The role of urea in formation of the sodium acetate trihydrate (SAT)-urea eutectic liquid: a neutron diffraction and isotopic substitution study.

Neutron diffraction with isotopic substitution has been used to investigate the structure of the liquid sodium acetate trihydrate-urea eutectic (mole fraction () of 0.60) at 50 °C. Urea competes with acetate anions and water molecules in the solvation of sodium ions, displacing water and, simultaneously, stabilising the liberated 'excess' water through hydrogen bonding between water and urea molecules in the eutectic liquid.

Versatile microbial communities rapidly assimilate ammonium hydroxide-treated plastic waste.

Waste plastic presently accumulates in landfills or the environment. While natural microbial metabolisms can degrade plastic polymers, biodegradation of plastic is very slow. This study demonstrates that chemical deconstruction of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) with ammonium hydroxide can replace the rate limiting step (depolymerization) and by producing plastic-derived terephthalic acid and terephthalic acid monoamide.

Impacts of Nutrients on Alkene Biodegradation Rates and Microbial Community Composition in Enriched Consortia from Natural Inocula.

There is a growing need for biological and chemical methods for upcycling plastic waste streams. Pyrolysis processes can accelerate plastic depolymerization by breaking polyethylene into smaller alkene components which may be more biodegradable than the initial polymer. While the biodegradation of alkanes has been extensively studied, the role microorganisms play in alkene breakdown is not well understood.

The structure of protic ionic liquids based on sulfuric acid, doped with excess of sulfuric acid or with water.

Neutron scattering with isotopic substitution was used to study the structure of concentrated sulfuric acid, and two protic ionic liquids (PILs): a Brønsted-acidic PIL, synthesised using pyridine and excess of sulfuric acid, [Hpy][HSO]·HSO, and a hydrated PIL, in which an equimolar mixture of sulfuric acid and pyridine has been doped with water, [Hpy][HSO]·2HO. Brønsted acidic PILs are excellent solvents/catalysts for esterifications, driving reaction to completion by phase-separating water and ester products. Water-doped PILs are efficient solvents/antisolvents in biomass fractionation.

Hydrophobic functional liquids based on trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) and carboxylic acids.

Trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) is a hydrophobic extracting agent used in a number of commercially important separations of valuable solutes from aqueous streams (with examples ranging from lanthanides, through gallium, to carboxylic acids). TOPO is traditionally used as a solute in kerosene, its extraction efficiency limited by its solubility in the organic diluents. In this work, eighteen hydrogen bond donors (HBDs) were screened for their capacity to liquefy TOPO, employing strategies used to design deep eutectic solvents (DES).

Enhanced extraction of phenol from model oils using ionic liquids elucidated with neutron diffraction.

Aromatic cation ionic liquids (ILs) based on alkylpyridiniums are shown to be good phenol extractants from model oils (hexane/toluene). ILs with hard basic anions are found to have best extraction efficiency consistent with tetraalkylammonium salts ([NR4]X). Key extraction interactions were analysed using small angle neutron diffraction.

The Effect of Systematic Light Exposure on Sleep in a Mixed Group of Fatigued Cancer Survivors.

Study Objectives: Sleep disturbances are commonly reported by cancer survivors. Systematic light exposure using bright light has been used to improve sleep in other populations. In this secondary data analysis, the effect of morning administration of bright light on sleep and sleep quality was examined in a mixed group of fatigued cancer survivors.

Vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors: investigational therapies for the treatment of psoriasis.

Psoriasis is a common inflammatory autoimmune condition in which environmental factors and genetic predisposition contribute to the development of disease in susceptible individuals. Angiogenesis is known to be a key pathogenic feature of psoriasis. Local and systemic elevation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A has been demonstrated in the skin and plasma of patients with psoriasis and is known to correlate with improvement following some traditional psoriasis treatments.