Green microalgae including those from the genus Lobosphaera are exploited in biotechnology to obtain valuable fatty acids e.g., arachidonic acid (C20:4, ARA) for the production of infant formulae, food and feed additives. In nature, microalgae frequently exist in naturally immobilized state (as biofilms) with limited cell division rate and increased stress resilience. In biotechnology, immobilization of microalgae on artificial cell carriers simplifies biomass harvesting, increases culture robustness and productivity. The choice of suitable cell carrier is central to biotechnology of immobilized culture. Cell carriers based on the natural amine-containing polymer chitosan and synthetic polyethylenimine (PEI) are promising candidates for immobilization of phototrophic microorganisms. This is the first report on the effects of immobilization on PEI and chitosan on the accumulation and composition of polyunsaturated fatty acids, including ARA, in Lobosphaera sp. IPPAS C-2047. The immobilization on PEI increased ARA percentage in the total tatty acids and ARA accumulation by 72% and 81%, compared with the suspended cells cultured respectively in complete or nitrogen-deprived medium 14 days. Immobilization of Lobosphaera sp. on the chitosan-based carrier declined ARA but increased oleic and α-linoleic acid percentages. Mechanisms of the effects of immobilization on fatty acid profiles of the microalgae are discussed.

Plastic waste constitutes one of the most important sources of pollution worldwide. Despite the growing recycling trend, nowadays there are no effective technologies that can compensate for the continuous increase in plastic production. Polyesters and polyamides are one of the most produced single-use plastics, mainly used in manufacturing textiles and soft drinks bottles. Today, only a very low fraction of these polymers can be recycled. It can be done by exploiting two leading technologies: mechanical and chemical recycling. Mechanical recycling represents, nowadays, the most used industrial application. However, it can treat a very narrow range of waste materials due to the impossibility of removing dyes and the deterioration of mechanical properties due to the incompatibility of different plastic materials. Another critical limit of this recycling technology is the limited number of recycling loops that can be done due to the thermal degradation that occurs during the extrusion process. The second possibility is chemical recycling, which allows the depolymerization of the original product to recover the monomers directly. The main drawbacks are the long reaction times and the many solvents needed to achieve high-purity products. Therefore, chemical recycling is economically feasible, only for big companies that can produce the virgin polymer in situ. In this work, a new technology has been patented. This process is constituted of three main steps. The first one is the distillation-assisted cyclodepolymerization (DA-CDP), introduced as a modification of the CDP process. In this unit, cyclic oligomers together with high molecular weight compounds have been produced. Then, after polymer purification, it is possible to achieve the same molecular weight of the initial polymer in less than 30 minutes, exploiting the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) in the next step.

The crystal structure of a polymorph of Glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O was synthesized from chiral cyclic Glycyl-L-alanine dipeptide, known to show molecular flexibility in different environments. The space group is polar (P21) and therefore pyroelectricity and optical second harmonic generation properties are allowed by symmetry. We report a pyroelectric coefficient as high as 45 µC/m2K occurring at 345 K, one order of magnitude smaller than the semi-organic ferroelectric Triglycine Sulphate (TGS) crystal. Furthermore, the polymorph displays a nonlinear optical effective coefficient of 0.14 pm/V, around 14 times smaller than the value from a phase-matched inorganic Barium Borate (BBO) single crystal.

The development of antimicrobial resistance to conventional antibiotics is a major global health challenge. Infections caused by multidrug-resistant gram-negative bacteria have been named one of the most urgent global health threats. Considerable efforts are devoted to developing new antibiotic drugs and investigating the mechanism of antibiotic resistance. Recently, Anti-Microbial Peptides (AMPs) have emerged as a new platform for the target and design of novel drug resistant anti-microbial agents promising a new therapeutic strategy. AMPs are rapid, potent, possess an unusually broad spectrum of activity, and have shown efficacy as topical agents. Unlike traditional therapeutics that interfere with essential bacterial enzymes, AMPs interact with microbial membranes through electrostatic interactions and physically damage cell integrity. However, naturally occurring AMPs have limited selectivity and modest efficacy. Therefore, recent efforts have focused on the development of synthetic AMP analogs as suitable drug targets. This work explores the development of novel antimicrobial agents which mimic the structure of graft-copolymers and mirror the mode of action of an AMP. Chitosan-graft-polypeptide side chains are synthesized by the ring-opening polymerization of N-carboxyanhydrides of L-lysine and L-leucine initiated from the functional groups of chitosan. The derivatives with random- and block-copolymer side chains are explored as drug targets. These graft copolymer systems exhibit activity against clinically significant pathogens and disrupt biofilm formation. This work highlights the potential of chitosan-graft-polypeptide structures in biomedical applications.

Initial periods of adsorption kinetics play an important role in estimating the initial adsorption rate and rate constant of adsorption process. Several adsorption processes rapidly occur, and the experimental data of adsorption kinetics under the initial periods can contain potential errors. The pseudo-second-order (PSO) kinetic model has been popularly applied in the field of adsorption. The use of the nonlinear optimization method to obtain the parameters of the PSO model can minimize error functions during modelling compared to the linear method. However, the nonlinear method has limitations in that it cannot directly recognize potential errors in the experimental points of time-dependent adsorption, especially under the initial periods. In this study, for the first time, the different linear types (Types 1–6) of the PSO model are applied to discover the error points under the initial periods. The result indicated that the fitting method using its linear equations (Types 2–5) is really helpful for identifying the error (doubtful) experimental points from the initial periods of adsorption kinetics. The imprecise points lead to low adjusted R2 (adj-R2), high reduced χ2 (red-χ2), and high Bayesian information criterion (BIC) values. After removing those points, the experimental data were adequately fitted with the PSO model. statistical analyses demonstrated that the nonlinear method must be used for modelling the PSO model because its red-χ2 and BIC were lower than the linear method. Type 1 has been extensively applied in the literature because of its very high adj-R2 (0.9999) and its excellent fitting to experimental points. However, its application should be limited because the potential errors from experimental points were not identified by this type. For comparison, the other kinetic models (i.e., pseudo-first-order, pseudo-nth-order, Avrami, and Elovich) are applied. The modelling result using the nonlinear forms of those models indicated that the fault experimental points from the initial periods were not detected.

Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) have potential for various gas and ion separations due to their well-defined pore structure and relatively easy fabrication process compared to other metal-organic frameworks. As a result, many reports have focused on preparing polycrystalline and continuous ZIF layers on porous supports. In this study, we investigated how humidity and chamber temperature influence the structure of a ZIF-8 layer prepared by the hydrothermal method. We controlled the chamber temperature (ranging from 50 °C to 70 °C) and relative humidity (ranging from 20 % to 100 %) using a thermos-hygrostat chamber. We found that as the chamber temperature increased, ZIF-8 preferentially grew into particles rather than forming a continuous polycrystalline layer. By measuring the temperature of the reacting solution based on chamber humidity, we discovered that the heating rate of the reacting solution varied with humidity, even at the same chamber temperature. At higher humidity, thermal energy transfer was accelerated as water vapor delivered more energy to the reacting solution. Therefore, a continuous ZIF-8 layer could be formed more easily at low humidity ranges (ranging from 20 % to 40 %), while micron ZIF-8 particles were synthesized at a high heating rate. Our findings suggest that controlling the heating rate of the reacting solution is critical to preparing a continuous ZIF-8 layer, particularly for future scale-up of ZIF-8 membranes.

The effects of 0.4wt.% Sc addition on a typical Al-Si10-Mg alloy were systematically investigated in the present research. Samples with and without Sc produced refined dendritic arranged microstructures with sensitivity to the aging treatment after solidification, particularly in the case of the alloy without Sc. After being exposed to 300°C for 90 minutes, the dendritic spacing nearly doubled in the Al-10wt.%Si-0.45wt.%Mg samples. The rapidly solidified microstructures were constituted by the -Al dendritic phase surrounded by eutectic phases/intermetallics such as Si, Mg2Si and Al3Sc (in the case of the alloy containing Sc). 255°C and 300°C were deemed most appropriate temperatures for aging treatments, with four exposure times of up to 120 minutes tested for each alloy. The heat treatments allowed the Vickers hardness profiles to be plotted and compared. Moreover, in order to detect both Sc- and Mg- precipitates after aging, specific samples have been prepared for either SEM or TEM analyses. At first, the results pointed to a strong precipitate-related hardening effect formed as a result of the Sc addition to the alloy. All samples containing Sc showed a higher hardness value when compared to their respective treated samples without Sc. Secondly, when comparing the Al-10Si-Mg-Sc alloy samples among themselves after being treated at different conditions, high temperatures and excessive treatment times can become detrimental to the hardness. This was due to the growth of larger Sc-bearing precipitates of approximately 1 µm in size under such conditions, having less pronounced hardening effect. The best condition (255°C for 60 min) for as centrifuged samples in Cu-mold produced very fine dispersion of Mg- and Sc- intermetallics (~200 nm in size) with a peak hardness of 110 HV.

In the East, it has already become a tradition to prepare dry powdered seasonings from the fruits of the sumac plant (Rhus coriaria L.). In this work, we tested their processing by extraction. Sumac was collected in mid-September in a mountain forest near the village of Gezik (Guba, Azerbaijan). Before extraction, it was first dehydrated in a drying cabinet SH-DO-149 FG (Southern Bark) to an air-dry state; then crushed in a Tube Mill control mill (Germany) into pieces of 1-3 mm in size. One- and two-stage maceration extraction was tested together with water or acidified water at temperatures from 20 to 80 °C. Evaporation of primary extracts was carried out in a rotary evaporator Lab Rot 2 L (China). The concentration of coloring substances in the extract (in units of optical density) was used as an output parameter. It was found that the use of two-stage extraction and acidified water with a concentration of citric acid 0.3 g/cm³ contributes to the extraction of the maximum amount of coloring substances and increases the transparency of the resulting extracts, which allows the extracted extracts to be concentrated directly to obtain a new type of natural food dye. The involvement of sumac fruits in industrial processing will increase the need for these medicinal fruits, and this, in turn, will serve as an incentive for the introduction of this medicinal plant into culture.

The importance of understanding the corrosion mechanisms of excavated metal artefacts help in determining the physico-chemical parameters of the burial environment and the formation of different corrosion products. These products can be observed and analysed with the help of various techniques that provide information on their morphology, chemical composition and structure. The analysis of ancient coins is extremely challenging in the presence of heavily corroded surfaces; as quantitative information may not exactly concur with its bulk composition. In the case of silver coins, the use of surface information can be used as a guide for bulk composition only. The current study carries out investigation and characterization of selected coins from a large coin hoard excavated from Amheida, Dakhla oasis, Egypt. The study and analysis of the alloy composition and corrosion products was performed using a multi-technique approach which included Light optical microscopes, Scanning Electron microscope (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction analysis. Investigation of the coins revealed the presence of a thick active inhomogeneous corrosion crust, while analysis showed that the coins were made from a binary silver copper alloy (billon) while the corrosion crust was rich in chlorides and carbonates, later identified by XRD analysis as Paratacamite, Malachite and Chrysocolla.

The growing interest in heat-conducting nanofluids requires highly sensitive methods for analyzing thermal properties. Thermal-lens spectrometry, despite its advantages over classical methods, does not have a general approach to measuring and interpreting results for dispersed systems. In this paper, by the example of nanofluids of silicon oxide in water in a wide range of concentrations and sizes, the selection of measurement parameters for transient and steady-state thermal lensing is justified, and the interpretation of the results of thermal diffusivity measurements is substantiated. The features of measurements of thermal diffusivity by thermal lens spectrometry under stationary state for dispersed systems are considered. Using this approach, it is possible to detect and distinguish thermal effects with high accuracy. For dispersions of silicon oxide, with increasing concentration, the thermal diffusivity passes through a minimum. Silicon oxide dispersions can be used both as a coolant or as a heat-removing liquid by selecting the particle size and concentration.

Wound healing is a process through which skin maintains itself. Once a wound occurs, the inflammatory and proliferative stages are instigated in reaction to injury. It is established that wound restorative comprises four stages including haemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. The amelioration of wound healing is very challenging as tumors can develop at the site of chronic injury. There are numerous plants, plant extracts and plant based natural products were widely used by tribal communities from ancient times for the treatment of cuts, burns, scars, burns and wounds. The therapeutic potential of these plants is recognized due to the presence of phytomolecules such as phenolic compounds, flavonoids, triterpenoids, saponins, tannins, alkaloids and glycosides. The plant used for the treatments of wound healing includes Achillea millefolium, Andrographis paniculata, Boswellia sacra, Calendula officinalis, Crocus sativus, Curcuma longa, Ehretia laevis, Ehretia microphylla, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Malva sylvestris, Rosmarinus officinalis and Salvia officinalis. This assemblage comprises the structures of phytomolecules isolated from the different extracts of these plants, mechanistic insights and important key findings responsible for wound healing. The mechanistic insights involved in wound healing are similar to cytotoxic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agents such as ROS generation, DNA fragmentation and western blotting. This review article is an effort to bridge the gaps in the prevailing literature and thus offers gigantic scope for researchers and academicians betrothed in validation of the customary claims and development of safer and efficient and worldwide recognized natural potential candidates as drugs for healing of wounds, burns and cuts.

Inositol poly- and pyrophosphates (InsPs and PP-InsPs) are central eukaryotic messengers. These very highly phosphorylated molecules can exist in two distinct conformations, a canonical one with five phosphoryl groups in equatorial positions, and a “flipped” axial conformation. Using 13C-labeled InsPs / PP-InsPs, the behavior of these molecules was investigated by 2D-NMR under solution conditions reminiscent of a cytosolic environment. Remarkably, the most highly phosphorylated messenger InsP8 readily adopts both conformations at physiological conditions. Environmental factors - such as pH, metal cation composition, and temperature - strongly influence the conformational equilibrium. Thermodynamic data revealed that the transition of InsP8 from the equatorial to the axial conformation is, in fact, an exothermic process. The speciation of InsPs and PP-InsPs also affects their interaction with protein binding partners; addition of Mg2+ decreased the binding constant Kd of InsP8 to an SPX protein domain. The results illustrate that PP-InsP speciation reacts very sensitively to solution conditions, suggesting it might act as an environment-dependent molecular switch.

The emergence of various electronic devices and equipment such as electric vehicles and drones requires higher energy density energy storage devices. Lithium-sulfur batteries (LSBs) are considered as the most promising new generation energy storage system owing to high theoretical specific capacity and energy density. However, the severe shuttle behaviors of soluble lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and the slow redox kinetics lead to low sulfur utilization and poor cycling stability, which seriously hinder the commercial application of LSBs. Therefore, various catalytic materials have been employed to solve these troublesome problems. High entropy materials (HEMs), as advanced materials, can provide unique surface and electronic structures that expose plentiful catalytic active sites, which opens new ideas for the regulation of LiPSs redox kinetics. Notwithstanding many instructive reviews in the land of LSBs, while this review aims to offer a complete and shrewd summary of the current progresses in HEMs-based LSBs, including in-depth interpretation of design principles and mechanistic electrocatalysis functions as well as pragmatic perspectives.

The flavin derivatives 10‐methyl‐isoalloxazine (MIA) and 6-fluoro-10-methyl-isoalloxazine (6F-MIA) were encapsulated in two alternative metal-organic frameworks, (MOFs) MIL53(Al) and MOF5, using a post-synthetic, diffusion-based incorporation into microcrystalline MIL-53 powders and an in-situ approach during the MOF-5 synthesis. The flavin@MOF composites were analyzed by powder X-ray diffractometry (PXRD), N2-sorption studies and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy and microscopy. The maximum amount of flavin dye incorporation is 3.9 wt% for MIA@MIL-53(Al) and 1.5 wt% for 6F-MIA@MIL-53(Al), 0.85 wt% for MIA@MOF-5 and 27.6 wt% for 6F-MIA@MOF-5. The emission wavelengths of all flavin@MOF composites mostly correspond to the wavelengths of the flavins in solution. Time-resolved spectroscopy showed that the fluorescence lifetime of flavin@MOF of 2-4.7 ns also corresponds to those in solution but is significantly prolonged compared to the solid flavin dyes with less than 1 ns, thereby confirming the concept of "solid solutions" for dye@MOF composites. The fluorescence quantum yield (ΦF) of the flavin@MOF composites is about half of the solution but is significantly higher compared to the solid flavin dyes. Both the fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield of flavin@MOF decrease with the flavin loading in MIL-53. Theoretical calculations using plane-wave and QM/MM methods are in good correspondence with the experimental results and explain the electronic structures as well as the photoluminescence/photophysical properties of crystalline MIA and the flavin@MOF composites. In the solids flavins π-stacking interactions of the molecules lead to a charge transfer state with low oscillator strength resulting in aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) with low lifetimes and quantum yields. In the MOF pores the flavin molecules are separated and the computed MIA@MOF structures do not find π-stacking interactions to the pore walls but only weak van-der-Waals contacts which reasons the enhanced fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield of the flavins in the composites compared to their neat solid state. The flexible MOF MIL-53(Al) was optimized essentially to the experimental large-pore form in the guest-free state with QuantumEspresso (QE) and with MIA molecules in the pores the structure contracted to close to the experimental narrow-pore form which was also confirmed by PXRD. In summary, the incorporation of flavins in MOFs yields solid-state materials with enhanced rigidity, stabilized conformation and reduced aggregations of the flavins, leading to increased fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield as controllable photo-luminescent and photo-physical properties.

We used the Taylor-Ulitovsky Technique to prepare nanocrystalline Co2MnGe Heusler alloy glass-coated microwires with a metallic nucleus diameter of 18 ± 0.1 µm and a total diameter of 27.2 ± 0.1 µm. Magnetic and structural studies were carried out to determine the fundamental magneto-structural characteristics of Co2MnGe glass-coated microwires. XRD revealed a well-defined nanocrystalline structure with average grain size about 63 nm, lattice parameter a = 5.62 and a unique mixture of L21 and B2 phases. The magnetization curves for field cooling and field heating (FC-FH) demonstrate a considerable dependence on the applied magnetic field, ranging from 50 Oe to 20 kOe. Internal stresses, originated by the production process, resulted in various magnetic phases, which were responsible for the notable difference of field cooling (FC) and field heating (FH) curves on magnetization dependence versus temperature. Furthermore, the ferromagnetic behavior and expected high Curie temperature together with high degree of L21 ordered makes it a promising candidate for many applications.

Fruits are commonly used, fresh or processed, to prepare different industrial products with superior nutritional and health-promoting properties. Currently, the demand for processed fruit products has motivated the rapid growth of the fruit processing industries, persuading them to produce an enormous amount of by-products with less utilization. Furthermore, people's shifting dietary habits and lack of awareness of nutritional properties result in an avoidable load of fruit by-products. The knowledge of the value of by-products urges exploration with proper documentation, emphasizing the health benefits of some such products. Hence, this review is prepared by carefully analyzing the recent literature on industrial applications of fruit by-products and their nutritional and health-promoting properties. The use of fruit by-products in food industries for various purposes has been reported in the past and has been reviewed and described here. Fruit by-products are a good source of nutrients and bioactive components, including polyphenols, dietary fibers, and vitamins, implying that they could have an important role for novel, value-added functional food properties. Furthermore, fruit by-products are used as the substrate for the production of organic acids, essential oils, enzymes, fuel, biodegradable packaging materials, and preservatives.

Understanding the effect of staking sequences and identifying the damage occurring within a structure using a structural health monitoring system are the keys to an efficient design of composite-based parts. In this research, a combination of digital image correlation (DIC) and acoustic emission (AE) is used to locate and classify the type of damage depending on the stacking sequence of the laminate during flexural loading. A comparison of the strain field results for unidirectional, cross-ply, and quasi-isotropic laminates was made in a first attempt to discuss their global behavior and to correlate the different damage patterns with the possible failure mechanisms. The damage was then addressed using a comprehensive interpretation of the acoustic emission signatures using the K-means classification of the acoustic events. The development of each damage mechanism was correlated to the applied load and expressed as a function of the loading rate to highlight the effect of the stacking sequence. Finally, the results of DIC and AE were combined to improve the reliability of the damage investigation without limiting the failure mechanism to matrix cracking, interfacial failure, and fiber breakage, as expected by the unsupervised event clustering.

Copper ferrite attracts a lot of interest from researchers as a material with unique magnetic, optical, catalytic and structural properties. In particular, the magnetic properties of this material are structurally sensitive and can be tuned by changing the distribution of Cu and Fe cations in octahedral and tetrahedral positions by controlling synthesis parameters. In this study, we propose a new simple and convenient method for the synthesis of copper ferrite nanoparticles using a strongly basic anion exchange resin in OH form. The effect and possible mechanism of polysaccharides addition on the elemental composition, yield and particle size of CuFe2O4 is investigated and discussed. It is shown that anion exchange resin precipitation leads to a mixture of unstable at standard temperature cubic (c-CuFe2O4) and stable tetragonal (t-CuFe2O4) phases. The effect of the reaction conditions on the c-CuFe2O4 stability is studied by temperature-dependent XRD measurements and discussed in terms of the cations distribution, Jahn−Teller distortion and Cu2+ and oxygen vacancies in the copper ferrite lattice. The obtained differences in the values of saturation magnetization and the coercive force of prepared samples are explained with a reference to variations in the particle sizes and the structural characteristics of copper ferrite.

Uric acid being a diagnostic biomarker of gout and therapeutic agent in homeopathic medicines necessitates to develop simple and specific method for its determination. Therefore, present study describes the development and validation of simple and specific colorimetric method for determination of uric acid in homeopathic tablets. Uric acid upon reaction with acid and reagent mixture produced coloured derivative which was detected at 411 nm. The method was found linear over the whole range investigated with the correlation coefficient (R²) = 0.9975. Beer’s law was obeyed over the concentration ranges from 5.0 µg/mL to 240 µg/mL. The method was found to be reliable (95.7 to 108.2% recovery), repeatable intra-day accuracy (97.01 to 107.4%) and reproducible-inter day accuracy (99.45 to 107.8%) with relative standard deviation less than 5%. The results of the present study indicate the method is easy to perform, specific and suitable to be used for the determination of uric acid in homeopathic Acid Uric Tablet using less expensive derivitization.

The interference-fit size has a significant effect on CFRP/Al-alloy laminates riveted lap joints, the requirements for the interference-fit size are different because of the strengthening of heterogeneous materials. However, in the process of the riveted CFRP/Al-alloy, the heterogeneous laminates lead to poor structural strength because of the different requirements of interference-fit size. Therefore, the different assembly types of riveting mold are designed to acquire a novel interference-fit size, and the tensile test is adopted to evaluate the tensile property. In addition, the fracture failure of CFRP/Al-alloy laminates riveted lap joint is observed by the ultra-depth of field microscope. Finally, the best assembly type is the trapezoid riveting mold combined with an arc riveting die, and the sidewall intersection angle of the trapezoid riveting mold is 66° which could achieve a suitable interference-fit size and a better mechanical performance.

Pesticides are often used in different applications including agriculture, forestry, aquaculture, food industry, etc in order to insect pests and weeds. The indiscriminate usage of pesticides poses a massive threat to food, environmental and human health safety. Hence, the fabrication of a sensitive, and reliable sensor for the detection of pesticide residues in agro products and environmental samples is a critical subject to be considered. Recently, the graphene family including graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) have been frequently employed in the construction of sensors owing to their biocompatibility, high surface area to volume ratio, and excellent physiochemical, optical, and electrical properties. The integration of bio-recognition molecules with GO/rGO nanomaterials offers a promising detection strategy with outstanding repeatability, signal intensity, and low background noise. This review focuses on the latest developments (2018 to 2022) in the different types of GO/rGO-based biosensors such as surface plasmon resonance (SPR), fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) and electrochemical based techniques, etc for pesticide analysis. The critical discussions on the advantages, limitations, and sensing mechanisms of emerging GO/rGO-based biosensors have been highlighted as well. Additionally, we explore the existing hurdles in GO/rGO-based biosensors, such as handling of difficult biological samples, reducing the total cost, and so on. This review also provides research gaps and viewpoints for future innovations in GO/rGO-based biosensors for pesticide determination mainly in areas with insufficient resources.

The topography and chemical composition modification of the titanium (Ti) implants play a decisive role in improving biocompatibility and bioactivity, accelerating osseointegration, and, thus, determining clinical success. In spite of the development of surface modification strategies, bacterial contamination is a common cause of failure. The use of systemic antibiotic therapy does not guarantee action at the contaminated site. In this work, we proposed a surface treatment for Ti implant that aim to improve its osseointegration and reduce bacterial colonization in surgery site due to local release of antibiotic. The Ti disks were hydrothermally treated with 3M NaOH solution to form a nanostructured layer of titanate on the Ti surface. Metronidazole was impregnated on these nanostructured surfaces to allow its local release. The samples were coated with poly(vinyl alcohol) - PVA films with different thickness to evaluate a possible control of drug release. Gamma irradiation was used to crosslink the polymer chains leading to a hydrogel layer formation and to sterilize the samples. The samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, FTIR, contact angle measurements, “in vitro” bioactivity, and drug release analysis. The alkaline hydrothermal treatment successfully produced intertwined, web-like nanostructures on the Ti surface, providing wettability and bioactivity to Ti samples (Ti+TTNT samples). Metronidazole was successfully loaded and released from Ti+TTNT samples coated or not with PVA. Although the polymeric film acted as a physical barrier to drug delivery, all groups reached the minimum inhibitory concentration for anaerobic bacteria. Thus, the surface modification method presented is a potential approach to improve the osseointegration of the Ti implant and to associate local drug delivery to dental implants, preventing early infections and bone failure.

It is important to add second- or third-phase materials to improve the physical, mechanical, and biodegradable properties of polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites. A unique hybrid bio-nanocomposite was fabricated using microparticle cellulose powder from wastepaper with a polypropylene (PP) polymeric matrix using a low-shear chaotic mixing method. A small amount (2-5%) of layered micro clay was also added to investigate the hybrid effect of nanocomposite fabrication on the mechanical properties. A low-shear chaotic melt mixing method induces the formation of nano cellulose structures and layered clay nanoparticles by via exfoliation. The nanoparticles were characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Mechanical properties such as the flexural strength (FS) and tensile strength (TS) were investigated using an Izod impact tester (IZ), and a dynamic mechanical testing analyzer (DMTA). Further, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to observe the microstructure of the nanocomposite. In addition, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were conducted to investigate the crystallinity and degradation of the samples, respectively. The addition of wastepaper cellulose powder below 2.5 wt. % did not improve the mechanical properties, however, improvements were observed when more than 5wt.% wastepaper cellulose powder was added. With the addition of a small amount of nano-clay, the mechanical properties were significantly improved, and a synergistic effect could be noticed. The observed results were then compared with PP-clay nanocomposites used in automotive industries to replace cellulose nanocomposites. The application areas can also cover lead production in paper cups and vacuum foaming.

Extensive use of petrochemical plastic packaging leads to the greenhouse gas emission and con-tamination to soil and oceans, posing major threats to the ecosystem. The packaging needs, hence, are shifting to bioplastics with natural biodegradability. Lignocellulose, the biomass from forest and agriculture, can produce cellulose nanofibrils (CNF), a biodegradable material with ac-ceptable functional properties, that can make packaging among other products. CNF extracted from lignocellulosic wastes can lower the packaging carbon footprint and the production cost. Most of these low value feedstocks go to alternative applications, that make their use in CNF packaging competitive. To transfer the waste materials from current practices to the packaging production, it is imperative to assess their sustainability, encompassing environmental and eco-nomic impacts along with the feedstock physical and chemical properties. A consolidated over-view of these criteria is absent in the literature. This study performs an iterative literature review and presents thirteen attributes, delineating sustainability of lignocellulosic wastes for commer-cial CNF packaging production. These criteria data are gathered for the UK waste streams, and transformed into a quantitative matrix, evaluating the waste feedstock sustainability for CNF packaging production. The presented approach can be adopted to decision scenarios in bioplas-tics packaging conversion and waste management.

In this paper, in order to provide proper parameters for the preparation of semi-solid billets, the semi-solid annealing of hot-rolled 2A14 Al alloy was investigated. The microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) with X-ray energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD), scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). XRD results show that with the increase of temperature, equilibrium θ-Al2Cu gradually dissolved in the matrix. The EDS results of SEM and STEM show that there were coarse θ-Al2Cu phase, ultra-fine precipitate Al(MnFeSi) or (Mn, Fe)Al6 phase and atomic clusters in the microstructure. EBSD results show that the recrystallization mechanism was dominated by continuous static recrystallization (CSRX), the homogeneous nucleation occurred when the sample was heated to near solidus temperature, and CSRX happened in the semi-solid temperature. In the process of recrystallization, the micro-texture changed from preferred orientation to random orientation. A variety of experimental results show that static recrystallization (SRX) occurred at semi-solid temperature due to the blocking effect of atomic clusters on dislocation slip and the Zener drag effect of fine precipitates on low angle grain boundaries (LAGBs) disappeared with melting at semi-solid temperature.

Bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) surface has a negative charge that allows the adsorption of calcium ions to initiate the nucleation of different calcium phosphate phases. The aim of this study was to investigate different methods of mineralization on three-dimensional microporous bacterial nanocellulose, to mimetize the composition, structure, and biomechanical properties of natural bone. To generate 3D microporous biomaterial, the porogen particles were incorporated during the BNC fermentation with the strain Komagataeibacter medellinensis. Calcium phosphates (CPs) were deposited on BNC scaffolds by five alternating immersing cycles with calcium and phosphate solutions. Scanning electron microscopy micrograph showed that the scaffolds have different pore sizes, between 70 and 350 µm, but the porous interconnectivity was affected by the biomineralization method and time. The crystals on the BNC surface are shown to be rod-shaped with a calcium phosphate ratio similar to that of immature bone, increasing from 1.13 to 1.6 with cycle numbers. The main mineral phases obtained by X-ray diffraction were Octacalcium Dihydrogen Hexakis (phosphate (V)) Pentahydrate (OCP). In vitro cell studies showed good cellular adhesion and higher cell viability to 95% in all the scaffolds. Osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on the scaffolds was evaluated by bone expression markers like alkaline phosphatase, osteocalcin, and osteopontin. In conclusion, it is possible to prepare 3D BNC scaffolds with controlled microporosity, which could allow osteoblast adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation.

This study was performed to synthesize multimodal radiopharmaceutical designed for the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. To achieve this goal, Super Paramagnetic Iron Oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles were used as a platform for targeting molecule (PSMA-617) and for complexation of two scandium radionuclides, 44Sc for PET imaging and 47Sc for radionuclide therapy. TEM and XPS images showed that the Fe3O4 NPs have a uniform cubic shape and a diameter from 38 to 50 nm. The Fe3O4 core are surrounded by SiO2 and an organic layer. The saturation magnetization of the SPION core was 60 emu/g. However, coating the SPIONs with silica and polyglycerol reduces the magnetization significantly. The obtained bioconjugates were labeled with 44Sc and 47Sc, with a yield higher than 97%. The radiobioconjugate exhibited high affinity and cytotoxicity towards the human prostate cancer LNCaP (PSMA+) cell line, much higher than for PC-3 (PSMA-) cells. High cytotoxicity of the radiobioconjugate was confirmed by radiotoxicity studies on LNCaP 3D-spheroids. In addition, the magnetic properties of the radiobioconjugate should allow for its use in guide drug delivery driven by magnetic field gradient.

Secondary metabolites from Hibiscus sabdariffa have been used to prevent different diseases. Roselle Hibiscus is known for being rich in phenolic bioactive compounds. The extraction conditions are directly related to the chemical composition and then to the overall bioactivity of the extract. In this study, a Box Behnken experimental design has been used to optimize the antioxidant activity, considering four variables: the ethanol:water ratio, the temperature, the extraction time, and the solvent:solid ratio. The experiment comprises 27 experiments and 3 repetitions at the central point. The results are described by surface response analysis and a second-degree polynomial equation. The model explains 87% of the variation in the response. The maximum antioxidant activity is yielded when 1% solids are extracted in 35.5% ethanol at 60°C for 33 min. Finally, a nutritional functional supplement of 495 µmol Trolox Equivalent (TE) antioxidant capacity was prepared with the optimized extract.

Due to its high specific surface area and rich porous structure, acacia-derived porous activated carbon is the most potentially effective material for wastewater treatment. This research study aimed to prepare activated carbon using Acacia erioloba seedpods as carbonaceous materials and phosphoric acid as an activating agent. The specific surface area of the prepared activated carbon sample was characterised by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller instrument. The specific surface area value was 387 m²/g. The activated carbon prepared was then sieved into three different particle sizes of 50, 100 and 200 micrometres and characterised using various analytical procedures, including proximate analysis to study moisture content, ash content, volatile matter content and fixed carbon content. The bulk density, SEM, power of hydrogen, iodine number and methylene blue number index were also investigated to determine the adsorption properties of the prepared activated carbon. Batch adsorption dynamics for the removal of organic compounds such as methylene blue and unsaturated character of fatty acid from aqueous solution were also carried out at room temperature to evaluate the prepared activated carbon's applicability in water treatment. The iodine number was 528, 638, and 554 mg/g for the 50, 100, and 200 μm activated carbon particles, respectively. From the results, the adsorption of methylene blue favoured the Freundlich adsorption model, showing higher correlation (R²) values than the Langmuir model. The results indicate that methylene blue particles were adsorbed on heterogeneous surfaces.

The thermal conductivity of the products of the interaction of molten core with concrete was derived using number theory. A formula has been found that describes the thermal conductivity of ZrO₂, ZrSiO₄, (U,Zr)SiO₄ and UO₂ over a wide temperature range. Formula is expressed in terms of the atomic numbers of elements, their valencies, the crystal structure of substances, and the thermal conductivities of individual chemical elements of the corium.

The detection and quantification of protein–protein interactions (PPIs) is a crucial technique that often involves the use of recombinant proteins with fusion-protein tags, such as maltose-binding protein (MBP) and glutathione-S-transferase (GST). In this study, we improved the cohesive and sticky properties of gelatinized starch by supplementing it with agarose, resulting in a harder gel that could coat the bottom of a microtiter plate. The resulting gelatinized starch/agarose mixture allowed for the efficient immobilization of MBP-tagged proteins on the coated plates, enabling the use of indirect ELISA-like PPI assays. By using the enzymatic activity of GST as an indicator, we succeeded in determining the dissociation constants between MBP-tagged and GST-tagged proteins on 96-well microtiter plates and a microplate reader without any expensive specialized equipment.

Since the past few decades, numerous modifications and innovations have been done to design the optimal corneal biomatrix for corneal epithelial cells (CECs) or limbal epithelial stem cells (LESCs) carriers. However, researchers have yet to discover the ideal optimization strategies in the development of corneal biomatrix design and its effects on cultured CECs or LESCs. This review further discusses and summarizes recent optimization strategies to develop an ideal collagen biomatrix and its interaction with CECs and LESCs. Using PRISMA guidelines, the articles published from June 2012 to June 2022 were systematically searched using Web of Science (WoS), Scopus, PubMed, Wiley, and EBSCOhost databases. The literature search identified 444 potential relevant published articles, with 29 relevant articles selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria after the screening and appraising processes. The current paper highlights the physicochemical and biocompatibility (in vitro and in vivo) characterization methods, which were inconsistent throughout the different studies. Despite the variability in the methodology approach, the reviewer postulated that the modification of the collagen biomatrix improves its mechanical and biocompatibility properties toward CECs and LESCs. All findings were discussed in this review; thus, it provides a general view of up-to-date trends in this field.

Nanostructured dipeptide self-assemblies exhibiting quantum confinement are of great interest due to their potential applications in the field of materials science as optoelectronic materials for energy harvesting devices. Among those, aromatic cyclo-dipeptides containing the amino acid tryptophan are wide-band gap semiconductors displaying high mechanical rigidity, photoluminescence and piezoelectric properties to be used in power generation. In this work, we report the fabrication of hybrid systems based on chiral cyclo-dipeptide L-Tryptophan- L-Tryptophan incorporated into biopolymer electrospun fibers. The micro/nanofibers contain self-assembled nanospheres embedded into the polymer matrix are wide-band gap semiconductors (gap energy 3.8 eV), display blue photoluminescence and relevant piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties with coefficients as high as 57 pCN-1 and 35×10-6 Cm-2k-1, respectively. They are therefore promise systems for thermal sensing and energy harvesting applications.

The interaction between hard-core soft-shell colloids are characterized by having two characteristic distances: one associated with the penetrable, soft corona and another one corresponding to the impenetrable core. Isotropic core-softened potentials with two characteristic length scales have long been applied to understand the properties of such colloids. Those potentials usually show waterlike anomalies, and recent findings have indicated the existence of multiple anomalous regions in the 2D limit under compression, while in 3D only one anomalous region is observed. In this direction, we perform Molecular Dynamics simulations to unveil the details about the structural behavior in the quasi-2D limit of a core-softened colloid. The fluid was confined between highly repulsive solvophobic walls, and the behavior at distinct wall separation and colloid density was analyzed. Our results indicated a straight relation between the 2D or 3D-like behavior and the layers separation. We can relate that if the system behaves as independent 2D-layers, it will have a 2D-like behavior. However, for some separations the layers are connected, with colloids hopping from one layer to another – having then a 3D-like structural behavior. Those findings fill the gap in the depiction of the anomalous behavior from 2D to 3D.

A unique two-column ²³⁰U/²²⁶Th generator has been developed. The focus was hold on obtaining ²²⁶Th of high purity in a solution amenable to further labeling. The first column of the proposed generator filled with TEVA Resin held ²³⁰U, from which ²²⁶Th was eluted with 7 M HCl solution. UTEVA Resin pretreated with nitric acid solution was used as a sorbent for the second column for thorium retention. ²²⁶Th was extracted with 0.01-0.05 M citric buffer solution. One cycle of generator milking took 5-7 minutes and produced > 90% of ²²⁶Th in 1.5 ml of eluate, pH 4.5-5.0. The proposed two-column ²³⁰U/²²⁶Th generator was tested over two months including a second loading of ²³⁰U additionally accumulated from ²³⁰Pa. The ²³⁰U impurity in ²²⁶Th eluate was less than 0.01% allowing to use it directly in synthesis of radiopharmaceutical compounds.

Acanthopanax senticosus(rupr. rt. Maxim.; AS) is a medicinal plant used in the clinical treatment of cerebrovascular diseases and central nervous system disorders, significantly improving blood lipid levels and endothelial cell function in patients with acute cerebral infarction. Isofraxidin, one of the active ingredients of AS, is the core of the medical effects, and its extraction and purification depend on organic solvents. Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) is a new green solvent, synthesized by intermolecular hydrogen bonding between hydrogen bond donors (HBD) and hydrogen bond acceptors (HBA), which has non-toxic, high separation and purification efficiency, and environmentally friendly compared with traditional organic solvents. In this paper, DES was used for the extraction of isofraxidin from AS. The primary findings demonstrate that the DESs had a viscosity higher than that of ethanol, and even adding a tiny amount of water (about 10%) would trigger solvent redistribution, leading to a considerable reduction in solvent viscosity. In comparison to ethanol, the extraction rate of isofraxidin by DESs was 2-3 times higher. Thus, this work developed a new technique for using green extraction of isofraxidin that has some practical implications.

Native reactive electrophile species (RES) are long-recognized regulators of pathophysiology; yet, knowledge surrounding how RES regulate context-specific biology remains limited. The latest technological advances in profiling and precision decoding of RES sensing and signaling have begun to bring about improved understanding of localized RES regulatory paradigms. However, studies in purified systems—prerequisites for gaining structure/function insights—prove challenging. We here introduce emerging chemical biology tools available to probe RES signaling, and the new knowledge that these tools have brought to the field. We next discuss existing structural data of RES-sensor proteins complexed with electrophilic metabolites or small molecule drugs (limited to < 300 Da), including challenges faced in acquiring homogenous RES-bound proteins. We further offer considerations that could promote enhanced understanding of RES regulation derived from three-dimensional structures of RES-modified proteins.

Thin-wall heat pipe is an efficient heat transfer component, which has been widely used in the field of heat dissipation of high-power electronic equipment in recent years. In this study, the orange peel morphology defect of thin-wall heat pipes after bending deformation was analyzed both for the macro 3D profile and for the micro-formation mechanism. The results show that after high temperature sintering treatment, the matrix grains of heat pipe are coarsened seriously and formed a strong Goss texture, while a certain annealing twins with the unique Copper orientation are retained. The distribution of Schmid factor value subjected to the uniaxial stress indicate the inhomogeneity of intergranular deformation exist among the annealing twins and matrix grains. The annealing twin exhibit a “hard-oriented” component during the deformation; thus, it plays a role as barrier and hinder the slipping of dislocation. As the strain accumulates, part of the annealing twins may protrude from the surface of heat pipe, forming a large-scale fluctuation of the surface as the so called the “orange peel” morphology. The 3D profile shows the bulged twins mostly perpendicular to the drawing direction, with about 200-300μm in width and 10-20μm in height.

Plantago major L. is a worldwide available plant that has been used traditionally for several medical application due to its properties such as wound healing, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial etc. This work aimed to develop and evaluate nanostructured PCL electrospun dressing with P. major extract encapsulated in nanofibers for application in wound healing. The extract from leaves was obtained by extraction in a mixture of water:ethanol= 1:1 of the freeze-dried extract presented a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for Staphylococcus Aureus susceptible and resistant to methicillin of 5.3 mg/mL, a high antioxidant capacity, but a low content of total flavonoids. Electrospun mats without defects were successfully produced using two P. major extract concentrations based on MIC value. The extract incorporation in PCL nanofibers was confirmed by FTIR and contact angle measurements. The PCL/P. major extract was evaluated by DSC and TGA demonstrating that incorporation of the extract decreases the thermal stability of the mats as well as the degree of crystallinity of PCL-based fibers. The P. major extract incorporation on electrospun mats produced a significant swelling degree (more than 400%) and increased the capacity of adsorbing wound exudates and moisture, important characteristics for skin healing. The extract-controlled release evaluated by in vitro study in PBS (pH, 7.4) shows that P. major extract delivery from the mats occurs in the first 24 h, demonstrating their potential capacity to be used in wound healing.

In this work, the adsorption and photocatalytic properties of ZnO-ZnAl2O4 nanosized composites synthesized by the polymer-salt method have been studied. To evaluate the efficiency of adsorption, experiments were carried out on the decolorization of aqueous solutions of the Chicago Sky Blue diazo dye. The adsorption process is divided into two stages, at the first stage the dye is rapidly adsorbed on the outer surface of the composite particles, at the second stage the dye diffuses into the pores of the material. It was noted that the rate of photocatalytic decomposition of the dye is higher than the rate of the adsorption process, which indicates the occurrence of photocatalytic decomposition of dye molecules both on the surface of the composites and in the liquid phase. With an increase in the light intensity, the photocatalytic process is significantly accelerated, linearly at low intensities, and at high intensities the dependence becomes a power law.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have become the preferred battery system for portable electronic devices and transportation equipment because of their high specific energy, good cycling performance, low self-discharge and no memory effect. However, too low ambient temperature will seriously affect the performance of LIBs, almost cannot discharge at -40~-60 ℃. There are many factors affecting the low temperature performance of LIBs, among which the electrode material is an important factor. Thus it is urgent to develop electrode materials or modify existing materials with excellent low temperature LIBs performance. Carbon-based anode is a kind of LIBs candidate. In recent years, it has been found that the diffusion coefficient of lithium ion in graphite anode decreases more obviously at low temperature, which is one of the important bottlenecks limiting its low temperature performance. However, the structure of amorphous carbon materials is complex, amorphous carbon materials have good ionic diffusion properties, and its grain size, specific surface area, layer spacing, structural defects, surface functional groups and doping elements may have a greater impact on the low temperature performance of the material. In this work, the low temperature performance of LIBs is obtained by modifying the carbon-based material from the perspective of electronic modulation and structural engineering.

Nowadays, there is extensive production and use of plastic materials for different industrial activities. These plastics, either from their primary production sources or through degradation processes of the plastics themselves, can contaminate the ecosystem with micro and nanoplastics. Once in the aquatic environment, these microplastics can be the basis for the adsorption of chemical pollutants, favoring that these chemical pollutants disperse more quickly in the environment and can affect living beings. Due to the lack of information on adsorption, three machine learning models (random forest, support vector machine, and artificial neural network) to predict different microplastic/water partition coefficients (log Kd) were developed using two different approximations (based on the number of input variables). The best-selected machine learning models present, in general, correlation coefficients upper than 0.92 in the query phase, which indicate that these type of models could be used for a rapid estimation of the absorption of organic contaminants on microplastics.

ChatGPT is an AI language model trained on vast amounts of text data, including scientific papers, providing a comprehensive understanding of catalysis. However, its reliability in catalysis research is unknown. To evaluate reliability, we compared a ChatGPT-generated review article on heterogeneous catalysts for higher alcohols synthesis by CO₂ hydrogenation to published peer-reviewed papers. Although the ChatGPT review article covers most necessary parts, it lacks sufficient discussion of the reaction mechanism. The core sections are too general, being not specific enough to the topic, and contain errors. The lack of citations further increases unreliability. While ChatGPT can provide much content on catalysis, it is insufficient and inaccurate for research on specific topics.

Background: Combinatorial therapy- “nano antibiotics” is an emerging field in nanoscience. In this present investigation, we attempted to combine the green synthesized noble metal nanoparticle and the antibiotic Streptomycin to form bio-conjugated nanoparticles. The newly synthesized Nano antibiotics acted as the antibiotic carrier, functioned as cargo, and delivered the antibiotic. Methods: Comparative studies between the noble metal nanoparticles were attempted for the first time on the grounds of their antibacterial activity. The antibacterial activity of the three noble metal nanoparticles was assessed against Streptomycin-resistant Bacillus sp.; the results obtained proved that silver nanoparticles were a potent antibacterial agent. Still, no antibacterial activity was exerted by gold, and platinum nanoparticles were for the Streptomycin-resistant strain Bacillus sp. To our surprise, the gold and platinum fabricated/bio-conjugated nanoparticle with the antibiotic showed 100% antibacterial activity, whose antibacterial activity was zero when functioning as a nanoparticle alone. Results: The combinatorial therapy of two different clauses of drugs majorly increased antibacterial activity. It enhanced the antibiotic to overcome the resistance exhibited by the bacterial pathogen, and the possible mechanism is elucidated in the present study. Also, an attempt has been made to assess the nanotoxicity of the nano-bioconjugates on RBC and compare their hemocompatibility. The results obtained in the current investigation demonstrate the enhanced antibacterial activity of the green synthesized nanoparticles conjugated with the streptomycin; their efficacy for combinational therapy against resistance in pathogenic organisms highlights the novelty of the work and the comparative study of three different noble metals nanoparticles (Ag, Au, Pt) from single agro-waste for the first time.

Controlling the selectivity of detonation initiation reaction of explosive is a Holy Grail, and it seems to be an “idiot's daydream”, by strengthening external electric field, to reduce the explosive sensitivity. The effects of external electric fields on the initiation reactions in NH2NO2∙∙∙NH3, a model system of the nitroamine explosive with alkaline additive, were investigated at the MP2/6-311++G(2d,p) and CCSD/6-311++G(2d,p) level. The concerted effect in the intermolecular hydrogen exchange is characterized by an index of the imaginary vibrations. Due to the weakened concerted effects by the electric field along the −x-direction opposite to the “reaction axis”, the dominant reaction changes from the hydrogen exchange to 1,3-intramolecular hydrogen transference with the increase of the field strengths. Furthermore, the stronger the field strengths, the higher the barrier heights become, indicating the lower sensitivities. Therefore, by strengthening the field strength and adjusting the orientation between the field and “reaction axis”, not only can the reaction selectivity be controlled, but also the sensitivity can be reduced, in particular under a super-strong field. Thus, a traditional concept, which the explosive is dangerous under the super-strong external electric field, is broken theoretically. Compared to the neutral medium, the low sensitivity of the explosive with alkaline can be achieved under the stronger field. Employing atoms in molecules, reduced density gradient and surface electrostatic potentials, the origin of the reaction selectivity and sensitivity change is revealed. This work provides a new idea to the technical improvement for adding the external electric field into the explosive system.

The integration of bacteriophages, a particular class of viruses that specifically infect bacteria and archaea, in biosensors for the monitoring of pathogens in foods and beverages is highly desirable. To this end, an increasing focus has been set on the exploration of covalent and physical methods for the immobilization of phages on solid surfaces. This work investigates the electrostatic assembly of tailed phages, specifically anti-Listeria monocytogenes P100 phages, on an ultrathin self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of 11-amino-1-undecanethiol (AUT). The cationic properties of AUT may allow for the electrostatic capture of P100 in a capsid-down fashion, thus, exposing the specific receptor-binding proteins on their tails to the corresponding pathogens in analytical samples. The physical properties of immobilized phages have been studied using AFM, SEM, and electrochemical techniques, providing insight into the orientation of the phages and revealing that the pH plays a remarkable role in the morphology and charge transfer behavior of the adsorbed films. Overall, this research portrays SAMs of amino-akylthiols as a valid platform for the oriented immobilization of bacteriophages on surfaces for electroanalytical purposes.

The present paper deals with the complex study of the CO2 capture from combined heat power plant flue gases using the efficient technological scheme design – membrane cascade type of «Continuous Membrane Column». In contrast to well-known multi-step or multi-stage process designs, the cascade type of separation unit provides several advantages. That apparatus conceptually refers to the distillation columns. Here, the separation process is implemented in it by creating two counter current flows. In one of them is depleted by the high-permeable component in a continuous mode, meanwhile the other one is enriched. Taking into account, that the circulating flows rate overcome the withdrawn ones, there is a multiplicative growth in separation efficiency. A comprehensive study of the CO2 capture using membrane cascade type of «Continuous Membrane Column» includes the determination of optimal membrane material characteristics, the sensitivity study of the process and feasibility evaluation. It was clearly demonstrated that proposed process provides the efficient CO2 capture, which meets the modern requirements in terms of CO2 content (≥ 95 mol.%), recovery rate (≥ 90 %) and residual CO2 concentration (≤ 2 mol.%). Moreover, it was observed, that it is possible to process CO2 with purity up to 99.8 mol.% at the same recovery rate. This allows use of this specific process design in the CO2 pretreatment operations in the production of high-purity carbon dioxide.

Despite being well established phenomena, solidification principles are experiencing tough challenges in their application to explain microscale transport phenomena in additive manufacturing melt pool. The problem becomes even more complicated when applied to multicomponent bulk metallic glass matrix composites (BMGMC) whose behavior is dubious and still not fully understood. The aim of the present study is to highlight pathways to overcome these challenges. A comprehensive nucleation and growth model based on original KGT theory and Rappaz modification is proposed encompassing actual transient thermophysical BMGMC data to predict evolving microstructure during additive manufacturing. The model is aimed at pictorial representation of in-situ ductile phase dendrite evolution from melt pool during solidification using two-dimensional cellular automaton (CA) methods. It is proposed to be coded in MATLAB® using commercial simulation code ABAQUS® at back end for macroscopic heat transfer model. The results will be compared with experimental values for validation.

Nanocomposites consisting of cerium based nanoparticles stabilized by carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) macromolecules were obtained using one-pot reaction at room tempera-ture. The characterization of the nanocomposites was carried out with the use of combina-tion of microscopy, XRD and IT-spectroscopy analysis. The type of crystal structure of in-organic nanoparticles corresponding to CeO2 has been determined and the mechanism of the nanoparticles formation was suggested. It was demonstrated that the size and shape of nanoparticles in the resulting nanocomposites does not depend on the ratio of the ini-tial reagents. Spherical particles with mean diameter 3 nm were obtained in different reac-tion mixtures. The scheme of the dual stabilization of CeO2 nanoparticles with carboxylate and hydroxyl groups of CMC. These findings are promising for the development and ap-plication of Ce-based nanoparticles materials.

The sandwich format immunoassay is generally more sensitive and specific than more common assay formats, including direct, indirect, or competitive. A sandwich assay, however, requires two receptors to bind non-competitively to the target analyte. Typically, pairs of antibodies (Abs) or antibody fragments (Fabs) capable of forming a sandwiching with the target are identified through a slow, guess-and-check method with panels of candidate binding partners. Additionally, sandwich assays reliant on commercial antibodies can suffer from changes to reagent quality outside the researchers’ control. This report presents a reimagined and simplified phage display selection protocol that directly identifies sandwich binding peptides and Fabs. The approach yielded two sandwich pairs, one peptide-peptide and one Fab-peptide sandwich for the cancer and Parkinson’s disease biomarker DJ-1. Requiring just a few weeks to identify, the sandwich pairs delivered apparent affinity comparable to other commercial peptide and antibody sandwiches. The results reported here could expand the availability of sandwich binding partners for a wide range of clinical biomarker assays.

Accurate and efficient determination of excited-state polarizabilities (α) is an open problem both experimentally and computationally. Following our previous work, [Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 2023, 25, 2131−2141], where one can employ simple ground-state density-based functions from the information-theoretic approach (ITA) to accurately and efficiently predict the macromolecular polarizabilities, we aim to predict the lowest excited-state polarizabilities in this work. The philosophy is to use density-based functions to depict the excited-state polarizabilities. As a proof-of-principle application, employing 2-(2′-hydroxyphenyl)benzimidazole and its derivatives as model systems, we have verified that either with the ground-state (S0) or excited-state (S1) densities as input, ITA quantities can be strongly correlated with the excited-state polarizabilities. When the transition densities are considered, both S0 and S1 polarizabilities are in good relationships with some ITA quantities. Furthermore, excitation and emission energies can be predicted based on multivariant linear regression equations of ITA quantities.

Modern surface analysis techniques are expanding significantly possibilities in description and attribution of historical artifacts. The present study is aimed to compare analytical ability of the X-ray fluorescent analysis (XRF) typically applied for studies ceramic art items with novel surface analysis methods: time-of-flight secondary ions mass spectroscopy (SIMS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) that were applied on measurements of elemental compositions of powder raw materials for porcelain fabrication: pegmatite P-1, Vesco-prima clay, kaolin, bone earth, dolomite, and feldspar. It was shown that SIMS successfully measures light elements unnoticeable for XRF such as lithium, beryllium, boron and heavy impurities not found out by XRF such as cobalt, cerium, copper, rubidium, vanadium. XPS has found thorium in the kaolin sample that was not detected by SIMS and XRF. The paper provides also values of chemical shifts of some XPS lines observed in materials under examination. The obtained information on relations of basic and impurity elements revealed by XRF and SIMS together with XPS chemical shifts data could be used to expose contemporary falsifications of historical porcelain and to attribute porcelain items during conservation process.

Benzaldehyde and its derivatives are used as food supplements, due to their properties as anti-oxidants and mainly as organoleptic substances. The degradation of these aldehydes produces benzoic acid and benzyl alcohol derivatives, both of which present high toxicity levels. On the other hand, peroxynitrite acts as an oxidizing agent, thus strategies for its production control during food processing could help to improve food quality parameters such as taste, colour and functional properties. Therefore, the control of these degradative oxidation processes is of great interest to the food industry. In order to know in depth this problem, the present article has fo-cused on the kinetic study of the oxidation of aldehydes by peroxynitrite. The proposed mecha-nism justifies all the experimental results, passing through three competitive pathways were per-oxynitrite acts as a radical, nucleophilic or oxidant species. The possible increase of toxic prod-ucts was analyzed.

Supramolecular structures are of great interest due to their applicability in various scientific and industrial fields. These fields of scientific action include promising applications i biomedical areas, in sensing, and in conductive and electrical phases. The sensible definition of supramolecular molecules is being set by investigators, who, because of the different sensitivities of their methods and observational timescales, may have different views as to what constitute these supramolecular structures. Besides, diverse polymers can be found to offer unique avenues for multifunctional systems with properties in medicine industrial applications. Aspects of this review provide different conceptual strategies to address molecular design, properties, and potential applications of self-assembly materials and the use of metal coordination as a feasible and useful strategy for constructing complex supramolecular structures. In this order of appreciations and ideas order, it is that this review report involves classic topics such as hydrogels that range from their relationship with drug delivery systems, to metallo-supramolecular materials, through applications in ophthalmic systems, in applications that require adhesiveness and electrically conductive hydrogels. This review also addresses systems that are largely based on hydrogel chemistry and the enormous opportunities to design very specific structures for applications that demand enormous specificity.

The reaction of mercaptoacetic acid esters with pentachloro-2-nitro-1,3-butadiene provides appropriate precursors for the synthesis of 2,3,4-trisubstituted benzo[h]quinolines. These heterocycles are easily accessible via a single-step reaction with 1-naphthyl- or 1-anthracenylamine, respectively. Due to steric bulk and high electron density ring closure to benzo[h]quinolines takes place, exclusively. Such highly substituted annelated pyridine systems can be modified in subsequent, selective reactions to build up new N-heterocycles with promising microbiological properties. Antibacterial and antiproliferative assays against four cell mammalian cell lines demonstrate that some of the sulfur-substituted benzo[h]quinolines analogs display potent phenotypic bioactivities in the single-digit micromolar range.

The synthesis of nitrogen-based heterocycles has always been considered essential in the development of pharmaceuticals in medicine and agriculture. This explains why various synthetic approaches have been proposed in recent decades. However, performing as methods often imply harsh conditions or the employment of toxic solvents and dangerous reagents. Mechanochemistry is undoubtedly one of the most promising technologies currently used for reducing any possible environmental impact due to the worldwide interest in developing solvent-free synthetic pathways. Following this line, we propose a renewed mechanochemical protocol for synthesizing various heterocyclic classes by exploiting the reducing proprieties and the electrophilic nature of thiourea dioxide (TDO). Simultaneously using the ready availability and low cost of a component of the textile industry such as TDO and all the advantages brought by a green technique such as mechanochemistry, we plotted the route towards a more sustainable and eco-friendly methodology for obtaining heterocyclic moieties.

Two solvated rhenium(IV) complexes with formula [ReCl4(bpym)]·MeCN (1) and [ReCl4(bpym)]·CH3COOH·H2O (2) [bpym = 2,2'-bipyrimidine] have been prepared and characterized by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT–IR), scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM–EDX), single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) and SQUID magnetometer. 1 and 2 crystallize in the monoclinic system with space groups P21/n and P21/c, respectively. In both compounds, the Re(IV) ion is six-coordinate and bound to four chloride ions and two nitrogen atoms of a 2,2’-bipyrimidine molecule forming a distorted octahedral geometry around the metal ion. In the crystal packing of 1 and 2, intermolecular halogen⋯halogen and π⋯halogen type interactions are present. Hydrogen bonds take place only in the crystal structure of 2. Both compounds exhibit an akin crystal framework based on halogen bonds. Variable-temperature dc magnetic susceptibility measurements performed on microcrystalline samples of 1 and 2 show a similar magnetic behavior for both compounds, with antiferromagnetic exchange between the Re(IV) ions connected mainly through intermolecular Re-Cl···Cl-Re interactions.

The bond index is an indicator of the grindability of the material and is widely used in the preparation of mineral raw materials and the cement industry. Paper offers new, abbreviated and simplified procedure to determine Bond work index that relies on first-order kinetics law and can be performed with any number of grinding cycles, depending on the desired accuracy of the required data. The parameters G and P80 of each grinding cycle are multiplied by the newly founded coefficients giDT and piDT to obtain values approximately equal to these parameters of the last grinding cycle when the equilibrium state is reached in the standard test. The paper presents comparative results obtained by standard Bond and new shortened procedure on individual samples of andesite, limestone, copper-ore and smelter slag and on composite samples of andesite from limestone and copper-ore with smelter slag in different mass ratios. As the number of grinding cycles increases, the precision of the shortened procedure increases, and the mean square error decrease 3.59%, 2.61% and 1.74% for two, three and four grinding cycles.

The output of non-ferrous metal smelters is 450,000 tons (3.1% of world output), and copper ranks 10th in the world for health impact evaluation. According to the latest information from smelters, the overall average concentration in 2020 was 8.2 ppb each of SO2, NO2, O3, PM10, and PM2.5. 7.5 ppb, 30.8 ppb, 21.3 μg/m3, and 13.2 μg/m3, and the maximum concentrations were 390 ppb, 50 ppb, 167 ppb, 148 μg/m3, and 107 μg/m3. Art Corporation, A2C (Atmosphere to CFD) model was used to investigate the resident health follow-up management (cohort study) study (SAS Enterprise Guide) as the basis for the source of diffuse pollution in the area. The average concentration of PAHs (polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons) among carcinogens in the air by survey site was the highest in Seokpo 4-ri (60.7 ng/m3), followed by Seokpo 1-ri (48.6 ng/m3) and Seokpo. Among the respiratory diseases, the disease (Acute upper respiratory tract disease(J00-J06), Other upper respiratory tract diseases (J32-J39), Acute lower respiratory tract infection (excluding pneumonia) (J20-J22), Chronic lower respiratory disease (persons) (excluding J40-J47, J45-J46), Asthma (J45-J46), Rhinitis (J30-J31), Respiratory disease (J00-J99), Cough (R05)) that has a correlation between the exposed area and the control area is as follows.

Microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) are distributed and transferred among the four major environmental compartments (air, water, soil, and biota) and have been already found in humans, making crucial to develop remediation technologies to tackle this kind pollution. Photocatalysis can be used to eliminate MPs present in contaminated wastewater effluents before their discharge into waterbodies. In this work, several green TiO2-based semiconductors were prepared using the extrapallial fluid (EPF) of Mytilus edulis sea water mussels as doping precursor. The semiconductors were then used as films or powders to photocatalytically degrade polystyrene (PS) NPs and MPs and polyethylene (PE) MPs. It was found that the obtention of green TiO2-based semiconductors with good characteristics for photocatalytic purposes (anatase crystalline phase, presence of porosity, activity in visible light and high surface area) seems not enough to achieve high degradation efficiency. The operational conditions of the reaction system should be also taken into account. For instance, the convenience of using semiconductors in the form of films can be overcome by their limited exposed surface area or the null adsorption of the semiconductor in the MPs particles. Additionally, crystallinity of the semiconductor can be a more determinant factor to take into account when performing photocatalysis of MPs.

Mechanically strong and thermally stable films obtained from a water-based polyurethane (PU) dispersion with small (0.1–1.5 wt.%) additions of graphene oxide nanosheet (GO) were studied through elemental analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, differential thermogravimetry, and Raman spectroscopy. Moreover, the depletion of near-surface layers in nitrogen was presented for all the samples under study. It was found that the introduction of GO into a PU matrix was ac-companied by a partial reduction of graphene oxide nanosheet and an increase in the concentra-tion of defects in its structure.

: The paper presents the results of uniaxial tensile tests of samples of hypoeutectic aluminum-silicon alloy A319. According to the results of which the influence of surface treatment by a pulsed electron beam on the mechanical properties of the material was determined. The peculiarities of localization of deformation in the material, caused by grinding of the surface layer material structure due to rapid crystallization during electron beam treatment were revealed. The surface treatment up to 100 µm depth leads to the formation of a fine dendritic columnar structure of silumin and to an increase in the plasticity of the samples. The influence of surface treatment affects the increase of deformation localization in the region of stable concentrator before failure. The largest increase in ductility and localization of deformation occurs during processing with energy density of 15 J/cm2. In the process of specimen deformation, unstable, metastable, and stable areas of plastic deformation localization are formed and replaced, and the formation of stable areas of localized plastic deformation, in which the specimen fails at the end of the test, can be detected at the initial stages of testing. In specimens, during testing in the zone of localized plastic deformation, bands are formed that pass through the entire surface of the specimen at an angle from 35 to 55 degrees to the axis of tension, their evolution leads to the formation of stable zones of localized plastic deformation and to the failure of the specimen.

Currently, there is increasing industrial demand for rare earth elements (REE) as these elements are now integral to the manufacture of many carbon-neutral technologies. The depleting REE ores and increasing mining costs are prompting to look for alternative sources for these valuable metals, particularly from waste streams. Although REE concentrations in most of the alternate resources are lower than current REE ores, some sources such as marine sediments, coal ash, and industrial wastes like red mud are looking promising with significant concentrations of REE in them. This review focuses on the alternative resources for REE such as ocean bottom sediments, continental shelf sediments, river sediments, stream sediments, lake sediments, phosphorites deposits, industrial waste products like red mud, and phosphogypsum, coal, coal fly ash, and related materials, waste rock sources from old and closed mines, acid mine drainage, and recycling of e-waste. Possible future Moon exploration and mining for REE and other valuable minerals are also discussed. It is evident that REE extractions from both primary and secondary ores alone are not adequate to meet the current demand, and sustainable REE recovery from the alternative resources described here is also necessary to meet the growing REE demand. An attempt is made to identify the potential of these alternative resources and sustainability challenges, benefits, and possible environmental hazards to meet the growing challenges in meeting the future REE requirements.

A diffusion welding of coarse-grained and ultrafine-grained (UFG) specimens of titanium near-α alloy Ti-5Al-2V used in nuclear power engineering was made by Spark Plasma Sintering. The failure of the welded specimens in the conditions of hot salt corrosion and of electrochemical corrosion were shown to have preferentially intercrystalline character. In the case of presence of macrodefects, crevice corrosion of the welded joints was observed. The resistance of the alloys against the intercrystalline corrosion was found to be determined by the concentration of vanadium at the titanium grain boundaries, by the size and volume fraction of the β-phase particles and by the presence of micro- and macropores in the welded joints. The specimens of the welded joints of the UFG alloy have higher hardness, hot salt corrosion resistance and the electrochemical corrosion.

Bismuth oxides are well-known electro-catalysts in fuel cells systems; they are usually used as anodic materials for the oxidation of low molecular weight alcohols. The utilization of BiO₂ and MnO₂ as catalysts in the pharmaceutical analysis is analytical method for the determination of heavy metal antibacterial agents in Pharmaceutical Dosage form is developed. The method is based on the voltammetric determination of heavy metal using Bidified platinum electrode by Bismuth oxide. The two components are oxidized at the Bidified electrode surface with the development of current that is linearly proportional to their concentrations in the range of 7.04*10^-7- 1*10^-3 M heavy metal. The oxidation reaction of the two components is pH-dependent, in which the buffer used is Britton-Robinson at pH = 7.00 where maximum peak current and maximum peak separation is obtained. The regression factors obtained from the calibration curves are 0.9812. The method of analysis was validated, where the limit of detection (LOD) and the limit of quantitation (LOQ) were calculated to be 1.44*10^-4 M, 4.36*10^-4 M and 1.27*10^-4 M, 3.84*10^-4 M respectively, the percentage recovery of both components was also calculated to 77 % for heavy metal.

Trends focused on the Global Innovation Index (GII) as a measure for progress of nanochemistry. This paper provides projections of recent developments in the word in nanochemistry based on the Global Innovation Index as a predictor for certain Arab countries. The GII is an annual ranking of countries by its ability and performance in innovation and is calculated on a basic average from five and two pillars in two sub-indexes, the Innovation Input Index and the Innovation Output Index. Each pillar represents a trait of creativity and consists of up to five measures, with a weighted average formula for measuring their ranking. In 2008, the GII rose to 36.3 in 2016 from 0.5. The GII is smaller than the GII in Arabic countries worldwide. During the years 2013-2016, the worldwide GII was increasing while for the same period, for Arabic countries, this decline could be explained by economic and industrial wars in the Arab region.

Abstract composite silver nanoparticles were synthesised using melanin broth and Arabic gum as a reducing and binding agent. The reactions are carried out with water because it is a non-hazardous solvent. The produced composites either had specified diameters (average diameter of 50 nm) with high silver loading or lower loading composites with tuneable morphologies and electrical properties. UV-IR, gamma, and conventional light are used to characterise the synthesised composite silver nanoparticles. Furthermore, measurements are carried out of the dielectric constant, refractive index, energy gap, optical and electrical conductivities, and refractive index coefficients. The silver nanoparticle formation was validated by UV-Vis measurement of the sample, which demonstrated a distinct peak at a wavelength of 420 nm. The characteristics of the composite silver nanoparticles are also quantified using several methods, including XRD, SEM, and particle size analysis.

The spectrophotometric methods of determination of the active pharmaceutical ingredients meloxicam and nimesulide were reviewed, and a simple UV-spectrophotometric method for the determination of these active pharmaceutical ingredients in industrial equipment cleaning validation samples were proposed. The methods are based on extraction of the residual quantities of meloxicam and numesulide from the manufacturing equipment surface by the concentrated sodium carbonate solution, and the subsequent UV-spectrophotometric determination of the basic forms of the drugs at the wavelength of 362 nm for meloxicam and at 397 nm for nimesulide. The calibration graphs are linear in the range from 5 to 25 mg/L of both nimesulide and meloxicam, the molar attenuation coefficients are 6100 m2/mol for nimesulide and 9100 m2/mol for meloxicam, the limit of detection is 0.8 mg/L for nimesulide and 1.9 mg/L for meloxicam, the limit of quantification is 2.5 mg/L for nimesulide and 5.8 mg/L for meloxicam, the methods are selective with respect to the common excipients, show a good accuracy (the relative uncertainty does not exceed 4%) and precision (the relative standard deviation does not exceed 5%), do not require lengthy sample preparation and sophisticated laboratory equipment and are suitable for the routine analysis of cleaning validation samples.

Herein, we report a stimuli responsive hydrogel with inhibitory activity against Escherichia coli prepared by chemical crosslinking of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCs) and hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC). The hydrogels were prepared by esterification of chitosan (Cs) with monochloroacetic acid to produce CMCs which was then chemically crosslinked to HEC using citric acid as the crosslinking agent. To impart a stimuli responsiveness property to the hydrogels, polydiacetylene-zinc oxide (PDA-ZnO) nanosheets were synthesized in-situ during the crosslinking reaction followed by photopolymerization of the resultant composite. To achieve this, ZnO was anchored on carboxylic groups in 10,12-pentacosadiynoic acid (PCDA) layers to restrict movement of alkyl portion of PCDA during crosslinking CMCs and HEC hydrogels. This was followed by irradiating the composite with UV radiation to photopolymerize the PCDA to PDA within the hydrogel matrix so as to impart thermal and pH responsiveness to the hydrogel. From the results obtained, the prepared hydrogel had a pH dependant swelling capacity as it absorbed more water in acidic media as compared to basic media. Incorporation of PDA-ZnO resulted in a thermochromic composite responsive to pH evidenced by a visible colour transition from pale purple to pale pink. Upon swelling, PDA-ZnO-CMCs-HEC hydrogels had inhibitory activity against E. coli attributed to the slow release of the ZnO nanoparticles as compared to CMCs-HEC hydrogels.

Ferrocene and its derivatives have ecologically effective antidetane properties. In this regard, ferrocene reacts with cyclic ketones and ferrosenylcarbinols are synthesized. It should be noted that ferrocene enters into electrophilic reactions and the process takes place in an acidic environment. In addition, the yield of the new product was small compared to the reactions of ferrocene with non-cyclic ketones. This is due to the spatial structures of molecules. The elemental analysis of obtained compounds was carried out; the structures were researched by cyclic voltammograms and Chronoamperometric.

As a consequence of a three-stage synthesis from terephthalic aldehyde, a series of 3,3 '- (1,4-phenylene) perchlorates including methyl, hydrogen, acetyl, bromio, methoxy and nitro groups (R = Br, H, Me). The matching formazans were reacted with formalin in dioxane in the presence of perchloric acid to produce tetrazin ium salts. Formazans were synthesized by reacting terephthalic aldehyde phenylhydrazone with ar ene diazonium tosylates in a DMF/pyridine combination. The use of ar ene diazonium tosylates greatly simplified the separation and purification of formazans. The p henylhydrazone was produced in aqueous dioxane using the usual approach from terephthalic aldehyde and phenylhydrazine/hydrochloric acid. Individual f ormazans and tetrazinium perchlorates were isolated and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, NMR, UV spectroscopy. The electrochemical reduction of tetrazinium perchlorates was investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV). Thus, all salts in the cathode region have two one-electron reduction peaks, which are connected to the sequential production of a radical cation and a biradical. It was discovered that donor substituents (R: OMe, Me) in the aromatic ring at position 1 accelerate tetrazinium cation reduction, whereas acceptor substituents (R: NO₂, COMe,) inhibit this process. On this premise, it was proposed that in the presence of donor substituents in the aromatic ring at position 1, the matching bis-verdazyl radicals should be easily generated. As a result, 3,3'- (1,4-phenylene) perchlorates are possible antecedents of symmetric biradical systems based on verdazyl radicals.

Water splitting technology is an efficient approach to generate hydrogen (H2) energy, which can well address the problems of environmental deterioration and energy shortage, as well as establishment of a clean and sustainable hydrogen economy powered by renewable energy sources due to the green reaction of H2 with O2. While the efficiency of H2 production by water splitting technology is intimately related with the reactions on electrode. Nowadays, the efficient electrocatalysts in water splitting reactions are the precious metal-based materials, i.e., Pt/C, RuO2 and IrO2. Ni (Co, Fe)-based layered double hydroxides (LDH) 2D materials are the typical non-precious metal-based materials in water splitting with advantages of low cost, excellent electrocatalytic performance and simple preparation methods, which exhibits a great potential for the substitution for precious metal-based materials. This review summarizes the recent progress of Ni (Co, Fe)-based LDH 2D materials for water splitting, which mainly focuses on discussing and analyzing the different strategies to modify LDH materials towards high electrocatalytic performance. We also discuss the recent achievements including their electronic structure, electrocatalytic performance, catalytic center, preparation process and catalytic mechanism. Furthermore, the characterization progress in revealing electronic structure and catalytic mechanism of LDH is highlighted in this review. Finally, we put forward some future perspectives related to design and explore advanced LDH catalysts in water splitting.

November 15th, 2022 was selected as the day where the human population reached the 8 billion mark [1]. This new reality will force the governments around the world to find ways to sustainably produce and secure food, water, and energy for their countries [2-4]. In terms of water, its quality and availability has been a matter of great concern in recent decades [5], especially with the emergence of new organic and inorganic pollutants [6]. Among organic contaminants, the detection of trace amounts of fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as ciprofloxacin (CFX) and levofloxacin (LFX), in natural water bodies, has been of great concern in the scientific community [7,8]. Some of the side effects of the consumption of these antibiotics are nausea, diarrhea, abdominal pain, rash, low sugar levels, and antibiotic resistance to bacterial infections, among others [9,10]. It was estimated that in 2019 more than 1.27 million people died due to antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections [11], and this number is expected to rise to 10 million by 2050, if the trend continues [12]. Because of this, new ways to degrade antibiotics from water have been developed over the years. A method that has been implemented for some time is the use of photocatalysts for the degradation of these compounds in water [13]. Semiconductors such as titanium oxide (TiO2), zinc oxide (ZnO), zinc sulfide (ZnS), cadmium sulfide (CdS), strontium peroxide (SnO2), or tungsten trioxide (WO3), among others, are commonly used in photocatalytic processes [14-16]. Zinc oxide has been widely used due to its low cost and stability in aqueous solution, easy production, and because it is an environmentally friendly material [17,18]. It has been identified that some of the disadvantages of ZnO as photocatalyst are photocorrosion, recombination of electron-hole pairs, fast backward reactions, and inability to use visible light [18]. Multiple approaches have been implemented over the years to reduce these limitations. One of them is the use of noble metals such as platinum (Pt), gold (Au), or even silver (Ag) as cocatalysts [15-17,19]. These metals can increase the photocatalytic activity by reducing the recombination of electron-hole pairs, as well allowing the use of visible light [20]. For example, Quin and coworkers [21] prepared a bio-inspired hierarchical assembly of carbonized spinach leaves@Au/ZnO for the degradation of CFX under visible light. The results showed a degradation of 61% of the antibiotic in a period of 180 minutes. Chankhanittha et al. [22] developed different Ag@ZnO composites for the complete degradation of red dye and ofloxacin antibiotic in 25 and 80 minutes, respectively. The researchers attributed the improved photoactivity to the high electron-hole separation efficiency at the photocatalyst interface, as well as the creation of the Schottky barrier at the silver-zinc oxide interface.

Melanoma is a type of highly malignant and metastatic skin cancer. In situ molecular imaging of endogenous levels of the melanoma biomarker tyrosinase (TYR) may decrease the likelihood of mortality. In this study we proposed the weakly fluorescent probe 1-(4-(2-(4-(dicyanomethylene)-4H-chromen-2-yl)vinyl)phenyl)-3-(4-hydroxybenzyl)urea (DCM-HBU), which releases a strong red-shifted fluorescent signal after a TYR-mediated oxidation followed by hydrolysis of the urea linkage. The large Stokes shift of the dye is owed to the recovery of the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) effect. The resulting probe derivate shows a highly ratiometric fluorescence output. Furthermore, the simultaneous excitation by two near-infrared (NIR) photons of the released DCM-NH2 fluorophore could avoid the usual drawbacks, such as cellular absorption, autofluorescence and light scattering, due to an usually short wavelength of the excitation light on biological systems, resulting in images with deeper tissue penetration. In addition, the probe is useful for the quantitative sensing of TYR activity in vivo, as demonstrated in zebrafish larvae. This new ratiometric two photon NIR fluorescent probe is expected to be useful for the accurate detection of TYR in complex biosystems at greater depths than other one-photon excited fluorescent probes.

The main purpose of this work is to contribute to understanding the mechanism of oxidation of the polymeric components of common disposable masks used during the COVID-19 pandemic to offer the chemical basis to predict their long-term behaviour under typical environmental conditions. Artificial ageing of representative mask layers under isothermal conditions (110℃) or accelerated photoageing showed that all the PP-made components underwent a fast oxidation process, following the typical hydrocarbon oxidation mechanism. In particular, yellowing and the melting temperature drop are early indicators of their diffusion-limited oxidation. Morphology changes also induced a loss of mechanical properties, observable as embrittlement of the fabric fibres. Results were validated through preliminary outdoor ageing of masks, which allows us to predict they will suffer fast and extensive oxidation only in the case of contemporary exposure to sunlight and relatively high environmental temperature, leading to their extensive breakdown in the form of microfiber fragments, i.e., microplastics.

By employing a variation of the polyamidation method using in situ silylated diamines and acid chlorides, it has been possible to obtain a rod-type polyamide: poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) (PPTA, a polymer used in the high value-added material Kevlar), with a molecular weight much higher than that obtained with the classical, and industrial, polyamidation method. The optimization of the method has consisted in using, together with the silylating agent, a mixture of pyridine and a high pKa tertiary amine. The research has been complemented by a combination of nuclear magnetic resonance and molecular simulation studies, which have determined that the improvements in molecular weight derive mainly from the formation of silylamide groups in the growing polymer.

Biocidal compositions based on interpolyelectrolyte complexes and a low molecular weight antibiotic can become a promising material for creating biocidal coatings, as they combine wash-off resistance and dual biocidal action due to the biocide and the polycation. Molecular mass characteristics of polymers play essential role in physics and mechanical properties of the coatings. In this work, the properties of polydiallyldimethylammonium chloride (PDADMAC) coatings of various molecular weights are investigated and assumptions are made about the optimal molecular weight needed to create antibacterial compositions. To study the resistance to washing off and moisture saturation of the coatings, the gravimetric method was used, the adhesive properties of the coatings were studied by dynamometry. It has been established that an increase in molecular weight affects the wash-off resistance of coatings, but does not affect moisture absorption and adhesion mechanics of coatings. All samples of PDADMAC were demonstrated to exhibit the same antibacterial activity. Thus, when developing systems for creating antibacterial coatings, it must be taken into account that in order to create stable coatings. The requirement to use PDADMAC with a high degree of polymerization is necessary for control the desorption of coating during wash off-but not mandatory for the control of mechanical and antibacterial properties of the coating.

The application of diffusion dialysis using various types of ion-exchange membranes for the separation of sulfuric acid and nickel sulfate has been evaluated. The process of dialysis separation of a real waste solution from an electroplating facility containing 252.3 g/L of sulfuric acid, 20.9 g/L of nickel ions and small amounts of zinc, iron, copper ions, etc. has been studied. Heterogeneous cation-exchange membrane containing sulfo groups and heterogeneous anion-exchange membranes with different thicknesses (from 145 μm to 550 μm) and types of fixed groups (4 samples with quaternary amino groups and 1 sample with secondary and tertiary amino groups) are used. The diffusion fluxes of sulfuric acid, nickel sulfate, and the total and osmotic fluxes of the solvent are determined. The use of a cation-exchange membrane does not allow separation of the components, since the fluxes of both components are low and comparable in magnitude. The use of anion-exchange membranes makes it possible to efficiently separate sulfuric acid and nickel sulfate. At the same time, the thin dialysis membrane turns out to be the most effective, as well as the membranes with quaternary amino groups, and the membrane with secondary and tertiary amino groups proved to be the least effective.

Dibenzocycloctynes have emerged as a promising scaffold for bioorthogonal ligation. An important structural aspect that has not been addressed so far is connected with their chirality. Herein, we explore by theoretical and experimental methods this structural aspect that has been so far neglected. First, a computational analysis is conducted and results are used as a guideline for experimental investigation. Next, an array of different experiments (HPLC on chiral columns, chiroptical spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction) for structure elucidation are scrutinized in concert. Finally, this work demonstrates the chirality and the stereodynamic behavior of dibenzocycloctynes and of their triazole adducts with simple azides and uncover their conformational behavior.

A series of LaF₃:Ce³⁺ phosphors for the application in photodynamic therapy is synthesized using a one-stage solvothermal synthesis. The conditions providing the maximum intensity of UV- and X-ray-excited luminescence, lowest size and highest colloidal stability of the phosphor nanoparticles are found to respectively include cerium content 5% mol., use of ethanol as the reaction medium for the solvothermal synthesis and addition of polyvinylpyrrolidone as a stabilizer in an optimized amount.

The invention of nanoscience not only brings a revolutionary change in the field of science but also changed the direction of research. Today the whole world is under the trigger of nano and nanoparticles have multidimensional applications in every aspect of life including environmental point of view. Till today a plethora of nanoparticles have been synthesized and have also been applied for multiple purposes and hence grabbed the attention of researchers all over the world. Among the bunch of NPs discovered to date, we have a particular interest in silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) because of their cost-effectiveness and huge abundance in the earth’s crust. With respect to every passing day, due to various kinds of anthropological activities, the quality of the environment such as air, water and soil is depleting which ultimately hampers the human civilization. To encompass the growing environmental issues, many techniques have been adopted. Among the many strategies, tackling the current issues regarding environment through nanoscience is highly worthy as because of its cost-effectiveness, less time consuming and easy handling process. This article reviews the potential of nanoparticles, particularly silver nanoparticles, for a wide range of environmental applications, such as soil, air, and water remediation.

Background: Senescence is a cellular ageing process in all multicellular organisms. It is characterized by a decline in cellular functions and proliferation, resulting in increased cellular damage and death. This condition plays an essential role in the ageing process and significantly contributes to the development of age-related complications. On the other hand, ferroptosis is a systemic cell death characterized by excessive iron accumulation followed by the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Oxidative stress is a common trigger of this condition and may be induced by various factors such as toxins, drugs, and inflammation. Ferroptosis is linked to numerous illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration, and cancer. Relevance of these conditions to ageing and disease: Senescence is believed to contribute to the decline in tissue and organ function that occurs with ageing. It has also been linked to the development of age-related pathologies, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer. In particular, senescent cells have been shown to produce inflammatory cytokines and other pro-inflammatory molecules that can contribute to these conditions. On the other hand, ferroptosis has been linked to the development of various health disorders, including neurodegeneration, cardiovascular disease, and cancer [1]. It is known to play a role in developing these diseases by promoting the death of damaged or diseased cells and contributing to the inflammation often associated with them. Both senescence and ferroptosis are complex processes that are still not fully understood. Further research is needed to thoroughly understand the role of these processes in ageing and disease, and to identify potential interventions to target these processes to prevent or treat age-related conditions. Objectives: This systematic review aims to assess the potential mechanisms underlying the link connecting senescence, ferroptosis, ageing, and disease.

This report aimed to know the performance of local mineral-based composite ceramic. The materials used consist of Indonesian local minerals, which are jarosite and manganite minerals as sources of oxide iron and Mangan. The materials were synthesized using the precipitation method, whereas composite ceramic was fabricated using a screen printing method and fired at 600 oC using a furnace. The results of the characterizations indicate that the sample forms three phases on diffraction peaks. The differences in the resistance values in ambient and ethanol environments indicate that the sample has very different responses. The high porosity of the sample greatly support the gas adsorption process. Thus, the sample has a high level of sensitivity. With the above characteristics, the composite ceramic which was fabricated has the potential to be applied to gas sensors, especially ethanol gas sensors.

With recent developments in fusion engineering, interest has sparked in development of fusion devices for deterrent. Enormous amount of energy generated by combining two light nuclei could be contained and manipulated at will to trigger and accelerate micro explosions (from shock wave, x-rays or ion beam focusing) which finally result in full scale blast. Materials required to make such device are critical. They must possess high strength, high hardness, ductility, formability, drawability, and anisotropic properties. High entropy alloys (HEA) are new class of materials which nicely fulfils this requirement. Essentially, they are solid solutions of multi principal elements (usually > 5) eliminating the need of base metal as in conventional alloys. This gives them many unique properties which may be tailored at will (heat treatment, cold rolling, precipitation, irradiation). They also exhibit excellent directional properties with formation of distinct bands along certain preferred crystallographic planes even in hexagonal close packed structures. These anisotropic properties are strong function of rolling, working, or forging (swaging) direction and can be utilized to benefit. This study encompasses making outer shell of a typical fusion device selected on the basis of the weight, which is a function of area of pay load bay of carrier aircraft.

Sorption of pure CO2 and CH4 and CO2/CH4 binary gas mixtures in amorphous glassy Poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene) oxide (PPO) at 35°C up to 1000 Torr is investigated. Sorption experiments were carried out using an approach that combines barometry with FTIR spectroscopy in the transmission mode to quantify the sorption of pure and mixed gases in polymers. The pressure range is chosen to prevent any variation of the glassy polymer density. The solubility within the polymer of the CO2 present in the gaseous binary mixtures is practically coincident with the solubility of pure gaseous CO2, up to a total pressure of the gaseous mixtures equal to 1000 Torr and for CO2 mole fraction of ~0.5 mol mol-1 and ~0.3 mol mol-1. The Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics for Glassy Polymers (NET-GP) modelling approach has been applied to the Non-Random Hydrogen Bonding (NRHB) lattice fluid model to fit the solubility data of pure gases. We have assumed here that no specific interactions are occurring between the matrix and the absorbed gas. The same thermodynamic approach has been then used to predict the solubility of CO2/CH4 mixed gases in PPO resulting in a deviation lower than 9.5% from the experimental results for CO2 solubility.

NASA/ESA/CSA joint venture James Webb Space Telescope is about to be launched. It is hypothesized to operate in near-infrared range. It is also hypothesized to unveil early star formation, galaxies, and universe due to its orbit, point in orbit and orbital motion. It has been under manufacturing for over 20 years at a staggering cost of 10 billion US dollars (most expensive scientific experiment in history). Beryllium (Be) is chosen to be element for construction of its main mirrors due to its high stiffness, low density, low linear coefficient of thermal expansion (α) in cryogenics and high thermal conductivity. It is followed by gold (Au) layer deposition on its (Be) surface to enhance its sensitivity towards infrared radiation as later is hypothesized to bear superior properties. However, serious mistakes have been made in selecting this material for this application. Owing to its crystal structure (hexagonal close packed (hcp)), slip planes (basal, prismatic and pyramidal) and mechanisms of their activation, Be necessitates easy fracture at cryogenic temperature. It has anisotropic properties and prone to transverse fracture under tensile loading. Furthermore, its ductile to brittle transition temperature is very low making it entirely unsuitable for such an application. It is one of most expensive metals on planet. This study constitutes revisiting these fundamental properties and mechanisms which were entirely ignored during materials selection thus rendering whole project useless.

The host-guest inclusion strategy has potential to surpass the limitations of energy density and suboptimal performances of single explosives. The guest molecules can not only enhance the detonation performance of host explosives but can also enhance their stability. Therefore, the deeply analysis the role of guest influence on the pyrolysis decomposition of the host-guest explosive is necessary. The whole decomposition reaction stage of CL-20/H2O, CL-20/CO2, CL-20/N2O, CL-20/NH2OH was calculated by ReaxFF-MD. The incorporation of CO2, N2O and NH2OH significantly increase the energy levels of CL-20. However, different guest has little influence on the initial decomposition paths of CL-20. The Ea1 and Ea2 values of CL-20/CO2, CL-20/N2O, CL-20/NH2OH systems are higher than the CL-20/H2O system. Clearly, incorporation of CO2, N2O, NH2OH can inhibit the initial decomposition and intermediate decomposition stage of CL-20/H2O. Guest molecules get heavily involved in the reaction and influence on the reaction rate. k1 of CL-20/N2O and CL-20/NH2OH systems are significantly larger than that of CL-20/H2O at high temperatures. k1 of CL-20/CO2 system is much complex, which can be affected deeply by temperatures. k2 of CL-20/CO2, CL-20/N2O system is significantly smaller than that of CL-20/H2O at high temperatures. k2 of CL-20/NH2OH system is little difference at high temperatures. For the CL-20/CO2 system, the k3 value of CO2 is slight higher than that for CL-20/H2O, CL-20/N2O, CL-20/NH2OH systems, while the k3 values of N2 and H2O are slight smaller than that for CL-20/H2O, CL-20/N2O, CL-20/NH2OH systems. For the CL-20/N2O system, the k3 value of CO2 is slight smaller than that for CL-20/H2O, CL-20/CO2, CL-20/NH2OH systems. For the CL-20/NH2OH system, the k3 value of H2O is slight larger than that for CL-20/H2O, CL-20/CO2, CL-20/N2O systems. These mechanisms revealed that CO2, N2O and NH2OH molecules inhibit the early stages of the initial decomposition of CL-20, and play an important role for the decomposition subsequently.

The storage of biochemical information, which is a prerequisite for the development of the first cell, is an unsolved problem affecting all concepts of the origin of life. However, if the protected environment in the continental crust is taken into account, completely new possibilities emerge for identifying processes that may have been crucial for the formation of the first cell. Under this background, we can hypothesize that cellular life began, with a self-sustaining cycle of molecular reaction steps and information storage of peptide sequences in RNA in a crustal depth of approximately 1000 m. This cycle was made possible in an open system bound to gas-permeable tectonic fracture zones with a high proportion of CO₂ and/or N₂. It can be assumed that a large number of RNA-like molecular strands formed in the crustal environment, from which a special RNA was selected by flotation processes, which formed the basis of a proto-tRNA. The formation of peptides and vesicles in supercritical CO₂ and the chemical evolution of peptides have already been proven at conditions of the upper continental crust. The behavior of individual amino acids in connection with vesicle formation deserves special interest. Hydrophobic amino acids accumulate in the vesicle membrane, with their position in the membrane depending on the degree of hydrophobicity. Selection of a proto-tRNA with an acceptor arm ending with the bases CCA resulted in a distinctive property. The position of adenine at the tip of the acceptor arm permitted it to penetrate the membrane, allowing it to be linked to an amino acid at the 3'-OH position of the terminal ribose. The penetration depth was controlled by the hydrophobicity of the opposite anti-codon, with adenine always occupying the middle position for the hydrothermally formed hydrophobic amino acids. When the vesicle membrane was closely occupied by proto-tRNAs, the anti-codons acted as templates and stored the sequence of the peptides that form. In the cases of hydrophilic anti-codons, the acceptor arm does not reach far enough into the membrane. This allowed hydrophilic amino acids to be linked to 2´-OH.

This research is completed in development of researches devoted to relations between elastic modulus (MoE) and thermal expansivity (CTe) of different materials. This study experimentally confirmed the relation of MoE and CTe for thermosetting polymers and FRPs both under normal and heating temperatures. As the thermosetting polymers, the epoxy compositions were used and glass fiber and mineral additives for FRP. The experiment was based on dilatometric and elastic deformations’ testing. Also, the relaxation model of MoE/CTe was proposed, that is based on physical properties of polymers’ supramolecular structures. The comparative analyzing of MoE/CTes’ different models is done. The most accurate models are determined, and the relaxation model has demonstrated the high accuracy.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are essential components of innate immunity across all species. AMPs have become the focus of attention in recent years as scientists are addressing antibiotic resistance, a public health crisis that has reached epidemic proportions. This family of peptides are a promising alternative to current antibiotics due to their broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity and tendency to avoid resistance development. A subfamily of AMPs interact with metal ions to potentiate their antimicrobial effectiveness, as such they have been termed metalloAMPs. In this work, we review the scientific literature of metalloAMPs that enhance their antimicrobial efficacy when combined with the essential metal ion, zinc (II). Beyond the role played by Zn(II) as a cofactor in different systems, it is well-known that this metal ion plays an important role in innate immunity. Here, we classify the different types of synergistic interactions between AMPs and Zn(II) into three distinct classes. By better understanding how each class of metalloAMPs uses Zn(II) to potentiate their activity, researchers can begin to exploit these interactions in the development of new antimicrobial agents and accelerate their use as therapeutics.

Pyrolysis has been applied in the human economy for many years, and it has become a significant alternative to the production of chemical compounds, including biofuels. The article focuses mostly on recent achievements in the technical and processing aspects of pyrolysis. This review provides an overview of the recent advanced pyrolysis technology used in gas, bio-oil, and biochar production. The key parameters to maximize the production of specific chemical compounds were discussed and considered during the construction of the reactors. The emphasis is put on optimizing the process parameters, technical requirements, and renewable energy use in the process and conception to improve the efficiency of product production. The application of pyrolysis gas, oil, and biochar as valuable chemical compounds are related to the intensifying effects of climate change, biofuel production, and waste management in accordance with the principles of sustainable development.

Bubble (point defect) – a precursor of fuzz or under dense nanostructure formation is crystal lattice defect. Suitable selection of crystal lattice which inhibit Frenkel pair generation and intrinsically promotes self- interstitial solid solution strengthening contributes effectively towards making plasma facing material. For this, interstitial sites, their size, amount / fraction, positions, tendency of occupation and diffusion parameters (e.g. activation energies (Q), activation volumes) are determined. Fcc iron carbon alloys (austenitic stainless steels AISI / SAE 321, fcc structure, Pearson code cF4, space group Fm3̅m) are proposed as suitable candidates. Along with their room temperature fcc structure having 12 interstitial positions (4 octahedral, 6 coordination sites and 8 tetrahedral, 4 coordination sites / unit cell) to allow insertion of self (iron) atoms, they have excellent corrosion resistance, thermal conductivity, and non- magnetic properties. After their melting, casting, and machining to required dimensions and geometry, stabilizing heat treatment is applied to precipitate all carbon as TiC and prevent formation of Cr23C6 (sensitization). This resist heat and surface degradation and yield excellent architecture which not onlyinhibit Frankel pair generation but will also allow bulk assimilation or surface annihilation (loop punching) of this lattice point defect. A superior thermal, fluid, and structural design augment above. A second choice is presented as Co base superalloys owing to same fcc crystal structure and excellent properties (such as strength, dimensional stability, oxidation resistance) at high temperature.

Transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) are of enormous significance to the emergence of flexible and wearable electronics and continued growth of modern devices. Versatile and tunable TCEs, featuring with not only high optical transmittance but also intriguing features of electrochemical energy-storage capability, remain a significant challenge. Here we develop capacitive active films comprised of graphene-conjugated V2O5@poly (3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) ternary composite (V2O5@PEDOT/rGO) on silver nanowire coated substrates as solid-state super/pseudocapacitors. The constructed electrodes exhibit improved electrolyte ions interaction with effective graphene layer, achieving high areal capacitance 0.6-1.2 mF.cm−2 with 0.5M LiCl electrolytes at optical transparency >60% with record durability. As demonstrated, the kinetic blocking of PEDOT layer and anchoring capability of graphene upon amphoteric soluble vanadium ions from layered V2O5 nanoribbons/nanobelts contribute synergistically to the unusual electrochemical stability, also shown using scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) providing electroactivity sites and ion transportation rates. As-fabricated symmetric solid-state supercapacitors delivered broad potential window >1.4 V under two different electrolyte environments (aqueous LiCl and LiCl/PVA gel) and demonstrated higher power and energy density (0.27 μWh.cm−2) outperforming previously reported devices at <0.1 μWh.cm−2. The electrochemical properties are also discussed in terms of solvation in polymer gel electrolyte ions.

Almond beverages are gaining ever-increasing consumer preference in the growing market of non-alcoholic vegetable beverages, ranking in first place among oilseed-based drinks, mainly due to the perceived healthy benefits. However, the high cost of the raw material, time and energy consuming pre-treatments such as soaking, blanching and peeling, and post-treatments such as thermal sterilization, leading also to the loss of valuable macronutrients and micronutrients, hinder the sustainability, affordability and spread of almond beverages. Hydrodynamic cavitation processes were applied, as a single-unit operation, to the extraction in water of almond skinless kernels in the form of flour and fine grains, and to whole almond seeds in the form of coarse grains, up to high concentrations. The results showed full compliance with a high-end commercial product and with the expected levels based on the properties of the raw materials. The concentrated extract obtained from whole almond seeds showed a comparatively much higher antiradical activity, likely due to the contribution of the almond kernel skin. In conclusion, hydrodynamic cavitation could represent a convenient alternative processing route to the production of conventional and new integral almond beverages, avoiding multiple and costly technological steps, while affording fast production cycles of potentially healthier beverages.

In the near future, the next generation of space travel will be revealed and people are going to live on multiple planets. As a result, because having enough oxygen for human survival is mandatory, in this research article, we are going to find out an appropriate method for producing oxygen on another planet by considering the accessible resources and their limitations.

Cenospheres are hollow particles in fly-ash, a by-product of coal burning, and are widely used as reinforcement for developing low density composites called syntactic foams. This study investigates the physical, chemical, and thermal properties of cenospheres obtained from 3 different sources, CS1, CS2, and CS3, for the development of syntactic foams. Description of floatation method to separate broken particles is given, and it was seen that up to 11 % of the particles were damaged. Post heat treatment samples show development of SiO2 phase in the cenosphere, which is not present in the as received product. CS3 had the highest quantity of Si element, compared to the other two, showing the difference in the source quality. The particle size distribution for CS2 is very narrow while for the others is much broader. All censopheres have porous walls but the morphology of CS2 is the most uniform and smooth. For the application of metallic layer and subsequent consolidation via spark plasma sintering, CS2 was deemed the most physically, thermally, and chemically suitable.

The novel coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) has resulted in an estimated 20 million excess deaths and the recent resurgence of COVID-19 in China is predicted to result in up to 1 million deaths over the next few months. With vaccines unable to halt transmission it is important to continue our quest for safe, effective, affordable drugs that will be available to all countries. Drug repurposing is one of the strategies being explored in this context. Recently, out of 7,817 approved drugs, 214 candidates were systematically down-selected using a combination of 11 filters including approval status, assay data against SARS-CoV-2, pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and toxicity profiles. These drugs were subjected in this study to virtual screening against various targets of SARS-CoV-2 followed by molecular dynamic studies of the best scoring ligands against each target. The chosen molecular targets were Spike receptor binding domain, Nucleocapsid protein RNA binding domain, and key non-structural proteins 3, 5, 12, 13 and 14. Four drugs approved for other indications — alendronate, cromolyn, natamycin and treprostinil — look sufficiently promising from our in silicostudies to warrant further in vitro and in vivo investigations as appropriate to ascertain their extent of anti-viral activities.

Thermoplastic molded regenerated silk was proposed as structural material in tissue engineering applications, mainly for application in bone. The protocol allows to obtain a compact non-porous material with a compression modulus in the order of a Giga Pascal starting from silk fibroin by compressing a silk fibroin lyophilized sponge of powder in mold at temperature higher than the glass transition temperature (Tg). The main purpose of the produced resin was the osteofixation and other structural applications in which the lack of porosity was not an issue. In this work, we introduced the use of citric acid in the thermoplastic molding protocol of SF to obtain a porosity inside the structural material. In addition to the previously developed protocols the addition of citric acid allowed us to obtain a structural material. The CA powder during the compression acted as a template for the pore formation. In addition, the CA was able to effectively crosslink the SF chain improving the mechanical strength. This effect was proved both evaluating the compression modulus and by studying the spectra obtained by Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). This protocol may be applied in the near future to the production of a structural bone scaffold.

Nickel foam substrates are frequently utilised for renewable energy applications as porous 3D-substrates. Preparation of these substrates usually includes an acid washing step, however the degree to which this step affects the final electrochemical performance after spray coating a catalyst ink is unreported. Herein, we report the effect of acid washing through physicochemical and electrochemical characterisation. The electrochemical performance was determined by repeated measurements of catalyst-coated nickel foam substrates both with and without the initial step of acid washing. Acid washing increased current density by 17.9% for the acid treated, MoS2-coated nickel foam electrode. This increment was affiliated with an electrochemically active surface area which increased by 87.1%, where Tafel analysis indicated that the acid treated, MoS2-coated electrodes facilitates the initial water dissociation step of the hydrogen evolution reaction with greater ease. Similar effects were also discovered for acid treated PtIr(1:3)/C-coated nickel foam substrates, albeit with less pronounced effects. Stability was also improved where the degradation rate was reduced by 18.9% for the acid treated, MoS2-coated electrodes. This proves the utility of acid washing nickel foam electrodes.

Advances in nanomedicine bring the attention of researchers to the molecular targets which can play a major role in the development of novel therapeutic and diagnostic modalities for cancer management. The choice of a proper molecular target can decide on the efficacy of the treatment and endorse the personalized medicine approach. Gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR) is a G-protein-coupled membrane receptor, well known to be overexpressed in numerous malignancies including pancreatic, prostate, breast, lung, colon, cervical and gastrointestinal cancers. Therefore, many research groups express a deep interest in targeting GRPR with their nanoformulations. A broad spectrum of the GRPR ligands has been described in the literature, which allows tuning of the properties of the final formulation, particularly in the field of the ligand affinity to the receptor and internalization possibilities. Hereby the recent advances in the field of applications of various nanoplatforms which are able to reach the GRPR expressing cells are reviewed.