Enhancers and hindrances to doctor-nurse interdisciplinary collaborative practice in Nigeria

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that enhance and hinder interdisciplinary collaborative practice (ICP) among doctors and nurses at the Nnamdi Azikiwe teaching hospital, Nnewi, southeast Nigeria. The study was a cross-sectional descriptive survey and the quantitative method of data collection was employed. The population was all doctors irrespective of area of specialty and all nurses employed and working in the hospital as at the time of study. Proportionate stratified and convenience sampling methods were used to select study participants according to their categories. Using validated structured questionnaire, data were collected from 110 doctors and 95 nurses in the teaching hospital on their perception on ICP and factors that enhance/hinder ICP. Data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Specifically, frequencies, percentages, standard deviation and graphic presentation were used for descriptive analysis of scores while the unpaired t test of mean score using Graph Pad Prism, Version 5.30 was used to determine the influence of profession, gender, and years of experience on perception of ICP at 0.05 level of significance. The study found that both doctors and nurses have positive perception on ICP. Their years of experience have significant influence on their perception. Clear individual roles and good working relationships enhance ICP while giving priority to professional status rather than expertise was seen as a prominent hindrance to ICP. The study recommends collaborative continuing education for doctors and nurses to enhance ICP in patient care. In addition, the inclusion of interdisciplinary collaborative practice programmme into the curriculum of medical and nursing students (where it does not exist) would go a long way to strengthen ICP and decrease hindrances when they graduate.

Branch-Chain-Rich Diisopropyl Ether with Steric Hindrance Facilitates Stable Cycling of Lithium Batteries at-20℃

Li metal batteries(LMBs)offer signifi-cant potential as high energy density alternatives;nev-ertheless,their performance is hindered by the slow desolvation process of electrolytes,particularly at low temperatures(LT),leading to low coulombic efficiency and limited cycle stability.Thus,it is essential to opti-mize the solvation structure thereby achieving a rapid desolvation process in LMBs at LT.Herein,we introduce branch chain-rich diisopropyl ether(DIPE)into a 2.5 M Li bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide dipropyl ether(DPE)elec-trolyte as a co-solvent for high-performance LMBs at-20℃.The incorporation of DIPE not only enhances the disorder within the electrolyte,but also induces a steric hindrance effect form DIPE’s branch chain,excluding other solvent molecules from Li+solvation sheath.Both of these factors contribute to the weak interactions between Li^(+)and solvent molecules,effectively reducing the desolvation energy of the electrolyte.Consequently,Li(50μm)||LFP(mass loading~10 mg cm^(-2))cells in DPE/DIPE based electrolyte demonstrate stable performance over 650 cycles at-20℃,delivering 87.2 mAh g^(-1),and over 255 cycles at 25℃ with 124.8 mAh g^(-1).DIPE broadens the electrolyte design from molecular structure considera-tions,offering a promising avenue for highly stable LMBs at LT.

Steric hindrance shielding viologen against alkali attack in realizing ultrastable aqueous flow batteries

Viologens known as a kind of promising negolyte materials for aqueous organic redox flow batteries,face a critical stability challenge due to the S_N2 nucleophilic attack by hydroxide ions(OH-)during the battery cycling.In this work,a N-cyclic quaternary ammonium-grafted viologen molecule,viz.1,1'-bis(4,4'-dime thylpiperidiniumyl)-4,4'-bipyridinium tetrachloride((DBPPy)Cl_(4)),is developed by the molecular engineering strategy.The obtained(DBPPy)Cl_(4) molecule shows a decent solubility of 1.84 M and a redox potential of-0.52 V vs.Ag/AgCl,Experimental and theoretical results reveal that the grafted N-cyclic quaternary ammonium groups act as the steric hindrance to prevent nucleophilic attack by OH~-,increasing the alkali resistance of the electroactive molecule.The symmetrical battery with 0.50 M(DBPPy)Cl4shows negligible decay during the 13-day cycling test.As demonstration,the flow battery utilizing 1.0 M(DBPPy)Cl_(4) as the negolyte and 1-(1-oxyl-2,2',6,6'-tetramethylpiperidin-4-yl)-1'-(3-(trimethylammonio)propyl)-4,4'-bipyridinium trichloride as the posolyte exhibits a high capacity retention rate of 99.99%per cycle at 60 mA cm^(-2).

Nickel catalysts with asymmetric steric hindrance for ethylene polymerization

α-Diimide catalysts have attracted widespread attention due to their unique chain walking characteristics.A series ofα-diimide nickel/palladium catalysts with different electronic effects and steric hindrances were designed and synthesized for olefin polymerization.In this work,we synthesized a series of asymmetricα-diimide nickel complexes with different steric hindrances and used them for ethylene polymerization.These nickel catalysts have high ethylene polymerization activity,up to 6.51×10^(6)g·mol^(−1)·h^(−1),and the prepared polyethylene has a moderate melting point and high molecular weight(up to 38.2×10^(4)g·mol^(−1)),with a branching density distribution between 7 and 94 branches per 1000 carbons.More importantly,the polyethylene prepared by these catalysts exhibits excellent tensile properties,with strain and stress reaching 800%and 30 MPa,respectively.

Unlocking high-rate O3 layered oxide cathode for Na-ion batteries via ion migration path modulation

O3-NaNi1/3Fe1/3Mn1/3O2is a promising layered cathode material with high specific capacity,low cost,and simple synthesis.However,sluggish kinetic hindrance is attributed to the size discrepancy between the large Na-ion and narrow tetrahedral interstitial positions,leading to inferior rate capacity and low reversible capacity.Herein,F with light-weight and strong electronegativity is introduced to substitute O atoms in the bulk structure,which intensifies the bond strength of transition metal and oxygen and enlarges the Na+diffusion channel.In addition,density-functional theory(DFT) calculations demonstrate that the electrostatic interaction is weakened between Na+in the tetrahedral site and the transitionmetal cation directly below it,dramatically reducing the migration barriers of Na+diffusion.Consequently,the as-obtained NaNi1/3Fe1/3Mn1/3O1.95F0.05sample displays outstanding rate performance of 86.7 mA h g^(-1)at 10 C and excellent capacity retention of 84.1% after 100 cycles at 2 C.Moreover,a full cell configuration using a hard carbon anode reaches the energy density of 307.7 Wh kg^(-1).This strategy paves the way for novel means of modulating the Na-ion migration path for high-rate O3-type layered cathode materials.

Cold plasma-activated Cu-Co catalysts with CN vacancies for enhancing CO_(2)electroreduction to low-carbon alcohol

Electrocatalytic CO_(2)reduction reaction to low-carbon alcohol is a challenging task,especially high selectivity for ethanol,which is mainly limited by the regulation of reaction intermediates and subsequent C–C coupling.A Cu-Co bimetallic catalyst with CN vacancies is successfully developed by H_(2)cold plasma toward a high-efficiency CO_(2)RR into low-carbon alcohol.The Cu-Co PBA-V_(CN)(Prussian blue analogues with CN vacancies)electrocatalyst yields methanol and ethanol as major products with a total low-carbon alcohol FE of 83.8%(methanol:39.2%,ethanol:44.6%)at-0.9 V vs.RHE,excellent durability(100 h)and a small onset potential of-0.21 V.ATR-SEIRAS(attenuated total internal reflection surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy)and DFT(density functional theory)reveal that the steric hindrance of V_(CN)can enhance the CO generation from*COOH,and the C–C coupling can also be increased by CO spillover on uniformly dispersed Cu atoms.This work provides a strategy for the design and preparation of electrocatalysts for CO_(2)RR into low-carbon alcohol products and highlights the impact of catalyst steric hindrance to catalytic performance.

Unraveling abnormal buried interface anion defect passivation mechanisms depending on cation-induced steric hindrance for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells

Although ionic liquids(ILs)have been widely employed to heal the defects in perovskite solar cells(PSCs),the corresponding defect passivation mechanisms are not thoroughly understood up to now.Herein,we first reveal an abnormal buried interface anion defect passivation mechanism depending on cationinduced steric hindrance.The IL molecules containing the same anion([BF4]^(-))and different sizes of imidazolium cations induced by substituent size are used to manipulate buried interface.It was revealed what passivated interfacial defects is mainly anions instead of cations.Theoretical and experimental results demonstrate that the large-sized cations can weaken the ionic bond strength between anions and cations,and facilitate the interaction between anions and SnO2as well as perovskites,which is conducive to interfacial defect passivation and ameliorating interfacial contact.It can be concluded that interfacial chemical interaction strength and defect passivation effect are positively correlated with the size of cations.The discovery breaks conventional thinking that large-sized modification molecules would weaken their chemical interaction with perovskite.Compared with the control device(21.54%),the device based on 1,3-Bis(1-adamantyl)-imidazolium tetrafluoroborate(BAIMBF4)with maximum size cations achieves a significantly enhanced efficiency of 23.61%along with much increased moisture,thermal and light stabilities.

No Way Out—The Doomed Pointlessness of Fighting against Reality in Araby

By analyzing the details of Araby,this paper is to prove that in Araby James Joyce puts the boy's personal yearning for idealized romance vis-à-vis several irresistible hindrances so as to reveal the doomed pointlessness of an individual's holding his ideal and passion in a reality with prevailing spiritual paralysis.

Spacial hindrance induced recovery of over-poisoned active acid sites in pyridine-modified H-mordenite for dimethyl ether carbonylation

Zeolite catalysts,such as H-mordenite(H-MOR),are readily deactivated by coke deposition in carbonylation reactions.Pyridine modification of H-MOR can improve its stability but can lead to an undesirable loss in catalytic activity.Herein,we report the intrinsic impact of the pyridine adsorption behavior on H-MOR and the spacial hindrance of the zeolite frameworks on dimethyl ether(DME)carbonylation at a molecular level.We discovered that acid sites at O2 positions,located on common walls of eight-membered ring(8-MR)side pockets and 12-MR channels,were active in DME carbonylation,but were unfortunately poisoned during pyridine modification.Density functional theory calculations revealed that the pyridine-poisoned acid sites at the O2 positions could be easily regenerated due to the spacial hindrance of the zeolite frameworks.Accordingly,they can be facilely regenerated by proper thermal treatment,which induces 60%promotion in the catalytic activity along with a high stability.Our findings demonstrate the determining role of O2 positions in H-MOR for DME carbonylation and provide a new avenue for the rational design of other efficient zeolite-relevant catalytic systems.

Enhancing ethylene selectivity in MTO reaction by incorporating metal species in the cavity of SAPO-34 catalysts

The SAPO‐34 catalysts were modified with metal cations by different processes(conventional ion exchange(CIE),template‐assisted ion incorporation(TII)and alcoholic ion exchange(AIE)),systematically characterized by XRD,XRF,N2 adsorption‐desorption,UV‐VIS,H2‐TPR,EPR,SEM,EDX,XPS,NH3‐TPD,1H NMR and IGA,and applied in MTO reaction.The metal cations incorporation introduces extra diffusion hindrance by metallic species located in the cavity of SAPO‐34.In particular,the Zn cations‐modified SAPO‐34 catalysts exhibit core‐shell like structure,with Si‐rich and Zn‐rich sublayer near the external surface,which favors the coke deposition at the beginning of MTO reaction,exerts marked impact on the diffusion of the generated products with relatively large molecular size(e.g.propylene),and significantly increases the selectivity to ethylene and the ratio of ethylene to propene in the MTO reaction.

THE STEPWISE EXCHANGE ACTION AND STERIC HINDRANCE EFFECT OF ORGANIC PHENOLS ON CLAYS IN SEAWATER

The exchange action of six types of organic phenols on clay surfaces in seawater is systematically studied in this work. The following significant conclusions are drawn from the experiments. (1) The interaction of organic phenols with montmorillonite, illite and kaolinite in seawater is monovalent anion exchage.(2) Their isotherms of stepwise exchage on clay surfaces belong to the Langmuir type or stepwise type.(3) The discovery of the"steric hindrance effects of stepwise exchange of organic phenols on clays surfaces", and revelation of an exchange mechanisrn diffeient from that in references are the greatest achieverments in this work.

Diffusion and adoption of environmentally sound technology in China cement industry

From rapid growth of cement industry in China there is serious pollution of powdered dust. After general analysis on factors influencing adoption of environmentally sound technology(EST) as well as economic benefit from adoption of dust removing technology and capital ability of cement firms to invest, the conclusion that the obstacles to EST in China cement sector are different from ones in other sectors was drawn. And then, hindrances to diffusion and adoption of EST in China cement were discussion by empirical study.

Influence of Steric Hindrance Between Hydrogen Atoms of Linkage Groups and Adjacent Phenyls on Properties of Polyimide

A diamine monomer 4,4′-methylenedianiline（MDA） was introduced to modify the polyimide of pyromellitic dianhydride（PMDA） and 4,4′-oxydianiline（ODA） by polycondensation. A series of polyamic acids was synthesized from MDA and ODA of different molar ratios with PMDA of sum mole of moles of MDA and ODA, and polyimide films were obtained by thermal imidization. Polyimide（PI） films were characterized by tensile testing, dynamic mechanical analysis（DMA）, thermal gravimetry analysis（TGA）, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR）, wide X-ray diffraction（WAXD） and molecular simulation. With the increase of MDA content, the tensile strength and thermal decomposition temperature remained generally stable compared with those of PMDA/ODA polyimide. Unexpectedly, the glass transition temperature（Tg） and Young＇s modulus increased from 388.7 °C and 2.37 GPa to 408.3 °C and 5.74 GPa, respectively. The results of WAXD and molecular simulation indicate the steric hindrance among hydrogen atoms of the linkage groups and adjacent phenyls enhanced the properties of the polyimide modified with MDA.

A Novel Initiator Containing Alkyne Group for the Polymerization of 2-Ethyl-2-oxazoline

A novel trifunctional initiator with one alkyne and two trifluoromethanesulfonate moieties was synthesized from a protected alcohol 5-hydroxyl-2-phenyl-1, 3-dioxane. The alkyne func- tionalized intermediate with two protected alcohol groups was synthesized by reacting with propargyl bromide. The alcohol groups were cleaved using a mixture of tetrahydrofuran and hydrochloric acid aqueous solution. In the last step the initiator was synthesized us- ing triflic anhydride in carbon tetrachloride. The initiator was characterized by 1H NMR and used for the polymerization of 2-ethyl-2-oxazoline which gives polymers with narrow distribution. For comparison a similar initiator with two tosylates was prepared and used for the polymerization of the monomer 2-ethyl-2-oxazoline, the resulting product has a wide molecular weight distribution and most of the initiator remains unreacted after 24 h which may be due to the steric hindrance between the two tosylate groups. To further explore the steric hindrance phenomenon, a linear tosylate initiator was synthesized, but still some of the initiator remains unreacted, illustrating that both steric hindrance and electrophilic balance affect the efficiency of the cationic ring-opening polymerization. All of the polymers were characterized in detail by using IH NMR, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectroscopy, and size exclusion chromatography to confirm the purity and distribution of the polymers.

Non-frozen process of heavy-ion fusion reactions at deep sub-barrier energies

The hindrance in heavy-ion fusion reactions a deep sub-barrier energies is investigated using the double folding model with a hybrid method between the frozen and adiabatic density approximations.In this method,the density distributions of the projectile and the target depend closely on the distance between them.As the distance decreased,the half-density radii of the colliding nucle gradually increased to the half-density radius of the compound nucleus.The total potential based on this non-frozen approximation generates a slightly shallower pocket and becomes more attractive inside the pocket compared to that obtained from the frozen approximation.A damping factor was used to simulate the decline of the coupled channel effects owing to the density rearrangement of the two colliding nuclei.The calculated fusion cross-sections and astrophysical S factors at the deep sub-barrier energies are both in good agreement with the experimental data for the medium-heavyNi+Ni and medium-lightMg+Si mass systems.In addition,it was concluded that the apparent maximum of the S factors most likely appears in fusion systems with strong coupling effects.

Preliminary study of binary protein adsorption system and potential bioseparation under homogeneous field of shear in airlift biocontactor

This paper investigates the bioseparation of binary protein mixtures using polystyrene based anion exchange resin. Adsorption experiments were conducted in batch mode using draft-tube internally recirculate dair lift biocontactor in comparison with the conventional shake flask batch adsorption equilibrium experiments. Binary protein mixtures contained bovine serum albumin (BSA) and bovine haemoglobin (BHb) at different initial fractions. Results from single solute adsorption experiments in biocontactor showed that both proteins were equally adsorbed onto the resin with equilibrium reached in an equal time period. This represents similar affinities towards the negatively charged resin surface, although BSA was expected to adsorb through specific forces. Adsorption results showed that BSA has hindered the BHb adsorption in the biocontactor, although adsorption of both proteins was equally hindered in the shake flasks adsorption experiments. Moreover, adsorption of BHb was inhibited up to 29% in the presence of BSA compared to the adsorption of BHb from a solution containing single solute of BHb at the same initial concentration. Similarly, the presence of BHb has hindered the adsorption of BSA by 59%. Adsorptions of both BSA and BHb from binary solution when each formed 75% initial fraction while the other protein formed the remaining 25% were relatively low with equilibrium reached in shorter time. Moreover, considerable amount of proteins remained in the solution, which demonstrates that multilayer adsorption most likely didn’t occur at the relatively small protein concentrations used in the present study. In general, the higher adsorption of BHb can also be related to the compressibility of its molecules which allowed for higher adsorption capacity. The homogeneous and lower shear environment in the airlift biocontactor compared to the other conventional batch adsorption in shake flask reduced the compressibility of BHb that caused higher BSA adsorption from binary solutions of BSA and BHb, which allowed for better bioseparation of both proteins.

Effect of Carboxyl Functionalized MWCNTs on the Cure Behavior of Epoxy Resin

Effects of carboxyl functionalized MWCNTs on the cure behavior of epoxy resin (EPIKOTETM resin 862 and EPICURETM curing agent W) were investigated by using differential scanning calorimeter in dynamic scan mode. Results indicated that nanotubes could initiate cure reaction at lower temperature while only 0.1 wt% samples were able to suppress the peak temperature (Tp) consistently regardless of different heating rate due to their higher reaction rate, other two batches (0.2 wt% and 0.3 wt% CNT) showed hardly any change in Tp compared to neat samples. Furthermore, addition of small amount (0.1 wt%) of CNTs significantly reduced the activation energy of the system but further addition elevated that due to their retarding effect. Also, a correlation was established between the dispersion state of CNTs in epoxy and total heat of reaction (ΔH) where lower ΔH was considered as an indication of better interfacial interaction of CNTs with matrix and hence, better dispersion. The difference in curing behavior of three different CNT percentages was discussed in terms of their steric hindrance and state of dispersion in the matrix.

Estimation of Separation of Electrolytes and Organic Compounds by Nanofiltration Membranes Using an Irreversible Thermodynamic Modei

Nanofiltration separation has become a popular technique for removing largeorganic molecules and inorganic substances from water. It is achieved by a combination of threemechanisms: electrostatic repulsion, sieving and diffusion. In the present work, a model based onirreversible thermodynamics is extended and used to estimate rejection of inorganic salts andorganic substances. Binary systems are modeled, where the feed contains an ion that is much lesspermeable to the membrane as compared with the other ion. The two model parameters are estimated byfitting the model to the experimental data. Variation of these parameters with the composition ofthe feed is described by an empirical correlation. This work attempts to describe transport throughthe nanofiltration membranes by a simple model.

The Effect of Gum Arabic on the Dispersion of Cement Pastes

Gum arabic, an inexpensive dispersant widely used in the food industry, has great potential for application in building materials. In order to find out the dispersion effect of gum arabic and the factors influencing the holding capacity of gum arabic in cement during hydration, rheological properties of cement paste with added gum arabic were assessed in this paper. The results show that 0.10wt%-0.60wt% of gum arabic positively affects dispersion, lower dosages have negligible effect. High speed mixing is required to maintain the dispersion stability of gum arabic in cement paste. The optimum dosage of gum arabic to achieve best disperse-holding capacity of cement paste was 0.3wt%, and the minimum water-cement ratio needed to obtain a dispersion effect was 0.28.

Efficient Synthesis of 3-N-Phthaloyl Homophenylalanine Lactone

A new method for the synthesis of 3-N-phthaloyl homophenylalanine lactone has been developed and its mechanism was proposed