Recent study has shown that the spinel type of MnO₂ nanoparticles have a required capacity for lithium extraction from liquid resources. The low lithium adsorption capacity of synthesised ion sieves was found to be an important limiting parameter for their use in industrial applications. Therefore, increasing the uptake capacity of different ion sieves by studying the effect of six effective parameters, involving lithium salt compound, manganese salt compound, oxidising reagent, calcination temperature, heating time and Li/Mn mol ratio, on the synthesised ion sieves was investigated. Hence, in this reported work, a specific approach based on the L₉(3⁴) Taguchi orthogonal array was employed to evaluate these parameters and to optimise them in two separate stages. Also, the relative importance of each factor was determined using analysis of variance. Although, all mentioned parameters had a significant effect on lithium uptake capacity, the oxidising reagent and the lithium salt compound were the most effective factors. Also, an appropriate ion sieve with a lithium adsorption capacity of more than 9 mmol g⁻¹ was synthesised for the first time.

Many micrometal devices are fabricated by microelectroforming technology in microelectromechanical systems. Micrometal devices usually suffer from poor interfacial adhesion strength, which restricts the application of microelectroforming technology. To solve this problem, in this reported work the influence of the electroforming crystallite size on practical adhesion energy is investigated. Furthermore, based on the energy balance criterion of fracture mechanics, the Miedema model of experimental electron theory (Miedema model) and the surface stress model, the equations between the crystallite size and the practical adhesion energy are established originally. Concerning the equations, the results show that the practical adhesion energy keeps an increasing trend and approaches basic adhesion energy as the crystallite size increases. To prove the equations, microelectroforming experiments were performed. The practical adhesion energy was measured by a scratch test. The crystallite size of the electroforming layer was tested by X-ray diffraction technology. The results of the experiments show that, within the range of the crystallite size, the practical adhesion energy keeps an increasing trend and approaches 15 J/m². The theoretical and the experimental results show the same trend. The equations are verified by the experiments and this work may guide the microelectroforming process.

A uniform precursor of Li₃V₂(PO₄)₃ nanoparticles was synthesised by a solvothermal method using ethanolamine lactate as both solvent and carbon sources at ambient pressure. Nanostructured Li₃V₂(PO₄)₃/C cathode materials could be successfully prepared by subsequent heat treatment. The scanning and transmission electron microscopy observation shows that the as-synthesised Li₃V₂(PO₄)₃/C powders retained the morphology and the particle size of the precursor that was formed during the solvothermal process. The Li₃V₂(PO₄)₃ particles are coated with uniform carbon layers with a thickness of about 5 nm. The material presents excellent performance with a high-rate capacity and cycle stability. It can deliver discharge capacities of 127.9, 117.7, 104.9 and 95.6 mAh g⁻¹ in the potential ranges of 3.0–4.3 V, 164.0, 154.8, 141.0 and 131.1 mAh g⁻¹ between 3.0 and 4.8 V corresponding to 0.5, 1, 5 and 10 C rate after cycles, respectively. The charge transfer impedance increases from 55.55 to 127.31 Ω after 50 cycles at 1.0 C, which is attributed to the refined structure and the uniform carbon film on the surface of the as-prepared Li₃V₂(PO₄)₃/C powders.

Anisotropic metal nanoparticles are of considerable interest to researchers because of their unique optical, electronic and catalytic properties compared with spherical nanoparticles. This Letter describes how chloride ions and citrate ions can be added to silver (Ag) nitrate solution to synthesise anisotropic silver nanostructures especially to form the Ag nanowires (AgNWs) without high hydrothermal or solvothermal operating temperatures. The AgCl colloidal precipitates were produced in the initial stage promoting the reduction of free silver ions and helping control silver ions at low concentration for the growth of AgNWs. The synthesis of AgNWs was also temperature and hydroxide radical dependent since the citrate ions could direct the growth of AgNWs at proper temperatures (over 130°C) in the absence of chloride ions. Transmission electron microscopy and UV–vis absorption spectra have been used to investigate the obtained products. The experimental results suggested that the chloride ions played a crucial role in directing the growth of anisotropic Ag nanostructures.

How to decrease the reset current is a key point for improving the performance of phase change memory (PCM). Therefore, an asymmetric structure of PCM is proposed to achieve this aim. Using ANSYS, three-dimensional finite element models were established to simulate the efficiency of electric–thermal conversion in PCM cells with an asymmetric structure and a conventional symmetric structure. Simulation results show that the peak temperature in the asymmetric cell with a feature size (FS) of 16 nm is higher than that in the conventional symmetric cell with the same FS by 37.2% when the same current pulse is applied. In an asymmetric cell, the current path and heat dissipating conditions are quite different from those in a symmetric cell, which leads to the remarkable enhancement in electric–thermal conversion efficiency. Simulation results also suggest a proper offset value in asymmetric structures, with which the efficiency of electric–thermal conversion can be further improved. If this new structure is used in fabrication, no additional cost will be incurred because the only difference between symmetric and asymmetric structures is the position of the top opening of the electrodes, indicating that the new structure is highly compatible with modern fabrication processes of PCM.

A nozzle-free spinneret with a flow controller was applied to produce nanoscale fibres of both polymeric solutions and melts by centrifugal field. This centrifugal processing strategy can be used to fabricate non-woven webs composed of fibre diameters ranging from several microns down to 400 nm or less. The fibre morphology and diameter in melt needleless centrifugal spinning (NCS) can be controlled by varying the rotation speed, temperature, liquid properties and collector system. Solution NCS adds the operating parameters of the solution concentration and the solvent. The field emission scanning electron microscope images show that the average diameter of the fibres is approximately 2 ± 0.8 µm and 400 ± 100 nm for polyethylene terephthalate fibres (2400 rpm, 245°C) and polyvinylpyrrolidone fibres (20 wt%, 4000 rpm), respectively.

Octahedral Co₃O₄ (∼1 μm) was synthesised by a one-step carbon-assisted method using degreasing cotton and cobalt chloride as precursors. The characterisation results show that the calcination temperature, calcination time, reaction precursor, oxygen environment and reactants ratio of the precursor play important roles in fabricating the Co₃O₄ powders. The result of the UV-vis spectrum also shows that the octahedral Co₃O₄ obtained can be applied in photocatalytic water splitting under visible light irradiation.

The preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces on hydrophilic metal substrates depends on both surface microstructures and low surface energy. Composite electro-brush flow plating technology was developed to prepare appropriate microstructures leading to superhydrophilicity on copper surfaces. The effects of plating voltage and plating time on the coating surface structures and hydrophobicity were discussed. The surface morphology and chemical composition were characterised by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The results demonstrate that the prepared surfaces have the appearance of micro–nano hierarchical structures composed of submicron papilla-like Ni structures and nanoscale Al₂O₃ particles. After fluoridation, the coating surfaces prepared by proper parameters show superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle of 162° and a sliding angle of less than 10°. Tests of micro hardness, wear resistance and persistence show that the obtained superhydrophobic n-Al₂O₃/Ni coating surfaces have outstanding mechanical properties and stability. This sample preparation technique has prospective application in the large-scale and continuous production of superhydrophobic engineering materials.

The size-dependent free vibration of nano/microbeams with piezo-layered actuators is analytically investigated. The size-dependent dynamic modelling of the piezo-layered beam is presented on the basis of the non-local continuum theory. Equations of the motion and boundary conditions of the beam are obtained by implementation of Hamilton's principle. Analytical solutions for natural frequencies and mode shapes are obtained as a function of the piezo-layered beam characteristic size and non-local size scale parameter. The size effects on the vibration behaviour of the beam are studied and it is found that the non-local parameter, length ratio and thickness ratio have significant effects on the free vibration of systems.

Magnetite (Fe₃O₄) particles are prepared by a hydrothermal method using ethylene glycol as the solvent. Aging time is a very important factor in the reaction process. The properties and morphology of the products with different aging times are investigated. In the initial stage of the reaction (1 and 2 h), the main powders were iron hydroxides. Fe₃O₄ particles generated (3 h) and grew into spherical shapes (4–10 h) with the extended aging time. The particle size and the specific saturation magnetisation also varied with aging time. By analysing the powders and the liquids during the reaction, a probable mechanism is studied.

An atmospheric-pressure plasma jet (APPJ) has been developed to fabricate hydrophilic patterns on superhydrophobic surfaces. The surface morphologies, chemical compositions and wettability were investigated using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectrophotometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and water contact angle measurement. The results show that the superhydrophobic areas exposed to the APPJ could be completely converted to superhydrophilic without changing the macro and microsurface morphologies. The transition from superhydrophobicity to superhydrophilicity is because of the decrease of hydrophobic fluorine-containing functional groups and the increase of the hydrophilic oxygen-containing functional groups. Combined with scanning and mask technology, complex and large-area wettability contrast patterns can be easily fabricated on various superhydrophobic substrates by the APPJ treatment. Additionally, the retention of intrinsic microstructures enables the surface to recover superhydrophobicity only by using surface fluorination. This results in a rapid reversible transition between superhydrophilicity and superhydrophobicity.

Barium titanate (BaTiO₃) is a well-known ferroelectric material and widely used in electronic industries for the multi-layer ceramic capacitor. In this reported work, commercially available tetragonal BaTiO₃ (BT) powders were taken to study the size effect on the structural and dielectric properties of the BT ceramics during high-energy ball milling (0–110 h). The same perovskite when kept under a normal atmospheric condition after milling shows gradual increase of additional crystalline phase that occurred because of the absorption of atmospheric CO₂ gas, which is characterised as orthorhombic BaCO₃. The milled BT samples were characterised by X-ray diffraction and small-angle X-ray scattering and a dielectric analyser. The purpose of this work was to study how the dielectric property of nanoBT ceramics varies with reduction of particle size, structural changes and the absorption of carbon by these nanopowders. It was observed that the dielectric constant of the BT powders increases with particle size reduction during milling. The dielectric behaviour of the BT ceramics significantly changes with polymorphic phase transformation in nanocrystalline BT at different stages of milling. The capacitance of nanoBT powders is significantly changed with the absorption of carbon by the nanoBT powders in a humid atmosphere.

A magnetic Fe₃O₄/BiOBr microsphere has been prepared by a simple and effective method. The Fe₃O₄/BiOBr magnetic photocatalyst exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible-light irradiation. RhB in aqueous solution was fully photodegraded after 100 min. The Fe₃O₄/BiOBr photocatalyst was easily recovered after liquid-phase photodegradation reaction because of its property, which could facilitate the practical running of an industrial wastewater treatment.

A carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC)-assisted method is developed for the preparation of a palladium (Pd) nanoparticles (NPs)/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanohybrid. The addition of a small amount of CMC to the reaction solution leads to the production of well-crystallised metallic Pd NPs with small diameter and uniformly dispersed on CNTs. The obtained Pd NPs supported on CNTs show enhanced catalytic activity and stability for the electrochemical oxidation of methanol in alkaline media. The as-developed Pd NPs/CNTs nanohybrid is a highly promising catalyst for use in fuel cell technology.

Lithium-rich layered oxide 0.3Li₂MnO₃·0.7LiNi_1/3Co_1/3Mn_1/3O₂ nanorods have been prepared by a KCl molten salt-assisted template route. The nanorods can well retain the rod-like structure of a β-MnO₂ template, and have the length of several hundred nanometres and diameters of about one hundred nanometres. In comparison with the sample obtained from immediate solid-state reaction, the molten salt treatment can help improve the phase purity and decrease the particle size. As a lithium-ion battery cathode, the KCl-treated nanorods deliver an initial discharge capacity of 242.9 mAh g⁻¹ with a high Coulombic efficiency of 83.6% at a current density of 20 mA g⁻¹ within 2.0–4.7 V. After 60 cycles, a discharge capacity of 150.8 mAh g⁻¹ can be retained at 0.5 C. Even at a high charge–discharge rate of 4 C (800 mA g⁻¹), a stable capacity of 104.2 mAh g⁻¹ can be reached, while the sample obtained from solid-state reaction only delivers an initial discharge capacity of 179.1 mAh g⁻¹at 20 mA g⁻¹.

Liposomal formulations containing ketoconazole were prepared with the ultimate goal of increasing their efficacy for topical drug delivery. Various concentrations of drugs were encapsulated within liposomes and characterised by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transformation infrared spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering studies for size distribution, zeta potential and stability. LIP₂₀₀ emerged as the best formulation with a size of 178.9 nm, polydispersity index of 0.299 and overall zeta potential of −5.38 mV. The encapsulation efficiency monitored over a period of 28 days varied between 79.6 and 75.4%. The formulation was found to be stable in serum solution with slight changes in size, polydispersity index and charge. The formulation also showed a better anti-fungal activity against Candida sp. in comparison to other preparations, as well as the control, indicating its potential as a promising topical drug delivery system.

An environmentally hospitable NaCl non-aqueous ionic liquid method has been employed to prepare single crystalline whisker-like Mg₂B₂O₅ crystals, which were synthesised by annealing a ground mixture of H₃BO₃, MgCl₂·6H₂O, NaCl and surfactant nonylphenyl ether (9) at 850°C for 2 h. The systemically comparative experiments have been performed to understand the formation mechanism of whisker-like Mg₂B₂O₅ crystals. The results demonstrated that both non-aqueous ionic liquid and nonylphenyl ether (9) played vital roles in the formation of whisker-like Mg₂B₂O₅ crystals. Based on the experimental results and analysis, a reasonable growth mechanism of whisker-like Mg₂B₂O₅ crystals is proposed. This reported work opens up a relative low-temperature strategy for the synthesis of single crystalline whisker-like Mg₂B₂O₅ crystals.

A novel mixed hemimicelle-based solid-phase extraction method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) adsorbed onto the surface of magnetic Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles was developed for extraction/preconcentration of ultra-trace amounts of indomethacin from biological fluids. Magnetic nanoparticles were synthesised via a simple chemical co-precipitation method and characterised by a transmission electron microscope, an X-ray diffractometer and Fourier transform infrared techniques. The method utilises the unique properties of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles including high surface area and superparamagnetism causing rapid separation (<20 min) and low adsorbent usage (only 50 mg). A comprehensive study on the parameters affecting the adsorption efficiency such as the amount of CTAB, pH of the solution, desorption conditions, amount of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, extraction and preconcentration time, sample volume and ionic strength are presented. Under optimum conditions, the method's linearity was over a range of 25–450 ng ml⁻¹.‏ The limit of detection of 8.6 ng ml⁻¹, an enrichment factor of 99 and the relative standard deviation (%RSD) of 1.9% (for a concentration of 50 ng ml⁻¹) were obtained. The method was successfully applied to determine indomethacin in human plasma and urine samples. Good recoveries (89–102%) with low %RSD, (1.7–2.7%) were achieved.

Mesoporous silicas are synthesised using 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene (TMB) and heptanes as pore expanders. Small-angle X-ray diffraction and N₂ adsorption–desorption isotherms at 77 K were used to characterise the pore structure of the prepared materials. The porosity increased with the added TMB amount for samples using TMB as a pore expander and a total pore value of 2.48 cm³/g was obtained, representing an increase by a factor of 2.4 as compared with mesoporous silica without TMB addition. For samples with heptanes as a pore expander, the pore volume increased with synthesis temperature. The mesoporous silica synthesised at 52°C had a total pore volume of 2.38 cm³/g.