An ultrafast chargeable polymer electrode based on the combination of nitroxide radical and aqueous electrolyte

A film of poly(2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyloxy-4-yl vinylether) coated on a current collector displayed a rapid and reversible electrochemical response in aqueous electrolytes, and allowed an ultrafast full charging of 3 mC cm À2 in as short as 3 seconds by virtue of the combination of the hydrophilic radical polymer and the aqueous electrolyte possessing a high electrical conductivity. Some nitroxide radical molecules, such as 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (TEMPO), are robust and known to show a reversible redox ability in organic and aqueous solutions, 1 and they have often been studied as a redox mediator in sensors and catalysts. 4,8 Rapid charging is one of the most important performances of secondary batteries; a short charging time would lead to significant advantages in our use of portable electric devices equipped with a secondary battery. Conventional Li-ion batteries cannot be rapidly charged because the charging process involves the slow de-intercalation of lithium ions from the metal oxide cathode, often taking more than 30 minutes for full charging. On the other hand, our previously reported radical polymer battery, which was composed of a lipophilic radical polymer as the cathode active material and an organic electrolyte containing a lithium salt, such as ethylene carbonate containing LiPF 6 , performed a rapid full charging in ca. 1 minute. In this paper, we report, for the first time, an aqueous electrolyte-based radical polymer battery that has very fast charging characteristics. We have designed poly(2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyloxy-4-yl vinylether) (PTVE) as an electrodeactive and hydrophilic polyvinylether-backboned polymer bearing a TEMPO pendant group (Scheme 1), which shows a reversible one-electron oxidation capability even in aqueous electrolytes. This functionality and compact molecular designing of PTVE allowed a high formula-weight-based charging-discharging capacity per weight of 135 mAh g À1 , which has improved from those of conventional redox polymers, such as polyvinylferrocene À1 ) by our group. PTVE with a molecular weight of M n = 78 000 (M w /M n = 1.2) and unpaired electron content of 0.97 per monomer unit (a maximum effective charging-discharging capacity per weight of 131 mAh g À1 ) was prepared by the cationic polymerization of 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyloxy vinylether 17 using trifluoroborane-diethylether as the initiator. The polymer was soluble in acetonitrile, but swollen and not soluble in water.w The acetonitrile solutions of PTVE (10-50 g/L) were spin-coated on a current collector such as a glassy carbon substrate, followed by drying at 80 1C for 24 h under vacuum, to yield the PTVE film with a thickness of 35 nm-1 mm, respectively. The cyclic voltammogram of the PTVE film repeatedly displayed a chemically reversible redox wave at 0.73 V vs. Ag/AgCl (Inset of Scheme 1 Redox couple of PTVE

Training with Hybrid Assistive Limb for walking function after total knee arthroplasty

BackgroundThe Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL, CYBERDYNE) is a wearable robot that provides assistance to patients while walking, standing, and performing leg movements based on the intended movement of the wearer. We aimed to assess the effect of HAL training on the walking ability, range of motion (ROM), and muscle strength of patients after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, and to compare the functional status after HAL training to the conventional training methods after surgery.MethodsNine patients (10 knees) underwent HAL training (mean age 74.1 ± 5.7 years; height 150.4 ± 6.5 cm; weight 61.2 ± 8.9 kg), whereas 10 patients (11 knees) underwent conventional rehabilitation (mean age 78.4 ± 8.0 years; height 150.5 ± 10.0 cm; weight 59.1 ± 9.8 kg). Patients underwent HAL training during 10 to 12 (average 14.4 min a session) sessions over a 4-week period, 1 week after TKA. There was no significant difference in the total physical therapy time including HAL training between the HAL and control groups. Gait speed, step length, ROM, and muscle strength were evaluated.ResultsThe nine patients completed the HAL training sessions without adverse events. The walking speed and step length in the self-selected walking speed condition, and the walking speed in the maximum walking speed condition were greater in the HAL group than in the control group at 4 and 8 weeks (P < 0.05). The step length in the maximum walking speed condition was greater in the HAL group than in the control group at 2, 4, and 8 weeks (P < 0.05). The extension lag and knee pain were lower in the HAL group than in the control group at 2 weeks (P < 0.05). The muscle strength of knee extension in the HAL group was greater than that in the control group at 8 weeks (P < 0.05).ConclusionHAL training after TKA can improve the walking ability, ROM, and muscle strength compared to conventional physical therapy for up to 8 weeks after TKA. Since the recovery of walking ability was earlier in the HAL group than in the control group and adverse events were not observed in this pilot study, HAL training after TKA can be considered a safe and effective rehabilitation intervention

Genetic analysis of TP53 in childhood myelodysplastic syndrome and juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia

信州大学博士（医学）・学位論文・平成23年3月31日授与（甲第886号)・齋藤章治ArticleLEUKEMIA RESEARCH. 35(12):1578-1584 (2011)journal articl

A human T cell leukemia virus type-I carrier with recurrent thrombocytopenia and various autoantibodies.

A 34-year-old woman infected with human T cell leukemia virus type-I(HTLV-I) with recurrent thrombocytopenia and various autoantibodies is described. The platelet counts fluctuated between 1.3 x 10(4)/microliters and 14.8 x 10(4)/microliters without any medical treatment, and thrombocytopenia improved with a decrease of platelet-associated IgG (PA-IgG). Autoantibodies such as rheumatoid factor, antinuclear factor, anti-Sm, anti-RNP and anti-SSA antibodies were also recognized. Marker analysis of peripheral mononuclear cells showed an increase in the proportion of CD 25+ cells, CD 3+ HLA-DR+ cells, CD4+ HLA-DR+ cells and CD8+ HLA-DR+ cells. The recurrent thrombocytopenia and development of various autoantibodies in this HTLV-I carrier are speculated to be due to the alteration of B cell functions by T cells infected with HTLV-I.</p

Demonstration of a spherical plasma mirror for the counter-propagating kilojoule-class petawatt LFEX laser system

A counter-propagating laser-beam platform using a spherical plasma mirror was developed for the kilojoule-class petawatt LFEX laser. The temporal and spatial overlaps of the incoming and redirected beams were measured with an optical interferometer and an x-ray pinhole camera. The plasma mirror performance was evaluated by measuring fast electrons, ions, and neutrons generated in the counter-propagating laser interaction with a Cu-doped deuterated film on both sides. The reflectivity and peak intensity were estimated as ∼50% and ∼5 × 1018 W/cm2, respectively. The platform could enable studies of counter-streaming charged particles in high-energy-density plasmas for fundamental and inertial confinement fusion research.Kojima S., Abe Y., Miura E., et al. Demonstration of a spherical plasma mirror for the counter-propagating kilojoule-class petawatt LFEX laser system. Optics Express 30, 43491 (2022); https://doi.org/10.1364/oe.475945

The role of methane in future climate strategies: mitigation potentials and climate impacts

This study examines model-specific assumptions and projections of methane (CH4) emissions in deep mitigation scenarios generated by integrated assessment models (IAMs). For this, scenarios of nine models are compared in terms of sectoral and regional CH4 emission reduction strategies, as well as resulting climate impacts. The models’ projected reduction potentials are compared to sector and technology-specific reduction potentials found in literature. Significant cost-effective and non-climate policy related reductions are projected in the reference case (10–36% compared to a “frozen emission factor” scenario in 2100). Still, compared to 2010, CH4 emissions are expected to rise steadily by 9–72% (up to 412 to 654 Mt CH4/year). Ambitious CO2 reduction measures could by themselves lead to a reduction of CH4 emissions due to a reduction of fossil fuels (22–48% compared to the reference case in 2100). However, direct CH4 mitigation is crucial and more effective in bringing down CH4 (50–74% compared to the reference case). Given the limited reduction potential, agriculture CH4 emissions are projected to constitute an increasingly larger share of total anthropogenic CH4 emissions in mitigation scenarios. Enteric fermentation in ruminants is in that respect by far the largest mitigation bottleneck later in the century with a projected 40–78% of total remaining CH4 emissions in 2100 in a strong (2 °C) climate policy case