Rapid and controllable in-situ self-assembly of main-group metal nanofilms for highly efficient CO_(2)electroreduction to liquid fuel in flow cells

The electrocatalytic reduction of CO_(2)is a promising pathway to generate renewable fuels and chemicals.However,its advancement is impeded by the absence of electrocatalysts with both high selectivity and stability.Here,we present a scalable in-situ thermal evaporation technique for synthesizing series of Bi,In,and Sn nanofilms on carbon felt(CF)substrates with a high-aspect-ratio structure.The resulting main-group metal nanofilms exhibit a homogeneously distributed and highly exposed catalyst surface with ample active sites,thereby promoting mass transport and ad-/desorption of reaction intermediates.Benefiting from the unique fractal morphology,the Bi nanofilms deposited on CF exhibit optimal catalytic activities for CO_(2)electroreduction among the designed metal nanofilms electrodes,with the highest Faradaic efficiency of 96.9%for formate production at−1.3 V vs.reversible hydrogen electrode(RHE)in H-cell.Under an industrially relevant current density of 221.4 mA·cm−2 in flow cells,the Bi nanofilms retain a high Faradaic efficiency of 81.7%at−1.1 V(vs.RHE)and a good long-term stability for formate production.Furthermore,a techno-economic analysis(TEA)model shows the potential commercial viability of electrocatalytic CO_(2)conversion into formate using the Bi nanofilms catalyst.Our results offer a green and convenient approach for in-situ fabrication of stable and inexpensive thin-film catalysts with a fractal structure applicable to various industrial settings.

Transforming liquid flow fuel cells to controllable reactors for highlyefficient oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural to 2, 5-furandicarboxylic acid at low temperature

Highly-efficient oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurtural(HMF) to 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid(FDCA) at low temperature with air as the oxidant is still challenging.Herein,inspired by the respirato ry electron transport chain(ETC) of living cells mediated by electron carriers,we constructed artificial ETCs and transformed liquid flow fuel cells(LFFCs) to flexible reactors for efficient oxidation of HMF to produce FDCA under mild conditions.This LFFC reactor employed an electrodeposition modified nickel foam as an anode to promote HMF oxidation and(VO_(2))_(2)SO_(4) as a cathode electron carrier to facilitate the electron transfer to air.The reaction rate could be easily controlled by selecting the anode catalyst,adjusting the external loading and changing the cathodic electron carrier or oxidants.A maximal power density of 44.9 mW cm^(-2) at room temperature was achieved,while for FDCA production,short-circuit condition was preferred to achieve quick transfer of electrons.For a single batch operation with 0.1 M initial HMF,FDCA yield reached 97.1%.By fed-batch operation,FDCA concentration reached 144.5 g L^(-1) with a total yield of 96%.Ni^(2+)/Ni^(3+) redox couple was the active species mediating the electron transfer,while both experimental and DFT calculation results indicated that HMFCA pathway was the preferred reaction mechanism.

Analysis of temperature distribution in PV-integrated electrochemical flow cells

Photovoltaic(PV)-integrated flow cells for electrochemical energy conversion and storage underwent a huge development.The advantages of this type of integrated flow cell system include the simultaneous storage of solar energy into chemicals that can be readily utilized for generating electricity.However,most studies overlook the practical challenges arising from the inherent heat exposure and consequent overheating of the reactor under the sun.This work aims to predict the temperature profiles across PV-integrated electrochemical flow cells under light exposure conditions by introducing a computational fluid dynamics–based method.Furthermore,we discuss the effects of the flow channel block architecture on the temperature profile to provide insights and guidelines for the effective remedy of overheating.

Water flooding behavior in flow cells for ammonia production via electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction

The green production of ammonia,in an electrochemical flow cell under ambient conditions,is a promising way to replace the energy-intensive Haber-Bosch process.In the operation of this flow cell with an alkaline electrolyte,water is produced at the anode but also required as an essential reactant at the cathode for nitrogen reduction.Hence,water from the anode is expected to diffuse through the membrane to the cathode to compensate for the water needed for nitrogen reduction.Excessive water permeation,however,tends to increase the possibility of water flooding,which would not only create a large barrier for nitrogen delivery and availability,but also lead to severe hydrogen evolution as side reaction,and thus significantly lower the ammonia production rate and Faradaic efficiency.In this work,the water flooding phenomenon in flow cells for ammonia production via electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction is verified via the visualization approach and the electrochemical cell performance.In addition,the effects of the nitrogen flow rate,applied current density,and membrane thickness on the water crossover flux and ammonia production rate are comprehensively studied.The underlying mechanism of water transport through the membrane,including diffusion and electro-osmotic drag,is precisely examined and specified to provide more insight on water flooding behavior in the flow cell.

Adhesion behavior of endothelial progenitor cells to endothelial cells in simple shear flow

The adhesion of endothelial progenitor cells（EPCs） on endothelial cells（ECs） is one of the critical physiological processes for the regenesis of vascular vessels and the prevention of serious cardiovascular diseases.Here,the rolling and adhesion behavior of EPCs on ECs was studied numerically.A two-dimensional numerical model was developed based on the immersed boundary method for simulating the rolling and adhesion of cells in a channel flow.The binding force arising from the catch bond of a receptor and ligand pair was modeled with stochastic Monte Carlo method and Hookean spring model.The effect of tumor necrosis factor alpha（TNF-α） on the expression of the number of adhesion molecules in ECs was analyzed experimentally.A flow chamber system with CCD camera was set up to observe the top view of the rolling of EPCs on the substrate cultivated with ECs.Numerical results prove that the adhesion of EPC on ECs is closely related to membrane stiff-ness of the cell and shear rate of the flow.It also suggests that the adhesion force between EPC and EC by P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 only is not strong enough to bond the cell onto vessel walls unless contributions of other catch bond are considered.Experimental results demonstrate that TNF-α enhanced the expressions of VCAM,ICAM,P-selectin and E-selectin in ECs,which supports the numerical results that the rolling velocity of EPC on TNF-α treated EC substrate decreases obviously compared with its velocity on the untreated one.It is found that because the adhesion is affected by both the rolling velocity and the deformability of the cell,an optimal stiffness of EPC may exist at a given shear rate of flow for achieving maximum adhesion rates.

Air flow control based on optimal oxygen excess ratio in fuel cells for vehicles

Air flow control is one of the most important control methods for maintaining the stability and reliability of a fuel cell system, which can avoid oxygen starvation or oxygen saturation. The oxygen excess ratio （OER） is often used to indicate the air flow condition. Based on a fuel cell system model for vehicles, OER performance was analyzed for different stack currents and temperatures in this paper, and the results show that the optimal OER was affected weakly by the stack temperature. In order to ensure the system working in optimal OER, a control scheme that includes an optimal OER regulator and a fuzzy control was proposed. According to the stack current, a reference value of air flow rate was obtained with the optimal OER regulator and then the air compressor motor voltage was controlled with the fuzzy controller to adjust the air flow rate provided by the air compressor. Simulation results show that the control method has good dynamic and static characteristics.

Sputtered Stainless Steel on Silicon Photoanode for Stable Seawater Splitting in Photoelectrochemical Flow Cell

Photoelectrochemical(PEC)seawater splitting is a promising method for the direct utilization of solar energy and abundant seawater resources for hydrogen production.Photoelectrodes are susceptible to various ions in seawater and complicated competitive reactions,resulting in the failure of photoelectrodes.This paper proposes the design and fabrication of diff erent sputtered stainless steel(SS)fi lms deposited on silicon photoanodes,completely isolating the electrolytes and semiconductor substrate.Upon coupling with the PEC flow cell,the back-illuminated photoanode coated with 316 SS cocatalyst achieves stable operation for 70 h in natural seawater with a highly alkaline KOH(30 wt.%,7.64 mol/L)electrolyte due to the remarkable protection eff ect of the substrate from stainless steel,while the PEC seawater splitting system achieves a record hydrogen production rate of 600μmol/(h·cm^(2)).An appropriate Ni/Fe ratio in the SS ensures remarkable oxygen evolution activity,while chromic oxide ensures the effective anticorrosion effect by adjusting the microenvironment of the photoanodes.Moreover,fabricating PEC flow cells with photoanodes coated with SS cocatalysts are a viable strategy for PEC seawater splitting.

The law of anti-VCAM-1 targeted microbubbles adhesion to activated endothelial cells under controlled shear flow

Microbubbles can enhance the detection in noninvasive ultrasound imaging.Recently,targeted microbubbles have been developed to selectively adhere to specific and overexpressed p molecules in endothelial cells in some pathologic conditions.However,the law of

Electrooxidative Degradation of an Anthraquinone Dye with in-situ Electrogenerated Active Chlorine in a Divided Flow Cell

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the possibility of treating C. I. Reactive Blue 19 wastewater by electrochemical oxidation via electrogenerated active chlorine, using metallic oxide coatings （dimensional stable anode, DSA） as anode. The electrolysis for the simulated wastewater was conducted at a constant current. Absorbances at 592 nm and 255 nm were measured to follow the decolorization of the dye and the degradatin of its aromatic ring. After 4 h of electrolysis under the experimental conditions： current density of 15 A·m^-2, 0.2 mol·L^-1 NaCl, 0.1 mol·L^-1 Na2SO4, 0.1 mmol·L^-1 dye, initial pH=6.4 and T=30℃, 100% decolorization of the dye and about 45% degradation of its aromatic ring were achieved, while no obvious change of total organic carbon was observed. The experimental results suggest that the decolorization of the dye and degradation of its aromatic ring were directly affected by current density, temperature, concentrations of the dye and sodium chloride, while slightly affected by initial pH and sodium sulfate concentration; the decolorization of the dye and degradation of its aromatic ring followed pseudo-first-order kinetics; and indirect electrooxidation, using electrogenerated active chlorine, predominated in the electrochemical oxidation.

Optimizing the nickel boride layer thickness in a spectroelectrochemical ATR-FTIR thin-film flow cell applied in glycerol oxidation

The influence of the drop-casted nickel boride catalyst loading on glassy carbon electrodes was investigated in a spectroelectrochemical ATR-FTIR thin-film flow cell applied in alkaline glycerol electrooxidation.The continuously operated radial flow cell consisted of a borehole electrode positioned 50μm above an internal reflection element enabling operando FTIR spectroscopy.It is identified as a suitable tool for facile and reproducible screening of electrocatalysts under well-defined conditions,additionally providing access to the selectivities in complex reaction networks such as glycerol oxidation.The fast product identification by ATR-IR spectroscopy was validated by the more time-consuming quantitative HPLC analysis of the pumped electrolyte.High degrees of glycerol conversion were achieved under the applied laminar flow conditions using 0.1 M glycerol and 1 M KOH in water and a flow rate of 5μL min^(–1).Conversion and selectivity were found to depend on the catalyst loading,which determined the catalyst layer thickness and roughness.The highest loading of 210μg cm^(–2)resulted in 73%conversion and a higher formate selectivity of almost 80%,which is ascribed to longer residence times in rougher films favoring readsorption and C–C bond scission.The lowest loading of 13μg cm^(–2)was sufficient to reach 63%conversion,a lower formate selectivity of 60%,and,correspondingly,higher selectivities of C_(2)species such as glycolate amounting to 8%.Thus,only low catalyst loadings resulting in very thin films in the fewμm thickness range are suitable for reliable catalyst screening.

Enhanced electrocatalytic activity of iron amino porphyrins using a flow cell for reduction of CO_(2) to CO

The flexibility of molecular catalysts is highly coveted for the electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide(CO_(2)) to carbon monoxide(CO) in both homogeneous and heterogeneous systems.While the electrocatalytic activity of molecular catalysts has been widely studied in H-cells;their less studied capabilities in more efficient flow cell reactors have the potential to rival that of heterogeneous catalysts.In this work,a comparative study of amino functionalized iron-tetraphenylporphyrins(amino-Fe-TPPs) immobilized onto carbonaceous materials in both H-cells and flow cells was conducted to selectively reduce CO_(2) to CO.In a flow cell set up operating in alkaline media,the resulting hybrid catalyst exhibits 87% faradaic efficiency(FE) with extraordinary current density(j) of 119 mA/cm^(2) and turnover frequency(TOF) of 14 s^(-1) at-1.0 V vs.RHE.This remarkable catalytic activity was achieved through thoughtful combination of molecular and flow cell design that provides an effective strategy for future immobilized heterogeneous approaches toward CO_(2) reduction reactions(CO_(2) RRs).

EXTRACTION KINETICS OF RARE EARTH（Ⅰ） A Constant Interfacial Cell with Laminar Flow

A technique was developed to study mass trans fer process and inter facial reaction in two phases system. This constant inter facial cell with a laminar flow was made into a cubic structure. The two fluids were continuously recycled and mixed. The concentration of each liquid could be monitored by two different methods. This kind of structure made both flows near the inter face flow parallel to the inter face. The inter face was smooth and steady. The mass trans fer rate could be judged by the linear velocity of the flows. The technique can be used for the analyses of the control step in both phases near the inter face in a diffusion control process. A preliminary hydrodynamics and mass trans fer study on the cell was presented, which ensures the distinguishing between a diffusion and a chemical reaction control process. A simplified mass transfer equation,N =0.5303D 1 /2* (Ci- Cb)* (V / B) 1/2, was achieved.

Combined modeling of cell aggregation and adhesion mediated by receptor–ligand interactions under shear flow

Blood cell aggregation and adhesion to endothelial cells under shear flow are crucial to many biological processes such as thrombi formation, inflammatory cascade, and tumor metastasis, in which these cellular interactions are mainly mediated by the underlying receptor-ligand bindings. While theoretical modeling of aggregation dynamics and adhesion kinetics of interacting cells have been well studied separately, how to couple these two processes remains unclear. Here we develop a combined model that couples cellular aggregation dynamics and adhesion kinetics under shear flow. The impacts of shear rate （or shear stress） and molecular binding affinity were elucidated. This study provides a unified model where the action of a fluid flow drives cell aggregation and adhesion under the modulations of the mechanical shear flow and receptor-ligand interaction kinetics. It offers an insight into understanding the relevant biological processes and functions.

Microfluidic-based single cell trapping using a combination of stagnation point flow and physical barrier

Single cell trapping in vitro by microfluidic device is an emerging approach for the study of the relationship between single cells and their dynamic biochemical microenvironments. In this paper, a hydrodynamic-based microfluidic device for single cell trapping is designed using a combination of stagnation point flow and physical barrier.The microfluidic device overcomes the weakness of the traditional ones, which have been only based upon either stagnation point flows or physical barriers, and can conveniently load dynamic biochemical signals to the trapped cell. In addition, it can connect with a programmable syringe pump and a microscope to constitute an integrated experimental system.It is experimentally verified that the microfluidic system can trap single cells in vitro even under flow disturbance and conveniently load biochemical signals to the trapped cell. The designed micro-device would provide a simple yet effective experimental platform for further study of the interactions between single cells and their microenvironments.

CFD simulation of effect of anode configuration on gas–liquid flow and alumina transport process in an aluminum reduction cell

Numerical simulations of gas–liquid two-phase flow and alumina transport process in an aluminum reduction cell were conducted to investigate the effects of anode configurations on the bath flow, gas volume fraction and alumina content distributions. An Euler–Euler two-fluid model was employed coupled with a species transport equation for alumina content. Three different anode configurations such as anode without a slot, anode with a longitudinal slot and anode with a transversal slot were studied in the simulation. The simulation results clearly show that the slots can reduce the bath velocity and promote the releasing of the anode gas, but can not contribute to the uniformity of the alumina content. Comparisons of the effects between the longitudinal and transversal slots indicate that the longitudinal slot is better in terms of gas–liquid flow but is disadvantageous for alumina mixing and transport process due to a decrease of anode gas under the anode bottom surface. It is demonstrated from the simulations that the mixing and transfer characteristics of alumina are controlled to great extent by the anode gas forces while the electromagnetic forces(EMFs) play the second role.

Lithium slurry flow cell,a promising device for the future energy storage

Lithium slurry flow cell(LSFC)is a novel energy storage device that combines the concept of both lithium ion batteries(LIBs)and flow batteries(FBs).Although it is hoped to inherit the advantages of both LIBs and FBs,such as high energy density,ease of fabrication,environmental friendly,independent energy and power density,to name but a few.While unfortunately,it still has many challenges to overcome before it becoming the future star in energy storage area.Here in this paper,we briefly recall its history and try to illustrate the main issues that hindering its research as well as application.As a typical interdisciplinary product,LSFC is definitely a promising candidate for large scale energy storage application,while obviously it still has a long way to go.

Vertical 3D Nanostructures Boost Efficient Hydrogen Production Coupled with Glycerol Oxidation Under Alkaline Conditions

Hydrogen production from electrolytic water is an important sustainable technology to realize renewable energy conversion and carbon neutrality.However,it is limited by the high overpotential of oxygen evolution reaction(OER)at the anode.To reduce the operating voltage of electrolyzer,herein thermodynamically favorable glycerol oxidation reaction(GOR)is proposed to replace the OER.Moreover,vertical Ni O flakes and NiMoNH nanopillars are developed to boost the reaction kinetics of anodic GOR and cathodic hydrogen evolution,respectively.Meanwhile,excluding the explosion risk of mixed H_2/O_(2),a cheap organic membrane is used to replace the expensive anion exchange membrane in the electrolyzer.Impressively,the electrolyzer delivers a remarkable reduction of operation voltage by 280 mV,and exhibits good long-term stability.This work provides a new paradigm of hydrogen production with low cost and good feasibility.

Synergistic regulation of hydrophobicity and basicity for copper hydroxide-derived copper to promote the CO_(2)electroreduction reaction

A simple method was proposed to activate alkaline Cu(OH)_(2)with an acidic ionomer,Nafion,to regulate its surface microenvironment,including hydrophobicity and local basicity.In particular,the direct complete neutralization reaction between Cu(OH)_(2)and Nafion in aqueous solution induces the exposing of vast anions which can exclude the in-situ-formed hydroxides and raise the local basicity.Remarkably,the optimal Nafionactivated Cu(OH)_(2)-derived Cu can efficiently suppress the hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)and improve the selectivity for multi-carbon products in the CO_(2)electroreduction reaction(eCO_(2)RR).The H2 Faradaic efficiency(FE)decreased to 11%at a current density of 300 mA/cm2(−0.76 V vs.RHE)in a flow cell,while the bare one with H2 had an FE of 40%.The total eCO_(2)RR FE reaches as high as 83%,along with an evidently increased C2H4 FE of 44%as compared with the bare one(24%),and good stability(8000 s),surpassing that of most of the reported Cu(OH)_(2)-derived Cu.The experimental and theoretical results both show that the strong hydrophobicity and high local basicity jointly boosted the eCO_(2)RR as acquired by felicitously introducing ionomer on the Cu(OH)_(2)-derived Cu surface.

Promoting and controlling electron transfer of furfural oxidation efficiently harvest electricity,furoic acid,hydrogen gas and hydrogen peroxide

Conventional chemical oxidation of aldehydes such as furfural to corresponding acids by molecular oxygen usually needs high pressure to increase the solubility of oxygen in aqueous phase,while electrochemical oxidation needs input of external electric energy.Herein,we developed a liquid flow fuel cell(LFFC)system to achieve oxidation of furfural in anode for furoic acid production with co-production of hydrogen gas.By controlling the electron transfer in cathode for reduction of oxygen,efficient generation of electricity or production of H_(2)O_(2)were achieved.Metal oxides especially Ag_(2)O have been screened as the efficient catalyst to promote the oxidation of aldehydes,while liquid redox couples were used for promoting the kinetics of oxygen reduction.A novel alkaline-acidic asymmetric design was also used for anolyte and catholyte,respectively,to promote the efficiency of electron transfer.Such an LFFC system achieves efficient conversion of chemical energy of aldehyde oxidation to electric energy and makes full use the transferred electrons for high-value added products without input of external energy.With(VO_(2))_(2)SO_(4)as the electron carrier in catholyte for four-electron reduction of oxygen,the peak output power density(Pmax)at room temperature reached 261 mW/cm^(2)with furoic acid and H_(2)yields of 90%and 0.10 mol/mol furfural,respectively.With anthraquinone-2-sulfonate(AQS)as the cathodic electron carrier,Pmaxof 60 mW/cm^(2)and furoic acid,H_(2)and H_(2)O_(2)yields of 0.88,0.15 and 0.41 mol/mol furfural were achieved,respectively.A new reaction mechanism on furfural oxidation on Ag_(2)O anode was proposed,referring to one-electron and two-electron reaction pathways depending on the fate of adsorbed hydrogen atom transferred from furfural aldehyde group.

Kinetics of cerium(Ⅳ) and fluoride extraction from sulfuric solutions using bifunctional ionic liquid extractant(Bif-ILE)[A336][P204]

The extraction kinetics of Ce（Ⅳ） and Ce（Ⅳ）-F^- mixture systems from sulfuric solutions to n-heptane solution containing Bif-ILE[A336][P204]（[trialkylmethylammonium][di-2-ethylhewanxylphosphinate]） with a constant interfacial area cell with laminar flow were studied,just to elucidate the extraction mechanism and the mass transfer models.The data were analyzed in terms of pseudo-first-order constants.The effects of stirring speed,specific interfacial area and temperature on the extraction rate in both systems were discussed,suggesting that the extractions were mixed bulk phases-interfacial control process.Supported by the experimental data,the corresponding rate equations for Ce（Ⅳ） extraction system and Ce（Ⅳ）-F^- mixture extraction system were obtained.The experimental results indicated the rate-controlling step.The kinetics model was deduced from the rate-controlling step and consistent with the rate equation.