@article{AloniPerovicWeitmanetal.2019, author = {Aloni, Sapir Shekef and Perovic, Milena and Weitman, Michal and Cohen, Reut and Oschatz, Martin and Mastai, Yitzhak}, title = {Amino acid-based ionic liquids as precursors for the synthesis of chiral nanoporous carbons}, series = {Nanoscale Advances}, volume = {1}, journal = {Nanoscale Advances}, number = {12}, publisher = {Royal Society of Chemistry}, address = {Cambridge}, issn = {2516-0230}, doi = {10.1039/c9na00520j}, pages = {4981 -- 4988}, year = {2019}, abstract = {The synthesis of chiral nanoporous carbons based on chiral ionic liquids (CILs) of amino acids as precursors is described. Such unique precursors for the carbonization of CILs yield chiral carbonaceous materials with high surface area (approximate to 620 m(2) g(-1)). The enantioselectivities of the porous carbons are examined by advanced techniques such as selective adsorption of enantiomers using cyclic voltammetry, isothermal titration calorimetry, and mass spectrometry. These techniques demonstrate the chiral nature and high enantioselectivity of the chiral carbon materials. Overall, we believe that the novel approach presented here can contribute significantly to the development of new chiral carbon materials that will find important applications in chiral chemistry, such as in chiral catalysis and separation and in chiral sensors. From a scientific point of view, the approach and results reported here can significantly deepen our understanding of chirality at the nanoscale and of the structure and nature of chiral nonporous materials and surfaces.}, language = {en} } @article{PerovicQinOschatz2020, author = {Perovic, Milena and Qin, Qing and Oschatz, Martin}, title = {From molecular precursors to nanoparticles}, series = {Advanced functional materials}, volume = {30}, journal = {Advanced functional materials}, number = {41}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {1616-301X}, doi = {10.1002/adfm.201908371}, pages = {21}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Nanoporous carbon materials (NCMs) provide the "function" of high specific surface area and thus have large interface area for interactions with surrounding species, which is of particular importance in applications related to adsorption processes. The strength and mechanism of adsorption depend on the pore architecture of the NCMs. In addition, chemical functionalization can be used to induce changes of electron density and/or electron density distribution in the pore walls, thus further modifying the interactions between carbons and guest species. Typical approaches for functionalization of nanoporous materials with regular atomic construction like porous silica, metal-organic frameworks, or zeolites, cannot be applied to NCMs due to their less defined local atomic construction and abundant defects. Therefore, synthetic strategies that offer a higher degree of control over the process of functionalization are needed. Synthetic approaches for covalent functionalization of NCMs, that is, for the incorporation of heteroatoms into the carbon backbone, are critically reviewed with a special focus on strategies following the concept "from molecules to materials." Approaches for coordinative functionalization with metallic species, and the functionalization by nanocomposite formation between pristine carbon materials and heteroatom-containing carbons, are introduced as well. Particular focus is given to the influences of these functionalizations in adsorption-related applications.}, language = {en} } @article{PerovicZeiningerOschatz2020, author = {Perovic, Milena and Zeininger, Lukas and Oschatz, Martin}, title = {Immobilization of gold-on-carbon catalysts onto perfluorocarbon emulsion droplets to promote oxygen delivery in aqueous phase (D)-glucose oxidation}, series = {ChemCatChem}, volume = {13}, journal = {ChemCatChem}, number = {1}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {1867-3880}, doi = {10.1002/cctc.202001590}, pages = {196 -- 201}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The catalytic activity of metal nanoparticles (NPs) supported on porous supports can be controlled by various factors, such as NPs size, shape, or dispersivity, as well as their interaction with the support or the properties of the support material itself. However, these intrinsic properties are not solely responsible for the catalytic behavior of the overall reaction system, as the local environment and surface coverage of the catalyst with reactants, products, intermediates and other invloved species often play a crucial role in catalytic processes as well. Their contribution can be particularly critical in liquid-phase reactions with gaseous reactants that often suffer from low solubiltiy. One example is (D)-glucose oxidation with molecular oxygen over gold nanoparticles supported on porous carbons. The possibility to promote oxygen delivery in such aqueous phase oxidation reactions via the immobilization of heterogenous catalysts onto the interface of perfluorocarbon emulsion droplets is reported here. Gold-on-carbon catalyst particles can stabilize perfluorocarbon droplets in the aqueous phase and the local concentration of the oxidant in the surroundings of the gold nanoparticles accelerates the rate-limiting step of the reaction. Consequently, the reaction rate of a system with the optimal volume fraction of fluorocarbon is higher than a reference emulsion system without fluorocarbon, and the effect is observed even without additional oxygen supply.}, language = {en} } @article{PerovicAloniMastaietal.2020, author = {Perovic, Milena and Aloni, Sapir Shekef and Mastai, Yitzhak and Oschatz, Martin}, title = {Mesoporous carbon materials with enantioselective surface obtained by nanocasting for selective adsorption of chiral molecules from solution and the gas phase}, series = {Carbon}, volume = {170}, journal = {Carbon}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Oxford}, issn = {0008-6223}, doi = {10.1016/j.carbon.2020.08.010}, pages = {550 -- 557}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Separation of enantiomers is an everlasting challenge in chemistry, catalysis, and synthesis of pharmaceuticals. The design and fabrication of chiral adsorbent materials is a promising way to increase the surface area of chiral information, as well as to maximize the available surface for the adsorption of one enantiomer. Porous materials such as silica or metal-organic-frameworks are established compounds in this field, due to their well-defined surface structure and ease of functionalization with chiral groups. As another class of porous materials, carbons provide the advantages of high thermal and chemical stability, resistance against moisture, electrical conductivity, and widely tunable pore size. Although they are well established in many adsorption-related applications, carbons received far less attention in enantioselective adsorption processes because the controlled functionalization of their surface is rather difficult due to the chemically heterogeneous atoms in the network. A suitable approach to overcome this limitation is the synthesis of chiral carbons directly from chiral precursors. So far, chiral carbons synthesized from chiral precursors used salt-templating as a way of introducing porosity, which resulted in mainly microporous materials or materials with broad pore size distribution. In the present study, the possibility of combining nanocasting as an alternative templating approach with chiral ionic liquids as a carbon precursor is demonstrated. Chiral recognition is measured in the gas phase, by adsorption of chiral gas, as well as in the solution, by using isothermal titration calorimetry. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.}, language = {en} } @article{IlicTsoukaPerovicetal.2020, author = {Ilic, Ivan K. and Tsouka, Alexandra and Perovic, Milena and Hwang, Jinyeon and Heil, Tobias and L{\"o}ffler, Felix and Oschatz, Martin and Antonietti, Markus and Liedel, Clemens}, title = {Sustainable cathodes for Lithium-ion energy storage devices based on tannic acid-toward ecofriendly energy storage}, series = {Advanced sustainable systems}, volume = {5}, journal = {Advanced sustainable systems}, number = {1}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {2366-7486}, doi = {10.1002/adsu.202000206}, pages = {8}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The use of organic materials with reversible redox activity holds enormous potential for next-generation Li-ion energy storage devices. Yet, most candidates are not truly sustainable, i.e., not derived from renewable feedstock or made in benign reactions. Here an attempt is reported to resolve this issue by synthesizing an organic cathode material from tannic acid and microporous carbon derived from biomass. All constituents, including the redox-active material and conductive carbon additive, are made from renewable resources. Using a simple, sustainable fabrication method, a hybrid material is formed. The low cost and ecofriendly material shows outstanding performance with a capacity of 108 mAh g(-1) at 0.1 A g(-1) and low capacity fading, retaining approximately 80\% of the maximum capacity after 90 cycles. With approximately 3.4 V versus Li+/Li, the cells also feature one of the highest reversible redox potentials reported for biomolecular cathodes. Finally, the quinone-catecholate redox mechanism responsible for the high capacity of tannic acid is confirmed by electrochemical characterization of a model compound similar to tannic acid but without catecholic groups.}, language = {en} }