Graphene nanoplatelets composite membranes for thermal comfort enhancement in performance textiles

The advent of 2D nanostructured materials as advanced fillers for polymer matrix composites has opened the doors to a plethora of new industrial applications requiring both electric and thermal management. Unique properties, in fact, can arise from accurate selection and processing of 2D fillers and their matrix. Here, we report an innovative family of nanocomposite membranes based on polyurethane (PU) and graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), designed to improve thermal comfort in functional textiles. GNP particles were thoroughly characterized (through Raman, atomic force microscopy, high-resolution TEM, scanning electron microscope), and showed high crystallinity (I_D/I_G = 0.127), low thickness (D50 < 6–8 layers), and high lateral dimensions (D50 ≈ 3 μm). When GNPs were loaded (up to 10% wt/wt) into the PU matrix, their homogeneous dispersion resulted in an increase of the in-plane thermal conductivity of composite membranes up to 471%. The thermal dissipation of membranes, alone or coupled with cotton fabric, was further evaluated by means of an ad hoc system designed to simulate a human forearm. The results obtained provide a new strategy for the preparation of membranes suitable for technical textiles, with improved thermal comfort.     

The interpretation of the English landscape garden between 1815 and 1840 through Xavier Kurten’s work in Piedmont (north-west Italy)

Xavier Kurten (?–1840) was a Prussian landscape gardener who worked for the Savoy family in the Piedmont region of Italy in the first half of the nineteenth century. He designed or redesigned all royal parks, creating a specific style based on the English naturalistic garden approach. This research was performed with the aim of investigating the development of the English landscape garden in Italy. Historical documents relating to Kurten’s biography and his work in Piedmont, including plans, were collected and analysed. We analyse and discuss the features that characterised his work: the relationship between the landscape—garden—house, the path system, the use of water, the vegetation, and the garden as a productive landscape. Kurten’s style is compared with the projects of William Kent and Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown.     

Air exposure time of olive pastes during the extraction process and phenolic and volatile composition of virgin olive oil

The time of exposure of olive pastes to air contact (TEOPAC) during malaxation was studied as a processing parameter that could be used to control endogenous oxidoreductases, such as polyphenoloxidase, peroxidase, and lipoxygenase, which affect virgin olive oil quality. Phenolic and volatile compounds were analyzed in the oils obtained using progressive TEOPAC at three ripening stages of olives. Multivariate statistical analysis was applied to the raw data. The phenolic concentration of virgin olive oil progressively decreased with increasing IEOPAC. On the contrary, a positive relationship was found with the concentration of several volatile compounds responsible for virgin olive oil aroma. The effect of TEOPAC, however, was strictly related to fruit ripening.     

X-Ray Micro-Calorimeter Based on Si Thermistors for X-Ray Astronomy: Design and First Measurements

X-ray Astronomy provides a unique window on a wide variety of astrophysical phenomena. The currently operating X-ray space observatories perform X-ray spectral imaging with the use of CCDs. When available, cryogenic X-ray microcalorimeter arrays will far outperform CCDs in terms of spectral resolution, energy bandwidth and count rate. Experience has been gained with Infra-Red bolometer arrays at CEA-LETI (Grenoble) in collaboration with the CEA-SAp (Saclay); taking advantage of this background, we are now developing an X-ray spectro-imaging camera for the next generation space astronomy missions, using silicon technology (implanted and high temperature diffused thermistors). Each pixel of this array detector is made of a tantalum absorber bound, by indium bump hybridization, to a silicon thermistor. The absorber array is bound to the thermistor array in a single automatic step. The thermo-mechanical link, provided by hybridization, is being improved in terms of thermal capacitance. Finally, our main effort is in developing arrays of silicon thermistors with negligible excess 1/f noise. The thermistor has been simulated with the 2D simulator ATHENA (SILVACO International). We studied the effects of the implants and their thermal treatment on both vertical and lateral dopant distributions at the edges of the thermistor. Prototypes have been created following the procedure optimized by the ATHENA simulation. We present the status of the development and results of measurements performed on these four main building blocks required to create a detector array up to 32×32 pixels in size.      

Antennal fine morphology of the threatened beetle Osmoderma eremita (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), revealed by scanning electron microscopy

The aim of this study was to characterize the antennal morphology of Osmoderma eremita, a threatened scarab beetle inhabiting tree hollows. O. eremita males produce a sex pheromone, (R)‐(+)‐γ‐decalactone, responsible mainly for the attraction of females but also other males. Gross and fine morphology of microstructures including sensilla, microsculpture and pores were analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy. The antenna of O. eremita showed the typical lamellicorn shape of scarab beetles, with a basal scape, a pedicel, a funicle composed of five antennomeres and a club composed of three lamellae. Six different subtypes of sensilla chaetica (Ch.1 ? 6), Böhm sensilla (Bo), one subtype of sensilla basiconica (Ba.1), two subtypes of sensilla coeloconica (Co.1 ? 2), two subtypes of sensilla placodea (Pl.1 ? 2), pores and peculiar folds were described. The two sexes did not show any significant differences in the occurrence and number of the sensilla placodea, known to be responsible for the pheromone reception. Instead, some sexual differences were found on the occurrence and topology of three different microstructures: (1) one subtype of sensillum chaeticum (Ch.2) occurring on the pedicel only in males; (2) a characteristic pore occurring on the funicle only in males; (3) a peculiar fold occurring on different antennomeres of the funicle in the two sexes, on the fourth in males and on the fifth in females. A comparison between sensilla of O. eremita and those of other Scarabaeoidea is provided. Microsc. Res. Tech. 79:178–191, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Boosting Infrared Light Harvesting by Molecular Functionalization of Metal Oxide/Polymer Interfaces in Efficient Hybrid Solar Cells

Hybrid solar cells based on light absorbing semiconducting polymers infiltrated in nanocrystalline TiO₂ electrodes, have emerged as an attractive concept, combining benefits of both low material and processing costs with well controlled nano‐scale morphology. However, after over ten years of research effort, power conversion efficiencies remain around 0.5%. Here, a spectroscopic and device based investigation is presented, which leads to a new optimization route where by functionalization of the TiO₂ surface with a molecular electron acceptor promotes photoinduced electron transfer from a low‐band gap polymer(poly[2,6‐(4,4‐bis‐(2‐ethylhexyl)‐4H‐cyclopenta[2,1‐b;3,4‐b0]dithiophene)‐alt‐4,7‐(2,1,3‐benzothiadia‐zole)] (PCPDTBT) to the metal oxide. This boosts the infrared response and the power conversion efficiency to over 1%. As a further step, by “co‐functionalizing” the TiO₂ surface with the electron acceptor and an organic dye‐sensitizer, panchromatic spectral photoresponse is achieved in the visible to near‐IR region. This novel architecture at the heterojunction opens new material design possibilities and represents an exciting route forward for hybrid photovoltaics.     

Bisorbicillinoids Produced by the Fungus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichoderma citrinoviride</Emphasis> Affect Feeding Preference of the Aphid <Emphasis Type="Italic">Schizaphis graminum</Emphasis>

We report the effects of some bisorbicillinoids isolated from biomass of the fungus Trichoderma citrinoviride on settling and feeding preference of the aphid Schizaphis graminum. Purification of the fungal metabolites was carried out by a combination of column chromatography and thin-layer chromatography using direct and reverse phases. Chemical identification was performed by spectroscopic methods including nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry. The identified bisorbicillinoids appeared to be bislongiquinolide, its 16,17-dihydro derivative, trichodimerol, and dihydrotrichodimerol. A feeding preference test with alate morphs of S. graminum was used to identify the active fractions. Among the four bisorbicillinoids, dihydrotrichodimerol and bislongiquinolide influenced aphid feeding preference, restraining specimens from settling on leaves treated with metabolites. Taste neurons sensitive to these compounds, particularly to bislongiquinolide, were located on tarsi of the S. graminum alate morphs.     

Zebrafish Embryos Allow Prediction of Nanoparticle Circulation Times in Mice and Facilitate Quantification of Nanoparticle–Cell Interactions

The zebrafish embryo is a vertebrate well suited for visualizing nanoparticles at high resolution in live animals. Its optical transparency and genetic versatility allow noninvasive, real‐time observations of vascular flow of nanoparticles and their interactions with cells throughout the body. As a consequence, this system enables the acquisition of quantitative data that are difficult to obtain in rodents. Until now, a few studies using the zebrafish model have only described semiquantitative results on key nanoparticle parameters. Here, a MACRO dedicated to automated quantitative methods is described for analyzing important parameters of nanoparticle behavior, such as circulation time and interactions with key target cells, macrophages, and endothelial cells. Direct comparison of four nanoparticle (NP) formulations in zebrafish embryos and mice reveals that data obtained in zebrafish can be used to predict NPs' behavior in the mouse model. NPs having long or short blood circulation in rodents behave similarly in the zebrafish embryo, with low circulation times being a consequence of NP uptake into macrophages or endothelial cells. It is proposed that the zebrafish embryo has the potential to become an important intermediate screening system for nanoparticle research to bridge the gap between cell culture studies and preclinical rodent models such as the mouse.     

Photoinduced charge transfer and efficient solar energy conversion in a blend of a red polyfluorene copolymer with CdSe nanoparticles

We present measurements of charge transfer and the photovoltaic effect in a blend of the alternating polyfluorene copolymer poly(2,7-(9,9-dioctyl-fluorene)-alt-5,5-(4',7'-di-2-thienyl-2',1',3'-benzothiadiazole)) with branched CdSe nanoparticles. Quasi-steady-state photoinduced absorption measurements identified a long-lived charged species that formed after photoexcitation at room temperature. Photovoltaic devices based on this blend system showed a spectral response extending to 650 nm and gave a solar power conversion efficiency of 2.4% under Air Mass 1.5 Global (AM1.5G) conditions.