Electrocatalytic Reduction of CO2 to Ethylene by Molecular Cu‐Complex Immobilized on Graphitized Mesoporous Carbon

The electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂) to hydrocarbons is a challenging task because of the issues in controlling the efficiency and selectivity of the products. Among the various transition metals, copper has attracted attention as it yields more reduced and C2 products even while using mononuclear copper center as catalysts. In addition, it is found that reversible formation of copper nanoparticle acts as the real catalytically active site for the conversion of CO₂ to reduced products. Here, it is demonstrated that the dinuclear molecular copper complex immobilized over graphitized mesoporous carbon can act as catalysts for the conversion of CO₂ to hydrocarbons (methane and ethylene) up to 60%. Interestingly, high selectivity toward C2 product (40% faradaic efficiency) is achieved by a molecular complex based hybrid material from CO₂ in 0.1 m KCl. In addition, the role of local pH, porous structure, and carbon support in limiting the mass transport to achieve the highly reduced products is demonstrated. Although the spectroscopic analysis of the catalysts exhibits molecular nature of the complex after 2 h bulk electrolysis, morphological study reveals that the newly generated copper cluster is the real active site during the catalytic reactions.     

Changes in phenolics,soluble solids,vitamin C,and antioxidant capacity of various cultivars of hardy kiwifruits during cold storage

Food Science and Biotechnology - Hardy kiwifruits (Actinidia arguta) contain various bioactive compounds such as vitamin C and phenolics and can withstand cold temperatures. Changes in soluble...     

Properties of recombinant 4-α-glucanotransferase from Bifidobacterium longum subsp. longum JCM 1217 and its application

Food Science and Biotechnology - To determine the physiochemical properties of the 4-α-glucanotransferase from Bifidobacterium sp., the bllj_0114 gene encoding 4-α-glucanotransferase was...     

An airlight estimation method for image dehazing based on gray projection

Multimedia Tools and Applications - As the key parameter of dehazing algorithms, airlight value directly affect the calculation accuracy of sky region, and any deviation will lead to the chromatic...     

Effects of hydrolysis of precursor on the structures and properties of polymer-derived SiBN ceramic fibers

In this paper, polyborosilazane precursor was synthesied from HMDZ, HSiCl₃, BCl₃ and CH₃NH₂ using a multistep method. By controlling the storage conditions, parts of the polyborosilazane fibers were hydrolyzed. FT-IR, NMR, XRD, TEM and monofilament tensile strength test were employed to study the effects of hydrolysis of precursor on the structures and properties of polymer-derived SiBN ceramic fibers. FT-IR and NMR results indicate that Si-N group in PBSZ reacts with H₂O to form Si-O-Si group. After pyrolysis reaction at 1400℃, Si-O-Si group will finally transformed into highly ordered cristobalite and β-quartz, resulting in formation of the wrinkled surface of the obtained SiBN ceramic fiber. The strip-like defects on fiber surface, according to monofilament tensile strength test, had a significant effect on mechanical property of the obtained SiBN ceramic fiber and caused no increase in fiber tensile strength of hydrolytic polyborosilazane fiber before and after pyrolytic process.     

A dense and compact laser cladding layer with solid metallurgical bonding significantly improved corrosion resistance of Mg alloy for engineering applications

Although Mg alloy attracts great attention for engineering applications because of high specific strength and low density, low corrosion resistance limits its extensive use. In this study, Mg–Al–Zn–Mn alloy was treated via a laser cladding process to generate a dense and compact laser cladding layer with solid metallurgical bonding on the substrate for improving corrosion resistance, effectively hindering the corrosion pervasion into Mg alloy. The corrosion current density declined from 103 μA/cm² for Mg alloy to 13 μA/cm² for the laser cladding layer in NaCl aqueous solution. Moreover, the laser cladding layer was slightly corroded in comparison with Mg alloy in NaCl aqueous solution. Besides, the microhardness of the cladding layer reached a mean value of 170.5 HV, 3.1 times of Mg alloy (56.8 HV) due to the in situ formation of hardening intermetallic phases. Wear resistance of laser cladding layer was also obviously improved. These results demonstrated that the laser cladding layer obviously enhanced anticorrosion property of Mg alloy for engineering applications.     

Improving storability,physiological disorders,and antioxidant properties of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears (Pyrus communis L.) by pre-harvest 1-methylcyclopropene spraying

Ethylene continues to be a major factor influencing quality of European pears during storage. Although research has been done on the effect of pre-harvest 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) on physiological characteristics in pears, a full understanding of cultivar response and antioxidant metabolism remains elusive. Spraying 1-MCP on ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears was studied with respect to physiology, storage and eating quality, disorders, and antioxidant properties at two harvest date (H1 and H2) during storage and ripening. Treatment with 1-MCP extended the harvest window of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears 3 and 4 days, respectively, without reducing storage or eating quality. Treatment with 1-MCP reduced ethylene production (EPR) and respiration rates (RR), maintained fruit firmness and green colour during storage and retarded development of desirable melting texture in both cultivars. Additionally, 1-MCP lowered the incidence of disorders by alleviating membrane lipid peroxidation, retaining high total flavonoids (TF) and antioxidant capacity, and enhancing superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity in both cultivars. Overall, pre-harvest 1-MCP applications could extend storage time of ‘Bartlett’ and ‘d’Anjou’ pears to 5 and 6 months, respectively, at −1.1 ± 0.5 °C, by reducing ethylene synthesis and enhancing antioxidant metabolism.