Sodium P-toluenesulfonate Research Articles

Surface Passivation of Perovskite Film by Sodium Toluenesulfonate for Highly Efficient Solar Cells

Ionic defects at the surfaces of organolead halide perovskite films are detrimental to both the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Herein, sodium p‐toluenesulfonate (STS) is applied during the surface modification of perovskite layer for the first time, leading to the efficient surface passivation of the perovskite film and consequently significant enhancements in both efficiency and stability of mixed‐cation PSC devices. Upon incorporating STS atop the perovskite layer, the power conversion efficiency of the Cs0.05MA0.12FA0.83PbI2.55Br0.45 (abbreviated as CsMAFA) mesoporous‐structure mixed‐cation PSC devices improves from 18.70% to 20.05% with reduced hysteresis. The sulfonate (–SO3−) anion of STS coordinates with the Pb2+ of CsMAFA perovskite, and the Na+ cation of STS electrostatically interacts with the anions (I−/Br−) of CsMAFA perovskite, resulting in the surface passivation of the CsMAFA perovskite film with reduced electron and hole trap state densities. In addition, STS modification induces an upshift of the valence band of perovskite, facilitating hole extraction from the perovskite layer to the hole transport layer with suppressed interfacial charge recombination. Moreover, such a trap state passivation of perovskite film leads to improvement of the ambient stability of PSC devices.

SPARC: A Carbon Fiber Nerve Electrode Appropriate for Chronic Recording

State‐of‐the‐art intraneural peripheral nerve electrodes are large, silicon‐based structures that can cause substantial tissue response and are ill‐suited for recording from small autonomic nerves. The focus of this work is to adapt our minimally‐scarring carbon fiber brain electrodes to a chronic intraneural nerve array. The objective of this study is to increase the durability of the carbon fiber electrodes to withstand the surgical handling necessary for nerve implantation, while maintaining a cellular scale electrode that can insert through the outer epineurium layer of peripheral nerves. Toward that end, we embedded carbon fibers in silicone to increase robustness, sharpened the fibers to penetrate epineurium, and tested fibers coated with poly(3,4‐ethylene‐dioxythiophene):sodium p‐toluenesulfonate (PEDOT:pTS) in vivo.We tested the durability of carbon fibers by embedding uninsulated fibers in a body of silicone and inducing a 90‐degree bend to simulate the expected shear forces seen during surgery. We found that fibers of 175μm length were robust to thousands of bend cycles. After 3000 bends, 15 of 16 fibers remained intact. We blunt cut carbon fibers using a 532nm green laser and inserted fibers into silicone of stiffness similar to epineurium to determine a length for in vivo testing. We found that blunt fibers reliably insert into silicone without breaking when less than 200μm in length (N=8 fibers). We hypothesized that sharpened fibers would insert into tissue more easily, and therefore sharpened fibers with a 5mm butane flame when protruding from the surface of water. The dimensions of sharpened fibers were 224μm in length with 147μm of exposed carbon and a tip angle of 72 degrees (N=24 fibers).We inserted functionalized sharpened carbon fibers coated with PEDOT:pTS into peroneal and cervical vagus nerves of anesthetized rats (N=5 arrays, 71 fibers, 7 animals). In all experiments, we observed that the sharpened carbon fiber electrodes penetrated the epineurium for successful insertion. The average 1kHz impedance of coated fibers prior to and upon insertion was 38kΩ and 56kΩ, respectively. In both cases, the Z1kHz of roughly 90% of fibers measured below 100kΩ. We recorded spontaneous and evoked neural activity in each experiment and are analyzing the data for discernable single units. We also inserted sharpened fibers into anesthetized feline sacral dorsal root ganglia (N=3) and confirmed insertion with evoked neural recordings and 1kHz impedances (Z=59kΩ).This work shows that the durable nature of carbon fibers embedded in silicone allows them to withstand surgical handling and insert into various types of nerves. Our next step will be the fabrication of an array for chronic implantation.Support or Funding InformationNIH OT2OD024907, NINDS U01NS094375, NINDS UF1NS107659, NSF 1707316

A cross-linked sheet structured poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) grown on Ni foam: Morphology control and application for long-life cyclic asymmetric supercapacitor

In this work, a cross-linked sheet structured conducting polymer ploy(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) decorated on Ni foam is synthesized via one-step electrodeposition using the sodium p-toluenesulfonate (STSA) as surfactant and applied for supercapacitor electrode. The surfactants play a vital role in controlling the morphologies of PEDOT leading to the electrochemical performance difference. The optimized PEDOT electrode exhibits the highest capacitance of 711.6 mF cm−2 at 3.0 mA cm−2 in the three-electrode system. An asymmetric device (PEDOT/STSA//AC) is constructed by PEDOT/STSA (the positive electrode), activated carbon (AC) (the negative electrode) as well as 1 M Na2SO4 (the electrolyte). The device has been worked in a high-voltage range of 0–1.5 V, which displays the satisfied energy density of 14.0 Wh·kg−1 at 535.5 W kg−1. Furthermore, the PEDOT/STSA//AC device presents excellent rate capability and long-time cyclic stability.

Aqueous hydrotropic solution: green reaction medium for synthesis of pyridopyrimidine carbonitrile and spiro-oxindole dihydroquinazolinone derivatives

From the green chemistry point of view, water is one of the most sustainable solvents for chemical transformations, but there are some limitations to its use as a reaction medium due to the lack of solubility of organic compounds. To overcome this difficulty, we used aqueous hydrotropic solution, which increases the solubility of organic compounds in water by 200-fold. We report an environmentally efficient method for synthesis of pyridopyrimidine carbonitriles and spiro-oxindole dihydroquinazolinones by using 50 % aqueous sodium p-toluene sulfonate (NaPTS) solution at ambient reaction condition. The merits of the present protocol include short reaction time, excellent product yield with high purity, easy workup procedure and reusability of reaction medium.

Smart mobility control agent for enhanced oil recovery during CO2 flooding in ultra-low permeability reservoirs

The development of natural/artificial fractures leads to significant differences of the physical properties between the matrix and the fractures, which usually causes serious channeling and low sweep efficiency during CO2 flooding in ultra-low permeability reservoirs, the use of a CO2-responsive smart mobility control system to generate bulk gel by wormlike micelles (WLMs) to mitigate gas channeling has great potentials for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in ultra-low permeability reservoirs. In this study, five kinds of chemicals with CO2-sensitive groups are screened to measure the apparent viscosity using a rheometer. The experimental results show that the optimum system consists of 4.4 wt% N, N-dimethyl octylamide-propyl tertiary amine (DOAPA) and 2.0 wt% sodium p-toluenesulfonate (SPTS). Subsequently, the plugging capacity and EOR performance of the system are systematically evaluated using core flooding experiments. The optimized system (DOAPA/SPTS) exhibits outstanding plugging capacity for gas channeling with a plugging efficiency of 99.2%. The oil recovery of the CO2 flooding increases by 20.0%. In addition, the thickening mechanism of the CO2-responsive system is studied using rheological experiments and a cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (Cryo-TEM). The shear-thinning behavior demonstrates that the thickening effect of the high-viscosity WLMs is strong in the DOAPA/SPTS-CO2 solution, and the Cryo-TEM results indicate a transition from spherical micelles to the WLMs. The protonation contributes to the formation of the WLMs in the solution during phase transformation process. The results of this study are expected to provide benchmark to select the mobility control agent for CO2 flooding in ultra-low permeability reservoirs.

In situ synthesis of conductive nanocrystal cellulose/polypyrrole composite hydrogel based on semi-interpenetrating network

A novel conductive composite hydrogel (PPy/NCC-g-AA) was fabricated via an in-situ oxidative polymerization of pyrrole monomer (Py) into a three-dimensional (3D) framework of acrylic acid (AA) grafted nanocrystal cellulose hydrogel (NCC-g-AA). Due to the high stability of the semi-interpenetrating network structure originating from PPy and NCC-g-AA hydrogel, the mechanical strength of the composite hydrogel was significantly enhanced, with the compressive modulus increasing from 0.23 to 4.16 MPa. The introduced carboxyl groups of AA enabled the hydrogel with improved water retention capacity (swelling ratio up to 910%). By doping with sodium p-toluenesulfonate (TsONa), the hydrogel showed much higher electrical conductivity (up to 8.8 × 10−3 S·cm−1) than that of undoped. This hydrogel is a promising candidate for applications in catalyst supports, nerve regeneration and carbon capture.

The universality of lignocellulosic biomass liquefaction by plasma electrolysis under acidic conditions

In this research, we compared the discharge characteristics and catalytic efficiency of sulfuric acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid, and their respective sodium salts (sodium sulfate and sodium p-toluenesulfonate) in sawdust liquefaction and found that sulfuric acid was the optimal catalyst when glycerol was used as solvent during the plasma electrolytic liquefaction (PEL) process. When sodium p-toluenesulfonate was used as the only catalyst, the liquefaction yield reached 83.51% after 25 min. This yield was higher than that obtained using sodium sulfate as the catalyst (60.63%) because different concentrations of H ions were produced in PEL. Cellulose, lignin, and holocellulose were extracted from sawdust and successfully liquefied in PEL, illustrating the universality of PEL. The optical emission spectra of the different biomass during the PEL process were similar, indicating that the kinds of free radicals produced were similar, which can accelerate the liquefaction of sawdust.

Green synthesis of lignin nanoparticle in aqueous hydrotropic solution toward broadening the window for its processing and application

To exploit a green way to produce polymer nanoparticles using biodegradable and renewable macromolecules instead of petroleum-based ones, we initiated a novel and facile method to synthesize lignin nanoparticles (LNPs). The LNPs, having a hydrodynamic diameter ranging from ca. 80 to 230 nm, were formed by self-assembly in a recyclable and non-toxic aqueous sodium p-toluenesulfonate (pTsONa) solution at room temperature, with a lowest concentration of up to 48 g/L. We eliminated the unfavorable factors of restricted processing pH and lignin species by taking advantage of the hydrotropic chemistry and the synergistic dissociation of the entrapped pTsONa and intrinsic phenolic hydroxyl and carboxylic acid moieties of the LNPs. Because of the hydrotropic system, various water-soluble or water-insoluble drugs can be dissolved and encapsulated in the LNPs with an encapsulation efficiency of up to 90%. The drug-encapsulated LNPs also showed great properties, with sustained drug-releasing capability and biocompatibility. Furthermore, the unloaded drugs and free pTsONa could be easily recycled for multiple use, thereby achieving environmental sustainability. This synthesis approach with broad processing window could realize the industrial scale-up production of LNPs and have wide potential applications, including but not limited to versatile drug/bioactive macromolecule loading in the biomedical field.

The Initial Comparison Study of Sodium Lignosulfonate, Sodium Dodecyl Benzene Sulfonate, and Sodium p-Toluene Sulfonate Surfactant for Enhanced Oil Recovery

Surfactant (surface active agent) exhibit numerous interesting properties that enable their use as additional component in mobilising of residual oil from capillary pore after secondary recovery process using gas injection and water flooding. In this study, Sodium Lignosulfonate (SLS) surfactant was successfully synthesized by applying batch method using lignin from oil palm empty fruit bunches as precursor. Furthermore, its performance in reducing interfacial tension of crude oil and formation water colloidal system was compared with commercial available surfactant including Sodium Dodecyl Benzene Sulfonate (SDBS) and Sodium p-Toluene Sulfonate (SpTS). The synthesized SLS surfactant was characterized by using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Meanwhile, its performance in reducing interfacial tension of crude oil and formation water colloidal system was analyzed by using compatibility test, phase behaviour analysis, and interfacial tension (IFT) measurement. The compatibility test shows that SLS, SDBS, and SpTS surfactants were compatible with formation water. In addition, the phase behaviour analysis shows that SLS surfactant was better than SpTS surfactant, while SDBS surfactant generates the highest performance proved by the best microemulsion formation resulted by SDBS. Furthermore, the optimum concentration of SLS, SDBS, and SpTS surfactants in reducing the interfacial tension of crude oil and formation water was 1.0%. The IFT measurement indicates that the performance of SLS with the value of 1.67 mN/m was also better than SpTS surfactant with the value of 3.59 mN/m. Meanwhile, SDBS surfactant shows the best performance with the IFT value of 0.47 mN/m.

Measurement and Correlation for the Solubility of Sodium p-Toluenesulfonate, Sodium Sulfite, and Sodium p-Methylphenoxide in Aqueous Sodium Hydroxide Solutions and Sodium Sulfite in Aqueous Ethanol Solutions

The solubilities of sodium p-toluenesulfonate (NaPTS), sodium sulfite (Na2SO3), and sodium p-methylphenoxide (NaCRS) in aqueous NaOH solutions and Na2SO3 in aqueous ethanol solutions were investigated using a dynamic method over the temperature range from 277 to 341 K at atmospheric pressure. The experimental results showed that the solubilities of NaPTS, Na2SO3, and NaCRS in aqueous NaOH solutions and Na2SO3 in aqueous ethanol solutions decreased distinctly with the solute-free mass fraction of NaOH (w40) and ethanol (w50). Further, there were obvious transition points in the solubility–temperature curves of NaPTS and Na2SO3 in aqueous NaOH solutions, and the transition points shifted to lower temperature as w40 rose. The forming of transition point was due to the different equilibrium solid phase, which was revealed by characterization of the equilibrium solid phase. But the transition points in the solubility–temperature curves of Na2SO3 in aqueous ethanol solutions remained constant at different w50 v...

On the Development and Application of an In-House Fabricated Mg2+ Ion Selective Microelectrode (ISME) for Assessing Mg Corrosion

A solid-contact Mg2+ ion-selective microelectrode (ISME) usually consists of a carbon fiber coated with conducting polymer, such as electropolymerized 3, 4 ethylenedioxythiopene (PEDOT), in contact with the ion-selective membrane. PEDOT is typically electrochemically deposited onto the carbon fibers from rather expensive ionic liquid based dopants. Herein, Mg2+ ISMEs were assembled using a commercially available Mg2+ ionophore-containing solution and PEDOT electrochemically deposited from sodium p-toluenesulfonate, thus providing a simple and inexpensive method to develop Mg2+ ISMEs. The ISME fabricated by this procedure is successfully able to respond to Mg2+ ion concentrations arising from pure Mg during free corrosion and also galvanic corrosion (when Mg is coupled to pure iron).

L-lactic acid and sodium p-toluenesulfonate co-doped polypyrrole for high performance cathode in sodium ion battery

In this work, polypyrrole (PPy) was co-doped with l-lactic acid (LA) and sodium p-toluenesulfonate (TsONa) for high performance cathode in sodium ion battery (SIB) via facile one-step electropolymerization on Fe foil. The as-synthesized LA/TsONa co-doped PPy cathode was investigated in terms of scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), galvanostatic charge/discharge and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The results suggested that some oval-bud-like LA/TsONa co-doped PPy particles did form and tightly combine with the surface of Fe foil; furthermore, LA/TsONa co-doped PPy cathode also delivered higher electrochemical performances than TsONa mono-doped PPy cathode. For example, the initial specific discharge capacity was as high as about 124 mAh/g, and the reversible specific capacity still maintained at about 110 mAh/g even after 50 cycles, higher than those of TsONa mono-doped PPy cathode. The synergy effect of multi components of LA/TsONa co-doped PPy cathode should be responsible for high electrochemical performances.

Efficient synthesis of chromeno[2,3-c]pyrazolyl-pyrazolol(s) in hydrotropic solution and their anti-infective potential

We report synthesis of chromeno[2,3-c]pyrazolyl-pyrazolol(s) with anti-infective potential in aq. sodium p-toluenesulfonate (NaPTS) hydrotropic solution under ultrasound irradiation at room temperature. Salicylaldehyde (1 mmol), on reaction with 1-phenyl-3-methyl-5-pyrazolone (2 mmol), yielded chromeno[2,3-c]pyrazolyl-pyrazolol(s). Knoevenagel reaction, Michael reaction, intramolecular cyclization, followed by dehydration are key steps involved in the present synthetic protocol. The synthesized compounds were screened for their antimicrobial potential, and molecular docking studies were performed to establish their possible mode of action.

Observation on Sodium p-Toluenesulfonate Doped Polypyrrole Cathode for Sodium Ion Battery

Sodium p-toluenesulfonate (TsONa)-doped polypyrrole (PPy) was synthesized as the cathode active material of sodium ion battery by way of facile one-step electrodeposition on iron (Fe) foil. The mic...

PH-Responsive fluorescent graphene quantum dots for fluorescence-guided cancer surgery and diagnosis.

Cancer remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality around the world. Improved cancer treatment requires enhancement of cancer diagnosis and detection. To achieve this goal, here we report a novel imaging probe, pH-responsive fluorescent graphene quantum dots (pRF-GQDs). pRF-GQDs were prepared by electrolysis of graphite rods in sodium p-toluenesulfonate acetonitrile solution. The resulting pRF-GQDs, which have minimal toxicity, display a sharp fluorescence transition between green and blue at pH 6.8, a pH matching the acidic extracellular microenvironment in solid tumors. We found that this unique fluorescence switch property allows tumors to be distinguished from normal tissues. In addition to fluorescence, pRF-GQDs also exhibit upconversion photoluminescence (UCPL). We demonstrate that the combination of UCPL and fluorescence switch enables detection of solid tumors of different origin at an early developmental stage. Therefore, pRF-GQDs have great potential to be used as a universal probe for fluorescence-guided cancer surgery and cancer diagnosis.

ChemInform Abstract: Synthesis, Structure, Band Gap, and Near‐Infrared Photosensitivity of a New Chalcogenide Crystal, (NH4)4Ag12Sn7Se22.

AbstractBlack sheet‐like crystals of the title compound are prepared from mixtures of Sn, Se, AgCl, NH2NH2·H2O, 4‐(4‐(dimethylamino)styryl)‐1‐methylpyridinium iodide, and sodium p‐toluenesulfonate (autoclave, 160 °C, 5—7 d).

Preparation of polypyrrole nanocomposites for supercapacitor using spent battery powder as raw materials

A strategy has been developed to prepare conductive polymer-based nanocomposites as the electrode materials for supercapacitor with spent battery powder (SBP) as raw materials. Thus the waste resources from power could be sustainably recycled for new energy storage devices. The SBP containing manganese dioxide (MnO2) and graphite powder was obtained from the spent zinc-carbon battery, in which MnO2 was utilized for the oxidative polymerization of pyrrole. The binary graphite/polypyrrole (G/PPy) and ternary MnO2/graphite/polypyrrole (MnO2/G/PPy) nanocomposites were obtained under different reaction conditions, such as hydrochloric acid concentration, MnO2/pyrrole molar ratio, sodium p-toluene sulfonate (p-TSNa)/pyrrole molar ratio, and acid solution volume. The results showed that the electrochemical properties of the G/PPy nanocomposites were better than those of the MnO2/G/PPy. Under the optimized preparation condition (100mL of 1.5mol/L HCl with 0.03mol/L pyrrole, and MnO2/pyrrole/p-TSNa molar ratio of 1:1:1), the G/PPy nanocomposite possessed a relatively high Coulombic efficiency, a high electrical conductivity of 20.0S/cm, and the highest specific capacitance of 212.4F/g at 1mV/s scan rate tested by CV, as well as a retention of 89.5% of its original capacitance after 1000 cycles.

Modeling and prediction of protein solubility using the second osmotic virial coefficient

The development of a precipitation or crystallization step requires knowing the solubility of the target protein and its crystallization behavior in aqueous solutions at different pH, temperatures and in the presence of precipitating agents, especially salts. Within this work, a solubility model for proteins based on the second osmotic virial coefficient B22 is developed. For this, a relation between protein solubility and B22 was combined with the extended DLVO model. This solubility model was then used to model and also predict the protein solubility of lysozyme and monoclonal antibody for different salts, salt concentrations, and pH. The modeled as well predicted B22 and protein solubility data of lysozyme in the presence of sodium chloride and sodium p-toluenesulfonate and of a monoclonal antibody in the presence of ammonium sulfate at different pH shows good agreement with experimental data.

Sulfur-doped graphene quantum dots as a novel fluorescent probe for highly selective and sensitive detection of Fe(3+).

Sulfur-doped graphene quantum dots (S-GQDs) with stable blue-green fluorescence were synthesized by one-step electrolysis of graphite in sodium p-toluenesulfonate aqueous solution. Compared with GQDs, the S-GQDs drastically improved the electronic properties and surface chemical reactivities, which exhibited a sensitive response to Fe(3+). Therefore, the S-GQDs were used as an efficient fluorescent probe for highly selective detection of Fe(3+). Upon increasing of Fe(3+) concentration ranging from 0.01 to 0.70 μM, the fluorescence intensity of S-GQDs gradually decreased and reached a plateau at 0.90 μM. The difference in the fluorescence intensity of S-GQDs before and after adding Fe(3+) was proportional to the concentration of Fe(3+), and the calibration curve displayed linear regions over the range of 0-0.70 μM. The detection limit was 4.2 nM. Finally, this novel fluorescent probe was successfully applied to the direct analysis of Fe(3+) in human serum, which presents potential applications in clinical diagnosis and may open a new way to the design of effective fluorescence probes for other biologically related targets.

CO2-/N2-Triggered Viscoelastic Fluid with N,N-Dimethyl Oleoaminde-Propylamine and Sodium p-Toluenesulfonate

In this article, a new type of CO2-triggered switchable wormlike micelles based on N,N-dimethyl oleoaminde-propylamine (DOAPA) and sodium p-toluene sulfonate (SPTS) mixed in a molar ratio of 1:1 is studied. With inlet of CO2, DOAPA molecules are protonated to form quaternary ammonium. The electrostatic attraction between quaternary ammonium and SPTS results in assembled structures and formation of a viscoelastic wormlike fluid. These results are proved by rheological methods in this study. Upon the release of CO2, the quaternary ammonium is deprotonated back to tertiary amines, the assemble structures are split, and water-like fluid is obtained. Such a reversible transition of viscosity between high and low can be repeated several times with or without CO2. This transition of the micromolecular structure is proved by 1H NMR and conductivity. As well, the process of viscosity reduction can be controlled by the flow rate of N2 addition.