[en] The conference covers topics that focus on photonic materials and devices, magnetic materials, biomaterials, energy materials, functional materials, semiconductors, optical materials, ceramics, glasses, composite materials, polymers, thin films, optoelectronic materials, and electronic materials. Papers relevant to INIS are indexed separately

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[en] SBA-15 silica supported rhenium catalysts were synthesized using solution-based atomic layer deposition method, and their activity and stability were studied in the acid-catalyzed 2-butanol dehydration. We find that ReOx/SBA-15 exhibited an extremely high initial activity but a fast deactivation for 2-butanol dehydration at 90-105 C. Fast deactivation was likely due to the sintering, sublimation, and reduction of rhenia as confirmed by TEM, elemental analysis, and in situ UV vis (DRS) measurements. To overcome these issues, ReOx/AlOx/SBA-15 catalysts with significantly improved stability were prepared by first modifying the surface identity of SBA-15 with alumina followed by dispersion of rhenia using atomic layer deposition. The AlOx phase stabilizes the dispersion of small and uniform rhenia clusters (<2 nm) as as confirmed by TEM, STEM and UV-vis (DRS) characterizations. Additional 27Al MAS NMR characterization revealed that modification of the SBA-15 surface with alumina introduces a strong interaction between rhenia and alumina, which consequently improves the stability of supported rhenia catalysts by suppressing the sintering, sublimation, and reduction of rhenia albeit at a moderately reduced initial catalytic dehydration activity

[en] A rechargeable battery stores readily convertible chemical energy to operate a variety of devices such as mobile phones, laptop computers, electric automobiles, etc. A battery generally consists of four components: a cathode, an anode, a separator and electrolytes. The properties of these components jointly determine the safety, the lifetime, and the electrochemical performance. They also include, but are not limited to, the power density and the charge as well as the recharge time/rate associated with a battery system. An extensive amount of research is dedicated to understanding the physical and chemical properties associated with each of the four components aimed at developing new generations of battery systems with greatly enhanced safety and electrochemical performance at a significantly reduced cost for large scale applications. Advanced characterization tools are a prerequisite to fundamentally understanding battery materials. Considering that some of the key electrochemical processes can only exist under in situ conditions, which can only be captured under working battery conditions when electric wires are attached and current and voltage are applied, make in situ detection critical. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), a non-invasive and atomic specific tool, is capable of detecting all phases, including crystalline, amorphous, liquid and gaseous phases simultaneously and is ideal for in situ detection on a working battery system. Ex situ NMR on the other hand can provide more detailed molecular or structural information on stable species with better spectral resolution and sensitivity. The combination of in situ and ex situ NMR, thus, offers a powerful tool for investigating the detailed electrochemistry in batteries. (topical review)

[en] We recently showed that superporous hydrogel (SPH) scaffolds promote long-term stem cell viability and cell driven mineralization when cells were seeded within the pores of pre-fabricated SPH scaffolds. The possibility of cell encapsulation within the SPH matrix during its fabrication was further explored in this study. The impact of each chemical component used in SPH fabrication and each step of the fabrication process on cell viability was systematically examined. Ammonium persulfate, an initiator, and sodium bicarbonate, the gas-generating compound, were the two components having significant toxicity toward encapsulated cells at the concentrations necessary for SPH fabrication. Cell survival rates were 55.7% ± 19.3% and 88.8% ± 9.4% after 10 min exposure to ammonium persulfate and sodium bicarbonate solutions, respectively. In addition, solution pH change via the addition of sodium bicarbonate had significant toxicity toward encapsulated cells with cell survival of only 50.3% ± 2.5%. Despite toxicity of chemical components and the SPH fabrication method, cells still exhibited significant overall survival rates within SPHs of 81.2% ± 6.8% and 67.0% ± 0.9%, respectively, 48 and 72 h after encapsulation. This method of cell encapsulation holds promise for use in vitro and in vivo as a scaffold material for both hydrogel matrix encapsulation and cell seeding within the pores. (paper)

[en] Highlights: • Induced heating of 4G cell phone radiation affects the functions of neural cells. • Temperature and SAR of brain, eye and skin tissues are measured in laboratory condition. • Rise in temperature and SAR values are found in the studied tissues for confrontation of 600 s. • Long time and over exposure to mobile phone radiation may affect the individual health. Exposures to electromagnetic radiation mainly from the extended use of mobile phones may initiate biological damages in the human body at the macromolecular level. Several studies on human and animal models have shown significant changes in the functions of neural cells. Present empirical study analyses the thermal changes and the specific absorption rates (SAR) of brain, eye and skin tissues due to prolonged exposure to mobile phone radiation. A phantom, simulating human head with skin, skull and brain was used for the study. The Phantom was exposed to radiation for longer durations (600 s and more) and the temperature variations at different specific points were studied with sensitive thermocouple probes. SAR (1 g of contiguous tissue) values were determined using the variations of temperature and other parameters. The average rise in brain temperature was found to be 0.10 $\pm$ 0.05 °C at 30 mm deep in the brain and the estimated SAR was 0.66 ± 0.35 Wkg^-1. The increase in temperature for the eye socket was 0.03 ± 0.02 °C with SAR 0.15 ± 0.08 Wkg^-1. The average rise in temperature for skin was 0.14 ± 0.05 °C and the SAR was 0.66 ± 0.42 Wkg^-1. Although the measured SAR lie within the safe limit of 2 Wkg^-1 recommended by the international regulatory body, considering the tremendous growth in the number of mobile phone users and prolonged use of mobile phone in communication purposes, the cumulative effects could be a real concern for human health.

[en] IR, Raman and surface-enhanced Raman scattering spectra of L-proline were recorded and analyzed. The molecular plane assumes a tilted orientation with respect to the metal surface. The vibrational wavenumbers and corresponding vibrational assignments are examined theoretically using the Gaussian 03 set of quantum chemistry codes