Construction of spontaneously polarized ceramic via synergistic mechanical activation-Biomimetic mineralization for activating air and water

Spontaneously polarized crystals with intrinsic electric dipole moment have attracted immense interest as excellent functional materials for extensive applications.It is of great significance to engineer sustainable spontaneously polarized materials with fascinating characteristics and performance for activating air and water.Herein,a novel strategy based on the synergy of mechanical activation(MA)and biomimetic mineralization(BM)was created to construct spontaneously polarized ceramic.MA induced the structural damage of clay and promoted the dissolution of ions and the release of free proteins,contributing to the formation of silicate precursor in BM process.After high temperature firing,the silicate precursor in clay was converted to form KCa_(3)AlCa_(3)Si_(4)O_(16)(hexagonal crystal system,L^(6)symmetry type,and P63 space group)in the resulting spontaneously polarized ceramic.The non-centrosymmetric structure of KCa_(3)AlCa_(3)Si4O_(16)and the high intrinsic electric dipole moments contributed by K(1)polyhedrons resulted in high spontaneous polarization(0.2322μC/cm^(2))and far-infrared emissivity(0.951)of spontaneously polarized ceramic.In air,spontaneously polarized ceramic can activate H_(2)O and O_(2)molecules to form negative air ions owing to surface electric field.In water,spontaneously polarized ceramic can disaggregate large water clusters to form small water clusters ascribed to surface electric field and far-infrared emission;water pH can be regulated from weak acidity to approximate neutrality via the capture of electrons by H+ions to produce releasable hydrogen gas.This work provides great promise for rational design and synthesis of spontaneously polarized materials for functional applications.

NUMERICAL EXPERIMENT WITH PROCESSES FOR EFFECT OF AUSTRALIAN COLD AIR ACTIVITY ON EAST-ASIAN SUMMER MONSOON

Based on diagnostic results,a numerical study is made of the processes of Australian cold air activity affecting East Asian summer monsoon by using Kuo-Qian P-σ incorporated coordinate five-layer primitive equation spherical band model.Analysis is done of the response to the Southern Hemisphere circulation with and without cold air activity in Australia of the flow,rainfall and diabatic heating fields in the monsoon area of Asia,especially,East Asia,with special attention to the intensification and northward march of the monsoon due to the activity.It is found that the processes for the effect transmission are very analogous to the meridional propagation of quasi-40-day oscillation,together with the meridional wind disturbance showing south-north travel and the flow/rainfall fields exhibitirg corresponding movement in this direction,only with a 12-day lag.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air,surface soil and wheat grain near a large steel-smelting manufacturer in northern China

The total concentrations and component profiles of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons（PAHs） in ambient air,surface soil and wheat grain collected from wheat fields near a large steel-smelting manufacturer in Northern China were determined.Based on the specific isomeric ratios of paired species in ambient air,principle component analysis and multivariate linear regression,the main emission source of local PAHs was identified as a mixture of industrial and domestic coal combustion,biomass burning and traffic exhaust.The total organic carbon（TOC） fraction was considerably correlated with the total and individual PAH concentrations in surface soil.The total concentrations of PAHs in wheat grain were relatively low,with dominant low molecular weight constituents,and the compositional profile was more similar to that in ambient air than in topsoil.Combined with more significant results from partial correlation and linear regression models,the contribution from air PAHs to grain PAHs may be greater than that from soil PAHs.

Comparisons of indoor active and passive air sampling methods for emerging and legacy halogenated flame retardants in Beijing, China offices

One active and two passive air sampling configurations were deployed simultaneously in three offices in Beijing,China to test their comparability for sampling emerging and legacy halogenated flame retardants spanning a large range of octanoleair partition coefficients(KOA).Sampling in each office was carried out for three consecutive 28-day periods in the spring-summer of 2013.The active sampler was run for 2.5 h at different times every day for 28 days to parallel the passive samplers and sample a total volume comparable to that sampled by the passive samplers(~20 m^3).At the end of each 28-day sampling period,a separate active air sample was taken by running the sampler pump continuously for about 2.5 days.The comparability of measured concentrations varied between the air sampling configurations and for different compounds.The predominant compound measured in nearly all samples was BDE-209,a compound known to have heavy use in China.Several emerging flame retardants were also detected including DBE-DBCH,PBT,HBB,DDC-CO,and DBDPE.Very little of the tetra-hexabrominated BDEs associated with the technical PentaBDE product was observed.

Surface engineering towards high-energy carbon cathode for advanced aqueous zinc-ion hybrid capacitors

Opportunities coexist with challenges for the development of carbon-based cathodes with a high energy density applied for zinc ion hybrid capacitors(ZIHCs).In the present study,a facile and effective surface engineering approach is demonstrated to greatly improve the energy storage ability of commercial carbon paper(CP)in ZIHC.Benefiting from the introduced oxygen functional groups,larger surface area and improved surface wettability upon air calcination,the assembled aqueous ZIHC with the functionalized carbon paper(FCP)exhibits a much higher areal capacity of 0.22 mAh/cm^(2)at 1 mA/cm^(2),outperforming the counterpart with blank CP by over 5000 times.More importantly,a superior energy density and power density of 130.8μWh/cm^(2)and 7460.5μW/cm^(2),are respectively delivered.Furthermore,more than 90%of the initial capacity is retained over 10000 cycles.This surface engineering strategy to improve the energy storage capability is potentially applicable to developing a wide range of high-energy carbon electrode materials.

Possible influence of Arctic Oscillation on dust storm frequency in North China

This study has investigated the influence of Arctic Oscillation （AO） on dust storm frequency in North China in spring seasons during 1961-2007. There is a significant linkage between dust storm frequency and AO; a negative （positive） AO phase is related to an increased （decreased） dust storm frequency in North China. This relationship is closely related to changes in the cold air activity in Mongolia. The cold air activity exerts large impacts on the dust storm frequency; the frequency of cold air activity over Mongolia not only positively correlates with the dust storm frequency in North China, but also shows a long-term decreasing trend that is an important reason for the long-term decreasing of dust storm frequency in North China. The AO has large influence on the frequency of cold air activity over Mongolia; a negative （positive） AO phase is highly related to an increased （decreased） frequency of cold air activity over Mongolia, which results in an increased （decreased） dust storm frequency in North China.

Effects of Annealing Below Glass Transition Temperature on the Wettability and Corrosion Performance of Fe-based Amorphous Coatings

This study investigated the effect of annealing below glass transition temperature(T_(g))on the microstructural characteristics,mechanical property,wettability,and electrochemical performance of activated combustion-high velocity air fuel(AC-HVAF)-sprayed Fe-Cr-Mo-W-C-B-Y amorphous coatings(ACs).Results showed that Fe-based ACs with a thickness of~300μm exhibited a fully amorphous structure with low oxidization.Originating from the reduced free volume,sub-T_(g) annealing increased the thermal stability,hardness,and surface hydrophobicity of Fe-based ACs.The enhanced corrosion resistance of sub-T_(g) annealed ACs in 3.5 wt%NaCl solution was attributed to the increased surface hydrophobicity and passivation capability.This finding elucidates the correlation between sub-T_(g) annealing and the properties of Fe-based ACs,which promotes ameliorating ACs with superior performance.

Decadal Variation of the Northern Hemisphere Annular Mode and Its Influence on the East Asian Trough

We analyze the decadal variation of the stratosphere troposphere coupled system around the year 2000 by using the NCEP reanalysis-2 data.Specifically,the relationship between the Northern Hemisphere Annular Mode（NAM） and the tropospheric East Asian trough is investigated in order to find the effective stratospheric signals during cold air outbreaks in China.Statistical analyses and dynamic diagnoses both indicate that after 2000,increased stratospheric polar vortex disturbances occur and the NAM is mainly in negative phase.The tropospheric polar areas are directly affected by the polar vortex,and in the midlatitudes,the Ural blocking high and East Asian trough are more active,which lead to enhanced cold air activities in eastern and northern China.Further investigation reveals that under this circulation pattern,downward propagations of negative NAM index are closely related to the intensity variation of the East Asian trough.When negative NAM anomalies propagate down to the upper troposphere and reach a certain intensity（standardized NAM index less than 1）,they result in apparent reinforcement of the East Asian trough,which reaches its maximum intensity about one week later.The northerly wind behind the trough transports cold air southward and eastward,and the range of influence and the intensity are closely associated with the trough location.Therefore,the NAM index can be used as a measure of the signals from the disturbed stratosphere to give some indication of cold air activities in China.