20 results match your criteria: "Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Education[Affiliation]"

Tough and circular glass fiber composites a tailored dynamic boronic ester interface.

Mater Horiz

December 2024

Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.

Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites are valued for their strength and cost-effectiveness. However, traditional GFRPs often face challenges for end-of-life recycling due to their non-depolymerizable thermoset matrices, and long-term performance due to inadequate interfacial adhesion, which can lead to fiber-matrix delamination. Here, we have designed dynamic fiber-matrix interfaces to allow tough and closed-loop recyclable GFRPs by utilizing a vitrimer, derived from upcycled polystyrene--poly(ethylene--butylene)--polystyrene (SEBS) with boronic ester (S-Bpin) and amine-based diol crosslinker.

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In the recent times research towards solid state supercapacitors (SSS) have increased drastically due to the promising performance in futuristic technologies particularly in portable and flexible electronics like smart watches, smart fabrics, foldable smartphones and tablets. Also, when compared to supercapacitors using liquid electrolyte, solid electrolyte has several advantages like high energy density, safety, high cycle life, flexible form factor, and less environmental impact. The crucial factor determining the sustainability of a technology is the eco-friendliness since the natural resources are being exploited in a wide scale.

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Enhanced Electrochemical Performance of Disordered Rocksalt Cathodes Enabled by a Graphite Conductive Additive.

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces

August 2023

Chemical Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830, United States.

Cobalt-free cation-disordered rocksalt (DRX) cathodes are a promising class of materials for next-generation Li-ion batteries. Although they have high theoretical specific capacities (>300 mA h/g) and moderate operating voltages (∼3.5 V vs Li/Li), DRX cathodes typically require a high carbon content (up to 30 wt %) to fully utilize the active material which has a detrimental impact on cell-level energy density.

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Mn-based cation-disordered rocksalt oxides (Mn-DRX) are emerging as promising cathode materials for next-generation Li-ion batteries due to their high specific capacities and cobalt- and nickel-free characteristic. However, to reach the usable capacity, solid-state synthesized Mn-DRX materials require activation via postsynthetic ball milling, typically incorporating more than 20 wt % conductive carbon that adversely reduces the electrode-level gravimetric capacity. To address this issue, we first deposit amorphous carbon on the surface of the LiMnTiO (LMTO) particles to increase the electrical conductivity by 5 orders of magnitude.

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Article Synopsis
  • Plastics are crucial for society due to their lightweight and low-cost nature, with over 400 million metric tons produced annually, but their diverse chemical structures complicate effective reuse and recycling, leading to significant waste management challenges.
  • Current recycling methods largely succeed with single-type plastics, but mixed plastic waste requires extra sorting, prompting researchers to develop advanced technologies like selective deconstruction catalysts to improve recycling processes.
  • Collaborating academic and industrial efforts can enhance recycling systems, establish closed-loop circularity for plastics, and contribute to achieving a net zero carbon society by reducing environmental impacts.
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Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection has become a worldwide pandemic and created an utmost crisis across the globe. To mitigate the crisis, the design of vaccine is the crucial solution. The frequent mutation of the virus demands generalized vaccine candidates, which would be effective for all mutated strains at present and for the strains that would evolve due to further new mutations in the virus.

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Enhanced antibacterial activity of a novel biocompatible triarylmethane based ionic liquid-graphene oxide nanocomposite.

Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces

July 2021

Department of Chemistry, Amity Institute of Applied Sciences, Amity University Kolkata, Major Arterial Road, Action Area II, Kadampukur Village, Rajarhat, Newtown, West Bengal, 700135, India. Electronic address:

Biofilm formation on medical implants and devices has been a severe concern that results in their impaired performance and life-threatening complications. Thus, development of novel functional coatings for infection prone surfaces with biofilm inhibiting characteristics is of prime significance considering the rapid emergence of multidrug resistant bacteria. Herein we present a novel nanocomposite derived from Graphene Oxide (GO) and a newly developed functional Ionic liquid (IL) obtained through a metathesis reaction between a triarylmethane dye hexamethyl pararosaniline chloride or crystal violet (CV) and sodium dodeceyl sulfate (SDS) to yield [CV][DS] (hexamethyl pararosaniline dodecyl sulfate).

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Background: Microbial electrolysis is a promising technology for converting aqueous wastes into hydrogen. However, substrate adaptability is an important feature, seldom documented in microbial electrolysis cells (MECs). In addition, the correlation between substrate composition and community structure has not been well established.

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Photosystem I (PSI) from the thermophilic cyanobacterium (Te) is the largest membrane protein complex to have had its structure solved by X-ray diffraction. This trimeric complex has 36 protein subunits, over 380 non-covalently bound cofactors and a molecular weight of ∼1.2 MDa.

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Microbial electrolysis using aqueous fractions derived from Tail-Gas Recycle Pyrolysis of willow and guayule.

Bioresour Technol

February 2019

Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Education, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville 37996, United States; Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, United States. Electronic address:

This study investigated microbial electrolysis of two aqueous phase waste products derived from guayule and willow generated from Tail Gas Recycle Pyrolysis (TGRP). The highest average current density achieved was 5.0 ± 0.

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Transport Properties of Perfluorosulfonate Membranes Ion Exchanged with Cations.

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces

November 2018

Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering , University of Tennessee, Knoxville , Tennessee 37996 , United States.

In this work, the properties of univalent, that is, Li, Na, NH, and TEA form perfluorosulfonate (PFSA) membranes are studied and compared to the properties of H form materials. Properties of these polymer membranes including water uptake, density and conductivity, were investigated for membranes exposed to various water activity levels. The water uptake by the membranes decreased in the order H > Li > Na > NH > TEA, the same order as the hydration enthalpy (absolute values) of cations.

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Furanic and phenolic compounds are problematic compounds resulting from the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass for biofuel production. Microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) is a promising technology to convert furanic and phenolic compounds to renewable H. The objective of the research presented here was to elucidate the processes and electron equivalents flow during the conversion of two furanic (furfural, FF; 5-hydroxymethyl furfural, HMF) and three phenolic (syringic acid, SA; vanillic acid, VA; 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, HBA) compounds in the MEC bioanode.

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Cost-Benefit Analysis of Telemedicine Systems/Units in Greek Remote Areas.

Pharmacoecon Open

June 2017

European Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Education, Panteion University of Political and Social Sciences, 136 Andrea Siggrou Avenue, Kallithea, 17671, Athens, Greece.

Background: Telemedicine units and information technology systems provide special healthcare services to remote populations using telecommunication technology, in order to reduce or even remove the usual and typical face-to-face contact between doctor and patient. This innovative approach to medical care delivery has been expanding for several years and currently covers various medical specialties.

Objective: To facilitate installation of telemedicine systems/units in Greek remote areas, this article presents results of a cost-benefit analysis for two Greek islands, Patmos and Leros, using specific economic criteria.

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Leveraging nature's biocomplexity for solving human problems requires better understanding of the syntrophic relationships in engineered microbiomes developed in bioreactor systems. Understanding the interactions between microbial players within the community will be key to enhancing conversion and production rates from biomass streams. Here we investigate a bioelectrochemical system employing an enriched microbial consortium for conversion of a switchgrass-derived bio-oil aqueous phase (BOAP) into hydrogen via microbial electrolysis (MEC).

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Phenolic compounds in hydrolysate/pyrolysate and wastewater streams produced during the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass for biofuel production present a significant challenge in downstream processes. Bioelectrochemical systems are increasingly recognized as an alternative technology to handle biomass-derived streams and to promote water reuse in biofuel production. Thus, a thorough understanding of the fate of phenolic compounds in bioanodes is urgently needed.

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The objective of this study was to systematically investigate the inhibitory effect of furfural (FF), 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), syringic acid (SA), vanillic acid (VA), and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (HBA), which are problematic lignocellulose-derived byproducts, on exoelectrogenesis in the bioanode of a microbial electrolysis cell. The five compound mixture at an initial total concentration range from 0.8 to 8.

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Biotransformation of Furanic and Phenolic Compounds with Hydrogen Gas Production in a Microbial Electrolysis Cell.

Environ Sci Technol

November 2015

School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0512, United States.

Furanic and phenolic compounds are problematic byproducts resulting from the breakdown of lignocellulosic biomass during biofuel production. The capacity of a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) to produce hydrogen gas (H2) using a mixture of two furanic (furfural, FF; 5-hydroxymethyl furfural, HMF) and three phenolic (syringic acid, SA; vanillic acid, VA; and 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, HBA) compounds as the substrate in the bioanode was assessed. The rate and extent of biotransformation of the five compounds and efficiency of H2 production, as well as the structure of the anode microbial community, were investigated.

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Toxicological challenges to microbial bioethanol production and strategies for improved tolerance.

Ecotoxicology

December 2015

Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, P.O. Box 2008, MS6342, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831-6342, USA.

Bioethanol production output has increased steadily over the last two decades and is now beginning to become competitive with traditional liquid transportation fuels due to advances in engineering, the identification of new production host organisms, and the development of novel biodesign strategies. A significant portion of these efforts has been dedicated to mitigating the toxicological challenges encountered across the bioethanol production process. From the release of potentially cytotoxic or inhibitory compounds from input feedstocks, through the metabolic co-synthesis of ethanol and potentially detrimental byproducts, and to the potential cytotoxicity of ethanol itself, each stage of bioethanol production requires the application of genetic or engineering controls that ensure the host organisms remain healthy and productive to meet the necessary economies required for large scale production.

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Hydrogen production from switchgrass via an integrated pyrolysis-microbial electrolysis process.

Bioresour Technol

November 2015

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, United States; Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6226, United States; Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Education, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville 37996, United States. Electronic address:

A new approach to hydrogen production using an integrated pyrolysis-microbial electrolysis process is described. The aqueous stream generated during pyrolysis of switchgrass was used as a substrate for hydrogen production in a microbial electrolysis cell, achieving a maximum hydrogen production rate of 4.3 L H2/L anode-day at a loading of 10 g COD/L-anode-day.

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Growing green electricity: progress and strategies for use of photosystem I for sustainable photovoltaic energy conversion.

Biochim Biophys Acta

September 2014

Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Department of Microbiology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Education, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA. Electronic address:

Oxygenic photosynthesis is driven via sequential action of Photosystem II (PSII) and (PSI)reaction centers via the Z-scheme. Both of these pigment-membrane protein complexes are found in cyanobacteria, algae, and plants. Unlike PSII, PSI is remarkably stable and does not undergo limiting photo-damage.

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