Correct understanding of the positive role and mechanism of green finance in promoting ecological environment is an important premise and guarantee for promoting green finance to better serve the ...improvement of ecological environment. Based on the panel data of 31 provinces (municipalities and autonomous regions) in China from 2009 to 2017, this paper constructs a spatial Dubin model based on the distance weight matrix and empirically analyzes the impact of green finance on the ecological environment and its spatial spillover effects. The empirical results show that (1) the development of green finance promotes the improvement of the ecological environment in this region and (2) the influence of green finance on the ecological environment has a significant positive spatial spillover effect, that is, the development of green finance in this region will promote the improvement of the ecological environment in the surrounding areas.
Biomass wastes are abundant around us. They are renewable and inexpensive. Product manufacturing from renewable resources has caught increasing interest recently. Activated carbon preparation from ...biomass resources, including various trees, leaves, plant roots, fruit peels, and grasses, is a good example. In this paper, an overview of activated carbon production from biomass resources will be given. The first part will be on the processing technologies. The second part will focus on the carbon activation methods. The third part will introduce the biomass resources. The fourth part will be on surface modification of activated carbon through the addition of various components. Finally, the development of product applications will be discussed with an emphasis on adsorption, filtration, water purification, energy conversions, and energy storage.
The increasing demand for energy and diminishing sources of fossil fuels have called for the discovery of new energy sources. The effective energy conversion process of biomass is able to fulfill ...energy needs. Among the advanced biomass conversion technologies, thermochemical processes hold considerable potential approaches and needed for optimization. Thus, this study presents a comprehensive review of the research and development on the effects of catalysts on the thermochemical conversion of biomass to determine the progress of catalytic thermochemical conversion processes. The effects of catalysts on torrefaction, pyrolysis, hydrothermal liquefaction, and gasification are highlighted. Aspects related to reaction conditions, reactor types, and products are discussed comprehensively with the reaction mechanisms involved in the catalytic effects. Hydrogenation and hydrodeoxygenation can occur in the presence of zeolite catalysts during fast pyrolysis while producing highly aromatic bio-oil. A heterogeneous catalyst in liquefaction increases the hydrocarbon content and decreases viscosity, acid value, and oxygenated compounds in the bio-oil. Thus, expanding and enhancing knowledge about catalyst utilization in the thermochemical conversion technologies of biomass will play an important role in the generation of renewable and carbon-neutral fuels.
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•AAEMs modify the biomass cellulose structure to enhance thermal reactivity.•Zeolites enhance the deoxygenation reactions and aromatic yield.•Heterogeneous catalysts enhance hydrocarbon in bio-oil with high recyclability.•AAEMs and Ni catalysts promote the H2 content in the gasification process.
Morphological and structural analysis of the ZnO NRs by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows that the ZnO NRs were grown ...vertically on platinum electrodes with a diameter around 20-200 nm and a length of 5-7 μm. These modified electrodes were applied for detecting Salmonella enteritidis at a concentration of 103 cfu/mL. Electrochemical measurements including cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) reveal that the ZnO NR-modified platinum electrodes could detect Salmonella bacteria well with signal to noise ratio much higher than 3 : 1. In the paper by J. Zhu et al., carbon quantum dots (CQDs) with high quantum yield and good stability were synthesized from waste tea leaves and peanut shells by a one-step hydrothermal method. HWFSR systems containing novel mixer designs are capable of producing pure M-phase VO2 particles in a single step contrary to the current reactor design that uses a second post heat treatment step, and they are capable of synthesizing many other nanoparticle species, especially those requiring high temperature and pressure reaction conditions.
Identifying the nature of active centers and structure–performance correlations is of fundamental importance for the successful design of more energy-efficient and/or selective catalysts. Recently, ...the studies of metal-free catalysts containing sp2- or sp3-hybridized B sites have displayed an attractive prospect for N2 reduction but have obscured the nature of the optimal active B species. Herein, with the aid of first-principles calculations, we explicitly disclose that sp2-hybridized B is the optimal species for providing high activity for N2 reduction and particularly outstanding capability to suppress the competing hydrogen evolution reaction. Specifically, the system with B substituting an edge N atom in the cavity of C2N is proposed to be highly promising for N2 reduction under mild conditions. The developed comprehensive insight is of clear significance for the rational design of advanced catalysts for NH3 synthesis under mild conditions.
Epidemiological evidence on the association between sedentary behaviors and the risk of depression is inconsistent. We conducted a meta-analysis of prospective studies to identify the impact of ...sedentary behaviors on the risk of depression. We systematically searched in the PubMed and Embase databases to June 2019 for prospective cohort studies investigating sedentary behaviors in relation to the risk of depression. The pooled relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated with random-effect meta-analysis. In addition, meta-regression analyses, subgroup analyses, and sensitivity analyses were performed to explore the potential sources of heterogeneity. Twelve prospective studies involving 128,553 participants were identified. A significantly positive association between sedentary behavior and the risk of depression was observed (RR = 1.10, 95% CI 1.03-1.19, I
= 60.6%, P < 0.01). Subgroup analyses revealed that watching television was positively associated with the risk of depression (RR = 1.18, 95% CI 1.07-1.30), whereas using a computer was not (RR = 0.99, 95% CI 0.79-1.23). Mentally passive sedentary behaviors could increase the risk of depression (RR = 1.17, 95% CI 1.08-1.27), whereas the effect of mentally active sedentary behaviors were non-significant (RR = 0.98, 95% CI 0.83-1.15). Sedentary behaviors were positively related to depression defined by clinical diagnosis (RR = 1.08, 95% CI 1.03, 1.14), whereas the associations were statistically non-significant when depression was evaluated by the CES-D and the Prime-MD screening. The present study suggests that mentally passive sedentary behaviors, such as watching television, could increase the risk of depression. Interventions that reduce mentally passive sedentary behaviors may prevent depression.
The increasingly stringent requirement in large‐scale energy storage necessitates the development of high‐performance sodium‐ion batteries (SIBs) that can operate under low‐temperature (LT) ...environment. Although SIBs can achieve good cycling stability and rate performance at room temperature, the sluggish electrochemical reaction kinetics at low temperature remains a great challenge for SIBs. Here, a superior LT SIB composed of 3D porous Na3V2(PO4)3/C (NVP/C‐F) and NaTi2(PO4)3/C foams (NTP/C‐F) is developed. First‐principles calculations reveal that the intrinsic Na+ diffusivity in NASICON‐type NVP and NTP is extremely high (maximum 3.84 × 10−5 for NVP and 2.94 × 10−9 cm2 s−1 for NTP) at –20 °C. In addition, the designed 3D interconnected porous foam structures demonstrate excellent electrolyte absorption ability and Na+ transport performance at low temperature. As a result, under −20 °C, the NVP/CF and NTP/CF electrodes (half‐cell configuration) can attain reversible capacities close to their theoretical values, and are able to be charged and discharged rapidly (20 C) for 1000 cycles. Based on these features, the designed NTP/CF||NVP/CF full cell also displays superb LT kinetics and cycling stability, making a great stride forward in the development of LT SIBs.
A high‐performance low‐temperature sodium ion full battery composed of 3D porous Na3V2(PO4)3/C and NaTi2(PO4)3/C foams is developed. Owing to the fast Na+ diffusivity of these two NASICON‐type electrodes and excellent electrolyte absorption ability of the foam structure, this full battery demonstrates superb kinetics and cycling stability (e.g., 20 C over 1000 cycles) at −20 °C.
Piezo‐electrocatalysis as an emerging mechano‐to‐chemistry energy conversion technique opens multiple innovative opportunities and draws great interest over the past decade. However, the two ...potential mechanisms in piezo‐electrocatalysis, i.e., screening charge effect and energy band theory, generally coexist in the most piezoelectrics, making the essential mechanism remain controversial. Here, for the first time, the two mechanisms in piezo‐electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (PECRR) is distinguished through a narrow‐bandgap piezo‐electrocatalyst strategy using MoS2 nanoflakes as demo. With conduction band of −0.12 eV, the MoS2 nanoflakes are unsatisfied for CO2‐to‐CO redox potential of −0.53 eV, yet they achieve an ultrahigh CO yield of ≈543.1 µmol g−1 h−1 in PECRR. Potential band position shifts under vibration are still unsatisfied with CO2‐to‐CO potential verified by theoretical investigation and piezo‐photocatalytic experiment, further indicating that the mechanism of piezo‐electrocatalysis is independent of band position. Besides, MoS2 nanoflakes exhibit unexpected intense “breathing” effect under vibration and enable the naked‐eye‐visible inhalation of CO2 gas, independently achieving the complete carbon cycle chain from CO2 capture to conversion. The CO2 inhalation and conversion processes in PECRR are revealed by a self‐designed in situ reaction cell. This work brings new insights into the essential mechanism and surface reaction evolution of piezo‐electrocatalysis.
Piezo‐electrocatalysis as an emerging mechano‐to‐chemistry energy conversion technique opens multiple innovative opportunities, drawing great interest but also suffering from the controversial mechanisms. A narrow‐bandgap piezo‐electrocatalyst strategy is proposed by choosing CO2 reduction as a probe reaction to distinguish the two potential mechanisms, i.e., screening charge effect and energy band theory, and reveal that piezo‐electrocatalysis is independent of band positions.
Observational studies suggest that insomnia might be associated with an increased risk of depression with inconsistent results. This study aimed at conducting a meta-analysis of prospective cohort ...studies to evaluate the association between insomnia and the risk of depression.
Relevant cohort studies were comprehensively searched from the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases (up to October 2014) and from the reference lists of retrieved articles. A random-effects model was used to calculate the pooled risk estimates and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs). The I
statistic was used to assess the heterogeneity and potential sources of heterogeneity were assessed with meta-regression. The potential publication bias was explored by using funnel plots, Egger's test, and Duval and Tweedie trim-and-fill methods.
Thirty-four cohort studies involving 172,077 participants were included in this meta-analysis with an average follow-up period of 60.4 months (ranging from 3.5 to 408). Statistical analysis suggested a positive relationship between insomnia and depression, the pooled RR was 2.27 (95 % CI: 1.89-2.71), and a high heterogeneity was observed (I
= 92.6 %, P < 0.001). Visual inspection of the funnel plot revealed some asymmetry. The Egger's test identified evidence of substantial publication bias (P <0.05), but correction for this bias using trim-and-fill method did not alter the combined risk estimates.
This meta-analysis indicates that insomnia is significantly associated with an increased risk of depression, which has implications for the prevention of depression in non-depressed individuals with insomnia symptoms.
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