Achieving Ultralong Room-Temperature Phosphorescence in Covalent Organic Framework System.

The combination of room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) would give rise to a new class of functional materials with sensing and responsive properties. However, such organic materials have been rarely reported, especially for those with long phosphorescence lifetimes. Here we report the incorporation of RTP emitters into COFs either via chemical decoration or noncovalent doping to achieve ultralong RTP in a COF system. The RTP emitters are designed with small phosphorescence rates and consequently exhibit ultralong phosphorescence lifetimes when nonradiative decay and oxygen quenching are suppressed in COF system. The RTP-COF materials have been found to possess oxygen sensing properties with large response of phosphorescence lifetimes.

Dual-functional ionic porous organic framework for palladium scavenging and heterogeneous catalysis.

Porous organic frameworks (POFs) with predesigned structures and tunable porosities have been widely studied in adsorption and heterogeneous catalysis. Introducing ionic structure into the framework endows POFs with new functionalities that may extend their applications. Here, we report new applications for a guanidinium-based ionic POF (IPOF-Cl) in palladium scavenging and heterogeneous catalysis. Due to the ionic framework and the porous structure, the IPOF-Cl displays fast adsorption kinetics and high adsorption capacities (up to 754 mg g-1) of Na2PdCl4 in aqueous solutions via a chemisorption (ion exchange) process. Significantly, it shows excellent scavenging activity towards trace amount of [PdCl4]2- in aqueous solution. More importantly, the loaded [PdCl4]2- species on the IPOF substrate are further reduced into ultrafine Pd nanoparticles with size of ∼2-5 nm. The obtained IPOF-Pd(0) nanocomposite containing uniformly distributed Pd nanoparticles and hierarchical porous structure demonstrates high activity in catalyzing a range of Suzuki coupling reactions. This study provides new routes for the development of ionic porous organic materials for applications in metal scavenging and catalysis.

Extraordinary Room-Temperature Tensile Ductility of Pure Magnesium.

Room-temperature tensile behavior and associated deformation mechanisms of multiple-axial forged (MAFed) pure Mg has been investigated. The as-MAFed Mg, with a coarsely recrystallized structure, exhibited a balanced strain-hardening behavior with strain, resulting in extraordinary mechanical properties with high ultimate stress (~200 MPa) and extensive true strain (~0.30). The observation on the microstructural evolution suggests that the balanced strain-hardening behavior is correlated with de-twinning behavior cooperated with pyramidal dislocations at the plastic straining stage.