No abstract

A new methodology has been developed to provide effective functionalization of the intersurfaces of ordered, crystalline, layered magadiite via an imprinting synthesis. Although the surface imprinting has been conducted successfully on a variety of substrates, no report has appeared on imprinting synthesis on the intergalleries of the layered materials. This methodology has resulted in a simplified experimental procedure for functionalizing layered silicates with good control of the distributions of functional ligands on magadiite. Our results demonstrate that the imprint-functionalized magadiite has better selectivity and a higher capacity for metal-ion templates than the nonimprinted analogue. The possibility of continuous variation of the basal spacing and the crystalline structures of the layered materials highlight a new opportunity for conducting imprinting synthesis.

An important element in the development of advanced neutron detectors is the synthesis and characterization of improved, highly efficient neutron-scintillating materials. The research described here concerns the development of elastic, transparent, and thick film neutron scintillators with high Li+6 loading through room-temperature sol-gel processing. The room-temperature sol-gel processing allows an easy integration of such scintillating materials into electronic detecting devices. The lithium-6 salicylate di-ureasil xerogels developed here show promise for the fabrication of large area neutron detectors and have high potential for use in in situ monitoring and imaging of fissile materials and radioactive contaminants.

A uranium EXAFS study of the uranyl nitrate dimer [{UO2(μ-OH)(NO3)2}2]2- at 10 and 294 K is described. Low-temperature data readily reveal the presence of the second uranium atom in the complex as well as distinguishing characteristics associated with the equatorial nitrate and bridging hydroxide groups. Observation and analysis of these critical components in EXAFS data collected at room temperature are much more difficult.