Sulfurization of transition metal inorganic electrocatalysts in Li-S batteries.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have garnered significant attention for their exceptional energy density, positioning them as a promising solution for next-generation energy storage. A critical factor in their performance is the use of transition metal inorganic compound electrocatalysts, prized for their distinctive catalytic properties. Recently, increasing interest has focused on the sulfurization of these catalysts in polysulfide-rich environments, a process that holds great potential for enhancing their efficiency.

Separator modification with a high-entropy hydroxyphosphate, CoNiFeCuCa(PO)(OH), for high-performance Li-S batteries.

The shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) significantly hinders the practical application of lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs). Herein, a high-entropy hydroxyphosphate (CoNiFeCuCa(PO)(OH), denoted as HE-CHP), was synthesized by metal cation exchange with calcium hydroxyphosphate (CHP) and then coated on polypropylene (PP) separators to suppress the shuttling of LiPSs. Density functional theory calculations indicated that the various introduced metal cations could effectively modulate the binding strength of soluble polysulfides and enhance the reaction kinetics of LiPSs conversion.

Atmosphere Induces Tunable Oxygen Vacancies to Stabilize Single-Atom Copper in Ceria for Robust Electrocatalytic CO Reduction to CH.

Electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction (ECORR) shows great potential to create high-value carbon-based chemicals, while designing advanced catalysts at the atomic level remains challenging. The ECORR performance is largely dependent on the catalyst microelectronic structure that can be effectively modulated through surface defect engineering. Here, we provide an atmosphere-assisted low-temperature calcination strategy to prepare a series of single-atomic Cu/ceria catalysts with varied oxygen vacancy concentrations for robust electrolytic reduction of CO to methane.

Mastering Surface Sulfidation of MnP-MnO Heterostructure to Facilitate Efficient Polysulfide Conversion in Li─S Batteries.

The development of lithium-sulfur (Li─S) batteries has been hampered by the shuttling effect of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs). An effective method to address this issue is to use an electrocatalyst to accelerate the catalytic conversion of LiPSs. In this study, heterogeneous MnP-MnO nanoparticles are uniformly synthesized and embedded in porous carbon (MnP-MnO/C) as core catalysts to improve the reaction kinetics of LiPSs.

Three-Phase-Heterojunction Cu/CuO-SbO Catalyst Enables Efficient CO Electroreduction to CO and High-Performance Aqueous Zn-CO Battery.

Zn-CO batteries are excellent candidates for both electrical energy output and CO utilization, whereas the main challenge is to design electrocatalysts for electrocatalytic CO reduction reactions with high selectivity and low cost. Herein, the three-phase heterojunction Cu-based electrocatalyst (Cu/CuO-SbO-15) is synthesized and evaluated for highly selective CO reduction to CO, which shows the highest faradaic efficiency of 96.3% at -1.

Li-S Chemistry of Manganese Phosphides Nanoparticles With Optimized Phase.

The targeted synthesis of manganese phosphides with target phase remains a huge challenge because of their various stoichiometries and phase-dependent physicochemical properties. In this study, phosphorus-rich MnP, manganese-rich Mn P, and their heterostructure MnP-Mn P nanoparticles evenly dispersed on porous carbon are accurately synthesized by a convenient one-pot heat treatment of phosphate resin combined with Mn . Moreover, their electrochemical properties are systematically investigated as sulfur hosts in lithium-sulfur batteries.

Association Between Night Shift and Hypertension: A Cross-Sectional Study in Chinese Adults.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of night-shift work on the risk of hypertension for improving workers' health.

Methods: A total of 10,038 Chinese participants were constituted in the cross-sectional study. Logistic regression and restricted cubic spline were used to estimate the effect of night shift on hypertension.

Maternal exposure to extreme high-temperature, particulate air pollution and macrosomia in 14 countries of Africa.

Background: Macrosomia has increased rapidly worldwide in the past few decades, with a huge impact on health. However, the effect of PM and extreme high-temperature (EHT) on macrosomia has been ignored.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the association between maternal exposure to EHT, PM and macrosomia based on the Seventh Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) in 14 countries of Africa.

Controlling of Ni-Based Composites in Salt Melt Synthesis with High Sodium-Ion Storage Performance.

Owing to its fascinating properties (such as high theoretical specific capacity and considerable conductivity), nickel sulfide (NiS) was investigated comprehensively as an anode material in sodium-ion batteries. However, they still suffered from volume expansion and sluggish kinetics, resulting in serious cycle capabilities. Herein, through controlling the kind of molten salts (NaSO, NaCl, and NaCO) in salt melt synthesis (SMS), a series of NiS with an N, S-codoped carbon layer was successfully prepared, accompanied with different morphologies and structures (earthworm-like belts and triangular and spherical particles).

Parallel depth buffer algorithm based on a ternary optical computer.

The depth buffer algorithm, as a method at pixel level of computer graphics, can assist in realizing object collision detection and interference calculation in virtual space. It calculates the depth value of the object in a 3D scene to help construct the view model, while the traditional depth buffer algorithm cannot work without pixel-by-pixel operation and has the disadvantages of slow speed, low computational efficiency, and large space occupation. In this paper, the parallel depth buffer algorithm based on a ternary optical computer (TOC) is proposed by taking advantage of giant data-bit parallel computing, the reconfigurable processor of TOC.

Poor morphology of inner cell mass increases birth weight and large for gestational age.

Research Question: Can inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm morphological grading, especially ICM and trophectoderm graded C, affect perinatal outcomes?

Design: A retrospective review of medical records of 8946 singletons delivered from vitrified-warmed single blastocyst transfer cycles between January 2009 and December 2020.

Results: Inner cell mass graded C had a higher adjusted birth weight than ICM graded A (0.61 ± 1.

Short-term exposure to six air pollutants and cause-specific cardiovascular mortality of nine counties or districts in Anhui Province, China.

Recently, the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) has attracted global attention. Meanwhile, CVD has become the leading cause of death in China. Some epidemiological studies have indicated that ambient air pollution may contribute to increased mortality from CVD diseases.

Multiple environmental exposures and obesity in eastern China: An individual exposure evaluation model.

Obesity has caused a huge burden of disease. Few studies have explored individuals' environmental exposure level and the impact of multiple environmental exposures on obesity. The aim of this study was to explore individual air pollution exposure evaluation, and the association between and multiple environmental factors and obesity among adult residents in rural areas of China.

One-dimensional core-shell motif nanowires with chemically-bonded transition metal sulfide-carbon heterostructures for efficient sodium-ion storage.

Herein, a chemical-vapor deposition-like strategy was developed for the synthesis of versatile core-shell transition metal sulfide (TMS)@carbon nanowires with chemically-bonded heterostructures and significantly improved electrochemical performance. The morphological evolution observations revealed the simultaneous growth of TMS nanowires and their bonding with an ultrathin carbon layer. The resulting core-shell heterostructured nanowires possessed notable advantages, including fast ion/electron diffusion rates, improved conductivity, and chemical/mechanical stability, thereby leading to remarkable reversible capacity, rate capability, and cycling stability for Na-ion storage applications.

Associations of combined exposures to ambient temperature, air pollution, and green space with hypertension in rural areas of Anhui Province, China: A cross-sectional study.

Hypertension (HTN) was a major preventable cause of cardiovascular disease (CVD), contributing to a huge disease burden. Ambient temperature, air pollution and green space were important influencing factors of HTN, and few studies have assessed the effects and interactions of ambient temperature, air pollution and green space on HTN in rural areas. In this study, we selected 8400 individuals randomly in rural areas of Anhui Province by a multi-stage stratified cluster sampling.

Effects of carbon dioxide and green space on sleep quality of the elderly in rural areas of Anhui Province, China.

Sleep quality leads to many healthy problems, which has caused global concern. Most studies have focused on the sleep quality in some large cities, ignoring the elderly in rural areas who may have more serious sleep problems. Therefore, this study aimed to understand the sleep status of the elderly in rural areas of Anhui Province and the influence of environmental factors on it.

Enhanced oxygen reduction and methanol oxidation reaction over self-assembled Pt-M (M = Co, Ni) nanoflowers.

Herein, we introduce a facile approach to synthesize a unique class of Pt-M (M = Ni, Co) catalysts with a nanoflower structure for boosting both oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). By controlling the surface-active agents, we modified the functional groups surrounding the Pt atoms, tuned the alloying of Pt and the transition metals Ni and Co, and prepared two different kinds of nanodendrites. Their successful synthesis depends on the selection and amount of surfactants (hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)).

FAM9B serves as a novel meiosis-related protein localized in meiotic chromosome cores and is associated with human gametogenesis.

Meiosis is a complex process involving the expression and interaction of numerous genes in a series of highly orchestrated molecular events. Fam9b localized in Xp22.3 has been found to be expressed in testes.

Six air pollutants and cause-specific mortality: a multi-area study in nine counties or districts of Anhui Province, China.

Air pollution and its negative effects on health of people have been a global concern. Many studies had found a strong association between air pollutants and risk of death, but few had focused on the effects of six pollutants and rural areas. Our study aimed to investigate the effects of six air pollutants (CO, NO, O, PM, PM, and SO) on non-accidental and respiratory deaths in rural areas of Anhui Province by adjusting for confounding factors, and to further clarify which populations were susceptible to death associated with air pollution.

Associations of exposure to multiple trace elements with the risk of goiter: A case-control study.

Goiter is one of common endocrine diseases, and its etiology has not been fully elucidated. The changes in trace elements' levels have an important impact on the thyroid. We designed a case-control study, which involved 383 goiter cases and 383 matched controls.

Thyroid hormones in relation to polybrominated diphenyl ether and metals exposure among rural adult residents along the Yangtze River, China.

Although several studies indicate that exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and metals may influence thyroid function, the evidence is limited and inconsistent in general population. The current study was conducted to determine the levels of plasma PBDEs and urinary metals and evaluate the associations of co-exposure to both with thyroid hormones (THs) among rural adult residents along the Yangtze River, China. A total of 329 subjects were included in current analyses, and 8 PBDEs congeners and 14 urinary metals were measured to reflect the levels of environmental exposure.

Exposure to 2,4-dichlorophenol, 2,4,6-trichlorophenol, pentachlorophenol and risk of thyroid cancer: a case-control study in China.

Thyroid cancer (TC) has inflicted huge threats to the health of mankind. Chlorophenols (CPs) were persistent organic pollutant and can lead to adverse effects in human health, especially in thyroid. However, epidemiological studies have revealed a rare and inconsistent relationship between internal exposure to CPs and TC risk.

Simultaneous removal of Zn and p-nitrophenol from wastewater using nanocomposites of montmorillonite with alkyl-ammonium and complexant.

Three types of alkyl-ammonium with different branching chains and three complexants with different functional groups were used to prepare alkyl-ammonium or complexant intercalated montmorillonite nanocomposite (A-Mt or C-Mt). In addition, synergistic intercalated montmorillonite nanocomposites (A/C-Mt) with alkyl-ammonium along with complexant were also prepared. The adsorption performance of the various nanocomposites toward Zn and p-nitrophenol (PNP) from simulated binary wastewater containing both Zn and PNP were systematically investigated.

Multiple metal exposure and obesity: A prospective cohort study of adults living along the Yangtze River, China.

Association between long-term exposure to multiple metals and obesity remains inconclusive, and prospective evidence on the region along the Yangtze River was limited. Thus, our study aimed to examine the association of multiple metal exposure and obesity. We measured baseline urine levels of 22 metals of 982 adults living along the Yangtze River, incidence of obesity was calculated from body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) measured at follow-up survey.

Supplementation of the In Vitro Maturation Culture Medium of Mouse Oocytes with Growth Hormone Improves Pregnancy Outcomes.

This study aimed to examine the effects of adding growth hormone (GH) into the in vitro maturation (IVM) culture medium of mouse oocytes on pregnancy outcomes. Cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were cultured in a medium with (GH group, 100 ng/mL) or without (Con group) GH. Thereafter, chromosome morphology, spindle morphology, and mitochondrial function were examined.