Use of the O2-Thiosemicarbazide System, for the Leaching of: Gold and Copper from WEEE & Silver Contained in Mining Wastes

Environmental pollution today is a latent risk for humanity, here the need to recycle waste of all kinds. This work is related to the kinetic study of the leaching of gold and copper contained in waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) and silver contained in mining wastes (MW), using the O2-thiosemicarbazide system. The results obtained show that this non-toxic leaching system is adequate for the leaching of said metals. Reaction orders were found ranging from 0 (Cu), 0.93 (Ag), and 2.01 (Au) for the effect of the reagent concentration and maximum recoveries of 77.7% (Cu), 95.8% (Au), and 60% (Ag) were obtained. Likewise, the activation energies found show that the leaching of WEEE is controlled by diffusion (Cu Ea = 9.06 and Au Ea = 18.25 kJ/Kmol), while the leaching of MW (Ea = 45.55 kJ/Kmol) is controlled by the chemical reaction. For the case of stirring rate, it was found a low effect and only particles from WEEE and MW must be suspended in solution to proceed with the leaching. The pH has effect only at values above 8, and finally, for the case of MW, the O2 partial pressure has a market effect, going the Ag leaching from 33% at 0.2 atm up to 60% at a 1 atm.

Effects of Oxygen Partial Pressure on Wood-Based Activated Carbon Treated with Vacuum Ultraviolet Light

This study uses vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light with a wavelength of 172 nm as a surface treatment to enhance the adsorption capacity of wood-based activated carbon (AC). The AC surface treatment is performed under three O2 partial pressure conditions—5.0 × 104 Pa, where ozone (O3) effects dominate; 6.3 × 10−6 Pa, where VUV effects dominate; and 1.9 × 103 Pa for a balanced condition. For the O3-dominant condition, only graphene edge defects are etched (no aromatic carbon bonds are etched), resulting in increased surface roughness. When the VUV effects dominate, aromatic carbon bonds are cleaved, which then reacted with O2 or water adsorbed inside the pores. This increased both the number and size of the mesopores. Under the balanced conditions, the water adsorption capacity was enhanced by 45.5%, which is higher than that obtained before VUV exposure or with VUV under other conditions. This is because the surface roughness increased, as well as the pore sizes and numbers under the balanced condition. These results indicate that we can control VUV-based AC surface treatments via O2 partial pressure.

The Role of Hypoxia in Glioblastoma Radiotherapy Resistance

Glioblastoma (GB) (grade IV astrocytoma) is the most malignant type of primary brain tumor with a 16 months median survival time following diagnosis. Despite increasing attention regarding the development of targeted therapies for GB that resulted in around 450 clinical trials currently undergoing, radiotherapy still remains the most clinically effective treatment for these patients. Nevertheless, radiotherapy resistance (radioresistance) is commonly observed in GB patients leading to tumor recurrence and eventually patient death. It is therefore essential to unravel the molecular mechanisms underpinning GB cell radioresistance in order to develop novel strategies and combinational therapies focused on enhancing tumor cell sensitivity to radiotherapy. In this review, we present a comprehensive examination of the current literature regarding the role of hypoxia (O2 partial pressure less than 10 mmHg), a main GB microenvironmental factor, in radioresistance with the ultimate goal of identifying potential molecular markers and therapeutic targets to overcome this issue in the future.

High NH3-SCR reaction rate with low dependence on O2 partial pressure over Al-rich Cu–*BEA zeolite

It was revealed that Al-rich Cu–*BEA zeolite exhibit high reaction rate for NH3-SCR at 473 K in low PO2 reaction condition.

Source of Oxygen Fed to Adventitious Roots of Syzygium kunstleri (King) Bahadur and R.C. Gaur Grown in Hypoxic Conditions

Syzygium kunstleri, a woody plant species, adapts to hypoxic conditions by developing new adventitious roots. Here, we investigate its morphological adaptation to long-term water level changes and the sources and pathways of O2 supplied to its adventitious roots. Cuttings were cultivated in hydroponic and agar media, and then, the water level was increased by 6 cm following adventitious root emergence; afterward, O2 partial pressure changes were measured using a Clark-type O2 microelectrode. O2 concentrations in the adventitious roots decreased when N2 was injected, regardless of the presence of light, indicating that the O2 source was not photosynthetic when bark was removed. New adventitious roots developed near the surface when the water level increased, and O2 conditions above the raised water level influenced O2 concentrations in adventitious roots. O2 concentrations in adventitious roots that developed before the water level increased were lower than in the newly developed adventitious roots but increased when the O2 concentrations above the original water level increased. Our study highlights morphological changes, such as the development of adventitious roots, as environmental adaptation mechanisms. By revealing O2 sources in S. kunstleri under hypoxic environments, we offer insights into the challenges of long-term adaptation to changing environments in woody plants.

The Investigation of a SAW Oxygen Gas Sensor Operated at Room Temperature, Based on Nanostructured ZnxFeyO Films

In this paper, we report a wireless gas sensor based on surface acoustic waves (SAW). For room temperature detection of oxygen gas, a novel nanostructured ZnxFeyO gas-sensitive film was deposited on the surface of a SAW resonator by an oblique magnetron co-sputtering method. The measurements of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and a scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed that the crystal phase composition and the microstructures of ZnxFeyO films were significantly affected by the content of Fe. The experimental results showed that the sensors had a good response to O2 at room temperature. The max frequency shift of the sensors reached 258 kHz as the O2 partial pressure was 20%. Moreover, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was performed to analyze the role of Fe in the sensitization process of the ZnxFeyO film. In addition, the internal relationship between the Fe content of the film and the sensitivity of the sensor was presented and discussed. The research indicates that the nanostructured ZnxFeyO film has a good potential for room temperature O2 gas detection applications.

Influence of N2/O2 Partial Pressure Ratio during Channel Layer Deposition on the Temperature and Light Stability of a-InGaZnO TFTs

The electrical characteristics of amorphous InGaZnO (a-IGZO) thin film transistors (TFTs) deposited with different N2/O2 partial pressure ratios (PN/O) are investigated. It is found that the device with 20% PN/O exhibits enhanced electrical stability after positive-bias-stress temperature (PBST) and negative-bias-stress illumination (NBSI), presenting decreased threshold voltage drift (ΔVth). Compared to the N-free TFT, the average effective interface barrier energy (Eτ) of the TFT with 20% PN/O is increased from 0.37 eV to 0.57 eV during the bias-stress process, which agrees with the suppressed ΔVth from 3.0 V to 1.12 V after the PBS at T = 70 °C. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis revealed that the enhanced stability of the a-IGZO TFT with 20% PN/O should be ascribed to the control of oxygen vacancy defects at the interfacial region.