Forging a sustainable sky: Unveiling the pillars of aviation e-fuel production for carbon emission circularity.

In 2021, airplanes consumed nearly 250 million tons of fuel, equivalent to almost 10.75 exajoules. Anticipated growth in air travel suggests increasing fuel consumption. In January 2022, demand surged by 82.3%, as per the International Air Transport Association. In tackling aviation emissions, governments promote synthetic e-fuels to cut carbon. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production increased from 1.9 million to 15.8 million gallons in six years. Although cost of kerosene produced with carbon dioxide from direct air capture (DAC) is several times higher than the cost of conventional jet fuel, its projected production cost is expected to decrease from $104-$124/MWh in 2030 to $60-$69/MWh in 2050. Advances in DAC technology, decreasing cost of renewable electricity, and improvements in FT technology are reasons to believe that the cost of e-kerosene will decline. This review describes major e-kerosene synthesis methods, incorporating DAC, hydrogen from water electrolysis, and hydrocarbon synthesis via the Fischer-Tropsch process. The importance of integrating e-fuel production with renewable energy sources and sustainable feedstock utilization cannot be overstated in achieving carbon emission circularity. The paper explores the concept of power-to-liquid (PtL) pathways, where renewable energy is used to convert renewable feedstocks into e-fuels. In addition to these technological improvements, carbon pricing, government subsidies, and public procurement are several policy initiatives that could help to reduce the cost of e-kerosene. Our review provides a comprehensive guide to the production pathways, technological advancements, and carbon emission circularity aspects of aviation e-fuels. It will provide a valuable resource for researchers, policymakers, industry stakeholders, and the general public interested in transitioning to a sustainable aviation industry.

Copper-carbon hybrid nanoparticles as antimicrobial additives.

Millions of cases of hospital-acquired infections occur every year involving difficult to treat bacterial and fungal agents. In an effort to improve patient outcomes and provide better infection control, antimicrobial coatings are ideal to apply in clinical settings in addition to aseptic practices. Most efforts involving effective antimicrobial surface technologies are limited by toxicity of exposure due to the diffusion. Therefore, surface-immobilized antimicrobial agents are an ideal solution to infection control. Presented herein is a method of producing carbon-coated copper/copper oxide nanoparticles. Our findings demonstrate the potential for these particles to serve as antimicrobial additives. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1557/s43579-022-00294-2.

Growth of High-Quality Hexagonal Boron Nitride Single-Layer Films on Carburized Ni Substrates for Metal-Insulator-Metal Tunneling Devices.

Two-dimensional (2D) hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) plays a significant role in nanoscale electrical and optical devices because of its superior properties. However, the difficulties in the controllable growth of high-quality films hinder its applications. One of the crucial factors that influence the quality of the films obtained via epitaxy is the substrate property. Here, we report a study of 2D h-BN growth on carburized Ni substrates using molecular beam epitaxy. It was found that the carburization of Ni substrates with different surface orientations leads to different kinetics of h-BN growth. While the carburization of Ni(100) enhances the h-BN growth, the speed of the h-BN growth on carburized Ni(111) reduces. As-grown continuous single-layer h-BN films are used to fabricate Ni/h-BN/Ni metal-insulator-metal (MIM) devices, which demonstrate a high breakdown electric field of 12.9 MV/cm.

Marginal adaptation and fracture resistance of feldspathic and polymer-infiltrated ceramic network CAD/CAM endocrowns for maxillary premolars.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the marginal adaptation and fracture resistance of feldspathic and Polymer-Infiltrated Ceramic Network (PICN) CAD/CAM endocrowns for maxillary premolars. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty extracted human permanent maxillary premolars were randomly divided into two groups (n = 10); Group CEREC (GC), which was produced by feldspathic ceramic and the Group Enamic (GE), which was produced by PICN. All teeth were endodontically treated and decoronated horizontally at 2 mm above the cemento-enamel junction. Endocrown preparations were done with 4 mm depth into the pulp chamber. Endocrowns were manufactured using CAD/CAM from ceramic blocks. Following adhesive cementation, all specimens were subjected to thermocycling. Marginal adaptation evaluated under SEM at 200 × magnification. Each specimen was fixed in a universal testing machine and a compressive load was applied at 45° to long axis of the teeth until failure. Failure load was recorded and failure modes were evaluated. Statistical analyses were performed with SPSS 19.0 software and data were compared using Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the marginal adaptation between two groups (P > 0.05). GE presented significantly higher fracture resistance when compared to GC (P < 0.05). Failure pattern was similar and characterized by the tooth-ceramic fracture on the force-applied side. CONCLUSIONS: CAD/CAM fabricated feldspathic ceramic and PICN endocrowns provide sufficient marginal adaptation, but the PICN endocrowns shows higher fracture resistance than the feldspathic ceramic endocrowns.

High-Potential Metalless Nanocarbon Foam Supercapacitors Operating in Aqueous Electrolyte.

Light-weight graphite foam decorated with carbon nanotubes (dia. 20-50 nm) is utilized as an effective electrode without binders, conductive additives, or metallic current collectors for supercapacitors in aqueous electrolyte. Facile nitric acid treatment renders wide operating potentials, high specific capacitances and energy densities, and long lifespan over 10 000 cycles manifested as 164.5 and 111.8 F g-1 , 22.85 and 12.58 Wh kg-1 , 74.6% and 95.6% capacitance retention for 2 and 1.8 V, respectively. Overcharge protection is demonstrated by repetitive cycling between 2 and 2.5 V for 2000 cycles without catastrophic structural demolition or severe capacity fading. Graphite foam without metallic strut possessing low density (≈0.4-0.45 g cm-3 ) further reduces the total weight of the electrode. The thorough investigation of the specific capacitances and coulombic efficiencies versus potential windows and current densities provides insights into the selection of operation conditions for future practical devices.

Advanced Sulfur-Silicon Full Cell Architecture for Lithium Ion Batteries.

Lithium-ion batteries are crucial to the future of energy storage. However, the energy density of current lithium-ion batteries is insufficient for future applications. Sulfur cathodes and silicon anodes have garnered a lot of attention in the field due their high capacity potential. Although recent developments in sulfur and silicon electrodes show exciting results in half cell formats, neither electrode can act as a lithium source when put together into a full cell format. Current methods toward incorporating lithium in sulfur-silicon full cells involves prelithiating silicon or using lithium sulfide. These methods however, complicate material processing and creates safety hazards. Herein, we present a novel full cell battery architecture that bypasses the issues associated with current methods. This battery architecture gradually integrates controlled amounts of pure lithium into the system by allowing lithium the access to external circuit. A high specific energy density of 350 Wh/kg after 250 cycles at C/10 was achieved using this method. This work should pave the way for future researches into sulfur-silicon full cells.

Chelant Enhanced Solution Processing for Wafer Scale Synthesis of Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Thin Films.

It is of paramount importance to improve the control over large area growth of high quality molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and other types of 2D dichalcogenides. Such atomically thin materials have great potential for use in electronics, and are thought to make possible the first real applications of spintronics. Here in, a facile and reproducible method of producing wafer scale atomically thin MoS2 layers has been developed using the incorporation of a chelating agent in a common organic solvent, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Previously, solution processing of a MoS2 precursor, ammonium tetrathiomolybdate ((NH4)2MoS4), and subsequent thermolysis was used to produce large area MoS2 layers. Our work here shows that the use of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) in DMSO exerts superior control over wafer coverage and film thickness, and the results demonstrate that the chelating action and dispersing effect of EDTA is critical in growing uniform films. Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy (HR-STEM) indicate the formation of homogenous few layer MoS2 films at the wafer scale, resulting from the novel chelant-in-solution method.

Silicon Derived from Glass Bottles as Anode Materials for Lithium Ion Full Cell Batteries.

Every year many tons of waste glass end up in landfills without proper recycling, which aggravates the burden of waste disposal in landfill. The conversion from un-recycled glass to favorable materials is of great significance for sustainable strategies. Recently, silicon has been an exceptional anode material towards large-scale energy storage applications, due to its extraordinary lithiation capacity of 3579 mAh g-1 at ambient temperature. Compared with other quartz sources obtained from pre-leaching processes which apply toxic acids and high energy-consuming annealing, an interconnected silicon network is directly derived from glass bottles via magnesiothermic reduction. Carbon-coated glass derived-silicon (gSi@C) electrodes demonstrate excellent electrochemical performance with a capacity of ~1420 mAh g-1 at C/2 after 400 cycles. Full cells consisting of gSi@C anodes and LiCoO2 cathodes are assembled and achieve good initial cycling stability with high energy density.

Silicon and Carbon Nanocomposite Spheres with Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Full Cell Lithium Ion Batteries.

Herein, facile synthesis of monodisperse silicon and carbon nanocomposite spheres (MSNSs) is achieved via a simple and scalable surface-protected magnesiothermic reduction with subsequent chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Li-ion batteries (LIBs) were fabricated to test the utility of MSNSs as an anode material. LIB anodes based on MSNSs demonstrate a high reversible capacity of 3207 mAh g-1, superior rate performance, and excellent cycling stability. Furthermore, the performance of full cell LIBs was evaluated by using MSNS anode and a LiCoO2 cathode with practical electrode loadings. The MSNS/LiCoO2 full cell demonstrates high gravimetric energy density in the order of 850 Wh L-1 with excellent cycling stability. This work shows a proof of concept of the use of monodisperse Si and C nanocomposite spheres toward practical lithium-ion battery applications.

Strain Gated Bilayer Molybdenum Disulfide Field Effect Transistor with Edge Contacts.

Silicon nitride stress capping layer is an industry proven technique for increasing electron mobility and drive currents in n-channel silicon MOSFETs. Herein, the strain induced by silicon nitride is firstly characterized through the changes in photoluminescence and Raman spectra of a bare bilayer MoS2 (Molybdenum disulfide). To make an analogy of the strain-gated silicon MOSFET, strain is exerted to a bilayer MoS2 field effect transistor (FET) through deposition of a silicon nitride stress liner that warps both the gate and the source-drain area. Helium plasma etched MoS2 layers for edge contacts. Current on/off ratio and other performance metrics are measured and compared as the FETs evolve from back-gated, to top-gated and finally, to strain-gated configurations. While the indirect band gap of bilayer MoS2 at 0% strain is 1.25 eV, the band gap decreases as the tensile strain increases on an average of ~100 meV per 1% tensile strain, and the decrease in band gap is mainly due to lowering the conduction band at K point. Comparing top- and strain-gated structures, we find a 58% increase in electron mobility and 46% increase in on-current magnitude, signalling a benign effect of tensile strain on the carrier transport properties of MoS2.

Effects of juniper essential oil on growth performance, some rumen protozoa, rumen fermentation and antioxidant blood enzyme parameters of growing Saanen kids.

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of juniper essential oil on the growth performance, rumen fermentation parameters, rumen protozoa population, blood antioxidant enzyme parameters and faecal content in growing Saanen kids. Thirty-six male Saanen kids (36 ± 14 days of age) were used in the study. Each group consisted of 9 kids. The control group (G1) was fed with a diet that consisted of the above concentrated feed and oat hay, whereas the experimental groups consumed the same diet but with the concentrated feed uniformly sprayed with juniper essential oil 0.4 ml/kg (G2), 0.8 ml/kg (G3) or 2 ml/kg (G4). There were no differences (p > 0.05) in live weight, live weight gain or feed consumption between the control and experimental groups. There was a significant improvement (p < 0.05) in feed efficiency in the G3 group. There were no differences in the rumen pH, rumen volatile fatty acid (VFA) profile or faecal pH of the control and experimental groups. The rumen NH3 N values were similar at the middle and end of the experiment, but at the start of the experiment, the rumen NH3 N values differed between the control and experimental groups (p < 0.05). The faecal score value was significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in the experimental groups. The addition of juniper essential oil supplementation to the rations caused significant effects on the kids' antioxidant blood parameters. Although the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and catalase values were significantly (p < 0.05) increased in the experimental groups (G2, G3 and G4), especially group G4, the blood glutathione peroxidase (GPX) value significantly decreased in the experimental groups. The results of this study suggest that supplementation of juniper oil is more effective on antioxidant parameters than on performance parameters and may be used as a natural antioxidant product.

Carbon-Coated, Diatomite-Derived Nanosilicon as a High Rate Capable Li-ion Battery Anode.

Silicon is produced in a variety of ways as an ultra-high capacity lithium-ion battery (LIB) anode material. The traditional carbothermic reduction process required is expensive and energy-intensive; in this work, we use an efficient magnesiothermic reduction to convert the silica-based frustules within diatomaceous earth (diatomite, DE) to nanosilicon (nanoSi) for use as LIB anodes. Polyacrylic acid (PAA) was used as a binder for the DE-based nanoSi anodes for the first time, being attributed for the high silicon utilization under high current densities (up to 4C). The resulting nanoSi exhibited a high BET specific surface area of 162.6 cm2 g-1, compared to a value of 7.3 cm2 g-1 for the original DE. DE contains SiO2 architectures that make ideal bio-derived templates for nanoscaled silicon. The DE-based nanoSi anodes exhibit good cyclability, with a specific discharge capacity of 1102.1 mAh g-1 after 50 cycles at a C-rate of C/5 (0.7 A gSi-1) and high areal loading (2 mg cm-2). This work also demonstrates the fist rate capability testing for a DE-based Si anode; C-rates of C/30 - 4C were tested. At 4C (14.3 A gSi-1), the anode maintained a specific capacity of 654.3 mAh g-1 - nearly 2x higher than graphite's theoretical value (372 mAh g-1).

Towards flexible binderless anodes: silicon/carbon fabrics via double-nozzle electrospinning.

Flexible electrodes (C-Si/C) composed of Si/C fibers trapped in carbon fiber frames via double-nozzle electrospinning improve the cycling stability and rate capability of Si/C fabrics. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) has been demonstrated as a superior carbon matrix for Si compared with polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) annealed using the same heat-treatment process.

Toxicology Study of Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes and Reduced Graphene Oxide in Human Sperm.

Carbon-based nanomaterials such as single-walled carbon nanotubes and reduced graphene oxide are currently being evaluated for biomedical applications including in vivo drug delivery and tumor imaging. Several reports have studied the toxicity of carbon nanomaterials, but their effects on human male reproduction have not been fully examined. Additionally, it is not clear whether the nanomaterial exposure has any effect on sperm sorting procedures used in clinical settings. Here, we show that the presence of functionalized single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT-COOH) and reduced graphene oxide at concentrations of 1-25 µg/mL do not affect sperm viability. However, SWCNT-COOH generate significant reactive superoxide species at a higher concentration (25 µg/mL), while reduced graphene oxide does not initiate reactive species in human sperm. Further, we demonstrate that exposure to these nanomaterials does not hinder the sperm sorting process, and microfluidic sorting systems can select the sperm that show low oxidative stress post-exposure.

The effect of volatile oil mixtures on the performance and ilio-caecal microflora of broiler chickens.

The aim of this study was to investigate the individual and combined effects of rosemary, oregano and fennel volatile oil (FVO) supplementation on the performance and ilio-caecal bacteriological flora of broiler chickens. A total of 800 male Ross-308 broiler chickens were divided equally into 8 groups; each contained 100 chickens. The study included a control treatment (NC) with no dietary additives that was supplemented with oils according to the following 7 treatments: 200 mg α-tocopherol acetate/kg (PC), 100 mg oregano volatile oil (OVO)/kg, 100 mg rosemary volatile oil (RVO)/kg, 100 mg FVO/kg and an equal mixture of oregano+rosemary+fennel VO (100, 200, 400 mg/kg, VOM-1, VOM-2 and VOM-3, respectively). The experiment lasted for 6 weeks. At the end of the experiment, dietary supplementation with α-tocopherol, oregano, rosemary and FVO and two different volatile oil mixtures (VOMs) (VOM-2; VOM-3) significantly increased the body weights (BWs) of broilers at 7, 14 and 21 d of age compared to the negative control (NC) (-) and VOM-1 groups. At 0-42 d, birds fed on VOM-3 were considerably heavier and also gained more weight than NC (-) and VOM-1 groups. The blend of VOs at 400 mg/kg significantly increased Lactobacillus spp. in faeces. The blends of oregano, rosemary and FVOs (VOM-3) at 400 mg/kg concentration and also VOM-3 group exhibited stronger antibacterial activity against coliform bacteria compared to the NC (-) group. In conclusion, the blend of oregano, rosemary and fennel VOs at higher concentrations (400 mg/kg concentration) in diets can be used to stimulate the growth and can improve the intestinal microbial balance (including a reduction of coliform bacteria and an increase in Lactobacillus spp. counts) of broiler chickens.

Template Free and Binderless NiO Nanowire Foam for Li-ion Battery Anodes with Long Cycle Life and Ultrahigh Rate Capability.

Herein, NiO-decorated Ni nanowires with diameters ca. 30-150 nm derived from Ni wire backbone (ca. 2 µm in diameter) is directly synthesized on commercially available Ni foam as a renovated anode for Li-ion batteries. Excellent stability with capacity 680 mAh g(-1) at 0.5C (1C = 718 mA g(-1)) is achieved after 1000 cycles. Superior rate capability is exhibited by cycling at extremely high current rates, such as 20C and 50C with capacities ca. 164 and 75 mAh g(-1), respectively. The capacity can be recovered back to ca. 430 mAh g(-1) in 2 cycles when lowered to 0.2C and stably cycled for 430 times with capacity 460 mAh g(-1). The NiO nanowire foam anode possesses low equivalent series resistance ca. 3.5 Ω, resulting in superior power performance and low resistive losses. The NiO nanowire foam can be manufactured with bio-friendly chemicals and low temperature processes without any templates, binders and conductive additives, which possesses the potential transferring from lab scale to industrial production.

Phase Engineering of 2D Tin Sulfides.

Tin sulfides can exist in a variety of phases and polytypes due to the different oxidation states of Sn. A subset of these phases and polytypes take the form of layered 2D structures that give rise to a wide host of electronic and optical properties. Hence, achieving control over the phase, polytype, and thickness of tin sulfides is necessary to utilize this wide range of properties exhibited by the compound. This study reports on phase-selective growth of both hexagonal tin (IV) sulfide SnS2 and orthorhombic tin (II) sulfide SnS crystals with diameters of over tens of microns on SiO2 substrates through atmospheric pressure vapor-phase method in a conventional horizontal quartz tube furnace with SnO2 and S powders as the source materials. Detailed characterization of each phase of tin sulfide crystals is performed using various microscopy and spectroscopy methods, and the results are corroborated by ab initio density functional theory calculations.

Scalable Multifunctional Ultra-thin Graphite Sponge: Free-standing, Superporous, Superhydrophobic, Oleophilic Architecture with Ferromagnetic Properties for Environmental Cleaning.

Water decontamination and oil/water separation are principal motives in the surge to develop novel means for sustainability. In this prospect, supplying clean water for the ecosystems is as important as the recovery of the oil spills since the supplies are scarce. Inspired to design an engineering material which not only serves this purpose, but can also be altered for other applications to preserve natural resources, a facile template-free process is suggested to fabricate a superporous, superhydrophobic ultra-thin graphite sponge. Moreover, the process is designed to be inexpensive and scalable. The fabricated sponge can be used to clean up different types of oil, organic solvents, toxic and corrosive contaminants. This versatile microstructure can retain its functionality even when pulverized. The sponge is applicable for targeted sorption and collection due to its ferromagnetic properties. We hope that such a cost-effective process can be embraced and implemented widely.

Bio-Derived, Binderless, Hierarchically Porous Carbon Anodes for Li-ion Batteries.

Here we explore the electrochemical performance of pyrolyzed skins from the species A. bisporus, also known as the Portobello mushroom, as free-standing, binder-free, and current collector-free Li-ion battery anodes. At temperatures above 900 °C, the biomass-derived carbon nanoribbon-like architectures undergo unique processes to become hierarchically porous. During heat-treatment, the oxygen and heteroatom-rich organics and potassium compounds naturally present in the mushroom skins play a mutual role in creating inner void spaces throughout the resulting carbon nanoribbons, which is a process analogous to KOH-activation of carbon materials seen in literature. The pores formed in the pyrolytic carbon nanoribbons range in size from sub-nanometer to tens of nanometers, making the nanoribbons micro, meso, and macroporous. Detailed studies were conducted on the carbon nanoribbons using SEM and TEM to study morphology, as well as XRD and EDS to study composition. The self-supporting nanoribbon anodes demonstrate significant capacity increase as they undergo additional charge/discharge cycles. After a pyrolysis temperature of 1100 °C, the pristine anodes achieve over 260 mAh/g after 700 cycles and a Coulombic efficiency of 101.1%, without the use of harmful solvents or chemical activation agents.

Conservative surgical management of multiple myometrial abscesses; an unusual case with review of the literature.

Myometrial abscess, especially with multiple foci, is quite rare and previous literature prevalently discusses unique locus of intramyometrial abscesses, usually treated with hysterectomy accompanied with or without bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. The presented case, to the authors' knowledge, is the first multiple myometrial abscess case treated with conservative surgical approach.