Search Results (2,225)

Background/Objectives: Dihydromyricetin (DHM), a poorly water-soluble flavonoid with potent antioxidant and skin-rejuvenating properties, exhibits limited skin permeation. This study aimed to develop and characterize DHM-loaded in situ film-forming emulsions (FFE) using Eudragit^® RS 100 as the film-forming polymer to enhance skin permeation while minimizing systemic absorption. Methods: FFE formulations, comprising a DHM-loaded lipid mixture and a Eudragit^® RS 100 polymer solution, were developed using a full-factorial design of experiments varying poloxamer 407 (P407) and octyl cyanoacrylate (O60/20)/N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) concentrations to evaluate drying time, elongation at break, water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), and dermal permeation. The optimized formulation was further characterized for physicochemical properties, chemical integrity, drug loading, and release behaviour. Results: All formulations were homogeneous and physically stable over 24 h. Drying time was positively influenced by P407 but negatively by O60/20/NMP; P407 reduced dermal permeation, while O60/20/NMP had a biphasic effect without significantly affecting elongation at break and WVTR. The optimized FFE (0.079%w/w O60/20/NMP, without P407) showed rapid drying (2.68 min), elongation >10%, and self-formed nanoscale emulsion droplets from the lipid mixture. FTIR confirmed component compatibility; XRD revealed DHM conversion from a crystalline to an amorphous state. Compared with a system without lipid, FFE exhibited significantly higher moisture content (p < 0.001), a lower swelling index (p = 0.021), comparable occlusive factor (p = 0.68), and followed Higuchi kinetic release. Conclusions: The optimized FFE demonstrated desirable film-forming properties and physicochemical compatibility, offering an innovative formulation strategy with translational potential for topical industries. However, substitution of NMP is recommended for cosmetic formulations. Full article

The similarity of droplet impacts on nature-mimicking superhydrophobic surfaces is traditionally compared using the dimensionless Weber number. Yet, maintaining a constant We by decoupling droplet diameter and impact velocity influences secondary forces, challenging this assumption of similarity. In this work, we investigate water droplet impacts on a lotus-leaf-mimicking laser-textured superhydrophobic aluminum surface at two constant Weber number levels (25 and 50), varying droplet diameter from 2.1 to 4.15 mm. Our results confirm that maximum spreading depends on the Reynolds number at a fixed We, as smaller, faster droplets spread less due to increased relative viscous dissipation. We propose a modified empirical scaling model that describes our data with high accuracy and generalizes successfully to external datasets. Crucially, we demonstrate that the contact time of a droplet of a given size is not strictly velocity-independent, unveiling a Weber number-dependent inertia-capillary scaling. We show that this is driven by a shift in rebound dynamics, where the relative timescale of spreading increases over retraction for larger droplets. These findings demonstrate that We is insufficient to characterize droplet rebound across varying scales and that accounting for size-dependent deviations is critical for the precise design of technologies that leverage droplet-surface interactions. Full article

Transforming agricultural residues into functional porous materials provides a sustainable strategy for wastewater remediation. Herein, cellulose was separated from cotton stalks via formic acid-assisted hemicellulose extraction and sodium chlorite delignification, and then sulfuric acid hydrolysis. Chitosan-assisted hydrothermally treated cellulose (CC) was prepared via hydrothermal treatment in the presence of chitosan. Anisotropic CC/chitosan composite aerogels were prepared via glutaraldehyde crosslinking and unidirectional freeze-drying. The hydrophilic CC/CS aerogel exhibited an oriented porous structure, a low density of 0.03 g cm⁻³, and a porosity of 85.33%. For Congo red (CR) adsorption, the equilibrium data were described well by the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm models, with a calculated maximum adsorption capacity of 483.09 mg g⁻¹. Electrostatic attraction, hydrogen bonding, and pore-mediated retention jointly contributed to CR uptake. To realize oil–water separation, methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) vapor modification was applied to prepare hydrophobic aerogel (M-CC/CS). M-CC/CS presented an initial water contact angle (WCA) of around 134°, and the WCA remained above 115° after 600 s of water droplet exposure. The aerogel showed absorption capacities of 16.22–40.13 g g⁻¹ toward various oils and organic solvents. Under gravity, M-CC/CS separated immiscible oil/water mixtures at a flux of 565.47 L m⁻² h⁻¹ and several water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions with efficiencies above 99.9% while maintaining high separation efficiency over 10 cycles. This work demonstrates a cotton-stalk-derived aerogel platform whose hydrophilic and hydrophobically modified forms can be used for dye adsorption and oily water treatment, respectively. Full article

Metallized pellets are spherical iron-bearing burden materials obtained by treating iron ore pellets through processes such as direct reduction. They contain a certain proportion of metallic iron and mainly consist of metallic iron, incompletely reduced oxides, gangue, and other nonmetallic components. They are one of the commonly used iron-bearing materials in electric smelting furnaces. The melting process of metallized pellets not only affects the melting efficiency of the charge but is also accompanied by slag–metal separation and gangue separation, which is directly related to mass transfer, heat transfer, and production efficiency during the smelting process. However, existing studies have mainly focused on the melting behavior of pellets in a single-phase molten pool, while studies on gangue separation, interfacial migration, and slag–metal separation during pellet melting at the slag–metal two-phase interface remain rare. Because this region involves complex interfacial heat transfer, fluid flow, and interfacial interactions, investigating only the overall melting process of pellets is insufficient to reveal the actual gangue separation mechanism. Therefore, a systematic investigation of the melting and separation processes of pellets at the slag–metal interface is necessary. Based on the principle of similarity, a water–oil–ice three-phase physical model was employed in this study, in which water, silicone oil, and ice balls containing dyed silicone oil samples were used to simulate molten iron, slag, and pellets, respectively. The dyed silicone oil is specially designed to simulate the gangue in the pellet. Visualization experiments were conducted to investigate the evolution of pellet melting morphology, oil droplet (gangue) release behavior, and diffusion characteristics in the oil layer under different initial oil droplet positions and static or parallel flow conditions. The results show that the initial position of the oil droplet and the parallel flow significantly affect the local melting behavior of the ice ball and the oil droplet release process. In particular, the release time of the oil droplet located above the ice ball is significantly longer than that of the oil droplet located below the ice ball. The parallel flow significantly changes the melting sequence of the ice ball and the oil droplet release path by enhancing convective heat transfer in the lower region of the ice ball. According to the initial position of the oil droplet and the flow conditions, the oil droplet release process can be classified into five typical separation types, including (1) lateral release of the upper oil droplet after the ice shells on both sides melt through, (2) release of the upper oil droplet through a hole at the bottom of the upper hemisphere, (3) direct release of the lower oil droplet through a local hole, (4) two-stage release of the lower oil droplet controlled by interfacial constraint, and (5) single-stage release of the oil droplet on the downstream flow side driven by parallel flow. The oil droplet release time in the parallel flow cases is shorter than that in the static conditions. The diffusion behavior of the oil droplet after entering the oil layer is weakly affected by the parallel flow and is mainly characterized by inertial diffusion along the initial release direction, followed by spreading toward the surrounding area. This study reveals the slag–metal separation mechanism during pellet melting at the slag–metal interface under the combined control of flow, ice shell morphology, and interfacial interactions, providing experimental evidence for optimizing the melting and separation behavior of pellet charges in electric smelting furnaces and related smelting processes. Full article

The performance of Peltier-driven atmospheric water generation (AWG) systems depends strongly on the surface geometry and wetting behavior of the condensation structure. Triply periodic minimal surfaces (TPMS) provide high surface area-to-volume ratio and geometric tunability, but their effectiveness as three-dimensional condensation structures requires experimental evaluation. In this study, five additively manufactured TPMS geometries, Gyroid, Diamond, Lidinoid, SplitP, and Schwarz, were evaluated in a Peltier-driven AWG setup under controlled laboratory conditions. The measured water collection response varied among the tested TPMS geometries, which showed different condensation, retention, and collection trends. Water collection was measured with and without surface treatment, while the monitored surface temperature remained below the calculated dew point during testing. Without surface treatment, total water collection ranged from approximately 0.9 to 1.4 g, whereas surface-treated specimens collected approximately 0.6 to 1.2 g. The specimens with surface treatment exhibited predominantly discrete droplets rather than the film-wise morphology observed without surface treatment, but the total water collection did not increase consistently. Gyroid and Lidinoid showed slight increases with surface treatment, while SplitP, Diamond, and Schwarz showed reductions. Water collection also did not scale directly with calculated TPMS surface area, which suggests that effective air exposure, droplet retention, drainage, and coating uniformity contributed strongly to the observed performance. These findings provide experimental insights into additively manufactured TPMS geometry and surface treatment conditions for Peltier-driven AWG. Full article

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), also referred to as unmanned aerial pesticide application systems (UAPASs), are increasingly used for crop protection applications because of their operational efficiency and precision. However, UAV spraying is typically conducted at very-low volumes (VLVs) (10–20 L ha⁻¹), resulting in highly concentrated spray solutions that may alter formulation behavior relative to conventional ground applications. In this study, a total of nineteen commercially available herbicide, insecticide, and fungicide formulations representing multiple formulation classes were evaluated under UAV-relevant (10 L ha⁻¹) and conventional ground application conditions. Tank-mix compatibility, sprayability, droplet size distribution, driftable fines, dynamic surface tension (DST), and droplet spreading were assessed. Tank-mix incompatibility was most frequently observed in mixtures containing emulsifiable concentrate (EC) formulations, with five of 11 commonly used tank mixes exhibiting severe incompatibility at UAV rates despite compatibility at conventional application volumes. Formulations containing suspended actives, including suspension emulsions (SEs), suspension concentrates (SCs), oil dispersions (ODs), and water-dispersible granules (WDGs), showed the greatest risk of filter and screen clogging, whereas EC and soluble liquid (SL) formulations exhibited acceptable sprayability. UAV-rate spray solutions generally produced comparatively finer droplet spectra than ground-rate solutions, increasing driftable fines by up to 36.6% depending on formulation type. DST decreased by 2.5–35.2% under UAV conditions, with the largest reductions observed for SC and EC formulations. Reduced DST was associated with increased droplet spreading, particularly for fungicide formulations, where droplet spreading increased up to 718.8% relative to ground-rate preparations. These results demonstrate that formulation behavior can differ substantially under VLV conditions and that formulation-specific evaluation of compatibility, sprayability, atomization characteristics, and surface-tension-dependent behavior is required when products are deployed through UAV spray systems. Full article

This paper investigated the lubricant stability and anti-biofouling performance on slippery liquid-infused nanostructured surfaces (SLIPSs) using thermodynamic and interfacial energy analyses. ZnO nanorods were synthesized on indium tin oxide substrates with and without a ZnO seed layer by electrochemical deposition and subsequently infused with PDMS-based silicone oil. The seed-layer-assisted growth produced densely packed and vertically aligned ZnO nanorods. Interfacial energy analysis showed that the resulting SLIPSs satisfied the criterion for resistance to water-induced lubricant displacement (ΔE₂ = 64.14 mJ·m⁻²), indicating effective lubricant retention, whereas non-seeded surfaces exhibited reduced lubricant stability. Consistent with this prediction, the seed-layer-assisted SLIPSs retained droplet mobility following spin testing at 2500 rpm, although the reduced sliding velocity indicated a decline in slippery performance. Anti-biofouling evaluation using Escherichia coli (XL1-Blue) revealed that the SLIPSs effectively suppressed bacterial attachment, reducing surface coverage to below 0.3% after 24 h of incubation. In comparison, the pristine ITO and ZnO nanorods exhibited values of 50.8% and 54.6%, respectively. Subsequent surface free energy analysis demonstrated that lubricant infusion reduced the work of adhesion to 77.92 mJ·m⁻². These findings provide insight into the interfacial interactions governing lubricant retention and bacterial attachment on SLIPSs. Full article

This study proposes a self-condensing water-electrode plasma device in which ambient water vapor is condensed on a cooled needle-tip electrode within a strong electric-field region, forming continuously renewed water droplets, Taylor cones, or water-film interfaces that participate in the discharge process. The effects of ambient humidity, needle-tip temperature, and applied voltage on the self-condensation behavior were investigated. The discharge modes at different applied voltages and discharge gaps, the generation of reactive species, and the inactivation efficacy against Staphylococcus aureus were also analyzed. The results showed that increasing ambient humidity, decreasing the needle-tip temperature, and increasing the applied voltage all promoted water condensation at the needle tip. The electric field shortened the droplet formation time and reduced the droplet detachment size. As the applied voltage increased, the device sequentially underwent water condensation, electrospray, stable Taylor-cone, water-film discharge, and bare-electrode discharge stages, while the boundary voltage of each stage increased with the discharge gap. The ozone concentration remained below the instrument’s limit of detection during discharge with the self-condensing water electrode, whereas hydroxyl-radical generation was significantly enhanced. Compared with a conventional metal electrode, the self-condensing water electrode exhibited greater inactivation of S. aureus at the same applied voltage, with a more pronounced advantage under low-voltage conditions. These findings demonstrate that introducing a self-condensing water interface can regulate the local discharge morphology and reactive-species composition, providing a new strategy for developing low-temperature plasma sterilization technologies with low ozone production and high bactericidal activity. Full article

The initiation of electrochemical corrosion on steel surfaces begins with water molecule aggregation, though the atomic-scale mechanisms from adsorption and wetting to corrosive microdroplet formation remain unclear. Using molecular dynamics simulations, this work investigates the formation of corrosive aqueous micro-environments on iron-based surfaces during early condensation. It focuses on the regulatory effects of surface roughness and local hydrophilic sites on condensation nucleation, droplet growth, and wetting. Results show a linear correlation between droplet contact angle and solid–liquid interaction energy, with temperature dependence controlled by the substrate’s intrinsic wettability. For fence-type rough surfaces, we clarify the transition from a critical to a mixed (Cassie–Wenzel) wetting state, confirming that roughness enhances intrinsic wettability. Condensation analysis reveals that stronger solid–liquid interaction promotes water adsorption and induces a shift from dropwise to filmwise condensation, with interphase temperature difference driving heat transfer. On hydrophobic surfaces with local hydrophilic sites, these sites serve as preferential nucleation points. Their size effect can pin the three-phase contact line, leading to droplet growth in a high-contact-angle mode. This study offers an atomic-scale view of how condensation creates the initial aqueous environment required for electrochemical corrosion, providing theoretical insight into phase-change heat transfer and interfacial behaviour on complex surfaces. The findings guide the design of surfaces resistant to condensation-induced corrosion. Full article

Aircraft icing can substantially alter leading-edge geometry and degrade aerodynamic performance, highlighting the need for computationally efficient prediction methods during preliminary aircraft design. This study presents a two-dimensional reduced-order framework for airfoil ice-accretion prediction that couples a Hess–Smith potential-flow solver with Lagrangian droplet tracking, surface collection-efficiency reconstruction, a low-order freezing model, and an iterative geometry-update procedure. After each ice-accretion increment, the aerodynamic flow field and droplet trajectories are recomputed over the updated geometry, thereby capturing the coupled effects of ice growth, local flow acceleration, and downstream droplet impingement. A convergence study was performed to establish suitable surface and particle discretization. The predictive capability of the framework was assessed against four experimental NACA 23012 ice-accretion geometries representing streamwise and roughness-dominated configurations. The numerical predictions reproduced the location, extent, and principal morphological characteristics of the measured leading-edge deposits. Parametric investigations showed that the collection-efficiency distribution is governed primarily by the angle of attack, median volumetric diameter, and freestream velocity, whereas the maximum ice thickness is controlled predominantly by liquid water content and ambient temperature. Two-parameter response maps further revealed nonlinear interactions among droplet inertia, aerodynamic transport, incident water flux, freezing conditions, and geometry evolution. The proposed framework provides a practical, low-cost tool for preliminary icing assessment, sensitivity analysis, and rapid screening of atmospheric and operating conditions prior to higher-fidelity investigation. Full article

Plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs), particularly Meloidogyne enterolobii, pose a severe threat to global agriculture, necessitating the development of sustainable and highly effective management alternatives. Herein, we report the rational design, physicochemical characterisation, and nematicidal evaluation of lemon oil-loaded ionic liquid nanoemulsions. Three distinct ionic liquids (ILs)—1,3-dimethylimidazolium acetate ([DMIM][OAc]), 1,3-dimethylimidazolium chloride ([DMIM][Cl]), and 1-methylimidazolium acetate ([MIM][OAc])—were integrated into oil-in-water nanoemulsions to assess their structural influence on formulation stability and bioactivity. The formulated ionic liquid nanoemulsions (IL-NEs) exhibited excellent colloidal properties, characterised by monodisperse nanometric droplets (18.13–24.42 nm, polydispersity index (PDI) < 0.4) and stable pH profiles with no visible phase separation over 120 days under the tested storage conditions. In vitro bioassays against M. enterolobii revealed a distinct structure–activity relationship (SAR) driven by the IL cation-anion composition, alongside strong concentration- and time-dependent efficacy. The [MIM][OAc]-based formulation demonstrated superior nematicidal performance, achieving the lowest terminal LC₅₀ (0.23% at 20 h) and the most rapid mortality kinetics (LT₅₀ of 7.63 h at 5.0%). Microscopic observations revealed marked morphological alterations, including internal structural damage and disruption of the integument. These findings unequivocally highlight the potential of structurally tunable IL-NEs as a potent, sustainable delivery platform for essential oil-based biopesticides in modern crop protection. Full article

Slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) can reduce ice adhesion, but their durability depends on coupled wetting, rheological, and phase-transition effects. Here, seven imidazolium ionic liquids (ILs) with varied alkyl and disiloxane substituents were evaluated as lubricants for laser-textured superhydrophobic aluminum. Surface tension, viscosity, thermal behavior, lubricant retention, wetting, and ice adhesion at −10 °C were correlated over 30 icing-deicing cycles. All freshly prepared coatings were water-wettable but exhibited weak droplet pinning, with sliding angles of 1.4–7.5°, despite apparent water contact angles below 90°. This combination reflects the lubricant-mediated interface, for which droplet mobility is not determined by the static contact angle alone. The behavior of SLIPS with different lubricants diverged under centrifugal loading: low-viscosity ILs were depleted, whereas ILs that solidified under the applied cooling protocol were retained more effectively within the texture. Counterintuitively, greater lubricant retention produced higher ice adhesion because solidified ILs stabilized ice bridges within the surface relief. The lowest adhesion after cycling was obtained for the coating infused with [C₉C₃Si₂Oim][NTf₂], which after lubricant depletion restored a superhydrophobic state with a water static contact angle of 171.6 ± 1.6°. These results identify lubricant phase state and interfacial redistribution as key design parameters for durable anti-icing SLIPS. Full article

Natural carrier systems that integrate structural integrity with protective function are critical for the efficient delivery of lipophilic bioactives. Here, we employed Ampelopsis grossedentata leaf powder (AGP), a flavonoid-rich plant material, as a particulate stabilizer to construct Pickering emulsion gels. The influence of AGP concentration and oil phase volume fraction on gel structure was examined, and the ability of the gels to protect lutein was further assessed. AGP displayed appropriate interfacial wettability, enabling it to adsorb at the oil–water interface and build a coherent particle layer. A progressive increase in AGP concentration reduced droplet size and raised gel strength from 3.07 × 10⁻² N to 5.04 × 10⁻² N, reflecting the formation of a more robust particle-based network. Among the formulations tested, the gel prepared with 4% AGP gave the best overall structural performance: it had the highest gel strength, together with favorable elasticity index (EI) and macroscopic viscosity index (MVI) values, indicative of superior load-bearing capacity and disturbance resistance. Raising the oil phase fraction further tightened droplet packing and improved structural stability. In storage trials, the optimized AGP-stabilized emulsion gel retained substantially more lutein than the MCT oil system without powder, with the 7-day retention increasing from 14.9% to 55.9%. This protective effect may be attributed to the physical barrier created by interfacial particles, together with the antioxidant activity of flavonoids naturally present in AGP. These findings uncover a synergistic role of plant-based particles in structuring Pickering emulsion gels and preserving lipophilic bioactives, highlighting AGP as a sustainable and functional platform for delivery systems. Full article

Nonlamellar liquid crystalline nanodispersions produced from single monoacylglycerols or from their combinations with fatty acids or other amphiphiles have attracted interest owing to their structural versatility and tunability. In this study, we investigated the effect of dilinolein (DLO) incorporation on the structural features of Pluronic F127-stabilized monolinolein (MLO) nanodispersions using small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM), and dynamic light scattering (DLS). We report a lipid composition-dependent direct colloidal transformation from hexosomes, defined as nanoparticles with an ordered internal inverse hexagonal (H₂) phase, toward nanoparticles with highly disordered internal nanostructures upon the partial replacement of MLO by DLO. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) measurements showed that, at relatively low DLO content, the MLO-rich MLO:DLO 90:10 (w/w) nanodispersion retained an ordered internal H₂ phase, with three well-defined characteristic Bragg peaks, whereas the SAXS patterns recorded for nanodispersions containing ≥20 wt% DLO displayed loss of the characteristic H₂ Bragg reflections and broad correlation maxima, indicating loss of long-range internal periodicity and the emergence of highly disordered internal nanostructures. Similarly, the control nanodispersion prepared from DLO alone displayed a broad, low-intensity correlation maximum rather than distinct Bragg peaks, consistent with a highly disordered internal nanostructure. For the nanodispersions displaying broad SAXS correlation maxima, the SAXS-derived characteristic distance decreased monotonically from 4.53 to 2.87 nm as the DLO fraction increased. Additional cryo-TEM observations of two nanodispersions containing relatively high DLO contents revealed predominantly spherical nanoparticles characterized by an intense lipid core and discernible internal nanoscale features. However, these internal features were not sufficiently resolved to allow full characterization and unambiguous assignment of the internal phase, consistent with a highly disordered inverse nanostructure that may include an L₂-like inverse-micellar organization alongside other possible arrangements such as nanoemulsion droplets. Taken together, the SAXS and cryo-TEM observations indicate a composition-driven colloidal transformation from hexosomes with a well-defined internal H₂ phase toward nanoparticles with a highly disordered internal phase as the DLO content increases. The experimental findings suggest that DLO modifies lipid packing at the MLO–water interface and promotes more negative spontaneous curvature, favoring the observed structural transformation. The ability to tune the internal nanostructure by lipid composition while maintaining nanoscale particle size and low dispersity makes these nanodispersions attractive platforms for drug nanocarrier development. Full article

Inorganic-bonded bamboo composite (InorgBam) combines the lightweight, high-strength nature of bamboo bundles with the heat resistance, low smoke emission, and environmental compatibility of inorganic binders. However, the inherent surface pores and inter-bundle gaps in this material may facilitate water ingress, and the protective role of waterborne coatings, along with their influence on mechanical performance, remains unclear. This study investigated these issues through short-term water absorption tests, dynamic water contact angle measurements, industrial X-ray computed tomography (CT), and mechanical evaluations. After 48 h of immersion, the coated specimens absorbed only 9.55% water, representing a 59.0% reduction relative to the uncoated group (23.29%). The coated surface exhibited minimal change in contact angle, indicating restricted droplet spreading. CT imaging further revealed a relatively continuous coating layer that sealed surface pores, inter-bundle gaps, and local depressions, with no evidence of deep penetration into the interior. Following coating application, the parallel-to-grain tensile, compressive, and flexural strengths exhibited marginal increases of 3.37%, 2.94%, and 3.27%, respectively, while the dominant failure modes remained unchanged. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that the waterborne coating delays moisture ingress primarily through surface sealing and barrier effects, rather than internal pore-filling, thereby preserving the basic mechanical properties of InorgBam under unaged conditions. Full article