Measurement of Electrophysiological Signals In Vitro Using High-Performance Organic Electrochemical Transistors

Biological environments use ions in charge transport for information transmission. The properties of mixed electronic and ionic conductivity in organic materials make them ideal candidates to transduce physiological information into electronically processable signals. A device proven to be highly successful in measuring such information is the organic electrochemical transistor (OECT). Previous electrophysiological measurements performed using OECTs show superior signal-to-noise ratios than electrodes at low frequencies. Subsequent development has significantly improved critical performance parameters such as transconductance and response time. Here, interdigitated-electrode OECTs are fabricated on flexible substrates, with one such state-of-the-art device achieving a peak transconductance of 139 mS with a 138 µs response time. The devices are implemented into an array with interconnects suitable for micro-electrocorticographic application and eight architecture variations are compared. The two best-performing arrays are subject to the full electrophysiological spectrum using prerecorded signals. With frequency filtering, kHz-scale frequencies with 10 µV-scale voltages are resolved. This is supported by a novel quantification of the noise, which compares the gate voltage input and drain current output. These results demonstrate that high-performance OECTs can resolve the full electrophysiological spectrum and suggest that superior signal-to-noise ratios could be achieved in high frequency measurements of multiunit activity.     

Polymers dynamics of the nonfluoro,nano-brush repelling agent with self-stratifying property in water-based coatings

While perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs), also known as C8s, are used extensively in textile repellent coatings, concerns have arisen for their carcinogenicity and hazardous effects on the environment. In this study, a novel water-based, nonfluoro, and nanobrush textile repelling agent was prepared by conventional sol–gel chemistry using amorphous fumed silica and n-octyltriethoxysilane as the starting materials. Minimal interaction between the designed repelling agent and marketed water-based resins was confirmed using linear viscosity region (LVR) analysis and asymmetric-flow field-flow fractionation (AF4), suggesting the self-stratification potential of the repelling agent. More specifically, the repelling agent exhibited excellent compatibility and self-stratifying ability with a force-emulsified acrylic-based resin, affording a water contact angle of 104.3° when incorporated at 7% solid content. Performance tests carried out on thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) revealed excellent adhesion (100/100) of a final formulation, and a significant increase in water contact angle from 80.1° to 103.8° after treatment. In addition, the fouling area after the removal of a submerged sample from a mixture of slurry, polymer, and oil decreased from 48 to 1% when the repelling agent was added. Moreover, the sludge-fouling property remained unchanged after 1000 cycles of abrasion. These findings demonstrate the potential of the described nonfluoro, nanobrush repelling agent as an environmentally safe alternative for use with commercial resins, in turn realizing a fully water-based hydrophobic coating. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 48003.     

Real-time organic aerosol chemical speciation in the indoor environment using extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Understanding the sources and composition of organic aerosol (OA) in indoor environments requires rapid measurements, since many emissions and processes have short timescales. However, real-time molecular-level OA measurements have not been reported indoors. Here, we present quantitative measurements, at a time resolution of five seconds, of molecular ions corresponding to diverse aerosol-phase species, by applying extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (EESI-MS) to indoor air analysis for the first time, as part of the highly instrumented HOMEChem field study. We demonstrate how the complex spectra of EESI-MS are screened in order to extract chemical information and investigate the possibility of interference from gas-phase semivolatile species. During experiments that simulated the Thanksgiving US holiday meal preparation, EESI-MS quantified multiple species, including fatty acids, carbohydrates, siloxanes, and phthalates. Intercomparisons with Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) and Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer suggest that EESI-MS quantified a large fraction of OA. Comparisons with FIGAERO-CIMS shows similar signal levels and good correlation, with a range of 100 for the relative sensitivities. Comparisons with SV-TAG for phthalates and with SV-TAG and AMS for total siloxanes also show strong correlation. EESI-MS observations can be used with gas-phase measurements to identify co-emitted gas- and aerosol-phase species, and this is demonstrated using complementary gas-phase PTR-MS observations.     

Malic acid production from renewables: a review

Malic acid derived from fossil resources is currently applied in the food and beverage industries with a medium global production capacity. However, in the transition from a fossil-based to a bio-based economy, biotechnologically produced l -malic acid may become an important platform chemical with many new applications, especially in the field of biopolymers. In this review, currently used petrochemical production routes to dl -malic acid are outlined and insights into possible bio-based alternatives for microbial l -malic acid production are provided. Besides ecological reasons, the possibility to produce enantiopure l -malic acid by microbial fermentation is the biggest advantage over chemical synthesis. State-of-the-art and open challenges concerning production host engineering, substrate choice and downstream processing are addressed. With regard to production hosts, a literature overview is given covering the leading natural production strains of Aspergillus, Ustilago and Aureobasidium, as well as Escherichia coli as the most important engineered recombinant host. The utilization of renewable substrates as an alternative to glucose is emphasized in particular as a key aspect for a competitive bio-based production. Out of the alternative substrates discussed in this review, the industrial side-streams crude glycerol and molasses seem to be most promising for large-scale l -malic acid production. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

聚烯烃催化剂硅胶载体的制备和表征

采用并流共沉淀法制备了适用于聚烯烃催化剂的硅胶载体,为减少颗粒的聚集,在制备过程中添加一种表面活性剂。利用透射电子显微镜(TEM)、比表面积测定(BET)和X射线粉末衍射(XRD)法对制备的硅胶载体进行了表征;考察了在制备硅胶载体过程中原料硅酸钠溶液的浓度、溶液pH以及焙烧温度对产物硅胶载体的物理性能的影响。实验结果表明,硅酸钠溶液的浓度影响硅胶的初始粒子的大小,溶液pH直接影响硅酸钠的水解速率,焙烧温度影响硅胶的孔结构和比表面积。当硅酸钠溶液的浓度为0．2mol／L、溶液pH为8-9、反应温度为70℃、焙烧温度为700℃时,硅胶载体的BET比表面积为242．22m2／g、最可几孔径为16．45 nm、堆密度为0．492 1g/mL,与进口硅胶(Silica Gel 955)的物理性能相近。     

Capture of Organic Vapors Using Adsorption and Electrothermal Regeneration

Activated-carbon-fiber cloth (ACFC) is an alternative adsorbent to granular activated carbon (GAC) for removing and recovering organic vapors from gas streams. Electrothermal desorption (ED) of ACFC provides rapid regeneration while requiring less energy compared to traditional regeneration techniques used with GAC. This paper provides proof-of-concept results from a bench-scale ACFC adsorption system. The automated system captured 1,000 ppmv of hazardous air pollutants/volatile organic compounds (HAPs/VOCs) from air streams and demonstrated the use of ED, using ac voltage, to recover the HAP/VOC as a pure liquid. The desorbed HAP/VOC condensed onto the inner walls of the adsorber and was collected at the bottom of the vessel, without the use of ancillary cooling. Seventy percent of the HAP/VOC was collected per cycle as condensate, with the balance being retained in the regenerated adsorber or recycled to the second adsorber. ED with in-vessel condensation results in minimal N2 consumption and short regeneration cycle times allowing the process to be cost competitive with conventional GAC-based adsorption processes. This technology extends the application of carbon adsorption systems to situations that were previously economically and physically impractical.     

Organic Nanoparticles: Preparation,Self‐Assembly,and Properties

The strong tendency of organic nanoparticles to rapidly self‐assemble into highly aligned superlattices at room temperature when solution‐cast from dispersions or spray‐coated directly onto various substrates is described. The nanoparticle dispersions are stable for years. The novel precipitation process used is believed to result in molecular distances and alignments in the nanoparticles that are not normally possible. Functional organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs)—which have the same host–dopant emissive‐material composition—with process‐tunable electroluminescence have been built with these nanoparticles, indicating the presence of novel nanostructures. For example, only changing the conditions of the precipitation process changes the OLED emission from green light to yellow.     

石化企业挥发性有机物成分谱构建及溯源解析

石化企业是挥发性有机物(VOCs)的重点排放源，开展VOCs成分谱构建和溯源解析工作对石化企业进行有针对性的污染治理具有重要的意义。综述了石化企业VOCs排放特征的研究现状，重点介绍了石化企业VOCs源成分谱和溯源解析工作的研究进展和存在的问题，建议完善采样和分析方法，利用数学算法，构建基于生产工艺的源成分谱，优化解析模型，形成一套完善的溯源解析技术，从而为石化企业大气污染物溯源提供理论、技术支持，有效实现石化企业安全环保一体化监控。     

双层有机电致发光器件有机层厚度优化的数值研究

在陷阱电荷限制电流传导理论的基础上,提出了双层有机电致发光器件的数值模型,研究了结构为"阳极/空穴输运层(HTL)/发光层(EML)/阴极"的器件中电流密度和量子效率随有机层的特征陷阱能量、陷阱密度和载流子迁移率的依赖关系. 研究发现,对于给定的HTL和EML的特征陷阱能量、陷阱密度和载流子迁移率,存在一个最优的HTL和EML之间的厚度比率,在此最优厚度比下,器件的电流密度和量子效率达到最大.通过有机层厚度的优化,器件的电流密度和量子效率可提高多达两个数量级.另外,还研究了最优厚度比随有机层特征陷阱能量、总陷阱密度和载流子迁移率之间的定量关系.