Copper-cobalt oxides thin films had been successfully coated on reflective aluminium substrates via a facile sol-gel dip-coating method for solar absorptance study. The optimum absorptance in the range of solar radiation is needed for further optimum design of this material for selective solar absorber application. Field emission scanning electron microscopy was used to characterize the surface morphology of the coating whereby nano-size, grain-like morphology was observed.Synchrotron with dip-speed 120 mm/min (four cycles). The operational simplicity of the dip-coating system indicated that it could be extended for coating of other mixed metal oxides as well.

The molecular organization of the epicuticle (the outermost layer) of insect wings is vital in the formation of the nanoscale surface patterns that are responsible for bestowing remarkable functional properties. Using a combination of spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques, including Synchrotron-sourced Fourier-transform infrared microspectroscopy (FTIR), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS), we have identified the chemical components that constitute the nanoscale structures on the surface of the wings of the dragonfly, Hemianax papuensis. The major components were identified to be fatty acids, predominantly hexadecanoic acid and octadecanoic acid, and n-alkanes with even numbered carbon chains ranging from C14 to C30. The data obtained from XPS depth profiling, in conjunction with that obtained from GCMS analyses, enabled the location of particular classes of compounds to different regions within the epicuticle. Hexadecanoic acid was found to be a major component of the outer region of the epicuticle, which forms the surface nanostructures, and was also detected in deeper layers along with octadecanoic acid. Aliphatic compounds were detected throughout the epicuticle, and these appeared to form a third discrete layer that was separate from both the inner and outer epicuticles, which has never previously been reported.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) decomposition was performed at a normal atmosphere and room temperature in dielectric barrier discharge microplasma reactors to reduce CO2 emissions and convert CO2 into valuable chemical materials. The outlet gases, including CO2, CO, and O2, were analyzed with gas chromatography. The results indicated that the conversions of CO2 in dielectric material‐packed reactors were all higher than that in nonpacked reactors. Particle size, dielectric constant, particle morphology, and acid‐base properties of the dielectric materials (including quartz wool, quartz sand, γ‐Al2O3, MgO, and CaO) all affected the CO2 decomposition process. The conversion of CO2 and energy efficiency achieved the highest values of 41.9 and 7.1% in a CaO‐packed reactor for the higher dielectric constant and basicity of CaO. Quartz wool was also an excellent dielectric packing material because its fiber structure provided rigid sharp edges. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 898–903, 2015

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High shear vortex fluidics coupled with NIR affords luminescent carbon dots as a scalable process.

Graphene oxide scrolls (GOS) are fabricated in high yield from a colloidal suspension of graphene oxide (GO) sheets under shear stress in a vortex fluidic device (VFD) while irradiated with a pulsed laser operating at 1064 nm and 250 mJ. This is in the absence of any other reagents with the structure of the GOS established using powder X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.

A facile aqueous based method of decorating p-phosphonic acid calix[8]arene functionalized graphene with well-dispersed ultrafine palladium nanoparticles (y2 nm) has been developed. The electrocatalytic Pd-NP-graphene nano-composite has been incorporated into a functional hydrogen sensing device using a simple drop casting technique on interdigitated electrodes.

The continually increasing use of fossil fuels throughout the world has caused carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration to grow rapidly in the atmosphere. Increasing CO2 emissions are the major cause of global warming, and a number of studies have been done to show the predicted effects of global warming. This paper reported a method of degradation of CO2 through dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma; a microplasma reactor was used to decompose CO2 into carbon monoxide (CO) at normal atmosphere and room temperature. Gas chromatography was used to analyze the compositions of the outlet gases. No carbon deposits were found in this work. A variety of parameters, such as feed flow rate, input power, frequency, discharge gap, and external electrode length were investigated. The effects of these parameters on CO2 conversion were examined. At the same time, the effects of feed flow rate and input power on the energy efficiency were studied. The results indicated that a higher conversion of CO2 can be realized with a lower feed flow rate, a limited higher input power and a lower frequency. However, a higher feed flow rate and a lower input power were beneficial for energy utilization. The discharge gap had a little effect on the conversion of CO2 in microplasma reactor. In this work, the highest conversion of CO2 was 18.0%, and the highest energy efficiency was 3.8%. The DBD microplasma is a promising method for decomposing CO2.© 2014 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd