Isotopic characteristics of a few selected structurally controlled geothermal systems of the Western Ghats,India

The Western Ghats is the most potential area of India in terms of geothermal energy exploitation and they are characterized by numerous faults. These faults acts as conduit for the deeper circulation of the geothermal water of meteoric origin and are controlling the geothermal systems of this region. The stable isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O and δ²H) of a few selected geothermal springs and non-thermal groundwater were monitored to identify their recharge sources. Tritium in geothermal water and groundwater were also measured to evaluate their transit time and the mixing processes governing within the geothermal systems. The temperature of hot springs varies from 56 to 71 °C. The stable isotope result shows that geothermal springs have absence of magmatic component and rainwater is their recharge source. It was also established that geothermal water has not undergone much fractionation because of rock–water interaction. Tritium content of the geothermal springs are low indicate deeper circulation and longer residence time of the thermal water. Lower tritium also shows insignificant mixing with non-thermal ground water.

     

Prussian Blue‐Derived Iron Phosphide Nanoparticles in a Porous Graphene Aerogel as Efficient Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Tailoring of new hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) electrocatalyst with earth abundant elements is important for large scale water splitting and hydrogen production. In this work, we present a simple synthetic method for incorporating iron phosphide (FeP) particles into three‐dimensional (3D) porous graphene aerogel (GA) structure. The FeP formed in porous 3D GA (FeP/GA) is derived from electroactive Fe hexacyanoferrate (FeHCF). The advantage of incorporating FeP, in the porous 3D graphene network enables high accessibility for HER. As synthesized FeP/GA catalyst shows good electrocatalytic activity for HER in both acidic and alkaline solutions. The developed method can be useful for synthesizing metal hexacyanoferrate derived mono/bimetal phosphide catalyst in porous 3D graphene aerogels.     

A Brief Overview of the Effect of High Pressures on the Vibrational Spectra of Biomaterials

Abstract

The application of high pressures to biomaterials can often result in significant structural modifications and, in some cases, also lead to changes in the rates and the equilibria of any associated biological activities. Pressure-induced changes can conveniently be monitored by molecular spectroscopy. We present here a brief overview of the effects of high pressures on the IR and Raman spectra of biomaterials that have been reported over the past 25 years. Examples of the biomaterials that have been examined are model antithyroid drugs, proteins, amino acids, dental materials, human bones, and bioorganometallic compounds. In addition, some recent investigations on the effect of pressure on microbial activity and the conversion of biomass into molecular hydrogen under supercritical water conditions are discussed. Two typical diamond-anvil cells (DACs), which are used for high-pressure vibrational spectroscopic measurements, are also described here.     

Ultrasonic studies of aluminium-substituted Bi(Pb)-2223 superconductors

The compositional dependence of elastic properties of Al³⁺-substituted Bi(Pb)-2223 superconducting system with the general formula Bi_1.7−x Al_xPb_0.3Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃ O_y (x = 0.0, 0.1, 0.2 and 0.3) have been studied by means of ultrasonic pulse transmission (UPT) technique at 1 MHz (300 K). The elastic moduli of the specimens are computed and corrected to zero porosity. The observed variation of elastic constants with aluminium substitution has been explained on the basis of the strength of interatomic bonding. The applicability of heterogeneous metal mixture rule for estimating elastic constants and transition temperature has been tested.     

Regeneration-Based Quantification of Coumarins (Scopoletin and Scoparone) in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Abutilon indicum</Emphasis> In Vitro Cultures

Abutilon indicum exploited for its immense value has been propagated successfully through multiple shoot induction and somatic embryogenesis. Direct regeneration (8.20?±?0.83 shoots) was achieved from nodal explants using 0.5 mg/l kinetin (Kn) in MS media. The basal callus from nodal explants turned embryogenic on subsequent introduction of 0.2 mg/l TDZ into the Kn-supplemented media, giving rise to somatic embryos. The embryogenic potential of calli expressed in terms of embryo-forming capacity (EFC) increased from 8.15 EFC to 20.95 EFC after plasmolysis. The phytochemical analysis (HPLC) for the presence of scopoletin and scoparone has revealed a unique accumulation pattern, with higher levels of scopoletin during the earlier stages and scoparone in the later stages of development. The embryogenic calli contained the highest amount of coumarins (99.20?±?0.97 and 61.03?±?0.47 μg/gFW, respectively) followed by regenerated plant (9.43?±?0.20 and 36.36?±?1.19 μg/gFW, respectively), obtained via somatic embryogenesis. Rapid multiplication of A. indicum equipped with two potent coumarins is important in order to meet the commercial demand for combat against dreadful diseases, thereby providing a new platform for plant-based drugs and their manufacture on a commercial scale.     

An Efficient Synthesis of Novel 2‐(5‐indolyl)‐1H‐benzimidazole Derivatives and Evaluation of Their Antimicrobial Activities

In this paper, we report the synthesis of novel 2‐(5‐indolyl)‐1H‐benzimidazole derivatives. The methodology involves the Sonogashira reaction of 4‐(1H‐benzimidazol‐2‐yl)‐2‐bromo‐N,N‐dimethylaniline ( 3 ) with variety of terminal alkynes to get corresponding novel 4‐(1H‐benzimidazol‐2‐yl)‐2‐alkynyl‐N,N‐dimethylaniline derivatives ( 4 ). These compounds on iodocyclization afforded novel iodoindolylbenzimidazole derivatives ( 5 ). The resulting compounds were functionalized further via palladium‐mediated carbon–carbon bond formation for generating novel structurally diversified heterocyclic compounds. All these newly synthesized compounds were evaluated for antimicrobial activity.     

Ultrafast Photoinduced Electron Transfer and Charge Stabilization in Donor–Acceptor Dyads Capable of Harvesting Near‐Infrared Light

To harvest energy from the near‐infrared (near‐IR) and infrared (IR) regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, which constitutes nearly 70 % of the solar radiation, there is a great demand for near‐IR and IR light‐absorbing sensitizers that are capable of undergoing ultrafast photoinduced electron transfer when connected to a suitable electron acceptor. Towards achieving this goal, in the present study, we report multistep syntheses of dyads derived from structurally modified BF₂‐chelated azadipyrromethene (ADP; to extend absorption and emission into the near‐IR region) and fullerene as electron‐donor and electron‐acceptor entities, respectively. The newly synthesized dyads were fully characterized based on optical absorbance, fluorescence, geometry optimization, and electrochemical studies. The established energy level diagram revealed the possibility of electron transfer either from the singlet excited near‐IR sensitizer or singlet excited fullerene. Femtosecond and nanosecond transient absorption studies were performed to gather evidence of excited state electron transfer and to evaluate the kinetics of charge separation and charge recombination processes. These studies revealed the occurrence of ultrafast photoinduced electron transfer leading to charge stabilization in the dyads, and populating the triplet states of ADP, benzanulated‐ADP and benzanulated thiophene‐ADP in the respective dyads, and triplet state of C₆₀ in the case of BF₂‐chelated dipyrromethene derived dyad during charge recombination. The present findings reveal that these sensitizers are suitable for harvesting light energy from the near‐IR region of the solar spectrum and for building fast‐responding optoelectronic devices operating under near‐IR radiation input.     

Synthesis and biological evaluation of novel active arylidene derivatives of 5,6-dihydro-4<Emphasis Type="Italic">H</Emphasis>-cyclopenta[<Emphasis Type="Italic">b</Emphasis>]- and 4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzo[<Emphasis Type="Italic">b</Emphasis>]-thiophene-2-carboxylic acid

A series of novel arylidene derivatives of 5,6-dihydro-4H-cyclopenta[b]-thiophene-2-carboxylic acid and 4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzo[b]-thiophene-2-carboxylic acid were synthesized by reacting benzylidene derivatives of chloro aldehyde with 2-mercaptoacetic acid. Benzylidene derivatives of chloro aldehyde were prepared from Vilsmeier reaction of 2-benzylidenecyclopentanone and 2-benzylidenecyclohexanone derivatives, obtained from condensation of various aromatic aldehydes with cyclopentanone and cyclohexanone. All synthesized compounds were characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), infrared (IR), and mass spectroscopy and X-ray single-crystal analysis. The synthesized compounds were screened for their in vitro antimicrobial and antifungal activity. Good antimicrobial activity, especially against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, was observed for most of the compounds tested. In particular, compound 9f emerged as an effective antibacterial agent and may be a potential candidate for future drug discovery and development.