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Soft microfluidic systems that capture, store, and perform biomarker analysis of microliter volumes of sweat, in situ, as it emerges from the surface of the skin, represent an emerging class of wearable technology with powerful capabilities that complement those of traditional biophysical sensing devices. Recent work establishes applications in the real-time characterization of sweat dynamics and sweat chemistry in the context of sports performance and healthcare diagnostics. This paper presents a collection of advances in biochemical sensors and microfluidic designs that support multimodal operation in the monitoring of physiological signatures directly correlated to physical and mental stresses. These wireless, battery-free, skin-interfaced devices combine lateral flow immunoassays for cortisol, fluorometric assays for glucose and ascorbic acid (vitamin C), and digital tracking of skin galvanic responses. Systematic benchtop evaluations and field studies on human subjects highlight the key features of this platform for the continuous, noninvasive monitoring of biochemical and biophysical correlates of the stress state.

Direct methanation in an integrated CO2 capture and utilization system has recently gained considerable attention as a promising approach owing to its simplified process and lower requirement of total thermal energy as compared to conventional CO2 capture and utilization techniques. This study formulated macroporous structured Ni/CaO catal-sorbents by controlling the Ni-to-CaO ratio. The influence of this ratio on the CO2 capture (capacity and kinetics) and direct methanation performances (productivity and kinetics) was evaluated at 500 °C. CO2 capture combined with direct methanation experiments revealed that 10Ni/CaO exhibited the best CO2 capture capacity, kinetics, and CH4 productivity with the thermal stability of Ni and CaO species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the CO2 sorption mechanisms and regeneration properties of alumina-based sorbent using K2CO3 loading under high-pressure and moderate temperature conditions were examined. To investigate the mechanism of CO2 sorption, a zirconium-based sorbent was compared with an alumina-based sorbent. The CO2 capture capacities of the PAI10, 20, 30, and 40 were 32.3, 63.0, 95.4, and 124.5 mg CO2/g sorbent, respectively. To investigate the CO2 sorption mechanism of an alumina-based sorbent, we performed XRD, TG/DTG, and FTIR analyses after CO2 sorption in the presence of 10 vol% CO2 and H2O each at 200 °C and 20 atm. For PAI10–40 sorbents, KHCO3 and KAl(CO3)(OH)2 phases were observed by TG/DTG and FTIR analysis. For PAI-x sorbents, it was confirmed that the captured CO2 is desorbed completely at a temperature below 400 °C at 20 atm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ru-based eggshell-type catalysts, in which Ru is located at the outer region of the pellet, were prepared by the impregnation method, using spherically shaped γ-Al2O3 pellets for steam-methane reforming (SMR). Ru was only supported on the external region of the pellet because of the strong interaction between its precursor and the alumina pellet. The Ru precursor penetrated the inside of the pellet by adding nitric acid to the impregnation solution. The distribution and thickness of the Ru layer in the catalyst can be controlled using the HNO3/Ru molar ratio and contact time at the impregnation step. Among the catalysts, the graded eggshell-type catalyst showed the highest activity and long-term stability in the SMR reaction. In addition, in the daily startup and shutdown (DSS) operation, similar to the hydrogen production environment for domestic polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), the graded eggshell-type catalyst showed high activity and stability after multiple cycles. Based on the experimental studies, it was confirmed that Ru-based catalysts are suitable for steam-methane reforming for PEMFC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dysregulated neutrophil recruitment drives many pulmonary diseases, but most preclinical screening methods are unsuited to evaluate pulmonary neutrophilia, limiting progress towards therapeutics. Namely, high throughput therapeutic screening systems typically exclude critical neutrophilic pathophysiology, including blood-to-lung recruitment, dysfunctional activation, and resulting impacts on the air-blood barrier. To meet the conflicting demands of physiological complexity and high throughput, we developed an assay of 96-well Leukocyte recruitment in an Air-Blood Barrier Array (L-ABBA-96) that enables in vivo -like neutrophil recruitment compatible with downstream phenotyping by automated flow cytometry. We modeled acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) with neutrophil recruitment to 20 ng/mL epithelial-side interleukin 8 (IL-8) and found a dose dependent reduction in recruitment with physiologic doses of baricitinib, a JAK1/2 inhibitor recently FDA-approved for severe COVID-19 ARDS. Additionally, neutrophil recruitment to patient-derived cystic fibrosis sputum supernatant induced disease-mimetic recruitment and activation of healthy donor neutrophils and upregulated endothelial e-selectin. Compared to 24-well assays, the L-ABBA-96 reduces required patient sample volumes by 25 times per well and quadruples throughput per plate. Compared to microfluidic assays, the L-ABBA-96 recruits two orders of magnitude more neutrophils per well, enabling downstream flow cytometry and other standard biochemical assays. This novel pairing of high-throughput in vitro modeling of organ-level lung function with parallel high-throughput leukocyte phenotyping substantially advances opportunities for pathophysiological studies, personalized medicine, and drug testing applications.