Surface Reconstruction Engineering with Synergistic Effect of Mixed-Salt Passivation Treatment toward Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells

Surface passivation treatment is a widely used strategy to resolve trap-mediated nonradiative recombination toward high-efficiency metal-halide perovskite photovoltaics. However, a lack of passivation with mixture treatment has been investigated, as well as an in-depth understanding of its passivation mechanism. Here, a systematic study on a mixed-salt passivation strategy of formamidinium bromide (FABr) coupled with different F-substituted alkyl lengths of ammonium iodide is demonstrated. It is obtained better device performance with decreasing chain length of the F-substituted alkyl ammonium iodide in the presence of FABr. Moreover, they unraveled a synergistic passivation mechanism of the mixed-salt treatment through surface reconstruction engineering, where FABr dominates the reformation of the perovskite surface via reacting with the excess PbI₂. Meanwhile, ammonium iodide passivates the perovskite grain boundaries both on the surface and top perovskite bulk through penetration. This synergistic passivation engineer results in a high-quality perovskite surface with fewer defects and suppressed ion migration, leading to a champion efficiency of 23.5% with mixed-salt treatment. In addition, the introduction of the moisture resisted F-substituted groups presents a more hydrophobic perovskite surface, thus enabling the decorated devices with excellent long-term stability under a high humid atmosphere as well as operational conditions.     

Magnetic porous nano-carbon catalysts supported silver nanoparticles derived from chitin and their application in catalytic reduction reactions

The exploitation of recycled carbonaceous catalysts from renewable biomass resources such as chitin is a crucial issue for the development of the sustainable society. In this article, the chitin-based N and O doped carbon microspheres (ChC) were fabricated by a simple dissolution, sol–gel transformation, and the carbonization methods. Subsequently, the novel magnetic Ag-Fe₃O₄@chitin-based carbon microspheres catalyst (MChC) was successfully constructed through the in situ redox reaction. The as-prepared MChC possessed rich micropores with high-surface area, and a narrow size distribution (50–120 μm). The Ag-Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles were immobilized through the interaction with C, N, and O atoms in the pores of MChC. The reduction of 4-nitrophenol was applied to evaluate the catalytic activity of MChC. 4-Nitrophenol (4-NP) could be fully reduced to 4-aminophenol (4-AP) in 5 min with the catalyst MChC-45. Moreover, MChC could be collected in solution with an external magnet in 8 s and remained relatively high-catalytic activity after 10 cycle times. This work provided novel ideas for the fabrication of doped carbon material from biomass and promoted its utilization in nanocatalytic applications.     

液滴撞击干燥倾斜壁面铺展实验研究

通过高速摄影技术及像素分析方法对液滴撞击干燥倾斜壁面进行实验研究，分析了不同倾斜角及韦伯数（We）对液滴飞溅及铺展的影响，结果表明，倾斜角的增加有利于抑制飞溅的产生；We一定时，液滴的前铺展因子随着倾斜角的增加而增加，后铺展因子随着倾斜角的增加而减小；液滴的前后初始铺展速度均大于液滴的撞击速度，且随着倾斜角的增加而减小。      

Silver-plated polyamide fabrics with high electromagnetic shielding effectiveness performance prepared by in situ reduction of polydopamine and chemical silvering

In this article, the silver-plated polyamide fabrics (SPPAFs) with high electroconductibility and shielding effectiveness were fabricated by using in situ reduction of polydopamine and chemical silvering. The effects of SPPAFs dopamine (C₈H₁₁O₂N) and silver nitrate (AgNO₃) concentration on surface resistivity and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness were studied. The results showed that the surface resistivity of SPPAFs can reach a minimum value of 0.06 ± 0.014 Ω cm⁻¹, when C₈H₁₁O₂N concentration is 4 g L⁻¹ and the AgNO₃ concentration is 120 g L⁻¹. The shielding effectiveness of SPPAFs in the wide frequency range of 10–3000 MHz increases with the increase in the concentration of AgNO₃, and increases first and stabilizes afterward with increasing C₈H₁₁O₂N concentration. When the concentration of C₈H₁₁O₂N and AgNO₃ is 3 and 120 g L⁻¹, respectively, mean shielding effectiveness values in the low-, medium-, and high-frequency bands are 71.3, 73.8, and 76.1 dB, respectively. Moreover, the mean shielding effectiveness values is 83.79 dB in the frequency range of 1.2–2.3 GHz. The dominant shielding mechanism of SPPAFs is the reflected electromagnetic waves and the absorption shielding effectiveness is less than 2 dB. The average electromagnetic shielding values of SPPAFs are above 67 dB after 16 weeks of storage, when C₈H₁₁O₂N concentration is 4 g L⁻¹ and the AgNO₃ concentration is 80 and 100 g L⁻¹. The prepared SPPAFs show promising applications in military textiles and smart wearable clothing. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 48227.     

Effects of structural characteristics on microwave dielectric properties of low-loss (Zn1-xNix)ZrNbTaO8 ceramics

Low-loss (Zn_1-xNi_x)ZrNbTaO₈ (0.02?≤?x?≤?0.10) ceramics possessing single wolframite structure are initiatively synthesized by solid-state route. Based on the results of Rietveld refinement, complex chemical bond theory is used to establish the correlation between structural characteristics and microwave performance in this ceramic system. A small amount of Ni²⁺ (x?=?0.06) in A-site with the fixed substitution of Ta⁵⁺ in B-site can effectually raise the Q?×?f value of ZnZrNb₂O₈ ceramic, embodying a dense microstructure and high lattice energy. The dielectric constant and τ_f are mainly affected by bond ionicity and the average octahedral distortion. The (Zn_0.94Ni_0.06)ZrNbTaO₈ ceramic sample sintered at 1150?°C for 3?h exhibits an outstanding combination of microwave dielectric properties: ε_r =?27.88, Q?×?f?=?128,951?GHz, τ_f =?–39.9?ppm/°C. Thus, it is considered to be a candidate material for the communication device applications at high frequency.     

Development of a Continuous Segmented Flow Tubular Reactor and the “Scale‐out” Concept – In Search of Perfect Powders

The synthesis of powders with controlled shape and narrow particle size distributions is still a major challenge for many industries. A continuous Segmented Flow Tubular Reactor (SFTR) has been developed to overcome homogeneity and scale‐up problems encountered when using batch reactors. Supersaturation is created by mixing the co‐reactants in a micromixer inducing precipitation; the suspension is then segmented into identical micro‐volumes by a non‐miscible fluid and sent through a tube. These micro‐volumes are more homogeneous when compared to large batch reactors leading to narrower size distributions, better particle morphology, polymorph selectivity and stoichiometry. All these features have been demonstrated on single tube SFTR for different chemical systems. To increase productivity for commercial application the SFTR is being “scaled‐out” by multiplying the number of tubes running in parallel instead of scaling‐up by increasing their size. The versatility of the multi‐tube unit will allow changes in type of precipitate with a minimum of new investment as new chemistry can be researched, developed and optimised in a single tube SFTR and then transferred to the multi‐tube unit for powder production.     

Specification,Verification and Prototyping of an Optimized Compiler

This paper generalizes an algebraic method for the design of a correct compiler to tackle specification and verification of an optimized compiler. The main optimization issues of concern here include the use of existing contents of registers where possible and the identification of common expressions. A register table is introduced in the compiling specification predicates to map each register to an expression whose value is held by it. We define different kinds of predicates to specify compilation of programs, expressions and Boolean tests. A set of theorems relating to these predicates, acting as a correct compiling specification, are presented and an example proof within the refinement algebra of the programming language is given. Based on these theorems, a prototype compiler in Prolog is produced.     

Gonadal steroids have paradoxical effects on brain oxytocin receptors

Specific brain receptors for oxytocin have been described in several mammalian species. The distribution of these receptors differs greatly across species and in the rat, receptor binding in specific brain regions appears to depend upon gonadal steroids. This study used in vitro receptor autoradiography to examine the effects of testosterone on oxytocin receptor binding in the mouse forebrain. Three groups of male mice were compared: castrates treated with blank capsules, castrates treated with testosterone filled capsules, and intact males. Irrespective of steroid treatment, the distribution of oxytocin receptors in mouse forebrain differed markedly from patterns previously described in the rat. In addition to these species differences in receptor distribution, testosterone had effects in the mouse which differed from the induction of receptors previously reported in the rat. In the mouse ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus, binding in the untreated castrate males was approximately double that observed in either the intact or the testosterone-treated castrates. In other regions of the mouse brain, such as the intermediate zone of the lateral septum, binding to oxytocin receptors was increased with testosterone treatment. These results suggest that the brain oxytocin receptor varies across species not only in its distribution but also in its regional regulation by gonadal steroids. These apparently paradoxical changes in oxytocin receptor binding may result from either direct or indirect effects of gonadal steroids in mouse brain.