Volume 238, Issue 10 - Special Issue: Solar Water Splitting and Artificial Photosynthesis (SWAP), Part 1; Guest Editors: Kevin Bethke, Jeyanthinath Mayandi and Smagul Karazhanov

Bio-derived materials could play a major role in future supportable green and health technologies. Nontraditional materials such as proteins and biopolymers are observed for their probable use in the fabrication of bioplastics for packaging. In the present work, novel ternary composite films of chitosan (CS), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), with different ratios of natural egg white (EW) and glycerol as a plasticizer, were fabricated by solution casting technique. The synthesized ternary composite films were characterized by UV–Vis absorption spectra, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. The hydrophobicity of as-synthesized samples was confirmed by contact angle measurement. The microbiological screening analysis was established against bacteria viz. Pseudomonas sp., Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. The attained results denoted that the film might be an appropriate applicant for food packaging applications.

A novel hydrogen bonded single crystal of 7-azaindolinium-3,5-dinitrobenzoate (7AIDNB) has been grown, and the structure of the crystal was determined by single-crystal XRD analysis. The results show that the grown crystal belongs to a triclinic crystal system with centrosymmetric space group P -1 and the unit cell parameters: a  = 6.998(9) Å, b  = 8.498(12) Å, c  = 13.103(17) Å, V  = 710.78(17) Å 3 , Z  = 2. The presence of expected discrete functional groups in 7AIDNB has been identified by an FT-IR spectroscopic study. The thermal stability and decomposition of the title crystal have been studied by TG-DTA analysis. The optical property of the grown crystal has been analyzed by UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy analysis. The DFT with 6-311++G( d , p ) basis set has been used to examine optimization of molecular geometry, Mulliken charge, and HOMO-LUMO. As the frequency of the grown crystal increases, the dielectric loss and dielectric constant decrease. The third-order NLO parameters of 7AIDNB have been examined by a Z -scan technique.

In the present work, the nitrogen doped carbon nanotubes (NCNTs) were prepared over various transition metal loaded mesoporous SBA-15 catalysts by the CVD method for supercapacitor application. Mesoporous Siliceous SBA-15 support and transition metals (Cr, Fe, Co, Ni and Cu) loaded SBA-15 (M/SBA-15) catalysts were prepared through hydrothermal and wet impregnation process, respectively. The catalytic performance of all the prepared catalysts were evaluated by synthesizing NCNTs by CVD at 800 °C using triethylamine as the precursor. The NCNTs produced over Ni/SBA-15 have an outstanding specific capacitance of 263 F g −1 at 0.5 A g −1 in 1.0 M H 2 SO 4 aqueous solution according to the electrochemical investigations because of its increased nitrogen content of 3.2 at.%. Furthermore, a two-electrode based symmetric device was construct and tested. The fabricated device showed the specific capacitance of 113 F g −1 at 0.5 A g −1 with high energy density of 10 W h Kg −1 at the power density of 333 W kg −1 . The NCNT showed 96 % of capacitance retention even after 1000 cycles. The synergism of high nitrogen content and bamboo-like graphitized structure resulted in excellent specific capacitance, better cycle life and rate performance of the prepared NCNTs as supercapacitor electrode.

We investigated the role of dynamic shock waves in perovskite SrTiO 3 (STO) material. XRD, FE-SEM, EDAX, FTIR, UV-DRS, XPS, and Raman spectroscopy were all used to examine the title material. When perovskite sample was loaded with shocks, its diffraction pattern did not show any crystal structure changes. The FE-SEM results suggest that the grain size increased linearly with the number of shocks. We used energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to perform elemental analysis; results confirmed that SrTiO 3 NPs were indeed present. Although the impulse of the shock wave changed the optical characteristics, it did not affect the molecular structure. To find the optical band gap energies of untreated and shocked NPs, Tauc plot relationships were used. The band-gap energies got smaller as the shock pulse became more substantial. The impact of shock waves caused oxygen vacancies and surface defects, lowering band gap energy. The test for photocatalytic testing showed that SrTiO 3 NPs that are loaded with shock waves worked much better when they were exposed to visible light. The characteristics, including stress, strain, and bond length, were found to significantly influence photocatalytic applications. In addition, attempts were made to provide a viewpoint for future study. Overall, the objective of this research was to provide valuable insights for experts engaged in the field of SrTiO 3 .

The theoretical calculations for 2-[3-(4-chlorophenyl)-5-(4-(propane-2-yl) phenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazol-1-yl]-4-(4-fluorophenyl)-1,3-thiazole (CPDFT) are performed using the Density Functional Theory (DFT) technique employing the B3LYP/cc-pVDZ and LanL2MB basis sets. Theoretical infrared (IR) and Raman frequencies as well as structural investigation were performed. The molecular structure demonstrating the presence of charge transfer and determining the bond length, bond angle of the header molecule. FMO deals about the both occupied and unoccupied orbitals of the molecule are computed. A molecular electrostatic potential map was created and analysed to identify the sites of electrophilic and nucleophilic areas of CPDFT. The ligand-protein interaction of the title compound was assessed by docking studies, indicating a strong affinity between the title compound and the target macromolecules. A reduced density gradient graph, electron localization electron and Localized orbital locator was employed to discern the non-covalent interactions of CPDFT.

Current research aims to improve the characteristics of lithium manganese oxide (LiMn 2 O 4 ), a highly prospective for waste water treatment applications, by incorporating gadolinium (Gd-0.25 %) into the manganese position. This integration, achieved via conventional ball milling, aims to improve the structural, morphological, and electrical characteristics of Li 4 Mn 5 O 12 . A range of analytical methods, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and impedance testing, were utilized to evaluate the influence of Gd-0.25 % on Li 4 Mn 5 O 12 . The results indicate that the inclusion of Gd at the manganese sites enhances the thermal conductivity of Li 4 Mn 5 O 12  (Li 4 Mn 4.75 Gd 0.25 O 12 ), leading to improved conductivity compared to undoped Li 4 Mn 5 O 12 . Additionally, the enhanced material exhibits promising potential as an efficient photocatalyst, demonstrated by its degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye.

Tetracycline hydrochloride (TCN), widely recognized for its broad-spectrum efficacy and cost-effectiveness as an antibiotic, has raised significant environmental and health concerns due to its contamination in water bodies. This study introduces an innovative approach to address this issue by employing a titanium dioxide/graphitic carbon nitride (TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 5 ) nanocomposite through photocatalysis. The synthesis of this composite involved a hydrothermal method, and a comprehensive characterization was conducted using XRD, FT-IR, and SEM techniques. The formed heterojunction between TiO 2 and g-C 3 N 5 exhibited remarkable photocatalytic degradation capabilities, achieving a removal rate of over 85 % within a short period of 135 min. This signifies the composite’s efficiency in breaking down TCN in aqueous environments. Beyond its high effectiveness, the TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 5 nanocomposite presents itself as an environmentally friendly and sustainable solution for addressing the critical issues associated with antibiotic contamination in water. This study underscores the potential of photocatalysis using TiO 2 /g-C 3 N 5 as a promising technology for mitigating the adverse effects of TCN on both ecosystems and human health.

Here we report the structural, optical and magnetic properties of La 0.4 Pr 0.25 Na x Sr 0.35− x MnO 3 ( x  = 0, 0.05, and 0.1) synthesized using ball milling method. After milling, the precursors are calcinated at 1,200 °C for 12 h. The phase purity, crystal structure, lattice parameter, and crystallite size of the samples were determined using X‐ray diffraction (XRD). The peaks from XRD provide the perovskite hexagonal structure with an R 3 ‾ $\overline{3}$ c space group. Surface morphology shows the recreation of spherical structure to nanoflakes/layered structures. The ultraviolet-visible diffused reflectance spectroscopy (UV–vis DRS) study indicates that the decrease in the band gap is observed with the increase of Na content. The intensity of the luminescence peak decreases progressively with the increase of Na doping. The room temperature (RT) magnetization of the samples reveals weak ferromagnetism and shows a novel vertical shift in magnetization at room temperature.

The proposed study aims to synthesize ZnO, WO 3 , and rGO nano particles (NPs) using simple and effective chemical reduction technique and to investigate its biomedical applications. According to the XRD results, synthesized NPs had hexagonal, monoclinic, and cubic crystal forms. The FESEM micro image shows sheet-like structure for rGO NPs, an algal crystal structure for ZnO, and a bulk cluster formation for WO 3 NPs. The value of band gap was found to be 5.75, 5.37 and 3.01 eV for ZnO, WO 3 , and rGO NPs respectively. The presence of diverse functional groups in the produced NPs was verified using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Investigations against different microorganisms indicated an augmentation in the antibacterial activity for ZnO and WO 3 NPs. Electrodes coated with rGO NP were made and discovered to be effective in collecting human biomedical data more effectively. The performance of rGO NP coated electrodes was compared using a development board for electromyography analysis along with an android application for monitoring purposes. The quality of the signal, the ratio between the signal and the background noise, as well as the level of impedance between the electrode and the skin was observed to be better than conventional electrodes.