Chitosan/Sodium Alginate Multilayer pH-Sensitive Films Based on Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly for Intelligent Packaging

The abuse of plastic food packaging has brought about severe white pollution issues around the world.Developing green and sustainable biomass packaging is an effective way to solve this problem.Hence,a chitosan/sodium alginate-based multilayer film is fabricated via a layer-by-layer(LBL)self-assembly method.With the help of superior interaction between the layers,the multilayer film possesses excellent mechanical properties(with a tensile strength of 50 MPa).Besides,the film displays outstanding water retention property(blocking moisture of 97.56%)and ultraviolet blocking property.Anthocyanin is introduced into the film to detect the food quality since it is one natural plant polyphenol that is sensitive to the pH changes ranging from 1 to 13 in food when spoilage occurs.It is noted that the film is also bacteriostatic which is desired for food packaging.This study describes a simple technique for the development of advanced multifunctional and fully biodegradable food packaging film and it is a sustainable alternative to plastic packaging.

Au@Ag Core-shell Nanorods Self-assembled on Polyelectrolyte Multilayers for Ultra-High Sensitivity SERS Fiber Probes

We demonstrated a chemical process in the fabrication of a SERS fiber probe with an ultrahigh sensitivity.The synthesis was carried out by preparing Au@Ag core-shell nanorods (Au@Ag-NRs) selfassembled on polyelectrolyte (PE) multilayers,for which Au@Ag-NRs were controlled by adjusting the silver layer thickness.The effect of silver layer thickness of Au@Ag-NRs on the SERS performance of the fiber probe was investigated.The SERS fiber probe shows the best performance when the silver layer thickness is controlled at 8.57 nm.Under the condition of optimizing silver layer thickness,the fiber probe exhibits ultra-high sensitivity (i e,10^(-10) M crystalline violet,CV),good reproducibility (i e,RSD of 3.5%) and stability.Besides,electromagnetic field distribution of the SERS fiber probe was also investigated.The strongest enhancement is found within the core of fiber,whereas a weakened electromagnetic field exists in the fiber cladding layer.The SERS fiber probe can be a good candidate in ultra-trace detection for biomedical and environmental areas.

STUDIES ON RELATION BETWEEN INTRINSIC VISCOSITY OF POLYELECTROLYTES IN SOLUTIONS USED FOR LAYER-BY-LAYER SELFASSEMBLY AND THEIR CORRESPONDING ADSORPTION AMOUNTS IN THE RESULTANT MULTILAYER MEMBRANES

The adsorption amount of poly(styrene sulfonate) and poly(dimethyldiallyl ammonium chloride) (PSS/PDDA) self-assembled multilayer membranes in designed dipping solvents were measured by UV-Vis-spectroscopy and quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Intrinsic viscosities of PSS and PDDA in corresponding dipping solvents were determined by an Ubbelohde viscometer. It is found that the adsorption amount of PSS/PDDA self-assembled multilayer membranes built up in different dipping solutions, added salt concentration, pH of solution and solvent quality, respectively changed oppositely with the corresponding intrinsic viscosity of PSS and PDDA in dipping solvents. A negative relation between the adsorption amount and intrinsic viscosity was revealed, and explained in term of the concept of excluded volume of polymer molecule in dilute solutions.

Ti/(Ti,Cr)N/CrN multilayer coated 316L stainless steel by arc ion plating as bipolar plates for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Arc ion plating (AIP) is applied to form Ti/(Ti,Cr)N/CrN multilayer coating on the surface of 316L stainless steel (SS316L) as bipolar plates for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). The characterizations of the coating are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Interfacial contact resistance (ICR) between the coated sample and carbon paper is 4.9 m Omega cm(2) under 150 N/cm(2), which is much lower than that of the SS316L substrate. Potentiodynamic and potentiostatic tests are performed in the simulated PEMFC working conditions to investigate the corrosion behaviors of the coated sample. Superior anticorrosion performance is observed for the coated sample, whose corrosion current density is 0.12 mu A/cm(2). Surface morphology results after corrosion tests indicate that the substrate is well protected by the multilayer coating. Performances of the single cell with the multilayer coated SS316L bipolar plate are improved significantly compared with that of the cell with the uncoated SS316L bipolar plate, presenting a great potential for PEMFC application. (C) 2016 Science Press and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press. All rights reserved.

Fabrication and Properties of Multilayer Chitosan Membrane Loaded with Tinidazole

With the aim of providing effective periodontal disease therapeutic method, multilayer membranes which were loaded with drug for guided tissue regeneration were prepared using an immerseprecipitation phase inversion technique. Single layer, bi-layer and tri-layer membranes were fabricated with chitosan used as cartier and tinidazole as medicine model which was loaded on the membrane. The influence of layer on structure and properties of membrane were studied by SEM, UV spectrophotometer and mechanical test. Drug release properties of three types of layer membranes were also investigated. The results showed that release rate could be slown down in both bi-layer and tri-layer membranes （to 11 days and 14 days respectively） and tri-layer membrane lasted the longest. After a process of rapid release, the concentration of tinidazole which was released by the membrane was maintained at an efficient dosage level. Compared with single layer and bi- layer membranes, we found tri-layer membrane could play a role in controlling low-rate drug release especially at the early stage of release, and keep an efficient dosage at affected part for a long period of time. The loss of drug which loaded on membrane decreased from 84.6% for single layer to 13.04% for tri-layer. The mechanical strength of three types of membrane were detected and showed that it could meet the requiremens of clinical practice. The membranes especially with tri-layer could be more valuable in application.

Permeation Characteristics of Light Hydrocarbons Through Poly（amide-6-β-ethylene oxide） Multilayer Composite Membranes

In this paper, poly(amide-6-β-ethylene oxide) (PEBA1657) copolymer was used to prepare multilayer polyetherimide (PEI)/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)/PEBA1657/PDMS composite membranes by dip-coating method. Permeation behaviors of ethylene, ethane, propylene, propane, n-butane, methane and nitrogen through the multilayer composite membranes were investigated over a range of operating temperature and pressure. The permeances of light hydrocarbons through PEI/PDMS/PEBA1657/PDMS composite membranes increase with their increasing condensability, and the olefins are more permeable than their corresponding paraffins. For light hydrocarbons, the gas permeances increase significantly as temperature increasing. When the transmembrane pressure difference increases, the gas permeance increases moderately due to plasticization effect, while their apparent activation energies for permeation decrease.

Multilayer Membranes Based on Ceramic Materials——Sol-gel Synthesis,Characterization and Membrane Performance

In nearly all chemical and petrochemical systems, separation of products generally accounts for more than 50% of the capital cost and the greatest part of the energy consumption. It is generally believed that membrane systems can offer benefits in both reducing the energy consumption of the separation stages and lowering the capital expenditure （CAPEX）. Microporous ceramic membranes have the potential to overcome the limitation in polymer membranes operation, which has been the subject of a large amount of research worldwide in the last two decades. And most of the research has aimed at the production of the asymmetric multilayered membrane based on amorphous oxides by sol-gel techniques. The paper is to give an overview of publications on ceramic membranes, including less common materials of titania, zirconia, which can be used for pervaporation in corrosive media. Commercially available microporous membranes based on these membrane materials and the membrane economics are also summarized.

Surface modification of polypiperazine-amide membrane by self-assembled method for dye wastewater treatment

Polypiperazine-amide membranes were modified with poly(ethyleneimine)(PEI) by self-assembled method,through which PEI molecules were fixed on the membrane surface by ionic interaction. In the experiments,the PEI concentration ranged from 50 to 2000 mg·L-1while the depositing time was fixed at 20 min. The results showed that low PEI concentration resulted in a slight increase of pure water flux, which was attributed to the enhanced membrane surface hydrophilicity. The PEI adsorption on membrane surface had less effect on the rejections to neutral PEG and sucrose, but improved the rejections to divalent cationic ions and methylene blue as the result of reversion of the membrane surface charge from negative to positive according to the XPS analysis and zeta potential measurements. The membrane modified at PEI = 1500 mg·L-1exhibited high rejection to methylene blue(MB) and is potential to be applied in the treatment of effluents containing positively charged dyes.

Fiber Optic Humidity Sensor Based on Self-Assembled Polyelectrolyte Multilayers

Polyelectrolyte multilayers were self-assembled onto planar glass substrates and multimode optic fibers. The multilayer thin films deposited on glass substrates were characterized by using UV-vis spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscope. The multilayer thin films containing hydrophilic side-groups possessed are affinity for uwer molecules. The adsorption and desorption of free water vapor gave rise to the changes in the refractive index and in the reflectance of the thin films. A multilayer thin film based fiber optic humidity sensor with an LED light source of 0.85 mum was designed. Under certain conditions, the rejected light intensity of the thin film sensor was a function of the humidity of air. About 30 bilayers was optimal for the multilayer thin film sensor working at wavelength of 0.85 mum. This sensor can work over almost the whole relative humidity range with very good sensitivity.

IONIC SELF-ASSEMBLY AND HUMIDITY SENSITIVITY OF POLYELECTROLYTE MULTILAYERS

Multilayer thin films of alternately adsorbed layers of polyelectrolytes PDDA and PS-119 were formed on both planar silica substrates and optical fibers through the ionic self-assembly technique. Intrinsic Fabry-Perot cavities were fabricated by stepwise assembling the polyelectrolytes onto the ends of optical fibers for the purposes of fiber optical device and sensor development. Ionically assembled polyelectrolyte multilayer thin films, in which. there are hydrophilic side groups with strong affinity towards water molecules, are a category of humidity-sensitive functional materials. The polyelectrolyte multilayer thin film Fabry-Perot cavity-type fiber optical humidity sensor can work over a wide range from about 0% RH to about 100% RH with a response time less than 1 s.

Fabrication of Au/SiO_(2) Nanocomposite Films by Self-Assembly Multilayer Method

Gold colloid was prepared by chemical reduction of hydrogen tetrachloroaurate, polyelectrolyte/gold nanoparticle/silica nanoparticie composite films were fabricated via an electrostatic self-assembly multilayer method, and composite films of gold nanoparticle dispersed in silica matrix were formed by heat-treating the polyelectrolyte/gold nanoparticle/silica nanoparticle composite films to eliminate the polyelectrolyte. The obtained composite films were investigated with UV-vis, TEM, AFM and XRD. The results show that the self-assembly multilayer method is a promising process to produce composite films of gold nanoparticle-dispersed in organic and/or inorganic matrixes.

Analysis of electrochemical impedance and XRD spectroscopy for complex self-assembled film on silver

Self-assembled monolayers （SAMs） of （3-mercaptopropy） trimethoxysilane （3-MtrF） chemisorbed on silver surfaces were chemically ＂modified by 1-octadecanethiol to form self-assembled mixed-monolayers （SAMM） and the co-polymer of N-vinylcarbazole and methyl methacrylate ester （to form complex selfassembled film （CSAF））. The oxidation resistance of these barriers on silver surfaces and some influential factors concerned processes were analyzed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS） in a 10% NaOH aqueous solution at oxidation potential. X-ray diffraction （XRD） spectroscopy shows that the oxidation occurring on the silver surface may be restrained effectively due to the coating barrier, and CSAF（Ⅱ） is the best one. Studies also reveal that oxide processes of bare silver and a series of modified silver electrodes in a 10% NaOH aqueous solution are of more than two relaxation time constants.

Preparation, formation mechanism and mechanical properties of multilayered TiO_2-organic nanocomposite film

Ti O2-organic multilayered nanocomposite films were deposited on a self-assembled monolayer-coated silicon substrate based on layer-by-layer technique and chemical bath deposition method by a hydrolysis of Ti Cl4 in an acid aqueous solution. The chemical compositions, surface morphologies and mechanical properties of the films were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectrometer(XPS), scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and nanoindentation depth-sensing technique, respectively. The results indicate that the major chemical compositions of the films are Ti and O. The principal mechanism for the nucleation and growth of the films is homogeneous nucleation, and the layer number of films has great influence on the surface morphology and roughness of the films. In addition, mechanical nanoindentation testing presents a significant increase in hardness and fracture toughness of titanium dioxide multilayered films compared with single-layer titanium dioxide thin film.

Fabrication of SPES/Nano-TiO_2 Composite Ultrafiltration Membrane and Its Anti-fouling Mechanism

Membrane fouling is one of the major obstacles for reaching a high flux over a prolonged period of ultrafiltration（UF）process.In this study,a sulfonated-polyethersulfone（SPES）/nano-TiO2 composite UF membrane with good anti-fouling performance was fabricated by phase inversion and self-assembly methods.The TiO2 nanoparticle self-assembly on the SPES membrane surface was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）and FT-IR spectrometer.The morphology and hydrophilicity were characterized by scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,atomic force microscopy（AFM）and contact angle goniometer,respectively.The anti-fouling mechanism of composite UF membrane was discussed through the analysis of the micro-structure and component of UF membrane surface.The results showed that the TiO2 content and the micro-structure of the composite UF membrane surface had great influence on the separation and anti-fouling performance.

Assembling Synthesis of ZnSe Orthohexagonal Slices through Emulsion Liquid Membrane System of Gas-liquid Transport

Orthohexagonal slices assembled by ZnSe quantum dots were synthesized through emulsion liquid membrane system. These orthohexagonal slices were 1.5-3.5 μm in side length and were self-assembled by ZnSe quantum dots of 2-3 nm. It was proposed the surfactant molecules on ZnSe quantum dots played a key role in the self-assembly process.

STABILITY AND ELECTROCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF FULL-CONJUGATED SELF-ASSEMBLED FILMS BASED ON POLYANILINE AND ITS ACID-SUBSTITUTED DERIVATES

The stability of full-conjugated self-assembled （SA） multilayer films based on partially doped polyaniline （PANI） as a polycation and poly（o-aminobenzoic acid） （PCAN）, poly（aniline-2-sulfonic acid） （PSAN） as polyanions is investigated in alkali aqueous solutions. The self-assembled PANI-PCAN films keep their stability within 24 h in 1 mol/L NaOH solution,-the PANI-PSAN films, however, maintain the stability for 20 min in the same condition because the solubility of PSAN in alkali solutions is much higher than that of PCAN. The electrochemical properties of the SA films are determined, and the film-CdS composites formed in situ are also reported.

Multilayer Film Fabrication and Photoelectric Conversion Property of Two Pyrrolidinofullerene Carboxylic Acid Derivatives

Two multilayer films of pyrrolidinofullerene carboxylic acid derivatives, which exhibit photoelectric conversion property, are reported here. The first monolayers were fabricated on hydrophilic indium-tin-oxide (ITO), quartz, and mica by esterification reaction. The multilayers were characterized by contact angle and UV spectrum. The photoelectric conversion properties of both multilayer films were studied.

A Totally Absorbable Multilayer PLGA Implant Device Containing Doxorubicin Inhibited Tumor Growth and Metastasis without Systemic Toxicity in Murine Breast Cancer and an Ideal Pharmacological Paradigm for Regional Chemotherapy

We hypothesize that a cylinder implant made of multilayer Poly-lactic-co-glycolic-acid (PLGA) membrane can be a method for controlled and extended drug release. We fashioned a multilayer cylindrical implant termed STID100 that released doxorubicin for 3 weeks in an orthotopic 4T1 breast cancer model in Balb/C mice. This implant starts as a thin doxorubicin-embedded PLGA membrane, and is then rolled into a cylinder containing an air gap between the membrane layers. Its controlled sustained release delivered 2× the amount of the intravenous (IV) equivalent of doxorubicin, inhibited the primary tumor, and prevented lung metastasis. Importantly it did not cause weight loss, splenomegaly, or cardiac toxicity vs systemically administrated doxorubicin. This favorable safety profile is further substantiated by the finding of no detectable plasma doxorubicin in multiple time points during the 3-week period, and low tumor doxorubicin concentration. The implant system delivered to the specification of an ideal pharmacological paradigm might offer a better coverage of the local tumor, significantly preventing metastatic spread with less drug toxicity to many vital organs, compared to the traditional pharmacology of IV route. The profile of STID made it an attractive therapeutic alternative in metastatic tumor prevention, pain management and many other diverse clinical scenarios.

Do membrane proteins cluster without binding between molecules?

Clustering is a basic event for the initiation of immune cell responses, and simulation analyses of clustering of membrane proteins have been performed. It was claimed that a cluster is formed by the self-assembly induced by protein dimerization with a high binding speed (Woolf and Linderman, Biophys. Chem. 104, 217-227, 2003). We examined the cluster formation with Monte Carlo simulation using two algorithms. The first was that simulation processes were divided into two substeps. All proteins were subjected to movement in the first substep, followed by reaction in the second substep. The second algorithm was that proteins were first selected to react and proteins which did not react were subjected to movement. The self-assembly induced by dimerization was simulated only with the second algorithm. In this algorithm, monomers dissociated from dimers do not move because these monomers are not selected for movement, and a large proportion of such monomers are selected to form dimers in the next step. The self-assembly was again simulated with the first algorithm containing the conditions that monomers dissociated from dimers did not move in the next movement substep. This algorithm seems to be far removed from natural conditions. Thus, it is inferred that the self-assembly induced by dimerization is unlikely in situ, and that some interaction between proteins is required for cluster formation. In contrast to algorithms in previous simulations, our results suggest that it is more appropriate that proteins move to the same direction for a while and reflect when the collision occurs.

基于金字塔池化网络的质子交换膜燃料电池气体扩散层组分推理方法

针对质子交换膜燃料电池气体扩散层(gas diffusion layer composition,GDL)形貌划分与制备工艺改进问题,提出了一种基于金字塔池化网络(pyramid scene parsing network,PSPNet)与多层感知器(multi-layer perception,MLP)的气体扩散层组分识别与比例推理方法:首先将带标签的气体扩散层扫描电镜(scanning electron microscope,SEM)图片输入神经网络,得到特征图;得到的图像特征层进入金字塔池化模块后,获取SEM图像的深层和浅层特征;随后将深层和浅层特征图层融合输入全卷积网络(fully convolutional network,FCN)模块,得到预测图像;最后统计各个组分上的像素点比例,通过MLP完成组分比例推理。结果表明:所提方法组分识别像素准确率达81.24%;在5%偏差范围内,比例推理准确率为88.89%。该方法解决了气体扩散层多组分无法区分、比例无法获知的问题,可有效应用于气体扩散层的质检、数值重构以及制备工艺改进。