Effect of nitrogen on mechanical,oxidation and structural behaviour of Ti–Si–B–C–N nanocomposite hard coatings deposited by DC sputtering

Ti–Si–B–C–N film was deposited by DC magnetron sputtering at different argon and nitrogen ratios such as N₂/Ar = 1 : 5, 2 : 4, 3 : 3, 4 : 1 and 5 : 0. The formation of TiN and TiB phases was observed because of incorporation of nitrogen. The hardness, modulus, microstructure, structure and bond formation with different nitrogen contents during the deposition were studied by nanoindentation, scanning electron microscope, X‐ray diffraction and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, respectively. The oxidation kinetics of Ti–Si–B–C–N was investigated. The nitrogen incorporation during deposition influences different properties of the coating. Hardness and modulus decreased, and microstructure showed very fine grain presence, and film changes to fully amorphous because of incorporation of nitrogen in the film. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Biosynthesis of Indigo Dye by Newly Isolated Naphthalene-Degrading Strain <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas s</Emphasis>p. HOB1 and its Application in Dyeing Cotton Fabric

Indigo is one of the oldest dyes manufactured chemically and is mostly used in textile, food, and pharmaceutical industries. However, owing to the environmental hazards posed by the chemical production, the present scenario in the field stipulates a biosynthesis alternative for indigo production. The present study describes an indigenously isolated naphthalene-degrading strain Pseudomonas sp. HOB1 producing a blue pigment when indole was added in the growth medium. This blue pigment was analyzed by high-pressure thin-layer chromatography and other spectroscopic techniques which revealed it to be the indigo dye. Pseudomonas sp. HOB1 showed ability to produce 246 mg indigo liter⁻¹ of the medium. The K _m for the enzyme naphthalene dioxygenase which is involved in indigo formation is 0.3 mM, and V _max was as high as 50 nmol min⁻¹ mg dry biomass⁻¹. The bacterial indigo dye was further successfully applied for dyeing cotton fabrics. The high indigo productivity of Pseudomonas sp. HOB1 using naphthalene as growth substrate and its applicability on cotton fabrics, therefore, stems the probability of using this culture for commercial indigo production.     

Polarization switching properties of spray deposited CsNO3: PVA composite films

The ferroelectric and switching properties of spray deposited cesium nitrate: poly (vinyl alcohol) composite films at different substrate temperatures (T _s ) have been studied. The optimum value of remanent polarization was obtained in the film deposited at T _s =200°C, which may be due to larger structural distortion (c/a ratio) and less porosity as revealed by x-ray diffraction and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) analysis. The switching current transients have been analyzed by nucleation limited switching model (NLS) with the Lorentzian distribution function. This model gives excellent agreement with the experimental polarization current throughout the whole time range. The switching parameters were determined in the composite films deposited at different T _s and found to be optimum at T _s =200°C. The effect of pulse amplitude on the domain switching properties has also been studied and analyzed. The peak value of polarization current exhibits an exponential dependence on the external applied field.     

Rotary disc bioreactor-based approach for bacterial nanocellulose production using Gluconacetobacter xylinus NCIM 2526 strain

Bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) is an indomitable biomaterial of utmost usage in different technological areas. Previously, the BNC production has been reported in the simplified bioreactors. Thus, pioneering bioreactor-assisted strategies are desirable for the commendable BNC production. Advanced bioreactors must be corroborated along with different bacterial strains to obtain creditable BNC yield. This study deals with BNC production in rotary disc bioreactor (RDBR) using Gluconacetobacter xylinus NCIM 2526 strain. RDBR-based production of BNC provided 189?±?14 gL^?1 of wet BNC, i.e., equivalent to 6.6?±?0.3 gL^?1 dry BNC yield in 10 days. However, in static cultivation mode, 56?±?12 gL^?1 wet weight of BNC, corresponding to 2.4?±?0.4 gL^?1 dry weight, was produced. Thus, BNC production was approximately 2.75 folds higher in RDBR than statically produced BNC from the same volume of the media. The sugar to BNC conversion yield (12.2?±?0.8%) was doubled in RDBR-based production as compared to static BNC production (6.2?±?1.4%) with efficient sugar consumption (90.0?±?3.3%). The maximum amount of BNC was produced at 7 RPM and pH 6. RDBR-based BNC showed a more hydrophilic nature than statically produced BNC. The RDBR might be appropriate for large-scale BNC production, especially for wet-end applications, as an ample amount of BNC can be produced from a single fermentation process. These BNC pellicles might have the potential for biomedical applications like wound dressings, biofacial masks, hydrogels, and tissue engineering scaffolds.

     

Imino-phenolic-pyridyl conjugates of calix[4]arene (L1 and L2) as primary fluorescence switch-on sensors for Zn2+ in solution and in HeLa cells and the recognition of pyrophosphate and ATP by [ZnL2

Pyridyl-based triazole-linked calix[4]arene conjugates, viz. L(1) and L(2), were synthesized and characterized. These two conjugates were shown to be selective and sensitive for Zn(2+) among the 12 metal ions studied in HEPES buffer medium by fluorescence, absorption, and visual color change with the detection limit of ~31 and ~112 ppb, respectively, by L(1) and L(2). Moreover, the utility of the conjugates L(1) and L(2) in showing the zinc recognition in live cells has also been demonstrated using HeLa cells as monitored by fluorescence imaging. The zinc complexes of L(1) and L(2) were isolated, and the structure of [ZnL(1)] has been established by single-crystal XRD and that of [ZnL(2)] by DFT calculations. TDDFT calculations were performed in order to demonstrate the electronic properties of receptors and their zinc complexes. The isolated zinc complexes, viz. [ZnL(1)] and [ZnL(2)], have been used as molecular tools for the recognition of anions on the basis of their binding affinities toward Zn(2+). [ZnL(2)] was found to be sensitive and selective toward phosphate-bearing ions and molecules and in particular to pyrophosphate (PPi) and ATP among the other 18 anions studied; however, [ZnL(1)] was not sensitive toward any of the anions studied. The selectivity has been shown on the basis of the changes observed in the emission and absorption spectral studies through the removal of Zn(2+) from [ZnL(2)] by PPi. Thus, [ZnL(2)] has been shown to detect PPi up to 278 ± 10 ppb at pH 7.4 in aqueous methanolic (1/2 v/v) HEPES buffer.     

Bidirectional Controlled Teleportation by Using 5-Qubit States: A Generalized View

Recently bidirectional controlled perfect teleportation using 5-qubit states are reported in Int. J. Theor. Phys. (2013), doi:10.1007/s10773-013-1484-8 and ibid (2012), doi:10.1007/s10773-012-1208-5. In this paper we have shown that there exists a class of 5-qubit quantum states that can be used for bidirectional controlled teleportation. Two out of the three reported cases are the special cases of the proposed class of 5-qubit quantum states and one of them is not strictly a case of controlled bidirectional quantum teleportation. Further, we have shown that one can in principle, construct infinitely many 5-qubit quantum states for this purpose. We have also shown that the idea can be extended to bidirectional controlled probabilistic teleportation. Some potential applications of the proposed scheme and its modified versions are also discussed in relation with the implementation of quantum remote control and quantum cryptography.     

Preparation of porous titania–silica microspheres for treatment of radioactive waste

Titania–silica microspheres have been prepared by sol–gel process. Internal gelation route, which use hexamethylenetetramine as the source of ammonia was used for the preparation spherical gel particles. A cationic surfactant, cetrimide was added in the feed broth for introducing meso-porosity in the gel network. Further paraffin oil emulsion was incorporated in the feed broth before gelation for the formation of larger pores in the gel network. The spherical gel particles thus obtained were washed and heat treated under controlled conditions to remove the entrapped surfactant, paraffin oil and other organic compounds resulting in highly porous intact titania–silica microspheres. The material was characterized by surface area, porosity and by SEM photomicrographs. The ion exchange property of this material was studied using the sorption of plutonium on this material from carbonate medium by distribution coefficient studies and ion exchange column loading and elution experiments.     

Two source emission behavior of projectile fragments alpha in 84Kr interactions at around 1 GeV per nucleon

The emission of projectile fragments alpha has been studied in ⁸⁴Kr interactions with nuclei of the nuclear emulsion detector composition at relativistic energy below 2 GeV per nucleon. The angular distribution of projectile fragments alpha in terms of transverse momentum could not be explained by a straight and clean-cut collision geometry hypothesis of Participant — Spectator (PS) Model. Therefore, it is assumed that projectile fragments alpha were produced from two separate sources that belong to the projectile spectator region differing drastically in their temperatures. It has been clearly observed that the emission of projectile fragments alpha are from two different sources. The contribution of projectile fragments alpha from contact layer or hot source is a few percent of the total emission of projectile fragments alphas. Most of the projectile fragments alphas are emitted from the cold source.