High-quality SiO_2 Colloidal Crystal Fabricated by Controllable Vertical Deposition Method

Monodispersed silica microspheres with diameter of 353nm were assembled into photonic crystal in ethanol colloidal suspensions of varied silica volume fraction at different temperature and humidity by means of controllable vertical deposition method. The surface morphology and optical properties were studied by SEM and UV-Vis-NIR. It was found that the high-quality silica colloidal photonic crystals were obtained from ethanol solutions with environment temperature between 45℃ and 55℃, humidity between 66% and 76%, the volume fraction of microspheres is between 0.8% and 1.5%. The ordered close-packed photonic crystal fabricated by controllable vertical deposition method had the two photonic bandgaps in the visible light band and near infrared band.

3D Artificial Array Interface Engineering Enabling Dendrite-Free Stable Zn Metal Anode

The ripple effect induced by uncontrollable Zn deposition is considered as the Achilles heel for developing high-performance aqueous Zn-ion batteries.For this problem,this work reports a design concept of 3D artificial array interface engineering to achieve volume stress elimination,preferred orientation growth and dendrite-free stable Zn metal anode.The mechanism of MXene array interface on modulating the growth kinetics and deposition behavior of Zn atoms were firstly disclosed on the multi-scale level,including the in-situ optical microscopy and transient simulation at the mesoscopic scale,in-situ Raman spectroscopy and in-situ X-ray diffraction at the microscopic scale,as well as density functional theory calculation at the atomic scale.As indicated by the electrochemical performance tests,such engineered electrode exhibits the comprehensive enhancements not only in the resistance of corrosion and hydrogen evolution,but also the rate capability and cyclic stability.High-rate performance(20 mA cm^(-2))and durable cycle lifespan(1350 h at 0.5 mA cm^(-2),1500 h at 1 mA cm^(-2)and 800 h at 5 mA cm^(-2))can be realized.Moreover,the improvement of rate capability(214.1 mAh g^(-1)obtained at 10 A g^(-1))and cyclic stability also can be demonstrated in the case of 3D MXene array@Zn/VO2battery.Beyond the previous 2D closed interface engineering,this research offers a unique 3D open array interface engineering to stabilize Zn metal anode,the controllable Zn deposition mechanism revealed is also expected to deepen the fundamental of rechargeable batteries including but not limited to aqueous Zn metal batteries.

Controlling electrodeposited Ni layers by different-sized graphene oxides enables conductive e-textiles for the highly sensitive electrochemical detection of glucose

With the increasing popularity of wearable electronic devices,there is an urgent demand to develop electronic textiles(e-textiles)for device fabrication.Nevertheless,the difficulty in reconciliation between conductivity and manufacturing costs hinders their large-scale practical applications.Herein,we reported a facile and economic method for preparing conductive e-textiles.Specifically,nonconductive polypropylene(PP)was wrapped by reduced graphene oxide(rGO),followed by the electrodeposition of Ni nanoparticles(NPs).Notably,modulating the sheet size of graphene oxide(GO)resulted in controllable deposition of Ni NPs with adjustable size,allowing for controlled manipulations over the structures,morphologies,and conductivity of the obtained e-textiles,which influenced their performance in electrochemical glucose detection subsequently.The optimal material,denoted as Ni/rGO+(0.2)/PP,exhibited an impressive conductivity of 7.94×10^(4)S·m^(−1).With regard to the excellent conductivity of the as-prepared e-textiles and the high electrocatalytic activity of Ni for glucose oxidation,the asprepared e-textiles were subjected to glucose detection.It was worth emphasizing that the Ni/rGO_(0.2)/PP-based electrode demonstrated promising performance for nonenzymatic/label-free glucose detection,with a detection limit of 0.36μM and a linear response range of 0.5μM to 1 mM.This study paves the way for further development and application prospects of conductive etextiles.

Fabrication of high-quality three-dimensional photonic crystal heterostructures

Three-dimensional photonic crystal （PC） heterostructures with high quality are fabricated by using a pressure controlled isothermal heating vertical deposition technique. The formed heterostructures have higher quality, such as deeper band gaps and sharper band edges, than the heterostructures reported so far. Such a significant improvement in quality is due to the introduction of a thin TiO2 buffer layer between the two constitutional PCs. It is revealed that the disorder caused by lattice mismatch is successfully removed if the buffer layer is used once. As a result, the formed heterostructures possess the main features in the band gap of constitutional PCs. The crucial role of the thin buffer layer is also verified by numerical simulations based on the finite-difference time-domain technique.

Ashless Multi-Functional Friction Modifier for Modern Engine Oils

Automotive manufacturers are currently under pressure to improve fuel efficiency,and at the same time,reduce exhaust gas emission.To meet new emission requirements,modern vehicles are equipped with exhaust gas after-treatment devices.However,as sulfated ash,phosphorus and sulfur(SAPS) have a detrimental impact on these after-treatment devices,the use of low-or zero-SAPS additives is favored.Irgalube F 10 A is an additive that does not contain any metal,phosphorus or sulfur.It enables formulators to develop ...

Removing coarse sediment by sorting of reservoirs

Reservoir sedimentation is an unsolved problem.In this paper,based on measured data,theoretical analysis and numerical computations,we prove that a proportion of the sediment coarser than 0.1 mm(CS) is sorted and deposited in specific reaches in the upper backwaters or in run-of-river reservoirs.The ratio of CS is usually small but it impacts the slope of deposition delta greatly and raises the backwater in later stages for a river shaped reservoir(RSR).Based on these facts,we propose to remove such CS from a fixed basin(FB) in the upper backwater by dredging and we prove that the removal of CS is effective in reducing sediment deposition and in preserving the long-term capacity of reservoirs.A numerical model computation of the Three Gorges Project(TGP) reservoir indicates that dredging 30×106-50×106 t/a of CS could reduce 20% total deposition by the end of 100th year,so that the slope of deposition can be slowed down by 25%-30%.This would be remarkable for a long extended RSR.This method of removing CS can also be applied to the Xiaolangdi reservoir(XLD) on the Yellow River(YR) to not only limit reservoir deposition but also filter out the CS from entering the Lower Yellow River(LYR) to slow down the rise of the perched LYR.It provides a new alternative to postpone the continuous siltation of the LYR.