Unraveling the mechanism of increased synthesis of hydrogen from an anaerobic fermentation by zinc ferrate nanoparticles: Mesophilic and thermophilic situations comparison.

In this work, ZnFe2O4 NPs were created using the pyrolysis process, and its effects on thermophilic (TF) and mesophilic (MF) fermentation were examined. In MF, the maximum hydrogen yield (MHY) occurred in the 50 mg/L ZnFe2O4 NPs group (228.01 mL/g glucose), which was 45.24% higher than that of the control group (157.01 mL/g glucose). While in TF, MHY appeared in 100 mg/L ZnFe2O4 NPs was 149.12 mL/g glucose, which was 38.83% higher than the control group (107.41 mL/g glucose). ZnFe2O4 NPs boosted the synthesis of ferredoxin, hydrogenase, and ethanol dehydrogenase by increasing the generation of butyrate in MF and acetate in TF. Moreover, Clostridium sensu stricto 5 and 10 in MF and TF rose by 9.20% and 9.40%, respectively, due to the increased abundance of predominant hydrogen-producing bacteria by ZnFe2O4 NPs.

Investigation on In Situ Carbon-Coated ZnFe2O4 as Advanced Anode Material for Li-Ion Batteries.

ZnFe2O4 as an anode that is believed to attractive. Due to its large theoretical capacity, this electrode is ideal for Lithium-ion batteries. However, the performance of ZnFe2O4 while charging and discharging is limited by its volume growth. In the present study, carbon-coated ZnFe2O4 is synthesized by the sol-gel method. Carbon is coated on the spherical surface of ZnFe2O4 by in situ coating. In situ carbon coating alleviates volume expansion during electrochemical performance and Lithium-ion mobility is accelerated, and electron transit is accelerated; thus, carbon-coated ZnFe2O4 show good electrochemical performance. After 50 cycles at a current density of 0.1 A·g-1, the battery had a discharge capacity of 1312 mAh·g-1 and a capacity of roughly 1220 mAh·g-1. The performance of carbon-coated ZnFe2O4 as an improved anode is electrochemically used for Li-ion energy storage applications.

Zinc ferrate nanoparticles for applications in medicine: synthesis, physicochemical properties, regulation of macrophage functions, and in vivo safety evaluation.

Zinc ferrate nanoparticles (ZnFe2O4 NPs) have attracted enormous interest as potential nanomaterials. The purpose of this study was to examine the in vitro macrophages toxicity, in vivo safety, and immunogenicity. Three kinds of ZnFe2O4 NPs with different shapes (round, litchi, and raspberry), nano-sizes, and pores were successfully prepared. In vitro experiments showed that ZnFe2O4 NPs caused no cytotoxicity against the RAW 264.7 cells up to administered dose of 200 µg/mL, enhanced proinflammatory cytokine TNF-α, and costimulatory marker CD86 expression in the RAW 264.7 cells. Interestingly, ZnFe2O4 NPs reduced ROS expression, which was inconsistent with common metal oxide NPs such as iron oxide (Fe3O4) NPs and zinc oxide (ZnO) NPs. ZnFe2O4 NPs improved the RAW 264.7 cells phagocytosed more neutral red. There was no obvious difference in body weight, the number of immune cells, organ index, and expression of inflammatory factors in serum of rats administrated intravenously and subcutaneously on day 21 after treatment by ZnFe2O4 NPs in comparison with the blank control. These results demonstrated that ZnFe2O4 NPs slightly enhanced the function of the RAW 264.7 cells in vitro but caused no obvious toxicity to macrophages as well as rat blood cells, and low immunogenicity in rats, suggesting that ZnFe2O4 NPs as a biocompatible nanomaterials achieved potential for bioapplication in the future.