Removal and preconcentration of lead(II), cadmium(II) and chromium(III) ions from wastewater samples using surface functionalized magnetite nanoparticles

The potential removal and preconcentration of lead(II), cadmium(II), and chromium(III) ions from wastewaters were investigated and explored. Magnetite nanoparticles were chemically modified with p-nitro aniline. The aniline-coated magnetite nanoparticles (ANMNPs) were fully characterized by FT-IR, XRD, SEM, and TEM measurements. Batch studies were performed to address various experimental parameters for the removal and determination of these ions. ANMNPs showed high tendency to investigated metal ions, in this order: Cr(III) > Cd(II) > Pb(II), owing to the strong contribution of surface loaded aniline. The potential applications of ANMNPs adsorbent for removal and preconcentration of Pb(II), Cr(III), and Cd(II) from wastewaters as well as drinking tap water samples were successfully accomplished giving recovery values of (98–101 %), without any noticeable interference of the wastewater or drinking tap water matrices.     

Molecularly imprinted polymer coated magnetite nanoparticles as an efficient mefenamic acid resonance light scattering nanosensor

In this work, a mefenamic acid (MFA) nanosensor was synthesized by the aid of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) technique. MIP layer was coated on magnetite nanoparticles as magnetic nano-carriers. Synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using various measurements techniques. Light scattering properties of the synthesized nanoparticles in the presence or absence of MFA have been selected as the detection signal. In this regard, resonance light scattering has been used as the detection method. Various factors that can potentially affect light scattering efficiency (i.e., pH, ultrasonication time and nanoparticle dosage) were optimized using “one-at-a-time” method. A linear dynamic range was established from 100.0 to 2000.0 ng L⁻¹ of MFA and the limit of detection was found to be 50.0 ng L⁻¹ using the proposed method.     

Fabrication of newly developed pectin –GeO2 nanocomposite using extreme biomimetics route and its antibacterial activities

The combination of pectins and germanium dioxide may generate novel materials with excellent and unique properties combining the advantages of macromolecules, derived from renewable resources and metal oxide nanoparticles. Pectin–GeO₂ nanocomposite was prepared by hydrothermal method at room temperature. Structural morphology and chemical interactions between GeO₂ and pectin were analyzed using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy Equipped with Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR-ATR), AC impedance spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrophotometer (SEM-EDS) Thermo gravimetric analysis (TG) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). According to the TEM observation, the average composite granules size was about 70 nm and the embedded GeO₂ nanoparticles were uniform with an average diameter of 20 nm. The pectin-germanium dioxide degradation was observed in one single DSC endoderm peak at 100°C (Area swept 276.4 mJ and enthalpy change 48.1 J/g) and three DTG peaks in the temperature range between 165 and 570°C. All the results suggest the pectin–GeO₂ nanocomposite as a promising candidate for biomedical and environmental applications.     

Size dependent analysis of functionally graded microbeams using strain gradient elasticity incorporated with surface energy

In this study, strain gradient theory is used to show the small scale effects on bending, vibration and stability of microscaled functionally graded (FG) beams. For this purpose, Euler–Bernoulli beam model is used and the numerical results are given for different boundary conditions. Analytical solutions are given for static deflection and buckling loads of the microbeams while generalized differential quadrature (GDQ) method is used to calculate their natural frequencies. The results are compared with classical elasticity ones to show the significance of the material length scale parameter (MLSP) effects and the general trend of the scale dependencies. In addition, it is shown the effect of surface energies relating to the strain gradient elasticity is negligible and can be ignored in vibration and buckling analyses. Combination of the well-known experimental setups with the results given in this paper can be used to find the effective MLSP for metal-ceramic FG microbeams. This helps to predict their accurate scale dependent mechanical behaviors by the introduced theoretical framework.     

Size dependent buckling analysis of functionally graded micro beams based on modified couple stress theory

Buckling analysis of functionally graded micro beams based on modified couple stress theory is presented. Three different beam theories, i.e. classical, first and third order shear deformation beam theories, are considered to study the effect of shear deformations. To present a profound insight on the effect of boundary conditions, beams with hinged-hinged, clamped–clamped and clamped–hinged ends are studied. Governing equations and boundary conditions are derived using principle of minimum potential energy. Afterwards, generalized differential quadrature (GDQ) method is applied to solve the obtained differential equations. Some numerical results are presented to study the effects of material length scale parameter, beam thickness, Poisson ratio and power index of material distribution on size dependent buckling load. It is observed that buckling loads predicted by modified couple stress theory deviates significantly from classical ones, especially for thin beams. It is shown that size dependency of FG micro beams differs from isotropic homogeneous micro beams as it is a function of power index of material distribution. In addition, the general trend of buckling load with respect to Poisson ratio predicted by the present model differs from classical one.     

Chitosan-Placental ECM Composite Thermos-Responsive Hydrogel as a Biomimetic Wound Dressing with Angiogenic Property

Attempts are being made to develop an ideal wound dressing with excellent biomechanical and biological properties. Here, a thermos-responsive hydrogel is fabricated using chitosan (CTS) with various concentrations (1%, 2.5%, and 5% w/v) of solubilized placental extracellular matrix (ECM) and 20% β-glycerophosphate to optimize a smart wound dressing hydrogel with improved biological behavior. The thermo-responsive CTS (TCTS) alone or loaded with ECMs (ECM-TCTS) demonstrate uniform morphology using SEM. TCTS and ECM1%-TCTS and ECM2.5%-TCTS show a gelation time of 5 min at 37 °C, while no gel formation is observed at 4 and 25 °C. ECM5%-TCTS forms gel at both 25 and 37 °C. The degradation and swelling ratios increase as the ECM content of the hydrogel increase. All the constructs show excellent biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo, however, the hydrogels with a higher concentration of ECM demonstrate better cell adhesion for fibroblast cells and induce expression of angiogenic factors (VEGF and VEGFR) from HUVEC. Only the ECM5%-TCTS has antibacterial activity against Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 19606. The data obtained from the current study suggest the ECM2.5%-TCTS as an optimized smart biomimetic wound dressing with improved angiogenic properties now promises to proceed with pre-clinical and clinical investigations.