Encapsulated Ni-Co alloy nanoparticles as efficient catalyst for hydrodeoxygenation of biomass derivatives in water

Catalytic hydrodeoxygenation(HDO)is one of the most promising strategies to transform oxygen-rich biomass derivatives into high value-added chemicals and fuels,but highly challenging due to the lack of highly efficient nonprecious metal catalysts.Herein,we report for the first time of a facile synthetic approach to controllably fabricate well-defined Ni-Co alloy NPs confined on the tip of N-CNTs as HDO catalyst.The resultant Ni-Co alloy catalyst possesses outstanding HDO performance towards biomass-derived vanillin into 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol in water with 100%conversion efficiency and selectivity under mild reaction conditions,surpassing the reported high performance nonprecious HDO catalysts.Impressively,our experimental results also unveil that the Ni-Co alloy catalyst can be generically applied to catalyze HDO of vanillin derivatives and other aromatic aldehydes in water with 100%conversion efficiency and over 90%selectivity.Importantly,our DFT calculations and experimental results confirm that the achieved outstanding HDO catalytic performance is due to the greatly promoted selective adsorption and activation of C=O,and desorption of the activated hydrogen species by the synergism of the alloyed Ni-Co NPs.The findings of this work affords a new strategy to design and develop efficient transition metal-based catalysts for HDO reactions in water.

Recent antibacterial agents from biomass derivatives:Characteristics and applications

Enhancing awareness of personal cleanliness and antibacterial resistance has intensified the antibacterial substance request on consumable products. Antibacterial agents that have been commercialized nowadays are produced from inorganic and non-renewable substances. This provides several drawbacks, particularly against health and environmental issues. Therefore, many scientists work on substituting fossil-fuel-based antibacterial agents with natural ones such as from biomass. Biomass derivatives, natural abundances of biopolymers in the world, amount to major compounds including polysaccharides (cellulose, hemicellulose, and chitosan) and polyphenol (tannin and lignin) substances which are capable to combat the growth of Gram-positive bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria. To date, no report focuses on a deep understanding of antibacterial properties derived from biomass and the internal and external factors effects. This work provides that gap because comprehensive knowledge is necessary before applying biomass to the products. The potency of biomass derivatives as antibacterial additives is also summarized. Basic knowledge of antibacterial characteristics to the application in products is highlighted in this review. Besides, the discussion about challenges and future perspectives is also delivered.

Selective photosynthesis of imines from biomass-derived aldehydes over Ni/TiO_(2)

Photocatalytic reductive amination of biomass-derived aldehydes is a desirable way to selectively upgrade biomass into value-added nitrogen-containing chemicals under mild conditions.However,it is challenging to produce imines in high selectivity because of the undesirable side reactions caused by the activity of functional groups.Here,we demonstrate the highly reactive and selective production of imines from biomass derived aldehydes via the photocatalytic reductive amination,using a defective TiO_(2)supported nickel catalyst.The employment of methanol as the hydrogen donor and ammonia solution as the nitrogen source avoids the use of high-pressure H_(2)and expensive amines,rendering the current catalytic process safe,economical,and environmentally friendly.In depth investigations attribute the improved separation and transfer of photogenerated charge carriers to the presence of oxygen vacancies and decorated Ni nanoparticles,thereby accelerating the production of imines from benzaldehyde amination(conversion,95.8%;seleetivity,95.2%).Furthermore,the developed system could be easily translated to the photocatalytic conversions of various biomass derived aldehydes,which provided an example of a cost-effective and sustainable approach for the valorization of biomass derived feedstocks.

Two-dimensional porous carbon derived from pollen with enlarged interlayer distance enhanced electrocatalytic oxidation of n-valeraldehyde to octane

Electrocatalytic n-valeraldehyde oxidation reaction was an inexpensive and eco-friendly method to control n-valeraldehyde contamination and produce high value-added octane.However,low-cost and readily available electrocatalysts with high current efficiency were urgently needed.Herein,two-dimensional porous carbon derived from pollen with enlarged interlayer distance was built by alkali activation method,applying in electrocatalytic n-valeraldehyde oxidation reaction.The enlarged interlayer distance was verified by X-ray diffraction(XRD)and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscope(HAADF-STEM).Electrocatalytic experiments consequences showed activated biomass derived carbon possessed a higher electrocatalytic activity and octane selectivity than unactivated catalyst.Systematic tests and in situ infrared experiments demonstrated that enlarged interlayer distance was positively correlated with specific surface area of catalysts,large specific surface area provided abundant absorption sites,facilitated the adsorption for n-valeraldehyde,and further promoted the transformation of n-valeraldehyde to octane.This work also provides a new avenue for creating high-performance electrocatalysts in terms of lattice engineering.

An angle-insensitive electromagnetic absorber enabling a wideband absorption

Electromagnetic(EM)wave absorbers with wideband absorption capability are proposed as a strategy to mitigate environmental pollution by EM waves.However,designing an EM absorber with its performance capacity independent of the EM wave incident angle remains elusive to date.Resolving this challenge requires development of EM absorbers whose EM absorption performance is insensitive to the EM wave incident angle.Herein,we synthesized EM absorbers with a variety of structures with different symme-tries(including micro-/nanospheres,nanoflakes and nanotubes)to study the effect of the EM absorbers’structure and the EM wave incident angle on the EM absorption performance.Our analysis reveals that non-magnetic EM absorbers with spatially symmetric nanostructures exhibit excellent EM wave incident angle-insensitivity.Finally,we demonstrate that a class of non-magnetic EM absorbers made from bam-boo derived-carbon nanospheres exhibit EM incident angle-insensitivity and wideband EM absorption performance with an effective absorption band up to 3.5 GHz when the thickness is 1.4 mm,a signif-icant improvement from prior studies which used thicknesses as high as 3-4 mm for comparable EM absorption performance.

Computational Modelling of Retrofitting a Coal Fired Boiler Type OP-230 for Predicting NOX Reduction

This study focuses on a CFD modelling of biomass-derived syngas co-firing with coal in an older mid-sized PC-fired boiler of type OP-230 with low-emission burners on the front wall. The simulations were performed to determine whether the boiler can be retrofitted for the fulfilment of the prospective environmental protection regulations relating to levels of NO_X emissions. The improvement of the air staging via the dual-fuel technique was based on the indirect co-firing technology. The impact of two arrangements of dedicated syngas nozzles(below and above the existing coal burners), two syngas compositions and two heat replacements(5% and 15%) on the course of thermal processes in a furnace was tested. The reductions in NO_X emissions were predicted relative to the baseline when only coal is combusted. The highest reduction of about 38% was achieved with the syngas nozzles below the existing coal burners and 15% heat replacement. This arrangement of nozzles offers the residence time sufficient to co-fire coal with waste derived syngas. A lower reduction in NO_X emissions was obtained with the nozzles above the burners as the enlargement of local fuel rich zone near syngas injection becomes significant for 15% heat replacement. Results provide for the decreasing impact of methane content along with the increase of syngas heat input. The avoided CO_2 emissions through the syngas indirect co-firing with coal in the boiler are linear function of heat replacements.