The role of surface electrification on the growth and structural features of titania nanoparticles

TiO2 particles, prepared by following a sol-gel preparative route, were submitted to hydrothermal steps performed at solution pH values corresponding, respectively, to positive, zero and negative oxide surface charges. After the hydrothermal step all the samples were thermally treated at 300 and 600degreesC, for the same length of time (6 h). The powders, both precursors and calcined samples, were characterized for phase composition-crystallinity. particle morphology and surface electrification features. The role played by the particles electrification during the hydrothermal step in affecting the physico-chemical properties of the powders is discussed

Electrochemical recovery of zinc from the spent pickling baths coming from the hot dip galvanizing industry. Potentiostatic operation

An electrochemical reactor was developed to recover zinc from the spent pickling solutions coming from the hot dip galvanizing industry. These solutions mainly contain ZnCl2 and FeCl2 in aqueous HCl media. The effect of the applied potential on the figures of merit (fractional conversion, current efficiency, space-time yield and specific energy consumption) of the electrochemical reactor was analysed. Voltammetric experiments were performed previously in order to select the optimum conditions to be applied in the electrolysis experiments. From the I-V curves it was inferred that bulk zinc deposition started from potential values more cathodic than -0.99 V. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) appeared from -0.45 V and masked the zinc cathodic peak C1, related to bulk zinc deposition, at high HCl concentrations. The presence of HCl inhibited iron deposition in synthetic samples. The additives present in the real baths, which diminish the massive hydrogen generation, allowed the observation of peak C1. The potential values to be applied in the electrolysis experiments were chosen from the voltammetric experiments and ranged between -1 V and -1.75 V. In the absence of iron in solution, as the electrode potential was shifted towards more negative values, the space-time yield of zinc and its fractional conversion increased because of the increase in the electrode roughness and the hydrogen turbulence-promoting action. Simultaneously, the specific energy consumption decreased initially due to the increase in the zinc conversion rate but decreased for the most cathodic potential value due to HER. The presence of iron in synthetic solutions led to a decrease in current efficiency associated with the reverse redox Fe 2+/Fe3+ system and to the enhancement of the HER, which also induced increments in the local pH and the subsequent zinc redissolution for the most cathodic potential values. On the contrary, the additives present in the real spent pickling baths avoided the adverse effects of iron, and zinc electrodeposition was possible even at high cathodic potential values. In fact, a potential value of -1.75 V was selected as the optimum since the conversion, the current efficiency and the space time yield obtained in the real baths were relatively high.Authors want to express their gratitude to the Universidad Politecnica de Valencia for the economical support in the project reference PAID-06-08, and to the Generalitat Valenciana for the financing of the project reference GV/2010/029.Carrillo Abad, J.; García Gabaldón, M.; Ortega Navarro, EM.; Pérez-Herranz, V. (2011). Electrochemical recovery of zinc from the spent pickling baths coming from the hot dip galvanizing industry. Potentiostatic operation. Separation and Purification Technology. 81(2):200-207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2011.07.029S20020781

Dysfunctional LAT2 amino acid transporter is associated with cataract in mouse and humans

Cataract, the loss of ocular lens transparency, accounts for ∼50% of worldwide blindness and has been associated with water and solute transport dysfunction across lens cellular barriers. We show that neutral amino acid antiporter LAT2 (Slc7a8) and uniporter TAT1 (Slc16a10) are expressed on mouse ciliary epithelium and LAT2 also in lens epithelium. Correspondingly, deletion of LAT2 induced a dramatic decrease in lens essential amino acid levels that was modulated by TAT1 defect. Interestingly, the absence of LAT2 led to increased incidence of cataract in mice, in particular in older females, and a synergistic effect was observed with simultaneous lack of TAT1. Screening SLC7A8 in patients diagnosed with congenital or age-related cataract yielded one homozygous single nucleotide deletion segregating in a family with congenital cataract. Expressed in HeLa cells, this LAT2 mutation did not support amino acid uptake. Heterozygous LAT2 variants were also found in patients with cataract some of which showed a reduced transport function when expressed in HeLa cells. Whether heterozygous LAT2 variants may contribute to the pathology of cataract needs to be further investigated. Overall, our results suggest that defects of amino acid transporter LAT2 are implicated in cataract formation, a situation that may be aggravated by TAT1 defects

Photodegradation of Pollutants in Air: Enhanced Properties of Nano-TiO2Prepared by Ultrasound

Nanocrystalline TiO2samples were prepared by promoting the growth of a sol–gel precursor, in the presence of water, under continuous (CW), or pulsed (PW) ultrasound. All the samples turned out to be made of both anatase and brookite polymorphs. Pulsed US treatments determine an increase in the sample surface area and a decrease of the crystallite size, that is also accompanied by a more ordered crystalline structure and the samples appear to be more regular and can be considered to contain a relatively low concentration of lattice defects. These features result in a lower recombination rate between electrons and holes and, therefore, in a good photocatalytic performance toward the degradation of NOxin air. The continuous mode induces, instead, the formation of surface defects (two components are present in XPS Ti 2p3/2region) and consequently yields the best photocatalyst. The analysis of all the characterization data seems to suggest that the relevant parameter imposing the final features of the oxides is the ultrasound total energypervolume (Etot/V) and not the acoustic intensity or the pulsed/continuous mode

X-ray absorption spectroscopy characterization of Zn underpotential deposition on Au(111) from phosphate supporting electrolyte

Zn K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) has been used to investigate the structure of Zn monolayers prepared on Au(111) electrodes via underpotential deposition (UPD) from phosphate supporting electrolyte. Theoretical modeling of the XAS data indicates that the Zn adatoms adopt a commensurate ({radical}3x{radical}3)R30{sup o} ({mu}{sub sc} = 0.33) adlayer structure and reside within the 3-fold hollow sites of the Au(111) surface. Meanwhile, phosphate counter-ions co-adsorb on the UPD adlayer and bridge between the Zn adatoms in a ({radical}3x{radical}3)R30{sup o} ({mu}{sub sc} = 0.33) configuration, with each phosphorous atom residing above a vacant 3-fold hollow site of the Au(111). Significantly, this surface structure is invariant between the electrochemical potential for UPD adlayer formation and the onset of bulk Zn electrodeposition. Analysis of the Zn K-edge absorption onset also presents the possibility that the Zn adatoms do not fully discharge during the process of UPD, which had been proposed in prior voltammetric studies of the phosphate/Zn(UPD)/Au(111) system

THERMAL MODEL OF A THINNED-DIE COOLING SYSTEM

ABSTRACT For through-silicon optical probing of microprocessors, the heat generated by devices with power over 100W must be dissipate