Trialkoxysilane Grafting in Alcohols: A Simple Approach towards Modified Silica-Based Materials.

The grafting of trialkoxysilanes is the most common method for the surface functionalization of silica gel, and it is usually carried out in the presence of toluene or other solvents such as acetonitrile or acetone. Here, we replaced these solvents with alcohols to afford silica materials containing alkoxy groups linked to the silicon atom. The grafting of -dimethyl-3-amino- or 3-amino-propyltrimethoxysilane was carried out in the presence of several alcohols containing an unsubstituted alkyl chain (C7 and C14), a PEG functionalized chain, or an amino-substituted chain (-dimethylamino, pyridyl).

Quaternary Ammonium Salts-Based Materials: A Review on Environmental Toxicity, Anti-Fouling Mechanisms and Applications in Marine and Water Treatment Industries.

The adherence of pathogenic microorganisms to surfaces and their association to form antibiotic-resistant biofilms threatens public health and affects several industrial sectors with significant economic losses. For this reason, the medical, pharmaceutical and materials science communities are exploring more effective anti-fouling approaches. This review focuses on the anti-fouling properties, structure-activity relationships and environmental toxicity of quaternary ammonium salts (QAS) and, as a subclass, ionic liquid compounds.

Highly Functionalized SWCNTs with a Dopamine Derivative as a Support for Pd Nanoparticles: A Recyclable Catalyst for the Reduction of Nitro Compounds and the Heck Reaction.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) were functionalized with a dopamine derivative in which the amine group was converted to azide (dopamine azide). The direct reaction of SWCNTs and dopamine azide in o-dichlorobenzene at high temperature (160 °C) led to very highly functionalized CNTs (≈60 wt.%).

Antifouling Systems Based on a Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane-Based Hexyl Imidazolium Salt Adsorbed on Copper Nanoparticles Supported on Titania.

The reaction of octakis(3-chloropropyl)octasilsesquioxane with four equivalents of 1-hexylimidazole or 1-decylimidazole gave two products labelled as HQ-POSS (hexyl-imidazolium quaternized POSS) and DQ-POSS (decyl-imidazolium quaternized POSS) as regioisomer mixtures. An investigation of the biological activity of these two compounds revealed the higher antimicrobial performances of HQ-POSS against Gram-positive and Gram-negative microorganisms, proving its broad-spectrum activity. Due to its very viscous nature, HQ-POSS was adsorbed in variable amounts on the surface of biologically active oxides to gain advantages regarding the expendability of such formulations from an applicative perspective.

First Evidence of Tris(catecholato)silicate Formation from Hydrolysis of an Alkyl Bis(catecholato)silicate.

The hydrolysis of 3-ammoniumpropylbis(catecholato)silicate giving two different silica-based materials containing different amounts of tris(catecholato)silicate, is reported. The latter species can be formed through an attack of catechol to the silicon atom in the pentacoordinate complex, in which the silicon-carbon bond is further activated toward electrophilic proton cleavage. The Knoevenagel reaction was used as a probe in order to test the availability of functional groups on the surface of such materials.