Comparing the photocatalytic activity of N-doped and S-doped titanium dioxide nanoparticles for water splitting under sunlight radiation

The objective of this research is to compare the photocatalytic activity of nanoparticles of N-doped and S-doped titanium dioxide in water splitting by using sunlight radiation for hydrogen production. The sol–gel method was used for the preparation of nanoparticles of doped TiO₂ and the weight percent of doping element was 2, 4, 6 and 8. The prepared nanoparticles were identified by absorbance spectra of UV–Vis and FT-IR, TGA, XRD patterns, FE-SEM images and EDX spectra. The nanoparticles of S–\({\text{TiO}}_{2}\) indicated the lower band gap and lesser particle size versus N–\({\text{TiO}}_{2}\) nanoparticles. Nevertheless, the nanoparticles of N–\({\text{TiO}}_{2}\) showed the higher photocatalytic activity in hydrogen production process. The activity of doped samples with sulfur (S–\({\text{TiO}}_{2}\)) was reduced by the presence of sulfate anions, and the absorption of radiation in the samples surface was due to a decrease in the number of electron–hole pair in photocatalyst. The photocatalytic activity of N–\({\text{TiO}}_{2}\) was also increased with the increasing in weight fraction of N atoms, and the highest hydrogen production was obtained in 6 wt% of nitrogen.     

Determination of Total Iron in Environmental Samples by Solid Phase Extraction with Dimethyl(E)‐2‐(2‐Methoxyphenoxy)‐2‐Butenedioate

A novel solid phase extraction technique for determination of total iron in environmental water samples was developed. The method is based on sorption of Fe(III) ions on octadecyl silica membrane disk modified with a new synthetic ligand dimethyl(E)‐2‐(2‐methoxyphenoxy)‐2‐butenedioate (I). Iron(III) is quantitatively retained on the disk in the pH range of 3–7 at a flow rate of 1–7 mL min⁻¹. The Fe(III) eluted with 10 mL of 0.01 M EDTA and than was measured by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) at 248.3 nm. The maximum capacity disk modified by 7 mg of ligand was found to be 197 ± 2 μg of iron(III). The breakthrough volume was greater than 2000 mL. The iron(III) was completely recovered (> 99%) from water with a preconcentration factor of more than 200. The limit of detection of the proposed method was 1.00 ng mL⁻¹. The various cationic and anionic interferences had no effect on the recovery of iron(III) from the binary mixtures. The proposed method was successfully applied to determination of total iron from three different water samples.     

MicroRNA‐2861 and nanofibrous scaffold synergistically promote human induced pluripotent stem cells osteogenic differentiation

Tissue engineering using new strategies has become a growing and promising method for treating large tissue lesions in the body. On the other hand, microRNAs (miRNAs), which are small non‐coding regulatory RNAs, are a new class of genetic materials that can have effective pharmacological roles. The combination of these two themes has created promising prospects for the treatment of diseases. Herein, human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) were transduced with miRNA‐2861 and then the osteogenic differentiation potential of transduced iPSCs and non‐transduced iPSCs was investigated while cultured on the electrospun poly lactic‐co‐glycolic acid (PLGA) nanofibrous scaffold and culture plate. MiR‐2861‐transduced iPSCs showed a significantly higher viability, mineralization, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, calcium content, and bone‐related gene expression in comparison with those iPSCs that non‐transduced. The results also indicated that this increase is improved when miR‐2861 transduced iPSCs are cultured on the PLGA nanofibrous scaffold synergistically. This synergy was also confirmed by the results obtained from of Western blot analysis. It can be concluded that, miR‐2861, by negative regulation of those proteins that decrease/inhibit osteogenic differentiation and PLGA nanofibrous scaffold by preparation of a suitable artificial extracellular matrix, have a great positive impact in improving iPSCs osteogenic differentiation potential and this blend can be proposed to use in bone tissue engineering application.     

Stereoselective Solvent‐Free Synthesis of 4‐Hydroxy‐1,3‐thiazinane‐2‐thiones

An efficient solvent‐free one‐pot stereoselective synthesis of 4‐hydroxy‐1,3‐thiazinane‐2‐thione derivatives from the reaction of primary amines and carbon disulfide in the presence of α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes has been reported. The 4‐hydroxy‐1,3‐thiazinane‐2‐thione derivatives were easily converted to the related dehydrated or acetylated products.     

Red water treatment by photodegradation process in presence of modified TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> nanoparticles and validation of treatment efficiency by MLR technique

An active photocatalyst under sunlight irradiation was proposed for treatment of red water of TNT production process. The nanoparticles of TiO₂/S_0.05,Zn_0.05 were prepared by the sol–gel method and were verified by XRD pattern, TEM image, EDXS analysis, BET analysis and DRS spectra. The proposed photocatalyst showed the surface area of 146 m² g^?1, anatase and rutile phases and band-gap energy of 2.92 eV. The prepared nanoparticles were used as photocatalyst in treatment of red water under UV lamp and sun irradiations. The photodegradation process was optimized in conditions of 5 g L^?1 of photocatalyst, irradiation time of 4 h and dilution times of 1000 of real samples. The treatment efficiency of 76 and 69 % and rate constants of 0.368 and 0.319 h^?1 were obtained under UV and sun irradiations, respectively. The multiple linear regression as a statistic technique was used for study of validation and verification of four factors of mole fraction of S dopant, the irradiation intensity of UV lamp, the dose of photocatalyst and dilution times on samples as predictor’s on the treatment efficiency of red water as the response variable. The output of MLR showed the obtained P values <0.05 in confidence level of 95 % for all of the variables. Thus, the null hypothesis is rejected, and a meaningful addition is observed in the model because changes in the predictor’s value are related to changes in the response variable.     

Radiative properties of cirrus clouds in the infrared (8–13 μm) spectral region

Atmospheric radiation in the infrared (IR) 8–13 μm spectral region contains a wealth of information that is very useful for the retrieval of ice cloud properties from aircraft or space-borne measurements. To provide the scattering and absorption properties of nonspherical ice crystals that are fundamental to the IR retrieval implementation, we use the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method to solve for the extinction efficiency, single-scattering albedo, and the asymmetry parameter of the phase function for ice crystals smaller than 40 μm. For particles larger than this size, the improved geometric optics method (IGOM) can be employed to calculate the asymmetry parameter with an acceptable accuracy, provided that we properly account for the inhomogeneity of the refracted wave due to strong absorption inside the ice particle. A combination of the results computed from the two methods provides the asymmetry parameter for the entire practical range of particle sizes between 1 and 10,000 μm over the wavelengths ranging from 8 to 13 μm. For the extinction and absorption efficiency calculations, several methods including the IGOM, Mie solution for equivalent spheres (MSFES), and the anomalous diffraction theory (ADT) can lead to a substantial discontinuity in comparison with the FDTD solutions for particle sizes on the order of 40 μm. To overcome this difficulty, we have developed a novel approach called the stretched scattering potential method (SSPM). For the IR 8–13 μm spectral region, we show that SSPM is a more accurate approximation than ADT, MSFES, and IGOM. The SSPM solution can be further refined numerically. Through a combination of the FDTD and SSPM, the extinction and absorption efficiencies are computed for hexagonal ice crystals with sizes ranging from 1 to 10,000 μm at 12 wavelengths between 8 and 13 μm.

Calculations of the cirrus bulk scattering and absorption properties are performed for 30 size distributions obtained from various field campaigns for midlatitude and tropical cirrus cloud systems. Ice crystals are assumed to be hexagonal columns randomly oriented in space. The bulk scattering properties are parameterized through the use of second-order polynomial functions for the extinction efficiency and the single-scattering albedo and a power-law expression for the asymmetry parameter. We note that the volume-normalized extinction coefficient can be separated into two parts: one is inversely proportional to effective size and is independent of wavelength, and the other is the wavelength-dependent effective extinction efficiency. Unlike conventional parameterization efforts, the present parameterization scheme is more accurate because only the latter part of the volume-normalized extinction coefficient is approximated in terms of an analytical expression. After averaging over size distribution, the single-scattering albedo is shown to decrease with an increase in effective size for wavelengths shorter than 10.0 μm whereas the opposite behavior is observed for longer wavelengths. The variation of the asymmetry parameter as a function of effective size is substantial when the effective size is smaller than 50 μm. For effective sizes larger than 100 μm, the asymmetry parameter approaches its asymptotic value. The results derived in this study can be useful to remote sensing studies of ice clouds involving IR window bands.     

Electrocatalytic determination of sulfite using a modified carbon nanotubes paste electrode: application for determination of sulfite in real samples

This paper introduces a carbon paste electrode modified with ferrocene and carbon nanotubes as a voltammetric sensor for determination of sulfite at pH 7.0. The results showed that under the optimum condition (pH 7.0) in cyclic voltammetry, the oxidation of sulfite occurred at a potential about 280?mV less positive than the unmodified carbon paste electrode. Kinetic parameters such as electron transfer coefficient (??) and heterogeneous rate constant (k) for sulfite were also determined using electrochemical approaches. Under the optimized conditions, the electrocatalytic oxidation peak current of sulfite showed two linear dynamic ranges with a detection limit of 0.1???M for sulfite. The proposed method was examined as a selective, simple, and precise method for voltammetric determination of sulfite in some real samples such as weak liquor from wood and paper industry, boiler water, river water, industrial water, and tap water.