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AIMS AND OBJECTIVES To compare the self-perceived preparedness, knowledge, comfort and confidence of Australian Registered Nurses when caring for people with ID and/or ASD across contexts of practice: primary care and community, intensive care, acute hospital, emergency department, paediatrics and ID/ASD. BACKGROUND There is limited research comparing nursing preparedness and competency when caring for people with intellectual disability (ID) and/or autism (ASD) across nursing contexts of practice. A greater understanding of the differed educational preparedness, confidence and comfort across contexts of practice can aid the development of tailored educational programmes to improve nursing capacity to care for this cohort. DESIGN Cross-sectional descriptive study. METHODS A descriptive survey tool of registered nurses (n = 69.3). Comparative inferential analysis was undertaken between the independent categorical variable of six nursing contexts of practice across several dependent variables including age, years since registration, educational content and exposure, knowledge, comfort and confidence. This cross-sectional study was undertaken according to the STROBE Statement checklist of items. RESULTS Occupying an ID/ASD nursing role was significantly associated with higher reported levels of educational preparedness, professional development and postgraduate education relevant to caring for people with ID and/or ASD. Levels of self-reported knowledge of care issues, confidence and comfort when undertaking healthcare tasks was significantly associated with the context of practice, with nurses working in ID/ASD settings reporting the highest levels across all variables. CONCLUSION The findings of the study highlight an association between greater educational exposure to content relevant to working with people with ID/ASD and subsequently working in that field. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE This study has highlighted that professional development programmes aiming to improve nursing capacity to care for people with ID and/or ASD, should be informed by and address differing gaps in confidence, comfort and educational preparedness across nursing contexts of practice.

To survey the educational experience of Registered Nurses in Australia, at undergraduate, post graduate and continuing professional development levels.It has been previously demonstrated that nurse...

People with intellectual disability and/or autism are likely to be in hospital more often, for longer, and have poorer health outcomes. Few audit tools exist to identify their barriers in mainstream healthcare environments. This study aimed to identify evidence of audit characteristics of healthcare contexts specifically for people with intellectual disability and/or autism, for conceptual development of an auditing framework. A scoping review of evaluations of healthcare environments was completed in January 2023. Findings were presented using the PAGER framework. Of the sixteen studies identified, most originated in the UK, nine focused on intellectual disability, four on autism, and three were concerned with mixed diagnosis. Six domains for auditing healthcare environments were identified: care imperatives, communication to individuals, understanding communication from individuals, providing supportive environments of care, supporting positive behaviour, and actions to make things go well. Further research is recommended to refine an audit framework.

Internationally healthcare organisations and governments are grappling with the issue of upskilling healthcare workforces in relation to digital health. Significant research has been undertaken in relation to documenting essential digital health capability requirements for the workforce. In 2019 the Australian Digital Health Agency funded work by the Australasian Institute of Digital Health to develop a National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health Capability Framework. This paper describes the methodological approach used in the development of the Framework.

Internationally healthcare organisations and governments are grappling with the issue of upskilling healthcare workforces in relation to digital health. Significant research has been undertaken in relation to documenting essential digital health capability requirements for the workforce. In 2019 the Australian Digital Health Agency funded work by the Australasian Institute of Digital Health to develop a National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health Capability Framework. This paper describes the methodological approach used in the development of the Framework.

Given that prevention is crucial to long healthy life and restraining escalating health care costs, this study examines social media and networking (SM&N) needs among health consumers regarding preventive health. Results showed the most important SM&N needs included: education about health issues, connecting to a support group, knowing the implications of health condition, opportunities and understanding of preventive health care, and tracking physical activity. Among demographic groups women, younger aged groups, and African Americans considered SM&N needs to be more important. Homemakers indicated greatest need for information about health issues and facilitating interaction with others. Full-time employees placed greater importance on managing their own health.

The pioneering work of Ulster Television (UTV) in the field of adult education television is among the most neglected chapters of UK regional broadcasting history. Between July 1962 and August 1963 the station produced 73 televised lectures in association with Queen's University, Belfast. UTV's initial effort, Midnight Oil (1962), was the first ever adult education series on UK television, while its sequel, The Inquiring Mind (1963), explored the medium's potential as an illustrative educational tool. Both series prefigured key aspects of the television broadcasts which supported the subsequent Open University. Their audience ratings also challenged established wisdom about the potential reach of televised adult education. Despite their innovative nature, UTV's series have been marginalised within accounts of the origins of adult education television in the UK. Such narratives have tended to focus on later English productions and generally identify Anglia Television's Dawn University (1963) as the first precursor to the Open University. One account, Sendall (1983) , even questioned the veracity of the UTV's claim to have brought adult education television to the UK. This article establishes the extent and nature of UTV's contribution to adult education television before examining the factors which may have led to the marginalisation of its role within narratives surrounding UK broadcasting history.

Insufficient evidence: Evaluating Dr Who's lost adventures Dr Who: The Enemy of The World (Barry Letts UK 1967-8). BBC Worldwide 2013. Region 2. 1.33:1. £20.42. Dr Who: The Web of Fear (Douglas Camfield UK 1968). BBC Worldwide 2014. Region 2. 1.33:1. £20.42.The discipline of television archiving resembles, in some respects, a giant treasure hunt. Besides caring for existing content, archivists are engaged in a perpetual effort to recover material discarded by their predecessors when broadcasts were viewed as mere ephemera. As late as the 1980s, thousands of television programmes were destroyed each year by UK broadcasters who wished to minimise costs by reusing the videotapes they were recorded upon. The lack of value placed on programmes is reflected by the term, ' junking', used to describe their destruction. Episodes from many long-running videotaped programmes were lost during this process, including the majority of Doctor Who episodes broadcast between 1963 and 1974.While fans of most series have been content to let the professionals do their work, Doctor Who fandom contracted a collective case of 'archive fever' once the destruction of episodes from the series became public knowledge in 1981. The revelation that 136 episodes from the programme were missing led to a substantial realignment within fandom, which became 'more focused on the programme's past glories of the 1960s and 1970s, rather than new material that was being offered up by the BBC' (Molesworth 11). This transformation matched the symptoms of what Derrida later termed 'archive fever': 'It is to burn with a passion. It is never to rest, interminably, from searching for the archive right where it slips away. It is to run after the archive' (91). The compulsive thirst to reconstruct the BBC's Doctor Who archive has resulted in some significant successes and surprising rediscoveries, most recently the retrieval of two serials from the programme's fifth season, The Enemy of the World (23 Dec 1967-27 Jan 1968) and The Web of Fear (3 Feb-9 Mar 1968), from a Nigerian film store.The films were located by Philip Morris, a Doctor Who fan who has been conducting a search of African archives for missing UK television programmes. The intensity of the 'archive fever' developed in some circles is such that their return was a clandestine affair due to the risk that impatient fans would disrupt the retrieval process. Unfortunately, the BBC's desire to quench their thirst for lost archives has had a negative impact on these DVD releases, which lack any of the special features associated with previous Doctor Who titles. The need to satisfy demands for the earliest possible release date mean there was not sufficient time to prepare any.This is unfortunate as the story behind the recovery warrants its own special feature. Although the BBC produced Doctor Who on videotape, it also produced 16mm film prints for worldwide distribution because that format was cheaper to transport and could be handled by even the most primitive of stations. The BBC retained ownership of these prints and foreign broadcasters were supposed to return or destroy them after use. The Nigerian prints escaped this process because the country's broadcasting services were restructured in the 1970s. The regional station that screened the two serials merged with other broadcasters to form the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA). The NTA centralised its archives in Lagos but some of its inherited regional archive stores were missed during this process, meaning that their contents lay undisturbed for over 35 years. Unfortunately, the third episode of The Web of Fear was missing from the material Morris found. While this has generated conspiracy theories within fandom, such instances are not uncommon in moving-image archiving. The fact is that individual reels do go missing due to reasons such as decomposition, misfiling or accidental disposal. Indeed, all major film archives hold some incomplete films within their collections. …

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify pre‐loan factors that ultimately impact post‐loan risk ratings of small business in southern Arkansas.Design/methodology/approachOrdinary least squares linear regression analysis is conducted on small business data to determine which factors contribute to higher post‐loan credit risk ratings.FindingsBusinesses with records of loan repayment and personal financial assets at stake are more likely to be assigned better credit risk ratings. Additional analysis indicates that businesses with no past due collections or judgments, having good trade references, a profitable business, and not operating in a volatile industry are much more likely to result in loans ultimately receiving good post‐loan performance marks and lower risk ratings.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper has a small sample of firms in a historically economically depressed region. While the relevant factors seem intuitive they may not apply to other regions and/or larger businesses.Practical implicationsResults of this paper may be interesting to loan officers of banks and other lenders, particularly in this region given the current financial crisis.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to analyze actual data from small businesses in southern Arkansas. The results may help the organizations attempting to aid economic development in this region.

For the first time, the hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis of a range of disulfides has been achieved over a supported palladium catalyst using hydrogen under relatively benign conditions. These unexpected results demonstrate that it is possible to avoid the poisoning of the catalyst by either the nitrogen-containing groups or the sulfur species, allowing both efficient reaction and recycling of the catalyst under the proper conditions (e.g., at low temperatures). A slight loss in activity was found on recycling; however, the catalyst activity can be recovered using hydrogen pretreatment. The reaction mechanism for the hydrogenolysis and hydrogenation of ortho -, meta -, and para -dinitrodiphenyldisulfide to the corresponding aminothiophenol has been elucidated. Density functional theory calculations were used to investigate the adsorption mode of the dinitrodiphenyldisulfides; a clear dependence on adsorption geometry was found regarding whether the molecule is cleaved at the S–S bond before the reduction of the nitro group or vice versa. This study demonstrates the versatility of these catalysts for the hydrogenation/hydrogenolysis of sulfur-containing molecules, which normally are considered poisons, and will extend their use to a new family of substrates.

A 5% Pt/graphite catalyst has been sintered in 5% H2/Ar at 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, and 1000 K and cinchonidine-modified samples used to catalyse enantioselective ethyl pyruvate hydrogenation at 293 K and 30 bar pressure. Changes in catalyst morphology on sintering have been investigated by high resolution electron microscopy and cyclic voltammetry. The as-received catalyst contained small Pt particles aggregated into clusters. As the temperature was raised these clusters disaggregated; the resulting small particles grew, first showing enhanced crystallinity and better defined step and terrace topography, and later progressive faceting. Ultimately the particles were large and hexagonal. These processes were accompanied by a loss of surface area and a reduction in catalytic activity. Enantiomeric excess rose from 43% for as-received material to 63% for catalyst sintered at 700 K, and declined for higher sintering temperatures. The particle size distribution for the optimal catalyst peaked at 8 nm and most particles were substantially faceted. Chiral performance is interpreted in terms of enhanced enantioselectivity provided by edge sites in the Pt surface. Modification of chiral kink sites by alkaloid, to give diastereomeric enantioselective sites may have further enhanced the enantioselectivity. The investigation provides clear objectives for future catalyst design.

A series of bimetallic Ru-containing monometallic and bimetallic catalysts were prepared and tested for their activity for the hydrogenation of 2-butanone to 2-butanol at 30 °C and 3 bar H 2 . RuPt bimetallic catalysts were the most active for the reaction, with a ratio of 5 wt% Ru:1 wt% Pt on activated carbon (AC) found to be optimum. The activity of this bimetallic catalyst was more than double that of the sum of the activities of the monometallic Ru and Pt catalysts, providing evidence of a “bimetallic” effect. Structural analysis of the bimetallic catalysts revealed that they consisted of clusters of particles of the order of 1–2 nm. Extended X-ray absorption fine structure analysis showed that there were two types of particle on the surface of the bimetallic RuPt catalyst, specifically monometallic Ru and bimetallic RuPt particles. For the bimetallic particles, it was possible to fit the data with a model in which a Ru core of 1.1 nm is enclosed by two Pt-rich layers, the outer layer containing only 13 at% Ru. Pretreatment of the monometallic and bimetallic catalysts in hydrogen had a significant effect on the activity. Both the bimetallic and monometallic Ru-based catalysts showed a trend of decreasing activity with increasing temperature of prereduction in hydrogen. This loss of activity was almost fully reversible by exposure of the catalysts to air after reduction. The changing activity with exposure to different gas phase environments could not be attributed to changes in particle size or surface composition. It is proposed that the introduction of hydrogen results in a gradual smoothing of the surface and loss of defect sites; this process being reversible on introduction of air. These defect sites are particularly important for the dissociative adsorption of hydrogen, potentially the rate-determining step in this reaction.

The steps (Pt{111} × {111} and Pt{100} × {111}) and terraces (Pt{100} and Pt{111}) of a 5% Pt/graphite catalyst have been identified by cyclic voltammetry and their contributions to rate and enantioselectivity in high-pressure ethyl pyruvate hydrogenation assessed. Bi preferentially adsorbed from solution onto the platinum surface of the catalyst at step and {100} terrace sites. Further increasing Bi coverage led to the gradual occupation of {111} terrace sites, followed by the formation of Bi multilayers. In contrast, S adsorbed from solution onto terrace and step sites simultaneously but with the {111} × {111} step sites being strongly disfavoured. Pt/graphite, Bi–Pt/graphite, and S–Pt/graphite catalysts have been modified by cinchonidine and used to catalyse the enantioselective hydrogenation of ethyl pyruvate to ethyl lactate at 30 bar and 293 K. The effect of increasing Bi coverage at step sites was to increase activity substantially but reduce enantiomeric excess from 43%(R) to 17%(R), whereas the effect of increasing S adsorption at terrace sites was to decrease activity and increase enantiomeric excess to 52%(R). These unexpected contrary effects on activity and enantioselectivity were confirmed for Bi adsorption by repeating the experiments using the standard reference catalyst 6.3% Pt/silica (EUROPT-1), for which enantiomeric excess fell linearly from 73%(R) to 20%(R) as Bi loading was increased. The well-documented rate enhancement associated with catalyst modification by cinchonidine has been reassessed in the light of this further rate enhancement by Bi adsorption, and its origin has been attributed to inhibition of ethyl pyruvate dimerisation/polymerisation by the strongly basic alkaloid. Rate enhancement is now attributed to reaction occurring at a normal rate at an enhanced number of sites, not (as previously proposed) to a reaction occurring at an enhanced rate at a constant number of sites. The opposing effects of Bi and S on rate and enantioselectivity are consistent with (i) preferential initiation of pyruvate polymerisation at step sites, (ii) inhibition of propagation of this polymerisation by alkaloid, and (iii) a higher enantiomeric excess in cinchonidine-modified near-step sites than in similarly modified terrace sites. These results have important implications for future catalyst design.

The liquid phase selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde to cinnamyl alcohol has been carried out over a graphite-supported iridium catalyst. The effect of reaction parameters such as temperature, pressure, concentration of reactant, the effect of addition of product to the feed and pre-reduction of the catalyst were studied. In situ pre-reduction of the catalyst with hydrogen had a very significant enhancing effect on the conversion of cinnamaldehyde and selectivity of the catalyst to cinnamyl alcohol. Kinetic analysis of the pre-reduced catalyst showed that the reaction is zero order with respect to cinnamaldehyde and first order with respect to hydrogen. The reaction follows an Arrhenius behaviour with an activation energy of 37 kJ mol−1. Detailed analysis of the reaction showed that hydrogenation of the CC double bond to give hydrocinnamaldehyde predominantly occurred at low conversions of cinnamaldehyde (

A series of supported gold catalysts (0.25, 0.5, 1.0 wt% Au/graphite) have been investigated for the oxidation of glycerol and propan-1,2-diol. The 1 wt% Au/graphite catalyst is found to give 100% selectivity to the mono acid product, isolated as the sodium salt, as long as NaOH is present. The catalysts are characterized by TEM and cyclic voltammetry. By TEM, active catalysts all comprise fairly broad-size distributions (5–50 nm diameter) for the gold nanoparticles, although most are ca. 25 nm in diameter. An inactive 1 wt% Au/graphite is shown to have considerably larger particle sizes (>50 nm) and this indicates that there may be an optimum particle size for the desired catalysis. Characterization using cyclic voltammetry of active Au/graphite catalysts carried out in NaOH reveals the presence of an oxide species that may be responsible for the observed catalysis. In contrast, the inactive 1 wt% Au/graphite catalyst shows no oxidation in the cyclic voltammetry experiments.

The use of platinum group metal (PGM) catalysts for the selective oxidation of various primary and secondary alcohols under mild conditions is described. High throughput screening (HTS) techniques have been used to identify trends in catalyst activity and product selectivity. Using air as oxidant and water as solvent 5% Pt, 1% Bi/C has been identified as an efficient catalyst for the transformation of 2-octanol to 2-octanone and 1-octanol to octanoic acid. To improve aldehyde selectivity the promotion of Pt/Al2O3 and Ru/C catalysts has been investigated. The use of H2O2 as oxidant has been demonstrated as a suitable alternative to air.

The oxidation of aqueous solutions of glycerol is described and discussed for Pd, Pt and Au nanoparticles supported on graphite and activated carbon. The oxidation in a batch reactor at 60 °C and 1 bar pressure using air as oxidant was initially investigated. Under these conditions, supported Pd and Pt catalysts give some selectivity to glyceric acid, but the main reaction products are considered to be non-desired C1 by-products, e.g. CO2, HCHO and HCOOH. In addition, under these conditions, supported Au catalysts were totally inactive. Using an autoclave with pure oxygen at 3 bar pressure gave a significant improvement in reactivity and, for Pt and Au catalysts, the formation of C1 by-products was eliminated when NaOH was added. In particular, it was noted that, in the absence of NaOH, the Au/C catalyst was inactive. For 1 wt.% Au/graphite or activated carbon, 100% selectivity to glyceric acid at high conversion was readily achieved. The role of the base is discussed and it is proposed that the base aids the initial dehydrogenation via H-abstraction of one of the primary OH groups of glycerol and, in this way, the rate limiting step in the oxidation process is overcome.

The action of chiral modifiers like cinchonine and cinchonidine in facilitating enationselectivity in heterogeneous catalysis is investigated using a combination of electrochemical and scanning probe methods. The surface chirality of corner kink sites is suggested as being crucial for chirality recognition at supported catalyst nanoparticles. Other aspects of chirality in relation to one, two, three and four dimensions are also discussed.

The Friedel-Crafts acylation of anisole (AN) with acetic anhydride (AA) and the Fries rearrangement of phenyl acetate in the liquid phase catalyzed by bulk and silica-supported heteropoly acids (HPA), mainly H 3 PW 12 O 40 (PW), have been studied. In anisole acylation, PW exhibits very high activity, yielding up to 98% para and 2-4% ortho isomer of methoxyacetophenone (MOAP) at 90-110°C and an AN/AA molar ratio of 10-20. The reaction appears to be heterogeneously catalyzed; no contribution of homogeneous catalysis by HPA was observed. PW is almost 100 times more active than the zeolite H-Beta, which is in agreement with the higher acid strength of HPA. The PW catalyst is reusable, although gradual decline of activity was observed due to the coking of the catalyst. The acylation is inhibited by the product because of adsorption of MOAP on the catalyst surface. In contrast to anisole, the acylation of toluene with HPA is far less efficient than that with H-Beta. Evidence is provided that the activity of HPA in toluene acylation is inhibited by preferential adsorption of acetic anhydride on the catalyst. It is demonstrated that PW is a very efficient and reusable catalyst for the Fries rearrangement of phenyl acetate in homogeneous or heterogeneous liquid-phase systems at 100-150°C.

The Friedel–Crafts acylation of anisole (AN) with acetic anhydride (AA) in liquid phase catalysed by bulk and silica-supported heteropoly acids (HPA), mainly H3PW12O40 (PW), has been studied. The PW exhibit very high activity, yielding up to 98% para and 2–4% ortho isomer of methoxyacetophenone (MOAP) at 90–110°C and an AN/AA molar ratio of 10–20. Catalyst pretreatment is essential; the activity passes a maximum at a pretreatment temperature of 150°C. The acylation of anisole appears to be heterogeneously catalysed; no contribution of homogeneous catalysis by HPA was observed. PW is almost a factor of 100 more active than the zeolite H-beta, which is in agreement with the higher acid strength of HPA. The PW catalyst is reusable, although gradual decline of activity was observed due to the coking of the catalyst. The acylation is inhibited by product because of adsorption of MOAP on the catalyst surface. The ratio of adsorption coefficients of MOAP and anisole has been found to be 37 at 90°C. Anisole acylation is first order in acetic anhydride, the order in catalyst is 0.66, and the apparent activation energy is 41 kJ/mol in the temperature range of 70–110°C. In contrast to anisole, the acylation of toluene with HPA is far less efficient than that with H-beta. Evidence is provided that the activity of HPA in toluene acylation is inhibited by preferential adsorption of acetic anhydride on the catalyst.

This paper summarizes the objectives and status for the Future-responsive Access to Space Technologies (FAST) Airframe and Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) Ground Experiment (AFGE) program. The FAST AFGE program is an Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) project focused on demonstrating the integration of composite structures technologies for application on future space launch vehicle airframes. Technology advancement of integrated composite structures is being performed by development and testing of an integrated airframe ground test article to reduce risks for future responsive access to space. The FAST AFGE test article consists of a liner-less, load bearing, composite cryogenic propellant tank with an integral common bulkhead and integral skirts. The composite propellant tank serves as the airframe fuselage and is integrated with lifting surfaces, thrust structure, thermal protection, and structural health monitoring capability. The primary focus of this paper includes a mass properties assessment for the major composite structural components of the AFGE integrated test article, the common bulkhead tank and the wing box carry-through structure. Structural design details are summarized including predicted mass properties of the major structural components compared to measured weights. Test article weights are used to derive total airframe mass properties for a Reference Flight System (RFS) reusable booster as a measure of structural efficiency. A comparison of structural efficiency is made with goals and thresholds for the FAST AFGE program. The test plan for the FAST AFGE integrated test article is summarized including mass property measurements, cryogenic fill with pressurization cycling, and mechanical/thermal load tests to demonstrate reliability, reusability, and potential nonlinearity to reduce airframe risks for future space launch vehicles.

Shoppers have many avenues on where to purchase products, one of which is online. Many online retailers do not apply state and local sales taxes on products they sell, thus allowing them to sell their products cheaper than can be found at local retailers. If the physical presence nexus rule is altered and Internet sales tax is applied for all online transactions, it could potentially change online shopping. The results of a survey of 154 persons are presented, discussing the potential impact of the changing of the physical presence nexus rule and requiring Internet sales tax.

The rapid developments in technology have brought increased convenience, but at the price of loss of privacy. Consumers should be aware of the potential threat to their personal information and should learn the facts and take steps to protect themselves.

Glycerol is oxidised to glyceric acid with 100% selectivity using either 1% Au/charcoal or 1% Au/graphite catalyst under mild reaction conditions (60 °C, 3 h, water as solvent).

Calculation of system reliability of large-scale aircraft structure is frequently intractable due to the potentially thousands of failure locations, hundreds of load cases and multiple failure modes. Consequently, a probability-based filtering technique – referred to as the Correlation-Conditional Probability (CCP) filtering method – is being developed to complement engineering judgment by algorithmically determining the failure locations, load cases, and failure modes that will contribute to the estimation of the system reliability, thereby significantly reducing the complexity of the system reliability analysis. These locations may also serve as key monitoring points for structural certification and structural health monitoring. In this paper are reported the metrics used to filter the multiple failure locations and a demonstration of the method on a plate bending model.

[Abstract] This paper summarizes the development and flight results of the X-53, better known as the Active Aeroelastic Wing (AAW) F/A-18 Flight Research Program.. Goals of the AAW Flight Research Program were to demonstrate, in full scale, key AAW parameters and to measure the aerodynamic, structural, and flight control characteristics associated with AAW. The AAW program’s technical content is discussed and some lessons learned and conclusions are described.

The writings of the German scholar Wolfgang Ernst have become increasingly influential within media archaeology in recent years. His work adopts a strongly techno-centric approach and identifies archives as important study centres. Paradoxically, practical archival evidence is sometimes lacking within Ernst’s output. This paper uses evidence from a recent television archive project to examine aspects of Ernst’s approach. This exercise sought to uncover source material relating to a Northern Irish current affairs series, Counterpoint (1978-96), which had been badly affected by videotape wiping. Its methodology utilised a strongly materialistic approach to successfully recover ‘lost’ archival artefacts.

Oxidation is an important method for the synthesis of chemical intermediates in the manufacture of high-tonnage commodities, high-value fine chemicals, agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals: but oxidations are often inefficient. The introduction of catalytic systems using oxygen from air is preferred for 'green' processing. Gold catalysis is now showing potential in selective redox processes, particularly for alcohol oxidation and the direct synthesis of hydrogen peroxide. However, a major challenge that persists is the synthesis of an epoxide by the direct electrophilic addition of oxygen to an alkene. Although ethene is epoxidized efficiently using molecular oxygen with silver catalysts in a large-scale industrial process, this is unique because higher alkenes can only be effectively epoxidized using hydrogen peroxide, hydroperoxides or stoichiometric oxygen donors. Here we show that nanocrystalline gold catalysts can provide tunable active catalysts for the oxidation of alkenes using air, with exceptionally high selectivity to partial oxidation products ( approximately 98%) and significant conversions. Our finding significantly extends the discovery by Haruta that nanocrystalline gold can epoxidize alkenes when hydrogen is used to activate the molecular oxygen; in our case, no sacrificial reductant is needed. We anticipate that our finding will initiate attempts to understand more fully the mechanism of oxygen activation at gold surfaces, which might lead to commercial exploitation of the high redox activity of gold nanocrystals.

The selective reduction of molecular oxygen with excess H(2) in the presence of alkenes was achieved successfully for the first time: silver supported on alumina catalysts exhibited full conversion of O(2) at temperature as low as 50 degrees C, while the conversion of ethene or propene remained essentially zero up to 250 degrees C.