Application of Hydrogenated Graphitic Supports in Electrocatalysts: Effects on Carbon Support Surface Chemistry, Nanoparticle Growth, and Electrocatalytic Activity.

One of the key technical challenges before the widespread adoption of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is increasing the durability of the platinum catalyst layer to meet a target of 8000 operating hours with only a 10% loss of performance. Carbon corrosion, one of the primary mechanisms of degradation in fuel cells, has attracted attention from researchers interested in solving the durability problem. As such, the development of catalyst supports to avoid this issue has been a focus in recent years, with interest in hydrophobic supports such as highly graphitized carbons.

Synthesis of Graphene and Graphene Films with Minimal Structural Defects.

Graphene is a carbon material with extraordinary properties that has been drawing a significant amount of attention in the recent decade. High-quality graphene can be produced by different methods, such as epitaxial growth, chemical vapor deposition, and micromechanical exfoliation. The reduced graphene oxide route is, however, the only current approach that leads to the large-scale production of graphene materials at a reasonable cost.

An Economical and Scalable Method to Synthesize Graphitic-Like Films.

An economical and facile method to synthesize a precursor for carbon films and materials has been developed. This precursor can be easily coated onto substrates without binder reagents and then converted into a graphitic-like structure after mild thermal treatment. This approach potentially allows the coating of glass surfaces of different shapes and forms, such as the inside of a glass tube, for instance.

What Happens to Apparent Horizons in a Binary Black Hole Merger?

We resolve the fate of the two original apparent horizons during the head-on merger of two nonspinning black holes. We show that, following the appearance of the outer common horizon and subsequent interpenetration of the original horizons, they continue to exist for a finite period of time before they are individually annihilated by unstable marginally outer trapped surfaces (MOTSs). The inner common horizon vanishes in a similar, though independent, way.

The Impact of Treatment Delay on Hepatitis C Liver Transplant Outcomes.

Direct-acting antivirals for the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) have improved outcomes in liver transplant recipients (LTRs). However, the timing of HCV treatment and approach to treating rejection have not been well described. Additionally, pharmacists' roles in these comprehensive areas have not been investigated.