Synthesis and characterization of visible light responsive N-TiO2 mixed crystal by a modified hydrothermal process

N doped TiO₂ with anatase and rutile mixed crystal were prepared by using tetrabutyl titanate as the precursor via a modified hydrothermal process and calcination at 320 °C. The microstructure and morphology of samples were characterized by XRD, UV-vis-DRS, FTIR and XPS. The results showed that N-TiO₂ particles were crystallized to anatase and rutile mixed crystal structure; they were presented narrow particle size distribution, and the average particle size was ca. 13.5 nm calculated from XRD results. It was found that the N-doped TiO₂ particles showed strong visible-light absorption and high photocatalytic activity for the mineralization of Rhodamine B under irradiation by visible light (400-500 nm). The high visible-light photocatalytic activity of the obtained N-doped TiO₂ might result from the synergetic effect of nitrogen doping and the mixed lattice structure of N-TiO₂. Possible mechanism of N-TiO₂ mixed crystal formed under hydrothermal conditions was discussed.     

Cytosolic escape of mitochondrial DNA triggers cGAS-STING-NLRP3 axis-dependent nucleus pulposus cell pyroptosis

Low back pain (LBP) is a major musculoskeletal disorder and the socioeconomic problem with a high prevalence that mainly involves intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration, characterized by progressive nucleus pulposus (NP) cell death and the development of an inflammatory microenvironment in NP tissue. Excessively accumulated cytosolic DNA acts as a damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) that is monitored by the cGAS-STING axis to trigger the immune response in many degenerative diseases. NLRP3 inflammasome-dependent pyroptosis is a type of inflammatory programmed death that promotes a chronic inflammatory response and tissue degeneration. However, the relationship between the cGAS-STING axis and NLRP3 inflammasome-induced pyroptosis in the pathogenesis of IVD degeneration remains unclear. Here, we used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histopathology to demonstrate that cGAS, STING, and NLRP3 are associated with the degree of IVD degeneration. Oxidative stress induced cGAS-STING axis activation and NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis in a STING-dependent manner in human NP cells. Interestingly, the canonical morphological and functional characteristics of mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) opening with the cytosolic escape of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) were observed in human NP cells under oxidative stress. Furthermore, the administration of a specific pharmacological inhibitor of mPTP and self-mtDNA cytosolic leakage effectively reduced NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptotic NP cell death and microenvironmental inflammation in vitro and degenerative progression in a rat disc needle puncture model. Collectively, these data highlight the critical roles of the cGAS-STING-NLRP3 axis and pyroptosis in the progression of IVD degeneration and provide promising therapeutic approaches for discogenic LBP.Subject terms: Cell death, Diseases     

页岩矿物不同润湿性表征与吸附微观机理

无机矿物作为页岩气吸附的重要载体,其表面性质对甲烷吸附能力有着重要影响,而润湿性作为固体重要表面性质之一,对矿物气体吸附能力的影响不可忽视.文章以蒙脱石和石英作为研究对象,通过对矿物表面甲基化(-CH₃)和羟基化(-OH)处理来改变其润湿性,以探究无机矿物表面润湿性对甲烷吸附能力的影响.采用分子动力学方法研究矿物体系的润湿性,用接触角对润湿性进行定量表征,并构建纳米狭缝,结合巨正则蒙特卡罗方法模拟润湿性改变前后,CH₄在矿物中的吸附变化.研究结果表明,水滴在羟基化矿物表面迅速破裂并铺展在矿物表面,而在甲基化表面铺展程度较小,普遍呈半球形.羟基化蒙脱石和石英表面的润湿接触角分别为12.7°和26.5°,均小于其甲基化表面接触角62.5°和85.7°.甲基化矿物甲烷吸附量均高于其羟基化,气体几乎大都以吸附状态位于孔隙壁面,随着矿物亲水性的减弱,其对甲烷吸附能力增强.     

A Fast Algorithm for Wave Propagation from a Plane or a Cylindrical Surface

The newly developed Taylor-Interpolation-FFT (TI-FFT) algorithm dramatically increases the computational speeds for millimeter wave propagation from a planar (cylindrical) surface onto a “quasi-planar” (“quasi-cylindrical”) surface. Two different scenarios are considered in this article: the planar TI-FFT is for the computation of the wave propagation from a plane onto a “quasi-planar” surface and the cylindrical TI-FFT is for the computation of wave propagation from a cylindrical surface onto a “quasi-cylindrical” surface. Due to the use of the FFT, the TI-FFT algorithm has a computational complexity of O(N ² log₂  N ²) for an N × N computational grid, instead of N ⁴ for the direct integration method. The TI-FFT algorithm has a low sampling rate according to the Nyquist sampling theorem. The algorithm has accuracy down to −80 dB and it works particularly well for narrow-band fields and “quasi-planar” (“quasi-cylindrical”) surfaces.     

Levitation performance of the magnetized bulk high-Tc superconducting magnet with different trapped fields

To a high-T_c superconducting (HTS) maglev system which needs large levitation force density, the magnetized bulk high-T_c superconductor (HTSC) magnet is a good candidate because it can supply additional repulsive or attractive force above a permanent magnet guideway (PMG). Because the induced supercurrent within a magnetized bulk HTSC is the key parameter for the levitation performance, and it is sensitive to the magnetizing process and field, so the magnetized bulk HTSC magnets with different magnetizing processes had various levitation performances, not only the force magnitude, but also its force relaxation characteristics. Furthermore, the distribution and configuration of the induced supercurrent are also important factor to decide the levitation performance, especially the force relaxation characteristics. This article experimentally investigates the influences of different magnetizing processes and trapped fields on the levitation performance of a magnetized bulk HTSC magnet with smaller size than the magnetic inter-pole distance of PMG, and the obtained results are qualitatively analyzed by the Critical State Model. The test results and analyses of this article are useful for the suitable choice and optimal design of magnetized bulk HTSC magnets.     

Kinetic glass transition in a micellar system with short-range attractive interaction

We show that percolation and structural arrest transitions coexist in different regions of the phase diagram of a copolymer-micellar system and relate them to short-range intermicellar attraction. The intermediate scattering function shows a nonergodic transition along a temperature and concentration dependent line. Analyses show a logarithmic time dependence, attributed to a higher-order glass transition singularity predicted by mode-coupling theory, followed by a power law.     

Freeman离子源的特性与改进研究

此文简要叙述用于离子束材料改性装置的Ｆｒｅｅｍａｎ离子源的特性，其主要参数：灯丝电流、孤压、磁场、气流量和吸极电压与引出离子束流强的关系。对源体内部因微漏冷却水（真空度由３．９×１０－４降至４．２×１０－４Ｐａ）致使气体分子电离、起弧困难和等离子体不稳作了实验研究；对灯丝与弧室间的氮化硼绝绝物上沉积被溅射出的Ｗ、Ｍｏ原子导致绝缘下降、灯丝寿命缩短进行了部份结构改进。结果表明，提高加工工艺，确保真空系统密封性能和输入气体纯度对弧室内气体分子碰撞电离和等离子体的稳定至关重要；在ＢＮ绝缘物上放置钼制屏蔽罩有效地屏蔽掉Ｗ、ＭＯ原子沉积使灯丝寿命延长一倍，达到了４０小时。     

Visible-light-mediated external-reductant-free reductive cross coupling of benzylammonium salts with (hetero)aryl nitriles

Herein we report a novel visible-light-mediated external reductant-free reductive cross coupling for the construction of C sp~2–C sp~3 bonds. A variety of benzylammonium salts underwent selective coupling with(hetero)aryl nitriles to deliver important diarylmethanes under mild reaction conditions. Importantly, photocatalysts can be omitted for many cases, which might involve the electron donor acceptor(EDA) complex. Mechanistic studies indicated benzylic radicals might be involved as the key intermediates. Moreover, the in situ generated NMe_3 via cleavage of C–N bond in ammonium salts acts as the electron donor,thus avoiding the use of external-reductant.     

Theoretical investigation into coordination and selectivity of uranyl-unilateral benzotriazole salophens (X = O/S) for R/S-triadimefons

The design of new uranyl-ligands (uranyl-Ls) is of great significance for the separation and utilization of uranium. In this paper, the triazole group was introduced into uranyl-salophen (uranyl-S) to form new asymmetric uranyl-unilateral benzotriazole salophen (uranyl-UBS); we further replaced two oxygen atoms of uranyl-UBS with two sulfur atoms to generate uranyl-unilateral benzotriazole thio-salophen (uranyl-UBTS) as a new receptor. Then, we comprehensively explored coordination models of uranyl-UBS and uranyl-UBTS with R/S-triadimefons (R/S-TDFs) enantiomers as the guests using density functional theory calculations at the B3LYP//RECP/6-311G** level; we then investigated enantioselectivity recognition of the new receptors to the guests R/S-TDFs. The results indicated that the uranium atoms of the receptors uranyl-S, uranyl-UBS and uranyl-UBTS could coordinate with the carbonyl oxygens in guests R/S-TDFs to form complexes of guest-receptors R/S-TDFs-uranyl-Ls that exhibited two stable V-shaped structures with quite different properties. It was found that the coordination ability to the guests R/S-TDFs is uranyl-UBTS > uranyl-UBS > uranyl-S, while the enantioselectivity for the guests is uranyl-UBTS > uranyl-S > uranyl-UBS and, when the receptor is the same, R-TDF has stronger coordination ability than S-TDF. These results provide information and theoretical supports for the experiments of asymmetric uranyl-UBS with R/S-TDFs, and produce a reference for further exploring the coordination characteristics of asymmetric uranyl-salophen with the triazole derivatives.     

Cuprous oxide/titanium dioxide composite photocatalytic decolorization of reactive brilliant red X-3B dyes wastewater under visible light

Research on Chemical Intermediates - In recent years, how to improve photocatalytic performance under visible light has become one of the research hot topics. The nano-TiO2 particles were...