VOLUME 38, NO6, DEC-2016

Wondrous Nanotechnology

In the last two decades, a lot of progress has been made in Nanotechnology and Nanoscience, an exploitation of matter on atomic, molecular and supermolecular scale. Nanotechnology because of its size is widely used in such varied fields as surface science, molecular biology, organic chemistry, semi-conductor physics, micro fabrication, medical sciences, electronics, biomaterials, energy production, etc. Using nanotechnology, Researchers have been able to develop new materials with nanoscale dimensions to directly control matter on the atomic or molecular scale. Due to the range of many potential applications, both industrial and military, many governments boast invested billions of dollars in nanotechnology and nanoscience research. This brief review deals with the fundamentals of nanotechnology and nanoscience and its application in various fields. It also discusses the future of nanotechnology and the risks involved in it.read more

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Iqra Zubair Awan, S. B. Hussain and A. ul Haq

Granular Activated Carbon assisted Ozonation of Cephalexin Antibiotic

This study investigates removal of cephalexin using ozonation in the presence of granular activated carbon. Initial experiments were carried out about adsorption of cephalexin onto granular activated carbon, effect of catalytic ozonation, and biodegradability of cephalexin solution. The effect of ozonation on pH, ozone utilization efficiency and decomposition byproducts, was observed. Response surface methodology was adopted to optimize three operating parameters pH of solution, ozone supply and cephalexin concentration. GAC assisted ozonation, was found to be effective in decomposing COD (chemical oxygen demand) and cephalexin from solution. Optimum values of variables were pH from 7-8, ozone supply 30 mg/L and 100 mg/L of cephalexin solution. The complete removal of cephalexin and 60% COD removal was achieved at these optimum input values.read more

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Javaid Akhtar, Muhammad Imran, Muhammad Khurram Zahoor and Noraishah Saidina Amin

Structural, Electrical and Dielectric Behavior of NixCo1-xPryFe2-yO4 Nano-Ferrites Synthesized by Sol-Gel Method

The influence of praseodymium (Pr) contents on the structural, electrical and dielectric properties of NixCO1-xPryFe2-yO4 ferrites was investigated. This series was prepared by sol-gel method. XRD analysis reveals single phase samples up to y ≤ 0.04. At y ≥ 0.06, a secondary phase of iron praseodymium oxide (PrFeO3) appears along with the spinel phase. The incorporation of Pr3+ for Fe3+ ions results in a slight increase of lattice constant due to larger ionic radius of the substituted ions. It was inferred that the substitution of praseodymium limits the grain growth. The DC electrical resistivity and activation energy are higher for the substituted samples. The dielectric constant, dielectric loss (tan δ) and AC-conductivity decreased on account of substitution. The decrease in dielectric constant is imputed to the reduction in the internal viscosity of the substituted samples. Ferrites have high dielectric constant and low tan δ, they may be attractive for application in switching and memory storage devices.read more

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Muhammad Tahir Farid, Ishtiaq Ahmad, Ghulam Murtaza, Irshad Ali and Imtiaz Ahmad

Novel Additives for Ni Electroplating that Eliminate Wastewater Production

The focus of this study is to improve the physical properties of electroplated Ni films, such as corrosion resistance, electrical resistivity, plating thickness, and adhesion force. The organic additives 2-mercaptobenzimidazole, 2-mercaptobenzothiazole, and thioglycolic acid were used in the electroplating bath for this purpose. The resulting Ni films were characterized by spectrophotometry, electron microscopy, and hardness tests. The implications for wastewater production associated with Ni plating are discussed within the context of these organic additives.read more

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Ahmet Ozan Gezerman and Burcu Didem Çorbacıoğlu

Fabrication, Thermal, Morphological and Rheological Studies on Novel Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Composites of Cetylpyridinium Chloride-Modified Montmorillonite Incorporated PEO/PMMA Blend

Ion-conducting thin film polymeric electrolytes were synthesized by mixing high molecular weight Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as a polymer matrix, Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) modified montmorillonite (MMT) as a filler, and with varying content of LiClO4 by solution casting technique. The thermal, morphological and rheological properties of the electrolytes were evaluated by using (Thermogravimetric / Differential Thermal Analysis (TG/DTA), Quick Thermal Conductivity Meter (QTM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Rheometer techniques respectively. The addition of CPC-modified clay to the polymeric electrolytes showed better dispersion at 3.5 wt. % of salt and resulted in enhanced thermal performance. The thermal conductivity of thin films was found to be very sensitive to the amount of clay addition in the system, and showed a linear decrease with the increasing clay content in the system. High MW PMMA incorporation at 50 wt. % to the composite system of PEO resulted in the agglomeration of clay particles in the composite system.read more

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Mohammad Saleem Khan, Sabiha Sultana, Imran Rehan, Kamran Rehan, Noor-ul-Amin, Gul Tiaz Khan and Abdul Shakoor

Determination of Basic Solid State Parameters and Characterization of Optical, Dielectric and Fluorescence Properties of Calcium Boro Lactate(CaBL)

This paper describes the calculation of basic solid state parameters like penn gap, plasma energy, polarizability and fermi energy for calcium boro lactate single crystal. calcium boro lactate crystals were developed by solution growth method. Single crystal diffraction studies carried out and calculated basic solid state criterion for the CaBL compound. optical nature of these compound explained by using UV-Visible spectrum. Electro-optic behaviour of the crystal explained by dielectric studies. Light emitting properties explained by fluorescence studies.read more

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A. Vijayalakshmi and Vidyavathy Balraj

Structural Characterization of Inclusion Complex of Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone and Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin

Hesperidin methyl chalcone (HMC) was a semisynthetic derivative of hesperidin, which owned antiviral and antimicrobial activities. Owing these properties, it can be applied in pharmaceutical industry. However low stability had become a barrier to its application. In order to overcome this problem, an inclusion complex of hesperidin methyl chalcone and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) were prepared by freeze-drying, using some analytical techniques to characterize the inclusion complex, including ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results of these analytical techniques indicated that the hesperidin methyl chalcone has been dispersed completely in the HP-β-CD without a new compound formed, but entrapped inside the cavity of HP-β-CD.read more

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Yun Li, Fang Li, Wei Sun, Xuan Chen and Wangyang Shen

Coproduction of Hydrogen and Carbon Filaments from Methane Decomposition over Fe/La2O3 Catalysts

Clean hydrogen production from catalytic methane decomposition has attracted the attention of many researchers as an alternative fuel source. In the present work, the catalytic decomposition of methane into hydrogen and carbon filaments on La2O3 doped Fe catalyst was investigated using 25% iron loading. The effect of reaction temperatures (500-750°C) over 25% Fe/ La2O3 catalyst was studied. The catalysts before and after reaction were characterized by BET, XRD, H2-TPR, TGA, TPO, SEM and TEM. Stability studies of 25% Fe/ La2O3 at 750 °C for 360 min for one cycle and 5 regeneration cycles were carried out. The 25% Fe/ La2O3 catalyst showed high stability for the six cycles with no reduction in activity. Hence, iron supported over La2O3 catalyst is an efficient catalyst for hydrogen production from catalytic methane decomposition. SEM and TEM images exhibited formation of carbon filaments with various diameters and lengths.read more

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Ahmed. Sadeq Al–Fatesh, Jehad Abu-Dahrieh, Ahmed Aidid Ibrahim, Anis Hamza Fakeeha and Wasim. Ullah Khan

Influence of Ferrocene and Transition Metals on the Biological Activities of Schiff Bases

A series of organic and organometallic Schiff bases bearing phenylferrocene and their six transition metal complexes have been prepared and tested for their potential biological applications by using antifungal, antibacterial, antitumor activities, toxicity testing against the brine shrimp and DNA damage analysis. The copper and cobalt complexes of organic Schiff base showed significant antibacterial activity. The antifungal activities tested against six fungal strains revealed that N-(4-hydroxybenzylidene) aniline (A5) had the highest antifungal activity. Most of these compounds showed cytotoxic activity against the brine shrimp. The results of showed that these compounds had significant antitumor activity, up to 97% in the case of N-(4-chlorobenzylidene) aniline (A3). Only two compounds N-(2-hydroxy benzylidene) 4-ferrocenylaniline (F2) and Nickel (II) complex of organic Schiff base (CO2) had DNA damaging activity at 20mg/ml concentration.read more

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Faiz Ullah Shah, Maryam Jamil, Javaria Aslam, Asghari Gul, Zareen Akhter and Bushra Mirza

Partial Hydrogenation of Alkynes on Highly Selective Nano-Structured Mesoporous silica MCM-41 Composite Catalyst

In this research, we have developed a silica MCM-41/Metformin/Pd (II) nano composite catalyst for the selective hydrogenation of alkynes to the corresponding (Z)-alkenes under a mild condition of atmospheric pressure and room temperature. Firstly, functionalized Si-MCM-41 metformin catalyst with the optimum performance was prepared. Then, the synthesized catalyst was elucidated by X-ray powder diffraction, BET surface area, FT-IR spectrophotometer, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and applied in partial hydrogenation of different alkynes, with high selectivity and high yield. The products were characterized by 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, FT-IR, and Mass Spectrometry (MS) that strongly approved the (Z)-double bond configuration of produced alkenes. This prepared catalyst is competitive with the best palladium catalysts known for the selective liquid phase hydrogenation of alkynes and can be easily recovered and regenerated with keeping high activity and selectivity over at least three cycles with a simple regeneration procedure.read more

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Reza Kia Kojoori