ALBERT

Description: Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts were prepared by chemical vapour deposition for catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of phenol in a fixed bed reactor. Firstly, Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts with Cu loading of 0.5, 2, and 6 wt% were prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N 2 adsorption–desorption and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS). The characterization results demonstrated that CuO was uniformly dispersed on ZSM-5 with slight effect on the structure properties of the support. Then, several variables, such as the copper loading, reaction temperature, catalyst bed height and feed flow rate were investigated in the CWPO of phenol in aqueous solution at high concentration (1000 ppm). Compared with the catalyst prepared by the impregnation method, the Cu-ZSM-5 prepared by chemical vapour deposition has a better capacity of further oxidizing the intermediate organic products into carbon dioxide and water with less metal loading. Based on the Cu-ZSM-5 catalyst with Cu loading of 6 wt%, complete removal of phenol and a high TOC reduction (around 70%) have been achieved at the temperature of 80°C feed flow rate of 2 ml min –1 and catalyst bed height of 3 cm. Moreover, this catalyst maintained high catalytic activity after three runs with high phenol conversion (94%) under this optimum operating condition. Finally, the reaction mechanism was studied based on the intermediates detected by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Description: In this article, we have synthesized a series of nitrogen-doped nanoporous carbon (NPC) from metal organic framework of UiO-66 with different ratios of adenine and 1,4-benzendicarboxylate (H 2 BDC) coated on carbon nanotube film (CNTF) to obtain a flexible porous electrode (NPC/CNTF). It is worth noting that the introduction of adenine at different ratios did not change the structure of UiO-66. We also investigated the effect of carbonization temperature from 800 to 1000°C on the electrochemical properties of the NPC. The ratio (H 2 BDC:adenine) 9 : 1 and the NPC carbonized at 900°C (denoted as NPC-1-900) exhibits better electrochemical properties. The results show that NPC-1-900/CNTF electrode exhibits an exceptional areal capacitance of 121.5 mF cm –2 compared to that of PC-900/CNTF electrode (22.8 mF cm –2 ) at 5 mV s –1 in a three-electrode system, indicating that the incorporation of nitrogen is beneficial to the electrochemical properties of nanoporous carbon. A symmetric flexible solid-state supercapacitor of NPC-1-900/CNTF has also been assembled and tested. Electrochemical data show that the device exhibited superior areal capacitance (43.2 mF cm –2 ) at the scan rate of 5 mV s –1 ; the volumetric energy density is 57.3 µWh cm –3 and the volumetric power density is 2.4 mW cm –3 at the current density of 0.5 mA cm –2 based on poly(vinyl alcohol)/H 3 PO 4 gel electrolyte. For practical application, we have also studied the bending tests of the device, which show that the device exhibits outstanding mechanical stability under different bending angles. Furthermore, the flexible device shows excellent cyclic stability, which can retain 91.5% of the initial capacitance after 2000 cycles.

Description: Textile fabrics are highly anisotropic, so that their mechanical properties including strengths are a function of direction. An extreme case is when a woven fabric sample is cut in such a way where the bias angle and hence the tension loading direction is around 45° relative to the principal directions. Then, once loaded, no yarn in the sample is held at both ends, so the yarns have to build up their internal tension entirely via yarn–yarn friction at the interlacing points. The overall fabric strength in such a sample is a result of contributions from the yarns being pulled out and those broken during the process, and thus becomes a function of the bias direction angle , sample width W and length L , along with other factors known to affect fabric strength tested in principal directions. Furthermore, in such a bias sample when the major parameters, e.g. the sample width W , change, not only the resultant strengths differ, but also the strength generating mechanisms (or failure types) vary. This is an interesting problem and is analysed in this study. More specifically, the issues examined in this paper include the exact mechanisms and details of how each interlacing point imparts the frictional constraint for a yarn to acquire tension to the level of its strength when both yarn ends were not actively held by the testing grips; the theoretical expression of the critical yarn length for a yarn to be able to break rather than be pulled out, as a function of the related factors; and the general relations between the tensile strength of such a bias sample and its structural properties. At the end, theoretical predictions are compared with our experimental data.

Description: The deformation and fracture characteristics of shale in the Changning-Xingwen region were experimentally studied under triaxial cyclic loading with a controlled pore-water pressure. An RLW-2000M microcomputer-controlled coal-rock rheometer was used in the State key Laboratory of coal mine disaster dynamics and control in Chongqing University. These experimental results have indicated the following. (i) The shale softened after being saturated with water, while its failure strength decreased with the increase of axial strain. (ii) A complete cyclic loading–unloading process can be divided into four stages under the coupling action of axial cyclic loading and pore-water pressure; namely the slow or accelerated increasing of strain in the loading stage, and the slow or accelerated decreasing of strain in the unloading stage. (iii) The axial plastic deformation characteristics were similar when pore-water pressures were set to 2, 6 and 10 MPa. Nevertheless, the shale softened ostensibly and fatigue damage occurred during the circulation process when the pore-water pressure was set to 14 MPa. (iv) It has been observed that the mean strain and strain amplitude under axial cyclic are positively correlated with pore-water pressure, while the elastic modulus is negatively correlated with pore-water pressure. As the cycle progresses, the trends in these parameters vary, which indicates that the deformation and elastic characteristics of shale are controlled by pore-water pressure and cyclic loading conditions. (v) Evidenced via triaxial compression tests, it was predominantly shear failure that occurred in the shale specimens. In addition, axial cyclic loading caused the shale to generate complex secondary fractures, resulting in the specimens cracking along the bedding plane due to the effect of pore-water pressure. This study provides valuable insight into the understanding of the deformation and failure mechanisms of shale under complicated stress conditions.

Description: Measurement of in situ stress is critical to understand the deformation and destruction of the underground space surrounding rock, and dynamic disaster of the coal mine. At present, with the increasing depth of mining, in situ stress parameters are more and more important for coal mine. In this paper, a novel method for in situ stress measurement with Kaiser effect was studied and applied in the Baijiao coal mine. First, we presented a comprehensive analysis method for the identification of Kaiser effect point. Then, a calculation method for in situ stress measurement based on the Kaiser effect on acoustic emissions was suggested. After that, the in situ stress test of Baijiao coal mine is taken as the research object, an experiment using acoustic emissions monitoring during uniaxial compression testing was performed to investigate the mechanical properties and acoustic emissions characteristics. Finally, in situ stress of the study area was calculated using the novel calculation method above and calculation results were verified using stress relief method and hydraulic fracturing method. The results showed that the calculation results obtained using the proposed method were valid and credible. Therefore, the calculation method for in situ stress measurement and the proposed comprehensive analysis method using the Kaiser point could be applied for in situ stress testing using the Kaiser effect method.

Description: l -Cysteine is one of the most promising biomass-based building blocks with great potential applications. Herein, we report a versatile synthetic route to produce cysteine-based 2,5-diketopiperazine (DKP) with good yield from the thiol-ene click reaction of l -cysteine and commercially available acrylates, followed by dimerization of the amino acid intermediates. The achieved DKP diastereomers were successfully separated and fully characterized by spectroscopic methods. Moreover, the chiroptical property of DKP in the presence of various metal ions was investigated by circular dichroism spectroscopy. The potential application of the optically active cysteine-based DKP as a chiral probe for detection of silver ion in water has been demonstrated.

Description: Curcumin is an active component derived from Curcuma longa L. which is a traditional Chinese medicine that is widely used for treating metabolic diseases through regulating different molecular pathways. Here, in this study, we aimed to comprehensively investigate the effects of curcumin on glycolipid metabolism in vivo and in vitro and then determine the underlying mechanism. Male C57BL/6 J obese mice and 3T3-L1 adipocytes were used for in vivo and in vitro study, respectively. Our results demonstrated that treatment with curcumin for eight weeks decreased body weight, fat mass and serum lipid profiles. Meanwhile, it lowered fasting blood glucose and increased the insulin sensitivity in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. In addition, curcumin stimulated lipolysis and improved glycolipid metabolism through upregulating the expressions of adipose triglyceride lipase and hormone-sensitive lipase, peroxisome proliferator activated receptor /α (PPAR/α) and CCAAT/enhancer binding proteinα (C/EBPα) in adipose tissue of the mice. In differentiated 3T3-L1 cells, curcumin reduced glycerol release and increased glucose uptake via upregulating PPAR and C/EBPα. We concluded that curcumin has the potential to improve glycolipid metabolism disorders caused by obesity through regulating PPAR signalling pathway.

Description: For Cr(VI)-removal microbial fuel cell (MFC), a more efficient biocathode in MFCs is required to improve the Cr(VI) removal and electricity generation. RVC-CNT electrode was prepared through the electrophoretic deposition of carbon nanotube (CNT) on reticulated vitreous carbon (RVC). The power density of MFC with an RVC-CNT electrode increased to 132.1 ± 2.8 mW m –2 , and 80.9% removal of Cr(VI) was achieved within 48 h; compared to only 44.5% removal of Cr(VI) in unmodified RVC. Cyclic voltammetry, energy-dispersive spectrometry and X-ray photoelectron spectrometry showed that the RVC-CNT electrode enhanced the electrical conductivity and the electron transfer rate; and provided more reaction sites for Cr(VI) reduction. This approach provides process simplicity and a thickness control method for fabricating three-dimensional biocathodes to improve the performance of MFCs for Cr(VI) removal.

Description: The present experimental study on permeability characteristics for raw coal under different stress states is implemented by applying the triaxial self-made ‘THM coupled with servo-controlled seepage apparatus for gas-containing coal’; the result indicates that the flow rate of gas in the coal sample gradually decreases with the nonlinear loading of axial pressure and increases with the nonlinear unloading of axial stress and confining pressure. The flow rate, axial stress and confining pressure curves all satisfy the negative exponential function relation. When the sample reaches the peak intensity, the sample will be destroyed and the stress will drop rapidly; then the flow rate of the sample will increase rapidly. At this stage, the flow rate and axial strain show an oblique ‘v' pattern. The flow rate of the coal sample increases nonlinearly with the increase of gas pressure; the relation curve between flow rate and gas pressure satisfies the power function relation. Under the same confining pressure and gas pressure conditions, the larger the axial stress, the smaller the flow rate of the coal sample. Under the same axial stress and gas pressure conditions, the flow rate of the coal sample will first decrease, but then increase as the confining pressure decreases. During the post-peak loading and unloading process, the flow rate of the coal sample will decrease with the loading of confining pressure but increase with the unloading of confining pressure, and there will be an increase in wave shape with the increase in axial strain. The flow rate of each loading and unloading confining pressure is higher than that of the previous loading and unloading confining pressure. At the post-peak stage, the relation curve between the flow rate of the coal sample and the confining pressure satisfies the power function relation in the process of loading and unloading confining pressure.

Description: Rosin esters are widely applied as masticatory substances and beverage stabilizers, while classical acid-catalysed processes will lead to metal residue or environmental issues. Super/subcritical CO 2 –enriched high temperature liquid water (HTLW) as a green acid catalyst in the esterification reaction of rosin with glycerol was investigated. The pH of CO 2 –H 2 O binary system, as calculated based on gas–liquid equilibrium, charge balance and chemical equilibrium equations, ranged from 3.49 to 3.70 depending on the reaction conditions, indicating effective acid catalysis. Response surface methodology experiments showed the optimum conditions were 3.5 h, 3.9 MPa CO 2 pressure, a rosin-to-glycerol molar ratio of 1.32 and 269°C, and an enhanced esterification yield of 94.74% was achieved, which was superior to that obtained using a ZnO catalyst. It was found that the esterification kinetics was a pseudo first-order reaction, and the enthalpy and entropy of activation were calculated using the Arrhenius–Polanyi equation. The presence of super/subcritical CO 2 -enriched HTLW catalyst can decrease the activation energy and significantly accelerate the reaction rate.