Steering N/S coordination number to accelerate catecholase-like catalysis over low-coordinated Cu site.

Modulation of coordination configuration is crucial for boosting the biomimetic catalytic activity of nanozymes, but remains challenging. Here, we found that the non-first-shell amino group in the ligand was capable of steering the N/S coordination number through remote induction to enable the formation of a low-coordinated CuNS configuration. This endowed the resulting nanozyme (ATT-Cu) with an upshifted d-band center compared with a control nanozyme (TT-Cu) with CuNS configuration, enhancing the adsorption capabilities of ATT-Cu for O and HO intermediates as well as its affinity for catechol.

Peroxymonosulfate activation by cobalt-doped ferromanganese magnetic oxides through singlet oxygen and radical pathways for efficient sulfadiazine degradation.

In this paper, cobalt-doped MnFeO (CMFO-0.4) with oxygen vacancies was successfully synthesised by the sol-gel method and applied as a high-performance catalyst for the activation of peroxomonosulfate (PMS). The catalyst showed an excellent catalytic effect for the degradation of sulfadiazine (SDZ) by activated PMS, and the degradation rate can reach 100% in 10 minutes.

Enhanced electromagnetic wave absorption properties of SiCN(Ni)/BN ceramics by generated Ni and NiSi.

In this paper, the SiCN(Ni)/BN ceramic with excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance was successfully prepared. The Ni and NiSi were formed by the introduction of nickel acetylacetonate (NA), which effectively improved the impedance matching performance of SiCN(Ni)/BN ceramics. The EMW absorption properties of the SiCN(Ni)/BN ceramics showed a trend of first increasing and then decreasing with the increase in content of NA.

Herbal molecule-mediated dual network hydrogels with adhesive and antibacterial properties for strain and pressure sensing.

Multifunctional integration is the focus of hydrogel-based flexible sensors, and formation of a dual network (DN) could shed light on the fabrication of hydrogels with multifunctionality and enhanced properties. In this study, a DN hydrogel was fabricated by the self-assembly of herbal molecule glycyrrhizic acid (GA) as the first hydrogel network and subsequent photocrosslinking of methacrylated sodium alginate (SA-MA) to form the second network. Profiting from the good compatibility between the two hydrogel networks, the obtained DN hydrogels with a homogeneous porous microstructure were endowed with remarkably enlarged stretching (114.

DLBLS_SS: protein secondary structure prediction using deep learning and broad learning system.

Protein secondary structure prediction (PSSP) is not only beneficial to the study of protein structure and function but also to the development of drugs. As a challenging task in computational biology, experimental methods for PSSP are time-consuming and expensive. In this paper, we propose a novel PSSP model DLBLS_SS based on deep learning and broad learning system (BLS) to predict 3-state and 8-state secondary structure.

A novel fluorescent probe of alkyne compounds for putrescine detection based on click reaction.

Putrescine is a toxic biogenic amine produced in the process of food spoilage, and a high concentration of biogenic amines in foods will cause health problems such as abnormal blood pressure, headaches and tachycardia asthma/worsening asthma. The detection of putrescine is necessary. However, traditional putrescine detection requires specialized instruments and complex operations.

Preparation of rigid polyurethane foam from lignopolyol obtained through mild oxypropylation.

Lignin, one of the main components of lignocellulose, can be used as an alternative to chemical polyols in the production of polyurethane because of its abundant phenolic and alcohol hydroxyls. Traditionally, lignin is directly applied in the preparation of polyurethane; however, modified lignin has been proved to be superior, especially that obtained by the oxypropylation reaction. Therefore, lignopolyol obtained by mild and efficient oxypropylation was utilized in the production of rigid polyurethane foam in this study.

One-pot method for preparation of capsaicin-containing double-network hydrogels for marine antifouling.

Marine biofouling which interferes with normal marine operation and also causes huge economic loss has become a worldwide problem. With the development of society, there is an urgent need to develop non-toxic and efficient anti-fouling strategies. Capsaicin is an environmentally friendly antifouling agent, but controlling the stable release of capsaicin from the coating is still a challenge to be solved.

A study on coconut fatty acid diethanolamide-based polyurethane foams.

The possibility of using coconut fatty acid diethanolamide, a derivate from coconut oil as a bio-based polyol for the synthesis of polyurethane foam was explored. The intrinsic tertiary amine moiety in this polyol (-CFAD) endowed an auto-catalytic effect in the synthesis process of polyurethane foams, combined with a shorter cream and gelation time compared to the fossil-based polyol 3152. H-nuclear magnetic resonance (H-NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) were conducted to characterize the chemical structural features of the -CFAD, and rheology measurement showed the shear-thinning behavior due to the branched structure.

Study on the synthesis and thermal stability of silicone resins reinforced by Si-O-Ph cross-linking.

A novel silicone resin (SR-OH) containing phenolic hydroxyl (Ph-OH) groups was designed and synthesized co-hydrolysis/condensation and catalytic hydrogenation. During the curing process, the cross-linking degree of the resin was further increased by the Si-O-Ph bonds formed by the reaction of the Ph-OH and terminal Si-OH groups. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the cured resin product exhibited excellent thermal and thermo-oxidative stability, which was much higher than that of a typical methyl phenyl silicone resin (SR-Ph).

Novel bio-based filler: hyperbranched polymer modified leather buffing dust and its influence on the porous structure and mechanical properties of polyurethane film.

An amino-terminated hyperbranched polymer (A-HP) was employed to modify leather buffing dust (BD) to prepare functional filler, hyperbranched buffing dust (HBD). The structure and morphology of BD and HBD were characterized by XPS, DSC and SEM. Furthermore, HBD was added into the typical solvent type polyurethane (PU) to prepare a wetting PU film which was used as the coating for synthetic leather.

DFT insight into the effect of Cu atoms on adsorption and dissociation of CO over a Pd/ TiO(101) surface.

In order to improve the photocatalytic activity of a bimetallic cocatalyst, understanding its mechanism is very important for the development of a CO photocatalyst. In this study, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to investigate CO adsorption and dissociation over Pd-Cu bimetallic clusters loaded on a TiO(101) surface, aiming at understanding the origin of the effect caused by the presence of Cu. The results demonstrated that the introduction of a Cu atom has a dual effect on the adsorption and dissociation of CO: (1) it provides the positive polarization charge center to enhance CO adsorption, and (2) it up-shifts the d-band center of the Cu atom to improve the activation of CO.

Study on the adsorption properties of multiple-generation hyperbranched collagen fibers towards isolan-series acid dyes.

In the present study, collagen fibers derived from leather solid wastes were used and modified as insoluble vectors and successfully employed as adsorbents for the removal of acid dyes. A "one-step" method was applied to synthesis effective adsorbents, which provided a sustainable way to reuse leather solid wastes multifunctional modification. The adsorption properties of amino-terminated hyperbranched polymer (HBPN)-modified collagen fibers for the removal of different kinds of acid dyestuff from aqueous solutions were studied.

Effects of granular activated carbon and Fe-modified granular activated carbon on anammox process start-up.

In this study, granular activated carbon (GAC) and Fe-modified granular activated carbon (FeGAC) prepared by ultrasonic impregnation method were added into respective up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors to explore their effects on the anammox process start-up. The results showed that the time of anammox system start-up could be reduced from 108 d in R1 (control group) to 94 d in R2 (GAC reactor) and to 83 d in R3 (FeGAC reactor). After 120 days of operation, the nitrogen removal rates (NRR) of all reactors could reach more than 0.

Preparation and characterization of enzymatically cross-linked gelatin/cellulose nanocrystal composite hydrogels.

Gelatin is an attractive hydrogel material because of its excellent biocompatibility and non-cytotoxicity, but poor mechanical properties of gelatin-based hydrogels become a big obstacle that limits their wide-spread application. To solve it, in this work, gelatin/cellulose nanocrystal composite hydrogels (Gel-TG-CNCs) were prepared using microbial transglutaminase (mTG) as the crosslinking catalyst and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) as reinforcements. The physicochemical properties of the composite hydrogels were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Mechanism of ,-dimethylformamide electrochemical oxidation using a Ti/RuO-IrO electrode.

The compound ,-dimethylformamide (DMF) is a widely used industrial chemical and a common environmental contaminant that has been found to be harmful to human health. In this study, electrochemical oxidation was adopted for the degradation of DMF. The effects of four kinds of electrodes on the removal rates of DMF and total organic carbon were compared, and based on the result, the Ti/RuO-IrO electrode was selected as the operating electrode.

Correction: QuEChERS pretreatment combined with high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for determination of aristolochic acids I and II in Chinese herbal patent medicines.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1039/D0RA03200J.].

QuEChERS pretreatment combined with high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for determination of aristolochic acids I and II in Chinese herbal patent medicines.

Aristolochic acid I and II (AA I and II), a kind of nephrotoxic and carcinogenic compound, are widely added in Chinese herbal patent medicines though they have been banned due to their toxicity. However, the traditional sample pre-treatment combined with the LC-MS analysis system is not effective to determine AAs in such complicated patent medicines. The QuEChERS pretreatment method possesses some merits such as being quick and effective.

Effect of sulfate removal in a high sulfate volumetric loading micro-aerobic bio-reactor and study of subsequent bio-sulfur adsorption by iron-modified activated carbon.

Removal of sulfide from a micro-aerobic bio-reactor was studied at 10 000 mg L chemical oxygen demand (COD) of inlet water, with the sulfate volumetric loading 0.75, 1.0, 1.

Adsorption and regeneration of leaf-based biochar for -nitrophenol adsorption from aqueous solution.

As an environmentally friendly and low-cost adsorbent, biochar has great potential in wastewater treatment. This study investigated biochar derived from L. leaves (PLB) activated by KOH in terms of its capacity and reusability to adsorb -nitrophenol (PNP).

Design of Energetic Materials Based on Asymmetric Oxadiazole.

A new family of asymmetric oxadiazole based energetic compounds were designed. Their electronic structures, heats of formation, detonation properties and stabilities were investigated by density functional theory. The results show that all the designed compounds have high positive heats of formation ranging from 115.

Molecule design and properties of bridged 2,2-bi(1,3,4-oxadiazole) energetic derivatives.

A series of bridged 2,2-bi(1,3,4-oxadiazole) energetic derivatives were designed and their geometrical structures, electronic structures, heats of formation, detonation properties, thermal stabilities and thermodynamic properties were fully investigated by density functional theory. The results showed that the -N group and the -N- bridge play an important role in improving heats of formation of these 2,2-bi(1,3,4-oxadiazole) derivatives. The calculated detonation properties indicated that the -NF group and the -N- bridge were very useful for enhancing the heats of detonation, detonation velocities and detonation pressures.

Browning control of fresh-cut Chinese yam by edible coatings enriched with an inclusion complex containing star anise essential oil.

Star anise essential oil (SAEO) has a variety of antioxygenic and antimicrobial properties, and is widely used in food preservation. However, its application is still challenging due to poor water solubility and physicochemical stability. We now report that encapsulation of SAEO in hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPCD) enhances its water solubility, as well as its thermal, storage, and photostability.