National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

About: National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology is a government organization based out in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Catalysis & Thin film. The organization has 22114 authors who have published 65856 publications receiving 1669827 citations. The organization is also known as: Sangyō Gijutsu Sōgō Kenkyū-sho.

A reversible lithium–CO2 battery with Ru nanoparticles as a cathode catalyst

Abstract: Li–CO2 batteries have attracted wide attention owing to their high energy density and ability to utilize carbon dioxide. However, current Li–CO2 batteries still suffer from several unresolved problems such as low coulombic efficiency and high charge potential, and hence much work is still required to optimize the electrochemical performance of Li–CO2 batteries. In this work, Ru nanoparticles have been deposited on Super P carbon using a solvothermal method and the resulting material (Ru@Super P) has been employed as a cathode in Li–CO2 batteries. The Li–CO2 battery with Ru@Super P as the cathode exhibits significantly reduced charge potential and can be operated for 80 cycles with a fixed capacity of 1000 mA h g−1 at 100 mA g−1, which is by far the best cycling stability among the reported Li–CO2 batteries. We found that Ru possesses a selective catalytic activity in promoting the reaction between Li2CO3 and carbon during charge. This characteristic of Ru helps to avoid electrolyte decomposition and improve the electrochemical performance of Li–CO2 batteries.

Polydimethylsiloxane Coating for a Palladium/MOF Composite: Highly Improved Catalytic Performance by Surface Hydrophobization

Abstract: Surface wettability of active sites plays a crucial role in the activity and selectivity of catalysts. This report describes modification of surface hydrophobicity of Pd/UiO-66, a composite comprising a metal–organic framework (MOF) and stabilized palladium nanoparticles (NPs), using a simple polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) coating. The modified catalyst demonstrated significantly improved catalytic efficiency. The approach can be extended to various Pd nanoparticulate catalysts for enhanced activity in reactions involving hydrophobic reactants, as the hydrophobic surface facilitates the enrichment of hydrophobic substrates around the catalytic site. PDMS encapsulation of Pd NPs prevents aggregation of NPs and thus results in superior catalytic recyclability. Additionally, PDMS coating is applicable to a diverse range of catalysts, endowing them with additional selectivity in sieving reactants with different wettability.

Proposal to reclassify the proteobacterial classes Deltaproteobacteria and Oligoflexia, and the phylum Thermodesulfobacteria into four phyla reflecting major functional capabilities

Abstract: The class Deltaproteobacteria comprises an ecologically and metabolically diverse group of bacteria best known for dissimilatory sulphate reduction and predatory behaviour. Although this lineage is the fourth described class of the phylum Proteobacteria, it rarely affiliates with other proteobacterial classes and is frequently not recovered as a monophyletic unit in phylogenetic analyses. Indeed, one branch of the class Deltaproteobacteria encompassing Bdellovibrio-like predators was recently reclassified into a separate proteobacterial class, the Oligoflexia. Here we systematically explore the phylogeny of taxa currently assigned to these classes using 120 conserved single-copy marker genes as well as rRNA genes. The overwhelming majority of markers reject the inclusion of the classes Deltaproteobacteria and Oligoflexia in the phylum Proteobacteria. Instead, the great majority of currently recognized members of the class Deltaproteobacteria are better classified into four novel phylum-level lineages. We propose the names Desulfobacterota phyl. nov. and Myxococcota phyl. nov. for two of these phyla, based on the oldest validly published names in each lineage, and retain the placeholder name SAR324 for the third phylum pending formal description of type material. Members of the class Oligoflexia represent a separate phylum for which we propose the name Bdellovibrionota phyl. nov. based on priority in the literature and general recognition of the genus Bdellovibrio. Desulfobacterota phyl. nov. includes the taxa previously classified in the phylum Thermodesulfobacteria, and these reclassifications imply that the ability of sulphate reduction was vertically inherited in the Thermodesulfobacteria rather than laterally acquired as previously inferred. Our analysis also indicates the independent acquisition of predatory behaviour in the phyla Myxococcota and Bdellovibrionota, which is consistent with their distinct modes of action. This work represents a stable reclassification of one of the most taxonomically challenging areas of the bacterial tree and provides a robust framework for future ecological and systematic studies.