Tracking a Missing Kinetic Dimension

Dissolved black carbon (DBC) is a mobile, redox-active fraction of carbon formed during biomass combustion and pyrolysis. Although electron-donating and electron-accepting capacities describe how much charge a material can exchange, they do not indicate how quickly that exchange occurs. Work led by Yufei Wu, Peng Zhang, Zhaofeng Chang, and Bo Pan at Kunming University of Science & Technology quantified the apparent heterogeneous electron-transfer rate constant, k₀, as a kinetic measure of DBC reactivity.

Comparing Carbon Sources and Temperatures

The team examined 10 DBC samples produced from rice straw and sawdust at pyrolysis temperatures of 200–600 °C. Cyclic voltammetry and differential pulse voltammetry were conducted with a three-electrode system, while particle-size analysis and mediated electrochemical measurements characterized diffusion and electron-exchange properties. Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) was used to resolve molecular formulas and assign compound classes. Microbial electrochemical systems containing Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 were used to assess how DBC affected extracellular electron transfer.

A study carried out by the EHU-University of the Basque Country concludes that a more sustainable green hydrogen economy requires a combination of technological improvements and policies that guarantee environmental benefits, economic competitiveness and social responsibility. After analysing various configurations of H₂ production locations and global LOHC-based transport routes, the team concludes that there is no perfect scenario. However, the results show that LOHC technology has significant potential to play a key role in the global green hydrogen trade in the near future.

It was not fully understood how deep-sea microorganisms maintain their structure and function under high-pressure conditions. A research team from Kyushu University, conducted an experimental study focusing on PoXeR, a protein from a deep-sea bacterium. As increasing pressure was applied to the protein, the researchers found that it assembled itself into groups of three, called a trimeric structure to stabilize itself. This adaptive strategy revealed how deep-sea proteins remain stable under extreme pressure.