We have achieved the synthesis of dual-metal single atoms and atomic clusters that co-anchor on a highly graphitic carbon support. The catalyst comprises Ni 4 (and Fe 4 ) nanoclusters located adjacent to the corresponding NiN 4 (and FeN 4 ) single-atom sites, which is verified by systematic X-ray absorption characterization and density functional theory calculations. A distinct cooperation between Fe 4 (Ni 4 ) nanoclusters and the corresponding FeN 4 (NiN 4 ) atomic sites optimizes the adsorption energy of reaction intermediates and reduces the energy barrier of the potential-determining steps. This catalyst exhibits enhanced oxygen reduction and evolution activity and long-cycle stability compared to counterparts without nanoclusters and commercial Pt/C. The fabricated Zn−air batteries deliver a high power density and long-term cyclability, demonstrating their prospects in energy storage device applications.
The current antibacterial treatment
methods of silk sutures
can
only be finished by surface modification, leading to problems of short
antibacterial effects, easy slow-release consumption, prominent toxicity,
and susceptibility to drug resistance. Speculatively, surgical sutures
combining antibacterial material internally will possess a more promising
efficacy. Hence, we extracted recycled regenerated silk fibroin (RRSF)
from waste silk resources to make RRSF solutions. Internally combining
with inorganic titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles, we
fabricated antibacterial RRSF-based surgical sutures. The morphologies,
mechanical and antibacterial properties, biocompatibility tests, and
in vivo experiments were carried out. The results showed that the
surgical sutures with 1.25 wt % TiO2 acquired 2.40 N knot
strength (143 μm diameter) and achieved a sustainable antibacterial
effect of 93.58%. Surprisingly, the sutures significantly reduced
inflammatory reactions and promoted wound healing. Surgical sutures
in this paper realize high-value recovery of waste silk fibers and
provide a novel approach to preparing multifunctional sutures.
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