Surfaces with Adjustable Features—Effective and Durable Materials for Water Desalination

Materials based on PVDF with desirable and controllable features were successfully developed. The chemistry and roughness were adjusted to produce membranes with improved transport and separation properties. Membranes were activated using the novel piranha approach to generate OH-rich surfaces, and finally furnished with epoxy and long-alkyl moieties via stable covalent attachment. The comprehensive materials characterization provided a broad spectrum of data, including morphology, textural, thermal properties, and wettability features. The defined materials were tested in the air-gap membrane distillation process for desalination, and improvement compared with pristine PVDF was observed. An outstanding behavior was found for the PVDF sample equipped with long-alkyl chains. The generated membrane showed an enhancement in the transport of 58–62% compared to pristine. A relatively high contact angle of 148° was achieved with a 560 nm roughness, producing a highly hydrophobic material. On the other hand, it was possible to tone the hydrophobicity and significantly reduce adhesion work. All materials were highly stable during the long-lasting separation process and were characterized by excellent effectiveness in water desalination.

Influence of moisture concentration and hydrophobic material on induced stress in FCBGA package under reflow

Purpose This paper focuses on the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) analysis of moisture induced stress for the flip chip ball grid array (FCBGA) package with hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials during the reflow soldering process. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the influence of moisture concentration and FCBGA with hydrophobic material on induced pressure and stress in the package at varies times. Design/methodology/approach The present study analyzed the warpage deformation during the reflow process via visual inspection machine (complied to Joint Electron Device Engineering Council standard) and FSI simulation by using ANSYS/FLUENT package. The direct concentration approach is used to model moisture diffusion and ANSYS is used to predict the Von-Misses stress. Models of Test Vehicle 1 (similar to Xie et al., 2009b) and Test Vehicle 2 (FCBGA package) with the combination of hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials are performed. The simulation for different moisture concentrations with reflows process time has been conducted. Findings The results from the mechanical reliability study indicate that the FSI analysis is found to be in good agreement with the published study and acceptable agreement with the experimental result. The maximum Von-Misses stress induced by the moisture significantly increased on FCBGA with hydrophobic material compared to FCBGA with a hydrophilic material. The presence of hydrophobic material that hinders the moisture desorption process. The analysis also illustrated the moisture could very possibly reside in electronic packaging and developed beyond saturated vapor into superheated vapor or compressed liquid, which exposed electronic packaging to higher stresses. Practical implications The findings provide valuable guidelines and references to engineers and packaging designers during the reflow soldering process in the microelectronics industry. Originality/value Studies on the influence of moisture concentration and hydrophobic material are still limited and studies on FCBGA package warpage under reflow process involving the effect of hydrophobic and hydrophilic materials are rarely reported. Thus, this study is important to effectively bridge the research gap and yield appropriate guidelines in the microelectronics industry.

Physical Properties of Hydrophobic Epoxy-Based Silsesquioxane (EP-POSS) Photovoltaic Materials

With the increasing application of photovoltaic panels in the field of power generation, hydrophobic materials have gradually received attention from researchers. Because EP-POSS (epoxy-based silsesquioxane) has many excellent properties, such as transparency, hydrophobicity, flame retardancy and weather resistance, it may be widely used in photovoltaic power generation boards in the future. Therefore, it is important to study the physical properties of EP-POSS. This article studies the physical properties of synthesized EP-POSS, such as the light transmittance, adhesion, flame retardancy, surface energy, and dielectric properties. The results prove that EP-POSS is a hydrophobic material that can be applied to photovoltaic panels. This work laid a theoretical foundation for the application of EP-POSS as a hydrophobic material to photovoltaic panels.

A solution to break the salt barrier for high-rate sustainable solar desalination

We present a strategy to break the salt barrier for sustainable solar steam generation from seawater, by constructing an efficient water–salt loop and employing a highly porous, super-hydrophobic material with high photothermal conversion capability.

Amino Anthraquinone: Synthesis, Characterization, and Its Application as an Active Material in Environmental Sensors

This work reports synthesis, thin film characterizations, and study of an organic semiconductor 2-aminoanthraquinone (AAq) for humidity and temperature sensing applications. The morphological and phase studies of AAq thin films are carried out by scanning electron microscope (SEM), atomic force microscope (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. To study the sensing properties of AAq, a surface type Au/AAq/Au sensor is fabricated by thermally depositing a 60 nm layer of AAq at a pressure of ~10−5 mbar on a pre-patterned gold (Au) electrodes with inter-electrode gap of 45 µm. To measure sensing capability of the Au/AAq/Au device, the variations in its capacitance and resistance are studied as a function of humidity and temperature. The Au/AAq/Au device measures and exhibits a linear change in capacitance and resistance when relative humidity (%RH) and temperature are varied. The AAq is a hydrophobic material which makes it one of the best candidates to be used as an active material in humidity sensors; on the other hand, its high melting point (575 K) is another appealing property that enables it for its potential applications in temperature sensors.

Nanoliposomes and Tocosomes as Multifunctional Nanocarriers for the Encapsulation of Nutraceutical and Dietary Molecules

Nanoscale lipid bilayers, or nanoliposomes, are generally spherical vesicles formed by the dispersion of phospholipid molecules in a water-based medium by energy input. The other nanoscale object discussed in this entry, i.e., tocosome, is a recently introduced bioactive carrier made mainly from tocopheryl phosphates. Due to their bi-compartmental structure, which consists of lipidic and aqueous compartments, these nanocarriers are capable of carrying hydrophilic and hydrophobic material separately or simultaneously. Nanoliposomes and tocosomes are able to provide protection and release of sensitive food-grade bioactive materials in a sustained manner. They are being utilized for the encapsulation of different types of bioactive materials (such as drugs, vaccines, antimicrobials, antioxidants, minerals and preservatives), for the enrichment and fortification of different food and nutraceutical formulations and manufacturing of functional products. However, a number of issues unique to the nutraceutical and food industry must first be resolved before these applications can completely become a reality. Considering the potentials and promises of these colloidal carrier systems, the present article reviews various aspects of nanoliposomes, in comparison with tocosomes, including the ingredients used in their manufacture, formation mechanisms and issues pertaining to their application in the formulation of health promoting dietary supplements and functional food products.