A comprehensive review of solar thermoelectric cooling systems

The negative environmental impacts of burning fossil fuels have forced the energy research community seriously to consider renewable sources, such as naturally available solar energy. This paper provides an overview of solar thermoelectric (TE) cooling systems. Thus, this review presents the details referring to TE cooling parameters and formulations of the performance indicators and focuses on the development of TE cooling systems in recent decade with particular attention on advances in materials and modeling and design approaches. Additionally, the TE cooling applications have been also reviewed in aspects of electronic cooling, domestic refrigeration, air conditioning, and power generation. Finally, the possibility of solar TE cooling technologies application in “nearly zero” energy buildings is briefly discussed, and some future research directions are included. This research shows that TE cooling systems have advantages over conventional cooling devices, including compact in size, light in weight, high reliability, no mechanical moving parts, no working fluid, being powered by direct current, and easily switching between cooling and heating modes.     

Robocast zirconia-toughened alumina scaffolds: Processing,structural characterisation and interaction with human primary osteoblasts

Zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) is the gold-standard ceramic in hip arthroplasty, but still lacks direct osseointegration and a metal shell, often coated with a bioactive layer, is currently required. The latter could potentially be replaced by a thinner, architectured ZTA layer, thereby allowing for larger acetabular components, with larger range of motion and lower dislocation risk. Robocasting may be an adequate technique to fabricate the architectured layer. Therefore, as a first step, this study aimed to produce ZTA scaffolds (3D-ZTA) by robocasting and assess their in vitro response. Shape retention was achieved by using a stable, well-dispersed, high solid loading ink injected in acid pH waterbath. 3D-ZTA exhibit regularly spaced microporous, rough struts and fully interconnected macroporosity. Human primary osteoblasts were homogenously distributed inside 3D-ZTA and showed increased osteogenic marker expression compared to 2D-ZTA control. Further work will focus on optimizing scaffold design to improve cell retention and extracellular matrix maturation.     

The Effect of Electroporation of a Lyotroic Liquid Crystal Genistein-Based Formulation in the Recovery of Murine Melanoma Lesions

A lamellar lyotropic liquid crystal genistein-based formulation (LLC-Gen) was prepared in order to increase the aqueous solubility of the lipophilic phytocompound genistein. The formulation was applied locally, in a murine model of melanoma, with or without electroporation. The results demonstrated that, when the formulation was applied by electroporation, the tumors appeared later. During the 21 days of the experiment, the LLC-Gen formulation decreased the tumor volume, the amount of melanin and the degree of erythema, but when electroporation was applied, all these parameters indicated a better prognosis even (lower tumor volume, amount of melanin and degree of erythema). Although hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining confirmed the above events, application of the LLC-Gen formulation by electroporation did not lead to a significant effect in terms of the serum concentrations of the protein S100B and serum neuron specific enolase (NSE), or the tissue expression of the platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ) antibody.     

Investigation of metallic nanoparticles adsorbed on the QCM sensor by SEM and AFM techniques

Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) is known as a very sensitive device used for determination of mass quantity adsorbed on sensor surface. Its detection limits are in the range of ng cm\(^{-2}\). The adsorption mechanism of metallic nanoparticles on QCM sensor was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). This study aims to highlight the importance of QCM applications in nanoparticles deposition field. The layers formed through adsorption process, induced by the oscillations of the QCM sensor, were investigated by AFM for surface topography and for particle mean size values. The morphology of layers and nanoparticles dimensions were determined by SEM. For a more complex investigation of the nanoparticles adsorption mechanism, the chemical composition of layers was achieved using SEM coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (SEM-EDS). This preliminary research involved a new approach in characterization of metallic nanoparticles layers to achieve functional assembled monolayers.     

Formaldehyde Resins Bearing Diaminodiphenylmethane Groups: Synthesis,Characterization and Properties

Summary: Novel formaldehyde resins bearing diaminodiphenylmethane groups were synthesized by the polymerization of a mixture of diaminodiphenylmethane (DDM), cyclohexanone (CHx) and o‐cresol (o‐Cz) with formaldehyde (FA) in the presence of an acid catalyst (HCl). The resins obtained were characterized by spectral, elemental and thermal analysis and used as a hardener for epoxy resins. The curing and temperature behavior of these epoxy resin/formaldehyde systems were investigated using differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetry techniques. The resins had good thermal stability and the activation energies of degradation reactions had values between 70–98 kJ · mol^?1.

The curing reaction of epoxy resins with the DDM/CHx/o‐Cz/formaldehyde resins.     

Adsorption studies on copper,cadmium, and zinc ion removal from aqueous solution using magnetite/carbon nanocomposites

Magnetite/carbon nanocomposites were tested as adsorbents for removal of metal ions from aqueous solutions. The effect of adsorption parameters such as solutions pH (ranging between 2 and 9), the nature and the quantity of the sorbent (10, 20, 40, and 60 mg), initial concentration of metal ions (10, 30, 50, 100, and 150 mg/L), and temperature (25, 45, and 65°C) was evaluated. The removal efficiency of metal ions depends on solution pH and increases with increasing carbon content, the dose of magnetite/carbon nanocomposites, and the temperature and decrease with initial concentration of the metal ions. The adsorption kinetics was described by pseudo-second-order model, and the equilibrium experimental data were well fitted to the Sips isotherm, yielding a maximum adsorption capacity of 41.11, 76.67, and 48.45 mg/g for copper, cadmium, and zinc, respectively. The thermodynamic parameter Gibbs free energy was determined to be negative, which indicated that the adsorption process is spontaneous. The optimum conditions (1 g/L adsorbent, 25°C, and pH 6) were selected for removal of metal ions from real wastewaters, with good results indicating that investigated nanocomposites could be used for the application in real systems.     

Microwave-Assisted Batch Extraction of Polyphenols from Sea Buckthorn Leaves

Extraction of polyphenols from sea buckthorn leaves using microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) is described. The influence of different parameters on the extraction process (reactor type, stirring rate, extraction time, temperature, ethanol/water ratio) was studied. The polyphenolic extracts were analyzed in order to determine the total phenolic content (TPC) either by the Folin–Ciocalteu method or by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), and the concentration of the main polyphenolic compounds by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The specific microwave energy was also determined. MAE resulted in a shorter extraction time (7.5 versus 30 min for the conventional method). The best results for MAE were obtained at a temperature of 90°C, using a solvent/plant ratio of 20/1 and 50% ethanol in the extraction solvent. The highest values of antioxidant capacity were obtained for polyphenolic extracts resulted from microwave extraction.     

Comparison of Fenton and sono-Fenton bisphenol A degradation

Degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) was carried out with the Fenton reagent with and without additional sonochemical treatment. The Fenton and the sono-Fenton decomposition of BPA showed that ultrasound irradiation of wastewater improved the wet oxidation process of 25 mg l(-1) BPA solutions. The sonochemical degradation of BPA was monitored using UV absorption and large volume injection packed capillary LC measurements.