Baoshan Li

Direct synthesis of Ti-containing SBA-16-type mesoporous material by the evaporation-induced self-assembly method and its catalytic performance for oxidative desulfurization.

A novel Ti-containing SBA-16-type mesoporous material (with various Ti loadings of 5, 10, and 15 wt%) was synthesized by an evaporation-induced self-assembly method using F127 copolymer as template. The materials were characterized by XRD, FTIR, TG-DTA, N(2) adsorption, SEM, HRTEM, and XPS. The characterization results show that the material possesses high thermal stability, thick pore walls (10.43-10.68 nm), and high surface area (642.26-691.5 m(2)/g) with a mesoporous worm-like structure, and titanium was successfully incorporated into the silica matrix with a tetrahedral environment. The material showed high activity in the oxidative desulfurization of DBT and its activity was not reduced even after three times recycling; further reuse resulted in a gradual decrease in its activity.

Preparation, characterization and application in deep catalytic ODS of the mesoporous silica pillared clay incorporated with phosphotungstic acid.

Mesoporous silica pillared clay (SPC) materials with different contents of H(3)PW(12)O(40) (HPW) heteropoly acid were synthesized by introducing HPW into clay interlayer template in an acidic suspension using sol-gel method. Samples with similar HPW loadings were also prepared by impregnation method using SPC as the support. The results of the characterizations showed that HPW was dispersed more homogeneously in the encapsulated samples than in the impregnated samples. The encapsulated materials exhibited better catalytic performance than the impregnated samples in oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene-containing model oil. The sulfur removal reached up to 98.6% for the model oil under the experiential conditions.

Preparation of MCM-41 incorporated with lacunary Keggin polyoxometalate and its catalytic performance in esterification

The ordered mesoporous MCM-41 materials incorporated with lacunary polyoxometalate were prepared via an original direct synthesis method. As the control, the samples with similar lacunary polyoxometalate loadings were also prepared by impregnation of MCM-41. The prepared samples were characterized by XRF, XRD, FT-IR, Raman spectra, HRTEM, SEM, N(2) adsorption isotherm, TG-DTA, and NH(3)-TPD technology. The results show that the lacunary polyoxometalate is better dispersed in the direct synthesized samples than in the impregnated samples, and its structure remains intact after formation of the materials. The catalytic performance of the materials was tested using the esterification of n-butanol with acetic acid. The direct synthesized samples display excellent catalytic performance and reusability, which is superior to the impregnated samples. Under the optimized conditions, the conversion of n-butanol is 89.7%, and the selectivity of butyl acetate is nearly 100%.

Synthesis of mesoporous silica-pillared clay by intragallery ammonia-catalyzed hydrolysis of tetraethoxysilane using quaternary ammonium surfactants as gallery templates

Mesoporous silica-pillared montmorillonite (MMT) materials were synthesized by intragallery ammonia-catalyzed hydrolysis tetraethoxysilane (TEOS). The reaction involved hydrolysis and condensation of tetraethoxysilane in the presence of intragallery surfactants templates. Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), N(2) adsorption-desorption isotherms, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infra-red (FT-IR) spectra were employed to characterize the mesoporous silica-pillared montmorillonite. These novel materials exhibited reflections corresponding to a basal spacing of 4.76-5.62 nm, a uniform pore size of 3.75-4.51 nm and large surface areas of 597.2-712.4 m(2)/g. And the porous structure and physical properties of silica-pillared montmorillonite derivatives remained stable after heating for 5 h at 700 degrees C in air. Our results indicate that surfactants play a decisive role in pore formation, because they act as micelle-like template during the hydrolysis of TEOS. These mesoporous silica-pillared montmorillonite materials exhibit excellent catalytic activity and selectivity for coker gas oil cracking reaction in comparison to normal MCM-41 and Al-MCM-41.

In situ synthesis, characterization, and catalytic performance of tungstophosphoric acid encapsulated into the framework of mesoporous silica pillared clay

Mesoporous silica pillared clay (SPC) incorporated with tungstophosphoric acid (HPW) has been synthesized via in situ introducing P and W source in the acidic suspension of the clay interlayer template during the formation of the silica pillared clay. The samples were characterized by XRD, XRF, FT-IR, TG-DTA, N(2) adsorption-desorption, and SEM techniques. The results showed that the HPW formed by in situ method has been effectively introduced into the framework of mesoporous silica pillared clay and its Keggin structure remained perfectly after formation of the materials. In addition, samples with similar HPW loadings were also prepared by impregnation method using SPC as the support. HPW in the incorporated samples was better dispersed into the silica pillared clay than in the impregnated samples. The results of catalytic tests indicated that the encapsulated materials demonstrated better catalytic performance than the impregnated samples in oxidative desulfurization (ODS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT).

Preparation of mesoporous ferrisilicate with high content of framework iron by pH-modification method and its catalytic performance

The mesoporous ferrisilicates (MFS) with high iron content were synthesized by pH-modification method, and the iron content could be up to 10.5 wt.% (Si/Fe=8). The pH was kept less than 2 at pre-hydrothermal synthesis step and was adjusted to 11 during hydrothermal step. The samples were characterized by XRD, HRTEM, N(2)-sorption, XRF, FTIR, DRUV-vis, Fe K-edge EXAFS, EPR, and DSC. The results suggested that the MFS materials were ordered 2D hexagonal mesophase of MCM-41, and the iron atoms were tetrahedral coordinated in the silica framework. This material could efficiently catalyze the hydroxylation of phenol in water medium using H(2)O(2) as an oxidant, and the phenol conversion could be up to 52% under the optimal experimental conditions.

Antibacterial activity of biochemically capped iron oxide nanoparticles: A view towards green chemistry

A green approach to fabricate nanoparticles has been evolved as a revolutionary discipline. Eco-compatible reaction set ups, use of non-toxic materials and production of highly active biological and photocatalytic products are few benefits of this greener approach. Here, we introduce a green method to synthesize Fe oxide NPs using Punica granatum peel extract. The formation of Fe oxide NPs was optimized using different concentrations of peel extract (20mL, 40mL and 60mL) to achieve small size and better morphology. The results indicate that the FeNPs, obtained using 40mL concentration of peel extract possess the smallest size. The morphology, size and crystallinity of NPs was confirmed by implementing various techniques i.e. UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Electron Diffraction Spectroscopy. The bio-chemicals responsible for reduction and stabilization of FeNPs were confirmed by FT-IR analysis. The biogenic FeNPs were tested for their size dependent antibacterial activity. The biogenic FeNPs prepared in 40mL extract concentrations exhibited strongest antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa i.e. 22 (±0.5) mm than FeNPs with 20mL and 60mL extract concentrations i.e. 18 (±0.4) mm and 14 (±0.3) mm respectively. The optimized FeNPs with 40mL peel extract are not only highly active for ROS generation but also show no hemolytic activity. Thus, FeNPs synthesized using the greener approach are found to have high antibacterial activity along with biocompatibility. This high antibacterial activity can be referred to small size and large surface area.

Synthesis of mesoporous zeolite Ni-MFI with high nickel contents by using the ionic complex [(C4H9)4N]2(+)[Ni(EDTA)]2- as a template.

Ni-MFI zeolites with high percentage of Ni (5-15 wt%) were prepared by using an ionic complex [(C(4)H(9))(4)N](2)(+)[Ni(EDTA)](2-) by one step synthesis. These molecular sieves were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms. The results showed that heteroatom Ni was successfully introduced into the MFI framework up to 15 wt%. Moreover, this Ni-MFI possessed regular and stable structure with high specific surface area and average pore diameter of 388-439 m(2) g(-1) and 2.566-3.828 nm, respectively, compared to MFI prepared by traditional methods. These samples also showed good thermal and hydrothermal stability.

Synthesis and characterization of composite molecular sieves M1-MFI/M2-MCM-41(M1, M2=Ni, Co) with high heteroatom content and their catalytic properties for hydrocracking of residual oil.

The novel rich heteroatom-containing (15 wt.%) composite molecular sieves M(1)-MFI/M(2)-MCM-41 have been prepared from the ionic complex [(C(4)H(9))(4)N](2)(+)[M(1)(EDTA)](2-) and [C(16)H(33)(CH(3))(3)N](2)(+)[M(2)(EDTA)](2-) as the organic templates, which could effectively introduce a large amount of heteroatoms into the framework of molecular sieves. The products were characterized by XRD, XRF, SEM, HRTEM, N(2) adsorption-desorption, H(2)-TPR, FT-IR, TG and DSC techniques. The catalytic performances of the composite materials were investigated by means of residual oil hydrocracking. Characterization results showed that the composite materials simultaneously possessed a typical orthogonal MFI phase and a hexagonal MCM-41 phase and the two phases were composite rather than the physical mixture. H(2)-TPR data indicated all of the heteroatoms were incorporated by isomorphous substitution of silicon in framework. N(2) adsorption-desorption analysis exhibited that these samples possessed regular and stable structure with high specific surface area and large pore diameters of 550-620 m(2) g(-1), 3.5 nm and 5.5 nm, respectively. M(1)-MFI/M(2)-MCM-41 presented excellent activities in hydrocracking of residual oil, which were superior to the pure materials of MFI/MCM-41.

Synthesis of magnetic FexOy@silica-pillared clay (SPC) composites via a novel sol–gel route for controlled drug release and targeting

Novel magnetic silica-pillared clay (SPC) materials with an ordered interlayered mesopore structure were synthesized via a two-step method including gallery molecular self-assembly and sol-gel magnetic functionalization, resulting in the formation of FexOy@SPC composites. Small-angle XRD, TEM and N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms results show that these composites conserved a regular layered and ordered mesoporous structure after the formation of FexOy nanoparticles. Wide-angle XRD and XPS analyses confirmed that the FexOy generated in these mesoporous silica-pillared clay hosts is mainly composed of γ-Fe2O3. Magnetic measurements reveal that these composites with different γ-Fe2O3 loading amounts possess super-paramagnetic properties at 300K, and the saturation magnetization increases with increasing Fe ratio loaded. Compared to the pure SPC, the in vitro drug release rate of the FexOy@SPC composites was enhanced due to the fact that the intensities of the SiOH bands on the pore surface of SPC decrease after the generation of FexOy. However, under an external magnetic field of 0.15T, the drug release rate of the FexOy@SPC composites decreases dramatically owing to the aggregation of the magnetic FexOy@SPC particles triggered by non-contact magnetic force. The obtained FexOy@SPC composites imply the possibility of application in magnetic drug targeting.