The Study on Bamboo Microfibers Isolated by Steam Explosion and Their Comprehensive Properties

To overcome the shortage of wood resources as well as to develop novel natural fibers materials,the Chimonobambusa quadrangularis(CQ)and Qiongzhuea tumidinoda(QT)planted in Southwest China were effectively isolated by the steam explosion(SE).The fine and uniform bamboo microfibers derived from CQ and QT were obtained,and their smallest average widths were 12.62μm and 16.05μm,respectively.The effects of steam explosion on the micro-morphology,chemical composition,thermal stability,crystallinity,surface wettability,and mechanical properties of bamboo microfibers were comprehensively investigated.The results showed that the relative content of cellulose in bamboo microfibers increased but the hemicellulose and lignin contents decreased after SE.The degrees of crystallinity for CQ and QT increased from 40.49%and 39.46%to 68.90%and 55.78%,respectively.The thermal stability and surface hydrophilicity were also improved.The CQ microfibers had a maximum decomposition temperature of 2.79°C,a tensile strength of 58.54 MPa,an elongation at break of 0.6%,and a water contact angle of 2.7°higher than those of the QT microfibers.

Eco-friendly aqueous foam stabilized by cellulose microfibers with great salt tolerance and high temperature resistance

A low-cost eco-friendly aqueous foam,especially the robust foam with great tolerance to high salinity and high temperature,is in great demand in the oil industry,e.g.,oil and gas well or geothermal well drilling.Herein,an ultra-stable aqueous foam was developed using the biodegradable cellulose microfiber(CMF)as a foam stabilizer.The foam stabilized by CMF shows excellent tolerance to the high concentration of NaCl(6.0 wt%)and CaCl_(2)(0.25 wt%)and the related drainage half-life times(T_(0.5))reach 1750 and 2340 s respectively.By contrast,the foams without CMF are completely drained(T_(0.5)=0 s)when NaCl concentration is greater than 6.0 wt%or CaCl_(2) concentration is greater than 0.20 wt%.Notably,T0.5 of the foams stabilized by CMF at these saline concentrations still can maintain above 1000 s even after aging at 120℃ for 16 h,exhibiting an outstanding foam-stabilizing performance at high temperature.Experimental results suggest that the salt and high-temperature tolerance of CMF in foam stabilization is attributed to the electrically uncharged surfaces,the formation of a gel-like structure and the excellent thermal stability.This work not only provides a promising candidate of aqueous foam stabilizer to deal with high temperature and high salinity but also presents a natural-based solution for an environmentally friendly drilling industry in the future.

Preparation of TiO2/Bi2O3 Microfibers and Their Photocatalytic Activity

A series of TiO2/Bi2O3 heterojunction microfibers have been fabricated using cotton fibers as bio-templates, and characterized by XRD, SEM and UV-Vis techniques. Results reveal that Bi2O3 in the TiO2/Bi2O3 sample is assigned to monoclinic and tetragonal mix-crystal phase. Fibers lengths can reach several micrometers and diameters range from 0.5 μm to 3 μm. Compared with pure TiO2 and Bi2O3, TiO2/Bi2O3 samples display better absorption in visible light region. Photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of MB under visible light irradiation. TiO2/Bi2O3 microfibers exhibite much higher activity than pure TiO2 and Bi2O3, and 22.84%TiO2/Bi2O3 can achieve the decomposition of about 95%MB, which is attributed to synergistic effects of the strong visible-light absorption of TiO2/Bi2O3 microfibers and the heterojunction formed between TiO2 and Bi2O3.

Enhancement of microwave absorption of nanocomposite BaFe_(12)O_(19)/α-Fe microfibers

Nanocomposite BaFe12019/a-Fe microfibers with diameters of about 1-5 μm are prepared by the organic gel- thermal selective reduction process. The binary phase of BaFe12019 and a-Fe is formed after reduction of the precursor BaFel2019/a-Fe203 microfibers at 350 ℃ for 1 h. These nanocomposite microfibers are fabricated from a-Fe （16-22 nm in diameter） and BaFe12019 particles （36--42 nm in diameter） and basically exhibit a single-phase-like magnetization be- havior, with a high saturation magnetization and coercive force arising from the exchange--coupling interactions of soft a-Fe and hard BaFe12019. The microwave absorption characteristics in a 2-18 GHz frequency range of the nanocomposite BaFe12O19/a-Fe microfibers are mainly influenced by their mass ratio of a-Fe/BaFe12019 and specimen thickness. It is found that the nanocomposite BaFelzO19/a-Fe microfibers with a mass ratio of 1：6 and specimen thickness of 2.5 mm show an optimal reflection loss （RL） of -29.7 dB at 13.5 GHz and the bandwidth with RL exceeding -10 dB covers the whole Ku-band （12.4-18.0 GHz）. This enhancement of microwave absorption can be attributed to the heterostruc- ture of soft, nano, conducting a-Fe particles embedded in hard, nano, semiconducting barium ferrite, which improves the dipolar polarization, interfacial polarization, exchange--coupling interaction, and anisotropic energy in the nanocomposite BaFe12O19/a-Fe microfibers.

Double-layer microwave absorber of nanocrystalline strontium ferrite and iron microfibers

Microwave absorption properties of the nanocrystalline strontium ferrite （SrFe12O19） and iron （α-Fe） microfibers for single-layer and double-layer structures are investigated in a frequency range of 2 GHz 18 GHz. For the singlelayer absorbers, the nanocrystalline SrFe12O19 microfibers show some microwave absorptions at 6 GHz 18 GHz, with a minimum reflection loss （RL） value of -11.9 dB at 14.1 GHz for a specimen thickness of 3.0 mm, while for the nanocrystalline α-Fe microfibers, their absorptions largely take place at 15 GHz-18 GHz with the RL value exceeding -10 dB, with a minimum .RL value of about -24 dB at 17.5 GHz for a specimen thickness of 0.7 mm. For the doublelayer absorber with an absorbing layer of α-Fe microfibers with a thickness of 0.7 mm and matching layer of SrFe12O19 microfibers with a thickness of 1.3 ram, the minimum RL value is about -63 dB at 16.4 GHz and the absorption band width is about 6.7 GHz ranging from 11.3 GHz to 18 GHz with the RL value exceeding -10 dB which covers the whole Ku-band （12.4 GHz 18 GHz） and 27% of X-band （8.2 GHz 12.4 GHz）.

Liquid Concentration Sensing Properties of Microfibers with a Nanoscale-Structured Film

A type of compact solution concentration sensor based on a microfiber with a nanoscale-structured film is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. Additional loss at different solution concentrations is calculated by means of the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain （3D-FDTD） method. The microfiber is fabricated by using the flame-heated scanning technique. Nanoscale-structured film is coated on the microfiber surface, which is assembled as a sensing unit. The sensitivity of this kind of sensor increases with the decreasing diameters of the microfiber. When the diameter of the microfiber is 2 #m, a minimum concentration sensitivity of 1% （under 450s measuring time） is demonstrated in the experiment. Higher sensitivity can be attained when the solution concentration is higher. The sensing properties of this microfiber with the nanoscale-structured film may provide opportunities for new applications in optical sensing devices.

How synthetic microfibers end up in food & drinking water

No one sets out to refresh themselves by drinking plastic. But microscopic pollution are in virtually every body of water on Earth. While the debris comes from a number of sources, including food and drink packaging and cosmetics, research is pointing to synthetic textile microfibers as a major culprit. Studies show hundreds of thousands of microplastic particles can enter the wa-ter supply just by laundering that polo shirt, midi dress or yoga pants.

Microwave absorption properties of a double-layer absorber based on nanocomposite BaFe_(12)O_(19)/α-Fe and nanocrystalline α-Fe microfibers

The nanocomposite BaFe12O19/α-Fe and nanocrystalline α-Fe microfibers with diameters of 1-5 μm, high aspect ratios and large specific areas are prepared by the citrate gel transformation and reduction process. The nanocomposite BaFe12O19/α-Fe microfibers show some exchange-coupling interactions largely arising from the magnetization hard （BaFe12019） and soft （a-Fe） nanoparticles. For the microwave absorptions, the double-layer structures consisting of the nanocomposite BaFe12O19/α-Fe and α-Fe microfibers each exhibit a wide band and strong absorption behavior. When the nanocomposite BaFel2O19/α-Fe microfibers are used as a matching layer of 2.3 mm in thickness and a-Fe microfibers as an absorbing layer of 1.2 mm in thickness, the optimal reflection loss （RL） achieves -47 dB at 15.6 GHz, the absorption bandwidth is about 12.7 GHz ranging from 5.3 to 18 GHz, exceeding -20 dB, which covers 72.5% C-band （4.2-8.2 GHz） and whole X-band （8.2-12.4 GHz） and Ku-band （12.4-18 GHz）. The enhanced absorption properties of these double-layer absorbers are mainly ascribed to the improvement in impedance matching ability and microwave multi-reflection largely resulting from the dipolar polarization, interfacial polarization, exchange-coupling interaction, and small size effect.

Wavelength and sensitivity tunable long period gratings fabricated in fluid-cladding microfibers

We report the fabrication of long period gratings in fluid-cladding microfibers by directly focusing a femtosecond laser beam on the microfibers surface to induce periodical modification a long one side of the microfibers.A long period grating is fabricated in a water-cladding microfiber with a diameter of~5μm,which demonstrates a resonant attenuation of 28.53 dB at wavelength of 1588.1 nm with 10 pitches.When water cladding is changed to be refractive index oil of n=1.33 and alcohol solution with concentration of 5%,the resonance wavelength shifts to 1575.1 nm with resonant attenuation of 24.91 dB and 1594.1 nm with resonant attenuation of 35.9 dB,respectively.The long period grating demonstrates different temperature sensitivities of-0.524 nm/℃,-0.767 nm/℃and-1.316 nm/℃for water,alcohol solution and refractive index oil cladding microfibers,respectively,which means the alterable liquid cladding allows the availability of tunable wavelength and sensitivity.The fluid-cladding protects the microfibers from external disturbance and contamination and allows more flexibility in controlling the transmission property and sensing characteristics of long period gratings,which can be used as fiber devices and sensors for chemical,biological,and environmental applications.

Numerical and experimental analysis of long period gratings in wavelength scale elliptical microfibers

We report the fabrication of long-period gratings （LPGs） in elliptical microfibers with femtosecond laser. Based on the numerical analysis of the modes and the mode coupling condition of elliptical microfibers, an LPG is fabricated with a very short pitch of 10 μm by periodically modifying the fiber surface, which demonstrates very strong polarization-dependent resonances, a very low temperature sensitivity of a few picometers in air, and high temperature sensitivity of -1.62 nm/℃ in refractive index oil.

Temperature and strain sensitivities of surface and hybrid acoustic wave Brillouin scattering in optical microfibers

Temperature and strain sensitivities of surface acoustic wave(SAW)and hybrid acoustic wave(HAW)Brillouin scat-tering(BS)in 1μm-1.3μm diameter optical microfibers are simulated.In contrast to stimulated Brillouin scattering(SBS)from bulk acoustic wave in standard optical fiber,SAW and HAW BS,due to SAWs and HAWs induced by the coupling of longitudinal and shear waves and propagating along the surface and core of microfiber respectively,facilitate innovative detection in optical microfibers sensing.The highest temperature and strain sensitivities of the hybrid acoustic modes(HAMs)are 1.082 MHz/℃and 0.0289 MHz/με,respectively,which is suitable for microfiber sensing applica-tion of high temperature and strain resolutions.Meanwhile,the temperature and strain sensitivities of the SAMs are less affected by fiber diameter changes,ranging from 0.05 MHz/℃/μm to 0.25 MHz/℃/μm and 1×10^(-4) MHz/με/μm to 5×10^(-4) MHz/με/μm,respectively.It can be found that that SAW BS for temperature and strain sensing would put less stress on manufacturing constraints for optical microfibers.Besides,the simultaneous sensing of temperature and strain can be realized by SAW and HAW BS,with temperature and strain errors as low as 0.30℃-0.34℃and 14.47με-16.25με.

Preparation and Characterization of Sepiolite Microfibers with High Aspect Ratio

It is difficult to access exfoliated sepiolite(Sep)fibers with high aspect ratio from Sep ore.The traditional method used to purify Sep ore also reduces its aspect ratio.In this study,impurities in the Sep ore were removed by acid activation followed by a cetyltrimethylammonium chloride(C16)treatment to organically modify the purified Sep by cation exchange.Then,the organically-modified Sep(O-Sep)was stripped and processed by an ultrasonic cell crusher to obtain Sep microfibers at a specific frequency for a given period.These Sep samples had relatively high aspect ratio,compared with the Sep fibers gotten by traditional method.Scanning electron microscopy(SEM)and transmission electron microscopy(TEM)demonstrate the micro-morphology of exfoliated Sep samples in an intuitive way.Moreover,pure inorganic membrane prepared only with the exfoliated Sep fibers exhibited excellent flexibility,further demonstrating the excellent properties of Sep fibers with high aspect ratio.

Bioinspired anti-freezing 3D-printable conductive hydrogel microfibers for highly-sensitive and wide-range detection of ultralow and high strains

Soft strain sensors that can transduce stretch stimuli into electrical readouts are promising as sustainable wearable electronics.However,most strain sensors cannot achieve highly-sensitive and wide-range detection of ultralow and high strains.Inspired by bamboo structures,anti-freezing microfibers made of conductive poly(vinyl alcohol)hydrogel with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiphene)-poly(styrenesulfonate)are developed via continuous microfluidic spinning.The microfibers provide unique bamboo-like structures with enhanced local stress to improve both their length change and resistance change upon stretching for efficient signal conversion.The microfibers allow highlysensitive(detection limit:0.05%strain)and wide-range(0%-400%strain)detection of ultralow and high strains,as well as features of good stretchability(485%strain)and anti-freezing property(freezing temperature:-41.1°C),fast response(200 ms),and good repeatability.The experimental results,together with theoretical foundation analysis and finite element analysis,prove their enhanced length and resistance changes upon stretching for efficient signal conversion.By integrating microfluidic spinning with 3D-printing technique,the textiles of the microfibers can be flexibly constructed.The microfibers and their 3D-printed textiles enable highperformance monitoring of human motions including finger bending and throat vibrating during phonation.This work provides an efficient and general strategy for developing advanced conductive hydrogel microfibers as highperformance wearable strain sensors.

Core–Shell Microfiber Encapsulation Enables Glycerol‑Free Cryopreservation of RBCs with High Hematocrit

Cryopreservation of red blood cells(RBCs)provides great potential benefits for providing transfusion timely in emergencies.High concentrations of glycerol(20%or 40%)are used for RBC cryopreservation in current clinical practice,which results in cytotoxicity and osmotic injuries that must be carefully controlled.However,existing studies on the low-glycerol cryopreservation of RBCs still suffer from the bottleneck of low hematocrit levels,which require relatively large storage space and an extra concentration process before transfusion,making it inconvenient(time-consuming,and also may cause injury and sample lose)for clinical applications.To this end,we develop a novel method for the glycerol-free cryopreservation of human RBCs with a high final hematocrit by using trehalose as the sole cryoprotectant to dehydrate RBCs and using core–shell alginate hydrogel microfibers to enhance heat transfer during cryopreservation.Different from previous studies,we achieve the cryopreservation of human RBCs at high hematocrit(>40%)with high recovery(up to 95%).Additionally,the washed RBCs post-cryopreserved are proved to maintain their morphology,mechanics,and functional properties.This may provide a nontoxic,high-efficiency,and glycerol-free approach for RBC cryopreservation,along with potential clinical transfusion benefits.

Harvesting Energy Via Water Movement and Surface Ionics in Microfibrous Ceramic Wools

Due to the push for carbon neutrality in various human activities,the development of methods for producing electricity without relying on chemical reaction processes or heat sources has become highly significant.Also,the challenge lies in achieving microwatt-scale outputs due to the inherent conductivity of the materials and diverting electric currents.To address this challenge,our research has concentrated on utilizing nonconductive mediums for water-based low-cost microfibrous ceramic wools in conjunction with a NaCl aqueous solution for power generation.The main source of electricity originates from the directed movement of water molecules and surface ions through densely packed microfibrous ceramic wools due to the effect of dynamic electric double layer.This occurrence bears resemblance to the natural water transpiration in plants,thereby presenting a fresh and straightforward approach for producing electricity in an ecofriendly manner.The generator module demonstrated in this study,measuring 12×6 cm^(2),exhibited a noteworthy open-circuit voltage of 0.35 V,coupled with a short-circuit current of 0.51 mA.Such low-cost ceramic wools are suitable for ubiquitous,permanent energy sources and hold potential for use as self-powered sensors and systems,eliminating the requirement for external energy sources such as sunlight or heat.

Low-Density Microplastics in Recreational Parks of Al Ain, United Arab Emirates: Abundance, Composition, and Potential Effects on Soil Health

Microplastics (MPs) have been an emerging concern due to their harmful effects on the ecosystem and are ubiquitous in various habitats, from marine to terrestrial environments. However, studies on the presence of MPs in recreational areas are limited. One of the previous works has reported that urban recreational parks are considered “sinks” for plastic debris, including MPs. In this study, low-density MPs (LD-MPs) in soil samples collected from recreational parks of Al Ain, United Arab Emirates (UAE) were isolated by density flotation method. Results showed that these parks have varying levels of LD-MPs caused by various anthropogenic activities, such as sludge use and application of reclaimed water from wastewater treatment facilities in those areas. These plastic particles were isolated in 87% of the soil samples, with an average concentration of 1550 ± 340 MPs/kg. Predominantly, these comprised large LD-MPs (300 - 5000 μm), with red and blue being the most common colors. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy identified possible synthetic polymers, including polyethylene and polypropylene. Additionally, a negative correlation was observed between LD-MP concentration and soil pH and moisture content, indicating potential adverse effects on soil health. These findings highlight the need for monitoring and managing microplastic pollution in urban recreational areas to mitigate its ecological impacts.

Template-free preparation of porous Co microfibers from spent lithium-ion batteries as a promising microwave absorber

In order to take full advantage of the secondary resources,in this paper,we reported a template-free process to prepare porous Co microfibers from spent lithiumion batteries(LIBs).First,the waste LiCoO_(2) powders were leached by oxalic acid at a suitable temperature,and rodlike cobalt oxalate powders were obtained.Second,the porous Co microfibers were prepared by using the cobalt oxalate as precursors through a thermal decomposition at420 ℃ under nitrogen atmosphere.The prepared Co microfibers possess diameters of 1-2 μm,and each microfiber consists of small particles with size of100-200 nm.The Co microfibers(25 wt%)/paraffin composite exhibited excellent microwave absorption performance.When the sample thickness is 4.5 mm,the reflection losses reach-36.14 and-38.20 dB at 4.16 and 17.60 GHz,respectively,and the effective bandwidth reaches up to 5.52 GHz.This indicates that the Co microfibers can be used as a promising microwave absorber.Therefore,this paper demonstrates a novel process to make a high value-added product through recycling from the spent lithium-ion batteries.In addition,it is advantageous to eliminate the hazard of spent lithium-ion batteries and electromagnetic radiation to environment and human health.

Bio-Inspired Screwed Conduits from the Microfluidic Rope-Coiling Effect for Microvessels and Bronchioles

Tubular microfibers have recently attracted extensive interest for applications in tissue engineering.However,the fabrication of tubular fibers with intricate hierarchical structures remains a major challenge.Here,we present a novel one-step microfluidic spinning method to generate bio-inspired screwed conduits(BSCs).Based on the microfluidic rope-coiling effect,a viscous hydrogel precursor is first curved into a helix stream in the channel,and then consecutively packed as a hollow structured stream and gelated into a screwed conduit(SC)via ionic and covalent crosslinking.By taking advantage of the excellent fluid-controlling ability of microfluidics,various tubes with diverse structures are fabricated via simple control over fluid velocities and multiple microfluidic device designs.The perfusability and permeability results,as well as the encapsulation and culture of human umbilical vein endothelial cells(HUVECs),human pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells(HPAs),and myogenic cells(C2C12),demonstrate that these SCs have good perfusability and permeability and the ability to induce the formation of functional biostructures.These features support the uniqueness and potential applications of these BSCs as biomimetic blood vessels and bronchiole tissues in combination with tissue microstructures,with likely application possibilities in biomedical engineering.

Long-period grating inscription on polymer functionalized optical microfibers and its applications in optical sensing

We demonstrated long-period grating(LPG) inscription on polymer functionalized optical microfibers and its applications in optical sensing. Optical microfibers were functionalized with ultraviolet-sensitive polymethyl methacrylate jackets and, thus, LPGs could be inscribed on optical microfibers via point-by-point ultraviolet laser exposure. For a 2 mm long microfiber LPG(MLPG) inscribed on optical microfibers with a diameter of 5.4 μm, a resonant dip of 15 d B at 1377 nm was observed. This MLPG showed a high sensitivity of strain and axial force, i.e.,-1.93 pm∕με and-1.15 pm∕μN, respectively. Although the intrinsic temperature sensitivity of the LPGs is relatively low, i.e.,-12.75 pm∕°C, it can be increased to be-385.11 pm∕°C by appropriate sealing. Benefiting from the small footprint and high sensitivity, MLPGs could have potential applications in optical sensing of strain,axial force, and temperature.

Micro-nano-fabrication of green functional materials by multiphase microfluidics for environmental and energy applications

Multiphase microfluidic has emerged as a powerful platform to produce novel materials with tailor-designed functionalities,as microfluidic fabrication provides precise controls over the size,component,and structure of resultant materials.Recently,functional materials with well-defined micro-/nanostructures fabricated by microfluidics find important applications as environmental and energy materials.This review first illustrated in detail how different structures or shapes of droplet and jet templates are formed by typical configurations of microfluidic channel networks and multiphase flow systems.Subsequently,recent progresses on several representative energy and environmental applications,such as water purification,water collecting and energy storage,were overviewed.Finally,it is envisioned that integrating microfluidics and other novel materials will play increasing important role in contributing environmental remediation and energy storage in near future.