No description available.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are able to activate elements that are insoluble in common solvents. Here, the synthesis of binary antimony compounds directly from elements was explored. The 12 elements Ti-Cu, Al, Ga, In, and Te, known to form binary compounds with Sb, were reacted with Sb in [P₆₆₆₁₄]Cl under inert conditions in a closed glass flask with vigorous stirring for 16 h at 200 °C. This was immediately successful in four cases and resulted in the formation of NiSb, InSb, Cu₂Sb and Sb₂Te3. The applied reaction temperature is several hundred degrees below the temperatures required for solvent-free conversions. Compared to reactions based on diffusion in the solid state, reaction times are much shorter. The IL is not consumed and can be recycled. Since the reaction with Cu showed almost complete conversion, the influences of reaction time, temperature and medium were further investigated. Among the tested imidazolium ILs ([BMIm]Cl, [BMIm][OAc], [BDMIm]Cl) and phosphonium ILs ([P₆₆₆₁₄]X, X=Cl⁻, [DCA]⁻, [OAc]⁻, [NTf₂]⁻), those with chloride anion yielded the best results. In a diffusion experiment, Cu₂Sb formed on the copper, which indicates that antimony forms mobile species in these ILs. Supplemental crystal structure data of (As₃S₄)[AlCl₄], which was ionothermally synthesized from As and S, are reported.

No description available.

(EN) The presented dissertation thesis summarizes the new results of electrochemical generation of volatile compounds usable in atomic spectral methods. The main aim of this work is to develop and to characterize new types of electrolytic flow-through cells and to examine their possibilities of determination of arsenic, selenium and antimony by using the electrochemical hydride generation technique coupled with atomic absorption spectrometry with a quartz tube atomizer. Individual electrolytic cells were designed and constructed to comply with two important requirements. The cathode chamber of the electrolytic cell should have a minimal volume and a high efficiency of analyte conversion to the volatile hydride. Constructed electrolytic cells are divided into the construction groups and described in the experimental part. Selenium was chosen as the first analyte. The relevant working parameters (such as type, concentration and flow rate of electrolytes, generation current and carrier gas flow rate) were optimized for each newly constructed electrolytic cell. Under the optimal working parameters, the basic characteristics of selenium determination were found out by using electrochemical hydride generation. The electrolytic cells were compared to each other and with the classical electrolytic cell...

Procedimentos analíticos espectrofotométricos foram desenvolvidos empregando etapas de separação e pré-concentração em sistemas de análises em fluxo com multi-impulsão ou lab-in-syringe, com aplicação a amostras de interesse agronômico (ferro em materiais vegetais e alimentos) e ambiental (cianeto dissociável em ácidos, ferro e antimônio em águas). A determinação de cianeto explorou a descoloração do complexo formado entre Cu(I) e ácido 2-2´-biquinolino-4,4´-dicarboxílico (BQA) pela presença de CN-, após a separação de HCN por difusão gasosa. Espectrofotometria com longo caminho óptico foi empregada para aumentar a sensibilidade, com resposta linear entre 5 e 200 g L-1, limite de detecção, coeficiente de variação (n = 10) e frequência de amostragem de 2,0 g L-1, 1,5% e 22 h-1, respectivamente. O procedimento consumiu apenas 48 ng de Cu(II), 5,0 g de ácido ascórbico e 0,9 g de BQA por determinação e gerou 2,6 mL de efluente. Tiocianato, nitrito e sulfito não afetaram a determinação de cianeto e peróxido de hidrogênio evitou a interferência de sulfeto até 200 g L-1. Os resultados para as amostras de águas naturais foram concordantes com o procedimento fluorimétrico em fluxo com 95% de confiança. Novas estratégias foram propostas para a extração em ponto nuvem (EPN) em fluxo: (i) a fase rica em surfactante foi retida diretamente na cela de fluxo, evitando a diluição; (ii) microbombas solenoide foram exploradas para melhorar a mistura e modular a vazão na retenção e remoção da fase rica, evitando a eluição com solvente orgânico e (iii) o calor liberado e os sais fornecidos por uma reação de neutralização em linha foram explorados para indução do ponto nuvem, sem dispositivo externo de aquecimento. Estas inovações foram demonstradas pela determinação espectrofotométrica de ferro baseada no complexo com 1-(2-tiazolilazo)-2-naftol (TAN). Resposta linear foi observada entre 10 e 200 g L-1, com limite de detecção, coeficiente de variação e frequência de amostragem de 5 g L-1, 2,3% (n = 7) e 26 h-1, respectivamente. O fator de enriquecimento foi de 8,9 com consumo apenas de 6 g de TAN e 390 g de Triton X-114 por determinação. Os resultados para amostras de águas foram concordantes com o procedimento de referência e os obtidos para digeridos de materiais de referência de alimentos concordaram com os valores certificados. A determinação espectrofotométrica de antimônio foi realizada explorando pela primeira vez a EPN em sistema lab-in-syringe. O complexo iodeto e antimônio forma um par iônico com H+, que pode ser extraído com Triton X-114. Planejamento fatorial demonstrou que as concentrações de ácido ascórbico, H2SO4 e Triton X-114, bem como as interações de segunda e de terceira ordem foram significativas (95% de confiança). Planejamento Box-Behnken foi aplicado para a identificação dos valores críticos. Robustez com 95% de confiança, resposta linear entre 5 e 50 g L-1, limite de detecção, coeficiente de variação (n = 5) e frequência de amostragem foram estimados em 1,8 g L-1, 1,6% e 16 h-1, respectivamente. Os resultados para amostras de águas naturais e medicamentos anti-leishmaniose foram concordantes com os obtidos por espectrometria de absorção atômica com geração de hidretos (HGFAAS) com 95% de confiança / Spectrophotometric analytical procedures were developed by exploiting separation and preconcentration steps in flow systems based on multi-pumping or lab-in-syringe approaches with application to agronomic (iron in plant materials and food) and environmental samples (acid dissociable cyanide, iron and antimony in waters). Cyanide determination exploited bleaching of the Cu(I)/2,2\'-biquinoline 4,4\'-dicarboxylic acid (BCA) complex by the analyte, after separation of HCN by gas diffusion. Long path length spectrophotometry was successfully exploited to increase sensitivity, thus achieving a linear response from 5 to 200 g L-1, with detection limit, coefficient of variation (n = 10) and sampling rate of 2 g L-1, 1.5% and 22 h-1, respectively. Each determination consumed 48 ng of Cu(II), 5 g of ascorbic acid and 0.9 g of BCA. As high as 100 mg L-1 thiocyanate, nitrite or sulfite did not affect cyanide determination and sample pretreatment with hydrogen peroxide avoided sulfide interference up to 200 g L-1. The procedure is environmentally friendly and presented one of the lowest detection limits associated to high sampling rate. The results for freshwater samples agreed with those obtained with the flow-based fluorimetric procedure at the 95% confidence level. Novel strategies were proposed for on-line cloud point extraction (CPE): (i) the surfactant-rich phase was retained directly into the flow cell to avoid dilution prior to detection; (ii) solenoid micro-pumps were explored to improve mixing and for flow modulation in the retention and removal of the surfactant-rich phase, thus avoiding the elution step with organic solvents and (iii) the heat released and the salts provided by an on-line neutralization reaction were exploited to induce cloud point without an external heating device. These approaches were demonstrated for the spectrophotometric determination of iron based on complex formation with 1-(2-thiazolylazo)-2-naphtol (TAN). A linear response was observed from 10 to 200 g L-1, with detection limit, coefficient of variation, and sampling rate of 5 g L-1, 2.3% (n = 7) and 26 h-1, respectively. The enrichment factor was 8.9 and the procedure consumed only 6 g of TAN and 390 g of Triton X-114 per determination. The results for freshwater samples agreed with the reference procedure and those obtained for certified reference materials of food agreed with the certified values. Spectrophotometric determination of antimony was performed for the first time exploiting CPE in the lab-in-syringe system. The antimony/iodide complex forms an ion-pair with H+, which can be extracted with Triton X-114. Factorial design showed that the concentrations of ascorbic acid, H2SO4 and Triton X-114, as well as the second and third order interactions were significant (95% confidence). The Box-Behnken design was applied to identify the critical values. The system is robust with 95% confidence and a linear response was observed from 5 to 50 g L-1, with detection limit, coefficient of variation (n = 5) and sampling rate of 1.8 g L-1, 1.6% and 16 h-1, respectively. The results for water samples and antileishmanial drugs agreed with those obtained by hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry at the 95% confidence level

Core- and Valence Photoelectron Spectroscopy (PES), X-ray- and Ultraviolet-Visible Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS and UV-Vis), Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) and Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations are used to study the electronic and geometrical structure of a class of macro-cyclic molecules, Phthalocyanines (Pc), on surfaces. These molecules are widely studied due to their application in many different fields. Multilayer and monolayer coverages of Iron Phthalocyanine (FePc) and metal-free Phthalocyanine (H2Pc) deposited on different surfaces are investigated in order to get insight in the electronic and geometrical structure of the obtained overlayers, of crucial importance for the understanding of the film functionality. Sublimation of molecular thick films on Si(100) and on conducting glass results in films with molecules mainly oriented with their molecular plane orthogonal to the surface. Ex-situ deposited H2Pc films on conductive glass show different molecular orientation and morphology with respect to the vacuum sublimated films. We study the monolayer adsorption structure of FePc and H2Pc and compare our results with other Pc’s adsorbed on graphite. We find that the molecular unit cell and the superstructure is characteristic for each Pc adsorbed on graphite, even if the geometrical size of the compared molecules is the same. The PE- and XA- spectra of FePc on graphite are essentially identical for the mono- and multilayer preparations, evidencing weak intermolecular and molecular-substrate interactions of van der Waals nature. Furthermore, we characterize Pc’s on InSb (001)-c(8x2). The substrate In rows are observed to be the adsorption site for Pc’s. We find that the growth of the two-dimensional islands of FePc is prolonged in the [-110] direction, in contrast to ZnPc adsorbed on the same substrate at room temperature. We interpret this result as an indication that the adsorption is controlled by the substrate corrugation observed at 70 K.

The broad theme of the present research investigation is on the preparation and characterization of the ultra thin films. The emerging field of nano science and technology demands the realization of different materials in nanometer dimension and a comprehensive understanding of their novel properties. Especially, the properties of the semiconducting materials in the nano dimensions are quite different from their bulk phase. A phase transition from semimetalic to semiconducting nature occurs at a thickness < 5nm of Sb ultra thin films. These facts emphasize the need for preparing these materials as nano layers and studying their properties as a function their size. Among the various characterization methods available to study the structure and the interfaces, Raman spectroscopy has proved to be a useful technique. In addition to revealing the structural information, Raman spectroscopy can bring out the quantum size effects in the lattice vibrational spectra of lower dimensional solids, stress state of the film in the initial growth stages, chemical nature of materials etc. Raman spectroscopy studies on the quantum structure of Ge and Sb are limited. This is attributed to the two serious limitations of the conventional backscattering of Raman signal. 1. The back scattered Raman signal intensity from the ultra thin layer could be below the detection limit. 2. The lower penetration depth of the lasers could inhibit the information from the buried layers. These limitations could be overcome to a major extent by employing an optical interference technique called IERS. This is basically an anti-reflection structure consisting minimum of three layers. These three layers are essential for achieving the interference conditions. The thicknesses of each layer were calculated using a matrix method. IERS structure consists of 1. A reflecting layer at the bottom of the stack (Platinum or Aluminum) 2. The second layer which is grown above the reflecting layer is a transparent dielectric layer, which introduces the necessary phase shift and hence it is called phase layer.(SiO2 or CeO2) 3. The top ultra thin layer which is to be investigated (Ge or Sb), is grown over the dielectric film and it is the layer which absorbs the most of the incident exciting light and it is called the absorbing layer. In this trilayer structure the thickness of the phase layer and the absorbing layer are adjusted in such a way that the light reflected from the air-ultra thin layer interface and the dielectric-reflector interface are equal in amplitude but opposite in phase. This leads to the destructive interference and a perfect anti-reflection condition is achieved. This enhances the near surface local field and results in the enhanced Raman signal. Regarding the reflection layer, thermally evaporated Al films were used. But the surface studies revealed a large surface roughness of 2.7nm for area of 2 µm×2µm. Also Al is known to react with oxygen and formation of an oxide layer is favored. In an effort to overcome these problems, a platinum layer was chosen instead of Al as a reflecting layer. Dual ion beam sputter deposition was employed to prepare the platinum films and to study the surface property of the films prepared at different secondary ion current density. Thus the process parameters to get the Pt film with the required surface properties were optimized. To prepare the required phase layer, optical thin films of Ceria were used. The optical and structural property of ceria is found to be sensitive to the process parameters. Hence a new deposition technique for preparing the CeO2 thin films was adopted. This technique is called Dual ion beam Sputter Deposition (DIBSD). This technique involves, two ion sources (Kaufman type). One source is used to sputter the target, which is called the primary ion source and the other one is used to assist the growing film, which is called the secondary ion source. Both argon and oxygen were fed into the secondary ion source and oxygen ions in the mixture of the gases (Ar +O2) react with the growing film and the oxygen stoichiometry in the film is maintained. Also the secondary ion bombardment of the growing film helps in the densification and it leads to the increase in the refractive index of the ceria films. The films were found to grow with a preferential orientation along (111) direction. The optical properties of the films were studied by using the transmission spectra of the films from the spectrophotometer. Powder X-Ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy, were employed to study the structural properties. Atomic Force Microscopy was used to examine the surface topography and to estimate the surface statistics. A stress free ceria film with a high refractive index of 2.36 at 600nm was prepared for a secondary ion beam current density of 150µA/cm2 and a beam energy of 150 eV. Raman spectra and X-ray diffraction data of these films have revealed the formation of point defects in these films as a function of secondary ion current density. Germanium (Ge) ultra thin layers were prepared by using Ion Beam Sputter Deposition (IBSD) as this technique has a good control over the rate of deposition apart from various other advantages. The Ge ultra thin films were prepared on the multilayer stacks with Al or Pt as a reflecting layer. The germanium films were prepared for the various thicknesses ranging from 1-10 nm. These films were prepared on the multilayer stack of reflecting layer and phase layer. The films were prepared for the different substrate temperatures from 40 °C to 300 °C. The films thus prepared have been analyzed by Interference Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (IERS) for the structural and quantum size effects, by RBS for the thickness and to study interface diffusion, and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) for the analysis of nano structure of the grown films and also for the surface statistics. The thickness of the Ge films was found to be same as that had been calculated from the rate of deposition of the films. The films showed increase in the grain sizes with increase in the thickness of the films. The nanostructure of the films from AFM images confirms this observation. IERS of the films shows the transition from the compressive to stress free nature of the film for the nominal thickness of 1 & 2 nm. The quantum size effects of the films show the asymmetric broadening and peak shift and these observations were studied using the spatial correlation model. The TEM studies on the samples with Pt as a reflecting layer show influence of the underlying layer of CeO2 by the formation Moiré fringes. Antimony (Sb) films were prepared for the different thicknesses (3-10nm) and at different substrate temperatures (40 °C - 200 °C) on the Pt/CeO2 multilayer stacks as the absorbing layer. IERS studies on the films were performed and the results are as follows. Sb films show crystallization with increase in thickness from 3nm to 4nm. The films show amorphous to crystalline transition for the substrate temperature of 200 °C. Quantum size effects on the samples due to the phonon confinement were analyzed by the spatial correlation model. The atomic force microscopic measurements for the nanostructural information on the samples showed that the grain sizes of the films increase with increase in the thickness. Also the surface morphology shows a definite change in the features for the transition of amorphous to crystallization phase. Chapter 1 introduces the importance of Ge and Sb in the present day technologies. The current state of research on these two materials has been discussed. The importance of ceria and Pt films has been highlighted in the context of IERS and for the applications elsewhere. The advantages and disadvantages of ion beam sputter deposition have been described. The importance of Raman spectroscopy as a characterization tool for the nano structures has been shown in this chapter along with an introduction on Raman spectroscopy. Also, the importance of the other complimentary characterization techniques has been discussed. Chapter 2 presents the experimental details used to deposit and characterize the thin films. Details of IBSD and DIBSD processes are given. The characterization pertaining to structural, surface, optical and compositional properties are dealt in detail. Method to compute the optical constants of a transparent film is also given. Chapter 3 presents the properties of reflecting layers. Structural, surface and the compositional (presence of Ar ion) properties of the DIBSD platinum thin films are presented. Chapter 4 presents the optical, structural and surface properties of DIBSD ceria thin films as a function of process parameters. Chapter 5 deals with the growth and Raman analysis of ultra thin Ge films with Al and Pt as reflecting layers. Chapter 6 deals with the growth and Raman analysis of ultra thin Sb films. Chapter 7 gives the summary of the thesis and the future scope of the work.

Porous metal oxides formed by supercritical carbon dioxide (SCCO2) treatments at low temperature were used for displays, solar cells, and light emitting diodes (LEDs) applications. The SCCO2 fluid, also known as green solvents, exhibits low viscosity, low surface tension and high diffusivity as gases, and high density and solubility same with liquids. In this thesis, we successfully fabricated porous antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO) and porous indium tin oxide (ITO) by the SCCO2 treatments. In addition, the treatment can also be used to improve the work function and surface energy of ITO anode of an organic LED (OLED). The performance of the OLEDs was drastically enhanced in comparison with that of the devices without any ITO surface treatments. First, the porous ATO films were formed by the SCCO2 treatment for absorption of silver molecules in silver electro deposition devices. The porosity, resistivity and average optical transmittance of the porous ATO film in visible wavelength were 43.1%, 3 £[-cm and 90.4%, respectively. For the silver electro deposition devices with the porous ATO film, the transmittance contrast ratio of larger than 12 in visible spectrum was obtained at an operating voltage of 1.5 V. Furthermore, for the 0.25 cm2 device, the switching time of 4.5 seconds was achieved by applying a square-wave voltage ranging from 1.5 to -0.2 V between the electrodes. On the other hand, the porous ITO with low refractive index was prepared by SCCO2/IPA treatment on gel-coated ITO thin films. The high refractive index of the ITO film was achieved by long-throw radio-frequency magnetron sputtering technique at room temperature. The index contrast (£Gn) was higher than 0.6 between porous ITO and sputtered ITO films. The large £Gn is useful for fabricating conductive anti-reflection (AR) and high reflection (HR) structures using the porous ITO on sputtered ITO bilayers. The weighted average reflectance and transmittance of 4.3% and 83.1% were achieved for the double-layer ITO AR electrode with a sheet resistance of 1.1 K£[/¡E. For HR structures, the reflectance and sheet resistance were 87.9% and 35 £[/¡E with 4 periods ITO bilayers. Finally, the SCCO2 treatments with strong oxidizer H2O2 were proposed to modify surface property of ITO anode of a fluorescent OLED. The highest work function and surface energy of 5.5 eV and 74.8 mJ/m2 was achieved by the SCCO2/H2O2 treatment. For the OLED with 15 min SCCO2 treatment at 4000 psi, the turn-on voltage and maximum power efficiency of 6.5 V and 1.94 lm/W were obtained. The power efficiency was 19.3% and 33.8% higher than those of the OLEDs with oxygen plasma treated and as-cleaned ITO anodes.

No description available.

Lo scopo della tesi è di caratterizzare i rischi per la salute umana, che derivano dall’inquinamento delle acque (acque sotterranee) e dal cibo (riso) tramite l’applicazione e lo sviluppo di nuove tecniche analitiche. La tecnica “diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT)” con resina a base di ferrihydrite, è stata studiata per l'accumulo delle forme inorganiche (As(III) e As(V)) e organiche (DMA(V) e MMA(V)) di Arsenico in matrici acquose. I DGT sono stati applicati su campioni di acque sotterranee, raccolti in sei diverse città del Nord Italia, dove la concentrazione di As è molto alta. Antimonio (Sb) è associato all’As in diversi studi perché le proprietà fisiche e chimiche di questi due elementi sono simili, ed esso è stato recentemente riconosciuto come contaminante dell'acqua. In questa tesi per la prima volta sono state riportate le prestazioni dettagliate dei DGT con ferrihydrite, impiegati in soluzioni acquose di Sb(III) e Sb(V). L’analisi delle forme chimiche di Sb(III) e Sb(V) in campioni acquosi è stata realizzata con l’applicazione della diluizione isotopica. In generale il riso, a differenza di altri prodotti alimentari di origine terrestre, contiene quantità significative di Arsenico inorganico. L’analisi della speciazione di As è stata realizzata in 70 campioni di riso italiano, rappresentativo di diversi tipi di coltivazione. Le forme più abbondanti nel riso erano As(III) e DMA(V). Inoltre è stato interessante studiare la localizzazione dell’As nel chicco di riso, sottoposto a diversi processi di lavorazione (risone, riso integrale e lavorato con o senza parboiling), perché sia la distribuzione che la presenza delle diverse forme chimiche nel chicco sono fattori chiave che controllano la biodisponibilità del contaminante. La distribuzione dell’ As nei chicchi di riso di due varietà (Gladio e Ronaldo) sottoposti a diversi processi, è stato determinato con Laser Ablation ICP-MS. In realtà il contenuto di As era più alto nei chicchi di riso non-parboiled rispetto a quello parboiled. La relazione tra intensità dell’As e le varie parti del chicco di riso ha rivelato che i livelli di As diminuisco dalla parte esterna verso la posizione centrale, mentre i valori di As sembrano essere simili tra la parte media e interna dei non parboiled. / The aim of this thesis was to explore new analytical techniques as well as to carry out further characterisations of human health risks, which derive from water pollution, in particular groundwater, and food, in particular rice. The prevention of water pollution is an environmental aspect, that includes monitoring of both natural enrichment and outside pollution with routine analysis but also with new techniques, e.g. the application of passive sampling techniques and advanced technologies. The diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) technique with ferrihydrite adsorbent, has been investigated for the accumulation of different species of Arsenic (As), like Inorganic Species (arsenite and arsenate) and Organic Arsenic (dimethylarsinic and monomethylarsenate) in aqueous matrix. To evaluate the performance of DGT method for accumulation of arsenic species, after deployment in synthetic solutions, DGT devices were carried out on groundwaters collected in six different towns in the North of Italy, where the As concentration is very high. Recently, health effects at arsenic exposures have been observed in areas where levels of inorganic As in drinking water are not excessive. Antimony (Sb) is associated to As in several studies because the physical and chemical properties of these two elements are similar, and it has been recently recognized as water contaminant. In this thesis I reported for the first time detailed performance characteristics of the Fe-oxide gel associated to DGT devices deployed in known aqueous solutions of trivalent and pentavalent Sb. Speciation analysis of Sb(III) and Sb(V) in aqueous samples was performed through extraction and on-line determination of isotope dilution concentration after a chromatographic separation. Generally rice, unlike food products of terrestrial origin, contains significant amounts of inorganic arsenic. Recently some Government Organizations (e.g. EFSA) debated the possibility to set an upper limit for total and inorganic arsenic in rice. Arsenic speciation was realized in 70 Italian rice samples from different representative cultivation conditions. The most abundant forms in rice were As(III) and DMA(V). After that, it was fundamental to investigate the localization of As in rice grains in different processes (raw, brown and milled rice with or without parboiling technique), because both speciation and distribution throughout the grain are key factors controlling bioavailability of the contaminant. The As distribution in rice grains of two varieties (Gladio and Ronaldo) from different processes, was determined by LA-ICP-MS. The distribution of As varied between the various parts of the grains (exterior, medium and interior part). During parboiling, the partial boiling of food as the first step in the cooking process, arsenic might have released from the grain to the boiling water. Thus, parboiling of rice grain may reduce the magnitude of arsenic intake in human body. Actually the As content was higher in non-parboiled rice grain than in parboiled rice. The relationship between As intensities and the different parts of rice grain revealed that As levels decreased from the external part towards the middle position, and then the intensity values seem to be similar between medium and internal part in non parboiled products.