Synthesis of fullerene@gold core-shell nanostructures

A "direct encapsulation" method was developed for the synthesis of highly stable water-soluble fullerene@gold core-shell nanostructures, with gold nanoshells showing either closed or porous morphology. This gold nano-shell coating formed a "nano-oven", capable of decomposing encapsulated fullerene molecules rapidly when irradiated by laser. We envisaged this being a useful tool for chemical reactions as well as a novel scaffold for nano-material synthesis.     

Neocinnamomum caudatum Essential Oil Ameliorates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in RAW 264.7 Cells by Inhibiting NF-κB Activation and ROS Production

Neocinnamomum caudatum (Lauraceae) plant is used in the traditional system of medicine and is considered a potential source of edible fruits, spices, flavoring agents and biodiesel. The leaves, bark and roots of the species are used by local communities for the treatment of inflammatory responses, such as allergies, sinusitis and urinary tract infections. However, there is no scientific evidence to support the molecular mechanism through which this plant exerts its anti-inflammatory effect. The aim of the current research was to characterize the chemical constituents of bark (NCB) and leaf (NCL) essential oil of N. caudatum and to elucidate its anti-inflammatory action in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated RAW 264.7 cells. Essential oils extracted by hydrodistillation were further subjected to gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The major constituents in bark essential oil identified as β-pinene (13.11%), α-cadinol (11.18%) and α-pinene (10.99%), whereas leaf essential oil was found to be rich in β-pinene (45.21%), myrcene (9.97%) and α-pinene (9.27%). Treatment with NCB and NCL at a concentration of 25 µg/mL exerted significant anti-inflammatory activity by significantly reducing LPS-triggered nitric oxide (NO) production to 45.86% and 61.64%, respectively, compared to the LPS-treated group. In the LPS-treated group, the production of proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-1β, decreased after treatment with essential oil, alleviating the mRNA levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2. The essential oil also inhibited the production of intracellular ROS and attenuated the depletion of mitochondrial membrane potential in a concentration-dependent manner. Pretreatment with NCB also reduced nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB)/p65 translocation and elevated the levels of endogenous antioxidant enzymes in LPS-induced macrophages. The present findings, for the first time, demonstrate the anti-inflammatory potential of both bark and leaf essential oils of N. caudatum. The bark essential oil exhibited a significantly more important anti-inflammatory effect than the leaf essential oil and could be used as a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.     

The effect of the thickness of the porous material on the parallel plate channel flow when the walls are provided with non-erodible porous lining

Flow through a channel whose walls are lined with non-erodible porous material is investigated using Beavers and Joseph slip boundary condition. It is shown that the effect of porous lining is to increase the mass flow rate and to decrease the friction factor.     

Adsorbed Intermediates in Oxygen Reduction on Platinum Nanoparticles Observed by In Situ IR Spectroscopy

The sluggish kinetics of oxygen reduction to water remains a significant limitation in the viability of proton‐exchange‐membrane fuel cells, yet details of the four‐electron oxygen reduction reaction remain elusive. Herein, we apply in situ infrared spectroscopy to probe the surface chemistry of a commercial carbon‐supported Pt nanoparticle catalyst during oxygen reduction. The IR spectra show potential‐dependent appearance of adsorbed superoxide and hydroperoxide intermediates on Pt. This strongly supports an associative pathway for oxygen reduction. Analysis of the adsorbates alongside the catalytic current suggests that another pathway must also be in operation, consistent with a parallel dissociative pathway.     

Control strategies for laser separation of carbon isotopes

Laser isotope separation (LIS) by infrared laser chemistry of polyatomic molecules has come a long way since its discovery. The last decade has seen considerable efforts in scaling up of the process for light elements like carbon, oxygen and silicon. These efforts aim at ways to improve both the enrichment factor and the throughput. The achievement is quite significant especially for carbon isotope separation wherein macroscopic operating scales have been realized. We report our studies on the IR laser chemistry of two promising systems, viz. neat CF₂HCl and CF₃Br/Cl₂. We have investigated conditions for optimizing the dissociation yield and selectivity using natural samples containing l.l%C-13.Wealso highlight our current efforts for scaling up the process. These include the design aspects of a photochemical reactor with multipass refocusing Herriott optics for efficient photon utilization, development of a cryogenic distillation set up and a preparative gas chromatograph for large scale separation/collection of the isotopically enriched photoproduct in the post-irradiation stage.     

Exact Bianchi type V imperfect fluid solutions

It is shown that it is sufficient to solve a single first order differential equation to determine exact Bianchi type V imperfect fluid solutions of Einstein's field equations. Two exact solutions are presented in this paper. One of these two solutions corresponds to the case when the anisotropic pressure tensor is proportional to the shear tensor. This proportionality, it is shown, is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the absence of heat flow in a Bianchi type V universe. It is also observed that the presence of heat flow necessarily introduces anisotropy in a Bianchi type V universe.     

A simple spectrophotometric method for the determination of nylidrin hydrochloride, isoxsuprine hydrochloride and salbutamol sulphate in pharmaceutical preparations

A simple spectrophotometric method for the determination of nylidrin hydrochloride, isoxsuprine hydrochloride and salbutamol sulphate is described, based on measurement of the orangeyellow species produced when the drugs are coupled with diazotized benzocaine (p-aminoethyl benzoate) in trimethylamine medium. The method is applicable over the range 1-12 mug ml for isoxsuprine hydrochloride and nylidrin hydrochloride and 1-8 mug ml for salbutamol sulphate. The method is a modification of the Bratton-Marshall reaction and is simple, reproducible, accurate and more sensitive than those cited in the literature.     

An extractive spectrophotometric method for the determination of tetramisole hydrochloride in pharmaceutical preparations

A simple extractive photometric method for the determination of tetramisole hydrochloride in pharmaceutical preparations is described. The method uses the formation of coloured complexes of the drug with reagents such as Solochrome Dark Blue, Solochrome Black T, Bromocresol Purple, Bromothymol Blue, Bromophenol Blue and Bromocresol Green in an acidic buffer. The ion-pair complexes formed are quantitatively extracted into chloroform under the experimental conditions.