Dual-Functional Ru/Ni-B-P Electrocatalyst Toward Accelerated Water Electrolysis and High-Stability.

Development of advanced electrocatalysts for the green hydrogen production by water electrolysis is an important task to reduce the climate and environmental issues as well as to meet the future energy demands. Herein, Ru/Ni-B-P sphere electrocatalyst is demonstrated by a combination of hydrothermal and soaking approaches, meeting the industrial requirement of low cell voltage with stable high-current operation. The Ru/Ni-B-P sphere catalyst demonstrates low overpotentials of 191 and 350 mV at 300 mA cm-2 with stable high current operation, ranking it as one of the best oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts. The bifunctional 2-E system demonstrates a low cell voltage of 2.49 V at 2000 mA cm-2 in 6 m KOH at 60 °C of harsh industrial operation condition. It also demonstrates outstanding stability with continuous 120 h (5 days) CA operation at 1000 mA cm-2. Further, the hybrid configuration of Ru/Ni-B-P || Pt/C being paired with the conventional benchmark electrode demonstrates a record low 2-E cell voltage of 2.40 V at 2000 mA cm-2 in 6 m KOH and excellent stability at high current of 1500 mA cm-2 under industrial operational condition.

CoFeBP Micro Flowers (MFs) for Highly Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Reaction and Oxygen Evolution Reaction Electrocatalysts.

Hydrogen is one of the most promising green energy alternatives due to its high gravimetric energy density, zero-carbon emissions, and other advantages. In this work, a CoFeBP micro-flower (MF) electrocatalyst is fabricated as an advanced water-splitting electrocatalyst by a hydrothermal approach for hydrogen production with the highly efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). The fabrication process of the CoFeBP MF electrocatalyst is systematically optimized by thorough investigations on various hydrothermal synthesis and post-annealing parameters. The best optimized CoFeBP MF electrode demonstrates HER/OER overpotentials of 20 mV and 219 mV at 20 mA/cm2. The CoFeBP MFs also exhibit a low 2-electrode (2-E) cell voltage of 1.60 V at 50 mA/cm2, which is comparable to the benchmark electrodes of Pt/C and RuO2. The CoFeBP MFs demonstrate excellent 2-E stability of over 100 h operation under harsh industrial operational conditions at 60 °C in 6 M KOH at a high current density of 1000 mA/cm2. The flower-like morphology can offer a largely increased electrochemical active surface area (ECSA), and systematic post-annealing can lead to improved crystallinity in CoFeBP MFs.

Funnel Devices Based on Asymmetrically Strained Transition Metal Dichalcogenides.

The strain applied to transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) reduces their energy bandgap, and local strains result in a funnel-like band structure in which funneled excitons move toward the most strained region. Herein, a funnel device based on asymmetrically strained WS2 and MoS2 is reported. Asymmetric strains are induced by transferring the TMD flakes onto a fork-shaped SU-8 microstructure. Raman and photoluminescence spectra peaks are shifted according to the morphology of the SU-8 microstructure, indicating the application of asymmetric strains to the TMDs. To investigate whether funneled excitons can be converted to electrical currents, various devices are constructed by depositing symmetric and asymmetric electrodes onto the strained TMDs. The scanning photocurrent mapping images follow a fork-shaped pattern, indicating probable conversion of the funneled excitons into electrical currents. In the case of the funnel devices with asymmetric Au and Al electrodes, short-circuit current (ISC ) of WS2 is enhanced by the strains, whereas ISC of MoS2 is suppressed because the Schottky barrier lowers with increasing strain for the MoS2 . These results demonstrate that the funnel devices can be implemented using asymmetrically strained TMDs and the effect of strains on the Schottky barrier is dependent on the TMD used.

Preparation of nano-sized graphite-supported CuO and Cu-Sn as active materials in lithium ion batteries.

Nano-sized Cu-Sn and Cu oxide particles supported on ball-milled graphite were synthesized, and their electrochemical characteristics for use as anode active materials in lithium-ion batteries were investigated. The samples were also characterized via FE-SEM, XRD, and TGA. Most of the Cu oxides on BMG were monoclinic CuO crystals, whereas the Cu-Sn particles were composed of hexagonal Cu3Sn and tetragonal SnO2 crystals. These particles may contribute to an increase in the reversible capacity of lithium ion batteries.

SnO2 nanoparticles distributed on multi-walled carbon nanotubes and ball-milled graphite as anode materials of lithium ion batteries.

SnO2 nanoparticles were supported on ball-milled graphite (BMG) or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) using a chemical reduction method with ethylene glycol, and the electrochemical properties of the nanocomposites were evaluated as anode active materials of lithium-ion batteries. The BMG and CNTs contributed to an increase in both the capacity enhancement and cyclic stability compared to that of commercial graphite. In particular, the mixture electrode of SnO2/BMG:SnO2/CNT = 3:1 (in weight ratio) showed higher performance in the reversible capacity and cyclic stability than did the SnO2/BMG and SnO2/CNT electrodes. This might be resulted from the network formation for excellent electronic path by CNT distributed on SnO2/BMG composites.

Association between Four Dietary Patterns and the Risk of Periodontal Diseases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Several dietary patterns are reported as risk factors for several chronic diseases including oral diseases. However, thus far, there has been no comprehensive quantitative analysis of nutrition and periodontal diseases. METHODS: This systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines. Cohort, case-control, and cross-sectional studies were eligible for inclusion in this study. The Newcastle-Ottawa scale was used to qualitatively assess the risk of bias in the included studies. The number of samples was used for odds ratio calculation, followed by the unadjusted value and 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: Nine papers were included for the systematic review and meta-analysis. The results of screening for database search records showed that four diet patterns (western diet, dairy product intake, sugar intake, and vitamin C intake) have enough data for meta-analysis. The risk of periodontal disease in the western-diet group and the lowest dairy product intake group was 1.05 (0.51-2.13) and 1.28 (0.89-1.84), respectively. The risk of periodontal disease in the highest sugar intake group and the lowest vitamin C intake group was 1.52 (0.79-2.91) and 1.15 (1.08-1.23), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: With aging of the population globally, the prevalence of periodontal disease increases, and the associated cost also increases. Though this study, we found foods related to the risk of periodontal disease, and we are confident that it will contribute to lowering the incidence of the disease.

Vanadium-Doped FeBP Microsphere Croissant for Significantly Enhanced Bi-Functional HER and OER Electrocatalyst.

Ultra-fine hydrogen produced by electrochemical water splitting without carbon emission is a high-density energy carrier, which could gradually substitute the usage of traditional fossil fuels. The development of high-performance electrocatalysts at affordable costs is one of the major research priorities in order to achieve the large-scale implementation of a green hydrogen supply chain. In this work, the development of a vanadium-doped FeBP (V-FeBP) microsphere croissant (MSC) electrocatalyst is demonstrated to exhibit efficient bi-functional water splitting for the first time. The FeBP MSC electrode is synthesized by a hydrothermal approach along with the systematic control of growth parameters such as precursor concentration, reaction duration, reaction temperature and post-annealing, etc. Then, the heteroatom doping of vanadium is performed on the best FeBP MSC by a simple soaking approach. The best optimized V-FeBP MSC demonstrates the low HER and OER overpotentials of 52 and 180 mV at 50 mA/cm2 in 1 M KOH in a three-electrode system. In addition, the two-electrode system, i.e., V-FeBP || V-FeBP, demonstrates a comparable water-splitting performance to the benchmark electrodes of Pt/C || RuO2 in 1 M KOH. Similarly, exceptional performance is also observed in natural sea water. The 3D MSC flower-like structure provides a very high surface area that favors rapid mass/electron-transport pathways, which improves the electrocatalytic activity. Further, the V-FeBP electrode is examined in different pH solutions and in terms of its stability under industrial operational conditions at 60 °C in 6 M KOH, and it shows excellent stability.

Ferroelastic-Ferroelectric Multiferroicity in van der Waals Rhenium Dichalcogenides.

2D multiferroics with combined ferroic orders have gained attention owing to their novel functionality and underlying science. Intrinsic ferroelastic-ferroelectric multiferroicity in single-crystalline van der Waals rhenium dichalcogenides, whose symmetries are broken by the Peierls distortion and layer-stacking order, is demonstrated. Ferroelastic switching of the domain orientation and accompanying anisotropic properties is achieved with 1% uniaxial strain using the polymer encapsulation method. Based on the electron localization function and bond dissociation energy of the Re-Re bonds, the change in bond configuration during the evolution of the domain wall and the preferred switching between the two specific orientation states are explained. Furthermore, the ferroelastic switching of ferroelectric polarization is confirmed using the photovoltaic effect. The study provides insights into the reversible bond-switching process and potential applications based on 2D multiferroicity.

Growth and Drug Interaction Monitoring of NIH 3T3 Cells by Image Analysis and Capacitive Biosensor.

Capacitive biosensors are manufactured on glass slides using the semiconductor process to monitor cell growth and cell-drug interactions in real time. Capacitance signals are continuously monitored for each 10 min interval during a 48 h period, with the variations of frequency from 1 kHz to 1 MHz. The capacitance values showed a gradual increase with the increase in NIH 3T3 cell numbers. After 48 h of growth, 6.67 µg/mL puromycin is injected for the monitoring of the cell-drug interaction. The capacitance values rapidly increased during a period of about 10 h, reflecting the rapid increase in the cell numbers. In this study, we monitored the state of cells and the cell-drug interactions using the developed capacitive biosensor. Additionally, we monitored the state of cell behavior using a JuLiTM Br&FL microscope. The monitoring of cell state by means of a capacitive biosensor is more sensitive than confluence measuring using a JuLiTM Br&FL microscope image. The developed capacitive biosensor could be applied in a wide range of bio-medical areas; for example, non-destructive real-time cell growth and cell-drug interaction monitoring.

Improved Photoresponse of UV Photodetectors by the Incorporation of Plasmonic Nanoparticles on GaN Through the Resonant Coupling of Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance.

Very small metallic nanostructures, i.e., plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs), can demonstrate the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect, a characteristic of the strong light absorption, scattering and localized electromagnetic field via the collective oscillation of surface electrons upon on the excitation by the incident photons. The LSPR of plasmonic NPs can significantly improve the photoresponse of the photodetectors. In this work, significantly enhanced photoresponse of UV photodetectors is demonstrated by the incorporation of various plasmonic NPs in the detector architecture. Various size and elemental composition of monometallic Ag and Au NPs, as well as bimetallic alloy AgAu NPs, are fabricated on GaN (0001) by the solid-state dewetting approach. The photoresponse of various NPs are tailored based on the geometric and elemental evolution of NPs, resulting in the highly enhanced photoresponsivity of 112 A W-1, detectivity of 2.4 × 1012 Jones and external quantum efficiency of 3.6 × 104% with the high Ag percentage of AgAu alloy NPs at a low bias of 0.1 V. The AgAu alloy NP detector also demonstrates a fast photoresponse with the relatively short rise and fall time of less than 160 and 630 ms, respectively. The improved photoresponse with the AgAu alloy NPs is correlated with the simultaneous effect of strong plasmon absorption and scattering, increased injection of hot electrons into the GaN conduction band and reduced barrier height at the alloy NPs/GaN interface.

Hydrogen Peroxide Detection by Super-Porous Hybrid CuO/Pt NP Platform: Improved Sensitivity and Selectivity.

A super-porous hybrid platform can offer significantly increased number of reaction sites for the analytes and thus can offer advantages in the biosensor applications. In this work, a significantly improved sensitivity and selectivity of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) detection is demonstrated by a super-porous hybrid CuO/Pt nanoparticle (NP) platform on Si substrate as the first demonstration. The super-porous hybrid platform is fabricated by a physiochemical approach combining the physical vapor deposition of Pt NPs and electrochemical deposition of super-porous CuO structures by adopting a dynamic hydrogen bubble technique. Under an optimized condition, the hybrid CuO/Pt biosensor demonstrates a very high sensitivity of 2205 µA/mM·cm2 and a low limit of detection (LOD) of 140 nM with a wide detection range of H2O2. This is meaningfully improved performance as compared to the previously reported CuO-based H2O2 sensors as well as to the other metal oxide-based H2O2 sensors. The hybrid CuO/Pt platform exhibits an excellent selectivity against other interfering molecules such as glucose, fructose, dopamine, sodium chloride and ascorbic acid. Due to the synergetic effect of highly porous CuO structures and underlying Pt NPs, the CuO/Pt architecture offers extremely abundant active sites for the H2O2 reduction and electron transfer pathways.

Production of bio-oil with reduced polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons via continuous pyrolysis of biobutanol process derived waste lignin.

The fast pyrolysis of waste lignin derived from biobutanol production process was performed to determine the optimal pyrolysis conditions and pyrolysis product properties. Four types of pyrolysis reactors, e.g.: micro-scale pyrolyzer-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, lab and bench scale fixed bed (FB) reactors, and bench scale rotary kiln (RK) reactor, were employed to compare the pyrolysis reaction conditions and product properties obtained from different reactors. The yields of char, oil, and gas obtained from lab scale and bench scale reactor were almost similar compared to FB reactor. RK reactor produced desirable bio-oil with much reduced yield of poly aromatic hydrocarbons (cancer precursor) due to its higher cracking reaction efficiency. In addition, char agglomeration and foaming of lignin pyrolysis were greatly restricted by using RK reactor compared to the FB reactor.

Bidirectional Core Sandwich Structure of Reduced Graphene Oxide and Spinnable Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes for Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Effectiveness.

Thin and flexible electromagnetic shielding materials have recently emerged because of their promising applications in drones, portable electronics, military defense facilities, etc. This research develops an electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding material by a bidirectional lattice sandwich structure (BLSS), which is formed by liquid crystalline graphene oxide (LCGO) and an orthogonal pattern of spinnable multiwalled (OPSM) nanotubes in consideration of the movement of electromagnetic waves. The average EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) of the developed material with 0.5 wt % reduced LCGO (r-LCGO) and an OPSM nanotube composed of 64 layers was approximately 66.1 dB in the X-band frequency range (8.2-12.4 GHz, wavelength: 3.5-2.5 cm), which corresponds to a shielding efficiency of 99.9999%. Also, its absorption effectiveness is 99.7% of the total EMI SE, indicating that it has a remarkable ability to prevent secondary damage induced by EM reflection. The specific EMI SE (SSE/t) of the composite material considering the contribution of thickness (t) ranged from 21 953 to 2259 dB cm2/g.

Debrominated high quality oil production by the two-step catalytic pyrolysis of phenolic printed circuit boards (PPCB) using natural clays and HY.

The two-step catalytic pyrolysis (CP) of a phenolic-printed circuit board (PPCB) over in-situ natural clays (dolomite, bentonite, and olivine) and ex-situ HY(30, SiO2/Al2O3: 30) was investigated by tandem micro reactor-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The non-catalytic pyrolysis (NCP) of PPCB produced oxygenated, phosphorous, and brominated compounds due to the presence of paper, tetrabromo bisphenol A (TBBA), phosphorous flame retardants, and phenol resin in the PPCB. Among the natural clays, dolomite showed the highest debromination and aromatics formation efficiency during the in-situ CP of PPCB followed by bentonite and olivine owing to the different catalyst properties. Two-step CP of PPCB over in-situ natural clays and ex-situ HY(30) achieved higher efficiency on the formation of higher quality oil (mono-phenol and aromatic hydrocarbons) with a lower Br content than the one-step CP of PPCB. Among the two-step catalysts, the combination of in-situ dolomite and ex-situ HY(30) provided the highest quality oil production due to the high acidity and sufficiently large pore size of dolomite. Two-step CP of PPCB over in-situ dolomite and ex-situ HY(30) also revealed a longer lifetime than the one-step CP of PPCB over ex-situ HY(30), not only for the formation of aromatic hydrocarbons and mono-phenols, but also for debromination.

Electrodeposition of α-MnO2/γ-MnO2 on Carbon Nanotube for Yarn Supercapacitor.

Yarn supercapacitors have attracted renewed interest as promising energy storage for wearable devices due to their lightweight, long cycling lifetime and excellent weavability. There has been much effort to fabricate high performance yarn supercapacitor by depositing pseudo-capacitive materials on the outer surface of the carbon fibers. However, a key challenge still remains to achieve high capacitance and high mass loading without sacrificing the cycling stability. Herein, we perform a phase-controlled of MnO2 at various deposition temperatures with ultrahigh mass loading of 11 mg/cm2 on a MWNT sheets and fabricate it to yarn structure to achieve high capacitance without decreasing in the electrochemical performance. The structure of optimized sample (MnO2/CNTs-60, deposition at 60 °C) consists of the composite of primary α-MnO2 nanosheets and secondary γ-MnO2 nanoparticles. The heteronanostructures of MnO2 provide facile ionic and electric transport in the yarn electrode, resulting in improvement of electrochemical performance and cycling stability. The MnO2/CNTs-60 yarn electrode with ultrahigh mass loading delivers a high areal capacitance of 3.54 F/cm2 at 1 mA/cm2 and an excellent rate capability. Finally, the MnO2/CNTs-60 device exhibits an outstanding high areal energy density of 93.8 µWh/cm2 at the power density of 193 µW/cm2, which is superior to previously reported symmetric yarn supercapacitors.

Carbon nanotubes-elastomer actuator driven electrothermally by low-voltage.

Electroactive polymers (EAPs) have attracted attention in many fields such as robotics, sensors devices and biomedical devices. However, the practical application of these actuators has still problems due to incomplete reversibility and high applied voltage. In order to overcome these problems, in this study, we have shown actuator based on phase transition that is consisted of the carbon nanotubes yarn infiltrated with the mixture of elastomer and methanol. Our electrothermally driven hybrid coiled yarn muscle provides a work capacity of 0.49 kJ kg-1 and a tensile contraction of 30.5% within ∼3 s on an applied stress of 3.1 MPa at an applied DC voltage of 5 V. The maximum work capacity is under isobaric 23.4 MPa, which is 110 times that of typical mammalian skeletal muscles. This actuator may serve as a promising candidate for the practical use in soft robotics.

Characterization of Rotational Stacking Layers in Large-Area MoSe2 Film Grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy and Interaction with Photon.

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) are promising next-generation materials for optoelectronic devices because, at subnanometer thicknesses, they have a transparency, flexibility, and band gap in the near-infrared to visible light range. In this study, we examined continuous, large-area MoSe2 film, grown by molecular beam epitaxy on an amorphous SiO2/Si substrate, which facilitated direct device fabrication without exfoliation. Spectroscopic measurements were implemented to verify the formation of a homogeneous MoSe2 film by performing mapping on the micrometer scale and measurements at multiple positions. The crystalline structure of the film showed hexagonal (2H) rotationally stacked layers. The local strain at the grain boundaries was mapped using a geometric phase analysis, which showed a higher strain for a 30° twist angle compared to a 13° angle. Furthermore, the photon-matter interaction for the rotational stacking structures was investigated as a function of the number of layers using spectroscopic ellipsometry. The optical band gap for the grown MoSe2 was in the near-infrared range, 1.24-1.39 eV. As the film thickness increased, the band gap energy decreased. The atomically controlled thin MoSe2 showed promise for application to nanoelectronics, photodetectors, light emitting diodes, and valleytronics.

Overexpression of squalene synthase in Eleutherococcus senticosus increases phytosterol and triterpene accumulation.

Squalene synthase (SS) catalyzes the first committed step in sterol and triterpenoid biosynthesis. Transgenic Eleutherococcus senticosus Rupr. and Maxim. plants were generated by introducing an SS-encoding gene derived from Panax ginseng (PgSS1) together with genes expressing hygromycin phosphotransferase and green fluorescent protein (GFP) through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Early globular embryo clusters developing from the embryogenic callus were used for Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Transformants were selected on Murashige Skoog medium containing 25 mg/L hygromycin. Hygromycin-resistant somatic embryos developed into plants after the cotyledonary embryos were treated with 14.4 microM gibberellic acid. Transformation was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction, Southern, and GFP analyses. The SS enzyme activity of the transgenic plants was up to 3-fold higher than that of wild-type plants. In addition, GC-MS and HPLC analysis revealed that phytosterols (beta-sitosterol and stigmasterol) as well as triterpene saponins (ciwujianosides B (1), C(1) (2), C(2) (3), C(3) (4), C(4) (5), D(1) (6) and D(2) (7)) levels in transgenic E. senticosus were increased by 2- to 2.5-fold. These results suggest that the metabolic engineering of E. senticosus to enhance production of phytosterols and triterpenoids by introducing the PgSS1 gene was successfully achieved by Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation.

Polyphenols isolated from Allium cepa L. induces apoptosis by suppressing IAP-1 through inhibiting PI3K/Akt signaling pathways in human leukemic cells.

Allium cepa Linn is commonly used as supplementary folk remedy for cancer therapy. Evidence suggests that Allium extracts have anti-cancer properties. However, the mechanisms of the anti-cancer activity of A. cepa Linn are not fully elucidated in human cancer cells. In this study, we investigated anti-cancer effects of polyphenols extracted from lyophilized A. cepa Linn (PEAL) in human leukemia cells and their mechanisms. PEAL inhibited cancer cell growth by inducing caspase-dependent apoptosis. The apoptosis was suppressed by caspase 8 and 9 inhibitors. PEAL also up-regulated TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) receptor DR5 and down-regulated survivin and cellular inhibitor of apoptosis 1 (cIAP-1). We confirmed these findings in other leukemic cells (THP-1, K562 cells). In addition, PEAL suppressed Akt activity and the PEAL-induced apoptosis was significantly attenuated in Akt-overexpressing U937 cells. In conclusion, our data suggested that PEAL induced caspase-dependent apoptosis in several human leukemic cells including U937 cells. The apoptosis was triggered through extrinsic pathway by up-regulating DR5 modulating as well as through intrinsic pathway by modulating IAP family members. In addition, PEAL induces caspase-dependent apoptosis at least in part through the inhibition of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signaling pathway. This study provides evidence that PEAL might be useful for the treatment of leukemia.

Enhanced triterpene and phytosterol biosynthesis in Panax ginseng overexpressing squalene synthase gene.

Roots of Panax ginseng, one of the most famous medicinal plants, contain various phytosterols and bioactive triterpene saponins (ginsenosides). In P. ginseng, phytosterols and triterpenes share the common biosynthetic intermediate, squalene. Here, we investigate the regulatory role of Panax ginseng squalene synthase (PgSS1) on the biosynthesis of phytosterols and triterpene saponins. PgSS1 transcripts are expressed ubiquitously in the various plant tissues, but higher in shoot apex and root. The transcript levels of PgSS1 increased markedly in the adventitious roots during 12- to 96-h period after metyl jasmonate (MeJA) treatment; MeJA treatment induced the activation of the transcripts of squalene epoxidase (SE), beta-amyrin synthase (bAS), but not cycloartenol synthase (CAS). Unlike MeJA treatment, overexpression of PgSS1 in adventitious roots of transgenic P. ginseng was followed by the up-regulation of all the downstream genes tested, such as SE, bAS, and CAS. The enhanced activity of PgSS1 enzyme resulted in remarkable increase of phytosterols as well as ginsenoside contents. These results demonstrate that PgSS1 is a key regulatory enzyme not only for phytosterol but also for triterpene biosynthesis and overexpressing of PgSS1 confers the hyperproduction of triterpene saponins to P. ginseng.