In situ resource utilization

The poor structural stability and conductivity of Na3 V2 (PO4 )3 (NVP) have been serious limitations to its development. In this paper, Sc3+ is selected to replace partial site of V3+ which can enhance its ability to bond with oxygen, forming the ScO6 octahedral unit, resulting in improved structural stability and better kinetic properties for the NVP system. Moreover, due to the larger ionic radius of Sc3+ compared to V3+ , moderate Sc3+ substitution can support the crystal framework as pillar ions and expand the migration channels for de-intercalation of Na+ , thus efficiently promoting ionic conductivity...

Microbial factories lacking the ability of dynamically regulating the pathway enzymes overexpression, according to in situ metabolite concentrations, are suboptimal, especially when the metabolic intermediates are competed by growth and chemical production. The production of higher alcohols (HAs), which hijacks the amino acids (AAs) from protein biosynthesis, minimizes the intracellular concentration of AAs and thus inhibits the host growth. To balance the resource allocation and maintain stable AA flux, this work utilizes AA-responsive transcriptional attenuator ivbL and HA-responsive transcriptional activator BmoR to establish a concentration recognition-based auto-dynamic regulation system (CRUISE)...

The unregulated irrigation systems used in the late 20th century have led to increasingly severe deep percolation (DP) in the agricultural irrigation areas of the North China Plain. This has become an important factor limiting the efficient utilization of water resources and sustainable environmental development in these irrigation areas. However, the thick vadose zone is hydrodynamically exceptionally complex. The soil hydrological cycle is constantly changing under the influence of major climate change and human activity, thereby causing changes in DP that are difficult to quantify accurately...

Many plans are in preparation to land robotic missions on the surface of the Moon, which will pave the way to return humans to the lunar surface and set the stage for an ongoing human presence. Artemis is a NASA-led international effort to return humans to the Moon. One of the goals of Artemis is to use innovative technologies to address priority science objectives. At the same time, the European Space Agency (ESA) is exploring designs for a Moon base to enable ongoing human activity on the lunar surface. Furthermore, China plans to land humans on the Moon by 2030...

Although covalent organic frameworks (COFs) with high π-conjugation have recently exhibited great prospects in perovskite solar cells (PSCs), their further application in PSCs is still hindered by face-to-face stacking and aggregation issues. Herein, metal-organic framework (MOF-808) is selected as an ideal platform for the in situ homogeneous growth of a COF to construct a core-shell MOF@COF nanoparticle, which could effectively inhibit COF stacking and aggregation. The synergistic intrinsic mechanisms induced by the MOF@COF nanoparticles for reinforcing intrinsic stability and mitigating lead leakage in PSCs have been explored...

Sirtuin1 (SIRT1), an NAD+ -dependent histone deacetylase, plays a crucial role in regulating molecular signaling pathways. Recently, inhibition of SIRT1 rather than its activation shows the therapeutic potential for central nervous system disorder, however, the discovered SIRT1 inhibitors remains limited. In this work, a dual recognition-based strategy was developed to screen SIRT1 inhibitors from natural resources in situ. This approach utilized a Ni-modified metal-organic framework (Ni@Tyr@UiO-66-NH2 ) along with cell lysate containing an engineered His-tagged SIRT1 protein, eliminating the need for purified proteins, pure compounds, and protein immobilization...

Climate change necessitates exploring innovative geoengineering solutions to mitigate its effects-one such solution is deploying planetary sunshade satellites at Sun-Earth Lagrange point 1 to regulate solar radiation on Earth directly. However, such long-span space structures present unique technical challenges, particularly structural scalability, on-orbit manufacturing, and in-situ resource utilization. This paper proposes a structural concept for the sunshade's foil support system and derives from that a component-level modular system for long-span fiber composite lightweight trusses using coreless filament winding...

Utilizing renewable lignocellulosic resources for wastewater remediation is crucial to achieving sustainable social development. However, the resulting by-products and the synthetic process characterized by complexity, high cost, and environmental pollution limit the further development of lignocellulose-based materials. Here, we developed a sustainable strategy that involved a new functional deep eutectic solvent (DES) to deconstruct industrial xylose residue into cellulose-rich residue with carboxyl groups, lignin with carboxyl and quaternary ammonium salt groups, and DES effluent rich in lignin fragments...

Pyrroles are foundational building blocks in a wide array of disciplines, including chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and materials science. Currently sourced from nonrenewable fossil sources, there is a strive to explore alternative and sustainable synthetic pathways to pyrroles utilizing renewable feedstocks. The utilization of biomass resources presents a compelling solution, particularly given that several key bulk and fine chemicals already originate from biomass. For instance, 2,5-dimethoxytetrahydrofuran and aniline are promising candidates for biomass-based chemical production...

As a nonrenewable resource, phosphate rock is an important support for the development and survival of the national economy. The regional distribution and output of phosphate rock in China are extremely uneven, and the amount of high-quality ore resources is relatively poor, which seriously restricts the development and utilization of phosphate rock resources in China. This paper briefly summarizes the distribution characteristics of phosphate rock resources and summarizes the characteristics and research progress of Ediacaran-early Cambrian phosphorus mineralization types, geological characteristics, and deposit genesis of the Yangtze platform in South China...

This study aimed to enhance solar disinfection (SODIS) by the photo-Fenton process, operated at natural pH, through the re-utilization of fruit wastes. For this purpose, pure organic acids present in fruits and alimentary wastes were tested and compared with synthetic complexing agents. Owing to solar light, complexes between iron and artificial or natural chelators can be regenerated through ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) during disinfection. The target complexes were photoactive under solar light, and the Fe:Ligand ratios for ex situ prepared iron complexes were assessed, achieving a balance between iron solubilization and competition with bacteria as a target for oxidizing species...

β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) is a water-soluble, non-toxic, biocompatible, and cage compound that contains six, seven, or eight α-(1-4)-attached D-glucopyranose residues. The hydroxyl group in the β-CD is responsible for the reduction of metal ions as well as stabilizing the nanoparticles. In this study, we developed a colorimetric assay for identifying contagious pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 and Enterococcus faecium ( E. faecium ) via in situ development of β-CD-stabilized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs)...

Transition metal selenides (TMSs) stand out as a promising anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) owing to their natural resources and exceptional sodium storage capacity. Despite these advantages, their practical application faces challenges, such as poor electronic conductivity, sluggish reaction kinetics and severe agglomeration during electrochemical reactions, hindering their effective utilization. Herein, the dual-carbon-confined CoSe2 /FeSe2 @NC@C nanocubes with heterogeneous structure are synthesized using ZIF-67 as the template by ion exchange, resorcin-formaldehyde (RF) coating, and subsequent in situ carbonization and selenidation...

The concept of "state fishes of India" highlights the importance and significance of the prioritized fish species distributed across various states within the country. This review article systematically documents the current status of state fishes from various perspectives, identifies the prevailing knowledge gaps, and also highlights the issues and strategic plans essential for the conservation and sustainable utilization of these valuable genetic resources. A total of 8357 publications were checked for the consolidated information on state fish species, and the appropriate items were selected under eight categories: biology, physiology and nutrition, aquaculture, habitat and environmental parameters, genetics and biotechnology, harvest and postharvest, fish health management, and others...

In the context of carbon capture, utilization, and storage, the high-value utilization of carbon storage presents a significant challenge. To address this challenge, this study employed the bipolar membrane electrodialysis integrated with carbon utilization technology to prepare Na2 CO3 products using simulated seawater concentrate, achieving simultaneous saline wastewater utilization, carbon storage and high-value production of Na2 CO3 . The effects of various factors, including concentration of simulated seawater concentrate, current density, CO2 aeration rate, and circulating flow rate of alkali chamber, on the quality of Na2 CO3 product, carbon sequestration rate, and energy consumption were investigated...

Plant collections held by botanic gardens and arboreta are key components of ex situ conservation. Maintaining genetic diversity in such collections allows them to be used as resources for supplementing wild populations. However, most recommended minimum sample sizes for sufficient ex situ genetic diversity are based on microsatellite markers, and it remains unknown whether these sample sizes remain valid in light of more recently developed next-generation sequencing (NGS) approaches. To address this knowledge gap, we examine how ex situ conservation status and sampling recommendations differ when derived from microsatellites and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in garden and wild samples of two threatened oak species...

As a by-product of the steelmaking industry, the large-volume production and accumulation of steel converter slag cause environmental issues such as land occupation and dust pollution. Since metal salts of unsaturated carboxylic acid can be used to reinforce rubber, this study explores the innovative application of in-situ modified steel slag, mainly comprising metal oxides, with methacrylic acid (MAA) as a rubber filler partially replacing carbon black. By etching the surface of steel slag particles with MAA, their surface roughness was increased, and the chemical bonding of metal methacrylate salt was introduced to enhance their interaction with the molecular chain of natural rubber (NR)...

Artemisia is a large genus encompassing about 400 diverse species, many of which have considerable medicinal and ecological value. However, complex morphological information and variation in ploidy level and nuclear DNA content have presented challenges for evolution studies of this genus. Consequently, taxonomic inconsistencies within the genus persist, hindering the utilization of such large plant resources. Researchers have utilized satellite DNAs to aid in chromosome identification, species classification, and evolutionary studies due to their significant sequence and copy number variation between species and close relatives...

Mars exploration will foresee the design of bioregenerative life support systems (BLSSs), in which the use/recycle of in situ resources might allow the production of food crops. However, cultivation on the poorly-fertile Mars regolith will be very challenging. To pursue this goal, we grew potato ( Solanum tuberosum L.) plants on the MMS-1 Mojave Mars regolith simulant, pure (R100) and mixed with green compost at 30% (R70C30), in a pot in a cold glasshouse with fertigation. For comparison purposes, we also grew plants on a fluvial sand, pure (S100) and amended with 30% of compost (S70C30), a volcanic soil (VS) and a red soil (RS)...

Recent studies have shown that astronauts experience altered immune response behavior during spaceflight, resulting in heightened susceptibility to illness. Resources and resupply shuttles will become scarcer with longer duration spaceflight, limiting access to potentially necessary medical treatment and facilities. Thus, there is a need for preventative health countermeasures that can exploit in situ resource utilization technologies during spaceflight, such as additive manufacturing (i.e., 3D printing). The purpose of the current study was to test and validate recyclable antimicrobial materials compatible with additive manufacturing...