Search Results (77,168)

The commercial viability of flexible and disposable photodetectors is often constrained by the reliance on costly noble-metal electrodes and conventional substrates. Here, we address these challenges by integrating a chemical vapor deposition (CVD)-grown monolayer MoS₂ with a low-cost copper (Cu) electrode on a paper substrate, combining scalable semiconductor synthesis with inexpensive device components. Raman, photoluminescence, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements confirmed the crystallinity of the MoS₂ monolayer and its direct bandgap of 1.8 eV. The fabricated device demonstrated a broadband photoresponse covering the ultraviolet and visible regions, achieving a maximum responsivity and specific detectivity of 1.37 mA/W and 3.17 × 10⁹ Jones, respectively, at 320 nm under 5 V bias and an incident power density of 2.14 mW/cm². The device retains a well-resolved photoresponse under bending to a radius of 11.25 mm and over 100 bending cycles, confirming the mechanical robustness of the paper platform. By replacing the noble-metal contacts with low-cost Cu electrodes and conventional polymer substrates with paper while employing scalable CVD-grown MoS₂, this work establishes an economically viable platform for the large-scale manufacture of flexible and disposable photodetectors while providing a scalable pathway toward their large-area manufacture. Full article

Watershed-scale simulation of heavy metal transport and transformation is an important tool for pollution source identification, environmental risk assessment, and watershed management decision-making. Existing hydrological and water quality models provide essential process-based foundations for heavy metal transport simulation, including runoff generation, soil erosion, sediment transport, and channel routing. However, limitations remain in the coupling of geochemical reactions, representation of metal speciation, response to extreme events, and separation of multiple uncertainty sources. Based on literature records from the Web of Science Core Collection, this study integrates a PRISMA-based screening procedure, CiteSpace bibliometric analysis, comparative assessment of representative hydrological and water quality models, and an AHP—MCDA semi-quantitative evaluation method to systematically review modeling frameworks for watershed-scale heavy metal transport and transformation. The SWAT model and its extended module SWAT-HM are further used as representative cases to analyze the coupling mechanisms among hydrological processes, sediment processes, and heavy metal transport and transformation. The results indicate that the SWAT model has relatively high overall applicability in terms of hydrological process representation, sediment/erosion process representation, and heavy metal coupling basis, making it suitable for long-term pollution load assessment in medium- and large-scale watersheds. However, for urban storm runoff, high-frequency water quality responses, surface water–groundwater exchange, and detailed reactive transport processes, other models or coupled modeling frameworks are still required. The SWAT-HM model links dissolved, particulate, and sediment-associated heavy metal transport with runoff, erosion, and sediment transport processes, but its representation of complex speciation transformation, valence state changes in redox-sensitive elements such as As and Cr, and colloid-facilitated transport remains simplified. Future research should move toward an integrated modeling system that coordinates mechanisms, data, and uncertainty, with particular emphasis on breakthroughs in multi-scale dynamic coupling, element-specific parameter systems, dynamic pH–Eh modules, and standardized uncertainty decomposition workflows, thereby improving model interpretability, predictive reliability, and management relevance. Full article

Mineral and metallurgical feedstocks, including ores, concentrates, industrial residues, and hazardous mineral-like wastes, are increasingly important sources for resource recovery and valorization, but their complex composition often limits conventional processing routes. This review critically examines combustion-assisted processing strategies, including self-propagating high-temperature synthesis, for the treatment of primary and secondary mineral resources. Particular attention is given to the transition from model powder systems to compositionally complex real feedstocks and to the effects of mineralogy, inert gangue, volatile components, toxic impurities and feedstock variability on reaction behavior and product quality. The reviewed studies are evaluated in terms of thermochemical feasibility, combustion-front stability, phase formation, metal–slag separation, impurity partitioning, product qualification and environmental performance. The analysis indicates that combustion-assisted routes are most promising when internal heat release is coupled with reduction, alloying, carburization, nitridation, sintering, vitrification or immobilization, enabling metal recovery, waste valorization and direct formation of useful products. Their broader implementation remains constrained by incomplete conversion, volatile-metal control, post-treatment requirements and limited scale-up and techno-economic validation. Future development requires defined processing windows, predictive modelling, digital monitoring, integrated separation and systematic environmental assessment. Full article

This study reports the synthesis, characterization, and wastewater treatment performance of a hybrid nanocomposite based on graphene oxide (GO) and γ-alumina (γ-Al₂O₃). Functionalization was carried out via silanization using GPTMS for GO and APTES for γ-Al₂O₃, followed by covalent grafting through epoxy–amine linkage. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed successful grafting, showing Si–O–Si stretching and reduced epoxy ring vibrations. BET analysis indicated that the GO/γ-Al₂O₃ hybrid (ALGO) preserved a high specific surface area (198.08 m²/g), comparable to commercial γ-Al₂O₃, demonstrating that GO did not hinder porosity. ALGO was incorporated into polyurethane foam at loadings of 1–5% (ALGO@PU foam) and applied in wastewater treatment. UV-Vis spectroscopy revealed strong affinity for silver ions, evidenced by a decrease in AgNO₃ absorbance (~430–600 nm) with increasing AlGO content. Treatment of real industrial wastewater showed significant reductions in chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), and turbidity. At 5% loading, COD and BOD decreased from 1162 and 480 mg/L to 64 and 11 mg/L, respectively, while turbidity dropped from >1100 NTU to 1.62 NTU. These results demonstrate that ALGO is a functional adsorbent capable of removing ion metals, and improving water clarity, highlighting its potential for industrial wastewater treatment applications. Full article

Bisphenol AF (BPAF), a highly persistent fluorinated substitute for bisphenol A with endocrine-disrupting risks, resists conventional water treatment. To simultaneously address recalcitrant fluorinated pollutant removal and phosphogypsum (PG) valorization, we synthesized a CoFe₂O₄@PG composite catalyst via sol-gel using industrial PG as support, and applied it to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for BPAF degradation. CoFe₂O₄ was successfully loaded onto PG, forming densely packed quasi-spherical aggregates. Under optimal conditions, the 10% CoFe₂O₄@PG/PMS system removed 99.17% of BPAF within 60 min, outperforming CoFe₂O₄/PMS and confirming that PG loading enhances catalytic activity. The system tolerated pH variations; Cl⁻ had some interference, while CO₃²⁻, SO₄²⁻, and HPO₄²⁻ showed limited effects. The Co(II)/Co(III) and Fe(II)/Fe(III) redox cycles play a key role in the activation of PMS to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), with the sulfate radical (SO₄•⁻) and singlet oxygen (¹O₂) being the primary reactive species. The catalyst exhibited broad pH adaptability, anti-interference, and cycling stability; after five cycles, removal decreased by only 15.48%, and metal leaching complied with Chinese national standards. This work offers a new strategy for fluorinated-pollutant remediation and PG valorization. Full article

Mineralogical composition and crystal structure govern not only the geological classification of ore-derived dust but also its biological reactivity, yet the mineralogy–toxicity relationship of respirable dust from metal and nonmetal (MNM) mining operations remains poorly constrained. This study presents a mineralogical and physicochemical characterization of laboratory-generated respirable dust from bulk ore collected at one metal mine and four nonmetal mines, spanning five geological settings. Mineral phase and crystal structure were identified by XRD, with FTIR, SEM-EDX, and ICP-MS providing complementary structural, morphological, and elemental data. Crystalline silica (quartz) dominated four of five mine dust types (70.0%–88.3% in silica-rich nonmetal samples; 78.5%–86.6% in the metal mine), confirming pervasive respirable crystalline silica exposure regardless of commodity, while one nonmetal mine yielded a silica-free, carbonate-dominated dust as a reference material. In vitro MTT assays showed dose-dependent cytotoxicity across all samples, with viability at 100 µg/mL ranging from 31% to 71%. Quartz-rich nonmetal dust reduced viability to ~45% versus ~62% for carbonate-dominated dust (p ≤ 0.0001), while metal mine dust was most cytotoxic (31%–44%), coinciding with elevated surface manganese. This potency gradient (carbonate < silica-rich nonmetal < metal) establishes direct, mineralogically grounded structure–toxicity relationships and provides foundational data for occupational health risk assessment and dust control in MNM mining environments. Full article

This competitive solvent extraction study of various metal species (27) in the periodic table was conducted by using a series of asymmetric ligands, tested for the first time, composed of N-heterocyclic receptors with variable ring size and a β-dicarbonyl fragment with the aim of providing a snapshot of their efficacy. We evaluated the effect of heteroatoms in the substituent on solvent extraction performance and the selectivity of this type of chelating extractant with equivalent binding sites but an unsymmetric backbone due to differing coordination environments. The influence of the chemical nature of the organic liquid phase on the solvent extraction process was also discussed: ionic liquids ([C₁C_nim⁺][Tf₂N⁻]) or typical organic diluents. Fe³⁺ can be extracted with all ligands only in IL medium (100%). The separation factors (SFs) between adjacent metals of 4f-series and iron towards other s-, p, d- and f-block metal ions have been assessed from a circular economy perspective: to extend the product lifecycle and regenerate natural resources. The SF values (Fe/Lns) were below ca. 6 for CHCl₃, while the SFs for adjacent 4f-series ions were generally close to 1.1, with higher selectivity observed for selected ion pairs. In addition, the competitive solvent extraction process of 12 refractory metals as well as 8 platinum group metals was investigated with the synthesized ligands. The diluent n-heptane (a structurally symmetric alkane) outperformed isooctane (an asymmetric branched alkane) and chloroform (a polar asymmetric solvent) for refractory metal recovery with a maximum efficiency (100%). Furthermore, EPR, Raman and DTA-TG-MS spectroscopy analyses were used to study the extracted d- and f-chelate complexes in the ionic liquid media: Gd³⁺, Cu²⁺ and Fe³⁺. Full article

Smart hydrogels are increasingly explored as adaptive platforms for controlled drug delivery because their polymer networks can respond dynamically to chemical, biological, and physical cues. Among these systems, dynamic polymer networks formed through reversible covalent and noncovalent interactions provide a unique means of coupling molecular-scale bond exchange with time-dependent changes in hydrogel structure, mechanics, degradation, and therapeutic transport. This review presents an integrated framework linking dynamic crosslink chemistry, exchange kinetics, network properties, and drug-release behavior. Dynamic covalent, supramolecular, metal–ligand, and hybrid network strategies are compared with particular emphasis on how crosslink lifetime, mesh accessibility, swelling, viscoelasticity, stress relaxation, and degradation govern therapeutic cargo loading, retention, diffusion, and release. Representative release mechanisms and kinetic models are discussed together with cargo-specific design considerations for small molecules, proteins and peptides, nucleic acids, and nanoparticle-based therapeutics. Biomedical applications are further considered according to therapeutic requirements and administration routes, including injectable local depots, topical and transdermal delivery, and regenerative systems. Finally, key translational challenges involving physiological complexity, biocompatibility, reproducibility, scale-up, sterilization, and storage stability are critically assessed. By connecting molecular interaction dynamics with network-level behavior and therapeutic performance, this review provides design principles for developing more predictable, programmable, and clinically translatable dynamic hydrogel drug-delivery systems. Full article

High-temperature processing of carbohydrate-rich biomass, including starch liquefaction and lignocellulose saccharification, can improve sugar yields, reduce contamination risks, and facilitate integration with thermochemical pretreatments. However, the operational stability of native carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) at 60–90 °C remains a major bottleneck for efficient and economically viable biorefineries, and existing reviews rarely integrate multiscale molecular mechanisms with process-relevant engineering strategies. This review systematically examines the multiscale basis of thermostability in CAZymes—covering core hydrophobic packing, electrostatic and metal-mediated networks, disulfide bonds, conformational dynamics, and modular architectures involving catalytic domains, linkers, and carbohydrate-binding modules—and directly links these features to enzyme longevity under high-solids, inhibitor-rich conditions. We then critically compare key engineering strategies, including structure-guided rational design, semi-rational directed evolution, consensus design, ancestral sequence reconstruction, and machine learning-assisted workflows embedded in design–build–test–learn (DBTL) cycles, highlighting their respective strengths, limitations, and complementarity. Representative case studies demonstrate that engineered thermophilic α-amylases and cellulases achieving ΔT_m improvements of approximately 10–20 °C can sustain >80–85% residual activity after prolonged exposure at process-relevant temperatures, translating into tangible benefits such as 15–30% reductions in enzyme dosing and measurable decreases in steam consumption, alongside higher sugar titers. By bridging molecular determinants, engineering paradigms, and quantitative process performance, this review provides a pragmatic roadmap for deploying thermostable CAZymes as robust biocatalysts in sustainable high-temperature biomass conversion. Full article

Background: Vascular inflammation and vasculotoxic heavy metals have each been linked to acute coronary syndrome (ACS) but have rarely been studied together. This study compared serum pentraxin-3 (PTX-3), a proposed marker of local vascular inflammation, and whole-blood lead (Pb), arsenic (As), and nickel (Ni) between ACS patients and controls. Methods: In this single-center, cross-sectional case–control study, 50 patients with angiographically confirmed ACS were compared with 50 age- and sex-comparable emergency department controls with minor non-cardiac complaints. Results: PTX-3, Pb, As, and Ni were higher in ACS patients (all false discovery rate-adjusted q < 0.001). Between-group discrimination was highest for Pb (area under the curve [AUC] 0.962) and PTX-3 (AUC 0.951). PTX-3 and Pb remained independently associated with ACS after adjustment for hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and smoking and, separately, for age, diabetes, and renal function. Within the ACS group, PTX-3 was not significantly correlated with the Gensini score (ρ = 0.12, p = 0.41). Conclusions: PTX-3 and whole-blood Pb, As, and Ni were markedly elevated in ACS, with PTX-3 and Pb showing the strongest and most robust associations. Prospective multicenter studies in patients with suspected ACS are needed to confirm these findings and establish whether these biomarkers add value beyond established clinical assessment. Full article

With the continuous miniaturization of semiconductor devices, the limitations of conventional Si-based devices—including short-channel effects, increased leakage current, and elevated power consumption—have become more pronounced, drawing increasing attention to atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors as candidate channel materials for next-generation devices. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) exhibit electronic and optical properties that vary with layer number; in particular, monolayer MoS₂ possesses a direct bandgap and excellent electrostatic gate control, making it a promising material for ultrascaled transistors and optoelectronic devices. In this review, we examine the structural and electrical properties of TMDs, focusing on phase engineering for crystal-phase control, semimetal electrodes, and van der Waals contacts for reducing contact resistance at metal/TMD interfaces. We further analyze wafer-scale TMD growth via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and metal–organic CVD (MOCVD), as well as recent progress in epitaxial growth for controlling grain boundaries and growth orientation. From a device perspective, we review TMD transistors with 1 nm and sub-1 nm physical gate lengths and discuss their extension toward high-frequency devices and three-dimensional integration. These findings demonstrate that TMDs are promising channel materials capable of overcoming the scaling limitations of conventional Si-based semiconductors; however, challenges remain for practical implementation, including large-area material uniformity, contact resistance, defect and interface control, process reproducibility, and compatibility with existing CMOS processes. Full article

This paper studies the “one-ladle” technique at the “blast furnace–converter interface” in long steel production and proposes an optimization scheme based on laminar-flow operation to reduce energy consumption from long hot-metal ladle turnover and large temperature drops. A representative steel plant was analyzed using a simulation model coupling hot-metal flow, temperature, and time factors, reflecting typical transfer paths. Flexsim (version 2024.2.2) software was used to examine the effects of ladle quantity, railcar capacity, and operating schemes on temperature drop and turnover time. Results show that optimizing transport routes, standardizing cross-area operations, and balancing crane workloads significantly reduce cross-interference and waiting, lowering the maximum hot-metal temperature drop by 29 °C and shortening ladle turnover time by 29 min. This approach enhances interface efficiency and offers simulation-based guidance for optimizing the blast furnace–converter interface in similar steel enterprises. Full article

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations of metallic surfaces routinely employ periodic slab models in which spurious coupling between top and bottom surfaces artificially splits surface states, yet the thickness required to eliminate this artifact remains poorly characterized. Here, we systematically investigate convergence of surface states at the $\overline{\mathsf{\Gamma }}$ point of Al(001) slabs as a function of slab thickness (11–81 atomic layers) and relaxation depth (3–11 layers). The splitting and energy position of the surface states are largely insensitive to the relaxation depth, but depend strongly on the slab thickness. At $\overline{\mathsf{\Gamma }}$, for symmetric relaxation, the splitting decays exponentially with slab thickness, requiring at least 55 layers to fall below 10 meV; for asymmetric relaxation, a persistent splitting of ∼35 meV does not vanish even in the thick-slab limit. We interpret this behavior using a two-state coupling model. For practical comparison with experimental binding energies, the midpoint energy E_mid of a symmetric 31-layer slab offers a computationally efficient alternative to full decoupling for the $\overline{\mathsf{\Gamma }}$ surface states. For asymmetric slabs, however, the lower-energy branch E_low, corresponding to the relaxed surface, should be used instead of midpoint averaging. These results establish validated convergence criteria for Al(001) and provide a methodological framework transferable to other metallic optoelectronic materials. Full article

Moisture preparation, moisture at testing, and timber variability can jointly influence the response of metal-plate-connected (MPC) members. This exploratory re-analysis concerns 18 C24 Norway spruce assemblies (45 × 170 mm) with Mitek T150 or Ristek LL13 plates. The principal comparison includes 14 directly conditioned specimens in nominal 15%, 20%, and 40% preparation groups, with only two or three beams per connector–group cell; four moisture-transition specimens are described separately. Pooled mean ultimate loads were 14.15, 11.41, and 10.22 kN, respectively. An additive model summarized a nominal-group association (F(2,10) ≈ 12.29, p ≈ 0.002; bias-reduced, nonpartial ω² ≈ 0.587), but this estimate remains uncertain in such a small sample. The connector comparison was inconclusive (p ≈ 0.122), rather than evidence of equivalent performance. In the nominal 40% group, reported mean moisture differed substantially between Mitek and Ristek (40.45% and 26.35%), and resistance-meter readings in the wet range lack documented validation. Separate verified moisture records at pressing and testing, and the timber-allocation procedure, are not documented. Consequently, preparation history, test-state moisture, connector system, and possible timber-batch differences cannot be separated causally. Laboratory coupons were summarized at the parent-beam level, without treating subsamples as independent treatment replicates. The findings identify associations requiring a balanced, replicated experiment; they do not establish an assembly-moisture effect, a connector ranking, or a design reduction factor. Full article

In the failure analysis of metallic materials, the observation of fracture-surface morphology by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is an important means of determining the fracture mechanisms. In practice, however, interpretation of fracture-surface images relies heavily on expert experience and is readily affected by subjective factors when large batches of images must be examined. To address this issue, this paper proposes a classification model based on You Only Look Once version 8 (YOLOv8) and the convolutional block attention module (CBAM) for SEM images of metal fracture surfaces, aiming to identify four typical fracture-surface categories: cleavage, fatigue, dimple, and intergranular fracture. Considering that SEM images are mostly grayscale texture images, the model emphasizes the preservation of brightness, local texture, and edge-contour information during input processing and training augmentation, and introduces CBAM to optimize the channel and spatial responses of feature maps. Experimental results showed that at an input resolution of 1024, the YOLOv8-CBAM model achieved a Top-1 accuracy of 97.92% with only 1.53 M parameters. The proposed model achieved a favorable balance between observed classification performance and model complexity compared with the evaluated convolutional neural network (CNN) baselines. In addition, the gradient-weighted class activation mapping (Grad-CAM) results showed correspondence between the high-response regions of the model and certain fracture-surface morphology regions. Full article