Despite the outstanding role of mesoscopic structures on the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) in the regular (n–i–p) architecture, mesoscopic PSCs in inverted (p–i–n) architecture have rarely been reported. Herein, an efficient and stable mesoscopic NiOx (mp‐NiOx) scaffold formed via a simple and low‐cost triblock copolymer template‐assisted strategy is employed, and this mp‐NiOx film is utilized as a hole transport layer (HTL) in PSCs, for the first time. Promisingly, this approach allows the fabrication of homogenous, crack‐free, and robust 150 nm thick mp‐NiOx HTLs through a facile chemical approach. Such a high‐quality templated mp‐NiOx structure promotes the growth of the perovskite film yielding better surface coverage and enlarged grains. These desired structural and morphological features effectively translate into improved charge extraction, accelerated charge transportation, and suppressed trap‐assisted recombination. Ultimately, a considerable efficiency of 20.2% is achieved with negligible hysteresis which is among the highest efficiencies for mp‐NiOx based inverted PSCs so far. Moreover, mesoscopic devices indicate higher long‐term stability under ambient conditions compared to planar devices. Overall, these results may set new benchmarks in terms of performance for mesoscopic inverted PSCs employing templated mp‐NiOx films as highly efficient, stable, and easy fabricated HTLs.

Problem statement: Preparation and synthesis of gold nanoparticles with small size and suitable stability is very important and applicable particularly in medicine. In this study, we have prepared gold nanoparticles by chemical reduction method employing L-Tryptophane as a reducing agent for ionic gold. Approach: The gold nanoparticles are the most employed amongst the different metallic nanoparticles in the fields of nanomedicine and nanobiotechnology. Therefore, the employed method should provide suitable particle size, shape and particle distribution in order to obtain nanoparticles of high activity and efficiency indicating the importance of the technique. In this study, HAuCl 4 .3H 2 O, L-Tryptophane and polyethyleneglycol (PEG) were used to produce AuCl − 4 ions. They were acted as pre-material, reducing and stabilizing agents respectively. Results: The size, distribution and formation of gold nanoparticles were confirmed by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) indicating the diameter of gold nanoparticles at the range of 10-25 nm and UV spectroscopy. The formed nanoparticles showed the highest absorption at 518 nm. Conclusion: The gold nanoparticles were stable in PEG1000. Since these nanoparticles have suitable size distribution they can be considered as a suitable candidate to be employed in nanomedicine and nanobiotechnology.

An imidazolium-based ionic liquid was embedded into MIL-101­(Cr) via coordinate and covalent bonds to synthesize heterogeneous catalysts for efficient CO2 capture at low pressure and CO2 fixation with epoxides. In MIL-IL­(A), the ionic liquid was coordinated to Cr centers, while in MIL-IL­(B), the ionic liquid was attached to MIL-101­(Cr) via a covalent bond. These two materials were used for CO2 capture at p/p 0 = 0.033 and 0 °C. The results showed that the CO2 absorbing capacity for MIL-IL­(A) and MIL-IL­(B) is 5.46 and 7.84 times higher than that of the parent MOF, respectively. The ionic liquid loading was measured by IC, CHN, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Furthermore, the catalytic activity of both catalysts was checked in the cycloaddition of CO2 to epoxides in the absence of any cocatalyst and under solvent-free conditions. A firm bond between the ionic liquid and the framework in MIL-IL­(B) made it a recyclable heterogeneous catalyst for CO2 fixation with epoxides. The analytical techniques confirmed the grafting of ionic liquid on the MOF structure, and the framework remained intact after 5 cycles in the cycloaddition of CO2 to styrene epoxide.

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Ultrasound-Assisted C-C Coupling Reactions Catalyzed by Unique SPION--A-Pd(EDTA) as a Robust Nanocatalyst. -A new palladium-EDTA-complex--tagged dicationic liquid with a 1,3,5-triazine core anchored to supermagnetic nanoparticles is developed and successfully used as heterogeneous catalyst for Heck and Suzuki coupling reactions. -(GHOTBINEJAD, M.; KHOSROPOUR*, A. R.; MOHAMMADPOOR-BALTORK, I.; MOGHADAM, M.; TANGESTANINEJAD, S.; MIRKHANI, V.; RSC Adv. 4 (2014) 17, 8590-8596, http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/c3ra45790g ; Dep. Chem., Isfahan Univ., Isfahan 81746, Iran; Eng.) -Mais 46-046