties as well as a PQQ-independent novel enzymatic cascade for the degradation of modified and unmodified PVA. The cascade consists of four steps catalyzed by three enzymes with in situ cofactor recycling technology making this cascade suitable for industrial applications.
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    Weak electron irradiation suppresses the anomalous magnetization of N-doped diamond crystals
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Setzer, Annette; Esquinazi, Pablo D.; Daikos, Olesya; Scherzer, Tom; Pöppl, Andreas; Staacke, Robert; Lühmann, Tobias; Pezzagna, Sebastien; Knolle, Wolfgang; Buga, Sergei; Abel, Bernd; Meijer, Jan
    Several diamond bulk crystals with a concentration of electrically neutral single substitutional nitrogen atoms of ≲80 ppm, the so-called C or P1 centers, are irradiated with electrons at 10 MeV energy and low fluence. The results show a complete suppression of the irreversible behavior in field and temperature of the magnetization below 30 K, after a decrease in ≲40 ppm in the concentration of C centers produced by the electron irradiation. This result indicates that magnetic C centers are at the origin of the large hysteretic behavior found recently in nitrogen-doped diamond crystals. This is remarkable because of the relatively low density of C centers, stressing the extraordinary role of the C centers in triggering those phenomena in diamond at relatively high temperatures. After annealing the samples at high temperatures in vacuum, the hysteretic behavior is partially recovered.
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    Fibroblast Response to Nanocolumnar TiO2 Structures Grown by Oblique Angle Sputter Deposition
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Kapprell, Uta; Friebe, Sabrina; Grüner, Susann; Grüner, Christoph; Kupferer, Astrid; Rauschenbach, Bernd; Mayr, Stefan G.
    Cells are established to sense and respond to the properties, including nano- and microscale morphology, of the substrate they adhere to, which opens up the possibility to tailor bioactivity. With this background, the potential of tilted TiO2 nanostructures grown by oblique angle sputtering to affect fibroblasts with particular focus on inducing anisotropy in cell behavior is explored. By depositing TiO2 at different oblique angles relative to the substrate normal, morphologies, columnar tilt angle, roughness, and distances between neighbored nanocolumns can be adjusted. To assess bioactivity of the resulting structures, L929-mouse fibroblasts are seeded in vitro on TiO2 nanostructured substrates. Angle-dependent movement and velocity distributions of the cells on differently tilted columns and a smooth reference sample are studied. Cell proliferation rates and cell areas are additional factors which provide information about viability and the well-being of cells. It could be shown that the local topography of the surface has an influence on the directed movement of the cells. © 2021 The Authors. Advanced Materials Interfaces published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Molecular Beam Epitaxy Growth and Characterization of Germanium-Doped Cubic AlxGa1−xN
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2020) Deppe, Michael; Henksmeier, Tobias; Gerlach, Jürgen W.; Reuter, Dirk; As, Donat J.
    In cubic (c-)GaN Ge has emerged as a promising alternative to Si for n-type doping, offering the advantage of slightly improved electrical properties. Herein, a study on Ge doping of the ternary alloy c-AlxGa1−xN is presented. Ge-doped c-AlxGa1−xN layers are grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. In two sample series, both the Al mole fraction x and the doping level are varied. The incorporation of Ge is verified by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry. Ge incorporation and donor concentrations rise exponentially with increasing Ge cell temperature. A maximum donor concentration of 1.4 × 1020 cm−3 is achieved. While the incorporation of Ge is almost independent of x, incorporation of O, which acts as an unintentional donor, increases for higher x. Dislocation densities start increasing when doping levels of around 3 × 1019 cm−3 are exceeded. Also photoluminescence intensities begin to drop at these high doping levels. Optical emission of layers with x > 0.25 is found to originate from a defect level 0.9 eV below the indirect bandgap, which is not related to Ge. In the investigated range 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.6, Ge is a suitable donor in c-AlxGa1−xN up to the low 1019 cm−3 range.
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    Long-Living Holes in Grey Anatase TiO2 Enable Noble-Metal-Free and Sacrificial-Agent-Free Water Splitting
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2020) Liu, Ning; Mohajernia, Shiva; Nguyen, Nhat Truong; Hejazi, Seyedsina; Plass, Fabian; Kahnt, Axel; Yokosawa, Tadahiro; Osvet, Andres; Spiecker, Erdmann; Guldi, Dirk M.; Schmuki, Patrik
    Titanium dioxide has been the benchmark semiconductor in photocatalysis for more than 40 years. Full water splitting, that is, decomposing water into H2 and O2 in stoichiometric amounts and with an acceptable activity, still remains a challenge, even when TiO2-based photocatalysts are used in combination with noble-metal co-catalysts. The bottleneck of anatase-type TiO2 remains the water oxidation, that is, the hole transfer reaction from pristine anatase to the aqueous environment. In this work, we report that “grey” (defect engineered) anatase can provide a drastically enhanced lifetime of photogenerated holes, which, in turn, enables an efficient oxidation reaction of water to peroxide via a two-electron pathway. As a result, a Ni@grey anatase TiO2 catalyst can be constructed with an impressive performance in terms of photocatalytic splitting of neutral water into H2 and a stoichiometric amount of H2O2 without the need of any noble metals or sacrificial agents. The finding of long hole lifetimes in grey anatase opens up a wide spectrum of further photocatalytic applications of this material. © 2020 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH GmbH
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    Relevance of π-Backbonding for the Reactivity of Electrophilic Anions [B12X11]− (X=F, Cl, Br, I, CN)
    (Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 2021) Mayer, Martin; Rohdenburg, Markus; Kawa, Sebastian; Horn, Francine; Knorke, Harald; Jenne, Carsten; Tonner, Ralf; Asmis, Knut R.; Warneke, Jonas
    Electrophilic anions of type [B12X11]− posses a vacant positive boron binding site within the anion. In a comparatitve experimental and theoretical study, the reactivity of [B12X11]− with X=F, Cl, Br, I, CN is characterized towards different nucleophiles: (i) noble gases (NGs) as σ-donors and (ii) CO/N2 as σ-donor-π-acceptors. Temperature-dependent formation of [B12X11NG]− indicates the enthalpy order (X=CN)>(X=Cl)≈(X=Br)>(X=I)≈(X=F) almost independent of the NG in good agreement with calculated trends. The observed order is explained by an interplay of the electron deficiency of the vacant boron site in [B12X11]− and steric effects. The binding of CO and N2 to [B12X11]− is significantly stronger. The B3LYP 0 K attachment enthapies follow the order (X=F)>(X=CN)>(X=Cl)>(X=Br)>(X=I), in contrast to the NG series. The bonding motifs of [B12X11CO]− and [B12X11N2]− were characterized using cryogenic ion trap vibrational spectroscopy by focusing on the CO and N2 stretching frequencies (Formula presented.) and (Formula presented.), respectively. Observed shifts of (Formula presented.) and (Formula presented.) are explained by an interplay between electrostatic effects (blue shift), due to the positive partial charge, and by π-backdonation (red shift). Energy decomposition analysis and analysis of natural orbitals for chemical valence support all conclusions based on the experimental results. This establishes a rational understanding of [B12X11]− reactivety dependent on the substituent X and provides first systematic data on π-backdonation from delocalized σ-electron systems of closo-borate anions. © 2021 The Authors. Chemistry - A European Journal published by Wiley-VCH GmbH