Dysprosium doped copper oxide (Cu1-xDyxO) nanoparticles enabled bifunctional electrode for overall water splitting

The production of hydrogen, a favourable alternative to an unsustainable fossil fuel remains as a significant hurdle with the pertaining challenge in the design of proficient, highly productive and sustainable electrocatalyst for both oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Herein, the dysprosium (Dy) doped copper oxide (Cu_1-xDy_xO) nanoparticles were synthesized via solution combustion technique and utilized as a non-noble metal based bi-functional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting. Due to the improved surface to volume ratio and conductivity, the optimized Cu_1-xDy_xO (x = 0.01, 0.02) electrocatalysts exhibited impressive HER and OER performance respectively in 1 M KOH delivering a current density of 10 mAcm^?2 at a potential of ?0.18 V vs RHE for HER and 1.53 V vs RHE for OER. Moreover, the Dy doped CuO electrocatalyst used as a bi-functional catalyst for overall water splitting achieved a potential of 1.56 V at a current density 10 mAcm^?2 and relatively high current density of 66 mAcm^?2 at a peak potential of 2 V. A long term stability of 24 h was achieved for a cell voltage of 2.2 V at a constant current density of 30 mAcm^?2 with only 10% of the initial current loss. This showcases the accumulative opportunity of dysprosium as a dopant in CuO nanoparticles for fabricating a highly effective and low-cost bi-functional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting.     

金针菇多糖对微冻大黄鱼及其鱼片品质变化的影响

为研究金针菇多糖（polysaccharide from Flammulina velutipes，FVP）对微冻大黄鱼及鱼片在贮藏期间肌原纤维蛋白性质的变化及水分分布的影响，实验分别选用0.03、0.06、0.09 g/L FVP浸渍处理大黄鱼和鱼片，以无菌水处理为对照组，分析微冻贮藏期间样品的感官指标得分、总挥发性盐基氮含量、总巯基含量、Ca2＋-ATPase活性、蛋白流变学性质以及水分迁移变化规律。结果表明：FVP可有效抑制整鱼总挥发性盐基氮含量上升和感官得分的下降；减缓整鱼及鱼片在微冻过程中总巯基含量、Ca2＋-ATPase活性下降和水分流失；此外FVP还能够延缓大黄鱼因腐败而出现的蛋白凝胶能力减弱。在本实验选取的多糖浓度范围内，0.09 g/L FVP处理组保鲜效果较强。该研究结果可为FVP用于水产品贮运保鲜提供理论参考。     

Thermodynamic modeling of gas solubility in aqueous sodium chloride solution

An electrolyte Equation of State is presented by combining the Cubic Plus Association Equation of State,Mean Spherical Approximation and the Born equation.This new model uses experimental relative static permittivity,intend to predict well the activity coefficients of individual ions (ACI) and liquid densities of aqueous solutions.This new model is applied to model water + NaCl binary system and water + gas +NaCl ternary systems.The cation/anion-water interaction parameters of are obtained by fitting the exper-imental data of ACI,mean ionic activity coefficients (MIAC) and liquid densities of water + NaCl binary system.The cation/anion-gas interaction parameters are obtained by fitting the experimental data of gas solubilities in aqueous NaCl solutions.The modeling results show that this new model can correlate well with the phase equilibrium and volumetric properties.Without gas,predictions for ACI,MIAC,and liquid densities present relative average deviations of 1.3％,3.6％ and 1.4％ compared to experimental ref-erence values.For most gas-containing systems,predictions for gas solubilities present relative average deviations lower than 7.0％.Further,the contributions of ACI,and salting effects of NaCl on gases are ana-lyzed and discussed.     

Cyberbullying: Effect of emergency perception on the helping tendencies of bystanders

The effect of the emergency perception of bystanders of cyberbullying victims on helping behaviors is often neglected in research on cyberbullying. In this study, we explored the influence of this cognitive factor on cyber-bystanders’ helping tendencies as well as elucidated possible underlying processes. The results of two studies were reported. In Study 1, 150 undergraduates read a true case of a girl experiencing cyberbullying. The results indicated that when the participants perceived the victim’s situation to be more critical (i.e., higher emergency perception), their helping tendencies were stronger, partly through increased state empathy followed by feelings of responsibility to help. In Study 2, we randomly assigned 300 undergraduates to two groups. The low emergency group read the same cyberbullying case as Study 1, whereas the cyberbullying case read by the high emergency group contained additional emergency information of the victim. The results indicated that the high emergency group expressed stronger helping tendencies than did the low emergency group. This effect was caused by a stronger perception that the victim was in an emergency situation, which not only strengthened the participants’ helping tendencies directly but also indirectly through increasing their state empathy and feelings of responsibility to help.     

Reusable Polyacrylonitrile-Sulfur Extractor of Heavy Metal Ions from Wastewater

Mercury, lead, and cadmium are among the most toxic and carcinogenic heavy metal ions (HMIs), posing serious threats to the sustainability of aquatic ecosystems and public health. There is an urgent need to remove these ions from water by a cheap but green process. Traditional methods have insufficient removal efficiency and reusability. Structurally robust, large surface-area adsorbents functionalized with high-selectivity affinity to HMIs are attractive filter materials. Here, an adsorbent prepared by vulcanization of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), a nitrogen-rich polymer, is reported, giving rise to PAN-S nanoparticles with cyclic π-conjugated backbone and electronic conductivity. PAN-S can be coated on ultra-robust melamine (ML) foam by simple dipping and drying. In agreement with hard/soft acid/base theory, N- and S-containing soft Lewis bases have strong binding to Hg²⁺, Pb²⁺, Cu²⁺, and Cd²⁺, with extraordinary capture efficiency and performance stability. Furthermore, the used filters, when collected and electrochemically biased in a recycling bath, can release the HMIs into the bath and electrodeposit on the counter-electrode as metallic Hg⁰, Pb⁰, Cu⁰, and Cd⁰, and the PAN-S@ML filter can then be reused at least 6 times as new. The electronically conductive PAN-S@ML filter can be fabricated cheaply and holds promise for scale-up applications.     

Microbial susceptibility of various polymers and evaluation of thermoplastic elastomers with antimicrobial additives

The incursion of microbial growth on polymeric products can deteriorate their performance and lead to the development of undesirable staining and odors. A growing trend in the industry has aimed to reduce microbial populations on high-touch surfaces via the use of antimicrobials to protect material aesthetics and durability or to prevent the spread of pathogenic microorganisms. In this study, a variety of plastic substrates (30 unique polymer compounds), including poly(acrylonitrile-co-butadiene-co-styrene), poly(butylene terephthalate), poly(etherimide), various thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs), poly(carbonates), and poly(amides), were screened for susceptibility to microbial attack using American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) G21 (fungi susceptibility), Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) Z2801, and modified ASTM E1428-15a (bacterial susceptibility) test standards. TPEs were determined to be most susceptible to microbial attack under the appropriate environmental conditions. Subsequent studies assessed the use of an antimicrobial additive, zinc pyrithione (ZPT), for potential efficacy in a variety of TPE blends for diverse target market applications. ZPT proved to be very effective in protecting TPEs, reducing Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli populations by 99.9% or more in JIS Z2801 testing and inhibiting fungal growth (rating = 0) according to the ASTM G21 standard.     

基准平面垂直断面法在爆破漏斗试验中的应用

系统阐述了基准平面垂直断面法在爆破漏斗试验中测量爆破漏斗体积的基本原理,并将隧道激光断面仪应用于金厂河矿1 750 m水平15^#采场底部切割巷道爆破漏斗试验爆破漏斗体积测量中。通过与传统体重法等计算法所得漏斗体积分析比较,结果表明基于隧道激光断面仪与3D Mine软件分析的基准平面垂直断面法实用性强、操作方便、结果直观可靠,达到试验预期目的。     

The Age-Sensitive Efficacy of Calorie Restriction on Mitochondrial Biogenesis and mtDNA Damage in Rat Liver

Calorie restriction (CR) is the most efficacious treatment to delay the onset of age-related changes such as mitochondrial dysfunction. However, the sensitivity of mitochondrial markers to CR and the age-related boundaries of CR efficacy are not fully elucidated. We used liver samples from ad libitum-fed (AL) rats divided in: 18-month-old (AL-18), 28-month-old (AL-28), and 32-month-old (AL-32) groups, and from CR-treated (CR) 28-month-old (CR-28) and 32-month-old (CR-32) counterparts to assay the effect of CR on several mitochondrial markers. The age-related decreases in citrate synthase activity, in TFAM, MFN2, and DRP1 protein amounts and in the mtDNA content in the AL-28 group were prevented in CR-28 counterparts. Accordingly, CR reduced oxidative mtDNA damage assessed through the incidence of oxidized purines at specific mtDNA regions in CR-28 animals. These findings support the anti-aging effect of CR up to 28 months. Conversely, the protein amounts of LonP1, Cyt c, OGG1, and APE1 and the 4.8 Kb mtDNA deletion content were not affected in CR-28 rats. The absence of significant differences between the AL-32 values and the CR-32 counterparts suggests an age-related boundary of CR efficacy at this age. However, this only partially curtails the CR benefits in counteracting the generalized aging decline and the related mitochondrial involvement.