New near-IR (NIR) squaraine dyes (p-SQ1 and p-SQ2) containing one and two anchoring groups were synthesized and used as the sensitizers of p-type DSSCs. The dye (0.113%) with two anchoring groups (p-SQ2) shows better performance than the dye (0.053%) with only one anchoring group (p-SQ1). Cosensitized p-type DSSCs using two dyes with complementary absorption were tested. They have broadened IPCE spectra and good cell performance.

In this article, we have fabricated photovoltaic devices based on the poly(3-hexylthiophene)-TiO 2 nanorod bulk heterojunction. The microscopic mechanisms of charge separation and charge transport in the poly(3-hexylthiophene)-TiO 2 nanorod nanocomposites have been investigated by photoluminescence quenching, time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy, and time-of-flight mobility measurements. Charge separation and transport efficiency can be improved by adding an adequate amount of TiO 2 nanorods in polymer. In addition, the device performance can be further enhanced by thermal annealing or removal of insulating surfactant in the hybrid, giving an optimized device performance of a short circuit current density of 2.62 mA cm À2 , an open circuit voltage of 0.69 V, a fill factor of 0.63 under simulated A.M. 1.5 illumination (100 mW cm À2 ). The corresponding power conversion efficiency under 1 sun is about 1.14%.

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CEC-MS has been used for the analysis of eight-triazine herbicides. It showed significantly better S/N ratio than reversed EOF CE-MS and MEKC-MS, due to the lack of a surfactant in the separation buffer. By optimizing the pH, the organic content of the running buffer, and the separation potential, optimal separation was achieved within 18 min using a running buffer of pH 7.0, containing 70% v/v ACN, and an applied voltage of 17 kV. Gradient CEC showed superior separation when compared with isocratic elution. The combination of a tapered CEC column and a low-flow interface confers several advantages including better sensitivity, low dead volume, and independent control of the conditions used for CEC separation and ESI analysis.

A highly enantioselective organocatalytic vinylogous aldol-cyclization cascade reaction of 3-alkylidene oxindoles to isatins has been achieved by using bifunctional organocatalysts. The unexpected intramolecular lactonization which follows the initial aldol reaction, leading to the cleavage of the oxindole ring and generation of enantioenriched spirooxindole dihydropyranones in good to excellent yields with high enantioselectivities.

Despite muchprogress in the development of mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) for many advanced applications, the synthesis of MMMs without particle agglomeration or phase separation at high nanofiller loadings is still challenging. In this work, we synthesized nanoporous zeolitic imidazole framework (ZIF-8) nanoparticles with aparticle sizeof60nm and ap ore sizeo f0 .34 nm in water and directly added them into an aqueous solution of the organic polymer poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) without an intermediate drying process.T his approach led to ah igh-quality PVA/ZIF-8 MMM with enhanced performance in ethanol dehydration by pervaporation. The permeability of this MMM is three times higher than that of pristine PVA, and the separation factor is nearly nine times larger than that of pristine PVA. The significantly improved separation performance was attributed to the increase in the fractional free volume in the membranes.

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Silicon nitride (SiN(x)) and parylene thin films were deposited onto flexible polyimide (PI) substrates using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition and a parylene reactor for transparent barrier applications. The PI substrates from the Industry Technology Research Institute with high optical transmittance and high glass transition temperature were used. A relatively high growth temperature of 200 degrees C was chosen to deposit the SiN(x) films. To characterize the SiN(x) films deposited under different growth temperatures, a wet-etching process was performed to visualize the defect distribution in the barrier films. After 120 min of etching, the etching area ratio decreased from 44.9 to 6.7%, while the average defect spacing increased from 125 to 450 mu m with increasing growth temperature. Under room temperature and relative humidity of 50%, four SiN(x)/parylene stacks with the SiN(x) films deposited at 80 and 200 degrees C were demonstrated to decrease the water vapor transmission rate to 7.9x10(-4) and 7.41x10(-6) g/m(2)/day, respectively. As a result, ultralow permeation can be achieved with less repeating barrier stacks by using high temperature deposited SiN(x) films in the barrier structures