Highly-efficient and autocatalytic reduction of NaHCO_3 into formate by in situ hydrogen from water splitting with metal/metal oxide redox cycle

The Earth’s sustainable development is threatened by the increasing atmospheric COlevel which can be attributed to the imbalance of COdue to the rapid consumption of fossil fuels caused by human activities and the slow absorption and conversion of COby nature. One of the efficient methods for reconstructing the balance of COshould involve the rapid conversion of COinto fuels and chemicals.The hydrogenation of COwith gaseous hydrogen is currently considered to be the most commercially feasible synthetic route, however, the supply of safe and economical hydrogen sources poses a significant challenge to up-scaling application. Direct utilization of hydrogen from dissociation of water, the most abundant, cheap and clean hydrogen resource, for the reduction of COwould be one of the most promising approaches for COutilization. This paper provides an overview of the current advances in research on highly efficient reduction of COor NaHCO, a representative compound of CO, into formic acid/formate by in situ hydrogen from water dissociation with a metal/metal oxide redox cycle under mild hydrothermal conditions.

Enhanced photocatalytic CO_(2) hydrogenation with wide-spectrum utilization over black TiO_(2) supported catalyst

Light-driven conversion of CO_(2)into chemicals/fuels is a desirable approach for achieving carbon neutral-ity using clean and sustainable energy.However,its scale-up application is restricted due to insufficient efficiency.Herein,we present a photothermal catalytic hydrogenation of CO_(2)into CH_(4)over Ru/black TiO_(2) catalysts,aiming to achieve the synergistic use of light and heat in solar energy during CO_(2)conversion.Owing to the desirable spectral response ability and photothermal conversion performance of black TiO_(2),an efficient combination of photocatalysis and thermocatalysis has been established.The CO_(2)hydrogena-tion was significantly accelerated because of the increased catalyst surface temperature enabled by the photothermal effect of black TiO_(2).Simultaneously,through the in situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS)observation,electron-rich Ru nanoparticles was achieved based on the photo-induced excitation,thereby providing more negative hydride to improve nucleophilic attack to the CO_(2),obtaining the CH_(4) yield of 93.8%.

Alternative splicing patterns of doublesex reveal a missing link between Nix and doublesex in the sex determination cascade of Aedes albopictus

Sexual development in insects is regulated by a complicated hierarchical cascade of sex determination.The primary signals are diverse,whereas the central nexus doublesex(dsx)gene is relatively conserved within the pathway.Aedes(Stegomyia)albopictus is an important vector with an extensive worldwide distribution.We previously reported that Ae.albopictus dsx(Aalbdsx)yields one male-(Aalbdsx^(M))and three female-specific isoforms(Aalbdsx^(F1-3));however,the spatiotemporal expression profiles and mechanisms regulating sex-specific alternative splicing require further investigation.In this study,we demonstrated that the Aalbdsx^(M) messenger RNA(mRNA)represents the default pattern when analyzed in human foreskin fibroblasts and HeLa cells.We combined reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction with RNA immunoprecipitation using specific antibodies against tagged Ae.albopictus male-determining factor AalNix and confirmed that AalNix indirectly regulates dsx pre-mRNA and regulates its alternative splicing.During the early embryo stage(0-2 and 4-8 h),maternal dsx^(F) and default splicing dsx^(M) were detected in both sexes;the expression of dsx^(M) then decreased until sufficient AalNix transcripts accumulated in male embryos at 20-24 h.These findings suggest that one or more potential dsx splicing enhancers can shift dsx^(M) to dsx^(F) in both sexes;however,the presence of Nix influences the function of this unknown splicing enhancer and ultimately leads to the formation of dsx^(M) in males.Finally,our results provide important insight into the regulatory mechanism of dsx alternative splicing in the mosquito.

Electron-Beam Irradiation Induced Regulation of Surface Defects in Lead Halide Perovskite Thin Films

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites(OIHPs)have been intensively studied due to their fascinating optoelectronic performance.Electron microscopy and related characterization techniques are powerful to figure out their structure-property relationships at the nanoscale.However,electron beam irradiation usually causes damage to these beam-sensitive materials and thus deteriorates the associated devices.Taking a widely used CH_(3)NH_(3)PbI_(3)film as an example,here,we carry out a comprehensive study on how electron beam irradiation affects its properties.Interestingly,our results reveal that photoluminescence(PL)intensity of the film can be significantly improved along with blue-shift of emission peak at a specific electron beam dose interval.This improvement stems from the reduction of trap density at the CH_(3)NH_(3)PbI_(3)surface.The knock-on effect helps expose a fresh surface assisted by the surface defect-induced lowering of displacement threshold energy.Meanwhile,the radiolysis process consistently degrades the crystal structure and weaken the PL emission with the increase of electron beam dose.Consequently,the final PL emission comes from a balance between knock-on and radiolysis effects.Taking advantage of the defect regulation,we successfully demonstrate a patterned CH_(3)NH_(3)PbI_(3)film with controllable PL emission and a photodetector with enhanced photocurrent.This work will trigger the application of electron beam irradiation as a powerful tool for perovskite materials processing in micro-LEDs and other optoelectronic applications.