Abstract: Embodiments described herein provide for nanofertilizers having at least one plant nutrient coated onto a metal nanoparticle. Some embodiments provide for a method of making a nanofertilizer including providing a metal nanoparticle and coating the metal nanoparticle with at least one plant nutrient or precursor thereof. In some embodiments, a method of making a nanofertilizer may include mixing a metal salt and a plant nutrient in an aqueous medium to form a solution and adding a reducing agent to the solution to form a coated metal nanoparticle. Some embodiments provide for a boron nanofertilizer and methods of making the same. Some embodiments provide for a method of treating a plant nutrient deficiency, such as, for example, a boron deficiency. Some embodiments also provide for a kit for making a plant nutrient coated nanoparticle.

Abstract: Methods and compositions for making carbon aerogels from biomass are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of making a carbon aerogel from a biomass involves dielectrically heating a biomass slurry to produce the carbon aerogel. The method further includes heating the carbon aerogel to produce an electrically conducting carbon aerogel.

Abstract: A technique for determining whether or not a fluorescent material exhibits a directionally dependent property, such as anisotropy or chirality, involves illuminating the particle at its excitation wavelength to stimulate fluorescent emission at both a full-frequency (fundamental) wavelength and a half-frequency wavelength. The ratio of the full-frequency signal strength to the half-frequency signal strength provides an indication of the sample's directionally dependent property. This half-frequency spectral analysis can be used to sort anisotropic particles suspended in fluid flowing through a flow cytometer. For instance, the present technique may be used to separate racemic mixtures of chiral enantiomers of cells, pharmaceutical compounds, and other samples.

Abstract: Methods including contacting, in the solid state, a sample comprising a first organic molecule with a composition comprising: a carbon nanotube, such that an interface forms between the sample and the composition; observing any movement of the interface; and characterizing the first organic molecule based on the observed movement are described.

Abstract: Lithium metal oxides may be regenerated under ambient conditions from materials recovered from partially or fully depleted lithium-ion batteries. Recovered lithium and metal materials may be reduced to nanoparticles and recombined to produce regenerated lithium metal oxides. The regenerated lithium metal oxides may be used to produce rechargeable lithium ion batteries.

Abstract: Enzyme compositions with enhanced enzyme activity and/or thermophilic and psychrophilic stability are described. Additionally, methods and kits for making and using the enzyme compositions are provided.

Abstract: The present technology provides liquid quality assessment systems and methods for their preparation and use. The systems can include a light source configured to illuminate a liquid sample, a reflecting surface configured to reflect light scattered by the liquid sample, and a detector configured to detect light intensity, wherein the light source illuminates the liquid sample with a first incident light when the reflecting surface is absent; the detector detects a first light scattered by the liquid sample in response to the first incident light; the light source illuminates the liquid sample with a second incident light when the reflecting surface is present; and the detector detects a second light which is a combination of light scattered by the liquid sample in response to the second incident light and light reflected by the reflecting surface of light scattered by the liquid sample in response to the second incident light.

Abstract: Technologies are generally described herein generally relate to tunnel field-effect transistor (TFETs) structures with a gate-on-germanium source (GoGeS) on bulk silicon substrate for sub 0.5V (VDD) operations. In some examples, the GoGeS structure may include an increase in tunneling area and, thereby, a corresponding increases in the ON-state current ION. In order to achieve supersteep sub-threshold swing, both the lateral tunneling due to gate electric-field and the non-uniform tunneling at the gate-edge due to field-induced barrier lowering (FIBL) may be suppressed through selection of component dimension in the device structure. Example devices may be fabricated using CMOS fabrication technologies with the addition of selective etching in the process flow.

Abstract: Lithium metal oxides may be regenerated under ambient conditions from materials recovered from partially or fully depleted lithium-ion batteries. Recovered lithium and metal materials may be reduced to nanoparticles and recombined to produce regenerated lithium metal oxides. The regenerated lithium metal oxides may be used to produce rechargeable lithium ion batteries.

Abstract: Provided herein are chlorophyll polymers and conductive materials, sensors, and devices comprising the chlorophyll polymers, and methods of use and preparation thereof.

Abstract: A method of preserving a harvested cultivated food can include applying a preservative composition onto a cultivated food. The preservative composition can include a folate substance or hydrogel having the folate substance in a carrier. The carrier and/or hydrogel may facilitate application of the folate to the cultivated food and may contribute to the improvement of preservation of the cultivated food post-harvest. A container can be configured for protecting harvested cultivated food by having a chamber with a preservative composition located in the container. A substrate can include a preservative composition located on the substrate, which can be applied to a cultivated food to increase preservation.

Abstract: A food preservation system can include a gas (e.g., oxygen) permeable package having at least one oxygen permeable member defining a package chamber therein, and a silverized biomass in the package chamber of the oxygen permeable package. Another food preservation system can include a container having an internal chamber, and an oxygen permeable divider located in the internal chamber so as to divide the internal chamber into a first chamber and a second chamber. The first chamber can being configured for receiving food therein, and a silverized biomass is located in the second chamber. A method of preserving food can include retaining a food in a container that includes silverized biomass such that the food does not contact the silverized biomass. The silverized biomass can have a combination of silver and biomass.

Abstract: A method of determining the relative concentrations of enantiomeric forms of a compound in an enantiomeric mixture includes combining the enantiomeric mixture with carbon nanotubes or graphene to form a carbon-enantiomer mixture, exposing the mixture to a monochromatic polarized light, and analyzing reflected polarized light from the mixture using a differential analyzer.

Abstract: A method of preserving a harvested cultivated food can include applying a preservative composition onto a cultivated food. The preservative composition can include an amino acid, peptide having the amino acid or protein having the amino acid. The amino acid or peptide or protein having the amino acid can be associated with a water soluble substance. The water soluble substance may facilitate application of the amino acid to the cultivated food and may contribute to the improvement of preservation of the cultivated food post-harvest. A container can be configured for protecting harvested cultivated food by having a chamber with a preservative composition located the container. A substrate can include a preservative composition located on the substrate, which can be applied to a cultivated food to increase preservation.

Abstract: Technologies are generally provided for converting a k-ary tree to an equivalent height balanced binary tree. A k-ary tree root may be first set as the binary tree root. Nodes may then be inserted in the binary tree based on nodes of the k-ary tree. First two children of each k-ary tree node may be inserted as left and right children in the binary tree. If there are additional children, those may be inserted into a child queue. If there are less than two children in the k-ary tree, children from the child queue may be used to fill the left and right child nodes in the equivalent binary tree repeating the process level-wise until all nodes in the k-ary tree are processed.

Abstract: Disclosed are compositions containing a formula of LixTiyV1Bz wherein x, y, and z are real numbers greater than zero. In certain embodiments, x is not greater than 7, and y is not greater than 6, or a combination thereof. The composition may be a microporous aerogel, a mesoporous aerogel, a crystalline structure, or a combination thereof. In certain embodiments, the composition may be an aerogel, and a surface of the aerogel comprises microcrystals, nanocrystals or a combination thereof. The compositions have very low densities. Also disclosed are methods to produce the composition and use of the composition in energy storage devices.

Abstract: Provided herein are compositions and methods for enhancing enzyme activity, half-life, thermostability, enhanced activity at elevated temperature, and/or decreasing the pH dependency of laccase enzyme. Also provided are methods for using the composition comprising the stabilized enzymes.

Abstract: Embodiments described herein provide for nanofertilizers having at least one plant nutrient coated onto a metal nanoparticle. Some embodiments provide for a method of making a nanofertilizer including providing a metal nanoparticle and coating the metal nanoparticle with at least one plant nutrient or precursor thereof. In some embodiments, a method of making a nanofertilizer may include mixing a metal salt and a plant nutrient in an aqueous medium to form a solution and adding a reducing agent to the solution to form a coated metal nanoparticle. Some embodiments provide for a boron nanofertilizer and methods of making the same. Some embodiments provide for a method of treating a plant nutrient deficiency, such as, for example, a boron deficiency. Some embodiments also provide for a kit for making a plant nutrient coated nanoparticle.

Abstract: Exposure to a static magnetic field changes the fluorescence intensity of a wide range of fluorophores, including small molecules (e.g., tryptophan), complex organizations of fluorophores (e.g., proteins), quantum dots, nanoparticles, and other materials. Different materials may experience different changes in fluorescence emission upon exposure to a magnetic field—for instance, some or all of a material's fluorescence emission spectrum may increase in amplitude or shift in wavelength. Different materials may also experience different changes in relaxation time, which is the time constant associated with fluorescence decay. These magnetically induced differences fluorescence emission spectra and decay can be used to identify, classify, or sort materials noninvasively.

Abstract: Techniques generally disclosed herein relate to computation of a guard zone of a three-dimensional object. In some examples, guard zones may be computed by identifying intersection lines that couple adjacent planes of an object, and categorizing an external angle at an intersection line between adjacent planes as concave or convex. In some embodiments, for convex angles, a cylindrical surface can be determined that is located about an outside surface of the object and centered along the intersection line between the adjacent planes. In some embodiments, for concave angles, the external angle can be bisected with a bisection plane. A guard zone may be formed by one or more of (i) providing a guard zone plane parallel to the object that is a tangent to a given cylindrical surface, (ii) providing a guard zone plane parallel to the object that intersects a given bisection plane, and/or (iii) coupling adjacent guard zone planes.