Enhancement of antibacterial activity through phyto-fabrication of silver nanoparticles with Ficus thonningii aqueous extracts.

The World Health Organisation reports higher levels of bacterial resistance to cephalosporins and carbapenems of above 54%. The sufficient redox capabilities of Ficus thonningii phytochemicals for Ag  reduction to Ag and ultimately aggregation to nucleation are exploited for the first time in attempting to enhance the antibacterial activity. Solution colour change to brown due to surface plasmon resonance phenomenon confirmed nanoparticle fabrication with a UV/Vis absorption peak at 426 nm.

Perspectives on the Development of Filter Media for Point of Use Water Filters: Case Study of Arsenate Removal.

The demand for access to clean water will continue to increase as the world population increases. For sustainable development and embracement of technological advancement, it is plausible to consider a filter material development approach that uses locally abundant natural resources as the raw material and nanotechnology techniques for material fabrication. The review and research paper will present a perspective of the authors on how to embrace nanotechnology for filter media development with key focus on the remediation of arsenate.

Green Synthesis and Characterization of Silver Nanoparticles Using Fruit Rind Extract.

The wide-scale application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in areas such as chemical sensing, nanomedicine, and electronics has led to their increased demand. Current methods of AgNPs synthesis involve the use of hazardous reagents and toxic solvents. There is a need for the development of new methods of synthesizing AgNPs that use environmentally safe reagents and solvents.

Electrically conducting polymers as templating interfaces for fabrication of copper nanotubes.

Submicrometer tubes have been fabricated by a polymer-based template approach using electroless deposition. The copper was deposited on polystyrene fibers functionalized with an interfacial electrically conducting polyaniline thin film layer. Thermal degradation of the functionalized fiber templates resulted in copper tubes of diameter 1600 ± 50 nm with wall thicknesses ranging between 100 and 200 nm.

Templated synthesis of amphiphilic nanoparticles at the liquid-liquid interface.

A simple and reliable method is described to produce inorganic nanoparticles functionalized asymmetrically with domains of hydrophobic and hydrophilic ligands on their respective hemispheres. These amphiphilic, Janus-type particles form spontaneously by a thermodynamically controlled process, in which the particle cores and two competing ligands assemble at the interface between two immiscible liquids to reduce the interfacial energy. The asymmetric surface chemistry resulting from this process was confirmed using contact angle measurements of water droplets on nanoparticle monolayers deposited onto hydrophobic and hydrophilic substrates-particles presenting their hydrophobic face give contact angles of ∼96°, those presenting their hydrophilic face ∼19°.

Polyacrylonitrile-based carbonized fibers and metal-carbonized fiber nanocomposites for thermal transport.

This work examines the fabrication and thermal analysis of metal-carbon composite fibers prepared via an electrospinning process. The metal-carbon composite fibers of silver, copper, gold, and nickel were prepared by electrospinning of a composite solution of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and metal precursor followed by heat treatment in air, nitrogen to 1000 degrees C and in 6% H2, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and Scanning thermal microscopy (SThM) were applied to characterize the metal-carbon fibers.

Synthesis and optical properties of co-doped ZnO submicrometer tubes from electrospun fiber templates.

Submicrometer ZnO tubes have been synthesized by a polymer based template approach using sol-gel deposition. Zinc acetate, a precursor to ZnO, was deposited on catalytically active electrospun polycarbonate fibers approximately 250+/-100 nm in diameter. Thermal degradation of the core fibers resulted in the oxidation of zinc acetate to produce ZnO nanotubes with diameters of approximately 500+/-100 nm and an average wall thickness of approximately 100+/-50 nm.