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Atomically thin molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) films were synthesized on a SiO2/Si substrate by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies reveal the double-atomic-layer structure and the surface element composition of the MOCVD-grown MoS2 films. The photoluminescence measurement demonstrates a strong emission peak with a bandgap of 685.1 nm, attributed to highly efficient radiative transition at the double atomic layer. The contact resistance between the doubleatomic-layer MoS2 film and metal electrode was measured using the transmission-line modeling method. A Ti/Au electrode forms an ohmic contact with the double-atomic-layer MOCVD-grown MoS2 film, exhibiting a resistivity of 100 kΩ. The field-effect transistor based on the double-atomiclayer MoS2 film exhibits an electron mobility of 1.3×10−4 cm2/V·s and an on/off ratio of 6.5×102 at room temperature.

Ion-specific nutrient management systems would replace conventional electrical conductivity-based management systems for more efficient maintenance of the concentration of each ion in nutrient solutions for closed hydroponic systems. This study reports on the validation testing of a previously developed ion-specific sensing and control system. Specific objectives were to (1) evaluate the ability of the system to maintain the target concentrations of five macronutrients, i.e., NO3−, PO43−, K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ ions, required for crop growth in closed hydroponic systems based on both real-time measurement of NO3−, K+, and Ca2+ and the use of a concentration ratio method to replenish Mg2+ and PO43−, and (2) investigate the applicability of a cobalt rod-based electrode for hydroponic phosphate sensing. In a lettuce cultivation test conducted with the ebb-and-flow method over 21 days, most of the macronutrient concentrations were successfully maintained at the target levels with RMSE values of 25.2 ± 9.4, 19.1 ± 8.1, and 11.5 ± 6.1 mg∙L−1 for NO3−, K+, and Ca2+, respectively. In the case of Mg2+ and PO43− ions replenished in a proportional ratio to the supply of Ca2+ and NO3− ions, respectively, the Mg2+ concentrations were maintained between 18 and 25 mg∙L−1 at an almost constant level, whereas the PO43− concentrations increased steadily over time with no clear evidence of plant uptake, implying that the use of a concentration ratio method would not be effective in controlling the concentrations of PO43− in hydroponic solutions. As a phosphate sensor, the cobalt electrodes yielded an RMSE result of 10.9 ± 7.1% from a comparison of the electrode method and standard analysis when tested in hydroponic lettuce samples taken once a day during the period of lettuce growing, thereby offering the potential for use in hydroponic phosphate sensing.

Hydroponic plant culturing requires the concentration of nutrients in the supplied solution to be maintained at a constant level. For example, phosphate ion concentration directly affects crop growth, which necessitates the development of convenient and rapid techniques for on-site phosphate quantitation. Herein, we developed a new low-cost colorimetric method of quick on-site phosphate quantitation based on a modification of the conventional molybdenum colorimetric method. Specifically, the nutrient solution treated with ascorbic acid and molybdate was analyzed by colorimetric method after 10 min incubation, and a phosphate quantitation protocol was proposed. To verify this protocol, 50 nutrient solution samples with concentrations of 0–200 ppm were used to develop a model and perform a validation experiment, and the PLSR (Partial Least Squares Regression) and PCR (Principal Component Regression) models were developed and validated using a crossvalidation method and sample transmission spectra. The PLSR model, employing smoothing preprocessing at a 5 nm wavelength spacing, exhibited the best prediction performance and showed an error of ~10% within the measurement range during verification. In addition, an artificial neural network-based model achieved R2=0.93 for the training set and R2=0.86 for the validation set. Finally, we developed convenient-to-use software for phosphate ion quantitation by the presented method and performed a demonstration test.

th , 2016; Revised: May 20 th , 2016; Accepted: May 27 th , 2016 Purpose: In-situ water quality monitoring based on ion-selective electrodes (ISEs) is a promising technique because ISEs can be used directly in the medium to be tested, have a compact size, and are inexpensive. However, signal drift can be a major concern with on-line management systems because continuous immersion of the ISEs in water causes electrode degradation, affecting the stability, repeatability, and selectivity over time. In this study, a computer-based nitrate monitoring system including automatic electrode rinsing and calibration was developed to measure the nitrate concentration in water samples in real-time. Methods: The capabilities of two different types of poly(vinyl chloride) membrane-based ISEs, an electrode with a liquid filling and a carbon paste-based solid state electrode, were used in the monitoring system and evaluated on their sensitivities, selectivities, and durabilities. A feasibility test for the continuous detection of nitrate ions in water using the developed system was conducted using water samples obtained from various water sources. Results: Both prepared ISEs were capable of detecting low concentrations of nitrate in solution, i.e., 0.7 mg/L NO3-N. Furthermore, the electrodes have the same order of selectivity for nitrate: NO3 >> HCO3 > Cl > H2PO4 > SO4 2, and maintain their sensitivity by > 40 mV/decade over a period of 90 days. Conclusions: The use of an automated ISE-based nitrate measurement system that includes automatic electrode rinsing and two-point normalization proved to be feasible in measuring NO3-N in water samples obtained from different water sources. A one-to-one relationship between the levels of NO3-N measured with the ISEs and standard analytical instruments was obtained.

The extremely high contact resistance often observed in the interface between two-dimensional p-type transition-metal dichalcogenides and metal electrodes with a high work function, such as Ni, Au, and Pd, is usually correlated with poor device performance. Here, we report the quantitative contact resistance and the Schottky barrier height of chemical vapor deposition grown-monolayer tungsten diselenide (WSe2)-based field-effect transistors (FETs) with Au electrodes; these values are obtained by using the transmission line method and by analyzing the low-temperature transport properties, respectively. Back-gate monolayer WSe2 FETs with Au electrodes exhibit p-type behavior, with a mobility, on/off ratio, contact resistance, and Schottky barrier height of 0.2 cm2/V•s, 6 × 105, 0.495 M Ω · μ m, and 38 meV, respectively.

Phosphate is a key element affecting plant growth. Therefore, the accurate determination of phosphate concentration in hydroponic nutrient solutions is essential for providing a balanced set of nutrients to plants within a suitable range. This study aimed to develop a data fusion approach for determining phosphate concentrations in a paprika nutrient solution. As a conventional multivariate analysis approach using spectral data, partial least squares regression (PLSR) and principal components regression (PCR) models were developed using 56 samples for calibration and 24 samples for evaluation. The R2 values of estimation models using PCR and PLSR ranged from 0.44 to 0.64. Furthermore, an estimation model using raw electromotive force (EMF) data from cobalt electrodes gave R2 values of 0.58&ndash, 0.71. To improve the model performance, a data fusion method was developed to estimate phosphate concentration using near infrared (NIR) spectral and cobalt electrochemical data. Raw EMF data from cobalt electrodes and principle component values from the spectral data were combined. Results of calibration and evaluation tests using an artificial neural network estimation model showed that R2 = 0.90 and 0.89 and root mean square error (RMSE) = 96.70 and 119.50 mg/L, respectively. These values are sufficiently high for application to measuring phosphate concentration in hydroponic solutions.

Background The cosmetics market has rapidly increased over the last years. For example, in 2011 it reached 242.8 billion US dollars, which was a 3.9% increase compared to 2010. There have been many recent trials aimed at finding the functional ingredients for new cosmetics. Gallic acid is a phytochemical derived from various herbs, and has anti-fungal, anti-viral, and antioxidant properties. Although phytochemicals are useful as cosmetic ingredients, they have a number of drawbacks, such as thermal stability, residence time in the skin, and permeability through the dermal layer. To overcome these problems, we considered conjugation of gallic acid with a peptide. Results We synthesized galloyl-RGD, which represents a conjugate of gallic acid and the peptide RGD, purified it by HPLC and characterized by MALDI-TOF with the aim of using it as a new cosmetic ingredient. Thermal stability of galloyl-RGD was tested at alternating temperatures (consecutive 4°C, 20°C, or 40°C for 8 h each) on days 2, 21, 41, and 61. Galloyl-RGD was relatively safe to HaCaT keratinocytes, as their viability after 48 h incubation with 500 ppm galloyl-RGD was 93.53%. In the group treated with 50 ppm galloyl-RGD, 85.0% of free radicals were removed, whereas 1000 ppm galloyl-RGD suppressed not only L-DOPA formation (43.8%) but also L-DOPA oxidation (54.4%). Conclusions Galloyl-RGD is a promising candidate for a cosmetic ingredient.