Silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic materials were fabricated via the combination of direct ink writing (DIW) and reactive melting infiltration (RMI) techniques. The effects of the carbon black-to-silicon carbide (C-to-SiC) ratio on the rheological properties of the slurry, as well as the microstructure and mechanical performance of the resulting SiC ceramics were systematically investigated. The experimental results demonstrate that, as the carbon black content increases from 9vol% to 18vol%, the viscosity, yield stress, and equilibrium modulus of the slurry all exhibit a corresponding increase, contributing to enhanced dimensional precision of the green body. After high-temperature heat treatment, the linear shrinkage in the vertical direction decreases from 8.59% to 6.88%. The prepared SiC ceramic materials display densities in the range of 2.70 – 2.85 g/cm³ and porosities ranging from 0.39vol% to 3.99vol%, indicating an improvement in densification. With the increase in carbon black content, the free silicon content in the ceramics decrease, while the residual carbon content increase. Mechanical testing results reveal that the SiC ceramics fabricated from slurries with 12vol% and 15vol% carbon black content achieve the highest flexural strength and modulus, reaching 287.74 MPa and 274.10 GPa, respectively. A reasonable C-to-SiC ratio helps to generate more SiC content (especially nanoscale β-SiC) and retain less residual Si, thereby forming a finer microstructure. Combined with less residual C, higher mechanical properties can be obtained.

A polyurethane semi-prepolymer was introduced as a new modifier for asphalt. The performance of the polyurethane semi-prepolymer-modified asphalt were compared with SBS-modified asphalt. The results of infrared spectroscopy and fluorescence microscopy indicate that there is a chemical reaction between the polyurethane semi-prepolymer and the asphalt, while the SBS and the asphalt are physically cross-linked. The dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) tests indicate that the polyurethane semi-prepolymer-modified asphalt exhibits resistance to deformation at high temperatures, remarkable elastic recovery, minimal stress sensitivity, and higher viscosity. However, its low-temperature performance is inferior to that of SBS-modified asphalt. Based on the asphalt mixture rutting test, the study confirms the excellent rutting resistance of polyurethane semi-prepolymer-modified asphalt. Moreover, the three-point beam bending test and semi-circular bending test (SCB) indicate that the low-to-medium temperature cracking resistance of the polyurethane semi-prepolymer-modified asphalt mixture is inferior to that of SBS-modified asphalt. Therefore, polyurethane semi-prepolymer-modified asphalt exhibits significant application potential in high-temperature regions and on heavy-duty roadways.

At temperatures ranging from 1 210 to 1 270 °C, pressure for 40 MPa and holding time for 10 min, higher density ultrafine-grained WC-Ni₃Al cemented carbides with Ni₃Al contents ranging from 5wt% to 20wt% were fabricated using spark plasma sintering. The influence of Ni₃Al addition on the structure and properties of the WC-Ni₃Al composites was investigated and characterized. The experimental results demonstrate that Ni₃Al addition affects the sintering behavior of WC-Ni₃Al cemented carbides. During sintering, Ni₃Al possesses higher interfacial energy, thus inhibits the growth of WC grains, resulting in an average grain size of 280–330 nm of WC-Ni₃Al composites, which is classified as ultrafine-grained. Furthermore, the increase in Ni₃Al content results in a decrease in hardness but an improvement in fracture toughness. When the Ni₃Al content reaches 15wt%, it aggregates to form “Ni₃Al pools”, resulting in a significant hardness reduction of 14.02% compared to WC-10wt% Ni₃Al composites. More fracture energy is consumed by cracks passing through the “Ni₃Al pools”, thus enhancing the toughness of the material. The optimal comprehensive properties are obtained with a Ni₃Al content of 10wt%, exhibiting a hardness of 1 866.8 HV, a fracture toughness of 11.79 MPa·m^1/2, achieved a great balance between high hardness and high toughness than that of other studies.

In order to select waxes demonstrating superior warm-mixing performance, five kinds of waxes used for warm-mixed additives (WMAs) were introduced: modified polyamide wax (MPW), refined Fischer-Tropsch wax 1 (RFW1), refined Fischer-Tropsch wax 2 (RFW2), specialty wax (SW), and oxidized polyethylene wax (OPW), to study the effects of their performance and the mechanism compared with the Sasobit warm-mixed additive (SWMA) on the performance of Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene high viscosity asphalt (SHVA). Five types of waxes were added to SHVA to prepare wax-mixed asphalt. The physical and rheological properties of the warm-mixed SHVAs were investigated by basic performance tests, Brookfield viscosity tests, DSR and DSC tests, and the microstructure of the asphalt was observed by FTIR tests and fluorescence microscope. The experimental results show that there is no chemical reaction occurred between the wax additives and the asphalt after the wax materials were added. And all the six waxes have good warm-mixing effect. Considering the effects on the performance of modified asphalt, the warm-mixing effect of RFW2 and its rheological performance of warm-mixed SHVA is better than that of conventional SWMA.

A dual-layer TaC coating including porous TaC (p-TaC) inner layer and dense TaC (d-TaC) outer layer was in-situ fabricated by laser chemical vapor deposition (LCVD) for improving the thermal shock resistance. The p-TaC inner layer exhibits a (111) preferred orientation and characterizes a network of trunks and branches attributed to the “shadow effect”, while the d-TaC outer layer displays a random orientation with a columnar crystal structure. This dual-layer design effectively mitigates CTE mismatch and alleviates thermal stress. Consequently, the coated graphite can withstand more than 10 cycles of thermal shock test from room temperature (RT) to 1 400 °C with no stress cracking. This work provides a novel strategy for fabricating functional coatings on graphite with excellent thermal shock resistance.

This study evaluated the acid and alkali corrosion resistance of AlCrN/AlCrNO/AlCrO multilayer SSACs fabricated by cathodic arc ion plating (CAIP). Corrosion tests were designed to simulate extreme acid rain and alkaline conditions commonly encountered in northern China. The SSAC samples were synthesized via CAIP and subsequently immersed in H₂SO₄ solution (pH = 4.0) and Na₂CO₃ solution (pH = 9.5) for 24 hours, respectively. After exposure, the solar absorptance of all samples remained nearly unchanged at approximately 0.94. Thermal emittance exhibited only minor changes, increasing to 0.22 after acid exposure and decreasing to 0.19 after alkali exposure. Comprehensive characterization using SEM, EDS, XPS, XRD, and ICP analyses revealed that the coating’s chemical composition, microstructure, and phase structure were well preserved after corrosion. However, interaction with the corrosive media resulted in a reduction in macro-droplet size along with partial detachment. In conclusion, the AlCrN/AlCrNO/AlCrO SSAC exhibits excellent resistance to both acidic and alkaline environments, and further reduction of macro-droplet content could enhance the coating’s long-term durability.

To investigate the key factors governing thermal conductivity in silicate glasses, we focused on a glass series where magnesium substitutes calcium for systematic investigation. With the increasing magnesium content, the thermal conductivity (κ) shows a linearly increasing trend. Based on the phonon gas model, Debye sound velocity, phonon mean free path and κ maintain strongly correlate near-linear relationships. Moreover, the volumetric heat capacity remains relatively invariant across compositions. Given the inherent strong phonon scattering characteristic of amorphous systems, the phonon mean free path in this glass series shows constrained variation. which restricts the behavior and establishes Debye sound velocity as the principal determinant governing κ evolution. The observed linear variation in thermal conductivity arises from the common linear trends of the debye sound velocity, volumetric heat capacity and phonon mean free path with respect to the substitution of magnesium ions for calcium ions.

To address the issues of high brittleness and significant shrinkage of cement-based materials, the synergistic effects of nano-graphene oxide (GO) and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) on the mechanical properties and shrinkage behavior of cement mortar were systematically investigated through individual and hybrid incorporation. Individual systems (GO: 0.02wt%, 0.04wt%, 0.06wt%; EVA: 3wt%, 5wt%, 7wt%) and hybrid systems were designed. The 7-day and 28-day flexural strength, compressive strength, and drying shrinkage rate were tested, while thermogravimetric analysis (TG), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were employed to characterize the microstructure. The experimental results indicate that, in individual systems, the G4 specimen (0.04wt% GO) exhibits 23.9% and 19.7% enhancements in 28-day flexural and compressive strengths, respectively, compared to the control specimen (PC). The E5 specimen (5wt% EVA) shows an 8.2% improvement in flexural strength. For the hybrid E5G4 specimen (5wt% EVA and 0.04wt% GO), the 28-day flexural and compressive strengths are increased by 30.6% and 25.4%, respectively, relative to PC, with a limited 32.2% rise in drying shrinkage. Microstructural analyses reveal that the lamellar structure of GO promots the densification of C-S-H gel through physical filling and nucleation effects, while EVA forms continuous polymer films to inhibit crack propagation, thereby alleviating shrinkage. This study demonstrates that the hybrid incorporation of GO and EVA synergistically optimizes the mechanical performance of cement-based materials via nano-reinforcement and polymer toughening mechanisms. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the design of high-performance cementitious composites.

Strain-sensitive LaCoO₃ was epitaxially employed as the ferromagnetic layer, while SrFeO_2.5 was used as the antiferromagnetic layer to fabricate SrFeO_2.5/LaCoO₃ bilayers. When the LaCoO₃ layer is relatively thin, the bilayers exhibit an exchange spring behavior akin to soft/hard magnetic coupling. However, when the LaCoO₃ layer transitions from being thin to thick, the bilayers transform into a single ferromagnetic-phase magnetization reversal mode. Meanwhile, all the bilayers are accompanied by an obvious exchange bias effect. Extensive experimental results indicate that the changes in the magnetization reversal process and the appearance of exchange bias effect are closely associated with the pinning effect caused by magnetic coupling interaction at the ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic interface, rather than the soft/hard magnetic phases generated by the LCO layer induced by the substrate.

A novel magnetically separable nano-heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst (Fe₃O₄/CEWSB) was successfully fabricated via a one-pot oxidation precipitation approach, in which Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles were uniformly anchored on cerium-modified walnut shell biochar (CEWSB) to form a stable composite structure. Systematic characterizations including SEM, BET, Raman, FTIR, XRD, XPS and VSM confirmed that Fe₃O₄/CEWSB possesses rich surface oxygen-containing functional groups (−OH, −COOH), well-developed mesoporous structures, and abundant oxygen vacancies as well as carbon defects. The Fe₃O₄/CEWSB significantly enhances methylene blue (MB) removal efficiency through abundant carbon defects and oxygen vacancies, synergistic Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ and Ce⁴⁺/Ce³⁺ redox cycles, and oxygen-containing functional groups. At the condition of pH 3.0, H₂O₂ 30 mM, catalyst 1.0 g/L, Fe₃O₄/CEWSB exhibits the highest degradation capacity (>99%), the degradation process followed pseudo-first-order reaction kinetics with a high rate constant of 0.0440 min⁻¹. Scavenger experiments identified ·OH and ·O₂⁻/·O₂H as the dominant reactive species participating in MB decomposition. Possible degradation intermediates and reaction pathways were elucidated through GC-MS characterization. The Fe₃O₄/CEWSB catalyst maintained excellent reusability and outstanding stability with 89.37% removal rate of MB and low Fe leaching (1.085%) in 5 cycles. This study develops a sustainable and efficient catalyst for textile wastewater degradation.

Phosphoric acid was utilized to modify titanium dioxide, elucidating its mechanism for inhibiting the high-temperature transformation of the anatase phase into the rutile phase. The effects of sintering temperature, phosphoric acid doping amount, and initial grain size on the stability of anatase phase were evaluated. The results reveal that phosphate groups chelate to the TiO₂ surface effectively suppressed phase transition. This research provides a new insight into the mechanism by which phosphoric acid-modified TiO₂ inhibits the anatase-to-rutile phase transformation, offering theoretical support for its application in high temperature environments.

MgF₂/Al₂O₃ composite sintering aids and ZrO₂ reinforcing phases were employed to enhance the mechanical properties of Si₃N₄ ceramics. Si₃N₄ ceramics were synthesized via pressureless sintering at 1 620–1 640 °C for 3 hours. This study comprehensively investigated the impact of the composite sintering aids and the sintering temperature on the mechanical properties, phase transformation and microstructure. The Si₃N₄ ceramics with an optimized α/β phase proportion exhibit a good performance in hardness and strength. These ceramics were sintered at 1 630 °C. The density, hardness and bending strength are 93.30%, 16.64 (± 0.38) GPa, and 441.26 (± 34.46) MPa.

Flow battery energy storage (FBES) provide a flexible storage for low-carbon port integrated energy systems (PIES). To improve renewable energy accommodation and overcome the high cost and low utilization of decentralized storage, this paper proposes a shared flow battery energy storage (SFBES) framework for multi-port integrated energy systems. A bi-level collaborative optimization model is developed, where the upper-level optimizes storage power and energy capacities, and the lower-level coordinates renewable generation, quay crane (QC), electric truck (ET), and multi-energy conversion units. The model is reformulated as a single-level MILP using KKT conditions.

The polyamide 612 plates were stretched at a series of temperatures to simulate the hot stretching process during the fiber spinning. The oriented polyamide 612 plates were systematically analyzed from aspects of mechanical properties, thermal properties, crystal structure and crystal morphology. The experimental results show that spherulites are destroyed and evolved into oriented fibrilsduring tensile process. The mechanical properties of polyamide 612 are greatly inhanced after pre-stretching process. There exists a crystal phase transition behavior in polyamide matrix (from γ to α-formcrystals), which is induced by arrangment of hydrogen bonds. The maximum tensile strength of polyamide 612 appeares at 120 °C, which is result of competition of chain orientation and relaxation. This works can povide theory support for preparation of polyamide fibers with high performance.

Modulating ternesite hydration has become an urgent concern to improve cement performance. Herein, the ternesite was synthesized in laboratory and 5%–25% calcinated metakaolin (MK) was doped into ternesite Subsequently. The strength, hydration, and microstructure of the ternesite-metakaolin (T-MK) system were evaluated, and the related mechanism was explored via X-ray diffraction, isothermal calorimetry, thermogravimetry differential thermal analysis, the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method, and scanning electron microscopy. MK accelerates ternesite hydration and shortens the induction period, with 20% MK exhibiting the optimum result. At 28 d, T-MK20 exhibits 16 MPa compressive strength and it is 5-fold higher than that of pure ternesite. T-MK20 exhibits a hydration degree of 48.4% at this age. In addition to C-S-H, gypsum, and Ca (OH)₂, a new hydration product, ettringite, is generated in the hardened paste. The interwoven acicular ettringite crystals developes a mechanical skeleton, and then the C-S-H fills the pores to form a dense microstructure. Consequently, the hardened paste of T-MK exhibits good performance. These experimental results can open a new path for the application of low-carbon cementitious materials by incorporating ternesite.

Slag and PMA were used as precursors, while Ca(OH)₂ and Na₂CO₃ were used as the alkaline activator. The impact of alkali-activated slag-PMA (ASP) content, defined as the mass ratio of ASP to the total of ASP and desulfurized gypsum (0, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40%), on the drying time, setting time, dry density, fire resistance, compressive strength, bond strengths (W₀), and wind suction & vibration resistance (W_a) was explored. The underlying mechanism was revealed by XRD, TG-DTG, SEM and MIP. The experimental results indicate that, as ASP content rises, the drying time, initial setting time and final setting time are shortened, and the fire resistance of DAF first decreases and then increases, being worst at 30%. As ASP content increases, the compressive strength, W₀ and W_a first go up then drop, peaking at 20%. When ASP content increases from 0 to 20%, the hydration products increase and large pore reduce, thus increasing W₀ and W_a. When ASP content increases from 20% to 40%, the hydration products decrease, and the higher ASP content results in more internal cracks, causing to a decrease in W₀ and W_a. The research findings will promote the application of PMA in DAF.

To solve the problems of low early strength and slow strength development of excess-sulfate phosphogypsum phosphorus slag cement (EPPSC), humid-heat curing (HHC) was used to improve the mechanical properties of EPPSC. Different contents of phosphogypsum (PG) and phosphorus slag were introduced into the system. The mass changes of the samples before and after curing were compared. The compressive strengths of the samples under HHC were measured and compared with those under standard curing (SC), respectively. The hydration mechanism of EPPSC under HHC conditions was investigated by XRD and SEM. The experimental results show that the strength of the EPPSC after 24 h of HHC is comparable to that of standard curing after 28 d, which can reach more than 30 MPa. The later strength of the specimens subjected to HHC is also improved. The suitable curing temperature is 60–70 °C, the suitable curing time is 12–24 h, and the suitable PG dosage is 30%–50%. The EPPSC can obtain the compressive strength as 43.6 MPa at 28 d and 63.0 MPa at 90 d, while the problems of low early strength and slow strength development can be improved. HHC accelerates the formation of C-S-H gel and the growth of ettringite (AFt) crystals by promoting the dissociation of granulated blast furnace slag and phosphorus slag. At the same time, the growth and densification of gypsum crystals in PG-enriched areas form the PG microaggregate, enhancing the system’s cementing ability, thus improving the overall performance of EPPSC materials.

To enhance the applicability of recycled aggregate (RA) in structural concrete, this study innovatively employed a cement-industrial waste powder (metakaolin/silica fume/fly ash) composite slurry to coat and strengthen recycled aggregate. For the first time, the “10-minute water absorption rate” was used as the core evaluation index to investigate its effects on the bulk density, apparent density, water absorption rate, and crushing value of RA. Subsequently, recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) was prepared, and the transfer mechanism of aggregate modification effects to the interfacial strength of concrete was revealed through compressive, splitting tensile, and flexural strength tests. Finally, by combining the measured interfacial performance indicators of recycled concrete after multiple freeze-thaw cycles, the study elucidated the performance evolution of recycled concrete during long-term use. The experimental results show that, compared with unmodified recycled aggregate, the synergistic incorporation of the four materials increases the bulk density by 13.6%, the apparent density by 12.1%, and reduces the crushing value by 66.4%. With the increase in the amount of industrial waste powder, the water absorption rate of recycled aggregate gradually decreases. The composite slurry can “fill and seal” the interfacial transition zone of recycled aggregate, reducing the number of harmful large pores, and the 10-minute short-term water absorption rate is reduced by more than 50% compared to unmodified recycled aggregate. The composite slurry-strengthened aggregate enables the 28-day compressive strength of recycled concrete to increase by 26%, the 28-day splitting tensile strength by 19%, and the flexural strength by 13.5%. After 200 freeze-thaw cycles, the relative dynamic modulus of elasticity of recycled concrete with the four types of composite slurry-strengthened aggregates is 84.5%, and the mass loss is 2.8%. This study provides a technical pathway for the high value-added resource utilization of construction waste.

Based on the background of new high-strength steel protective materials hitted by the ultrahigh speed weapons, the Hugoniot elastic limit strength of the material was obtained through the high-strength steel flying fragment impact test. A two-stage light gas gun was used to carry out an ultra-high speed impact test on the 6 g tungsten alloy spherical fragments penetrating the high-strength steel target, and the ANSYS/LS-DYNA software was used to perform numerical calculations of the ultra-high speed penetration. The experimental results reveal that the Hugoniot elastic limit strength obtained in the test can provide a good reference for the correction of simulation parameters. There are differences in the pit formation mechanism of high-strength steel at different speeds. At ultra-high speeds, the penetration depth is reduced due to the shearing, spalling, delamination and material properties of the projectile.

Taking AZ80 magnesium alloy reinforced with Y+SiC as the research object, we investigated its squeeze casting mechanical properties through numerical simulation. Based on a simulation software platform, a reasonable squeeze casting process scheme for the specimens was determined. The solidification process and mechanical properties of the squeeze-cast samples were simulated and analyzed. The experimental results indicate that the factors influencing mechanical properties, in descending order of significance, are squeeze pressure, pouring temperature, and holding time. When the pouring temperature is 700 °C, the squeeze pressure is 100 MPa, and the holding time is 15 s, meantime the squeeze-cast AZ80 magnesium alloy achieves optimal and stable mechanical performance. Under these conditions, the tensile strength reaches 271.4 MPa, the elongation is 7.4%, and the Rockwell hardness is 98.2 HRC. Orthogonal experiments were conducted to validate the process parameters, and the results are consistent with the simulation, confirming the optimal parameter combination. A high-strength and high-toughness AZ80 magnesium matrix composite was successfully fabricated using Y+SiC reinforcement. It show that after squeeze casting, many Y + SiC particles are encapsulated within the matrix grains, thereby significantly improving the overall mechanical properties of the Y+SiC/ AZ80 magnesium matrix composite.

The microstructure, tensile properties, and fracture behavior of Al-11% Mg₂Si hypoeutectic alloys with rare earth La (0, 0.1wt%, 0.2wt%, 0.4wt%, 0.6wt%, and 0.8wt%) were systematically studied. The experimental results show that the addition of La remarkably refines the primary α-Al dendrites and eutectic Mg₂Si particles of the alloy and decreases the secondary dendrite arm spacing of the alloy. In addition, the introduction of La transforms the shape of the eutectic Mg₂Si phase into a fine granular or fibrous structure from a coarse plate-like structure. The constitutional undercooling formed by the enrichment of La atoms and La containing particles at the primary Al grain boundary and eutectic Mg₂Si/α-Al phase interface is responsible for α-Al refinement and Mg₂Si modification. The addition of La significantly improves the tensile properties of the alloy and at an optimum addition of 0.4wt% of La; meanwhile, the ultimate tensile strength, yield strength and elongation of the alloy increase from 231 MPa, 136 MPa and 2.1% to 322 MPa, 164 MPa and 4.8%, respectively, which are 39.4%, 20.6% and 128.6% higher than those without the addition of La. The improvement of the tensile properties of La-containing alloys is mainly due to the fact that the reduction in the size and the change in morphology of eutectic Mg₂Si crystals caused by the addition of La enhance the anti-cracking stress and reduce stress concentration at the Mg₂Si/Al phase interface.

Based on the CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy with simple face-centered cubic structure (FCC) prepared by vacuum arc melting technology, (CoCrFeMnNi) 85Al6Ti4Cu5 HEA was prepared by adding Al, Ti and Cu elements. Copper mold suction casting, 1473 K sealing homogenization, 70% cold rolling + 923 K aging, water cooling and heat treatment process. The microstructure and phase composition of as-cast and heat-treated high-entropy alloys were systematically characterized by metallographic microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The microhardness of as-cast and heat-treated high-entropy alloys was tested by Vickers hardness tester. The effect of heat treatment process on the precipitation of the second phase of (CoCrFeMnNi) 85Al6Ti4Cu5 HEA was studied. The experimental results show that the second phase precipitated in the as-cast (CoCrFeMnNi) 85Al6Ti4Cu5 HEA is mainly AlTiNi2 phase with L21 structure. After homogenization, cold rolling, aging and other heat treatment processes, the amount of second phase precipitation gradually increases. The addition of Cu element has a solid solution strengthening effect on CoCrFeMnNi-based high-entropy alloy, and the as-cast microhardness of the alloy reaches 252.9 HV_0.5. Combined with the heat treatment process, the alloy forms a FCC + BCC dual-phase structure. The research shows that the addition of Cu element promotes the precipitation of L21 phase. Under the combined effect of solid solution strengthening and second-phase strengthening, the hardness of the alloy after heat treatment reaches a maximum of 484.7 HV_0.5. The addition of alloying elements has significantly improved the mechanical properties of high-entropy alloys.

A hierarchical porous polystyrene microsphere (HPPM) that simultaneously possesses micro-, meso-, and macropores was fabricated by two-step seed swelling and hyper-crosslinking method, respectively, based on the polystyrene (PS) microspheres prepared by dispersion polymerization using a shaker. Subsequently, Au NPs were in-situ loaded onto the sulphonated HPPM via a thermal reduction reaction to prepare the hierarchical porous polystyrene microsphere-supported Au NPs (Au@sHPPM) composite catalyst. SEM and particle size test results show that the microspheres exhibit excellent monodispersity. The specific surface area reaches 529.21 m²·g⁻¹ when the ratio of St/DVB is 0.6:2.0, and further increases to 644.14 m²·g⁻¹ after hyper-crosslinking. The XRD and XPS analysis results indicate that HAuCl₄ is reduced to Au NPs. In the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol with sodium borohydride (NaBH₄), Au@sHPPM composite catalyst demonstrates excellent catalytic performance, with a conversion rate of up to 96.76% within 15 minutes. Furthermore, it also demonstrates outstanding catalytic performance for organic dyes such as Congo red, Rhodamine B and Malachite green, indicating that the Au@sHPPM composite catalyst has good stability and reusability.

Two novel water-soluble A-D-A fluorescent probes (H01 and H02), composed of a phenol moiety that functions as a latent donor in conjugation with two picoliniums, were designed and synthesized for selective detection of hypochlorite. Both probes show rapid response to hypochlorite and a favorable linear correlation between hypochlorite concentration and fluorescent intensity. And the detection limit is calculated as 3.39 µM for H01 and 4.95 µM for H02, respectively. These probes also exhibit high selectivity, rapid response (3 s) and large Stokes shift. Both exhibit good biocompatibility, allowing effective monitoring of the exogenous hypochlorite fluctuations in living cells.

A novel PVA/EG/GE/LiCl (PEGL) multifunctional hydrogel was developed by using a binary of ethylene glycol (EG)/water as solvent, with gelatin (GE) and PVA as the skeletons and lithium chloride (LiCl) for conductivity. The experimental results indicate that, compared to four other hydrogels, the PEGL hydrogel exhibits the best tensile strength (3.92 ± 0.12 MPa), a good elongation at break (375.22 ± 11.25%), and excellent anti-freezing properties, being able to withstand approximately 6 500 times its own weight without breaking. Moreover, the PEGL organic hydrogel sensor has high sensitivity and rapid response characteristics, capable of transforming body movements into repeatable and stable electrical signals. This study provides new ideas for the development of new types of high-performance wearable flexible strain sensors.

This study investigated the crosslinking behavior and curing properties of environmentally friendly polyurethane (PU) modified asphalt (PUMA) prepared by in-situ polymerization. The research aimed to clarify the chemical reaction sites and sequence between the PU prepolymer (PUP) and asphalt components, and to evaluate the microstructural and performance evolution of PUMA during curing. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were employed to predict reactive sites based on electrostatic potential and frontier molecular orbitals, and to compute Gibbs free energy and transition state energy barriers. The experimental results indicate that phenolic hydroxyl and pyridinic nitrogen in asphaltene molecules and phenolic hydroxyl in resin molecules are the primary sites for reaction with PUP. PUP reacts spontaneously with chain extender (BDO), water, asphaltene, and resin at room temperature, with the reaction following the order: BDO > H₂O > asphaltene-1 > asphaltene-2 > resin. Microstructural analysis by atomic force microscopy reveals that PU acts as a bridge connecting asphaltene and resin, forming an integrated network that became more perfect with prolonged curing time. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy of SARA fractions confirms the formation of amide bonds between PUP and asphalt components. The high-temperature performance of PUMA improves with curing time, while the low-temperature performance slightly decreases but still meets specification requirements after 180 days of curing. The findings can provide a fundamental basis for the design and preparation of high-performance PUMA.

This study focused on solving the efficiency problem of microbial repair materials in concrete crack filling. Sodium alginate with a proportion of 1.5% and β-cyclodextrin with different proportions (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, 0.75%, and 1%) were introduced into traditional microbial repair materials, and a new microbial-sodium alginate-β-cyclodextrin composite system was successfully constructed. The basic properties, durability and microstructure of the modified microbial remediation material were comprehensively analyzed. The experimental results show that the production of calcium carbonate is up to 2.5 g after the addition of β-cyclodextrin, which is 8.5% higher than that of the control group (2.3 g) in the absence of β-cyclodextrin. The water absorption of the material decreases to 54.7%, which is 17.7% lower than that of the control group (66.5%). The thermal shrinkage rate decreases to 0.4%, which is 69.2% lower than that of the control group (1.3%). This synergistic effect significantly improves the durability of the repaired specimens. The mass loss rate after freeze-thaw cycles is reduced to a minimum of 0.8%, which is 36.9% lower than the 1.3% of the unrepaired specimens. The loss rate of compressive strength after freeze-thaw cycles decreases to 4.7%, which is 65.9% lower than that of the unrepaired specimen (13.9%). In addition, after UV aging treatment, the water absorption of the material only increases slightly from 54.7% to 56.8%, an increase of 3.8%.

We investigated the binding of universal protein BSA (Bovine Serum Albumin) over graphene oxide (GO) surface and performed quantitative measurements to find its maximum binding capacity. The interaction of proteins onto a 2D surface can happen via two available orthogonal extremes-side-on and end-on. Electrochemical measurements using cyclic voltammetry to define the uniqueness of the present study as it confirms the binding of BSA over GO surface and evaluate its maximum capacity. The reliability of the results is verified by repeating the experiment multiple times over a year. UV-Vis, FTIR, Raman, and SEM measurements clearly show that BSA is perfectly bound over GO. The estimated value of BSA over GO calculated by standard protein estimation test - Lowry’s protein assay is 1.1 mg/mg.