The effect of job strain and worksite social support on reported adverse reactions of COVID-19 vaccine: A prospective study of employees in Japan.

OBJECTIVES: This prospective study aimed to examine the association of psychosocial working conditions with adverse reactions after receiving COVID-19 vaccination in a sample of employees in Japan. METHODS: The data were retrieved from an online panel of full-time employees (E-COCO-J). The analysis included participants who were employed and were not vaccinated at baseline (June 2021) but received vaccination at a 4-month follow-up (October 2021). An 11-item scale measured the adverse reactions. Four types of psychosocial working conditions (i.e., job demands, job control, and supervisor and coworker support) were measured using the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between the psychosocial working conditions and adverse reactions of COVID-19 vaccines, adjusting for socioeconomic variables, chronic disease, the number of vaccination, type of vaccine, anxiety for adverse reactions, fear and worry about COVID-19, and psychological distress at baseline. RESULTS: Overall, 747 employees were included in the analysis. The average number of adverse reactions was 3.8 (standard deviation = 2.2): Arm pain (81.1%), fatigues (64.1%), muscle pains (63.3%), and fever (37.5°C+) (53.5%) were reported more frequently. Coworker support score was significantly and negatively associated with the numbers of adverse reactions (standardized ß = -0.100, P = .023). Women, young age, second-time vaccination, Moderna, and high psychological distress were significantly associated with adverse reactions. CONCLUSIONS: Employees with low coworker support may be more likely to have adverse reactions after vaccinations. The findings of this study could support that increasing workplace support may reduce adverse reactions.

Hydrophobic RuO2/Graphene/N-doped porous carbon hybrid catalyst for Li-air batteries operating in ambient air

Li–air batteries have received significant attention for their ultrahigh theoretical energy density. However, the byproducts induced by attacking air hinder the conversion of Li–O2 batteries to Li–air batteries. Humidity is one of the main obstacles, not only causing side reactions with the discharge products but also leading to rapid corrosion of the lithium anode. Here, we fabricated a novel composite hydrophobic catalyst by loading RuO2 and graphene on N-doped porous carbon. The catalyst was endowed with hydrophobicity and showed superior catalytic performance and low affinity to water in the air. A Li–air battery equipped with this novel composite catalyst exhibited eminent cycling performance in pure oxygen (over 470 h), humid oxygen [∼40% relative humidity (RH), over 310 h], and ambient air (∼42% RH, over 330 h) at a current density of 500 mA g−1, and the discharge specific capacity increased from 13122.1 to 19358.6 mAh g−1. © 2022

Remedies to Avoid Failure Mechanisms of Lithium-Metal Anode in Li-Ion Batteries

Rechargeable lithium-metal batteries (LMBs), which have high power and energy density, are very attractive to solve the intermittence problem of the energy supplied either by wind mills or solar plants or to power electric vehicles. However, two failure modes limit the commercial use of LMBs, i.e., dendrite growth at the surface of Li metal and side reactions with the electrolyte. Substantial research is being accomplished to mitigate these drawbacks. This article reviews the different strategies for fabricating safe LMBs, aiming to outperform lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). They include modification of the electrolyte (salt and solvents) to obtain a highly conductive solid–electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer, protection of the Li anode by in situ and ex situ coatings, use of three-dimensional porous skeletons, and anchoring Li on 3D current collectors.