In recent years, lithium-sulfur (LiS) batteries have attracted tremendous attention as a promising candidate for the next generation recharged battery because of the high theoretical capacity and theoretical specific energy density. However, the severe shuttle effect and poor conductivity of pol...

Epitaxial growth of boron phosphide (BP) films on 4H- and 6H-SiC(0001) substrates with on- and off-axis orientations was investigated in this study. The films were prepared by chemical vapor deposition using phosphine and diborane as reactants over a temperature range of 1000 oC–1200 °C. The e...

We report that a covalent compound, boron phosphide (BP), can function as a highly stable and metal-free photocatalyst to produce hydrogen from water in the presence of sacrificial agents under visible light irradiation, even at extreme conditions such as strong acid and alkali. The BP photocata...

The adsorption of alkali atoms (Li, Na, and K) on graphene and hexagonal boron phosphide (h-BP) is studied by means of various density functionals including semi-local GGA, dispersion corrected DFT-D, meta-GGA, and many of the available non-local vdW-DF functionals. The accurate interaction ener...

Design and synthesis of high energy density materials is an escalating area of research. Continuous strides are made to explore new and better materials for this purpose. Herein, we report a new and effective strategy to improve the cell voltage and performance of Na-ion batteries where phosphid...

Continuous strides are made to realize molecular systems with exceptionally high nonlinear optical response. Here, we report alkali metal exohedrally doped phosphide nanocages as the excellent materials with remarkable nonlinear optical response. Density functional theory calculations have been ...

Biosynthesis of membrane-derived oligosaccharides (MDO), located in the periplasmic space of Escherichia coli, was not inhibited by colicin M, an inhibitor of bactoprenyl phosphate regeneration. This result suggests that bactoprenol does not serve as a lipid carrier of MDO oligosaccharides acros...

Many lantibiotics use the membrane bound cell wall precursor Lipid II as a specific target for killing Gram-positive bacteria. Binding of Lipid II usually impedes cell wall biosynthesis, however, some elongated lantibiotics such as nisin, use Lipid II also as a docking molecule for pore formatio...

Bacteria are equipped with complex cell surface structures, such as cell walls. How they maintain cell surface integrity through cell wall metabolism during growth and adaptation to unfavorable environmental conditions is still elusive. In the Gram-positive soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis, one ...

Undecaprenyl Pyrophosphate Synthase (UPPS) is an enzyme critical to the production of complex polysaccharides in bacteria, as it produces the crucial bactoprenol scaffold on which these materials are assembled. Methods to characterize the systems associated with polysaccharide production are non...

Tungsten’s unique properties and the excellent cutting and wear resistance properties of its carbides have made it a strategic commodity of high importance globally. Cemented carbides, used for the production of tools and components for metal cutting, rock drilling and wear resistance applicati...

Cladding layers were prepared on carbon steel using nanostructured carbide-strengthened cobalt (Co)-based alloy (using nanostructured tungsten carbide as hard phases) as a deposited material by multi-track laser cladding. In addition to Co-based alloy, the deposited materials contained nanostruc...

In this work, cemented tungsten carbide nano-particles were prepared by a chemical method called acrylamide gel. In this process, first, a xerogel containing tungsten and cobalt oxide particles was synthesized. Then, it was carburized by a hydrogen reduction heating process.Acrylamide and N, N-m...

To prepare coarse-grained tungsten carbide powder, it is necessary to choose large-sized initial tungsten powder and carburize at a higher temperature for a long time. Moreover, there are still lots of cracks in the particle due to the agglomeration by primary grains. In this article monocrystal...

The WC mean grain size, grains size distribution, binder phase composition and properties of four batches of WC-based cemented carbides with different Co:Re ratios varying from 0:100 to 60:40 were examined. The WC mean grain size significantly decreases, hardness and coercivity increases and mag...

Nanostructured tungsten carbide-cobalt coatings were deposited by air plasma spraying (APS) technique, using nitrogen as primary plasma gas. The characteristics of nanostructured coatings are typically affected by the percentage of unmelted/partially-melted regions present in the coatings. Hence...

Femtosecond (fs) laser ablation has been studied for the potential of fast, high precision machining of difficult-to-machine materials like binderless tungsten carbide. Obstacles that have limited its efficiency include melting from heat accumulation (HA), particle shielding, and plasma shieldin...

Cemented tungsten carbide materials are traditionally bonded using a cobalt matrix, resulting in a material that possesses a unique combination of exceptional properties. However, cobalt has been recently classified as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen,” and thus, removal of thi...

The Saharan Metacraton is largely covered by the Sahel and Sahara with only sparse bedrock exposure making it one of the most poorly studied cratons in the World. Consequently, detrital zircon geochronology is invaluable to discern the lithotectonic development of the Saharan Metacraton in the a...

Acetone, one of the most common VOCs, could cause serious air pollution and threat the human health when someone is exposed to certain concentration of acetone. Thereof, acetone detection and elimination in the air was significant to prohibit the hazard of acetone. Acetone adsorbed to (BeO)12, (...