Sol-gel preparation, corrosion resistance and hydrophilicity of Ta-containing TiO_2 films on Ti6Al4V alloy

Ta-containing TiO2 films with Ta contents of 5%, 20%, 33% （mole fraction） were sol-gel coated on the surface roughened Ti6AI4V alloy by dip coating method for biomedical applications. The Ta-TiO2 films on 1.5 mol/L NaOH-HCI pretreated substrate are adherent, but there are cracks for the sample with 33% Ta. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results show that Ti and Ta exist as TiP2 and Ta205 in the film, and A1 element is not detectable. X-ray diffraction and Raman scattering analyses reveal that the addition of Ta decreases crystallization of the films. Potentiodynamic polarization test in a Ca-free Hank＇s balanced solution demonstrates that the coating samples markedly improve the corrosion resistance compared with the polished sample. The addition of Ta impedes UV light-induced hydrophilic conversion of the coating samples. The sample with 20% Ta has enough film integrity and hydrophilic conversion rate, and is expected to possess good biological properties.

Improvement of hydrophilicity of porous PVDF membranes with LiCl additives

Porous polyvinylidene fluoride（PVDF）membranes blended with LiCl are prepared through the phase inversion method to obtain a good support layer for air dehumidification.The hydrophilicity of the resulting membrane is evaluated by water contact angle measurements and vapor adsorption tests.The moisture permeation performance of the membrane is measured by permeation tests in terms of total mass transfer coefficients and moisture permeability rates.It is found that water contact angles and water vapor adsorption capacities increase with the increasing LiCl content in the casting solution.As the LiCl content increases,the total mass transfer coefficient increases slightly at a low LiCl content（below 2.5%）and then improves greatly at a high LiCl content（above 2.5%）,whereas the moisture permeation rate increases.The results demonstrate that LiCl can remarkably improve the hydrophilicity of PVDF membranes,and then greatly enhance moisture permeation performance.

An unusual network of α-MnO_(2) nanowires with structure-induced hydrophilicity and conductivity for improved electrocatalysis

Nanowires with anisotropic morphologies have been applied in various scientific and technological areas.It is also widely employed to fabricate nanowires into high-dimensional superstructures(arrays,networks etc.)to overcome the shortcomings of low-dimensional nanowires.However,typical strategies for constructing these superstructures are restricted to complicated and harsh synthetic conditions,not to mention unique 3D structures with advanced properties beyond common superstructures.Herein,we report an unusual network ofα-MnO_(2)nanowires with structure-induced hydrophilicity and conductivity.In the network,the nanowires are interconnected from all directions by nodes,and the 3D network structure is formed from the endless connection of nodes in a node-by-node way.The unique network structure brings about high hydrophilicity and conductivity,both of which are positive factors for an efficient electrocatalyst.Accordingly,the α-MnO_(2) network was tested for electrocatalytic water oxidation and showed significantly enhanced activity compared with isolatedα-MnO_(2)nanowires and 3Dα-MnO_(2)microspheres.This study not only provides a synthetic route toward an advanced network structure but also a new idea for the design of materials for electrochemistry with both efficient mass diffusion and charge transfer.

Preparation and Hydrophilicity of Copolymerization of Chitosan Selectively Grafted by Polyethylene Glycol

Copolymerization of chitosan selectively grafted by polyethylene glycol was prepared. Chitosan was selectively grafted by monomethoxy polyethylene glycol（mPEG-OH）, which contained a hydroxyl group combining with hexamethylene diisocyanate（HDI） to form a novel macromonomer namely monomethoxy polyethylene glycol isocyanate（mPEG-NCO） containing a isocyanate group with higher chemical activity in ethyl glyoxalate solution absolutely without water. The selective grafted copolymerization of Chitosan with mPEG-NCO was conducted under heterogeneous conditions as suspension in dimethylformamide. The hydrophilic copolymers of chitosan were prepared by condensation reaction of isocyanate group on mPEG- NCO with hydroxy groups on chitosan chains because amino groups on chitosan chains were protected by complexion formation with copper ions. The effect of reaction condition on the grafting extents was discussed. Swelling properties of mPEG-g-CS were researched. The graft copolymer mPEG-g-CS was characterized by the infrared spectra. The experimental result showed that the copper ions were very effective to protect amino groups from condensation reaction. The swelling degree in water increases with adding of grafting ratio. The maximum swelling degree was up to above 132% when the grafting ratio was about 270%. The graft copolymer can be soluble partially in pure water.

Three different low-temperature plasma-based methods for hydrophilicity improvement of polyethylene films at atmospheric pressure

Three different low-temperature plasma-based methods were used to improve the surface hydrophilicity of polyethy- lene （PE） films, and all the modification processes were carried out by employing an atmospheric pressure plasma jet （APPJ） system. （a） PE films were directly modified by APPJ using a gas mixture of He and 02. （b） Acrylic acid （AA） was introduced into the system and a polymer acrylic acid （PAA） coating was deposited onto the PE films. （c） AA was grafted onto the PE surface activated by plasma pre-treatment. It was found that the hydrophilicity of the PE films was significantly improved for all the three methods. However, the samples modified by Process （a） showed hydrophobicity recovery after a storage time of 20 days while no significant change was found in samples modified by Process （b） and Process （c）. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR） results indicated that the most intensive C=O peak was detected on the PE surface modified by Process （c）. According to the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） analysis, the ratios of oxygen-containing polar groups for samples modified by Process （b） and Process （c） were higher than that modified by Process （a）.

HYDROPHOBICITY－HYDROPHILICITY BALANCE RELATIONSHIPSFORCOLLECTORLESSFLOTATIONOFSULPHIDEMINERALS

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Hydrophilicity Modification of Addition-cured Room Temperature Vulcanization Silicone Rubber

Allyl terminated polyether was used to improve the hydrophilicity of addition-cured room temperature vulcanization silicone rubber. With the increasing of the polyether, both the hydrophilicity and water absorbed of the vulcanizates were increased. The mechanical properties were also improved by adding the polyether. The result showed that 1.5wt% of the polyether provided the silicone rubber with proper hydrophilicity.

Increase in the Hydrophilicity and Lewis Acid-Base Properties of Solid Surfaces Achieved by Electric Gliding Discharge in Humid Air: Effects on Bacterial Adherence

This study addressed the effects of treatment with gliding discharge plasma on the surface properties of solid materials, as well as the consequences concerning adherence of a model bacterium. As evaluated by contact angles with selected liquids, plasma treatment caused an increase in surface hydrophilicity and in the Lewis acid-base components of the surface energy of all materials tested. These modifications were more marked for low density polyethylene and stainless steel than for polytetrafiuoroethylene. After treatment, the hydrophilicity of the materials remained relatively stable for at least 20 days. Moreover, analysis of the topography of the materials by atomic force microscopy revealed that the roughness of both polymers was reduced by glidarc plasma treatment. As a result of all these modifications, solid substrates were activated towards micro-organisms and the adherence of S. epidermidis, a negatively charged Lewis-base and mildly hydrophilic strain selected as the model, was increased in almost all the cases tested.

Surface Modification of Biodegradable Poly(D,L-lactic acid) by Nitrogen and Nitrogen/Hydrogen Plasma for Improving Surface Hydrophilicity

Enhancement of the surface hydrophilicity of biodegradable poly （D,L-lactic acid） （PLA） films is studied. The PLA films were treated by nitrogen plasma （PLA-N2） and nitro- gen/hydrogen plasma （PLA-N2/H2）, respectively. The surface properties and microstructure of PLA-N2 and PLA-N2/H2 were studied by static contact angle measurement, surface free energy calculation, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） and atomic force microscopy （AFM）. It is confirmed that the surface hydrophilicity of PLA-N2 and PLA-N2/H2 was higher than that of pristine PLA, and the surface hydrophilicity of PLA-N2 films was better than that of PLA-N2/H2.

Self-Organizing Evolution of Anodized Oxide Films on Ti-25Nb-3Mo-2Sn-3Zr Alloy and Hydrophilicity

In the present work,hierarchical nanostructured titanium dioxide(TiO2) films were fabricated on Ti-25Nb-3Mo-2Sn-3Zr(TLM) alloy for biomedical applications via one-step anodization process in ethylene glycolbased electrolyte containing 0.5wt% NH4F.The nanostructured TiO2 films exhibited three distinct types depending on the anodization time:top irregular nanopores(INP)/beneath regular nanopores(RNP),top INP/middle regular nanotubes(RNT)/bottom RNP and top RNT with underlying RNP.The evolution of the nanostructured TiO2 films with anodization time demonstrated that self-organizing nanopores formed at the very beginning and individual nanotubes originated from underlying nanopore dissolution.Furthermore,a modified two-stage self-organizing mechanism was introduced to illustrate the growth of the nanostructured TiO2 films.Compared with TLM titanium alloy matrix,the TiO2 films with special nano-structure hold better hydrophilicity and higher specific surface area,which lays the foundation for their biomedical applications.

Theoretical Study on Thermodynamic Properties and Hydrophilicity of Polychorinated Phenothiazines (PCPTZs)

The thermodynamic properties of 135 polychlorinated phenothiazines （PCPTZs） in the standard state are calculated using a combination of quantum mechanical computations performed with the Gaussian 03 program at the B3LYP/6-311G^＊＊ level, and their octanol-water partition coefficients （logKow） are calculated based on group contributions. The chlorine substitution pattern strongly influenced the thermodynamic properties and hydrophilicity of the compounds. The thermodynamic properties of congeners also depend on the chlorine substitution pattern. The effect of chlorine substitution pattern is quantitatively studied by considering the mmaber and position of Cl atom substitution （Npcs）. The results show that the Npcs model may be used to predict the thermodynamic properties and hydrophilicity for all 135 PCPTZ congeners.

Surface Modification of Polyglycolic Acid Fibers by Hydrogen Peroxide for Enhancing Hydrophilicity and Cytocompatibility

Hydrogen peroxide( H_2O_2) is applied for surface modification of polyglycolic acid( PGA) fibers in order to enhance the hydrophilicity and cytocompatibility of PGA fibers effectively,and maintain the breaking strength as the same time. PGA fibers are dipped in H_2O_2 solution a certain time for modification. Scanning electron microscopy( SEM) was used to observe the surface morphology of PGA fibers before and after modification. The varying of PGA macromolecule was examined with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy( FTIR) analyses. X-ray diffraction( XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry( DSC) analysis showed that crystallinity slightly decreases. Mechanical performance test showed tensile force of modified PGA fiber was increased. The water contact angle test indicated the improving of hydrophilic. A cell proliferation assay showed that fibroblast cells attach and proliferate well on the fibers, which meant the modified fibers possess good cytocompatibility. These results suggest that H_2O_2 surface modification is easy to operate and a advantageous modification method for PGA fibers.

Enhancing Hydrophilicity of Thick Electrodes for High Energy Density Aqueous Batteries

Thick electrodes can substantially enhance the overall energy density of batteries.However,insufficient wettability of aqueous electrolytes toward electrodes with conventional hydrophobic binders severely limits utilization of active materials with increasing the thickness of electrodes for aqueous batteries,resulting in battery performance deterioration with a reduced capacity.Here,we demonstrate that controlling the hydrophilicity of the thicker electrodes is critical to enhancing the overall energy density of batteries.Hydrophilic binders are synthesized via a simple sulfonation process of conventional polyvinylidene fluoride binders,considering physicochemical properties such as mechanical properties and adhesion.The introduction of abundant sulfonate groups of binders(i)allows fast and sufficient electrolyte wetting,and(ii)improves ionic conduction in thick electrodes,enabling a significant increase in reversible capacities under various current densities.Further,the sulfonated binder effectively inhibits the dissolution of cathode materials in reactive aqueous electrolytes.Overall,our findings significantly enhance the energy density and contribute to the development of practical zinc-ion batteries.

Amino Acids Functionalized Graphene Oxide for Enhanced Hydrophilicity and Antifouling Property of Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Membranes

Herein, functionalized graphene oxide（GO） was prepared by the covalent functionalization with amino acids（lysine, glycine, glutamic acid and tyrosine） in this study. Zeta potential results demonstrated that covalent functionalization of GO with amino acids was favourable for their homogeneous dispersion in water and organic solvents. Based on the higher absolute value of zeta potential and the better dipersion stability of GO-lysine, the PVDF/GO-lysine hybrid membranes were then prepared via the phase inversion induced by immersion precipitation technique. SEM images showed a better pore diameter and porosity distribution on the PVDF/GO-lysine membrane surface. The zeta potential absolute value of the PVDF/GO-lysine membrane surface was higher than that of the virgin PVDF membrane. Furthermore, the PVDF/GO-lysine membranes surface exhibited good hydrophilicity. The water flux of PVDF/GO-lysine membranes can reach two times of that of the virgin PVDF membrane. And the BSA adsorbed amount on PVDF/GO-lysine surface was decreased to 0.82 mg/cm^2 for PVDF/GO-lysine-8% membrane. Filtration experiment results indicated that the fouling resistance was significantly improved for the PVDF/GO-lysine membranes. As a result, lysine functionalized GO will provide a promising method to fabricate graphene oxide based hybrid membranes with effective antifouling property and hydrophilicity.

Development of hydrophilicity gradient ultracentrifuga- tion method for photoluminescence investigation of separated non-sedimental carbon dots

Carbon nanodots （CDs） formed by hydrothermal dehydration occur as mixtures of differently sized nanoparticles with different degrees of carbonization. Common ultracentrifugation has failed in sorting them, owing to their extremely high colloidal stability. Here, we introduce an ultracentrifugation method using a hydrophilicity gradient to sort such non-sedimental CDs. CDs, synthesized from citric acid and ethylenediamine, were pre-treated by acetone to form clusters. Such clusters ＂de-clustered＂ as media comprising gradients of ethanol they were forced to sediment through and water with varied volume ratios. Primary CDs with varied sizes and degrees of carbonization detached from the clusters to become well dispersed in the corresponding gradient layers. Their settling level was highly dependent on the varied hydrophilicity and solubility of the environmental media. Thus, the proposed hydrophilicity-triggered sorting strategy could be used for other nanoparticles with extremely high colloidal stability, which further widens the range of sortable nanoparticles. Furthermore, according to careful analysis of the changes in size, composition, quantum yield, and transient fluorescence of typical CDs in the post-separation fractions, it was concluded that the photoluminescence of the as-prepared hydrothermal carbonized CDs mainly arose from the particles＇ surface molecular state rather than their sizes.

ENHANCING HYDROPHILICITY AND PROTEIN RESISTANCE OF SILICONE HYDROGELS BY PLASMA INDUCED GRAFTING WITH HYDROPHILIC POLYMERS

The hydrophilicity of silicone hydrogels used as soft corneal contact lens plays an important role in wearing comfort. In order to enhance hydrophilicity and protein resistance, silicone hydrogel membranes were modified by atmospheric pressure glow discharge plasma （APGDP） induced surface graft polymerization of N-vinyl pyrrolidone （NVP） and poly（oligoethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate） （PEGMA） in this paper. XPS analysis demonstrated the success of graft polymerization of NVP and PEGMA onto the surface of silicone hydrogel membranes. The hydrophilicity of silicone hydrogels was characterized by the measurement of water contact angle （WCA）. The result showed that NVP grafted silicone hydrogel has the WCA of about 68° and PEGMA grafted silicone hydrogel has the lowest WCA of about 62°, while the pristine silicone hydrogel is hydrophobic with the WCA of about 103°. Protein resistance of silicone hydrogels was investigated by the method of bicinchoninic acid assay using bovine serum albumin （BSA） as a model. It＇s found that the grafted silicone hydrogel has a significant improvement of protein resistance, and PEGMA grafting is more efficient for the reduction of protein adsorption than NVP grafting. The silicone hydrogel membranes grafted with NVP and PEGMA are good candidates of soft corneal contact lenses.

Effective Antarctic krill oil extraction using switchable hydrophilicity solvents

Antarctic krill has been widely studied because of its abundant biomass,rich nutritional value,and great production potential.Notably,krill oil(KO)is rich in phospholipids(PLs),polyunsaturated fatty acids(PUFAs),and astaxanthin.A method based on a green switchable hydrophilicity solvent N,7V-dimethyIcyclohexylamine(DMCHA),which can reversibly change from oil soluble to water soluble in the presence of CO2 was used to extract KO from frozen Antarctic krill as it consumes less energy than traditional methods.We showed that DMCHA destroyed the surface structure of Antarctic krill and accelerated the dissolution of KO.In addition,this method enabled the PL extraction to reach up to 80.2%of total PLs,among which PC accounted for the highest proportion,up to 90.91%in PL.In fact,the astaxanthin extraction reached up to 81.44%of total astaxanthin while the fatty acid(FA)extraction up to 84.35%.The KO extracted through DMCHA was rich in PUFA,up to 47.74%,and the content of EPA+DHA reached 42.16%of total FA content.Furthermore,the amount of residual solvent in the lipid phase was just 0.23%of the DMCHA used for the extraction and the recovery rate of solvent was up to 93.2%.Our results demonstrated the high efficiency of oil extraction and the environmental friendliness of this method.

Reason for the loss of hydrophilicity of TiO_2 film and its photocatalytic regeneration

TiO2 film was prepared on soda-lime glass by sol-gel method. The water contact angle (?w) of the fresh TiO2 film is 0°. During storage in air, the surface of TiO2 film is gradually converted to the hydrophobic state. XPS and ITD results reveal that it is due to the adsorption of organic contaminants on TiO2 surface in air ambience. The lost hydrophilicity of TiO2 film can be regenerated by UV illumination.

Force-Induced Enhancement of Hydrophilicity of Individual Polymethyl Methacrylate Chain

Comprehensive Summary,Polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA)has been widely applied in diverse fields such as medicine and engineering materials due to its good hydrophilicity and biocompatibility.However,another term for PMMA,Plexiglas,means that it is water insoluble.These features of PMMA are valuable but seem paradoxical.To explore the underlying mechanism of the paradoxical properties,the interactions between PMMA and water have been investigated by atomic force microscopy(AFM)-based single-molecule force spectroscopy(SMFS).The single-chain elasticity of PMMA obtained in aqueous solutions is significantly different from that obtained in non-aqueous environments,implying that PMMA can form hydrogen bonds with water molecules.

Self-supporting hierarchically micro/nano-porous Ni_(3)P-Co_(2)P-based film with high hydrophilicity for efficient hydrogen production

Designing efficient and stable non-precious metal HER(hydrogen evolution reaction)electrocatalysts with high large current density adaptability is significant for industrial application of hydrogen production by water electrolysis.Herein,a facile strategy was developed to construct a multi-phase Ni3 P-Co_(2)P-(Ni-Co)film with self-supporting hierarchically micro/nano-porous structure by using bubble template method electrodeposition of self-supporting micro-porous Ni Co P film,oxygen-free annealing for phase separation producing Ni_(3)P-Ni-Co_(2)P-Co structure,and acid etching for constructing surface nano-porous structure.The effective active sites for HER was significantly increased due to the hierarchically micro/nano-porous structure,which not only enlarged the surface roughness,but enhanced the bubble detachment by improving the hydrophilicity.Meanwhile,the HER electrolysis durability was improved benefiting from the Ni_(3)P-Co_(2)P phases with high corrosion resistance(especially in acid solution)and the self-supporting film structure without binder.Consequently,the Ni Co P-OA-AE film exhibited high HER catalytic performance,which delivered a current density of 10 m A cm^(-2)at a low overpotential of 42.9 and 39.7 m V in 1 M KOH and 0.5 M H_(2)SO_(4),respectively.It also possessed high long-term electrolysis durability,and the cell voltage of water electrolysis using self-supporting porous Ni Co P-OA-AE||Ir O_(2)-Ta_(2)O_(5) electrolyzer at 500 m A cm^(-2)for 250 h in 0.5 M H_(2)SO_(4 )is only 2.9 V.