The novelty of this study was to investigate for the first time in literature the influence of Bombyx mori silkworm cocoon’s age on the properties of silk fibroin-based materials, during all stages of cocoon processing to obtain the fibroin film. The study started with the premise that the cocoon age could cause modifications on fibroin properties during processing and, consequently, a possible interference on the characteristics of the final product. Characterizations were performed using batches of cocoons produced in different years, named C0 (fresh cocoons) and C6 (six-year-old cocoons). The influence of cocoon’s aging was observed on dialyzed dispersion regarding the molecular weight, particle size, and conformation. C6 films showed a more crystalline structure and higher thermal resistance than C0 films. The findings reported in this work are relevant for the reproducibility of fibroin-based materials, and the cocoon age is a key factor that should be considered in the preparation of fibroin-based materials.

In this work, we propose a multi-sensor platform where sensors are stacked over one another (3D stacked) each offering a unique functionality. The technique involves the use of Polyurethane (PU) sponge and PVDF/graphene (Gr) /ZnO composites for various sensing applications. The sponge was made conductive by dipping it in different weight percentages of pencil lead dispersed in ethanol through ultrasonication. Large area Gr/PVDF films were fabricated by simple solution mixing and casting method which also served as a substrate for the 3D stacked sensor. ZnO was grown hydrothermally over Gr/PVDF film by masking a portion of Gr/PVDF film to form a p-n junction. Silver paste and copper tape were used as contact pads. All the three fabricated devices were stacked with PU sponge sandwiched between Gr/PVDF/ZnO (top) and large area Gr/PVDF (bottom) as substrate. Performance of individual sensors and 3D stacked sensor was compared and no notable change was observed. The 3D stacked sensor array platform with its multifunctionality would be a step ahead in wearable electronics which can be integrated on human and can function as an e-skin for burn and acid victims, robotics and human-machine interactions.

In spite of the phenomenal efficiency progression of the organometal halide perovskite-based solar cells (PSCs) over the past few years, detailed understanding of the working mechanisms and effective measures to overcome the main weaknesses such as the long-term instability are of central importance. This paper provides a brief review of our most recent research on high-performance PSCs including the diethanolamine-modification of NiO surface, the mixed solvent engineering and the mesoporous TiO2 nanobowl (NB) array assisted light harvesting.

Crystalline silicon dominates the solar panel industry today but remains relatively expensive to manufacture. If devices could be fabricated from inexpensive materials by a simple solution process without the need for high-temperature annealing, their cost could be considerably reduced. Recently, inorganic–organic (I/O) hybrid systems based on inorganic nanoparticles (including quantum dots) and perovskite materials as light harvesters with organic hole-conducting materials have shown great potential for efficient solar cells due to the combination of superior optical properties and solution-based processes. In this review, we describe the relevant morphological factors and the performance of perovskite solar cells with tuned heterojunctions. In particular, we describe the mediator retarding the rapid crystallization of perovskite layers for a bilayer configuration. Appropriate processes and chemical engineering induced the formation of well-crystallized perovskite materials with extremely uniform and dense perovskite layers and remarkably improved the performance of the cells with a National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)-certified record efficiency of 20.1%.

The meso-scale hexagonally packed order structures were obtained by solvent casting from the immiscible polymer blend solutions. The order structures were the result of phase separation occurred at the evaporation front during the solvent casting, the so-called dissipative system. The order domains were flat spheres or ellipses on the matrix surface depending on the combination of polymer blends and solvent, the diameter of spheres were tunable from 0.5 to 3 μm by the casting condition, such as the solvent used for mixing and the evaporation rate. Three blend systems, NBR/SBR, NBR/BR and PMMA/BR, formed two dimensional order structures with the domain size in μm-scale by solvent casting from those homogeneous solutions. The conditions to obtain the two dimensional meso-scale order structure were evaluated.

Dense thin β/β’’-alumina electrolyte films of less than 50 μm thickness were fabricated using vacuum dip-coating on porous substrate tubes. The porous substrate tubes were fabricated using a slip casting method. Fine Na-β/β’’-alumina powder was obtained via traditional solid state reaction processing. It was found that vacuum dip-coating is an effective method for fabricating thin dense layers coated on the porous tube. The mechanical properties of the porous tube, with and without the dense layer, were tested using a C-ring method. The optimized sintering process was also studied.

Here we discuss two alternative approaches for building flexible batteries for applications in smart textiles. The first approach uses well-studied inorganic electrochemistry (Al-NaOCl galvanic cell) and innovative packaging in order to produce batteries in a slender and flexible fiber form that can be further weaved directly into the textiles. During fabrication process the battery electrodes are co-drawn within a microstructured polymer fiber, which is later filled with liquid electrolyte. The second approach describes Li-ion chemistry within solid polymer electrolytes that are used to build a fully solid and soft rechargeable battery that can be furthermore stitched onto a textile, or integrated as stripes during weaving process.

Proton exchange membrane with interconnected H+-transfer channels in submicron scale has been synthesized by means of pore filling polymerization. Polysulfone (PSU) membrane containing densely distributed pores is synthesized using the phase inversion approach. The membrane is then filled up with a designed formula consisting of monomers (e.g. 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulphonic acid and N, N’-Methylenebisacrylamide) and a binary solvent. It is undertaken through solution diffusion of the monomer formula into the pores impregnated with the bore liquid. When the PSU matrix loaded with monomers is subjected to polymerization, a uniform distribution of interconnected H+-transfer channels is realized. This special membrane structure gives rise to a maximum ionic exchange capacity of 2.43 meq/g and the highest proton conductivity of 0.2 S/cm. Compared to the commercial Nafion® membrane, the pore-filled membrane significantly enhances the power output of H2-PEM fuel cell.

Spray pyrolysis was used for the deposition of lead iodide (PbI2) thin films using N.N-dimethylformamide (DMF) as an alternative solvent under varying deposition parameters. Final thickness of 60 μm was obtained for a total deposition time of 2.5 hours. The films were characterized mainly by using Raman and photoluminescence, but additional techniques such as X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and dark conductivity as a function of temperature were also employed. Thick PbI2 films deposited by spray pyrolysis using DMF as a solvent are promising to be used in medical systems as X-ray imaging.

This paper compared the results of osteoblast-like UMR-106 cells response to 3-D biodegradable porous with nonporous PHBV (poly (3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) films. Nonporous PHBV films were prepared by solvent casting and evaporation. Porous PHBV films were prepared by solute leaching of salt/PHBV cast film. Sieved sodium chloride (∼150 μm) was used to create a matrix with high porosity and then leached out by the solvent. Thermo gravimetric analysis showed that over 99% of the salts were leached out by the solvent. Osteoblast-like UMR-106 cells were seeded onto the nonporous and porous PHBV films, respectively. After 6 and 10 days of incubation, growth rate of UMR-106 cells on porous film was higher than on nonporous film. The viable cell proliferation on the porous and nonporous PHBV film was quantified by (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt) (MTS) assay. The results of this study suggest that the UMR-106 cells proliferate more on the porous PHBV matrix and porous PHBV films are a promising material for bone tissue engineering applications.

The surface electronic structures of conjugated regio regular and regio random poly (3- hexylthiophene) (rr-P3HT and rra-P3HT) thin films were studied by near edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and Penning ionization electron spectroscopy (PIES). The distribution of the surface electronic states was controlled on rr-P3HT and rra-P3HT thin films with different molecular ordering by varying the coating process and PIES was adopted to observe the electronic states existing outside the surface.