Artiles
Article
25 September 2023Anion Exchange Membrane Reinforced with Polyethylene Substrate for Alkaline Fuel Cell Applications
To enhance mechanical robustness of our in-house anion exchange membrane (QPAF-4), the reinforcement technique was applied using ozone-treated, porous polyethylene (PE) thin film (Toray SETELA) as a substrate. Homogenous and flexible reinforced membranes (QPAF-4-PE, 15–20 µm thick) were obtained by bar-coating method. The cross-sectional SEM image and EDS analysis revealed triple-layered (sandwich-like) structure without detectable pinholes. The QPAF-4-PE with ion exchange capacity (IEC) of 1.48 meq·g−1 exhibited lower water uptake (15 wt% at 90% relative humidity) and slightly lower hydroxide ion conductivity (71 mS·cm−1 at 80 ℃) than those of the pristine QPAF-4 (IEC = 1.84 meq·g−1, 25 wt% water uptake and 82 mS·cm−1 of the conductivity). The reinforced QPAF-4-PE exhibited slightly higher viscoelasticity (particularly, in MD direction) due to the suppressed water absorbability. Furthermore, the elongation at break increased by 9.8% in TD direction and 6.3% in MD direction. An H2/O2 fuel cell using QPAF-4-PE as membrane was investigated at different back-pressure, in which the cell with 100 kPa back-pressure onto the cathode side only achieved the maximum performance (176 mW·cm−2 at current density of 364 mA·cm−2) and the longest durability for (>200 h) at a constant current density of 100 mA·cm−2 maintaining 0.43 V of the cell voltage (67% remaining). The durability was eight times longer than that with ambient pressure and two times longer than that with back-pressure on both sides.
Article
19 September 2023Advancing Green Hydrogen Production in Saudi Arabia: Harnessing Solar Energy and Seawater Electrolysis
The transition to clean and sustainable energy sources is crucial for combating the challenges posed by climate change. Green hydrogen, produced through renewable energy-driven electrolysis, holds significant promise as a viable clean energy carrier. The study introduces a system that leverages abundant solar energy and utilizes seawater as the feedstock for electrolysis, potentially offering a cost-effective solution. A comprehensive mathematical model, implemented in MATLAB, is employed to simulate the design and operational efficiency of the proposed green hydrogen production system. The system’s core components include solar panels as a clean energy source, an advanced MPPT charge controller ensuring optimal power delivery to the electrolyzer, and a seawater tank serving as the electrolyte source. The model combines these elements, allowing for continuous operation and efficient hydrogen production, addressing concerns about energy losses and cost-effectiveness. Results demonstrate the influence of solar irradiance on the system’s performance, revealing the need to account for seasonal variations when designing green hydrogen production facilities. Theoretical experiments are conducted to evaluate the behavior of a lithium battery, essential for stabilizing the system’s output and ensuring continuous operation during periods of low solar radiation.
Article
16 September 2023Hepatic Lysosomal Enzyme Activity in Primary Biliary Cholangitis
Background: Lysosomal enzymes are implicated in autophagy and senescence. Hepatic lysosomal enzymes have not been studied in Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC). We therefore quantified the activities of lysosomal hydrolases in liver tissue of PBC patients. Methods: We compared enzyme activities in liver tissue from PBC patients with normal livers. Alcoholic liver disease and chronic viral disease served as disease controls. Results: Cathepsin B1 was significantly increased in early PBC (225.1 ± 18.06 mean ± SD, p < 0.0001) and reduced in later stages (66.5 ± 9.7, p = 0.004, controls 130.4 ± 14.9). It was reduced in patients with extensive fibrosis such as alcoholic and viral cirrhosis (p < 0.01 and p = 0.004 respectively) but not in chronic hepatitis. Cathepsin D was increased in early PBC (39 × 103 ± 4.8 SD, p < 0.0001) and less so in later stages (20.1 × 103 ± 3.9, p = 0.05, controls 14.1 × 103 ± 2.9). It was also increased in the presence of histological necro-inflammation in hepatitis. Treatment with ursodeoxycholate (UDCA) restored the abnormal values of enzymes in PBC. Lipid hydrolases mostly paralleled the changes of Cathepsins. Sequential measurements in serum of patients with acute alcoholic hepatitis showed that cathepsin B1 gradually decreases, and esterases increase as aminotransferases improve. Conclusions: The increased activity of lysosomal enzymes in early PBC are possibly on line with increased senescence. Treatment with UDCA restores abnormal values. In chronic liver disease, Cathepsin B1 reduction is associated with fibrosis and increased cathepsin D with necro-inflammation. Abnormalities of lysosomal enzymes indicate impairment of the final stage of autophagy in chronic liver disease.
Commentary
14 September 2023Synthetic Biology Industry in China: Current State and Future Prospects
In this article, we provided an overview of the current state of the SynBio industry in China with a focus on its research and technology, its main applications, and major players. We also discussed future prospects including the challenges and advantages of the SynBio industry in China.
Perspective
13 September 2023Estimate of Economic Impact of EVs Li-ion Batteries Recovery
Nowadays, increasing attention is directed towards the sustainable use of raw materials. For a circular economy, recovery from spent devices represents a fundamental practice. With the transition to electric mobility, an increasing number of devices powered by lithium batteries are produced. Indeed, this is the fastest growing sector producing spent batteries, which are an important secondary source of critical raw materials, such as lithium, cobalt, graphite, and nickel. Therefore, this work aims to quantify the economic impact of recovering raw materials from lithium batteries used in the electric vehicles sector. Based on the chemical composition of the various lithium batteries and their market diffusion, the intrinsic economic value of this waste has been estimated to be around 6500 €/ton. Starting from the literature data on the global energy demand from lithium batteries and deriving the trend of their specific energy over time, the mass of material introduced into the market annually is estimated to reach 60 Mton/year by 2040. The annual amount of end-of-life lithium batteries was calculated by applying the Weibull distribution to describe the probability of failure, yielding 10 Mton/year by 2040. Finally, based on these results, the economic impact of the recovery market was assessed for two different scenarios.
Article
08 September 2023Synthesis and Characterization of Cyclic Carbonate End-Functional Linear and Star Polyesters via Ring-Opening Polymerization
Well-defined α-(cyclic carbonate), ω-hydroxyl heterotelechelic poly (D,L-lactide)s (PDLLAs) were prepared with good end-group fidelity by ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of D,L-lactide catalyzed by organo catalyst namely, N,N′ dimethyl amino pyridine (DMAP) in conjunction with a renewable, functional bio-based initiator namely glycerol 1,2-carbonate (GC) in bulk at 135 °C with 82% yield. In the case of GC/DMAP catalyzed polymerizations, the HO-PDLLA-COOH series was not observed in MALDI TOF mass analysis unlike as obtained due to transesterification reactions when catalyzed by GC/Sn(Oct)2. Also, cyclic carbonate end-functional 4-arm star poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) was prepared via coupling of GC with (PCL-COOH)4 at room temperature in the presence of N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) and DMAP. Quantitative conversion of hydroxyl functionality in (PCL-OH)4 to carboxylic acid and then to cyclic carbonate functionality was achieved with 90% yield for low molecular weight 4-arm star PCL confirmed by NMR, FT-IR, and MALDI TOF mass spectroscopy.
Review
01 September 2023In Vitro BioTransformation (ivBT): Definitions, Opportunities, and Challenges
Great needs always motivate the birth and development of new disciplines and tools. Here we propose in vitro BioTransformation (ivBT) as a new biomanufacturing platform, between the two dominant platforms—microbial fermentation and enzymatic biocatalysis. ivBT mediated by in vitro synthetic enzymatic biosystems (ivSEBs) is an emerging biomanufacturing platform for the production of biocommodities (i.e., low-value and bulk biochemicals). ivSEB is the in vitro reconstruction of artificial (non-natural) enzymatic pathways with numerous natural enzymes, artificial enzymes, and/or (biomimetic or natural) coenzymes without living cell’s constraints, such as cell duplication, basic metabolisms, complicated regulation, bioenergetics, and so on. The two great needs (i.e., food security and the carbon-neutral renewable energy system) have motivated the birth and development of ivBT. Food security could be addressed by making artificial food from nonfood lignocellulose and artificial photosynthesis for starch synthesis from CO2. The carbon-neutral renewable energy system could be addressed by the construction of the electricity-hydrogen-carbohydrate cycle, where starch could be a high density of hydrogen carrier (up to 14.8% H2 wt/wt) and an electricity storage compound (greater than 3000 Wh/kg). Also, ivBT can make a number of biocommodities, such as inositol, healthy sweeteners (e.g., D-allulose, D-tagatose, D-mannose), advanced biofuels, polymer precursors, organic acids, and so on. The industrial biomanufacturing of the first several biocommodities (e.g., myo-inositol, D-tagatose, D-mannose, and cellulosic starch) would wipe off any prejudice and doubt on ivBT. Huge potential markets of biocommodities with more than tens of trillions of Chinese Yuan would motivate scientists and engineers to address the remaining technical challenges and develop new tools within the next decade.
Article
01 September 2023The Priority of Nature-based over Engineered Negative Emission Technologies: Locating BECCS and DACCS within the Hierarchy of International Climate Law
Drastically reducing emissions is essential to achieve the Paris Agreement’s (PA) goal of keeping global temperature well below 2 °C, ideally at 1.5 °C. With regard to residual emissions, however, a demand for negative emission technologies (NETs), also known as carbon dioxide removal (CDR), remains. NETs are particularly necessary to reach net-zero goals by offsetting emissions in hard-to-abate sectors. This article examines the distinction between “engineered” and “nature-based” removals from the perspective of international climate change law. To that end, the relevant legal norms in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol (KP), and the PA are interpreted—with a particular emphasis on two engineered removals: bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) and direct air carbon capture and storage (DACCS). We posit that the three treaties establish a normative hierarchy that is more favorable towards so-called nature-based removals and less favorable to engineered removals (and even more favorable towards emission reductions).
Article
31 August 2023Potential Role of Exciton in Photocatalysis
This article commemorates the outstanding Russian scientists E.F. Gross and A.N. Terenin. It revisits their successors’ efforts to develop Terenin’s idea of using excitons, discovered by Gross, for photocatalytic redox reactions on wide-gap semiconductors. Terenin proposed ZnO as the subject of study. To explore the possibility of replacing photogenerated electrons and holes in a redox reaction by an exciton being a quasi-neutral particle, the test reaction of the photoactivated oxygen isotope exchange (POIE) was studied. It was found that many years of initial unsuccessful attempts were due to the fact that the exciton energy is spent on luminescence. In our experiments, the excitons decayed non-radiatively, and the long-lived electron-donor F-type and hole V-type active centers were formed by creating the 2D surface nanostructure ZnO/ZnO1−x/O−. These centers allowed to obtain the reaction efficiency 5–8 times higher than with the interband transitions. Thus, the developed 2D surface nanostructure ZnO/ZnO1−x/O− resolved the problem of using an exciton in photocatalysis and demonstrated the perspective of this nanostructure as an efficient photocatalyst.
Review
28 August 2023Dynamic Metabolic Control: From the Perspective of Regulation Logic
Establishing microbial cell factories has become a sustainable and increasingly promising approach for the synthesis of valuable chemicals. However, introducing heterologous pathways into these cell factories can disrupt the endogenous cellular metabolism, leading to suboptimal production performance. To address this challenge, dynamic pathway regulation has been developed and proven effective in improving microbial biosynthesis. In this review, we summarized typical dynamic regulation strategies based on their control logic. The applicable scenarios for each control logic were highlighted and perspectives for future research direction in this area were discussed.
