Methods and apparatus are disclosed for producing seeds that are transformed into hollow spheres. A seed includes a core and a coating. Upon heating, the coating becomes viscous and expands responsive to an internal gas pressure created by the core. Example applications for the seeds and/or cores are disclosed, including bricks and other construction materials having the hollow spheres incorporated therein.

A bacterially induced crystal particle is formed by a composite shell that encloses a hollow space. The composite shell layer includes a biomaterial and a metallic material. The biomaterial includes cell wall or cell membrane of a bacterium. The metallic material includes oxides, sulfides, selenides, acid salt compounds of a transition metal, or any combination thereof. When the bacterially induced crystal particle is spheric, the composite shell is formed by two dome-shaped portions, and a thickness of each of the dome-shaped portions is not less than 1/73 of a diameter of the bacterially induced crystal particle. Alternatively, when the bacterially induced crystal particle is rod-shaped, the thickness of the dome-shaped portions is not less than 1/73 of a width of the bacterially induced crystal particle, and a thickness of the cylindrical portion is not less than 1/37 of the width of the bacterially induced crystal particle.

A material synthesis method may comprise: adding at least one liquid precursor solution to an atomizer device; generating by the atomizer device an aerosol comprising liquid droplets; transporting the aerosol to a reactive zone for evaporating one or more solvents from the aerosol; and collecting particles synthesized from at least evaporating the aerosol.

Particulate material comprising rough mesoporous hollow nanoparticles. The rough mesoporous hollow nanoparticles may comprise a mesoporous shell, the external surface of which has projections thereon, the projections having smaller sizes than the particle size. The particulate material may be used to deliver active agents, such as insecticides and pesticides. The active agents can enter into the hollow core of the particles and be protected from degradation by sunlight. The rough surface of the particles retains the particles on plant leaves or animal hair. Methods for forming the particles are also described. Carbon particles and methods for forming carbon particles are also described.

Hollow particles containing monocrystalline titanium oxide and silica, and having a titanium oxide content of 86.0-99.5 mol % and a silica content of 0.5-14.0 mol %; and a method of producing the particles. A white ink containing the hollow particles as a coloring agent; the use of the white ink in inkjet recording; and a method for inkjet recording using the white ink.

Disclosed in certain embodiments is a method of preparing structural colorants comprising photonic particles, the method comprising varying the calcination temperature in the process to enable the tuning of pore size to obtain a wide variety of possible colors.

The disclosure relates to the field of electronic materials, and in particular to a composite film of fluorinated polybenzoxazole (6FPBO) and triple-shelled mesoporous silica hollow spheres, and to its preparation and use. The composite film comprises fluorinated polybenzoxazole as a matrix and amino-functionalized triple-shelled mesoporous silica hollow spheres which are dispersed in the fluorinated polybenzoxazole matrix. A mass ratio of (amino-functionalized triple-shelled mesoporous silica hollow spheres)/(fluorinated polybenzoxazole) is 1/100 to 5/100. The composite film has excellent thermal stability and a lower dielectric constant.

Provided are a porous composite, an anode and a lithium battery each including the same, and a method of preparing the porous composite. The porous composite includes nanopores and graphene, wherein the nanopores are arranged in a graphene matrix including the graphene, and a size of the nanopores is about 50 nm or less.

Disclosed is a composite particle for use in a marking that is suitable for identification/authentication purposes. The particle comprises at least one superparamagnetic portion and at least one thermoluminescent portion and optionally also a thermoconductive portion between the superparamagnetic and thermoluminscent portions.

Provided are: a spherical magnesium oxide having not only high sphericity but also smooth surface and having excellent moisture resistance and excellent filling properties, and a method producing the same. In the present invention, by controlling the boron and iron contents of the calcined magnesium oxide to be in the respective predetermined ranges, there is provided a spherical magnesium oxide having a volume-based cumulative 50% particle diameter (D50), as measured by a laser diffraction/scattering particle size distribution measurement, in the range of from 3 to 200 μm, which is the range for a relatively large particle diameter, and a high sphericity of 1.00 to 1.20, as measured from viewing a SEM photomicrograph, as well as smooth surface, and having excellent moisture resistance and excellent filling properties. A predetermined spherical magnesium oxide is provided by virtue of the synergies obtained from the boron content of 300 to 2,000 ppm and the iron content of 100 to 1,500 ppm.