Facile fabrication of MOF-decorated nickel iron foam for highly efficient oxygen evolution

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as efficient electrocatalysts due to the features of high specific surface area, rich pore structure and diversified composition. It is still challenging to synthesize self-supporting MOF-based catalysts using simple and low-cost fabrication methods. Herein, we successfully fabricated Ni-doped MIL-53(Fe) supported on nickel-iron foam (Ni-MIL-53(Fe)/NFF) as efficient electrocatalyst. A facile two-step solvothermal method without adding any metal salts was used, which can simplify the fabrication process and reduce the experimental cost. In the fabrication process, the bimetallic Ni-MIL-53(Fe)/NFF was in situ converted from an intermediate NiFe₂O₄/NFF. The obtained material exhibits outstanding electrocatalytic oxygen evolution performance with a low overpotential of 248 mV at 50 mA cm^?2, and a small Tafel slope of 46.4 mV dec^?1. This work sheds light on the simple and efficient preparation of bimetallic MOF-based material, which is promising in electrocatalysts.     

Microstructure-abrasive wear correlation of in situ ZA27/TiC composites

Abrasive wear is a complex surface degradation process driven by various factors such as microstructure, the mechanical properties of the target material, the abrasive, loading conditions, and the surrounding environment. In this study, in situ TiC reinforced Zinc Aluminum alloy composites were prepared through a liquid metallurgy route and the synergistic effect of applied load, sliding speed, abrasive grit size and TiC content on the high-stress abrasive wear response were investigated. The test materials' wear response was established by characterising wear surfaces, sub-surfaces, debris particles, and an abrasive medium. The study suggests that the wear resistance of the specimens decreases with an increase in the applied load, and the composite reinforced with 10 wt % of TiC shows superior wear behaviour among all the test materials. The study also points out that the ZA-27 alloy reinforced with in situ TiC can be a suitable replacement of the conventionally used materials for automotive applications.     

纳米Co/rGO磁性复合吸附材料的制备及对Cu2+的吸附性能

以改进Hummer法制备的薄片状氧化石墨烯(GO)为载体和模板负载钴离子，然后采用原位还原法制得纳米金属Co/石墨烯磁性复合吸附材料(Co/rGO)，并将其应用于对Cu2+的吸附和脱除，以期为高效可复用的铜离子脱除剂的合成与应用提供指导。实验结果证实，Co/rGO复合材料具有超顺磁性，能够很方便的使用磁铁进行分离并在无磁场情况下振荡分散。Co/rGO复合材料对Cu2+具有稳定的吸附/脱附性能，实验条件下对Cu2+的最大吸附容量达到117.5 mg/g且5 min内实现吸附平衡，远优于其原料GO的60 min吸附容量27.6 mg/g。本工作系统考察了NaOH加入量、络合剂种类、溶剂种类等关键因素对Co粒子在rGO载体上形貌和分布特性的影响，比较了不同合成条件下的复合材料对Cu2+吸附效果的影响，并对优选条件下制备的Co/rGO复合材料进行了FT-IR, XRD, SEM表征。研究结果表明，纳米Co/rGO磁性材料对Cu2+的吸附过程更符合Freundlich模型，属于多层吸附。室温下吸附焓ΔH=17.81 kJ/mol，吸附反应平衡常数Kθ=3.65。当初始Cu2+浓度为39.22 mg/L时，对Cu2+的吸附率为93.47%，五次吸附/脱附循环后吸附容量仍保持在初始值的94%，每次吸附后溶液中残余Cu2+浓度均满足钴电解液对杂质铜离子的浓度去除要求(5 mg/L)或GB 8978-1996污水综合排放标准3级(2 mg/L)，有望在相关领域发挥作用。     

Hydrogen uptake of manganese oxide-multiwalled carbon nanotube composites

Hydrogen uptake of pristine multi-walled carbon nanotubes is increased more than three-fold at 298 K and hydrogen pressure of 4.0 MPa, upon addition of hydrogen spillover catalyst manganese oxide, from 0.26 to 0.94 wt%. Simple and convenient in situ reduction method is used to prepare Mn-oxide/MWCNTs composite. XRD, FESEM, and TEM demonstrates nanostructural characterization of pristine MWCNTs and composite. TGA analysis of Mn-oxide/MWCNTs composites showed a single monotonous fall related to MWCNTs gasification. Enhancement of hydrogen storage capacity of composite is attributed to spillover mechanism owing to decoration of Mn-oxide nanoparticles on outer surface of MWCNTs. Hydrogen uptake follows monotonous dependence on hydrogen pressure. Oxide-MWCNTs composite not only shows high hydrogen storage capacity as compared to pristine, but also exhibit significant cyclic stability upon successive adsorption–desorption cycles.     

In situ characterization of LiY(WO4)2 nanotubes for electrochemical energy storage

Here, LiY(WO₄)₂ nanotubes are prepared via a feasible electrospinning technique. This new anode material shows excellent electrochemical properties. The capacity loss of LiY(WO₄)₂ nanotubes is as low as 6.9% after 156 cycles, while bulk LiY(WO₄)₂ presents the capacity loss higher than 55.0%. Even after 600 long-life cycles, the capacity loss of the nanotubes is only 9%. It can be seen that the hollow structure with a rough surface and a porous morphology contributes to the improvement of electrochemical performance. Furthermore, online X-ray diffraction (XRD) method is firstly applied to understand the lithium ions insertion/extraction mechanism of LiY(WO₄)₂ nanotubes. It can be concluded that it is an asymmetrical two-phase reaction. A phase transformation from LiY(WO₄)₂ to Li₃Y(WO₄)₂ can be obviously seen from the in situ XRD during discharge process. While Li₂Y(WO₄)₂ appears as an intermediate phase with a reverse charge reaction. In addition, in situ XRD also demonstrates that LiY(WO₄)₂ nanotubes have surprised electrochemical reversibility. All the above results indicate that LiY(WO₄)₂ nanotubes can be expected to be anode candidate for rechargeable lithium ion batteries (LIBs).     

Interconnected SiC–Si network reinforced Al–20Si composites fabricated by high pressure solidification

The microstructures and mechanical properties of the interconnected SiC–Si network reinforced Al–20Si composites solidified under high pressures were investigated. The results demonstrate that the complete interconnected SiC–Si network can be obtained by high pressure solidification, and the connected micron-sized pores are uniformly distributed in the interconnected SiC–Si network. The compressive strength and microhardness of the SiC/Al–20Si composites solidified under 3 GPa were 723 MPa and 229 HV_0.05, respectively. Furthermore, the fracture process of SiC/Al–20Si composites was studied by in situ TEM tensile testing. The result shows that the crack first initiated and propagated at the Al/Si interface under an external load, and the SiC particles in the interconnected SiC–Si network can effectively hinder the crack propagation, thus enhancing the strength.     

In vitro and in vivo degradability,biocompatibility and antimicrobial characteristics of Cu added iron-manganese alloy

In recent years,iron(Fe)based degradable metal is explored as an alternative to permanent fracture fixation devices.In the present work,copper(Cu)is added in Fe-Mn system to enhance the degradation rate and antimicrobial properties.Fe-Mn-xCu(x=0.9,5 and 10 wt.％)alloys are prepared by the melting-casting-forging route.XRD analysis confirms austenite phase stabilization due to the presence of Mn and Cu.As predicted by Thermo-Calc calculations,Cu rich phase precipitations are noticed along the austen-ite grain boundaries.Degradation behaviours of Cu added Fe-Mn alloys are investigated through static immersion and electrochemical polarization where enhanced degradation is found for higher Cu added alloys.When challenged against E.Coli bacteria,the Fe-Mn-Cu alloy media extract shows a significant bac-tericidal effect compare to the base alloy.In vitro cytocompatibility studies,as determined using MG63 and MC3T3-E1 cell lines,indicate increased cell density as a function of time for all the alloys.When implanted in rabbit femur,the newly developed alloy does not show any kind of tissue necrosis around the implants.Better osteogenesis and higher new bone formation are observed with Fe-Mn-10Cu alloy as evident from micro-computed tomography(μ-CT)and fluorochrome labelling.     

Damage of the ocular surface from indoor suntanning—Insights from in vivo confocal microscopy

PurposeTo evaluate the ocular surface at the microstructural level of adults who habitually undertake indoor-suntanning utilising in vivo confocal microscopy.MethodsParticipants were prospectively recruited and enrolled into either а study group (n = 75) with a history UV indoor tanning, or a control group (n = 75) with no prior history of artificial tanning. The study group participated in voluntary tanning sessions performed with standard equipment and maintained their usual routine for eye protection. Slit lamp biomicroscopy and in vivo confocal microscopy were performed at baseline before undertaking a series of suntanning sessions (10 sessions of 10 min duration over a 15 day period), within three days after the last session, and four weeks after the last session. Control group participants were examined at baseline and 8 weeks later and did not participate in tanning sessions.ResultsAll participants were female with a mean age of 25 ± 4 years and 24 ± 4 years in the study and control groups, respectively. No clinically significant changes were observed in either group over time using slit lamp biomicroscopy (all p ≥ 0.05), however, statistically significant differences were observed between the study and the control group for all corneal layers imaged using confocal microscopy (all p ≤ 0.03). Characteristic cystic conjunctival lesions with dark centres and bright borders were observed in 95% of the study group before and in 100% after the suntanning sessions.ConclusionIndoor suntanning resulted in statistically significant microstructural changes in the cornea and the bulbar conjunctiva that are undetectable with slit lamp biomicroscopy.     

Stress field and damage evolution in C/SiC woven composites: Image-based finite element analysis and in situ X-ray computed tomography tests

The construction and examination of meso-structural finite element models of a Chemical-Vapor-Infiltrated (CVI) C/SiC composite is carried out based on X-ray microtomography digital images (IB-FEM). The accurate meso-structural features of the C/SiC composites, which are consisted of carbon fiber tows and CVI-SiC matrix, in particular the cavity defects, are reconstructed. With the IB-FEM, the damage evolution and fracture behaviors of the C/SiC composite are investigated. At the same time, an in situ tensile test is applied to the C/SiC composite under a CT real-time quantitative imaging system, aiming to investigate the damage and failure features of the material as well as to verify the IB-FEM. The IB-FEM results indicate that material damage initially occur at the defects, followed by propagating toward the fiber-tow/SiC-matrix interfaces, ultimately, combined into macro-cracks, which is in good agreement with the in situ CT experiment results.