Oxidative exfoliation of spent cathode carbon:A two-in-one strategy for its decontamination and high-valued application

Spent cathode carbon(SCC)from aluminum electrolysis is a potential graphite resource.However,full use of the SCC remains a challenge,since it contains many hazardous substances(e.g.,fluoride salts,cyanides),encapsulated within the thick carbon layers and thus posing serious environmental concerns.This work presents a chemical oxidative exfoliation route to achieve the recycling of SCC and the decontaminated SCC with high-valued graphene oxide(GO)-like carbon structures(SCC-GO)is applied as an excellent adsorbent for organic pollutants.Specifically,after the oxidative exfoliation,the embedded hazardous constituents are fully exposed,facilitating their subsequent removal by aqueous leaching.Moreover,benefiting from the enhanced specific surface areas along with abundant O-containing functional groups,the as-produced SCC-GO,shows an adsorption capacity as high as 347 mg·g^(-1)when considering methylene blue as a pollutant model,which exceeds most of the recently reported carbon-based adsorbents.Our study provides a feasible solution for the efficient recycling of hazardous carbonaceous wastes.

Visible light triggered exfoliation of COF micro/nanomotors for efficient photocatalysis

We report a new facile light-induced strategy to disperse micron-sized aggregated bulk covalent organic frameworks(COFs)into isolated COFs nanoparticles.This was achieved by a series of metal-coordinated COFs,namely COF-909-Cu,-Co or-Fe,where for the first time the diffusio-phoretic propulsion was utilized to design COF-based micro/nanomotors.The mechanism studies revealed that the metal ions decorated in the COF-909 backbone could promote the separation of electron and holes and trigger the production of sufficient ionic and reactive oxygen species under visible light irradiation.In this way,strong light-induced self-diffusiophoretic effect is achieved,resulting in good dispersion of COFs.Among them,COF-909-Fe showed the highest dispersion performance,along with a drastic decrease in particle size from 5μm to500 nm,within only 30 min light irradiation,which is inaccessible by using traditional magnetic stirring or ultrasonication methods.More importantly,benefiting from the outstanding dispersion efficiency,COF-909-Fe micro/nanomotors were demonstrated to be efficient in photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline,about 8 times faster than using traditional magnetic stirring method.This work opens up a new avenue to prepare isolated nanosized COFs in a high-fast,simple,and green manner.

Synthesis of phosphonated graphene oxide by electrochemical exfoliation to enhance the performance and durability of high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells

The doping of functionalized graphene oxide(GO)in the membranes becomes a promising method for improving the performance of high-temperature proton exchange membrane fuel cells(HT-PEMFC).Phosphonated graphene oxide(PGO)with a P/O ratio of 8.5%was quickly synthesised by one-step electrochemical exfoliation based on a three-dimensiaonal(3D)printed reactor and natural graphite flakes.Compared with the GO prepared by the two-step electrochemical exfoliation method,the PGO synthesized by the one-step electrochemical exfoliation can better improve the performance of the membrane-electrode-assembly(MEA)based on the polybenzimidazole(PBI)membrane in the HTPEMFC.The doping of 1.5 wt%GO synthesised by electrochemical exfoliation with the 2-step method or reactor method in PBI increased the peak power density by 17.4%or 35.4%compared to MEA based on pure PBI membrane at 150℃,respectively.In addition,the doping of PGO in PBI improves its durability under accelerated stress test(AST).

Ultraviolet Photodetector based on Sr_(2)Nb_(3)O_(10) Perovskite Nanosheets

Liquid-phase exfoliation was employed to synthesize Sr_(2)Nb_(3)O_(10) perovskite nanosheets with thicknesses down to 1.76 nm.Transmission electron microscopy(TEM),atomic force microscope(AFM),X-ray photoelectron spectrometer(XPS),and other characterization techniques were used to evaluate the atomic structure and chemical composition of the exfoliated nanosheets.A UV photodetector based on individual Sr_(2)Nb_(3)O_(10) nanosheets was prepared to demonstrate the application of an ultraviolet(UV) photodetector.The UV photodetector exhibited outstanding photocurrent and responsivity with a responsivity of 3×10^(5) A·W^(-1) at 5 V bias under 280 nm illumination,a photocurrent of 60 nA,and an on/off ratio of 3×10^(2).

A Method of Evaluation Efficacy of Cosmetics Exfoliator and Its Application

Measuring the tanning skin can provide a scientific method to evaluate the efficacy of cosmetics exfoliator.Dihydroxyacetone(DHA,5.0%(w/w))was used to stain the inner forearms cuticle of subjects.The skin surface L*and b*were determined,then ITA and its recovery rate were calculated to evaluate the exfoliating efficacy of cosmetics.The results showed that no significant(P≥0.05)differences were observed for L*,b*and ITA on different skin surface of unstained subjects.After staining with DHA,no adverse reaction was found in the stained areas,and the changes of L*,b*and ITA on different skin surface were consistent(P≥0.05).Two different cosmetics were used continuously to exfoliate the skin in different areas.After treatment for 7 days,the corresponding areas of skin L*,b*and ITA had significant(P<0.05)improvement in comparison with negative control area.But there were differences in the evaluation results of the exfoliation efficacy using these three parameters.The recovery rate of ITA of two samples improved significantly(P<0.05)than the negative control area.The work indicated that using 5.0%DHA for skin browning and measuring the skin surface color change by ITA recovery rate can accurately and sensitively assess the skin cuticle renewal rate difference.This method can be used as one of the effective way to evaluate the efficacy of cosmetics exfoliation.

Electrochemical exfoliation of two-dimensional layered black phosphorus and applications

With the discovery of graphene,black phosphorus(BP)has been rediscovered as a two-dimensional(2 D)layered material.Since its first preparation in 2014,2 D BP has elicited immense interest,and has exhibited excellent properties,such as distinct pleated structures in layers,adjustable direct bandgap,high carrier mobility,moderate on/off ratio,large specific surface area,and various interesting in-layer anisotropies.However,the realization of these excellent properties depends on the preparation of highquality 2 D BP sheets.Electrochemical exfoliation methods are typically performed under mild conditions,thus,these methods are convenient,controllable,and can produce high-quality 2 D BP sheets.This review summarizes research progress in BP sheets preparation through anodic,cathodic,and electrolyte exfoliation in recent years.Different exfoliating methods affect the quality of 2 D BP sheets.Moreover,possible exfoliating mechanisms and the potential applications of different exfoliating methods are summarized and discussed in detail.Lastly,the shortcomings of existing research on electrochemical exfoliation are presented,and suggestions and prospects for future research on the electrochemical exfoliation of 2 D BP are proposed.

Synthesis of graphene materials by electrochemical exfoliation: Recent progress and future potential

Synthesis of structurally controlled graphene materials is critical for realizing their practical applications.The electrochemical exfoliation of graphite has emerged as a simple method to produce graphene materials.This review examines research progress in the last 5 years,from 2015 to 2019.Graphene material synthesis methods generally have a trade‐off between increasing production yield and achieving better material property control.The synthesis conditions for synthesizing pristine graphene,graphene oxide(GO),and graphene composites are significantly different.Thus,in this review,we first discuss synthesis methods for graphene materials with high C/O ratios from four aspects:graphite electrodes,equipment engineering,electrolytes,and additional reduction methods.Next,we survey synthesis methods for GO and examine how the pretreatment of the graphite electrodes,electrolytes,and operation parameters,such as applied voltages,electrolyte temperatures,and mechanical forces,affect the quality of GO.Further,we summarize electrochemical exfoliation methods used to dope graphene materials,introduce covalent functional groups,incorporate various nanoparticles,and assembly of graphene architectures.For all synthesis methods,we compare the properties of resulting graphene materials such as C/O ratios,lateral size,layer numbers,and quality characterized by Raman spectroscopy.Lastly,we propose our perspectives on further research.We hope this review stimulates more studies to realize the on‐demand production of graphene materials with desired properties using electrochemical exfoliation methods.

The Effect of Thermal Exfoliation Temperature on the Structure and Supercapacitive Performance of Graphene Nanosheets

Graphene nanosheets(GSs) were prepared from graphite oxide by thermal exfoliation method. The effect of thermal exfoliation temperature on the structure and supercapacitive performance of GSs has been investigated. The results show that the GSs with pore sizes center around 4.0 nm. With an increase of thermal reduction temperature, the number of stacking layers and the structure disorder degree increase, while the oxygen-containing groups content, BET surface area,and electrical resistivity of GSs decrease. The results indicate that 673 K is the preferable thermal exfoliation temperature to acquire good supercapacitive performance. In this case, the GSs have the best supercapacitive performance(233.1 F g-1) in a 6 mol L-1KOH electrolyte. The prepared GSs at the preferable thermal exfoliation temperature have good rate performance and cycle stability.

Effect of Scandium and Zirconium on Mechanical and Exfoliation Corrosion Properties of Al-Mg-Mn Alloys

To quest for the best combination of mechanical properties and exfoliation corrosion resisting property of Al-Mg-Mn base alloys, and to seek after the effect of Sc and Zr on mechanical and exfoliation corrosion properties of Al-Mg-Mn alloys, comparative research technique was used, the mechanical properties of Al-Mg-Mn alloys with and without minor Sc and Zr treated by different annealing were measured, the degrees of exfoliation corrosion for these alloys through accelerated exfoliation corrosion test were evaluated, and polarization curves of these alloys were measured, too. The micro-morphologies of corrosion specimens were observed by SEM and the corrosion product was analyzed using EDS. Optical microscope and TEM were used, the relationship between their microstruc-tures and mechanical properties, exfoliation corrosion resisting property was investigated, and the results show that the addition of minor Sc and Zr can enhance the strength greatly and also improve the combination of strength and plasticity. Moreover, the addition of minor Sc, Zr does not cause appreciable decrease of exfoliation corrosion resisting property, the Al-Mg-Mn-Sc-Zr alloy annealed at 350 ℃ for 1 h has excellent combination of mechanical properties and exfoliation corrosion resisting property, the satisfied combination of mechanical properties nad exfoliation corrosion resisting property can be obtained by means of adding minor Sc and Zr, decreasing the content of Mn, and adopting reasonable annealing practice.

Self-Exfoliation of Flake Graphite for Bioinspired Compositing with Aramid Nanofiber toward Integration of Mechanical and Thermoconductive Properties

Flexible yet highly thermoconductive materials are essential for the development of next-generation flexible electronic devices.Herein,we report a bioinspired nanostructured film with the integration of large ductility and high thermal conductivity based on self-exfoliated pristine graphene and three-dimensional aramid nanofiber network.A self-grinding strategy to directly exfoliate flake graphite into few-layer and few-defect pristine graphene is successfully developed through mutual shear friction between graphite particles,generating largely enhanced yield and productivity in comparison to normal liquid-based exfoliation strategies,such as ultrasonication,high-shear mixing and ball milling.Inspired by nacre,a new bioinspired layered structural design model containing three-dimensional nanofiber network is proposed and implemented with an interconnected aramid nanofiber network and high-loading graphene nanosheets by a developed continuous assembly strategy of sol-gel-film transformation.It is revealed that the bioinspired film not only exhibits nacre-like ductile deformation behavior by releasing the hidden length of curved aramid nanofibers,but also possesses good thermal transport ability by directionally conducting heat along pristine graphene nanosheets.

Cryogenic Exfoliation of 2D Stanene Nanosheets for Cancer Theranostics

Stanene(Sn)-based materials have been extensively applied in industrial production and daily life,but their potential biomedical application remains largely unexplored,which is due to the absence of the appropriate and effective methods for fabricating Sn-based biomaterials.Herein,we explored a new approach combining cryogenic exfoliation and liquid-phase exfoliation to successfully manufacture two-dimensional(2D)Sn nanosheets(SnNSs).The obtained SnNSs exhibited a typical sheet-like structure with an average size of~100 nm and a thickness of~5.1 nm.After PEGylation,the resulting PEGylated SnNSs(SnNSs@PEG)exhibited good stability,superior biocompatibility,and excellent photothermal performance,which could serve as robust photothermal agents for multi-modal imaging(fluorescence/photoacoustic/photothermal imaging)-guided photothermal elimination of cancer.Furthermore,we also used first-principles density functional theory calculations to investigate the photothermal mechanism of SnNSs,revealing that the free electrons in upper and lower layers of SnNSs contribute to the conversion of the photo to thermal.This work not only introduces a new approach to fabricate 2D SnNSs but also establishes the SnNSs-based nanomedicines for photonic cancer theranostics.This new type of SnNSs with great potential in the field of nanomedicines may spur a wave of developing Sn-based biological materials to benefit biomedical applications.

The role of electrolyte acid concentration in the electrochemical exfoliation of graphite:Mechanism and synthesis of electrochemical graphene oxide

Electrochemistry has emerged as a major route for graphene and graphene oxide synthesis from graphite.Anodic graphite oxidation is commonly used with dilute mineral acid or aqueous salt electrolytes.In this system,the electrolyte acid concentration appears to be a critical parameter.However,the effect of the acid concentration,particularly at low concentrations,is still not fully understood.To address this issue,we used a packed bed electrochemical reactor to synthesize seven different electrochemical graphite oxide(EGO)products in 2–16M sulfuric acid.Detailed XRD,XPS,Raman,conductivity and optical microscopy analysis of the products was carried out.We found dilute acid(<10 M)graphite oxides were less crystalline and less oxidized than those produced in stronger acids.The oxygen evolution reaction at the graphite surface appears to affect the structural changes,oxidation mechanism,and electrochemical corrosion of the anode.EGO conductivity is also strongly affected by the electrolyte’s acidity.We show that well oxidized,yet reasonably conductive,single layer graphene oxide can be produced from 7.1M acid.These results broaden our understanding of graphite electrochemistry and will serve to inform future electrochemical graphene synthesis efforts.

Electron microscopic investigation of anterior lens capsule in an individual with true exfoliation

AIMTo determine the changes which occur in the anterior capsule in true exfoliation which is a very rare condition.

Effect of Pre-Aging, Over-Aging and Re-Aging on Exfoliation Corrosion and Electrochemical Corrosion Behavior of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloys

By means of TEM, hardness, conductivity, tensile strength test, fracture toughness test, polarization curve and EIS, the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys treated by a new multi-stage aging system, i.e. pre-aging, over-aging and re-aging (120&#176;C/24h + 160&#176;C/8h + 120&#176;C/24h), were characterized. It is found that compared with the Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys treated by T76 (120&#176;C/24h + 160&#176;C/8h), the new multi-stage aging treatment can improve the tensile strength, fracture toughness, hardness and conductivity of the alloys at the same time. This is mainly due to the pre-aging, over-aging and re-aging process of super high strength aluminum alloys. Compared with the two-stage over aging process, the formation of multi-stage multi-phase precipitation structure can improve the strength, toughness and corrosion resistance of the alloys at the same time. The polarization curve is consistent with the conclusion. Therefore, we conducted this study to test how the comprehensive properties of the alloy can be improved.

Few-layered graphene via gas-driven exfoliation for enhanced supercapacitive performance

High-quality graphene flakes have long been desirable for numerous applications including energy stor- age, printable electronics, and catalysis. In this contribution, we report a green, efficient, facile gas-driven exfoliation process for the preparation of high-quality graphene in large scale. The gas exfoliation process was realized by the interplay between the expansion of interlayer at high temperature and the gasifi- cation of liquid nitrogen within the interlayer. Detailed experiments demonstrated that the higher tem- perature was critical to the formation of fewer layers. The exfoliated graphene was proved to be of high quality. We further investigated the electrochemical behavior of this exfoliated graphene. As a result, this few-layered graphene demonstrated an enhanced capability as a supercapacitor, much higher than its counterpart parent material.

Two-dimensional polyaniline nanosheets via liquid-phase exfoliation

Two-dimensional（2D） organic nanomaterials are fascinating because of their unique properties and pentential applications in future optoelectronic devices.Polyaniline（PANI） has attracted much attention for its high conductivity,good environmental stability and unusual doping chemistry.We report on liquid-phase exfoliation of layered PANI films grown by electrochemical polymerization.Atomic force microscopy images demonstrate that few-or even mono-layer PANI nanosheets can be fabricated.The PANI nanosheets can be transferred onto a variety of surfaces,providing a promising route to their incorporation into a variety of devices for further studies and various applications.

INTERGRANULAR AND EXFOLIATION CORROSION BEHAVIOUR OF 8090Al-Li ALLOY

The A1-2.79Li-1.3Cu-0.7Mg-0.12Zr(8090) alloy has excellent resistance to intergranular and exfoliation corrosion as naturally aged, worst as peak aged and rather better as underaged than as overaged. The corrosion behaviour of the alloy is closely dependent on its microstructure. Under the peak aging condition, the coarse T_2 phase, which is continuously distributed along grain boundaries, has so low corrosion potential in comparison with the ma- trix, this makes the corrosion resistance of the alloy to be deteriorated by anodic dissolution along grain boundaries.

Exfoliation of poly(ethylene glycol)-intercalated graphite oxide composite in water without sonication

A novel method for exfoliating graphite oxide(GrO)was implemented through the mass water absorption of a GrO–poly(ethylene glycol)(GrO–PEG)composite.The GrO–PEG composite was prepared by intercalating PEG into the lamellae of GrO,and the variation of the basal spacing was measured by X-ray diffraction analysis.The yield of graphene was measured with an ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer,and the properties of graphene oxide(GO)were characterized by atomic force microscopy,transmission electron microscopy(TEM),Raman spectrometry,and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.Increasing intercalation time was found to improve the yield of GO,whereas increasing the PEG molecular weight had the opposite effect.The GO sheets produced from the intercalation–absorption–exfoliation process were found to be a four-layer structure.TEM and Raman analyses indicate that the graphitized structure and oxygen groups of GO were preserved during the exfoliation process.Most importantly,the results show that good-quality GO could be prepared via a mild method involving water absorption of a GrO–PEG composite.

Association of LOXL1 gene common sequence variants in Jordanian patients with exfoliation syndrome and exfoliative glaucoma

AIM：To investigate the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms （SNPs） in the LOXL1 gene with exfoliation syndrome/glaucoma （XFS/XFG） among Jordanians.METHODS：Sixty-one patients with XFS/XFG and 59 healthy control individuals were recruited in the study.Patients were diagnosed with XFS/XFG using standard clinical examination techniques. The exonic rs1048661SNP and the intronic rs2165241 SNP in LOXL1 gene were genotyped using sequencing technique. Allele and genotype frequencies were compared between cases and controls using Chi-square analysis.RESULTS：The G allele of the rs1048661 SNP and the T allele of the rs2165241 SNP were common in the sample with frequencies of 86.4% and 81.4%, respectively. In addition, there were no significant differences in the genotypic and allelic distributions between patients and controls for rs1048661 SNP （P=0.770, OR=1.21, 95%CI：0.56-2.60） and for rs2165241 SNP （P=0.605, OR=1.12,95%CI：0.59-2.09）. In addition, no significant associations were found between haplotypes of the examined SNPs and XFS/XFG in the sample （P〉0.05）. CONCLUSION：Variations in LOXL1 gene may not be associated with XFS/XFG in the Jordanian population.More studies are required to confirm the current findings.

The association of LOXL1 polymorphisms with exfoliation syndrome/glaucoma: Meta-analysis

AIM: To investigate the association of lysyl oxidaselike 1(LOXL1) single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)with exfoliation syndrome(XFS)/exfoliation glaucoma(XFG).METHODS: Published manuscripts from Pub Med and EMBASE were identified until May 2014. Summary odds ratios(ORs) and 95% confidence intervals(CIs) for LOXL1(rs1048661, rs2165241 and rs3825942) polymorphisms and the risk of XFS/XFG were estimated using random-or fixed- effect model.· RESULTS: The three LOXL1 polymorphisms(rs1048661, rs3825942, and rs2165241) were associated with an increased risk for XFS/XFG among Caucasians,with OR 2.19(1.96-2.45), 8.8(6.05-12.79) and 3.41(3.11-3.73), respectively. On the contrast, the rs1048661 and rs2165241, but not rs3825942 polymorphism, have a potential protective effect on XFS/XFG in Asians, with OR0.06(0.02-0.18), 0.15(0.09-0.25), respectively.CONCLUSION: There is strong evidence that LOXL1 polymorphisms are associated with XFS/XFG risk. The strength of risk might be ethnicity-dependent.