Supplementing cold plasma with heat enables doping and nano-structuring of metal oxides

Nitrogen doped SnO2 polycrystalline nanostructures were produced from commercial SnO powders in a new system that combines a low-temperature plasma with heating. The method has the potential to improve the initial efficiency and the cycling performance of SnO2 anodes in Li-ion batteries. With this system, the temperature of the SnO to SnO2 conversion was lowered from 430 to 320 °C, up to 5 at% of doped nitrogen was detected and a nano-scale polycrystalline structure was observed in the product. Combining heat and low-pressure plasma is a promising approach for the production and treatment of enhanced energy storage materials.

Molecular regulation of survivin targeted nano-therapy in advanced prostate cancer

 The increasing complexities of prostate cancer disease progression necessitates more stable and less toxic therapeutic strategies. The current study demonstrated for the first time, the survivin targeted anti-cancer therapeutic activity of the bio-molecular drugs such as SurR9-C84A and bovine lactoferrin in inducing prostate cancer specific apoptosis. Moreover, improved therapeutic efficacy was conferred to these bio-molecules either by their encapsulation in stem cell targeted bio-compatible nanoparticles, or by the synthesis of protein-cytotoxic drug conjugates. This study also highlighted the role played by miRNAs in the regulation of iron metabolism and apoptosis, mediated by the selective activation of p53 and PTEN pathways.

Control of partial coalescence of self-assembled metal nano-particles across lyotropic liquid crystals templates towards long range meso-porous metal frameworks design

The formation of purely metallic meso-porous metal thin films by partial interface coalescence of self-assembled metal nano-particles across aqueous solutions of Pluronics triblock lyotropic liquid crystals is demonstrated for the first time. Small angle X-ray scattering was used to study the influence of the thin film composition and processing conditions on the ordered structures. The structural characteristics of the meso-structures formed demonstrated to primarily rely on the lyotropic liquid crystal properties while the nature of the metal nano-particles used as well as the their diameters were found to affect the ordered structure formation. The impact of the annealing temperature on the nano-particle coalescence and efficiency at removing the templating lyotropic liquid crystals was also analysed. It is demonstrated that the lyotropic liquid crystal is rendered slightly less thermally stable, upon mixing with metal nano-particles and that low annealing temperatures are sufficient to form purely metallic frameworks with average pore size distributions smaller than 500 nm and porosity around 45% with potential application in sensing, catalysis, nanoscale heat exchange, and molecular separation.

A comparative assessment of the hardness of nano-structured bainitic steel affected by using various quenchants

Quenching, in heat treatment, plays a vital role in controlling material properties. It is the most important step in manipulating the strength of steel. It involves cooling the material from the austenitizing temperature at different cooling rates using variations in quenchants to obtain corresponding material properties. The commonly used quenchants are water, oil, and brine. The cooling rate is the rate at which heat is ejected from the material by the quenchant. The effectiveness of the quenchant is judged by its ability to absorb heat from the material and thermally conduct. Because of stringent regulations regarding use and disposal, there is a need to develop new, environmentally friendly quenchants. The experimental design in this study consisted of quenching austenitized nano-structured bainitic steel in four different quenchants, namely, water, oil, brine, and 1 M sodium carbonate solution. This research gives the insight of substituting conventional quenchants with 1 M sodium carbonate solution. The final four samples were characterized using metallography. A comparative study of the hardness of nano-structured bainitic steel quenched in the newly developed quenchant (i.e., 1 M sodium carbonate solution) and of steel quenched with the conventional one is done. All the results are tabulated, and the applicability of the quenchants is discussed.

Self-cleaning wool: effect of noble metals and silica on visible-light-induced functionalities of nano TiO2 colloid

© 2014 The Textile Institute. This study intends to enhance the functionality of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles applied to wool fabrics under visible light. Herein, TiO2, TiO2/SiO2, TiO2/Metal, and TiO2/Metal/SiO2 nanocomposite sols were synthesized and applied to wool fabrics through a low-temperature sol–gel method. The impacts of three types of noble metals, namely gold (Au), platinum (Pt), and silver (Ag), on the photoefficiency of TiO2 and TiO2/SiO2 under visible light were studied. Different molar ratios of Metal toTiO2 (0.01, 0.1, 0.5, and 1%) were employed in synthesizing the sols. Photocatalytic efficiency of fabrics was analyzed through monitoring the removal of red wine stain and degradation of methylene blue under simulated sunlight and visible light, respectively. Also, the antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacterium and the mechanical properties of fabrics were investigated. Through applying binary and ternary nanocomposite sols to fabrics, an enhanced visible-light-induced self-cleaning property was imparted to wool fabrics. It was concluded that the presence of silica and optimized amount of noble metals had a synergistic impact on boosting the photocatalytic and antimicrobial activities of coated samples. The fabrics were further characterized using attenuated total reflectance, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and scanning electron microscopy images.

Nano-carbon electrodes for thermal energy harvesting

Thermogalvanic cells are capable of converting waste heat (generated as a by-product of almost all human activity) to electricity. These devices may alleviate the problems associated with the use of fossil fuels to meet the world's current demand for energy. This review discusses the developments in thermogalvanic systems attained through the use of nano-carbons as the electrode materials. Advances in cell design and electrode configuration that improve performance of these thermo converters and make them applicable in a variety of environments are also summarized. It is the aim of this review to act as a channel for further developments in thermogalvanic cell design and electrode engineering.

Effects of nano cerium (IV) oxide and zinc oxide particles on biogas production

With an increase in use of nanoparticles (NPs) in day to day products, these particles eventually enter the wastewater treatment plant and get removed from the effluent while getting accumulated in the sludge at ever increasing concentrations. These NPs have a potential for causing inhibition in sludge digestion processes. Therefore, this research focused on the effects of cerium (IV) oxide (CeO2) and zinc oxide (ZnO) NPs on biogas production from sludge. The inhibition effects were investigated by studying toxicity of the said NPs on Escherichia coli. The results showed that CeO2 and ZnO NPs showed some degree of inhibition in biogas production with 65.3% biogas reduction at ZnO NPs at 1000 mg/L concentration. Conversely, CeO2 at low concentration of 10 mg/L lead to an increase biogas generation by 11%. The tolerable exposure concentrations for ZnO were determined to be 100 and 500 mg/L, where the system could overcome the inhibition effect after 14 days of incubation. The bacterial toxicity test showed that both nanoparticles were toxic for bacteria leading to biogas reduction.

Nano-capsules of amphiphilic poly (ethylene glycol)-block-poly (bisphenol A carbonate) copolymers via thermodynamic entrapment

The synthesis of amphiphilic poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (PEG-b-PC) block copolymer is presented here using a simple bio-chemistry coupling reaction between poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (PC) with a monomethylether poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG-OH) block, mediated by dicyclohexylcarbodiimide/4-dimethylaminopyridine. This method inherently allows great flexibility in the choice of starting materials as well as easy product purification only requiring phase separation and water washing. Collective data from Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) and modulated dynamic scanning calorimetry (MDSC) confirmed the successful attachment of the poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG-OH) and poly(bisphenol A carbonate) (PC) blocks. The preparation of nano-capsules was carried out by sudden addition of water to PEG-b-PC copolymers dispersed in THF, resulting in the controlled precipitation (i.e. thermodynamic entrapment) of the copolymer. Nano-capsules as small as 85 nm ± 30 nm were produced using this simple and fast methodology. We also demonstrate that encapsulating a water-insoluble bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (DGEBA) epoxy resin is possible highlighting the potential use of these capsules as a chemical delivery system.

Addition of low concentrations of an ionic liquid to a base oil reduces friction over multiple length scales: a combined nano- and macrotribology investigation

The efficacy of ionic liquids (ILs) as lubricant additives to a model base oil has been probed at the nanoscale and macroscale as a function of IL concentration using the same materials. Silica surfaces lubricated with mixtures of the IL trihexyl(tetradecyl)phosphonium bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinate and hexadecane are probed using atomic force microscopy (AFM) (nanoscale) and ball-on-disc tribometer (macroscale). At both length scales the pure IL is a much more effective lubricant than hexadecane. At the nanoscale, 2.0 mol% IL (and above) in hexadecane lubricates the silica as well as the pure IL due to the formation of a robust IL boundary layer that separates the sliding surfaces. At the macroscale the lubrication is highly load dependent; at low loads all the mixtures lubricate as effectively as the pure IL, whereas at higher loads rather high concentrations are required to provide IL like lubrication. Wear is also pronounced at high loads, for all cases except the pure IL, and a tribofilm is formed. Together, the nano- and macroscales results reveal that the IL is an effective lubricant additive - it reduces friction - in both the boundary regime at the nanoscale and mixed regime at the macroscale.

Investigation of nano-scale precipitation phenomena in Al-Fe and Al-Cu-(Fe) alloys processed via direct strip casting

The use of rapid solidification processes such as direct strip casting (DSC) is a good way to refine the Fe-intermetallics and decrease their detrimental effects. DSC creates out-ofequilibrium supersaturated microstructures. In this work, we explore the precipitation phenomena in direct strip cast Al-Fe and Al-Cu-Fe alloys and related corrosion and mechanical properties. The precipitates are characterised with differential scanning calorimetry and transmission electron microscopy. The corrosion performances are evaluated with immersion tests and weight loss measurements and the yield strength and ductility are estimated with tensile tests. A strong correlation between the microstructure and the bulk properties is revealed with a significant improvement of properties of DSC alloys.

Functionality of nano titanium dioxide on textiles with future aspects: focus on wool

The consumption of titanium dioxide in today's world is on the increase. As the most popular nano substance, TiO 2 is used in various industries notably in the textile industry. More and more recently, through a synergistic combination of photocatalytic features of nanoparticles, fabrics with novel properties are produced. Self-cleaning and stability against UV rays as well as chemical media, to name but a few, are among new prominent properties, obtained on textiles. A common subject reported in most studies has been the diverse approaches to immobilize the nanoparticles on the surface of fabrics. Wool is among common textile materials that have undergone numerous processes to be modified. This review intends to bring to light different aspects of application of nano titanium dioxide in the textile industry especially on wool, and also presents a concise overview on the rigorous pieces of research conducted in this realm.

Nano-precipitation : preparation and application in the field of pharmacy

Over the last 30 years, nanoparticle-based medicine has received tremendous attention due to its advances with smart therapeutics and less toxicity. Few nanomedicine products have been approved for commercial use in the clinic (such as Doxil®, Ambraxane®…). Nanomedicine research is still at its early stage and the preparation of nanoparticles must be carefully considered. Systems involving further increased supersaturation, either via solvent evaporation, temperature reduction or anti-solvent mixture, were suggested to be capable of inducing nanoprecipitation (NPT). Since this technique is straight-forward, fast and easy to duplicate in practice, it is highly preferred and recommended. In this review, the process of NTP was described and discussed in detail. Factors that affect the encapsulation efficiency, the nanoparticle size, the morphology and the stability of nanoparticles prepared by NTP were described. This process is one of the most preferable processes for preparing solid nano-protein due to their elegant techniques that preserve the bioactivity of proteins. Although the production of nanoparticles by this process has not been applied in the pharmaceutical industry due to the organic solvent issue, the production equipment for large-scale has been marketed.