An evaluation of the capacitive behavior of supercapacitors as a function of the radius of cations using simulations with a constant potential method.

We report on the atomistic molecular dynamics, applying the constant potential method to determine the structural and electrostatic interactions at the electrode-electrolyte interface of electrochemical supercapacitors as a function of the cation radius (Cs+, Rb+, K+, Na+, Li+). We find that the electrical double layer is susceptible to the size, hydration layer volume, and cations' mobility and analyzed them. Besides, the transient potential shows an increase in magnitude and length as a function of the monocation size, i.e., Cs+ > Rb+ > K+ > Na+ > Li+. On the other hand, the charge distribution along the electrode surface is less uniform for large monocations. Nonetheless, the difference is not observed as a function of the radius of the cation for the integral capacitance. Our results are comparable to studies that employed the fixed charge method for treating such systems.

Charge-storage mechanism of highly defective NiO nanostructures on carbon nanofibers in electrochemical supercapacitors.

An electrode composed of highly defective nickel oxide (NiO) nanostructures supported on carbon nanofibers (CNFs) and immersed in an Li+-based aqueous electrolyte is studied using Raman spectroscopy under dynamic polarization conditions to address the charge-storage phenomenon. By this operando technique, the formation of Li2SO4·H2O during the discharge process is verified. At the same time, we observed the phase transformation of NiO to NiOOH. The Ni(OH)2/NiOOH redox couple is responsible for the pseudocapacitive behavior with intercalation of cationic species in the different Ni structures. A 'substitutive solid-state redox reaction' is proposed to represent the amphoteric nature of the oxide, resulting in proton intercalation, while the insertion of Li+ occurs to a less extent. The electrode material exhibits outstanding stability with 98% coulombic efficiency after 10 000 charge-discharge cycles. The excellent electrode properties can be ascribed to a synergism between CNFs and NiO, where the carbon nanostructures ensured rapid electron transport from the hydrated nickel nanoparticles. The NiO@CNF composite material is a promising candidate for future applications in aqueous-based supercapacitors. DFT simulation elucidates that compressive stress and Ni-site displacement lead to a decrease up-to 3.5-fold on the electron density map located onto the Ni-atom, which promotes NiO/Ni(OH)2/NiOOH transition.

Evaluation of the antioxidant potential of myricetin 3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside and myricetin 4'-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside through a computational study.

In this work, we present a computational study on the antioxidant potential of myricetin 3-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (Compound M3) and myricetin 4'-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (Compound M4'). Structural parameters, bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs), ionization potentials (IPs), proton dissociation enthalpies (PDEs), proton affinities (PAs), and electron transfer enthalpies (ETEs), which are properties connected with different mechanisms related to antioxidant activity, were determined using density functional theory (DFT) with B3LYP, LC-ωPBE, M06-2X, and BMK functionals along with the 6-311G(d,p) and 6-311+G(d,p) basis sets in the gas phase, water, and pentylethanoate. The values obtained were compared with results previously available in the literature for myricetin (the parent molecule and a well-known antioxidant) and myricetin 3,4'-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (Compound M3,4'). As the BDEs are considerably lower than the IPs, the HAT mechanism is preferred over SET for the compounds M3 and M4'. The present study indicates Compound M3 as having its lowest bond dissociation enthalpy from the several different OH groups with similar value to the lowest for myricetin (74.72 kcal/mol versus 74.8 kcal/mol, respectively, at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory in the gas phase) and, thus, presenting antioxidant potential as good as its parent molecule. On the other hand, Compound M4' presented 78.97 kcal/mol as the lowest BDE at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) level of theory in the gas phase, that is very close to the 78.34 kcal/mol computed using the same approach for Compound M3,4'. Therefore, the present investigation indicated Compound M4' as being a slightly inferior antioxidant (with antioxidant potential comparable to Compound M3,4') than Compound M3. In addition, the inclusion of the sugar moiety studied here in the position 4'-ArOH of myricetin seems to have a more marked impact (downward) on the antioxidant activity than the glycosylation in the position 3-ArOH.

Probing the antioxidant potential of phloretin and phlorizin through a computational investigation.

The structures and energetics of two dihydrochalcones (phloretin and its glycoside phlorizin) were examined with density functional theory, using the B3LYP, M06-2X, and LC-ω PBE functionals with both the 6-311G(d,p) and 6-311 + G(d,p) basis sets. Properties connected to antioxidant activity, i.e., bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) for OH groups and ionization potentials (IPs), were computed in a variety of environments including the gas-phase, n-hexane, ethanol, methanol, and water. The smallest BDEs among the four OH groups for phloretin (three for phlorizin) were determined (using B3LYP/6-311 + G(d,p) in water) to be 79.36 kcal/mol for phloretin and 79.98 kcal/mol for phlorizin while the IPs (at the same level of theory) were obtained as 139.48 and 138.98 kcal/mol, respectively. By comparing with known antioxidants, these values for the BDEs indicate both phloretin and phlorizin show promise for antioxidant activity. In addition, the presence of the sugar moiety has a moderate (0-6 kcal/mol depending on functional) effect on the BDEs for all OH groups. Interestingly, the BDEs suggest that (depending on the functional chosen) the sugar moiety can lead to an increase, decrease, or no change in the antioxidant activity. Therefore, further experimental tests are encouraged to understand the substituent effect on the BDEs for phloretin and to help determine the most appropriate functional to probe BDEs for dihydrochalcones.

A computational investigation on the antioxidant potential of myricetin 3,4'-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside.

In this work, we present a computational study on the antioxidant potential of myricetin 3,4[Formula: see text]-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside (Compound M). A density functional theory (DFT) approach with the B3LYP and LC-ωPBE functionals and with both the 6-311G(d,p) and 6-311+G(d,p) basis sets was used. The focus of the investigation was on the structural and energetic parameters including both bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) and ionization potentials (IPs), which provide information on the potential antioxidant activity. The properties computed were compared with BDEs and IPs available in the literature for myricetin, a compound well known for presenting antioxidant activity (and the parent molecule of the compound of interest in the present work). Myricetin 3,4[Formula: see text]-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside presented the lowest BDE to be 79.13 kcal/mol (as determined using B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) in water) while myricetin has a quite similar value (within 3.4 kcal/mol). IPs computed in the gas phase [B3LYP/6-311G(d,p)] are 157.18 and 161.4 kcal/mol for myricetin 3,4[Formula: see text]-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside and myricetin, respectively. As the values of BDEs are considerably lower than the ones probed for IPs (in the gas phase or in any given solvent environment), the hydrogen atom transfer mechanism is preferred over the single electron transfer mechanism. The BDEs obtained suggest that myricetin 3,4[Formula: see text]-di-O-α-L-rhamnopyranoside can present antioxidant potential as good as the parent molecule myricetin (a well-known antioxidant). Therefore, experimental tests on the antioxidant activity of Compound M are encouraged.

Electronic and magnetic properties of the [Ni(salophen)]: An experimental and DFT study.

The effect of the coordination of a Ni(II) ion on the electronic and magnetic properties of the ligand salophen were experimentally and theoretically evaluated. The complex [Ni(salophen)] was synthesized and characterized through FTIR and an elemental analysis. Spectral data obtained using DMSO as a solvent showed that the ligand absorption profile was significantly disturbed after the coordination of the metal atom. In addition to a redshift of the salophen ligand absorption bands, mainly composed by π → π∗ electronic transitions, additional bands of around 470 nm were observed, resulting in a partial metal-to-ligand charge transfer. Furthermore, a significant increment of its band intensities was observed, favoring a more intense absorption in a broader range of the visible spectrum, which is a desired characteristic for applications in the field of organic electronics. This finding is related to an increment of the planarity and consequent electron delocalization of the macrocycle in the complex, which was estimated by the calculation of the current strengths at the PBE0/cc-pVTZ (Dyall.v3z for Ni(II)) level.