Characterization of native and anodic oxide films formed on commercial pure titanium using electrochemical properties and morphology techniques

Potentiostatically anodized oxide films on the surface of commercial pure titanium (cp-Ti) formed in sulfuric (0.5 M H₂SO₄) and in phosphoric (1.4 M H₃PO₄) acid solutions under variables anodizing voltages were investigated and compared with the native oxide film. Potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, EIS, were used to predicate the different in corrosion behavior of the oxide film samples. Scanning electron microscope, SEM, and electron diffraction X-ray analysis, EDX, were used to investigate the difference in the morphology between different types of oxide films. The electrochemical characteristics were examined in phosphate saline buffer solution, PSB (pH 7.4) at 25 °C. Results have been shown that the nature of the native oxide film is thin and amorphous, while the process of anodization of Ti in both acid solutions plays an important role in changing the properties of passive oxide films. Significant increase in the corrosion resistance of the anodized surface film was recorded after 3 h of electrode immersion in PSB. On the other side, the coverage (θ) of film formed on cp-Ti was differed by changing the anodized acid solution. Impedance results showed that both the native film and anodized film formed on cp-Ti consist of two layers. The resistance of the anodized film has reached to the highest value by anodization of cp-Ti in H₃PO₄ and the inner layer in the anodized film formed in both acid solutions is also porous.     

An efficient cubic B-spline and bicubic B-spline collocation method for numerical solutions of multidimensional nonlinear stochastic quadratic integral equations

This paper aims to develop a novel numerical approach on the basis of B-spline collocation method to approximate the solution of one-dimensional and two-dimensional nonlinear stochastic quadratic integral equations. The proposed approach is based on the hybrid of collocation method, cubic B-spline, and bi-cubic B-spline interpolation and Itô approximation. Using this method, the problem solving turns into a nonlinear system solution of equations that is solved by a suitable numerical method. Also, the convergence analysis of this numerical approach has been discussed. In the end, examples are given to test the accuracy and the implementation of the method. The results are compared with the results obtained by other methods to verify that this method is accurate and efficient.     

Preparation and Some Properties of Lithium Vanadium Bronzes

Lithium vanadium bronzes with composition formula Li_xV₂O₅ (0.04 ≤ × ≤ 0.92) have been prepared by solid‐state reaction at 650 °C in argon atmosphere. The obtained products were characterized by X‐ray powder diffraction and IR spectroscopy. The results reveal that four phases are present in the range from x = 0.04 to 0.92, namely α, β, β′, and γ phase. The magnetic susceptibility for the investigated bronzes was measured using the conventional Gouy's method. The values of the effective magnetic moments, as calculated from experimental data, indicate the presence of V⁴⁺ ions in all bronze samples. The electrical conductivity as a function of temperature and lithium content was measured in the temperature range from room temperature to 483 K. The electrical conductivity of the bronzes is found to be affected by lithium content. The values of the electrical conductivity increase with temperature for the prepared samples and both electronic and ionic conduction are discussed.     

Supported palladium oxide nanoparticles in Al-SBA-15 as an efficient and reusable catalyst for the synthesis of pyranopyrazole and benzylpyrazolyl coumarin derivatives via multicomponent reactions

An eco-friendly method for diversity-oriented synthesis of substituted dihydropyrano[2,3-c]pyrazole and benzylpyrazolyl coumarin derivatives has been achieved via one-pot and multicomponent reaction in the presence of PdO/Al-SBA-15 as an efficient and recyclable catalyst in H₂O/EtOH under reflux conditions. The significant merits of this method are wide scope, high yields of the desired products, short reaction times and simple workup procedure. In addition, this nanocatalyst was simply recovered and reused five times without significant loss in catalytic activity and also performance.

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Determination of citric acid in fermentation media by pyrolysis mass spectrometry

Rapid and sensitive determination of citric acid in fermentation media by pyrolysis mass spectrometry (Py–MS) is proposed. Owing to high specificity of this method, distinguishing the citric acid from the matrix and by-products formed in the Krebs cycle is possible. Selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode is used for quantitative measurements, in which mass to charge (m/z) values of 175 of citric acid and 138 of 3-nitroaniline as internal standard are chosen. Limit of detection (LOD) for this method has been found to be 1 ng ml⁻¹ and the linear working range was 10 ng ml⁻¹–100 mg ml⁻¹. Relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of the method for five replicates was 0.84%. Results of Py–MS are compared with those obtained by UV–vis spectrophotometric method. Also, factor analysis is used for evaluating the influence of pH, molasses concentration, time and shaker intensity on the production of citric acid by Aspergillus niger.     

Polyphenolic Profile of Callistemon viminalis Aerial Parts: Antioxidant,Anticancer and In Silico 5-LOX Inhibitory Evaluations

Five new compounds viz kaempferol 3-O-(4″-galloyl)-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1‴→6″)-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (1), kaempferol 3-O-β-d-mannuronopyranoside (2), kaempferol 3-O-β-d-mannopyranoside (3), quercetin 3-O-β-d-mannuronopyranoside (4), 2, 3 (S)- hexahydroxydiphenoyl]-d-glucose (5) along with fifteen known compounds were isolated from 80% aqueous methanol extract (AME) of C. viminalis. AME and compounds exerted similar or better antioxidant activity to ascorbic acid using DPPH, O₂⁻, and NO inhibition methods. In addition, compounds 16, 4, and 7 showed cytotoxic activity against MCF-7 cell lines while 3, 7 and 16 exhibited strong activity against HepG2. An in silico analysis using molecular docking for polyphenolic compounds 2, 3, 7, 16 and 17 against human stable 5-LOX was performed and compared to that of ascorbic acid and quercetin. The binding mode as well as the enzyme-inhibitor interactions were evaluated. All compounds occupied the 5-LOX active site and showed binding affinity greater than ascorbic acid or quercetin. The data herein suggest that AME, a source of polyphenols, could be used against oxidative-stress-related disorders.     

Biological Potentials and Phytochemical Constituents of Raw and Roasted Nigella arvensis and Nigella sativa

Nigella species are widely used to cure various ailments. Their health benefits, particularly from the seed oils, could be attributed to the presence of a variety of bioactive components. Roasting is a critical process that has historically been used to facilitate oil extraction and enhance flavor; it may also alter the chemical composition and biological properties of the Nigella seed. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the roasting process on the composition of the bioactive components and the biological activities of Nigella arvensis and Nigella sativa seed extracts. Our preliminary study showed that seeds roasted at 50 °C exhibited potent antimicrobial activities; therefore, this temperature was selected for roasting Nigella seeds. For extraction, raw and roasted seed samples were macerated in methanol. The antimicrobial activities against Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Candida albicans, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Klebsiella oxytoca were determined by measuring the diameter of the zone of inhibition. The cell viability of extracts was tested in a colon carcinoma cell line, HCT-116, by using a microculture tetrazolium technique (MTT) assay. Amino acids were extracted and quantified using an automatic amino acid analyzer. Then, gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis was performed to identify the chemical constituents and fatty acids. As a result, the extracts of raw and roasted seeds in both Nigella species showed strong inhibition against Klebsiella oxytoca, and the raw seed extract of N. arvensis demonstrated moderate inhibition against S. pyogenes. The findings of the MTT assay indicated that all the extracts significantly decreased cancer cell viability. Moreover, N. sativa species possessed higher contents of the measured amino acids, except tyrosine, cystine, and methionine. The GC–MS analysis of extracts showed the presence of 22 and 13 compounds in raw and roasted N. arvensis, respectively, and 9 and 11 compounds in raw and roasted N. sativa, respectively. However, heat treatment decreased the detectable components to 13 compounds in roasted N. arvensis and increased them in roasted N. sativa. These findings indicate that N. arvensis and N. sativa could be potential sources of anticancer and antimicrobials, where the bioactive compounds play a pivotal role as functional components.     

Solid-phase extraction, separation, and visible spectrophotometric determination of trace amounts of iron in water samples.

A simple and reliable method is presented for the rapid extraction, separation, preconcentration, and determination of iron as its bathophenanthroline complex by the use of octadecylsilica membrane disks and spectrophotometry. We evaluted extraction efficiency, the influence of sample matrix, type and optimum amount of extractant, flow rates of sample solution and eluent, pH, amounts of bathophenanthroline and hydroxylamine hydrochloride, breakthrough volume, and limit of detection. We also studied the effects of various cationic interferences on percent recovery of iron. Complete elution of the complex from disks was obtained with a minimal amount of solvent. The limit of detection of the proposed method is 0.080 ppb. The method was applied to the recovery and determination of iron in natural waters.     

Natural Convection from a Vertical Plate in a Porous Medium Using Brinkman's Model

A regular perturbation analysis is presented for the following laminar natural convection flows of Newtonian fluids with temperature-dependent effective viscosity: a freely-rising plane plume, the flow above a horizontal line source on an adiabatic surface (a plane wall plume) and the flow adjacent to a vertical uniform flux surface for porous medium. The temperature-dependent effective viscosity introduces nonsimilarity into the governing equations. Numerical results are presented for the flow and heat transfer characteristics.