Search

High-performance foldable metal-coated ionic polymer-metal nanocomposites (IPMNCs) with crack minimized electrode are desired for wearable electronics, energy harvesting devices, tactile sensors, structural health monitors, humidity sensors, and supercapacitor devices. However, the IPMNC shows the cracked structure that seriously decreases the performance of IPMNCs for sensors and actuators applications. To overcome the issue of the cracked metal electrode, here we propose a metal-coated hierarchical porous structured IPMNC via minimizing the cracks in the Platinum (Pt) electrode using attachment of poly(2-acrylamide-2-methyl-1-propane-sulfonic acid) (PAMPS) in poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE))/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) blend. The crack-minimized Pt electrode deposition on PAMPS attached P(VDF-TrFE)/PVP-based IPMNCs showed enhanced electrical and sensing signals compared to the Nafion, ionic liquid, and polystyrene sulphonic acid-based IPMNCs. The developed IPMNCs with an optimized composition depict stable sensing signals up to 10,000 cycles. The hierarchical porous structure and the crack-minimized metal electrode on the P(VDF-TrFE)/PVP/PAMPS IPMNC can be utilized in various attractive applications such as energy harvesting, wearable electronics, humidity sensor, pulse, braille recognition, catalyst supports, bio-interfacing, and sensors.

Pharyngoesophageal defects can cause exposure to various bacterial flora and severe inflammation. We fabricated a biodegradable polycaprolactone (PCL) patch composed of both thin film and three-dimensional (3D) printed lattice, and then investigated the efficacy of pharyngoesophageal reconstruction by using 3D printed antibiotic-releasing PCL patches that inhibited early inflammation by sustained tetracycline (TCN) release from both thin PCL films and printed rods implanted in esophageal partial defects. PCL was 3D printed in lattice form on a presolution casted PCL thin film at ∼100 μm resolution. TCN was loaded onto the PCL-printed patches by 3D printing a mixture of TCN and PCL particles melted at 100°C. TCN exhibited sustained release

Polymer modified Quartz Tuning Fork sensor array with three sensors has been developed to classify 1,4-dimethoxy-2, 3-butanediol (BD), cyclohexanone (CH), ethanol, methanol and acetone with various concentrations. Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), Decision Tree (DT), and Random Forrest (RF) have been used and evaluated as the classifiers predicting the VOCs and their concentration. The classifiers were trained with three features: response time, recovery time, and shift in the resonant frequency of the sensors. The results have been compared and analyzed for the performance of each classifier for the present system. RF gives the best performance as a classifier with an accuracy of classification more than 95%. We present results of VOC classifier performance for the QTF sensor array.

One of the major challenges in wound healing is the development of suitable hydrogels that are injectable, biocompatible with multiple functionalities and properties such as high mechanical, tissue adhesiveness, and swelling properties. However, these hydrogels should not elicit any immunological response and synthesis steps should be easier and tunable according to the requirements. Considering these properties, we synthesized a thermo-sensitive triblock copolymer consisting of bovine serum albumin (BSA) protein capable of leveraging the needs for a proper wound closure and tissue regeneration on excisional injuries. Firstly, the triblock copolymer consisting of poly(e-caprolactone-co-lactide)-b-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(e-caprolactone-co-lactide (PCLA) was synthesized and then the copolymer was grafted with BSA to yield BSA-PCLA bioconjugates. Aqueous solutions of free-flowing bioconjugate sol at room temperature can transform to gel at physiological temperature with high viscoelastic properties. Subcutaneous injection of BSA-PCLA bioconjugate sol into the back of Sprague-Dawley rats formed gel immediately and found to be bioresorbable after 5 weeks without significant toxicity at implantation sites. BSA-PCLA bioconjugate gel exhibited good adhesive property to major organs including liver, heart, and spleen when compared with control PCLA gel. When tested for in vivo wound closure trials, the BSA-PCLA gels showed rapid wound contraction compared to the PCLA and the control. The increased angiogenesis and collagen deposition were confirmed from the histological studies of the samples. These highly adhesive, biocompatible, biodegradable, thermos-sensitive bioconjugate gels show promising potential in wound healing and tissue regeneration without any additional biofactors or inorganic nanoparticles.

Root like structured Ni-doped zinc oxide [Zn(1-x)NixO (x = 0.09)] thin films were deposited on a non-conducting glass substrate by indigenously developed spray pyrolysis system at optimized substrate hotness of 573±5 K. Thus obtained Ni-doped ZnO thin films were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). XRD result revealed that Ni-doped ZnO has a polycrystalline nature with a hexagonal wurtzite structure. For pure ZnO and Ni-doped ZnO thin films, the particle sizes were 60.9 and 53.3 nm while lattice strain values were 1.56×10−3 and 1.14×10−3, respectively. The film surface showed characteristic root-like structure as observed by the SEM. It was observed that the Ni-doped ZnO thin films were grown in high density along with more extent of branching as compared to pure ZnO thin films but retained the root-like morphologies, however, the branches were more-thinner and of shorter lengths. AFM analysis showed that the surface grains of the Ni-doped samples are homogeneous with less RMS roughness values compared with the undoped ZnO samples. The photocatalytic activity of the prepared thin films was evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) dye under UV light irradiation. Pure ZnO and Ni-doped ZnO thin films took 150 min and 100 min to degrade about 60% MO dye, respectively.

Silica-POCl2 was used as the promoter for the three-component reaction of ethyl/methyl 3-phenyl glycidate, aniline derivatives, and dimethyl carbonate, leads to the synthesis of methyl/ethyl 2-oxo-4-phenyl-3-aryloxazolidine-5-carboxylate derivatives. The desired product was obtained in high yields.

Naphthalene is an aromatic hydrocarbon used as room freshner. Therefore, it is of interest to document the computer aided pharmacokinetic profiling and toxicity analysis data of naphthalene.

Furan and its derivatives find wide-spread application as pharmaceuticals, pigments, dyes, brighteners, flavour & fragrance compounds and insecticides. They also exhibit antihyperglycemic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-tumour activities. Silver catalysts are nowadays commonly used in organic synthesis due to the high oxidation potential and versatile nature of silver complexes. In this review, we summarise the recent advances in the synthesis and applications of furan moiety using silver catalysis and covers literature from 2015-2020.

Copper containing materials are widely used in a range of catalytic applications. Here, we report the use of Cu K-edge high resolution XANES to determine the local site symmetry of copper ions during the thermal treatment of a Cu-Cr-Fe oxide catalyst. We exploited the Cu K-edge XANES spectral features, in particular the correlation between area under the pre-edge peak and its position to determine the local environment of Cu2+ ions. The information gained from this investigation rules out the presence of Cu2+ ions in a tetrahedral or square planar geometry, a mixture of these sites, or in a reduced oxidation state. Evidence is presented that the Cu2+ ions in the Cu-Cr-Fe oxide system are present in a distorted octahedral environment.

Owing to the advantages offered by fluorine in the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industry, methods to incorporate fluorine have gained immense attention in the last two decades. Recently, several sustainable catalysts based on first row transition metals have been employed for fluoromethylation reactions. Amongst them, nickel catalysts due to their abundance, less toxicity and high catalytic activity have been increasingly used for the introduction of a variety of fluorinated functionalities like mono-, di- and tri-fluoromethyl groups including trifluoromethyl selenides and sulfides. This is the first review that exclusively covers the important strategies and mechanistic analyses in nickel-catalysed mono-, di- and tri-fluoromethylation, trifluoromethylthiolation and trifluoromethylselenolation covering the literature up to 2021.

Manganese-catalyzed C–H activation has emerged as a powerful tool in organic synthesis within a few years. These reactions are highly selective, eco-friendly and exhibit a wide substrate scope. These strategies have found enormous applications in medicinal chemistry, materials science and natural product synthesis. This review summarizes the recent advances in manganese-catalyzed C–H activation and covers literature from 2018–2020.

The development of effective methods to create a C–CF3 bond has attracted great attention in organofluorine chemistry and also in homogeneous catalysis. Recently, iron-catalyzed trifluoromethylation reactions have progressed widely to produce numerous CF3-containing compounds. In current years, with the arrival of transition metal-catalyzed trifluromethylation reactions, iron-catalyzed reactions are recognized to be promising for providing extremely functionalized products. This review provides an overview of the Fe-catalyzed trifluoromethylation reactions leading to the formation of various types of compounds such as amines, acids, aldehydes, ketones etc. covering the literature up to 2020.

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) constructed from metal ions/clusters and organic linkers have led to new porous luminescent materials and, thus, have attracted much attention. But their photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQYs) are not high and the photoluminescence mechanism is still unclear. In order to solve this problem, in this work, zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8, a kind of MOF) composite films containing small molecules of acetic acid were successfully prepared on a glass substrate via a sol–gel method, and they exhibited a high PLQY of 54.42%. Compared with pure ZIF-8 film, the obtained ZIF-8 composite film presented a significant enhancement in blue light emission. Moreover, the PLQY of the ZIF-8 composite film can be controlled to a certain extent via adjusting the molar ratio of the ligands to the zinc source. Among them, ZIF-8 film prepared at a molar ratio of 2.5 : 1 showed higher transmittance, and the fluorescence quantum efficiency reached 54.42%, which may be attributed to electron transfer between acetic acid as an electron-donor and the ZIF-8 structure caused by their relatively strong hydrogen bonding interactions. This work may provide new insights into the enhanced fluorescence of MOF materials for light-emitting applications.

N-Arylated pyrroles have a wide range of applications in pharmaceuticals, the agrochemical industry and organic synthesis. They are intermediates for the formation of many biologically active compounds and natural products. Over the past decades, numerous protocols have been established for the efficient synthesis of N-aryl pyrroles, amongst which reactions using transition metal-based catalyst/mono- or bidentate ligand systems play an important role as they involve milder reaction conditions, affording excellent yields of the products. Amid these methods, the lion's share lies in copper catalysis. Many copper-based compounds are efficient as catalysts for organic synthesis, they are economical and nearly non-toxic. In this review, we focus on the copper-catalyzed C–N cross-coupling reactions of various aryl electrophiles with a range of nucleophilic pyrroles under various reaction conditions, covering the literature up to 2021.

This study primarily investigates the total (Fe) iron presence in Sulaimaniyah Governorate, the Iraqi Kurdistan Region (IKR), which has an abundance of iron mines. Spatial quantification and frequent monitoring of mineral existence in the soil are essential in the mining regions. To achieve this goal, a remote sensing technique was utilized to predict soil minerals, particularly iron existence in the study area using a multispectral satellite image, Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+). A robust methodology was perceived and developed from image processing to estimate and map iron oxides rich soils, and soil’s spectral indices were obtained after algorithms applied in processing on the bands of Landsat image. Soil samples were collected and analyzed in the laboratory to determine the chemical, physical, and mineralogical characteristics of soils. Correlation coefficients were carried out between soil properties and spectral band values retrieved from image analysis to examine the band potentials of Landsat. The statistical results showed that there was a significant relationship between the 3rd band of the ETM+ image and each of the total iron (R2 = 0.643), the free iron oxide (R2 = 0.659), and sand particles (R2 = 0.561). The predicted soil mineral maps were generated for the study area to visualize the study site's soil characterization and total iron spread. This study results could help primarily identify the spatial distribution of some soil properties in Sulaimaniyah, Iraq.

Background: A vital need to ascertain novel anti-tubercular agent which is the volatile global spreading of multidrug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase is one among such target. It is one of the key enzymes involved in the type II fatty acid biosynthesis pathway of M. tuberculosis. Objective: In this study, in silico evaluations were employed in screening of active constituent of Couroupita guianensis against Enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase of Mycobacterium tuberculi. Materials and Methods: Totally 16 compounds namely Isatin, Indigo, Coup 2, Indirubin, Calotronaphthalene, Coup, Alpha Amyrin, Nerol, Betasitosterol, Campesterol, Eugenol, Tryptanthrin, Benzyl Alcohol, Betaamyrin and Farnesol were subjected to in silico screening. Glide software of Schrodinger was used to carry out the current work. Results: The compounds exhibit good docking score and few with hydrogen bond interaction. Isoniazid was used as the standard and validation was performed. The results have shown that derivatives were proved to be highly potent inhibitors against Mycobacterium tuberculosis enoyl acyl carrier protein reductase. Conclusion: Most of the compounds exhibit hydrophobic interaction. Then isatin and eugenol can be tested against Mycobacterium tuberculi. Keywords: Couroupita guianensis, Enoyl acyl carrier protein reductase, In silico screening, Mycobacterium tuberculi.

In the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR), tin-based catalysts are known for their high formate faradaic yield. However higher overpotentials are required to attain a high faradaic yield with high partial current density for formate. Here, we describe the increase in the electrocatalytic CO2RR activity of Sn nanoparticles decorated on nitrogen-doped carbon fibers (NCFs) by adding a small amount of Pd. Nitrogen-doped carbon fibers decorated with SnPd nanoparticles (Sn100−yPdy–NCF) of different Sn : Pd ratios were synthesized using the electrospinning method and their electrocatalytic CO2RR activity was studied. The Sn100−yPdy–NCF catalyst with 3 wt% (y = 3) Pd displayed superior activity for the CO2RR and attained a faradaic efficiency of 85%, whereas the NCF with Sn nanoparticles (Sn100–NCF) attained only 57% efficiency at the same potential. The surface electronic configuration, Tafel slope (79 mV dec−1) and bicarbonate reduction activity of the catalyst reveal that the combination of SnOx–PdO on the catalyst surface is responsible for the superior CO2RR activity.

Malaria is a communicable disease which is caused by protozoan's mainly Plasmodium species (P. falciparum, P. ovale, P. vivax, P. malariae and P. knowlesi). The increasing resistance of Plasmodium to available malarial drugs poses a great responsibility for the researchers in the field of malaria. To overcome this problem of resistance, this study aimed to design and synthesize a new class of antimalarial agent with chalcone as the main moiety. Chalcones, a member of flavanoid family, consist of two aromatic rings of 1,3-diphenyl-2-propen-1-one linked by a three carbon α,β-unsaturated carbonyl system. Five derivatives were designed and among them one was selected. The CC2 was then synthesized by esterification of Para amino acetophenone followed by treatment with hydrazide to form 2-(4 acetylphenoxy)acetohydrazide. This was then coupled with 2-Bromo substituted Diazotized esterified anilines, which was finally linked with substituted benzaldehyde to yield CC2. These were then structurally verified by Infra Red (IR) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The chalcone was then tested for in vitro growth inhibition assays using SYBR GREEN-1 Based assay and IC50 values were identified. The compound CC2 showed quite promising antimalarial activity by inhibiting cysteine protease enzyme. The acute toxicity studies of the compound were carried out as per OECD guideline 425 and the results showed no toxic signs and symptoms indicating CC2 as a safe and less toxic compound.

The formation of silver and Au@Ag core@shell nanoparticles via reduction of AgNO3 by trisodium citrate was followed using in situ X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy and time-resolved UV-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy. The XANES data were analyzed through linear combination fitting, and the reaction kinetics were found to be consistent with first-order behavior with respect to silver cations. For the Au@Ag nanoparticles, the UV-vis data of a lab-scale reaction showed a gradual shift in dominance between the gold- and silver-localized surface plasmon absorbance bands. Notably, throughout much of the reaction, distinct gold and silver contributions to the UV-vis spectra were observed; however, in the final product, the contributions were not distinct.

Picrosirius red stain has been increasingly used for collagen studies in dental and medical research. Sirius red is an acidic dye which binds specifically to collagen and distinguishes type I and type III collagen fibres. This review depicts earlier uses of picric acid, preparation of the picrosirus red stain, mechanism of action, hazards and safety protocols of handling picric acid in laboratory. Keywords: Birefringence, Collagen fibres, Picrosirius red stain, Polarized microscopy, Picric acid.

In an effort to minimize the usage of non-renewable materials and to enhance the functionality of the renewable materials, we have developed thin metal oxide coated porous carbon derived from a highly abundant non-edible bio resource, i.e., palm kernel shell, using a one-step activation-coating procedure and demonstrated their superiority as a supercapacitive energy storage electrode. In a typical experiment, an optimized composition contained ~10 wt% of Mn2O3 on activated carbon (AC); a supercapacitor electrode fabricated using this electrode showed higher rate capability and more than twice specific capacitance than pure carbon electrode and could be cycled over 5000 cycles without any appreciable capacity loss in 1 M Na2SO4 electrolyte. A symmetric supercapacitor prototype developed using the optimum electrode showed nearly four times higher energy density than the pure carbon owing to the enhancements in voltage window and capacitance. A lithium ion capacitor fabricated in half-cell configuration using 1 M LiPF6 electrolyte showed larger voltage window, superior capacitance and rate capability in the ~10 wt% Mn2O3 @AC than the pure analogue. These results demonstrate that the current protocol allows fabrication of superior charge storing electrodes using renewable materials functionalized by minimum quantity of earthborn materials.

Proton conducting materials suffer from low proton conductivity under low-relative humidity (RH) conditions. Previously, it was reported that acid–acid interactions, where acids interact with each other at close distances, can facilitate proton conduction without water movement and are promising for overcoming this drawback [T. Ogawa, H. Ohashi, T. Tamaki and T. Yamaguchi, Chem. Phys. Lett., 2019, 731, 136627]. However, acid groups have not been compared to find a suitable acid group and density for the interaction, which is important to experimentally synthesize the material. Here, we performed ab initio calculations to identify acid groups and acid densities as a polymer design that effectively causes acid–acid interactions. The evaluation method employed parameters based on several different optimized coordination interactions of acids and water molecules. The results show that the order of the abilities of polymer electrolytes to readily induce acid–acid interactions is hydrocarbon-based phosphonated polymers > phosphonated aromatic hydrocarbon polymers > perfluorosulfonic acid polymers ≈ perfluorophosphonic acid polymers > sulfonated aromatic hydrocarbon polymers. The acid–acid interaction becomes stronger as the distance between acids decreases. The preferable distance between phosphonate moieties is within 13 A.

We discuss scattering between a bright soliton and a soliton dimer in coupled quasi-one-dimensional dipolar Bose-Einstein condensates. The dimer is formed by each soliton from both tubes due to the attractive inter-layer dipole-dipole interaction. The dipoles within each tube repel each other, and a stable, bright soliton is stabilized via attractive contact interactions. In general, the scattering is inelastic, transferring the kinetic energy into internal modes of both soliton dimer and single soliton. Our studies reveal rich scattering scenarios, including dimer-soliton repulsion at small initial velocities, exchange of atoms between dimer and single soliton and soliton fusion at intermediate velocities. Interestingly, for some particular initial velocities, the dimer-soliton scattering results in a state of two dimers. At large initial velocities, the scattering is elastic as expected., 8 pages, 5 figures

Copper-catalyzed C-H functionalization is becoming a significant area in organic chemistry. Copper is now widely used as a catalyst in organic synthesis as it is inexpensive and not very toxic. Functionalization of C-H bonds to construct wide varieties of organic compounds has received much attention in recent times. This review focuses on the recent advances in Cu-catalyzed C-H functionalization and covers literature from 2018-2020.

Zinc sulfide is an important wide-band gap semi-conductor and dithiocarbamate complexes [Zn(S2CNR2)(2)] find widespread use as single-source precursors for the controlled synthesis of ZnS nanoparticulate modifications. Decomposition of [Zn((S2CNBu2)-Bu-i)(2)] in oleylamine gives high aspect ratio wurtzite nanowires, the average length of which was increased upon addition of thiuram disulfide to the decomposition mixture. To provide further insight into the decomposition process, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) of [Zn(S2CNMe2)(2)] was performed in the solid-state, in non-coordinating xylene and in oleylamine. In the solid-state, dimeric [Zn(S2CNMe2)(2)](2) was characterised in accord with the single crystal X-ray structure, while in xylene this breaks down into tetrahedral monomers. In situ XAS in oleylamine (RNH2) shows that the coordination sphere is further modified, amine binding to give five-coordinate [Zn(S2CNMe2)(2)(RNH2)]. This species is stable to ca. 70 degrees C, above which amine dissociates and at ca. 90 degrees C decomposition occurs to generate ZnS. The relatively low temperature onset of nanoparticle formation is associated with amine-exchange leading to the in situ formation of [Zn(S2CNMe2)(S2CNHR)] which has a low temperature decomposition pathway. Combining these observations with the previous work of others allows us to propose a detailed mechanistic scheme for the overall process.

Understanding the mechanism of thermal energy transport in a single nanotube (NT) is essential for successfully engineering nanostructured conducting polymers to apply to thermoelectrics or flexible electronic devices. We report the characterization of the in-plane thermal energy transport in a single poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) NT via direct measurement of the in-plane thermal conductivity (κ). We also demonstrate that the in-plane κ of PEDOT:PSS NT can be tuned within the range of 0.19 to 1.92 W·m-1·K-1 merely by changing the solvent used to treat the NTs in the post-fabrication stage. The in-plane thermal energy transport in a pristine NT, with its low in-plane κ, is primarily due to phonons; in a sulfuric acid-treated NT however, significant electronic contributions lead to a high in-plane κ. The present study will contribute to understanding the mechanism of thermal energy transport in highly disordered structures, such as conducting polymers, and to designing highly efficient polymer-based devices in which in-plane κ plays a pivotal role in determining the energy conversion efficiency.

A heteroatom doped porous carbon electrocatalyst with enhanced oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) performance in alkaline medium was obtained by high temperature treatment of Ni incorporated ZIF-8 frameworks and its composite with g-C3N4 as a supporting matrix template. The morphology and porosity of this heteroatom containing carbon were tuned by varying the Ni : Zn molar ratio in Ni/Zn ZIF-8 and Ni/Zn ZIF-8@g-C3N4 composites. The template aided synthetic strategy using g-C3N4 helped in the controlled decomposition of composites leading to a heteroporous sheet like architecture with increased nitrogen content. The Ni/Zn ZIF-8 sample on heat treatment in the 800–1000 °C temperature range led to the formation of Ni,N co-doped porous carbon (Ni-NPC) with Ni–C active sites. The defective sites induced by nickel carbide along with the distributed N atoms on the carbon surface enabled active O2 adsorption sites. The high surface area, high degree of graphitisation as well as the defects created by well dispersed N and Ni on porous carbon matrices favoured charge separation leading to higher electrochemical ORR activity. The Ni,N co-doped carbon catalyst in alkaline medium exhibited a limiting current density of 5.2 mA cm−2 with a half-wave potential of 0.76 V vs. RHE in 0.1 M KOH. The catalyst also showed improved methanol tolerance and better stability compared to the standard Pt/C catalyst.

Chiral sulfinamides are among the best known chiral auxiliaries in the stereoselective synthesis of amines and their derivatives. The most extensively used enantiopure tert-butanesulfinamide emerged as the gold standard among many others over the last two decades. The present review attempts to provide an overview of tert-butanesulfinamide mediated asymmetric N-heterocycle synthesis via sulfinimines and covers literature from 2010–2020. This methodology offers general access to structurally diverse piperidines, pyrrolidines, azetidines, and their fused derivatives that represent the structural motif of many natural products and therapeutically applicable compounds.

Highly efficient and durable catalysts are increasingly sought in water electrolysis, particularly for resolving the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) kinetics. Herein, ternary phosphides in...

ZnO and Fe doped ZnO thin films have been prepared by using simple homemade spray pyrolysis unit. The optimum temperature for the growth of thin films was found to be 300 ± 5 °C. The morphological, structural and optical properties were studied for these thin films. The X-ray diffractrograms exhibit hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure without any additional phase of the thin films. The root-like shapes (Ganglia) structure observed over the surface of the substrate by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). From UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) the band gap value of Fe doped films was found to be 3.92 eV. The peak shift in the Photo Luminance analysis confirms the presence of Fe content in the thin films and also there is a red shift. AFM images shows that RMS roughness value has decreases compared to pure ZnO films. The Photocatalytic activity of the prepared Fe doped thin films was evaluated using the Methyl Orange dye (MO) under UV light source. Nearly 89% dye degradation in 80 min was observed for Fe doped ZnO thin films.

Superlattice comprising of ferroelectric (FE) and non-ferroelectric (non-FE) material has been developed to induce a ferroelectric response in the non-ferroelectric layer. In this study, a superlattice thin film comprising of BiFeO3 (BFO) as FE oxide and La0.85Ce0.15MnO3 (LCMO) as semiconducting non-FE oxide is fabricated and investigated the FE and piezoelectric responses in LCMO. We observed the piezoelectric response of individual layers using time-resolved X-ray microdiffraction experiment under an external electric field. Piezoelectric response of individual layers was resolved by comparing it with the values obtained from kinematic diffraction calculation. Piezoelectric coefficient (d33) of LCMO monolayer is found to be approximately 27 pm/V, which is a similar value as that of the BFO layer.

Designing biocompatible superparamagnetic mesoporous nanoparticles for advanced healthcare applications has received much attention. In this research, we have synthesized intrinsic mesoporous superparamagnetic hydroxyapatite (HAp) nanoparticles using bio-waste of black Chlamys varia seashell as a calcium source by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)–enabled microwave-assisted synthesis approach. The synthesized Fe-doped HAp nanoparticles were characterized using various characterization techniques to know the phase purity and morphological features. The incorporation of Fe greatly affected the morphology of HAp nanoparticles without affecting their crystalline phase. Superparamagnetic behavior was observed with the incorporation of Fe in the HAp nanoparticles. Further, saturation magnetization was enhanced with higher incorporation of Fe ions. The cytotoxicity studies of the synthesized pure and Fe-doped HAp samples conducted using a human osteoblasts cell line (MG63), which indicated that Fe-doped HAp nanoparticles are biocompatible. Further, antibacterial activity analysis also confirmed their excellent antibacterial performance against different pathogens. Hence, SDS-enabled microwave-assisted synthesis approach using seashell as a calcium source would be a better approach for the production of intrinsic mesoporous superparamagnetic HAp nanoparticles for various biomedical applications, such as drug targeting, hyperthermia cancer therapy, and magnetic resonance imaging.

The correlation of adsorption isotherm is crucial for the successful implementation of adsorption technology. In this work, the adsorption behavior of anionic dyes, eosin Y, and indigo carmine from...

A novel Suzuki-type cross-coupling reaction of organoboron reagents with alkynyl bromides has been developed in the presence of catalytic Et2Zn/DMEDA system. The reaction afforded a variety of internal alkynes in moderate to excellent yields under mild reaction conditions without the formation of any homo-coupling products. The resulting internal alkynes have valuable applications in pharmaceutical and industrial areas. The use of relatively non-toxic zinc, chelating amine ligand and low reaction temperature make this protocol an alternative for the synthesis of internal alkynes. The scope and limitations of this protocol are also investigated.

Background The study aimed to design, synthesize and evaluate various brominated derivatives of 7-hydroxy coumarin as a new scaffold against Alzheimer’s disease by in vivo and in vitro models. A group of three novel pyrazoles endowed with brominated 7-hydroxy 4-methyl coumarin derivatives were designed. Among the designed compounds, a single entity (D1) was selected based on the docking score, which could be considered mainly for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Three novel pyrazoles endowed with brominated 7-hydroxy 4-methyl coumarin derivatives were designed and docking studies of these compounds were carried out using Argus lab4.0.1 version. According to the docking score, a single entity of compound (D1) was selected for further study. The structure of the compound (D1) was explored by spectral analysis. The anti-Alzheimer’s activity was evaluated by in vivo and in vitro methods. All results were compared statistically by one-way ANOVA using GraphPad Prism. Results Molecular docking studies revealed that the compound D1 was able to bind simultaneously to the amino acid and in the active sites of the acetylcholine esterase enzyme. In acetylcholine esterase inhibition assay, the compound shows a significant increase in acetylcholine esterase level. The MAO inhibitory activities were in the nanomole range (human MAO-A IC50 = 3.9, human MAO-B IC 50 = 4.4). DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate) assay showed that the compound shows a promising antioxidant property. In the evaluation of learning and memory of compound D1 using elevated plus maze, the compound D1-pretreated group showed a significant increase in memory and learning when compared with donepezil. Conclusions Among the designed series of pyrazole endowed with brominated 7-hydroxyl 4-methyl coumarin derivatives, compound D1 showed good antioxidant property and acetylcholine esterase and MAO inhibitory activity; based on this property, the synthesized compound D1 can be considered a new scaffold on Alzheimer’s disease.

Cells across all kingdoms of life actively partition molecules between discrete cellular compartments. In Gram-positive bacteria, a thick and highly cross-linked peptidoglycan cell wall separates the bacterial membrane from the extracellular space, imposing a barrier that must be crossed by proteins whose functions require that they be exposed on the bacterial cell surface1,2. Some surface-exposed proteins, such as the Listeria monocytogenes actin nucleation-promoting factor ActA3, remain associated with the bacterial membrane yet somehow thread through tens of nanometers of dense, cross-linked cell wall to expose their N-terminus on the outer surface4,5. Here, we show that entropy can drive the translocation of disordered transmembrane proteins through the Gram-positive cell wall. We develop a physical model predicting that the entropic constraint imposed by a thin periplasm is sufficient to drive translocation of an intrinsically disordered protein like ActA across a porous barrier similar to the cell wall. Consistent with this scenario, we demonstrate experimentally that translocation depends on both the dimensions of the cell envelope and the length of the disordered protein, and that translocation is reversible. We also show that disordered regions from eukaryotic nuclear pore complex proteins are capable of entropy-driven translocation through Gram-positive cell walls. These observations suggest that entropic forces alone, rather than chaperones or chemical energy, are sufficient to drive translocation of certain Gram-positive surface proteins for exposure on the outer surface of the cell wall.

Recent studies identified fluoroalkyl amides (FAs) transformation to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) during disinfection as an indirect source of PFASs contamination of drinking water. This paper discerns the position of water disinfection systems (WDSs) as a PFOA exposure pathway. A new mechanistic model incorporating the derived knowledge about the zwitterionic/cationic FAs transformation to PFOA with the unsteady-state hydraulic characteristics of WDSs was developed. The simulation outputs from model application to a WDS from the USA established the significant role of delivery via distribution network in the PFOA formation in drinking water. PFOA exposure risk assessment studies predicted95% of the system nodes to be at high risk when the existing stringent health-based guideline values are adopted. The 1 to 3 years and 4 to 8 years old age groups were found susceptible to PFOA exposure through drinking water beyond the tolerable limit of 3 ng/kg/day. The model predicted that reducing the chlorine dose from 2±0.2 to 1±0.1 mg/L at the treatment units drops the share of 1 to 3 years old and 4 to 8 years old consumers falling to PFOA exposure from 4.32 to 0.45% and 0.32 to0.01%, respectively. Besides, 24.9% more, including ∼x223C10% of the consumers of 1 to 3 years old age group, were found exposed to PFOA risks when the organic loading of water was reduced by 60%.

Enantiopure aryl-sulfinamides are important chiral auxiliaries in the asymmetric synthesis of amines and their derivatives. Here, we provide an overview of arylsulfinamide mediated asymmetric methods towards N-heterocycle synthesis. This methodology through sulfinylimines offers general access to structurally diverse piperidines, pyrrolidines, aziridines and their derivatives which represent the structural motif of many natural products and therapeutically important compounds. The review covers articles from 2006–2020 and we have categorized the review based on the ring size as 3-, 5-, and 6- membered heterocycles and their derivatives.

The low-temperature processability of molecular ferroelectric (FE) crystals makes them a potential alternative for perovskite oxide-based ferroelectric thin films. Quinuclidinium perrhenate (HQReO4) is one such molecular FE crystal that exhibits ferroelectricity when crystallized in an intermediate temperature phase (ITP). However, bulk HQReO4 crystals exhibit ferroelectricity only for a narrow temperature window (22 K), above and below which the polar phase transforms to a non-FE phase. The FE phase or ITP of HQReO4 should be stabilized in a much wider temperature range for practical applications. Here, to stabilize the FE phase (ITP) in a wider temperature range, highly oriented thin films of HQReO4 were prepared using a simple solution process. A slow evaporation method was adapted for drying the HQReO4 thin films to control the morphology and the temperature window. The temperature window of the intermediate temperature FE phase was successfully widened up to 35 K by merely varying the film drying temperature between 333 and 353 K. The strategy of stabilizing the FE phase in a wider temperature range can be adapted to other molecular FE materials to realize flexible electronic devices.