Search Results (50)

Lippia origanoides Kunth (Verbenaceae family), popularly known in northern Brazil as “Salva-de-Marajó”, is a native plant widely used in traditional medicine and cooking. While previous studies have addressed its antimicrobial and insecticidal properties, its ability to inhibit disease-related enzymes has received limited attention. This study investigated the essential oil (EO) of L. origanoides as a source of enzyme inhibitors relevant to Alzheimer’s disease, metabolic disorders and skin pigmentation disorders. The EO showed strong inhibitory activity against acetylcholinesterase (IC₅₀: 22.9 μg/mL) and α-glucosidase (IC₅₀: 14.6 μg/mL), indicating potential for managing neurodegenerative conditions and diabetes, respectively. Moderate inhibition was observed for lipase, butyrylcholinesterase and tyrosinase. Although carvacrol, the major EO constituent, contributed significantly to these effects, it did not fully explain the observed bioactivity. Bio-guided fractionation revealed that oxygenated compounds were mainly responsible for inhibiting cholinesterases and lipase, whereas α-glucosidase inhibition was associated with hydrocarbon compounds. Both fractions contributed to tyrosinase inhibition, reinforcing the EO’s relevance for treating hyperpigmentation. Furthermore, the EO demonstrated strong antioxidant activity, largely linked to carvacrol and oxygenated constituents. Chemical characterization by GC-MS, GC-FID and enantiomeric analysis strengthened the relationship between composition and bioactivity. Overall, L. origanoides EO emerged as a promising multifunctional natural product for therapeutic and cosmetic applications. Full article

Anti-icing materials have attracted considerable research interest due to their potential applications in preventing ice accretion and growth. However, a major challenge in the field is how to enhance durability while maintaining anti-icing performance. This study proposes a facile fabrication method for anti-icing coatings with anti-aging and self-healing abilities. A three-dimensionally cross-linked block copolymer, synthesized from polydimethylsiloxane, 4-aminophenyl disulfide, and trimethylolpropane triglycidyl ether, yielded a coating with excellent anti-icing/de-icing performance, including a low ice adhesion strength (29.2 kPa) and a high icing delay time (1389 s). The introduction of 4-aminophenyl disulfide enables dynamic disulfide bond reorganization and aromatic framework formation, synergistically conferring the icephobic coating with self-repair mechanisms and an anti-aging function. The coating exhibited a rapid self-healing capability (within 4 h), which is facilitated by the dynamic exchange of its hydrogen and disulfide bonds. Furthermore, the material demonstrated outstanding durability against physical wear and ultraviolet radiation. After being subjected to a 1000-cycle abrasion test and ultraviolet aging, the coating successfully retained more than 70% of its original performance in both icing delay time and ice adhesion strength. This paper proposes a facile strategy for developing self-healing and anti-aging anti-icing coatings and proposes innovative strategies for multifunctional anti-icing coatings. Full article

The present study assesses the effectiveness of the indole-type alkaloid Yohimbine (YHB) as a green corrosion inhibitor for OLC52 carbon steel and Al in 0.25/0.25 mol L⁻¹ acetic acid/potassium acetate solutions relevant for de-icing applications. Electrochemical techniques, including cyclic and linear sweep voltammetry, chronoamperometry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy have been combined with the evaluation of adsorption isotherms and molecular modeling calculations. YHB significantly decreases the corrosion rate for both metals, attaining inhibitory efficiencies of up to 95% for OLC52 and 91% for Al at 298 K, while maintaining high protection efficiency even at higher temperatures. The Langmuir adsorption model and the values of $∆G_{ads}^o$ between −31 and −41 kJ mol⁻¹ indicate a spontaneous adsorption process defined by a mixed physicochemical mechanism, resulting in the formation of a compact protective film. Quantum molecular descriptors support the ability of YHB molecules to interact with metal surfaces via donor–acceptor interactions and electrostatic interactions. The findings demonstrate the potential of YHB as an environmentally friendly inhibitor for the protection of ferrous and non-ferrous alloys in mildly acidic acetic/acetate media used in de-icing solutions. Full article

Poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) stands out as a renowned commercial conducting polymer composite, boasting extensive and promising applications in the realm of film electronics. In this study, we have made a concerted effort to overcome the inherent drawbacks of PEDOT:PSS films (especially, high moisture absorption, mechanical damage vulnerability, insufficient substrate adhesion ability, etc.) by uniformly blending them with polydimethylsiloxane polyurea (PDMS-PUa) and silica (SiO₂) nanoparticles through a feasible mechanical stirring process, which effectively harnesses the intermolecular interactions, as well as the morphological and structural characteristics, among the various components. The Si−O bonds within PDMS-PUa and the −CH₃ groups attached to Si atoms significantly enhance the hydrophobicity of the composite film (as evidenced by a water contact angle of 132.89° under optimized component ratios). Meanwhile, SiO₂ microscopically modifies the surface morphology, resulting in increased surface roughness. This composite film not only maintains high conductivity (1.21 S/cm, in contrast to 0.83 S/cm for the PEDOT:PSS film) but also preserves its hydrophobicity and electrical properties under rigorous conditions, including high-temperature exposure (60–200 °C), ultraviolet (UV) aging (365.0 nm, 1.32 mW/cm²), and abradability testing (2000 CW abrasive paper, drag force of approximately 0.98 N, 40 cycles). Furthermore, the film demonstrates enhanced resistance to both acidic (1 mol/L, 24 h) and alkaline (1 mol/L, 24 h) environments, along with excellent self-cleaning and de-icing capabilities (−6 °C), and satisfactory adhesion (Level 2). Notably, the dried composite film can be re-dispersed into a solution with the aid of isopropanol through simple magnetic stirring, and the sequentially coated films also exhibit good surface hydrophobicity (136.49°), equivalent to that of the pristine film. This research aims to overcome the intrinsic performance drawbacks of PEDOT:PSS-based materials, enabling them to meet the demands of complex application scenarios in the field of organic electronics while endowing them with multifunctionality. Full article

The Shapley Supercluster, one of the largest and most massive structures in the nearby (redshift $z\le 0.1$) Universe, located approximately 200 Mpc away, is a unique laboratory for high-energy astrophysics. Galaxy clusters that comprise it are promising targets for multimessenger study due to the presence in the intracluster medium of the necessary conditions for the acceleration of cosmic rays up to ultra-high energies and the generation by them of non-thermal electromagnetic and neutrino emission. Using the Shapley Supercluster’s observational data from the recent eROSITA-DE Data Release, we recover the physical parameters of 45 X-ray luminous galaxy clusters and calculate the expected multiwavelength—from radio to very-high-energy γ-ray as well as neutrino emission, with a particular focus on hadronic interactions of accelerated cosmic ray nuclei with the nuclei of the intracluster medium. The results obtained allow verification of cluster models based on multimessenger observations of clusters, especially in $\gamma$-ray (Fermi-LAT, H.E.S.S., CTAO-South for the Shapley Supercluster case), and neutrino (Ice Cube, KM3NeT). We also estimate the ability of the Shapley Supercluster to manifest as cosmic Zevatrons and show that it can contribute to the PAO Hot Spot in the Cen A region at UHECR energies over 50 EeV. Full article

Aiming at the problems of serious pavement temperature diseases, low efficiency and high loss of ice-breaking methods, high occupancy rate of waste tires and the low utilization rate and insufficient durability of rubber particles, this paper aims to improve the service level of roads and ensure the safety of winter pavements. A pavement material with high efficiency, low carbon and environmental friendliness for active snow melting and ice breaking is developed. Firstly, NaOH, NaClO and KH550 were used to optimize the treatment of rubber particles. The hydrophilic properties, surface morphology and phase composition of rubber particles before and after optimization were studied, and the optimal treatment method of rubber particles was determined. Then, the optimized rubber particles were used to replace the natural aggregate in the polyurethane gel mixture by the volume substitution method, and the optimum polyurethane gel dosages and molding and curing processes were determined. Finally, the influence law of the road performance of RPGM was compared and analyzed by means of an indoor test, and the ice-breaking effect of RPGM was explored. The results showed that the contact angles of rubber particles treated with three solutions were reduced by 22.5%, 30.2% and 36.7%, respectively. The surface energy was improved, the element types on the surface of rubber particles were reduced and the surface impurities were effectively removed. Among them, the improvement effect of the KH550 solution was the most significant. With the increase in rubber particle content from 0% to 15%, the dynamic stability of the mixture gradually increases, with a maximum increase of 23.5%. The maximum bending strain increases with the increase in its content. The residual stability increases first and then decreases with the increase in rubber particle content, and the increase ranges are 1.4%, 3.3% and 0.5%, respectively. The anti-scattering performance increases with the increase in rubber content, and an excessive amount will lead to an increase in the scattering loss rate, but it can still be maintained below 5%. The fatigue life of polyurethane gel mixtures with 0%, 5%, 10% and 15% rubber particles is 2.9 times, 3.8 times, 4.3 times and 4.0 times higher than that of the AC-13 asphalt mixture, respectively, showing excellent anti-fatigue performance. The friction coefficient of the mixture increases with an increase in the rubber particle content, which can be increased by 22.3% compared with the ordinary asphalt mixture. RPGM shows better de-icing performance than traditional asphalt mixtures, and with an increase in rubber particle content, the ice-breaking ability is effectively improved. When the thickness of the ice layer exceeds 9 mm, the ice-breaking ability of the mixture is significantly weakened. Mainly through the synergistic effect of stress coupling, thermal effect and interface failure, the bonding performance of the ice–pavement interface is weakened under the action of driving load cycle, and the ice layer is loosened, broken and peeled off, achieving efficient de-icing. Full article

Hybrid fiber-reinforced polymer-laminated composites are often used under icy conditions (such as for reinforcing parts in aircraft frames and bridge beams), where there is an urgent demand for deicing. In this paper, besides the different mechanical properties of laminates along the longitudinal carbon fiber (CF) and glass fiber (GF) directions, the anisotropic electrothermal behavior of a hybrid glass/carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy (GCF/EP) is also investigated, as well as its deicing performance and self-repairing capability. The surface equilibrium temperature of GCF/EP composites can conveniently be adjusted by tuning the current magnitude and its flow direction. Compared to the longitudinal CF direction of the GCF/EP, where 0.3 A was loaded to achieve a surface equilibrium temperature of 122.8 °C, a much weaker current (0.03 A) was needed to load along the longitudinal GF direction to reach almost the same temperature. However, besides the higher flexural strength and fast temperature response, along the longitudinal CF direction, the GCF/EP exhibited excellent deicing performance, including a shorter time and larger energy efficiency. Furthermore, the self-repairing ability of the GCF/EP and its effect on the deicing performance of the composite were characterized. Studying the Joule heating effect of GCF/EP composite laminates and their corresponding deicing performance lays the foundation for their design and practical application in icy environments. Full article

The recognition of ice thickness on transmission lines serves as a prerequisite for controlling de-icing robots to carry out precise de-icing operations. To address the issue that existing edge computing terminals fail to meet the demands of ice thickness recognition algorithms, this paper introduces an Efficient Edge Computing Network (EECNet) specifically designed for identifying ice thickness on transmission lines. Firstly, pruning is applied to the Efficient Neural Network (ENet), removing redundant components within the encoder to decrease both the computational complexity and the number of parameters in the model. Secondly, a Dilated Asymmetric Bottleneck Module (DABM) is proposed. By integrating different types of convolutions, this module effectively strengthens the model’s capability to extract features from ice-covered transmission lines. Then, an Efficient Partial Conv Module (EPCM) is designed, introducing an adaptive partial convolution selection mechanism that innovatively combines attention mechanisms with partial convolutions. This design enhances the model’s ability to select important feature channels. The method involves segmenting ice-covered images to obtain iced regions and then calculating the ice thickness using the iced area and known cable parameters. Experimental validation on an ice-covered transmission line dataset shows that EECNet achieves a segmentation accuracy of 92.7% in terms of the Mean Intersection over Union (mIoU) and an F1-Score of 96.2%, with an ice thickness recognition error below 3.4%. Compared to ENet, the model’s parameter count is reduced by 41.7%, and the detection speed on OrangePi 5 Pro is improved by 27.3%. After INT8 quantization, the detection speed is increased by 26.3%. These results demonstrate that EECNet not only enhances the recognition speed on edge equipment but also maintains high-precision ice thickness recognition. Full article

Gynostemma pentaphyllum (GP) is an herbal tea with medicinal properties and potent antioxidants. Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are another interesting solvent for plant extraction due to their ability to extract plant phytochemicals efficiently. This research was conducted to study the phytochemicals of GP extracts isolated by DESs, investigate the biological activities, and develop cosmetic formulations containing GP extracts. The results showed that the total phenolic and total flavonoid contents of DES extracts were 0.39 ± 0.04 to 6.93 + 0.59 mg GAE/g extract and 1.48 ± 0.44 to 8.17 + 0.07 mg QE/g extract, respectively. The highest IC₅₀ values of DES extract on DPPH assay, lipid peroxidation inhibition, and nitric oxide radical scavenging of DES extracts were 8.54 ± 3.31, 6.04 ± 0.82, and 38.63 ± 1.46 mg/mL, respectively. The DES extracts demonstrated collagenase enzyme inhibition at IC₅₀ values of 0.92 ± 0.04 mg/mL. The selected DES extracts, S7, S9, S11, and S13, exhibited low cytotoxic effects on RAW264.7 cells and exhibited the most substantial reduction in nitic oxide levels. The selected DES extract with high bioactivities, S7, exhibited a high rutin and kaempferol content at 7.87 ± 0.01 mg rutin/g extract and 25.36 ± 0.08 mg kaempferol/g extract in the active content determination by HPLC assay. The cosmetic formulations containing S7 exhibited excellent stability after the stability test. This study illustrated the potential of DES extracts for further development in novel cosmetic products. Full article

Ice accumulation on cold surfaces presents significant operational and safety challenges in various fields such as power transmission, aviation, and polar marine transportation. This study investigates the effectiveness of selectively applied superhydrophobic patterns on hydrophilic substrates to locally control freezing behaviors. The freezing dynamics of water droplets impacting surfaces with hybrid wettability patterns were investigated experimentally under cold conditions. The results demonstrate that superhydrophobic surfaces significantly reduce the freezing rate due to decreased contact time and the contact region. By selectively placing superhydrophobic patterns on hydrophilic surfaces, the location of ice formation could be effectively manipulated. The use of multiple superhydrophobic stripes was found to segment the impacting droplets into several parts, implying the ability to selectively avoid ice accumulation at specific areas. Furthermore, experiments identified critical temperature thresholds at which the effectiveness of superhydrophobic stripes diminishes. When the temperature of the substrate is higher than −25 °C, the superhydrophobic stripes can sufficiently divide an impacting droplet leaving no ice at the superhydrophobic region. In the tested temperature range between −25 °C and −40 °C, the ice coverage ratio at the superhydrophobic region increases as temperature decreases, with a maximum value of 25.6 ± 2.33% at −40 °C. Superhydrophobic patterns also exhibited improved deicing efficiency during melting processes, highlighting their potential for robust ice management applications. Full article

The application of microwave de-icing technology in road engineering is constrained by its low energy utilization rate, which can be attributed to low heat production rates and ineffective heat dissipation to the underlying pavement. In this work, asphalt mixtures are designed as an upper layer (heating layer) and a lower layer (thermal-resistance layer). Magnetite slag was selected as a microwave-sensitive source for generating heat, and expanded perlite powder was incorporated into the lower layer as a thermal resistance material. Structural layer optimization and thermal-resistance layer design of the asphalt mixture were carried out by changing the thickness of the upper and lower layers to further improve the heat production rates. The design effectiveness is comprehensively evaluated by factors such as the changing law of the average surface temperature of mixtures, ice-melting time, and cost-effectiveness analyses. The results show that EP possesses better thermal stability, lower microwave energy conversion ability and more excellent heat-resistance potential compared with mineral powder. The heat-resistance layer with EP can prevent heat from being conducted to the lower layer and promote it to concentrate on the specimen surface, which can endow the microwave heating efficiency of specimens to be further improved by up to 26.97% and the de-icing time reduced by 10%, ascribed to the heat-resistance design. Furthermore, the collaborative design of the structural layer optimization and heat-resistance layer can increase energy utilization efficiency and save microwave-absorbing materials while ensuring excellent microwave de-icing efficiency. Full article

Ice-covered transmission lines seriously affect the normal operation of the power transmission system. Resonance deicing based on different ice thicknesses is an effective method to solve the issue of ice-covered transmission lines. In order to obtain accurate ice thickness of transmission lines, this paper designs an ice thickness of transmission line recognition model based on Global Micro Strip Awareness Net (GMSA-Net) and proposes a Mixed Strip Convolution Module (MSCM) and a global micro awareness module (GMAM). The MSCM adapts to the shape of ice-covered transmission lines by using strip convolutions with different receptive fields, improving the encoder’s ability to extract ice-covered features; the GMAM perceives through both global and micro parts, mining the connections between semantic information. Finally, the ice thickness of the generated segmented image is calculated using the method of regional pixel statistics. Experiments are conducted on the dataset of ice-covered transmission lines. The mean Intersection over Union (mIoU) of image segmentation reaches 96.4%, the balanced F-Score (F1-Score) is 98.1%, and the identification error of ice thickness is within 3.8%. Experimental results prove that this method can accurately identify the ice thickness of transmission lines, providing a control basis for the application of resonant deicing engineering. Full article

Anti-icing/de-icing is of fundamental importance in practical applications such as power transmission, wind turbines, and aerofoils. Despite recent efforts in developing engineering surfaces to delay ice accumulation or reduce ice adhesion, it remains challenging to design robust photothermal icephobic surfaces in a durable, low-cost, easy-fabrication manner. Here, we report an intelligent candle soot-based photothermal surface (PDMS/CS60@PDMS/Al) that can utilize sunlight illumination to achieve the multi-abilities of anti-icing, de-icing, and self-cleaning. Our method lies in the construction of hierarchical micro/nanostructures by depositing photothermal candle soot nanoparticles, which endow the surface with superior superhydrophobicity and excellent photothermal performance. The underlying mechanism is exploited by establishing the heat transfer model between the droplets and the cooled surface. We believe that the smart PDMS/CS60@PDMS/Al developed in this work could provide a feasible strategy to design intelligent engineering surfaces for enhanced anti-icing/de-icing. Full article

Superhydrophobic coatings can be a suitable solution for protecting vulnerable electrical infrastructures in regions with severe meteorological conditions. Regenerative superhydrophobicity, the ability to regain superhydrophobicity after being compromised or degraded, could address the issue of the low durability of these coatings. In this study, we fabricated a superhydrophobic coating comprising hydrophobic aerogel microparticles and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-modified silica nanoparticles within a PDMS matrix containing trifluoropropyl POSS (F-POSS) and XIAMETER PMX-series silicone oil as superhydrophobicity-regenerating agents. The fabricated coating exhibited a static contact angle of 169.5° and a contact angle hysteresis of 6°. This coating was capable of regaining its superhydrophobicity after various pH immersion and plasma deterioration tests. The developed coating demonstrated ice adhesion as low as 71.2 kPa, which remained relatively unchanged even after several icing/de-icing cycles. Furthermore, the coating exhibited a higher flashover voltage than the reference samples and maintained a minimal drop in flashover voltage after consecutive testing cycles. Given this performance, this developed coating can be an ideal choice for enhancing the lifespan of electrical insulators. Full article

Marine mangrove vegetation has been traditionally employed in folk medicine to address various ailments. Notably, Rhizophora apiculata Blume has exhibited noteworthy properties, demonstrating efficacy against cancer, viruses, and bacteria. The enzyme fatty acid synthase (FAS) plays a pivotal role in de novo fatty acid synthesis, making it a promising target for combating colon cancer. Our study focused on evaluating the FAS inhibitory effects of both the crude extract and three isolated compounds from R. apiculata. The n-butanol fraction of R. apiculata extract (BFR) demonstrated a significant inhibition of FAS, with an IC₅₀ value of 93.0 µg/mL. For inhibition via lyoniresinol-3α-O-β-rhamnopyranoside (LR), the corresponding IC₅₀ value was 20.1 µg/mL (35.5 µM). LR competitively inhibited the FAS reaction with acetyl-CoA, noncompetitively with malonyl-CoA, and in a mixed manner with NADPH. Our results also suggest that both BFR and LR reversibly bind to the KR domain of FAS, hindering the reduction of saturated acyl groups in fatty acid synthesis. Furthermore, BFR and LR displayed time-dependent inhibition for FAS, with k_obs values of 0.0045 min⁻¹ and 0.026 min⁻¹, respectively. LR also exhibited time-dependent inhibition on the KR domain, with a k_obs value of 0.019 min⁻¹. In human colon cancer cells, LR demonstrated the ability to reduce viability and inhibit intracellular FAS activity. Notably, the effects of LR on human colon cancer cells could be reversed with the end product of FAS-catalyzed chemical reactions, affirming the specificity of LR on FAS. These findings underscore the potential of BFR and LR as potent FAS inhibitors, presenting novel avenues for the treatment of human colon cancer. Full article