Novel P2-type Na0.6Fe0.5-2xMn0.5TixVxO2 Cathode for High-Capacity and Stable Sodium-Ion Batteries

Necessity of enery storage and battery production is soaring up steadily for the growth of portable electronic devices and surging evolution of electric vehicles and renewables. Lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology has been the primary choice for such applications due to its high-energy-density, high-stability, and longer cycle-life. Albeit with all merits, depletion of lithium reserve has prompted battery researchers to search for new alternatives to LIB. Sodium, in this respect, can be a viable solution as it is the sixth most abundant element and shares the same group with lithium in periodic table, having similar structure and electrochemical working mechanisms. The pivotal factor hindering the deployment of the laboratory-based Sodium-ion battery (SIB) technologies into the commercial battery market is low energy density compared to that of LIB. Improvement of overall electrochemical performance of cathode materials can be a game-changer as it affects energy density, lifespan, and tolerance of batteries. In this research, a novel P2-type transition metal-oxide cathode Na0.6Fe0.5-2xMn0.5TixVxO2 was synthesized by doping NaFeMnO2 (NFM) with vanadium and titanium. A set of physicochemical analyses, including Field-Effect Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy analysis, were performed to justify the morphological competence of the pristine NFM and vanadium-titanium doped NFM and crystal structures and lattice parameters were refined through X-ray Diffraction and Rietveld analysis. These exhaustive structural and morphological comparisons provided insights on the effects of vanadium-titanium doping on stabilizing surface structures, reducing Jahn Teller distortion, enhancing stability and capacity retention, and promoting Na+ carrier transport mechanism

The Use of Adipose Tissue-Derived Progenitors in Bone Tissue Engineering - a Review

2500 years ago, Hippocrates realized that bone can heal without scaring. The natural healing potential of bone is, however, restricted to small defects. Extended bone defects caused by trauma or during tumor resections still pose a huge problem in orthopedics and cranio-maxillofacial surgery. Bone tissue engineering strategies using stem cells, growth factors, and scaffolds could overcome the problems with the treatment of extended bone defects. In this review, we give a short overview on bone tissue engineering with emphasis on the use of adipose tissue-derived stem cells and small molecules

Modeling and Analysis of Grid Tied Combined Ultracapacitor Fuel Cell for Renewable Application

In this manuscript, the performance of an ultracapacitor fuel cell in grid connected mode is investigated. Voltage regulation to the ultracapacitor was achieved with a three level bidirectional DC-DC converter while also achieving power flow from the grid to the ultra-capacitor via the bidirectional converter. The choice of a bidirectional three level converter for voltage regulation is based on its inherently high efficiency, low harmonic profile and compact size. Using the model equations of the converter and grid connected inverter derived using the switching function approach, the grid's direct and quadrature axes modulation indices, Md and Mq, respectively were simulated in Matlab for both lagging and leading power factors. Moreover, the values of Md and Mq were exploited in a PLECS based simulation of the proposed model to determine the effect of power factor correction on the current and power injection to gridComment: 7 pages, 16 figures, IEEE conference on Electromagnetic Compatibilit

Osteoconductivity of bone substitutes with filament-based microarchitectures: Influence of directionality, filament dimension, and distance

Additive manufacturing can be applied to produce personalized bone substitutes. At present, the major three-dimensional (3D) printing methodology relies on fila­ment extrusion. In bioprinting, the extruded filament consists mainly of hydrogels, in which growth factors and cells are embedded. In this study, we used a lithogra­phy-based 3D printing methodology to mimic filament-based microarchitectures by varying the filament dimension and the distance between the filaments. In the first set of scaffolds, all filaments were aligned toward bone ingrowth direction. In a second set of scaffolds, which were derived from the identical microarchitecture but tilted by 90°, only 50% of the filaments were in line with the bone ingrowth direction. Testing of all tricalcium phosphate-based constructs for osteoconduction and bone regeneration was performed in a rabbit calvarial defect model. The results revealed that if all filaments are in line with the direction of bone ingrowth, filament size and distance (0.40–1.25 mm) had no significant influence on defect bridging. Howev­er, with 50% of filaments aligned, osteoconductivity declined significantly with an increase in filament dimension and distance. Therefore, for filament-based 3D- or bio-printed bone substitutes, the distance between the filaments should be 0.40 to 0.50 mm irrespective of the direction of bone ingrowth or up to 0.83 mm if perfectly aligned to it

Generating and detecting bound entanglement in two-qutrits using a family of indecomposable positive maps

The problem of bound entanglement detection is a challenging aspect of quantum information theory for higher dimensional systems. Here, we propose an indecomposable positive map for two-qutrit systems, which is shown to generate a class of positive partial transposed (PPT) states. A corresponding witness operator is constructed and shown to be weakly optimal and locally implementable. Further, we perform a structural physical approximation of the indecomposable map to make it a completely positive one, and find a new PPT entangled state which is not detectable by certain other well-known entanglement detection criteria.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures, Comments are welcome

3D-Printed HA-Based Scaffolds for Bone Regeneration: Microporosity, Osteoconduction and Osteoclastic Resorption

Additive manufacturing enables the realization of the macro- and microarchitecture of bone substitutes. The macroarchitecture is determined by the bone defect and its shape makes the implant patient specific. The preset distribution of the 3D-printed material in the macroarchitecture defines the microarchitecture. At the lower scale, the nanoarchitecture of 3D-printed scaffolds is dependent on the post-processing methodology such as the sintering temperature. However, the role of microarchitecture and nanoarchitecture of scaffolds for osteoconduction is still elusive. To address these aspects in more detail, we produced lithography-based osteoconductive scaffolds from hydroxyapatite (HA) of identical macro- and microarchitecture and varied their nanoarchitecture, such as microporosity, by increasing the maximum sintering temperatures from 1100 to 1400 °C. The different scaffold types were characterized for microporosity, compression strength, and nanoarchitecture. The in vivo results, based on a rabbit calvarial defect model showed that bony ingrowth, as a measure of osteoconduction, was independent from scaffold's microporosity. The same applies to in vitro osteoclastic resorbability, since on all tested scaffold types, osteoclasts formed on their surfaces and resorption pits upon exposure to mature osteoclasts were visible. Thus, for wide-open porous HA-based scaffolds, a low degree of microporosity and high mechanical strength yield optimal osteoconduction and creeping substitution. Based on our study, non-unions, the major complication during demanding bone regeneration procedures, could be prevented

TPMS Microarchitectures for Vertical Bone Augmentation and Osteoconduction: An In Vivo Study

Triply periodic minimal surface microarchitectures (TPMS) were developed by mathematicians and evolved in all kingdoms of living organisms. Renowned for their lightweight yet robust attributes, TPMS structures find application in diverse fields, such as the construction of satellites, aircrafts, and electric vehicles. Moreover, these microarchitectures, despite their intricate geometric patterns, demonstrate potential for application as bone substitutes, despite the inherent gothic style of natural bone microarchitecture. Here, we produced three TPMS microarchitectures, D-diamond, G-gyroid, and P-primitive, by 3D printing from hydroxyapatite. We explored their mechanical characterization and, further, implanted them to study their bone augmentation and osteoconduction potential. In terms of strength, the D-diamond and G-gyroid performed significantly better than the P-primitive. In a calvarial defect model and a calvarial bone augmentation model, where osteoconduction is determined as the extent of bony bridging of the defect and bone augmentation as the maximal vertical bone ingrowth, the G-gyroid performed significantly better than the P-primitive. No significant difference in performance was observed between the G-gyroid and D-diamond. Since, in real life, the treatment of bone deficiencies in patients comprises elements of defect bridging and bone augmentation, ceramic scaffolds with D-diamond and G-gyroid microarchitectures appear as the best choice for a TPMS-based scaffold in bone tissue engineering

Influence of Scaffold Microarchitecture on Angiogenesis and Regulation of Cell Differentiation during the Early Phase of Bone Healing: A Transcriptomics and Histological Analysis

The early phase of bone healing is a complex and poorly understood process. With additive manufacturing, we can generate a specific and customizable library of bone substitutes to explore this phase. In this study, we produced tricalcium phosphate-based scaffolds with microarchitectures composed of filaments of 0.50 mm in diameter, named Fil050G, and 1.25 mm named Fil125G, respectively. The implants were removed after only 10 days in vivo followed by RNA sequencing (RNAseq) and histological analysis. RNAseq results revealed upregulation of adaptive immune response, regulation of cell adhesion, and cell migration-related genes in both of our two constructs. However, significant overexpression of genes linked to angiogenesis, regulation of cell differentiation, ossification, and bone development was observed solely in Fil050G scaffolds. Moreover, quantitative immunohistochemistry of structures positive for laminin revealed a significantly higher number of blood vessels in Fil050G samples. Furthermore, µCT detected a higher amount of mineralized tissue in Fil050G samples suggesting a superior osteoconductive potential. Hence, different filament diameters and distances in bone substitutes significantly influence angiogenesis and regulation of cell differentiation involved in the early phase of bone regeneration, which precedes osteoconductivity and bony bridging seen in later phases and as consequence, impacts the overall clinical outcome