Homemade Device Research Articles

Carboxymethylcellulose sodium-derived carbon aerogels for solar-driven water purification

Recycling polluted water via different techniques has become one of the most feasible ways to solve the freshwater crisis. We describe a novel method to prepare reusable and efficient photothermal energy conversion materials for water purification. Using crosslinked xerogels as precursor, the porous and interconnected carboxymethylcellulose sodium-derived carbon aerogels (abbreviated as CCAs) with good hydrophilic performance and strong light absorption capability are firstly fabricated through pyrolysis. Photothermal measurement results show that CCA15 exhibit excellent solar steam generation rate of 2.31 kg m−2 h−1 with high light-to-vapor conversion efficiency of 95.9% under 1 sun illumination. In addition, the feasible application of CCA15 for efficient water purification under 1 sun irradiation using a homemade water treatment device has been demonstrated successfully. The as-prepared CCAs shown in here can be a continuable solution to mitigate the global freshwater crisis.

Assessing the influence of parameters on tissue welding in small bowel end-to-end anastomosis in vitro and in vivo.

The use of high-frequency electric welding technology for intestinal end-to-end anastomosis holds significant promise. Past studies have focused on in vitro, and the safety and efficacy of this technology is uncertain, severely limiting the clinical application of this technology. This study investigates the impact of compression pressure, energy dosage, and duration on anastomotic quality using a homemade anastomosis device in both in vitro and in vivo settings. Two hundred eighty intestines and 5 experimental pigs were used for in vitro and in vivo experiments, respectively. The in vitro experiments were conducted to study the effects of initial pressure (50-400kpa), voltage (40-60V), and time (10-20s) on burst pressure, breaking strength, thermal damage, and histopathological microstructure of the anastomosis. Optimal parameters were then inlaid into a homemade anastomosis and used for in vivo experiments to study the postoperative porcine survival rate and the pathological structure of the tissues at the anastomosis and the characteristics of the collagen fibers. The anastomotic strength was highest when the compression pressure was 250kPa, the voltage was 60V, and the time was 15s. The degree of thermal damage to the surrounding tissues was the lowest. The experimental pigs had no adverse reactions after the operation, and the survival rate was 100%. 30days after the operation, the surgical site healed well, and the tissues at the anastomosis changed from immediate adhesions to permanent connections. High-frequency electric welding technology has a certain degree of safety and effectiveness. It has the potential to replace the stapler anastomosis in future and become the next generation of new anastomosis device.

Salt-resistant and antibacterial polyvinyl alcohol/chitosan/silver-loaded graphene oxide electrospun nanofiber membrane for high-efficiency solar-driven desalination

To address the issues of low photothermal conversion efficiency, salt deposition and biological contamination in solar-powered desalination, we have developed nanofibrous membranes composed of an optimized ratio of silver-loaded graphene oxide (GO-Ag) composites and polyvinyl alcohol/chitosan (PVA/CS), using a simple and productive electrospinning technique. The synergistic effect of GO and Ag significantly enhanced the photothermal conversion efficiency of the dual-photothermal PVA/CS/GO-Ag-4% electrospun nanofiber membranes (EFMs), which achieved the pure water evaporation rate of 1.67 kg m−2 h−1 and photothermal conversion efficiency of 93.3% under 1 sun (1 kW m−2). Notably, 97% of optical energy is converted to heat when the PVA/CS/GO-Ag-4% EFMs were placed on a homemade evaporation device, achieving up to a simulated seawater evaporation rate of 1.64 kg m−2 h−1 under 1sun, with a desalination rate of 99.99%. More importantly, larger area EFMs are easier to prepare compared to other morphologies of solar evaporators, and larger membranes can be placed on outdoor evaporation units for large-scale effective desalination of seawater used to collect fresh water under natural light. Furthermore, PVA/CS/GO-Ag-4% EFMs exhibited outstanding antibacterial performance against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Considering these strengths, the PVA/CS/GO-Ag-4% EFMs has considerable application potential in solar-driven desalination to solve water crises.

Retracted: Outcome of Gynecologic Laparoendoscopic Single-Site Surgery with a Homemade Device and Conventional Laparoscopic Instruments in a Chinese Teaching Hospital.

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.1155/2020/5373927.].

Engineering Atomic Ag1-N6 Sites with Enhanced Performance of Eradication Drug-Resistant Bacteria over Visible-Light-Driven Antibacterial Membrane.

Utilizing visible light for water disinfection is a more convenient, safe, and practical alternative to ultraviolet-light sterilization. Herein, we developed silver (Ag) single-atom anchored g-C3N4 (P-CN) nanosheets (Ag1/CN) and then utilized a spin-coating method to fabricate the Ag1/CN-based-membrane for effective antibacterial performance in natural water and domestic wastewater. The incorporated Ag single atom formed a Ag1-N6 motif, which increased the charge density around the N atoms, resulting in a built-in electric field ∼17.2 times stronger than that of pure P-CN and optimizing the dynamics of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Additionally, the Ag1-N6 motif inhibited the release of Ag ions, ensuring good biocompatibility. Based on the first-principles calculation, the adsorption energy of O2 on the Ag1/CN (-0.32 eV) was lower than that of P-CN (-0.07 eV), indicating that loaded Ag single atom can lower the energy barrier for O2 activation, generating extra *OH radicals that cooperated with *O2- to effectively neutralize bacteria. As a result, the Ag1/CN powder-catalyst with the concentration of 30 ppm demonstrated a 99.9% antibacterial efficiency against drug-resistant bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, kanamycin-resistant Escherichia coli, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) under visible-light irradiation for 4 h. This efficacy was 24.8 times higher than that of the P-CN powder catalyst. Moreover, the Ag1/CN-based-membrane can maintain a 99.9% bactericidal efficiency for natural water and domestic wastewater treatment using a homemade flow device, demonstrating its potential for water disinfection. Notably, the visible-light-driven antibacterial efficiency of the Ag1/CN catalyst outperformed the majority of the reported g-C3N4-based catalysts/membranes.

Magnetic nanoparticles detection based on nonlinear Faraday rotation

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have attracted interest in various research fields due to their special superparamagnetic and strong magneto-optical effects, especially as contrast agents for enhancing medical imaging contrast. Using MNPs capable of generating Faraday rotation angles with higher harmonics as magnetic-optical contrast agents allows for a distinct contrast with biological tissues lacking these higher harmonics. This significantly improves the sensitivity of magnetic-optical imaging. By introducing the interaction coefficient, we propose a model for the nonlinear Faraday rotation of MNPs under the excitation of an external alternating magnetic field. Using our homemade device (which can detect rotation angles as low as approximately 2e-7 rad), we have verified that the higher harmonics of the Faraday rotation can mitigate interference from paramagnetic and diamagnetic backgrounds at lower concentrations. In the future, it is anticipated that MNPs can be utilized as magneto-optical contrast agents to achieve high-resolution in vivo imaging.

The Synergistic Effect on the Mimetic Optical Structure of Feline Eyes toward Household Health Monitoring of Acute and Chronic Diseases.

A breakthrough in the performance of bionic optical structures will only be achieved if we can obtain an in-depth understanding of the synergy mechanisms operating in natural optical structures and find ways to imitate them. In this work, inspired by feline eyes, an optical substrate that takes advantage of a synergistic effect that occurs between resonant and reflective structures was designed. The synergistic effect between the reflective and resonant components leads to a Raman enhancement factor (EF) of 1.16 × 107, which is much greater than that achieved using the reflective/resonant cavities on their own. Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations and experimental results together confirm that the mechanism of this synergistic effect is achieved by realizing multiple reflections and repeated absorptions of light, generating a strong local electric field. Thus, a 2-3 order of magnitude increase in sensitivity could be achieved. More importantly, with the homemade centrifugal device, above optical substrates were further used to develop a rapidly highly sensitive household health monitoring system (detection time <3 min). It can thus be used to give early warning of acute diseases with high risk (e.g., acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and cerebral peduncle). Due to the good reusability and storability (9% and 8% reduction in EF after washing 30 times and 9 months of storage, respectively) of the substrates, the substrates thus reduce detection costs (to ∼$1), making them much cheaper to use than the current gold-standard methods (e.g., ∼$16 for gout detection).

Adsorption of heavy metals from aqueous solutions by magnetic barium hydroxyapatite nanoparticles

ABSTRACT Magnetic barium hydroxyapatite (Fe3O4@BaHAP) nanoparticles were synthesised and used as a sorbent for the removal of several heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions. The sorbent characterisation was performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), vibrating-sample magnetometer (VSM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. A homemade device, named continuous collection of magnetic sorbent (CCMS), was designed for efficient removal of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions and simultaneous collection of the sorbent by a permanent magnet at the end of the process. Results of BET analysis show that average pore diameter, average pore width, pore volume and specific surface area of the Fe3O4@BaHAP NPs were 10.9 nm, 11.6 nm, 0.16 cm3/g and 55.7 m2/g, respectively. Influential parameters on the removal efficiency were investigated and optimised using a central composite design method. The optimised values for solution pH, sorbent amount, stirring and circulating times were 6.2, 150 mg, 13 and 25 min, respectively. Magnetic BaHAP nanoparticles were shown to have higher removal efficiency than BaHAP or Fe3O4 alone. Under optimised conditions, adsorption capacities for Pb2+, Cr3+, Cd2+ and Cu2+ were 99.0, 66.5, 91.2 and 92.1 mg/g, respectively. The results demonstrated that the synthesised magnetic BaHAP nanoparticles can effectively remove several metal ions from contaminated water sources.

Peptide Nucleic Acid Clamp-Assisted Photothermal Multiplexed Digital PCR for Identifying SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern.

The unprecedented demand for variants diagnosis in response to the COVID-19 epidemic has brought the spotlight onto rapid and accurate detection assays for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at multiple locations. However, it is still challenging to ensure simplicity, affordability, and compatibility with multiplexing. Here, a novel technique is presented that combines peptide nucleic acid (PNA) clamps and near-infrared (NIR)-driven digital polymerase chain reaction (dPCR) to identify the Omicron and Delta variants. This is achieved by simultaneously identifying highly conserved mutated signatures at codons 19, 614, and 655 of the spike protein gene. By microfluidically introducing graphene-oxide-nanocomposite into the assembled gelatin microcarriers, they achieved a rapid temperature ramping-up rate and switchable gel-to-sol phase transformation synchronized with PCR activation under NIR irradiation. Two sets of duplex PCR reactions, each classifying respective PNA probes, are emulsified in parallel and illuminated together using a homemade vacuum-based droplet generation device and a programmable NIR control module. This allowed for selective amplification of mutant sequences due to single-base-pair mismatch with PNA blockers. Sequence-recognized bioreactions and fluorescent-color scoring enabled quick identification of variants. This technique achieved a detection limit of 5,100 copies and a 5-fold quantitative resolution, which is promising to unfold minor differences and dynamic changes.

Impact of pretreatment with dielectric barrier discharge plasma on the drying characteristics and bioactive compounds of jackfruit slices.

Hot-air drying is a popular method for preserving the production of jackfruit, but heat treatment damages its nutritional qualities. Cold plasma is one of the pretreatment methods used to preserve quality attributes of fruits before drying. In the present work, we studied the effect of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma on the drying characteristics, microstructure, and bioactive compounds of jackfruit slices with different pretreatment times (15, 30, 45, and 60 s), followed by hot-air drying at 50, 60, and 70 °C. A homemade DBD device was operated via three neon transformers. Optical emission spectrophotometry revealed the emitted spectra of the reactive species in DBD plasma, including the N2 second positive system, N2 first negative system, nitrogen ion, and hydroxyl radical. The results showed that the DBD plasma promoted moisture transfer and enhanced the drying rate, related to the changes in the surface microstructure of samples damaged by DBD plasma. The modified Overhults model was recommended for describing the drying characteristics of jackfruit slices. The contents of ascorbic acid, total phenolics, total flavonoids, total polysaccharides, and antioxidant activity in pretreated jackfruit slices were improved by 9.64%, 42.59%, 25.77%, 27.00%, and 23.13%, respectively. However, the levels of color and carotenoids were reduced. Thus, the bioactive compounds in dried jackfruit slices can be improved using the DBD plasma technique as a potential pretreatment method for the drying process. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Developing and Evaluating the Greenness of a Reliable, All-in-One Thin-Film Microextraction Protocol for Determining Fentanyl, Methadone, and Zolpidem in Plasma, Urine, and Oral Fluid.

This paper proposes an all-in-one microextraction-based protocol capable of determining and quantifying fentanyl, methadone, and zolpidem in plasma, urine, and saliva at concentrations below those required by international regulatory organizations. A homemade thin-film microextraction device featuring an octyl-cyanopropyl stationary phase was coupled with LC-MS/MS. The proposed method was developed and validated according to FDA criteria, providing extraction efficiency values ranging from 26.7% to 76.2% with no significant matrix effects (2.6% to 15.5% signal suppression). The developed protocol provided low limits of quantification (mostly equal to 1 ng mL-1) and good reproducibility (intra- and inter-day RSDs of less than 9.6% and 12.0%, respectively) and accuracy (89% to 104% of the test concentration). An assessment of the protocol's environmental impact indicated that attention must be devoted to eliminating the use of toxic reagents and developing its capability for in situ sampling and in-field analysis using portable instruments. The proposed TFME-based protocol provides clinical laboratories with a versatile, one-step tool that enables the simultaneous monitoring of fentanyl, methadone, and zolpidem using the most popular biological matrices.

Multiplexed detection of respiratory pathogens using a portable device combining a CREM strategy.

Rapid and precise detection of respiratory pathogens is crucial for clinical diagnosis and treatment of respiratory infections. In this study, the multiplex and visual detection of respiratory pathogens is facilitated by specifically designed engineered CRISPR RNA (en-crRNA) to activate the trans-cleavage activity of Cas12a, along with a homemade portable device. The en-crRNA comprised an original crRNA and a DNA reporter molecule that is labelled with both a fluorophore and a quencher. Moreover, the DNA is partially complementary to the variable region of the original crRNA. The proof of concept was demonstrated by simultaneously identifying distinct respiratory pathogens with a detection limit of 102 copies per μL. The visual discrimination was subsequently achieved using a homemade portable device that was seamlessly integrated with a smartphone. The specificity of the strategy was validated by comparing with qPCR assays for clinical sample detection, demonstrating exceptional accuracy with areas under the ROC curves of 0.98 for all targets. The research provides a promising avenue for the development of rapid, specific, and on-site detection techniques aimed at multiplex identification of respiratory pathogens.

Identification of the Bandwidth of a Magneto-Inertial Navigation Filter

We address the analysis of a nonlinear navigation filter used in Magneto-Inertial Dead-Reckoning (MIDR) whose input data are provided by a home-made device. This filter takes the measurements given by the magnetic sensors as inputs and returns the velocity of the body. Therefore, any unmodeled time-varying disturbance in the measurements impacts the estimation of the velocity and yields errors that distort the estimation. For dimensioning purpose, we aim to identify the bandwidth of the linearized part of this filter. To derive a model of this bandwidth, we first simplify our filter as a time-invariant Single-Input Single-Ouput (SISO) system in the situation where the steady-state regime is reached. The Best Linear Approximation (BLA) of this nonlinear system can hence be described by a conventional transfer function. We justify the validity of such a linear approximation for Extended Kalman Filters (EKF) and identify it with different methods, yielding a model for the bandwidth depending on the experimental conditions of navigation. We show that our filter is actually suitable for pedestrian navigation. Finally, simulations in realistic physical situations are used for validation.

Experimental Study on the Migration and Clogging of Fine Particles in Coarse-Grained Soil with Seepage

The migration and clogging of fine particles in the pores of coarse-grained soil with seepage is of great significance to reduce the leakage of soil at the dam base and lower the permeability of soil. Therefore, the homemade infiltration test device was used to test the infiltration and clogging of soil samples with different particle size ratios D15/d85 (D15 represents the particle size corresponding to the cumulative percentage content of soil particles smaller than a certain particle size in the coarse particles which is 15%, and d85 represents the particle size corresponding to the cumulative percentage content of soil particles smaller than a certain particle size in the fine particles group which is 85%). The factors affecting the deposition of fine particles in coarse-grained soil and the characteristics of fine particle migration and penetration were analyzed. The clogging of coarse-grained soil, hydraulic gradient and pore changes characteristics before and after clogging were studied. The results show that: 1) The main factor affecting the retention of fine particles in coarse-grained soil is the particle size ratio, and the retention rules conforms to the Peak-Gauss function relationship. The penetration law of fine particles satisfies the Logistic function relationship, which can directly predict the internal clogging of coarse-grained soil. 2) The particle size ratio is the main factor affecting the blockage in each mode, followed by the influence of the water head, When the particle size ratio is less than 13.10, the clogging ratio decreases with the increase of particle size ratio, and the hydraulic gradient increases with the increase of particle size ratio. When is greater than 13.10, the clogging ratio increases with the increase of particle size ratio, and the hydraulic gradient decreases with the increase of particle size ratio. 3) The degree of clogging in coarsegrained soil is closely related to the change in porosityand and can be judged according to the change of porosity in coarse-grained soil. The research results deepen the understanding of fine particle migration on the rules of coarse-grained soil clogging and can provide a theoretical basis for related engineering applications.

Nanosized Pd@Ag heterojunction with tunable shapes: Morphological modulation for improving plasma-mediated catalytic hydrogen evolution

Catalytic ability of bi-metal hybrid nanoagents largely depends on their phase constitution and morphology, also bearing a close correlation to the fabrication process. We herein design and develop a modified polyol protocol with inorganic ion induction for rationally constructing Ag nanoagents with tunable shapes (nanowire, nanocube, and nanoparticle), followed by evenly anchoring of stepwise reduced Pd nanograins on the surface of Ag nanoagents to foster Ag core - Pd shell (i.e. Pd@Ag) nanosized heterostructure. A home-made photochemical reaction device is used to scientifically evaluate the catalytic ability of the Pd@Ag nanoagents on hydrolyzing ammonia borane to evolve hydrogen gas. The ample characterization reveals that the fabricated Ag nanoagents hold the expected regular and uniform shapes, with 10–15 nm thick Pd layer cladded on their surfaces. The particular shapes of the Ag nanoagents can be duly manipulated via the induction of inorganic ions, and the thickness and compactness of the Pd shell can also be suitably regulated by controlling reduction duration. The verified formation of electron synergistic effect among the both metals is favorable to elevate the catalytic ability. The bimetal Pd@Ag nanoagents perform the superior catalytic activity under visible light irradiation, far exceeding that of the respective monometal counterparts, with the order of catalytic activity: Pd@Ag-NWs > Pd@Ag-NCs > Pd@Ag-NPs. The hydrolysis reaction at the given conditions is confirmed to be quasi first-order reaction, with the apparent activation energy of 53.44 kJ·mol−1 and TOF value of 47.04 min−1. The Pd@Ag-NWs catalyst behaves satisfactory stability, with 87.8 % initial catalytic activity retained after five cyclic use.

Preparation of an imprinted monolith for field simultaneously selective separation and enrichment of nitrophenols and lead (II) ion in water samples

Imprinted materials have gained significant attention due to its highly specific recognition performance. However, there is no study that using molecule and ion as mixed templates to prepare hybrid imprinted material for simultaneously selective separation and enrichment of molecules and ion. Here, a new strategy employing organic molecule and heavy metal ion as mixed templates to prepare imprinted material was proposed. 2,4-Dinitrophenol (2,4-DNP) and Pb2+ were selected as model templates to in-situ synthesize adsorbent based on imprinted monolith (AIM) in pipette tip. The obtained AIMs were used as the extraction medium of home-made multiple channels in-tip microextraction device (MCMD) for field simultaneously selective entrapment of nitrophenols (NPs) and Pb2+. The selection of functional monomers was well verified with Density function theory. Under the optimal fabrication conditions, the AIM displayed high specific recognition capability towards 2,4-DNP and Pb2+ with imprinted factors 7.31 and 5.20, respectively, and corresponding adsorption capacities were as high as 27.8 mg/g and 20.3 mg/g, respectively. The practicality of proposed AIM/MCMD was evaluated by simultaneously on-site selective capture of NPs and Pb2+ in various environmental waters prior to quantification with HPLC (for NPs) and atomic absorption spectrometry (for Pb2+). Results well evidence that the proposed strategy is feasible in the preparation of imprinted polymer for simultaneously specific extraction of molecules and metal ion, and the developed AIM/MCMD is a useful field sample preparation method for reliable quantification of NPs and Pb2+ in aqueous samples.

Fully Integrated Ratiometric Fluorescence Enrichment Platform for High-Sensitivity POC Testing of Salivary Cancer Biomarkers.

The point-of-care (POC) testing of cancer biomarkers in saliva with both high sensitivity and accuracy remains a serious challenge in modern clinical medicine. Herein, we develop a new fully integrated ratiometric fluorescence enrichment platform that utilizes acoustic radiation forces to enrich dual-emission sandwich immune complexes for a POC visual assay. As a result, the color signals from red and green fluorescence (capture probe and report probe, respectively) are enhanced by nearly 10 times, and colorimetric sensitivity is effectively improved. When illuminated using a portable UV lamp, the fluorescence color changing from red to green can be clearly seen with the naked eye, which allows a semiqualitative assessment of the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) level. In combination with a homemade smartphone-based portable device, cancer biomarkers like CEA are quantified, achieving a limit of detection as low as 0.012 ng/mL. We also directly quantify CEA in human saliva samples to investigate the reliability of this fully integrated platform, thus validating the usefulness of the proposed strategy for clinical diagnosis and home monitoring of physical conditions.

Multi-field synergistic regulation enhanced multicaloric effect in all-d-metal Ni37Co13Mn35Ti15 alloy

Solid-state cooling technology has attracted great attention to replace traditional vapor-compression cooling technology due to its advantages of environmentally friendly, energy conservation, and high efficiency. However, the cooling performance of a single field (magnetic, stress or electric field) induced caloric effect is still insufficient. Recently, a larger multicaloric effect is expected to be achieved by the synergistic regulation of multiple fields. In this study, we choose all-d-metal Ni37Co13Mn35Ti15 alloy with magnetostructural phase transition and systematically study the multicaloric effect through the synergistic regulation of external stress and magnetic fields based on our homemade multicaloric effect testing device. The magnetic field and stress field play opposite effects on the phase transition, thus contributing contradictory caloric effect to multicaloric effect. By loading stress without magnetic field while unloading stress under magnetic field of 1.1 T, the stress hysteresis and energy hysteresis loss can be reduced by up to 45.2% and 54.8% in comparison with those obtained from a non-ideal regulation protocol. Moreover, the maximum adiabatic temperature change |ΔTad| during unloading increases by 24% from 6.3 K to 7.8 K with the application of magnetic field (1.1 T), suggesting a larger multicaloric effect than that of a single elastocaloric effect. These results prove that multi-field synergistic regulation is an effective means to enhance the multicaloric effect and reduce the hysteresis and energy loss of materials with the magnetostructural transition.

A facile fluorescence imprinted strategy based on boronic acid functionalized MOF and Mg/N-CDs for discrimination of transferrin: Expansion for boronic acid functionalized MOF application

In this research, we proposed a novel fluorescence imprinted sensor (FIS@MIP) for rapid and sensitive detection of transferrin (TrF) based on the boronic acid functionalized Zr-MOF (Zr-UiO-66-B(OH)2) and high fluorescence quantum yield of Mg/N co-doped carbon dots (Mg/N-CDs). The boronic acid moieties of Zr-UiO-66-B(OH)2 could significantly covalently bind TrF and load more Mg/N-CDs to avoid fluorescence quenching caused by self-aggregation of Mg/N-CDs. Additionally, Zr-UiO-66-B(OH)2 was prepared though linker fragmentation approach, which eliminated the complex post modification process and could provide sufficient boric acid groups. High luminescent and fluorescence quantum yield endowed Mg/N-CDs remarkable fluorescence response to TrF. Under the optimal conditions, the fluorescence intensity of FIS@MIP at 438 nm was quenched by Trf within 1 min. Based on specific recognition sites, a good linear relationship was obtained in the linear range of 0.1 µM–20 µM, and the low detection limit was determined as 0.067 µM. In order to explore portable detection application, a home-made device based on smartphone was designed for on-site detection of TrF with a detection limit of 0.38 µM. Significantly, this smartphone platform was successfully applied for detection of TrF in simulated actual samples (i.e., human urine and human serum) with satisfactory results, which provided a new promising strategy for on-site and sensitive discrimination of TrF in actual samples. This research will promote the development of the application of boronic-acid functionalized Zr-MOF in molecularly imprinted sensing of glycoproteins..

Pore engineering in robust carbon nanofibers for highly efficient capacitive deionization

Capacitive deionization (CDI) is considered as a revolutionary desalination method to alleviate the global water crisis. However, the current carbon-based CDI cells are constrained by the inferior desalination efficiency, resulting from the undesirable pore structure and sluggish electron/ion transport. Herein, a new porogen of silicalite-1 is proposed for the tailorable fabrication of flexible porous carbon nanofibers (PCNFs) by electrospinning, carbonization and alkali etching, where the surface area, total pore volume, mechanical robustness, specific capacitance, and electrosorption performance of the developed PCNFs are associated with the silicalite-1 dosage. The symmetric CDI unit assembled by the freestanding PCNF membrane electrodes shows a state-of-the-art desalination capacity (38.64 mg g−1), a remarkable salt removal rate (12.1 mg g−1 min−1), a desirable charge efficiency (82.36 %), an acceptable energy consumption (0.668 Wh g−1), and a satisfactory cyclic durability, and such excellent deionization performance can be explained by that the abundant hierarchical pores, the large accessible surface area, and the interconnected conductive carbon network effectively expedite the electron/ion transport. Additionally, the home-made CDI device has a favorable desalination capability toward the high-ion concentration seawater from the Yellow Sea (Xiaomai Island). This work not only validates the feasibility of silicalite-1 as the pore-forming agent for the targeted preparation of flexible PCNFs, but also it highlights the potential of pore engineering in freestanding PCNFs for advanced CDI.