Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol-to-lymphocyte count ratio (LLR) is a promising novel predictor of postoperative new-onset deep vein thrombosis following open wedge high tibial osteotomy: a propensity score-matched analysis.

BACKGROUND: The association of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and lymphocyte counts with the development of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) has been demonstrated in many fields but remains lacking in open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO). This study aimed to assess the predictive value of LDL-C to lymphocyte count ratio (LLR) in screening for postoperative new-onset DVT. METHODS: Clinical data were retrospectively collected from patients who underwent OWHTO between June 2018 and May 2023. The limited restricted cubic spline (RCS) was conducted to evaluate the nonlinear relationship between LLR and the risk of postoperative new-onset DVT. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were plotted and the predictive value of biomarkers was assessed. After adjusting for intergroup confounders by propensity score matching, the univariate logistic regression was applied to assess the association between LLR and DVT. RESULTS: 1293 eligible patients were included. RCS analysis showed a linear positive correlation between LLR and the risk of DVT (P for overall = 0.008). We identified LLR had an area under the curve of 0.607, accuracy of 74.3%, sensitivity of 38.5%, and specificity of 80.7%, and LLR > 1.75 was independently associated with a 1.45-fold risk of DVT (95% CI: 1.01-2.08, P = 0.045). Furthermore, significant heterogeneities were observed in the subgroups of age, BMI, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, Kellgren-Lawrence grade, the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, and intraoperative osteotomy correction size. CONCLUSION: LLR is a valuable biomarker for predicting postoperative new-onset DVT in patients with OWHTO, and routine screening is expected to yield positive benefits.

The effect of distal locking mode on postoperative mechanical complications in intertrochanteric fractures: a retrospective cohort study of five hundred and seven patients.

PURPOSE: The optimal choice of distal locking modes remains a subject due to limited available data, and therefore, this study aims to investigate the relationship between distal locking mode and postoperative mechanical complications in an intertrochanteric fracture (ITF) population who underwent closed reduction and intramedullary fixation with a PFNA-II. METHODS: Patients aged 65 years or older who underwent surgery with PFNA-II fixation in a university teaching hospital between January 2020 and December 2021 were potentially eligible. Based on the distal locking mode, patients were classified into static, dynamic, and limited dynamic groups, among which the differences were tested using univariate analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine whether the distal locking mode was independently associated with the risk of postoperative one year mechanical complications, adjusting for covariates and potential confounders. Subgroup analyses were performed to evaluate the robustness of the findings. RESULT: Among 507 eligible patients, 33 (6.5%) developed postoperative mechanical complications. In the univariate analysis, sex (P = 0.007), fracture type (P = 0.020), LAT Parker ratio (P = 0.023), and lateral femoral (P = 0.003) wall showed that the differences were significant. Compared to the static group, the limited dynamic group and the dynamic group showed higher odds of postoperative mechanical complications (OR = 3.314, 95% CI: 1.215-9.041; and OR = 3.652, 95% CI: 1.451-9.191, respectively). These associations were robust across a series of analyses, including adjusting for confounders and subgroup analyses. CONCLUSION: Using a distal non-static locking mode significantly increases the risk of postoperative mechanical complications, and static locking could be a preferable option when treating an intertrochanteric fracture.

Development and validation of a nomogram for predicting the risk of immediate postoperative deep vein thrombosis after open wedge high tibial osteotomy.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify independent risk factors for immediate postoperative deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in patients with open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO) and to develop and validate a predictive nomogram. METHODS: Patients who underwent OWHTO for knee osteoarthritis (KOA) from June 2017 to December 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Baseline data and laboratory test results were collected, and the occurrence of DVT in the immediate postoperative period was regarded as the study outcome event. Multivariable logistic regression identified independent risk factors associated with a higher incidence of immediate postoperative DVT. The predictive nomogram was constructed based on the analysis results. The stability of the model was further assessed in this study using patients from January to September 2022 as an external validation set. RESULTS: 741 patients were enrolled in the study, of which 547 were used in the training cohort and the other 194 for the validation cohort. Multivariate analysis revealed a higher Kellgren-Lawrence (K-L) grade (III vs. I-II OR 3.09, 95% CI 0.93-10.23. IV vs. I-II OR 5.23, 95% CI 1.27-21.48.), platelet to hemoglobin ratio (PHR) > 2.25 (OR 6.10, 95% CI 2.43-15.33), Low levels of albumin (ALB) (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.70-0.90), LDL-C > 3.40 (OR 3.06, 95% CI 1.22-7.65), D-dimer > 1.26 (OR 2.83, 95% CI 1.16-6.87) and BMI ≥ 28 (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.02-6.50) were the independent risk factors of immediate postoperative DVT. The concordance index (C-index) and Brier score of the nomogram were 0.832 and 0.036 in the training set, and the corrected values after internal validation were 0.795 and 0.038, respectively. The receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve, the calibration curve, the Hosmer-Lemeshow test, and the decision curve analysis (DCA) performed well in both the training and validation cohorts. CONCLUSION: This study developed a personalized predictive nomogram with six predictors, which allows surgeons to stratify risk and recommended immediate ultrasound scans for patients with any of these factors. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Proximal tibial osteotomy with absorbable spacer combined with fibular osteotomy has similar clinical outcomes to high tibial osteotomy in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis.

PURPOSE: Proximal tibia osteotomy with absorbable spacer combined with fibular osteotomy (TPOASI) is an emerging surgical technique for treating knee osteoarthritis (KOA); however, the efficacy of this procedure remains unknown. We hypothesize that TPOASI can achieve similar clinical outcomes to opening-wedge high tibial osteotomy (OW-HTO). The objective of this study is to compare the clinical results between these two procedures. METHODS: Patients who underwent TPOASI or OW-HTO from July 2016 to September 2020 were included. The following outcome parameters were determined before and after the surgery: the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), the visual analogue scale of pain, the Intermittent and Persistent Osteoarthritis Pain Scale, femorotibial angle, and post-operative complications. RESULTS: In total, 209 cases were analyzed (102 in TPOASI group; 107 in OW-HTO group) with 3.1 years average follow-up. Both procedures achieved significant improvement in KOOS (62.0 to 24.4 in the TPOASI and 62.8 to 26.2 in the OW-HTO group, p < 0.001) and WOMAC score (68.9 to 24.1 in the TPOASI versus 69.9 to 26.1 in the OW-HTO group, p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in complications or femorotibial angle between the two groups but the only significant difference in the outcome parameters was the WOMAC stiffness score (19.6 in the TPOASI versus 26.5 in the OW-HTO group). CONCLUSION: TPOASI achieves comparable results to OW-HTO in terms of clinical scores, radiographic results, and complications, but has the advantage of avoiding internal fixation removal.

Ternary Mo2 NiB2 as a Superior Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Overall Water Splitting.

Transition metal borides are considered as promising electrocatalysts for water splitting due to their metallic conductivity and good durability. However, the currently reported monometallic and noncrystalline multimetallic borides only show generic and monofunctional catalytic activity. In this work, the authors design and successfully synthesize highly crystalline ternary borides, Mo2 NiB2 , via a facile solid-state reaction from pure elemental powders. The as-synthesized Mo2 NiB2 exhibits very low overpotentials for both the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), that is, 280 and 160 mV to reach a current density of 10 mA cm-2 , in alkaline media. These values are much lower from the ones observed over monometallic borides, that is, Ni2 B and MoB, and the lowest among all nonprecious metal borides. By loading Mo2 NiB2 onto Ni foams as both cathode and anode electrode for overall water splitting applications, a low cell voltage of 1.57 V is required to achieve a current density of 10 mA cm-2 , comparable with the value required from the Pt/C||IrO2 /C couple (1.56 V). The proposed synthesis strategy can be used for the preparation of cost-effective, multi-metallic crystalline borides, as multifunctional electrocatalysts.

Understanding the Surface Reconstruction on Ternary Wx CoBx for Water Oxidation and Zinc-Air Battery Applications.

Here, the synthesis of a series of pure phase metal borides is reported, including WB, CoB, WCoB, and W2 CoB2 , and their surface reconstruction is studied under the electrochemical activation in alkaline solution. A cyclic voltammetric activation is found to enhance the activity of the CoB and W2 CoB2 precatalysts due to the transformation of their surfaces into the amorphous CoOOH layer with a thickness of 3-4 nm. However, such surface transformation does not happen on the WB and WCoB due to their superior structure stability under the applied voltage, highlighting the importance of metal components for the surface reconstruction process. It is found that, compared with CoB, the W2 CoB2 surface shows a quicker reconstruction with a larger active surface area due to the selective leaching of the W from its surface. In the meantime, the metallic W2 CoB2 core underneath the CoOOH layer shows a better promotion of its oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance than CoB. Therefore, the ternary W2 CoB2 shows better OER performance than the CoB, as well as the WB and WCoB. It is also found that the mixture of W2 CoB2 with Pt/C as the catalysts in air electrode for rechargeable Zn-air battery (ZAB), shows better performance than the IrO2 -Pt/C couple-based ZAB.

A dimethyl disulfide gas sensor based on nanosized Pt-loaded tetrakaidecahedralα-Fe2O3nanocrystals.

Surface modification by employing precious metals is one of the most effective ways to improve the gas-sensing performance of metal oxide semiconductors. Pureα-Fe2O3nanoparticles and Pt-modifiedα-Fe2O3nanoparticles were prepared sequentially using a rather simple hydrothermal synthesis and impregnation method. Compared with the originalα-Fe2O3nanomaterials, the Pt-α-Fe2O3nanocomposite sensor shows a higher response value (Ra/Rg = 58.6) and a shorter response/recovery time (1 s/168 s) to 100 ppm dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) gas at 375 °C. In addition, it has better selectivity to DMDS gas with the value of more than 9 times higher than the other target gases at 375 °C. This study indicates that the Pt-α-Fe2O3nanoparticle sensor has good prospects and can be used as a low-cost and effective DMDS gas sensor.

Surface Functionalized Sensors for Humidity-Independent Gas Detection.

Semiconducting metal oxides (SMOXs) are used widely for gas sensors. However, the effect of ambient humidity on the baseline and sensitivity of the chemiresistors is still a largely unsolved problem, reducing sensor accuracy and causing complications for sensor calibrations. Presented here is a general strategy to overcome water-sensitivity issues by coating SMOXs with a hydrophobic polymer separated by a metal-organic framework (MOF) layer that preserves the SMOX surface and serves a gas-selective function. Sensor devices using these nanoparticles display near-constant responses even when humidity is varied across a wide range [0-90 % relative humidity (RH)]. Furthermore, the sensor delivers notable performance below 20 % RH whereas other water-resistance strategies typically fail. Selectivity enhancement and humidity-independent sensitivity are concomitantly achieved using this approach. The reported tandem coating strategy is expected to be relevant for a wide range of SMOXs, leading to a new generation of gas sensors with excellent humidity-resistant performance.

Ordered mesoporous carbon assisted Fe-N-C for efficient oxygen reduction catalysis in both acidic and alkaline media.

Fe-N-C catalyst obtained by high temperature pyrolysis is one of the most promising electrocatalysts for non-precious metal oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, up to now, the lesser density of active sites results in a substantial performance gap between the Fe-N-C materials and the conventional Pt/C ORR catalysts. Herein, an N-doped mesoporous carbon is employed as the support for the dispersion of poly-m-phenylenediamine. With high specific surface areas of 1526 m2 g-1, the as-prepared Fe-N-C materials show the half-wave potential of 0.89 V and 0.79 V in 0.1 M KOH and 0.5 M H2SO4, respectively. Notably, the superior methanol tolerance, as well as excellent stability, makes our Fe-N-C materials as competitive candidates for oxygen electrochemical catalysis.

Fe3C cluster-promoted single-atom Fe, N doped carbon for oxygen-reduction reaction.

A key challenge in carrying out an efficient oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is the design of a highly efficient electrocatalyst that must have fast kinetics, low cost and high stability for use in an energy-conversion device (e.g. metal-air batteries). Herein, we developed a platinum-free ORR electrocatalyst with a high surface area and pore volume via a molten salt method along with subsequent KOH activation. The activation treatment not only increases the surface area to 940.8 m2 g-1 by generating lots of pores, but also promotes the formation of uniform Fe3C nanoclusters within the atomic dispersed Fe-Nx carbon matrix in the final material (A-FeNC). A-FeNC displays excellent activity and long-term stability for the ORR in alkaline media, and shows a greater half-wave potential (0.85 V) and faster kinetics toward four-electron ORR as compared to those of 20 wt% Pt/C (0.83 V). As a cathode catalyst for the Zn-air battery, A-FeNC presents a peak power density of 102.2 mW cm-2, higher than that of the Pt/C constructed Zn-air battery (57.2 mW cm-2). The superior ORR catalytic performance of A-FeNC is ascribed to the increased exposure of active sites, active single-atom Fe-N-C centers, and enhancement by Fe3C nanoclusters.

A Surface-Oxide-Rich Activation Layer (SOAL) on Ni2 Mo3 N for a Rapid and Durable Oxygen Evolution Reaction.

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is key to renewable energy technologies such as water electrolysis and metal-air batteries. However, the multiple steps associated with proton-coupled electron transfer result in sluggish OER kinetics and catalysts are required. Here we demonstrate that a novel nitride, Ni2 Mo3 N, is a highly active OER catalyst that outperforms the benchmark material RuO2 . Ni2 Mo3 N exhibits a current density of 10 mA cm-2 at a nominal overpotential of 270 mV in 0.1 m KOH with outstanding catalytic cyclability and durability. Structural characterization and computational studies reveal that the excellent activity stems from the formation of a surface-oxide-rich activation layer (SOAL). Secondary Mo atoms on the surface act as electron pumps that stabilize oxygen-containing species and facilitate the continuity of the reactions. This discovery will stimulate the further development of ternary nitrides with oxide surface layers as efficient OER catalysts for electrochemical energy devices.

Charge Disproportionation in Sr0.5Bi0.5FeO3 Containing Unusually High Valence Fe3.5.

A Sr analogue of Ca0.5Bi0.5FeO3, Sr0.5Bi0.5FeO3, containing unusually high valence Fe3.5+ ions was synthesized by using a high-pressure technique. It relieves the electronic instability due to the unusually high valence of Fe3.5+ by a single charge disproportionation (CD) transition (Fe3.5+ → 0.75Fe3+ + 0.25Fe5+) rather than the successive CD and intermetallic charge transfer (CT) transitions seen in Ca0.5Bi0.5FeO3. Conduction-band narrowing due to the significant bend in the Fe-O-Fe bond in the rhombohedral R3̅c crystal structure stabilized the charge-disproportionated state at low temperatures. Most importantly, Bi3+ ions in Sr0.5Bi0.5FeO3 do not act as countercations accepting oxygen holes as they do in Ca0.5Bi0.5FeO3, resulting in the absence of the intermetallic CT transition. The large cavity of the A-site Sr ions prevents the charge-transferred Bi5+ from being stabilized. In the charge-disproportionated state the nearest-neighbor Fe3+ spins align antiferromagnetically and one-fourth of the Fe3+ spins are randomly replaced by Fe5+ spins coupled ferromagnetically with the neighboring Fe3+ spins.

Two Charge Ordering Patterns in the Topochemically Synthesized Layer-Structured Perovskite LaCa2Fe3O9 with Unusually High Valence Fe3.67.

A-site-ordered layer-structured perovskite LaCa2Fe3O9 with unusually high valence Fe3.67+ was obtained by low-temperature topochemical oxidation of the A-site layer-ordered LaCa2Fe3O8. The unusually high valence Fe3.67+ in LaCa2Fe3O9 shows charge disproportionation of Fe3+ and Fe5+ first along the layer-stacking ⟨010⟩ direction below 230 K. Fe3+ is located between the La3+ and Ca2+ layers, while Fe5+ is between the Ca2+ layers. The two-dimensional electrostatic potential due to the A-site layered arrangement results in the quasi-stable ⟨010⟩ charge ordering pattern. Below 170 K, the charge ordering pattern changes, and the 2:1 charge-disproportionated Fe3+ and Fe5+ ions are ordered along the ⟨111⟩ direction. The ground-state charge ordering pattern is stabilized primarily by the electrostatic lattice energy, and the Fe5+ ions are arranged to make the distances between the nearest neighboring Fe5+ as large as possible.

Geometrical Spin Frustration of Unusually High Valence Fe(5+) in the Double Perovskite La2LiFeO6.

A double perovskite-structure oxide La2LiFeO6 with unusually high-valence Fe(5+) was synthesized using a high-pressure technique. The Li(+) and Fe(5+) ions at the B site in the rhombohedral R3̅ perovskite structure are ordered in a rock salt manner, and the resultant tetrahedral network of Fe(5+) gives geometrical spin frustration, which is consistent with a large frustration index f (|θ|/TN) ≈ 10. Mg(2+) substitution for Li(+) produces Fe(4+) from some Fe(5+) and changes the magnetic properties. The Weiss temperature is increased from -119 to 21 K by the substitution of only 1%, significantly decreasing the frustration index. The geometrical frustration of the Fe(5+) spin sublattice cannot be tolerant for even a very small amount of Fe(4+) disturbance.

Clinical outcomes of guider-assisted osteotomy compared to conventional pendulum-saw osteotomy in open wedge high tibial osteotomy: a propensity score-matched cohort study.

PURPOSE: We developed a novel guider-assisted osteotomy (GAO) procedure to improve the safety of open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO) and aimed to compare its efficacy and complications with the conventional pendulum-saw osteotomy (PSO). METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study of patients undergoing either GAO or PSO procedure in the OWHTO to treat varus knee osteoarthritis, who had a minimum of 2 years of follow-up. Patients were propensity score matched (PSM) in a 1:1 ratio based on demographic and clinical data with a caliper width of 0.02. The outcomes assessed involved the hospital for special surgery (HSS) and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) score, and the Intraoperative and postoperative complications. RESULTS: 199 patients were included in each group after PSM. The mean duration of follow-up was 38.3 ± 8.9 months. The GAO group had a shorter operation duration (104.5 ± 35.7 vs. 112.1 ± 36.0 min, p = 0.027) and fewer times of intraoperative fluoroscopy (4.2 ± 1.4 vs. 6.0 ± 1.4, p < 0.001). At the last follow-up, clinical scores for knee achieved significant improvements in both GAO and PSO groups: HSS (67.5 ± 10.5 vs. 90.2 ± 7.0, p < 0.001; 69.4 ± 8.2 vs. 91.7 ± 6.8, p < 0.001) and WOMAC (65.7 ± 11.6 vs. 25.2 ± 10.4, p < 0.001; 63.3 ± 12.2 vs. 23.8 ± 9.5, p < 0.001). However, no significant difference was observed between groups for any measures (p > 0.05). In addition, the intraoperative complications (0.5% vs. 3.5%, p = 0.068) and the postoperative bone delayed union and nonunion (1.0% vs. 4.5%, p = 0.032) were marginally or significantly reduced in the GAO versus PSO group. CONCLUSION: GAO demonstrates improvements in intraoperative radiation exposure and complications, with comparable short-term efficacy to PSO, and could be considered a viable alternative in clinical practice.

Risk Factors and Dynamic Nomogram Development for Surgical Site Infection Following Open Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy for Varus Knee Osteoarthritis: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: As the worldwide population ages, the population receiving open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO) is growing, and surgical site infection (SSI) is a rare but fatal surgical complication. This study aimed to identify risk factors independently associated with SSI following OWHTO and develop a predictive nomogram. Methods: Clinical data of patients who received OWHTO and followed up for more than 12 months in our hospital were retrospectively reviewed. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to determine independent risk factors for SSI and to construct predictive nomograms. The study further illustrated the predictive performance of the model by using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA). Results: A total of 1294 eligible patients were included in the study. Multivariate analysis revealed tobacco consumption (OR=3.44, p=0.010), osteotomy size ≥12 mm (OR=3.3, p=0.015), the use of allogeneic bone or artificial bone graft substitutes (allogeneic bone vs none, OR=4.08, p=0.037; artificial bone vs none, OR=5.16, p=0.047), Kellgren-Lawrence (K-L) grade IV (OR=2.5, p=0.046), systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) >423.62 (OR=6.2, p<0.001), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (HCRP) >2.6 mg/L (OR=2.42, p=0.044), and a higher level of fasting blood glucose (FBG) (OR=1.32, p=0.022) were the independent predictors of SSI. The cutoff score of the model was 148, with a sensitivity of 76.0% and specificity of 81.0%. The concordance index (C-index) and Brier score of the nomogram were 0.856 and 0.017, and the corrected values after 1000 bootstrapping validations were 0.820 and 0.018, respectively. Furthermore, the ROC curve, calibration curve, and DCA exhibited excellent predictive accuracy and clinical applicability of the model. Conclusion: This study developed a dynamic nomogram based on seven predictors, which allowed surgeons to individualize risk stratification of patients and intervene promptly to reduce SSI rates.

Co4N-WNx composite for efficient piezocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

A dual-phase transition metal nitride (TMN) based Co4N-WNx system has been fabricated using nitridation of CoWO4. The interface between centrosymmetric Co4N and non-centrosymmetric WNx promotes charge carrier separation. This system also shows piezoelectric behavior. The piezoelectric property has been proved using piezoelectric force microscopy (PFM) measurements. In addition, modulating the non-centrosymmetric structure of Co4N-WNx allows a hydrogen production rate of about 262.7 µmol g-1 h-1 in pure water. We also show that the piezocatalytic hydrogen evolution efficiency is satisfactory. Co4N-WNx can also help achieve simultaneous piezocatalytic hydrogen production and RhB degradation. This work provides a novel strategy for designing efficient piezocatalytic materials.

Mesoporous Ti0.5Cr0.5N for trace H2S detection with excellent long-term stability.

Efficient, accurate and reliable detection and monitoring of H2S is of significance in a wide range of areas: industrial production, medical diagnosis, environmental monitoring, and health screening. However the rapid corrosion of commercial platinum-on-carbon (Pt/C) sensing electrodes in the presence of H2S presents a fundamental challenge for fuel cell gas sensors. Herein we report a solution to the issue through the design of a sensing electrode, which is based on Pt supported on mesoporous titanium chromium nitrides (Pt/Ti0.5Cr0.5N). Its desirable characteristics are due to its high electrochemical stability and strong metal-support interactions. The Pt/Ti0.5Cr0.5N-based sensors exhibit a much smaller attenuation (1.3%) in response to H2S than Pt/C-sensor (40%), after 2 months sensing test. Furthermore, the Pt/Ti0.5Cr0.5N-based sensors exhibit negligible cross response to other interfering gases compared with hydrogen sulfide. Results of density functional theory calculation also verify the excellent long-term stability and selectivity of the gas sensor. Our work hence points to a new sensing electrode system that offers a combination of high performance and stability for fuel-cell gas sensors.

Integrated sensing array of the perovskite-type LnFeO3 (LnË­La, Pr, Nd, Sm) to discriminate detection of volatile sulfur compounds.

Distinguishing toxic gases among the various volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) is of significant practical value for atmospheric and environmental pollution monitoring, industrial monitoring, and even for medical diagnostics (where VSCs are indicators of diseases). The particular challenge lies in the detection and discrimination of sulfur-containing gases such as dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), methyl sulfide (DMS), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and carbon disulfide (CS2) is of value. Herein, single-phase perovskite-type LnFeO3 nanoparticles were prepared by the citrate sol-gel method. Their gas sensing characteristics regard to the four typical VSCs were investigated. We found that the gas response of the p-type semiconductor LnFeO3 gas sensors to the four typical VSCs are significantly different. In addition, the sensors offer high performance, good tolerance to environmental changes and long-term stability for detecting VSCs gas at an operating temperature of 210 °C. A new design of sensor array was realized by integrating a series of LnFeO3 materials, which revealed excellent recognition ability for various VSCs, showing promise for real time monitoring.

Titanium Nitride-Supported Platinum with Metal-Support Interaction for Boosting Photocatalytic H2 Evolution of Indium Sulfide.

Metal-support interaction strongly influences the catalytic properties of metal-based catalysts. Here, titanium nitride (TiN) nanospheres are shown to be an outstanding support, for tuning the electronic property of platinum (Pt) nanoparticles and adjusting the morphology of indium sulfide (In2S3) active components, forming flower-like core-shell nanostructures (TiN-Pt@In2S3). The strong metal-support interaction between Pt and TiN through the formation of Pt-Ti bonds favors the migration of charge carriers and leads to the easy reducibility of TiN-Pt, thus improving the photocatalytic atom efficiency of Pt. The TiN-Pt@In2S3 composite shows reduction of Pt loading by 70% compared to the optimal Pt-based system. In addition, the optimal TiN-Pt@In2S3 composite exhibits a H2 evolution rate 4 times that of a Pt reference. This increase outperforms all other supports reported thus far.