Functional UV Blocking and Superhydrophobic Coatings Based on Functionalized CeO and AlO Nanoparticles in a Polyurethane Nanocomposite.

Water repellency has significant potential in applications like self-cleaning coatings, anti-staining textiles, and electronics. This study introduces a novel nanocomposite system incorporating functionalized AlO and CeO nanoparticles within a polyurethane matrix to achieve hydrophobic and UV-blocking properties. The nanoparticles were functionalized using an octadecyl phosphonic acid solution and characterized by FTIR and XPS, confirming non-covalent functionalization.

Composition-Dependent Cytotoxic and Antibacterial Activity of Biopolymer-Capped Ag/Au Bimetallic Nanoparticles against Melanoma and Multidrug-Resistant Pathogens.

Nanostructured silver (Ag) and gold (Au) are widely known to be potent biocidal and cytotoxic agents as well as biocompatible nanomaterials. It has been recently reported that combining both metals in a specific chemical composition causes a significant enhancement in their antibacterial activity against antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, as well as in their anticancer effects, while preserving cytocompatibility properties. In this work, Ag/Au bimetallic nanoparticles over a complete atomic chemical composition range were prepared at 10 at% through a green, highly reproducible, and simple approach using starch as a unique reducing and capping agent.

Galvanostatically Deposited PtNi Thin-Films as Electrocatalysts for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

The synthesis of hybrid platinum materials is fundamental to enable alkaline water electrolysis for cost-effective H generation. In this work, we have used a galvanostatic method to co-deposit PtNi films onto polycrystalline gold. The surface concentrations of Ni (Γ ) and Pt (Γ ) were calculated from electrochemical measurements; the Γ /Γ ratio and electrocatalytic activity of these materials towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 1 M KOH show a strong dependence on the current density pulse applied during the electrodeposition.

Functionalization Effect on Polymer Nanocomposite Coatings Based on TiO₂⁻SiO₂ Nanoparticles with Superhydrophilic Properties.

In this study, a novel binary nanocomposite system based on TiO₂-SiO₂ was functionalized with trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA) and characterized by XPS and XRD. Results revealed that TiO₂-SiO₂ nanoparticles were covalently functionalized. Functionalized nanoparticles at low concentrations (0.