Transformation of La0.65Sr0.35MnO3 in electrochemical water oxidation

One of the most promising approaches to produce sustainable energy is hydrogen evolution by water splitting. Since water electrolysis is limited by the high overpotential required for the water oxidation reaction, electrocatalysts are applied to reduce the activation energy necessary for this reaction. However, primary catalysts may chemically convert to other compounds during the reaction. Therefore, the physicochemical and electrochemical changes of catalysts used over a long time need to be investigated in detail to understand the real operating catalyst.In this work, we have observed long-term microstructural changes and amorphization of La_0.65Sr_0.35MnO₃ when used as a catalyst in water-electrolysis at near neutral pH. Microscopic and electrochemical analyses show that the catalyst changed at the molecular level. This study revealed that an entirely different catalyst evolved from the original material over the course of the water oxidation reaction. This observation revealed the importance of the study of the long-term stability and reactivity of La_0.65Sr_0.35MnO₃ toward the water oxidation reaction.     

Investigating the antecedents to the adoption of SCRM technologies by start-up companies

Despite their fairly recent emergence, start-up companies now play an important role in the economic development of countries around the globe. These companies have fewer tangible assets and capital, and therefore, the efficient delivery of services and products is a key business priority for them. Customer relationship management (CRM) technologies, which are designed to facilitate customer engagement during the design, development and delivery of services and products may play a significant role in the success or failure of start-up companies. Developments in new communication technologies have transformed traditional CRM into electronic CRM (eCRM), mobile CRM (mCRM); and more recently, social CRM (SCRM). However, there remains very little understanding of the factors affecting SCRM adoption in start-up businesses. The relative newness of SCRM technologies, coupled with the swiftly evolving nature of start-up companies: which has made them difficult cases to study – has limited the amount of research undertaken in this area. This paper aims to close this gap by proposing a framework that depicts the factors affecting start-up companies’ intention to adopt SCRM applications, and explores the relative importance of these factors. Inspired by an extended Technological, Organisational and Environmental (TOE) framework, this paper investigates effects of technological characteristics (TC), organisational characteristics (OC), environmental characteristics (EC) and managerial characteristics (MC) on start-up companies’ intentions to adopt SCRM applications.The results outlined in this research indicate that the observability, compatibility and trialability of SCRM solutions positively affect SCRM adoption in start-up businesses. Moreover, the availability of internal financial resources has a similarly positive effect. When considering environmental characteristics, it was found that support from venture capitalists, crowd funding support, governmental support, business angels support and external pressure all positively affect the intention to adopt SCRM applications within start-up businesses.     

Investigation on microstructures of NiO–YSZ composite and Ni–YSZ cermet for SOFCs

NiO–YSZ composites and Ni–YSZ cermets were successfully performed for solid oxide fuel cell applications. These composites must have enough porosity and appropriate microstructure for transferring the fuel gases. In this study, ball-milling was used as a simple, cost-effective method for the purpose of mixing the raw materials. The homogeneity of NiO–YSZ composites was examined by Map mode of SEM. NiO–YSZ composites were reduced at the high temperature under the controlled atmosphere to fabricate Ni–YSZ cermet. Variations in the anode phases were investigated by XRD and microstructure and porosity of composites were observed by SEM. Effective parameters like temperatures and the amount of pore former were investigated on open porosity, bulk density, electrical conductivity as well as electrochemical impedance of NiO–YSZ composites and Ni–YSZ cermet. A thin layer of YSZ was deposited by EPD as an electrolyte on NiO–YSZ composites which had various amount of open porosity, to study its effect on the performance of semi-cells by electrochemical impedance.     

Highly protective performance of water-based epoxy coating loaded with self-doped nanopolyaniline synthesized under supercritical CO2 condition

In this study corrosion properties of water-based epoxy coating on carbon steel (CS) are improved by adding self-doped nano-polyaniline (SPAni) synthesized under supercritical carbon dioxide (ScCO₂) condition. The modified ScCO₂-synthesized SPAni using water-based polyamidoamine hardener results in formation of the water-based SPAni composite (Sc-WB). To obtain the water-based polyaniline epoxy coating (SP-WBE), the Sc-WB was mixed with epoxy resin in stoichiometric ratio. Applying SP-WBE on CS substrate resulted in high improvement in corrosion properties compared to the similar coating without SPAni. Formation of oxide layers and adhesion properties of SP-WBE at corrosive medium were evaluated using scanning electron microscope (SEM). The transmission electron microscope (TEM) was used to observe the distribution and particles size of nanopolyaniline in the final dried film. The anti-corrosion performance of water-based epoxy coating (blank sample) and SP-WBE coating on CS substrates were studied using salt spray standard test according to ASTM B-117, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and adhesion tests. EIS studies, after 1800 hrs of exposure to corrosive solutions, result in charge transfer resistance of 1.816E9 Ω and 8.64E7 Ω for SP-WBE and blank samples, respectively.     

Extraction of Gold (III) Ions from Aqueous Solutions Using Polyamine Type Surfactant Liquid Membrane

Experimental results of extraction of gold (III) ions from aqueous solutions by a polyamine type liquid membrane are presented. The effects of various parameters such as concentration of gold ions in the external phase, concentration of carrier, concentration of the internal phase reagents, pH of the external phase and the speed of agitation on the extraction rate were studied. The results show that by proper selection of the extraction conditions, nearly all of the Au (III) ions present in a highly concentrated feed solution was extracted within a few minutes.     

Designing triple-shape memory polymers from a miscible polymer pair through dual-electrospinning technique

Recently, multiple-shape memory polymers (SMPs) have attracted a great deal of attention in biomedical applications. Therefore, a series of triple-SMPs were developed by simply blending of two immiscible SMPs exhibiting two distinct transition temperatures, which is required for triple-shape memory (SM) effect. However, fabrication of triple-SMPs from completely miscible polymer pairs using the conventional blending approach is a challenging problem. Because this type of blends consists of one homogeneous phase and thereby exhibit only one transition temperature and dual-SM behavior. To overcome this problem, herein, a novel and versatile strategy is introduced for preparation of phase separated blends from a completely miscible polymer pair, exhibiting triple-SM behavior. Dual-electrospinning technique was utilized to simultaneously electrospin poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc), as a model miscible polymer pair, to obtain an interwoven polymer composite with two well-separated thermal transitions, as revealed by dynamic mechanical analyze. Consequently, the SM experiments revealed that the electrospun PLA/PVAc composites have triple-SM behavior. Furthermore, incorporation of graphene nanoplatelets into the composite fibers significantly improved the triple-SM properties of samples. Additionally, excellent adherence and spreading of the osteoblasts on the fibrous scaffolds containing graphene were observed. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47471.     

MWCNTs/Cu(OH)2 nanoparticles/IL nanocomposite modified glassy carbon electrode as a voltammetric sensor for determination of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac

This paper describes the development and utilization of a new nanocomposite consisting of Cu(OH)₂ nanoparticles, hydrophobic ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (EMIMPF₆) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes for glassy carbon electrode modification. The nanocomposite was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) along with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The modified electrode was used for electrochemical characterization of diclofenac. Using differential pulse voltammetry, the prepared sensor showed good sensitivity and selectivity with low overpotential for the determination of diclofenac in the range from 0.18 to 119 μM, with a detection limit of 0.04 μM. Electrochemical studies suggested that the MWCNTs/Cu(OH)₂ nanoparticles/IL nanocomposite modified electrode provided a synergistic augmentation on the voltammetric behavior of electrochemical oxidation of diclofenac, which was indicated by the improvement of anodic peak current.     

Performance and Energy Consumption of Membrane‐Distillation Hybrid Systems for Olefin‐Paraffin Separation

Light olefin and paraffin are commonly separated by energy‐intensive cryogenic distillation. Membrane/distillation hybrid systems constitute an economical alternative separation process. Different configurations of this hybrid system are studied for olefin‐paraffin separation with emphasis on C₃ separation. An approach based on the McCabe‐Thiele method is applied to analyze different process configurations. A facilitated transport membrane is considered as membrane type. Both new column design and augmentation of an existing distillation column by a membrane module are considered. Numerical examples are considered for the separation of propane from propylene through different hybridization shapes with facilitated transport membranes. The energy requirement can be halved using hybrid systems.