Membranes are an efficient way to treat emulsified heavy metal-based wastewater, but they generally come with a trade-off between permeability and selectivity. In this research, the amine and sulphonic groups on the inner and outer surface of mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) were first modified by a chemical approach. Then, MSNs with amine and sulphonic groups were utilized as new inorganic nanofiller to fabricate mixed matrix polysulfone (PSU) nanocomposite membranes using the classical phase inversion approach. The resultant nanoparticles and membranes were characterized by their physico-chemical characteristics as well as determination of pure water permeability along with cadmium and zinc ion removal. Embedding nanoparticles resulted in a significant rise in the water permeability as a result of changes in the surface properties and porosity of the membrane. Furthermore, the efficiency of developed membranes to remove cadmium and zinc was significantly improved by more than 90% due to the presence of functional groups on nanoparticles. The functionalized-MSNs/PSU nanocomposite membrane has the potential to be an effective industrial effluent removal membrane.

Two novel complexes, [(C₇H₁₀NO₂)CdCl₃]_n(I) and [(C₇H₉NO₂)CuCl₂],havebeen synthesized and characterized. Single crystal X-ray diffraction revealed that in compound (I), 2,6-dimethanol pyridinium acts as a monodentate ligand through the O atom of the hydroxyl group. Contrarily, the 2,6-dimethanol pyridine ligand interacts tridentately with the Cu(II) ion via the nitrogen atoms and the two oxygen (O, O’) atoms of the two hydroxyl groups. The structure’s intermolecular interactions were studied using contact enrichment ratios and Hirshfeld surfaces. Following metal coordination, numerous hydrogen connections between entities and parallel displacement stacking interactions between pyridine rings dictate the crystal packing of both compounds. The aromatic cycles generate layers in the crystal for both substances. Powder XRD measurements confirmed the crystalline sample phase purity. SEM confirmed the surface homogeneity, whereas EDX semi-quantitative analysis corroborated the composition. IR spectroscopy identified vibrational absorption bands, while optical UV-visible absorption spectroscopy investigated optical properties. The thermal stability of the two materials was tested using TG-DTA.

Using acid–base assays and simple slow evaporation method at ambient temperature, we were successful in producing a novel salt with the chemical formula (C₅H₁₄N₂)[HgCl₄]·H₂O. According to single-crystal X-ray diffraction data, the crystal packing was regulated by H-bonds and by Coulomb interactions (also called electrostatic interactions) between distinct entities, which formed a 3D network. The 2D fingerprint plots and the Hirshfeld surface were utilized to examine the effect of intermolecular interactions. FTIR spectroscopy, PL spectroscopy, thermal analysis, and electrical conductivity experiments were also carried out, and the antioxidant activity was tested.

In this paper, a new organic salt bis(2-ethyl-6-methylanilinium)tetrachloromercurate (II)) has been synthesized, characterized, and studied theoretically using DFT. The synthesized compound was found to crystallize in the monoclinic system with space group P21/c with the following unit cell parameters a=23.1696(2), b=25.7951 (6), c=7.5980 (4) Å, β=96.5790 (11)°, and Z=8. Its atomic arrangement can be described asmutually alternating organic and inorganic entities in the (ab) plane. The cohesion is achieved through N-HCl hydrogen bonds and ππ stacking interacting neighboring aromatic cations. The PXRD was carried out. The intermolecular interactions in the crystal packing were investigated using Hirshfeld surface analysis. Its associated 2D fingerprint plots revealed their contribution quantitatively. High-resolution images of the surface were obtained by the SEM technique, and the EDX spectrum assured the existence of all nonhydrogen atoms. The infrared spectrum was used to gain more information about vibrational modes. Analysis of thermal differential and gravimetric (TGA/DTA) shows two-phase transitions observed at 362 and 394K. AC conductivity measurements were performed to confirm these two-phase transitions.

In this paper, we report on the chemical preparation, crystal details, vibrational, optical, and thermal behavior, and antibacterial activity of a new non-centrosymmetric compound: 4-tert-butyl-pyridinium tetrachloridocuprate. X-ray diffraction analysis shows that the structure has a 3D network made up of C–H…Cl and N–H…Cl H-bonds, and [CuCl₄]²⁻ anions have a shape halfway between a tetrahedron and a square planar structure in this compound’s monoclinic system. Hirshfeld surface analysis was used to explain the nature and extent of intermolecular interactions, highlighting the importance of the H-bonds and the C–H⋯π interactions in the structure’s stabilization. Additionally, SEM/EDX experiments were conducted. The powder X-ray diffraction investigation at room temperature validated the material purity. Moreover, the different functional groups were identified using FT-IR spectroscopy. In addition, the optical properties were investigated using UV-Vis absorption. The thermal stability of (C₉H₁₄N)₂[CuCl₄] was performed by TGA-DTA. The bactericidal potency of the title compound was surveyed.

The chemical preparation, crystal structure, Hirshfeld surface analysis and spectroscopic characterization of the novel cadmium (II) 2,5-dichloro-p-phenylendiaminium decachlorotricadmate(II) hexahydrate complex, (C₆H₈Cl₂N₂)₂[Cd₃Cl₁₀]·6H₂O, has been reported. The atomic arrangement can be described as built up by an anionic framework, formed by edge-sharing [CdCl₆]²⁻ octahedra in linear polymeric chains spreading along the a-axis, while the organic cations surround these latters. The inspection of the Hirshfeld surface analysis helps to discuss the strength of hydrogen bonds and to quantify the inter-contacts, which reveal that H…Cl/Cl…H (38.9%), H…H (13.9%), and Cd…Cl/Cl…Cd (12.4%) are the main interactions that govern the crystal packing of the studied structure. SEM/EDXwas carried out and the powder XRD confirmed the good crystallinity of the material. FT-IR and the DFT calculation reveal the good correlation between the experimental and the theoretical wavenumbers. The HOMO-LUMO energy gap was used to predict the electric conductivity of the compound. Finally, the thermal TGA/DTA analysis shows stability until 380 K.