Bejoy Abraham¹, Jesna Mohan², Linu Shine³, Sivakumar Ramachandran^3,*

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.136, No.1, pp. 87-106, 2023, DOI:10.32604/cmes.2023.023384 - 05 January 2023

Abstract Tear film, the outermost layer of the eye, is a complex and dynamic structure responsible for tear production. The tear film lipid layer is a vital component of the tear film that provides a smooth optical surface for the cornea and wetting the ocular surface. Dry eye syndrome (DES) is a symptomatic disease caused by reduced tear production, poor tear quality, or excessive evaporation. Its diagnosis is a difficult task due to its multifactorial etiology. Out of several clinical tests available, the evaluation of the interference patterns of the tear film lipid layer forms a More >

Ruyu Yan^1,2,3,4, Jian Fang^1,*, Xiaohua Yang^2,3,4,5,6, Na Yao^2,3,4,5,6, Mei Li^2,3,4,5,6, Yuan Nie^2,3,4,5,6, Tianxiang Deng^2,3,4,5,6, Haiyang Ding^2,3,4,5,6, Lina Xu^2,3,4,5,6, Shouhai Li^2,3,4,5,6,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.4, pp. 1937-1950, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2023.025126 - 01 December 2022

Abstract Ethyl cellulose (EC), an important biomass-based material, has excellent film-forming properties. Nevertheless, the high interchain hydrogen bond interaction leads to a high glass transition temperature of EC, which makes it too brittle to be used widely. The hydroxyl group on EC can form a supramolecular system in the form of a non-covalent bond with an effective plasticizer. In this study, an important vegetable-oil-based derivative named dimer fatty acid was used to prepare a novel special plasticizer for EC. Dimer-fatty-acid-based thioether polyol (DATP) was synthesized and used to modify ethyl cellulose films. The supramolecular composite films… More > Graphic Abstract

Huicheng Xu, Hao Xie, Weidong Shan, Weihong Wang^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.3, pp. 1123-1135, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2022.023959 - 31 October 2022

Abstract Straw utilization is a key issue related to agricultural production and air pollution control. In this study, a novel extrusion process was proposed to improve the physical and mechanical properties of the straw-reinforced linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) composite. Instead of crushing the straw and mixing it with plastic matrix, the new method mixes straw with plastic matrix in its original form. The intact long rice straws were parallelly spread on the LLDPE film and then rolled up together into a prefabricated roll. The rolls experienced three extrusion processes as follows: (1) twin-screw melting, cooling and… More >

Yanfeng Zhu¹, Huidong Shi¹, Qing Ju¹, Dong Zhao¹, Yucai Shen^1,2,*, Tingwei Wang^1,2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.3, pp. 1303-1319, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2022.023129 - 31 October 2022

Abstract Poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) and poly(butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA) blend films were prepared with different contents of a multifunctional epoxide chain extender Joncryl ADR-4468 (ADR) or benzoyl peroxide (BPO). The long-chain-branching (LCB) introduced by ADR and branched/crosslinked entanglement induced by BPO increased melt elasticity, viscosity and compatibility, as indicated by thermal properties, rheological and morphological analyses. It was found that the elongation at break and the tensile strength were significantly improved, due to the enhancement of compatibility and the interfacial adhesion by the incorporation of ADR or BPO. The best mechanical properties were obtained in PBAT/PBSA/ADR (60/40/0.3) (A4T6A_0.3) More > Graphic Abstract

Sai Gong^1,2,#, Shanglin Xiang^1,#, Tingwei Wang^1,*, Dongyu Cai^2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.3, pp. 1063-1076, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2022.023011 - 31 October 2022

Abstract Waterborne polymers are vital for coating industry to reduce carbon emissions. However, formation of robust and self-healable films at ambient temperature remains a challenge owing to high energy cost of film formation process. This work reports a solar-driven film formation of waterborne polyurethanes (WPUs) containing disulfide bonds via in-situ incorporation of 2D titanium carbide (MXene) with ability to convert light to heat. Instead of directly mixed with WPUs, MXene is added to join the reaction with isocyanate-terminated pre-polymer before emulsification process. This approach not only prevents aggregation of MXene in water but stabilizes MXene against thermal More > Graphic Abstract

Yunxia Zhou¹, Hisham Essawy², Ai Liu¹, Chenyu Yang¹, Defa Hou¹, Xiaojian Zhou^1,*, Guanben Du¹, Jun Zhang^1,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.2, pp. 837-852, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2022.022792 - 22 September 2022

Abstract This study presents an easily prepared film based on alkaline starch-polyvinyl alcohol hybrid and lignin fiber as an additive (SPL film). The SPL film was prepared under acidic conditions through a polycondensation reaction of PVA and a mixture incorporating alkaline starch and lignin fiber from agriculture or forest source. The examination using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the surface of SPL film was smooth and the lignin fiber had good compatibility within the film hybrid. Electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy (ESI-MS) and fourier transform infrared (FTIR) investigations indicated that alkaline starch and lignin fiber reacted More > Graphic Abstract

Xueyuan Wei, Yang Bai^*, Qi Chen^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.11, No.1, pp. 61-77, 2023, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2023.022773 - 10 August 2022

Abstract Due to the long carrier lifetime, high carrier mobility, and high absorption coefficient of perovskite materials, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has increased from 3.8% in 2009 to 25.7% in 2021, which have already surpassed the PCE of thin-film solar cells and closes to the efficiency of Si-based photovoltaics (26.7%). Therefore, PSCs have become a promising clean energy technology for commercialization. However, the low defect formation energy of perovskite leads to a higher defect density than other conventional photovoltaic materials. It results in severe non-radiative recombination, limiting its further development More > Graphic Abstract

Paul H. Chung¹, Joon Yau Leong¹, Jared J. Wallen², Whitney Stanton³, Niccole Diaz³, Caleb D. Phillips⁴, Gerard D. Henry⁵

Canadian Journal of Urology, Vol.29, No.6, pp. 11348-11354, 2022

Abstract Introduction: Traditional culture is the current standard-of-care to determine therapeutic antibiotics for patients suffering from penile prostheses (PP) infections. However, approximately 50% of PPs removed for infection are culture negative. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) compares DNA sequences to reference sequences with known microbial taxonomies to identify isolates and report relative abundances. We aim to compare the ability for standard culture and NGS techniques to identify microorganisms and biofilm composition on PPs.
Materials and methods: Ninety-one PPs explanted for mechanical malfunction were included in this study. Devices removed for infection or erosion were excluded. During revision surgery, two specimens… More >

XINGMIN XU¹, QINGQING SUN², AIRONG XU², XINBAO GUO²

Journal of Polymer Materials, Vol.39, No.1-2, pp. 167-181, 2022, DOI:10.32381/JPM.2022.39.1-2.11

Abstract Silk fibroin (SF) with renewability, biocompatibility and biodegradability shows potential application in various fields including biomedicine, tissue engineering, and wearable electronic devices. Herein, SF is used to exert effective reinforcement of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) composite film to further improve its practicability. As such, PVA/SF composite films were prepared for the first time using a facile approach. The films were characterized to investigate possible interaction of PVA with SF. Meanwhile, systematic investigations have also been completed to explore the influences of PVA/SF mass ratio on the mechanical properties (tensile strength, elongation at break), biodegradability and biocompatibility, More >

Fithry Mohd Amir^*, Mohd Zamri Yusoff, Saiful Hasmady Abu Hassan

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer, Vol.18, pp. 1-15, 2022, DOI:10.5098/hmt.18.27

Abstract Nanofluid film on a horizontal tube is investigated numerically on the circular and multi-faceted cylinder. The fluid flow characteristics, including film thickness, shear stress, and thermal performance, are observed and analyzed. Fluid film on the circular surface is typical in many engineering applications, but the study of nanofluid film on non-circular surface is deficient in literature. The study provides a numerical model of a multi-faceted cylinder to simulate the nanofluid film on the non-circular surfaces using a volume of fluid (VOF) method. The ratio of Brownian motion to thermophoretic diffusion, N_BT developed along the film thickness More >