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The present study focuses on the development of low-cost, lightweight and highly wear resistant composites for brake rotor applications. Sillimanite mineral reinforced aluminum matrix composites were stir cast using three distinct reinforcement particle sizes. Reinforcement level was varied in the range of 3–15 wt%. The influence of operating temperature (50℃–300℃) and applied pressure (0.2–1.0 MPa) on the wear/friction behaviour of composites was observed. Optical micrographs showed homogenous particle distribution throughout the matrix. The high nanohardness obtained for interface regions signifies good particle–matrix bonding of processed composites. Dilatometry studies showed that the increase in sillimanite content decreased the coefficient of thermal expansion of the composites. Maximum improvement of 33% in coefficient of thermal expansion (over base alloy) was observed for 15 wt% fine composites. Wear analysis revealed that the developed composites provided adequate wear resistance till an operating temperature of 200℃, beyond which wear rate increased significantly. For the high operating temperature of 200℃, the steady-state wear of composites was comparable (only 6.62% higher) to the commercial cast iron alloy used in brake rotor applications. The aluminium-based composites developed in the present research are low cost (sillimanite is a naturally occurring mineral sand) and lightweight (60% lighter than cast iron) and can be used as an alternate material for brake rotors in light vehicles. Finally, SEM of worn out surfaces divulged the dominance of adhesive wear for material removal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present investigations, LM13 aluminium alloy reinforced with 15 and 20wt.% rutile mineral of fine (50–75 µm) and coarse (106–125 µm) size range was prepared through stir casting technique. The microhardness on different phase of the composite was measured to check the interfacial bonding of particles with the base material. The wear properties of the samples were studied using pin-on-disc tribometer at high load (49 N) with variation in temperatures from 50℃ to 300℃. Wear results indicated that the composites containing fine size reinforced particles showed around two times higher wear resistance over a wide range of temperature than the composite-containing coarse particles. A transition in wear mode from mild to severe was observed above 200℃. Wear track and wear debris were analysed to understand the nature of wear. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Swiftly increasing population and industrial developments of urban areas has accelerated the worsening of the water quality in recent years. Groundwater samples from different locations of the Doon valley, Garhwal Himalaya were analyzed to measure concentrations of six potential toxic elements (PTEs) viz. chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As), molybdenum (Mo), cadmium (Cd), and lead (Pb) using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS) with the aim to study the spatial distribution and associated hazards. In addition, machine learning algorithms have been used for prediction of water quality and identification of influencing PTEs. The results inferred that the mean values (in the units of µg L -1 ) of analyzed PTEs were observed in the order of Mo (1.066) > Ni (0.744) > Pb (0.337) > As (0.186) > Cr (0.180) > Cd (0.026). The levels and computed risks of PTEs were found below the safe limits. The radial basis function neural network (RBF-NN) algorithms showed high level of accuracy in the predictions of heavy metal pollution index (HPI), heavy metal evaluation index (HEI), non-carcinogenic (N-CR) and carcinogenic (CR) parameters with determination coefficient values ranged from 0.912 to 0.976. However, the modified heavy metal pollution index (m-HPI) and contamination index (CI) predictions showed comparatively lower coefficient values as 0.753 and 0.657, respectively. The multilayer perceptron neural network (MLP-NN) demonstrated fluctuation in precision with determination coefficient between 0.167 and 0.954 for the prediction of computed indices (HPI, HEI, CI, m-HPI). In contrast, the proficiency in forecasting of non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic hazards for both sub-groups showcased coefficient values ranged from 0.887 to 0.995. As compared to each other, the radial basis function (RBF) model indicated closer alignments between predicted and actual values for pollution indices, while multilayer perceptron (MLP) model portrayed greater precision in prediction of health risk indices., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

In the area of geochemical analyses of rock solutions, achieving a complete sample dissolution is a fundamental prerequisite for obtaining accurate, precise and reliable analytical results. The challenge posed by the presence of resistant minerals such as zircon, rutile, corundum, spinel, tourmaline, beryl, chromite, and cassiterite in different silicate rocks is a well-recognized challenge in geological studies. These minerals, due to their resilient nature, demand additional efforts to ensure complete dissolution during sample preparation. The prevailing conventional sample digestion methods require several days of laboratory work and the handling of large amounts of multiple types of acids, which also increase sample blanks. Until recently, there was a widely held belief that microwave-assisted digestion, where microwave radiation is transformed to heat, faced limitations in achieving complete dissolution of refractory minerals. This prevailing opinion led to skepticism about the applicability of microwave-assisted digestion for sample preparation of e.g. igneous rock samples containing these minerals. This study introduces a novel, universal and quick closed-vessel (pressurized) high-temperature microwave-assisted digestion method appropriate for dissolution of all major types of igneous silicate rock samples, including rocks containing refractory minerals. This streamlined and expeditious procedure, comprising three steps, requires only a total time of ∼9 h. The method proves its versatility by successfully dissolving both, mafic igneous samples (e.g., basalt) with low-content of resistant minerals, and felsic igneous samples (e.g., granite) with relatively high-content of resistant minerals. To validate the reliability of this procedure, 36 trace elements were analyzed: Li, Be, Sc, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Cs, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, Hf, Ta, Pb, Th and U in several geological Certified Reference Materials (CRMs). The CRMs including basalts JB-3, BCR-2, BHVO-2; andesites JA-2, AGV-2; granodiorite GSP-2; granite JG-2 and alkaline granite MGL-OShBO, were digested and analyzed using triple quadrupole Inductively Coupled-Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (ICP-QQQ). The results of the analysis demonstrate remarkable consistency, closely aligning with both certified and literature values., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they do not have any competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this article, we have reported the effect of varying concentration of europium (Eu) in (50 - x)% P 2 O 5 -25% Na 2 O-24% CaO-% Eu 2 O 3 , where x = 1, 3, 5. The glass samples were synthesised via conventional melt-quench method. The impact of europium ion (Eu 3+ ) on the structural, optical and luminescent properties of phosphate soda lime glasses has been studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transformed infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive spectroscopy and photoluminescent techniques. The amorphous nature of glass samples was confirmed by XRD patterns. FTIR confirmed the presence of various functional groups. The emission spectra of synthesised samples exhibited intense emission peaks corresponding to Eu 3+ under excitation at 393 nm. Among all the peaks, the maximum intensity was observed for 5 D 0  →  7 F 2 transition. Judd-Ofelt (J-O) parameters (Ω 2 , Ω 4 ) and other radiative parameters such as band width, radiative transition probabilities, stimulated emission cross-sections and branching ratio were determined from emission spectra. The other photometric parameters such as CIE coordinates and colour purity were also determined. Furthermore, cytotoxic studies were carried out on normal cell line human embryonic kidney cells (HEK-293) using MTT assay. Results showed that the prepared samples significantly enhanced growth in glass sample-treated cells as compared to control cells. These findings suggest that synthesised glass samples are biocompatible in nature and have potential for applications in display devices and biomedical research area., (© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

A series of tellurite-based glasses are prepared by using a melt-quenching method. The effect of cerium on the physical, thermal, structural, optical, spectroscopic, and shielding properties of barium tellurite glass samples is studied. It has been observed that the thermal stability factor increases with increasing cerium ion (Ce 3+ ) concentration. The density and other physical parameters such as ion concentration and molar volume are calculated using the Archimedes principle. An increase in optical band gap and density suggests a decrement in non-bridging oxygens. These results are in accordance with Raman results. The blue emission in prepared glasses is studied in terms of International Commission on Illumination chromaticity coordinates. Moreover, various shielding properties such as mass attenuation coefficient, linear attenuation coefficient, effective atomic number, half-value layer, and tenth-value layer have also been determined to understand the photon shielding characteristics of as-prepared glass samples., (© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Here, europium-doped (1 to 11 mol%) and titanium (1 to 5 mol%)co-doped SrY 2 O 4 :Eu phosphors were synthesized using solid-state reaction method. The synthesized samples were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and photoluminescence (PL) techniques for structural, morphological, functional group, and photoluminescence studies, respectively. XRD patterns confirmed the formation of pure phase SrY 2 O 4 at 1300°C and structural parameters were further determined using Rietveld refinement. FESEM micrographs revealed that doped and co-doped samples had different morphological features. All the samples were excited at ultraviolet light excitation and emission spectra consisted of peaks corresponding to the Eu ions. The maximum PL intensity was observed for 9 mol% of Eu ions and 3 mol% co-doping of Ti ions. The synthesized phosphors have potential applications in optoelectronics and display devices., (© 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Seed germination is the primary stage of growth in a seed. A wealth of experiments exist in literature to support the existence of correlation between seed germination to the electric and magnetic fields. This becomes more important as researchers have suggested to develop technologies to build ecologically clean and environment-friendly solutions to agricultural practices. Although the literature supports the existence of seed germination acceleration, the lack of a definite causal theory has been observed by numerous researchers over decades. After considering all the existing experimental data, we have formulated a causal theory to explain the factors influencing seed germination around high voltage DC transmission lines. This work opens new avenues of research in this field., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In the modern era, growing number of indoor plants for various purposes, such as vegetation, flowering, and decorations, has increased over the traditional follow-up trends for plantation. However, the indoor plantation requires different parameters for their growth; among these, light plays a significant role. In order to control the growth of plants using light-emitting diodes, Mn-doped oxide phosphors have emerged as promising candidates due to their broad and intense emission bands in the red and far-red spectral range. In this review article, recent progress on Mn-doped oxides for indoor plant growth has been reviewed. This review article is mainly divided into three parts. In the first part, different reaction conditions for the synthesis of Mn-doped oxide phosphors are compared. In the second part, the luminescent and other photometric parameters of these are discussed. The influence of different co-dopants on the luminescent characteristics has been elucidated in detail. The third part discusses the properties of light-emitting diodes fabricated using these phosphors for plant growth. The present review article elucidates the synthesis parameters, luminescent properties, and light-emitting diodes fabricated using Mn-doped oxide materials for plant growth applications., (© 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

In the present work, silica extracted from the agricultural waste material; rice husk (RH) was utilized for the synthesis of biocompatible glass of general composition SiO 2 -P 2 O 5 -CaO-MgO-MoO 3 . In the synthesized glasses P 2 O 5 (5%) and CaO (25%) was kept constant whereas MgO and MoO 3 was varied from 10% to 20% and 0% to 5% respectively. The structural, morphological, elemental and functional properties of silica as well as the derived glasses were analyzed by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy techniques. The effect of MoO 3 on the structural and thermal properties of silicate phosphate glasses has been studied in details. The bioactivity of as-synthesized glass samples were further evaluated after immersion in Simulated Body Fluid (SBF) solution which shows bioactive properties thus enabling them to be used as scaffolds in implant materials.

This paper reports the effect of alkaline earth metals (AEM = Mg 2+ , Ca 2+ , Sr 2+ , Ba 2+ ) co-doping on the structural, morphological and luminescent properties of Gd 2 O 3 :Eu phosphors. The concentration of the Eu 3+ ions was fixed 4 mol% to avoid the chances of the concentration quenching. AEM co-doped Gd 2 O 3 :Eu XRD profile confirmed the synthesis of cubic-phase of all the co-doped samples. FESEM micrographs exhibited the rod like morphology of the synthesized phosphors. All the samples were irradiated under UV excitation and exhibited intense, sharp and narrow emission spectra corresponding to the characteristic transitions ( 5 D 0  →  7 F 1,2,3,4 ) transitions of Eu 3+ ions. The photometric parameters such as CIE coordinates, CCT and color purity are calculated. In order to probe the further luminescent properties and influence of the of alkaline earth metals on the local environment of the Eu ions in the host lattice, spectral parameters are calculated from Judd Ofelt theory from emission spectra. The obtained results suggest that AEM can be effectively utilized to enhance the luminescence intensity even after concentration quenching. The as-synthesized phosphors can be used in various solid state lighting devices and bio-sensors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A facile carbothermal route was adopted to obtain niobium carbide nanoparticles (NPs) embedded in carbon network from Nb 2 O 5 to study photocatalytic behavior. Optimization of synthesis parameters to obtain single phase NbC NPs has been successfully done. The phase identification, morphology and nature of carbon were determined with the help of X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Raman spectroscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) suggested the presence of multiple oxidation states of Nb associated to NbC and NbC x O y centers on the surface of NPs. Due to the presence of NbC x O y on the surface of NPs, absorption under visible region of EM spectrum has been observed by UV-visible spectroscopy. Different organic dyes (RhB, MB and MO) were used to study the effect of holding time on the photocatalytic performance of as-synthesized samples. RhB dye was found to be the most sensitive organic molecule among all the considered dyes and degraded 78% in 120 min.

In the present study, novel mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) (15-x)CuO-xMgO-10P 2 O 5 -60SiO 2 -10CaO-5ZnO (2.5 ≤ x ≤ 12.5, varying in steps of 2) are synthesized using the sol-gel technique. The structural phases of the glasses/glass ceramics were studied by XRD. The pH variation and simulated body fluids (SBF) studies demonstrated the in-vitro bioactivity of all the MBGs. MBGs possess surface area variation between 98.22 and 442.41 cm 2 /g. The pore size of MBGs lies in the range of 5.8-8.8 nm. The cytotoxicity assays were conducted for MG63 human osteosarcoma cell line depicting non-toxic behavior of all MBGs at 7.8125 μg/ml. In addition to this, the effect of the magnesium on the gene expression was also investigated using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The MBGs were loaded with the antibacterial (vancomycin/amoxicillin), anticancerous (doxorubicin), and analgesic (Iburofen) drugs. Ibuprofen and amoxicillin drugs were almost fully loaded in all the MBGs, whereas doxorubicin and vancomycin drugs illustrated variation in loading with decreasing copper content. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 106A: 2116-2130, 2018., (© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Asthma is a common, under-diagnosed disease affecting all ages. We sought to identify a nasal brush-based classifier of mild/moderate asthma. 190 subjects with mild/moderate asthma and controls underwent nasal brushing and RNA sequencing of nasal samples. A machine learning-based pipeline identified an asthma classifier consisting of 90 genes interpreted via an L2-regularized logistic regression classification model. This classifier performed with strong predictive value and sensitivity across eight test sets, including (1) a test set of independent asthmatic and control subjects profiled by RNA sequencing (positive and negative predictive values of 1.00 and 0.96, respectively; AUC of 0.994), (2) two independent case-control cohorts of asthma profiled by microarray, and (3) five cohorts with other respiratory conditions (allergic rhinitis, upper respiratory infection, cystic fibrosis, smoking), where the classifier had a low to zero misclassification rate. Following validation in large, prospective cohorts, this classifier could be developed into a nasal biomarker of asthma.

Data-driven machine learning methods present an opportunity to simultaneously assess the impact of multiple air pollutants on health outcomes. The goal of this study was to apply a two-stage, data-driven approach to identify associations between air pollutant exposure profiles and children's cognitive skills. Data from 6900 children enrolled in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort, a national study of children born in 2001 and followed through kindergarten, were linked to estimated concentrations of 104 ambient air toxics in the 2002 National Air Toxics Assessment using ZIP code of residence at age 9 months. In the first-stage, 100 regression trees were learned to identify ambient air pollutant exposure profiles most closely associated with scores on a standardized mathematics test administered to children in kindergarten. In the second-stage, the exposure profiles frequently predicting lower math scores were included within linear regression models and adjusted for confounders in order to estimate the magnitude of their effect on math scores. This approach was applied to the full population, and then to the populations living in urban and highly-populated urban areas. Our first-stage results in the full population suggested children with low trichloroethylene exposure had significantly lower math scores. This association was not observed for children living in urban communities, suggesting that confounding related to urbanicity needs to be considered within the first-stage. When restricting our analysis to populations living in urban and highly-populated urban areas, high isophorone levels were found to predict lower math scores. Within adjusted regression models of children in highly-populated urban areas, the estimated effect of higher isophorone exposure on math scores was -1.19 points (95% CI -1.94, -0.44). Similar results were observed for the overall population of urban children. This data-driven, two-stage approach can be applied to other populations, exposures and outcomes to generate hypotheses within high-dimensional exposure data., (Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Carbon coated nano molybdenum carbide (Mo 2 C) has been synthesized at 800 °C through single step reduction route using molybdenum trioxide (MoO 3 ) as a precursor, polypropylene (P.P) as a carbon source and magnesium (Mg) as a catalyst in an autoclave. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal analysis techniques (TG/DTA/DTG), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Williamson- Hall (W-H) analysis has been done to estimate various parameters like strain, stress and strain energy density. Multi-stage kinetic analysis of the product phase has been studied to establish the nature of the thermal decomposition. Coats-Redfern method applied to determine the mechanism involved in the decomposition of the product phase shows that initial and final stage follow F1 mechanism whereas middle stage follow F3 mechanism. The activation energy (E a ) and pre-exponential factor (A) has also been determined. The morphological studies shows that the particles have partially spherical/faceted shape, with carbon coated having wide particle size distribution. The surface chemistry and surface area analysis were studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Brunauer-Emmet-Teller (BET), respectively. The formation mechanism of carbon coated Mo 2 C nano particles has been predicted based on the XRD, TG/DTA & DTG and microstructural results.

In the present study, novel glasses xSrO-(10-x) MgO-60SiO 2 -20CaO-10 P 2 O 5 (2 ≤ x ≤ 8, in steps of 2) are synthesized via sol-gel method. The current work focusses on the evaluation of mechanical, physical and biocompatible properties for sol-gel glasses. The pore size and surface area of these glasses were studied using BET analysis. The structural aspect of the glasses/glass ceramics was studied by XRD and Raman spectroscopy. The cytotoxicity assays were conducted for MG63 human osteosarcoma cell line. Furthermore, the as prepared glasses were used for the fabrication of 3-D porous scaffolds via polymer replication method. The loaded green bodies have been sintered at 700, 800 and 900 °C and were kept for 6 h to densify the glass network. The effect of sintering temperature on the structure and properties of as prepared scaffolds were analyzed via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and porosity calculations.

In the present study, antibacterial and anticancerous drug loading kinetics for the (10-x)CuO-xZnO-20CaO-60SiO 2 -10P 2 O 5 (2≤x≤8, varying in steps of 2) mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) have been studied. XRD analysis of the as prepared glass samples proved its amorphous nature. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed the apatite layer formation on the surface of the MBGs after soaking for 15 days in SBF. Ion dissolution studies of calcium, phosphorous and silicon have been performed using inductively coupled plasma (ICP). FTIR and Raman analysis depicted about the presence of various bonds and groups present in the glasses. The pore size of MBGs lies in the range of 4.2-9.7 nm. Apart from this, specific surface area of the MBGs varied from 263 to 402 cm 2 /g. The MBGs were loaded with Doxorubicin (DOX), Vancomycin (VANCO) and Tetracycline (TETRA) drugs among which, the decreasing copper content influenced the loading properties of doxorubicin and tetracycline drugs. Vancomycin was fully loaded almost in all the MBGs, whereas other drugs depicted varying loading with respect to the copper content.

Excessive use of antibiotics has posed two major challenges in public healthcare. One of them is associated with the development of multi-drug resistance while the other one is linked to side effects. In the present investigation, the authors report an innovative approach to tackle the challenges of multi-drug resistance and acute toxicity of antibiotics by using antibiotics adsorbed metal nanoparticles. Monodisperse silver nanoparticles (SNPs) have been synthesised by two-step process. In the first step, SNPs were prepared by chemical reduction of AgNO3 with oleylamine and in the second step, oleylamine capped SNPs were phase-transferred into an aqueous medium by ligand exchange. Antibiotics - tetracycline and kanamycin were further adsorbed on the surface of SNPs. Antibacterial activities of SNPs and antibiotic adsorbed SNPs have been investigated on gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus megaterium, Bacillus subtilis), and gram-negative (Proteus vulgaris, Shigella sonnei, Pseudomonas fluorescens) bacterial strains. Synergistic effect of SNPs on antibacterial activities of tetracycline and kanamycin has been observed. Biocidal activity of tetracycline is improved by 0-346% when adsorbed on SNPs; while for kanamycin, the improvement is 110-289%. This synergistic effect of SNPs on biocidal activities of antibiotics may be helpful in reducing their effective dosages.

Prediction problems in biomedical sciences, including protein function prediction (PFP), are generally quite difficult. This is due in part to incomplete knowledge of the cellular phenomenon of interest, the appropriateness and data quality of the variables and measurements used for prediction, as well as a lack of consensus regarding the ideal predictor for specific problems. In such scenarios, a powerful approach to improving prediction performance is to construct heterogeneous ensemble predictors that combine the output of diverse individual predictors that capture complementary aspects of the problems and/or datasets. In this paper, we demonstrate the potential of such heterogeneous ensembles, derived from stacking and ensemble selection methods, for addressing PFP and other similar biomedical prediction problems. Deeper analysis of these results shows that the superior predictive ability of these methods, especially stacking, can be attributed to their attention to the following aspects of the ensemble learning process: (i) better balance of diversity and performance, (ii) more effective calibration of outputs and (iii) more robust incorporation of additional base predictors. Finally, to make the effective application of heterogeneous ensembles to large complex datasets (big data) feasible, we present DataSink, a distributed ensemble learning framework, and demonstrate its sound scalability using the examined datasets. DataSink is publicly available from https://github.com/shwhalen/datasink., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Trivalent lanthanide complexes of the type [Ln(L)Cl(H2O)2] (where Ln=Nd(III) or Sm(III) and LH2=Schiff bases derived by the condensation of 3-(phenyl/substitutedphenyl)-4-amino-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole with diacetyl/benzil) have been synthesized by the reactions of anhydrous lanthanide(III) chloride with Schiff bases in methanol. The structures of the complexes have been proposed on the basis of elemental analysis, electrical conductance, magnetic moment, spectroscopic measurements (IR, 1H, 13C NMR and UV-vis spectra) and X-ray diffraction studies. The spectral data reveal that the Schiff base ligands behave as dibasic tetradentate chelating agents having coordination sites at two thiol sulfur atoms and two azomethine nitrogen atoms. The presence of coordinated water in metal complexes was confirmed by thermal and IR data of the complexes. All the Schiff bases and their metal complexes have also been screened for their antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus and antifungal activities against Aspergillus niger, Curvularia pallescens and Colletotrichum capsici., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Silver shows the highest antimicrobial activities amongst all metals. It is better than many first line antibiotics. The antimicrobial properties of silver can be tuned by altering its physical and surface properties. Researchers have demonstrated enhancement in the antibacterial properties of silver with decreasing particle size from bulk to nano. In the present article, we study the effect of particle size of silver at nanoscale on their antimicrobial properties. Two samples of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) of same physical size (≈8 nm) but different hydrodynamic size (59 and 83 nm) are prepared by chemical reduction of AgNO3 with oleylamine followed by phase transfer with triblock copolymer Pluronic F-127. Their antimicrobial properties are investigated by microdilution method against clinically important strains of gram positive (S. aureus and B. megaterium) and gram negative (P. vulgaris and S. sonnei) bacteria. Nearly 38-50% enhancement in the antibacterial action of SNPs was observed when their hydrodynamic size was reduced to 59 nm from 83 nm. It has been observed that the antibacterial action of SNPs was governed by their hydrodynamic size and not by their crystallite and physical size. The phenomenological model was also proposed which makes an attempt to explain the microscopic mechanism responsible for the size dependent antibacterial activities of silver., (© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Silver nanoparticles have a huge share in nanotechnology based products used in clinical and hygiene products. Silver nanoparticles leaching from these medical and domestic products will eventually enter terrestrial ecosystems and will interact with the microbes present in the land and water. These interactions could be a threat to biorecycling microbes present in the Earth's crust. The antimicrobial action towards biorecycling microbes by leached silver nanoparticles from medical waste could be many times greater compared to that of silver nanoparticles leached from other domestic products, since medical products may contain traditional antibiotics along with silver nanoparticles. In the present article, we have evaluated the antimicrobial activities of as-synthesized silver nanoparticles, antibiotics - tetracycline and kanamycin, and antibiotic-adsorbed silver nanoparticles. The antimicrobial action of silver nanoparticles with adsorbed antibiotics is 33-100% more profound against the biorecycling microbes B. subtilis and Pseudomonas compared to the antibacterial action of silver nanoparticles of the same concentration. This study indicates that there is an immediate and urgent need for well-defined protocols for environmental exposure to silver nanoparticles, as the use of silver nanoparticles in nanotechnology based products is poorly restricted.

A new class of oxovanadium(IV) complexes with Schiff bases derived by the condensation of 5-(phenyl/substituted phenyl)-2-hydrazino-1,3,4-thiadiazoles and indoline-2,3-dione have been prepared in ethanol in the presence of sodium acetate. Micro-analytical data, magnetic susceptibility, UV-Vis, IR, EPR and XRD spectral techniques were used to confirm the structures. Electronic absorption spectra of the complexes suggest a square-pyramidal geometry. The oxovanadium(IV) complexes have monoclinic crystal system and particle sizes were found to be in the range 18.0 nm to 24.0 nm (nano-size). In vitro antifungal activity of synthesized compounds was determined against fungi Aspergillus niger, Colletotrichum falcatum and Colletotrichum pallescence and in vitro antibacterial activity was determined by screening the compounds against Gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis) bacterial strains. The oxovanadium(IV) complexes have higher antimicrobial effect than free ligands., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Mn (0.5%, 1%, 1.5% and 2%) doped and undoped ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) capped with PVP (1.0%) were successfully synthesized via co-precipitation approach using zinc acetate, sodium hydroxide and manganese acetate as precursors. Structural analysis was performed by XRD confirming phase purity and crystalline wurtzite structure. TEM results show average particle size 15-20 nm and 22-25 nm for Mn (1%) and Mn (2%) doped ZnO NPs respectively. Manganese (Mn) doping has led to reduction in band gap which facilitate the absorption of radiation in visible region. The Photocatalytic activity of undoped and Mn (0.5%,1%,1.5% and 2%) doped NPs was analyzed via degradation of crystal violet (CV) dye. The crystal violet decomposition rate of undoped and Mn doped NPs were studied under UV-visible region. It is observed from degradation studies that the doping has a pronounced effect on the photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs. Kinetic studies shows that photo degradation of CV follow a pseudo first-order kinetic law. Experiments for reusability of Mn (1%) doped with PVP (1%) capped ZnO were also performed to determine the stability of as prepared sample. It shows an increase in catalytic activity of NPs by small amount when exposed to UV irradiation for 3 h. Photoluminescence and UV-Visible absorption spectroscopy studies were also performed for studying the effect of UV irradiation on the surface of ZnO NPs.

Bioactive glass and glass-ceramics are used in bone repair applications and are being developed for tissue engineering applications. Bioactive glasses/Bioglass are very attractive materials for producing scaffolds devoted to bone regeneration due to their versatile properties, which can be properly designed depending on their composition. An important feature of bioactive glasses, which enables them to work for applications in bone tissue engineering, is their ability to enhance revascularization, osteoblast adhesion, enzyme activity and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells as well as osteoprogenitor cells. An extensive amount of research work has been carried out to develop silicate, borate/borosilicate bioactive glasses and phosphate glasses. Along with this, some metallic glasses have also been investigated for biomedical and technological applications in tissue engineering. Many trace elements have also been incorporated in the glass network to obtain the desired properties, which have beneficial effects on bone remodeling and/or associated angiogenesis. The motivation of this review is to provide an overview of the general requirements, composition, structure-property relationship with hydroxyapatite formation and future perspectives of bioglasses.Attention has also been given to developments of metallic glasses and doped bioglasses along with the techniques used for their fabrication., (Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., a Wiley Company.)

Zn(II) complexes have been synthesized by reacting zinc acetate with Schiff bases derived from 2-hydrazino-5-[substituted phenyl]-1,3,4-thiadiazole and 2-hydroxyacetophenone/benzaldehyde/indoline-2,3-dione. All these complexes are soluble in DMF and DMSO; low molar conductance values indicate that they are non electrolytes. Elemental analyses suggest that the complexes have 1:2 metal to ligands stoichiometry of the types [ZnL2(H2O)2](L=monoanionic Schiff bases derived from 2-hydrazino-5-[substituted phenyl]-1,3,4-thiadiazole and 2-hydroxyacetophenone/indoline-2,3-dione) [ZnL2(')(OOCCH3)2(H2O)2](L'=neutral Schiff bases derived from 2-hydrazino-5-[substituted phenyl]-1,3,4-thiadiazole and benzaldehyde), and they were characterized by IR, (1)H NMR, and (13)C NMR. Particle sizes of synthesized compounds were measured with dynamic light scattering (DLS) analyser which indicates that particle diameter are of the range ca. 100-200nm. All these Schiff bases and their complexes have also been screened for their antibacterial (Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis), Escherichia coli (E. coli) and antifungal activities (Colletotrichum falcatum (C. falcatum), Aspergillus niger (A. niger), Fusarium oxysporium (F. oxysporium) Curvularia pallescence (C. pallescence). The antimicrobial activities have shown that upon complexation the activity increases., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In the present work, Zinc sulphide (ZnS) nanoparticles (NPs) capped with 2-Mercaptoethanol (2 ME) are synthesized via chemical precipitation method. Structural and morphological studies have been done using X Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) techniques. Band gap of as prepared NPs is determined using UV-Visible spectroscopy. Photoluminescence spectra of the synthesized NPs was recorded to study the emission properties. After optimizing the capping concentration, ZnS NPs were synthesized at different pH viz. 5.62 (natural pH), 8, 10, and 12 at optimized capping concentration. These nanoparticles were further used as a catalyst to degrade crystal violet dye. It has been observed that catalyst synthesized at pH 12 is able to degrade dye to a larger extent as compared to samples synthesized at pH 5.62, 8, and 10. Possible reason for this observation is discussed. Reusability of catalyst shows better results of dye degradation. UV curing studies of ZnS surface with different irradiation times (0-180 min) are done in this context.

A new series of diazadioxa oxovanadium(IV) macrocyclic complexes of type [VO(mac)]SO(4) have been synthesized via the condensation reaction of a 3-(phenyl/substituted phenyl)-4-amino-5-hydrazino-1,2,4-triazole (H(2)L) with salicylaldehyde/2-hydroxyacetophenone and 1,4-dibromobutane in the presence of oxovanadium(IV) sulfate in ethanol. All the newly synthesized compounds were characterized on the basis of elemental analyses, conductance measurements, magnetic properties, spectral (UV-Vis, IR, EPR) and XRD studies. The particle size of the complexes has been calculated from XRD spectra using Debye-Scherrer formula and these are found to be in 31-32 nm range. The efficacy of two macrocyclic complexes was also studied in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats over a period of 30 days. The administration of these complexes in diabetic rats reversed the diabetic effect due to their insulin-mimetic effects., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

New Zn(II) complexes have been synthesized by the reactions of zinc(II) acetate with Schiff bases derived from 3-substituted phenyl-4-amino-5-hydrazino-1, 2, 4-triazole and benzaldehyde, 2-hydroxyacetophenone or indoline-2,3-dione. All these complexes are soluble in DMF and DMSO; low molar conductance values indicate that they are non-electrolytes. Elemental analyses suggest that the complexes have 1:1 stoichiometry of the type [ZnL(H(2)O)(2)], [ZnL'(OAc)(2)(H(2)O)(2)] (L=dianionic Schiff bases derived from 3-(substituted phenyl)-4-amino-5-hydrazino-1, 2, 4-triazole and 2-hydroxyacetophenone or indoline-2,3-dione; L'=neutral Schiff bases derived from 3-(substituted phenyl)-4-amino-5-hydrazino-1, 2, 4-triazole and benzaldehyde) and they were characterized by FT-IR, (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR and FAB mass. All these Schiff bases and their complexes have also been screened for their antibacterial activities against Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli and antifungal activities against Colletotrichum falcatum, Aspergillus niger, Fusarium oxysporium and Carvularia pallescence by petriplates methods., (Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

A total of 20 novel organophosphorus derivatives have been synthesized by the reactions of O,O-diethylchlorophosphate/thiophosphate with isatin-3-(substituted benzoic acid/phenoxy acetic acid hydrazones). The derivatives have been characterized on the basis of analysis and spectral (IR and (1)H and (13)C NMR) data. Fungicidal activities of the derivatives against Colletotrichum falcatum , Fusarium oxysporum , and Curvularia pallescence have been evaluated. The screening results have been correlated with the structural features of the tested compounds. The greater potency has been observed with thiophosphates compared to phosphates, with substituted phenoxy acetic acid hydrazones compared to substituted benzoic acid hydrazones, and with substitutent Cl(-) attached to the aromatic ring compared to other substitutents. O,O-Diethylchlorophosphate compounds containing isatin-3-(4-chlorophenoxy acetic acid hydrazone) (IIe) and the compound containing two molecules of O,O-diethylchlorophosphate attached to isatin-3-(4-hydroxy phenoxy acetic acid) hydrazone (IIh) were proven to be more active than some prevalent commercial synthetic fungicides.

The reactions of (eta(5) - C(5)H(5))(2)MCl(2) (M = Ti, Zr, or Hf) with mercaptoazoles (LH(2)), namely, bis(mercaptotriazoles), bis(mercap- tooxadiazoles), and bis(mercaptothiadiazoles) in 2 : 1 molar ratio, respectively, have been studied in dry tetrahydrofuran in the presence of n-butylamine and the binuclear complexes of the type [{(eta - C(5)H(5))(2) M}(2)(L)] (M = Ti/Zr/Hf) are obtained. Tentative structural conclusions are drawn for the reaction products based upon elemental analysis, electrical conductance, magnetic moment, and spectral data (UV-Vis, IR, (1)H NMR, and (13)C NMR). FAB-mass spectra of few complexes of each series were also carried out to confirm the binuclear structures. Studies were conducted to assess the growth-inhibiting potential of the complexes synthesized, and the ligands against various fungal and bacterial strains.

A series of new coordination complexes of La(III) and Pr(III) with hydrazones, derived from 1,1-diacetylferrocene and different aromatic acid hydrazides have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses, electrical conductance, magnetic moment, IR, (1)H NMR, UV-vis spectra and molar conductance. The thermal behaviour of the complexes under non-isothermal condition was investigated by TG and DTG techniques. The antifungal activity of hydrazones and their corresponding complexes were also investigated.

Lanthanum(III) and praseodymium(III) complexes with dithiocarbamates have been synthesized by the reactions of lanthanum(III) and praseodymium(III) chloride with barium dithiocarbamate and complexes of type [LnCl(L)H2O]n have been obtained (where Ln=La(III) or Pr(III); L=barium salt of dithiocarbamate derived from glycine, L-leucine, L-valine, DL-alanine). The complexes have been characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductance, electronic absorption and fluorescence, infrared, far infrared, 1H NMR spectral studies. The presence of coordinated water molecule is inferred from thermogravimetric analysis which indicates the loss of one water molecule at 150-170 degrees C. The oscillator strength, Judd-Ofelt intensity parameter, stimulated emission cross-section, etc. have been obtained for different transitions of Pr3+.

Ten new lanthanum(III) and praseodymium(III) complexes of the general formula Na[La(L)2H2O] (Ln=La(III) or Pr(III); LH2=thiosemicarbazones) derived from the condensation of isatin with 4-phenyl thiosemicarbazide, 4-(4-chlorophenyl) thiosemicarbazide, 4-(2-nitrophenyl) thiosemicarbazide, 4-(2-bromophenyl) thiosemicarbazide and 4-(2-methylphenyl) thiosemicarbazide, have been synthesized in methanol in presence of sodium hydroxide. The XRD spectra of the complexes were monitored to verify complex formation. The complexes have also been characterized by elemental analysis, molar conductance, electronic absorption and fluorescence, infrared, far infrared, 1H and 13C NMR spectral studies. Thermal studies of these complexes have been carried out in the temperature range 25-800 degrees C using TG, DTG and DTA techniques. All these complexes decompose gradually with the formation of Ln2O3 as the end product. The Judd-ofelt intensity parameter, oscillator strength, transition probability, stimulated emission cross section for different transitions of Pr3+ for 4-phenyl thiosemicarbazones have been calculated.

The reactions of bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(IV)/zirconium(IV) dichloride with a series of imine-oxime ligands (LH2), derived by condensing benzil-alpha-monoxime and 2-phenylenediamine, 4-phenylenediamine, 4-methyl-2-phenylenediamine, 2,6-diamino-pyridine, have been studied in anhydrous tetrahydrofuran in the presence of base and metallocycles of the [Cp2M(L)] (M=Ti or Zr) type have been isolated. Tentative structures have been proposed for the products based on elemental analysis, electrical conductance and spectral (electronic, IR and (1)H-NMR) data. Proton NMR spectra indicate that on the NMR time scale there is rapid rotation of the cyclopentadienyl ring around the metal-ring axis at 25 degrees C. Studies were conducted to assess the growth inhibiting potential of the complexes synthesized and the ligands against various bacterial strains.

Five novel organophosphorus derivatives have been synthesized by the reactions of O,O-diethylchlorophosphate with piperazine dithiosemicarbazones. The derivatives have been characterized on the basis of analyses and spectral (IR, 1H NMR) data. Fungicidal activities of these derivatives against Colletotrichum falcatum, Fusarium oxysporum, and Curvularia pallescence have been evaluated. The screening results have been correlated with the structural features of the tested compounds. Organophosphorus derivatives containing 1,4-bis(4-chlorobenzaldehyde)piperazine dithiosemicarbazone and 1,4-bis(4-methoxybenzaldehyde)piperazine dithiosemicarbazone proved to be more active than some prevalent commercial synthetic fungicides.

The reactions of bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(IV) dichloride with Schiff bases derived by condensing 2- amino-5-phenyl-1,3,4-thiadiazole with benzaldehyde (SPT), 4-nitrobenzaldehyde (SNT), 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (SMT), 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde (SSTH) or 2-hydroxyacetophenone (SATH) have been studied in refluxing tetrahydrofuran and complexes of types [Cp(2)TiCl(SB)]Cl (SB= SPT, SNT or SMT) and [Cp(2)Ti(SB')]Cl (SB'H= SSTH or SATH) have been isolated. Tentative structural conclusions are drawn for these reaction products based upon elemental analyses, electrical conductance, magnetic moment and spectral (UV-vis, IR and (1)H NMR) data. Studies were conducted to assess the growth-inhibiting potential of the complexes synthesized, and the ligands, against various fungal and bacterial strains.

The reactions of bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(IV) dichloride with a new class of thiosemicarbazone (LH(2)), derived by condensing isatin with different N(4)-substituted thiosemicarbazides, have been studied and products of type [Cp(2)Ti(L)] have been isolated. On the basis of various physico-chemical and spectral studies, five coordinate structures have been assigned to these derivatives. Toxicity studies of titanocene complexes at tbur different concentrations have been carried out against snail Lymnaea acuminata. The effect of most potent compounds on the activity of acetylcholinesterase enzyme, which inhibits the activity of enzyme, possibly by the formation of enzyme-inhibitor complex, was also studied.

The reactions of mono(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(IV) trichloride and bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium(IV)/ zirconium(IV) dichloride with a new class of dithiosemicarbazone, derived by condensing piperazine dithiosemicarbazide with benzaldehyde (L(1)H(2)), 2-chlorobenzaldehyde (L(2)H(2)), 4-nitrobenzaldehyde (L(3)H(2)) or salicylaldehyde (L(4)H(4)) have been studied and different types of binuclear products, viz. [{CpTiCl(2)}(2)L], [{Cp(2)MCl}(2)L], ((L=L(1), L(2) or L(3)), [{CpTiCI}(2)L(4)] and [{Cp(2)M}(2)L(4)] (M=Yi or Zr), have been isolated. Tentative structures are proposed for these complexes based upon elemental analyses, electrical conductance, magnetic moment and spectral (electronic, IR, (1)H and (13)C NMR) data. Attempts have been made to establish a correlation between antibacterial activity and the structures of the products.

Ten newly synthesized organophosphorus derivatives containing substituted chalcones and substituted chalcone semicarbazones were tested for their antifungal efficacy against Colletotrichum falcatum, Fusarium oxysporum, Curvularia pallescens (all sugarcane pathogens). The O,O-diethylphosphate derivatives containing 2-chlorochalcone and 2-chlorochalcone semicarbazone exhibited 70-85% mycelial inhibition against all the test fungi at 1000 ppm. The screening results were correlated with structural features of the tested compounds.

The nature of deformation of the deep continental roots beneath the Archean-Early Proterozoic terrains opens the question whether these ancient terrains have had stable roots since the Precambrian or whether recent plate motions have deformed them. In view of this, we make an attempt to study the thermal structure beneath the cratonic regions of the Indian shield, which vary in lithospheric thickness from 65 km in the Singhbhum craton to 148 km in the Archean Dharwars. The average depth of 104 km to the top of the underlying asthenosphere is consistent with other termination methods and is in fact less than half the 200-400-km depth found in other stable areas of the earth. Similarly, the average reduced heat flow of about 35 mW/m2 and Moho temperature of about 550 degrees C (range: 400 degrees -730 degrees C) for the Indian cratons are also much higher than their counterparts elsewhere. Our study indicates a large-scale deformation of the cratonic mantle lithosphere beneath the Indian shield since the Mesoproterozoic caused by various geodynamic causes, challenging the idea of stability of deep continental roots.