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The Europium doped Zinc aluminate [ZnAl2O4] nanoparticles prepared by green biogenic technique using Resinfera E-tirucalli latex. Zinc nitrate hexahydrate, and Aluminium nitrate and Europium nitrate were used as starting materials. Naturally available Resinfera latex of Euphorbia family was used as a combustion agent. The obtained nanoparticles were thermally annealed 3 h at 900 °C. The obtained samples were analysed for their structural investigations by analytical methods. By XRD data the average particle size was calculated by Scherrer’s equation. The sizes of the nano zinc aluminate was 18 nm and the Eu3+ doped zinc aluminate NPs was about 16 nm in size. In FTIR Spectra three bands which are observed in the range 400–700 cm−1 are characteristics of metal oxide zinc aluminate spinel structure The optical properties were analysed by UV–Visible spectra. The decolourization of the methylene blue (MB) dye was studied under sun light and UV light irradiation and studied the effect of pH by the catalyst ZnAl2O4:Eu3+ NPs.

Three different alumina sources (boehmite, aluminium nitrate and α-alumina particles) and 12Ce-TZP powder containing 1 wt% lanthanum oxide were used to prepare 12Ce-TZP-based alumina-toughened-zirconia (ATZ) composites. The obtained ATZs had similar density and phase composition, whereas the microstructures were significantly different. Alumina-particle addition gave rise to a typical ATZ microstructure consisting of equiaxial sub-micrometer zirconia and alumina phases, while the lanthanum hexa-aluminate phase was formed in large and non-homogenously distributed precipitates (∼3.5 μm in length). The boehmite and aluminium nitrate-based composites contained not only sub-micrometer equiaxial alumina and zirconia grains but also small-sized lanthanum hexa-aluminate precipitates (∼1.2 μm in length) that were inter- and transgranularly positioned in the zirconia matrix and effectively promoted crack deflection and toughening. In combination with a higher t-ZrO2 transformability, the boehmite-based composites had a higher indentation fracture resistance, strength and reliability compared to the aluminium-nitrate and alumina-particle based equivalents.

The present article reports a simple and cost-effective process to prepare the crystalline MgAl2O4 spinel using non-stoichometric amount of magnesium nitrate, aluminium nitrate by solution combustion route. Thiourea was used as a fuel and reducing agent while soaking was carried at 1000ºC with different soaking periods. After slow drying of mixed solutions at 80ºC for 4-5 hours a gel was formed and got characterized by DTA/TGA (Differential Thermal Analysis and Thermal Gravimetric Analysis) to observe the effect of temperature variation and identify the range of temperature where crystalline nature of the powder was noted. Powder sample was prepared from the gel after annealing at 1000ºC followed by soaking for 4 hours, 5 hours, 6 hours to compare the variation of particle size with respect to time. The calcined powders were characterized by XRD (X-ray powder diffraction) to determine the phases and crystal planes present in the sample, FT-IR (Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy) to study the types of metal oxide or metal-metal bond present in the sample along with M-O coordination studies, FESEM (Field emission scanning electron microscopy) to observe the morphological structure of the sample, EDAX (Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis) to observe the percentage of each element present in the sample. Bulk densities were estimated from 2.4156 g/cm3 to 2.8571 g/cm3 and the rapid increase in apparent porosity of samples 7.4289%, 10.3630% and 32.51% for 4 hours 5 hours and 6 hours respectively were also noted. It had been observed that the average crystal size of spinel particles was about 48 nm, 36 nm, and 47 nm respectively. Finally, hardness of spinel was evaluated by Vicker Hardness test and evaluated to be10.52GPa (1073 HV), 4.087GPa (416.7HV) and 5.079 GPa (517.9HV).

Porous mullite ceramics with ultra-low shrinkage and high porosity were prepared by solid state reaction between MoO3 and mullite precursor powders which were synthesized from tetraethylorthosilicate and aluminium nitrate nonahydrate via sol-gel methods. The synthetic process of mullite precursor powder and effects of MoO3 amount on the phase composition, microstructure, physical properties such as firing shrinkage, open porosity, bending strength, water absorption and bulk density of porous mullite ceramics were investigated. The results indicated that the addition of MoO3 not only lowered the mullite forming temperature from 985.4 to 853.3 °C, but also restrained densification behavior of samples due to the formation of mullite and Al2O3–MoO3 solid solution, besides, MoO3 also improves the formability, open porosity and bending strength of samples. The optimal amounts of MoO3 is 8 wt%, and the resultant samples exhibit outstanding properties, including a low shrinkage rate of 1.86 ± 0.07%, an open porosity of 61.91 ± 0.16% and a bending strength of 9.35 ± 1.11 MPa.

Textured transparent conductive electrodes for thin-film solar cells have been considered as an effective route for enhancing sunlight harvest due to light trapping. Here, we report a self-assembling electrochemical approach for preparing Al-doped ZnO nanorod arrays (NRAs) as light-trapping electrodes from a mixed aqueous solution of zinc nitrate and aluminium nitrate. The mechanism and optimized process conditions of forming one-dimensional ZnO nanorods with Al-doping were systematically investigated. The results showed that Al atoms were successfully doped into ZnO crystal lattice, and the morphologies could be controlled by adjusting the Al3+/Zn2+ ratio in the precursors and deposition time. The Al-doped ZnO films grew into well-aligned hexagonal NRAs with c-axis perpendicular to the substrates and then transited into a mixture of nanosheets and nanorods with Al3+/Zn2+ ratio increasing. They exhibited good electrical conductivity with a sheet resistance of 68-167Ω/square and appropriate visible light transmittance of 61-82%. Taking into account of desired morphology and phase purity, as well as good electrical conductivity and optical transmittance, the optimal window of Al3+/Zn2+ ratio in the precursors was determined between 1 at% and 2 at% with applied potential of -1.5V, bath temperature of 80°C, and deposition time of about 30min. The electrodeposition method provides a facile and efficient route for obtaining large-area textured transparent electrodes at a low cost.

The fractional uptake of ingested aluminium and aluminium compounds (aluminium citrate, aluminium nitrate, aluminium chloride, aluminium sulphate, aluminium hydroxide, aluminium oxide, aluminium metal, powdered aluminium pot electrolyte, acidic sodium aluminium phosphate (SALP), basic sodium aluminium phosphate (Kasal), sodium aluminium silicate and FDC 0.02% for aluminium oxide; 0.04% for powdered pot electrolyte; 0.12% for sodium aluminium silicate; and 0.09% for FD&C red 40 aluminium lake. For aluminium metal, SALP and Kasal the amount of 26Al present in the rats was insufficient to determine uptake and was less than 0.03%. The results produced for aluminium citrate, aluminium hydroxide and aluminium sulphate are close to those published for man.

Manipulating the exposed facets of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) is of importance toward understanding their facet-dependent property in a variety of applications. Herein, we apply a novel inorganic competitive coordination strategy to control the growth orientation of copper-based MOFs (HKUST-1, MOF-14, and Cu-MOF-74) without sacrificing the pore accessibility and crystallinity. Through monitoring the reactant composition, we find that the competitive coordination induced by the added aluminium nitrate mainly affects the crystal growth stage rather than the nucleation stage. The kinetic study further reveals that Al3+ competes with Cu2+ to coordinate with ligands, restraining the growth rate of certain facets and resulting in the orientated growth of copper-based MOFs. Compared to the reduced pore accessibility of HKUST-1 crystals modulated by the organic modulation method, Al3+-modulated HKUST-1 displays a much larger surface area (>2200 m2/g) and more accessible Cu active sites. Hydroxylation of toluene was utilized as a model reaction to investigate the facet-catalytic activity for as-synthesized HKUST-1. The selectivity of the preferred product cresol increases with the morphology transformation of HKUST-1 from octahedron to cube.

Pure alumina powder is synthesized by solid state reaction method, wherein aluminium nitrate nano hydrate is annealed for 3 h at 1000 °C in muffle furnace. Carbon nano cones, as a reinforcer, are added to pure alumina in different weight proportions such as 0.5%, 2.5% and 4% and annealed at 1000 °C for 3 h in nitrogen atmosphere. The synthesized samples were characterized using XRD, SEM and DRS techniques to estimate crystallite size, interplanar distance and band gap. SEM reveals the surface morphologies of all samples and a rough estimate of crystallite sizes varying from few nm to 15 µm.

Using a combustion synthesis, the range of achievable textures is broader than using conventional synthesis methods and can be controlled more successfully. As a tool allowing the achievement and control of desired textures, here we bring about wet chemistry synthesis using aluminium nitrate nonahydrate (ANN) precursor systematically combined with different fuels (amino acids). The amino acids ; glycine (G), alanine (A) and asparagine (N) have been specifically selected in order to show the role of gradual increase in their: (1) molar mass, (2) enthalpy of combustion, (3) amine groups content and (4) ratio to ANN. Detailed (micro) structural and thermal characterisations confirm that the nanocrystalline character and thermomechanical stability were not diminished in the course of this synthesis. The conditions leading to development of different morphologies from gels to powders were found to be heavily under the influence of fuel/oxygen ratio, i.e. of the smouldering versus flaming mechanism of the combustion. Higher content of nitrates (predominately from amino-rich amino acids) strongly promoted auto-combustion behaviour. As- derived alumina precursors have been thermally treated at various temperatures (quenched and soaked), to monitor γ- and α-alumina crystallisation, with respect to the development of morphology. Different texture types have been observed, such as porous wormhole, porous and porous expanded flakes. Higher fuel levels promote specific surface increase. This combustion synthesis allows facile tailoring of nanocrystalline γ-alumina with different morphological features, whereas samples having optimal parameters were suitable for catalyst support application on behalf of rapid sorption performance.

Background Aluminium nitrate and other aluminium-containing compounds have been demonstrated to cause several health challenges. Psidium guajava L) is a well known cultivated tree with hepatoprotective nature and radical scavenging ability. Methods Twenty-five (25) female Wistar rats with average weight of 195 g were grouped into five groups (n = 5), with their weights measured and recorded weekly throughout the period of 21 days of the research. Control (group A), 32.5 mg/kg AL only (group B), 30 mg/kg AL + 250 mg/kg PGLE (group C), 20 mg/kg AL + 500 mg/kg PGLE (group D) and 10 mg/kg AL + 750 mg/kg PGLE (group E). Histological examination of the liver was done using Hematoxylin and Eosin stain. Results Various degenerative changes were observed in the liver architecture following aluminum nitrate administration when compared with the control group. Significant regenerative changes similar to control were observed following administration of high dose of Psidium guajava. Conclusion The results obtained in this study revealed that aqueous extract of Psidium guajava leaves possess good hepato-protective properties.

Fine alpha-alumina (α-Al2O3) powder was prepared by simple precipitation technique using aluminium salt and ammonia as a precipitating agent. In this method, an aqueous solution of aluminium nitrate and ammonia were mixed with continuous stirring both in the presence and in the absence of polyethylene glycol (PEG). A controlled pH range of 7.5–8.5 was maintained throughout the synthesis process. A comparative study between the alumina powder prepared in the presence and absence of PEG was drawn into attention. The washing of the precipitate was deliberately avoided in one case to study the effect of washing on phase formation temperature. The synthesized powders were calcined at different temperatures and characterized by X-ray diffraction study, thermal analysis, infrared analysis, microstructural study, and particle size analysis. The results showed less agglomerated fine alumina powder formation in its pure α-Al2O3 phase at 1050°C in the presence of PEG.

Zinc Oxide (ZnO) and Aluminium doped Zinc Oxide (AZO) thin films are deposited on the glass slides by sol-gel spin coating technique. Zinc acetate dehydrate, 2 methoxyethanol, and diethanolamine are respectively used as a precursor, solvent, and stabilizer. Aluminium nitrate nonahydrate was used as the dopant source to obtain the atomic percentage of the dopant of 2%, 4%, 6% and 8%. The structural, optical, and electrical properties of the films were investigated using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), UV-visible spectrophotometry, and a Four-point probe technique respectively. The results from structural analyses show that the films are polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and a preferential orientation alongside the \(c\)-axis. The value obtained for the unit cell \(a=3.020\) A and \(c= 5.108\) A are in line with the reported literature. The transmittance of the films was observed within the visible region of the spectrum and the optical bandgap of the un-doped ZnO was established to be around 4.11 eV. However, the optical bandgap of the AZO films (4 and 6 at %) marginally decreases with doping concentration, which may be ascribed to the shrinkage of band effect due to the increase in carrier concentration. The lowest resistivity of \(3.53\times {10}^{-3}\,\Omega\) cm was observed for the doping concentration of 2% of Al. From the results, it was established that as the doping concentration increases, the thicknesses of the thin films were increased. Likewise, the increase in doping leads to a better uniformly distributed absorption spectra of the deposited AZO thin films.

Thermal analysis of the binary system (Al(NO3)3)–(Cu(NO3)2) of different ratios was performed by using differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. The eutectic temperature of the binary salt mixture was determined to be 65 °C. Moreover, the degradation temperature, specific heat, latent heat of fusion and thermal stability were reported, respectively. Further, this work focuses on synthesising low-temperature salt mixtures comprised of aluminium nitrate non-hydrate (Al(NO3)3) and copper nitrate hydrate (Cu(NO3)2) of varying compositions (60:40, 50:50, 55:45 and 57.5:42.5), respectively, which are optimised using Design of Expert v13. The performance of the binary salt mixture was determined from the results obtained from thermal stability measurements after the exposure of salt mixture to 120 h at a higher temperature. The results showed that the novel binary molten salt mixtures exhibit decomposition at 215 °C and the latent heat was found to increase from 17.7 to 20.73 J g−1 with the increase in aluminium nitrate composition with excellent repeatability after three sets of experiments. The average specific heat of binary molten salt mixture was observed from 2.73 to 2.13 J g−1 K−1. The optimal molar ratio of binary molten salts is found to be 60:40 (Al/Cu) from the obtained results. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray showed a uniform distribution of both the salts in the mixture. The average specific heat of the optimal molar ratio was 21.8% higher compared to other molar ratios, indicating the most promising material to be used in solar applications.

In this work, Ag and Al co-doped ZnO nanoparticles have been prepared through chemical synthesis route using zinc acetate, silver nitrate and aluminium nitrate. The synthesized nanoparticles are characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The nanofluids are prepared by dispersing 1 wt% of Al and Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles in ethylene glycol (EG)-water (W) mixture. The effect of base fluid on the thermal conductivity enhancement of the nanofluids has been studied by employing three different EG + Water mixtures namely, 25% EG-75% Water, 50% EG-50% Water and 75% EG-25% Water as base fluids. The nanoparticles are homogeneously dispersed in base fluids by using combined magnetic stirring and ultrasonication. The thermal conductivity of the nanofluids are measured through transient hot-wire technique. It is observed that the addition of small amount of Al and Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles to the ethylene glycol-water mixture increases the thermal conductivity of the base fluid. The 50% EG-50 Water mixture showed highest thermal conductivity enhancement of 37% compared to other base fluids when 1% Al and Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles are dispersed.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), consisting of inorganic metal centres coordinated with organic linkers, are a group of hybrid materials emerging recently and have attracted immense attention because of their exceptionally high microporosity, tuneable pore size and uniformly-structured cavities. The controlled synthesis of crystals with defined morphology is critical for their performance in terms of adsorption, gas separation, and catalysis etc. Some instructive attempts have been conducted successfully to manipulate the morphology of MOFs by adjusting reaction parameters, changing solvents and using templates or additives. Among them, the organic additives with their high efficiency and repeatability have been frequently introduced. However, organic additives tend to be difficult to be removed from MOFs micropore structures and have adverse impacts on the crystallinity due to introducing defects. Therefore, there is an increasing interest in fashioning the morphology of MOFs by inorganic coordination strategy.This project focuses on controlled synthesis of MOFs by using inorganic additives or precursors and investigates their morphology-dependent applications in terms of adsorption and catalysis. The studies include the morphology control of copper-based MOFs and the study of morphology transformation mechanism, as well as exploring the morphology dependent performance on gas adsorption and catalysis. It aims to establish guidelines for the controlled synthesis of MOFs via inorganic strategies.In the first part of the experimental chapter, we used Mg/Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanosheets as modulators to tune the growth orientation of HKUST-1 without either pore blockage or crystallinity degradation. Through the introduction of LDH during the hydrothermal process, HKUST-1 crystal shape transfers from octahedron with fully exposed {111} facets to tetrakaidecahedron with both {100} and {111} facets. The exposure of {100} facet with large pore size facilitates the activation of MOF, thereby providing more open metal sites. The tetrakaidecahedral HKUST-1 exhibits high acetylene uptake of 275 cm3 (STP)/g at 298 K and 1 atm, which is the highest value ever reported to the best of our knowledge. Time-dependent experiment revealed that the morphology control of LDH was due to: a) competitive coordination between aluminium ions released from LDH and copper ions with organic ligands; b) fast deprotonation of ligands induced by the hydroxyl function group on the LDH. In order to further reveal the mechanism of aluminium ion on the morphology control of copper-based MOFs, we used aluminium nitrate as an inorganic competitive coordinator to control the growth orientation of copper-based MOFs, such as HKUST-1, MOF-14 and Cu-MOF-74. Through monitoring the reactant composition, we find that the competitive coordination induced by the added aluminium nitrate mainly affects the crystal growth stage rather than the nucleation stage. The kinetic study further reveals that Al3+ competes with Cu2+ to coordinate with ligands, restraining the growth rate of certain facet and resulting in the orientated growth of copper-based MOFs. Hydroxylation of toluene was utilized as a model reaction to investigate the facet-catalytic activity for as-synthesized HKUST-1. The selectivity of the cresol increases with the morphology transformation of HKUST-1 from octahedron to cube.In the third part of the experimental chapter, we used metal oxide to accelerate the deprotonation of ligands. A universal method for controlled-synthesis of urchin-like superstructure MOFs by matching the dissolution of metal source and the crystallization of MOFs was developed through using nanosized metal oxide as precursors. Cu-MOF74, Co-BTC and Mn-BTC with urchin-like superstructures (US) were synthesized successfully by using proposed strategy. Cu-MOF-74 was selected as an example to investigate the mechanism of the formation of superstructure MOFs. Taking advantage of their unique structure, the US-MOFs are used as useful catalysts for selective catalytic reduction of NO.

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) are materials with a large surface area and antimicrobial properties are advantageous properties for the controlled release of molecules for biomedical applications. However, their synthesis is expensive and harmful to the environment due to the use of organic ligands and solvents. Thus, this work proposes the synthesis of a new MOF by hydrothermal method using water as the solvent, aluminium nitrate as a metallic source, and bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET) as organic ligand, obtained via glycolysis of polyethylene terephthalate (PET); and its comparison with MIL53-Al MOF, synthesized from terephthalic acid (BDC) as organic ligand. Both MOFs were characterized by XRD, ATR-FTIR, N2 physisorption, TGA, SEM and XPS; besides their in vitro biocompatibility was tested by porcine fibroblasts viability. The results indicate that aluminium ions are coordinated to both carbonyl and hydroxyl functional groups of the BDC and BHET organic ligands. The new BHET-Al MOF shows higher thermal stability than MIL53-Al, it also exhibits a macroporous structure in comparison with the microporosity of the MIL53-Al. BHET-Al MOF is not cytotoxic for porcine dermal fibroblasts growing on its surface for up to 48 h of culture, thus, this innovative MOF is a promising material for the controlled release of drugs.

This study investigated the one-pot hydrothermal synthesis of mixed-phase ion-exchangers from waste amber container glass and three different aluminium sources (Si/Al = 2) in 4.5 M NaOH(aq) at 100 °C. Reaction products were characterised by X-ray diffraction analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, 27Al and 29Si magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy at 24, 48 and 150 h. Nitrated forms of cancrinite and sodalite were the predominant products obtained with reagent grade aluminium nitrate (Al(NO3)3∙9H2O). Waste aluminium foil gave rise to sodalite, tobermorite and zeolite Na-P1 as major phases, and the principal products arising from amorphous aluminium hydroxide waste were sodalite, tobermorite and zeolite A. Minor proportions of the hydrogarnet, katoite, and calcite were also present in each sample. In each case, crystallisation was incomplete and products of 52, 65 and 49% crystallinity were obtained at 150 h for the samples prepared with aluminium nitrate (AN-150), aluminium foil (AF-150) and amorphous aluminium hydroxide waste (AH-150), respectively. Batch Pb2+-uptake (~100 mg g−1) was similar for all 150-hour samples irrespective of the nature of the aluminium reagent and composition of the product. Batch Cd2+-uptakes of AF-150 (54 mg g−1) and AH-150 (48 mg g−1) were greater than that of AN-150 (36 mg g−1) indicating that the sodalite- and tobermorite-rich products exhibited a superior affinity for Cd2+ ions. The observed Pb2+- and Cd2+-uptake capacities of the mixed-product ion-exchangers compared favourably with those of other inorganic waste-derived sorbents reported in the literature.

Herpes simplex virus is among the most prevalent sexually transmitted infections. Acyclovir is a potent, selective inhibitor of herpes viruses and it is indicated for the treatment and management of recurrent cold sores on the lips and face, genital herpes, among other diseases. The problem of the oral bioavailability of acyclovir is limited because of the low permeability across the gastrointestinal membrane. The use of nanoparticles of pseudoboehmite as a drug delivery system in vitro assays is a promising approach to further the permeability of acyclovir release. Here we report the synthesis of high purity pseudoboehmite from aluminium nitrate and ammonium hydroxide containing nanoparticles, using the sol–gel method, as a drug delivery system to improve the systemic bioavailability of acyclovir. The presence of pseudoboehmite nanoparticles were verified by infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction techniques. In vivo tests were performed with Wistar rats to compare the release of acyclovir, with and without the addition of pseudoboehmite. The administration of acyclovir with the addition of pseudoboehmite increased the drug content by 4.6 times in the plasma of Wistar rats after 4 h administration. We determined that the toxicity of pseudoboehmite is low up to 10 mg/mL, in gel and the dried pseudoboehmite nanoparticles.

Humans have a strong link of exposure to aluminium nitrate [Al (NO3)3] toxicity from various sources. This study examined physicochemical properties and varied concentrations of bee honey (BH) in ameliorating aluminium (Al) toxicity. Thirty albino Wistar rats were used for this study. They were separated into six Groups of five rats each. Group 1 served as control, Group 2 was given Al (NO3)3 only, Group 3, 4, 5 and 6 were given Al (NO3)3 then treated with 10 %, 25 %, 50 % and 100 % BH daily for 2 weeks. Aluminium nitrate was administered at a dose of 6.5 mg/kg, intraperitoneally. The physicochemical contents of BH were the same with international standard (IS). There were significant (p < 0.05) decreases in SOD, CAT, GSH and increased MDA level in the liver, kidney and brain of Group 2 when compared with Group 1. Treatment with 50 % BH significantly (p < 0.05) increased SOD, CAT, GSH and decreased MDA levels when compared with Group 2. No significant differences were indicated in CAT, SOD, GSH and MDA in the tissues of Group 3 and 6 in comparison with Group 2. However, liver histology of rats treated with 50 % BH revealed normal hepatic cells same as the control. This study strongly suggested that BH could restore altered antioxidant parameters and liver histology. In addition, BH at moderate intake it could be good alternative chelating agent for Al toxicity.

Technetium-99m (99mTc), a daughter radionuclide of molybdenum-99 (99Mo), is the most widely used radiodiagnostic agent due to its ideal characteristics. The separation of this radionuclide from 99Mo is commonly performed using alumina. However, a new production method of this radionuclide, which employs a low specific activity 99Mo, makes alumina no longer suitable as separation material. This study aims to develop novel alumina using a facile solid-state reaction for 99Mo/99mTc generator system. The SS-alumina was synthesized from aluminium nitrate nonahydrate and ammonium bicarbonate without solvent. The resulted SS-alumina was then analyzed by FTIR and BET method. 99Mo adsorption and 99mTc releasing study on a series of pH were also performed. FTIR study revealed that the resulting material was Al2O3 with a surface area of 237.65 m2/g. The adsorption capacity, 99mTc yield, 99Mo breakthrough, and alumina breakthrough were 76.06 mg Mo/g alumina, 80.31%, 56.5 µCi/mCi 99mTc, and less than 5 mg/mL, respectively. The elution profile shows a high activity of 99mTc in 2nd and 3rd fraction. It is concluded that the SS-alumina shows good performance as adsorbent material for separation of a 99Mo/99mTc and further work is now underway.

In the current scenario, biosynthesis has a major trend in the world due to its eco-friendly approach, effectiveness and low cost. In this experiment Aluminium Oxide nano powder was extracted from ‘Muntingia Calabura’ leaf with aluminium nitrate as precursor. An attempt has been made to develop the properties of sisal/coir, sisal/banana and banana/coir based hybrid composite with addition of aluminium oxide (Al2O3) nano powder. Compression moulding technique was adapted to fabricate the epoxy based natural fiber composites. Nano Al2O3 powder was added in 0, 1, 2 and 3 wt%. The results demonstrate that addition of nano powder up to 3 weight (wt) percentage improvise the tensile, flexural and impact properties for all incorporated hybrid fibers. Residual wt% for sisal/coir, sisal/banana and banana/coir hybrid composites enhanced from 27.15 to 29.14, 26.07 to 31.33% and 23.76 to 27.50% by 3% nano substitution. Degradation temperature improved in different stages of hybrid combinations. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images clearly showed the reduction of fiber breakage, matrix breakage and void gaps due to alumina nano powder addition.

We developed aluminium (Al)-doped nickel oxide (NiO) nanosheet arrays film on the indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) substrate via sol–gel immersion method using nickel nitrate hexahydrate and aluminium nitrate nonahydrate as precursor and dopant materials, respectively. The Al-doping concentrations were varied from 0 to 2 at.%. Uniform Al-doped NiO nanosheet array films were observed on the substrate; the denser and smaller size of the NiO nanosheets were obtained at higher Al-doping concentrations. The growth mechanism was proposed. The crystallinity of Al-doped NiO nanosheet deteriorated at higher doping concentration. Meanwhile, the crystallite size, lattice parameter, and interplanar spacing were reduced with the doping quantity. The compressive strain, tensile stress, dislocation density, and band gap of the Al-doped NiO upsurged at higher doping concentration. The current–voltage measurement results revealed that the resistivity increased after the doping process up to 2 at.%. The Raman spectra showed that the doped samples exhibit blue-shift and decreased intensity of the Raman peaks.

Cinnamic acid (CA) is known to lose its definite function by forming into radicals that able to penetrate into the skin and lead to health issues. Incorporating CA into zinc/aluminum-layered double hydroxides (Zn/Al-LDH) able to reduce photodegradation and eliminate close contact between skin and CA. Co-precipitation or direct method used by using zinc nitrate hexahydrate and aluminium nitrate nonahydrate as starting precursors with addition of various concentration of CA. The pH were kept constant at 7 ± 0.5. Fourier Transform Infrared-Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR-ATR) shows the presence of nanocomposites peak 3381 cm–1 for OH group, 1641 cm–1 for C=O group, 1543 cm–1 for C=C group and 1206 cm–1 for C–O group and disappearance of N–O peak at 1352 cm–1 indicates that cinnamic acid were intercalated in between the layered structures. Powder X-Ray Diffraction (PXRD) analysis for Zn/Al-LDH show the basal spacing of 9.0 Ǻ indicates the presence of nitrate and increases to 18.0 Ǻ in basal spacing in 0.4M Zn/Al-LDH-CA. CHNS analysis stated that 40 % of cinnamic acid were being found and intercalated in between the interlayer region of the Zn/Al-LDH with higher thermal stability. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) images of 0.4 M Zn/Al-LDH-CA shows that the nanocomposites are in more compact, flaky non porous, large agglomerates with smooth the surfaces of the intercalated compound. Controlled release was successful with 80 % release in phosphite anion and 70 % release carbonate anion. The cinnamic acid was successfully inserted between the interlayer regions of Zn/Al-LDH with slow release formulation. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reservedReceived: 1st October 2018; Revised: 8th December 2018; Accepted: 12nd December 2018; Available online: 25th January 2019; Published regularly: April 2019How to Cite: Adam, N., Ghazali, S.A.I.S.M., Dzulkifli, N.N., Hak, C.R.C., Sarijo, S.H. (2019). Intercalations and Characterization of Zinc/Aluminium Layered Double Hydroxide-Cinnamic Acid. Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering & Catalysis, 14 (1): 165-172 (doi:10.9767/bcrec.14.1.3328.165-172)Permalink/DOI: https://doi.org/10.9767/bcrec.14.1.3328.165-172

In the present study, it was aimed to investigate the synthesis of iron based magnetic aluminium oxide nanocomposites (IMANCs) by solution combustion (SC) method using various fuel types at various amounts. IMANCs were synthesized using aluminium nitrate and iron nitrate as oxidizers. Urea, glycine and sucrose were chosen as fuel types at various amounts, respectively, to examine their effects on size and morphology of nanocomposites synthesized. The chemical compositions, morphologies and thermal behaviors of IMANCs synthesized were compared with data obtained from characterization studies using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS), Thermogravimetric and Differential Thermal Analysis (TG/DTA), Fourier Transform Infrared Analysis (FT-IR), Surface Area and Porosity Analyzer. The characterization studies revealed that IMANCs were synthesized successfully by SC method with nanoscale properties. It was found that IMANCs synthesized using stoichiometric amount of glycine had porous and smaller particle size with higher surface area compared to other samples synthesized by urea and sucrose, respectively. There is no documentation found on glycine based synthesis of IMANCs by SC method in the literature so far. Additionally, this original paper is the first report on the synthesis of IMANCs by applying calcination and reduction processes following SC reaction using various fuel types at various amounts. It was resulted that the samples synthesized by SC method had smaller particle sizes compared to the samples which were synthesized by applying calcination and reduction processes following SC reaction using stoichiometric amount of urea, glycine and sucrose as fuel types, respectively. Keywords: Iron based magnetic aluminium oxide nanocomposites, Fuel types, Solution combustion method, Calcination, Reduction, Characterization studies

Porous alumina microfibers with a diameter of 125 nm were prepared through hydrothermal reaction in urea solution using aluminium nitrate as the precursor, and characterized using transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The mechanism of oxidation of chlorogenic acid was examined using cyclic voltammetry, indicating a reversible two-electron process. Compared with the bare carbon paste electrode (CPE), the oxidation signals of chlorogenic acid were greatly enhanced with the alumina microfiber-modified CPE. Chronocoulometry experiments indicated that the accumulation of chlorogenic acid on the surface of the alumina microfibers was obviously improved relative to that on the bare electrode, which is attributed to the numerous micropores and regular fiber-like structures. Based on the signal amplification ability of the porous alumina microfibers, a novel electrochemical sensing platform was developed for chlorogenic acid. The linear range was 10–2000 μg L−1, and the limit of detection was evaluated to be 5.0 μg L−1. The practical application of this new method was demonstrated using honeysuckle and soft drink samples. The results were consistent with the values obtained by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Alumina thin films are synthesized by combustion synthesis of mixtures of aluminium nitrate (ALN) and methylcarbazate (MCZ). The interdependence of the ratio of oxidizer and reducing agent on composition, microstructure and electronic properties of the resulting oxide layers is investigated. The dielectric and insulating behaviour is improved by addition of different amounts of MCZ (MCZ : ALN = 0.67 or 2.5). In this way films (thickness ∼140 nm) with a dielectric constant κ of 9.7 and a dielectric loss tan δ below 0.015 can be achieved. Medium concentrations of MCZ (MCZ : ALN = 1.0 or 1.5) lead to films with lower performance, though. Our studies indicate two opposing effects of the organic additive. Removal of organic residues during film formation as combustion gases is potentially detrimental. Larger amounts of MCZ, however, cause condensation reactions in the precusor mixture, which improve the microstructure. The porosity of the films can be sucessfully analyzed by positron annihilation liftetime studies. In this way the impact of the organic ligand sphere on the resulting microstructure can be quantified. Samples prepared from ALN alone exhibit mesopores and also larger micropores. In contrast, the formation of mesopores can be inhibited by addition of MCZ.

In this work, graphite (G), ammonium iron (II) sulfate (AFS) and aluminium nitrate were added to polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) at 25% loading level to improve its flame retardancy. In addition, PVA/(G+AFS+AN) composite was prepared. The flammability and smoke density of PVA composites were evaluated by UL94 flame chamber, limiting oxygen index (LOI) and smoke density chamber. Vertical flame spread test (UL94V) indicated that PVA composites achieved V0 class in PVA/(G+AFS+AN)and PVA/AFS samples. Horizontal burning rate (UL94H) data showed that PVA composites achieved H0 class. LOI of PVA was enhanced from 19.1% to 21.3%, 25.2%, 26.1% and 27.2% in PVA/G, PVA/AN, PVA/AFS and PVA/(G+AFS+AN)composites, respectively. The maximum specific optical density (Dsmax) of PVA was decreased in all PVA composites due to the formation of protective char layer on polymer surface. The maximum reduction in Dsmax value of PVA was 64% and it was observed in PVA/(G+AFS+AN). XRD analysis of char residue after smoke density test of PVA/(G+AFS+AN) indicated the presence of coquimbite phase, graphite and magnetite in the char residue. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) data of PVA and PVA/(G+AFS+AN) composite showed that the new flame-retardant system improved the thermal stability of neat polymer and the temperatures at which 50% (T50%) weight loss takes place were greatly enhanced. In addition, the char residue at 750 ℃ was increased.

Facile and efficient adsorbent was prepared by modification of the activated carbon (AC) with aluminium (Al). Impregnation of commercial AC with varying weight percents (1, 2, 5 and 10%) of Al, using aluminium nitrate solution, resulted to AC-Al of differing Al-loading amounts and the composites were investigated for their sorption capacity of methylene blue (MB) in aqueous phase. Adsorbent characteristics with respect to cationic dye (MB) adsorption efficiency was studied by N2-physisorption, Raman spectroscopy, FTIR and Boehm titration. The AC-Al (2) adsorbent containing 2 wt % Al loaded on AC yielded the best performance due to better acidic and basic properties, with little compromise on surface area. Parametric investigation indicated a fast sorption process which is endothermic in nature. The Langmuir isotherm well described the adsorption process with a maximum adsorption capacity of 181.82 mg/g. The kinetic studies showed that the adsorption process followed a pseudo-second order kinetics. The high removal efficiency of the AC-Al (2) indicated its immense potential in toxic water remediation.

In this paper, composite membranes based on polyvinyl chloride (PVC) has been prepared and then filled with 0.125-0.250 wt% of iso-phthalic acid/aluminium nitrate nanoparticles. All of the polymeric and nanocomposite membranes were fabricated by solution casting using tetrahydrofuran (THF) solvent. The performance of the prepared membranes was studied for CO2/N2 at the feed pressure of 2.5, 3, and 3.5 bar at 35 °C. Results showed that in most cases, increasing the percentage of PVC increased the permeability of CO2/N2. Also, with the addition of iso-phthalic acid/aluminium nitrate nanoparticles in the membrane, gas permeability in all cases increased. The highest gas pair selectivity for CO2/N2 could be obtained from PVC (30 wt%) loaded with 0.250 wt% of iso-phthalic acid/aluminium nitrate nanoparticles. For characterization of samples, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used. These results also suggest that PVC membranes with the higher loading percentage of nanoparticles are good candidates for the CO2/N2 separation, offering better selectivity for CO2/N2 in the range of 63.78 to 230.42, depending on the loading percentage.

This paper deals with the preparation and evaluation of a zeolite prototype developed from an aluminosilicate precursor for its possible application as a hydrocracking catalyst. Aluminium nitrate and tetraethyl orthosilicate at definite proportions were the primary reagents for the gel synthesis. Nickel loading and stipulated post-synthesis treatment of the material are also addressed in this paper. The characteristics of the calcined aluminosilicate gel were estimated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) study with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), differential thermal analysis (DTA) with thermogravimetry (TG) and Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) at different temperatures. A preliminary laboratory-scale investigation of hydrocracking performance of this zeolite prototype was also conducted.

Al-doped ZnO, which emits a yellowish orange light at the excitation of blue light, is prepared by means of a sol-gel combustion method, using zinc acetate, aluminium nitrate, and urea as precursors. XRD analysis reveals that the obtained material shows hexagonal wurtzite structure of ZnO. This phosphor material is excitable in a wide range of wavelength from 350 to 500 nm with an excitation maximum at 470 nm. The concentration of Al varies from 5 mol% to 15 mol% with respect to Zn and a maximum photo-luminescent emission intensity is obtained at 15 mol%. At 455 nm excitation, Al-doped ZnO shows a broad band yellowish orange emission starting from 470 to 620 nm with an emission maximum at 530 nm. At a blue LED excitation, it emits a warm white light with a CRI of 91 and CIE color co-ordinates of (x = 0.50, y = 0.39). This Al-doped ZnO can be used as a blue light converted yellowish- orange emitting phosphor material for applications in WLEDs.

Addition of low concentrations of metal ions to the diet of saprophagous insects can impact on their metabolism over a short period of time, causing an increase or decrease in their body mass. This article presents a 14-day laboratory experiment evaluating the changes in the body mass of larval stage 3 of Tenebrio molitor (Linnaeus, 1758) induced by adding different inorganic substances (350 mg kg−1 of dry fodder) to the diet of the larvae. Following the addition of inorganic substances to the fodder, the most marked differences compared to the control were observed in the groups which consumed substrate with lead nitrate (the mass of the larvae increased on average by 102.6% compared to increase in mass in the control variant of the experiments), cobalt nitrate (by 96.9%), calcium chloride (by 89.1%) sodium triphosphate (by 86.0%), zinc chloride (by 83.5%). A nonsignificant effect (a tendency of increase in the body mass) on T. molitor larvae was caused by manganese sulfate (by 57.8%), aluminium nitrate (by 57.3%), iron oxide (by 51.5%), barium nitrate (by 47.9%), orthophosphoric acid (by 47.4%), manganese chloride (by 46.5%), calcium carbonate (by 27.7%), iron sulfate (by 24.2%) and ammonium heptamolybdate (by –7.5%). Therefore, 5 out of the 15 studied inorganic substances significantly stimulated the increase in the body weight of T. molitor larvae, and 7 manifested these capacities at the level of tendency (stimulated an increase in body weight averaging 43–58% over the 14-day experiment). The obtained data indicate a necessity for further study on the impact of inorganic pollutants on different stages of insects.

Nanocrystalline alumina particles were successfully synthesized in an indigenously built flame-assisted spray pyrolysis (FASP) setup. Aluminium nitrate nonahydrate was dissolved in deionized water in the desired amount to get a precursor solute concentration of 0.01 mol L -1 . The solution was then atomized by using a jet nebulizer. The droplets were then pyrolyzed in an oxy-LPG (liquifiedpetroleum gas) flame producing nanocrystalline alumina particles which were confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis. Particle morphology was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The synthesized powders were predominantly metastable transition aluminas exhibiting spherical morphology and were unagglomerated. The synthesized powders were then calcined at 1473 K for 2 hour to transform into the stable α-Al 2 O 3 (corundum) phase.

Inorganic p-type films with high mobility are very important for opto-electronic applications. It is very difficult to synthesize p-type films with a wider, tunable band gap energy and suitable band energy levels. In this research, p-type copper aluminum sulfide (CuxAl1−xSy) films with tunable optical band gap, carrier density, hole mobility and conductivity were first synthesized using a simple, low cost and low temperature chemical bath deposition method. These in situ fabricated CuxAl1−xSy films were deposited at 60 °C using an aqueous solution of copper(II) chloride dihydrate (CuCl2·2H2O), aluminium nitrate nonohydrate [Al(NO3)3·9H2O], thiourea [(NH2)2CS], and ammonium hydroxide, with citric acid as the complexing agent. Upon varying the ratio of the precursor, the band gap of the CuxAl1−xSy films can be tuned from 2.63 eV to 4.01 eV. The highest hole mobility obtained was 1.52 cm2 V−1 s−1 and the best conductivity obtained was 546 S cm−1. The CuxAl1−xSy films were used as a hole transporting layer (HTL) in organic solar cells (OSCs), and a good performance of the OSCs was demonstrated using the CuxAl1−xSy films as the HTL. These results demonstrate the remarkable potential of CuxAl1−xSy as hole transport material for opto-electronic devices.

In this research, nano-sized γ-Al2O3 particles were synthesized by modified sol–gel method using new precursors. In this study, aluminium nitrate, ethylene glycol (EG), citric acid (CA) and triethanolamine (TEA) were used as an Al3+ source, gel, chelating and surfactant agents, respectively. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA) and infrared spectroscopy (IR). Then, the removal efficiency of heavy metal ions (lead and cadmium) in the adsorption process by the as-synthesized alumina nanoparticle has been investigated and the effect of various experimental parameters such as pH, adsorbent dosage and exposure time were examined. The maximum removal was obtained at pH 5.0 by the as-synthesized adsorbent at the contact time of the 20 min and 30 min for Pb(II) and Cd(II) respectively. The equilibrium study showed that the adsorption data of both metal ions followed the Freundlich isotherm model. Then, regeneration study on the synthesized adsorbent was performed and it was found that the adsorbent can be successfully regenerated up to 3 times with the high level of adsorption.

Despite the growing interest in the potential electrochemical applications of both aluminium and ionic liquids in batteries, the microstructure of mixtures of trivalent salts and these dense ionic environments is completely unknown. In this work, the solvation of Al3+ cations in highly dense ionic solvents is investigated. For this purpose, molecular dynamics simulations of mixtures of a protic ionic liquid, ethylammonium nitrate (EAN), with aluminium nitrate (Al(NO3)3), both in bulk and confined between graphene walls, are performed. Several structural quantities of the system are calculated for different salt concentrations, such as densities, radial distribution functions, structure factors, coordination numbers and hydrogen bonds for the bulk mixture and ionic density profiles for the confined ones. Moreover, vibrational density of states is calculated for the salt cations, both in bulk and when close to the walls. The results obtained are analyzed and compared to those for mixtures of EAN with monovalent and divalent salts, in order to probe the influence of the salt cation charge on the system's properties. Finally, ab initio density functional theory calculations were performed in order to analyze the structure of the Al3+-ligand complexes, and their predictions for the Raman spectrum are compared both to the corresponding experimental one and the one coming from molecular dynamics simulations. According to our calculations, [Al(NO3)6]3- octahedral complexes do not significantly change the microstructure of the mixtures relative to those of Mg2+-based ones.

Zeolites find use in various applications in biological/medical field where the majority of them were prepared using Cetrimonium Bromide (CTAB), Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) and fly ash as binders. In this work, two new zeolites were prepared by using polyethylene glycol (PEG) as binder starting from aluminium nitrate nonahydrate (ANN) and tetraethylortho silicate (TEOS) through sol-gel technique. The resultant zeolites were compared with the one synthesized using CTAB as binder. Zeolites prepared using PEG was found to be polycrystalline with an average grain size of 0.5-1nm by X-ray analysis. The new zeolites were characterized using SEM, XRD, EDAX and FTIR analysis. The zeolites prepared were comparable with those used in biological applications.