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Towards developing novel and sustainable molecular light-to-heat converters.

ABSTRACT: Light-to-heat conversion materials generate great interest due to their widespread applications, notable exemplars being solar energy harvesting and photoprotection. Another more recently identified potential application for such materials is in molecular heaters for agriculture, whose function is to protect crops from extreme cold weather and extend both the growing season and the geographic areas capable of supporting growth, all of which could help reduce food security challenges. To address this demand, a new series of phenolic-based barbituric absorbers of ultraviolet (UV) radiation has been designed and synthesised in a sustainable manner. The photophysics of these molecules has been studied in solution using femtosecond transient electronic and vibrational absorption spectroscopies, allied with computational simulations and their potential toxicity assessed by in silico studies. Following photoexcitation to the lowest singlet excited state, these barbituric absorbers repopulate the electronic ground state with high fidelity on an ultrafast time scale (within a few picoseconds). The energy relaxation pathway includes a twisted intramolecular charge-transfer state as the system evolves out of the Franck-Condon region, internal conversion to the ground electronic state, and subsequent vibrational cooling. These barbituric absorbers display promising light-to-heat conversion capabilities, are predicted to be non-toxic, and demand further study within neighbouring application-based fields.

SUBMITTER: Abiola TT

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8634993 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Towards developing novel and sustainable molecular light-to-heat converters.

Abiola Temitope T TT Rioux Benjamin B Toldo Josene M JM Alarcan Jimmy J Woolley Jack M JM Turner Matthew A P MAP Coxon Daniel J L DJL Telles do Casal Mariana M Peyrot Cédric C Mention Matthieu M MM Buma Wybren J WJ Ashfold Michael N R MNR Braeuning Albert A Barbatti Mario M Stavros Vasilios G VG Allais Florent F

Chemical science 20211018 46

Light-to-heat conversion materials generate great interest due to their widespread applications, notable exemplars being solar energy harvesting and photoprotection. Another more recently identified potential application for such materials is in molecular heaters for agriculture, whose function is to protect crops from extreme cold weather and extend both the growing season and the geographic areas capable of supporting growth, all of which could help reduce food security challenges. To address ...[more]

PMID: 34976344

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Project description:BackgroundThe health care sector is among the most carbon-intensive sectors, contributing to societal problems like climate change. Previous research demonstrated that especially the use of personal protective equipment (e.g., aprons) in critical care contributes to this problem. To reduce personal protective equipment waste, new sustainable policies are needed. Policies are only effective if people comply.AimOur aim is to examine whether compliance with sustainable policies in critical care can be increased through behavioural influencing. Specifically, we examined the effectiveness of two sets of nudges (i.e., a Prime + Visual prompt nudge and a Social norm nudge) on decreasing apron usage in an intensive care unit (ICU).Study designWe conducted a field experiment with a pre- and post-intervention measurement. Upon the introduction of the new sustainable policy, apron usage data were collected for 9 days before (132 observations) and 9 days after (114 observations) the nudge interventions were implemented.ResultsNeither the Prime + Visual prompt nudge, nor the Social norm nudge decreased apron usage.ConclusionsWhile previous studies have found that primes, visual nudges and social norm nudges can increase sustainable behaviour, we did not find evidence for this in our ICU field experiment. Future research is needed to determine whether this null finding reflects reality, or whether it was due to methodological decisions and limitations of the presented experiment.Relevance to clinical practiceThe presented study highlights the importance of studying behavioural interventions that were previously proven successful in the lab and in other field contexts, in the complex setting of critical care. Results previously found in other contexts may not generalize directly to a critical care context. The unique characteristics of the critical care context also pose methodological challenges that may have affected the outcomes of this experiment.

Dataset Information

Towards developing novel and sustainable molecular light-to-heat converters.

Publications

Towards developing novel and sustainable molecular light-to-heat converters.

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