Controlled synthesis of mono- and bimetallic Pt-based catalysts for electrochemical ethanol oxidation

Poisoning tolerance of Pt-based catalyst is an important parameter for the designing of direct electrochemical fuel cells (EFCs) based on electrooxidation of alcohols (i.e. methanol, ethanol). Applicability of direct ethanol EFCs is still challenging taking into account the lack of effective electrocatalysts which are able to produce high faradic current densities and high stability towards strong adsorption of C1 and C2 oxidation products. As we present here, mono- and bimetallic Pt-based electrocatalysts have been synthesized on a carbon black support for the elecotrooxidation of ethanol in acidic media. Depending of the molar ratio between poly-n-vinylpyrrolidone (PVP, acting as protecting agent) and Pt, nanoparticle size distribution has been controlled, obtaining an optimal condition of Pt loading and electroactive surface area (ECSA) for the PVP/Pt ratio = 1. The electrochemical behavior of electrocatalyst Pt/Re/CB-1 shows a negligible variation in the ECSA (98.3 m2 g−1) in comparison with the monometallic electrodes (90.2 m2 g−1). In contrast, addition of Ir tends to reduce the ECSA by agglomeration of some nanoparticles and decreasing its electrochemical performance. Incorporation of Re in the alloy promotes bond breaking of the intermediates adsorbed on surface, specifically adsorbed C2 molecules, releasing great number of the active sites from the Pt surface, minimizing the deactivation with cycling and providing remarkable stable catalyst with high specific current densities with the addition of small amounts of Re.N. S. V. and G. M. thank to ANPCyT and CONICET for the financial support. A.F.Q.J. gratefully acknowledges Generalitat Valenciana for the financial support through Santiago Grisolia grant (GRISOLIA/2016/084). MICIN and FEDER are acknowledged (projects PIB2019-105923RB-I00 and RTI2018-095291-B-I00)

The economic burden of pediatric gastroenteritis to Bolivian families: A cross-sectional study of correlates of catastrophic cost and overall cost burden

Background: Worldwide, acute gastroenteritis causes substantial morbidity and mortality in children less than five years of age. In Bolivia, which has one of the lower GDPs in South America, 16% of child deaths can be attributed to diarrhea, and the costs associated with diarrhea can weigh heavily on patient families. To address this need, the study goal was to identify predictors of cost burden (diarrhea-related costs incurred as a percentage of annual income) and catastrophic cost (cost burden ≥ 1% of annual household income). Methods. From 2007 to 2009, researchers interviewed caregivers (n = 1,107) of pediatric patients (\u3c5 years old) seeking treatment for diarrhea in six Bolivian hospitals. Caregivers were surveyed on demographics, clinical symptoms, direct (e.g. medication, consult fees), and indirect (e.g. lost wages) costs. Multivariate regression models (n = 551) were used to assess relationships of covariates to the outcomes of cost burden (linear model) and catastrophic cost (logistic model). Results: We determined that cost burden and catastrophic cost shared the same significant (p \u3c 0.05) predictors. In the logistic model that also controlled for child sex, child age, household size, rural residence, transportations taken to the current visit, whether the child presented with complications, and whether this was the child\u27s first episode of diarrhea, significant predictors of catastrophic cost included outpatient status (OR 0.16, 95% CI [0.07, 0.37]); seeking care at a private hospital (OR 4.12, 95% CI [2.30, 7.41]); having previously sought treatment for this diarrheal episode (OR 3.92, 95% CI [1.64, 9.35]); and the number of days the child had diarrhea prior to the current visit (OR 1.14, 95% CI [1.05, 1.24]). Conclusions: Our analysis highlights the economic impact of pediatric diarrhea from the familial perspective and provides insight into potential areas of intervention to reduce associated economic burden. © 2014 Burke et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd