ZSM-5/USY/Beta分子筛催化剂对四氢萘加氢裂化制备BTEX的性能研究

分别采用ZSM-5、USY、Beta 3种分子筛通过等体积浸渍法制备了NiMo/ZSM-5、NiMo/USY、NiMo/Beta 3种催化剂,分别标记为cat-1、cat-2、cat-3。利用XRD、NH3-TPD、SEM对催化剂进行表征分析,在固定床反应器上以四氢萘作为模型化合物,研究其加氢裂化制备BTEX的催化性能,考察了四氢萘加氢裂化的工艺条件,并探讨了加氢裂化机理。结果表明,Beta分子筛制备的催化剂cat-3金属组分颗粒大小均匀,呈现出高度分散的状态,并且酸量适中。在反应温度为400℃、氢油比为600、反应压力为4MPa、2h-1空速的最佳反应条件下,与cat-1、cat-2相比,cat-3具有最佳的四氢萘转化率和BTEX选择性,分别高达95%和70%左右。

A novel diurnal and seasonal variation analysis of BTEX in Bengaluru urban area

In the urban atmosphere of Bengaluru, various volatile organic compounds(VOCs), particularly Benzene,Toluene, Ethylbenzene, and Xylene(BTEX), have shown an increasing trend in concentration. The present research was conducted during summer and monsoon seasons, focusing on Kadubeesanahalli, a high-traffic area within the Bengaluru Metropolitan City. Hourly sample data was collected using a BTEX analyzer(Model GC955-600) and subsequently transformed into daily, monthly, and seasonal values. The study revealed distinct patterns in benzene concentrations. Benzene levels were lowest during the early morning hours, specifically from 1:00 a.m.to 7:00 a.m.. Concentrations then increased from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and again from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.,corresponding to the morning and evening peak traffic hours. However, between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., the concentration decreased due to reduced traffic levels. These diurnal variations in benzene concentration are influenced by meteorological parameters. Comparing the two seasons, higher concentrations of Benzene, EthylBenzene, and MP-xylene were observed during the summer season. This increase is attributed to the elevated temperatures during summer, which promote the vaporization of BTEX compounds. Conversely, lower BTEX concentrations were recorded during the monsoon season due to the wet deposition process. The observed positive correlation(r > 0.5) among BTEX parameters strongly suggests a common source, most likely originating from vehicular emissions.

Albizzia chinensis(Osbeck)Merr extract YS ameliorates ethanol-induced acute gastric ulcer injury in rats by regulating NRF2 signaling pathway

Background:Around the world,there is a high incidence of gastric ulcers.YS,an extract from the Chinese herb Albizzia chinensis(Osbeck)Merr,has potential therapeutic applications for gastrointestinal diseases.Here we elucidated the protective effect and underlying mechanism of action of YS on gastric ulcer in rats injured by ethanol.Methods:The ethanol-i nduced gastric ulcer rat model was used to assess the protective effect of YS.A pathological examination of gastric tissue was performed by H&E staining.GES-1 cells damaged by hydrogen peroxide were used to simulate oxidative damage in gastric mucosal epithelial cells.Endogenous NRF2 was knocked down using small interfering RNA.Immunoprecipitation was used to detect ubiquitination of NRF2.Co-i mmunoprecipitation was used to detect the NRF2-Keap1 interaction.Results:YS(10 and 30 mg/kg,i.g.)significantly reduced the ulcer index,decreased MDA level,and increased SOD and GSH levels in gastric tissues damaged by ethanol.YS promoted NRF2 translocation from cytoplasm to nucleus and enhanced the NQO1 and HO-1 expression levels in injured rat gastric tissue.In addition,YS regulated NQO1 and HO-1 via NRF2 in H_(2)O_(2)-i nduced oxidative injured GES-1 cells.Further studies on the underlying mechanism indicated that YS reduced the interaction between NRF2 and Keap1 and decreased ubiquitylation of NRF2,thereby increasing its stability and expression of downstream factors.NRF2 knockdown abolished the effect of YS on MDA and SOD in GES-1 cells treated with H_(2)O_(2).Conclusion:YS reduced the NRF2-Keap1 interaction,promoting NRF2 translocation into the nucleus,which increasing the transcription and translation of NQO1 and HO-1 and improved the antioxidant capacity of rat stomach.

Validation of a Method for Characterization of Ethanol in Water by HS-GC-FID to Serve the Traceability of Halal Measurements

The determination of the ethanol content in food products is of fundamental importance for HALAL certification. In this work, an analytical method for the determination of ethanol in water by headspace gas chromatography with flame ionization detector (HS-GC-FID) has been developed and validated for the use in characterization of ethanol reference materials. The validation study was carried out in the linear calibration range 100 - 1500 mg/kg using the NIST SRM 2900, nominal 95.6%. The studied performance characteristics of the method were the limit of detection, LOD, the limit of quantification LOQ, selectivity, linearity, precision, recovery and bias. The validation results showed that the method is selective, precise, accurate and free from any significant bias. The LOD and LOQ were 1.27 and 3.86 mg/kg respectively and the estimated expanded uncertainty was 2% indicating that the method is fit for the purpose of certification of ethanol in water reference materials.

Rational modulation of electronic structure in PtAuCuNi alloys boosts efficient electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation assisted with energy-saving hydrogen evolution

Compared to conventional electrocatalytic water splitting,electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation reaction(EOR)along with hydrogen production is considered a more energy-efficient strategy.Herein,we prepared a type of novel quaternary alloy catalyst(PtAuCuNi@NF)that exhibits excellent activity for EOR(0.215 V at 10 mA cm^(-2))and hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)(7 mV at 10 mA cm^(-2)).Experimental results demonstrated that both Cu and Ni modulated the electronic environment around Pt and Au.The electron-rich active center facilitates the rapid adsorption and dissociation of reactants and intermediates for both EOR and HER.Impressively,in the ethanol-assisted overall water splitting(E-OWS),a current density of 10 mA cm^(-2)was achieved at 0.28 V.Moreover,an advanced acid-base self-powered system(A-Bsps)that can achieve a self-powered voltage of 0.59 V was assembled.Accordingly,the self-driven hydrogen production with zero external power supply was realized by integrating A-Bsps with the E-OWS equipment.The interesting results can provide a feasible strategy for designing and developing advanced nanoalloy-based materials for clean energy integration and use in various fields.

Antibacterial,antioxidant and antiproliferation activities of essential oils and ethanolic extracts from Chinese mugwort(Artemisia vulgaris L.)leaf in Shanxi

Background:Artemisia vulgaris,a medicinal aromatic plant,is widely used as a food item,tonic pharmaceutical,and cosmetic industry additive owing to its antibacterial,antihypertensive,hepatoprotective,antioxidant,and antispasmodic properties.But the effect of different geographic locations on the chemical composition and bioactivities of its extracts is unclear.Methods:Biological activities of essential oils and ethanol extracts of three varieties of Artemisia vulgaris leaves,which are grown in Shanxi province China,were studied.Results:Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed that the main components of essential oils were terpenes and ketones.Essential oils and ethanol extract of Artemisia vulgaris leaves possessed good antioxidant activities,and their half maximal inhibitory concentrations determined using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl and 2,2’-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonate)assays were 57.0 and 22.9μg/mL,respectively.The essential oils also exhibited remarkable antibacterial activity against three foodborne pathogenic bacterial strains.The ethanol extract presented a high anticancer activity against the MGC-803 human gastric cancer cell line.Conclusion:These biological activities were well correlated with the composition of the extract and EOs,which in turn is affected by the genetic composition of Artemisia vulgaris and geographic location and diverse climatic condition under which it is grown.These findings demonstrate the remarkable potential of Artemisia vulgaris as a valuable source of antioxidant,antibacterial,and anticancer agents.

Ethanol steam reforming over Ni/ZSM-5 nanosheet for hydrogen production

Compared to reforming reactions using hydrocarbons,ethanol steam reforming(ESR)is a sustainable alternative for hydrogen(H_(2))production since ethanol can be produced sustainably using biomass.This work explores the catalyst design strategies for preparing the Ni supported on ZSM-5 zeolite catalysts to promote ESR.Specifically,two-dimensional ZSM-5 nanosheet and conventional ZSM-5 crystal were used as the catalyst carriers and two synthesis strategies,i.e.,in situ encapsulation and wet impregnation method,were employed to prepare the catalysts.Based on the comparative characterization of the catalysts and comparative catalytic assessments,it was found that the combination of the in situ encapsulation synthesis and the ZSM-5 nanosheet carrier was the effective strategy to develop catalysts for promoting H_(2) production via ESR due to the improved mass transfer(through the 2-D structure of ZSM-5 nanosheet)and formation of confined small Ni nanoparticles(resulted via the in situ encapsulation synthesis).In addition,the resulting ZSM-5 nanosheet supported Ni catalyst also showed high Ni dispersion and high accessibility to Ni sites by the reactants,being able to improve the activity and stability of catalysts and suppress metal sintering and coking during ESR at high reaction temperatures.Thus,the Ni supported on ZSM-5 nanosheet catalyst prepared by encapsulation showed the stable performance with~88% ethanol conversion and~65% H_(2) yield achieved during a 48-h longevity test at 550-C.

Ethanol changes Nestin-promoter induced neural stem cells to disturb newborn dendritic spine remodeling in the hippocampus of mice

Adolescent binge drinking leads to long-lasting disorders of the adult central nervous system,particularly aberrant hippocampal neurogenesis.In this study,we applied in vivo fluorescent tracing using NestinCreERT2::Rosa26-tdTomato mice and analyzed the endogenous neurogenesis lineage progression of neural stem cells(NSCs)and dendritic spine formation of newborn neurons in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus.We found abnormal orientation of tamoxifen-induced tdTomato+(tdTom^(+))NSCs in adult mice 2 months after treatment with EtOH(5.0 g/kg,i.p.)for 7 consecutive days.EtOH markedly inhibited tdTom^(+)NSCs activation and hippocampal neurogenesis in mouse dentate gyrus from adolescence to adulthood.EtOH(100 mM)also significantly inhibited the proliferation to 39.2%and differentiation of primary NSCs in vitro.Adult mice exposed to EtOH also exhibited marked inhibitions in dendritic spine growth and newborn neuron maturation in the dentate gyrus,which was partially reversed by voluntary running or inhibition of the mammalian target of rapamycinenhancer of zeste homolog 2 pathway.In vivo tracing revealed that EtOH induced abnormal orientation of tdTom+NSCs and spatial misposition defects of newborn neurons,thus causing the disturbance of hippocampal neurogenesis and dendritic spine remodeling in mice.

The emerging role of mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles to ameliorate hippocampal NLRP3 inflammation induced by binge-like ethanol treatment in adolescence

Our previous studies have reported that activation of the NLRP3(NOD-,LRR-and pyrin domain-containing protein 3)-inflammasome complex in ethanol-treated astrocytes and chronic alcohol-fed mice could be associated with neuroinflammation and brain damage.Mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles(MSC-EVs)have been shown to restore the neuroinflammatory response,along with myelin and synaptic structural alterations in the prefrontal cortex,and alleviate cognitive and memory dysfunctions induced by binge-like ethanol treatment in adolescent mice.Considering the therapeutic role of the molecules contained in mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles,the present study analyzed whether the administration of mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles isolated from adipose tissue,which inhibited the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome,was capable of reducing hippocampal neuroinflammation in adolescent mice treated with binge drinking.We demonstrated that the administration of mesenchymal stem cell-derived extracellular vesicles ameliorated the activation of the hippocampal NLRP3 inflammasome complex and other NLRs inflammasomes(e.g.,pyrin domain-containing 1,caspase recruitment domain-containing 4,and absent in melanoma 2,as well as the alterations in inflammatory genes(interleukin-1β,interleukin-18,inducible nitric oxide synthase,nuclear factor-kappa B,monocyte chemoattractant protein-1,and C–X3–C motif chemokine ligand 1)and miRNAs(miR-21a-5p,miR-146a-5p,and miR-141-5p)induced by binge-like ethanol treatment in adolescent mice.Bioinformatic analysis further revealed the involvement of miR-21a-5p and miR-146a-5p with inflammatory target genes and NOD-like receptor signaling pathways.Taken together,these findings provide novel evidence of the therapeutic potential of MSC-derived EVs to ameliorate the hippocampal neuroinflammatory response associated with NLRP3 inflammasome activation induced by binge drinking in adolescence.

Camalote Grass (Paspalum fasciculatum Willd) as a Sustainable Raw Material for the Production of Lignocellulosic Ethanol

The current trend of replacing a percentage of gasoline with ethanol has promoted the development of new processes for its production from lignocellulosic biomass. This work reports the production of ethanol from the Camalote grass (Paspalum fasciculatum Willd). The lignocellulosic biomass was subjected to acid hydrolysis at 125C and 15 psi with H2SO4 concentrations at 5%, 10%, and 20%, obtaining an average of reducing sugars (pentoses and hexoses) from the hydrolyzed juice with 12.3%, 10%, and 17% Brix, respectively. The sugars were fermented using yeast of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae at 30C for 48 hours. Finally, the ethanol was distilled at 78C, and the average yields were obtained through analysis of variance with a 95% confidence level. The values indicate that there is a significant difference (p > 0.05), the Tukey study shows that all the % v/v averages are different from each other. For H2SO4 concentration at 5% (10.33 ± 2), H2SO4 at 10% (9.33 ± 1.8), and H2SO4 at 20% (6.33 ± 2). The acidity analysis for the ethanol obtained from each treatment gave a value of 1.8 mg/L of acetic acid in all cases.

苯系物(BTEX)长期污染对土壤和地下水微生物群落及代谢潜能的影响

苯、甲苯、乙苯和二甲苯统称为苯系物(BTEX),是化工污染场地检出率最高的芳香族有机污染物。为研究BTEX长期污染对土壤和地下水微生物群落结构和代谢潜能的影响,采集了江苏省某搬迁化工厂的浅层土、地下水和深层土样品,利用16S rRNA基因扩增子测序和宏基因组测序技术对BTEX长期污染场地展开分析。结果表明:相比较未受污染的土壤样品,长期BTEX污染显著改变了微生物群落结构和多样性,其中以变形菌门改变最为显著。共现性网络分析表明,污染场地中随着样品取样深度的增加,微生物网络复杂性和群落稳定性降低。BTEX代谢功能基因注释表明,地下水样品中污染物代谢基因丰度和多样性更高,并且在地下水和浅层土中同时存在完整的好氧降解途径,但在地下水中厌氧降解基因的丰度更高。BTEX降解途径中benABC和bcrCBAD基因簇在浅层土中更完整,但通过构建BTEX开环的关键基因bamA的系统发育树表明,地下水中可能存在新的BTEX开环基因。这些结果证明BTEX长期污染的不同生境中存在高度多样的微生物群落与降解途径,为相关污染场地的微生物修复提供了科学依据。

海洋中单环芳烃(BTEX)的来源、分布与迁移及其生态环境效应

挥发性有机物排放是目前大气环境污染的一个焦点问题,以苯、甲苯、乙苯和邻/间/对二甲苯(BTEX)为主要代表的单环芳烃是其中一类重要的化合物。受人类生产活动的影响,BTEX在大气、土壤、地表及地下径流、海洋中普遍存在,其环境效应与生态毒害受到广泛关注。本文从大气-海水-沉积物-生物体入手,综述了海洋环境中BTEX的分布、来源及其迁移过程等研究进展。研究显示海洋环境中BTEX浓度变化范围较大,在分布上呈现出近海高、远洋低的趋势。海洋中BTEX的主要来源是人为来源,即海洋是陆源BTEX重要的汇,而海-气交换和生物降解则被认为是BTEX的主要去除途径。此外,本文阐释了海洋中BTEX的生态与大气环境效应。BTEX具有生物毒性,威胁海洋生物的生存与繁衍,破坏海洋生态系统平衡;而进入大气的BTEX能够影响大气的氧化能力,对于臭氧和二次有机气溶胶的形成具有重要贡献。尽管海洋BTEX研究取得了一定的认识,但目前海洋环境不同介质中BTEX来源解析、迁移转化过程及生物毒性机理亟需深入系统研究,为深入认识BTEX的生物地球化学过程与环境效应奠定基础。

Acetic acid-assisted mild dealloying of fine CuPd nanoalloys achieving compressive strain toward high-efficiency oxygen reduction and ethanol oxidation electrocatalysis

Dealloying by which the transition metal is partially or completely leached from an alloy precursor is an effective way to optimize the fundamental effects for further enhancing the electrocatalysis of a catalyst.Herein,to address the deficiencies associated with the commonly used dealloying methods,for example,electrochemical and sulfuric acid/nitric acid treatment,we report an acetic acid-assisted mild strategy to dealloy Cu atoms from the outer surface layers of CuPd alloy nanoparticles to achieve high-efficiency electrocatalysis for oxygen reduction and ethanol oxidation in an alkaline electrolyte.The leaching of Cu atoms by acetic acid exerts an additional compressive strain effect on the surface layers and exposes more active Pd atoms,which is beneficial for boosting the catalytic performance of a dealloyed catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)and the ethanol oxidation reaction(EOR).In particular,for ORR,the CuPd nanoparticles with a Pd/Cu molar ratio of 2:1 after acetic dealloying show a half-wave potential of 0.912 V(vs.RHE)and a mass activity of 0.213 AmgPd^(-1) at 0.9 V,respectively,while for EOR,the same dealloyed sample has a mass activity and a specific activity of 8.4 Amg^(-1) and 8.23 mA cm^(-2),respectively,much better than their dealloyed counterparts at other temperatures and commercial Pd/C as well as a Pt/C catalyst.

Study on Optimization of Ethanol Reflux Extraction of Phenolic Acids from Salvia miltiorrhiza

The extraction technology of phenolic acid compounds from Salvia miltiorrhiza by ethanol reflux was studied. In this experiment, salvianolic acid B standard was used to make the standard curve. Single factor experiment and orthogonal experiment were used to study the extraction of different ethanol concentrations, reflux times and material-to-liquid ratios. The OD value of salvianolic acid compounds was measured with a spectrophotometer. The extraction rate of phenolic acid compounds under different extraction conditions was calculated through a regression equation, so as to obtain the optimal conditions for the ethanol reflux extraction process of Salvia miltiorrhiza. The experimental data can provide a reference for the ethanol reflux extraction process of salvianolic acids in the industry. According to the experiment, the extraction rate of phenolic acids in Salvia miltiorrhiza was the highest when the ethanol concentration was 60%, the reflux time was 1.5 hours, and the ratio of material-to-liquid was 1:10.

Fecal metabolomics reveals the positive effect of ethanol extract of propolis on T2DM mice

A large number of studies have shown that propolis has positive effects in the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM).However,there are have only been a few reports that are based on an ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry(UPLC-Q-TOF-MS)analysis of the fecal metabolomics of ethanol extract of propolis(EEP)in the treatment of T2DM.The present investigation was designed to screen potential biomarkers of T2DM by the metabonomic method and to explain the possible anti-diabetes mechanism of EEP according to the changes in the biomarkers.The results showed that EEP improved the body weight(BW)of T2DM mice,lowered blood sugar levels,and significantly restored blood biochemical indicators related to T2DM,such as fasting insulin(FINS),homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance(HOMA-IR),aspartate transaminase(AST),and alanine aminotransferase(ALT).Liver pathology showed that EEP reversed liver damage caused by T2DM.Metabolomics data identified 27 potential biomarkers in fecal samples.EEP effectively regulated the dysfunction in the metabolic pathways of glycerophospholipids,sphingolipids,riboflavins,and sterol lipids caused by T2DM.In summary,our research results revealed positive effects of EEP in the treatment of T2DM and provided potential candidate markers for further research and in the clinical treatment of T2DM.

Semi-Automated Enzymatic Determination of Ethanol in Beverages: Collaborative Study for RIDA®CUBE Ethanol

Easy and quick methods to quantify ethanol reliably in beverages are always important. In 2022, the EnzytecTM Liquid Ethanol test kit was approved as AOAC Official MethodSM 2017.07 Final Action after a collaborative study was conducted with different beverages such as kombucha, juices, and beer. During set-up of this collaborative test, small sized companies asked to include the RIDA®CUBE Ethanol/RIDA®CUBE SCAN device since it is easy to use, suitable for a few samples only and contains the identical reagents as the EnzytecTM Liquid system. It is applicable to quantify ethanol in diluted kombucha, fruit juices, and alcohol-free beer samples around 0.5% alcohol-by-volume within 12 min. The overall relative reproducibility standard deviation across a wide concentration range for kombucha, was calculated to be 6.29%. Analysis of juices and beer showed an overall higher variation with an estimated overall RSD(R) value by regression of 14.4%. The data obtained by this collaborative study show that the RIDA®CUBE Ethanol in combination with the RIDA®CUBE SCAN device is suitable to quantify ethanol from matrices representing important alcohol-free liquid food categories.

Molybdenum tailored Co^(0)/Co^(2+)active pairs on a perovskite-type oxide for direct ethanol synthesis from syngas

Selective synthesis of ethanol from syngas under the Co-based catalysts is still challenging due to the hard of regulating the active site Co^(0) and Co^(2+)ratio.In this work,a series of CaTi_(0.9-x)Co_(x)Mo_(0.1)O_(3)(x=0,0.1-0.4)and CaTi_(0.7)Co_(0.3)O_(3) catalysts were prepared by using citric acid complexation method to promote the synthesis of ethanol.It was found that Mo species in the perovskite lattice can regulate the Co^(0) and Co^(2+)ratio through the domain-limiting effect of perovskite and the degree of Co reduction could be adjusted by changing the Co/Mo molar ratio.Among these investigated catalysts,the total selectivity of alcohols over the catalyst with the optimal Co/Mo ratio CaTi_(0.6)Co_(0.3)Mo_(0.1)O_(3) reached 39.1%,with ethanol accounting for 74.7%,which was ascribed to the moderate and tightly bound ratio of dissociative to non-dissociative adsorption sites on the surface and the balance of CH_(x)-CH_(y) coupling and C^(O) insertion.

Rh-Cu alloy nano-dendrites with enhanced electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation activity

The application of direct ethanol fuel cell(DEFC)has been bottlenecked by the sluggish ethanol oxidation reaction(EOR).Efficient electrocatalysts for the C-C bond cleavage are essential to promote EOR with high efficiency and C1 selectivity.Here,we prepared Rh-Cu alloy nano-dendrites(RhCu NDs)with abundant surface steps through controlled co-reduction,which exhibited significantly enhanced activity and C1 selectivity(0.47 m A cm_((ECSA))^(-2),472.4 mA mg_(Rh)^(-1),and 38.9%)than Rh NDs(0.32 mA cm((ECSA))-2,322.1 mA mgRh-1,and 21.4%)and commercially available Rh/C(0.18 mA cm_((ECSA))^(-2),265.4 mA mg_(Rh)^(-1),and 14.9%).Theoretical calculations and CO-stripping experiments revealed that alloying with Cu could modulate the surface electronic structures of Rh to resist CO-poisoning while strengthening ethanol adsorption.In situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR)indicated that the surface steps on RhCu NDs further promoted the C-C bond cleavage to increase the C1 selectivity.Therefore,optimizing the surface geometric and electronic structures of nanocrystals by rational composition and morphology control can provide a promising strategy for developing practical DEFC devices.

Loading CuO on the surface of MgO with low-coordination basic O^(2-)sites for effective enhanced CO_(2) capture and photothermal synergistic catalytic reduction of CO_(2) to ethanol

The higher capacity of CO_(2)adsorption on the surface of magnesium oxide(MgO)with low-coordination O^(2-)sites would effectively enhance the catalytic reduction of CO_(2).Herein,a series of copper oxide(CuO)and MgO composites with different mass ratios have been prepared by hydrothermal method and used for photothermal synergistic catalytic reduction of CO_(2)to ethanol.The catalyst with CuO mass ratio of 1.6% shows the best yield(15.17μmol·g^(-1)·h^(-1))under 3 h Xenon lamp illumination.The improved performance is attributable to the loose nano-sheet structure,uniform dispersion of active sites,the increased specific surface area,medium-strength basicity,the high separation efficiency of electrons and holes,and the formation of Mg-O-Cu species.The synthesized CuO and MgO composites with loose nano-sheet structure facilitate the diffusion of reactants CO_(2),so an excellent CO_(2)adsorption performance can be obtained.Meanwhile,the introduction of CuO in the form of bivalence provides higher specific surface area and porosity,thus obtaining more active sites.More importantly,the Mg-O-Cu species make the donation of electrons from MgO to CO_(2)easier,resulting in the breaking of the old Mg-O bond and the formation of C-O bond,thus promoting the adsorption and conversion of CO_(2)to ethanol.

Outbreak of methanol-induced optic neuropathy in early COVID-19 era;effectiveness of erythropoietin and methylprednisolone therapy

BACKGROUND Methanol is a highly toxic,non-potable alcohol.Outbreaks of methanol toxicity occur due to its fraudulent addition to alcoholic beverages as a cheaper substitute for ethanol.Recently,alongside the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic,rumors circulated on social media that consuming alcohol can prevent or cure the virus,leading to a COVID-19 and methanol-induced optic neuropathy(MON)syndemic.AIM To investigate the impact of erythropoietin(EPO)on the outcomes of patients diagnosed with MON.METHODS In this prospective study,105 patients presenting with acute bilateral visual loss secondary to methanol intoxication were enrolled from March to May 2020 at Farabi Eye Hospital.A comprehensive ocular examination was conducted for all participants.Recombinant human EPO and methylprednisolone were administered intravenously to all patients for three consecutive days.RESULTS The mean age of the participants was 39.9 years(±12.6).Ninety-four patients were male and eleven were female.The mean pre-treatment best corrected visual acuity(BCVA)improved from 2.0±0.86 to 1.39±0.69 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution post-treatment(P<0.001),with significant improvement observed in all age categories and genders(P<0.001).Visual acuity improvement was also significant regardless of whether the patient presented before or after 72 h(P<0.001),and the post-treatment BCVA remained significant at all monthly follow-up visits(P<0.001).CONCLUSION EPO and methylprednisolone therapy have been shown to be effective in improving visual outcomes in patients with MON when administrated within the first month of exposure.Public awareness efforts are necessary to prevent further outbreaks of methanol toxicity in the current COVID-19 era.