Microfibrillar Polysaccharide-Derived Biochars as Sodium Benzoate Adsorbents

Microfibrillar biochars of chitin (CTF), chitosan (CSF), and cellulose (CLF) were fabricated via green homogenization and a pyrolysis process, and were subsequently explored as adsorbents for removing over-released sodium benzoate (SB) in aqueous systems. The structure, composition, morphology, and adsorption behavior of the as-fabricated biochars were characterized. Results suggest that all biochars, with a microscaled fibrillar structure and foam-like network morphology, underwent severe chemical transition during the pyrolysis process, thereby causing an enhancement of the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area, pore volume, and aromatic and carbonaceous composition. Consequently, N-doped porous CTF/CSF microfibrillar biochars displayed a distinguished capture capacity toward SB compared to that of their fibrillar precursors. Tailoring the chemical composition, porous structure, and sorption mechanism constitutes a possible strategy to achieve adequate structural effects of polysaccharide microfibrillar chars for potential application in environmental treatment or bioenergy

Synthesis and Structural Characterization of Mixed-Valent Ytterbium and Europium Complexes Supported by a Phenoxy(quinolinyl)amide Ligand

The formation of mixed-valent ytterbium and europium complexes L₄Ln^III₂Ln^II (Ln = Yb (<b>1</b>), Eu (<b>2</b>)) was observed for the first time in the spontaneous reduction reaction system of quinolinyl aminophenol (H₂L) with Ln­[N­(SiMe₃)₂]₃ (Ln = Yb, Eu) in toluene at 90 °C, whereas the same reaction with Sm­[N­(SiMe₃)₂]₃ gave the expected monoamido samarium complex LSmN­(SiMe₃)₂(DME) (<b>4</b>). The isolation of the binuclear ytterbium complex L₃Yb₂ (<b>3</b>) under mild conditions demonstrates that the transformation from a trivalent ytterbium complex to the mixed-valent ytterbium species <b>1</b> may involve a ligand redistribution reaction and homolysis of the Yb–N bond

Route-Finding Performance.

<p>The bar plots show trial-by-trial times for individual subjects in the three groups when they used the tag reader (lower panels) or did not use the tag reader (upper panels). Yellow bars designate outliers. Two box plots at the right show the distributions of the times-to-completion for the three groups of subjects in terms of the median times (red lines), 25% and 75% quartile limits (blue boxes), the maximum and minimum values (whiskers), and outliers (red crosses) for the three groups. Upper and lower dash lines, when present, mark the preset range limits if any outliers are outside the limits. Separate box plots show times for testing with and without the tag reader. A third box plot shows the within-subjects difference in times-to-completion with and without the tag reader.</p

Segmentation of a Digital Tag’s image from its background.

<p>Left: a digital tag on a wall. Right: the IR image of the same tag demonstrating the segmentation advantage offered by the retro-reflective effect and unique patterns within the tag design.</p

Operating range of the Tag Reader (green).

<p>The boundaries of the green region show the maximum and minimum distances for successful reading of the tags as a function of the angle between the tag reader and the normal to the tag.</p

Tag Browsing Performance.

<p>Accuracy (the percentage of successful tag-recognition events out of a total of 38 opportunities during four traversals of a corridor) in the Tag Browsing Experiment: Medians (red lines), the 25% and 75% quartile limits (blue boxes), and the minimum and maximum values (whiskers) are shown for three groups of subjects.</p

Building Navigator Route Finding Mode.

<p>A subject, located at the red triangle, wishes to travel to the target location marked by the purple star. Waypoints are indicated by circles. Note that “East-West” and “North-South” in the verbal descriptions refer to corridors. See the text for a description of the functionality of the route-finding mode.</p

Exploration Performance.

<p>The bar plots show trial-by-trial times-to-completion for individual subjects in the three groups when they used the tag reader (lower panels) or did not use the tag reader (upper panels). Yellow bars designate outliers. Two box plots at the right show the distributions of the times-to-completion for the three groups of subjects in terms of the median times (red lines), 25% and 75% quartile limits (blue boxes), the maximum and minimum values (whiskers), and outliers (red crosses) for the three groups. Upper and lower dash lines, when present, mark the preset range limits if any outliers are outside the limits. Separate box plots show times for testing with and without the tag reader. A third box plot shows the within-subjects difference in times-to-completion with and without the tag reader.</p

Schematic drawing of the Digital Sign System (DSS).

<p>Schematic drawing of the Digital Sign System (DSS).</p

Building Navigator Explore Mode.

<p>A subject’s location and north-facing direction are indicated by the red triangle in the floor plan. See the text for a description of the functionality of the Explore mode.</p