skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


Title: Automated corona discharge (CD) for efficient and broad-spectrum surface and air sterilization
In the past three years, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused serious health, environmental, societal, and economic challenges globally. Sterilization is one of the most efficient methods to mitigate the spread of infectious viruses like SARS-CoV-2. However, extreme sterilization practices can cause serious health and environmental problems worldwide. Heat, ultraviolet C (UVC), and chemical disinfectants require high energy consumption and can cause health concerns, environmental pollution, and chemical overuse. In this paper, we evaluated the efficiency of corona discharge (CD) as an environmentally and energy-friendly sterilization method on different surfaces for sterilization. It was confirmed that CD is an efficient sterilization process for most surfaces and personal protective equipment (PPE). CD allows for a reduction in disinfectant use, addresses the PPE shortage problem, and reduces plastic pollution and biowaste. The air sterilization effect of CD creates a promising option to reduce airborne pathogens. To address the safety concerns of CD, the heat, UVC, and ozone emissions of CD were confirmed to be within a safe range. A wireless, affordable CD robot was developed with the capability to scan along pre-designed paths while having the capability to avoid static and moving obstacles. Automated CD devices and robots can be favorable sterilization solutions for the future as a contactless, more environmentally friendly, efficient, affordable, and portable solution.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2114216
PAR ID:
10450314
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Materials Chemistry C
ISSN:
2050-7526
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; ; ; ; (, Catalysts)
    null (Ed.)
    The lithium-sulfur (Li-S) redox battery system is considered to be the most promising next-generation energy storage technology due to its high theoretical specific capacity (1673 mAh g−1), high energy density (2600 Wh kg−1), low cost, and the environmentally friendly nature of sulfur. Though this system is deemed to be the next-generation energy storage device for portable electronics and electric vehicles, its poor cycle life, low coulombic efficiency and low rate capability limit it from practical applications. These performance barriers were linked to several issues like polysulfide (LiPS) shuttle, inherent low conductivity of charge/discharge end products, and poor redox kinetics. Here, we review the recent developments made to alleviate these problems through an electrocatalysis approach, which is considered to be an effective strategy not only to trap the LiPS but also to accelerate their conversion reactions kinetics. Herein, the influence of different chemical interactions between the LiPS and the catalyst surfaces and their effect on the conversion of liquid LiPS to solid end products are reviewed. Finally, we also discussed the challenges and perspectives for designing cathode architectures to enable high sulfur loading along with the capability to rapidly convert the LiPS. 
    more » « less
  2. ; ; ; ; (, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health)
    Indoor dust can be a major source of heavy metals, nutrients, and bacterial contamination in residential environments and may cause serious health problems. The goal of this research is to characterize chemical and bacterial contaminants of indoor, settled house dust in the Houston Metropolitan region. To achieve this, a total of 31 indoor dust samples were collected, along with household survey data, which were subsequently analyzed for elemental and bacterial concentrations. Microscopic and geospatial analysis was conducted to characterize and map potential hotspots of contamination. Interestingly Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Zn concentrations of all 31 indoor dust samples were significantly enriched and exceeded soil background concentrations. Furthermore, As, Cd, Pb, and Zn concentrations in the dust samples were significantly correlated to the enteric bacterial load concentrations. Human health assessment revealed that cancer risk values via ingestion for Cd, Cr, and Ni were greater than the acceptable range. Of our 31 dust sample isolates, three Gram-negative and 16 Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria were identified, capable of causing a wide range of diseases. Our results demonstrate that both chemical and bacterial characterization of indoor dust coupled with spatial mapping is essential to assess and monitor human and ecological health risks. 
    more » « less
  3. ; (, Physics of Plasmas)
    Nonthermal atmospheric pressure plasmas transform input electrical energy efficiently into reactive species, charged particles, and photons. This “activated gas” is being investigated as solutions for a range of environmental and health problems facing society today. In this Perspective, we take a cursory look at a few of these societal problems and the reflected role that plasmas may play in charting the pathway to a solution buoyed by supporting research. Here, we survey the plasma-based opportunities in the removal of trace contaminants in water supporting methodologies such as water reuse, which addresses scarcity and pollution, the opportunity posed by plasmas-based chemical depolymerization for plastics recycling, and the application of plasmas for food security, which includes sterilization of foodstuffs and the improvement of crop yield. Finally, we also included a short review on how plasmas may help control disease spread. In each case, the scope of the problem is presented along with the potential plasma-based solution. 
    more » « less
  4. ; ; ; ; ; ; (, Wear)
    The development of high-performance and environmentally-compatible lubricants is crucial for minimizing energy losses in mechanical systems and increasing the lifetime of moving mechanical components, thus preserving our environment. While ionic liquids (ILs) have emerged as promising next-generation materials for lubrication purposes owing to their attractive physico-chemical properties, several challenges currently limit their use in engineering applications, including their high cost and corrosivity. Recently, eco-friendly, protic ILs (PILs) have been synthesized and showed great advantages compared to tradition (aprotic) ILs, such as low cost, ease of preparation, and good lubricating properties. Despite these advancements, remarkably little is known about the interrelationship between PIL molecular structure and lubrication mechanisms. In this work, the physico-chemical and lubricating properties of a family of PILs synthesized by using only renewable, biodegradable, and biocompatible products and constituted by the same choline cation and amino-acid anions with different side chains, were investigated. The molecular structures of the choline amino acid-based ionic liquids (AAILs) were confirmed through magnetic resonance and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, while their thermal behavior was evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. The antiwear and friction-reducing performance of the choline AAILs when used as neat lubricants was studied as a function of normal load by reciprocating ball-on-flat tribometry using steel-steel contact. Surface analytical measurements (Raman and XPS) performed on the worn steel surfaces confirmed that the excellent lubricating performance of choline AAILs originates from the formation of oxygen- and carbon-rich tribolayers. The formation of these protective layers are influenced by the applied normal load and the molecular structure of the amino acid. The results of this work open the path for the rational design of environmentally-friendly PILs for tribological applications. 
    more » « less
  5. ; ; ; ; ; ; (, Journal of Materials Chemistry B)
    Biomanufacturing metal/metallic nanomaterials with ordered micro/nanostructures and controllable functions is of great importance in both fundamental studies and practical applications due to their low toxicity, lower pollution production, and energy conservation. Microorganisms, as efficient biofactories, have a significant ability to biomineralize and bioreduce metal ions that can be obtained as nanocrystals of varying morphologies and sizes. The development of nanoparticle biosynthesis maximizes the safety and sustainability of the nanoparticle preparation. Significant efforts and progress have been made to develop new green and environmentally friendly methods for biocompatible metal/metallic nanomaterials. In this review, we mainly focus on the microbial biomanufacture of different metal/metallic nanomaterials due to their unique advantages of wide availability, environmental acceptability, low cost, and circular sustainability. Specifically, we summarize recent and important advances in the synthesis strategies and mechanisms for different types of metal/metallic nanomaterials using different microorganisms. Finally, we highlight the current challenges and future research directions in this growing multidisciplinary field of biomaterials science, nanoscience, and nanobiotechnology. 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email