超臨界水中的溶解和化學反應受到一系列因素的影響，如溶解能，熵以及溶液密度等，是決定化學平衡的基本熱力學量，同時這些又受到溫度和壓強的控制。爲了解釋這些因素的影響，有必要把量子化學的靜態優化與分子動力學模擬相結合和比較。通過量子化學可以得到0K下的優化結構，而分子動力學模擬可以提高實際時間的勢能面。本論文的研究，主要圍繞在氣態下甲醛分子HCHO和甲酸分子HCOOH跟不同數目水分子H2O結合的水合簇結構，以及在常溫水溶液和超臨界水溶液中，甲醛HCHO和甲酸HCOOH的溶解結構和溫度所帶來的熱效應，最後研究甲酸HCOOH在水催化下的離解反應機理。 / 使用化學計算軟件Gaussian03和密度泛函理論方法，用6-311++G(d,p)基組來計算和研究氣態下甲醛分子和甲酸分子的水簇合物。通過不同數目的水分子所得到的最穩定簇合物的結構和能量，來研究甲醛分子HCHO，甲酸根離子HCOO⁻以及甲酸分子HCOOH與水分子相互結合時的氫鍵作用力強弱和簇合物的穩定性。同時，也考慮了甲酸酸解后的水簇合物結構，通過與沒有酸解的水簇合物的比較，為進一步瞭解水溶解中甲酸的酸解離情況提供寶貴的信息。 / 使用基於贗勢和平面波基組，以及密度泛函理論的從頭計算分子動力學軟件VASP，來模擬和研究甲醛分子HCHO和甲酸分子在水溶液中的溶解情況。根據對半徑關聯函數PRDF的統計結果，可以觀察出溶質的溶解結構，以及溶劑分子之間，或者溶質與溶劑分子之間的氫鍵作用。通過水合數目可以看出氫鍵作用力隨著溫度的提升而減弱。水溶液的溫度在臨界點之上時，其結果證實了甲酸的酸解反應受到嚴重的抑制，與常溫水的結果相反。 / 使用從頭計算分子動力學軟件CPMD中基於Car-Parrinello分子動力學方法的Metadynamics方法對甲酸的反應機理進行系統的研究，包含脫水反應和脫氫反應。解離反應分別包含不同數目的分子，通過對比來研究反應中水分子所起的潛在的催化作用。除此之外，通過300K和700K這兩種不同溫度下的結果對比，來解釋超臨界水溶解中甲酸快速解離的原因。自由能曲面和自由能壘揭示了在不同環境下甲酸的主要解離途徑。 / Solvation and chemical reactions in supercritical water are affected by a number of factors. Solvation energy, entropy, and densities are the basic thermodynamic quantities that determine the chemical equilibriums, which can be controlled by temperature and pressure. To account for these factors, static optimization leading to zero-temperature structures should be combined and compared with molecular dynamics simulation in real time. In my thesis, the solvation structures are studied in gas phase and aqueous phase, to understand the properties of solvent water and the thermal effect on the reactions. / The hydrated clusters of formaldehyde and formic acid in gas phase are explored computationally by density functional theory (DFT) with a basis set 6-311++G(d,p). Investigation on the structures and energies of hydrated HCHO, HCOO⁻ and HCOOH solvated by a number of water molecules is important for understanding the hydrogen bond interactions as the number of water molecules increases. Comparisons between non-dissociated and dissociated clusters of hydrated formic acid provide valuable information on the acidic dissociation of formic acid in aqueous solution. / The solvations of formaldehyde and formic acid in aqueous solution are simulated by density functional theory based ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) method with pseudopotentials and a plane wave basis set using Vienna Ab-initio Simulation Package (VASP). The pair radial distribution function is obtained to elucidate the solvation structure and the hydrogen bond interaction among solvent molecules, and between solute and solvent. The hydration number indicates the weakening of the hydrogen bond with increasing temperature. The results at the temperatures above the critical point of water show that the acid dissociation of formic acid is greatly depressed which is different from the results in ambient water. / The mechanisms for the dissociations of formic acid in the gas phase and in aqueous solution are studied by Car-Parrinello (CP)-based metadynamics (MTD) method, implemented in the Car-Parrinello Molecular Dynamics (CPMD) program. The two main dissociations channels of dehydration and dehydrogenation, including zero, one, two and bulk water molecules, respectively, are simulated with a biased external potential to examine the potential catalytic role of water. In addition, the thermal effects at two different temperatures are included to account for the rapid dissociation of formic acid in supercritical water. The free energy surfaces are reconstructed and the barriers are calculated to show the main dissociation pathway of formic acid in different environments. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Chen, Qiubo. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 185-194). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese. / TITLE PAGE --- p.i / ABSTRCACT (ENGLISH) --- p.ii / (CHINESE) --- p.v / AKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.vii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.viii / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.xiv / LIST OF TABLES --- p.xxiv / Chapter Chapter ONE --- Background / Chapter 1.1 --- Introduction of green chemistry --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1.1 --- Green chemistry --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1.2 --- Supercritical fluid (SCF) and supercritical water (SCW) --- p.2 / Chapter 1.2 --- Formaldehyde and formic acid in supercritical water --- p.8 / Chapter 1.2.1 --- Formaldehyde --- p.8 / Chapter 1.2.2 --- Formic acid --- p.12 / Chapter 1.3 --- Scope of this thesis --- p.17 / Chapter Chapter TWO --- Theories and Calculation Methods / Chapter 2.1 --- General background --- p.19 / Chapter 2.1.1 --- Schrödinger equation --- p.19 / Chapter 2.1.2 --- Born-Oppenheimer approximation --- p.20 / Chapter 2.2 --- Hartree-Fock (HF) approximation and post-Hartree-Fock (post-HF) approximation --- p.22 / Chapter 2.3 --- Density functional theory (DFT) --- p.28 / Chapter 2.3.1 --- Kohn-Sham (KS) scheme --- p.29 / Chapter 2.3.2 --- Local density approximation (LDA) --- p.31 / Chapter 2.3.3 --- Generalized gradient approximation (GGA) --- p.33 / Chapter 2.3.4 --- Hybrid functionals --- p.34 / Chapter 2.4 --- Ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) --- p.35 / Chapter 2.4.1 --- Molecular dynamics --- p.35 / Chapter 2.4.2 --- Ab initio molecular dynamics --- p.36 / Chapter 2.4.3 --- Plane waves --- p.42 / Chapter 2.4.4 --- Pseudopotentials (PP) --- p.44 / Chapter 2.4.5 --- Periodic boundary condition (PBC) --- p.48 / Chapter 2.5 --- Metadynamics (MTD) method --- p.48 / Chapter 2.5.1 --- The Algorithm --- p.49 / Chapter 2.5.2 --- Lagrangian metadynamics and the choice of V(t,s) --- p.52 / Chapter 2.5.3 --- The choice of CVs --- p.53 / Chapter Chapter THREE --- Structures of the Hydrated Clusters of Formaldehyde and Formic Acid / Chapter 3.1 --- Introduction --- p.55 / Chapter 3.2 --- Computational details --- p.56 / Chapter 3.3 --- Results and discussions --- p.58 / Chapter 3.3.1 --- Studies of HCHO(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~4 --- p.58 / Chapter 3.3.1.1 --- The structures of HCHO(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~4 --- p.58 / Chapter 3.3.1.2 --- The energies of HCHO(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~4 --- p.63 / Chapter 3.3.2 --- Studies of HCHO⁻(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~6 --- p.65 / Chapter 3.3.2.1 --- The structures of HCHO⁻(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~4 --- p.66 / Chapter 3.3.2.2 --- The energies of HCHO⁻(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0~4 --- p.71 / Chapter 3.3.2.3 --- Studies of HCOO⁻(H2O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 5 and 6 --- p.73 / Chapter 3.3.3 --- Studies of HCOOH⁻(H2O)[subscript n] and HCOO⁻(H₃O)⁺(H₂O)[subscript n-1] clusters --- p.76 / Chapter 3.3.3.1 --- Results of cis-HCOOH(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters and trans-HCOOH(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n = 0 ~ 4 --- p.76 / Chapter 3.3.3.2 --- Results of trans-HCOOH(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters, n > 4 --- p.82 / Chapter 3.3.3.3 --- Comparisons of non-dissociated trans-HCOOH(H₂O)[subscript n] clusters with dissociated ion pair HCOO⁻(H₃O)⁺(H₂O)[subscript n-1] clusters --- p.84 / Chapter 3.4 --- Summary --- p.87 / Chapter CHAPTER FOUR --- Ab initio Molecular Dynamics Studies on the Solvations of Formaldehyde HCHO and Formic Acid HCOOH in Water Solution at Different Temperatures / Chapter 4.1 --- Introduction --- p.90 / Chapter 4.2 --- Computational details --- p.93 / Chapter 4.3 --- Results and discussions --- p.94 / Chapter 4.3.1 --- The solvation of water solution --- p.94 / Chapter 4.3.1.1 --- The solvation of pure water solution at T = 300 K, 600 K, 700 K and 2000 K --- p.95 / Chapter 4.3.1.2 --- The solvation of proton H⁺ in water solution at T = 300 K and 700 K --- p.101 / Chapter 4.3.2 --- The solvation of formaldehyde HCHO in water solution at T = 300 K, 500 K, 700 K and 900 K --- p.104 / Chapter 4.3.3 --- The solvation of formate ion HCOO⁻ in water solution at T = 300 K, 500 K, 700 K and 900 K --- p.109 / Chapter 4.3.4 --- The solvation of formic acid HCOOH in water solution at T = 300 K, 500 K, 700 K and 900 K --- p.117 / Chapter 4.4 --- Summary --- p.125 / Chapter CHAPTER FIVE --- The Reactions of Formic Acid HCOOH: Insights from Car-Parrinello Based Metadynamics (MTD) Method / Chapter 5.1 --- Introduction --- p.128 / Chapter 5.2 --- Computational details --- p.130 / Chapter 5.3 --- Results and Discussions --- p.132 / Chapter 5.3.1 --- The intrinsic rotation of a single formic acid molecule HCOOH in gas phase at T = 300 K and T = 700 K --- p.132 / Chapter 5.3.2 --- The dehydration of formic acid in gas phase at T = 300 K and T = 700 K --- p.140 / Chapter 5.3.2.1 --- The dehydration of a single formic acid molecule trans-HCOOH --- p.140 / Chapter 5.3.2.2 --- The dehydration of formic acid molecule trans-HCOOH with one water molecule --- p.147 / Chapter 5.3.2.3 --- The dehydration of formic acid molecule trans-HCOOH with two water molecules --- p.152 / Chapter 5.3.3 --- The dehydrogenation of formic acid in gas phase at T = 300 K and T = 700 K --- p.158 / Chapter 5.3.3.1 --- The dehydrogenation of a single formic acid molecule cis-HCOOH --- p.158 / Chapter 5.3.3.2 --- The dehydrogenation of formic acid molecule cis-HCOOH with one water molecule --- p.163 / Chapter 5.3.3.3 --- The dehydrogenation of formic acid molecule cis-HCOOH with two water molecule --- p.167 / Chapter 5.3.4 --- The dissociations of formic acid in water solution at T = 300 K and T = 700 K --- p.171 / Chapter 5.3.4.1 --- The acid dissociation of formic acid in water solution --- p.173 / Chapter 5.3.4.2 --- The dehydration of formic acid in water solution --- p.175 / Chapter 5.3.4.3 --- The dehydrogenation of formic acid in water solution --- p.178 / Chapter 5.4 --- Summary --- p.181 / References --- p.185

Line width parameters for a number of spectral lines in the pure rotational spectrum of formaldehyde (CH20) and formic acid (HCOOH) have been measured using a sourcemodulated microwave spectrograph. All transitions studied in this investigation were of the type ΔJ=O (i.e. Q-branch transitions), with ΔK-1=0 and ΔK+1 =+l. The center frequencies of the measured lines varied from 8662.0 MHz to 48612.70 MHz. The experimentally determined collision diameters for self broadening interactions involving HCOOH and CH2 Q molecules were found to be 2 - 27 per cent less than those calculated by the Murphy-Boggs theory of collision broadening. Much better agreement between a simplified broadening scheme for symmetric top molecules and the observed foreign-gas collision diameters is obtained by using Birnbaum's theory.

This dissertation thesis consists of six chapters. The main focus of this study is the need for understanding the reaction mechanism and intermediates formed on Pt-modified Au surface as anode catalysts in the formic acid fuel cells. Chapter 1 gives an introduction to formic acid and methanol fuel cells, an overview of the current catalysts employed at the anode of the fuel cells, specifically the Pt-modified Au electrodes as potential catalysts and the different deposition methods for preparing this catalytic surface. Information about different electrochemical methods used like cyclic voltammetry and potential step method along with other characterization methods and spectroscopic techniques has also been given. As one of the main methods to characterize the catalysts, Raman and surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy have been discussed in detail. The electrooxidation of formic acid and the nature of the intermediates at a platinum-modified gold surface prepared through spontaneous deposition were characterized using a combination of electrochemistry and in situ surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Spontaneously deposited platinum on gold showed unique high catalytic activity for formic acid electrooxidation. The oxidation current of formic acid is more than five times higher on the Pt-modified gold electrode surface than on a bare Pt surface and about 72 times higher than on a bare Au surface. SERS results reveal the involvement of a novel HCOO− adsorbate at 300 cm−1. Both electrochemical and spectroscopic results suggest that the formic acid electrooxidation takes place by the dehydrogenation pathway involving a low frequency formate intermediate on the Pt-modified gold electrode catalyst. Next, the effect of the deposition solution employed in the spontaneous deposition process was explored and demonstrated to play an important role in catalytic activity of these surfaces. Electrochemical studies show that Pt-modified Au surfaces prepared from bromoplatinate solution are most active in oxidizing formic acid. The second most active surface for formic acid electrooxidation was that from chloroplatinate followed by that from the iodoplatinate solutions. Also, the optimal condition to prepare the most active surface is different for various haloplatinate solutions. In situ surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) with potential control revealed the presence of formate at 300 cm-1 as the reaction intermediate in the catalytic processes on all three Pt-modified Au surfaces, but with different potential-dependent behaviors. A clear and transparent bis ethylenedioxy tetrathiafulvalene iodine doped polymer films (BEDO-TTF) was successfully prepared by electrochemical method of cyclic voltammetry. The formation of the transparent films has been linked to the reduction of the iodine species in the film to iodide species giving rise to colorless films. Furthermore, Raman studies have revealed the presence of different iodide species like triodide, pentaiodide and iodine when anodic and cathodic potentials were applied to the films. Also, it was seen that the iodine was complexed with the BEDO-TTF polymer in a stoichiometry of 2.4: 3 [(BEDO-TTF) 2.4I3] at certain concentration in the doping technique. Raman studies were also conducted on single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) to study the defects introduced during the ball milling procedure and Ru doping. The Raman results reveal that both ball milling procedure and Ru doping leads to the formation of more defects and carbonaceous species in the SWCNTs. Thus, both electrochemical and Raman method were demonstrated to characterize the composition and properties of various materials including conducting polymer and carbon nanotubes

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 59-79) Examines the metabolism of volatile fatty acid and formic acid in fed sheep. Develops a method for analysing and qualifying volatile fatty acids with special reference to formic acid in biological fluids by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography.

A systematic study of formic acid electrooxidation on polycrystalline palladium is presented. The study begins with a discussion on the oxide growth process on platinum and palladium. CO electrooxidation under controlled mass transport is studied in order to elucidate the manner in which Pd interacts with CO, a proposed poisoning species in formic acid oxidation. The mechanism of formic acid oxidation is studied using various potentiodynamic techniques, including dynamic electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, which provides impedance measurements during a voltammogram. Through kinetic analysis, a model for the oxidation was developed. The impedance measurements support both the dc measurements as well as the results of the oxidation model. It was determined that CO formation was slow on Pd within the time scale of the experiments. The chief cause of surface deactivate was then determined to be the Pd surface interaction with the (bi)sulfate adsorption in the double layer region. / Graduate

Thesis (M.Sc. (Organic Chemistry))--Mahidol University, 1979.

Ritmos biológicos são regulados por mecanismos homeostáticos que asseguram a confiabilidade funcional do relógio fisiológico independentemente de mudanças de temperatura no ambiente. Compensação de temperatura, ou a independência do período oscilatório em relação à temperatura, é conhecida por exercer um papel central em muitos ritmos biológicos, mas um fenômeno raro em osciladores químicos. Estudou-se nessa dissertação a influência da temperatura na dinâmica oscilatória durante a oxidação catalítica de ácido fórmico sobre eletrodo de platina policristalina. Os experimentos foram conduzidos em cinco temperaturas diferentes de 5 à 25 ºC, e as oscilações foram estudadas sob controle galvanostático. Resultados experimentais foram comparados a um novo modelo proposto para a eletro-oxidação de ácido fórmico, considerando formato como intermediário ativo e a desidrogenação da água em altos potenciais. Sob condições oscilatórias apenas comportamento anti-Arrhenius foi observado. Sobre-compensação com coeficiente de temperatura (q10, definido como a razão entre a constante de velocidade à temperatura T + 10 ºC e em T) < 1 é achada para a maioria dos casos, exceto em altas correntes aplicadas onde compensação de temperatura, q10 ~ 1 predomina. O comportamento do período e amplitude resulta de uma combinação complexa entre a temperatura e corrente aplicada ou, equivalentemente, a distância do equilíbrio termodinâmico. Altas energias de ativação aparente foram obtidas em condições voltamétricas, não-oscilatórias, as quais implicam que o comportamento anti-Arrhenius observado sob regime oscilatório resulta de um acoplamento entre as rotas reacionais em vez de uma fraca dependência da temperatura nas etapas elementares. Mecanisticamente, os experimentos e o modelo matemático sugerem que o período em regime de (sobre)compensação de temperatura durante a eletro-oxidação de ácido fórmico sobre platina é governado pelo acoplamento entre as taxas reacionais de formação/remoção de monóxido de carbono e formato em condições oscilatórias. / Biological rhythms are regulated by homeostatic mechanisms that assure that physiological clocks function reliably independent of temperature changes in the environment. Temperature compensation, i.e. the independence of the oscillatory period on temperature, is known to play a central role in many biological rhythms, but it is rather rare in chemical oscillators. It was studied in this master thesis the influence of temperature on the oscillatory dynamics during the catalytic oxidation of formic acid on a polycrystalline platinum electrode. The experiments are performed at five temperatures from 5 to 25 ºC, and the oscillations studied under galvanostatic control. Experimental results are compared to a new model proposed for formic acid electro-oxidation, which includes formate as an active intermediate and water dehydrogenation at high potentials. Under oscillatory conditions only non-Arrhenius behavior is observed. Over-compensation with temperature coefficient (q10, defined as the ratio between the rate constants at temperature T + 10 ºC and at T) < 1 is found in most cases, except that temperature compensation with q10 ~ 1 predominates at high applied currents. The behavior of the period and the amplitude result from a complex interplay between temperature and applied current or, equivalently, the distance from thermodynamic equilibrium. High, positive apparent activation energies were obtained under voltammetric, non-oscillatory conditions, which implies that the non-Arrhenius behavior observed under oscillatory conditions results from the interplay among reaction steps rather than from a weak temperature dependence of the individual steps. Mechanistically, the experiments and the mathematical model suggest that the period in temperature (over)compensation regime during electro-oxidation of formic acid at platinum is governed by the coupling among the reaction rates of formation/removal of carbon monoxide and formate coverage in oscillatory conditions.

Abstract More than 900 papers related to organosolv pulping have been reviewed in this thesis. From the information included in those papers it can be concluded that organosolv pulping processes are still in a developing stage and are not yet ready to seriously threat the position of the kraft process as the main pulp manufacturing process in the world. Distillation seems to be the main alternative as the process for recovering the solvent in organosolv pulping. A good reason for this is that using simple distillation no potentially harmful components are introduced to the process. The effect of feed composition on the operation of a separation sequence in an organosolv process using aqueous formic and acetic acids and corresponding peroxyacids was studied. When simple distillation was used as the separation method the effect was found to be significant. The no ideal nature of the formic acid-acetic acid-water mixture, which separation was studied, makes the ternary composition space to divide into four distillation regions. Which region the feed is located in, obviously determines the economy of the distillation sequence. Shortcut calculation methods cannot be recommended to be used for designing a distillation sequence for the ternary mixture studied, but they give useful information for the comparison of such sequences. They were used to choose a limited number of alternatives for studies with rigorous calculation methods. Minimum work of separation can also be used to make a satisfying estimate for the relative easiness of separation of the formic acid-acetic acid-water mixture. Thermal integration using pinch technology was also tested and found very useful for decreasing the thermal energy consumption of distillation processes. Thermodynamic efficiencies for separating the formic acid-acetic acid-water mixture by simple distillation were estimated. They were found to be lower than the average value for distillation presented in literature.

Problems presented in this paper concern the chemical equilibrium of methyl alcohol, formic acid, and methyl formate when combined.

The green production of formic acid and utilization of methanol over heterogeneous catalysis system were investigated in this study. The heterogeneous catalysts are widely used in the chemical industry. They offer high stability and reusability which can enhance the production ability and lower the production cost, it can be considered as the sustainable energy solution for the future. In this work, we demonstrated several different heterogeneous catalysts for sustainable formic acid production and methanol utilization, including the heteropoly acid supported mesoporous silica catalysts and multi-function mixed metal oxide catalysts. Detailed characterizations of the final products were carried out by N2 adsorption and desorption, XRD, HR-TEM, SEM, ICP-OES, XANES, NH3- TPD, Raman spectroscopy, and FTIR to identify the chemical properties and physical properties of the catalysts. We obtained 60 % glycerol conversion and 30 % formic acid selectivity with at least 3 rounds of usages in batch system over PV1Mo/SBA-15-p-DS catalyst. Moreover, the continuous methyl formate production with significantly high formation rate (16.7) has been achieved via our CuMgO-based catalysts, and the best Cu5MgO5 catalyst gives more than 80 % methanol conversion with constant selectivity to methyl formate even after 4 catalytic test (more than 200 h), revealing their potential for industrialization. For the methanol utilization reaction, the methanol homocoupling to form dimethoxymethane (DMM) has been investigated. The redox and acidic properties of catalysts both play a critical role in this reaction and the related to different product. The supported V2O5 catalyst achieves the best catalytic performance (62.1 % conversion and 85.6 % DMM selectivity) with a Ce/Al specific ratio of 1. This research not only provided the efficient catalysts for numerous application with high activity, but also discovered the relation between the catalytic performance and the nature of the materials. These findings might further help the researcher to solve the global environmental and energy issues in the near future.