Triethyl Borate Research Articles

Fluorination Promotes Lithium Salt Dissolution in Borate Esters for Lithium Metal Batteries

Lithium metal batteries promise higher energy densities than current lithium-ion batteries but require novel electrolytes to extend their cycle life. To promote electrolyte stability against lithium metal and improve the reversibility of lithium deposition/stripping, several electrolyte design strategies have been pursued. For example, high concentration electrolytes (HCEs) and localized high concentration electrolytes (LHCEs) produce solvation structure rich in salt aggregates and ion pairs, which can increase lithium metal cycling Coulombic efficiency to as high as 99.5%. Recently, molecular design of fluorinated ether solvents also leads to high lithium metal Coulombic efficiency of up to 99.9% in single-solvent-single-salt ~ 1 M electrolytes. In addition, fluorinated acetals, fluorinated carbonates, and fluorinated sulfonamides are also reported to enable efficient lithium metal cycling. Among those novel electrolytes, fluorinated solvents or diluents are frequently used because fluorinated moieties are known to yield LiF as a preferable component in solid electrolyte interphase (SEI). However, fluorinated groups are believed to weaken ion solvation as most fluorinated solvents show poorer solvation ability or lower ionic conductivity compared to their nonfluorinated counterparts. The trade-off between SEI passivation and ion solvation limits further optimization of fluorinated electrolytes.In this work, we synthesize tris(2-fluoroethyl) borate (TFEB) as a new fluorinated borate ester solvent. Interestingly, moderately fluorinated TFEB shows unexpectedly high lithium salt solubility (~1 M LiFSA) while the nonfluorinated triethyl borate (TEB) and heavily fluorinated tris(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) borate (TTFEB) can hardly dissolve lithium salt. Through density functional theory (DFT) calculations and ab-initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations, we show that the partially fluorinated -CH2F group in TFEB acts as primary coordination site that promotes lithium salt dissolution. The electrochemical property of TFEB electrolyte is then compared to the methoxy polyethyleneglycol borate esters reported in literature. Owing to the fluorinated solvent structure, TFEB electrolyte passivates lithium metal with LiF-rich SEI and supports compact lithium deposition morphology, high lithium metal Coulombic efficiency, and stable cycling of lithium metal/LiFePO4 cells. This work ushers in a new electrolyte design paradigm where partially fluorinated moieties enable salt dissolution and can serve as primary ion coordination sites for next-generation electrolytes. Figure 1

Combustion Behavior of Fuel Droplets with Metallic, Non-Metallic and Organo-Metallic Boron Additives

ABSTRACT There is considerable interest in the utilization of fuels derived from boron materials, with their high calorific value, in various applications ranging from propellants to pyrotechnics. Conversely, their impact on the combustion behavior of conventional hydrocarbon fuels remains largely unclear. In this study, ignition, combustion, micro-explosion and simultaneous atomization behaviors of gasoline-based alternative fuels containing metallic (28–35 µm MgB2), nonmetallic (1 µm amorphous boron, 10 µm AlB12 with 86–88% and 95–97% purity) and organo-metallic boron derivatives (triethyl borate (TEB) containing C2H5 groups and trimethyl borate (TMB) containing CH3 groups) were investigated. The experiments were carried out at droplet scale and recorded using a high-speed camera and a thermal camera. The findings revealed a systematic reduction in ignition delay for each gasoline fuel enriched with boron derivatives. 2.5%AlB12/G and pure TMB droplets were the fastest extincting fuel droplets (0.9678 s and 1.245 s, respectively). The highest maximum flame temperature was recorded as 626 K and 610 K for pure TMB and 80%TEB/G, respectively. Droplet diameter regression analyses showed that the diameters of fuel droplets containing predominantly metallic and nonmetallic boron derivatives decreased in accordance with the d 2 -law. This study demonstrated that cost-effective and easily producible amorphous boron and organometallic boron derivatives are promising energy carriers for hydrocarbon fuels.

External donor modified Mg-Ti based Z-N catalyst system for synthesis of Ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene

This study reported novel external donors Diethyl 2,2'-(dimethylsilanediyl) diacetate (DSD1), Diethyl 2,2'-(phenyl(methyl) silanediyl) diacetate (DSD2) and Diethyl 2,2'- (diisopropylsilanediyl) diacetate (DSD3) and triethyl borate (TEB) employed with magnesium dichloride supported Ti-based monoester (Mg-Ti-ME) and magnesium dichloride supported Ti-based diester (Mg-Ti-DE) catalyst for synthesis of Ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). Furthermore, the catalyst was tested with different concentrations of chain-terminating agents to understand the effect on molecular weight. The results showed Mg-Ti catalysts using DSD1, DSD2, and DSD3 and TEB external donors had significantly increased molecular weight in the presence of external donors with decreases in catalyst activity, compared to donor-free catalyst systems. In addition, in the presence of chain terminating agent molecular weight decreases significantly with less effect on catalyst activity. The obtained polymer, thermal properties characterized through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), morphology through a scanning electron microscope (SEM), particle size of resin through a particle size analyzer and molecular weight through viscosity-average molecular weights method.

A SEM-EDX Study on the Structure of Phenyl Phosphinic Hybrids Containing Boron and Zirconium.

The SEM-EDX method was used to investigate the structure and morphology of organic-inorganic hybrids containing zirconium, boron and phosphorus compounds, synthesized by the sol-gel method. We started by using, for the first time together, zirconyl chloride hexa-hydrate (ZrOCl2·6H2O), phenyl phosphinic acid and triethyl borate as precursors and reagents, at different molar ratios. The obtained hybrids showed a very high thermal stability and are not soluble in water or in organic solvents. As a consequence, such hybrid solid materials are suitable for applications at high temperatures. The obtained hybrids have complex 3D structures and form organic-inorganic networks containing Zr-O-Zr, Zr-O-P and Zr-O-B bridges. Such organic-inorganic networks are also expected to form supramolecular structures and to have many potential applications in different fields of great interest such as catalysis, medicine, agriculture, energy storage, fuel cells, sensors, electrochemical devices and supramolecular chemistry.

Synthesis of Oil Soluble Boron Esters and Obtaining Lubricant Additive Packages with Anti-wear and Extreme Pressure Properties

The purpose of this work is synthesis and characterization of pryridin-yl-borate esters and investigation of tribological performance as additive. The syn-thesis of dialkyl-(2-(pyridin-2-yl) ethyl) borate esters both in the literature and the novel synthesis of dialkyl 2-(methyl (pyridin-2-yl) borate esters and dialkyl 2- (5-ethylpyridin-2-yl) ethyl borate esters were carried out. The boron esters to be obtained were characterized by using IR, 1H NMR,13C NMR spectroscopic methods as well as physical methods such as TAN and corrosion tests. The fric-tion-reducing and anti-wear properties of the synthesized lubricant additives were measured with a four-ball friction and wear tester. As a result of these stud-ies, it has been shown that the friction coefficient is reduced by about 30-40 % compared to the base oil and the wear is also reduced. In the tribological analysis performed using synthesized four molecules within the scope of the study, it was found that resistance to oxidation is increased when the synthesized molecules were added to group I base oil at 0.5 % and 1% w/w concentration. The novel synthesis of dialkyl 2-(methyl (pyridin-2-yl) borate esters and dialkyl 2- (5-ethylpyridin-2-yl) ethyl borate esters were carried out and tribological perfor-mances in base oil were analysed first time.

Investigation of combustion characteristics on triethyl borate, trimethyl borate, diesel, and gasoline droplets

In this study, the evolution of fuel droplet diameter, flame structure, and maximum flame temperature over time was observed using a high-speed camera and a thermal camera at the same time. Traditional fuels (diesel and gasoline) and new generation fuels (triethyl borate and trimethyl borate) fuels were investigated within the droplet experiments. It has been shown that the flame structure of diesel and gasoline fuel droplets has a large non-luminous region that is seen during the combustion process, unlike triethyl borate and trimethyl borate fuels. The curves of the time-dependent variation of the dimensionless square of the droplet diameter (D/D0)2 of the fuel droplets considered in the study generally exhibited curve properties conforming to the D2-law. In the flame formed by the trimethyl borate droplet, the highest flame temperature was observed by the thermal camera, while the shortest burning time was detected. According to the experimental conditions in the study, the shortest ignition delay was measured for trimethyl borate, while the longest ignition delay time was observed for diesel fuel droplet. Also, it was determined that the lowest burn rate constant was detected for the gasoline droplet, while the highest burn rate constant was seen for diesel fuel.

The Influence of Boron on the Structure and Properties of Hybrid Compounds Containing Zirconium and Phosphorus.

In the present work, novel organic–inorganic hybrid materials containing boron, zirconium, and phosphorus were synthesized at different molar ratios, using the sol–gel method, starting from zirconyl chloride hexa-hydrate, triethyl borate, and phenyl phosphonic acid as the precursors. The sol–gel process is used for the first time in the present work in order to obtain organic–inorganic hybrids (or the so-called inorganic polymers) containing together boron, zirconium, and phosphorus. The sol–gel syntheses were performed at room temperature in ethanol. Zirconium containing compounds are already well known for their applications in medicine in restorative or prosthetic devices, including dental implants, knee and hip replacements, middle-ear ossicular chain reconstruction, and so on. Zirconium is a strong transition metal, which started to replace hafnium and titanium in the last decade in important applications. On the other hand, boron has the capability (similar to carbon) to form stable covalently bonded molecular networks. In addition to this capability, boron also offers mixed metallic and nonmetallic properties, because of its place on the periodic table, at the border between metals and nonmetals. Boron is responsible for the higher thermal stability of synthesized hybrid compounds. In the structure of those hybrid compounds, zirconium, boron, and phosphorus atoms are always connected via an oxygen atom, by P-O-Zr, Zr-O-Zr, or Zr-O-B bridges.

Impact of Triethyl Borate on the Performance of 5 V Spinel/Graphite Lithium-Ion Batteries

Impact of Triethyl Borate on the Performance of 5 V Spinel/Graphite Lithium-Ion Batteries

Triethyl-Borates as Surfactants to Stabilize Semiconductor Nanoplatelets in Polar Solvents and to Tune Their Optical Properties.

Stabilizing nanocrystals (NCs) with high fluorescence quantum efficiency in suitable solvents and tuning of their optical properties precisely are critical for designing and assembling optoelectrical devices. Here, we demonstrated that by replacing the original X-type ligand (R-COO-) with triethylborate (TEB), zinc-blend structure nanoplatelets (Zb-NPLs) turn from hydrophobic to hydrophilic and are quite stable in polar solvents. More importantly, a large shift of 253 meV is observed for the TEB-passivated NPLs, which can be attributed to the strain of the crystal lattice and the electron or hole delocalizing into the ligand shell. It is worth noting that unlike conventional inorganic ligands, such as metal chalcogenide complexes or halides that quench fluorescence, TEB-treated NPLs maintain 100% of their original brightness in polar solvents with a slight increase in full width at half maximum (FWHM, 32 nm). Furthermore, we explored the possibility of employing TEB as surface ligands for NPLs with different thicknesses and compositions. We believe the discovery of new surface chemistry using borate-related ligands can greatly expand the potential application areas of NPLs.

Graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometric studies for the quantification of trace and ultratrace impurities in the semiconductor grade organic chemicals such as triethylborate, tetraethylorthosilicate and trimethylphosphate

The paper describes the direct determination of impurities by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GF AAS) in high (7 N, i.e. 99.99999%) purity organic compounds used as precursors for the deposition of dielectric films by chemical vapour deposition (CVD). The impurity analysis is required to assess the suitability of the compounds that include triethyl borate (TEB), tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and trimethyl phosphate (TMPO), used as precursors for the deposition of compositionally good quality films. Such features as high sensitivity and limits of detection of GFAAS are exploited for the direct determination of twenty elements (Ag, Al, Bi, Ca, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Ni, Pb, Sn, Sb, Zn) in μg L−1 levels in the three compounds. The analysis was preceded by a comprehensive study on the quantitative recovery of spiked elements using clean room procedures. Specially designed sample holders made of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) were used for the analysis. The routinely used polystyrene sample holders are attacked by these chemicals and are thus rendered unsuitable for analysis. GFAAS operating parameters such as drying, pyrolysis and atomisation temperatures were optimized for each analyte in each organic sample for the removal of the matrix effects on the analyte and for quantitative recovery of the analytes. A fourth drying step was introduced in the furnace program. The accuracy of the method has been established by spike recovery tests in the absence of certified reference materials for high purity chemicals. The method is free from any interference and has a precision of <10%. Studies on the effect of polypropylene (PP) and perfluoroalkhoxy (PFA) storage containers on the impurities of these chemicals were performed and the results were discussed. The method can be effectively utilized for the quality control and quality assurance of these important class of chemicals used extensively in semiconductor industry.

SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC DETERMINATION OF BORON IN FOOD PRODUCTS BY ESTER BORATE DISTILLATION INTO CURCUMIN

Spectrophotometric determination of boron in food products by ester borate distillation into curcumin was studied. The sensitivity and selectivity of curcumin method were overcome by generating ester borate at proper temperature, time and pH. Boron was separated as triethyl borate by distillation in a vessel using ethanol solvent and reacted with curcumin. Distillation system reached optimum condition at temperature of 75oC and pH 5-6. Boron-curcumin complex was measured at 555 nm after 10 minutes of reaction. Separation of boron by distillation method complied with validation parameters. The standard curve was linier at concentration range of 1.2-4.8 ppm (R2=0.9995) and had molar extinction value (?) 4.7 x 105 L mol-1 cm-1 for high sensitivity level which is higher than the previous study. Percent recovery was found to be 96.09-104.92 %. Boron content in meatball and tofu products was in the range of 1.406-3.589 and 0.010-1.085 mg/kg. Ester borate distillation into curcumin has been successfully applied to the determination of boron in food products because of its high selectivity and sensitivity.

Deposition of Boron-Doped Thin CVD Diamond Films from Methane-Triethyl Borate-Hydrogen Gas Mixture

Boron-doped diamond is a promising semiconductor material that can be used as a sensor and in power electronics. Currently, researchers have obtained thin boron-doped diamond layers due to low film growth rates (2–10 μm/h), with polycrystalline diamond growth on the front and edge planes of thicker crystals, inhomogeneous properties in the growing crystal’s volume, and the presence of different structural defects. One way to reduce structural imperfection is the specification of optimal synthesis conditions, as well as surface etching, to remove diamond polycrystals. Etching can be carried out using various gas compositions, but this operation is conducted with the interruption of the diamond deposition process; therefore, inhomogeneity in the diamond structure appears. The solution to this problem is etching in the process of diamond deposition. To realize this in the present work, we used triethyl borate as a boron-containing substance in the process of boron-doped diamond chemical vapor deposition. Due to the oxygen atoms in the triethyl borate molecule, it became possible to carry out an experiment on simultaneous boron-doped diamond deposition and growing surface etching without the requirement of process interruption for other operations. As a result of the experiments, we obtain highly boron-doped monocrystalline diamond layers with a thickness of about 8 μm and a boron content of 2.9%. Defects in the form of diamond polycrystals were not detected on the surface and around the periphery of the plate.

More than just a protection layer: Inducing chemical interaction between Li3BO3 and LiNi0·5Mn1·5O4 to achieve stable high-rate cycling cathode materials

Spinel LiNi0·5Mn1·5O4 (LNMO), though being considered as a promising cathode material because of their high energy and power density, always suffers from rapid capacity deterioration due to the Jahn-Teller effect and severe leakage of Mn ions into electrolytes at elevated temperatures. In this work, Li3BO3 (LBO) formed from slow hydrolysis of triethyl borate was coated on the surface of LiMn1·5Ni0·5O4 materials prepared through a modified wet-chemistry method. Our results put an emphasis on the strong chemical interactions between the external LBO coating layer and the internal LNMO core induced by a high-temperature thermal treatment; owing to the favorable solid-solid interfacial interaction, the presence of the relatively oxidative Li3BO3 layer was found to diminish the population of the oxygen vacancy and minimize the unstable Mn3+ species in the LNMO active materials, which thus could alleviate the adverse Jahn-Teller distortion and enhance the structural stability. Moreover, as a coating layer, the LBO could prevent direct interaction between the cathode active materials and the electrolyte; as such, the etching of the LNMO cathode materials by the decomposition products of electrolytes such as HF and the leakage of active metal species were inhibited effectively. Besides, the LBO itself is a highly conductive ionic conductor, which thus could enable fast Li+ cation diffusion on the cathode. On this basis, a significant improvement was observed in the high-rate cycling performance for thus coated LNMO cathode materials. The bare LNMO electrode failed within merely 300 cycles. In contrast, our optimal sample LBO2%@LNMO with 2 wt% of LBO delivers a high discharge specific capacity of 127 mAh g−1, which accounts for 92% of its initial capacity after 500 cycles at 1C in the range of 3.5–4.99 V; when cycling at 10 C, it displays an initial discharge specific capacity of 111 mAh g−1 and maintains 85 mAh g−1 after 1000 cycles. Our work demonstrates that in addition to behaving as a physical protection layer, the introduction of the ionic conductive Li3BO3 coating layer could also modify the local composition of the spinel-type LNMO through strong interfacial chemical reaction, which thus could profoundly enhance the structural integrity and high-rate cycling stability.

Perovskite Solution Aging: What Happened and How to Inhibit?

Summary The studies of perovskite film in the perovskite solar cells (PSCs) mainly focus on their crystallization and growth, but the reactions that happen in the precursor solutions are still not very clear, which is leading to the bad reproducibility for high-efficient devices. We demonstrated that, in the methylammonium- and formamidinium-mixed organic cation perovskite solution, the methylamine molecule could be first generated from the deprotonation of methylammonium iodide, and then condensate with formamidinium iodide to form N-methyl formamidinium iodide and N, N′-dimethyl formamidinium iodide. The triethyl borate was carried out as a stabilizer to restrain the deprotonation of methylammonium iodide in the precursor solutions, resulting in the elimination of the impurity phase in perovskite films. We think that the introduction of stabilizer in the perovskite precursor solution will become a common strategy for mixed-organic-cation PSCs in the future to improve the reproducibility and efficiency.

Study of Tribological Synergistic Effect of N-Containing Heterocyclic Borate Ester with Tricresyl Phosphate as Rapeseed Oil Additive

Abstract A single borate ester additive sometimes fails to meet the requirements of modern working conditions, it needs two or more additives for the use. Two N-containing heterocyclic borate esters, 2-(1H-benzotriazol-1-yl) ethyl bis(2-aminoethyl) borate (BEB) and bis-(2-amionethyl) (2-benzothiazol-2-ylthio)ethyl borate (MEB) have been synthesized. Their tribological properties were studied by a four-ball tester after mixing with tricresyl phosphate (TCP) in rapeseed oil (RSO). The results show that these complex additives have strong synergistic effects on load carrying and anti-wear properties. At a mass ratio of BEB (MEB) to TCP of 0.5:0.5, the load carrying capability (PB value) of RSO can be improved by 160.6 % and 204.2 %, respectively. At the same mass ratio, the load carrying capability of the complex additive from the TMx series (MEB with TCP) was better than that of the TBx series (BEB with TCP). The anti-wear effect of TBx was better than that of TMx at high load. The friction reduction of 196 N showed little difference because of the small difference in physical adsorption capacity between TCP and BEB (MEB). The analytical results of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) on the worn steel ball surfaces showed that the complex additives were adsorbed on the lubricating surface and formed a stable protective film during the sliding process due to absorption and tribochemical reactions between the borate ester, TCP and metal surface which helped to improve the tribological properties of RSO.

Triethyl borate and tripropyl borate as electrolyte additives for 4.8 V high voltage layered lithium-rich oxide cathode with enhanced self-discharge suppression performance: A comparative study

Trimethyl borate (TMB) has been identified as electrolyte additive to suppress self-discharge for high voltage layered lithium-rich oxide cathode (LRO) for lithium ion batteries in our previous work. To expand pervious findings, its derivatives, triethyl borate (TEB) and tripropyl borate (TPB) with increased alkyl chains, have been considered as electrolyte additives to mitigate self-discharge behavior of LRO cathode for lithium ion batteries and we make a contrast to explain which one is better and why is better. It is found that fully charged (4.8 V, vs. Li/Li+) LRO cathode suffers severe self-discharged issue upon storage in standard (STD) electrolyte (1 mol L−1 LiPF6-EC/EMC/DEC (3:5:2, in weight)). In contrast, this detrimental self-discharge behavior of LRO cathode at high voltage can be effectively depressed by introducing TEB or TPB into the electrolyte system. Combinations of electrochemical methods and multi spectroscopy techniques have been employed to evaluate effects of TEB and TPB on the LRO cathode surface. They reveal that the B–O and B–F bonds species in the film formed by TEB and TPB prevents electrolyte decomposition and protects LRO from structure transformation. These species in the film formed by TEB is much more than TPB, which explains the better effect for TEB.

Synthesis of 2-Substituted 6-(Polyfluoromethyl)pyrimidine-4-carbaldehyde Acetals

Heterocyclization of 5,5-difluoro- and 5,5,5-trifluoro-2,4-dioxopentanal dimethyl acetals with amidines in the presence of 4 equiv of triethyl borate afforded 2-substituted 6-(difluoromethyl)- and 6-(trifluoromethyl)pyrimidine-4-carbaldehyde dimethyl acetals in high yields.

Effect of in-situ boron doping on hydrogen adsorption properties of carbon nanotubes

Floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition method was used for the synthesis of boron doped carbon nanotubes (BCNTs) using ethanol, triethyl borate and ferrocene as carbon source, boron source and catalyst precursor, respectively. The synthesized BCNTs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The hydrogen adsorption activity was studied for BCNTs along with undoped single walled and multi walled carbon nanotubes. Significant enhancement in the hydrogen storage value was found in doped CNTs as compared to the other undoped CNTs. Hydrogen storage for BCNTs was found to be 2.5 wt% at 10 bar and 77 K. In-situ doped BCNTs gives higher hydrogen adsorption as compared to ex-situ doped BCNTs. The Langmuir adsorption isotherm was found to be suitable for describing the adsorption isotherm as compared with Freundlich isotherm. Maximum adsorption capacity was about 9.8 wt% at 77 K. Pseudo second order kinetics was followed by BCNTs for hydrogen adsorption.

Borate electrolyte additives for high voltage lithium nickel manganese oxide electrode: A comparative study

Trimethyl borate (TMB) and triethyl borate (TEB) are used as film-forming electrolyte additives for high voltage Lithium nickel manganese oxide (LNMO) cathode. DFT calculation and initial charge curve of LNMO reveal that the oxidation activity of TEB is higher than that of TMB. Addition of 2% TMB and 2% TEB effectively improve the capacity retention of high voltage LNMO from 23.4% to 85.3% and 72.6% after 600 cycles, respectively. The film generated in TMB-containing electrolyte shows better ability on suppressing the LNMO shedding in comparison with that of TEB, resulting in higher capacity retention of LNMO in TMB-containing electrolyte at high voltage. The superior performance of LNMO with TMB-containing electrolyte should be ascribed to its less intense film-forming reaction which generates a denser protective surface film on LNMO surface. However, why LNMO shows catalyzation effect on TEB oxidation but not on TMB is unclear, which needs further intensive investigation.

Understanding Interfacial Properties between Li-Rich Layered Oxide and Electrolyte Containing Triethyl Borate

Boron-containing electrolyte additives have been successfully used to improve the cyclability for Li-rich layered oxide, a hopeful cathode of high energy density lithium ion battery, but available mechanisms on their contribution are diversified. In this paper, we provide evidence to confirm the mechanism that Li-rich layered oxide is protected by a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layer derived from boron-containing electrolyte additives. Triethyl borate (TEB), a simple boron-containing molecule, is selected as the electrolyte additive, and a representative Li-rich layered oxide, Li[Li0.2Mn0.54Ni0.13Co0.13]O2, is synthesized for understanding the interfacial properties between the oxide and the electrolyte through physical and electrochemical characterizations. Cyclability tests display that the as-prepared oxide exhibits a fast capacity decrease in the standard electrolyte, 1.0 M LiPF6, in a mixed carbonate solvent of ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and ethylene carbonate (EC) (...