The realization of quasicrystals has attracted a considerable attention due to their unusual structures and properties. The concept of quasicrystals in the atomically thin materials is even more appealing due to the in‐plane covalent bonds and weak interlayer interactions. Here, it is demonstrated that 2D quasicrystals can be created/isolated from bulk phases because of long‐range interlayer ordered aperiodic arrangements. An ultrasonication‐assisted exfoliation of polygrained icosahedral Al–Pd–Mn quasicrystals at room temperature shows the formation of a large area of mono‐ and few layers in threefold quasicrystalline plane. The formation of these layers from random grain orientation consistently indicates that the threefold plane is most stable in comparison to the twofold and fivefold planes in icosahedral clusters. The above experimental observations are further supported with help of theoretical simulations. The mono‐ and few‐layered aperiodic planes render plentiful active sites for the catalysis of hydrogen evolution reaction. The threefold 2D quasicrystalline plane exhibits a hydrogen evolution reaction overpotential of ≈100 mV (160 times less than bulk counterpart) and long‐term durability. These systems constitute the first demonstration of quasicrystalline monolayer ordering in a free‐standing thin layer without requiring the support of periodic or aperiodic substrate. 相似文献
Due to the Brazilian market introduction of the genetically modified (GM) crop Roundup Ready™ (RR) soybean, the ability to detect GM crops has become a legal necessity. In order to detect the presence of RR soybean, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification method was evaluated for the detection of RR in soybean mixtures and commercially available soy flour, infant formula and soymilk powder. To detect the presence of RR soybean, a nested PCR resulted in an amplicon of 169 bp, present for all soybean mixed samples containing 0.01-10% GM soybean and absent for 0% GM soybean. None of the analysed infant formulas showed a positive signal after the nested PCR; four out of six soy flour samples and 15 out of 25 soymilk powder samples were positive for the presence of RR soybean. Results show that the nested PCR method used is adequate to determine the presence of GM soybean in the presented products. 相似文献
The ideal food packaging materials are recyclable, biodegradable, and compostable. Starch from plant sources, such as tubers, legumes, cereals, and agro-industrial plant residues, is considered one of the most suitable biopolymers for producing biodegradable films due to its natural abundance and low cost. The chemical modification of starch makes it possible to produce films with better technological properties by changing the functional groups into starch. Using biopolymers extracted from agro-industrial waste can add value to a raw material that would otherwise be discarded. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has driven a rise in demand for single-use plastics, intensifying pressure on this already out-of-control issue. This review provides an overview of biopolymers, with a particular focus on starch, to develop sustainable materials for food packaging. This study summarizes the methods and provides a potential approach to starch modification for improving the mechanical and barrier properties of starch-based films. This review also updates some trends pointed out by the food packaging sector in the last years, considering the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Perspectives to achieve more sustainable food packaging toward a more circular economy are drawn. 相似文献
This work reports the magnetite-functionalization and biological evaluation of eugenol by the co-precipitation method employed only Fe2+ under mild conditions and control from the amount of the incorporated magnetite. Magnetic nanoparticles were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), hydrodynamic size distribution (Zetasizer), and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). SEM images showed that EUG·Fe3O4 similar in shape to a nanoflower. The FTIR spectrum confirmed the presence of characteristic EUG and Fe3O4 bands in the EUG·Fe3O4 sample, the XRD analysis showed that the magnetite functionalization with eugenol slightly affected the Fe3O4 crystal structure, while the VSM measurements demonstrate that EUG·Fe3O4 1:1 shows a superparamagnetic behavior, suggesting small non-interacting particles. The in vitro safety profile and cytotoxicity of free eugenol, magnetite pristine, EUG·Fe3O4 1:1, EUG·Fe3O4 1:5, and EUG·Fe3O4 1:10 was investigated using human cell lines (keratinocytes and melanoma). The results demonstrate the high biocompatibility of EUG·Fe3O4 in HaCat cells and the greater specificity for the A375 cell line. Furthermore, the magnetite-functionalization with eugenol decreased the toxic effects of free eugenol on healthy cells. Antibacterial tests were performed in different bacterial strains. The experimental data showed that among the magnetic compounds, the microorganisms were only sensitive to treatment with EUG·Fe3O4 1:1. Regarding the antibiofilm activity assay, it can be observed that only the EUG·Fe3O4 caused a significant decrease in biomass when compared to the positive control. Finally, it can be concluded that EUG·Fe3O4 proves to be a potential candidate for future studies for drug delivery of cancer and bacterial infections treatments.
Recent technologies advancements promise to change our lives dramatically in the near future. A new different living society is progressively emerging, witnessed from the conception of novel digital ecosystems, where humans are expected to share their own spaces and habits with machines. Humanoid robots are more and more being developed and provided with enriched functionalities; however, they are still lacking in many ways. One important goal in this sense is to enrich their cognitive capabilities, to make them more “intelligent” in order to better support humans in both daily and special activities. The goal of this research is to set a step in bridging the gap between symbolic AI and connectionist approaches in the context of knowledge acquisition and conceptualization. Hence, we present a combined approach based on semantics and machine learning techniques for improving robots cognitive capabilities. This is part of a wider framework that covers several aspects of knowledge management, from representation and conceptualization, to acquisition, sharing and interaction with humans. Our focus in this work is in particular on the development and implementation of techniques for knowledge acquisition. Such techniques are discussed and validated through experiments, carried out on a real robotic platform, showing the effectiveness of our approach. The results obtained confirmed that the combination of the approaches gives superior performance with respect to when they are considered individually.