Recent Progress on Polyvinyl Alcohol-Based Materials for Energy Conversion

Electrocatalytic energy conversion shows a promising “bridge” to mitigate energy shortage issues and minimizes the ecological implications by synergy with the sustainable energy sources, which calls for low-cost, highly active,...

Rh/RhOx nanosheets as pH-universal bifunctional catalysts for hydrazine oxidation and hydrogen evolution reactions

Hydrazine oxidation (HzOR) assisted hydrogen evolution is a promising effluent treatment and energy conversion method for resolving the global energy shortage and environmental crisis. However, the highly efficient and pH-universal...

Insights into energy balance dysregulation from a mouse model of methylmalonic aciduria

Inherited disorders of mitochondrial metabolism, including isolated methylmalonic aciduria (MMAuria), present unique challenges to energetic homeostasis by disrupting energy producing pathways. To better understand global responses to energy shortage, we investigated a hemizygous mouse model of methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (Mmut) type MMAuria. We found Mmut mutant mice to have reduced appetite, energy expenditure and body mass compared to littermate controls, along with a relative reduction in lean mass but increase in fat mass. Brown adipose tissue showed a process of whitening, in line with lower body surface temperature and lesser ability to cope with cold challenge. Mutant mice had dysregulated plasma glucose, delayed glucose clearance and a lesser ability to regulate energy sources when switching from the fed to fasted state, while liver investigations indicated metabolite accumulation and altered expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor and Fgf21-controlled pathways. Together, these indicate hypometabolism, energetic inflexibility and increased stores at the expense of active tissue as energy shortage consequences.

Microcystis@TiO2 Nanoparticles for Photocatalytic Reduction Reactions: Nitrogen Fixation and Hydrogen Evolution

Solar-driven photocatalysis has been known as one of the most potential technologies to tackle the energy shortage and environmental pollution issues. Utilizing bio-pollutants to prepare functional materials has been considered as a green option. Herein, we used Microcystis aeruginosa as a bio-template to fabricate a Microcystis@TiO2 photocatalyst using a calcination method. The as-prepared Microcystis@TiO2 showed prominent ability as well as favorable stability for photocatalytic reduction reactions including hydrogen evolution and nitrogen fixation. Under light illumination, Microcystis@TiO2 calcined at 550 °C exhibited optimal photo-reduced activity among all samples, with the highest hydrogen evolution (1.36 mmol·g−1·h−1) and ammonia generation rates (0.97 mmol·g−1·h−1). This work provides a feasible approach to prepare functional materials from disposed pollutants.

A Novel Loop Based Fine Grained Network-wide Time Synchronization over Constrained Delay Paths in Wireless Sensor Networks

Sensor Networks play a vital role in today’s ever-growing automation process. Time synchronization between the nodes impacts the performance of the network and applications. Most of the existing time synchronization algorithms either run a tree algorithm or cluster-based algorithm and then perform time synchronization. Both the algorithms suffer from communication and computation efficiency. When a node fails due to an energy shortage, these algorithms need to rerun the setup, thereby the remaining nodes consume energy. Hence, we propose a novel loop-based fine-grained network-wide time synchronization over constrained delay paths for the sensor networks. When a packet is transmitted, the neighborhood node on receiving this packet will add a time offset information and broadcast. The process continues until the loop is formed and then uses the information set and helps to synchronize its clock information. The simulations and results validate the performance of the proposed algorithm.

Industrial science of the tank industry during the Great Patriotic War: contribution to solving problems of engineering and technical optimization of armored production in 1941–1945. Part 2

The work is devoted to the contribution of leading research institutes of the People’s Commissariat of Tank Industry to improve the metallurgical, welding and machining industries in the tank industry of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War. The evacuation of main capacities of the USSR’s tank industry at the east demanded to transfer not only workers and industrial equipment to the base of civil engineering plants, but also to ensure the restoration of key technological processes in a new place. It was required in emergency conditions of war, at a new place, in conditions of personnel, equipment and energy shortage, industrial cooperation collapse, to create workable units, for mass production of tanks. Thanks to the concentration of industry management in the hands of the People’s Commissariat for Tank Industry, the country’s establishment was able to maintain the scientific and technical potential of industrial research institutes that had been engaged in core work in armor metallurgy, electric welding, mechanical processing and mechanical engineering technology before the war. They managed to integrate their personnel and technical potential into the production stuff of tank-building giants, created in the east after the evacuation. It made possible to create under extremely war conditions, a workable territorial production complexes for the production of medium and heavy tanks, which nevertheless got under the conditions of serious personnel and technological limitations.

AWARENESS OF ENVIRONMENTAL DEPLETION AMONG THE STUDENT TEACHERS OF GREATER MUMBAI

The study was carried out with a sample of 130 student teachers from various colleges of education situated in Mumbai Region. A researcher made environmental depletion scale based on five major aspects of environmental depletion known as Eco-system destruction, Habitat destruction, Extinction of Wildlife, Climate Change, Water Scarcity and Energy shortage and Pollution was used for this research study. The results indicated that there was no Significant difference in the Environmental depletion awareness scores between the male and female student teachers of Mumbai Region. For Graduate and Post Graduate student teachers, there existed a significant difference Environmental depletion awareness score. Further Between the experienced and Inexperienced student teachers, there existed a highly significant difference in the Environmental depletion awareness scores. The results indicated that the environmental depletion awareness differs among student teachers due to experience and educational qualifications and not based on gender revealing that experience and higher educational qualifications definitely play a pivotal role in creating environmental depletion awareness.

Unravelling the Strategies for Cell wall Biosynthesis used by Salt-Tolerant Proso Millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) under Salt Stress: From Root Structure to Molecular Mechanism

Background: Considering the twin global problems of increasingly serious energy shortage and effects of salt stress on biofuel plants, breeding of salt-resistant biofuel plant and the discovery of mechanisms for biomass accumulation under salt stress is necessary for energy shortage. Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) is very resilient to abiotic stress, especially to land degradation caused by soil salinization, and its promising as dedicated bioenergy crops for the production of renewable fuels and forage, due to its high photosynthetic efficiency C4 plant and ability to grow in a range of environmental conditions. However, the mechanisms by which the roots of proso millet adapt and tolerate salt-stress are obscure.Results: In this study, plants of a salt-sensitive cultivar (SS 212) and a salt-tolerant cultivar (ST 47) of proso millet were exposed to severe salt stress and subsequent re-watering. ST 47 exhibited greater salt tolerance and faster recovery than SS 212, as evidenced by higher increases in total root length (TRL), root surface area (RSA), root tip number (RTN), biomass. Moreover, microstructural analysis showed that relative to SS 212, the roots of ST 47 could maintain more intact internal structures, and thicker cell wall under salt stress, thereby stronger resistance to salt toxicity and maintenance of growth. Digital RNA sequence analysis suggested more genes involved in salt stress resistance were induced in ST 47 than in SS 212. In ST 47 also, re-watering restored most genes that had been induced by salt stress. Results of the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways analysis revealed that ST 47 maintained better Na+/ K+ balance to resist Na+ toxicity via a higher capability to restrict Na+ uptake, vacuolar Na+ sequestration, and Na+ exclusion. The mechanism for cell wall biosynthesis in cultivar ST 47 involved the promotion of cell wall composition changes, via efficient regulation of galactose metabolism and biosynthesis of cellulose and phenylpropanoids. Conclusions: Overall, this study provides valuable salt-resistant biofuel resources and mechanisms for relieving the world energy shortage, which could be applied for the rehabilitation of saline lands.

Fabrication of hollow flower-like magnetic Fe3O4/C/MnO2/C3N4 composite with enhanced photocatalytic activity

The serious problems of environmental pollution and energy shortage have pushed the green economy photocatalysis technology to the forefront of research. Therefore, the development of an efficient and environmentally friendly photocatalyst has become a hotpot. In this work, magnetic Fe3O4/C/MnO2/C3N4 composite as photocatalyst was synthesized by combining in situ coating with low-temperature reassembling of CN precursors. Morphology and structure characterization showed that the composite photocatalyst has a hollow core–shell flower-like structure. In the composite, the magnetic Fe3O4 core was convenient for magnetic separation and recovery. The introduction of conductive C layer could avoid recombining photo-generated electrons and holes effectively. Ultra-thin g-C3N4 layer could fully contact with coupled semiconductor. A Z-type heterojunction between g-C3N4 and flower-like MnO2 was constructed to improve photocatalytic performance. Under the simulated visible light, 15 wt% photocatalyst exhibited 94.11% degradation efficiency in 140 min for degrading methyl orange and good recyclability in the cycle experiment.