Faqin Dong

• PhD
• CEO at Southwest University of Science and Technology

Travertine, a unique continental carbonate deposit, forms a multitude of fantastic landscapes and changes morphology through continued deposition by hydrothermal water. This study explores the depositional differences of travertine under slope control through the local hydrochemical changes of travertine at different slopes in Huanglong (China), th...

Functionalized amidoxime [AO, R−C(NH2)═N(OH)] is widely used for uranium extraction from seawater, but increasing the effective functional sites for high AO utilization in adsorbents remains challenging. This study introduces a hydrogen bond reconstruction strategy to enhance uranium extraction efficiency of AO‐modified polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibe...

Chromium [Cr(VI)]-induced soil pollution is a serious environmental threat. Bioremediation utilizes specific microbes capable of transforming Cr(VI) into the less toxic Cr(III), however, microbial efficacy can be inhibited by elevated pollutant concentrations and competition from indigenous microbial communities. Thus, this study explored the poten...

Gypsum can be decomposed at low-temperature by adding reductant, which is beneficial to obtain cement. The effects of different reductant on the phases of belite cement raw meals were studied by calcining at 1300℃ for 2h and using phosphogypsum as raw materials. Diffraction peaks of calcium sulfate were not observed in the samples when 10 wt% activ...

Crystalline poly-para-xylylene (parylene) has the potential for use as a protective membrane to delay the nucleation of explosives by separating the explosives and their decomposition products to decrease the explosive sensitivity. Here, molecular dynamics (MD) and density functional theory (DFT) techniques were used to calculate the dissociative a...

In contaminated water and soil, little is known about the role and mechanism of the biometabolic molecule siderophore desferrioxamine-B (DFO) in the biogeochemical cycle of uranium due to complicated coordination and reaction networks. Here, a joint experimental and quantum chemical investigation is carried out to probe the biomineralization of ura...

As a type of atmospheric particulates, it is important to understand the characteristics of the atmospheric microbial-mineral aerosol. This paper focuses on the montmorillonite/bacteria complex, which is prepared by combining montmorillonite and three common strains of bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus pumilus) in the...

Background and aims Dioecy may subject females and males to contrasting selective pressures, leading to differences in adaptive traits associated with resource allocation and ecophysiology across sex. Such differences may then exert carry-over effects on the surrounding ecosystem. However, effect of different sex combinations over ecosystem biogeoc...

Based on the composite pollution of atmospheric microbial aerosol, this paper selects the calcite/bacteria complex as the research object which was prepared by calcite particles and two common strains of bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus) in the solution system. The morphology, particle size, surface potential, and surface groups of...

Inorganic mineral particles play an important role in the formation of atmospheric aerosols in the Sichuan Basin. Atmospheric haze formation is accompanied by the phase transition of mineral particles under high humidity and stable climatic conditions. Backward trajectory analysis was used in this study to determine the migration trajectory of atmo...

Arsenic (As) and uranium (U) frequently occur together naturally and, in consequence, transform into cocontaminants at sites of uranium mining and processing, yet the simultaneous interaction process of arsenic and uranium has not been well documented. In the present contribution, the influence of arsenate on the removal and reduction of uranyl by...

Crop production encounters challenges due to the dearth of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), while excessive chemical fertilizer use causes environmental hazards. The use of N-fixing microbes and P-solubilizing microbes (PSMs) can be a sustainable strategy to overcome these problems. Here, we conducted a greenhouse pot experiment following a complet...

Crop production encounters challenges due to the dearth of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), while excessive chemical fertilizer use causes environmental hazards. The use of N-fixing microbes and P-solubilizing microbes (PSMs) can be a sustainable strategy to overcome these problems. Here, we conducted a greenhouse pot experiment following a complet...

Cadmium contamination and toxicity on plants and human health is a major problem in China. Safe rice production in Cd-contaminated alkaline soils, with acceptably low Cd levels and high yields, remains an important research challenge. To achieve this, a small-scale field experiment with seven different soil amendment materials was conducted to test...

Atmospheric micro/nanominerals play an important role in the adsorption, enrichment and migration of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). In this study, the correlations between OCPs and minerals in outdoor atmospheric dustfall were investigated, and the correlations were used to speculate the source of p,p’‐(dicofol+dichlorobenzophenone [DBP]), which...

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are harmful to the environment and human health. A simple method was developed for the determination of 58 POPs, including 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 18 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and 24 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), in atmospheric gaseous and particle-phase samples. Different extract...

The contamination of saline soil with hazardous petroleum hydrocarbons is a common problem across coastal areas globally. Bioaugmentation combined with chemical treatment is an emerging remediation technique, but it currently shows low efficiency under high saline environments. In this study, we screened and used a novel halotolerant lipolytic fung...

Travertine/Tufa landscape is an important heritage and ecological wealth given to mankind by nature. Travertine/Tufa itself has excellent scientific and aesthetic value, mostly with geological archives such as volcanoes, tectonics, and glaciers, as well as fingerprints referring to climate and evolution of life. However, these travertine/tufa lands...

A kind of amino-modified polyvinyl alcohol fibers were prepared to extract uranium from actual uranium-containing laundry wastewater. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmed that amino groups were successfully attached to polyvinyl alcohol fibers' surface. The maximum adsorption capacity of uranium...

Photocatalytic removal of organic pollutants is a promising pollution treatment technology from the aspect of carbon neutrality. The complex diversity of actual wastewater components, as opposed to single-component systems, can significantly affect photocatalytic mechanisms. In this study, complex pollutant systems were created using various coordi...

Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum mainly contains gypsum, which comes from the FGD by using lime or limestone. The effects of calcining temperature and time on calcium sulfide preparation were explored. The gypsum completely decomposed into calcium sulfide by calcining at 900 °C for 30 min. The effect of time on CaS and CO2 reaction were also e...

Suspended particulate in the atmosphere are composite pollutants composed of minerals, heavy metal ions, organic pollutants and microorganisms, etc. Minerals can provide shelter for living microorganisms, and forming a mineral / microorganism complex. In this paper, the nano-micron calcite particles / bacteria complex was taken as the research obje...

Haze is the phenomenon of visibility degradation caused by extinction effects related to the physicochemical properties of atmospheric particulate matter (APM). Atmosphere heterogeneous reactions can alter the physicochemical properties of APM. Therefore, it is important to understand the atmospheric heterogeneous reactions of APM in order to revea...

The influence of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) on the interaction between uranium [U(VI)] and Shewanella putrefaciens (S. putrefaciens), especially the U(VI) biomineralization process occurring on whole cells and cell components of S. putrefaciens was investigated in this study. The removal efficiency of U(VI) by S. putrefaciens was decr...

Uranyl (UO2²⁺) species with hexavalent U(VI) oxidation state is the most ubiquitous form of uranium in natural minerals, underground water, contaminated soils, and ocean. Interplay between bioorganic molecules and U(VI) is rather complicated due to its various complex configurations and reaction networks. In this study, the widely present phytic ac...

The design of nanozymes as multifunctional hybrid nanomaterials for modern industrial applications is necessary to meet the demands of emerging technologies and overcome the limitations of natural enzymes. In this study, an aminopropyl-functionalized copper-containing phyllosilicate (ACP) was facilely synthesized as a novel laccase-mimicking nanozy...

Radionuclide recycling by biosorption combined with the ashing process is a promising nuclide recovery method. To investigate the transformation process of radionuclide occurrence state in bio-recycling, uranium and strontium recycling by S.cerevisiae were studied. S. cerevisiae exhibits good performance in the enrichment of uranium and strontium w...

Red gypsum comes from TiO2 production industry by sulfate method, which comes from the low acidic liquid stream treatment using lime or limestone. At present, RG main is treated by outdoor stacking, which induces additional costs and raises environmental concerns. It will be of interest to see the transformations of RG to obtain elemental sulfur an...

The slow decomposition rate of the reluctant structure of lignocellulose in agricultural waste is the great limitation of composting processes, which can be averted by pretreatment-strategies. This study focused on the impacts of pretreating rice straw using a consortium of newly isolated fungal species on lignocellulose degradation and humic subst...

Objective To investigate the effect of particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) dust on autophagy and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in human bronchial epithelial 16HBE cells, and to further explore its underlying mechanism. Methods 16HBE cells were stimulated with PM2.5 dust, and the cell viability was evaluated by CCK-8 assay. The cellular morphol...

The enrichment and recovery of U(VI) from low-level radioactive wastewater in the process of uranium enrichment is important for the sustainable development of nuclear energy and environmental protection. Herein, a novel amine-aminophosphonate bifunctionalized polyacrylonitrile fiber (AAP-PAN), was prepared for the extraction of U(VI) from simulate...

It is of great significance to develop an adsorbent with high adsorption capacity and excellent resistance to anion and cation interference toward the removal of U(VI). Herein, a novel polyamine-modified polyacrylonitrile-based fiber (PANPA) has been synthesized through hydrothermal method, which can validly remove U(VI) from solution. Combined wit...

Red gypsum is generated from TiO2 production industry by the sulfate method, which contains iron, calcium, and sulfur elements. The iron and calcium elements can be reused as iron-making raw materials, but the sulfur element in the gypsum is required to be removed as it has a harmful effect on the properties of iron. Herein, the influence of carbon...

Many researchers investigated that living bacteria could combine with uranium in the water and form bio-minerals. However, the key components and process in promoting the forming of uranium biomineralization are still not very clear. In this study, we investigated the biosorption features and mechanism of living and dead cell wall and cell membrane...

Ce and C-S codoped mesoporous TiO2 nanocomposites were synthesized via a sol-gel method integrated with an evaporation-induced self-assembly approach. The basic physicochemical characteristics of the synthetic samples were analyzed via a series of characterization techniques. The results reveal that C-S and Ce codoping on mesoporous TiO2 enhance th...

A kind of amino groups modified polyacrylonitrile fibers (PAN-A) was prepared to extract uranium from organic-containing low-level radioactive wastewater (OC-LLRW). SEM/EDS and FTIR characterization conformed that amino group was triumphant grafed on polyacrylonitrile fibers (PAN) surface. Its adsorption capacity was 492.1 mg g−1 (pH 6.0) and can e...

To investigate the heterogeneous oxidation mechanisms of SO2 by HONO on the α-Fe2O3 surfaces, the individual and combined adsorption characteristics of SO2 and HONO on the perfect and Odefect α-Fe2O3 (001) surfaces were calculated the density functional theory. Results revealed that SO2 was molecularly adsorbed while HONO was dissociated on prefect...

The rapid development of nuclear industry has generated large quantities of low-level radioactive wastewater (LLRW) to pose a potential threat globally. In this study, the feasibility of vacuum membrane distillation (VMD) process for the decontamination of uranium contained LLRW from UO2 fuel element production has been studied using commercial PTF...

The rapid development of nanozymes for ultrasensitive detection of contaminate has resulted in considerable attention. Herein, a carboxyl- and aminopropyl-functionalized copper organophyllosilicate (Cu-CAP) was synthesized by a facile, one-pot sol–gel method. The bifunctional groups endow it with superior catalytic activity than that of natural enz...

The goal of this study is to understand the role of various functional groups on the cell surface when the microorganisms are exposed to uranium (U(VI)). The biomass of Deinococcus radiodurans was subjected to chemical treatments to modify the carboxyl (-C=O), amino (-NH2), phosphate (-PO2⁻), and hydroxyl (-OH) groups, as well as the lipid fraction...

The biosorption and biomineralization behavior of U(VI) by Kocuria rosea with uranium resistance higher than other general microorganisms was investigated in this study. The results showed the obvious effects of initial U(VI) concentration, biomass, time, and especially pH, and presented that U(VI) was immobilized to K. rosea by physical and chemic...

Lipase is an industrial enzyme, the catalytic efficiency of which is restricted by various environmental factors. To improve this efficiency, immobilization technology has been utilized in the past to improve the stability of lipase in harsh conditions. Immobilization technology can be divided into physical methods and chemical methods. Some unsolv...

In nature, microorganisms can coexist and interact with various metals and their metallic compounds, ultimately affecting their migration rate, circulation process, and distribution state in the environment, which confirms that they can participate in every step of the metal geochemical cycle. As the most active and powerful geological force in the...

Electrochemical water splitting can produce H2 fuel through cathode protons reduction, but the O2 products from its anode 4-electrons water oxidation have relatively low application value and could result in the separation issue of pure H2 products. Here, we assembled an electrochemical cell using graphite electrodes and HCO3⁻-containing aqueous el...

In the field of photocatalysis, one focus is on high-performance visible light catalysis. For this study, which follows the defect engineering strategy, ultrathin two-dimensional (2D) S defect-rich MoS2 nanosheets were created in situ by ball-milling MoS2 nanosheets with ascorbic acid and then used for the removal of Cr(VI) from wastewater. The res...

Cadmium (Cd) contamination in rice paddy fields constitutes a serious health issue in some parts of China. Here we study the potential for remediation of Cd contaminated alkaline paddy soil with low iron (Fe) and high copper (Cu) background by altering the concentrations of Fe and Cu in the growing media, which has been only seldom considered. We a...

A novel ternary MoO3−x/g-C3N4/Tourmaline photocatalyst was synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method through anchoring MoO3−x on g-C3N4, which was coated on the surface of tourmaline. From the analysis to physicochemical, photoelectric and electronic structures properties of the obtained samples, the spontaneous surface electric fields of tourmal...

Various enzymatic reactions or enzymatic cascade reactions occur efficiently in biological microsystems due to space constraints or orderly transfer of intermediate products. Inspired by this, the horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-like nanozyme (Fe-aminoclay) was in situ synthesized on the surface of alkali-activated halloysite nanotubes and the natural...

Cadmium (Cd) is a major environmental pollutant and one of the most toxic metals in the environment. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) assisted phytoremediation can be used to remove Cd from polluted soils but the role of AMF, which mediate in Cd accumulation and tolerance, remains poorly understood. Here we inoculated Lolium perenne with two diff...

Novel luffa cylindrica adsorbent modified with carboxyl and amidoxime groups is successfully prepared by a simple water bath method for effective U(VI) uptake from uranium-containing wastewater and real uranium mine water. The critical factors affecting U(VI) adsorption are explored, such as grafting time of carboxyl and amidoxime groups, solution...

The thermal-condensation method is widely used for the synthesis of K-doped g-C3N4 photocatalysts, but the presence of organic byproducts in the resultant products is often overlooked in previous reports. Here, we demonstrated the universal presence of organic byproducts in K-doped g-C3N4 synthesized by typical thermal condensation of KOH/melamine,...

In this study, the natural luffa fiber was easily modified by chemical method with amide groups and phosphoric acid (LF-A2-M1/P). SEM, XRD, FTIR and XPS were used to characterize the morphology, structure, and property of the fiber. The maximum adsorption capacity of LF-A2-M1/P towards U(VI) is 353.85 mg·g−1 (pH = 6). The thermodynamic parameters d...

It has been reported that β-MnO2 has photocatalytic activity for the oxidative-coupling of 2-naphthols into 1,1′-bi-2-naphthols. Nevertheless, it is hard to exclude the possibility that the oxidative-coupling of 2-naphthols is initiated by β-MnO2 catalysis in dark due to the insufficient investigations in the related reports. In the present work, t...

The development of stable and efficient photocatalysts is a basic requirement for photocatalytic treatment of heavy metal pollutants. For this study, a composite photocatalyst (WxS1-x) consisting of hierarchical nano-sphere wurtzite with exposed active facets and natural sphalerite was constructed. Optimized as W0.4S0.6, it was able to reduce Cr (V...

High-siliceous/calcareous mineral granules may cause cytotoxicity by attaching to cell membranes. In this research, giant (GUVs) and small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) were used as model membranes for studying the interaction between high-siliceous/calcareous mineral granules (micro calcite, micro quartz, nano calcium carbonate, and nano silica) and...

Fine atmospheric particles with a diameter of 2.5 µm or less (PM2.5) have a large specific surface area, and carry a variety of organic matter, heavy metals, minerals and bacteria. They are an important risk factor in human non-communicable disease. To explore the molecular regulatory mechanism of the airway inflammation caused by PM2.5, an in vitr...

The manipulation of photoelectrodes' electron-hole pairs toward low recombination is the fundamental strategy to achieve high solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting cells. Herein, we demonstrate that a magnet placed parallel to a photoelectrode can improve the water splitting activity of typical BiVO4...

In this work, Ti/PbO2–Co-Sm electrode has been successfully prepared using electrodeposition and further applied for the electrocatalysis of atrazine (ATZ) herbicide wastewater. As expected, Ti/PbO2–Co-Sm electrode displays highest oxygen evolution potential, lowest charge transfer resistance, longest service lifetime and most effective electrocata...

Water table drawdown accelerates peatland degradation and carbon loss from peatland, but phenolic compounds—the concentration and composition of which are determined by vegetation community composition—can slow down carbon loss. However, the response of phenolic compounds to water table drawdown is not clear. We aimed to clarify how water table dra...

Crystal modifier is a significant factor in preparation of α-hemihydrate gypsum (α-HH) from phosphogypsum (PG). The influence of maleic acid, reaction temperature, time, and solid–liquid ratio on the preparation of high-strength α-HH from PG was systematically studied herein. The optimum condition for α-HH prepared by hydrothermal autoclave method...

Microorganisms coexist in nature and interact with various metal ions and metallic compounds, ultimately affecting their migration rates, circulation processes, and distribution states in the environment; microorganisms participate in every step of the biogeochemical cycle with metal ions. The core processes of metal-ion biomineralization involve t...

Chrysotile is the only type of asbestos still widely exploited, and all kinds of asbestos including chrysotile was classified as a group I carcinogen by the IARC. There is a wealth of evidence that chrysotile can cause a range of cancers, including cancer of the lung, larynx, ovary, and mesothelioma. As the second largest chrysotile producer, China...

The manipulation of the surface property of WO3 photoanode is the main breakthrough direction to improve its solar water oxidation performance both in thermodynamics and kinetics. Here, we report a WO3(002)/m-WO3 homojunction film that is composed of an upper WO3 layer with predominant (002) facet (WO3(002)) and a lower WO3 layer with multi-crystal...

The excessive exhaustion of conventional fossil fuels and increasingly severe environmental issues prompt us to grope for high-performance and cost-effective catalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by electrocatalytic water splitting. In this work, nanocoral-like NiSe2 catalysts modified with CeO2 have been successfully prepared through one...

In this work, Ti/SnO2-RuO2 dimensionally stable anode has been successfully fabricated via thermal decomposition method and further used for highly efficient electrocatalytic degradation of alizarin cyanin green (ACG) dye wastewater. The morphology, crystal structure and composition of Ti/SnO2-RuO2 electrode are characterized by scanning electron m...

Bacillus pumilus SWU7-1 was isolated from strontium ion (Sr(II))-uncontaminated soil, its biosorption potential was evaluated, and the effect of γ-ray radiation treatment on its biosorption was discussed. Domesticated under Sr(II) stress promoted the biosorption ability of B. pumilus to Sr(II), and the biosorption efficiency increased from 46.09% t...

The adsorption features and mechanism of phospholipid (the main components of cytoderm of gram-negative bacterium) to remove U(VI) in carbonate solution have been explored in this study. The utilized phospholipid was characterized by SEM-EDS, FT-IR, XRD, and XPS. Macroscopic experiments demonstrated that the removal capacity of phospholipid was dom...

As jarosite and oxalic acid are ubiquitous in nature, we investigated a remediation technology for uranium-contaminated site by photoinduced reduction coupled with adsorption of jarosite. Jarosite exhibited excellent adsorption properties for uranium, with a highest adsorption capacity 453.98 mg g−1. With the presence of oxalic acid, U(VI) was remo...

Prussian blue analogues have been widely investigated in the field of materials chemistry because of its low cost, high porosity, and excellent redox reversibility. Herein, a series of MnHCF/GO nanocomposites (MHG) with diverse GO contents have been successfully prepared at room temperature through a facile and cost-effective chemical precipitation...

In this work, a series of Bi10Co16O38 (BCO) micro-sheets have been synthesized at different temperatures through a one-step precipitation method. Furthermore, we have investigated the influence of reaction temperature on the capacitive behavior of BCO based electrodes by electrochemical measurements in 2.0 M KOH electrolyte. The results show that B...

Reasonable design of efficient and stable catalysts with low cost and abundant natural reserves is vital for electrocatalytic water splitting. Herein, novel nanotremella-like Bi2S3/MoS2 composites with different mass ratios between Bi2S3 and MoS2 have been successfully prepared through a hydrothermal approach and further applied to hydrogen evoluti...

Exploring cost-efficient electrocatalyst towards oxygen evolution reaction is the key to develop sustainable hydrogen energy from water splitting. In this work, based on the different mass contents of MWCNTs, we construct a series of cost-effective noble metal-free NiHCF/MWCNTs (NFM) catalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline medium....

Long-term exposure to chrysotile asbestos has been associated with an increased risk of pulmonary fibrosis, lung cancer, ovarian cancer and peritoneal mesothelioma. Although numerous pathophysiological mechanisms account for chrysotile asbestos-induced pulmonary toxicity, apoptosis has attracted considerable attention and has not yet been fully elu...

Clay minerals provide an excellent platform for enzyme immobilization, which can improve enzyme activity and stability for industrial applications. In this study, lipase from Aspergillus oryzae was immobilized on 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) amphiphilic functionalized montmorillonite (Mt) support via 1-(3-Dimethylaminopropyl)-3-ethyl-carbod...

Exploring high-performance and cost-effective non-noble metal electrocatalysts towards oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is critical for large-scale hydrogen production via water splitting. Herein, a series of ternary Fe–Mo–B materials with nanochain-like structure have been successfully fabricated by a green and feasible electroless deposition metho...

The conventional approach of 5-amino-1H-tetrazole (5AT) oxidative-coupling into 5,5′-azotetrazolate salts are confronted with several issues, including high energy consumption, insufficient security and inconvenient purification. A green photocatalytic method was demonstrated for the first time to achieve the selective oxidative-coupling of 5AT int...

There is great interest in detection of the level of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) explosive due to its importance in public security and environmental protection fields. The conventional chemical sensors do not simultaneously realize simple, rapid, sensitive, selective, and direct detection of TNT in different medium without sample pretreatment. Her...