Ba0.5Gd0.8La0.7Co2O6−δ Infiltrated BaZr0.8Y0.2O3-δ Composite Oxygen Electrodes for Protonic Ceramic Cells

In this study, a composite oxygen electrode is prepared by infiltrating a protonic-electronic conducting material, Ba0.5Gd0.8La0.7Co2O6−δ (BGLC) into a proton-conducting BaZr0.8Y0.2O3-δ (BZY20) backbone. The composite oxygen electrode is studied in a symmetrical cell configuration (BGLC-BZY20//BZY20//BGLC-BZY20). The electrode and cell performance are characterized via electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) with varying the operating conditions, including temperatures, oxygen, and steam partial pressures, with the purpose to identify and characterize the different electrochemical processes taking place in the oxygen electrode. Three electrode reaction processes are observed in the impedance spectra, which are tentatively assigned to i) diffusion of adsorbed oxygen/proton migration/hydroxyl formation, ii) oxygen reduction, and iii) charge transfer, going from the low- to high-frequency range. The BGLC-BZY20 electrode developed in this work shows a low polarization resistance of 0.22, 0.58, and 1.43 Ω cm2 per single electrode in 3 % humidified synthetic air (21% O2/79% N2) at 600, 550, and 500 °C, respectively. During long-term measurement, the cell shows no degradation in the first 350 hours but degrades afterward possibly due to insufficient material stability.

A quantitative paradigm for water-assisted proton transport through proteins and other confined spaces

Water-assisted proton transport through confined spaces influences many phenomena in biomolecular and nanomaterial systems. In such cases, the water molecules that fluctuate in the confined pathways provide the environment and the medium for the hydrated excess proton migration via Grotthuss shuttling. However, a definitive collective variable (CV) that accurately couples the hydration and the connectivity of the proton wire with the proton translocation has remained elusive. To address this important challenge—and thus to define a quantitative paradigm for facile proton transport in confined spaces—a CV is derived in this work from graph theory, which is verified to accurately describe water wire formation and breakage coupled to the proton translocation in carbon nanotubes and the Cl−/H+ antiporter protein, ClC-ec1. Significant alterations in the conformations and thermodynamics of water wires are uncovered after introducing an excess proton into them. Large barriers in the proton translocation free-energy profiles are found when water wires are defined to be disconnected according to the new CV, even though the pertinent confined space is still reasonably well hydrated and—by the simple measure of the mere existence of a water structure—the proton transport would have been predicted to be facile via that oversimplified measure. In this paradigm, however, the simple presence of water is not sufficient for inferring proton translocation, since an excess proton itself is able to drive hydration, and additionally, the water molecules themselves must be adequately connected to facilitate any successful proton transport.

Biophysical Reviews’ “Meet the Councilor Series”—a profile of Peter Pohl

It is my pleasure to write a few words to introduce myself to the readers of Biophysical Reviews as part of the “Meet the Councilor Series.” Currently, I am serving the second period as IUPAB councilor after having been elected first in 2017. Initially, I studied Biophysics in Moscow (Russia) and later Medicine in Halle (Germany). My scientific carrier took me from the Medical School of the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, via the Leibniz Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (Berlin) and the Institute for Biology at the Humboldt University (Berlin) to the Physics Department of the Johannes Kepler University in Linz (Austria). My key research interests lie in the molecular mechanisms of transport phenomena occurring at the lipid membrane, including (i) spontaneous and facilitated transport of water and other small molecules across membranes in reconstituted systems, (ii) proton migration along the membrane surface, (iii) protein translocation, and (iv) bilayer mechanics. Training of undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers from diverse academic disciplines has been—and shall remain—a consistent part of my work.

Proton Migration on the Boron Sheets Surface

Borophene is a two-dimensional allotrope of boron and it is also known as boron sheet. First it has been predicted theoretically in the mid-1990s, experimentally borophene was confirmed in 2015 when the structure was successfully synthesized in 2015. One of the key features of borophene is its strong anisotropy – the dependence of mechanical and electrical properties on direction. This phenomenon is not typical for 2D materials and has never been observed in 2D metals before. Borophene has the highest tensile strength of all known two-dimensional materials. In early works, it was found that the adsorption of a hydrogen atom on the surface of borophene is possible and the analyses of electronic density showed that atom H became a proton. Therefore, in this work, the authors have studied the proton migration over the surface of boron sheets of two types and have found the most energetically favorable path of proton motion. The electron-energy characteristics of the process of migration of a single proton along the surface of boron layers of two types are determined and it is established that in all the considered cases the proton is able to move along the surface almost barrier-free. The type of conductivity of pure boron layers and layers modified by a single proton is determined. In the A-type boron layer, the proton increases the band gap by 0.04 eV, and in the B-type layer, the band gap changes by 0.05 eV. It is proved that two-dimensional boron nanostructures can be considered as a new class of boron topological structure with proton conductivity.

A Quantitative Paradigm for Water Assisted Proton Transport Through Proteins and Other Confined Spaces

Water assisted proton transport through confined spaces influences many phenomena in biomolecular and nanomaterial systems. In such cases, the water molecules that fluctuate in the confined pathways provide the environment and the medium for the hydrated excess proton migration via Grotthuss shuttling. However, a definitive collective variable (CV) that accurately couples the hydration and the connectivity of the proton wire with the proton translocation has remained elusive. To address this important challenge-and thus to define a new quantitative paradigm for facile proton transport in confined spaces-a CV is derived in this work from graph theory, which is verified to accurately describe water wire formation and breakage coupled to the proton translocation in carbon nanotubes and the Cl-/H+ antiporter protein, ClC-ec1. Significant alterations in the conformations and thermodynamics of water wires are uncovered after introducing an excess proton into them. Large barriers in the proton translocation free energy profiles are found when water wires are defined to be disconnected according to the new CV, even though the pertinent confined space is still reasonably well hydrated and-by the simple measure of the mere existence of a water structure-the proton transport would have been predicted to be facile via that oversimplified measure. In this new paradigm, however, the simple presence of water is not sufficient for inferring proton translocation since an excess proton itself is able to drive hydration and, additionally, the water molecules themselves must be adequately connected to facilitate any successful proton transport.

Base-Mediated Claisen Rearrangement of CF3-Containing Bisallyl Ethers

We have previously clarified that the strongly electron-withdrawing CF3 group nicely affected the base-mediated proton migration reactions of CF3-containinig propargylic or allylic alcohols to afford the corresponding a,b-unsaturated or saturated ketones, respectively, which was applied this time to the Claisen rearrangement after O-allylation of the allylic alcohols, followed by isomerization to the corresponding allyl vinyl ethers, enabling the desired rearrangement in a tandem fashion, or in a stepwise manner where a palladium catalyst attained an excellent diastereoselectivity.

Synthesis and conductive performance about a kind of high-proton conductor, Dawson structure heteropoly acid H6P2W16Mo2O40 ⋅ 29H2O

A heteropoly acid (HPA) with Dawson structure, H6P2W[Formula: see text]Mo2O[Formula: see text]⋅29H2O, is synthesized with characterization and the investigation toward its proton conductive behavior. Actually, at 18[Formula: see text]C with 80% relative humidity (RH), H6P2W[Formula: see text]Mo2O[Formula: see text] ⋅ 29H2O displays the conductivity as 2.30 × 10[Formula: see text] S ⋅ cm[Formula: see text], indicating an excellent protonic conductor. The proton conduction activation energy is 32.19 kJ ⋅ mol[Formula: see text], implying proton migration following vehicle mechanism. During the measured range, higher temperature can boost the conductivity.