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- Nicholls, Ian A., et al.
(author)
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Rational design of biomimetic molecularly imprinted materials : theoretical and computational strategies for guiding nanoscale structured polymer development
- 2011
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In: Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1618-2642 .- 1618-2650. ; 400:6, s. 1771-1786
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In principle, molecularly imprinted polymer science and technology provides a means for ready access to nano-structured polymeric materials of predetermined selectivity. The versatility of the technique has brought it to the attention of many working with the development of nanomaterials with biological or biomimetic properties for use as therapeutics or in medical devices. Nonetheless, the further evolution of the field necessitates the development of robust predictive tools capable of handling the complexity of molecular imprinting systems. The rapid growth in computer power and software over the past decade has opened new possibilities for simulating aspects of the complex molecular imprinting process. We present here a survey of the current status of the use of in silico-based approaches to aspects of molecular imprinting. Finally, we highlight areas where ongoing and future efforts should yield information critical to our understanding of the underlying mechanisms sufficient to permit the rational design of molecularly imprinted polymers.
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- Wiklander, Jesper G., 1974-, et al.
(author)
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Towards a synthetic avidin mimic
- 2011
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In: Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1618-2642 .- 1618-2650. ; 400:5, s. 1397-1404
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A series of streptavidin-mimicking molecularly imprinted polymers has been developed and evaluated for their biotin binding characteristics. A combination of molecular dynamics and NMR spectroscopy was used to examine potential polymer systems, in particular with the functional monomers methacrylic acid and 2-acrylamidopyridine. The synthesis of copolymers of ethylene dimethacrylate and one or both of these functional monomers was performed. A combination of radioligand binding studies and surface area analyses demonstrated the presence of selectivity in polymers prepared using methacrylic acid as the functional monomer. This was predicted by the molecular dynamics studies showing the power of this methodology as a prognostic tool for predicting the behavior of molecularly imprinted polymers.
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- Dunér, Gunnar, et al.
(author)
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Surface-confined photopolymerization of pH-responsive acrylamide/acrylate brushes on polymer thin films
- 2008
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In: Langmuir. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0743-7463 .- 1520-5827. ; 24:14, s. 7559-7564
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dynamic acrylamide/acrylate polymeric brushes were synthesized at gold-plated quartz crystal surfaces. The crystals were initially coated with polystyrene-type thin films, derivatized with photolabile iniferter groups, and subsequently subjected to photoinitiated polymerization in acrylamide/acrylate monomer feeds. This surface-confined polymerization method enabled direct photocontrol over the polymerization, as followed by increased frequency responses of the crystal oscillations in a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). The produced polymer layers were also found to be highly sensitive to external acid/base stimuli. Large oscillation frequency shifts were detected when the brushes were exposed to buffer solutions of different pH. The dynamic behavior of the resulting polymeric brushes was evaluated, and the extent of expansion and contraction of the films was monitored by the QCM setup in situ in real time. The resulting responses were rapid, and the effects were fully reversible. Low pH resulted in full contractions of the films, whereas higher pH yielded maximal expansion in order to minimize repulsion around the charged acrylate centers. The surfaces also proved to be very robust because the responsiveness was reproducible over many cycles of repeated expansion and contraction. Using ellipsometry, copolymer layers were estimated to be similar to 220 nm in a collapsed state and similar to 340 nm in the expanded state, effectively increasing the thickness of the film by 55%.
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- Younesi, Reza, et al.
(author)
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Li-O-2 Battery Degradation by Lithium Peroxide (Li2O2): A Model Study
- 2013
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In: Chemistry of Materials. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1520-5002 .- 0897-4756. ; 25:1, s. 77-84
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The chemical stability of the Li-O-2 battery components (cathode and electrolyte) in contact with lithium peroxide (Li2O2) was investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). XPS is a versatile method to detect amorphous as well as crystalline decomposition products of both salts and solvents. Two strategies were employed. First, cathodes including carbon, alpha-MnO2 catalyst, and Kynar binder (PVdF-HFP) were exposed to Li2O2 and LiClO4 in propylene carbonate (PC) or tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether (TEGDME) electrolytes. The results indicated that Li2O2 degrades TEGDME to carboxylate containing species and that the decomposition products, in turn, degraded the Kynar binder. The alpha-MnO2 catalyst was unaffected. Second, Li2O2 model surfaces were kept in contact with different electrolytes to investigate the chemical stability and also the resulting surface layer on Li2O2. Further, the XPS experiments revealed that the Li salts such as LiPF6, LiBF4, and LiC!
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- Asfaw, Habtom Desta
(author)
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Multifunctional Carbon Foams by Emulsion Templating : Synthesis, Microstructure, and 3D Li-ion Microbatteries
- 2017
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Carbon foams are among the existing electrode designs proposed for use in 3D Li-ion microbatteries. For such electrodes to find applications in practical microbatteries, however, their void sizes, specific surface areas and pore volumes need be optimized. This thesis concerns the synthesis of highly porous carbon foams and their multifunctional applications in 3D microbatteries. The carbon foams are derived from polymers that are obtained by polymerizing high internal phase water-in-oil emulsions (HIPEs).In general, the carbonization of the sulfonated polymers yielded hierarchically porous structures with void sizes ranging from 2 to 35 µm and a BET specific surface area as high as 630 m2 g-1. Thermogravimetric and spectroscopic evidence indicated that the sulfonic acid groups, introduced during sulfonation, transformed above 250 oC to thioether (-C-S-) crosslinks which were responsible for the thermal stability and charring tendency of the polymer precursors. Depending on the preparation of the HIPEs, the specific surface areas and void-size distributions were observed to vary considerably. In addition, the pyrolysis temperature could also affect the microstructures, the degree of graphitization, and the surface chemistry of the carbon foams.Various potential applications were explored for the bespoke carbon foams. First, their use as freestanding active materials in 3D microbatteries was studied. The carbon foams obtained at 700 to 1500 oC suffered from significant irreversible capacity loss during the initial discharge. In an effort to alleviate this drawback, the pyrolysis temperature was raised to 2200 oC. The resulting carbon foams were observed to deliver high, stable areal capacities over several cycles. Secondly, the possibility of using these structures as 3D current collectors for various active materials was investigated in-depth. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, positive active materials like polyaniline and LiFePO4 were deposited on the 3D architectures by means of electrodeposition and sol-gel approach, respectively. In both cases, the composite electrodes exhibited reasonably high cyclability and rate performance at different current densities. The syntheses of niobium and molybdenum oxides and their potential application as electrodes in microbatteries were also studied. In such applications, the carbon foams served dual purposes as 3D scaffolds and as reducing reactants in the carbothermal reduction process. Finally, a facile method of coating carbon substrates with oxide nanosheets was developed. The approach involved the exfoliation of crystalline VO2 to prepare dispersions of hydrated V2O5, which were subsequently cast onto CNT paper to form oxide films of different thicknesses.
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- Liu, Yanfeng, et al.
(author)
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In Situ Optical Spectroscopy Demonstrates the Effect of Solvent Additive in the Formation of All-Polymer Solar Cells
- 2022
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In: Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1948-7185 .- 1948-7185. ; 13:50, s. 11696-11702
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- 1-Chloronaphthalene (CN) has been a common solvent additive in both fullerene- A nd nonfullerene-based organic solar cells. In spite of this, its working mechanism is seldom investigated, in particular, during the drying process of bulk heterojunctions composed of a donor:acceptor mixture. In this work, the role of CN in all-polymer solar cells is investigated by in situ spectroscopies and ex situ characterization of blade-coated PBDB-T:PF5-Y5 blends. Our results suggest that the added CN promotes self-aggregation of polymer donor PBDB-T during the drying process of the blend film, resulting in enhanced crystallinity and hole mobility, which contribute to the increased fill factor and improved performance of PBDB-T:PF5-Y5 solar cells. Besides, the nonradiative energy loss of the corresponding device is also reduced by the addition of CN, corresponding to a slightly increased open-circuit voltage. Overall, our observations deepen our understanding of the drying dynamics, which may guide further development of all-polymer solar cells.
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| 10. |
- Karlsson, Therese, 1987, et al.
(author)
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Hyperspectral imaging and data analysis for detecting and determining plastic contamination in seawater filtrates
- 2016
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In: Journal of Near Infrared Spectroscopy. - Chichester, England : SAGE Publications. - 0967-0335 .- 1751-6552. ; 24:2, s. 141-149
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- One possible way of monitoring plastic particles in sea water is by imaging spectroscopic measurements on filtrates. The idea is that filters from seawater sampling can be imaged in many wavelengths and that a multivariate data analysis can give information on (1) spatial location of plastic material on the filter and (2) composition of the plastic materials. This paper reports on simulated samples with spiked reference plastic particles, and real seawater filtrates containing microplastic pollutants. These real samples were previously identified through visual examination in a microscope. The samples were imaged using three different imaging systems. The different wavelength ranges were 375–970nm, 960–1662nm and 1000–2500nm. Data files from all three imaging systems were analysed by hyperspectral image analysis. The method using the wavelength span 1000–2500nm was shown to be the most applicable to this specific type of samples and gave a 100% particle recognition on reference plastic, above 300 µm and an 84% pixel recognition on household polyethylene plastic. When applied to environmental samples the technique showed an increase in identified particles compared with visual investigations. These initial tests indicate a potential underestimation of microplastics in environmental samples. This is the first study to demonstrate that hyperspectral imaging techniques can be used to study microplastics down to 300µm, which is a common size limit used in microplastic surveys.
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