TiO2-grafted multi-walled carbon nanotubes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs) comprised of TiO2 porous films with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) were prepared at low temperature (150 degrees C). MWNT were incorporated to facilitate the fast electron transport resulting from metallic properties of carbon nanotubes. In order to enhance the effect of MWNT incorporation, TiO2-grafted MWNT (TiO2-MWNT) was synthesized which can increase the electron transport rate further due to proximity of TiO2 to MWNT The presence of TiO2 nanoparticles on the surface of MWNT was confirmed by electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. As in the DSSCs prepared through high temperature sintering of photoanodes, the maximum content of MWNT incorporated into TiO2 was limited to 0.01 wt% relative to TiO2. TiO2 photoanodes including TiO2-grafted MWNT (TiO2-MWNT/P25) enhanced the cell efficiencies by ca. 28% and 14%, relative to TiO2 photoanodes without and with MWNT respectively, reaching the efficiency of 5.0%. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was utilized to examine the effect of incorporation of TiO2 nanoparticles grafted to MWNT on the cell performance.     

Repeated production of hydrogen by sulfate re-addition in sulfur deprived culture of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Biological hydrogen production by the green alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii can be induced in conditions of sulfur deprivation. In this study, we investigated the repeated and enhanced hydrogen production afforded by the re-addition of sulfate with monitoring of pH and concentration of chlorophyll and sulfate. Without adjustment of the pH, the optimal concentration of re-added sulfate was 30 μM for the hydrogen production. By the re-addition of 30 μM of sulfate and the adjustment of the pH during 4 cycles of repeated production, we obtained the maximum amount of 789 ml H₂ l⁻¹ culture, which is 3.4 times higher than that of one batch production without adjustment of pH, 236 ml H₂ l⁻¹ culture. This means that the enhancement of the hydrogen production can be achieved by the careful control of the sulfate re-addition and pH adjustment in the sulfur deprived culture.     

Characteristic of (La0.8Sr0.2)0.98MnO3 coating on Crofer22APU used as metallic interconnects for solid oxide fuel cell

This study reports the high temperature oxidation kinetics, area specific resistance (ASR), and interfacial microstructure of metallic interconnects coated by (La_0.8Sr_0.2)_0.98MnO₃ (LSM) in air atmosphere at 800 °C. An efficient LSM conductive layer was fabricated on metallic interconnects for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) by using a wet spray coating method. The optimum conditions for slurries used in the wet spray coating were determined by the measurement of slurry viscosity and coated surface morphology. The surface roughnesses of the substrates were increased through sandblast treatment. The adhesive strength of the interface between the coated layer and the metal substrate increased with increased surface roughness of the metallic interconnects. The electrical conductivities of the coated substrates were measured by using a DC two-point and four-wire method under air atmosphere at 800 °C. Of note, the Crofer22APU treated at 1100 °C in N₂ with 10 vol.% H₂ showed long-term stability and a lower ASR value than other samples(heat-treated at 800 °C and 900 °C). After an 8000-h oxidation experiment the coated Crofer22APU substrate, the ASR showed a low value of 23 mΩ cm². The thickness of the coated conductive oxide layer was about 10-20 μm. These results show that a coated oxide layer prevents the formation and the growth of scale (Cr₂O₃ and (Mn, Cr, Fe)₃O₄ layer) and enhances the long-term stability and electrical performance of metallic interconnects for SOFCs.     

Piezoelectric and dielectric properties of (K0.44Na0.52Li0.04)(Nb0.86Ta0.10Sb0.04)O3–PVDF composites

(Li, Ta, Sb) modified sodium potassium niobate/poly(vinylidene fluoride) [(K_0.44Na_0.52Li_0.04)(Nb_0.86Ta_0.10Sb_0.04)O₃–PVDF] 0-3 composites were prepared by a cold press technique, and their piezoelectric and dielectric properties were characterized. All composites exhibited good dispersion of ceramic particles in the polymer matrix. The piezoelectric and dielectric constants were found to be enhanced as the concentration of sodium potassium niobate increases. Even though the process is simple, the composite prepared in this study showed better piezoelectric and dielectric properties than PZT–polymer composites. At room temperature, a (K_0.44Na_0.52Li_0.04)(Nb_0.86Ta_0.10Sb_0.04)O₃–PVDF (7:3) composite revealed a relative dielectric constant, ?_r = 166, piezoelectric constant, d₃₃ = 33 pC/N and coercive field, E_c = 5 kV/cm.     

Design of Reader Baseband Receiver Structure for Demodulating Backscattered Tag Signal in a Passive RFID Environment

In this paper, we present a demodulation structure suitable for a reader baseband receiver in a passive radio frequency identification (RFID) environment. In a passive RFID configuration, an undesirable DC‐offset phenomenon may appear in the baseband of the reader receiver, which can severely degrade the performance of the extraction of valid information from the received tag signal. To eliminate this DC‐offset phenomenon, the primary feature of the proposed demodulation structures for the received FM0 and Miller subcarrier signals is to reconstruct the signal corrupted by the DC‐offset phenomenon by creating peak signals from the corrupted signal. It is shown that the proposed method can successfully detect valid data, even when the received baseband signal is distorted by the DC‐offset phenomenon.     

Chinese Yam Extracts Containing β‐Sitosterol and Ethyl Linoleate Protect against Atherosclerosis in Apolipoprotein E‐Deficient Mice and Inhibit Muscular Expression of VCAM‐1 In Vitro

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease, which is associated with increased expression of adhesion molecules and monocyte recruitment into the arterial wall. This study evaluated whether hexane extracts from the edible part (DB‐H1) or bark region (DB‐H2) of Dioscorea. batatas Decne have anti‐atherosclerotic properties in vivo and in vitro experiments. We also identified bioactive components in the hexane extracts. Thirty‐six apolipoprotein E (ApoE^?/?) mice and 12 control (C57BL/6J) mice were given a Western‐type diet for 11 or 21 wk. To examine the effects of yam extracts on lesion development, ApoE^?/? mice were orally administered DB‐H1 or DB‐H2 for the duration of the study (200 mg/kg b.w./day, 3 times per wk). Both DB‐H1 and DB‐H2 significantly reduced the total atherosclerotic lesion area in the aortic root. In addition, plasma concentrations of total cholesterol, oxidized‐low‐density lipoprotein, and c‐reactive protein were decreased by administration of DB‐H1 and DB‐H2. Consistent with the in vivo observations, DB‐H1 and DB‐H2 inhibited tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α–induced vascular cell adhesion molecule‐1 expression and adhesion of THP‐1 monocytes to TNF‐α–activated vascular smooth muscle cells. It was also found that treatment with DB‐H1 or DB‐H2 resulted in the inhibition nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species production and iNOS expression in macrophages. Thus, DB‐H1 and DB‐H2 seem to influence atherosclerosis by affecting the production of inflammatory mediators in vivo. Our results suggest that yam extracts have the potential to be used in the prevention of atherosclerosis.     

Light sensing in a photoresponsive, organic-based complementary inverter

A photoresponsive organic complementary inverter was fabricated and its light sensing characteristics was studied. An organic circuit was fabricated by integrating p-channel pentacene and n-channel copper hexadecafluorophthalocyanine (F16CuPc) organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) with a polymeric gate dielectric. The F16CuPc OTFT showed typical n-type characteristics and a strong photoresponse under illumination. Whereas under illumination, the pentacene OTFT showed a relatively weak photoresponse with typical p-type characteristics. The characteristics of the organic electro-optical circuit could be controlled by the incident light intensity, a gate bias, or both. The logic threshold (V(M), when V(IN) = V(OUT)) was reduced from 28.6 V without illumination to 19.9 V at 6.94 mW/cm2. By using solely optical or a combination of optical and electrical pulse signals, light sensing was demonstrated in this type of organic circuit, suggesting that the circuit can be potentially used in various optoelectronic applications, including optical sensors, photodetectors and electro-optical transceivers.     

Isolation,characterization, and genomic analysis of the novel T4-like bacteriophage ΦCJ20

Food Science and Biotechnology - Pathogenic Escherichia coli infections have been consistently reported annually. The basic characteristics and genome of the newly isolated ΦCJ20 from swine...     

Preparation and Dissolution Profiles of the Amorphous,Dihydrated Crystalline,and Anhydrous Crystalline Forms of Paclitaxel

The selection of pharmaceutical polymorphisms in the final production step is very important in terms of product recovery, properties, and storage. The amorphous, dihydrated crystalline, and anhydrous crystalline forms of paclitaxel were prepared using precipitation, spray drying, and colloid formation methods. These methods were found to be highly efficient and convenient, giving high recovery, short processing time, and good stability, as compared with conventional methods such as freeze drying, evaporation, recrystallization, and melting. The polymorphic natures of the resulting paclitaxel samples were confirmed by XRPD, IR, TGA, DSC, and SEM. The dissolution rates of the paclitaxel samples were studied in pharmaceutical solvents, which included cotton seed oil, corn oil, tricaprylin, and tributyrin. For each solvent, all of the amorphous paclitaxel samples showed much higher dissolution rates than the dihydrated crystalline, anhydrous crystalline, and commercial forms, and can be used for clinical applications that demand improvements in drug delivery.     

Non-functionalized soluble diketopyrrolopyrrole: Simplest p-channel core for organic field-effect transistors

We report the synthesis, characterization and behavior in field-effect transistors of non-functionalized soluble diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) core with only a solubilizing alkyl chain (i.e. –C₁₆H₃₃ or –C₁₈H₃₇) as the simplest p-channel semiconductor. The characteristics were evaluated by UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, cyclic voltammetry (CV), thermal analysis, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and density functional theory (DFT) calculation. For top-contact field-effect transistors, two types of active layers were prepared either by a solution process (as a 1D-microwire) or thermal vacuum deposition (as a thin-film) on a cross-linked poly(4-vinylphenol) gate dielectric. All the devices showed typical p-channel behavior with dominant hole transports. The device made with 1D-microwiress of DPP-R18 showed field-effect mobility in the saturation region of 1.42 × 10^?2 cm²/V s with I_ON/I_OFF of 1.82 × 10³. These findings suggest that the non-functionalized soluble DPP core itself without any further functionalization could also be used as a p-channel semiconductor for low-cost organic electronic devices.