Use of novel cardanol-porphyrin hybrids and their TiO₂-based composites for the photodegradation of 4-nitrophenol in water

Cardanol, a well known hazardous byproduct of the cashew industry, has been used as starting material for the synthesis of useful differently substituted "cardanol-based" porphyrins and their zinc(II), copper(II), cobalt(II) and Fe(III) complexes. Novel composites prepared by impregnation of polycrystalline TiO? powder with an opportune amount of "cardanol-based" porphyrins, which act as sensitizers for the improvement of the photo-catalytic activity of the bare TiO?, have been used in the photodegradation in water of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP), which is a toxic and bio-refractory pollutant, dangerous for ecosystems and human health.     

An algorithm for mean residual life computation of (n − k + 1)-out-of-n systems: An application of exponentiated Weibull distribution

In this paper, we establish an algorithm for the computation of the mean residual life of a (n − k + 1)-out-of-n system in the case of independent but not necessarily identically distributed lifetimes of the components. An application for the exponentiated Weibull distribution is given to study the effect of various parameters on the mean residual life of the system. Also the relationship between the mean residual life for the system and that of its components is investigated.     

Lebesgue and co-Lebesgue di-uniform texture spaces

The author introduces the notions of Lebesgue di-uniformity and co Lebesgue di-uniformity and investigates the relationship between a Lebesgue quasi uniformity on X and the corresponding Lebesgue di-uniformity on the discrete texture (X,P(X)). Finally a notion of a dual dicovering Lebesgue quasi di-uniform texture space is introduced and several properties are discussed.     

On the microbial reduction of ethyl α-methylacetoacetate

In the present work several microorganisms were screened in the reduction of methyl and ethyl acetoacetates. Good to excellent ees were obtained with up to quantitative substrate conversions. These microorganisms were also tested in the reduction of ethyl α-methylacetoacetate with good des and excellent ees. It was noticed that Kluyveromyces marxianus and Trichoderma harzianum were found to lead to products of opposite configuration with the use of methyl or ethyl acetoacetates, which is a very unusual finding.     

Quantum Chemical Approach for Determining Degradation Pathways of Phenol by Electrical Discharge Plasmas

This study uses density functional theory (DFT) simulations to predict the main pathways by which hydroxyl (OH) radicals oxidize phenol into monohydroxylated products during an electrical discharge directly in or contacting water. The calculated activation energies and reaction rate constants indicate that phenol ring H abstraction is less likely to occur than OH addition, which will be the fastest in the ortho and para positions. The chain propagation with molecular oxygen of such formed ortho and para radicals will result in the production of hydroquinone and catechol, which are, concurrently, the most likely products of phenol degradation by OH radicals. Electron transfer reactions between dihydroxycyclohexadienyl radicals and plasma oxidative species are another important reaction mechanism which may be contributing significantly to the formation of products. Good agreement between computed kinetic and experimental data demonstrates the feasibility of applying DFT to investigate chemical reaction mechanisms.     

Studying structural,morphological and optical properties of nanocrystalline ZnO:Ag films prepared by sol–gel method for antimicrobial activity

Pure and Ag-doped zinc oxide sol–gel thin films were prepared by spin-coating process. Pure and Ag–ZnO films, containing 2–8% Ag, were annealed at 500?°C for 2?h. All thin films were prepared and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and UV–visible spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction studies show the polycrystalline nature with hexagonal wurtzite structure of ZnO and Ag:ZnO thin films. The crystallite size of the prepared samples reduced with increasing Ag doping concentrations. AFM and SEM results indicated that the average crystallite size decreased as Ag doping concentration increased. The transmittance spectra were then recorded at wavelengths ranging from 300 to 1000?nm. The films produced yielded high transmission at visible regions. The optical band gap energy of spin-coated films also decreased as Ag doping concentration increased. In particular, their optical band gap energies were 3.75, 3.55, 3.4, 3.3, and 3.23?eV at 0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, and 8%, respectively. Antibacterial activity of pure and Ag-doped zinc oxide against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was evaluated by international recognized test (JIS Z 2801). The results showed that pure and Ag-doped ZnO thin film has an antibacterial inhibition zone against E. coli and S. aureus. Gram-positive bacteria seemed to be more resistant to pure and Ag-doped ZnO thin film than gram-negative bacteria. The test shows incrementally increasing in antibacterial activity of the thin films when dopant ratio increased under UV light.

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Synthesis and characterization of diorganotin(IV) complexes of Schiff bases with ONO‐type donors and crystal structure of [N‐(2‐hydroxy‐4‐nitrophenyl)‐3‐ethoxysalicylideneiminato]diphenyltin(IV)

A series of neutral complexes, namely, [N‐(2‐hydroxy‐4‐nitrophenyl)‐3‐hydroxysalicylideneiminato]‐ diphenyltin(IV) ( Ia ), [N‐(2‐hydroxy‐4‐nitrophenyl)‐3‐methoxysalicylideneiminato]diphenyltin(IV) ( IIa ) and [N‐(2‐hydroxy‐4‐nitrophenyl)‐3‐ethoxysalicylideneiminato]diphenyltin(IV) ( IIIa ) were prepared by the reaction of diphenyltin dichloride on the corresponding Schiff bases. The Schiff bases were the reaction products of 2‐hydroxy‐4‐nitroaniline and appropriate salicylaldehydes. All the compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, ¹H‐NMR, ¹³C‐NMR, IR and mass spectroscopy. Compound IIIa was also characterized by single crystal X‐ray diffraction and shows a C₂NO₂ coordination geometry nearly half‐way between a trigonal bipyramidal and square pyramidal arrangement. In the solid state, π? π interactions exist between the aniline fragments of neighbouring molecules. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.