Inhibition of Hydrogen Evolution by a Bifunctional Membrane between Anode and Electrolyte of Aluminum-Air Battery.

The hydrogen evolution reaction of the anode is a severe barrier that limits the further commercial application of Al-air batteries. Therefore, this study introduces a bifunctional membrane for the inhibition of hydrogen evolution in Al-air batteries. The reference to Al2O3@PAN as "bifunctional" means that it has both hydrophobic and anti-corrosion functions. Al2O3 can effectively inhibit the migration of hydroxide ions, and PAN is an excellent hydrophobic material. The bifunctional membrane is placed between the aluminum anode and the electrolyte, which can prevent the invasion of excess water and hydroxide ions, thereby inhibiting the hydrogen evolution corrosion of the anode. Electrochemical tests have confirmed that the corrosion inhibition rate of a bifunctional membrane containing 1.82 wt. % Al2O3@PAN is as high as 89.24%. The specific capacity of Al-air batteries containing this membrane can reach 1950 mAh/g, and the utilization rate of the aluminum anode has reached 61.2%, which is helpful in reducing the waste of aluminum resources. The results prove that the bifunctional membrane has excellent anti-corrosion properties. Bifunctional membranes can also be used to prevent the corrosion of metals in other fields.

Composite self-expanding bioresorbable prototype stents with reinforced compression performance for congenital heart disease application: Computational and experimental investigation.

Stents are vital devices to treat vascular stenosis in pediatric patients with congenital heart disease. Bioresorbable stents (BRSs) have been applied to reduce challenging complications caused by permanent metal stents. However, it remains almost a total lack of BRSs with satisfactory compression performance specifically for children with congenital heart disease, leading to importantly suboptimal effects. In this work, composite bioresorbable prototype stents with superior compression resistance were designed by braiding and annealing technology, incorporating poly (p-dioxanone) (PPDO) monofilaments and polycaprolactone (PCL) multifilament. Stent prototype compression properties were investigated. The results revealed that novel composite prototype stents showed superior compression force compared to the control ones, as well as recovery ability. Furthermore, deformation mechanisms were analyzed by computational simulation, which revealed bonded interlacing points among yarns play an important role. This research presents important clinical implications in bioresorbable stent manufacture and provides further study with an innovative stent design.