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Abstract: Water-soluble and highly stable dispersions of copper nanoparticles were obtained using a biomolecule-assisted synthetic method. Dopamine was utilized as both reducing and capping agent in aqueous medium. The successful formation of DA-stabilized copper particles was demonstrated by ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy (UV–Vis), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Zeta potential measurement, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The mechanism of dopamine on the effective reduction and excellent stability of copper nanoparticles was also discussed. This facile biomolecule-assisted technique may provide a useful tool to synthesize other nanoparticles that have potential application in biotechnology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] A critical challenge in the enzymatic conversion of acylglycerols is the limited exposure of the enzyme dissolved in the aqueous solution to the hydrophobic substrate in the oil phase. Positioning the enzyme in a microenvironment with balanced hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity in Pickering emulsion will facilitate the acylglycerol-catalyzing reactions at the interface between the oil and liquid phases. In this work, to overcome the challenge of biphasic catalysis, we report a method to immobilize enzymes in polyethylene glycol (PEG)-based hydrogel microparticles (HMPs) at the interface between the oil and water phases in Pickering emulsion to promote the enzymatic conversion of acylglycerols. 3 wt% of HMPs can stabilize the oil-in-water Pickering emulsion for at least 14 days and increase the viscosity of emulsions. Lipase-HMP conjugates showed significantly higher hydrolytic activity in Pickering emulsion; HMP-immobilized lipase SMG1 showed an activity about three times that of free lipase SMG1. Co-immobilization of a lipase and a fatty acid photodecarboxylase from Chlorella variabilis (CvFAP) in Pickering emulsion enables light-driven cascade conversion of triacylglycerols to hydrocarbons, transforming waste oil to renewable biofuels in a green and sustainable approach. HMPs stabilize the Pickering emulsion and promote interfacial biocatalysis in converting acylglycerols to renewable biofuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ZnO as an eco-friendly material shows bright luminescence under UV illumination when it is tailored into nanoscale size, which makes it a promising luminescent nanomaterial. However, the poor stability of ZnO hinders its applications drastically. In this work, multi-ZnO-cores@uni-BaSO 4 -shell (mZnO@uBaSO 4 ) nanocomposite has been prepared through a non-equilibrium sorption process employing ZnO QDs as the “seeds” and BaSO 4 as the “valve”. The mZnO@uBaSO 4 nanocomposite shows improved photo-, thermal- and ambient-stability compare with bare ZnO QDs. The fluorescence efficiency of the mZnO@uBaSO 4 nanocomposite decreases little even after 60 h of UV irradiation compare with ZnO QDs. The mZnO@uBaSO 4 nanocomposite shows bright luminescence with little decrease even the ambient temperature up to 160 °C and the nanocomposite shows strong resistance to harsh environment. By coating the mZnO@uBaSO 4 nanocomposite and commercial phosphors onto UV-chip, light-emitting diode (LED) with correlated color temperature, Commission Internationale de L'Eclairage coordinate, color rendering index and luminous efficiency of 6109 K, (0.32, 0.33), 85 and 47.33 lm/W have been realized, and this will make a great step towards eco-friendly UV-pumped LEDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • EH 6 surfactant molecules can rapidly migrate to newly formed interfaces and adsorb intensively to achieve surface wettability reversal and regulate droplet impact behavior on hydrophobic leaves. • EH 6 surfactant adsorbs intensively at the contact line and achieves rapid wetting on the hydrophobic surface driven by Marangoni forces. • EH 6 as a tank-mix adjuvant significantly improves the physicochemical properties of spray dilutions and enhances the dose delivery efficiency to achieve efficient delivery of pesticides. • EH 6 as a tank-mix adjuvant increases pesticide deposition and adhesion, thereby reducing pesticide use and environmental risk. Droplet rebound from hydrophobic leaves is a major factor influencing pesticide utilization. The use of a surfactant is a major strategy to reduce droplet rebound, promoting pesticide deposition on hydrophobic agricultural plant leaves. However, most surfactants known to regulate droplet rebound are either anionic or cationic. In this study, ethoxylated propoxylated 2-ethyl-1-haxanol (EH 6) was identified as a nonionic surfactant that inhibits droplet rebound while promoting the complete spreading of the droplet on hydrophobic leaves. Compared with the widely reported nonionic surfactant Tween 20, EH 6 performs better at concentrations above 0.3%. This phenomenon can be attributed to the rapid migration of EH 6 from the bulk to the newly generated interface, significantly reducing the surface tension. We introduce a simple and effective strategy that can be used to enhance droplet deposition on hydrophobic plant surfaces, which may offer future economic and environmental benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-BDC/Ti 3 C 2 T x hybrid nanosheets with rich bridging bonds and tight contact interface were in-situ fabricated via a simple two-step approach including solvothermal reaction and low-temperature annealing, which ensure the high overall conductivity and reactivity as well as stability, and hence bring improved electrochemical performance to HSC. [Display omitted] The design and synthesis of high-performance metal–organic frameworks (MOFs)-based electrodes are important for hybrid supercapacitors (HSC). Herein, enhanced interfacial interaction in Co-BDC/Ti 3 C 2 T x (denoted as CoTC) hybrid nanosheets is achieved through thermal treatment, giving remarkably improved capacity performance compared with CoTC. The low temperature annealing treatment enables modulation of the bridging bonds content of CoTC and thus regulates the interfacial coupling effect between Co-BDC and Ti 3 C 2 T x. Moreover, both the detailed XPS and XANES analysis reveal that the strong interfacial interactions between the two components promote a partial electron transfer from Ti 3 C 2 T x to Co-BDC through the Ti-O-Co interfacial bonds. Consequently, it endows the Co-BDC with enhanced conductivity as well as the higher valence of Ti species in Ti 3 C 2 T x , hence contributes a remarkable enhanced specific capacity. This work will provide a pathway to design advanced MOF/MXene materials for HSC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]