Publications by authors named "Tim Huber"

Article Synopsis
  • Sorption is a key method for cleaning up oil spills, but existing absorbents lack effectiveness, prompting researchers to develop new sustainable options.
  • Cellulose aerogels and foams are highlighted as promising materials due to their lightweight, porous structure and improved capacity for oil absorption, reusability, and multifunctionality.
  • The review discusses recent advancements in cellulose porous materials, including preparation techniques, the impact of 3D printing for customization, and the identification of challenges and future research directions.
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Article Synopsis
  • Biobased composites present a sustainable alternative to fossil-fuel-based materials, but their widespread use is limited by how people perceive them.
  • This study uses the Semantic Differential method to explore how visual and tactile evaluations shape the perception of biobased composites, revealing distinct sensory clusters and relationships.
  • Understanding the visual and tactile traits that influence perceptions of beauty, naturality, and value can guide the design of more appealing sustainable materials for consumers and designers.
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Screen-additive manufacturing (SAM) is a potential method for producing small intricate parts without waste generation, offering minimal production cost. A wide range of materials, including gels, can be shaped using this method. A gel material is composed of a three-dimensional cross-linked polymer or colloidal network immersed in a fluid, known as hydrogel when its main constituent fluid is water.

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An ordered 3D printed chromatography stationary phase was used to purify M13 bacteriophage (M13) directly from crude cell culture. This new approach, which offers the same advantages as expanded bed adsorption (EBA) with regard to tolerating solids-laden feed streams but without the corresponding issues associated with fluidized bed stability that affect the latter, can be described as "printed monolith adsorption (PMA)". PMA columns (5, 10 and 15 cm length by 1 cm diameter) were made via a wax templating method from cross-linked cellulose hydrogel and functionalized with a quaternary amine ligand.

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To facilitate functional hydrogel part production using the indirect wax mould method, it is necessary to understand the relationships between materials, process and mould removal. This research investigated the thermophysical properties, wettability and surface roughness of wax template moulds in the production of cellulose hydrogel objects. Cellulose gel was thermally formed and shaped in three different wax moulds-high melting point paraffin, sacrificial investment casting wax and Solidscape wax-by physical cross-linking of polymer networks of cellulose solution in NaOH/urea aqueous solvent.

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In recent years, 3D printing has enabled the fabrication of complex designs, with low-cost customization and an ever-increasing range of materials. Yet, these abilities have also created an enormous challenge in optimizing a large number of process parameters, especially in the 3D printing of swellable, non-toxic, biocompatible and biodegradable materials, so-called bio-ink materials. In this work, a cellulose gel, made out of aqueous solutions of cellulose, sodium hydroxide and urea, was used to demonstrate the formation of a shear thinning bio-ink material necessary for an extrusion-based 3D printing.

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Cellulose-based hydrogels were prepared by dissolving cellulose in aqueous sodium hydroxide (NaOH)/urea solutions and casting it into complex shapes by the use of sacrificial templates followed by thermal gelation of the solution. Both the gelling temperatures used (40⁻80 °C), as well as the method of heating by either induction in the form of a water bath and hot press or radiation by microwaves could be shown to have a significant effect on the compressive strength and modulus of the prepared hydrogels. Lower gelling temperatures and shorter heating times were found to result in stronger and stiffer gels.

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Material properties can be controlled via strain, pressure, chemical composition, or dimensionality. Nickelates are particularly susceptible due to their strong variations of the electronic and magnetic properties on such external stimuli. Here, we analyze the photoinduced dynamics in a single crystalline NdNiO film upon excitation across the electronic gap.

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Continuous fibre-reinforced all-cellulose composite (ACC) laminates were produced in the form of a dimensionally thick (>1 mm) laminate using an easy-to-use processing pathway termed solvent infusion processing (SIP) from a rayon (Cordenka™) textile using the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate. SIP facilitates the infusion of a solvent through a dry cellulose fibre preform with the aim of partially dissolving the outer surface of the cellulose fibres. The dissolved cellulose is then regenerated by solvent exchange to form a matrix phase in situ that acts to bond together the undissolved portion of the fibres.

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No there is no well-tested, easily administered screening tool to detect drug-seeking behaviors in primary care patients taking long-term opioids or being considered for such therapy (strength of recommendation [SOR]: studies of intermediate outcomes). Several tools have undergone preliminary testing in pain centers and are being tested in different settings with larger numbers of patients. For primary care providers, a useful screening tool for predicting drug-seeking behaviors is the Screener and Opioid Assessment for Patients with Pain (SOAPP-R; SOR: studies of intermediate outcomes).

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