A review of recent advances in selective catalytic NOx reduction reactor technologies

Research on NOx treatment is extensive in recent years due to growing environmental awareness. Selec- tive catalytic reduction （SCR） of NOx, as a proven technology, offers higher NOx control efficiency than many other NOx treatment methods. The present work reviews the recent development of SCR reactor technologies. Firstly, catalysts and mechanism of different SCRs were briefly summarized. Different SCR reactors, e.g. structured reactor, fluidized bed reactor and moving bed reactor, were then discussed. As a more advanced technology, multifunctional reactors were also developed for SCR process and could be divided into two categories： decoupled adsorption-reaction process and combined SCR system. The mechanism and properties of these processes were discussed in detail. Some recommendations were given for the future work in SCR reactor design. SCR reactor technology for emerging energy processes was also addressed, such as oxyfuel combustion and biofuel conversion processes, which put forward new requirements for SCR technologies and also open new opportunities for advanced design of SCR reactors.     

Atomic-Scale Dispersed Fe-Based Catalysts Confined on Nitrogen-Doped Graphene for Li-S Batteries: Polysulfides with Enhanced Conversion Efficiency

Lithium-sulfur batteries have been considered as potential electrochemical energy-storage devices owing to their satisfactory theoretical energy density. Nonetheless, the inferior conversion efficiency of polysulfides in essence leads to fast capacity decay during the discharge/charge cycle. In this work, it is successfully demonstrated that the conversion efficiency of lithium polysulfides is remarkably enhanced by employing a well-distributed atomic-scale Fe-based catalyst immobilized on nitrogen-doped graphene (Fe@NG) as a coating of separator in lithium-sulfur batteries. The quantitative electrocatalytic efficiency of the conversion of lithium polysulfides is determined through cyclic voltammetry. It is also proven that the Fe-N_X configuration with highly catalytic activity is quite beneficial for the conversion of lithium polysulfides. In addition, the adsorption and permeation experiments distinctly indicate that the strong anchoring effect, originated from the charge redistribution of N doping into the graphene matrix, inhibits the movement of lithium polysulfides. Thanks to these advantages, if the as-prepared Fe@NG catalyst is combined with polypropylene and applied as a separator (Fe@NG/PP) in Li-S batteries, a high initial capacity (1616 mA h g⁻¹ at 0.1 C), excellent capacity retention (93 % at 0.2 C, 70 % at 2 C), and superb rate performance (820 mA h g⁻¹ at 2 C) are achieved.     

Preparation and characterization of nano-Co-[4-chlorophenyl-salicylaldimine-methyl pyranopyrazole]Cl2 as a new Schiff base complex and catalyst for the solvent-free synthesis of 1-amidoalkyl-2-naphthols

By the reaction of 4-chlorobenzaldehyde with ethyl acetoacetate, malononitrile, and hydrazine hydrate, 6-amino-4-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-methyl-2,4-dihydropyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole-5-carbonitrile was prepared and then reacted with salicylaldehyde and CoCl₂·6H₂O to produce nano-Co-[4-cholorophenyl-salicylaldimine-methylpyranopyrazole]Cl₂ (nano-[Co-4CSMP]Cl₂). The prepared nano-Schiff base complex was reported for the first time and fully characterized by Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, thermal gravimetric analysis, differential thermal gravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Brunner–Emmett–Teller analyses and applied as an efficient catalyst for the synthesis of some 1-amidoalkyl-2-naphthol derivatives.     

A Tree-valued Markov Process Associated with an Admissible Family of Branching Mechanisms

Let E?R be an interval. By studying an admissible family of branching mechanisms{ψt,t ∈E} introduced in Li [Ann. Probab., 42, 41-79(2014)], we construct a decreasing Levy-CRT-valued process {Tt, t ∈ E} by pruning Lévy trees accordingly such that for each t ∈E, Tt is a ψt-Lévy tree. We also obtain an analogous process {Tt*,t ∈E} by pruning a critical Levy tree conditioned to be infinite. Under a regular condition on the admissible family of branching mechanisms, we show that the law of {Tt,t ∈E} at the ascension time A := inf{t ∈E;Tt is finite} can be represented by{Tt*,t∈E}.The results generalize those studied in Abraham and Delmas [Ann. Probab., 40, 1167-1211(2012)].     

Dodecahedral Au/Pt Nanobowls as Robust Plasmonic Electrocatalysts for Methanol Oxidation under Visible-Light Illumination

Plasmonic nanostructures with large absorption areas under resonant excitation have been utilized extensively in photon-assisted applications. In this work, dodecahedral Au nanobowls were first prepared by an easy and template-free method only through the introduction of H₂PtCl₆ and I⁻ during the growth procedure. The Au nanobowls show electron-field enhancement due to the high curvature of the bowl edge, the open region, and dodecahedral morphology. Au/Pt nanobowls, which couple plasmonic Au and catalytic Pt, were then constructed as plasmonic electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation. The mass activity reached 497.6 mA mg⁻¹ under visible-light illumination, which is 1.9 times that measured in the dark. Simultaneously, the electrocatalytic stability is also greatly improved under light excitation. The enhanced properties of the plasmonic Au/Pt electrocatalysts are ascribed to the synergistic effect of the plasmon-enhanced photothermal and hot-carrier effects on the basis of experimental investigations. This work thus offers an effective methodology to construct efficient plasmonic electrocatalysts for fuel cells.     

AuPt Bipyramid Nanoframes as Multifunctional Platforms for In Situ Monitoring of the Reduction of Nitrobenzene and Enhanced Electrocatalytic Methanol Oxidation

Multifunctional metal nanostructures with a hollow feature, especially for nanoframes, are highly attractive owing to their high surface-to-volume ratios. However, pre-grown metal nanocrystals are always involved during the preparation procedure, and a synthetic strategy without the use of a pre-grown template is still a challenge. In this article, a template-free strategy is reported for the preparation of novel AuPt alloy nanoframes through simply mixing HAuCl₄ and H₂PtCl₆ under mild conditions. The alloy nanostructures show a bipyramid-frame hollow architecture with the existence of only the ten ridges and absence of their side faces. This is the first report of bipyramid-like nanoframes and a template-free method under mild conditions. This configuration merges the plasmonic features of Au and highly active catalytic sites of Pt in a single nanostructure, making it an ideal multifunctional platform for catalyzing and monitoring the catalytic reaction in real time. The superior catalytic activity is demonstrated by using the reduction of nitrobenzene to the corresponding aminobenzene as a model reaction. More importantly, the AuPt nanoframes can track the reduction process on the basis of the SERS signals of the reactants, intermediates, and products, which helps to reveal the reaction mechanism. In addition, the AuPt nanoframes show much higher electrocatalytic properties toward the methanol oxidation reaction than commercial Pt/C electrocatalysts.     

Biosynthesis of Pd/MnO2 nanocomposite using Solanum melongena plant extract and its application for the one‐pot synthesis of 5‐substituted 1H‐tetrazoles from aryl halides

In this work, for the first time, Solanum melongena plant extract was used for the green synthesis of Pd/MnO₂ nanocomposite via reduction osf Pd(II) ions to Pd(0) and their immobilization on the surface of manganese dioxide (MnO₂) nanoparticles (NPs) as an effective support. The synthesized nanocomposite were characterized by various analytical techniques such as Fourier transform infrared (FT‐IR), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS) and UV–Vis spectroscopy. The catalytic activity of Pd/MnO₂ nanocomposite was used as a heterogeneous catalyst for the one‐pot synthesis of 5‐substituted 1H‐tetrazoles from aryl halides containing various electron‐donating or electron‐withdrawing groups in the presence of K ₄ [Fe (CN) ₆ ] as non‐toxic cyanide source and sodium azide. The products were obtained in good yields via a simple methodology and easy work‐up. The nanocatalyst can be recycled and reused several times with no remarkable loss of activity.     

Integrating Rigidity Analysis into the Exploration of Protein Conformational Pathways Using RRT* and MC

To understand how proteins function on a cellular level, it is of paramount importance to understand their structures and dynamics, including the conformational changes they undergo to carry out their function. For the aforementioned reasons, the study of large conformational changes in proteins has been an interest to researchers for years. However, since some proteins experience rapid and transient conformational changes, it is hard to experimentally capture the intermediate structures. Additionally, computational brute force methods are computationally intractable, which makes it impossible to find these pathways which require a search in a high-dimensional, complex space. In our previous work, we implemented a hybrid algorithm that combines Monte-Carlo (MC) sampling and RRT*, a version of the Rapidly Exploring Random Trees (RRT) robotics-based method, to make the conformational exploration more accurate and efficient, and produce smooth conformational pathways. In this work, we integrated the rigidity analysis of proteins into our algorithm to guide the search to explore flexible regions. We demonstrate that rigidity analysis dramatically reduces the run time and accelerates convergence.     

Synthesis and characterization of silica-coated magnetite nanoparticles modified with bis(pyrazolyl) triazine ruthenium(II) complex and the application of these nanoparticles as a highly efficient catalyst for the hydrogen transfer reduction of ketones

We present a facile and efficient method for modifying the surface of silica-coated Fe₃O₄ magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with bis(pyrazolyl) triazine ruthenium(II) complex [ MNPs@BPT–Ru (II) ] . Field emission-scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric/derivative thermogravimetry analysis, X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry analyses were employed for characterizing the structure of these nanoparticles. MNPs@BPT–Ru(II) nanoparticles proved to be a magnetic, reusable, and heterogeneous catalyst for the hydrogen transfer reduction of ketone derivatives. In addition, highly pure products were obtained with excellent yields in relatively short times in the presence of this catalyst. A comparison of this catalyst with those previously used for the hydrogen transfer reactions proved the uniqueness of MNPs@BPT–Ru(II) nanoparticle which is due to its inherent magnetic properties and large surface area. The presented method also had other advantages such as simple reaction conditions, eco-friendliness, high recovery ability, easy work-up, and low cost.