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Rice husk, a plentiful agricultural waste, is a natural and environmentally friendly silica reservoir. In this study, a hydrothermal synthesis was employed to produce silica/polypyrrole nanocomposites, with the primary objective of developing corrosion-resistant materials. The nanocomposites are comprehensively characterized using XRD, FTIR, FESEM, and electrochemical studies. The results confirmed the successful formation of a silica/polypyrrole nanocomposite and revealed that the adsorption of polypyrrole molecules onto silica clusters controls the formation of larger silica nanoparticles. Pure silica exhibits spherical particles ranging from 500 to 1 μm. A low concentration of polypyrrole results in nanoparticles with dimensions ranging from 100 to 200 nm, while a higher concentration leads to reduced silica nanoparticles with sizes 10–20 nm. Aggregation of spherical nanoparticles is more prominent in silica/polypyrrole nanocomposites than pure silica nanoparticles. The nanocomposites of silica/polypyrrole, namely SP-1, SP-2, and SP-3, demonstrated significantly higher corrosion resistance (Rct) values of 36613 Ω, 44536 Ω, and 49060 Ω, respectively, in comparison to the pure silica (19540 Ω). The corrosion rates of pure silica, SP-1, SP-2, and SP-3 were determined to be 1.2687 mm/yr, 0.4715 mm/yr, 0.4681 mm/yr, and 0.3042 mm/yr, respectively. Silica exhibits remarkable chemical stability and exceptional corrosion resistance, whereas polypyrrole is a conducting polymer endowed with distinctive electrical characteristics. These constituents can be synergistically combined within a nanocomposite matrix, enhancing corrosion resistance. The synthesized nanocomposite exhibits considerable promise as a corrosion-resistant coating agent, presenting a sustainable remedy for corrosion mitigation in different industrial contexts. [Display omitted] • Hydrothermal synthesis of silica/polypyrrole nanocomposite. • Rice husk biowaste was used as a silica source. • Improved corrosion protection due to synergistic effect of silica/polypyrrole. • A sustainable and cost-effective method for corrosion protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fullerene-free organic chromophores have drawn considerable attention as successful photonic devices for organic solar cells. So, a series of novel non-fullerene-based donor molecules (HBTD2–HBTD9) were fabricated via structural modification of the terminal acceptor groups from HBTR1. In order to achieve the photovoltaic, photophysical, and electronic behavior of fore-said compounds, density functional theory/time-dependent density functional theory (DFT/TD-DFT) based analyses were accomplished at B3LYP functional along with 6-311G(d,p) basis set. The optical and electrical characteristics of the derivatives were compared with HBTR1 architecture. All designed molecules exhibited a lower E HOMO - E LUMO band gap (2.183–4.106 eV) with a red shift in absorbance compared to the reference compound (4.179 eV). All derivatives (HBTD2–HBTD9), except HBTD3 , showed a greater exciton dissociation rate due to low binding energy (E b = −0.337 to 1.400 eV) when compared with HBTR1 (E b = 1.401 eV). Interestingly, HBTD9 manifested to be the prime candidate for non-fullerene organic solar cells (NF–OSCs) owing to the lowest energy band gap, large mobility of charges, and least value of binding energy while holding an excellent redshift value compared to all the designed chromophores. This study revealed that these chromophores would be potential competitors in manufacturing effective optoelectronic materials. • Designing of acridine based donor materials (HBTD2 - HBTD9) from HBTR1 via efficient acceptors. • Study of photovoltaic properties of aforesaid compounds through DFT. • Investigation of opto-electronic properties at B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) functional of DFT. • Efficacy of designed compounds was explored by investigating open circuit voltage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]