Publications

In the present work, sulfonated graphene oxide and sulfonated poly(1,4-phenylene ether-ether-sulfone) were blended with polyvinylidene fluoride to create a novel ionic polymer-metal composite actuator with enhanced performance. An ionic polymer-metal composite membrane in the protonated form was prepared by casting a composite blend of sulfonated poly(1,4-phenylene ether-ether-sulfone), polyvinylidene fluoride and sulfonated graphene oxide onto a plating of platinum metal as the electrode. The degree of sulfonation of poly(1,4-phenylene ether-ether-sulfone) was characterized using ion-exchange capacity measurements. Energy dispersive X-ray and transmittance electron microscopy analyses were carried out to analyze the chemical composition and detailed structure. Deposition of the platinum electrode and the surface morphology of the proposed ionic polymer-metal composite actuator were assessed using scanning electron microscopy analysis. The electrical properties were measured using cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry and proton conductivity. These measurements confirmed the better actuation performance of the fabricated ionic polymer-metal composite actuator compared to other expensive ionic polymer-based actuators, in terms of its high ion-exchange capacity, good proton conductivity, high current density and large bending deflection. The robust, flexible and mechanically strong membrane actuator, fabricated <i>via</i> the synergistic combination of sulfonated poly(1,4-phenylene ether-ether-sulfone), polyvinylidene fluoride and sulfonated graphene oxide, has considerable potential as an actuator material for robotic, bio-mimetic and other applications.

A new water-insoluble organic dye, namely, 2-((10-decyl-10H-phenothiazin-3-yl)methylene)malononitrile, was synthesized and fully characterized. It was envisioned that photocatalytic decolourization of a dye-containing long chain would pave the way for the photocatalytic remediation of wastewater containing toxic hydrophobic organic pollutants. Two commercially available nanoparticles, ZnO and TiO2, were selected, and their photocatalytic decolourization of the dye from aqueous medium were compared. The black UV light irradiation of the colored samples in the presence of TiO2 (P25) or ZnO resulted in their decolourization and the photocatalytic activity observed for TiO2 (P25) was better than that of ZnO. The kinetic of decolourization indicated that the process was first-order from which the rate constant was calculated. Also, the effect of pHs on the kinetic of decolourization revealed a negligible effect, indicating that the pH, although it affects the catalysts but has no effect on the organic-based hydrophobic dye and thus no effect on the photocatalytic process.

Abstract Cloud point (CP) measurements of 4‐(1,1,3,3‐tetramethylbutyl) phenyl‐polyethyleneglycol (Triton X‐100 (TX‐100)) were performed in aqueous solution in the presence of drug Amikacin sulfate (AS)/Neomycin sulfate (NS)/(AS/NS+ different inorganic salts). In aqueous solution, the CP values of TX‐100 first decrease with increasing concentration and then increase with increasing surfactant concentration. The CP values of TX‐100 solutions were found to increase with the increasing concentration of the AS/NS drug. The CP values of TX‐100‐AS/NS mixtures were also observed to decrease with the increase of the concentration of salt. Different thermodynamic parameters such as standard free energy ( ), standard enthalpy ( ) as well as the standard entropy ( ) change of phase separation were calculated and discussed in relation to molecular interactions.

An entry from the Cambridge Structural Database, the world’s repository for small molecule crystal structures. The entry contains experimental data from a crystal diffraction study. The deposited dataset for this entry is freely available from the CCDC and typically includes 3D coordinates, cell parameters, space group, experimental conditions and quality measures.

Microwave irradiation is used in this study to synthesize poly (acrylamide-co-2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)/chitosan (P(AM-co-HEMA)/chitosan) semi-IPN hydrogels, which are synthesized using one-pot polymerization techniques with ammonium persulfate (APS) as an initiator. The first step was to synthesize a (P(AM-co-HEMA) network in a chitosan aqueous solution, which formed a semi-IPN structure. Nanocomposite membranes of P(AM-co-HEMA)/chitosan membranes with varying Zinc oxide concentrations i.e. 2.5, 5, and 10 wt. % gravimetrically were tested for gas permeability measurements of pure oxygen gas at feed pressures ranging from 1 to 20 kg/cm2. The permeability of the membranes to oxygen ranged from 0.0963 to 0.2634 Barrer for the pristine Poly (Acrylamide-co-2-Hydroxyethyl Methacrylate)/Chitosan Semi-IPN membrane, and 5 and 10 wt. % ZnO loaded blend membranes showed good resistance and zero permeability at feed pressures of 1–5 kg/cm2 and 0.0341 to 0.0364 Barrer for 10 wt. % ZnO loaded blend membranes by increasing the feed pressures at the feed chamber. The nanocomposite membranes were tested for antimicrobial properties and found to be a more effective antimicrobial material. The results of the soil burial tests show that the prepared membranes are biodegradable. Mechanical strength is exceptional under normal conditions.

Finding new hole-transporting materials (HTMs) suitable for replacing the state-of-the-art spiro-OMeTAD is still challenging. In this work, newly synthesized diarylamine-substituted metal phthalocyanines (MPcs, M = Zn(II) or Cu(II)) functionalized with either linear or branched alkoxy chains are evaluated as HTMs in perovskite solar cells. Both the nature of the alkoxy chains and that of the coordinated metal species were found to influence the functional properties of the new MPcs. In particular, devices based on a ZnPc featuring four n-butoxy side chains exhibited the highest power conversion efficiencies (PCEs). A PCE of 20.00% was reached for triple cation perovskite devices, and a PCE up to 20.18% could be achieved for double cation devices.