Science and Technology of Advanced Materials

  The rapid advancement in intelligent bionics has elevated electronic skin to a pivotal component in bionic robots, enabling swift responses to diverse external stimuli. Combining wearable touch sensors with IoT technology lays the groundwork for achieving the versatile functionality of electronic skin. However, most current touch sensors rely on capacitive layer deformations induced by pressure, leading to changes in capacitance values. Unfortunately, sensors of this kind often face limitations in practical applications due to their uniform sensing capabilities...

In recent times, there has been a significant surge in research interest surrounding thermo-responsive water-soluble polyacrylamides, primarily due to their intriguing capability to undergo significant solubility changes in water. These polymers exhibit the remarkable ability to shift from a soluble to an insoluble state in response to temperature variations. The capacity of these polymers to dynamically respond to temperature changes opens up exciting avenues for designing smart materials with tunable properties, amplifying their utility across a spectrum of scientific and technological applications...

Already in 2012, Blom et al. reported (Nature Materials 2012, 11 , 882) in semiconducting polymers on a general electron-trap density of ≈3 × 1017 cm-3 , centered at an energy of ≈3.6 eV below vacuum. It was suggested that traps have an extrinsic origin, with the water-oxygen complex [2(H2 O)-O2 ] as a possible candidate, based on its electron affinity. However, further evidence is lacking and the origin of universal electron traps remained elusive. Here, in polymer diodes, the temperature-dependence of reversible electron traps is investigated that develop under bias stress slowly over minutes to a density of 2 × 1017 cm-3 , centered at an energy of 3...

Polymer fabrics are versatile materials used in various fields. Surface modification methods for hydrophobic polymer fibers have been developed to endow the materials with water wettability and functionality. Nevertheless, it remains a challenge to freely introduce functional groups to polymer fiber surfaces in a simple manner. Herein, we report the decoration of nonwoven fabric surfaces with azidated cello-oligosaccharide assemblies via molecular self-assembly. Cello-oligosaccharides with a terminal azido group were enzymatically synthesized and allowed to self-assemble in polyolefin, polyester, and vinylon nonwoven fabrics...

Ammonia, as an essential and economical fuel, is a key intermediate for the production of innumerable nitrogen-based compounds. Such compounds have found vast applications in the agricultural world, biological world (amino acids, proteins, and DNA), and various other chemical transformations. However, unlike other compounds, the decomposition of ammonia is widely recognized as an important step towards a safe and sustainable environment. Ammonia has been popularly recommended as a viable candidate for chemical storage because of its high hydrogen content...

To solve poor engineering performance of copper-tungsten alloys operated at high temperatures, 3D network tungsten frameworks were prepared using a selective laser melting (SLM) process, and then copper was melted and diffused into these tungsten network structures to form copper matrix composites with different copper contents (i.e. Cu-10vol%W and Cu-30vol%W). Their mechanical/electrical properties and arc ablation performance were characterized. Results showed the obtained CuW composites were dense with good interfacial bonding, and the connected Cu phases formed a heat conduction channel and improved electrical and thermal conductivities of the composites...

Implant-associated infections are threatening and devastating complications that lead to bone destruction and loss. As a smooth surface is suitable for inhibiting bacterial adhesion, endowing antibacterial activity to the Ti surface without any structural changes in the surface topography is an effective strategy for preventing infection. The thin film on the Ti-6Al-4 V surface was functionalized to endow antibacterial activity by immersion in a Cu(OH)2 solution. The resulting surface maintains the surface topography with a surface roughness of 0...

The control incorporation of metals in silica hollow spheres (SHSs) may bring new functions to silica mesoporous structures for applications including catalysis, sensing, molecular delivery, adsorption filtration, and storage. However, the strategies for incorporating metals, whether through pre-loading in the hollow interior or post-encapsulation in the mesoporous shell, still face challenges in achieving quantitative doping of various metals and preventing metal aggregation or channel blockage during usage...

Among various metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), the zeolitic imidazole framework (ZIF), constructed by the regular arrangement of 2-methylimidazole and metal ions, has garnered significant attention due to its distinctive crystals and pore structures. Variations in the sizes and shapes of ZIF crystals have been reported by changing the synthesis parameters, such as the molar ratios of organic ligands to metal ions, choice of solvents, and temperatures. Nonetheless, the giant ZIF-8 single crystals beyond the typical range have rarely been reported...

A selective composite membrane for vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) was successfully prepared by layer-by-layer (LbL) technique using a perfluorosulfonic sulfonic acid or Nafion 117 (N117). The composite membrane referred as N117-(PEI/GO) n , was obtained by depositing alternating layers of positively charged polyethylenimine (PEI) and negatively charged graphene oxide (GO) as polyelectrolytes. The physicochemical properties and performance of the pristine and composite membranes were investigated. The membrane showed an enhancement in proton conductivity and simultaneously exhibited a notable 90% reduction in vanadium permeability...

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation causes serious health risks. Inorganic metal oxides, such as titanium dioxide (TiO2 ) and zinc oxide (ZnO), have long been recognized for their effectiveness as UV radiation filters/blockers in sunscreen formulations. TiO2 and ZnO as UV-blocking materials have some limitations and issues such as producing harmful radicals and toxicity, respectively. As a result, there is a growing need to develop efficient and safe UV-blocking materials to overcome these limitations associated with the conventional TiO2 and ZnO materials...

In biomedical imaging, it is desirable that custom-made accessories for restraint, anesthesia, and monitoring can be easily cleaned and not interfere with the imaging quality or analyses. With the rise of 3D printing as a form of rapid prototyping or manufacturing for imaging tools and accessories, it is important to understand which printable materials are durable and not likely to interfere with imaging applications. Here, 15 3D printable materials were evaluated for radiodensity, optical properties, simulated wear, and capacity for repeated cleaning and disinfection...

A gecko foot-inspired, mushroom-shaped artificial dry adhesive exploiting intermolecular forces between microstructure and surface has drawn research attention for its strong adhesive force. However, the high pull-off strength corresponding to the adhesive force matters when detaching fragile substrates. In this study, we report a vacuum-powered soft actuator having oblique air chambers and a dry adhesive. The soft actuator performs coupled contraction and twisting by applying negative pneumatic pressure inward and exhibits not only high pull-off strength but also easy detachment...

This work investigates the fundamental photocatalytic properties of nitrogen-doped single-walled silicon carbide nanotubes (N-doped SWSiCNTs) for hydrogen evolution for the first time. Investigations of the structural, mechanical, electronic, and optical properties of the studied systems were carried out using popular density functional theory implemented in quantum ESPRESSO and Yambo codes. Analysis of the structural properties revealed high mechanical stability with the 3.6% and 7.4% N-doped SWSiCNT. The calculated band gap of the N-doped SWSiCNT with 3...

Topological insulators and semimetals are an interesting class of materials for new electronic and optical applications owing to their characteristic electromagnetic responses originating from the spin-orbit coupled band structures. However, topological electronic structures are rare in oxide materials despite their chemical stability being preferable for applications. In this study, given the theoretical prediction of Dirac bands in CaPd3 O4 , we investigate the fabrication and transport properties of SrPd3 O4 and CaPd3 O4 thin films as candidates of oxide Dirac semimetals...

The response of cells to environmental stimuli, under either physiological or pathological conditions, plays a key role in determining cell fate toward either adaptive survival or controlled death. The efficiency of such a feedback mechanism is closely related to the most challenging human diseases, including cancer. Since cellular responses are implemented through physical forces exerted on intracellular components, more detailed knowledge of force distribution through modern imaging techniques is needed to ensure a mechanistic understanding of these forces...

Carbon dots (CDs) are a new class of nanomaterials exhibiting high biocompatibility, water solubility, functionality, and tunable fluorescence (FL) property. Due to the limitations of batch hydrothermal synthesis in terms of low CDs yield and long synthesis duration, this work aimed to increase its production capacity through a continuous flow reactor system. The influence of temperature and time was first studied in a batch reactor for glucose, xylose, sucrose and table sugar precursors. CDs synthesized from sucrose precursor exhibited the highest quantum yield (QY) (175...

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Anion exchange membranes (AEMs) are core components in fuel cells and water electrolyzers, which are crucial to realize a sustainable hydrogen society. The low anion conductivity and durability of AEMs have hindered the commercialization of AEM-based devices, and research and development (R&D) to improve AEM materials is often resource-intensive. Although machine learning (ML) is commonly used in many fields to accelerate R&D while reducing resource consumption, it is rarely used in the AEM field. Three problems hinder the adoption of ML models, namely, the low explainability of ML models; complication with expressing both homopolymers and copolymers in unity to train a single ML model; and difficulty in building a single ML model that comprehends various polymer types...

This study introduces an approach to overcome the limitations of conventional pressure sensors by developing a thin and lightweight composite film specifically tailored for flexible capacitive pressure sensors, with a particular emphasis on the medium and high pressure range. To accomplish this, we have engineered a composite film by combining polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and graphite nanoplatelets (GNP) derived from expanded graphite (Ex-G). A uniform sized GNPs with an average lateral size of 2.55av and an average thickness of 33...