The lightness and high strength-to-weight ratio of the magnesium alloy have attracted more interest in various applications.However,micro/nanostructure generation on their surfaces remains a challenge due to the flamm...The lightness and high strength-to-weight ratio of the magnesium alloy have attracted more interest in various applications.However,micro/nanostructure generation on their surfaces remains a challenge due to the flammability and ignition.Motivated by this,this study proposed a machining process,named the ultraprecision diamond surface texturing process,to machine the micro/nanostructures on magnesium alloy surfaces.Experimental results showed the various microstructures and sawtooth-shaped nanostructures were successfully generated on the AZ31B magnesium alloy surfaces,demonstrating the effectiveness of this proposed machining process.Furthermore,sawtooth-shaped nanostructures had the function of inducing the optical effect and generating different colors on workpiece surfaces.The colorful letter and colorful flower image were clearly viewed on magnesium alloy surfaces.The corresponding cutting force,chip morphology,and tool wear were systematically investigated to understand the machining mechanism of micro/nanostructures on magnesium alloy surfaces.The proposed machining process can further improve the performances of the magnesium alloy and extend its functions to other fields,such as optics.展开更多
Micro/nanostructured components play an important role in micro-optics and optical engineering,tribology and surface engineering,and biological and biomedical engineering,among other fields.Precision glass molding tec...Micro/nanostructured components play an important role in micro-optics and optical engineering,tribology and surface engineering,and biological and biomedical engineering,among other fields.Precision glass molding technology is the most efficient method of manufacturing micro/nanostructured glass components,the premise of which is meld manufacturing with complementary micro/nanostructures.Numerous mold manufacturing methods have been developed to fabricate extremely small and high-quality micro/nanostructures to satisfy the demands of functional micro/nanostructured glass components for various applications.Moreover,the service performance of the mold should also be carefully considered.This paper reviews a variety of technologies for manufacturing micro/nanostructured molds.The authors begin with an introduction of the extreme requirements of mold materials.The following section provides a detailed survey of the existing micro/nanostructured mold manufacturing techniques and their corresponding mold materials,including nonmechanical and mechanical methods.This paper concludes with a detailed discussion of the authors recent research on nickel-phosphorus(Ni-P)mold manufacturing and its service performance.展开更多
To improve the weak corrosion resistance of silicon steel to acid solution and alkaline solution with high temperature,a stable hierarchical micro/nanostructure superhydrophobic surface with myriad irregular micro-sca...To improve the weak corrosion resistance of silicon steel to acid solution and alkaline solution with high temperature,a stable hierarchical micro/nanostructure superhydrophobic surface with myriad irregular micro-scale hump and sheet-like nanostructure was successfully prepared on silicon steel by a simple,efficient and facile operation in large-area laser marking treatment.The morphology,composition,wettability of the as-prepared surface were studied.The superhydrophobic performance of the surface was investigated as well.Additionally,the corrosion resistance of the superhydrophobic surface to acidic solutions at room temperature and alkaline solutions at high temperature (80 ℃) was carefully explored.The corrosion resistance mechanism was clarified.Moreover,considering the practical application of the surface in the future,the hardness of the hierarchical micro/nanostructure superhydrophobic surface was studied.The experimental results indicate that the hierarchical micro/nanostructure surface with texture spacing of 100 μm treated at laser scanning speed of 100 mms/ presents superior superhydrophobicity after decreasing surface energy.The contact angle can be as high as 156.6°.Additionally,the superhydrophobic surface provide superior and stable anticorrosive protection for silicon steel in various corrosive environments.More importantly,the prepared structure of the surface shows high hardness,which ensures that the surface of the superhydrophobic surface cannot be destroyed easily.The surface is able to maintain great superhydrophobic performance when it suffers from slight impacting and abrasion.展开更多
In this work, a simple method was carried out to successfully fabricate superoleophilic and superhydrophobic N-dodecyltrimethoxysilane@tungsten trioxide coated copper mesh. The as-fabricated copper mesh displayed prom...In this work, a simple method was carried out to successfully fabricate superoleophilic and superhydrophobic N-dodecyltrimethoxysilane@tungsten trioxide coated copper mesh. The as-fabricated copper mesh displayed prominent superoleophilicity and superhydrophobicity with a huge water contact angle about 154.39° and oil contact angle near 0° Moreover, the coated copper mesh showed high separation efficiency approximately 99.3%, and huge water flux about 9962.3 L·h^-1·m-2, which could be used to separate various organic solvents/ water mixtures. Furthermore, the coated copper mesh showed favorable stability that the separation efficiency remained above 90% after 10 separation cycles. Benefiting from the excellent photocatalytic degradation ability of tungsten trioxide, the coated copper mesh possessed the self-cleaning capacity. Therefore, the mesh contaminated with lubricating oil could regain superhydrophobic property, and this property of self-cleaning permitted that the fabricated copper mesh could be repeatedly used for oil and water separation.展开更多
This paper presents a probe-based force-controlled nanoindentation method to fabricate ordered micro/nanostructures.Both the experimental and finite element simulation approaches are employed to investigate the influe...This paper presents a probe-based force-controlled nanoindentation method to fabricate ordered micro/nanostructures.Both the experimental and finite element simulation approaches are employed to investigate the influence of the interval between the adjacent indentations and the rotation angle of the probe on the formed micro/nanostructures.The non-contacting part between indenter and the sample material and the height of the material pile-up are two competing factors to determine the depth relationship between the adjacent indentations.For the one array indentations,nanostructures with good depth consistency and periodicity can be formed after the depth of the indentation becoming stable,and the variation of the rotation angle results in the large difference between the morphology of the formed nanostructures at the bottom of the one array indentation.In addition,for the indentation arrays,the nanostructures with good consistency and periodicity of the shape and depth can be generated with the spacing greater than 1μm.Finally,Raman tests are also carried out based on the obtained ordered micro/nanostructures with Rhodamine probe molecule.The indentation arrays with a smaller spacing lead to better the enhancement effect of the substrate,which has the potential applications in the fields of biological or chemical molecular detection.展开更多
The peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures were fabricated by a facile hydrothermal approach. The peonylike CuO micro/nanostructures about 3-5 μm in diameter were assembled by CuO nanoplates. These CuO nanoplates, as th...The peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures were fabricated by a facile hydrothermal approach. The peonylike CuO micro/nanostructures about 3-5 μm in diameter were assembled by CuO nanoplates. These CuO nanoplates, as the building block, were self-assembled into multilayer structures under the action of ethidene diamine, and then grew into uniform peony-like CuO architecture. The novel peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures exhibit a high cycling stability and improved rate capability. The peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures electrodes show a high reversible capacity of 456 mAh/g after 200 cycles, much higher than that of the commercial CuO nanocrystals at a current 0.1 C. The excellent electrochemical performance of peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures might be ascribed to the unique assembly structure, which not only provide large electrode/electrolyte contact area to accelerate the lithiation reaction, but also the interval between the multilayer structures of CuO nanoplates electrode could provide enough interior space to accommodate the volume change during Li^+ insertion and de-insertion process.展开更多
Micro/nanostructures play a key role in tuning the radiative properties of materials and have been applied to high-temperature energy conversion systems for improved performance.Among the various radiative properties,...Micro/nanostructures play a key role in tuning the radiative properties of materials and have been applied to high-temperature energy conversion systems for improved performance.Among the various radiative properties,spectral emittance is of integral importance for the design and analysis of materials that function as radiative absorbers or emitters.This paper presents an overview of the spectral emittance measurement techniques using both the direct and indirect methods.Besides,several micro/nanostructures are also introduced,and a special emphasis is placed on the emissometers developed for characterizing engineered micro/nanostructures in high-temperature applications(e.g.,solar energy conversion and thermophotovoltaic devices).In addition,both experimental facilities and measured results for different materials are summarized.Furthermore,future prospects in developing instrumentation and micro/nanostructured surfaces for practical applications are also outlined.This paper provides a comprehensive source of information for the application of micro/nanostructures in high-temperature energy conversion engineering.展开更多
To develop anode materials with superior volumetric storage is crucial for practical application of lithium/sodium-ion batteries.Here,we have developed a micro/nanostructured Sn S/few-layer graphene(Sn S/FLG)composite...To develop anode materials with superior volumetric storage is crucial for practical application of lithium/sodium-ion batteries.Here,we have developed a micro/nanostructured Sn S/few-layer graphene(Sn S/FLG)composite by facile scalable plasma milling.Inside the hybrid,SnS nanoparticles are tightly supported by FLG,forming nanosized primary particles as building blocks and assembling to microsized secondary granules.With this unique micro/nanostructure,the Sn S/FLG composite possesses a high tap density of 1.98 g cm^(-3)and thus ensures a high volumetric storage.The combination of Sn S nanoparticles and FLG nanosheets can not only enhance the overall electrical conductivity and facilitate the ion diffusion greatly,but alleviate the large volume expansion of Sn S effectively and maintain the electrode integrity during cycling.Thus,the densely compacted Sn S/FLG composite exhibits superior volumetric lithium and sodium storage,including high volumetric capacities of 1926.5/1051.4 m Ah cm^(-3)at 0.2 A g^(-1),and high retained capacities of 1754.3/760.3 m Ah cm^(-3)after 500cycles at 1.0 A g^(-1).With superior volumetric storage performance and facile scalable synthesis,the Sn S/FLG composite can be a promising anode for practical batteries application.展开更多
Microscale crystallization is at the frontier of chemical engineering,material science,and biochemical research and is affected by many factors.The precise regulation and control of microscale crystal processes is sti...Microscale crystallization is at the frontier of chemical engineering,material science,and biochemical research and is affected by many factors.The precise regulation and control of microscale crystal processes is still a major challenge.In the heterogeneous induced nucleation process,the chemical and micro/nanostructural characteristics of the interface play a dominant role.Ideal crystal products can be obtained by modifying the interface characteristics,which has been proven to be a promising strategy.This review illustrates the application of interface properties,including chemical characteristics(hydropho-bicity and functional groups)and the morphology of micro/nanostructures(rough structure and cavities,pore shape and pore size,surface porosity,channels),in various microscale crystallization controls and process intensification.Finally,possible future research and development directions are outlined to emphasize the importance of interfacial crystallization control and regulation for crystal engineering.展开更多
A significant limitation in the engineering of artificial small-diameter vascular scaffolds is that the number of endothelial cells(ECs)is not sufficient to generate a confluent coverage of the vascular scaffolds,so t...A significant limitation in the engineering of artificial small-diameter vascular scaffolds is that the number of endothelial cells(ECs)is not sufficient to generate a confluent coverage of the vascular scaffolds,so that the surfaces of vascular scaffolds form thrombus via platelet adhesion and aggregation.Thrombus decrease relies on three-dimensional(3D)scaffolds to mimic the natural extracellular matrix(ECM)as templates to regulate cell behavior and facilitate tissue maturation.Here,we developed 3D scaffolds consisting of silk fibroin(SF)nanofibers and homogeneous microspheres by electrospinning and microfluidics.The nanofibers with diameters ranging from 250 to 350 nm doped with microspheres(2–10μm)formed bridge-shaped structures.ECs were seeded and maintained on the 3D microsphere-nanofiber scaffolds with a mean fiber diameter of 300 nm.A 10%higher ratio of cell proliferation on 3D microsphere-nanofiber SF scaffolds was noted as compared to that on microporous and sponge-like SF scaffolds with small surface network fabricated by freeze-drying.Moreover,the gene transcript levels including CD146,VE-C and PECAM-1 were better preserved on 3D microsphere-nanofiber SF scaffolds than those on freeze-dried scaffolds.Thus,the developed 3D microsphere-nanofiber structure may have a myriad of applications in vascular tissue engineering scaffolds and cardiovascular devices.展开更多
The widespread use of water-repellent superhydrophobic surfaces is limited by the inherent fragility of their micro-and nanoscale roughness, which is prone to damage and degradation. Here, we report a non-fluorinated ...The widespread use of water-repellent superhydrophobic surfaces is limited by the inherent fragility of their micro-and nanoscale roughness, which is prone to damage and degradation. Here, we report a non-fluorinated volumetric superhydrophobic nanocomposites that demonstrate mechanochemical robustness. The nanocomposites are produced through the addition of microscale diatomaceous earth and nanoscale fumed silica particles to high-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber. The water-repellency of the surface and bulk of nanocomposites having 120 phr of filler was determined based on the water contact angle and contact angle hysteresis. We compared the water-repellency of nanocomposites of differing diatomaceous earth to fumed silica mass ratios. Increasing the amount of diatomaceous earth enhanced the water-repellency of the nanocomposite surface, whereas an increased amount of fumed silica improved the water-repellency of the bulk material. Moreover, increasing the diatomaceous earth/fumed silica mass ratio improved the cross-linking density and hardness values of the nanocomposite.Despite being subjected to a range of mechanical durability tests, including sandpaper abrasion,knife scratching, tape peeling, water jet impact, and sandblasting, the nanocomposite maintained a water contact angle of 163. and contact angle hysteresis of 2°. When the water-repellency of the prepared nanocomposites eventually deteriorated, we restored their superhydrophobicity by removing the upper surface of the nanocomposite. This extraordinary robustness stems from the embedded low surface energy micro/nanostructures distributed throughout the nanocomposite. We also demonstrated the chemical stability, UV resistance, and self-cleaning abilities of the nanocomposite to illustrate the potential for real-life applications of this material.展开更多
基金supported by the Special Actions for Developing High-performance Manufacturing of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology(Grant No.:TC200H02J)the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Ad-ministrative Region,China(Project No.:PolyU 152125/18E)+1 种基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Project No.:U19A20104)the Research Committee of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University(Project Code G-RK2V).
文摘The lightness and high strength-to-weight ratio of the magnesium alloy have attracted more interest in various applications.However,micro/nanostructure generation on their surfaces remains a challenge due to the flammability and ignition.Motivated by this,this study proposed a machining process,named the ultraprecision diamond surface texturing process,to machine the micro/nanostructures on magnesium alloy surfaces.Experimental results showed the various microstructures and sawtooth-shaped nanostructures were successfully generated on the AZ31B magnesium alloy surfaces,demonstrating the effectiveness of this proposed machining process.Furthermore,sawtooth-shaped nanostructures had the function of inducing the optical effect and generating different colors on workpiece surfaces.The colorful letter and colorful flower image were clearly viewed on magnesium alloy surfaces.The corresponding cutting force,chip morphology,and tool wear were systematically investigated to understand the machining mechanism of micro/nanostructures on magnesium alloy surfaces.The proposed machining process can further improve the performances of the magnesium alloy and extend its functions to other fields,such as optics.
基金This work was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.51775046&51875043&52005040)the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2019M660480)+1 种基金the Beijing Municipal Natural Sci-ence Foundation(JQ20014)The authors would also like to acknowledge support from the Fok Ying-Tong Education Foundation for Young Teachers in the Higher Education Insti-tutions of China(No.151052).
文摘Micro/nanostructured components play an important role in micro-optics and optical engineering,tribology and surface engineering,and biological and biomedical engineering,among other fields.Precision glass molding technology is the most efficient method of manufacturing micro/nanostructured glass components,the premise of which is meld manufacturing with complementary micro/nanostructures.Numerous mold manufacturing methods have been developed to fabricate extremely small and high-quality micro/nanostructures to satisfy the demands of functional micro/nanostructured glass components for various applications.Moreover,the service performance of the mold should also be carefully considered.This paper reviews a variety of technologies for manufacturing micro/nanostructured molds.The authors begin with an introduction of the extreme requirements of mold materials.The following section provides a detailed survey of the existing micro/nanostructured mold manufacturing techniques and their corresponding mold materials,including nonmechanical and mechanical methods.This paper concludes with a detailed discussion of the authors recent research on nickel-phosphorus(Ni-P)mold manufacturing and its service performance.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51875425)。
文摘To improve the weak corrosion resistance of silicon steel to acid solution and alkaline solution with high temperature,a stable hierarchical micro/nanostructure superhydrophobic surface with myriad irregular micro-scale hump and sheet-like nanostructure was successfully prepared on silicon steel by a simple,efficient and facile operation in large-area laser marking treatment.The morphology,composition,wettability of the as-prepared surface were studied.The superhydrophobic performance of the surface was investigated as well.Additionally,the corrosion resistance of the superhydrophobic surface to acidic solutions at room temperature and alkaline solutions at high temperature (80 ℃) was carefully explored.The corrosion resistance mechanism was clarified.Moreover,considering the practical application of the surface in the future,the hardness of the hierarchical micro/nanostructure superhydrophobic surface was studied.The experimental results indicate that the hierarchical micro/nanostructure surface with texture spacing of 100 μm treated at laser scanning speed of 100 mms/ presents superior superhydrophobicity after decreasing surface energy.The contact angle can be as high as 156.6°.Additionally,the superhydrophobic surface provide superior and stable anticorrosive protection for silicon steel in various corrosive environments.More importantly,the prepared structure of the surface shows high hardness,which ensures that the surface of the superhydrophobic surface cannot be destroyed easily.The surface is able to maintain great superhydrophobic performance when it suffers from slight impacting and abrasion.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.21776319 and No.21476269).
文摘In this work, a simple method was carried out to successfully fabricate superoleophilic and superhydrophobic N-dodecyltrimethoxysilane@tungsten trioxide coated copper mesh. The as-fabricated copper mesh displayed prominent superoleophilicity and superhydrophobicity with a huge water contact angle about 154.39° and oil contact angle near 0° Moreover, the coated copper mesh showed high separation efficiency approximately 99.3%, and huge water flux about 9962.3 L·h^-1·m-2, which could be used to separate various organic solvents/ water mixtures. Furthermore, the coated copper mesh showed favorable stability that the separation efficiency remained above 90% after 10 separation cycles. Benefiting from the excellent photocatalytic degradation ability of tungsten trioxide, the coated copper mesh possessed the self-cleaning capacity. Therefore, the mesh contaminated with lubricating oil could regain superhydrophobic property, and this property of self-cleaning permitted that the fabricated copper mesh could be repeatedly used for oil and water separation.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.52035004,51911530206,51905047)Heilongjiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.YQ2020E015)+1 种基金Self-Planned Task of State Key Laboratory of Robotics and System(HIT)(Grant No.SKLRS202001C)Young Elite Scientist Sponsorship Program by CAST(Grant No.YESS20200155).
文摘This paper presents a probe-based force-controlled nanoindentation method to fabricate ordered micro/nanostructures.Both the experimental and finite element simulation approaches are employed to investigate the influence of the interval between the adjacent indentations and the rotation angle of the probe on the formed micro/nanostructures.The non-contacting part between indenter and the sample material and the height of the material pile-up are two competing factors to determine the depth relationship between the adjacent indentations.For the one array indentations,nanostructures with good depth consistency and periodicity can be formed after the depth of the indentation becoming stable,and the variation of the rotation angle results in the large difference between the morphology of the formed nanostructures at the bottom of the one array indentation.In addition,for the indentation arrays,the nanostructures with good consistency and periodicity of the shape and depth can be generated with the spacing greater than 1μm.Finally,Raman tests are also carried out based on the obtained ordered micro/nanostructures with Rhodamine probe molecule.The indentation arrays with a smaller spacing lead to better the enhancement effect of the substrate,which has the potential applications in the fields of biological or chemical molecular detection.
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(No.2016YFB0601100)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(No.FRFBD-16-008A)
文摘The peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures were fabricated by a facile hydrothermal approach. The peonylike CuO micro/nanostructures about 3-5 μm in diameter were assembled by CuO nanoplates. These CuO nanoplates, as the building block, were self-assembled into multilayer structures under the action of ethidene diamine, and then grew into uniform peony-like CuO architecture. The novel peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures exhibit a high cycling stability and improved rate capability. The peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures electrodes show a high reversible capacity of 456 mAh/g after 200 cycles, much higher than that of the commercial CuO nanocrystals at a current 0.1 C. The excellent electrochemical performance of peony-like CuO micro/nanostructures might be ascribed to the unique assembly structure, which not only provide large electrode/electrolyte contact area to accelerate the lithiation reaction, but also the interval between the multilayer structures of CuO nanoplates electrode could provide enough interior space to accommodate the volume change during Li^+ insertion and de-insertion process.
基金This work was supported by the China Scholarship Council(No.201806320236)the Academic Award for Outstanding Doctoral Candidates of Zhejiang University(No.2018071)+1 种基金the Key Research and Development Program of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region(No.2018BCE01004)the US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy(EERE)under the Solar Energy Technologies Office.
文摘Micro/nanostructures play a key role in tuning the radiative properties of materials and have been applied to high-temperature energy conversion systems for improved performance.Among the various radiative properties,spectral emittance is of integral importance for the design and analysis of materials that function as radiative absorbers or emitters.This paper presents an overview of the spectral emittance measurement techniques using both the direct and indirect methods.Besides,several micro/nanostructures are also introduced,and a special emphasis is placed on the emissometers developed for characterizing engineered micro/nanostructures in high-temperature applications(e.g.,solar energy conversion and thermophotovoltaic devices).In addition,both experimental facilities and measured results for different materials are summarized.Furthermore,future prospects in developing instrumentation and micro/nanostructured surfaces for practical applications are also outlined.This paper provides a comprehensive source of information for the application of micro/nanostructures in high-temperature energy conversion engineering.
基金the financial support from the Innovative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51621001)National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51671088,51671089)
文摘To develop anode materials with superior volumetric storage is crucial for practical application of lithium/sodium-ion batteries.Here,we have developed a micro/nanostructured Sn S/few-layer graphene(Sn S/FLG)composite by facile scalable plasma milling.Inside the hybrid,SnS nanoparticles are tightly supported by FLG,forming nanosized primary particles as building blocks and assembling to microsized secondary granules.With this unique micro/nanostructure,the Sn S/FLG composite possesses a high tap density of 1.98 g cm^(-3)and thus ensures a high volumetric storage.The combination of Sn S nanoparticles and FLG nanosheets can not only enhance the overall electrical conductivity and facilitate the ion diffusion greatly,but alleviate the large volume expansion of Sn S effectively and maintain the electrode integrity during cycling.Thus,the densely compacted Sn S/FLG composite exhibits superior volumetric lithium and sodium storage,including high volumetric capacities of 1926.5/1051.4 m Ah cm^(-3)at 0.2 A g^(-1),and high retained capacities of 1754.3/760.3 m Ah cm^(-3)after 500cycles at 1.0 A g^(-1).With superior volumetric storage performance and facile scalable synthesis,the Sn S/FLG composite can be a promising anode for practical batteries application.
基金Creative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.22021005)National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.21978037 and 21978033)+3 种基金Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(Grant No.DUT19TD33)National Key Research and Development Program of China(Grant No.2019YFE0119200)Support Plan of Innovative Talents of Liaoning Province(Grant Nos.XLYC1901005,XLYC1907149,XLYC1907063)Dalian Innovative Science and Technology Fund(Grant Nos.2020JJ26SN064 and 2021JJ12GX019).
文摘Microscale crystallization is at the frontier of chemical engineering,material science,and biochemical research and is affected by many factors.The precise regulation and control of microscale crystal processes is still a major challenge.In the heterogeneous induced nucleation process,the chemical and micro/nanostructural characteristics of the interface play a dominant role.Ideal crystal products can be obtained by modifying the interface characteristics,which has been proven to be a promising strategy.This review illustrates the application of interface properties,including chemical characteristics(hydropho-bicity and functional groups)and the morphology of micro/nanostructures(rough structure and cavities,pore shape and pore size,surface porosity,channels),in various microscale crystallization controls and process intensification.Finally,possible future research and development directions are outlined to emphasize the importance of interfacial crystallization control and regulation for crystal engineering.
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(31771058,32071359,11421202,61227902,and 11120101001)National Key Technology R&D Program(2016YFC1100704,2016YFC1101101)+2 种基金International Joint Research Center of Aerospace Biotechnology and Medical Engineering from Ministry of Science and Technology of China,111 Project(B13003)Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China(20131102130004)Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.G.L.Y.thanks Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(No.2014CFB778).
文摘A significant limitation in the engineering of artificial small-diameter vascular scaffolds is that the number of endothelial cells(ECs)is not sufficient to generate a confluent coverage of the vascular scaffolds,so that the surfaces of vascular scaffolds form thrombus via platelet adhesion and aggregation.Thrombus decrease relies on three-dimensional(3D)scaffolds to mimic the natural extracellular matrix(ECM)as templates to regulate cell behavior and facilitate tissue maturation.Here,we developed 3D scaffolds consisting of silk fibroin(SF)nanofibers and homogeneous microspheres by electrospinning and microfluidics.The nanofibers with diameters ranging from 250 to 350 nm doped with microspheres(2–10μm)formed bridge-shaped structures.ECs were seeded and maintained on the 3D microsphere-nanofiber scaffolds with a mean fiber diameter of 300 nm.A 10%higher ratio of cell proliferation on 3D microsphere-nanofiber SF scaffolds was noted as compared to that on microporous and sponge-like SF scaffolds with small surface network fabricated by freeze-drying.Moreover,the gene transcript levels including CD146,VE-C and PECAM-1 were better preserved on 3D microsphere-nanofiber SF scaffolds than those on freeze-dried scaffolds.Thus,the developed 3D microsphere-nanofiber structure may have a myriad of applications in vascular tissue engineering scaffolds and cardiovascular devices.
基金the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)K-Line Insulators Limited (Toronto, Canada) for financial support。
文摘The widespread use of water-repellent superhydrophobic surfaces is limited by the inherent fragility of their micro-and nanoscale roughness, which is prone to damage and degradation. Here, we report a non-fluorinated volumetric superhydrophobic nanocomposites that demonstrate mechanochemical robustness. The nanocomposites are produced through the addition of microscale diatomaceous earth and nanoscale fumed silica particles to high-temperature vulcanized silicone rubber. The water-repellency of the surface and bulk of nanocomposites having 120 phr of filler was determined based on the water contact angle and contact angle hysteresis. We compared the water-repellency of nanocomposites of differing diatomaceous earth to fumed silica mass ratios. Increasing the amount of diatomaceous earth enhanced the water-repellency of the nanocomposite surface, whereas an increased amount of fumed silica improved the water-repellency of the bulk material. Moreover, increasing the diatomaceous earth/fumed silica mass ratio improved the cross-linking density and hardness values of the nanocomposite.Despite being subjected to a range of mechanical durability tests, including sandpaper abrasion,knife scratching, tape peeling, water jet impact, and sandblasting, the nanocomposite maintained a water contact angle of 163. and contact angle hysteresis of 2°. When the water-repellency of the prepared nanocomposites eventually deteriorated, we restored their superhydrophobicity by removing the upper surface of the nanocomposite. This extraordinary robustness stems from the embedded low surface energy micro/nanostructures distributed throughout the nanocomposite. We also demonstrated the chemical stability, UV resistance, and self-cleaning abilities of the nanocomposite to illustrate the potential for real-life applications of this material.
