High-Humidity-Tolerant Chloride Solid-State Electrolyte for All-Solid-State Lithium Batteries.

Halide solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) hold promise for the commercialization of all-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLBs); however, the currently cost-effective zirconium-based chloride SSEs suffer from hygroscopic irreversibility, low ionic conductivity, and inadequate thermal stability. Herein, a novel indium-doped zirconium-based chloride is fabricated to satisfy the abovementioned requirements, achieving outstanding-performance ASSLBs at room temperature. Compared to the conventional Li2ZrCl6 and Li3InCl6 SSEs, the hc-Li2+xZr1-xInxCl6 (0.3 ≤ x ≤ 1) possesses higher ionic conductivity (up to 1.4 mS cm-1), and thermal stability (350 °C). At the same time, the hc-Li2.8Zr0.2In0.8Cl6 also shows obvious hygroscopic reversibility, where its recovery rate of the ionic conductivity is up to 82.5% after 24-h exposure in the 5% relative humidity followed by heat treatment. Theoretical calculation and experimental results reveal that those advantages are derived from the lattice expansion and the formation of Li3InCl6 ·2H2O hydrates, which can effectively reduce the migration energy barrier of Li ions and offer reversible hydration/dehydration pathway. Finally, an ASSLB, assembled with reheated-Li2.8Zr0.2In0.8Cl6 after humidity exposure, single-crystal LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 and Li-In alloy, exhibits capacity retention of 71% after 500 cycles under 1 C at 25 °C. This novel high-humidity-tolerant chloride electrolyte is expected to greatly carry forward the ASSLBs industrialization.

A cost-effective, ionically conductive and compressible oxychloride solid-state electrolyte for stable all-solid-state lithium-based batteries.

To enable the development of all-solid-state batteries, an inorganic solid-state electrolyte should demonstrate high ionic conductivity (i.e., > 1 mS cm-1 at 25 °C), compressibility (e.g., > 90% density under 250-350 MPa), and cost-effectiveness (e.g., < $50/kg). Here we report the development and preparation of Li1.75ZrCl4.75O0.5 oxychloride solid-state electrolyte that demonstrates an ionic conductivity of 2.42 mS cm-1 at 25 °C, a compressibility enabling 94.2% density under 300 MPa and an estimated raw materials cost of $11.60/kg. As proof of concept, the Li1.75ZrCl4.75O0.5 is tested in combination with a LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2-based positive electrode and a Li6PS5Cl-coated Li-In negative electrode in lab-scale cell configuration. This all-solid-state cell delivers a discharge capacity retention of 70.34% (final discharge capacity of 70.2 mAh g-1) after 2082 cycles at 1 A g-1, 25 °C and 1.5 tons of stacking pressure.

Alternate Crystal Structure Achieving Ionic Conductivity above 1 mS cm-1 in Cost-Effective Zr-Based Chloride Solid Electrolytes.

The realization of practical, commercial all-solid-state Li batteries requires the solid electrolyte to possess not only high ionic conductivity (above 1 mS cm-1 at 25 °C) but also low cost (below $50/kg). Unlike most of the present solid electrolytes, the recently reported Zr-based chloride solid electrolytes generally cost less than $50/kg, but their ionic conductivities at 25 °C are below 1 mS cm-1. Here, a Li-ion conductivity of 1.35 mS cm-1 at 25 °C and an estimated material cost of $11.09/kg are achieved simultaneously in a Li3Zr0.75OCl4 solid electrolyte. Unlike other Zr-based chloride systems, Li3Zr0.75OCl4 does not exhibit the trigonal structure, but is isostructural with Li3ScCl6, whose monoclinic structure allows for much faster ion transport. With such desirable characteristics, the all-solid-state cell formed by LiNi0.8Mn0.1Co0.1O2 and Li3Zr0.75OCl4 shows a capacity retention above 80.9% for 700 cycles at 25 °C and 5 C (975 mA g-1).

Li3TiCl6 as ionic conductive and compressible positive electrode active material for all-solid-state lithium-based batteries.

The development of energy-dense all-solid-state Li-based batteries requires positive electrode active materials that are ionic conductive and compressible at room temperature. Indeed, these material properties could contribute to a sensible reduction of the amount of the solid-state electrolyte in the composite electrode, thus, enabling higher mass loading of active materials. Here, we propose the synthesis and use of lithium titanium chloride (Li3TiCl6) as room-temperature ionic conductive (i.e., 1.04 mS cm-1 at 25 °C) and compressible active materials for all-solid-state Li-based batteries. When a composite positive electrode comprising 95 wt.% of Li3TiCl6 is tested in combination with a Li-In alloy negative electrode and Li6PS5Cl/Li2ZrCl6 solid-state electrolytes, an initial discharge capacity of about 90 mAh g-1 and an average cell discharge voltage of about 2.53 V are obtained. Furthermore, a capacity retention of more than 62% is attainable after 2500 cycles at 92.5 mA g-1 and 25 °C with an applied external pressure of 1.5 tons. We also report the assembly and testing of a "single Li3TiCl6" cell where this chloride material is used as the solid electrolyte, negative electrode and positive electrode.

RADIOACTIVE AEROSOL SEPARATION CHARACTERISTICS STUDY OF A NOVEL SUBMICRON VIRTUAL IMPACTOR.

With the intention of man-made radioactive aerosol separating and monitoring in a high radon environment, in this paper, a novel submicron virtual impactor was developed, and a numerical simulation model was established. Then, the rationality of the numerical method was validated by comparison to experimental data. Afterward, the variations of separation characteristics under different operating conditions of sample flow rate, minor flow ratio and clean air velocity ratio were discussed and analyzed in detail. In view of the different inertia between man-made and natural radioactive aerosol, the proposed novel submicron virtual impactor could provide a quicker approach to separate and detect the man-made radioactive aerosol particles. After that, the collection nozzle structure of the virtual impactor was improved based on the computational fluid dynamics analysis results. The results show that the proposed impactor has a higher separation efficiency and lower wall loss for fine particles compared to the conventional structures.

Fusobacterium nucleatum induces excess methyltransferase-like 3-mediated microRNA-4717-3p maturation to promote colorectal cancer cell proliferation.

Fusobacterium nucleatum infection plays vital roles in colorectal cancer (CRC) progression. Overexpression of microRNA-4717-3p (miR-4717) was reported to be upregulated in F. nucleatum positive CRC tissues, however, the underlying mechanism is unknown. In this study, we found that miR-4717 promoted CRC cell proliferation in vitro and growth of CRC in vivo following F. nucleatum infection. MicroRNA-4717 suppressed the expression of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 4 (MAP2K4), a tumor suppressor, by directly targeting its 3'-UTR. Furthermore, we confirmed that methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3)-dependent m6 A methylation could methylate primary (pri)-miR-4717, which further promoted the maturation of pri-miR-4717, and METTL3 positively regulated CRC cell proliferation through miR-4717/MAP2K4 pathways. In conclusion, F. nucleatum-induced miR-4717 excessive maturation through METTL3-dependent m6 A modification promotes CRC cell proliferation, which provides a potential therapeutic target and diagnostic biomarker for CRC.

An affinity prediction approach for the ligand of E3 ligase Cbl-b and an insight into substrate binding pattern.

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) are essentially fundamental to all cellular processes, so that developing small molecule inhibitors of PPIs have great significance despite representing a huge challenge. Studying PPIs with the help of peptide motifs could obtain the structural information and reference significance to reduce the difficulty in the development of small molecules. Computational methods are powerful tools to characterize peptide-protein interactions, especially molecular dynamics simulation and binding free energy calculation. Here, we established an affinity prediction model suitable for Casitas B lymphoma-b (Cbl-b) and phosphorylated motif system. According to the affinity data set of multiple truncated peptides, the force field, solvent model, and internal dielectric constant of molecular mechanics/generalized Born surface area (MM/GBSA) method were optimized. Further, we predicted the affinity of the rationally designed new sequences through this model and obtained a new 6-mer motif with a 7-fold increase in affinity and the comprehensive structure-activity relationship. Moreover, we proposed an insight of unexpected activity of the truncated 5-mer peptide and revealed the possible binding mode of the new highly active 6-mer motif by extended simulation. Our results showed that the activity enhancement of the truncated peptide was caused by the acetyl-mediated conformation change. The side chain of Arg and pTyr in the 6-mer motif co-occupied the site p1 to form numerous hydrogen bond interactions and increased hydrophobic interaction formed with Tyr266, leading to the higher affinity. The present work provided a reference to investigate the PPI of Cbl-b and phosphorylated substrates and guided the development of Cbl-b inhibitors.

Recovery and Regeneration of Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries From New Energy Vehicles.

It is of great economic, environmental and social benefit to discover harmless treatment and resource utilization options for spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), which contain a large proportion of valuable metal elements (e.g., Li, Ni, Co, Mn, Cu, and Al) and poisonous chemicals (e.g., lithium hexafluorophosphate and polyvinylidene fluoride). The present work summarized the leading technologies and hot issues in the disposal of spent LIBs from new energy vehicles. Moreover, development of the trend of innovative technologies for the recycling of spent LIBs is recommended.

Design, Synthesis, and Structure-Activity Relationships of Indoline-Based Kelch-like ECH-Associated Protein 1-Nuclear Factor (Erythroid-Derived 2)-Like 2 (Keap1-Nrf2) Protein-Protein Interaction Inhibitors.

The Keap1 (Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1)-Nrf2 (nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2)-ARE (antioxidant response element) pathway is the major defending mechanism against oxidative stresses, and directly disrupting the Keap1-Nrf2 protein-protein interaction (PPI) has been an attractive strategy to target oxidative stress-related diseases, including cardiovascular diseases. Here, we describe the design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationships (SARs) of indoline-based compounds as potent Keap1-Nrf2 PPI inhibitors. Comprehensive SAR analysis and thermodynamics-guided optimization identified 19a as the most potent inhibitor in this series, with an IC50 of 22 nM in a competitive fluorescence polarization assay. Further evaluation indicated the proper drug-like properties of 19a. Compound 19a dose-dependently upregulated genes and protein level of Nrf2 as well as its downstream markers and showed protective effects against lipopolysaccharide-induced injury in both H9c2 cardiac cells and mouse models. Collectively, we reported here a novel indoline-based Keap1-Nrf2 PPI inhibitor as a potential cardioprotective agent.

[The influence of suoquan capsule on the mRNA expression of CYP11B2 in deficiency of the kidney and diuresis rats].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the mechanism of nourishing kidney and reducing urine effect of suoquan capsule by discussing the adjusting action on ALD synthase. METHODS: Built the model of deficiency of the kidney and diuresis by adenine,inspectd the contents of Cort, ALD in blood and the mRNA expression of CYP11B2 with ELISA and RT-PCR technology of the mice. RESULTS: Compared with model group, Suoquan capsule could remarkedly increase the contents of Cort, ALD in blood and the mRNA expression of CYP1 1 B2 of model rats. CONCLUSIONS: Suoquan capsule can increase the contents of Cort, ALD in blood and the mRNA expression of CYP11B2 in deficiency of the kidney and diuresis rats. Promote the combining of ALD by adjusting the ALD synthase may be the mechanism of nourishing the kidney and reducing urine of Souquan capsule from ALD synthase approach.