Dietary supplementation with non-digestible isomaltooligosaccharide and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ZDY2013 ameliorates DSS-induced colitis via modulating intestinal barrier integrity and the gut microbiota.

Non-digestible oligosaccharides have attracted attention due to their critical role in maintaining the balance of a host's gut microbiota. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ZDY2013 was isolated from traditional fermented acid beans, which could metabolize many complex carbohydrates and had intestinal immunomodulatory effects. In our study, the ameliorative effect of a combination of non-digestible isomaltooligosaccharide (IMO) and L. plantarum ZDY2013 was investigated in dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis mice. The results showed that IMO could specifically promote L. plantarum ZDY2013 intestinal colonization after five days of gavage and ameliorate the symptoms of colitis (survival rate, DAI score, colon length, etc.) as well as colon tissue integrity. IMO combined with L. plantarum ZDY2013 increased the levels of intestinal tight junction proteins (ZO-1 and claudin) and mucin (MUC-2), followed by alleviation of inflammatory responses (decreased the expression of IL-1ß, TNF-α, and IL-6 and increased the expression of IL-10 and IL-22) and the level of oxidative stress (decreased the level of COX-2 and iNOS and increased the expression of T-AOC and SOD). Furthermore, the combination increased the diversity of the gut microbiota and modulated the microbial structural component (decreased the abundance of Escherichia and Helicobacter and increased the abundance of Lactobacillus and SCFA-producing related species). Taken together, our results suggested that the consumption of IMO and L. plantarum ZDY2013 could improve the symptoms of colitis in mice by improving the intestinal barrier along with regulating the composition and metabolites of the gut microbiota.

Preparation of Co-Ni-Ce/TiC alloy coatings by double-pulse under a sulfamic acid system and a process mechanism study.

To enhance the protective ability of copper crystallizers and extend their service life, this study explores the use of double pulse co-deposition under a sulfamic acid system to create protective coatings such as Co-Ni. The hardness test and friction wear analysis compare Co-Ni, Co-Ni-Ce, and Co-Ni-Ce/TiC coatings, revealing that the Co-Ni-Ce/TiC coating exhibits the most outstanding protective performance. SEM and XRD techniques are employed to characterize the three protective coatings, demonstrating that the incorporation of rare-earth cerium and nanoparticles improves the coating morphology and modifies their crystalline phase structure. Furthermore, cyclic voltammetry tests on the plating solutions of the three protective coatings indicate that the addition of Ce3+ and nanoparticles influences the deposition potentials. The deposition of Co2+ and Ni2+ follows a two-step, two-electron process, while the deposition of Ce3+ follows a one-step, three-electron process. It is observed that the deposition of all three ions is irreversible. To gain further insights into the nucleation mechanism of Ce3+, a chronoamperometry test is conducted, revealing that the nucleation of Ce3+ is a transient process controlled by diffusion.

Optimizing electrochemical performance of Na0.67Ni0.17Co0.17Mn0.66O2 with P2 structure via preparing concentration-gradient particles for sodium-ion batteries.

P2-type layered oxides for rechargeable sodium-ion batteries have drawn a lot of attention because of their excellent electrochemical performance. However, these types of cathodes usually suffer from poor cyclic stability. To overcome this disadvantage, in this work, novel ball-shaped concentration-gradient oxide Na0.67Ni0.17Co0.17Mn0.66O2 with P2 structure modified by Mn-rich surface is successfully prepared using co-precipitation method. The concentration of Mn increased from the inner core to the surface, endowing the material with an excellent cyclic stability. The cathode exhibits enhanced electrochemical properties than that of the sample synthesized by solid-state method and concentration-constant material. It shows 143.2 mAh/g initial discharge capacity and retains 131 mAh/g between 2 V and 4.5 V after 100 rounds. The significant improvement in the electrochemical properties of the sample benefits from the unique concentration-gradient structure, and the Mn-rich surface that effectively stabilizes the basic P2 structure. The relatively higher Ni content in the core leads to a slight improvement in the discharge capacity of the sample. This strategy may provide new insights for preparing layered cathodes for sodium-ion batteries with high electrochemical performance.

Anti-Fouling and Anti-Biofilm Performance of Self-Polishing Waterborne Polyurethane with Gemini Quaternary Ammonium Salts.

Biofilms are known to be difficult to eradicate and control, complicating human infections and marine biofouling. In this study, self-polishing and anti-fouling waterborne polyurethane coatings synthesized from gemini quaternary ammonium salts (GQAS), polyethylene glycol (PEG), and polycaprolactone diol (PCL) demonstrate excellent antibiofilm efficacy. Their anti-fouling and anti-biofilm performance was confirmed by a culture-based method in broth media, with the biofilm formation factor against Gram-positive (S. aureus) and Gram-negative bacterial strains (E. coli) for 2 days. The results indicate that polyurethane coatings have excellent anti-biofilm activity when the content of GQAS reached 8.5 wt% against S. aureus, and 15.8 wt% against E. coli. The resulting waterborne polyurethane coatings demonstrate both hydrolytic and enzymatic degradation, and the surface erosion enzymatic degradation mechanism enables them with good self-polishing capability. The extracts cyto-toxicity of these polyurethane coatings and degradation liquids was also systematically studied; they could be degraded to non-toxic or low toxic compositions. This study shows the possibility to achieve potent self-polishing and anti-biofilm efficacy by integrating antibacterial GQAS, PEG, and PCL into waterborne polyurethane coatings.

A dual-modification strategy for P2-type layered oxide via bulk Mg/Ti co-substitution and MgO surface coating for sodium ion batteries.

P2-type materials are regarded as competitive cathodes for next generation sodium ion batteries. However, the unfavorable P2 â†’ O2 phase transition usually leads to severe capacity decay. Moreover, the cathode material always suffers from destruction of surface crystal structure caused by trace amount of HF. In this study, a dual-modification method containing Mg/Ti co-doping and MgO surface coating is designed to solve the defects of P2-type Na0.67Ni0.17Co0.17Mn0.66O2 cathode. Results turn out that the P2 structure can be stabilized via Mg/Ti co-substitution and MgO layer could effectively prevent the surface from corroding by HF and promote migration of Na+. Moreover, the as-prepared MgO-coated Na0.67Ni0.17Co0.17Mn0.66Mg0.1O2 exhibits improved electrochemical performance than the raw material. It delivers 111.6 mAh g-1 initial discharge capacity and maintains 90.6% at high current density of 100 mA g-1 within 2-4.5 V, which has been obviously enhanced than that of Na0.67Ni0.17Co0.17Mn0.66O2. The significant improvement can be attributed to the synergistic effect of Mg/Ti co-substitution and MgO surface coating. This dual-modification strategy based on the synergetic effect of Mg/Ti co-doping and MgO surface coating might be a resultful step forward to develop cathode materials for sodium ion batteries.

Core-Shell Structured PtxMoy@TiO2 Nanoparticles Synthesized by Reverse Microemulsion for Methanol Electrooxidation of Fuel Cells.

The high price of catalyst and poor durability still restrict the development of fuel cells. In this work, core-shell structured PtxMoy@TiO2 nanoparticles with low Pt content are prepared by a reverse microemulsion method. The morphologies, particle size, structure, and composition of PtxMoy@TiO2 nanoparticles are examined by several techniques such as X-ray Diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy, etc. The PtxMoy@TiO2 electrocatalysts show significantly higher catalytic activity and better durability for methanol oxidation than the commercial Pt/C (ETEK). Compared to Pt/C catalyst, the enhancement of the electrochemical performance of PtxMoy@TiO2 electrocatalysts can be attributed to the core-shell structure and the shift of the d-band center of Pt atoms, which can weaken the adsorption strength toward CO molecules, facilitate the removal of the CO groups and improve electrocatalytic activity. The development of PtxMoy@TiO2 electrocatalysts is promising to reduce the use of noble metal Pt and has a great potential for application in fuel cells.

Controllable Synthesis of Nanostructured MnO2 as Electrode Material of Supercapacitors.

In this study, MnO² with different nanostructures (nanorods, nanospheres, nanoflowers, nanolychee) were obtained using a facile chemical method by adding different amounts of sulfuric acid for application in supercapacitors. Structure, morphology and composition were examined by X-ray diffractometer, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, Fourier transform infrared, etc. Electrochemistry performances were tested by Autolab and LANHE CT2001A test system. Results indicated that the nanoflower MnO² (F-MnO²) exhibited largest specific surface area, which was 83.17 m² g-1. Electrode materials were tested in different electrolytes, including 6.0 M KOH, 1.0 M LiNO3 and 1.0 M LiOH. The F-MnO² electrode material displayed the best electrochemical properties, and its specific capacitance was 171 F g-1 at 1 A g-1. Moreover, F-MnO² electrode material showed splendid cycling durability was 130.9% of original value after 1000 cycles. These results demonstrated that the F-MnO² electrode material should be a promising candidate for application in supercapacitors.

Study of the electrochemical recovery of cobalt from spent cemented carbide.

The massive accumulation of spent cemented carbide not only produces environmental pollution but also wastes resources such as tungsten and cobalt. To solve the problem, a low-temperature acid aqueous electrochemical method was used; cobalt was recycled on a stainless steel cathode, and at the same time, tungstic acid was enriched at a spent cemented carbide anode, achieving a high efficiency, low energy consumption, and low pollution separation and recovering spent cemented carbide. The transient electrochemical test results show the following: the reduction mechanism of cobalt is Co2+ (aq) + 2e- → Co(s). The nucleation mechanism is close to instantaneous nucleation. The electrodeposition is irreversible and controlled by the diffusion step. The average diffusion coefficient of Co(ii) is 2.16589 × 10-7 cm2 s-1. Electrodeposition experiments show that cobalt enters the electrolyte in the form of Co(ii) and is reduced to elemental cobalt on the stainless steel electrode, and tungsten carbide (WC) is oxidized to tungstic acid (H2WO4) under the oxidizing atmosphere of the anode and enriched in the anode area. The investigation provides favorable electrochemical conditions for the recovery and separation of other valuable metals from spent alloys.

Microstructure Characteristics of Cathode Materials for Rechargeable Magnesium Batteries.

Rechargeable magnesium batteries (RMBs) that use pure Mg or Mg alloy as anode and materials allowing Mg ions to insert/extract as cathode have many advantages such as high energy density, environmental friendliness, low cost, and safety of handling. RMBs are regarded as a promising candidate for portable power sources and heavy load energy devices. However, there are still some technological issues impeding their commercial application. The most important issue is the absence of applicable cathode materials because of the high charge density, strong polarization effect, and very slow insertion/extraction speed of Mg2+ ions. In recent years, the research reports on the cathode materials of RMBs have increased significantly. Here, an extensive number of research papers are reviewed in terms of the microstructure characteristics of cathode materials for RMBs. The status and issues of cathode materials are analyzed and discussed in detail. The future development directions and perspectives are prospected for providing an understanding of the related research activities on RMBs.

Constructing Hierarchical Porous Carbons With Interconnected Micro-mesopores for Enhanced CO2 Adsorption.

A high cost-performance carbon dioxide sorbent based on hierarchical porous carbons (HPCs) was easily prepared by carbonization of raw sugar using commercially available nano-CaCO3 as a double-acting template. The effects of the initial composition and carbonization temperature on the micro-mesoporous structure and adsorption performance were examined. Also, the importance of post-activation behavior in the development of micropores and synthesis route for the formation of the interconnected micro-mesoporous structure were investigated. The results revealed excellent carbon dioxide uptake reaching up 2.84 mmol/g (25oC, 1 bar), with micropore surface area of 786 m2/g, micropore volume of 0.320 cm3/g and mesopore volume of 0.233 cm3/g. We found that high carbon dioxide uptake was ascribed to the developed micropores and interconnected micro-mesoporous structure. As an expectation, the optimized HPCs offers a promising new support for the high selective capture of carbon dioxide in the future.

Mesoporous Silica Nanospheres Impregnated with 12-Phosphotungstic Acid as Inorganic Filler of Nafion Membrane for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells.

In this work, a novel nanocomposite material, hollow mesoporous silica nanosphere impregnated with 12-phosphotungstic acid, briefed as HMSN-I, was synthesized by a vacuum-assisted impregnation method. The HMSN-I was used as an inorganic filler to synthesize Nafion-based composite membranes for the high temperature and low humidity operation of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The Nafion/HMSN-I composite membrane showed much higher conductivity than the pristine Nafion membrane under the identical conditions. The cell with the Nafion/HMSN-I composite membrane demonstrated significantly enhanced cell performance and stability in high temperature and low humidity environment. The mechanism can be ascribed to the enhanced proton conductivity and water retention ability of the composite membrane, which is very promising for the development of high temperature and low humidity PEMFCs.

Self-assembled platinum nanoparticles on sulfonic acid-grafted graphene as effective electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation in direct methanol fuel cells.

In this article, sulfonic acid-grafted reduced graphene oxide (S-rGO) were synthesized using a one-pot method under mild conditions, and used as Pt catalyst supports to prepare Pt/S-rGO electrocatalysts through a self-assembly route. The structure, morphologies and physicochemical properties of S-rGO were examined in detail by techniques such as atomic force microscope (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The S-rGO nanosheets show excellent solubility and stability in water and the average particle size of Pt nanoparticles supported on S-rGO is ~3.8 nm with symmetrical and uniform distribution. The electrocatalytic properties of Pt/S-rGO were investigated for methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). In comparison to Pt supported on high surface area Vulcan XC-72 carbon (Pt/VC) and Pt/rGO, the Pt/S-rGO electrocatalyst exhibits a much higher electrocatalytic activity, faster reaction kinetics and a better stability. The results indicate that Pt/S-rGO is a promising and effective electrocatalyst for MOR of DMFCs.

Silver sulfide nanoparticles sensitized titanium dioxide nanotube arrays synthesized by in situ sulfurization for photocatalytic hydrogen production.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanotube arrays (TNAs) sensitized with silver sulfide (Ag2S) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized via facile in situ sulfurization. Metallic silver NPs were first loaded on TNAs through a simple electrodeposition process. The as-prepared Ag/TNAs composites were further treated with a solution of acetonitrile containing sulfur (S8) and dried in vacuum to obtain a new nanocomposite material comprising of TNAs sensitized with Ag2S NPs. In these composite nanostructures, ultrafine Ag2S NPs were well-dispersed and assembled on the exterior and interior walls of the TNAs. Owing to sensitizing with a narrow bandgap material like Ag2S and the homogeneous distribution of the Ag2S NP heterojunction structures over the surface of the TNAs, the synthesized nanocomposite samples exhibited remarkable capability to absorb visible light and showed a significant enhancement in the photocatalytic efficiency of hydrogen generation. Under visible light illumination (100mW/cm(2)), a maximum photoconversion efficiency of 1.21% and the highest hydrogen production rate of 1.13mL/cm(2)h were obtained from the TNA electrodes sensitized with Ag2S NPs.

2D single- or double-layered vanadium oxide nanosheet assembled 3D microflowers: controlled synthesis, growth mechanism, and applications.

A facile one-pot solvent-thermal method was developed to synthesize a unique 3D microflower structure assembled from single- or double-layered 2D nanosheets of V4O9 (F-VO). Simply by controlling the precursor concentration, yolk-shelled V4O9 (YS-VO) or bulk V4O9 (B-VO) can be produced instead. The precursor-concentration dependent growth mechanism is proposed. The exceptional catalytic/electrochemical properties and large specific surface area of F-VO promise a wide range of applications. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, we investigate its use in high-performance supercapacitors (~392 F g(-1)), and for sensitive detection of H2O2 (with a low detection limit of ~0.1 µM) and methanol (with a low detection limit of ~60 µM). Furthermore, we show that F-VO greatly outperforms its counterparts (YS-VO and B-VO) presumably owing to its unique structure and crystal plane orientation.

Template-free bottom-up synthesis of yolk-shell vanadium oxide as high performance cathode for lithium ion batteries.

A template-free strategy is exploited to bottom-up synthesize yolk-shell vanadium oxide through a two-step spontaneous assembly of hydrolytically formed subunits in a one-pot process. The unique structured vanadium pentoxide exhibits excellent cathode performance for lithium ion batteries.

Nanoparticle self-assembled hollow TiO2 spheres with well matching visible light scattering for high performance dye-sensitized solar cells.

Submicrometer-sized hollow TiO(2) spheres are directly self-assembled from TiO(2) nanoparticles without using any template or surfactant as a scattering layer for dye-sensitized solar cells, showing good visible light scattering match to significantly improve the photoconversion efficiency.

Highly ordered mesoporous Nafion membranes for fuel cells.

A highly ordered mesoporous Nafion membrane with a remarkable water retention ability was synthesized via a micelle templating method with self-assembled Pluronic F108 surfactants and its capability to operate under completely dry gas streams is demonstrated.

One-step synthesized HPW/meso-silica inorganic proton exchange membranes for fuel cells.

An inorganic proton exchange membrane with a high proton conductivity of 0.06-0.08 S cm(-1) at 70-100 degrees C and a low activation energy of 13.02 kJ mol(-1) was realized by immobilising HPW molecules into the mesoporous silica via a one-step self-assembly route assisted with a structure-directing surfactant.