An organic-inorganic hybrid adsorbent was prepared and its application for the uptake of CuII ions from aqueous solutions was studied. The polymer network was composed of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS), and 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA), described as PDMS-net-P(VTMS-co-DMAEMA). The chemical groups, thermal stability and morphology of this hybrid adsorbent were characterized using techniques of attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In adsorption studies, saturation of the active sites of the material was observed at pH 5, after 3 days, with each gram of material capable of adsorbing 0.48 mmol of copper(II). The fractionary-order and Sips models provided the best fits to the experimental data in kinetic and equilibrium studies of the adsorption process, respectively. Moreover, an acceptable reusability was found for this cross-linked organic-inorganic hybrid adsorbent after usage-regeneration cycles without significantly losing its original activity.

Functionalized elastomeric networks were obtained via a polycondensation reaction between poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) containing Si(CH3)2OH as end groups and an imidazole- or benzimidazole-modified alkoxysilane. The structure of the polymeric materials was characterized via attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and solid-state 13C and 29Si NMR spectroscopy, which indicated the presence of silsesquioxane units that acted as nodes on the PDMS chains and linked the functional groups. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of the product indicated high thermal stability with an initial weight-loss temperature around 450 K. The capacity for the removal of copper(II) from aqueous solution was estimated from adsorption isotherms, yielding values of 35.74 and 66.09 mg g-1, respectively, for benzimidazole-and imidazole-functionalized materials. The major adsorption models were evaluated to fit the removal data of copper(II) and the model elaborated by Sips was determined to provide the best fit for both prepared materials.

There has been a considerable interest in coordination complexes of molecular nitrogen (N2), partly due to a possible relationship between such complexes and the nitrogen activation process in nature. The present paper describes the synthesis and infrared spectroscopic characterization of an iron-nitrogen derivative with ethylenediamine-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetate (edta) as an experiment for an undergraduate course. The topics covered here include synthesis, reactivity and spectroscopy.

Óxidos mistos de SiO2/CeO2 (designados como SC) contendo quantidades variáveis de céria, SC1 = 5,6, SC2 = 8,0 e SC3 = 13,0 (% em massa), foram preparados pelo método de processamento sol-gel e obtidos como sólidos amorfos possuindo áreas superficiais específicas de SC1 = 463, SC2 = 474 e SC3 = 460 m²g-1. Íons fosfatos foram imobilizados na superfície destes sólidos, através da ligação química Ce-O-P, pela imersão de SC em uma solução de ácido fosfórico. Este procedimento produziu sólidos com as seguintes quantidades de P adsorvidas na superfície (em % atômica): SCP1 = 0,60, SCP2 = 0,71 e SCP3 = 1,63. A energia de ligação P 2p3/2, obtida por XPS, e o único pico observado em -10 ppm, por NMR de 31P, revelaram que o fosfato adsorvido na superfície é a espécie H2PO4-. Utilizando-se piridina como sonda molecular, somente sítios ácidos de Brønsted foram detectados. A determinação das quantidades destes sítios ácidos, feita pela adsorção de NH3 gasosa sobre a superfície, revelou os seguintes valores para cada sólido tratado com o íon fosfato: SCP1 = 0,37, SCP2 = 0,43 e SCP3 = 0,51 mmol g-1.

SiO2/CeO2 mixed oxide (designated as SC) with variable ceria contents, SC1 = 5.6, SC2 = 8.0 and SC3 = 13.0 wt%, prepared by the sol-gel processing method, were obtained as amorphous solids possessing specific surface areas of SC1 = 463, SC2 = 474 and SC3 = 460 m²g-1. Phosphate ions were immobilized onto the surface of these solids through Ce-O-P bonding by immersing SC into a phosphoric acid solution. Solids with the following P contents were obtained (in atom %): SCP1 = 0.60, SCP2 = 0.71 and SCP3 = 1.63. The binding energy peak P 2p3/2 at ca. 134.0 eV, observed by XPS, and the 31P MAS NMR single peak, observed at ca. -10 ppm, revealed that H2PO4- is the species present on the surface of the matrices. Using pyridine as a molecular probe, only Brønsted acid sites could be detected. The amount of these acid sites, determined by ammonia gas adsorption on the surface, reached the following values for each phosphate-treated solid: SCP1 = 0.37, SCP2 = 0.43 and SCP3 = 0.51 mmol g-1.