Initial design and physical characterization of a polymeric device for osmosis-driven delayed burst delivery of vaccines

Achieving the combination of delayed and immediate release of a vaccine from a delivery device without applying external triggers remains elusive in implementing single administration vaccination strategies. Here a means of vaccine delivery is presented, which exploits osmosis to trigger delayed burst release of an active compound. Poly(-caprolactone) capsules of 2 mm diameter were prepared by dip-coating, and their burst pressure and release characteristics were evaluated. Burst pressures (in bar) increased with wall thickness (t in mm) following Pburst = 131.t + 3.4 (R2 = 0.93). Upon immersion in PBS, glucose solution-filled capsules burst after 8.7 ± 2.9 days. Copolymers of hydrophobic  -caprolactone and hydrophilic polyethylene glycol were synthesized and their physico-chemical properties were assessed. With increasing hydrophilic content, the copolymer capsules showed increased water uptake rates and maximum weight increase, while the burst release was earlier: 5.6 ± 2.0 days and 1.9 ± 0.2 days for 5 and 10 wt% polyethylene glycol, respectively. The presented approach enables the reproducible preparation of capsules with high versatility in materials and properties, while these vaccine delivery vehicles can be prepared separately from, and independently of the active compound.

Microwave irradiation-assisted method for the deposition of adherent oxide films on semiconducting and dielectric substrates

We report a method for the deposition of thin films and thick coatings of metal oxides through the liquid medium, involving the micro waveirradiation of a solution of a metal-organic complex in a suitable dielectric solvent. The process is a combination of sol-gel and dip-coating methods, wherein coatings can be obtained on nonconducting and semiconducting substrates, within a few minutes. Thin films of nanostructured ZnO (wurtzite) have been obtained on Si(100), glass and polymer substrates, the nanostructure determined by process parameters The coatings are strongly adherent and uniform over 15 mm x 15 mm, the growth rate similar to 0.25 mu m/min Coatings of nanocrystalline Fe2O3 and Ga2O3 have also been obtained The method is scalable to larger substrates, and is promising as a low temperature technique for coating dielectric substrates, including flexible polymers. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Modified-Pore-Filled-PVDF-Membrane Electrolytes for Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

The polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane is modified by the chemical etchant-route employing a sodium naphthalene charge-transfer complex followed by impregnation with Nafion ionomer or polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-polystyrene sulfonic acid (PSSA) polymeric blend solutions by a dip-coating technique to form pore-filled-membrane electrolytes for application in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). The number of coatings on the surface-modified PVDF membrane is varied between 5 and 15 and is found to be optimum at 10 layers both for Nafion and PVA-PSSA impregnations for effective DMFC performance. Hydrophilicity of the modified-membrane electrolytes is studied by determining average contact angle and surface-wetting energy. Morphology of the membranes is analyzed by a cross-sectional scanning electron microscope. The modified PVDF membrane electrolytes are characterized for their water-methanol sorption in conjunction with their mechanical properties, proton conductivity, and DMFC performance. Air permeability for the modified membranes is studied by a capillary-flow porometer. Methanol crossover flux across modified-PVDF-membrane electrolytes is studied by measuring the mass balance of methanol using a density meter. DMFCs employing membrane electrode assemblies with the modified PVDF membranes exhibit a peak power-density of 83 mW/cm(2) with Nafion impregnation and 59 mW/cm(2) for PVA-PSSA impregnation, respectively. Among the membranes studied here, stabilities of modified-pore-filled PVDF-Nafion and PVDF-PVA-PSSA membranes with 10-layers coat are promising for application in DMFCs. (C) 2010 The Electrochemical Society. DOI: 10.1149/1.3518774] All rights reserved.

pH Induced switching in hydrogel coated fiber bragg grating sensor

In this paper we report a novel hydrogel functionalized optical Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensor based on chemo-mechanical-optical sensing, and demonstrate its specific application in pH activated process monitoring. The sensing mechanism is based on the stress due to ion diffusion and polymer phase transition which produce strain in the FBG. This results in shift in the Bragg wavelength which is detected by an interrogator system. A simple dip coating method to coat a thin layer of hydrogel on the FBG has been established. The gel consists of sodium alginate and calcium chloride. Gel formation is observed in real-time by continuously monitoring the Bragg wavelength shift. We have demonstrated pH sensing in the range of pH of 2 to 10. Another interesting phenomenon is observed by swelling and deswelling of FBG functionalized with hydrogel by a sequence of alternate dipping between acidic and base solutions. It is observed that the Bragg wavelength undergoes reversible and repeatable pH dependent switching.

Chitosan Immobilized Porous Polyolefin As Sustainable and Efficient Antibacterial Membranes

Polyolefinic membranes have attracted a great deal of interest owing to their ease of processing and chemical inertness. In this study, porous polyolefin membranes were derived by selectively etching PEO from PE/PEO (polyethylene/poly(ethylene oxide)) blends. The hydrophobic polyolefin (low density polyethylene) was treated with UV-ozone followed by dip coating in chitosan acetate solution to obtain a hydrophilic-antibacterial surface. The chitosan immobilized PE membranes were further characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscope (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscope (XPS). It was found that surface grafting of chitosan onto PE membranes enhanced the surface roughness and the concentration of nitrogen (or amine) scaled with increasing concentration of chitosan (0.25 to 2% wt/vol), as inferred from Kjeldahl nitrogen analysis. The pure water flux was almost similar for chitosan immobilized PE membranes as compared to membranes without chitosan. The bacterial population, substantially reduced for membranes with higher concentration of chitosan. For instance, 90 and 94% reduction in Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) colony forming unit respectively was observed with 2% wt/vol of chitosan. This study opens new avenues in designing polyolefinic based antibacterial membranes for water purification.

Optical and Morphological Properties of Sol Gel derived Titanium dioxide Films

Titanium oxide (Titania) thin films were synthesized on different substrates via the sol-gel dip-coating method using alkoxide solution. Some selected samples were also prepared with different percentage of Lead (Pb). The influence of Pb addition in precursor sol on the optical properties of titanium dioxide thin films was studied. The optical transmittance in the visible region has increased with increase in weight percentage of lead. The refractive index was slightly decreased with Pb addition. Crystallization of these coatings was achieved through thermal annealing at temperatures above 400 degrees C. The structural properties and surface morphology of the crystallized coatings were studied by Scanning Electron Microscopy. Increase in average grain size from 250 nm to 350 nm with increase in Pb concentration is observed. Films were appeared to more coarse with increase in Pb addition. An increase in Pb addition resulted increase in average roughness from 12 nm to 25 nm.

高度C轴取向的ZnO膜的低温水热法制备

在预先镀有ZnO纳米层的（0001）蓝宝石衬底上利用低温水热法制备出ZnO薄膜。SEM和XRD显示此ZnO膜是由六棱柱状阵列构成的，基于蓝宝石衬底生长，具有高度的c轴择优取向，且（0004）摇摆曲线的FWHM达到1．8°。并发现了在水热溶液中加入一定量六次甲基四胺可以调节六棱柱状ZnO尺寸比例。

Low-temperature hydrothermal growth of oriented [0001] ZnO film

Well-aligned ZnO films have been successfully prepared by using low-temperature hydrothermal approach on (0001) sapphire substrates that were pre-coated with a ZnO nano-layer by dip-coating. The characterizations of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicate that the ZnO films consist of hexagonal rods that grow along the c axis based on the sapphire substrates. It is found that the size of ZnO rods can be adjusted by an aqueous solution with some methenamine. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Desenvolvimento de revestimentos de óxidos mistos nanoestruturados de TiO2/Al2O3 em substratos metálicos de aço AISI 1020 e estudo das propriedades anticorrosivas

Sóis liofilizados precursores de Al2O3/TiO2, foram preparados via tecnologia sol-gel, com diferentes porcentagens de óxido de titânio (5%, 10%, 15% e 20%, em massa). Os sóis liofilizados foram caracterizados por meio de diversas análises, com o intuito de obter informações sobre o comportamento térmico, fases presentes, tamanho de partícula, composição e uniformidade das amostras. Os resultados obtidos indicam que os sóis apresentam as fases boemita e anatase, com partículas de tamanho nanométrico, tem composições muito similares quando analisadas em pontos distintos, átomos bem dispersos e distribuídos. Após esta etapa, amostras de aço AISI 1020 foram recobertas com estes sóis através do método dip-coating, o comportamento corrosivo foi estudado por meio de ensaios eletroquímicos e a morfologia das camadas, analisadas por meio de microscopias. Observou-se que as camadas eram uniformes e recobriam por completo toda a superfície das amostras, os ensaios de polarização indicaram melhorias no potencial eletroquímico para amostras recobertas, em comparação com amostras de aço sem recobrimento. O monitoramento de circuito aberto apresentou bons ajustes, indicando bom comportamento da camada. Notou-se pelas microscopias a presença de pontos de corrosão em algumas amostras antes dos ensaios, suspeitando-se que os resultados obtidos teriam sido melhores, caso houvesse um maior controle do processo de recobrimento.

Carbon nanotube growth for through silicon via application.

Through silicon via (TSV) technology is key for next generation three-dimensional integrated circuits, and carbon nanotubes (CNT) provide a promising alternative to metal for filling the TSV. Three catalyst preparation methods for achieving CNT growth from the bottom of the TSV are investigated. Compared with sputtering and evaporation, catalyst deposition using dip-coating in a FeCl2 solution is found to be a more efficient method for realizing a bottom-up filling of the TSV (aspect ratio 5 or 10) with CNT. The CNT bundles grown in 5 min exceed the 50 μm length of the TSV and are multi-wall CNT with three to eight walls. The CNT bundles inside the TSV were electrically characterized by creating a direct contact using a four-point nanoprober setup. A low resistance of the CNT bundle of 69.7 Ω (297 Ω) was measured when the CNT bundle was contacted midway along (over the full length of) the 25 μm deep TSV. The electrical characterization in combination with the good filling of the TSV demonstrates the potential use of CNT in fully integrated TSV applications.

Quasi-hexagonal ordered arrays of FePt nanoparticles prepared by a micellar method

Hexagonally ordered arrays of magnetic FePt nanoparticles on Si substrates are prepared by a self assembly of diblock copolymer PS-b-P2VP in toluene, a dip coating process and finally plasma treatment. The as-treated FePt nanoparticles are covered by an oxide layer that can be removed by a 40 s Ar+ sputtering. The effects of the sequence of adding salts on the composition distribution are revealed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements. No particle agglomeration is observed after 600 degrees C annealing for the present ordered array of FePt nanoparticles, which exhibits advantages in patterning FePt nanoparticles by a micellar method. Moreover, magnetic properties of the annealed FePt nanoparticles at room temperature are investigated by a vibrating sample magnetometer.

Surface characteristics of SiO2-TiO2 strip fabricated by laser direct writing

SiO2-TiO2 sol-gel films are deposited on SiO2/Si by dip-coating technique. The SiO2-TiO2 strips are fabricated by laser direct writing using all ytterbium fiber laser and followed by chemical etching. Surface structures, morphologies and roughness of the films and strips are characterized. The experimental results demonstrate that the SiO2-TiO2 sol-gel film is loose in Structure and a shrinkage concave groove forms if the film is irradiated by laser beam. The surface roughness of both non-irradiated and laser irradiated areas increases with the chemical etching time. But the roughness of laser irradiated area increases more than that of non-irradiated area under the same etching time. After being etched for 28 s, the surface roughness value of the laser irradiated area increases from 0.3 nm to 3.1 nm.

Enhanced photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nano-structured thin film with a silver hierarchical configuration

TiO2 sol-gels with various Ag/TiO2 molar ratios from 0 to 0.9% were used to fabricate silver-modified nano-structured TiO2 thin films using a layer-by-layer dip-coating (LLDC) technique. This technique allows obtaining TiO2 nano-structured thin films with a silver hierarchical configuration. The coating of pure TiO2 sol-gel and Ag-modified sol-gel was marked as T and A, respectively. According to the coating order and the nature of the TiO2 sol-gel, four types of the TiO2 thin films were constructed, and marked as AT (bottom layer was Ag modified, surface layer was pure TiO,), TA (bottom layer was pure TiO,, surface layer was Ag modified), TT (pure TiO, thin film) and AA (TiO, thin film was uniformly Ag modified). These thin films were characterized by means of linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and transient photocurrent (I-ph). LSV confirmed the existence of Ago state in the TiO, thin film. SEM and XRD experiments indicated that the sizes of the TiO,, nanoparticles of the resulting films were in the order of TT > AT > TA > AA, suggesting the gradient Ag distribution in the films. The SEM and XRD results also confirmed that Ag had an inhibition effect on the size growth of anatase nanoparticles. Photocatalytic activities of the resulting thin films were also evaluated in the photocatalytic degradation process of methyl orange. The preliminary results demonstrated the sequence of the photocatalytic activity of the resulting films was AT > TA > AA > TT. This suggested that the silver hierarchical configuration can be used to improve the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 thin film.

稀土配合物掺杂的中孔杂化发光材料的制备及其表征

稀土配合物由于具有优良的窄带发光性能和较长的荧光寿命，因而在光电学领域比如激光材料或者荧光标记上引起了广泛的兴趣和应用。吸附在固体表面的稀土配合物的发光性质得到了广泛的研究。MCM-48中孔材料是M41S家族中的一种，具有直径20-30A三维结构的中孔孔道，比MCM-41的一维结构孔道更有优势，比如它可以最大可能的避免客体分子的堆积现象。因此本论文中我们研究了将稀土（Eu3+）β-二酮（DBM＝dibenzoylmethane）配合物掺杂到纯硅MCM-48以及三种有机基团嫁接的有机－无机杂化MCM-48的孔道中去，得到了各种不同的杂化中孔发光材料。首先烧结后的MCM-48被装载稀土Eu（OBM）3'2H2O配合物之后。XRD结果说明稀土配合物被组装到了MCM-48中，其有序结构因为稀土配合物的进入而受到一定的影响，但是样品仍保持了MCM-48的立方相结构。分别通过吸收光谱和热失重的方法计算了掺杂后的发光MCM-48样品进行洗涤后留在MCM一48中配合物的量。固体漫反射光谱在紫外区有一个OBM配体的Sn基态能级（π）到S1激发态能级份＊）的电子跃迁形成的吸收宽带。可见区还观察到E护”离子的4f-4畴征吸收线。与稀土配合物中的OBM配体相比，掺杂MCM-48样品的Sn-S1吸收带均发生蓝移，反映了S1能级向高能方向移动。然后采用了室温两步合成法合成MCM-48，模板剂的去除采用了溶剂萃取法。最佳掺杂浓度为6.98×10-3 mol/l；同时最佳掺杂时间为24小时。在同样的掺杂条件下，稀土配合物在基质中的掺杂量MCM-48＞MCM-41＞＞SiO2。萃取之后的MCM-48在外形上近乎于球形，粒子的直径在0.7-1.2μm之间。粒子显现出多孔的海绵状表面形态，并且具有晶体结构外形，呈菱形十二面体被削去顶端立方体的结构。而且在粒子的表面观察到了类似螺旋结构的孔道，我们认为这是MCM一48所特有的双螺旋型三维孔道结构，这是到目前为止首次报道利用扫描电镜观察到中孔分子筛的孔道结构。荧光光谱结果观察到了激发峰的最大值由于纳米粒子效应出现的蓝移现象。不同基质中的发射系数QZ和04比较可知配合物在三种基质SiO2、MCM-41和MCM-48中环境的极性相差不大。掺杂到中孔MCM-48材料中的稀土配合物的热稳定性比在MCM-41中强，这是由于MCM-48的三维孔道对配合物的保护作用。室温条件下合成的MCM-48分子筛利用后合成嫁接的方法[post-synthesis grajng（PSG）]进行表面修饰，修饰剂选用了带有功能性乙烯基的VTES，链长最短的MTES以及带有氨基的长链NTSED。稀土Eu（DBM）3'2H2O配合物被组装到杂化中孔分子筛材料中。红外光谱与2951核磁共振光谱表明MCM-48的表面被成功的接枝上了有机M下任S，盯任s，N丁s任D基团。与MCM-48相比，MCM-48-R的表面积、孔体积和孔径的减少有以下NTSED＞VTES＞MTES的顺序。这也许是修饰的有机基团不同的链的长度不同的原因。稀土配合物在这三种有机一无机杂化基质环境的极性比纯硅MCM-48要增大。同时配合物在三种基质的中的QZ的值及发光效率的顺序为：MCM-48-MTES＜MCM-48-VTES＜MCM-48-NTSED，说明MCM-48经过三种有机硅氧烷修饰之后孔道极性也遵循同样的顺序，可以认为这是由于三种有机基团的链长的不同造成的，链长越长则修饰之后孔道极性增大的就越多。最后通过溶胶一凝胶过程利用提拉法（Dip-coating method）制备了具有中孔结构的SiO2-CTAB-Tb（acac）3透明发光薄膜（Mesostructed Iuminescence thin film，略为MLTF），稀土配合物利用原位合成（In-situ）的办法掺入到透明薄膜中。对薄膜进行热处理过程表明薄膜中的稀土配合物在50℃的时候开始形成。XRO结果表明稀土离子及有机配体的掺入对薄膜中孔相的结构没有太大的影响，荧光薄膜仍保持层状结构。红外光谱结果说明制备的中孔薄膜是由CTAB和硅氧烷聚合物组成的复合薄膜。荧光薄膜的发射光谱给出了Th3+离子的特征发射峰，荧光薄膜中有机配体与丁b离子之间发生了能量传递现象。因为在热处理过程中有机配体逐渐代替了开始与Tb离子配位的OH基团，使得二者间的能量传递更加有效，从而导致了荧光的增强。

Synthesis of Ruthenium Dioxide Nanoparticles by a Two-Phase Route and Their Electrochemical Properties

Dissolvable, size- and shape-controlled ruthenium dioxide nanoparticles are successfully achieved through a two-phase route. The influence of reaction time, temperature, and monomer concentration and the nature of capping agents on the morphologies of nanoparticles are studied through transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A possible mechanism for the formation and growth of nanoparticles is also involved. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) confirms the amorphous structure for as-prepared ruthenium dioxide nanoparticles. Samples are immobilized by simple dip-coating on a current collector, and the cyclic voltammetry measurement is utilized to investigate their electrochemical properties. The specific capacitance of one sample can teach as high as 840 F g(-1), which reveals the promising application potential to electrochemical capacitors.