Zhishuang Ma

Hierarchically Mesoporous o-Hydroxyazobenzene Polymers: Synthesis and Their Applications in CO2 Capture and Conversion

The synthesis of hierarchically mesoporous polymers with multiple functionalities is challenging. Herein we reported a template-free strategy for synthesis of phenolic azo-polymers with hierarchical porous structures based on diazo-coupling reaction in aqueous solution under mild conditions. The resultant polymers have surface areas up to 593 m(2)  g(-1) with the mesopore ratio of >80 %, and a good ability to complex with metal ions, such as Cu(2+) , Zn(2+) ,Ni(2+) , achieving a metal loading up to 26.24 wt %. Moreover, the polymers complexed with Zn showed excellent performance for catalyzing the reaction of CO2 with epoxide, affording a TOF of 2570 h(-1) in the presence of tetrabutyl ammonium bromide (7.2 mol %). The polymer complexed with Cu could catalyze the oxidation of alcohol with high efficiency.

B(C6F5)3-catalyzed methylation of amines using CO2 as a C1 building block

B(C6F5)3 was proven to be an efficient metal-free catalyst for the methylation of amines using CO2 as a C1 building block in the presence of hydrosilanes under easy-handling conditions. A broad range of N-alkylanilines, dialkylamines and primary anilines all proceeded well under the catalytic conditions.

Mesoporous nitrogen-doped carbons with high nitrogen contents and ultrahigh surface areas: synthesis and applications in catalysis

The development of mesoporous nitrogen-doped carbons (NDCs) with high nitrogen contents and high surface areas from biomass is of significance for many applications, such as oxidation reaction catalysts, electrode materials and so on. Herein we report a simple route to prepare mesoporous NDCs via calcinating the mixture of biomass feedstocks (including glucose, cellulose and lignin) and melamine using eutectic salts of KCl and ZnCl2 as the porogen, and a series of mesoporous NDCs with nitrogen content up to 11.9% and BET specific surface area up to 1800 m2 g−1 were obtained. Served as metal-free catalysts for oxidation of hydrocarbons with tert-butyl hydroperoxide in aqueous phase, the mesoporous NDC with a N content of 11.4% showed the highest efficiency compared to the reported N-doped carbons. Moreover, the as-prepared NDCs were indicated to be an ideal support to immobilize noble nanoparticles (e.g., Pd, Rh, Ru, Pt), producing a series of NDC supported metal nanocatalysts with metal particle size of around 2 nm. This work opens up a new way to prepare mesoporous N-doped carbon materials with tailored properties.

Highly mesoporous carbons derived from biomass feedstocks templated with eutectic salt ZnCl2/KCl

Highly mesoporous carbons (MCs) were prepared by the carbonization of biomass sources, including glucose, cellulose, and lignin, with eutectic salt (KCl/ZnCl2, denoted as PZ) as the porogen agent and catalyst. The influences of the mass ratio of carbon sources to PZ, the heating program, and the calcination temperature on the textural structures of the carbons were investigated. It was demonstrated that the MC derived from glucose with a mass ratio of glucose to PZ of 1:6 exhibited a specific surface area (SSA) of 1297 m2 g−1 and a pore volume of 2.727 cm3 g−1 dominated with a mesopore volume proportion of 92.2% and that the MCs from cellulose and lignin also showed relatively high mesoporous proportions in the range of 63.2–87.5% and SSAs higher than 1000 m2 g−1. Furthermore, based on the TGA, FT-IR and N2 sorption analyses, the generation of a high proportion of mesopores in MCs was also studied.

Cu-catalyzed aerobic oxygenation of 2-phenoxyacetophenones to alkyloxy acetophenones

Cu-catalyzed aerobic oxygenation of 2-phenoxyacetophenones in the presence of alcohols was reported, and the corresponding alkyl benzoates, alkyloxy acetophenones and phenols were produced in high yields.

Hydrogen‐Bonding‐Mediated Synthesis of Atomically Thin TiO2 Films with Exposed (001) Facets and Applications in Fast Lithium Insertion/Extraction

Ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) crystalline materials show high specific surface area (SA) of high energy (HE) facets, imparting a significant improvement in their performances. Herein we report a novel route to synthesize TiO2 nanofilms (NFs) with atomic thickness (<2.0 nm) through a solvothermal reaction mediated by the hydrogen-bonding networks constructed by hydroquinone (HQ). The resultant TiO2 NFs have nearly 100 % exposed (001) facets and give an extremely high SA up to 487 m(2)  g(-1) . The synergistic effect of HQ and choline chloride plays a vital role in the formation of TiO2 NFs and in the exposure of HE (001) facets. Because of its ultrathin feature and exposed (001) facet, the N2 -annealled TiO2 NFs showed fast kinetics of lithium insertion/extraction, demonstrating foreseeable applications in the energy storage.