Jian-Gong Ma

An Efficient Nanoscale Heterogeneous Catalyst for the Capture and Conversion of Carbon Dioxide at Ambient Pressure

Silver nanoparticles were successfully supported on the zeolite-type metal-organic framework MIL-101 to yield Ag@MIL-101 by a simple liquid impregnation method. For the first time, the conversion of terminal alkynes into propiolic acids with CO2 was achieved by the use of the Ag@MIL-101 catalysts. Owing to the excellent catalytic activity, the reaction proceeded at atmospheric pressure and low temperature (50 °C). The Ag@MIL-101 porous material is of outstanding bifunctional character as it is capable of simultaneously capturing and converting CO2 with low energy consumption and can be recovered easily by centrifugation.

Spin crossover-macromolecule composite nano film material

A kind of spin crossover-macromolecule polymer composite material, [Fe(NH(2)trz)(3)(ClO(4))(2)]-PVP (NH(2)trz is 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole and PVP is polyvinylpyrrolidone), appears as homogeneous film with a regular structure in nano-scale and shows the spin crossover (SC) phenomenon.

Two novel Cd(II) complexes with unprecedented four- and six-fold interpenetration

Two Cd(II) metal–organic frameworks have been synthesized. One of them shows an unusual pcu net with a new four-fold interpenetrating mode Ib, while another one has a rare cdl net with six-fold interpenetration.

Coordination-Driven Polymerization of Supramolecular Nanocages

Controlled assembly of 0D supramolecular nanocages into 2D or 3D architectures has been demonstrated for the first time via a coordination-driven polymerization approach, and the conversion from a 2D to 3D supramolecular architecture has also been successfully achieved via a temperature-induced crystal transformation. The boost of dimensionality for the supramolecular architecture has led to steady yet remarkable enhancement of properties, as reflected from the gas adsorption studies.

Microporous heterometal–organic framework as a sensor for BTEX with high selectivity

Two novel isostructural 3d–4f microporous heterometal–organic frameworks (HMOFs) with high acid/base stability were constructed based on a polydentate carboxylate ligand. Luminescent studies showed that one of the new HMOFs displayed high-sensitivity luminescent sensing functions for BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes), particularly for ethylbenzene. This is the first observation of a 3d–4f HMOF as a chemical sensor for BTEX.

Water molecule-driven reversible single-crystal to single-crystal transformation of a multi-metallic coordination polymer with controllable metal ion movement

A single-crystal to single-crystal (SC-SC) transformation process driven by water molecules has been exhibited by a multi-metallic coordination polymer. The in situ heating single crystal X-ray diffraction technique was applied to study the control of metal ion movement in the reversible SC-SC transformation process.

Two novel complexes based on hexagonal-planar {Co6} and rhombic {Zn4} clusters with different eight-connected topologies

Two rare eight-connected coordination frameworks were obtained which displayed a bcu-type net constructed from hexagonal-planar {Co6} clusters and a hex-like net constructed from rhombic {Zn4} clusters as nodes with bis-triazole as spacers, respectively.

Chiral Ni(II) Coordination Polymers: Structure-Driven Effects of Temperature and Polyvinylpyrrolidone

Chiral Ni(II) coordination compounds with structures of [NiL(H(2)O)(3)] (1) and {[NiL(H(2)O)]·0.5H(2)O}(n) (2) (H(2)L = thiazolidine 2,4-dicaboxlic acid) have been successfully synthesized by the reaction of Ni(CH(3)COO)(2)·4H(2)O and H(2)L in aqueous solution at 25 and 80 °C, respectively. From the same procedure with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as a surfactant, another corresponding micrometer-scale Ni(II) coordination polymer, {[NiL(H(2)O)(2)]·H(2)O}(n) (3), has been obtained at both 25 and 80 °C, which shows a different structure (one-dimensional, 1D) than both 1 (discrete molecule) and 2 (3D). The conversions of structures and conformations are directed by temperature and surfactant (PVP), as confirmed by powder and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Circular Dichroism (CD) and Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) measurements of the products have been investigated as well, which indicate the potential applications of these products in chiral and nonlinear optical (NLO) areas.

Synthesis and chirality control of bulk crystals and nanocrystals: from a right-handed nonpolar chain to a left-handed polar chain.

Both bulk crystals and nanocrystals of two helical complexes, [Cu(μ2-L)(H2O)]n (1) and {[Cu(μ2-L)(H2O)]·2H2O}n (2) (H2L = thiazolidine-2,4-dicarboxylic acid), have been synthesized with the chiralities of right-handedness (1) and left-handedness (2), respectively. 4-Cyanopyridine and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) have been applied to control the synthesis of complexes with different helicities in bulk-crystal and nanocrystal forms, respectively. 2 can be irreversibly transformed to 1 under heating. Associated with the conformation changing, the symmetry alters between nonpolar and polar space groups.

Silica‐Protection‐Assisted Encapsulation of Cu2O Nanocubes into a Metal–Organic Framework (ZIF‐8) To Provide a Composite Catalyst

The integration of metal/metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) into metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) to form composite materials has attracted great interest due to the broad range of applications. However, to date, it has not been possible to encapsulate metastable NPs with high catalytic activity into MOFs, due to their instability during the preparation process. For the first time, we have successfully developed a template protection-sacrifice (TPS) method to encapsulate metastable NPs such as Cu2 O into MOFs. SiO2 was used as both a protective shell for Cu2 O nanocubes and a sacrificial template for forming a yolk-shell structure. The obtained Cu2 O@ZIF-8 composite exhibits excellent cycle stability in the catalytic hydrogenation of 4-nitrophenol with high activity. This is the first report of a Cu2 O@MOF-type composite material. The TPS method provides an efficient strategy for encapsulating unstable active metal/metal oxide NPs into MOFs or maybe other porous materials.