New benzotriazoles (5-8) or dibenzodiazepine derivatives (11-18) were synthesized starting from 3-[(2-amino- 4,5-disubstitutedphenyl)amino]-5,5-disubstitutedcyclohex-2-enones (1-4) through internal coupling of their diazonium salts or internal Mannich reaction in the presence of aromatic aldehydes. Pharmacological evaluation of benzotriazole and dibenzodiazepine derivatives for their clozapine-like properties revealed that dibenzodiazepine 11 bearing 4-bromophenyl group exhibited the same antipsychotic activity as the reference drug clozapine while the activity of benzotriazole 7 was 25% lesser than that of clozapine. Moreover, compounds 7 and 11 did not show significant CNS depressant activity as well as no or slight neurotoxicity on contrast to clozapine when tested in mice using forced swim, rotarod and horizontal screen tests.

The change in the electronic absorption and emission energy of 7-aminocoumarin derivatives in binary solvent mixtures has been studied. The electronic transition energy along with the Stokes' shift is correlated with the orientation polarizability of the solvent as well as the empirical solvent polarity parameters $E_T$ (30). It is observed that the emission peak shift traces the change of $E_T$ (30) value very closely in binary solvent mixtures. The emission transition more strongly depends on the solvent polarity than the absorption, which indicates the dipole moment gets larger on excitation. From the dependence of the Stokes’ shift of 7-aminocoumarins with the solvent polarity parameters and the ground state dipole moment obtained by the semi-empirical calculations, the excited state dipole moment was estimated. The fluorescence lifetime change of 7-aminocoumarins in binary solvent mixtures was measured and the results are explained in terms of molecular conformation and solvent polarity. The study indicates the empirical solvent polarity $E_T$ (30) is a good measure of microscopic solvent polarity and it probes in general the non-specific solvent interactions.

Two new flavone glycosides, giraldiin A and B, together with three known compounds, annulatin, myricetin 3-O-$\alpha$- L-rhamnopyranoside and gallic acid, were isolated from the ethanol extract of the root of Pteroxygonum giraldii Damm. et Diels. The structures of giraldiin A and B are designated as 3'-($\alpha$-L-arabinopyranosyloxy)-4',5,5',7- tetrahydroxy-3-methoxyflavone and 4'-($\beta$-D-glucopyranosyloxy)-5,5',7-trihydroxy-2',3-dimethoxyflavone, respectively, on the basis of detailed spectroscopic analyses. The free radical scavenging activity of giraldiin A was evaluated by decolouring spectrophotometry of pentamethine cyanine dye (Cy5) with $Fe^{2+}-H_2O_2$ Fenton radical generating system. The results indicated the hydroxyl free radical scavenging activity of giraldiin A (E$D_{50}$ = 23.7 nmol/mL) is higher than that of some known antioxidants such as rutin, puerarin, daidzein and 2,6-di-tertbutyl-4-methylphenol.

Eleven novel oxiranyl and thiiranyl phenolic compounds were synthesized as potential antitumor agents using epichlorohydrin and epithiohydrin in the presence of $K_2CO_3$. Cytotoxicities were found in range of I$C_{50}$ values of 2.5-14.8 $\mu$M, which was partially attributed to topoisomerase II inhibition. Bis-thiiranyl anthraquinone analog, 19 showed more cytotoxicity against MDA-MB-231 (breast cancer cell) and PC3 (prostate cancer cell) after 24 and/or 48 h and more potent topoisomerase II inhibitory activity than etoposide.

Thermal and photochemistry of methyl iodide ($CH_3I)\;adsorbed\;on\;D_2O$ ice film on Cu(111) at 100 K were studied using temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS), X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopies. On the basis of TPD, multilayer and monolayer $CH_3I$ molecules desorb from $D_2O$ ice layer at 120 and 130 K, respectively. Photo-irradiation at 100 K exhibits dramatic changes in the TPD and I $3d_{5/2}\;XPS\;of\;CH_3I$ on ice film, due to a dramatic dissociation of $CH_3I$. The dissociation is likely activated by solvated electrons transferred from the metal substrate during photo-irradiation. No other photo-initiated reaction products were found within our instrumental detection limit. During photo-irradiation, the $CH_3I$, $CH_3$ and I could be trapped (or solvated) in ice film by rearrangement (and self-diffusion) of water molecules. A newly appeared parent molecular desorption peak at 145 K is attributed to trapped $CH_3I$. In addition, the $CH_3$ and I may diffuse through ice and chemisorb on Cu(111), indicated by TPD and I $d_{5/2}$ XPS taken with photo-irradiation time, respectively. No molecular ejection was found during photo-irradiation at 100 K. The work functions for $CH_3I/Cu(111),\;D_2O/Cu(111)\;and\;CH_3I/D_2$O/Cu(111) were all measured to be about 3.9 eV, 1.0 eV downward shift from that of clean Cu(111).

Methoxyiminoacetate and methoxyiminoacetamide derivatives possessing 2,2-dichlorovinyl side chains, have been synthesized and their biological activities against six representative plant fungal pathogens have been evaluated. Five substances in this series (3a, 4a, 3b, 3d, and 4d) were found to exhibit potent fungicidal activities compared to those of the commercially available fungicides, azoxystrobin and fenarimol.

When isolated phenol or a small phenol-solvent cluster is excited to the $S_1\;state\;of\;{\pi}{\pi}^*$ character, the hydrogen atom of the hydroxyl group dissociates via a ${\pi}{\sigma}^*$ state that is repulsive along the O-H bond. We computationally investigated the substitution effects of an amino group on the excited state hydrogen transfer reaction of phenol. The time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) with B3LYP functional was employed to calculate the potential energy profiles of the ${\pi}{\pi}^*$ and the ${\pi}{\sigma}^*$ excited states along the O-H coordinate, together with the orbital shape at each point, as the position of the substituent was varied. It was found that the amino substitution has an effect of lowering the ${\pi}{\sigma}^*$ state and enhancing the excited state hydrogen transfer reaction.

A facile, seed-mediated preparation method of trimetallic Au@Pb@Pt core-shell nanoparticles is developed. Au nanoparticles are the template seeds onto which sequentially reduced Pb and Pt are deposited. The trimetallic core-shell structure is confirmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy, TEM and EDS analysis, and cyclic voltammetry. The trimetallic Au@Pb@Pt core-shell nanoparticles show high electrocatalytic activity for formic acid and methanol electrooxidation.

This study was done for the determination and excretion profile of adrenosterone and its metabolites in human urine using both liquid chromatography with atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry and gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. Adrenosterone and its two metabolites were detected in human urine after administration a healthy volunteer with 75 mg of adrenosterone. We found that adrenosterone-M1 ($C_{19}H_{26}O_3$) was a reduction and adrenosterone-M2 ($C_{19}H_{26}O_4$) was a hydroxylation at C-ring, which did not know the exact position of the C-ring. The adrenosterone parent was detected by GC/TOF-MS, but not detected by LC/APCI/MS because of low intensity. Adrenosterone and its two metabolites were excreted as their glucuronided fractions. The recovery of this method ranged from 100.7 to 118.4% and the reproducibility and accuracy test were 85.5 to 112.0% and 1.1 to 8.4%, respectively. The excretion studies showed that adrenosterone and its metabolites were detectable in human urine during a 48 h period after oral administration, with maximum level of excretion at 4.1 h. The glucuro-/sulfaconjugated ratio of adrenosterone, M1 and M2 was 0.73 ${\pm}$ 0.03, 0.96 ${\pm}$ 0.06 and 0.89 ${\pm}$ 0.03 (n = 6), respectively. The amounts of adrenosterone excreted in urine were 14.75 ng for 48 h. Also, the maximum level of androsterone and 11$\beta$-hydroxy androsterone, which were endogenous steroids, were reached 4.1 h after the oral administration of adrenosterone.

GC/MS analysis of catecholamines (CAs) in biological sample may produce poor reproducible quantitaion when chemical derivatization is used as the technique to form a volatile derivative. Significant quantities of the side products can be formed from CAs with primary amine during the derivatization reaction under un-optimized conditions. We have tested various chemical derivatization techniques in an attempt to find an optimum derivatization method that will reduce side product formation, enable to separate several catecholamine derivatives in GC chromatogram, and obtain significant improvement of detection sensitivity in GC/MS analysis. Whereas several derivatization techniques such as trimethylsilylation (TMS), trifluoroacylation (TFA), and two step derivatization methods were active, selective derivatization to form O-TMS, N-heptafluorobutylacyl (HFBA) derivative using N-methyl-N-(trimethylsilyl)-trifluoroacetamide (MSTFA) and N-methyl-bis(heptafluorobutyramide) (MBHFBA) reagents was found to be the most effective method. Moreover, this derivative formed by selective derivatization could provide sufficient sensitivity and peak separation as well as produce higher mass ion as base peak to use selected ion in SIM mode. Calibration curves based on the use of an isotopically labeled internal standard show good linearity over the range assayed, 1 ~ 5000 ng/mL, with correlation coefficients of > 0.996. The detection limits of the method ranged from 0.2 to 5.0 ppb for the different CAs studied. The developed method will be applied to the analysis of various CAs in biological sample, combined with appropriate sample pretreatment.

A new method to semicontinuously determine $PM_{2.5}$ ionic species with a short time resolution is described in detail. In this system, a particle collection section (mixing part, particle collection chamber, and air/liquid separator) was developed. A Y-type connector was used to mix steam and an air sample. The particle collection chamber was constructed in the form of a helix coil and was cooled by a water circulation system. Particle size growth occurred due to the high relative humidity and water absorbed particles were efficiently collected in it. Liquid samples were drained out with a short residence time (0.08-0.1 s). The air/liquid separator was also newly designed to operate efficiently when the flow rate of the air sample was 16.7 L $min^{-1}$. For better performance, the system was optimized for particle collection efficiency with various types of test aerosols such as ($NH_4)_2SO_4,\;NaCl,\;NH_4HSO_4,\;and\;NH_4NO_3$. The particle collection efficiencies were almost 100% at different concentration levels in the range over 500 nm in diameter but 50-90% in the range of 50-500 nm under the following experimental conditions: 15 coil turns, a water flow rate for steam generation of 0.65 mL $min^{-1}$, and an air sample flow rate of 16.7 L $min^{-1}$. Finally, for atmospheric applications, chemical compositions of $PM_{2.5}$ were determined with a time resolution of 20 min on January 11-24, 2006 in Seoul, Korea, and the chemical characteristics of $PM_{2.5}$ ions were investigated.

A sensitive technique for the determination of trace Co(II) in various samples after column preconcentration by adsorbing onto silica gel loaded with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol was developed. Several experimental conditions, such as pH of sample solution, the amount of silica gel loaded with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol, the flow rate for adsorption and so forth, were optimized. The interfering effects of diverse concomitant ions were investigated. Fe(III) interfered with more than any other ions, but the interference by Fe(III) was completely eliminated by adjusting the amount of silica gel loaded with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol to 0.30 g. The dynamic range, the correlation coefficient ($R^2$), and the detection limit obtained by the proposed technique were 3.0-140.0 ng m$L^{-1}$, 0.9942, and 1.81 ng m$L^{-1}$, respectively. For validating the technique, the aqueous samples (tap water, reservoir water, stream water, and wastewater) and the plastic samples were used as real samples. Recovery yields of 93.0-107.0% were obtained. These measured data were not different from ICP-MS data at the 95% confidence level by F test. Based on the results of the experiment, it has been found that the proposed technique can be applied to the determination of Co(II) in various real samples.

Thermosensitive block copolymers of ethylene oxide and N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) were synthesized. A five armed star shape oligo(ethylene oxide) initiator with a cyclotriphosphazene core was prepared and used for the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of NIPAM. The lower critical solution temperatures (LCSTs) of the copolymers were 36 to 46 ${^{\circ}C}$, higher than that of PNIPAM (32 ${^{\circ}C}$), depending on their molecular weights. The copolymers were soluble in water below the LCSTs but formed micelles above the LCSTs. The thermosensitive micellization behaviors of the polymers were investigated by fluorescence spectroscopy. With increasing the temperature of an aqueous solution of P2 and pyrene above the LCST, the peak of 333 nm red-shifted to appear around 339 nm and its intensity increased significantly, indicating the micelle formation. The transfer of pyrene into the micelles was also confirmed by a confocal laser scanning microscope. The fluorescence image obtained from P2 in an aqueous pyrene solution exhibited a green emission resulting from the pyrene transferred into the micelles. Salt effects on the solubility of the copolymers in an aqueous solution were investigated. The LCST of P2 decreased sharply as the concentration of sodium chloride increased, while decreased slowly with potassium chloride.

Solvent extraction reaction of Zn(II) by Alamine336 from strong HCl solution up to 10 M was identified by analyzing the data reported in the literature. The equilibrium constant of this reaction was estimated by considering the complex formation between zinc and chloride ion. The necessary thermodynamic parameters, such as equilibrium constant for the formation of complexes and the interaction parameters, were evaluated from the thermodynamic data reported in the literature. The following solvent extraction reaction and the equilibrium constant was obtained by considering the activity coefficients of solutes present in the aqueous phase with Bromley equation. $Zn^{2+}\;2Cl^{-}\;+\;R_3NHCl_{org}\;=\;ZnCl_3R_3NH_{org},\;K_{ex}\;=\;6.33\;{\times}\;10^2$ There was a good agreement between measured and calculated distribution coefficients of Zn(II).

(2S,3R)-3-Hydroxy-2-(hydroxymethyl)-3,6-dihydro-2H-pyridine 8, an important precursor for the synthesis of polyhydroxylated piperidine azasugars, has been prepared from L-serine. Highly stereoselective nucleophilic addition to amino aldehyde 5 gave the corresponding allylic alcohol 6 which proceeded to give dihydro-2H-piridine 7a via a Grubbs II catalyzed RCM. Stereoselective H-bond directed epoxidation of allylic alcohol led to the oxiranyl alcohol 9 which was easily converted to L-deoxyaltronojirimycin by regioselective ring opening.

We present calculations for $S_N$2/E2 reactions in protic solvents (t-butyl alcohol, ethylene glycol). We focus on the role of the hydroxyl (-OH) groups in determining the $S_N$2/E2 rate constants. We predict that the ion pair E2 mechanism is more favorable than the naked ion E2 reaction in ethylene glycol. E2 barriers are calculated to be much larger (~ 9 kcal/mol) than $S_N$2 reaction barriers in protic solvents, in agreement with the experimental observation [Kim, D. W. et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 16394] of no E2 products in the reaction of CsF in t-butyl alcohol.

Using one-range addition theorems for Slater type orbitals (STOs) and Coulomb-Yukawa like correlated interaction potentials (CIPs) introduced by the author, the series expansion formulae are derived for the multicenter multielectron integrals. The expansion coefficients occurring in these relations are presented through the overlap integrals of two STOs. The convergence of series expansion relations is tested by calculating concrete cases. The accuracy of the results is quite high for quantum number, screening constants and location of orbitals. The final results are especially useful in the calculation of multielectron properties for atoms and molecules when Hartree-Fock-Roothaan (HFR) and explicitly correlated methods are employed.

Temperature and frequency dependent AC conductivity behavior has been studied for the chemically synthesized polyaniline-polymannuronate (PANI-PM) composites. The temperature (300 - 500 K) and frequency (100 - $10^6$ Hz) dependent AC conductivity suggests evidence for the transport mechanism in PANI-PM composites. The frequency dependence of AC conductivity has been investigated by the power law. The frequency exponent (s) is determined, and the data suggest that s decreases with temperature. The variation of s with temperature suggests that AC conduction is due to the correlated barrier hopping.

Sphingomonas chungbukensis DJ77 has the ability to produce large quantities of an extracellular polysaccharide that can be used as a gelling agent in the food and pharmaceutical industries. We identified, cloned and expressed the UDP-glucose dehydrogenase gene of S. chungbukensis DJ77, and characterized the resulting protein. The purified UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH), which catalyzes the reversible conversion of UDP-glucose to UDPglucuronic acid, formed a homodimer and the mass of the monomer was estimated to be 46 kDa. Kinetic analysis at the optimal pH of 8.5 indicated that the $K_m\;and\;V_{max}$ for UDP-glucose were 0.18 mM and 1.59 mM/min/mg, respectively. Inhibition assays showed that UDP-glucuronic acid strongly inhibits UGDH. Site-directed mutagenesis was performed on Gly9, Gly12 Thr127, Cys264, and Lys267. Substitutions of Cys264 with Ala and of Lys267 with Asp resulted in complete loss of enzymatic activity, suggesting that Cys264 and Lys267 are essential for the catalytic activity of UGDH.

A series of Eu(III) complexes with various neutral ligands (2,2’:6’,2"-terpyridine (T), diglyme (D), 1N-(2-dimethylamino) ethyl)-1N, 2N, 2N-trimethylethane-1,2-diamine (PT), di-(2-picolyl)-amine derivative (HT), and multidentate terpyridine derivative (DT)) were synthesized to investigate the effect of coordination environment on the sensitized luminescence of Eu(III) complexes. The nine coordination sites of the $Eu^{3+}$ ion are occupied by three bidentate carboxylate moieties and one neutral ligand. The highest emission intensity is obtained for $Eu^{3+}$- $[NA]_3$ (PT), due to the difference in energy transfer efficiency and symmetry of the first coordination sphere of $Eu^{3+}$ ion. But, the lowest emission intensity is obtained for $Eu^{3+}$-$[NA]_3$(T). Terpyridine may not play an important role antenna for photosensitizing $Eu^{3+}$ ion. It could be attributed to the weak spectral overlap integral J value between its phosphorescence band and $Eu^{3+}$ion absorption band. Therefore, different coordination environment of $Ln^{3+}$ ion play an important role in providing sensitization of lanthanide ion emission.

The influence of hot pressing on the pore structures of Nafion membranes was investigated by observing the Nafion before and after hot pressing with $^1H$ nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The freezing point depression and chemical shift data of water in the Nafion indicated the presence of two different pore size ranges in Nafion. Hot pressing mainly reduced the sizes and number of the big pores. The reduction of water uptake and proton conductivity after hot pressing was explained by this variation of pore size and number. We demonstrated the potential application of chemical shift data and NMR cryoporometry experiments to measure the relative pore sizes, on a nano scale, and numbers.

One-dimensional aluminum nitride (AlN) nanostructures were synthesized by calcining an Al(OH)(succinate) complex, which contained a very small amount of iron as a catalyst, under a mixed gas flow of nitrogen and CO (1 vol%). The complex decomposed into a homogeneous mixture of alumina and carbon at the molecular level, resulting in the lowering of the formation temperature of the AlN nanostructures. The morphology of the nanostructures such as nanocone, nanoneedle, nanowire, and nanobamboo was controlled by varying the reaction conditions, including the reaction atmosphere, reaction temperature, duration time, and ramping rate. Iron droplets were observed on the tips of the AlN nanostructures, strongly supporting that the nanostructures grow through the vapor-liquid-solid mechanism. The variation in the morphology of the nanostructures was well explained in terms of the relationship between the diffusion rate of AlN vapor into the iron droplets and the growth rate of the nanostructures.

Conformational change of ubiquitin variant with valine to alanine mutation at sequence position 26 was studied by varying solvent pH. Fluorescence emission spectra indicated that this variant ubiquitin has some residual structures in acidic and basic solution as compared to denaturant-induced unfolded state. Far-UV circular dichroic spectra indicated that the base-denatured state had more secondary structure than the acid-denatured state. Near-UV circular dichroic spectra indicated that the aromatic side-chains were in the relatively more rigid environment in the base-denatured state than those in the acid-denatured state. Although it appears that the more tertiary structure present in the base-denatured state, refolding reactions measured by stopped-flow fluorescence device suggest that both the acid- and base-denatured states occur before the major folding transition state. The acid- and base-denatured states are considered to reflect the early event of protein folding process.

A computational study of the reactions between Zn-containing species, the products of the thermal decomposition of diethylzinc (DEZn) and water was investigated. The Zn-containing species – $C_2H_5)_2,\;HZnC_2H_5,\;and\;(ZnC_2H_5)_2$ – were assumed to react with water during ZnO metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Density functional theory (DFT) calculations at the level of B3LYP/6-311G(d) were employed for the geometry optimization and thermodynamic property evaluation. As a result dihydroxozinc, $Zn(OH)_2$, was the most probable reaction product common for all three Zn-containing species. A further clustering of $Zn(OH)_2$ was investigated to understand the initial stage of ZnO film deposition. In experiments, the reactions of DEZn and water were examined by in-situ Raman scattering in a specially designed MOCVD reactor. Although direct evidence of $Zn(OH)_2$ was not observed, some relevant reaction intermediates were successfully detected to support the validity of the gas phase reaction pathways proposed in the computational study.

The reaction rates of 4-X-2,6-dinitrochlorobenzenes (X = $NO_2,\;CN,\;CF_3$) with Y-substituted pyridines (Y = 3-$OCH_3,\;H,\;3-CH_3,\;4-CH_3$) in methanol-acetonitrile mixtures were measured by conductometry at 25 ${^{\circ}C}$. It was observed that the rate constant increased in the order of X = 4-$NO_2\;>\;4-CN\;>\;4-CF_3$ and the rate constant also increased in the order of Y = 4-$CH_3\;>\;3-CH_3\;>\;H\;>\;3-OCH_3$. When the solvent composition was varied, the rate constant increased in order of MeCN > 50% MeOH > MeOH. The electrophilic catalysis by methanol may be ascribed to the formation of hydrogen bonds between alcoholic hydrogen and nitrogen of pyridines in ground state. Based on the transition parameters, ${\rho}_S,\;{\rho}_N,\;{\beta}_Y,\;{\rho}_{XY}$ and solvent effects, the reaction seems to proceed via $S_N$Ar-Ad.E mechanism. We also estimated the isokinetic solvent mixtures (${\rho}_{XY}$ = 0) based on cross-interaction constants, where the substituent effects of the substrate and nucleophile are compensated.

The four dentate $N_2O_2$ Schiff base ligand of bis(2-hydroxyacetophenone)-1,2-propanediimine (BHAPN) and its manganese (III) complex were synthesized and identified by microanalysis, spectral data ($^1H$ NMR, MS, FT-IR and UV-Visible) and molar conductivity measurement. The mild and efficient homogeneous oxidative decarboxylation of some carboxylic acids by catalytic amount of this manganese (III) complex, using tetrabutylamonium periodate as a mild oxidant in chloroform at room temperature is reported. The catalyst used in this study showed good activity for the decarboxylation of the titled compounds.

Lithium cyanoaluminum hydride (LCAH) was prepared by the metal cation exchange reaction of sodium cyanoaluminum hydride with lithium chloride in tetrahydrofuran. The reducing characteristics of LCAH were explored systematically by the reaction with selected organic compounds containing representative functional groups under the standardized conditions (tetrahydrofuran, 0 ${^{\circ}C}$). The reducing ability of LCAH was also compared with of the sodium derivative, sodium cyanoaluminum hydride (SCAH). Generally, the reducing behavior of LCAH resembles that of SCAH closely, but the reactivity of LCAH toward representative organic functional groups appeared to be stronger than that of SCAH. Thus, the regent reduces carbonyl compounds, epoxides, amides, nitriles, disulfides, carboxylic acids and their acyl derivatives to the corresponding alcohols or amines, at a relatively faster rate than that of SCAH. The cyano substitution, a strong election-withdrawing group, diminishes the reducing power of the parent metal aluminum hydrides and hence effects the alteration of their reducing characteristics.

A biosensor has been developed based on induced wavelength shifts in the Fabry-Perot fringes in the visible reflection spectrum of appropriately derivatized thin films of porous silicon semiconductors. Porous silicon (PSi) was generated by an electrochemical etching of silicon wafer using two electrode configurations in aqueous ethanolic HF solution. Porous silicon displayed Fabry-Perot fringe patterns whose reflection maxima varied spatially across the porous silicon. The sensor system studied consisted of a mono layer of porous silicon modified with Protein A. The system was probed with various fragments of an aqueous Human Immunoglobin G (Ig G) analyte. The sensor operated by measurement of the Fabry-Perot fringes in the white light reflection spectrum from the porous silicon layer. Molecular binding was detected as a shift in wavelength of these fringes.

The particle size of Li[$Ni_{0.2}Li_{0.2}Mn_{0.6}]O_2$ cathode powder was controlled effectively by dispersion using lauric acid as a surfactant. The samples treated by lauric acid showed smaller particles of approximately half the original size compared to the particles of a pristine sample. A structural change due to the dispersion of Li[$Ni_{0.2}Li_{0.2}Mn_{0.6}]O_2$ powder was not detected. The rate performance of the Li[$Ni_{0.2}Li_{0.2}Mn_{0.6}]O_2$ cathode was improved by dispersion using lauric acid, which was likely due to the decrease of the particle size. In particular, a sample dispersed pristine powder using lauric acid (L2) presented a greatly enhanced discharge capacity and capacity retention at a high C rate. The discharge capacity of a pristine sample was only 133 m$Ahg^{-1}$ (3C rate) and 96 m$Ahg^{-1}$ (12C rate) at the tenth cycle. In contrast, the L2 electrode delivered higher discharge capacities of 160 m$Ahg^{-1}$ (3C rate) and 129 m$Ahg^{-1}$ (12C rate) at the tenth cycle. The capacity retention at a rate of 12C/2C was also enhanced from ~ 45% (pristine sample) to 57% (L2) by treatment with lauric acid.

A new 1D oxalato bridged compound Ni(en)(ox)-2$H_2$O, (ox = oxalate; en = ethylenediamine) has been hydrothermally synthesized and characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction, IR spectrum, TG analysis, and magnetic measurements. In the structure the Ni atoms are coordinated with four oxygen atoms in two oxalate ions and two nitrogen atoms in one ethylenediamine molecule. The oxalate anion acts as a bis-bidentate ligand bridging Ni atoms in cis-configuration. This completes the infinite zigzag neutral chain, [Ni(en)(ox)]. The interchain space is filled by water molecules that link the chains through a network of hydrogen bonds. Thermal variance of the magnetic susceptibility shows a broad maximum around 50 K characteristic of one-dimensional antiferromagnetic coupling. The theoretical fit of the data for T > 20 K led to the nearest neighbor spin interaction J = -43 K and g = 2.25. The rapid decrease in susceptibility below 20 K indicate this compound to be a likely Haldane gap candidate material with S = 1.

The carbon-coated Si/Cu powder has been prepared by mechanical ball milling and hydrocarbon gas decomposition methods. The phase of Si/Cu powder was analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), dispersive Raman spectroscopy, electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The carbon-coated Si/Cu powders were used as anode active material for lithium-ion batteries. Their electrochemical properties were investigated by charge/discharge test using commercial LiCo$O_2$ cathode and lithium foil electrode, respectively. The surface phase of Si/Cu powders consisted of carbon phase like the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with a spacing layer of 0.35 nm. The carbon-coated Si/Cu/graphite composite anode exhibited a higher capacity than commercial graphite anode. However, the cyclic efficiency and the capacity retention of the composite anode were lower compared with graphite anode as cycling proceeds. This effect may be attributed to some mass limitations in LiCo$O_2$ cathode materials during the cycling.

We designed new anthracene-based host material to increase color purity as well as device efficiency. The new blue host, 9,10-bis(2,4-dimethylphenyl)anthracene (BDA), has highly twisted structure and wide band gap due to ortho interaction between anthracene and introduced 2,4-dimethylphenyl substituents. BDA exhibited deep blue fluorescence in solution (${\lambda}_{max}$ = 410 nm) and in solid state (${\lambda}_{max}$ = 429 nm), respectively, with the wide optical band gap (E = 3.12 eV). Blue-light-emitting OLEDs using obtained host and 2% Flu-DPAN as emitter showed 8 cd/A of high efficiency as well as high color purity [CIE coordinates = (0.15, 015)].