Evolutionary structure searches predict two hitherto unknown phases of KCl that are the most stable in the pressure regime of 200-600 GPa. I41/amd-KCl, which has the lowest enthalpy between ∼200-350 GPa, can be thought of as being composed of two three-connected nets. This structure can be compared with that of the Cs-IV electride (Cs(+)e(-)): the potassium ions assume the positions of the cesi...

Ion-exchange reactions are commonly used to develop novel metastable electrode materials for alkali-ion batteries that cannot be synthesized using direct chemical reactions. In this study, the electrochemical K Na ion-exchange reaction mechanisms in a layered KxCoO2 cathode as model system were investigated operando and ex situ structure characterization techniques. Some level of ions was obser...

The hydration of the alkali metal ions in aqueous solution has been studied by large angle X-ray scattering (LAXS) and double difference infrared spectroscopy (DDIR). The structures of the dimethyl sulfoxide solvated alkali metal ions in solution have been determined to support the studies in aqueous solution. The results of the LAXS and DDIR measurements show that the sodium, potassium, rubidi...

A novel 21-residue peptide incorporating six fluorinated amino acids was prepared. It was designed to fold into an amphiphilic alpha helical structure of nanoscale length with one hydrophobic face and one fluorinated face. The formation of a fluorous interface serves as the main vector for the formation of a superstructure in a bilayer membrane. Fluorescence assays showed this ion channel's abi...

Alkaline treatment method was used to ext ract collagen. Sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and circular dichroism (CD) spectra revealed that the alkali-soluble pigskin collagen (ASPC) retained the polypeptide chains and triple helix conformat ion. The amino acid profiles showed no major deviation from the characteristic collagen composition. Both of the denat...

Anion binding by neutral hosts in organic solvents can be inhibited by the presence of alkali metal cations. The binding inhibition is due to salt ion-pairing which increases in the order Cs(+) < K(+) < Na(+). The binding inhibition can be reversed by using heteroditopic hosts that simultaneously bind both the metal cation and the anion. The largest cation-induced enhancements are observed with...

The ion size matters: the structures of corannulene monoanions crystallized with Cs(+) and Rb(+) ions in the presence of [18]crown-6 reveal the intrinsic binding preferences of alkali metals and allow evaluation of the bowl deformation caused by negative charge distribution and metal binding. The large cesium cation coordinates exclusively to the concave face of C(20) H(10)(-), whereas the smal...

Starting from recent experimental and theoretical results on the optical absorption of lithium clusters, we reexamine some effects of the angular-momentum dependence of the electron-ion interaction, a necessary ingredient of accurate valence-only atoms. Our theoretical results are compared to a variety of optical data for alkali-metal atoms, clusters, and bulk solids, and illustrate interesting...

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