The effects of chitosan have been investigated on eighty patients with renal failure undergoing long-term stable haemodialysis treatment. The patients were tested after a control treatment period of 1 week. Half were fed 30 chitosan tablets (45 mg chitosan/tablet) three times a day. Ingestion of chitosan effectively reduced total serum cholesterol levels (from 10.14 +/- 4.40 to 5.82 +/- 2.19 mM) and increased serum haemoglobin levels (from 58.2 +/- 12.1 to 68 +/- 9.0 g L-1). Significant reductions in urea and creatinine levels in serum were observed after 4 weeks of chitosan ingestion. The feeling of physical strength, the appetite and the sleep of patients in the treatment group had improved significantly after 12 weeks of ingestion, compared with those of patients in the control group. During the treatment period, no clinically problematic symptoms were observed. These data suggest that chitosan might be effective treatment for renal failure patients, although the mechanism of the effect should be investigated further.

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Herein, a superhydrophobic and highly conductive cotton fabric (CF) composite with outstanding corrosion resistance for wearable textile electronics is developed. The fabrication process of the fabric composite involves spraying deposition and electrodeposition. Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs) are first synthesized on cotton fibers surface via two components spraying, forming cotton fibers core/AgNPs shell structure. The CF/AgNPs composite is then covered with a layer of cerium myristate (CeM) by electrodeposition, which endows the composite with superhydrophobicity and outstanding corrosion resistance. The resistivity of CF/AgNPs/CeM composite could reach as low as 0.106 Ω mm. Moreover, the obtained CF/AgNPs/CeM composite exhibits excellent self‐cleaning property and superhydrophobicity with a contact angle (CA) of 158.4°. Also, it maintains superhydrophobicity (CA > 150°) after 60 cm abrasion test or immersion in strong acidic/alkaline solution (pH = 1 or 13) for 24 h. In addition, the corrosion current density of conductive fabric composite (CFC) after electrodeposition decreases to 4.79% of the original value in simulated sweat corrosive media, suggesting a significant improvement of anti‐corrosion. The developed superhydrophobic CFC with excellent corrosion resistance and self‐cleaning performance has promising applications for wearable electronics in harsh conditions.

Polyurethane binder systems based on hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) possess several superior properties such as superior adhesion, high solid-loading capacity, outstanding mechanical performance, etc. They have been widely used in coatings and adhesives as well as in medical and military industries. The cure reaction between hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) and diisocyanates plays a key role in the properties of final products as well as the adjustment of process parameters. FT-IR spectroscopy is applied to investigate the kinetics of the curing reaction of HTPB and isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) in the presence of a low toxic and low viscosity catalyst, stannous isooctoate (TECH). The concentrations of the isocyanate groups (NCO) characterized by FT-IR during the cure reaction with respect to time were recorded at different temperatures and at constant stoichiometric ratio R n[NCO]/n[OH] = 1.0. The kinetic parameters, i.e., activation energy (E a), pre-exponential factor (A), activation enthalpy (∆H) and activation entropy (∆S) were determined. In addition, the curing process and mechanism of the HTPB-IPDI reaction are discussed.

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