Binary Cellulose Nanocrystal Blends for Bioinspired Damage Tolerant Photonic Films

Most attempts to emulate the mechanical properties of strong and tough natural composites using helicoidal films of wood‐derived cellulose nanocrystals (w‐CNCs) fall short in mechanical performance due to the limited shear transfer ability between the w‐CNCs. This shortcoming is ascribed to the small w‐CNC‐w‐CNC overlap lengths that lower the shear transfer efficiency. Herein, we present a simple strategy to fabricate superior helicoidal CNC films with mechanical properties that rival those of the best natural materials and are some of the best reported for photonic CNC materials thus far. Assembling the short w‐CNCs with a minority fraction of high aspect ratio CNCs derived from tunicates (t‐CNCs), we report remarkable simultaneous enhancement of all in‐plane mechanical properties and out‐of‐plane flexibility. The important role of t‐CNCs is revealed by coarse grained molecular dynamics simulations where the property enhancement are due to increased interaction lengths and the activation of additional toughening mechanisms. At t‐CNC contents greater than 5% by mass the mixed films also display UV reflecting behaviour. These damage tolerant optically active materials hold great promise for application as protective coatings. More broadly, we expect the strategy of using length‐bidispersity to be adaptable to mechanically enhancing other matrix‐free nanoparticle ensembles.     

Effects of In, Al and Sn dopants on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films

Effect of In, Al and Sn dopants on the optical and structural properties of ZnO thin films have been investigated by X-ray diffraction technique and optical characterization method. X-ray diffraction patterns confirm that the films have polycrystalline nature. The thin films have (002) as the preferred orientation. This (002) preferred orientation is due to the minimal surface energy which the hexagonal structure, c-plane to the ZnO crystallites, corresponds to the densest packed plane. The grain size values of the films are found to be 29.0, 35.2 and 39.5 nm for In, Al and Sn doped ZnO thin films, respectively. The optical band gaps of the films were calculated. The absorption edge shifts to the lower wavelengths with In, Al and Sn dopants. The inclusion of dopant into films expands also width of localized states as E(UIn)>E(UAl)>E(USn). The refractive index dispersion curves obey the single oscillator model. The dispersion parameters and optical constants of the films were determined. These parameters changed with In, Al and Sn dopants.     

Crystalline structure and morphological properties of undoped and Sn doped ZnO thin films

Undoped and tin (Sn) doped ZnO thin films have been prepared by spray pyrolysis method. Effect of Sn dopant on the crystalline structure and morphological properties of ZnO thin films has been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) method. XRD patterns confirm that the films have polycrystalline nature. While undoped ZnO film has (101) as the preferred orientation, Sn doped ZnO thin films have (002) as the preferred orientation. Grain sizes, lattice parameters and texture coefficient values of the films were determined. Microstructure was analyzed by SEM and the influence of the doping concentration in the microstructure of the films is investigated.     

String cloud and domain walls with quark matter for a higher dimensional FRW universe in self creation cosmology

In this study, we research a higher dimensional flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker(FRW) universe in Barber's second theory when strange quark matter(SQM) and normal matter(NM) are attached to the string cloud and domain walls. We obtain zero string tension density for this model. We obtain dust quark matter solutions. This result agrees with Kiran and Reddy, Krori et al, Sahoo and Mishra and Reddy. In our solutions the quark matter transforms to other particles over time. We also obtain two different solutions for domain walls with quark and normal matters by using a deceleration parameter. Also, the features of the obtained solutions are discussed and some physical and kinematical quantities are generalized and discussed. Our results are consistent with Yilmaz, Adcox et al and Back et al in four and five dimensions.     

NMR, UV, FT-IR, FT-Raman spectra and molecular structure (monomeric and dimeric structures) investigation of nicotinic acid N-oxide: A combined experimental and theoretical study

In this work, the experimental and theoretical UV, NMR, and vibrational features of nicotinic acid N-oxide (abbreviated as NANO, C(6)H(5)NO(3)) were studied. The ultraviolet (UV) absorption spectrum of studied compound that dissolved in water was examined in the range of 200-800nm. FT-IR and FT-Raman spectra in solid state were observed in the region 4000-400cm(-1) and 3500-50cm(-1), respectively. The (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra in DMSO were recorded. The geometrical parameters, energies and the spectroscopic properties of NANO were obtained for all four conformers from density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) basis set calculations. There are four conformers, C(n), n=1-4 for this molecule. The computational results identified the most stable conformer of title molecule as the C1 form. The complete assignments were performed on the basis of the total energy distribution (TED) of the vibrational modes, calculated with scaled quantum mechanics (SQM) method. (13)C and (1)H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shifts of the molecule were calculated by using the gauge-invariant atomic orbital (GIAO) method. The electronic properties, such as excitation energies, absorption wavelengths, HOMO and LUMO energies, were performed by CIS approach. Finally the calculation results were applied to simulate infrared, Raman, and UV spectra of the title compound which show good agreement with observed spectra.     

Effect of indium incorporation on the optical properties of spray pyrolyzed Cd0.22Zn0.78S thin films

In this study, effect of indium incorporation on the optical properties is investigated for the spray pyrolyzed onto glass substrates at 275°C substrate temperature undoped and indium doped Cd_0.22Zn_0.78S thin films. The average optical transmittance of all the films was over 77% in the wavelength range between 450 and 800 nm. The optical band gap energies of the thin films have been investigated by the measurement of the optical absorbance as a function of wavelength. The optical absorption studies reveal that the transitions are direct band gaps of 3.02 and 3.05 eV for undoped and doped indium Cd_0.22Zn_0.78S thin films, respectively. The Urbach tail parameter and optical constants such as refractive index, extinction coefficient, and dielectric constants were calculated for these films. The dispersion parameters such as single-oscillator energy and dispersive energy were discussed in terms oft he single-oscillator Wemple—DiDomenico model.     

Electrochemical Determination of Copper(II) in Water Samples Using a Novel Ion-Selective Electrode Based on a Graphite Oxide–Imprinted Polymer Composite

A novel copper(II)-selective electrode based on graphite oxide/imprinted polymer composite was developed for the electrochemical monitoring of copper(II) (Cu²⁺) ions. The electrode exhibited highly selective potentiometric response to Cu²⁺ with respect to common alkaline, alkaline earth and heavy metal cations. The composite composition studies indicated that the most suitable composite composition performing the most promising potentiometric properties was 20.0% ionophore (Cu²⁺-ion imprinted polymer), 10.0% paraffin oil, 5.0% multiwalled carbon nanotubes, and 65.0% graphite oxide. The fabricated electrode exhibited a linear response to Cu²⁺ over the concentration range of 1.0?×?10^??6–1.0?×?10^??1?M (correlation coefficient of 0.9998) with a sensitivity of 26.1?±?0.9?mV decade^??1. The detection limit of the fabricated electrode was determined to be 4.0?×?10^??7?M. The electrode worked well in the pH range of 4.0–8.0. The electrode had stable, reversible and fast potentiometric response (3?s). In addition, the electrode had a lifetime of more than 1 year. The analytical applications of the proposed electrode were performed using as an indicator electrode for the potentiometric titration of Cu²⁺ with ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid solution and for the determination of Cu²⁺ of spiked river, dam, and tap water samples. The obtained results for potentiometric titration and water samples were satisfactory.     

A model proposal for the chaotic structure of Istanbul stock exchange

Chaos theory is considered a novel way of understanding the behaviour of nonlinear dynamic systems. It is well known that the evaluation of chaotic systems is dependent on initial conditions since exponential growth error is a common characteristic. This present paper evaluates the effects of a nonlinear dynamic system in Istanbul Stock Exchange, based on time series. The reliability of predicting stock behaviour depends on this fact. In other words, the aim is to prove that if ISE daily index return shows chaotic behaviour.