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AbstractThe study examined the biosorption of Zn+2 by chemically modified Hevea brasiliensis sawdust using a batch adsorption system. The influence of concentration, pH, contact time, and adsorbent dose in a batch biosorption process were analyzed and the maximum Zn+2 uptake capacity was found as 36.8 mg/g. The Langmuir and Temkin model was found to be the most accurate when the experimental data were analyzed using the different adsorption isotherms models. This study presents an experimental modeling approach for the biosorption process based on artificial neural networks (ANN). Data from biosorption experiments were utilized to train and validate the ANN model. The ANN model can effectively represent the biosorption process, as demonstrated by the significant correlation (R2 = 0.998) established between the model and experimental data. A kinetic study revealed that the Zn+2 biosorption was favored by the pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models. The process is feasible, spontaneous, and endothermic, according to thermodynamic study. The H. brasiliensis sawdust underwent chemical carbonization, and its characteristics were examined using energy EDX, BET surface area analyzer, SEM, XRD, and FTIR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indoor organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells offer a compelling solution for powering diverse electronic devices integrated into the Internet of Things (IoT) network. They are prized for their robust power conversion efficiency (PCE), mechanical resilience, and ultra‐thin nature. The recent surge in inverted‐structure OPVs reflects their enhanced stability over conventional designs. Despite the advantage, their adaptation for indoor light utilization remains underexplored. Optimal selection of an electron transport layer (ETL) with precise energy band alignment is critical in this system. Herein, an inverted‐structured OPV is fabricated utilizing PBDB‐T as the wide bandgap donor, with a focus on enhancing its PCE under 1000 lx LED illumination through the doping of the zinc oxide‐ (ZnO‐) based ETL with indium (In). The results indicate that the device utilizing undoped ZnO as the ETL achieves a peak PCE of 9.42% under these specified conditions. Conversely, the OPV utilizing In‐doped ZnO as the ETL achieves a significantly higher PCE of 29.78% with 5 at% In, indicates the usefulness of ETL doping by In. This may be caused by the tuning of energy band alignment, improvement in electron mobility, and reduction in surface roughness of ZnO by In doping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A tributyltin(IV) complex was prepared by reacting bis-tributyltin(IV) oxide with 2-{4-hydroxy-3-[(2-carboxyphenylimino)methyl]phenylazo}benzoic acid in a 1:1 metal-ligand ratio. The complex was characterized by elemental analysis, UV-Vis, IR,1H and 119Sn NMR spectroscopy and mass spectrometry techniques. The 119Sn NMR study of the complex indicated the presence of two tin centers in a similar chemical environment and the complex exhibited a five-coordinate trigonal bipyramidal geometry in the solution phase. The molecular ion peak in the EI-MS spectrum of the complex revealed its molar mass. The optimized geometry of the complex was predicted by a DFT calculation. The in vitro antifungal activity of the complex was studied against four fungal species with respect to the standard drug Amphotericin-B. A molecular docking study was also carried out to understand the mode of interaction of the complex with the active side of the enzyme present in fungal species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The progress of brain synaptic devices has witnessed an era of rapid and explosive growth. Because of their integrated storage, excellent plasticity and parallel computing, and system information processing abilities, various field effect transistors have been used to replicate the synapses of a human brain. Organic semiconductors are characterized by simplicity of processing, mechanical flexibility, low cost, biocompatibility, and flexibility, making them the most promising materials for implanted brain synaptic bioelectronics. Despite being used in numerous intelligent integrated circuits and implantable neural linkages with multiple terminals, organic synaptic transistors still face many obstacles that must be overcome to advance their development. A comprehensive review would be an excellent tool in this respect. Therefore, the latest advancements in implantable neural links based on organic synaptic transistors are outlined. First, the distinction between conventional and synaptic transistors are highlighted. Next, the existing implanted organic synaptic transistors and their applicability to the brain as a neural link are summarized. Finally, the potential research directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible bioelectronic devices have attracted immense interest in the biomedical field because of their wearability, biocompatibility, diverse functionalities, and ease of personalization. Recently, flexible energy harvesters have been developed, and attempts have been made to integrate them with such devices, enabling them to operate without external batteries or power supply. In this review, the latest advances in flexible energy harvesters and their use in wearable devices are discussed. Energy harvesters for versatile biomedical applications are summarized. Finally, the challenges and future perspectives of self‐powered biomedical systems that enable wearable healthcare monitoring and management are outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Luminescent solar concentrators (LSCs) have the potential to serve as energy-harvesting windows in buildings. Although recent advances in nanotechnology have led to the emergence of novel fluorophores such as quantum dots, perovskites and others, the commercialization of such functional glass remains immature due to an insufficient power conversion efficiency. In other words, improvements in fluorophores alone cannot fully maximize the potential of LSCs. Here we introduce a new laminated type of LSC structure where a patterned low-refractive-index medium acts as an optical 'guard rail', providing a practically non-decaying path for guiding photons. We also propose the design rules regarding the dimensions of LSCs and the spectral characteristics of fluorophores. Once these rules were applied, we achieved record-high LSC performance. The measured external quantum efficiencies at 450 nm are 45% for a 100 cm2 area and 32% for the LSC with an edge aspect ratio of 71. The device efficiency is 7.6%, the highest value ever reported, to the best of our knowledge. These findings may have industrial implications and could accelerate the commercialization of LSCs. Luminescence solar concentrators are improved by using a laminated structure that creates a practically non-decaying optical 'guard rail' for light. Design rules enabled external quantum efficiencies as high as 45% for 450 nm light, yielding a device efficiency of 7.6%, probably useful for energy-harvesting windows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lead-free Cs2AgBiBr6 double perovskite has emerged as a promising new-generation photovoltaic, due to its non-toxicity, long carrier lifetime, and low exciton binding energies. However, the low power conversion efficiency, due to the high indirect bandgap (≈2 eV), is a challenge that must be overcome and acts as an obstacle to commercialization. Herein, to overcome the limitations through the light trapping strategy, we analyzed the performance evaluation via FDTD simulation when applying the moth-eye broadband antireflection (AR) layer on top of a Cs2AgBiBr6 double perovskite cell. A parabola cone structure was used as a moth-eye AR layer, and an Al2O3 (n: 1.77), MgF2 (n: 1.38), SiO2 (n: 1.46), and ZnO (n: 1.9) were selected as investigation targets. The simulation was performed assuming that the IQE was 100% and when the heights of Al2O3, MgF2, SiO2, and ZnO were 500, 350, 250, and 450 nm, which are the optimal conditions, respectively, the maximum short-circuit current density improved 41, 46, 11.7, and 15%, respectively, compared to the reference cell. This study is meaningful and innovative in analyzing how the refractive index of a moth-eye antireflection layer affects the light trapping within the cell under broadband illumination until the NIR region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]