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Rabies is a viral disease that is nearly 100% fatal once clinical signs and symptoms develop. Post-exposure prophylaxis can efficiently prevent rabies, and antibody (Ab) induction by vaccination or passive immunization of human rabies immunoglobulin (HRIG) or monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) play an integral role in prevention against rabies. In addition to their capacity to neutralize viruses, antibodies exert their antiviral effects by antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), which plays an important role in antiviral immunity and clearance of viral infections. For antibodies against rabies virus (RABV), evaluation of ADCC activity was neglected. Here, we developed a robust cell-based reporter gene assay (RGA) for the determination of the ADCC activity of anti-RABV antibodies using CVS-N2c-293 cells, which stably express the glycoprotein (G) of RABV strain CVS-N2c as target cells, and Jurkat cells, which stably express FcγRⅢa and nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) reporter gene as effector cells (Jurkat/NFAT-luc/FcγRⅢa cells). The experimental parameters were carefully optimized, and the established ADCC assay was systematically validated according to the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) Q2 guideline. We also evaluated the ADCC activity of anti-RABV antibodies, including mAbs, HRIG, and vaccine induced antisera, and found that all test antibodies exhibited ADCC activity with varied strengths. The established RGA provides a novel method for evaluating the ADCC of anti-RABV antibodies.

Social isolation (SI) is a major risk factor for mood disorders in adolescents. The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is an important reward center implicated in psychiatric disorders. Resveratrol (RSV) is one of the most effective natural polyphenols with anti-anxiety and depression effects. However, little is known about the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of RSV on behavioral abnormality of adolescent social stress. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the underlying mechanism of RSV on the amelioration of SI-induced behavioral abnormality. We found that SI induced anxiety-like behavior and social dysfunction in isolated female rats. Moreover, SI reduced mitochondrial number and ATP levels and increased thin spine density in the NAc. RNA sequencing results showed that SI changed the transcription pattern in the NAc, including 519 upregulated genes and 610 downregulated genes, especially those related to mitochondrial function. Importantly, RSV ameliorated behavioral and spine abnormalities induced by SI and increased NAc ATP levels and mitochondria number. Furthermore, RSV increased the activity of cytochrome C oxidase (COX) and upregulated mRNA levels of Cox5a, Cox6a1 and Cox7c. These results demonstrate that the modulation of spine plasticity and mitochondrial function in the NAc by RSV has a therapeutic effect on mood disorders induced by social isolation.

BiOBr sheets of controllable shape and size were synthesized via an ultrasound-assisted co-precipitation method at room temperature by varying the bromine source and reactant concentration. The BiOBr sheets synthesized from KBr and NaBr were rounded rectangles and round, respectively. The size of BiOBr sheets increased with increasing reactant concentration. As the reactant concentration increased from 10 mmol L−1 to 15 mmol L−1 until 20 mmol L−1, the size of as-prepared BiOBr sheets increased from 100–300 nm to 300–500 nm until 700–1000 nm, respectively. Moreover, the size difference in BiOBr sheets did not significantly affect the photocatalytic performance in degrading organic dyes. Such a simple and rapid method of controlling the shape and size of BiOBr sheets could provide more abundant matrix materials for the synthesis and modification of BiOBr.

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has triggered a serious public health crisis worldwide, and considering the novelty of the disease, preventative and therapeutic measures alike are urgently needed. To accelerate such efforts, the development of JS016, a neutralizing monoclonal antibody directed against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, was expedited from a typical 12- to 18-month period to a 4-month period. During this process, transient Chinese hamster ovary cell lines are used to support preclinical, investigational new drug-enabling toxicology research, and early Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls development; mini-pool materials to supply Phase 1 clinical trials; and a single-clone working cell bank for late-stage and pivotal clinical trials were successively adopted. Moreover, key process performance and product quality investigations using a series of orthogonal and state-of-the-art techniques were conducted to demonstrate the comparability of products manufactured using these three processes, and the results indicated that, despite observed variations in process performance, the primary and high-order structures, purity and impurity profiles, biological and immunological functions, and degradation behaviors under stress conditions were largely comparable. The study suggests that, in particular situations, this strategy can be adopted to accelerate the development of therapeutic biopharmaceuticals and their access to patients.

Owing to the limitation of in vitro culture of human noroviruses (HuNoVs), the development of HuNoV vaccines has to depend on the self-assembling virus-like particles (VLPs) with capsid protein expression. The heterogeneity of artificial VLPs exert an impact on the immunogenicity, and should be considered as one of the factors in vaccine evaluation. In this study, we biochemically finger print the HuNoV VLPs with different genogroups, genotypes and sub-genotypes which constitute for a candidate vaccine, by using capillary isoelectric focusing with whole column imaging detection (cIEF-WCID). The electropherograms of GI.1, GII.3, GII.4 and GII.17 VLPs in fluorescence signal were described in the monomer VP1 forms after degenerated by 8 M urea. The four HuNoV VLPs showed different properties in electropherogram finger prints. The finger prints were also reproducible within a certain concentration range (approx. 150 ∼ 20 ug/ml). This method can also tell the changes of pI finger-print patterns when the expired HoNoV VLPs were tested. In conclusion, cIEF-WCID shows great promise for evaluating the production consistency of HuNoV VLP vaccine.

Cocatalyst surface-loading has been regarded as an effective strategy to promote solar-energy-conversion efficiency. However, the potential influence of surface modification with cocatalysts on the...

CTLA-4 is an important immune checkpoint for the regulation of T cell activation, and anti-CTLA-4 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are being developed as mono- or combination therapy for various tumors with reliable clinical efficacy. Ipilimumab is the first approved inhibitor of immune checkpoint, and many other anti-CTLA-4 mAbs, including ipilimumab biosimilars, are in different stages of clinical trials. However, due to the immunomodulating nature of the mAbs targeting CTLA-4, mode of action (MoA) and cell-based bioassay to determine their bioactivities as the lot release or stability test has been a great challenge to quality control laboratories. In this study, we have developed and validated a reporter gene assay (RGA), in which two kinds of cell lines were engineered to measure the bioactivity of anti-CTLA-4 mAbs. Raji cells were stably transfected with the membrane-anchored anti-CD3 single chain antibody fragment (scFv) as antigen-presenting cells (APCs, Raji-CD3scFv cells), while Jurkat cells were stably transfected with CTLA-4 with Y201V mutation and NFAT controlled luciferase as the effector cells (Jurkat-CTLA-4-NFAT-luc cells). The ligation of CD80/CD86 on the APCs with CTLA-4 could reduce the luciferase expression accompanied with the activation of effector cells, while the anti-CTLA-4 mAb could reverse the reduction, which resulted in good dose response curve to determine its bioactivity. After optimizing various assay conditions, we performed full validation according to ICH-Q2 (R1), which demonstrated the excellent specificity, accuracy, precision, linearity, and the cell passage stability. The satisfied performance characteristics render the RGA a good bioassay in the bioactivity determination of anti-CTLA-4 mAbs, as applied in characterization, batch release control, stability study, and biosimilar assessment.

Sinisan (SNS) consists of four kinds of herbs, which is the core of antidepressant prescription widely used in traditional Chinese medicine clinic treatment for depression induced by early life stress. However, the role and precise mechanism of SNS antidepressant have not yet been elucidated.This study aimed to investigate the mechanism SNS on antidepressant of regulating mitochondrial function to improve hippocampal synaptic plasticity.90 Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats male pups on Post-Natal Day (PND) 0 were randomly divided into Control group (ddHSNS can alleviate depression-like and anxiety-like behaviors in MS rats, improve the damage of synapses and mitochondria, reduce the decrease of ATP in hippocampus, and reverse the expression levels of PSD-95, SYN, Mfn2, Drp1, and Fis1 proteins.SNS reduced the risk of early life stress induced depression disorder via regulating mitochondrial function and synaptic plasticity. Targeting mitochondrial may be a novel prospective therapeutic avenue for antidepressant.

Psychological stress is a common etiology among patients with lung cancer and serves as a potential indication of poor prognosis and advanced cancer clinical stage. Evidence indicates that depression is positively correlated with the evolvement of lung carcinoma. Nevertheless, the mechanisms underlying the effects of mental disorder on lung cancer have not been considerably and systemically explored. We hypothesized that mental disorder may affect the adjustment of the tumor microenvironment and immune cells. We used the chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) procedure to induce depressed mice models and established tumor-bearing models of C57BL/6 J mice. Results revealed that the worsening of lung cancer was notably hastened in the CUMS + tumor group. Notably, the expression of PD-L1 in tumor issues increased in the tumor microenvironment, accompanied with a decline in the levels of CD8. On the basis of the date of tumor migration, our results indicated that MMPs and VEGF significantly increased after CUMS + tumor treatment. Thus, we demonstrated that modulation of the tumor microenvironment is pivotal for depression-promoted lung cancer migration.

Choosing, designing and preparing the alternative electrode materials are of highly urgent for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in sustainable energy storage fields. Herein, a novel and well-dispersive hierarchical porous stratified texture of Co3O4 modified by nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxides (N-rGO/Co3O4) microplates are successfully synthesized via a reproducible and mass-produced route. The N-rGO/Co3O4 microplates are hierarchically self-assembled by a few porous thin nanoflakes and the N-rGO is uniformly permeated into Co3O4 matrix. As an anode material for LIBs, the N-rGO/Co3O4 microplates deliver a high initial discharge capacity of 1890 mAh·g−1 at 1 A g−1 with a Coulombic efficiency as high as 77.6%. During the 1000 charging-discharging cycles, the capacities and Coulombic efficiencies maintain at 1000 mAh·g−1 and 99.6%. Even the current density is increased to 2 A g−1, the electrode still delivers a stable capacity of 770 mAh·g−1 for 500 cycles. Moreover, the rate performance is highly superior. Such an advanced Li ions storage of the N-rGO/Co3O4 microplates is mainly due to the modification of small quantity N-rGO improving the electric conductivity without sacrificing the capacity of Co3O4 and the hierarchical porous stratified texture. Hence, the hierarchical porous N-rGO/Co3O4 microplates and synthetic strategy can be applied for next-generation LIBs in the near future.

A novel Bi4Ti3O12/BiOBr heterojunction photocatalyst was successfully fabricated for the first time through a traditional solid state method combined with a successive in situ growth method. The as-formed BiOBr nanosheets with diameters in the range of 100–200 nm were embedded homogenously on the surface of Bi4Ti3O12 particles. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of pure silk dyeing wastewater and antibiotics (ciprofloxacin and tetracycline) under visible light (λ > 400 nm). The Bi4Ti3O12/BiOBr heterojunction photocatalyst has a higher photocatalytic activity than pure Bi4Ti3O12 and BiOBr. The Bi4Ti3O12/BiOBr composite presented a significantly improved ability of Acid Blue dye and antibiotic photodegradation, which is almost 1.3 and 1.5 times higher than that of pure Bi4Ti3O12 and BiOBr, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity can be attributed to the effective separation of photo-generated electron–hole pairs driven by the p–n junction formed in heterostructured Bi4Ti3O12/BiOBr.

Background Adverse stress in early life negatively influences psychiatric health by increasing the risk of developing depression and suicide in adulthood. Clinical antidepressants, such as fluoxetine, exhibit unsatisfactory results due to their low efficacy or intolerable side effects. SiNiSan (SNS), a traditional Chinese herbal formula, has been proven to have affirmatory antidepressive effects. However, the underlying mechanism remains poorly understood. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the impact and molecular mechanism of SNS treatment in rats exposed to neonatal maternal separation (MS)-combined young–adult chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS). Method Seventy-two neonatal male Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly divided into six groups of 12 rats each: control + ddH2O, model + ddH2O, positive (fluoxetine: 5 mg/kg), SNS-low dose (2.5 g/kg), SNS-medium dose (5 g/kg), and SNS-high dose (10 g/kg). Behavioral tests included sucrose preference test, open-field test, and forced swimming test. Calcium sensitive receptor (CaSR), protein kinase C (PKC), ERK1/2, and synapse-associated proteins (PSD-95, GAP-43, and synaptophysin [Syn]) in the hippocampus (HIP) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) were assayed using Western blot. CaSR and Syn protein expression was measured by immunohistochemistry. Results MS-combined CUMS rats exhibited depression-like behavior. SNS exerted antidepressant effects on stress-induced depression-like behavior. The levels of CaSR, PKC, and p-ERK1/2 in the HIP and PFC decreased in stressed rats. SNS treatment significantly upregulated the expression of CaSR, PKC, and p-ERK1/2 in the HIP and PFC of adult stressed rats. Conclusion MS-combined CUMS could develop depression-like behavior in adult. SNS exhibited antidepressive effects accompanied by improving synaptic plasticity by activation of the CaSR-PKC-ERK signaling pathway.

(1-x)NBT-xBS ceramics were prepared by solid state method and their energy-storage properties were investigated. The XRD data showed that all samples exhibited perovskite structure and the stable solid solutions formed between NBT and BS. With increasing the contents of BS, the relaxor behavior was obvious. The optimal Tm of 90.53 °C and permittivity of 1526 were obtained in x = 0.2625 sample, leading to a high energy-storage density of 1.99 J/cm3 and energy efficiency of 86.6% at the applied electric field of 200 kV/cm. This work demonstrated (1-x)NBT-xBS as a good candidate of energy-storage base material.

The effects of KNbO3 addition on the temperature stability of dielectric properties and energy-storage performances of Sr 0.5Na0.25Bi0.25TiO3-MgO ((1-x)SNBTM5-xKN) ceramics were systematically investigated. It shows that KNbO3 has completely diffused into SNBT lattice to form a solid solutions. Two obvious maxima in permittivity curves were observed due to the formation of the polar nanoregions. For the sample with x = 0.05 addition, its permittivity variation region, where △e'/e'25 °C is no more than ± 15%, retains wide the range from −55 °C to 200 °C, indicating that the ceramics can meet the requirement of X9R specification. Furthermore, this sample shows a high electric breakdown strength of 17.85 kV/mm and a high discharge energy density of 2 J/cm3. The noticeable reduced remnant polarization induced by KNbO3 addition also contributes to the improved energy-storage performances. Thus, these novel ceramics with the aforementioned characteristics will potentially benefit the applications of high pulse power capacitors at high temperatures.

Homogeneous (Na0.5Bi0.5)(1–x)BaxTi(1–y)SnyO3 ceramics were densified by a combination of cold isostatic pressing and microwave sintering (CIP&MS strategy), and their phase transition and ferroelect...

Suffering from wide bandgaps and poor charge carrier mobility, most of the ferroelectric photocatalysts are still faced with low efficiency in spite of the advanced intrinsic ferroelectric polarization. Herein we proposed a simple Fe3+-doping strategy to induce oxygen vacancies and enhance ferroelectric polarization in Bi3TiNbO9 nanosheets simultaneously, realizing band structure modulation and charge carrier kinetics steering. Combining DFT calculations and systematic experimental characterizations, it was demonstrated that the introduction of Fe not only reduce the bandgaps but also improve electron-hole separation. The promoted carrier transport and increased carrier density was related to the Fe3+/Fe2+ redox cycle and oxygen vacancies (OVs) arising from the substitution of Ti4+ with Fe3+. More importantly, the enlarged ferroelectric polarization strength after doping verified by hysteresis loop can provide further driving force for charge carrier migration. Benefitting from these optimized properties, under the optimum doping concentration, the photocatalytic degradation rate of antibiotic tetracycline hydrochloride and organic dye rhodamin B under visible light were about 1.6 times and 2.1 times of that in pure Bi3TiNbO9 respectively, outperforming the benchmark P25 and the majority of bismuth layer structured ferroelectrics. This work shed light on the feasibility of defect engineering and ferroelectric polarization modulation for efficient ferroelectric photocatalysts development.

The ferroelectric performance of Ba(Fe 0.5 Nb 0.5 )O 3 (BFN) ceramics is still controversial due to their large leakage loss. In this paper, we prepared core-shell structured Ba(Fe 0.5 Nb 0.5 )O 3 @SiO 2 particles via a wet chemistry coating method, and the core-shell structures still remain in the sinterred ceramics. Compared with pure BFN ceramic, BFN@SiO 2 composite ceramic shows dramatically suppressed dielectric loss and ac conductivity, especially measurable hysteresis loop. Through further analysis in detail, the ferroelectricity of BFN ceramics can be confirmed due to the decreased leakage loss. In addition, the internal relaxation behavior of BFN@SiO 2 samples is still consistent with pure BFN ceramics, and the impedance complex plane analysis indicated that the insulating grain boundary (or internal barrier) plays a key role to the dielectric loss decrease of the BFN ceramics.

Ba(Fe0.5Ta0.5)O3/poly(vinylidene fluoride) (BFT/PVDF) flexible nanocomposite films are fabricated by tape casting using dopamine (DA)-modified BFT nanopowders and PVDF as a matrix polymer. After a surface modification of installing a DA layer with a thickness of 5 nm, the interfacial couple interaction between BFT and PVDF is enhanced, resulting in less hole defects at the interface. Then the dielectric constant (e′), loss tangent (tan δ), and AC conductivity of nanocomposite films are reduced. Meanwhile, the value of the reduced dielectric constant (Δe′) and the strength of interfacial polarization (k) are introduced to illustrate the effect of DA on the dielectric behavior of nanocomposite films. Δe′ can be used to calculate the magnitude of interfacial polarization, and the strength of the dielectric constant contributed by the interface can be expressed as k. Most importantly, the energy-storage density and energy-storage efficiency of nanocomposite films with a small BFT@DA filler content of 1 vol % ...

The Ba 0.4 Sr 0.6 TiO 3 (BST) ceramics with Bi 2 O 3 -B 2 O 3 -ZnO (BBZ) glass additive were prepared by the solid state reaction route. Microstructural observation demonstrates that the average grain size reduces obviously with increasing glass additive. The dielectric constant decreases and the dielectric breakdown strength (BDS) increases as glass additive increases. The energy storage density of ceramics with 5 wt% glass additive is 0.62 J/cm 3 attributed to the relatively high dielectric constant and BDS. These results indicate that this material is a promising candidate for energy storage capacitor devices.

A novel mesoporous TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 4 heterostructured photocatalyst was fabricated using polyethylene glycol (PEG) and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) as the templates. The structure and morphology of the photocatalyst were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N 2 adsorption-desorption isothermal, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectra (UV–vis DRS). Photocatalytic activities of TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 4 were evaluated through the degradation of organic dyes. The results show that the as-prepared TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 4 photocatalyst has a large specific surface area (591.93 m 2 /g), excellent visible-light photocatalytic activity and good stability. The enhanced photocatalytic activity can be attributed to its large surface area, the strong visible-light absorption and the heterostructured combination of TiO 2 and g-C 3 N 4 , which improves the charge-carriers separation.

The 0.92BaTiO3–0.08BiMO3 (M = Fe, Y, Al) solid solutions were prepared via a conventional solid state reaction technique. X-ray diffractometer, Raman spectra, scanning electron microscope, and impedance analyzer were used to examine the effect of three additions on the crystal structure, micromorphology and dielectric properties of 0.92BaTiO3–0.08BiMO3 (M = Fe, Y, Al) solid solutions. The 0.08 BiMO3 (M = Fe, Y, Al) additions totally transform the characteristic sharp phase transition (associated with permittivity maximum) of pure BaTiO3 into a less-distinct phase transition with a broad and strongly dispersive permittivity maximum characteristic of relaxor dielectrics.

We have used a ferroelectric BaTiO3 substrate with a hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanostructured surface to form a heterogeneous BaTiO3/α-Fe2O3 photocatalyst. In this study we show that varying the mass ratio of α-Fe2O3 on BaTiO3 has a significant influence on photoinduced decolorization of rhodamine B under simulated sunlight. The highest photocatalytic activity was obtained for BaTiO3–Fe2O3-0.001M, with the lowest mass ratio of α-Fe2O3 in our study. This catalyst exhibited a 2-fold increase in performance compared to pure BaTiO3 and a 5-fold increase when compared to the higher-surface-area pure α-Fe2O3. The increases in performance become more marked upon scaling for the lower surface area of the heterostructured catalyst. Performance enhancement is associated with improved charge-carrier separation at the interface between the ferroelectric surface, which exhibits ferroelectric polarization, and the hematite. Increasing the mass ratio of hematite increases the thickness of this layer, lowers the number of tripl...

(1-x)SrTiO3-x(Na0.5Bi0.5)TiO3 ((1-x)ST-xNBT) ceramics have been prepared by solid-state route and their structure, electric and energy storage properties have been investigated. Dielectric anomalies at Tm and T′m show strong frequency dispersion as the typical relaxor ferroelectrics behavior over a broad temperature range. The Tm of (1-x)ST-xNBT ceramics dramatically shifted to a higher temperature (from −118 °C to 106 °C at 1 kHz) with increasing x. All samples showed the broad relaxor behavior due to the increase in the degree of lattice disorder and the thermal evolution of PNRs, and exhibited a discharge energy density of more than 1.18 J/cm3. The x = 0.4 sample exhibited a maximum discharge energy density of 1.70 J/cm3, consistent with the high value of Eb (∼21 kV/mm) and Pm (∼25 μC/cm2). The results indicate that (1-x)ST-xNBT ceramics might be a promising environmental friendly material for energy storage application.

The bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3, BFO) photocatalysts were synthesized via a simple microwave hydrothermal process, in which the morphology and size were tailored by using different citric acid concentrations in precursor solution. The photocatalytic activity of prepared samples was evaluated by degrading rhodamine B (Rh B) under UV and visible light irradiation. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV–visible diffuse reflection spectrum (DRS) were used to investigate the samples’ crystallinity, purity, morphology and spectral features. When the citric acid loading amount on the BFO sample was 0.02 g, the optimal photocatalytic degradation efficiency was improved to 72.0%. On the basis of the calculated band-gap and the current experiment, the photocatalytic mechanism was also discussed.

The polycrystalline 0.94BaTiO 3 -0.06(Bi 0.5 Na 0.5 )TiO 3 -0.2Bi(Mg 0.5 Zr 0.5 )O 3 - x Ba(Fe 0.5 Nb 0.5 )O 3 (0.94BT-0.06BNT-0.2BMZ- x BFN) ( x = 0–0.125) ceramics are fabricated via a conventional solid state reaction method. A continuous progressive decline in e rmax with increasing x leads to near temperature-stable dielectric properties over a wide temperature range. It was demonstrated that the dielectric temperature stability of BT based ceramics can be improved effectively with increasing x . Stability in values of relative permittivity over a wide temperature range was demonstrated for x = 0.1, with e r = 850 ± 15% over the temperature range ≤−45.01–250.15 °C, and tanδ ≤ 0.02 from 37 °C to 120 °C.

Fine-grained BaTiO3 ceramics with different grain sizes (96–194 nm) were prepared by microwave sintering, and the grain size (GS) effect of fine-grained BaTiO3 ceramics on the electrical properties were investigated. A change from the tetragonal to pseudocubic structure gradually takes place with the decrease of GS. As the GS increased from 96 to 194 nm, the dielectric constant increased from 1300 to 1560. The temperature capacitance coefficients satisfied the EIA X7R specifications for all the samples. Impedance analysis proved that the fine-grained ceramics have higher activation energy for both grain and grain boundary. The remnant polarization (P r ) values decrease with the decreasing of the GS, which is ascribed that the increasing of the grain boundary and internal stress would weaken the polarization of the direction of electric field. The grain boundary and defects have the pinning effects on the domain, leading the increase in E c .

Magnetoelectric Ba0.9Ca0.1Ti0.9Zr0.1O3/CoFe2O4 (BCZT/CFO) laminated composites were prepared via the conventional solid state synthesis method and their phase composition and surface morphology were investigated by X-ray diffractometry, scanning electronic microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry. Their ferroelectric, magnetic and magnetoelectric properties were also studied. The results show that BCZT and CFO phases coexist in the composites. The magnetoelectric behavior is strongly dependent on the contents of CFO and dc magnetic field. The maximum magnetoelectric coefficient of the laminated composite reaches about 159 mV/cm Oe at 1120 Oe. Due to its ability of responding to magnetic or electric field, this laminated composite is expected to find application in data storage and magnetic field sensors.

Strontium titanate (SrTiO

Cocatalyst surface-loading has been regarded as an effective strategy to promote solar-energy-conversion efficiency. However, the potential influence of surface modification with cocatalysts on the photodegradation pathway and the underlying mechanisms is still unclear. Herein, we have used ferroelectric BaTiO

An efficient nanocomposite adsorbent of magnetic core-shell MnFe2O4@TiO2 nanoparticles loaded on reduced graphene oxide (MnFe2O4@TiO2-rGO) was successfully synthesized via a hydrothermal followed by sol-gel route. By using the ciprofloxacin (CIP) and Cu2+ as target pollutants, the adsorption properties of MnFe2O4@TiO2-rGO were systematically learned as well as the factors dependance on the adsorption properties, such as temperature, adsorption time, initial pollutant concentration and pH. The adsorption thermodynamics and kinetics for CIP and Cu2+ were also explored. According to the experimental results, the maximum adsorption capacities for CIP and Cu2+ are 122.87 and 225.99 mg/g, respectively. Their adsorption behaviors conform to the Langmuir isotherm and follow a pseudo-second-order kinetic model at all temperature. It is proposed that adsorption is spontaneous and endothermic chemisorption. Furthermore, the MnFe2O4@TiO2-rGO adsorbent can be easily recycled from polluted solution by external magnetic field. After the adsorbent recycled 6 times, the adsorption capacities for CIP and Cu2+ could still reach up to 76.56 and 118.45 mg/g, respectively. Based on the excellent adsorption performance, magnetic separation and recycling performance, therefore, it is highly believed that our MnFe2O4@TiO2-rGO adsorbent has huge potential applications in the field of water purification.

Polycrystalline (Ba0.9Bi0.1)(Ti0.9Al0.1)O3 (BBTA) ceramic is synthesized by solid state reaction method. XRD studies confirm the formation of single phase composition. Detailed studies of dielectric and impedance properties of the material in the wide range of frequency (20–2 MHz) and temperature (225–400 °C) shows that dielectric properties are strongly temperature and frequency dependent. The circle centers of Cole–Cole plots between e′ and e″ is located on the e′ axis, confirming the monodispersive nature of the relaxation processes for hopping electrons. The plots of Z″ and M″ are disperated with increase in frequency at different temperature, which proves the dielectric relaxation. The value of non-exponential parameter β can be determined by the full width-at-half-maximum of M″/M″ max spectrum (β = 1.14), indicating that the relaxation process for the sample is Debye-type relaxation phenomena in agreement with the observation from complex permittivity spectrum. The ac conductivity can be explained by the non-overlapping small polaron tunneling model.

0.475BNT–0.525BCTZ– x wt% MgO ceramics were prepared through a solid–solid state route and their phase structure, microstructure, dielectric and energy storage properties were investigated with the focus on optimizing properties for capacitor applications. The secondary phases of MgO and Mg 2 TiO 4 were observed when the content of MgO is higher than a critical amount (5–7 wt%). Diffuse phase transition was observed due to the large differences of ion valences and sizes in B-site ions and the presence of secondary phases. The dielectric breakdown strength of these ceramics were significantly enhanced along with the addition of MgO, leading to a significant improvement of discharge energy density. The sample with x =5 shows a high dielectric breakdown strength of 15.67 kV/mm and the highest maximum discharge energy density of 1.04 J/cm 3 .

Using BaTiO

Strontium titanate (SrTiO3) with perovskite structure has recently received significant attention in t he area of photocatalysis. However, challenges remain relating to its industrial applications; the high charge carrier recombination rate and low light-harvesting efficiency being the main two. Herein, a novel strategy based on fabrication of a typical n-p heterojunction has been proposed and the typical narrow-bandgap p-type semiconductor Ag2O was chosen to be coupled with SrTiO3 using a facile chemical precipitation method. The phase compositions, microstructures and optical properties of the prepared SrTiO3/Ag2O heterostructured photocatalysts have been systematically investigated with an x-ray diffractometer, scanning electron microscope, high resolution transmission electron microscope, x-ray photoelectron spectroscope and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The photocatalytic properties were evaluated through photodegradation of a common organic dye Rhodamine B (RhB). The results demonstrated that the heterostructured photocatalyst SrTiO3/Ag2O-0.15 outperformed pristine SrTiO3 and Ag2O. Specifically, the reaction rate of SrTiO3/Ag2O-0.15 is about 69 times and 4 times that of bare SrTiO3 and Ag2O respectively in photodegradation of RhB. The excellent photocatalytic performance was attributed to the synergetic effect between the improved visible-light harvesting efficiency and inhibited electron-hole recombination rate arising from the built-in electric field in a p-n heterojunction, as evidenced by the transient photocurrent and photoluminescence spectrum investigation. Furthermore, the excellent recyclability of the heterostructured photocatalyst was confirmed and holes were verified to be the major active species contributing to the overall degradation. Our findings demonstrate construction of p-n heterojunctions with narrow-bandgap semiconductors as a feasible avenue to promote overall photocatalytic efficiency, through simultaneously boosting charge-carrier separation and expanding photon-absorption range.

The use of semiconductors with a ‘built in’ bias has now become of interest for a growing number of photoactive applications. Using a combination of spectroscopic techniques, gas chromatography in association with mass spectroscopy and NMR, we show that a sample of ferroelectric BaTiO3 decorated with nanostructured Ag denatures a standard dye molecule (Rhodamine B) via a photocatalytic oxidation mechanism. The photosensitized oxidation was inhibited due to band bending induced by ferroelectric polarisation. In the Ag–BaTiO3 system we find a slight hypsochromic wavelength shift during the initial stages of degradation (only 3 nm before 80% degradation percentage) and associate this shift with the cleavage of the chromophore structure which pre-empted deethylation. This shift in maximum absorption of the dye molecule did not occur until the later stages of molecule fragmentation. Our major identifiable breakdown intermediate was benzoic acid. A lack of other identifiable fragments during the breakdown of the dye is associated with retention of these fragments on the catalyst as full mineralisation of the dye liberates CO2.

Ba(Fe

BaTiO3 is used as a target catalyst to probe the influence of ferroelectricity on the decolorization of a typical dye molecule—Rhodamine B—under simulated solar light. We show that there is a 3-fold increase in the decolorization rate using BaTiO3 with a high tetragonal content compared to predominantly cubic material. This is ascribed to the ferroelectricity of the tetragonal phase. The influence of ferroelectricity ensures a tightly bound layer of dye molecule and also acts to separate the photoexcited carriers due to the internal space charge layer. Both of these features act to enhance the catalytic performance. When nanostructured Ag is photochemically deposited on the surface of the BaTiO3, we find a further increase in the reaction rate that gives complete decolorization of the dye in around 45 min.

Iron-nickel (Fe-Ni) alloy nanoribbons were reported for the first time by deoxidizing NiFe2O4 nanoribbons, which were synthesized through a handy route of electrospinning followed by air-annealing at 450 °C, in hydrogen (H2) at different temperatures. It was demonstrated that the phase configurations, microstructures and magnetic properties of the as-deoxidized samples closely depended upon the deoxidization temperature. The spinel NiFe2O4 ferrite of the precursor nanoribbons were firstly deoxidized into the body-centered cubic (bcc) Fe-Ni alloy and then transformed into the face-centered cubic (fcc) Fe-Ni alloy of the deoxidized samples with the temperature increasing. When the deoxidization temperature was in the range of 300 ~ 500 °C, although each sample possessed its respective morphology feature, all of them completely reserved the ribbon-like structures. When it was further increased to 600 °C, the nanoribbons were evolved completely into the fcc Fe-Ni alloy nanochains. Additionally, all samples exhibited typical ferromagnetism. The saturation magnetization (Ms) firstly increased, then decreased, and finally increased with increasing the deoxidization temperature, while the coercivity (Hc) decreased monotonously firstly and then basically stayed unchanged. The largest Ms (~145.7 emu·g−1) and the moderate Hc (~132 Oe) were obtained for the Fe-Ni alloy nanoribbons with a mixed configuration of bcc and fcc phases.

The multiferroic magnetoelectric composites have attracted great interest due to some new expected physics and wide practical applications. However, the low resistivity restricts their further applications. In this work, multiferroic 0.8BaTiO3–0.2BaFe12–xMnxO19 composite ceramics were prepared by microwave-hydrothermal and microwave-sintering methods. It was found that the dielectric constant of the composites increased with increasing x, while the resistivity increased gradually. Accordingly, the dielectric loss dropped as expected and the P–E loops showed slimmer shapes after introducing of Mn ions. In addition, the magnetic hysteresis loops of the composite ceramics prepared showed an excellent ferromagnetic behavior. In summary, smaller leakage current and slim P–E loops were obtained through Mn ion doping in BaFe12O19 and forming BaTiO3–BaFe12−xMnxO19 composite ceramics while maintaining their good ferromagnetic property successfully.