The present invention relates to pyrazine derivatives such as those represented by Formulas I and II. X.sup.1 to X.sup.4 formulas I and II may be characterized as electron withdrawing groups, white Y.sup.1 to Y.sup.4 of Formulas I and II may be characterized as electron donating groups. Pyrazine derivatives of the present invention may be utilized in assessing organ (e.g., kidney) function. In a particular example, an effective amount of a pyrazine derivative that is capable of being renally cleared may be administered into a patient's body. The pyrazine derivative may capable of one or both absorbing and emanating spectral energy of at least about 400 nm (e.g., visible and/or infrared light). At least some of the derivative that is in the body may be exposed to spectral energy and, in turn, spectral energy may emanate from the derivative. This emanating spectral energy may be detected and utilized to determine renal function of the patient.

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A microwave-based thermal coupling chemical looping gasification method and device. The device includes: a microwave radiation cavity; a loading recess of a microwave absorbing material; and a quartz pipe reaction cavity between the microwave radiation cavity and the loading recess of a microwave absorbing material. A microwave generator consisting of magnetrons is provided at a central portion of the microwave radiation cavity and below the loading recess. An infrared temperature-measuring probe group is arranged at two ends of the magnetrons. Two ends of the microwave radiation cavity are connected to a first and second three-way valves, in communication with the ambient atmosphere and a protection gas charging device. A protection gas cooling device and a protection gas circulating fan are sequentially connected in series on a pipeline between the valves.

In one aspect, the disclosure relates to a method for converting waste plastics into value-added products, the method including the steps of (a) contacting the waste plastics with a catalyst to form a reaction mixture and (b) applying microwave irradiation to the reaction mixture. In another aspect, disclosed herein are value-added products including, but not limited to, aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons produced by the process disclosed herein. This abstract is intended as a scanning tool for purposes of searching in the particular art and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure.

Systems and methods for eliminating carbon dioxide and capturing solid carbon are disclosed. By eliminating carbon dioxide gas, e.g., from an effluent exhaust stream of a fossil fuel fired electric power production facility, the inventive concepts presented herein represent an environmentally-clean solution that permanently eliminates greenhouse gases while at the same time producing captured solid carbon products that are useful in various applications including advanced composite material synthesis (e.g., carbon fiber, 3D graphene) and energy storage (e.g., battery technology). Capture of solid carbon during the disclosed process for eliminating greenhouse gasses avoids the inefficiencies and risks associated with conventional carbon dioxide sequestration. Colocation of the disclosed reactor with a fossil fuel fired power production facility brings to bear an environmentally beneficial, and financially viable approach for permanently capturing vast amounts of solid carbon from carbon dioxide gas and other greenhouse gases that would otherwise be released into Earth's biosphere.

A solid state combinatorial synthesis of particulate diamond ranging in size from the macroscopic down to the nanoscale, which entails: a) forming a solution having a source of reactant atoms, a tetrahedranoidal compound reactant, and a solvent vehicle; b) forming liquid droplets of the solution; c) evaporating the solvent vehicle from the liquid droplets of the solution to form particles containing a homogenous solid mixture of the reactants; and d) exposing the particles of the homogeneous solid mixture to a high energy discharge thereby forming diamond particles.

The present invention relates to the reduction of materials at low temperatures (<600° C.) by means of microwave radiation without needing to use chemical reducing agents or electrical contacts. It relates more specifically to a method for reducing a material, which comprises the following steps: applying microwave radiation to a material disposed in a microwave application cavity; and separating simultaneously the fluid oxidation products generated from the reduced material,
such that the method is carried out without chemical reducing agents or electrical contacts.

This invention provides an innovative method to manufacture graphene layers or quantities and graphene oxide layers or quantities from graphite, coal slags, asphalt, and other carbon-rich sold materials in nature. The present invention uses controllable microwave irradiation to heat the mixtures of basic material, graphite, or coal slags, or asphalt, or their combinations with ionic liquids and surfactant plus environmentally friendly oxidation agents. This invention can generate the said-products of graphene layers and graphene oxides in a short time period of one second to 300 seconds. The present invention does not involve any concentrated sulfuric acid, nitric acid, nor huge water quantities needed for the purification, unlike the prior art. The as-produced graphene-based materials can be used for preparing conductive films for touch screens, producing graphene carbon fibers and three-dimensional porous graphene nanomaterials, and preparing graphene-based other intelligent nanocomposites for super-light-weight machines and vehicles.

There is described a microwave pyrolysis process for the depolymerization of plastic for the production of monomers, waxes and heavy oils including the steps of: a) steam purge of the plastic from about 0.5% to about 50% w/w of a catalyst, in a media; b) pyrolysis of the plastic and the catalyst in the media with a microwave (MW) for a time sufficient to allow generation of heat providing a thermal treatment between 300° C. and 650° C. through absorption of microwaves by the catalyst and the media. The catalyst includes a compound having a high dielectric loss at the frequency of the MW to absorb microwaves, transfer heat to the plastic and initiate a pyrolysis reaction.

A method of hyperpolarizing diamond particles includes applying a laser to a sample of the diamond particles, irradiating the diamond particles with a sweeping microwave to cause diamond polarization, shuttling the diamond particles through a magnetic field to detect .sup.13C nuclei in the diamond particles, and relaying the diamond polarization to nuclear spins to one of a surrounding solid or fluid.

The present invention relates to a process, reactor and system to produce self-standing two-dimensional nanostructures, using a microwave-excited plasma environment. The process is based on injecting, into a reactor, a mixture of gases and precursors in stream regime. The stream is subjected to a surface wave electric field, excited by the use of microwave power which is introduced into a field applicator, generating high energy density plasmas, that break the precursors into its atomic and/or molecular constituents. The system comprises a plasma reactor with a surface wave launching zone, a transient zone with a progressively increasing cross-sectional area, and a nucleation zone. The plasma reactor together with an infrared radiation source provides a controlled adjustment of the spatial gradients, of the temperature and the gas stream velocity.