Topic Review
Chitosan and its Derivatives
Chitosan (CS) is a hemi-synthetic cationic linear polysaccharide produced by the deacetylation of chitin. CS is non-toxic, highly biocompatible, and biodegradable, and it has a low immunogenicity. Additionally, CS has inherent antibacterial properties and a mucoadhesive character and can disrupt epithelial tight junctions, thus acting as a permeability enhancer. As such, CS and its derivatives are well-suited for the challenging field of ocular drug delivery. In the present review article, we will discuss the properties of CS that contribute to its successful application in ocular delivery before reviewing the latest advances in the use of CS for the development of novel ophthalmic delivery systems. Colloidal nanocarriers (nanoparticles, micelles, liposomes) will be presented, followed by CS gels and lenses and ocular inserts. Finally, instances of CS coatings, aiming at conferring mucoadhesiveness to other matrixes, will be presented.
  • 1.0K
  • 31 Jul 2020
Topic Review
Anion Exchange Membranes with Inorganic Fillers
Anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFC) are clean energy conversion devices that are an attractive alternative to the more common proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), because they present, among others, the advantage of not using noble metals like platinum as catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction. The AEMs are the central element of many technologically relevant devices, first and foremost alkaline membrane fuel cells (FC). These fuel cells can significantly reduce the amount of noble metal catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and may represent the future of FC development.
  • 1.0K
  • 29 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Eco-Friendly Emergent Structural Adhesives
Using adhesives for connection technology has many benefits. It is cost-efficient, fast, and allows homogeneous stress distribution between the bonded surfaces. 
  • 1.0K
  • 22 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Mechanism of Self-Healing Hydrogels
Polymeric hydrogels have drawn considerable attention as a biomedical material for their unique mechanical and chemical properties, which are very similar to natural tissues. Among the conventional hydrogel materials, self-healing hydrogels (SHH) are showing their promise in biomedical applications in tissue engineering, wound healing, and drug delivery. Additionally, their responses can be controlled via external stimuli (e.g., pH, temperature, pressure, or radiation). Identifying a suitable combination of viscous and elastic materials, lipophilicity and biocompatibility are crucial challenges in the development of SHH. Furthermore, the trade-off relation between the healing performance and the mechanical toughness also limits their real-time applications. Additionally, short-term and long-term effects of many SHH in the in vivo model are yet to be reported.
  • 1.0K
  • 09 Nov 2022
Topic Review
High-Temperature PEM Fuel Cells
This review summarizes the current status, operating principles, and recent advances in high-temperature polymer electrolyte membranes (HT-PEMs), with a particular focus on the recent developments, technical challenges and commercial prospects of the HT-PEM fuel cells. A detailed review of the most recent research activities has been covered by this work, with a major focus on the state-of-the-art concepts describing the proton conductivity and degradation mechanisms of HT-PEMs. Also, the fuel cell performance and the lifetime of HT-PEM fuel cells as a function of operating conditions have been discussed. In addition, the review will highlight the important outcomes found in recent literature about the HT-PEM fuel cell. The main objectives of this review paper will be as follows: (1) the latest development of the HT-PEMs, primarily based on polybenzimidazole membranes, (2) the latest development of the fuel cell performance and the lifetime of the HT-PEMs.
  • 1.0K
  • 28 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Deep Eutectic Solvents Systems
Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) represent an emergent class of green designer solvents that find numerous applications in different aspects of chemical synthesis. A particularly appealing aspect of DES systems is their simplicity of preparation, combined with inexpensive, readily available starting materials to yield solvents with appealing properties (negligible volatility, non-flammability and high solvation capacity). 
  • 1.0K
  • 07 Jul 2021
Topic Review
High Performance Polymer Composites
Summarize data on the structure, mechanical and tribological properties, and wear patterns of composites based on high-performance polymers (HPPs) intended for use in friction units. The three key sections, divided according to the tribological contact schemes regardless of the polymer matrix. In the second part, the analysis of composites is carried out in point contacts. The third section is devoted to the results of studies of HPP-based composites in linear ones. The fourth section summarizes information on flat contacts. Particular attention is paid to the formation of transfer films (TFs) in the contacts and their influence on the tribological patterns of the studied rubbing materials.
  • 1.0K
  • 16 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Mixed-Matrix Membranes for Gas Separation
Nanocomposite membranes, obtained by dispersing solid particles within a polymeric matrix, are referred to as mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) and are potentially capable to exceed the trade-off restrictions between membrane permeability and selectivity, that is an intrinsic trait for polymeric membranes applied to gas separation. Making the most appropriate combination of filler and polymer is an exciting challenge for materials scientists.
  • 1.0K
  • 28 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Natural-Drugs-Based Low-Molecular-Weight Supramolecular Gels
The utilization of paclitaxel, camptothecin, rhein, curcumin, and other natural small molecular drugs with unique rigid backbone structures and modifiable multiple sites as building blocks to form gels by self-assembly has attracted widespread attention. The obtained low-molecular-weight supramolecular gel not only retains the general characteristics of the gel but also overcomes the shortcomings of natural drugs, such as poor water solubility and low bioavailability.
  • 1.0K
  • 12 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Supercritical CO2 Foaming Technologies
Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) foaming is divided into physical foaming and chemical foaming; in contrast with the latter, the use of a physical foaming agent for PLA foaming has the characteristic of being green and non-polluting in line with the current carbon-neutral development plan. At the same time, the foam obtained by physical foaming has the properties of lightweight, low density, and more stable. Common physical blowing agents are CO2 and N2. Due to the plasticizing effect of CO2, and its high solubility in PLA, which can promote the crystallization of PLA, the current research on the supercritical foaming of PLA, especially intermittent foaming, mainly uses CO2 as the preferred foaming agent. However, due to the fast diffusion rate of N2, smaller bubbles can be obtained in microcellular injection foaming using N2. Therefore, N2 is commonly used as a blowing agent in the microcellular injection foaming process. In the supercritical foaming process, foaming parameters, such as saturation temperature, saturation pressure, and saturation time have a great influence on the structure and properties of the bubble pores. The cell diameter, cell density, and foam volume expansion ratio are three fundamental parameters for characterizing the cell structure. The variation in the three parameters has a great influence on the cell structure and the performance of the foam. Cell diameter generally refers to the average diameter of at least 100 cell units in the foaming image obtained from electron microscopy. Cell density refers to the number of cells per cubic centimeter of the foamed sample. Volume expansion ratio refers to the density ratio of the unfoamed sample to the foamed sample.
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  • 14 Nov 2022
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