Hydrogen sulfide gas detection by Au-decorated ZnO nanotube: a computational study and comparison to experimental observations

Based on the experimental reports, Au-decoration on the ZnO nanostructures dramatically increases the electronic sensitivity to H₂S gas. In the current study, we computationally scrutinized the mechanism of Au-decoration on a ZnO nanotube (ZON) and the influence on its sensing behavior toward H₂S gas. The intrinsic ZON weakly interacted with the H₂S gas with an adsorption energy of ?11.2 kcal/mol. The interaction showed no effect on the HOMO–LUMO gap and conductivity of ZON. The predicted response of intrinsic ZON toward H₂S gas is 6.3, which increases to 78.1 by the Au-decoration at 298 K. The corresponding experimental values are about 5.0 and 80.0, indicating excellent agreement with our findings. We showed that the Au atom catalyzes the reaction 3O₂?+?2H₂S?→?2SO₂?+?2H₂O. Our calculated energy barrier (at 298 K) is about 12.3 kcal/mol for this reaction. The gap and electrical conductance Au-ZON largely changed by this reaction are attributed to the electron donation and back-donation processes. The obtained recovery time is about 1.35 ms for desorption of generated gases from the surface of the Au-ZON sensor.     

Condensation–cyclization reaction for one-pot synthesis of 1,3-thiazolidin-4-one derivatives by poly(p-phenylenediamine) grafted on LDHs as a catalyst with green tool

The three-component reaction between amine, carbonyl compound and thioglycolic acid is now considered as a major strategy for synthesis of 1,3-thiazolidin-4-ones, which consists of the following steps: (i) condensation of aldehyde and amine which results the formation of an imine; (ii) the reaction between thioglycolic acid and the imine which is followed by an intramolecular cyclization reaction, which leads to the formation of the final product. In this way, if no suitable catalyst is employed, the completion of the reaction will not be achieved. Hence, it is of great importance to select an appropriate catalyst so that these compounds can be successfully synthesized. Herein, we employed LDHs@PpPDA as a versatile catalyst for the fabrication of novel derivatives of 1,3-thiazolidin-4-one.     

Probiotic-Induced Tolerogenic Dendritic Cells: A Novel Therapy for Inflammatory Bowel Disease?

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are immune-mediated, chronic relapsing diseases with a rising prevalence worldwide in both adult and pediatric populations. Treatment options for immune-mediated diseases, including IBDs, are traditional steroids, immunomodulators, and biologics, none of which are capable of inducing long-lasting remission in all patients. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a fundamental role in inducing tolerance and regulating T cells and their tolerogenic functions. Hence, modulation of intestinal mucosal immunity by DCs could provide a novel, additional tool for the treatment of IBD. Recent evidence indicates that probiotic bacteria might impact immunomodulation both in vitro and in vivo by regulating DCs’ maturation and producing tolerogenic DCs (tolDCs) which, in turn, might dampen inflammation. In this review, we will discuss this evidence and the mechanisms of action of probiotics and their metabolites in inducing tolDCs in IBDs and some conditions associated with them.     

Effect of hexagonal structure nanoparticles on the morphological performance of the ceramic scaffold using analytical oscillation response

Porous bony scaffolds are utilized to manage the growth and migration of cells from adjacent tissues to a defective position. In the current investigation, the effect of titanium oxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles on mechanical and physical properties of porous bony implants made of polymeric polycaprolactone (PCL) is studied. The bio-nanocomposite scaffolds are prepared with composition of nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite (HA) and TiO₂ powder using the freeze-drying technique for different weight fractions of TiO₂ (0 wt%, 5 wt%, 10 wt%, and 15 wt%). In order to identify the microstructure and morphology of the fabricated porous bio-nanocomposites, the X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscope (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are employed. Also, the biocompatibility and biodegradability of the manufactured scaffolds are examined by placing them in a simulated body fluid (SBF) for 21 days, their weight and pH changes are measured. The rate of degradation of the PCL-HA scaffold can be controlled by varying the percentage of its constituent components. Due to an increasing growth and activity of bone cells and the apatite formation on the free surface of the fabricated bio-nanocomposite implants as well as their reasonable mechanical properties, they have the potential to be used as a bone substitute. Additionally, with the aid of the experimentally extracted mechanical properties of the scaffolds, the vibrational characteristics of a beam-type implant made of the proposed porous bio-nanocomposites are explored. The results obtained from SEM image indicate that the scaffolds produced by the employed method have high total porosity (70%–85%) and effective porosity. The pore size is obtained between 60 and 200 μm, which is desirable for the growth and propagation of bone cells. Also, it is revealed that the addition of TiO₂ nanoparticles leads to reduce the rate of dissolution of the fabricated bio-nanocomposite scaffolds.     

Improving of Corrosion Behavior of Al 7075 by Applied Titania–<Emphasis Type="Italic">Benzotriazole</Emphasis> Nanostructured Coating with Sol Gel Method

Nowadays, self-healing coatings display high abrasion resistance and bond strength. Application of these coatings are reckoned the most common and the most economic method for restoration and protection against corrosion by which metal structures durability is enhanced. The major role of a self-healing hybrid coating in corrosion inhibition is to supply materials for controlling types of corrosion. In this paper, titania–Benzotriazole nanostructured coating has been applied to substrate Al 7075 by using the sol–gel process and immersion method. The bonds existing in the hybrid coating, structure and morphology and coating corrosion behavior have been studied using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), GIXRD, atomic force microscopy (AFM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and impedance electrochemical test, respectively. The obtained results are indicative of generating a homogeneous, uniform, crack-free titania–Benzotriazole nanostructured coating associated with excellent optimization of corrosion resistance at 2.8% Benzotriazole.     

Functionally-graded shape memory alloy by diffusion annealing of palladium-coated NiTi plates

Diffusion annealing of palladium-coated Ti-Ni plates was performed at temperatures ranging from 900 °C to 1,000 °C, to accomplish a compositional gradient in Ti-rich, Ti-Ni shape memory alloys. The aim of this study was to increase the transformation temperatures and transformation temperature intervals. Palladium diffusion profiles were measured by energy dispersive spectroscopy, and the corresponding approximate diffusion coefficients of the annealed specimens were calculated. The Gaussian solution of Fick’s second law for the one-dimensional lattice diffusion of a tracer was used. The transformation behavior studies were performed by differential scanning calorimetry. It was depicted that annealed specimens show longer transformation intervals compared to the bare alloy. In addition, annealed specimens showed improved shape memory properties that were attributed to the lower amount of Ti₂Ni precipitates in the diffusion layer. The shape memory behaviour of the samples was detected using micro-indentation at room temperature, followed by heating them above the austenite formation temperature to calculate the shape recovery ratio.     

Effects of H<Subscript>2</Subscript> Atmospheres on Sintering of Low Alloy Steels Containing Oxygen-Sensitive Masteralloys

Processing of novel sintered steels with compositions including oxygen-sensitive elements requires deep understanding of the chemistry of sintering. The use of H₂ atmospheres alleviates the oxygen transference from the base powder to the oxygen-sensitive particles. However, in H₂, methane formation at 700–1200°C causes dramatic homogeneous decarburization of the part that affects both mechanical behavior and dimensional stability. The intensity and the critical temperatures of this effect depend strongly on the alloying elements, being significantly enhanced in presence of Si. When combining the alloying elements as Fe-Mn-Si masteralloys, methane formation is enhanced around 760°C due to the high Mn content (40 wt.%) in the masteralloys. Nevertheless, the benefits of H₂ towards oxide reduction can still be advantageously used if diluting it in the form of N₂-H₂ atmospheres, or if limiting the use of H₂ to temperatures below 500°C. Thus, decarburization due to methane formation can be successfully controlled.     

Determination of the physical and mechanical properties of iron-based powder materials produced by microwave sintering

Microwave energy is highly efficient for heating and processing different materials. In recent years, this type of heat transfer has been used in sintering process. Rapid and highly efficient heating, time and energy saving, and improved properties of sintered materials are advantages of microwave sintering. In this paper, Fe and Fe-Cu powder compact samples (cylindrical and bone shapes) are sintered both in microwave and electrical tube furnaces. The microwave generator has 2.45 GHz frequency and 1 KW power. Times are selected in the range of 5–25 min for microwave sintering and 5–40 min for electrical heating. The sintering temperature is set at 1120°C. Samples are sintered in the reducing atmosphere of 95% N₂ + 5% H₂ mixture. The density, hardness, and tensile strength of the samples are measured. The results are compared. The results show that the microwave-sintered materials have a finer microstructure. The microwave-sintered materials have 6–8% higher density, 5–10 HV5 higher hardness, and about 10% higher tensile strength than conventionally sintered materials.     

Feature extraction using median–mean and feature line embedding

In this article, we propose a feature extraction method based on median–mean and feature line embedding (MMFLE) for the classification of hyperspectral images. In MMFLE, we maximize the class separability using discriminant analysis. Moreover, we remove the negative effect of outliers on the class mean using the median–mean line (MML) measurement and virtually enlarge the training set using the feature line (FL) distance metric. The experimental results on Indian Pines and University of Pavia data sets show the better performance of MMFLE compared to nearest feature line embedding (NFLE), median–mean line discriminant analysis (MMLDA), and some other feature extraction approaches in terms of classification accuracy using a small training set.