Sharif Digital Repository

The main aim of this work was to assess the ability of Bayesian multivariate adaptive regression splines (BMARS) and Bayesian radial basis function (BRBF) techniques for modelling the gas chromatographic retention indices of volatile components of Artemisia species. A diverse set of molecular descriptors was calculated and used as descriptor pool for modelling the retention indices. The ability of BMARS and BRBF techniques was explored for the selection of the most relevant descriptors and proper basis functions for modelling. The results revealed that BRBF technique is more reproducible than BMARS for modelling the retention indices and can be used as a method for variable selection and... 

Highly active unsupported MoO3 and Co -MoO3 catalysts were prepared by a simple solution reaction method in the presence of different organic additives. Catalysts were characterized by the XRD, BET surface area measurement, SEM and TEM techniques. Results suggested that utilizing different additives produced different morphologies OfMoO3 microstructures. Optimizing reaction conditions was found to produce more active molybdenum oxide nanoparticles when urea and PEG200 additives were utilized. XRD and TEM results indicated crystal growth restriction after cobalt incorporation. Catalytic activities of prepared materials were evaluated in the hydrodesulfurization reaction of Naphtha. Products... 

A moving bed biofilm reactor with pre-denitrification configuration was fed with a synthetic wastewater containing high chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonia. By changing different variables including ammonium and COD loading, nitrification rate in the aerobic reactor and denitrification rate in the anoxic reactor were monitored. Changing the influent loading was achieved via adjusting the inlet COD (956-2,096 mg/L), inlet ammonium (183-438 mg/L), and hydraulic retention time of the aerobic reactor (8, 12, and 18 hours). The overall organic loading rate was in the range of 3.60-17.37 gCOD/m2·day, of which 18.5-91% was removed in the anoxic reactor depending on the operational conditions.... 

This paper considers the modeling and control of a tubular fixed bed reactor with recycle stream for dimethyl ether (DME) production. For simulation purposes, a pseudo homogeneous model has been developed. By reactor simulation under steady state condition, effects of parameters such as feed rate, pressure and shell temperature are investigated. Using the steady state model, an optimizer that maximizes the reactor yield has been developed. For cooling the reactor, a steam drum that uses heat of reactions to produce steam was coupled with the reactor. Through dynamic simulation, system open loop response was obtained and two control loops were considered for controlling the reactor... 

Quasi-ultrafine (quasi-UF) particulate matter (PM0.25) and its components were measured in indoor and outdoor environments at four retirement communities in Los Angeles Basin, California, as part of the Cardiovascular Health and Air Pollution Study (CHAPS). The present paper focuses on the characterization of the sources, organic constituents and indoor and outdoor relationships of quasi-UF PM. The average indoor/outdoor ratios of most of the measured polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), hopanes, and steranes were close to or slightly lower than 1, and the corresponding indoor-outdoor correlation coefficients (R) were always positive and, for the most part, moderately strong (median R... 

A novel class of substituted quinazolines were prepared in good yields by a one-pot three-component reaction of isocyanides with adducts of anilines and tri- or dichloroacetonitrile, followed by intramolecular C-H activation, catalyzed by copper(I) iodide with l -proline as a ligand in acetonitrile at room temperature. © 2017 Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart .New York-Synlett  

Accelerated Michael-type Friedel-Crafts alkylation of naphthols with nitrostyrenes in the presence of water is reported. The procedure is simple, catalyst-free, and affords good yields of the products. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved  

Hexagonal core–shell SiO2[–MOYI]Cl–]Ag nanoframeworks were synthesized via surface modification of hexagonal silica nanoparticles prepared from perlite (EP) as a cheap and abundant raw material. The prepared samples were well characterized by X-ray diffraction powder (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) specific surface area analysis, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The XRD patterns confirmed that Ag and AgCl crystalline phases were successfully loaded on the surface. The TEM images were also implied that the... 

In this work, a facile ionic liquid-mediated method was utilized to fabricate an efficient photocatalyst for environmental remediation. The eco-friendly aspect of the treatment was explored through an in-vivo toxicity bioassay. ZnO particles, prepared by a combined solid state-pyrolysis method, were coated by 1-methyl-3-(oxiran-2ylmethyl)-1H-imidazolium-3-chloride ([MOYI]Cl) ionic liquid. Then, Ag/AgCl species were grown on the surface to make a heterojunction system leading to efficient charge separation and light absorption extension to the visible domain. The products were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, EDX, DRS, BET, and PL analysis. Photocatalytic performance of the nanostructures was... 

The morphology of the perovskite layer, the effective extraction of the charge carriers, and their transport are the main factors determining the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the perovskite solar cells (PSCs). In this work, we demonstrated that the geometric and electronic structures of the PSCs could be modified by using a conductive polymer additive in the lead (Pb) halide layer prepared by a two-step deposition method. Polypyrrole (PPy) as a conductive polymer is used in the perovskite layers which could increase the PCE of CH3NH3PbI3-xClx mixed-halide PSCs. By adding an optimized amount of PPy, PCE has been raised from 10.4 to 13.2%. PPy acts as a conductive channel facilitating... 

The perovskite oxide BaTiO3, doped with Ge oxides oxidized methane to C2 coupled hydrocarbons. The ultraviolet-visible spectra of pure barium titanate and Ge doped BaTi(1-x) GexO3 (x=0.05 ,0.1) were compared. The pure barium titanate exhibited an ultraviolet absorption effect. The addition of GeO2 resulted in an increase in absorption of wavelength. Therefore, small amount of Ge decreased band gap energy. Oxygen is inserted by nucleophilic attack which may be considered as an acid-base process. For promoted BaTiO3 catalysts with stable cation valance, electron donation ability of lattice oxygen is parallels to its ability of adsorb and active oxygen, and decrease the chance of deep oxidation... 

A study was conducted to report an observation on the effect of nanoclay fillers on the α-relaxation in an epoxy resin. The observation provided useful facts about glass transition processes in nanoclay-filled epoxy composites. The investigation involved the synthesis of intercalated-exfoliated clay-epoxy compounds, by swelling an organophilic montmorillonite in an aromatic epoxy resin and polymerization. The epoxy resin used in the study was a diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA), EPON 828, with an equivalent weight of 184-190 g/eq from Hexion Specialty Chemicals. The epoxy resin was cured with piperidine, obtained from Sigma-Aldrich. Nanomer® 1.30E. An octadecyl amine treated... 

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled to gas chromatography (GC) was applied to the extraction of phenol and some of its volatile derivatives in water samples. The SPME fiber consisted of a thin layer of polyaniline, which was electrochemically coated on a fine Pt wire. The stability of the coating was such that it could be used at temperatures as high as 325 °C, without any deterioration. The effects of various parameters affecting the extraction efficiency were studied, simultaneously. From these, optimization of the extraction temperature, extraction time, coating thickness, sample pH, salt concentration and desorption time was carried out by means of a (26-2) fractional factorial... 

In this work, a facile ionic liquid-mediated method was utilized to fabricate an efficient photocatalyst for environmental remediation. The eco-friendly aspect of the treatment was explored through an in-vivo toxicity bioassay. ZnO particles, prepared by a combined solid state-pyrolysis method, were coated by 1-methyl-3-(oxiran-2ylmethyl)-1H-imidazolium-3-chloride ([MOYI]Cl) ionic liquid. Then, Ag/AgCl species were grown on the surface to make a heterojunction system leading to efficient charge separation and light absorption extension to the visible domain. The products were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, EDX, DRS, BET, and PL analysis. Photocatalytic performance of the nanostructures was... 

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) fabricated using electron beam lithography are investigated using tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS) with a spatial resolution of 5 nm under ambient conditions. High-resolution TERS imaging reveals a structurally modified 5-10 nm strip of disordered graphene at the edge of the GNRs. Furthermore, hyperspectral TERS imaging discovers the presence of nanoscale organic contaminants on the GNRs. These results pave the way for nanoscale chemical and structural characterisation of graphene-based devices using TERS. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2021  

Biological treatment of waste gas styrene vapor was investigated in a three-stage bench-scale biofilter. Yard waste compost mixed with shredded hard plastics in a 25:75 v/v ratio of plastics:compost was inoculated with thickened municipal activated sludge. Microbial acclimation to styrene was achieved by exposing the system to an inlet concentration (CIn) of 0.25 g m -3 styrene and an empty bed retention time (EBRT) of 360 s for 30 days. Under steady-state conditions, maximum elimination capacity (EC) obtained was 45 g m-3 h-1 at a loading rate (L) of 60 g m -3 h-1 (CIn of 2 g m-3 and EBRT of 120 s). Reduction of retention time adversely impacted the performance resulting in the maximum EC... 

Electrochemical oxidation of catechol in the presence of 3-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole (MTA) as a nucleophile in aqueous buffered solutions was studied by cyclic voltammetry and controlled-potential coulometry. The mechanism of electrochemical reaction is confirmed by spectrophotometric tracing in various times of controlled-potential coulometry. The voltammetric and spectrophotometric foundations indicate that a 1,4 Michael addition of MTA from its thiol moiety to the electrochemically derived o-quinone is occurred. The electrochemical synthesis of Michael addition product has been successfully accomplished by controlled-potential coulometry in a divided H-type cell and the reaction product was... 

An immersed solvent microextraction (SME) method was successfully developed for the trace enrichment of s-triazine herbicides from aquatic media. A microdrop of butyl acetate was applied as the extraction solvent. After extraction, the microdrop was introduced directly into a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) injection port. Some important extraction parameters such as type of solvent, extraction time, stirring rate, and temperature were investigated and optimized. The highest possible microdrop volume of 3 μl, a sampling temperature of 60°C, and use of butyl acetate are major parameters to obtain high enrichment factors. The enrichment factor and linearity was studied by... 

Monometallic and bimetallic supported metal oxides catalysts on γ-alumina were prepared by heterogeneous deposition-precipitation. The γ-alumina used as a support was synthesized by the sol-gel and the co-precipitation methods. Supports and catalysts were characterized by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The performance of the prepared catalysts was studied for total oxidation of toluene in air at different relative humidity and oxidation temperatures. Efficiency of bimetallic catalysts for deep oxidation of toluene was... 

In this study, mathematical modelling of oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) to C 2 hydrocarbons (C 2H 6 and C 2H 4) over La 2O 3/CaO catalyst in a fixed-bed reactor operated under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions was investigated using the MATLAB program. In this process, methane and acetylene were the inputted feed and ethane, ethylene, propylene, propane, i-butane and n-butane were the output products. The amount of methane conversion obtained was 12.7% for the former feed however; if pure methane was inputted this conversion rose to 13.8%. Furthermore, the plasma process would enhance the conversion, selectivity towards desired product and process yield. A comparison between the...