Preparation of high-strength silica aerogels by two-step surface modification via ambient pressure drying

Journal of Porous Materials - High-strength silica aerogels were prepared successfully by a new two-step surface modification (TSSM) method via ambient pressure drying (APD). Methyltrimethoxysilane...     

Reconstructed Water Oxidation Electrocatalysts: The Impact of Surface Dynamics on Intrinsic Activities

Electroreduction of small molecules such as H₂O, CO₂, and N₂ for producing clean fuels or valuable chemicals provides a sustainable approach to meet the increasing global energy demands and to alleviate the concern on climate change resulting from fossil fuel consumption. On the path to implement this purpose, however, several scientific hurdles remain, one of which is the low energy efficiency due to the sluggish kinetics of the paired oxygen evolution reaction (OER). In response, it is highly desirable to synthesize high-performance and cost-effective OER electrocatalysts. Recent advances have witnessed surface reconstruction engineering as a salient tool to significantly improve the catalytic performance of OER electrocatalysts. In this review, recent progress on the reconstructed OER electrocatalysts and future opportunities are discussed. A brief introduction of the fundamentals of OER and the experimental approaches for generating and characterizing the reconstructed active sites in OER nanocatalysts are given first, followed by an expanded discussion of recent advances on the reconstructed OER electrocatalysts with improved activities, with a particular emphasis on understanding the correlation between surface dynamics and activities. Finally, a prospect for clean future energy communities harnessing surface reconstruction-promoted electrochemical water oxidation will be provided.     

Statistical Piezotronic Effect in Nanocrystal Bulk by Anisotropic Geometry Control

Utilizing inner-crystal piezoelectric polarization charges to control carrier transport across a metal-semiconductor or semiconductor–semiconductor interface, piezotronic effect has great potential applications in smart micro/nano-electromechanical system (MEMS/NEMS), human-machine interfacing, and nanorobotics. However, current research on piezotronics has mainly focused on systems with only one or rather limited interfaces. Here, the statistical piezotronic effect is reported in ZnO bulk composited of nanoplatelets, of which the strain/stress-induced piezo-potential at the crystals’ interfaces can effectively gate the electrical transport of ZnO bulk. It is a statistical phenomenon of piezotronic modification of large numbers of interfaces, and the crystal orientation of inner ZnO nanoplatelets strongly influence the transport property of ZnO bulk. With optimum preferred orientation of ZnO nanoplatelets, the bulk exhibits an increased conductivity with decreasing stress at a high pressure range of 200–400 MPa, which has not been observed previously in bulk. A maximum sensitivity of 1.149 µS m⁻¹ MPa⁻¹ and a corresponding gauge factor of 467–589 have been achieved. As a statistical phenomenon of many piezotronic interfaces modulation, the proposed statistical piezotronic effect extends the connotation of piezotronics and promotes its practical applications in intelligent sensing.     

Self-Adaptive Control System for Additive Manufacturing Using Double Electrode Micro Plasma Arc Welding

Wire arc additive manufacturing(WAAM)has been investigated to deposit large-scale metal parts due to its high deposition efficiency and low material cost.However,in the process of automatically manufacturing the high-quality metal parts by WAAM,several problems about the heat build-up,the deposit-path optimization,and the stability of the process parameters need to be well addressed.To overcome these issues,a new WAAM method based on the double electrode micro plasma arc welding(DE-MPAW)was designed.The circuit principles of different metal-transfer models in the DE-MPAW deposition process were analyzed theoretically.The effects between the parameters,wire feed rate and torch stand-off distance,in the process of WAAM were investigated experimentally.In addition,a real-time DE-MPAW control system was developed to optimize and stabilize the deposition process by self-adaptively changing the wire feed rate and torch stand-off distance.Finally,a series of tests were performed to evaluate the con-trol system's performance.The results show that the capability against interferences in the process of WAAM has been enhanced by this self-adaptive adjustment system.Further,the deposition paths about the metal part's layer heights in WAAM are simplified.Finally,the appearance of the WAAM-deposited metal layers is also improved with the use of the control system.     

Study of the Transformation of Gallium Arsenide Surface Layers under the Action of Light by Means of Surface Acoustic Waves

Journal of Communications Technology and Electronics - Changes in the state of the surface layer of semi-insulating (111) GaAs in air under the action of white light are studied using surface...     

Fabrication and upconversion luminescence properties of Er:SrF2 transparent ceramics compared with Er:CaF2

SrF₂ transparent ceramic is a promising upconversion material due to the low phonon energy. The effect of different sintering temperatures on Er:SrF₂ transparent ceramics was investigated. The suitable sintering temperature for Er:SrF₂ transparent ceramics was 900 °C by hot-pressed sintering in this study. High quality of Er:SrF₂ transparent ceramics with different doping concentrations were obtained. The upconversion luminescence spectra and decay behavior were compared between Er:SrF₂ and Er:CaF₂ transparent ceramics with different Er³⁺ doping concentration. The green emission of 5 at.% Er:SrF₂ ceramic was much stronger than that of 5 at.% Er:CaF₂ ceramic, while the red emission of Er:SrF₂ ceramic was almost the same as that of Er:CaF₂ ceramic. The upconversion luminescence lifetime of Er:SrF₂ transparent ceramics was longer than that of Er:CaF₂.All the results indicated Er:SrF₂ transparent ceramics was a candidate for green fluorescent upconversion materials.     

Effect of environmental pressure on the microstructure of YSZ thermal barrier coating via suspension plasma spraying

Suspension plasma spraying (SPS) as a potential technique to prepare thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) has been attracting more and more attention. However, most reports on SPS were carried out in the atmosphere. Given the unique features of in-flight particles and plasma jets under low pressure, the resulting coatings are expected to be different from those under atmospheric pressure. In this article, yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thermal barrier coatings were prepared using suspension plasma spraying under different environmental pressures. The results show that as the environmental pressure decreased, the column-like structural coating turned into a vertical crack segmented structure, as well as a dramatic decrease in surface roughness. More nanoparticle agglomerates were formed in the coating under lower environmental pressures. The real porosity of the coating increased with a decrease in environmental pressure.     

一株产羧酸酯酶菌的鉴定及酯酶特征的研究

目的:鉴定中国白酒发酵过程中的微生物种类，研究关键酶的特征与作用机制有利于提高白酒的优质品率。方法:本研究用形态学和生理学、16S rRNA、gyr B基因和antiSMASH分析的方法对酒曲中的一株微生物进行了验证；对该菌株的特性进行了研究，采用分子建模的方法获得了羧酸酯酶的3D模型，用分子对接的方法探讨了该菌株的羧酸酯酶的机理。结果:该菌株为产羧酸酯酶的革兰氏阴性菌Pb1（MW580690）；该菌株呈现典型的S型生长曲线，产物曲线为S型，羧酸酯酶活化最优pH范围为5.0~9.0。分子对接结果显示Phe21A为该酶具有催化活性的主要氨基酸，水解三丁酸甘油酯为丁酸和甘油。分子对接结果显示三丁酸甘油酯经过构象变化被转移到催化中心后，进一步被加工；酶的亲水性和疏水性的相互作用表面有利于配体向下转移，进而从疏水性通道释放产物到的酶表面。结论:产羧酸酯酶的菌株为贝莱斯芽胞杆菌，并为羧酸酯酶水解三丁酸甘油酯类物质的底物识别、转移和催化机理提供了新的见解。     

Preparation and electrochemical characterization of Ti-based amorphous metallic glass with high strength

Ti-based amorphous metallic glasses have excellent mechanical, physical, and chemical properties, which is an important development direction and research hotspot of metal composite reinforcement. As a stable, simple, efficient, and large-scale preparation technology of metallic powders, the gas atomization process provides an effective way of preparing amorphous metallic glasses. In this study, the controllable fabrication of a Ti-based amorphous powder, with high efficiency, has been realized by using gas atomization. The scanning electron microscope, energy-dispersive spectrometer, and X-ray diffraction are used to analyze surface morphology, element distribution, and phase structure, respectively. A microhardness tester is used to measure the mechanical property. An electrochemical workstation is used to characterize corrosion behavior. The results show that as-prepared microparticles are more uniform and exhibit good amorphous characteristics. The mechanical test shows that the hardness of amorphous powder is significantly increased as compared with that before preparation, which has the prospect of being an important part of engineering reinforced materials. Further electrochemical measurement shows that the corrosion resistance of the as-prepared sample is also significantly improved. This study has laid a solid foundation for expanding applications of Ti-based metallic glasses, especially in heavy-duty and corrosive domains.