Guocheng Yang

Electrospun MnCo2O4 nanofibers for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction

MnCo2O4 nanofibers (MCNFs) were successfully synthesized by electrospinning followed by a calcination process under mild conditions. The structural and morphological characterizations of MCNFs were performed by x-ray powder diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The electrochemical method was used to measure the electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) properties of MCNFs. Electrochemical studies show that the developed MCNFs possess excellent electroactivity towards HER with low hydrogen-evolution overpotential and a small Tafel slope. In addition, electrospinning can promote the materials into nano-sized architectures with large surface area, which can effectively enhance the electrocatalytic HER properties of MCNFs.

Exploring the trans-membrane dynamic mechanisms of single polyamidoamine nano-drugs via a “force tracing” technique

Considerable technological success has been achieved in the drug delivery of nano-drugs for chemotherapy, but the main obstacles in understanding the drug delivery dynamic mechanisms for nano-drug applications stem from technical limitations. In this paper, we explored the trans-membrane dynamic processes of polyamidoamine nano-drugs via a “force tracing” technique.

Interfacial structure and electrochemical sensing properties of nitrogen-doped diamond-like carbon film electrodes modified with platinum nanoparticles and 4-aminobenzoic acid

Platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) and 4-aminobenzoic acid (4-ABA) were used to modify nitrogen-doped diamond-like carbon (N:DLC) film electrode by electrodeposition and cyclic voltammetry. The bare, PtNPs-, 4-ABA-, 4-ABA/PtNPs alternately-modified N:DLC film electrodes were obtained, respectively. Various analysis technologies, such as atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and micro-Raman spectroscopy, have been used to study surface morphology, chemical composition and bonding structure of the film electrodes. Linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were performed to study the relationship between the interfacial structure of the chemically modified N:DLC film electrodes, as well as their electrochemical sensing properties toward hydrazine sulfate. Acquired results indicate that an outermost layer modified by 4-ABA or PtNPs behaved differently.

4-Phosphatephenyl-modified glassy carbon electrode for real-time and simultaneous electrochemical monitoring of paracetamol and diclofenac release from electrospun nanofibers

An effective electrochemical platform was set up for the real-time and simultaneous monitoring of the kinetics of drug release from electrospun nanofibers. The method describes the development and utilization of a 4-phosphatephenyl (4-PP)-modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE). The modified electrode was used to monitor paracetamol (PCT) and/or diclofenac (DCF) release from electrospun nanofibers. The drug-loaded nanofibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Using differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), the modified electrode shows good sensitivity and selectivity for the simultaneous determination of PCT (1.87 μM to 170 mΜ) and DCF (0.37s–51.87 μM). The release kinetics study reveals that the drug follows first order kinetics and that the mechanism of drug release was a diffusion-controlled type. No significant drug–polymer interactions were observed in the FTIR studies. The results obtained are promising, which demonstrates that the electrochemical method possesses the capability for the simultaneous detection of multiple molecules in a drug delivery system (DDS).