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The increasingly serious energy crisis and environmental pollution caused by the excessive use of fossil fuels have been prompting China to aggressively seek a clean and self-sufficient energy source in the future. In the past decades, hydrogen has emerged as a promising alternative due to its advantages of cleanliness, abundance, high energy density, and high conversion efficiency. However, several challenges have to be overcome for China's successful transition to hydrogen economy. In this paper, the hydrogen supply chain is firstly described to help the readers to clearly understand the hydrogen economy. Subsequently, the feasibility of hydrogen economy is discussed by reviewing viewpoints from the literature. Finally, the challenges of China's transition to hydrogen economy are detailed summarized and discussed, and the strategies for China to develop hydrogen economy were compared with that of Japan and Australia. • Hydrogen economy is feasible with many challenges. • Hydrogen and electricity should clearly have the same strategic position in China. • Geographic differences in resources and demands should be addressed. • It is necessary to diversify the application of hydrogen. • CCS technology is significance to the medium-term development of China's hydrogen economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Di-(2-ethylhexyl) ammonium phosphate (DEHAP)/octanol reverse micellar extraction was demonstrated to be an effective method to separate glutathione (GSH) from yeast fermentation broth. The effect of several important factors including pH, DEHAP concentration, and types and concentration of cations was investigated, and the optimum operating conditions were obtained by orthogonal experiments, for forward extraction: pH 2.5, DEHAP concentration=0.16mol/L, W 0 =10, phase ratio (organic/aqueous, v/v)=2:1, K+ concentration=0.1mol/L, and extraction time=15min. For back extraction: pH 10.5, Ca2+ concentration=0.6mol/L, phase ratio (aqueous/organic, v/v)=3:1, back extraction time=45min. Under the optimum operating conditions, the yield of GSH can reach 65% after one forward and three back extractions. No protein and only a small portion of amino acids were detected in the lyophilized product of GSH. The study on the extraction kinetics showed that the volumetric mass transfer rates of the forward and back extraction are around 0.209s−1 and 0.054s−1, respectively, which is very close to the literature results of electrostatic force-based reverse micellar extraction of protein. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The instabilities of a channel Couette flow composed of two layers of immiscible fluids were investigated experimentally and compared with the theoretical predictions of a linear instability analysis. The results show that in the shortwave instability regime, the experimental results agree well with the theoretical predictions of the linear instability analysis. However, we can find shortwaves even in the range of the depth ratios when the linear instability predicts only longwaves are unstable. The reasons are believed to be the dimensional limitation of the experimental apparatus and the existence of the outside and inside wall. In addition, we studied the dependence of the onset of the shortwaves on the viscosity and density of the fluids. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In previous work, we have shown that a dilute suspension of colloidal particles will spontaneously flow when placed in a container. The flow is caused by interfacial tension gradients created by aggregates of the colloidal particles on the interface. In this paper, we present some results that show the interfacial tension of charged stabilized titania suspensions significantly decreases within certain volume fractions. The data show that the interfacial tension is indeed a strong function of the particle concentration and help explain the unusual results seen in the flow experiments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Dividing-wall column (DWC) is a promising thermally coupled distillation technology for separating multicomponent mixtures. However, the difficulty of controlling vapor split ratio in DWC affects its energy consumption and so limits its wider application in industrial practice. The liquid-only side-stream distillation (LSD) process not only eliminates the vapor split in DWC but also shows comparable economic and thermodynamic efficiency with DWC. This study systematically optimizes and compares the economic performance of DWC and double LSD (DLSD) process for separating ethanol-propanol-butanol ternary mixture, and then analyzes exergy flows in these two processes in detail. Results indicate that TAC of DLSD process is 11.47% lower than that of DWC process, and exergy efficiency of DLSD and DWC processes is 10.81% and 8.57%, respectively. However, both processes exhibit similar exergy destruction in condensers, columns, coolers and reboilers. • Double liquid-only side-stream distillation (DLSD) and dividing-wall column (DWC) are presented and optimized. • Both economic assessment and exergy analysis of DLSD and DWC are carried out. • DLSD has lower annual total cost and higher efficiency than DWC. • DWC and DLSD exhibit similar exergy destruction distributions in columns and heat exchangers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a mathematical framework was developed for the sustainability prioritization of alternative low-carbon ammonia production routes. In the framework, a four-dimensional assessment system that can incorporate both quantitative and qualitative criteria from the environmental, economic, social-political, and technical concerns was firstly established. Subsequently, a hybrid Entropy-FANP method was employed to determine the criteria's weight by combining the objective data and subjective opinions; a novel PRSRV approach was developed to rigorously rank the alternative routes by aggregating the absolute sustainability performance and relative sustainability balance of each alternative. The proposed framework was applied to prioritize five promising low-carbon routes for ammonia production, i.e. wind turbine electrolysis (WGEA), solar photovoltaic electrolysis (PVEA), hydropower electrolysis (HPEA), biomass gasification electrolysis (BGEA), and nuclear high temperature electrolysis (NTEA), yielding the sustainability ranking of HPEA > BGEA > WGEA > PVEA > NTEA. The robustness and effectiveness of the proposed framework were verified by conducting the sensitivity analysis and comparing the results determined by the proposed framework with those determined using the previous approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When deep learning-based models are employed for the fault diagnosis of chemical processes, problems of poor calculation accuracy and efficiency often occur in the scenarios of high-dimensional, nonlinear, and time-varying data, which affects the overall robustness of the fault diagnosis model. This study proposes a novel Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) - enhanced deep convolutional neural network (EDCNN) model for the improved fault detection and diagnosis of chemical processes. In the GRU-EDCNN model, a maximum smooth function (MSF) is developed and presented to replace the classical activation function for better matching the input data format, which can significantly improve the calculation accuracy and the overall efficiency of DCNN models. Moreover, the convolutional layers in DCNN are optimized by a decentralized convolutional structure, thereby reducing the problem of parameter redundancy. The issue of gradient disappearance is tackled by the embedment of GRU, whose ability to control time series features and gateway information can ensure that no overfitting occurs in the GRU-EDCNN training processes. In two case studies, the GRU-EDCNN model was applied to the benchmark Tennessee Eastman (TE) process and an acid gas absorption process, and the corresponding data of fault diagnosis rate (FDR), false positive rate (FPR), and fault diagnosis time (FDT) of the GRU-EDCNN model were analyzed and compared with those of the other deep learning-based models, verifying the effectiveness of the GRU-EDCNN model for fault diagnosis in both simulated and real-time industrial processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Principal component analysis (PCA) is a classic fault diagnosis method widely used in chemical process data modeling. However, the limitation of PCA to handle dynamic and time-variant data has been progressively exposed with the ever-increasing development of artificial intelligence technologies and applications of automation systems in the chemical industry. In this paper, an enhanced temporal algorithm-coupled optimized adaptive sparse PCA (ETA-OASPCA) methodology is proposed with the aim to improve the conventional PCA method by introducing temporal state computation and dynamic adaptive sparsity. The ETA is constructed to extract the state transitions of the time-variant process data by introducing the "Transition" and "Hold", acquire the region of interest by employing a Maximum Fuzzy c-means (MFCM) method, and then use the region time prediction automaton to label the possible abnormal states. The introduction of dynamic adaptive sparsity in PCA, achieved by presenting an iterative interior point optimization method to update the dynamic sparse penalty term, can impose sparsity constraints on dynamic data calculations, thus enhancing the interpretability of the PCA model. The effectiveness of the proposed method was validated through its application in the Eastman Tennessee process, showing that an average fault detection rate, false alarm rate, and latency of 99.4%, 0.37%, and 4.11 mins can be achieved, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silica-coated LaNiO 3 nanoparticles (LaNiO 3 @SiO 2 NPs) were prepared by the modified Stöber method for the conversion of methane with carbon dioxide into syngas in a dielectric barrier discharge reactor (DBD) under ambient conditions. The synergistic effect of LaNiO 3 @SiO 2 NPs and DBD plasma toward the dry reforming of methane was investigated as a function of flow rate of feed gases, input power, and molar ratio of CH 4 /CO 2 . The results indicated that the Ni–La 2 O 3 @SiO 2 produced from LaNiO 3 @SiO 2 NPs showed high catalytic activity for the plasma-assisted dry reforming of methane due to the creation of a silica shell. The Koros–Nowak criterion test demonstrated that the catalytic activity of Ni–La 2 O 3 @SiO 2 sample was independent of the transport phenomenon. A semi-empirical power-law rate equation was applied to investigate the kinetic behavior of Ni–La 2 O 3 @SiO 2 catalyst for the plasma-assisted dry reforming of CH 4 and evaluate its kinetic parameters, including activation energy, rate constant, and reaction orders. Compared to the activation energy estimated for CO 2 consumption, lower value of CH 4 conversion corresponded to its higher reaction rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spinel nickel ferrite nanoparticles (NiFe 2 O 4 NPs) embedded in silica (NiFe 2 O 4 #SiO 2 ) was prepared to enhance the reaction performance of the dry reforming of methane in a coaxial dielectric barrier discharge reactor. NiFe 2 O 4 NPs of around 10 nm were effectively embedded in porous SiO 2 NPs (∼100 nm in diameter). Compared to the supported Ni-based catalysts (Ni/γ-Al 2 O 3 , Ni–Fe/γ-Al 2 O 3 , Ni–Fe/SiO 2 , and NiFe 2 O 4 ), the NiFe 2 O 4 #SiO 2 catalyst placed at the discharge zone exhibited excellent catalytic performance and high resistance to carbon formation during dry reforming under ambient conditions without the involvement of extra heat. The synergetic effect between the non-thermal plasma and the NiFe 2 O 4 #SiO 2 catalyst favored the conversion of CH 4 and CO 2 into syngas. The results indicated that the special structure of the as-synthesized NiFe 2 O 4 #SiO 2 catalyst was capable of restraining the aggregation of Ni–Fe alloy and suppressing the carbon formation in the reforming process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A model for life cycle energy efficiency analysis of biofuel is developed. [•] DEA is used to identify the wasteful use energy in biofuel production. [•] Recommendations are proposed for improving energy efficiency. [•] Life cycle perspective is incorporated in the analysis process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Catalytic hydrogenation of 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene over Ni/HY catalysts in different solvents was studied, which demonstrated that the reaction exhibits the best performance in protic solvents. The reason is hypothesized to be the strong hydrogen-bond interaction between the protic solvents with the reactant, intermediates and product due to their excellent hydrogen-bond donating capability, which favors the desorption of the adsorbed intermediates and product from the catalysts and helps to polarize the N O bonds of the reactant and intermediates. Subsequently, the hydrogenation in the mixed solvents of water and ethanol was investigated, which showed that the reaction can be significantly accelerated by adding water into ethanol and the optimum volume percentage of water is verified to be 40%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 heterojunctions were prepared via the sol-gel route to enhance solar-light induced photo-persulfate degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH). LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 exhibited the better removal efficiency of TCH in comparison to LaFeO 3 and MgFe 2 O 4. The photo-persulfate activity of LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 was intensively affected by LaFeO 3 content, pH, and inorganic salts. Under the optimal conditions, 2-LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 with a nominal LaFeO 3 content of 10 wt % presented the removal efficiency of 97.01 %, while declined to 85.40 % after ninth-cycle test. The lattice defects formed in LaFeO 3 and MgFe 2 O 4 acted as the active sites for TCH adsorption and photon capture. The oxygen-defected tight interface between LaFeO 3 and MgFe 2 O 4 was favorable for the separation and migration of photo-induce e-/h+ pairs, boosting solar-light response for photo-persulfate activity of LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4. However, the long-term photo-corrosion inevitably induced to the change in valance states of surface compositions, weakening the photo-persulfate performance in TCH elimination. [Display omitted] • LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 hybrids were prepared via the sol-gel approach. • LaFeO 3 /MgFe 2 O 4 had the strong solar-light photo-persulfate activity for TCH degradation. • The tight interface favored the transfer and migration of photo-induced e-/h+ pairs. • Photo-induced radicals and Fe2+/Fe3+ couples promoted the persulfate oxidation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal oxides-based heterojunction fabrication is a promising strategy to eliminate antibiotics from wastewater via adsorption-photocatalysis. ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4 hybrids with various La/Bi molar ratios were fabricated for enhancing the adsorption-photocatalytic elimination of tetracycline hydrochloride (TCH). Oxygen-defected ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4 composites provided the sufficient sites for photon capture and pollutants adsorption. In addition, the tight p-n-p type interface among oxygen-defected La 2 O 3 , ZnO, and spinel ZnBi 2 O 4 favored the rapid transfer and migration of photo-excited e-/h+ pairs, enlarging the visible light utilization. Hence, ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4 samples had the better adsorption-photocatalytic activity than ZnLa 2 O 4 and ZnBi 2 O 4 for TCH removal. Langmuir and second-order models well described the adsorption isotherms and kinetics of ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4 samples, respectively. The adsorption capacity of optimal ZnLa 1.75 Bi 0.25 O 4 with a La/Bi molar ratio of 7:1 was 406.85 mg g−1, and its removal efficiency of 210 mg L−1 TCH solution was 98.04 % within 150 min. The change in valence states of surface compositions induced to the declined removal efficiency of ZnLa 1.75 Bi 0.25 O 4 to 91.95 % after five cycle times. [Display omitted] • ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4 heterojunctions had the excellent adsorption-photocatalytic activities. • The adsorption capacity of optimal of ZnLa 1.75 Bi 0.25 O 4 was 406.85 mg g−1. • The removal efficiency of 210 mg L−1 TCH solution over ZnLa 1.75 Bi 0.25 O 4 was 98.05 %. • Langmuir and second-order models well fitted with the adsorption behaviors of ZnLa x Bi 2−x O 4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The selective hydrogenation of acetylene is a vital process to for the purification of crude ethylene in petroleum industry. Achieving high activity and selectivity simultaneously over Ni-based catalysts is still challenging. Herein, a partial encapsulation strategy is proposed by fabricating carbon-encapsulated Ag nanoparticles and un-encapsulated Ni nanoparticles on Al 2 O 3 surface (Ni-Ag@C/Al 2 O 3) toward the enhanced selectivity without loss of activity. In particular, the Ni-Ag@C/Al 2 O 3 exhibits higher ethylene selectivity of 81% at the complete acetylene conversion along with excellent stability for 30-h, in sharp with the Ni/Al 2 O 3 (6%) and Ni-Ag/Al 2 O 3 (54%) catalyst. The enhanced selectivity is attributed to the promotion of hydrogen spillover by the carbon species on Al 2 O 3 surface and the inhibition of oligomer formation by a steric hindrance formed by the carbon layer on the Ag surface. This study provides a new structural design avenue of bifunctional bimetallic catalyst for selective hydrogenation reaction. [Display omitted] • Separated Ag@C nanoparticles and Ni nanoparticles were fabricated on Al 2 O 3 surface. • High activity and selectivity were achieved simultaneously over Ni-Ag@C/Al 2 O 3. • The high activity is due to that the non-encapsulation of Ni with carbon layer. • Hydrogen spillover was enhanced over Ni-Ag@C/Al 2 O 3 by the carbon species on Al 2 O 3. • The carbon layer suppresses oligomer formation, thus resulting in high stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Pervaporation membranes for alcohols/water separation is important to alleviate the fossil energy crisis. • MOFs and COFs based pervaporation membranes with excellent performance have received widespread attention. • This review provides general guidance on the MOFs and COFs based pervaporation membranes for alcohols/water separation. High-performance pervaporation membrane has great application and development potential in alcohols/water separation industry due to its high efficiency and economy. It is an important pathway to alleviate the fossil energy crisis and obtain various alcohols scientifically. As a new type of porous crystal material, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and covalent organic frameworks (COFs) with controllable pore structure and rich chemical functions are promising for constructing high-performance alcohols/water separation membranes for future manufacturing development. There are different types of MOFs and COFs based pervaporation membranes, including MOFs polycrystalline membranes, MOFs based mixed matrix membranes (MMMs), COFs continuous membranes, and COFs based MMMs. In this review, we firstly discuss the classification of membranes, describe the process mechanism and evaluation indicators of pervaporation, select decisive criterions for MOFs and COFs, summary the preparation strategies and separation performance of these four membranes, and discuss in detail the impact of operating conditions. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of these four kinds of membranes are summarized, the challenges faced are identified, and the future development direction is pointed out, aiming to provide slight guidance for the design and development of high-performance MOFs and COFs based membranes for alcohols/water separation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The recovery of butyl acetate (BA) from lovastatin wastewater was studied by using the method of solvent extraction with liquid paraffin (LP) as the extractant. The effect of several key factors on the extraction efficiency including lysozyme content, initial BA concentration, equilibration time, and phase ratio was investigated. The results showed that the extraction efficiency of BA can reach 98% in 15min at room temperature when the initial concentration of BA is 7000mg/L. The loading capability of LP was demonstrated to be high by reusing the loaded LP to extract the fresh wastewater. Moreover, BA in the LP phase can be effectively recovered by vacuum evaporation and the regenerated LP has a very good reusability. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Isobaric vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE) data for water+n-propanol+n-butanol ternary system have been extensively measured at 99.2kPa using a recirculating still. The experimental data were then correlated using the extended UNIQUAC model, in which the binary interaction energy parameters between the three components were obtained through a simplex fitting method. The results showed that the calculated data by the extended UNIQUAC model using the same interaction energy parameters agree well with both the experimental data and the literature data. It demonstrated that the experimental data are very consistent with the literature data; and the extended UNIQUAC model is reliable to predict the VLE of the ternary system using the obtained interaction energy parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A mouse model was employed to evaluate protective cellular immune responses induced by an immediate early antigen of HSV-2. Particle-mediated DNA vaccination of mice with a DNA plasmid-encoding ICP27 resulted in the induction of ICP27-specific IFN-γ and TNF-α production in Balb/c mice, but little protection to intranasal challenge with wild type HSV-2. However, when the DNA vaccine was supplemented with as little as 50ng of a vector encoding the A and B subunits of the Escherichia coli heat labile enterotoxin (LT), animals were profoundly protected from morbidity and mortality. The ICP27+LT-mediated protection was correlated with a large increase in ICP27-specific IFN-γ and TNF-α production but cytokine-specific monoclonal antibody treatment at the time of challenge showed that protection was mediated predominantly by IFN-γ. Furthermore, depletion of T cell subsets prior to infectious challenge demonstrated that removal of either CD8+ or CD4+ T cells impaired protection with CD8+ T cells appearing to play a direct effector role. These data demonstrate that augmented cellular immune responses resulting from LT vector plus antigen vector administration to the skin are biologically significant, leading to enhanced protection against mucosal pathogenic challenge. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • The Al 2 O 3 supported carbon coated NiCuCo alloy were prepared via a simple method. • The trade-off between activity and selectivity was overcome on NiCuCo@C/Al 2 O 3. • The electron-rich Ni species weaken the desorption of acetylene and ethylene. • The reduced formation of green oil results in excellent stability. Achieving high ethylene selectivity and activity simultaneously for acetylene selective hydrogenation still remains challenging. Here, the challenge of the trade-off between activity and selectivity was solved by synergizing electronic effects and spatial confinement, which was achieved by confining the Ni-Co-Cu trimetallic nanoparticles in a carbon layer (Ni x Cu y Co z @C/Al 2 O 3). Compared to the catalyst without carbon encapsulation (Ni x Cu y Co z /Al 2 O 3), Ni x Cu y Co z @C/Al 2 O 3 showed superior catalytic performance in terms of enhanced activity, selectivity and stability. Under optimal conditions, acetylene conversion of 100% and ethylene selectivity of 89% were achieved, whereas Ni x Cu y Co z /Al 2 O 3 exhibited lower acetylene conversion (92%) and ethylene selectivity (21%). Detailed characterizations reveal that the electronic structure can be regulated flexibly by controlling the composition of Ni-Co-Cu nanoparticles. The enhanced activity and selectivity were attributed to the weakened adsorption of acetylene and ethylene on the electron-rich Ni. The improved stability was related to the carbon layer, which suppressed the acetylene coupling by the acidic sites on the Al 2 O 3 surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harnessing renewable energy (RE) sources to power desalination systems can migrate the pressures of freshwater scarcity and fossil fuel depletion. In this paper, a novel mathematical framework was developed to assess the sustainability of different RE-powered desalination systems, which is very essential for their portfolio selection, by resorting to the fuzzy multi-attribute decision making (MAMD) methods. In the framework, an evaluation system including ten attributes from four dimensions is introduced, while fuzzy triangular numbers and interval values are employed to capture the epistemic and aleatory uncertainties of decision information, respectively. More importantly, three fuzzy MADM methods were proposed in the framework to make the following methodological contributions: (1) fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory-based analytic network process (DANP) offers a reliable weighting result by addressing the interrelationships among the attributes; (2) fuzzy full consistency method (FUCOM) can easily but rigorously quantify the qualitative attributes by using the simplified pair-wise comparisons; (3) interval vector-aided technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (VATOPSIS) generates a rational ranking sequence by incorporating the balance among multi-attributes. To illustrate the proposed framework, six RE-powered desalination systems were studied, showing that the solar thermal-powered multi-effect distillation would be the best option under current conditions. Finally, the effectiveness and advantages of the proposed framework were verified by results comparison and discussion. Image 1 • A framework was proposed to assess the sustainability of RE-powered desalination. • The mathematical framework can address both the epistemic and aleatory uncertainties. • A fuzzy DANP approach was used to assign the weights to the interrelated attributes. • A fuzzy FUCOM method was developed to easily quantify the qualitative attributes. • An interval VATOPSIS method was introduced to rationally rank the alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen has attracted considerable attention as a clean and renewable energy carrier to potentially solve the increasingly serious problems of energy security and environmental pollution. As it can be produced from diverse feedstocks by using a variety of technologies, this study aims to develop a novel multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) mathematical framework for the sustainability assessment of multiple hydrogen production technologies (HPTs). In the proposed method, the criteria weights were determined by combining the grey relational analysis (GRA) and DEMATEL method, which can realize a relatively objective weighting process by considering the causal relationships among criteria. Moreover, the alternatives are also ranked by using the GRA approach to attain the grey correlation coefficients as indicators, which measures the closeness of the corresponding alternative with the ideal scheme. Finally, the developed MCDM method was illustrated by the sustainability prioritization of 9 HPTs. • A MCDM method was established for more objective sustainability assessment of HPTs. • An GRA-incorporated DEMATEL method was developed for determining the criteria weight. • The GRA approach was adopted for ranking the sustainability of HPTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel two-stage multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) method is proposed with the aim to select the most sustainable hydrogen production technology (HPT) by considering the preference information on both attributes and alternatives. In the first stage of the method, the initial sustainability ranking of the alternative HPTs was achieved by using the FBWM (Fuzzy Best-Worst Method) to determine the weights of the criteria and the fuzzy TOPSIS (Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to Ideal Solution) method to prioritize the sustainability of alternative HPTs. While, in the second stage, a novel Preference Ranking Linear Programming Method (PRLPM) was used to acquire the final sustainability ranking according to the alternative preference information by following the principle of the outranking method. The proposed method was illustrated by a case study with 8 HTPs, demonstrating that the developed two-stage MCDM method can reflect the alternative preference of the decision-maker more accurately for selecting the most preferred alternative among various HTPs. • The MCDM framework divides the sustainability decision-making into two stages. • Fuzzy best-worst method and fuzzy TOPSIS were used in the first stage. • A novel method based on preference information on alternatives is proposed. • The framework combines preference information on attributes and alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen has emerged as one of the most promising players in the future energy system for a better life due to multiple advantages, it is important to identify the most sustainable technology for producing hydrogen among several alternatives. This study aims to propose a novel multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) framework for prioritizing hydrogen production technologies under data uncertainties by combining the methods of interval best-worst method (IBWM), interval entropy technique (IET), and interval best-worst projection (IBWP). In the framework, the IBWM and the IET methods were integrated to offer a comprehensive weighting result by capturing both the uncertain subjective judgments and uncertain objective information regarding the importance of multiple criteria; the IBWP approach was introduced to offer a rigorous ranking result by aggregating both the absolute performance and relative balance of the alternatives regarding the multi-criteria system in uncertain conditions. An illustrative case considering five hydrogen production technologies was studied to verify the feasibility of the proposed framework, while results comparisons and sensitivity analysis were implemented to indicate the necessities and advantages of the developed MCDM methods. • A novel framework was proposed for selecting hydrogen production technology. • Uncertainties were incorporated into the sustainability assessment framework. • The interval BWM and the interval entropy were combined for weighting the criteria. • A novel IBWP method was developed for ranking technology alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In our study, Co(OH) 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene materials with layered 2D/2D heterojunction structures were synthesized as model systems, and their performance for pseudocapacitive energy storage was inverstigate. The results demonstrated that the coupling of Co(OH) 2 and Ti 3 C 2 T x can increase both the redox and intercalation pseudocapacitance of the as-prepared composite materials. Consquently, a total pseudo-capacitance of 153.0 F g−1 can be achieved for the Co(OH) 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x sample with a Ti 3 C 2 T x loading of 25 wt%, which is twice of that of the bare Co(OH) 2 , and an excellent stablility with only 1% decrease in capacitance after 1000 cycles has also been accomplished. Moreover, the quantitative kinetic analysis demonstrated that the dominant pseudocapacitive contribution for the as-prepared Co(OH) 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x materials can be tuned from surface capacitance into intercalation pseudocapacitance by adjusting the Ti 3 C 2 T x loading. This work may provide a new approach for designing MXene based pseudo-capacitive electrode materials with better rate capability and stability. • Co(OH) 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x composites with 2D/2D heterojunction structures were firstly prepared by growing Co(OH) 2 on Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene sheets. • Ti 3 C 2 T x facilitat the formation of 2D/2D structures and enchance the charge trasfer, which result in raising pseudocapacitance of the as-prepared composite materials. • The dominant pseudocapacitive contribution for the Co(OH) 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x composites can be tuned by adjusting the Ti 3 C 2 T x loading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, a novel label- and immobilization-free RNA aptamer-modified riboswitch-based biosensor was developed by using RNA aptamer modified secondary-structural scaffolds to control the identity of the ribosomal binding sequence (RBS). In the developed sensor, the duplex RNA aptamers-modified cis -repressor sequence is introduced upstream to the RBS of the indicating gene (gfp gene), leading to formatting an RNA bubble due to the none-complementary state of the RNA aptamers in the hairpin structure of the cis -repressor sequence. Without the presence of the target molecule, the ribosome cannot identify the RBS of the indicating gene as the RBS is hidden by the introduced cis -repressor, consequently, the indicating gene in the sensor would not be expressed, demonstrating the absence of the target. On the contrary, with the presence of the target molecule, the binding of aptamer with the target would induce the enlargement of the RNA bubble, leading to the separation of the cis -repressor sequence and RBS. Hence, the indicating gene would be expressed, manifesting the existence of the target. In addition, the developed sensor can quantitatively report the target concentrations by measuring the gfp gene-encoded GFP (green fluorescent protein) concentration. The approach proposed in this study can be used to construct sensors for detecting various chemicals by introducing the corresponding aptamers, therefore, this strategy can potentially provide a new set of analytical tools in the field of analytical chemistry. Image 1 • The target would induce the conformational changes of RNA aptamer-modified cis -repressor sequences. • The sensor can play its role to inhibit the expression of indicated gene without the target, and quickly responds to its target once the target arises. • The sensitivity of the sensor has been significantly improved with fewer number of sequestered RBS sequences included in the crRNA. • The developed sensor can fulfill the quantitative detection of the target chemical molecule via the GFP concentration encoded by the gfp gene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The separation of a ternary mixture of methyl acetate (MeAc), tetrahydrofuran (THF), and methanol (MeOH) produced from chemical or pharmaceutical plants can not only recover the valuable chemicals but also reduce the environmental pollution caused by the emission of waste organics. In this study, a two-step extractive distillation process with four columns (FCED) with dimethyl sulfoxide and p -xylene serving as the entrainers was firstly proposed to separate the ternary mixture by using Aspen Plus simulation. The vapor recompression heat pump (VRHP) technology was introduced to improve the thermodynamic efficiency of the proposed FCED process. Subsequently, a multi-objective optimization using the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II was employed to optimize the designed processes to accomplish a Pareto front trade-off in three crucial indicators, i.e., total annual cost (TAC), CO 2 emission, and exergy efficiency. A Pareto ranking method, i.e., the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solutions combined with entropy weighting approach, was used to choose the best solution from the Pareto front. The results indicate that, compared to the FCED process, TAC (8-year payback period) and CO 2 emissions of the VRHP-assisted FCED are reduced by 8.75% and 33.26%, respectively, while the exergy efficiency is increased by 8.06% from 3.67% to 3.96%, demonstrating that the introduction of VRHP can significantly improve the performance of the FCED process. [Display omitted] • THF/isopentyl acetate and THF/ p -xylene vapor-liquid equilibrium data are measured. • Dimethyl sulfoxide and p -xylene are chosen as the entrainers. • The novel processes for separating methyl acetate/THF/methanol are proposed. • Multi-objective optimization framework is applied to optimize the processes. • Heat pump can increase economic, environment, and exergy efficiency performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil/water separation is an urgent topic because the frequently occurred oil leakages and increasing discharge of oily wastewater. The 3D metal foams with special wettabilities are promising oil/water separation materials owing to their outstanding properties. Herein, we fabricated a HKUST-1 MOFs decorated copper foam using a facile template-sacrificial method for oil/water separation. The as-prepared copper foam possessed good superhydrophobicity under broad pH and saline conditions. Its oil adsorption capability was larger than 150% for all the chosen oils and the oil/water separation efficiency of the foam for various oil/water mixture was larger than 96%. Furthermore, although the wettability decreased to hydrophobic state after 30 cycles of mechanical abrasion, the separation efficiency of the foam kept above 97%, showing good repeatability. Results demonstrated that the distinctive 3D structure of copper foam contributed the excellent durability to mechanical abrasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract We report a novel electro-reduction process that can convert CO 2 to high-valued fuels with low electrolysis energy. In a designed electrolysis cell, a chemical regenerative catalyst, phosphomolybdic acid (PMo 12), was used as an electron-coupled proton carrier, and glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel synthesis, was employed as a reducing agent to provide electrons to PMo 12 under photo irradiation. Glycerol was firstly oxidized to value-added products of glyceric acid and acetic acid under the catalysis under PMo 12 , after an electrical potential was applied, the reduced PMo 12 (H PMo 12(red)) releases electrons and was re-oxidized to PMo 12 on the anode, while CO 2 was reduced into valuable hydrocarbons by taking electrons on the cathode. The developed approach has multiple advantages over the conventional CO 2 electrolysis, e.g. low electrolysis potential, and a noble metal-free anode due to the low overpotential of H PMo 12(red) oxidation on the anode. The electrolysis current densities of 0.23 and 0.29 Acm−2 were achieved under 2.0 V of electrolysis voltage for the Cu and Ag cathode, respectively, which is 2–3 times of conventional electrolysis. The faradaic efficiency for CO 2 reduction is 63.53% and 77.75% at 1.9 V, and the energy efficiency is 45.60% and 53.67% for the Cu and Ag electrode, respectively. Graphical abstract Image 1 Highlights • After being reduced, PMo 12 can be regenerated on anode. • Noble metal and other solid catalyst is no longer needed for anode. • Our electrolysis current density is 2–3 times of conventional electrolysis. • The faradaic efficiency could reach 77.75% at 1.9 V for CO 2 reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The economic and green synthesis of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) is of great significance. In this work, a facile method for preparing HKUST-1 MOFs at room temperature with insoluble Cu 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 particles and film as the precursors was developed. The as-prepared HKUST-1 MOFs were characterized by using the XRD, Raman spectrum, FTIR, XPS and N 2 adsorption-desorption analyses, and the wetting property of the HKUST-1 film was also evaluated. The results demonstrated that the MOF film decorated copper mesh possesses the promising underwater superoleophobicity and underoil superhydrophobicity, with the contact angles of non-wetting liquids larger than 150°. The on-demand oil/water separation was subsequently realized through a prewetting method, obtaining the high separation efficiency up to 97%. The facile route by using solid precursors developed in this work might provide a new strategy for preparing MOFs, and the special wetting properties of the as-prepared materials could enrich the applications of MOF films as well. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • HKUST-1 particles and films were prepared using solid Cu 2 (OH) 2 CO 3 as precursors. • The MOF film possessed underwater superoleophobicity and underoil superhydrophobicity. • On-demand oil/water separation was realized through a prewetting method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Sensors that can rapidly and specifically detect nucleic acids and chemical molecules can revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of diseases by allowing molecular-level informations to be used during the routine medicines. In this study, we demonstrated a novel dual-sensor that can be used to simultaneously detect any nucleic acids and chemical molecules whose binding aptamers can be found or synthesized. In the developed dual-sensor, the specifically designed PTG (a photosensitive azobenzene derivative carrying one photoisomerizable azobenzene moiety, one threoninol terminal and one guanidinium terminal) molecules are introduced into the unwinding region of two T7 promoters, and two DNA bubbles are introduced upstream of the two T7 promoters. Without the target, the indicating gene in the dual-tensor would not be expressed since the binding with RNAPs (RNA polymerases) cannot melt the T7 promoter for the indicating gene due to the integration of the DNA double strands via the PTG molecules, manifesting the absence of the target nucleic acid and chemical molecule. While with the presence of the target nucleic acid and/or chemical molecule, the indicating gene would be expressed as the T7 promoter contained in the enlarged DNA bubble can be melted and transcribed by the bound RNAPs as the enlarged DNA bubble can help the separation of the two DNA strands, demonstrating the existence of target nucleic acid and/or chemical molecule. Highlights • The PTG molecular can be introduced to increase the T m of the DNA. • The dual-sensor can detect the existence of two targets at the same time. • The sensitivity of the dual-sensor can be significantly improved under UV condition at 365 nm. • The developed dual-tensor can fulfill the quantitative detection of the target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract MnO 2 is considered as one of the most promising electrode materials for flexible supercapacitors but it often suffer in poor conductivity, which limits practical applications according to industry needs. To enhance the performance, forming MnO 2 -based hybrid structures with conductive materials is a promising implement approach. Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene sheets, a new kind of 2D transition metal carbides with metallic conductivity and hydrophilic nature, are promising candidate to couple with MnO 2. According to the complementary principle, we design a novel structure MnO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x hybrid nanocomposite by synergistically coupling one-dimensional (1D) MnO 2 nanoneedles with two-dimensional (2D) Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene sheet for flexible supercapacitor. XPS investigations suggest the obvious charge transfer from Ti 3 C 2 T x sheets to MnO 2 nanoneedles, where Ti 3 C 2 T x sheets serve as a remarkable 2D conductive substrate to facilitate the electrons transfer in the nanocomposites. This strong synergistic effect between Ti 3 C 2 T x and MnO 2 resulting from the chemical interaction greatly enhance the electrical conductivity, specific capacitance, rate stability and structural stability of the MnO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x nanocomposite. To show the potential application in energy storage, a symmetrical flexible supercapacitor device with good electrochemical performance, high flexibility and super cycling ability is fabricated by utilizing MnO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x nanocomposites as electrode materials. This work has proposed a new approach of developing advanced nanocomposites from a MnO 2 -based electrode for high performance flexible electronics. Graphical abstract In this work, we design a novel structure MnO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x hybrid nanocomposite by synergistically coupling one-dimensional (1D) MnO 2 nanoneedles with two-dimensional (2D) Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene sheet for flexible supercapacitor. Notably, 2D Ti 3 C 2 Tx sheets in the nanocomposite serve as a remarkable 2D conducive substrate to facilitate electrons transfer, which enhance the specific capacitance and cycle ability of the supercapacitor. Image 1 Highlights • MnO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 T x nanocomposite was succesfully achieved. • Ti 3 C 2 Tx sheets serve as a remarkable 2D conducive substrate to facilitate electrons transfer. • The synergistic effect between MnO 2 and Ti 3 C 2 T x is significantly affected by the MnO 2 content. • The flexible supercapacitor shows outstanding cycling stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Carbon confined Cu-Pd nanoalloy catalysts are successfully synthesized through an eco-friendly, facile and efficient approach. • Carbon encapsulation strategy efficiently improves the ethylene selectivity and stability for selective hydrogenation of acetylene. • Carbon layer acts as "cages" for confining the growth of the carbon chain to oligomer during the acetylene hydrogenation. • This synthesis strategy can be extended to other carbon confined Cu and Ag-based bimetal catalysts. A catalyst with high selectivity for acetylene selective hydrogenation is highly desirable, yet ideal selectivity often comes at the price of activity loss. Here, a carbon confined Cu 15 Pd catalyst (Cu 15 Pd@C) was fabricated through an eco-friendly and efficient approach, which improves ethylene selectivity while at the same time, maintains high activity. Under optimized conditions, acetylene conversion of 100% and ethylene selectivity of 91% were simultaneously achieved. Comprehensive characterization and DFT reveal that the carbon layer not only promotes the formation of smaller nanoparticles, but effectively inhibits the production of green oil, which is associated to the confined spatial microenvironment by the carbon layer, posing steric hindrance to chain growth from acetylene coupling. A series of carbon confined Cu and Ag-based bimetal catalysts were fabricated through the same method, proving the facilitation of carbon layer on such selective hydrogenation universal, and also showed great potential of our method and catalysts in practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The location of coke deposited on HZSM-5 zeolite catalyst during the supercritical catalytic cracking (400 °C, 4.0 MPa) of n -dodecane was systematically characterized by special temperature-programmed oxidation (TPO) and isothermal oxidation methods, and a steric hindrance model describing the interactions of the coke deposited on different locations was proposed to support the methods theoretically. Accord to the results, the sharp shoulder peak that appears on the TPO profile at high temperature range (> 700 °C) with low concentration of oxygen in the oxygen/nitrogen mixed carrier gas (≤ 2.0 Vol.%) can be ascribed to the characteristic peak representing the oxidation of the coke blocked in micropores, while the appearance of the CO peak during the isothermal oxidation at high temperature (≥ 550 °C) using air as carrier gas provides another method to detect the coke blocked in micropores. Through checking whether the characteristic sharp shoulder peak of the TPO profile appears or not as expected according to the steric hindrance model during the re-oxidation of several samples with different coke content and spatial distribution, which were prepared by partial oxidation of the spent catalyst using TPO and isothermal oxidation methods, the special TPO and isothermal oxidation methods combined with their theoretical support of the steric hindrance model were proved to be self-consistent in the characterization of the location of coke. The location information of coke was further verified by the typical method of nitrogen adsorption-desorption analyses of a series of partially oxidized samples prepared by TPO method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical architectures built from spherical assembly of nanowires/nanorods have found applications in a wide range of fields. However, although some literatures have reported their successful preparation, up to now, it is difficult to adjust the size of the building blocks of the 3D structures, which indeed largely affects the performance of the materials. In this work, by adopting metal ions and PVP modified carbon spheres as templates, we demonstrate a seed-mediated growing strategy to control Co 3 O 4 shapes to be 3D urchin-like hierarchical structures constructed from 40 nm-diameter nano-wires, or 3D coral-like ones assembled from thicker 100 nm-diameter nano-rods. XRD patterns show both structured Co 3 O 4 are cubic phase, and N 2 sorption demonstrates they own both mesopores and macropores. Besides, the obtained materials display good photocatalytic performance and reusability to degrade Congo Red dye. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A low energy electrolysis process that directly converts native biomasses to hydrogen at low temperature was reported. Practically, an environmentally-friendly proton exchange membrane electrolysis cell (PEMEC) uses a simple redox ion pair, Fe 3+ /Fe 2+ , as the catalyst which functions as an oxidation agent (oxidizing biomass), charge carrier (transferring the charge to anode) and discharge agent (discharge on anode electrode). The electro-catalytic activity of Fe 3+ /Fe 2+ ion was demonstrated by cyclic voltammetry and the rate for hydrogen evolution was measured at different current densities. At very low cell potential, smaller than 0.7 V, hydrogen begins to be produced, which is much less than the any noble metal catalysis water splitting hydrogen evolution. The electric energy consumption in our experiments for glucose-Fe ion system is 1.845 kW h Nm −3 H 2 at 100 mA cm −2 , which can save about 60.74% electric energy of traditional typical alkaline water electrolysis (4.7 kWh Nm −3 H 2 at U H2O = 2 V, the current density is 100 mA cm −2 ). Different from reported alcohol electrolysis, the biomass based electrolysis process does not require any noble-metal catalyst on the anode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combination with carbon capture and storage (CCS) can significantly reduce CO 2 emission in power generation systems, however, it remains to be clarified whether the CCS combination can make the power generation systems more sustainable by comprehensively taking account of economic, social and environmental effects. In this study, a novel multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) mathematical framework was developed to evaluate the sustainability of power generation systems using either fossil energy (with or without CCS) or renewable energy sources. In the mathematical framework, interval numbers are used to retain the objective uncertainties, and an improved Grey-Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (G-DEMATEL) method is employed to determine the weights of the evaluation criteria, which can avoid subjective uncertainties while considering the interactions between evaluation criteria. According to the affecting factors calculated by G-DEMATEL, the interaction between criteria can be visualized and key criteria can be identified more intuitively. Finally, the interval Vlsekriterijumska Optimizacijia I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) method is employed to rank the sustainability of alternative power generation systems. In order to verify the developed framework, the sustainability of 6 power generation systems was assessed and compared by considering 10 criteria from dimensions of technology, environment, economy and society. The results show that "Wind power" is assessed as the most sustainable technology and the criterion of "Global warming" has the greatest impact on the sustainability of power generation systems, while the sustainability of power generation systems using fossil energy can be significantly improved by combining with CCS. • A framework for assessing the sustainability of power generation systems is proposed. • The effect of combining with carbon capture and storage is investigated. • An objective weighting method that consider the interaction of criteria is developed. • An approach is developed for visualizing the interaction between the criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dual-porosity materials containing both macropores and mesopores are highly desired in many fields. In this work, we prepared dual-porosity Mn 2 O 3 cube materials with large-pore mesopores, in which, macropores are made by using carbon spheres as the hard templates, while the mesopores are produced via a template-free route. The attained dual-porosity Mn 2 O 3 materials have 24 nm of large-pore mesopores and 700 nm of macropores. Besides, the achieved materials own cubic morphologies with particle sizes as large as 6.0 μm, making them separable in the solution by a facile natural sedimentation. Dye adsorption measurements reveal that the dual-porosity materials possess a very high maximum adsorption capacity of 125.6 mg/g, much larger than many reported materials. Particularly, the adsorbents can be recycled and the dye removal efficiency can be well maintained at 98% after four cycles. Adsorption isotherm and kinetics show that the Langmuir model and the pseudo-second-order kinetics model can well describe the adsorption process of Congo Red on the dual-porosity Mn 2 O 3 cube materials. In brief, the reported dual-porosity Mn 2 O 3 demonstrates a good example for controlled preparation of dual-porosity materials with large-pore mesopores, and the macropore-mesopore dual-porosity distribution is good for mass transfer in dye adsorption application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A systematic framework towards sustainability is proposed to separate methanol and trimethoxysilane azeotrope. • Three distillation processes are optimized through MADS method for single-objective optimization. • A heat pump-assisted EDWC process (HP-EDWC) is optimized through multi-objective NSGA-II algorithm. • A multi-criteria decision-making method of TOPOSIS is proposed to give the optimal solution. The design and optimization of distillation process for separating azeotropes has attracted extensive attentions in decades. Currently, due to the high emphasis on environmental and social effect, it is necessary to incorporate relevant criteria into the objective function in addition to the economic indicators for approaching a more sustainable process. This paper aims to improve the process for separating the azeotropic mixture of methanol and trimethoxysilane via multi-objective optimization based on NSGA-II. Firstly, the performance of three processes, i.e., pressure-swing distillation, extractive distillation, and extractive dividing wall column (EDWC) distillation, is optimized and compared by using total annual cost (TAC) as the objective function, demonstrating that the EDWC distillation process is the preferred process. Subsequently, a heat pump assisted EDWC process (HP-EDWC) is proposed, and the multi-objective optimization is carried out based on NSGA-II algorithm with three criteria including TAC, carbon emission, and the thermodynamic efficiency, to obtain a set of Pareto solutions, which are then evaluated by using a multi-criteria decision-making method of TOPSIS to give the optimal solution. As a result, the values of TAC, carbon emission, and thermodynamic efficiency of the optimal HP-EDWC process are 90.30×104 $/year, 501.07 kg/h, and 26.02%, respectively. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• ED processes for separating 1,2-dichloroethane and n-hexane mixture were developed. • Two heat pump enhanced ED processes were proposed and optimized. • TAC of the heat pump enhanced ED processes is decreased. • Energy efficiency of the ED processes can be improved by employing HP technology. In the industrial process to synthesize ethylene sulfate, a film-forming electrolyte additive for lithium-ion batteries, a significant amount of liquid mixtures of n -hexane (HE) and 1,2-dichloroethane (DCE) are generated, whose separation is challenging because of the formation of a minimum-boiling azeotrope. Hence, in this study, the conventional ED process for separating the HE/DCE mixtures was firstly investigated. Subsequently, since the temperature difference between the overhead vapor and bottom liquid is large, which is not favorable to the application of the vapor recompression heat pump technology, two bottom flash heat pump (HP) assisted extraction distillation (ED) processes, i.e., the bottom flash HP assisted ED (BFHP-ED) process and the coupled vapor recompression and bottom flash HP assisted ED (VRBFHP-ED) process are proposed and optimized in terms of the minimal total annual cost (TAC). The results show that, the thermodynamic efficiency increases from 7.63% for ED, to 13.76% for BFHP-ED, and 13.16% for VRBFHP-ED processes, while CO 2 emissions of the BFHP-ED and VRBFHP-ED processes can be reduced by 41.05% and 39.19%, respectively. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A key challenge in polyamide (PA) based nanocomposite membranes is to achieve non-accumulation filler and defect-free features, based on proper compatibility and great dispersion between the particles in the matrix. To address this issue, herein, an interfacial bridging strategy was introduced to fabricate the nanocomposite membrane. A covalent organic framework (COF), TAPB-BPTA (TAPB = 1,3,5-tris(4-aminophenyl)benzene and BPTA = 1,4-benzenedicarboxaldehyde), containing alkynyl was synthesized by a microwave-assisted solvothermal route and preliminarily grafted with the cysteine (CYS) bridge via a click reaction. Furthermore, the short chain of amine moieties in TAPB-BPTA not only makes more amine groups and carboxy groups in the COF pore wall, thereby elevating its hydrophilicity and improving its dispersion in the polyethyleneimine coating solution, but also presumably brings further free motion for amine groups to react with acyl functions in trimesoyl chloride (TMC). The COF was copolymerized using TMC to finally obtain the crosslinked top skin layer without the defect formation between filler and polymer during the interfacial reaction. The pure water permeance of the optimized nanocomposite membrane is higher than that of the pristine PA membrane. Accordingly, the optimized membrane exhibited good permeability and competitive selectivity for dyes and antibiotics. Meanwhile, it had a highly rejection of 92% for methylene blue after multi-cycle separation test, showing excellent industrial wastewater treating capability. [Display omitted] • Covalent organic framework was synthesized and then grafted with cysteine via a click reaction. • The cysteine provides hydrophilicity to further improve the dispersion and adhesion in the membrane. • The composite membrane has high rejection for some contaminants in water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Double liquid-only side-stream distillation (DLSD) for separating ethanol, n -propanol and n -butanol mixture. • Temperature control schemes without composition measurement for DLSD are proposed. • Single temperature control (STC) and temperature difference control (TDC) for DLSD are compared. • TDC with feedforward action has better performance by a factor of 5 or more in total integral absolute error. The investigation of dynamic controllability of double liquid-only side-stream distillation (DLSD) is necessary due to its good potential for separating multicomponent mixtures in industrial practice. However, control strategy for DLSD is unique and complex owing to the existence of liquid side transfer streams. This study proposed three temperature control schemes without composition measurement for DLSD, i.e., single temperature control without feedforward structure (CS1), single temperature control and temperature difference control with feedforward structure (CS2 and CS3). Results demonstrate that DLSD process can be operated smoothly under ±20% feed flow rate and composition disturbances. The use of feedforward structure in CS2 and CS3 eliminates the transient deviations in the responses of product purities in CS1. Overall, CS3 provides better control for DLSD than CS1 and CS2 in terms of lower total sum of integral absolute error (by a factor of nearly 50 and 10, respectively). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal co-catalysts are essential for enhancing photocatalytic performance, especially in reduction reactions using semiconductor photocatalyst materials as a consequence of the reduced recombination kinetics of charge carriers by spatial charge separation. Generally Au, Pd, Pt, and their alloys are more promising candidates than Ag for photocatalytic H 2 evolution experiments, although Ag can trap more electrons having more negative reduction potential than that of Au, Pd, and Pt. Here we have synthesized and examined well-defined Au, Ag, and core-shell structured Au–Ag nanoparticles as co-catalysts for TiO 2 in photocatalytic H 2 evolution. By varying the dissolved oxygen in the reaction suspension, we found that selective photocatalytic reduction can be achieved by fine tuning the co-catalyst materials. Whilst Au NPs are superior for proton reduction, Ag NPs exhibits excellent performance for oxygen reduction. All core-shell structured Au–Ag NPs show non-selectivity in photocatalytic reduction of proton and oxygen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presented a novel microemulsion-based method for the preparation of MgO nanomaterials. Briefly, in a paraffin-in-water microemulsion system, we firstly synthesized Mg 5 (CO 3 ) 4 (OH) 2 ·4H 2 O/paraffin composites, the precursor of MgO, via an interface-controlled homogenous precipitation. By calcinating the composite precursor at different temperatures, MgO nanomaterials with varied morphologies could be obtained. A flower-like 3D hierarchical structure was achieved when applying lower calcination temperatures, which indeed preserves the morphology of the composite precursor. While at higher calcination temperatures, one can get the well-defined MgO nanoparticles. The prepared materials were thoroughly characterized by XRD, SEM and BET methods, and their application as adsorbents to remove Congo red from wastewater was demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More and more groundwater has been polluted recently, and technologies for groundwater contamination remediation are of vital importance; however, it is usually difficult for the users to select the most suitable technology among multiple alternatives. In order to address this, this study aims at developing a sustainability assessment framework for prioritizing the technologies for groundwater contamination remediation by combining the concept of sustainability and multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) method. A criterion system which consists of six criteria in three aspects has been proposed for sustainability assessment of technologies for groundwater contamination remediation, and a novel MCDM method by combining the logarithmic fuzzy preference programming based fuzzy analytic hierarchy process and the improved ELECTRE method has been developed for prioritizing the alternatives. In order to illustrate the developed methodology, four technologies including pump-treat (P&T), monitored natural attenuation (MNA), permeable reactive barriers (PRB), and air sparging (AS) have been studied, and the results show that the proposed methodology is feasible for prioritizing the technologies for groundwater contamination remediation for the stakeholders/decision-makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/objectives There is currently no licensed prophylactic or therapeutic vaccine for HSV-2 infection. Methods We developed a novel preclinical vaccine candidate, G103, consisting of three recombinantly expressed HSV-2 proteins (gD and the UL19 and UL25 gene products) adjuvanted with the potent synthetic TLR4 agonist glucopyranosyl lipid A (GLA) formulated in stable emulsion. The vaccine was tested for immunogenicity and efficacy in pre-clinical models for preventative and therapeutic vaccination. Results Vaccination of mice with G103 elicited antigen-specific binding and neutralizing antibody responses, as well as robust CD4 and CD8 effector and memory T cells. The T cell responses were further boosted by subsequent challenge with live virus. Prophylactic immunization completely protected against lethal intravaginal HSV-2 infection in mice, with only transient replication of virus in the genital mucosa and sterilizing immunity in dorsal root ganglia. Supporting the use of G103 therapeutically, the vaccine expanded both CD4 and CD8 T cells induced in mice by previous infection with HSV-2. In the guinea pig model of recurrent HSV-2 infection, therapeutic immunization with G103 was approximately 50% effective in reducing the number of lesions per animal as well as the overall lesions score. Conclusions Taken together, the data show that G103 is a viable candidate for development of a novel prophylactic and therapeutic HSV-2 vaccine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates China׳s biofuel industry—the third largest in the world—by combining a strength, weakness, opportunity and threats (SWOT) analysis with a method known as fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP). More specifically, the study employs SWOT analysis to identify the influential factors affecting the development of the biofuel industry in China. It then prioritizes their importance using the FAHP method. The study finds that high production costs, competition with other renewable energy resources, inconsistent policy and legislation support, and poor technical standards are impeding the growth of the biofuel industry of China. The study concludes by proposing strategic recommendations for how the industry can be made both leaner, more efficient and effective, and greener, more socially and environmentally sustainable. Some of these options focuses on improving technical perform, adhering to a “supply push” mentality. Others focus on improving affordability and consumer awareness, adhering to a “demand pull” mentality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A vinyl bridged 1,4,5,8-Naphthalenetetracarboxylic diimide (NDI) dimer, DNV was synthesized, which exhibits relatively strong Aggregation Induced Emission Enhancement (AIEE) behaviour with absolute quantum yield of 13.6%, as well as wide Aggregation Induced Chromism (AIC) phenomenon (over 100 nm), from green to orange emission. The density functional theory (DFT) and coupled cluster calculations reveal a unique twisted packing mode of DNV in its aggregated state, and mild intermolecular CT between the stacked DNV molecules was also observed. This J -aggregation like molecular arrangement and the net CT might contribute to the long wavelength emission. The bio-imaging capability of DNV is also examined by a living cell experiment. [Display omitted] • A vinyl bridged 1,4,5,8-Naphthalenetetracarboxylic diimide (NDI) dimer, DNV was synthesized and fully characterized. • Aggregation induced strong emission enhancement (AIEE) and large fluorescence chromism (AIC) were realized. • The theoretical calculations revealed a unique twisted packing mode for DNV in its aggregated state (dimer state). • Bio-imaging capability of the DNV material was also examined by living cell experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Fe0 nanoparticles were uniformly immobilized on COFs by a an in-situ growth method. • The Fe0/TpPa-1@DOPA has high Cr(VI) removal performance. • The high Cr(VI) removal performance could be realized in acidic, neutral and alkaline environments. Nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI, Fe0) has been widely used for reduction of strong toxic Cr(VI) to low toxic Cr(III), however, given the easy aggregation of NZVI, developing new substrate support for NZVI is highly desirable. In this study, via a simple in-situ growth method, NZVI was immobilized on porous TpPa-1 covalent organic frameworks (COFs), making it an effective adsorbent for adsorption and reduction of Cr(VI) from aqueous solution. Meanwhile, to make the composite of NZVI and COFs a uniform system, dopamine (DOPA) was used as a connector to combine them. The COFs with porous crystal structure provides controlled anchors for Fe0 loading as well as the reaction sites. Results verify that the Fe0/TpPa-1@DOPA exhibited an excellent performance in Cr(VI) removal due to synergistic effect of the composite, with the maximum removal capacity up to 516 mg/g. Furthermore, it maintained high removal capacity under acidic, neutral and alkaline environments. Therefore, the Fe0/TpPa-1@DOPA is a promising material for Cr(VI) removal from wastewater in practical application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]