Some embodiments of the invention include a synthetic biocidal surface comprising an array of disordered nanospikes. The biocidal surface may be lethal to cells on said surface due to piercing of cell membranes by said nanospikes. Some embodiments may include a method of producing a synthetic biocidal surface comprising an array of disordered nanospikes that may include exposing a silicon comprising substrate surface to reactive-ion etching.

The present invention relates to a method for producing boron nitride nanostructures, the method comprising subjecting boron nitride precursor material to lamp ablation within an adiabatic radiative shielding environment. The nanostructures produced may include nano-onion structures. The boron nitride precursor material subjected to lamp ablation may include amorphous boron nitride, hexagonal boron nitride, cubic boron nitride, wurtzite boron nitride or a combination of two or more thereof.

Provided are a carbon material for a catalyst carrier of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, the carbon material being a porous carbon material and simultaneously satisfying (1) an intensity ratio (I.sub.750/I.sub.peak) of an intensity at 750° C. (I.sub.750) and a peak intensity in a vicinity of 690° C. (I.sub.peak), in a derivative thermogravimetric curve (DTG) obtained by a thermogravimetric analysis when a temperature is raised at a rate of 10° C./min under an air atmosphere, is 0.10 or less; (2) a BET specific surface area, determined by BET analysis of a nitrogen gas adsorption isotherm, is from 400 to 1,500 m.sup.2/g; (3) an integrated pore volume V.sub.2-10 of a pore diameter of from 2 to 10 nm, determined by analysis of the nitrogen gas adsorption isotherm using Dollimore-Heal method, is from 0.4 to 1.5 mL/g; and (4) a nitrogen gas adsorption amount V.sub.macro at a relative pressure of from 0.95 to 0.99 in the nitrogen gas adsorption isotherm is from 300 to 1,200 cc(STP)/g, as well as a method of producing the same.

Provided is a potassium titanate powder that can avoid safety and health concerns and concurrently, during use in a friction material, can give excellent frictional properties. A potassium titanate powder is a powder formed of bar-like potassium titanate particles having an average length of 30 μm or more, an average breadth of 10 μm or more, and an average aspect ratio of 1.5 or more, wherein the bar-like potassium titanate particles are represented by a composition formula K.sub.2Ti.sub.nO.sub.2n+1 (where n=5.5 to 6.5).

A method for fabricating nanodiamond particles in a nanodiamond fabrication reactor, which method entails: a) forming a composite of a plurality of diamond monolayers interspersed with a plurality of non-monolayer dihydrobenzvalene (DHB), one over the other, by reacting kinetically energized carbyne radicals with a supported layer of DHB, thus sealing off any subtended, unreacted DHB from further reaction with the kinetically energized carbyne radicals. b) subjecting the diamond monolayers to an anvil having a nanomachined strike face, with sufficient force to fracture the diamond monolayers, to thereby produce nanodiamond having a shape in the X-Y plane matching that of the nanomachined strike face and a Z-axis dimension (thickness) which is that of a diamond monolayer.

A silicon material can include a silicon aggregate comprising a plurality of porous silicon nanoparticles welded together. The silicon aggregate can optionally have a polyhedral morphology. A method can include: receiving a plurality of porous silicon nanoparticles and cold welding the plurality of porous silicon nanoparticles into an aggregated silicon particle.

A process for concentrating graphite particles comprising a) providing a feedstock which contains the graphite particles and an undesired material, b) adding hydrophobic magnetic particles to the feedstock which results in a loaded feedstock containing agglomerates of the magnetic particles and the graphite particles, and c) separating the agglomerates from the loaded feedstock by a magnetic field which results in isolated agglomerates.

A nanostructure is made of a plurality of nanocrystals on at least one surface or surface region of a titanium body. A method for generating such nanostructure is by means of hydrothermal oxidation. Thereby, the nanocrystals have a basic tetragonal-pyramidal shape, at least in some regions. The area density of the nanocrystals is between 40 and 400 per μm.sup.2, wherein the area density decreases with increasing crystal height. The average spacing of 50 to 160 nm of adjacent nanocrystals is obtained at a nanocrystal height of 23 to 100 nm. This provides a titanium-based, bactericidal and hydrophilic nanostructure for implant surfaces and, at the same time, a corresponding manufacturing method with which the size and distribution of the nanocrystals forming a nanostructure that facilitates healing can be determined.

A method of using ZnO particles for the treatment of colon cancer and a method of using the particles for reducing the concentration of an organic contaminant in an aqueous solution is described. The ZnO particles are substantially spherical and may have nanopetals that provide a nanoflower morphology. The synthesis and characterization of the ZnO particles is also discussed.

A microstructure comprises a plurality of interconnected units wherein the units are formed of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) tubes. The graphene tubes may be formed by photo-initiating the polymerization of a monomer in a pattern of interconnected units to form a polymer microlattice, removing unpolymerized monomer, coating the polymer microlattice with a metal, removing the polymer microlattice to leave a metal microlattice, depositing an h-BN precursor on the metal microlattice, converting the h-BN precursor to h-BN, and removing the metal microlattice.