Cobalt MOF-Based Porous Carbonaceous Spheres for Multimodal Soft Actuator Exhibiting Intricate Biomimetic Motions.

The advancement of active electrode materials is essential to meet the demand for multifaceted soft robotic interactions. In this study, a new type of porous carbonaceous sphere (PCS) for a multimodal soft actuator capable of both magnetoactive and electro-ionic responses is reported. The PCS, derived from the simultaneous oxidative and reductive breakdown of specially designed cobalt-based metal-organic frameworks (Co-MOFs) with varying metal-to-ligand ratios, exhibits a high specific surface area of 529 m g and a saturated magnetization of 142.

Janus CoMOF-SEBS Membrane for Bifunctional Dielectric Layer in Triboelectric Nanogenerators.

Considerable research has been conducted on the application of functional nano-fillers to enhance the power generation capabilities of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). However, these additives often exhibit a decrease in output power at higher concentration. Here, a Janus cobalt metal-organic framework-SEBS (JCMS) membrane is reported as a dual-purpose dielectric layer capable of efficiently capturing and blocking charges for high-performance TENGs.

Functionally antagonistic polyelectrolyte for electro-ionic soft actuator.

Electro-active ionic soft actuators have been intensively investigated as an artificial muscle for soft robotics due to their large bending deformations at low voltages, small electric power consumption, superior energy density, high safety and biomimetic self-sensing actuation. However, their slow responses, poor durability and low bandwidth, mainly resulting from improper distribution of ionic conducting phase in polyelectrolyte membranes, hinder practical applications to real fields. We report a procedure to synthesize efficient polyelectrolyte membranes that have continuous conducting network suitable for electro-ionic artificial muscles.

Polysulfonated covalent organic framework as active electrode host for mobile cation guests in electrochemical soft actuator.

Tailoring transfer dynamics of mobile cations across solid-state electrolyte-electrode interfaces is crucial for high-performance electrochemical soft actuators. In general, actuation performance is directly proportional to the affinity of cations and anions in the electrolyte for the opposite electrode surfaces under an applied field. Herein, to maximize electrochemical actuation, we report an electronically conjugated covalent organic framework (S-COF) used as a common electrolyte-electrode host for 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium cation embedded into a Nafion membrane.

Magnetically and Electrically Responsive Soft Actuator Derived from Ferromagnetic Bimetallic Organic Framework.

The advancement in smart devices and soft robotics necessitates the use of multiresponsive soft actuators with high actuation stroke and stable reversibility for their use in real-world applications. Here, this work reports a magnetically and electrically dual responsive soft actuator based on neodymium and iron bimetallic organic frameworks (NdFeMOFs@700). The ferromagnetic NdFeMOFs@700 exhibits a porous carbon structure with excellent magnetization saturation (166.

Bisphenol-based cyanide sensing: Selectivity, reversibility, facile synthesis, bilateral "OFF-ON" fluorescence, C structural and conformational analysis.

A structurally characterized novel dual-pocketed tetra-conjugated bisphenol-based chromophore (fluorescence = 652 nm) was synthesized in gram scale in ~90% yield from its tetraaldehyde. Highly selective, naked-eye detection of CN (DMSO/HO) was confirmed by interferent testing. A detection limit of 0.

Asynchronous Double Schiff Base Formation of Pyrazole Porous Polymers for Selective Pd Recovery.

Pyrazole-linked covalent organic polymer is synthesized using an asynchronous double Schiff base from readily available monomers. The one-pot reaction features no metals as a building block or reagent, hence facilitating the structural purity and industrial scalability of the design. Through a single-crystal study on a model compound, the double Schiff base formation is found to follow addition, a kinetically favored product, suggesting that reactivity of the amine and carbonyls dictate the order and geometry of the framework building.

Inversion of Dispersion: Colloidal Stability of Calixarene-Modified Metal-Organic Framework Nanoparticles in Nonpolar Media.

Making metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) that are stabilized in nonpolar media is not as straightforward as making their inorganic nanoparticle counterparts, since surfactants penetrate through the porous structures or dissolve the secondary building units (SBUs) through ligand-exchange linker modulator mechanisms. Herein, we report that calixarenes stabilize UIO-66 nanoparticles effectively by remaining outside the grains through size exclusion, without pores becoming blocked, all the while providing amphiphilicity that permits the formation of stable colloidal dispersions with much narrower size distributions. Using the UIO-66 dispersed solutions, we show that smooth films from an otherwise immiscible polystyrene can be made feasibly.

Water-Resistant and Transparent Plastic Films from Functionalizable Organic Polymers: Coordination Polymers as Templates for Solid-State [2+2]-Photopolymerization.

An organic polymer containing cyclobutanes and amides as backbones and pyridyl groups as sidearms was synthesized by single-crystal-to-single-crystal (SCSC) [2+2]-photopolymerization in the coordination polymers (CPs) of diene. The diene molecule was photo-inactive in its crystals and formed a triply intertwined 1D-helical CP with Cd(NO ) and Cu(NO ) salts. The 1D-CP was transformed into a coordination polymer of organic polymers containing threefold interpenetrated 3D-networks of CdSO topology through a [2+2]-reaction in SCSC manner upon irradiation.

Exploration and exploitation of homologous series of bis(acrylamido)alkanes containing pyridyl and phenyl groups: β-sheet versus two-dimensional layers in solid-state photochemical [2 + 2] reactions.

The homologous series of phenyl and pyridyl substituted bis(acrylamido)alkanes have been synthesized with the aim of systematic analysis of their crystal structures and their solid-state [2 + 2] reactivities. The changes in the crystal structures with respect to a small change in the molecular structure, that is by varying alkyl spacers between acrylamides and/or by varying the end groups (phenyl, 2-pyridyl, 3-pyridyl, 4-pyridyl) on the C-terminal of the amide, were analyzed in terms of hydrogen-bonding interference (N-H⋯Npy versus N-H⋯O=C) and network geometries. In this series, a greater tendency towards the formation of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds (β-sheets and two-dimensional networks) over N-H⋯N hydrogen bonds was observed.

Coordination polymers of organic polymers synthesized via photopolymerization of single crystals: two-dimensional hydrogen bonding layers with amazing shock absorbing nature.

Crystalline coordination polymers of organic polymers (CPOPs) were synthesized via photopolymerization of Ag(I) coordination polymers of dienes which have a self-templating nature due to the formation of N-H···O hydrogen bonded layers. The shock absorbing nature of the H-bonded layer facilitated the SCSC [2+2] transformation upon irradiation to produce CPOPs.