The efficacy of protective effects of tannic acid, gallic acid, ellagic acid, and propyl gallate against hydrogen peroxide-induced oxidative stress and DNA damages in IMR-90 cells

There is increasing evidence that reactive oxygen species (ROS) are intimately involved in the oxidative damage of tissues for a wide variety of pulmonary diseases. Thus, it is desirable to search for chemopreventive agents that can counteract ROS-mediated injury to the pulmonary tissues. Using a human lung fibroblast IMR-90 cells as the experimental model, we first demonstrated that nearly 90% of intracellular ROS could be removed when H(2)O(2)-treated cells (200 microM) simultaneously incubated with 10 microg/mL of tannic acid (TA), gallic acid (GA), ellagic acid (EA), and propyl gallate (PA). Using C(11)-BODIPY(581/591 )as a lipid peroxidation probe, we also attested that all these compounds examined (10 microg/mL) could alleviate H(2)O(2)-evoked lipid peroxidation phenomena. Next, we examined the protective effects of these compounds on the depletion of intracellular glutathione (iGSH) in H(2)O(2)-treated cells using CMF-DA probe. Interestingly, PA was demonstrated to be the only compound that could effectively protect the integrity of iGSH from being depleted by this system. Finally, the protective effects of these compounds against oxidative DNA damage were evaluated using 8-oxoguanine formation as a marker. Our data indicated that all four compounds suppressed the formation of 8-oxoguanine effectively. Taken together, our data suggested that TA, GA, EA, and PA can protect cells from oxidative stress.     

Microstructural study of hydrogen desorption in 2NaBH4 + MgH2 reactive hydride composite

The desorption mechanism of as-milled 2NaBH₄ + MgH₂ was investigated by volumetric analysis, X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. Hydrogen desorption was carried out in 0.1 bar hydrogen pressure from room temperature up to 450 °C at a heating rate of 3 °C min⁻¹. Complete dehydrogenation was achieved in two steps releasing 7.84 wt.% hydrogen. Desorption reaction in this system is kinetically restricted and limited by the growth of MgB₂ at the Mg/Na₂B₁₂H₁₂ interface where the intermediate product phases form a barrier to diffusion. During desorption, MgB₂ particles are observed to grow as plates around NaH particles.     

Optimized hydrogen generation in a semicontinuous sodium borohydride hydrolysis reactor for a 60 W-scale fuel cell stack

Catalyzed hydrolysis of sodium borohydride (SBH) is a promising method for the hydrogen supply of fuel cells. In this study a system for controlled production of hydrogen from aqueous sodium borohydride (SBH) solutions has been designed and built. This simple and low cost system operates under controlled addition of stabilized SBH solutions (fuel solutions) to a supported CoB catalyst. The system works at constant temperature delivering hydrogen at 1 L min⁻¹ constant rate to match a 60-W polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). For optimization of the system, several experimental conditions were changed and their effect was investigated. A simple model based only on thermodynamic considerations was proposed to optimize system parameters at constant temperature and hydrogen evolution rate. It was found that, for a given SBH concentration, the use of the adequate fuel addition rate can maximize the total conversion and therefore the gravimetric storage capacity. The hydrogen storage capacity was as high as 3.5 wt% for 19 wt% SBH solution at 90% fuel conversion and an operation temperature of 60 °C. It has been demonstrated that these optimized values can also be achieved for a wide range of hydrogen generation rates. Studies on the durability of the catalyst showed that a regeneration step is needed to restore the catalytic activity before reusing.     

Comparison of different copper–chlorine thermochemical cycles for hydrogen production

Copper–chlorine thermochemical cycles for hydrogen production are very promising water splitting cycles. In this paper, different types of copper–chlorine cycles with various numbers of steps are compared. The factors that determine the number and effective grouping of steps are analyzed. It is found that the water requirement in the hydrolysis step is affected by a combination of drying and hydrolysis steps. It is also found that hydrogen can be produced either from electrolysis of cuprous chloride, or from chlorination of copper by hydrogen chloride, which indicates a potential combination of disproportionation and chlorination steps. The major engineering advantages and disadvantages of these cycle variations with different amounts of steps will be analyzed and discussed.     

Fabrication of core–shell MIL-101(Cr)@UiO-66(Zr) nanocrystals for hydrogen storage

The fabrication of core–shell nanocrystals by incorporating microporous UiO-66 into mesoporous MIL-101 is reported. The growth of the core–shell MIL-101@UiO-66 nanocrystals was observed and supported by TEM and PXRD. The accessible pore volumes of the individual metal-organic framework (MOF) components and the core–shell hybrid crystals were also characterized. The hydrogen storage capacity exhibited by the resulting core–shell nanocrystals was 26% and 60% higher than those of pure phase MIL-101 and UiO-66, respectively. Finally, the fabricated core–shell MIL-101@UiO-66 structure exhibited a high degree of moisture tolerance.     

Finite element modeling of HIC propagation in pipeline steel with regard to experimental observations

In this research, hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) phenomenon in pipeline steel has been investigated by finite element modeling (FEM) with the help of experimental observations. Abaqus software has been utilized to model the crack. To this, first an API 5L X70 pipeline steel was electrochemically charged by hydrogen for 8 h to create different types of HIC cracks. Then, SEM was used to observe different types of hydrogen cracks. Based on the observations, most of HIC cracks were observed at the center of cross section where center segregation of some elements occurred. The results showed that HIC cracks propagated in stepwise, sinusoidal, straight and disordered manner. Moreover, HIC crack nucleated from a point with high stress concentration factor which was between non-metallic inclusion or void and metal matrix. The initiated micro-cracks from two neighbor inclusions link together to form a long HIC crack. Based on the experimental observations and FEM modeling, it was concluded that the driving force for the HIC crack propagation is the presence of hydrogen at the crack tip after it is initiated. Crack tip usually acts as a very small void and the combination of hydrogen atoms makes a high pressure which propel the crack forward. Moreover, the HIC crack propagation path was predicted by fracture mechanics approach showing that the J-integral had its maximum amount when the HIC crack tended to propagate horizontally.     

A numerical investigation of hydrogen injection into noble gas working fluids

The thermodynamic efficiency of internal combustion engines is primarily dependent on the compression ratio and specific heat ratio of the working fluid. Due to a higher specific heat ratio, using a noble gas and oxygen instead of air can increase the thermal efficiency. The lack of nitrogen in the working fluid also eliminates NOx formation. In this study, the three-dimensional turbulent injection of hydrogen into a constant volume combustion chamber has been modeled and compared to mixtures of oxygen with nitrogen, argon, and xenon at different injection velocities. The results indicate that the hydrogen jet has a longer penetration length in nitrogen compared to argon and xenon. However, smaller penetration lengths lead to more complex jet shapes and larger cone angles. Combustion in a noble gas environment results in higher temperatures and OH radical concentrations, due in part to lower specific heats and the jet characteristics. Furthermore, mixedness is investigated using mean spatial variation and mean scalar dissipation. Hydrogen in argon shows a better mixing rate compared to nitrogen and xenon due to the higher diffusivity. The results indicate that reduction in mean spatial variation can lead to a shorter ignition delay.     

Remarkable decrease in dehydrogenation temperature of Li–B–N–H hydrogen storage system with CoO additive

Cobalt monoxide (CoO) was introduced into the Li–B–N–H system as a catalyst precursor, and the hydrogen desorption behavior of the LiBH₄–2LiNH₂–xCoO (x = 0–0.20) composites was investigated. It was observed that the majority of hydrogen desorption from the CoO-added sample occurred simultaneously with the melting of α-Li₄BN₃H₁₀. Moreover, the 0.05CoO-added sample exhibited optimized dehydrogenation properties, desorbing 9.9 wt% hydrogen completely with an onset temperature of 100 °C and exhibiting a decrease of more than 120 °C in the onset dehydrogenation temperature with respect to that of the additive-free sample. The activation energy of hydrogen desorption for the 0.05CoO-added sample was reduced by 30%. XAFS measurements showed that the CoO additive was first reduced chemically to metallic Co during the initial stage of thermal dehydrogenation, and the newly produced metallic Co acted as the catalytic active species in favor of the creation of B–N bonding. More importantly, approximately 1.1 wt% of hydrogen could be recharged into the fully dehydrogenated 0.05CoO-added sample at 350 °C and a hydrogen pressure of 110 atm, which represents much better performance than that exhibited by the pristine sample.     

Hydrogen microscopy – Distribution of hydrogen in buckled niobium hydrogen thin films

Hydrogen absorption in thin metal films clamped to rigid substrates results in mechanical stress that changes the hydrogen's chemical potential by Δμ_H(σ) = −1.124σ kJ/mol_H for σ measured in [GPa]. In this paper we show that local stress relaxation by the detachment of niobium hydrogen thin films from the substrate affects the chemical potential on the local scale: using coincident proton–proton scattering at a proton microprobe, the hydrogen concentration is determined with μm resolution, revealing that hydrogen is not homogenously distributed in the film. The local hydrogen solubility of the film changes with its local stress state, mapping the buckled film fraction. In niobium hydrogen thin films loaded up to nominal concentrations in the two-phase coexistence region, the clamped film fraction remains in the solid solution phase, while the buckles represent the hydride phase. These results are compared to a simple model taking the stress impact on the chemical potential into account.     

Life-cycle assessment of diesel, natural gas and hydrogen fuel cell bus transportation systems

The Sustainable Transport Energy Programme (STEP) is an initiative of the Government of Western Australia, to explore hydrogen fuel cell technology as an alternative to the existing diesel and natural gas public transit infrastructure in Perth. This project includes three buses manufactured by DaimlerChrysler with Ballard fuel cell power sources operating in regular service alongside the existing natural gas and diesel bus fleets. The life-cycle assessment (LCA) of the fuel cell bus trial in Perth determines the overall environmental footprint and energy demand by studying all phases of the complete transportation system, including the hydrogen infrastructure, bus manufacturing, operation, and end-of-life disposal. The LCAs of the existing diesel and natural gas transportation systems are developed in parallel. The findings show that the trial is competitive with the diesel and natural gas bus systems in terms of global warming potential and eutrophication. Emissions that contribute to acidification and photochemical ozone are greater for the fuel cell buses. Scenario analysis quantifies the improvements that can be expected in future generations of fuel cell vehicles and shows that a reduction of greater than 50% is achievable in the greenhouse gas, photochemical ozone creation and primary energy demand impact categories.