A stable anthraquinone-derivative cathode to develop sodium metal batteries: The role of ammoniates as electrolytes

Rechargeable sodium metal batteries constitute a cost-effective option for energy storage although sodium shows some drawbacks in terms of reactivity with organic solvents and dendritic growth.Here we demonstrate that an organic dye,indanthrone blue,behaves as an efficient cathode material for the development of secondary sodium metal batteries when combined with novel inorganic electrolytes.These electrolytes are ammonia solvates,known as liquid ammoniates,which can be formulated as NaI·3.3NH_(3) and NaBF_(4)·2.5NH_(3).They impart excellent stability to sodium metal,and they favor sodium non-dendritic growth linked to their exceedingly high sodium ion concentration.This advantage is complemented by a high specific conductivity.The battery described here can last hundreds of cycles at 10 C while keeping a Coulombic efficiency of 99%from the first cycle.Because of the high capacity of the cathode and the superior physicochemical properties of the electrolytes,the battery can reach a specific energy value as high as 210 W h kgIB^(-1),and a high specific power of 2.2 kW kgIB^(-1),even at below room temperature(4℃).Importantly,the battery is based on abundant and cost-effective materials,bearing promise for its application in large-scale energy storage.

Releasing nitrogen from ammoniated lignin by white rot fungus cometabolizes environmental pollutants

The nitrogen modified lignocelluloses(NML) produced under oxic ammoniation was metabolized by white rot fungus, NH + 4 N was released, NO - 3 N concentration was decreased and total nitrogen loss was blocked within incubation period. During releasing nitrogen from the metabolism of NML, white rot fungus cometabolized recalcitrant environmental pollutants and showed higher degradation capability. Results indicated that this NML complex colonized by white rot fungus might be effective with economic feasibility when they are applied into the vast field ecosystem, it might stabilize NH + 4 nitrogen flux and bioremediate the polluted environmental sites.

Synthesis of flower-shape clustering GaN nanorods by ammoniating Ga2O3 films

Flower-shape clustering GaN nanorods are successfully synthesized on Si（111） substrates through ammoniating Ga2O3/ZnO films at 950℃. The as-grown products are characterized by x-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscope （SEM）, field-emission transmission electron microscope （FETEM）, Fourier transform infrared spectrum （FTIR） and fluorescence spectrophotometer. The SEM images demonstrate that the products consist of flower-shape clustering GaN nanorods. The XRD indicates that the reflections of the samples can be indexed to the hexagonal GaN phase and HRTEM shows that the nanorods are of pure hexagonal GaN single crystal. The photoluminescence （PL） spectrum indicates that the GaN nanorods have a good emission property. The growth mechanism is also briefly discussed.

Measurement of Thermophysical Property of Energy Storage System (CaCl₂&#46NH₃System)

In order to measure the thermophysical properties of ammoniated salt (CaCl2.mNH3: m = 4, 8) as an energy storage system utilizing natural resources, the measurement unit was developed, and the thermophysical properties (effective thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity) of CaCl2.mNH3 and CaCl2.mNH3 with heat transfer media (Ti: titanium) were measured by the any heating method. The effective thermal conductivities of CaCl2.4NH3 + Ti and CaCl2.8NH3 + Ti were 0.14 - 0.17 and 0.18 - 0.20 W/(m.K) in the measuring temperature range of 290 - 350 K, respectively, and these values were approximately 1.5 - 2.2 times larger than those of CaCl2.4NH3 and CaCl2.8NH3. The effective thermal diffusivities were 0.22 - 0.24 × 10-6 and 0.18 - 0.19 × 10-6 m2/sin the measuring temperature range of 290 - 350 K, respectively, and these values were approximately 1.3 - 1.5 times larger than those of CaCl2.4NH3 and CaCl2.8NH3. The obtained results show that the thermophysical properties have a dependence on the bulk densities and specific heats of CaCl2.mNH3 and CaCl2.mNH3 + Ti. It reveals that the thermophysical properties in this measurement would be the valuable design factors to develop energy and H2 storage systems utilizing natural resources such as solar energy.

Performance of Thermal Energy Storage Unit Using Solid Ammoniated Salt (CaCl₂-NH₃System)

The exothermic chemical reaction of CaCl2 (calcium chloride) with NH3 (ammonia) can be utilized as an energy storage system. Since this reaction is a typical gas-solid reaction, the reaction rate is controlled by the heat transfer rate. In order to improve the low heat transfer rate of the ammoniation and the deammoniation of CaCl2, the influence of a heat transfer media (Ti: titanium) on the heat transfer rate of the solid ammoniated salt (CaCl2&#46mNH3) was studied and tested experimentally. The performance tests were carried out under the conditions of various weight ratios of Ti. No decrease of the activation of chemical reaction and no corrosion of experimental apparatus were observed on the repeated runs (≥30 times each). The heat transfer rate of ammoniated salt was greatly improved by adding Ti under the constant pressure (0.5 MPa). The reaction time required for the ammoniation of CaCl2 mixed with Ti was approximately 16% - 54% shorter than that of CaCl2 alone, and the reaction time required for the deammoniation was also approximately 19% - 59% shorter than that of CaCl2 alone.

Natural Mordenite Catalyst Used on the Ammoniation of Methanol

The catalytic properties of natural mordenite as acidic catalysts were investigated using the ammoniation of methanol.

Ingestive Behavior and Nutritional and Physiological Parameters of Sheep Fed Diets Based on Cashew Byproduct

Objective of this study was to evaluate the ingestive behavior,feed efficiency,and nutritional and physiological parameters of sheep that were fed diets based on byproducts from the processing of cashew.The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with a 4×2 factorial arrangement with four levels of inclusion(6%,11%,16%,and 21%of cashew byproduct)and two forms of processing—with chemical treatment(CT)and without chemical treatment(NCT).The interaction levels of inclusion of the byproduct of cashew versus chemical treatments was not(P>0.05)for the dry matter intake,consumption of organic matter.No effect was observed(P>0.05)for the intake of dry matter in function of the type of chemical treatment used in the byproduct of cashew.There was no effect of interaction(P<0.05)between levels of inclusion and chemical treatment applied or not on the byproduct of cashew for the coefficients of digestibility of dry matter,organic matter and crude protein(P>0.05).The inclusion of the byproduct of cashew did not influence the behavioral parameters,intake and digestibility of the diets of sheep,being recommended to use up to the level of 21%.

Niobium fluoride-modified hydrogen evolution reaction of magnesium borohydride diammoniate

Metal borohydride ammoniates have become one of the most promising hydrogen storage materials due to their ultrahigh capacities.However,their application is still restricted by the high temperature of hydrogen desorption and the release of ammonia.Here,to promote the dehydrogenation evolution and suppress the ammonia release,different amounts of NbF 5 were introduced into Mg(BH4)2·2NH3.Compared to the pure Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3),the Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3)-NbF_(5) composites exhibit lower onset dehydriding temperatures(53–57℃)and higher dehydriding capacities(5.6 wt.%–8.2 wt.%)at below 200℃,with the complete suppression of ammonia.In addition,7.4 wt.%H_(2) could be released from Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3)–5 mol%NbF5 composite at 200℃ within 20 min and the apparent activation energy is calculated to be 60.28 kJ mol^(-1),which is much lower than that of pure Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3)(92.04 kJ mol^(-1)).Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3) should mechanochemically react with NbF5,forming dual-metal(Mg,Nb)borohydride ammoniate and spherical MgF2.The introduction of electronegative Nb cation results in-situ formation of(Mg,Nb)borohydride ammoniate towards a lower dehydrogenation temperature and a higher hydrogen release purity.The increased phase boundaries among the Mg(BH_(4))_(2)·2NH_(3),dual-metal(Mg,Nb)borohydride ammoniate,and MgF2 phases further facilitate the hydrogen diffusion during the dehydrogenation of the composites.

Traumatic brain injury impairs synaptic plasticity in hippocampus in rats

Background Traumatic brain injury （TBI） often causes cognitive deficits and remote symptomatic epilepsy. Hippocampal regional excitability is associated with the cognitive function. However, little is known about injury-induced neuronal loss and subsequent alterations of hippocampal regional excitability. The present study was designed to determine whether TBI may impair the cellular circuit in the hippocampus.Methods Forty male Wistar rats were randomized into control （n=-20） and TBI groups （n=20）. Long-term potentiation, extracellular input/output curves, and hippocampal parvalbumin-immunoreactive and cholecystokinin-immunoreactive interneurons were compared between the two groups.Results TBI resulted in a significantly increased excitability in the dentate gyrus （DG）, but a significantly decreased excitability in the cornu ammonis 1 （CA1） area. Using design-based stereological injury procedures, we induced interneuronal loss in the DG and CA3 subregions in the hippocampus, but not in the CA1 area. Conclusions TBl leads to the impairment of hippocampus synaptic plasticity due to the changing of interneuronal interaction. The injury-induced disruption of synaptic efficacy within the hippocampal circuit may underlie the observed cognitive deficits and symptomatic epilepsy.

Oenanthe Javanica Extract Protects Against Experimentally Induced Ischemic Neuronal Damage via its Antioxidant Effects

Background： Water dropwort （Oenanthejavanica） as a popular traditional medicine in Asia shows various biological properties including antioxidant activity. In this study, we firstly examined the neuroprotective effect of Oenanthejavanica extract （OJE） in the hippocampal comus ammonis 1 region （CA 1 region） of the gerbil subjected to transient cerebral ischemia. Methods： Gerbils were established by the occlusion of common carotid arteries for 5 min. The neuroprotective effect of OJE was estimated by cresyl violet staining. In addition, 4 antioxidants （copper, zinc superoxide dismutase [SOD], manganese SOD, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase） immunoreactivities were investigated by immunohistochemistry. Results： Pyramidal neurons in the CA1 region showed neuronal death at 5 days postischemia; at this point in time, all antioxidants immunoreactivities disappeared in CA1 pyramidal neurons and showed 100 mg/kg, OJE protected CA 1 pyramidal neurons from ischemic damage in many nonpyramidal cells. Treatment with 200 mg/kg, not In addition, 200 mg/kg OJE treatment increased or maintained antioxidants immunoreactivities. Especially, among the antioxidants, glutathione peroxidase immunoreactivity was effectively increased in the CA 1 pyramidal neurons of the OJE-treated sham-operated and ischemia-operated groups. Conclusion： Our present results indicate that treatment with OJE can protect neurons from transient ischemic damage and that the neuroprotective effect may be closely associated with increased or maintained intracellular antioxidant enzymes by OJE.

Lentil straw(Lens culinaris): An alternative and nutritious feed resource for kids

The scarcity of feed resources with the continuously increasing cost of usual animal feeds urgently demands searching some alternate feeds for ruminants. In this study, Barberi male kids were divided into4 groups of 5 kids(body weight 17.5 ± 1.8 kg) in each group, and ad libitum fed lentil straw(Lens culinaris;LS), LS based total mixed ration(LSTMR), urea ammoniated LS(ALS) or ALS based total mixed ration(ALSTMR) for a period of 28 days. Results showed LS was a superior feed(CP, 9.2%) for kids, but having quite high crude fibre(CF; 39.6%) and Ca:P ratio(10:1). Urea ammoniation of LS was helpful for increasing the digestible crude protein(DCP)(P < 0.01), nitrogen-free extract(NFE) and total digestible nutrients(TDN) with reduction of CF content. Urea mmoniation also improved the digestibility of neutral and acid detergent fibre(P < 0.01), but its effect on CP digestibility was negative(P < 0.05). Dry matter(DM), DCP and TDN intakes(per kg W0.75) were also improved(P < 0.01) in the kids fed ALS. Negative growth rate and nitrogen(N) balance(-33.8 and -1.4 g/day, respectively) in kids fed LS became positive(46.9 and 2.0 g/day, respectively) when ALS was used in the diets of kids. Feeding of ALS also increased(P < 0.01) the total N and ammonia N content of strained rumen liquor(SRL). Use of straw(LS or ALS) in TMR increased the digestibility of DM, organic matter and NFE(P < 0.01), intake of energy, as well as total volatile fatty acids concentration(P < 0.01) in the SRL. The present study suggested that optimum performance of kids may be achieved using either ALS alone or TMR with LS or ALS.

Anhui to Construct 300 000 T/A Integrated Phosphate Compound Fertilizer

Anhui Sierte Fertilizer Co.,Ltd.located in Ningguo,Anhui province is a large private owned enterprise with the production of phosphate compound fertilizers as its core business.It owns a capacity of nearly 1.0 million t/a compound fertilizers,250 000 t/a sulfuric acid and 250 000 t/a mono-ammonia phosphate(MAP).The company gained a sales revenue of more than RMB1.5 billion in 2007.To further enhance its competitiveness,the company has decided to invest RMB400 million in the construction of a 300 000

Project News in June

300000 T/A Synthetic Ammonia ProjectKicked off in XinjiangOn June 19th,2009 Xinjiang KuitunJinjiang Chemical Co.,Ltd.,jointly estab-lished by The Xinjiang Production andConstruction Corps and Hangzhou JinjiangGroup,commenced construction on its300 000 t/a synthetic ammonia and 520000 t/a coal-based urea project at DushanziPetrochemical Industry Park,Kuitun,Xinjiang region.