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Today, the rise of opportunistic infections and their resistance to current antifungal drugs has led to the inevitable need to produce effective antimicrobials at a reasonable cost. This study aimed at producing a calcium carbonate/cobalt oxide nanocomposite with the most excellent antifungal activity against Candida albicans (C. albicans). Thus, nine experimental designs using the Taguchi technique were utilized to discover the greatest combination of parameters for antifungal activity. The colony‐forming unit (CFU) method was used to test the produced nanocomposites' antifungal properties against C. albicans. The results indicated that the synthesized nanocomposite in optimal conditions (20 mg/mL of calcium carbonate, 3 mg/mL of cobalt oxide, and 90 min of stirring time) could inhibit the growth of C. albicans by more than 74%. Various analyses were applied to determine the structural properties of the calcium carbonate/cobalt oxide nanocomposite, and its constituents revealed the fabricated nanocomposite's desirable properties. In the study, the nanocomposite was an efficient antifungal agent that might be employed in various fields, including medicine, dentistry, and life sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of surface morphology and elemental composition on the magnetic properties of nickel‐iron (NiFe) films prepared by electrodeposition with a range of deposition times has been investigated using a high‐resolution scanning electron microscope, energy and wavelength dispersive X‐ray analysis, and magneto‐optical Kerr effect magnetometry. Defects were noticed with various sizes distributed randomly in these samples. There was a noticeable increase in the defect size with a decrease in the deposition time. A slight variation in the elemental composition across the sample area was noticed. Very limited variation in the elemental weight with deposition time was seen. Square hysteresis loops were obtained from most locations on these samples with a high remanent magnetization. A reduction in coercivity was observed with increasing sample thickness. A wide distribution of the coercivity across the sample area and a slight change in the shape of the loops were seen, especially with samples with shorter deposition times. This was attributed to the differences in the film's elemental composition or the surface variation, which can act as pinning centers during the domain wall reversal. These defects have a more significant effect at shorter deposition times, which increases the coercivity of such films. This article gives an indication that NiFe films produced by this technique under such conditions are nonuniform, soft at longer growth times, and largely isotropic. Thus, in order to use such films in magnetic devices, their quality needs to be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A versatile approach is achieved through the surface coating of sulfur on α‐Fe2O3 nanosheet by microwave treatment that inherently supports the formation of self‐induced active solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layer which effectively protects the electrode surface and enhances the cyclic stability of lithium‐ion battery. The present findings on a sulfur‐coated α‐Fe2O3@S‐2 core‐shell structured anode demonstrates an initial specific capacity of 1194 mAh g−1 at a 0.1 C rate, and an average discharge capacity of 518 mAh g−1 over 20 cycles. Sulfur coating proves the incredible development of an active SEI layer that prevents electrolyte decomposition and the electrode persuades with stable capacity, fast rate capability and retains excellent coulombic efficiency for 500 cycles in LIB. GITT measurements exhibit superior Li+ ion diffusion coefficient DLi+= ${{D}_{{Li}^{+}}={\rm \ }}$ 2.87×10−10 cm2 s−1 at 80 % SOC for the α‐Fe2O3@S‐2 electrode. The in‐depth ex‐situ evaluations uncovered a fascinating self‐assembled active Li2SO4 electrode‐electrolyte interface formation in the sulfur‐coated α‐Fe2O3 electrode that contributes interfacial kinetics. The sulfur coated α‐Fe2O3 electrode exhibits an exceptional high‐rate performance and coulombic efficiency even in lithium‐sulfur battery. This research overthrows sulfur's significance in forming an active interfacial bridging SEI layer that facilitates lithium‐ion kinetics across the interface and alleviates undesirable SEI development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite lithium‐ion battery (LIB) and supercapacitor materials have gone through numerous enhancements, achieving high energy density as well as power density together is still a dream for the industries. In this scenario, herein we report, boric acid coated α−MnO2 anode with 1288 mAh g−1 at 0.1 C at the initial cycle and of an average discharge capacity of 570 mAh g−1 at 0.1 C over 20 cycles, high‐rate capability and 100 % Coulombic efficiency after 60 cycles for LIB. The Li+ diffusion coefficient estimated from GITT and EIS measurements reveals that the H3BO3 coated α−MnO2 electrode has superior Li‐ion kinetics (DLi+ ${{D}_{{{\rm L}{\rm i}}^{+}}}$ ∼10−10 cm2 s−1) than bare α−MnO2. Coin cells with boric acid coated α−MnO2 electrode are able to power up red and blue LEDs continuously for about 24–32 hours. The ex‐situ investigations reveal an interesting self‐assembled active electrode‐electrolyte interfacial bridging Li4B2O5 layer formation. This significant active layer allows free migration of lithium ions across interface that leads to good cyclability. In flexible supercapacitor, the boric acid coated α−MnO2 yields excellent cyclability over 500 cycles with specific capacitance of 35 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 and further 200 cycles at 30° acute angle with 21 F g−1 at 1 A g−1. The research overthrows the significance of boric acid in conversion reactions for active interfacial bridging layer in LIB and hydroxyl ion capturing agent in flexible supercapacitor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc chromite (ZnCr2O4)-based nanoparticles have various exceptional properties that make them suitable for use in a variety of fields, including chemistry, medicine, energy, the environment, industry, and information. In this work, nanocrystalline ZnCr2O4 has been effectively synthesized with a distinct fuel by microwave-assisted solution combustion method. The XRD results reveal a single-phase high pure formation of nanoscale ZnCr2O4. The ZnCr2O4 samples are further characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscope, UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometer. The results reveal that modifying the fuel precursors in the combustion technique played an impact on the particle size, bandgap energy, magnetic properties, and reaction time of the ZnCr2O4 preparation. The average particle size of the various samples ranged from 18.6 to 13.9 nm with various fuels. The significance of this study is the tuning effect of optical and magnetic properties of ZnCr2O4 by using various fuel precursors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present work, the effect of Mn doping in Zinc Chromite (ZnCr2O4) and particle size reduction on catalytic and photocatalytic degradation performance have been evaluated. The pristine Zn1−xMnxCr2O4 (x = 0 to 0.03) nanoscale samples are synthesized through a hydrothermal approach. The synthesized catalysts are characterized by XRD, HR-SEM, HR-TEM, catalytic, and photocatalytic degradation analyses. X-ray diffraction analysis results confirmed the formation of the ZnCr2O4 structure and its phase purity, crystallite size, and Mn dopant effect. The surface morphology and particle size of Zn1−xMnxCr2O4 samples are evaluated by SEM and TEM measurements. The textural properties of ZnCr2O4 samples are identified by the surface area analysis. The catalytic performance of Mn-doped ZnCr2O4 samples reveals superior catalytic performance compared to pristine ZnCr2O4 in benzaldehyde and carbonyl compound productions. Under UV irradiation, an excellent photocatalytic degradation efficiency of 89.66% for Zn0.97Mn0.03Cr2O4 catalyst with methylene blue has been obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudo-capacitors are the emerging energy storage devices which forms a bridge between batteries and conventional capacitors. In the present work, α-Mn2O3 nanorods have been synthesized by one-pot acid-assisted hydrothermal method for supercapacitor applications. The α-Mn2O3nanorod electrode is characterized by X-ray diffraction, SAED, Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), EDX and tested for supercapacitor application. XRD results indicate polycrystalline nature of α-Mn2O3. TEM results reveal an optimum nanorod diameter of 7 nm and length of 100 nm with high aspect ratio of 1:4. The high aspect ratio obtained by acid assisted one-pot hydrothermal route and the possible growth mechanism are explored. The structural and morphological investigations reveal that the acid implementation and suitable reaction temperature plays a crucial factor in the formation of homogeneous α-Mn2O3 nanorods. The cyclic voltammetry redox kinetics indicates pseudo-capacitive behavior with an excellent specific capacitance of 1377 F g−1 at 5 mVs−1. The galvanostatic charge–discharge investigations reveal an excellent 69% capacitance retention even after 1000 cycles. Ex-situ SEM, XRD and impedance spectroscopy investigations have been carried out to understand the nature of α-Mn2O3 nanorod after 1000 cycles. The synergetic effect of nanorod architecture, nanoparticle presence has been discussed in terms of excellent supercapacitive behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have received considerable attention as energy sources for wearable electronics. In recent years, much effort has been devoted to study light-weight, robust, and flexible electrodes. However, high areal and volumetric capacities need to be achieved for practical power and energy densities. In this paper, we report the use of three-dimensional (3D) free-standing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as a current collector-free anode to demonstrate flexible LIBs with enhanced areal and volumetric capacities. High density CNTs grown on copper (Cu) mesh are transferred to a flexible graphene/polyethylene terephthalate film and integrated into a flexible LIB. A fully flexible LIB cell integrated with the 3D CNT anode delivers a high areal capacity of 0.25 mAh cm−2 at 0.1C and shows fairly consistent open circuit voltage under bending. These findings may provide significant advances in the application of flexible LIB based electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present work, the effect of Mn doping in Zinc Chromite (ZnCr2O4) and particle size reduction on catalytic and photocatalytic degradation performance have been evaluated. The pristine Zn1−xMnxCr2O4 (x = 0 to 0.03) nanoscale samples are synthesized through a hydrothermal approach. The synthesized catalysts are characterized by XRD, HR-SEM, HR-TEM, catalytic, and photocatalytic degradation analyses. X-ray diffraction analysis results confirmed the formation of the ZnCr2O4 structure and its phase purity, crystallite size, and Mn dopant effect. The surface morphology and particle size of Zn1−xMnxCr2O4 samples are evaluated by SEM and TEM measurements. The textural properties of ZnCr2O4 samples are identified by the surface area analysis. The catalytic performance of Mn-doped ZnCr2O4 samples reveals superior catalytic performance compared to pristine ZnCr2O4 in benzaldehyde and carbonyl compound productions. Under UV irradiation, an excellent photocatalytic degradation efficiency of 89.66% for Zn0.97Mn0.03Cr2O4 catalyst with methylene blue has been obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]