Optimization of a New Extraction Technique for Analysis of Verbenone and cis-Verbenol in Pine Seeds

Results from a systematic study of the factors affecting extraction of cis-verbenol and verbenone from pine seeds are presented. Five extraction conditions were investigated: extraction solvent, method of extraction, extraction temperature, volume of solvent, and the ratio of the mass of sample to the amount of extraction solvent. The resulting optimized method uses magnetic-stirring-assisted extraction of pine seeds (5 g) with ethyl acetate (75 mL) for 20 min, at room temperature. RSDs were less than 5% for both compounds. GC–FID was used for quantification of cis-verbenol and verbenone in the extracts.     

Influence of Carbon Nanotubes on Phase Composition,Thermal and Post-Heating Behavior of Cementitious Composites

This paper experimentally investigates the influence of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on phase composition, microstructure deterioration, thermal behavior, and residual mechanical strengths of cementitious composites exposed to elevated temperatures. Cement mortars with small dosages of CNTs, 0.05% and 0.2% by weight of cement, were prepared and then heated at 25 °C, 150 °C, 200 °C, 450 °C, and 600 °C for two hours before being tested. The results show positive impact of the CNTs on the hydration process of cement mortar at room temperature and at higher temperatures up to 200 °C. Decomposition of the hydration products is obvious at 450 °C, whereas sever deterioration in the microstructure occurs at 600 °C. The nano reinforcement and bridging effect of the CNTs are obvious up to 450 °C. Thermal behavior characterization shows that CNTs incorporation enhances the thermal conductivity of the unheated and heat-treated mortar specimens. The decomposition of the hydration products needs more heat in the presence of CNTs. Finally, presence of CNTs significantly enhances the residual compressive and flexural strengths of heated mortar specimens for all studied temperatures.     

Equilibrium and kinetic studies for the adsorption of benzene and toluene by graphene nanosheets: a comparison with carbon nanotubes

In this study, graphene nanosheets (GNSs) were adopted as an adsorbent to investigate their characterizations and performance for adsorbing benzene and toluene in aqueous solutions. In order to determine the best fit model for each considered system, nonlinear regressions were used. Experimental data of adsorption were corroborated by the combined Langmuir–Freundlich (Sips) models for the isotherms and pseudo‐first‐order model for the kinetics. As a result, GNSs displayed high affinity to the aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene and toluene. The high affinity was dominated by π–π interactions to the flat surface and the sieving effect of the powerful groove regions formed by wrinkles on GNS's surfaces. Hydrophobic properties and molecular sizes of benzene and toluene affected the adsorption of GNS. In addition, the favorable adsorption of toluene possibly was due to the increase in the molecular weight, decrease in the solubility, and the increase in the boiling point. A comparative study on the benzene and toluene adsorption revealed that favorable adsorption of GNSs compared with that of carbon nanotubes was consistent with the order of physical properties such as specific surface area and pore's volume. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Phytochemical and In Silico ADME/Tox Analysis of Eruca sativa Extract with Antioxidant,Antibacterial and Anticancer Potential against Caco-2 and HCT-116 Colorectal Carcinoma Cell Lines

Eruca sativa Mill. (E. sativa) leaves recently grabbed the attention of scientific communities around the world due to its potent bioactivity. Therefore, the present study investigates the metabolite profiling of the ethanolic crude extract of E. sativa leaves using high resolution-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HR-LC/MS), including antibacterial, antioxidant and anticancer potential against human colorectal carcinoma cell lines. In addition, computer-aided analysis was performed for determining the pharmacokinetic properties and toxicity prediction of the identified compounds. Our results show that E. sativa contains several bioactive compounds, such as vitamins, fatty acids, alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids and phenols. Furthermore, the antibacterial assay of E. sativa extract showed inhibitory effects of the tested pathogenic bacterial strains. Moreover, the antioxidant activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) were found to be IC₅₀ = 66.16 μg/mL and 76.05 μg/mL, respectively. E. sativa also showed promising anticancer activity against both the colorectal cancer cells HCT-116 (IC₅₀ = 64.91 μg/mL) and Caco-2 (IC₅₀ = 83.98 μg/mL) in a dose/time dependent manner. The phytoconstituents identified showed promising pharmacokinetics properties, representing a valuable source for drug or nutraceutical development. These investigations will lead to the further exploration as well as development of E. sativa-based nutraceutical products.     

Entangled network and quantum communication

A theoretical scheme is introduced to generate entangled network via Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction. The dynamics of entanglement between different nodes, which is generated by direct or indirect interaction, is investigated. It is shown that, the direction of (DM) interaction and the locations of the nodes have a sensational effect on the degree of entanglement. The minimum entanglement generated between all the nodes is quantified. The upper and lower bounds of the entanglement depend on the direction of DM interaction, and the repetition of the behavior depends on the strength of DM. The generated entangled nodes are used as quantum channel to perform quantum teleportation, where it is shown that the fidelity of teleporting unknown information between the network members depends on the locations of the members.     

Structural and optoelectronic properties of amorphous GaN thin films

Amorphous gallium nitride (a-GaN) thin films were deposited on glass substrate by electron beam evaporation technique at room temperature and high vacuum using N ₂ as carrier gas. The structural properties of the films was studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). It was clear from XRD spectra and SEM study that the GaN thin films were amorphous. The absorbance, transmittance and reflectance spectra of these films were measured in the wavelength range of 300–2200 nm. The absorption coefficient spectral analysis in the sharp absorption region revealed a direct band gap of E _g = 3:1 eV. The data analysis allowed the determination of the dispersive optical parameters by calculating the refractive index. The oscillator energy E ₀ and the dispersion energy E _d, which is a measure of the average strength of inter-band optical transition or the oscillator strength, were determined. Electrical conductivity of a-GaN was measured in a different range of temperatures. Then, activation energy of a-GaN thin films was calculated which equalled E _a = 0:434 eV.     

A new approach to the reduction of sulfoxides to sulfides with 1,3-dithiane in the presence of electrophilic bromine as catalyst

A new, mild, and novel method is described for the efficient deoxygenation of sulfoxides to their corresponding sulfides with 1,3-dithiane at room temperature in the presence of catalytic amounts of N-bromosuccinimide (NBS), 2,4,4,6-tetrabromo-2,5-cyclohexadienone (TABCO), or Br(2) as the source of electrophilic bromine.     

Heavy-atom kinetic isotope effects,cocatalysts, and the propagation transition state for polymerization of 1-hexene using the rac-(C(2)H(4)(1-indenyl)(2))ZrMe(2) catalyst precursor

Using 13C NMR techniques, the 12C/13C kinetic isotope effects (KIEs) for the polymerization of 1-hexene catalyzed by rac-(C2H4(1-indenyl)2)ZrMe2 in the presence of four different cocatalysts (tris(pentfluorophenyl)borane, tris(pentafluorophenyl)alane, anilinium tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)borate, and methylalumoxane) have been determined. All cocatalysts yield similar KIEs within experimental uncertainty, with values of 1.009(1) and 1.017(2) at C1 and C2, respectively. Ab initio DFT computational modeling of the polymerization KIE indicates that alkene binding to the catalyst must be reversible, with the majority of the KIE developing in the subsequent migratory insertion reaction.