UK – Page 2 – TechConnect Briefs

Using Contact Angle Measurement for Determination of the Surface Free Energy of Nonporous Core Samples

Hashim I.A., Gobina E., Robert Godden University, UK

The surface free energy is one of the factors that characterises the surfaces of materials. The sessile drop method is the most popular method for determining its value. A contact angle between the surface and [...]

Defect Engineered Single-Layer MoS2 Dendrites as an Efficient Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Xu W., Li S., Pasta M., Warner J.H., University of Oxford, UK

Dendritic structures display a high density of edge sites, which are electrocatalytically active in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, given that the basal plane of 2H- phase MoS2 synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is [...]

3D-printed Optical Devices with Refractive Index Control for Microwave Applications

Isakov D., Wu Y., Allen B., Stevens C.J., Grant P.S., University of Warwick, UK

Achieving sub-wavelength spatial variations in the relative permittivity εr and permeability μr to control the propagation of the electromagnetic radiation opens up many opportunities for the development of new devices with improved or novel functionality [...]

Electrosprayed particles derived from nano-emulsions as carriers of fish oil

Paximada P., Howarth M., Dubey B., Sheffield Hallam University, UK

High intake of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) has been proven to decrease health risks in terms of heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases. Thus, the development of novel foods enriched with PUFA's is [...]

Development of photosensitiser functionalised electrospun nanofibre for photoremediation of of industrial waste water.

Chowdhury K.F., Millner P., Russell S., Sargeeva N., University of Leeds, UK

Increasing need of modern society and growing industrialization continuously drives the emergence of water scarcity. Water security is not only a problem for third world countries but one of the major problems within developed countries. [...]

The developments of a Helium Acoustic Levitation Environment for time resolved XFEL experiments

Dye E.R., Morris R.H., Newton M.I., Axford D., Aller P., Orville A.M., Docker P.T., Nottingham Trent University, UK

The study of proteins using X-ray diffraction either with synchrotrons or X-ray Free Electron Lasers (XFELS) has become ubiquitous. Of growing interest within the protein crystallographer community is the study of proteins as they interact [...]

An investigation into methodologies for the modification of contact angle for MX crystallography

Burton C., Prince M., Topham P., Docker D. Axford P., Orville G. Evans A., Kay J., Stuart D., Aston University, UK

This paper describes a detailed investigation into a range of surface modifications for manipulating the hydrophobicity of X-ray compatible materials for the application of surface microfluidics. With traditional microfluidics, as the scale of a fluid [...]

The Development of an Optofluidic Evanescent Field Sample Trapping and Loading Solution for Time Resolved Protein Crystallography Experiments

Diaz A.J., Docker P., Sparkes M.R., Kay J., Stuart D., Beale D. Axford J., ONeil W., Cordovez B., Diamond light Source, UK

X-ray crystallography is the leading technique for determining the atomic structure of biological molecules. The developers of this technique have maintained this position by continuously pushing the hardware and software boundaries such that data-collection from [...]

The development of acoustic levitation for time resolved protein crystallography experiments at XFELS

Docker P., Morris R., Newton M., Kay J., Beale J., Axford D., Orville A., Stuart D., Diamond light Source, UK

This body of work is building on the systems described in a recent publication by Tsujino and Tomizaki 1. They describe the application of acoustic levitation to support protein crystals mounting for X-ray diffraction experiments [...]

Ionic Diodes in Water Desalination & Purification

Marken F., Madrid E., Aaronson B.D.B., McKeown N.B., University of Bath, UK

Ionic rectifiers (or ionic diodes) work like electronic diodes, but allow ion flow to be controlled. We have developed novel ionic diode devices based on ionomer and polymer materials coated onto microholes to typically 5 [...]