A Direct Formaldehyde Fuel Cell for CO2 -Emission Free Co-generation of Electrical Energy and Valuable Chemical/Hydrogen.

Converting carbon-based molecular fuels into electricity efficiently and cleanly without emitting CO2 remains a challenge. Conventional fuel cells using noble metals as anode catalysts often suffer performance degradation due to CO poisoning and a host of problems associated with CO2 production. This study provides a CO2 -emission-free direct formaldehyde fuel cell. It enables a flow of electricity while producing H2 and valuable formate. Unlike conventional carbon-based molecules electrooxidation, formaldehyde 1-electron oxidation is performed on the Cu anode with high selectivity, thus generating formate and H2 without undergoing CO2 pathway. In addition, the fuel cell produces 0.62 Nm3 H2 and 53 mol formate per 1 kWh of electricity generated, with an open circuit voltage of up to 1 V and a peak power density of 350 mW cm-2 . This study puts forward a zero-carbon solution for the efficient utilization of carbon-based molecule fuels that generates electricity, hydrogen and valuable chemicals in synchronization.

Surface Spin Enhanced High Stable NiCo2 S4 for Energy-Saving Production of H2 from Water/Methanol Coelectrolysis at High Current Density.

Nickel based materials are promising electrocatalysts to produce hydrogen from water in alkaline media. However, the stability is of great challenge, limiting its practical material functions. Herein, a new technique for electro-deposition flower-like NiCo2 S4 nanosheets on carbon-cloth (CC@NiCo2 S4 ) is proposed for energy-saving production of H2 from water/methanol coelectrolysis at high current density by constructing array architectures and regulating surface magnetism. The optimized and fine-tuned magnetism on the surface of the electrochemical in situ grown CC@NiCo2 S4 nanosheet array result in (0 1 -1) surface universally exposed, high catalytic activity for methanol electrooxidation, and long-term stability at high current density. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy in combination of density functional theory calculations confirm the valence electron states and spin of d electrons for the surface of NiCo2 S4 , which enhance the surface stability of catalysts. This technology may be utilized to alter the surface magnetism and increase the stability of Ni-based electrocatalytic materials in general.

Pt-Co Electrocatalysts: Syntheses, Morphologies, and Applications.

Pt-Co electrocatalysts have attracted significant attention because of their excellent performance in many electrochemical reactions. This review focuses on Pt-Co electrocatalysts designed and prepared for electrocatalytic applications. First, the various synthetic methods and synthesis mechanisms are systematically summarized; typical examples and core synthesis parameters are discussed for regulating the morphology and structure. Then, starting with the design and structure-activity relationship of catalysts, the research progress of the morphologies and structures of Pt-Co electrocatalysts obtained based on various strategies, the structure-activity relationship between them, and their properties are summarized. In addition, the important electrocatalytic applications and mechanisms of Pt-Co catalysts, including electrocatalytic oxidation/reduction and bifunctional catalytic reactions, are described and summarized, and their high catalytic activities are discussed on the basis of their mechanism and active sites. Moreover, the advanced electrochemical in situ characterization techniques are summarized, and the challenges and direction concerning the development of high-performance Pt-Co catalysts in electrocatalysis are discussed.

Genome-wide association study reveals the genes associated with the leaf inclusion contents in Chinese medical tree Eucommia ulmoides.

Eucommia ulmoides is an economic tree that can biosynthesize secondary metabolites with pharmacological functions. Genetic basis of biosynthesis of these compounds is almost unknown. Therefore, genomic-wide association study was performed to exploit the genetic loci maybe involved in biosynthetic pathways of 5 leaf inclusions (aucubin, chlorogenic acid, gutta-percha, polyphenols, total flavonoids). It was shown that contents of the 5 leaf metabolites have a wide variation following normal distribution. A total of 2 013 102 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers were identified in a population containing 62 individual clones. Through genome-wide association study analysis, many SNP loci were identified perhaps associated with phenotypes of the leaf inclusions. Higher transcriptional levels of the candidate genes denoted by significant SNPs in leaves suggested they may be involved in biosynthesis of the leaf inclusions. These genetic loci provide with invaluable information for further studies on the gene functions in biosynthesis of the leaf inclusions and selective breeding of the plus trees.

The Influence of the Tri-reference Points on Fairness and Satisfaction Perception.

We examined the influence of three reference points (minimum requirements [MR], the status quo [SQ], and goal [G]) proposed by the tri-reference point (TRP) theory on fairness and satisfaction perceptions of pay in three laboratory experiments. To test the effects, we manipulated these three reference points both implicitly (Experiment 1) and explicitly (Experiments 2 and 3). We also provided the information of the salary offered to a peer person that was lower than, equal to, or higher than the salary offer to the participant. As hypothesized, the results demonstrated the important role of these reference points in judging the fairness of and satisfaction with pay when they were explicitly set (an interaction between reference points and social comparison in Experiments 2 and 3, but not in Experiment 1). Participants altered their judgments when the salary was in different regions. When the salary was below MR, participants perceived very low fairness and satisfaction, even when the offer was equal to/exceeded others. When the salary was above G, participants perceived much higher fairness and satisfaction, even with disadvantageous inequality. Participants were more impacted when they were explicitly instructed of the reference points (Experiments 2 and 3) than when they were not (Experiment 1). Moreover, MR appeared to be the most important, followed by G. A Salary below MR was judged as very unacceptable, with very low fairness and satisfaction ratings.