Sharif Digital Repository

The creation of surfaces with various super nonwetting properties is an ongoing challenge. We report diverse modifications of novel synthesized zirconia-ceria nanocomposites by different low surface energy agents to fabricate nanofluids capable of regulating surface wettability of mineral substrates to achieve selective superhydrophobic, superoleophobic-superhydrophilic, and superamphiphobic conditions. Surfaces treated with these nanofluids offer self-cleaning properties and effortless rolling-off behavior with sliding angles ≤7° for several liquids with surface tensions between 26 and 72.1 mN/m. The superamphiphobic nanofluid coating imparts nonstick properties to a solid surface whereby... 

In this research study, interfacial assembled nanoporous zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-8) multiwalled oxidized carbon nanotubes (MW-OCNTs) were developed and introduced into a silane coating. To analyze the destructive behavior of the nanoparticles exposed to salty solutions with three distinctive pHs of 2, 7.5, and 12, various types of tests such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) were accomplished. The XRD test revealed that the main characteristic peaks of ZIF-8 were eliminated and/or their intensity decreased. In accordance with the obtained data from the XRD test, nanoparticles at pH = 2 had been... 

Plastic packaging is causing a serious environmental concern owing to its difficulty in degrading and micro-particulates' emissions. Developing biodegradable films has gained research attention to overcome ecological and health issues associated with plastic based packaging. One alternative substitute for petroleum-based plastic is nanocellulose based films, having distinguishing characteristics such as biodegradability, renewability, and non-toxicity. Nanocellulose is classified into three major types, i.e., cellulose nanofibril, cellulose nanocrystals, and bacterial nanocellulose. However, the scope of this review is limited to cellulose nanofibril (CNF) because this is the only one of... 

Coating is an effective approach to address the high corrosion rate of biodegradable Mg alloys, as their main challenge toward their extensive use. In this regard, it was tried to control the degradation process of an Mg-4Zn alloy by Ca addition, equal channel angular pressing (ECAP), and hydrothermal coating. The obtained results indicated that excellent grain refinement induced by Ca incorporation and ECAP simultaneously, improved both mechanical strength and corrosion resistance of the Mg-based substrate. The achieved grain refinement resulted in a thicker, more compact and integrated coating, where the ECAP-processed Mg-4Zn-0.5Ca alloy exhibited the best coating quality with no... 

Herein, a series of superhydrophobic thin polyacrylic resin-coated carbon black (CB)/hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN)@Fe3O4/cellulose composite papers with good flexibility, low density (~0.67 g/cm3), high electrical conductivity (~0.065 S/cm), good thermal conductivity (0.462 W.m−1. K−1), and with water contact angle (WCA) of 153° were successfully fabricated by a facile dip-coating/spraying method. The CB-BN@Fe3O4 distribution in cellulose matrix provided high electrical conductivity in the in-plane and thickness directions. The electrical conductivity in both in-plane and thickness directions increased by increasing the number of vacuum-assisted dip-coating cycles. Moreover, these... 

Simultaneous enhancement of osseointegration and bacterial infection prohibition through surface modifications is a challenging but promising approach to achieve durable implantation. To that end, we present a multifunctional surface coating composed of graphene nanolayers and hierarchical well-aligned TiO2 nanotubes with a nanoporous top layer (cRTNT). FESEM studies reveal tunable increasing island morphologies of graphene nanolayers (G) on cRTNT by a cyclic voltammetry process. XPS analysis shows that the enhanced interface chemistry is due to TiO2-carbon bonding. The roughness of the sample containing a medium amount of graphene, cRTNT-75%GO, was calculated ∼289 nm, which was 543% higher... 

In the current study, the physicochemical and biological properties of tetracycline-loaded core-shell nanoparticles (Tet/Ni0.5Co0.5Fe2O4/SiO2 and Tet/CoFe2O4/SiO2) were investigated. The antibacterial activity of nanoparticles alone and in combination with tetracycline was investigated against a number of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria for determining minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values. The MIC of Tet/Ni0.5Co0.5Fe2O4/SiO2 nanoparticles turned out to be significantly higher than that of Tet/CoFe2O4/SiO2 nanoparticles. Furthermore, Tet/Ni0.5Co0.5Fe2O4/SiO2 nanoparticles exhibited potent antibiofilm activity against pathogenic bacteria compared to Tet/CoFe2O4/SiO2... 

The most common reasons for hard-tissue implant failure are structural loosening and prosthetic infections. Hence, in this study, to overcome the first problem, different bioinspired coatings, including dual acid-etched, anodic TiO2 nanotubes array, anodic hierarchical titanium oxide (HO), micro- and nanostructured hydroxyapatite (HA) layers, and HA/chitosan (HA/CS) nanocomposite, were applied to the titanium alloy surfaces. X-ray diffraction and FTIR analysis demonstrated that the in situ HA/CS nanocomposite formed successfully. The MTT assay showed that all samples had excellent cell viability, with cell proliferation rates ranging from 120% to 150% after 10 days. The HO coating... 

A chitosan-based carbon quantum dots (CQDs) with multifunctional properties were synthesized using a hydrothermal process. The CQDs were spherical with an average size of 7.8 ± 2.4 nm. The CQD showed strong antioxidant activity, potent antibacterial activity against E. coli and L. monocytogenes, and antifungal activity against A. niger and P. chrysogenum. In addition, the prepared CQD showed negligible cytotoxicity against L929 cells even at a concentration of 500 μg/mL. Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-based functional films were fabricated by adding various amounts of CQD. The CQDs were evenly dispersed in the polymer matrix to form a highly transparent UV-blocking film. The addition of CQD... 

In this research, the effect of surface characteristics on boiling heat transfer has been investigated experimentally. For this purpose, a device with the ability to automatically record the liquid temperature of the inlet and outlet of the test area, calculate the coefficient of boiling heat transfer, and heat flux has been developed. The automatic temperature stability of the working fluid and the ability to investigate the effect of surfaces with different characteristics (in terms of material and surface structure) on the boiling heat transfer parameters are the most important features of this device. The performance of the experimental setup was evaluated by the modified "Chen" equation... 

Methicillin resistance Staphylococcus aureus bacteria (MRSA) are serious hazards of bone implants. The present study was aimed to use the potential synergistic effects of Melittin and tetracycline to prevent MRSA associated bone implant infection. Chitosan/bioactive glass nanoparticles/tetracycline composite coatings were deposited on hydrothermally etched titanium substrate. Melittin was then coated on composite coatings by drop casting method. The surfaces were analyzed by FTIR, XRD, and SEM instruments. Tetracycline in coatings revealed multifunctional behaviors include bone regeneration and antibacterial activity. Releasing ALP enzyme from MC3T3 cells increased by tetracycline, so it is... 

Biodegradable magnesium implants possess excellent mechanical properties and biocompatibility, which make them suitable candidates to be employed as temporary structures for the bone regeneration purposes. However, there are still important challenges which limit their extensive use in biomedical applications, where the most important ones include implant-associated infection, rapid degradation rate and the need for improved mechanical properties. Silver, which is a strong antimicrobial agent, has been extensively used for improving the mentioned challenges in biodegradable Mg alloys either as alloying element or incorporation in the protective coating. Ag addition has been reported to have... 

In this work, flexible thermoelectric fabrics, polyester/yarn fabrics coated with polyaniline/carbon nanotube (PANI/CNT) nanocomposite, were fabricated by sequential processing: (I) polyaniline/carbon nanotube nanocomposites preparation by a one-step in-situ polymerization and (II) dip coating of a mixture solution of CNT-doped PANI on a polyester/yarn fabric. Nanocomposites were synthesized with various CNT content (0.5, 2.5, 5, and 10 wt%) and characterized using different methods. The Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity measurements were used to determine their thermoelectric properties. The results revealed significant improvement in both electrical conductivity and the... 

Surfaces with special wettability have aroused lots of attention due to their broad applications in many fields. In this work, we systematically report selective and various fabrications of nanofluids based on readily available materials such as SiO2 nanoparticles and polydimethylsiloxane to create superhydrophobic, superoleophobic, superhydrophilic/superoleophobic, and underwater superoleophobic coatings. The efficiency of prepared coatings is investigated on mineral rock plates as porous substrates via the straightforward and cost-effective solution-immersion technique. The static water contact angle of 170°, effortless bouncing of water droplets, and self-cleaning property with a near... 

Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) approach with the k-ε closure model is employed for the first time to simulate direct Solid-Phase Micro-Extraction (SPME) computationally. Simulations are performed by using COMSOL Multiphysics in order to examine methods to decrease the extraction time. Experiments are also conducted to support data obtained from the numerical framework. Di-n-Butyl Phthalate (DNBP) and etched steel wire are chosen as the analyte and the adsorbent, respectively. Stirring rate, fiber's location, stirrer magnet's size, and the method of sample rotation are examined to decrease the extraction time. In addition, the effects of adding a baffle to the vial and implementing a... 

The biodegradation behavior of Mg, coated by polymethyl methacrylate as well as polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)−bioactive glass (BG) composite was investigated. Electrophoretic deposition and dip coating techniques were adopted to prepare composite coating using a suspension of different percentages of the above two chemical materials. The deposited coatings were characterized using SEM, EDS, FTIR, and water contact angle measurements. Biodegradation behavior study of the coated Mg was performed using linear polarization, impedance spectroscopy, and immersion tests in simulated body fluid. The compact and homogeneous composite coating was developed as evidenced by electron microscopy results.... 

This study has investigated the effect of carbon coating on the electrochemical performance of SnO2 Nanowires (NWs) as an electrode along with a bis (trifluoromethane) sulfonimide lithium (LiTFSI)-based electrolyte in a lithium-ion battery (LIB). The vapor-liquid-solid approach has been used to grow SnO2 NWs on the stainless steel mesh current collector. The obtained results have demonstrated that the utilization of the LiTFSI-based electrolyte improved the battery performance with the SnO2 NWs electrode over the LiPF6-based electrolyte. This may be due to the formation of a stable and thin solid electrolyte interphase layer. Since bare SnO2 NWs exhibit inferior cycling stability due to... 

Infection is a disease that is mainly caused by different Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Treatment of infections requires a considerable amount of antibiotics, which can cause serious damage to the patient's body. Delivering the antibiotic only to the site of infection can prevent these destructive effects, such as the destruction of the normal intestinal flora. The drug delivery system through carriers will take antibiotics into a part of the body involved in the disease. Niosome nanoparticles, which have been made from non-ionic surfactants, have been emerging as ideal drug/antibiotics delivery vehicles. Recently, niosome formulations have been targeted to reduce toxicity and... 

Herein, we demonstrated a facile method for the fabrication of magnetic and superhydrophobic polyurethane sponge with water contact angle of 159° as an adsorbent for cleanup the marine oil spill pollution. For this aim, a polyurethane sponge was coated with carbon black (CB), hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN)@Fe3O4, and acrylic resin and then characterized by different techniques. Owing to the chemical and thermal stability of h-BN and CB, the modified sponge was stable under corrosive conditions (pH = 1–14 and salt solutions) and at different temperatures (−12 °C–105 °C). In addition to common oils and organic solvents, we also used the real spilled oils containing monoaromatics and... 

As steel is highly sensitive to temperature variations, fire exposure is more destructive in the case of steel structures in comparison to the concrete ones. The performance of an intermediate three-story steel moment frame with 4 spans was studied under the service load, thermal load and post-earthquake fire in this paper. Also, the effects of passive fire-protection materials such as ordinary cement-based and fire-retardant coatings were investigated. To model and analyze the structure; Abaqus software is utilized. In order to apply the earthquake effect, the push-over analysis method is employed. Changes in the stories deflection, endurance time and growth of nonlinear regions due to...