Engineering Strong Electron Metal-Support Interaction in Ru/WN/WO Heterointerfaces for Efficient Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution.

Developing cost-effective electrocatalysts with platinum-like performance for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) remains a critical challenge for advancing sustainable energy technologies. Herein, a Ru/WN/WO (Ru/WNO) heterostructured catalyst is presented in which Ru nanoparticles are anchored at the interface of a conductive WN phase and an oxygen-deficient WO phase. This tailored interface establishes a bidirectional electronic metal-support interaction (EMSI), where electron donation from WN and electron withdrawal by WO cooperatively modulate the electronic structure of Ru, stabilizing it in a partially oxidized state.

Durable fibrous nanohybrid sunscreen films with in-situ fabricated enteromorpha polysaccharides for enhanced UV protection.

Enteromorpha, a coastal green algae species, contains polysaccharides with excellent water solubility, biocompatibility, and antioxidant properties, making them ideal for skincare applications as natural antioxidant additives. This study introduces a modified electrospinning technique to fabricate fibrous nanohybrid sunscreen films incorporating Enteromorpha polysaccharides (EPPs) integrated with polyvinyl butyral (PVB) and titanium oxide (TiO). The resulting film harnesses EPPs' antioxidant capabilities to protect skin from free radicals generated by TiO photocatalysis, while the PVB matrix and electrospun fibers provide water resistance and breathability.

Bamboo Kraft Pulp Black Liquor as a Renewable Source of Value-Added Carbon Dots.

China is the country with the most abundant bamboo resources in the world. Using bamboo as a raw material for pulping and papermaking can save a lot of wood and protect forests. Bamboo pulping enterprises mostly adopt sulfate processes to produce a large amount of black liquor (BL), which contains monosaccharides, polysaccharides, oligosaccharides, pectin, lignin, etc.

Electrochemically self-driven integration of FeSe/FeS heterostructures for enhanced sodium storage and rapid kinetics.

An electrochemical method is proposed to integrate FeSe/FeS heterostructures into a 3D S-doped carbon framework, enhancing sodium storage capacity and kinetics. Concurrently, both and techniques are employed to investigate the underlying mechanisms.

Micro-Structure Engineering in Pd-InO Catalysts and Mechanism Studies for CO Hydrogenation to Methanol.

Significant interest has emerged for the application of Pd-InO catalysts as high-performance catalysts for CO hydrogenation to CHOH. However, precise active site control in these catalysts and understanding their reaction mechanisms remain major challenges. In this investigation, a series of Pd-InO catalysts were synthesized, revealing three distinct types of active sites: In-O, Pd-O(H)-In, and PdIn.

Synergistic interface and structural engineering for high initial coulombic efficiency and stable sodium storage in metal sulfides.

Transition metal sulfides (TMS) have gained significant attention as potential anode materials for sodium ion batteries (SIBs) due to their high theoretical capacity and abundance in nature. Nevertheless, their practical use has been impeded by challenges such as large volume changes, unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI), and low initial coulombic efficiency (ICE). To address these issues and achieve both long-term cycling stability and high ICE simultaneously, we present a novel approach involving surface engineering, termed as the "dual-polar confinement" strategy, combined with interface engineering to enhance the electrochemical performance of TMS.

Less Is More: Selective-Atom-Removal-Derived Defective MnO Catalyst for Efficient Propane Oxidation.

Defect manipulation in metal oxide is of great importance in boosting catalytic performance for propane oxidation. Herein, a selective atom removal strategy was developed to construct a defective manganese oxide catalyst, which involved the partial etching of a Mg dopant in MnO. The resulting MgMnO-H catalysts exhibited superior low-temperature catalytic activity (T = 185 °C, T = 226 °C) with a propane conversion rate of 0.

Determination of carbohydrate content in kenaf degumming wastewater and converting them to carbon dots.

The traditional textile degumming process produces abundant wastewater, which contains a lot of monosaccharides and oligosaccharides. It is of great economic and environmental significance to utilize these carbohydrates in high value. In this study, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to analyze the carbohydrate components in kenaf degumming wastewater, and then the production of C-dots using the wastewater was explored.

Microwave-assisted solid-state pretreatment for fabrication of hemp fibres using ethanolamine at low temperature.

Conventional methods faced challenges in pretreating natural cellulose fibres due to their high energy consumption and large wastewater drainage. This research devised an efficient solid-state pretreatment method for pretreating hemp fibres using ethanolamine (ETA) assisted by microwave (MW) heating. This method produced a notable removal rate of lignin (85.

Sustainable Production of Lactic Acid from Cellulose Using Au/W-ZnO Catalysts.

The catalytic conversion of cellulose to lactic acid (LA) has garnered significant attention in recent years due to the potential of cellulose as a renewable and sustainable biomass feedstock. Here, a series of Au/W-ZnO catalysts were synthesized and employed to transform cellulose into LA. Through the optimization of reaction parameters and catalyst compositions, we achieved complete cellulose conversion with a selectivity of 54.

Tailoring Zeolite L-Supported-Cu Catalysts for CO Hydrogenation: Insights into the Mechanism of CHOH and CO Formation.

The utilization of Cu-based catalysts in CO conversion into valuable chemicals is of significant interest due to their potential in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. However, the controllable design of Cu-based catalysts and the regulation of their mechanism remain challenging. In this study, a series of efficient Cu/L catalysts were prepared for this process, and the intrinsic influencing factors on the reaction routes were systematically revealed.

Zeolite-templated carbon-supported Ru-based catalysts for efficient alkaline hydrogen evolution reaction.

Herein, a series of Ru/ZTCs samples were prepared using LaY zeolite-templated carbon as a support. Characterizations showed that the unique structure of the ZTCs and the chemical state of Ru facilitated superior HER performance compared to other carbon-supported samples. This work offers a new strategy for designing excellent electrocatalysts.

Elucidating the Synergic Effect in Nanoscale MoS /TiO Heterointerface for Na-Ion Storage.

Interface engineering in electrode materials is an attractive strategy for enhancing charge storage, enabling fast kinetics, and improving cycling stability for energy storage systems. Nevertheless, the performance improvement is usually ambiguously ascribed to the "synergetic effect", the fundamental understanding toward the effect of the interface at molecular level in composite materials remains elusive. In this work, a well-defined nanoscale MoS /TiO interface is rationally designed by immobilizing TiO nanocrystals on MoS nanosheets.

Biodegradable and Reusable Cellulose-Based Nanofiber Membrane Preparation for Mask Filter by Electrospinning.

Environmentally friendly face masks with high filtration efficiency are in urgent need to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as other airborne viruses, bacteria and particulate matters. In this study, coaxial electrospinning was employed to fabricate a lithium chloride enhanced cellulose acetate/thermoplastic polyurethanes (CA/TPU-LiCl) face mask nanofiber filtration membrane, which was biodegradable and reusable. The analysis results show that the CA/TPU-LiCl membrane had an excellent filtration performance: when the filtration efficiency reached 99.

Research on Chemically Deuterated Cellulose Macroperformance and Fast Identification.

Chemically deuterated cellulose fiber was expected to provide novel applications due to its spectral, biological, and kinetic isotope effect. In this research, the performance of the chemically deuterated cotton fibers, including their mechanical property, enzymatic degradation performance, effect on bacterial treatment, and fast identification (near-infrared modeling) was investigated. The breaking tenacity of the deuterated cotton fibers was slightly lower, which might be attributed to the structural damage during the chemical deuteration.

Development of quantitative C NMR characterization and simulation of C, H, and O content for pyrolysis oils based on C NMR analysis.

Bio-oil is a valuable liquid product obtained from pyrolysis of biomass and it contains tens of hundreds of compounds, which brings about difficulties for characterization with various analytical methods. C NMR has advantages over other detection methods as it can characterize the entire composition of bio-oil and distinguish different types of carbon. But various shortcomings limit the application of C NMR.

Effects of Different Conditions on Co-Pyrolysis Behavior of Corn Stover and Polypropylene.

The pyrolysis behavior of corn stover and polypropylene during co-pyrolysis was studied using a tube furnace reactor. The effects of mixing ratio of corn stover and polypropylene, pyrolysis temperature, addition amount of catalyst (HZSM-5) and reaction atmosphere (N and CO) on the properties of pyrolysis products were studied. The results showed that co-pyrolysis of corn stover and polypropylene can increase the yield of pyrolysis oil.

Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis of Poly (Ethylene Terephthalate) (PET) with Zeolite and Nickel Chloride.

The pyrolysis of poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) in the presence of ZSM-5 zeolite and NiCl as a catalyst was studied at different temperatures under N atmosphere. Quantitative C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) were applied to characterize the waxy and solid residue. The carboxyl and aliphatic hydroxyl groups in the waxy residue have been greatly depleted after the use of zeolite during pyrolysis on the basis of the results of C NMR and FT-IR analysis.

Crystalline Modification of Isotactic Polypropylene with a Rare Earth Nucleating Agent Based on Ultrasonic Vibration.

In this paper, the crystalline modification of isotactic polypropylene (PP) with a rare earth nucleating agent (WBG) with different ultrasound conditions was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), wide-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The relationship between the ultrasound conditions and the crystalline structure, as well as the mechanism for the behavior, were revealed. SEM showed that the dispersion of the nucleating agent in the PP matrix was better at shorter ultrasound distances.

In-depth study on the effect of oxygen-containing functional groups in pyrolysis oil by P-31 NMR.

One of the major obstacles to the widespread use of pyrolysis oil is its high oxygen content, with oxygen atoms being mainly present in the hydroxyl and the carboxyl groups. Therefore, quantitative and accurate characterization of oxygen-containing functional groups is of great significance. This study employed P NMR to conduct in-depth studies on several model compounds including four kinds of alcohols and carboxylic acids.

A Comprehensive Characterization of Pyrolysis Oil from Softwood Barks.

Pyrolysis of raw pine bark, pine, and Douglas-Fir bark was examined. The pyrolysis oil yields of raw pine bark, pine, and Douglas-Fir bark at 500 °C were 29.18%, 26.

Impact of CO on Pyrolysis Products of Bituminous Coal and Platanus Sawdust.

Abundant studies have been completed about factors on the pyrolysis of coal and biomass. However, few articles laid emphasis on using CO as a carrier gas to explore the compositional changes of pyrolysis products in coal and biomass pyrolysis for industrial application and commercial value. The experiments on coal and biomass pyrolysis in N and CO using a horizontal tube furnace were conducted at 500 °C.

Determination of hydroxyl groups in biorefinery resources via quantitative P NMR spectroscopy.

The analysis of chemical structural characteristics of biorefinery product streams (such as lignin and tannin) has advanced substantially over the past decade, with traditional wet-chemical techniques being replaced or supplemented by NMR methodologies. Quantitative P NMR spectroscopy is a promising technique for the analysis of hydroxyl groups because of its unique characterization capability and broad potential applicability across the biorefinery research community. This protocol describes procedures for (i) the preparation/solubilization of lignin and tannin, (ii) the phosphitylation of their hydroxyl groups, (iii) NMR acquisition details, and (iv) the ensuing data analyses and means to precisely calculate the content of the different types of hydroxyl groups.

Preparation and Characterization of Microcellulose and Nanocellulose Fibers from A V Bast.

Artemisia vulgaris is an economic plant that is spreading widely in central China. Its unused bast generates a large amount of biomass waste annually. Utilizing the fibers in Artemisia vulgaris bast may provide a new solution to this problem.