Polythiolactone-Decorated Silica Particles: A Versatile Approach for Surface Functionalization, Catalysis and Encapsulation.

Invited for the cover of this issue is the group of Bart Jan Ravoo at Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster. The image depicts the "universal" post-modification of silica particles coated with a polythiolactone polymer shell. Read the full text of the article at 10.

Polythiolactone-Decorated Silica Particles: A Versatile Approach for Surface Functionalization, Catalysis and Encapsulation.

The surface chemistry of colloidal silica has tremendous effects on its properties and applications. Commonly the design of silica particles is based on their de novo synthesis followed by surface functionalization leading to tailormade properties for a specific purpose. Here, the design of robust "precursor" polymer-decorated silica nano- and microparticles is demonstrated, which allows for easy post-modification by polymer embedded thiolactone chemistry.

Rapid Photoswitching of Low Molecular Weight Arylazoisoxazole Adhesives.

Adhesion is one of the most ubiquitous practical applications at surfaces. With today's society calling increasingly for more reusable and "green" alternatives, the demand for readily reversible adhesives has triggered many studies into this field, in particular by incorporating molecular photoswitches into composite materials. Responsive polymers can act as reversible adhesives, but their employment brings about synthetic drawbacks and challenges in reproducibility and reusability.

Self-Assembly of Colloidal Molecules Based on Host-Guest Chemistry and Geometric Constraints.

The preparation of colloidal molecules (CMs), that is, clusters of colloids with a defined aggregation number and configuration, is of continued and significant interest in colloid chemistry and materials science and numerous interactions have been utilized to drive their (self-)assembly. However, only very few reports are available on the assembly of CMs based on host-guest chemistry. In this paper, we investigate the assembly of like-charged silica particles into well-defined, core-satellite AB-type CMs in water, mediated by host-guest interactions and geometric constraints.

Correction: Palladium-scavenging self-assembled hybrid hydrogels - reusable highly-active green catalysts for Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1039/C8SC04561E.].

Palladium-scavenging self-assembled hybrid hydrogels - reusable highly-active green catalysts for Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling reactions.

A hybrid hydrogel based on 1,3:2,4-dibenzylidene sorbitol (DBS) modified with acyl hydrazides combined with agarose was used for reduction and binding of palladium from aqueous mixtures without the need for an external reducing agent. Palladium uptake was monitored and the formation of Pd nanoparticles (PdNPs) trapped within the gel and located close to the nanofibres was confirmed. This gel effectively scavenges palladium from solution to concentrations < 0.