[Response of Cadmium in Soil-rice to Different Conditioners Based on Field Trials].

A plot experiment was carried out to assess the applicability of soil conditioners on Cd-polluted acidic paddy fields. The effects of five soil conditioners[Tianxiang 1 Hao (TX1), limestone (Li), silicon fertilizer, Nuodikang (NDK), and calcium magnesium phosphate fertilizer (CaMg-P)] on Cd accumulation and transport between contaminated soil and rice plants and rice yield on the land were analyzed. The results showed that compared with that under the control, other tested methods increased soil pH by 0.41-0.68 units and decreased available Cd content in the soil by 11.2%-39.7%. The difference between Li- and NDK-treated soil available Cd reached a significant level (P < 0.05). ② Compared with that in the blank control, the application of soil conditioner could significantly reduce the total amount of Cd in rice, and the Cd content in roots, other leaves, rachises, chaffs, and brown rice were significantly lower than those in the CK treatment (P < 0.05). The Cd translation factor between various sites was shown as TFroots-other nodes > TFroots-first nodes > TFroots-rachises > TFroots-chaffs ≈ TFroots-flag leaves > TFroots-brown rice. The Cd content of brown rice met the national safety standard (0.2 mg·kg-1), in which the TX1, Li, and CaMg-P treatments showed significant Cd reduction effects, and ω(Cd) was 0.097, 0.094, and 0.134 mg·kg-1, respectively. ③ The application of soil conditioner could increase the yield by 9.9%-35.8%, and the yield of the CaMg-P and TX1 treatments was significantly higher than that of other treatments (P < 0.05). ④ Correlation analysis showed that the Cd content in brown rice was significantly positively correlated with available Cd content in soil, available Fe content in soil, and available phosphorus but negatively correlated with soil pH. In summary, TX1 and CaMg-P are recommended to be applied in farmland lightly polluted by the heavy metal Cd to ensure the safety of agricultural products.

Microwave-Assisted Synthesis of Highly Active Single-Atom Fe/N/C Catalysts for High-Performance Aqueous and Flexible All-Solid-State Zn-Air Batteries.

The development of low-cost single-atom electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is highly desired but remains a grand challenge. Superior to the conventional techniques, a microwave-assisted strategy is reported for rapid production of high-quality Fe/N/C single-atom catalysts (SACs) with profoundly enhanced reaction rate and remarkably reduced energy consumption. The as-synthesized catalysts exhibit an excellent ORR performance with a positive half-wave potential up to 0.90 V, a high turnover frequency of 0.76 s-1 , as well as a satisfied stability with a lost half-wave potential of just 27 mV over 9000 cycles (much better than that of Pt/C with 107 mV lost) and good methanol resistance. The open-circuit voltages of as-constructed aqueous and flexible all-solid-state Zn-air batteries (ZABs) are 1.56 and 1.52 V, respectively, higher than those of 20% Pt/C-based ones (i.e., 1.43 and 1.38 V, respectively). Impressively, they afford a peak power density of 235 mW cm-2 , which exceeds that of Pt/C (i.e., 186 mW cm-2 ), and is comparable to the best ones of Fe/N/C-based ZABs ever reported.

Enhanced Magnetic Properties of FeSiAl Soft Magnetic Composites Prepared by Utilizing PSA as Resin Insulating Layer.

Thermosetting organic resins are widely applied as insulating coatings for soft magnetic powder cores (SMPCs) because of their high electrical resistivity. However, their poor thermal stability and thermal decomposition lead to a decrease in electrical resistivity, thus limiting the annealing temperature of SMPCs. The large amount of internal stress generated by soft magnetic composites during pressing must be mitigated at high temperatures; therefore, it is especially important to find organic resins with excellent thermal stabilities. In this study, we prepared SMPCs using poly-silicon-containing arylacetylene resin, an organic resin resistant to high temperatures, as an insulating layer. With 2 wt % PSA as an insulating layer and annealed at 700 °C for 1 h, the FeSiAl SMPCs achieved the best magnetic properties, including the lowest core loss of 184 mW/cm3 (measured at 0.1 T and 50 kHz) and highest permeability of 96.

Natural polyphenols enhance stability of crosslinked UHMWPE for joint implants.

BACKGROUND: Radiation-crosslinked UHMWPE has been used for joint implants since the 1990s. Postirradiation remelting enhances oxidative stability, but with some loss in strength and toughness. Vitamin E-stabilized crosslinked UHMWPE has shown improved strength and stability as compared with irradiated and remelted UHMWPE. With more active phenolic hydroxyl groups, natural polyphenols are widely used in the food and pharmaceutical industries as potent stabilizers and could be useful for oxidative stability in crosslinked UHMWPE. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: We asked whether UHMWPE blended with polyphenols would (1) show higher oxidation resistance after radiation crosslinking; (2) preserve the mechanical properties of UHMWPE after accelerated aging; and (3) alter the wear resistance of radiation-crosslinked UHMWPE. METHODS: The polyphenols, gallic acid and dodecyl gallate, were blended with medical-grade UHMWPE followed by consolidation and electron beam irradiation at 100 kGy. Radiation-crosslinked virgin and vitamin E-blended UHMWPEs were used as reference materials. The UHMWPEs were aged at 120 °C in air with oxidation levels analyzed by infrared spectroscopy. Tensile (n = 5 per group) and impact (n = 3 per group) properties before and after aging as per ASTM F2003 were evaluated. The wear rates were examined by pin-on-disc testing (n = 3 per group). The data were reported as mean ± SDs. Statistical analysis was performed by using Student's t-test for a two-tailed distribution with unequal variance for tensile and impact data obtained with n ≥ 3. A significant difference is defined with p < 0.05. RESULTS: The oxidation induction time of 100 kGy UHMWPE was prolonged to 144 hours with 0.05 wt% dodecyl gallate and 192 hours with 0.05 wt% gallic acid compared with 48 hours for 0.05 wt% vitamin E-blended UHMWPE. Accelerated aging of these polyphenol-blended UHMWPEs resulted in ultimate tensile strength of 50.4 ± 1.4 MPa and impact strength of 53 ± 5 kJ/m(2) for 100 kGy-irradiated UHMWPE with 0.05 wt% dodecyl gallate, for example, in comparison to 51.2 ± 0.7 MPa (p = 0.75) and 58 ± 5 kJ/m(2) (p = 0.29) before aging. The pin-on-disc wear rates of 100 kGy-irradiated UHMWPE with 0.05 wt% dodecyl gallate and 0.05 wt% gallic acid were 2.29 ± 0.31 and 1.65 ± 0.32 mg/million cycles, comparable to 1.68 ± 0.25 and 2.05 ± 0.22 mg/million cycles for 100 kGy-irradiated virgin and 0.05 wt% vitamin E-blended UHMWPE. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the sample numbers tested in this study, polyphenols appear to effectively enhance the oxidation stability without altering the mechanical properties or pin-on-disc wear rate of radiation-crosslinked UHMWPE. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Crosslinked UHMWPE with natural polyphenols with improved oxidative stability and low wear may find clinical application in joint implants.

[Determination of prometryne residue in shellfish by gas chromatography].

OBJECTIVE: To develop a method of gas chromatography (GC) for determining residues of promtryne in shellfish. METHODS: The sample was extracted with ethyl acetate, and cleaned-up with Envi-Carb SPE cartridge, alumina-N SPE cartridge, and determined by GC-FPD with DB - 1701 capillary chromatographic column (30 m x0.53 .mm x 0.5µm). RESULTS: Good linear was obtained in the concentration range of 0.10-0.96µg/ml with a correlation coefficient of 0. 999. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.0037 mg/kg and limit of quantity (LOQ) was 0.010 mg/kg. The average recoveries was 83. 7% - 102. 0% and relative standard deviations (RSD) was 0. 54% - 8.14% CONCLUSION: The method is simple, fast and credible, so it can be applied to determination of prometryne in shellfish.

The application of novel spindle-like polypyrrole hollow nanocapsules containing Pt nanoparticles in electrocatalysis oxidation of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH).

Novel spindle-like polypyrrole hollow nanocapsules containing Pt nanoparticles (Pt NPs/PPy composite hollow nanospindles) were successfully prepared by using beta-akaganeite (ß-Fe(3+)O(OH,Cl)) nanospindles as templates and methanoic acid as a reducing agent. The ß-Fe(3+)O(OH,Cl) templates can be easily obtained in ethanol/water mixing solution in the presence of thiophene and FeCl(3)·6H(2)O, and after coating by PPy shell, they can be gradually and completely etched during the reduction of H(2)PtCl(6) into Pt nanoparticles (Pt NPs) with the average size of 3.6 nm on spindle-like polypyrrole hollow nanocapsules, which could still keep their integrality of morphologies with the thickness of PPy shell of 18-20 nm. The investigation of Pt NPs/PPy composite hollow nanospindles modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) for the application to detect nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) with cyclic voltammetry (CV) and amperometry indicated good linearity and sensitivity of responses in the certain range of NADH concentration. The influence of Pt NPs content to the NADH oxidation current was also studied. This new kind of unique spindle-like noble metal/conducting polymer hollow nanostructured complex can be acted as a good steady electrode material for electrocatalytic oxidation of NADH.

Large-scale synthesis of tungsten oxide nanofibers by electrospinning.

We show in this communication that large-scale synthesis of orthorhombic WO3 nanofibers can be obtained via a simple electrospinning method. The morphology and the crystal structure are investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), FTIR, X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) spectra. SEM and TEM images showed that the diameter of the obtained WO3 nanofibers is between 100 and 500 nm. The structure of the obtained WO3 nanofibers was characterized by FTIR, XRD, and XPS spectra. The photoluminescence of the obtained WO3 nanofibers were also investigated.