Visualizing single-molecule diffusion in mesoporous materials

Periodic mesoporous materials formed through the cooperative self-assembly of surfactants and framework building blocks can assume a variety of structures, and their widely tuneable properties make them attractive hosts for numerous applications. Because the molecular movement in the pore system is the most important and defining characteristic of porous materials, it is of interest to learn about this behaviour as a function of local structure. Generally, individual fluorescent dye molecules can be used as molecular beacons with which to explore the structure of--and the dynamics within--these porous hosts, and single-molecule fluorescence techniques provide detailed insights into the dynamics of various processes, ranging from biology to heterogeneous catalysis. However, optical microscopy methods cannot directly image the mesoporous structure of the host system accommodating the diffusing molecules, whereas transmission electron microscopy provides detailed images of the porous structure, but no dynamic information. It has therefore not been possible to 'see' how molecules diffuse in a real nanoscale pore structure. Here we present a combination of electron microscopic mapping and optical single-molecule tracking experiments to reveal how a single luminescent dye molecule travels through linear or strongly curved sections of a mesoporous channel system. In our approach we directly correlate porous structures detected by transmission electron microscopy with the diffusion dynamics of single molecules detected by optical microscopy. This opens up new ways of understanding the interactions of host and guest.     

2-(4-吡啶基)咪唑二羧酸锌配位聚合物的自发拆分

非手性配体2-(4-吡啶基)-4,5-咪唑二羧酸（H2L）与硝酸锌进行水热反应得到组成为[ZnL]n?2nH2O的自发拆分的2种三维金属-有机框架手性晶体,空间群分别为P41212和P43212,其中配位多面体分别为和型Zn(NO)2N三角双锥结构. 两种晶体分别存在着约0. 2 nm宽的不同手性的超微四方孔道,容纳的结晶水分子通过氢键分别形成右手和左手螺旋. 320 ℃以下主体框架保持稳定. 晶体在440 nm左右的荧光发射相比配体增强2倍以上. 该研究对于由非手性原料合成手性多空材料的进一步研究具有积极意义.     

Ce-MCM-41分子筛催化臭氧氧化水中腐殖酸

采用水热法合成铈掺杂MCM-41（Ce-MCM-41）介孔分子筛,并将其用于臭氧氧化水中腐殖酸.本文研究了催化剂投加量、铈掺杂量、反应温度和初始pH对腐殖酸降解及矿化的影响. 结果表明,腐殖酸在Ce-MCM-41/O3体系内可实现有效降解. 与单独臭氧氧化相比,Ce-MCM-41催化剂的加入可提高臭氧氧化腐殖酸的矿化效果. 催化剂投加量为100 mg/L时,催化剂具有较好的催化活性,反应60min,DOC去除率为70.58%（Si/Ce=80）;三种铈掺杂量催化剂的添加均能提高腐殖酸矿化效果. 在278 ~308 K实验范围内,腐殖酸溶液的DOC去除率和UV254去除率均随反应温度升高而提高.溶液初始pH为6.0~8.5时,DOC去除率随碱性增强而略微下降. 表明温度和溶液初始pH影响催化臭氧氧化去除腐殖酸的效果. 此外,还考察了添加Ce-MCM-41对含溴水臭氧氧化过程中溴酸盐生成的影响,与单独臭氧相比,1.00 g Ce-MCM-41分子筛的加入减少了46.94%溴酸盐生成. 结果表明添加Ce-MCM-41分子筛可抑制溴酸盐的生成. 因此Ce-MCM-41分子筛可用于提高臭氧氧化腐殖酸效果和减少含溴水臭氧氧化过程中溴酸盐的生成.     

基于Voronoi图的城市体系空间结构及吸引范围——以广东省为例

城市体系空间结构是城镇化的基本载体,构建科学合理的城市体系空间结构是推进新型城镇化的重要内容. 为准确把握广东省的城市体系空间结构特征,使用Voronoi图空间组织方法和加权Voronoi图空间分割方法,以城市综合实力为质量属性,统合考察城市的地理区位和空间关系,对广东省县级以上城市的城市体系空间结构及吸引范围进行研究,得出以下结论：（1）广东省城市发展空间极化现象明显,城市综合发展水平存在较大差距;（2）在城市体系空间结构上,广东省形成了全域性中心城市区域性中心城市地方性中心城市一般性城市4个层级的城市体系空间结构;（3）从城市吸引范围分析,广东省部分城市存在同城化发展现象,其中广佛和潮汕同城趋势明显;（4）广东省城市的综合实力与其空间结构等级间存在明显的错位现象,因此应该进一步明确实力强等级低的城市的区域定位和职能定位,同时加快综合实力较弱的中心城市的发展,缩小发展差距,实现区域协调.     

金属基复合材料界面层阻尼功能研究

采用CVD技术制备了具有不同界面层的C-f/Al金属基复合材料，获得了一种界面层阻尼功能设计的新方法. 研究发现具有特殊界面层的C-f/Al复合材料的抗拉强度、弹性模量和阻尼性能比无界面层时都有明显增加，并且不同界面层的效果不同. 碳层对复合材料阻尼性能的提高效果最大，硅层的提高效果不如碳层，碳硅混合层的效果居中. 涂层的厚度也影响了阻尼提高的效果，较厚的碳层效果更好，这是由于提高了复合材料的阻尼应变振幅效应而产生的. 研究认为发生在界面层的微滑移是其主要的阻尼机制.     

Structural basis for binding of Smac/DIABLO to the XIAP BIR3 domain

The inhibitor-of-apoptosis proteins (IAPs) regulate programmed cell death by inhibiting members of the caspase family of enzymes. Recently, a mammalian protein called Smac (also named DIABLO) was identified that binds to the IAPs and promotes caspase activation. Although undefined in the X-ray structure, the amino-terminal residues of Smac are critical for its function. To understand the structural basis for molecular recognition between Smac and the IAPs, we determined the solution structure of the BIR3 domain of X-linked IAP (XIAP) complexed with a functionally active nine-residue peptide derived from the N terminus of Smac. The peptide binds across the third beta-strand of the BIR3 domain in an extended conformation with only the first four residues contacting the protein. The complex is stabilized by four intermolecular hydrogen bonds, an electrostatic interaction involving the N terminus of the peptide, and several hydrophobic interactions. This structural information, along with the binding data from BIR3 and Smac peptide mutants reported here, should aid in the design of small molecules that may be used for the treatment of cancers that overexpress IAPs.     

Bandgap modulation of carbon nanotubes by encapsulated metallofullerenes

Motivated by the technical and economic difficulties in further miniaturizing silicon-based transistors with the present fabrication technologies, there is a strong effort to develop alternative electronic devices, based, for example, on single molecules. Recently, carbon nanotubes have been successfully used for nanometre-sized devices such as diodes, transistors, and random access memory cells. Such nanotube devices are usually very long compared to silicon-based transistors. Here we report a method for dividing a semiconductor nanotube into multiple quantum dots with lengths of about 10nm by inserting Gd@C82 endohedral fullerenes. The spatial modulation of the nanotube electronic bandgap is observed with a low-temperature scanning tunnelling microscope. We find that a bandgap of approximately 0.5eV is narrowed down to approximately 0.1eV at sites where endohedral metallofullerenes are inserted. This change in bandgap can be explained by local elastic strain and charge transfer at metallofullerene sites. This technique for fabricating an array of quantum dots could be used for nano-electronics and nano-optoelectronics.     

Increased forest ecosystem carbon and nitrogen storage from nitrogen rich bedrock

Nitrogen (N) limits the productivity of many ecosystems worldwide, thereby restricting the ability of terrestrial ecosystems to offset the effects of rising atmospheric CO(2) emissions naturally. Understanding input pathways of bioavailable N is therefore paramount for predicting carbon (C) storage on land, particularly in temperate and boreal forests. Paradigms of nutrient cycling and limitation posit that new N enters terrestrial ecosystems solely from the atmosphere. Here we show that bedrock comprises a hitherto overlooked source of ecologically available N to forests. We report that the N content of soils and forest foliage on N-rich metasedimentary rocks (350-950?mg?N?kg(-1)) is elevated by more than 50% compared with similar temperate forest sites underlain by N-poor igneous parent material (30-70?mg?N?kg(-1)). Natural abundance N isotopes attribute this difference to rock-derived N: (15)N/(14)N values for rock, soils and plants are indistinguishable in sites underlain by N-rich lithology, in marked contrast to sites on N-poor substrates. Furthermore, forests associated with N-rich parent material contain on average 42% more carbon in above-ground tree biomass and 60% more carbon in the upper 30?cm of the soil than similar sites underlain by N-poor rocks. Our results raise the possibility that bedrock N input may represent an important and overlooked component of ecosystem N and C cycling elsewhere.