In this work, a porous polypropylene (PP)/nano carbon black (CB) composite was facilely fabricated via immiscible co-continuous polymer blend and subsequent dissolution process. The porous structure was generated from co-continuous polymer blend, which was exploited as the substrate for depositing nano CB. The interconnected micro pores of the co-continuous polymer blend and nano pores derived from agglomerated CB resulted in a significant enhancement of conductivity. Comparing with the conventional carbon composite obtained through dual-percolation method, the electrical conductivity of PP/CB composite increased 10 orders of magnitude with CB loading ranged from 1 wt% to 5 wt%. Moreover, it was found that the percolation threshold of PP/CB composite decreased nearly 80% compared with that of as-mixed sample. The enhanced conductivity and much lower percolation make this novel method a potential way for fabricating porous conductive materials for advanced application.

To discuss the internal effect of urea (CO(NH2)2) pretreatment on anaerobic digestion biogas production of rice straw waste, a self-designed laboratory-scale continuous anaerobic biogas digester was used in this study. Anaerobic biogas slurry, urea pretreatment and anaerobic digestion were evaluated for biogas production from rice straw. The results showed that the peak value of biogas production was attained on the 17th day by using 6% urea pretreatment on rice straw. However, the highest CH4 content was 49.8% on the 15th day for the 8% urea-treated rice straw. The cumulative biogas production of 6% urea pretreatment was the highest, about 16 540 mL, which was followed by 2% urea (12 283 mL), 8% urea (9 883 mL), and 4% urea (5 668 mL).

To discuss the effect of NaOH pretreatment technology for biogas production and methane (CH4) content enhancement during the anaerobic digestion of rice straw waste, a self-designed laboratory-scale continuous anaerobic biogas digester was used in this study. Anaerobic biogas slurry, NaOH pretreatment and anaerobic digestion were evaluated for biogas production from rice straw. The results showed that the peak value of biogas production was attained on the 16th day by using 6% NaOH pretreatment on rice straw. However, the highest CH4 content was 60.8% on the 24th day for the 4% NaOH-treated rice straw. The cumulative biogas production of 6% NaOH pretreatment was the highest, about 18 720 mL, which was followed by 8% NaOH (15 057 mL), 4% NaOH (12 103 mL), and 2% NaOH (10 754 mL).

The chemical pretreatment of rice straw was achieved via the liquid-state dissolution of CaCO3. Pretreatment effects on the biodegradability and subsequent anaerobic production of methane were investigated. The results showed that the peak value of biogas production was attained of 4% CaCO3 pretreatment on the 20th day, which is 1 589 mL. The test daily methane content of different pretreatment conditions mainly ranges from 3.4% to 47.4%. The cumulative biogas production of 6% CaCO3 pretreatment was the highest, about 19 917 mL.

A series of novel conducting nanocomposite (NC) hydrogels, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) /Clay/MWNT, were synthesized by in situ free-radical polymerization. The chemical structure of the gels was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The temperature responsive behaviors and mechanical properties were also investigated in detail. The prepared NC gels presented a rising volume phase transition temperature (VPTT) and enhanced mechanical properties. When the water content reached 700%, the conductivity increased from 0.46 to 1.09 ms•cm-1 with the addition of MWNTs increasing from 0 to 1.19wt%. The improved mechanical strength and conductivity make the NC gels a potential material in the development of artificial muscles, biosensors, bioseparation and other advanced materials both academically and practically.