Assessment of the health of a river ecosystem due to the impact of pollution from industrial discharge using instrumental neutron activation analysis and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and neutron activation analysis (NAA) were employed in the determination of heavy metal concentrations in water, plant and sediment samples to assess the extent of heavy metal pollution in a river system which is located within an industrial zone. Elemental concentrations of As, Pb, Hg, Cr, Cu, Cd, Ni and Zn were measured in the samples. Statistical analysis was performed on the data obtained to look for trends in the pollution pattern of these elements on the river system. The trend in concentrations of heavy metals pollution in water samples is in the order of Zn > Cu > Ni > Cr > As > Pb > Hg > Cd, whereas in plants the order is Zn > Cr > Cu > Pb > Ni > As > Hg > Cd and in sediments Zn > Cu > Pb > Ni > As > Hg.     

Docking of noncompetitive inhibitors into dengue virus type 2 protease: understanding the interactions with allosteric binding sites

A group of flavanones and their chalcones, isolated from Boesenbergia rotunda L., were previously reported to show varying degrees of noncompetitive inhibitory activities toward Dengue virus type 2 (Den2) protease. Results obtained from automated docking studies are in agreement with experimental data in which the ligands were shown to bind to sites other than the active site of the protease. The calculated K(i) values are very small, indicating that the ligands bind quite well to the allosteric binding site. Greater inhibition by pinostrobin, compared to the other compounds, can be explained by H-bonding interaction with the backbone carbonyl of Lys74, which is bonded to Asp75 (one of the catalytic triad residues). In addition, structure-activity relationship analysis yields structural information that may be useful for designing more effective therapeutic drugs against dengue virus infections.     

Profiling of Potential Antibacterial Compounds of Lactic Acid Bacteria against Extremely Drug Resistant (XDR) Acinetobacter baumannii

A total of 20 of isolates of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were selected and screened for antagonistic activity against clinical strains of 30 clinical isolates of extremely drug-resistant (XDR) Acinetobacter baumannii using the well diffusion assay method. Results showed that 50% of the highly LAB strains possessed inhibitory activity against (up to 66%) of the XDR A. baumannii strains tested. The supernatant of the twenty LAB strains was subjected to gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) revealed that the common compound found in the active isolates against XDR A. baumannii was 3-Isobutyl-2,3,6,7,8,8a-hexahydropyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazine-1,4-dione, a known potential diketopiperazine group. The molecular docking study against potential antibacterial targets with selected ligands was performed to predict the binding mode of interactions, which is responsible for antibacterial activity. The docking analysis of the potent compounds supported the potential antibacterial activity exhibiting high inhibition constant and binding affinity in silico.     

Singular solutions in viscoplasticity under plane strain conditions

The paper deals with asymptotic behavior of viscoplastic solutions in the vicinity of maximum friction surfaces under plane strain conditions. The definition of maximum friction surfaces is that the friction stress is equal to the shear yield stress at sliding. The constitutive equations of the viscoplastic model adopted include a saturation stress. It is shown that it is possible to choose parameters of the viscoplastic model such that the regime of sliding is possible at maximum friction surfaces. In this case solutions are singular in the vicinity of such surfaces. Because of this feature of solutions, the viscoplastic model chosen possesses a smooth transition of qualitative behavior between rigid perfectly plastic and viscoplastic solutions, and this may prove to be advantageous for some applications.     

Synergistic effect of exfoliated graphene nanoplatelets and non-halogen flame retardants on flame retardancy and thermal properties of kenaf flour-PP nanocomposites

A series of quaternary hybrid kenaf (K) flour-PP nanocomposites, such as PP/KF/MAPP/GNP/MgOH (K-GNP-MgOH), PP/KF/MAPP/GNP/APP (K-GNP-APP) and PP/KF/MAPP/GNP/MgO (K-GNP-MgO) filled with exfoliated graphene nanoplatelets (GNP)-3 phr acting as adjuvant in combination with mineral flame retardants, 20 mass/% magnesium hydroxide (Mg (OH)₂) and 20 mass/% magnesium oxide (MgO), and 20 mass/% intumescent ammonium polyphosphate (APP), respectively, were prepared through melt extrusion using co-rotating twin screw extruder. The resulting quaternary nanocomposites were characterized in terms of flame retardancy, thermomechanical, thermal conductivity, thermal behavior, heat deflection temperature (HDT), and mechanical, morphological and structural properties. Mass loss calorimeter data revealed a significant reduction of peak heat release rate, total heat release, effective heat of combustion, mass loss rate and delayed time to ignition due to GNP-MgOH, GNP-MgO and GNP-APP synergistic mechanism in hybrid nanocomposites, respectively. The effective thermal conductivities and HDT of quaternary nanocomposites were found to significantly increase. DSC results revealed enhanced crystallization temperatures with reduced degree of crystallinity, while melting points remained stable.

     

Structural and optical properties of nanocrystalline lead sulfide thin films prepared by microwave-assisted chemical bath deposition

Nanocrystalline PbS thin films have been successfully deposited on glass substrate from lead nitrate (Pb²⁺ ions) and thiourea (S^2? ions) precursors using MACB technique. The effects of molar concentration (0.02, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1 M) on the structure and microstructure evolution were studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. The optical properties were investigated using UV–vis spectrophotometer. Crystal size values obtained from XRD were compared with these calculated using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The values of optical band gaps were found to decrease as the ion source molar concentration increase.     

Mechanical and Morphological Properties of Bio-Phenolic/Epoxy Polymer Blends

Polymer blends is a well-established and suitable method to produced new polymeric materials as compared to synthesis of a new polymer. The combination of two different types of polymers will produce a new and unique material, which has the attribute of both polymers. The aim of this work is to analyze mechanical and morphological properties of bio-phenolic/epoxy polymer blends to find the best formulation for future study. Bio-phenolic/epoxy polymer blends were fabricated using the hand lay-up method at different loading of bio-phenolic (5 wt%, 10 wt%, 15 wt%, 20 wt%, and 25 wt%) in the epoxy matrix whereas neat bio-phenolic and epoxy samples were also fabricated for comparison. Results indicated that mechanical properties were improved for bio-phenolic/epoxy polymer blends compared to neat epoxy and phenolic. In addition, there is no sign of phase separation in polymer blends. The highest tensile, flexural, and impact strength was shown by P-20(biophenolic-20 wt% and Epoxy-80 wt%) whereas P-25 (biophenolic-25 wt% and Epoxy-75 wt%) has the highest tensile and flexural modulus. Based on the finding, it is concluded that P-20 shows better overall mechanical properties among the polymer blends. Based on this finding, the bio-phenolic/epoxy blend with 20 wt% will be used for further study on flax-reinforced bio-phenolic/epoxy polymer blends.     

One-Step Synthesis of Stable Colloidal Gold Nanoparticles Through Bioconjugation with Bovine Serum Albumin in Harsh Environments

In saline solutions with NaCl concentrations less than that typical of blood plasma and bodily fluids, gold nanoparticles (GNPs) aggregate and precipitate because of GNP cation complexation with the Cl^? anions in the solution. It is difficult to retain stable colloidal GNPs within any saline solution for a relatively long time without aggregation and precipitation. In this study, we developed a method to synthesize stable GNPs in harsh anion-containing environments. GNPs were formed by laser ablation in a saline solution, and their stabilization was achieved by adding bovine serum albumin (BSA) to the NaCl solution; this has been shown to be a quick, efficient approach to producing stable colloidal GNPs. GNP nanoclusters in saline solutions with and without BSA were observed via high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction. The results reveal that our methodology yields colloidal GNPs with long-term stability in a BSA-containing saline solution.     

The strain rate intensity factor in the plane strain compression of thin anisotropic metal strip

Using an available analytic solution for instantaneous plane strain compression of a plastically anisotropic strip between two parallel plates the strain rate intensity factor is found assuming Hill’s quadratic yield criterion. The distribution of material properties is uniform. The effect of parameters characterizing plastic anisotropy of the strip on the magnitude of the strain rate intensity factor is demonstrated. A possibility to replace the strain rate intensity factor with the plastic work rate intensity factor is discussed. Singular behavior of the plastic spin in the vicinity of the friction surface is revealed and discussed.