This paper reports the use of a new nano-metal organic framework (nanoMOF), named Fe-NDCMOF, as an anticancer drug carrier. Fe-NDC-MOF particles were prepared from iron nitrate and 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid using the microwave irradiation method. They have dimensions of 50-80 nm ? 300-450 nm with pore diameters of 14.855 nm. Calcein disodium salt (a fluorescent model drug mimicking antineoplastic agents) was loaded successfully in this MOF with high loading efficiency (99.15%) and capacity (43.27 wt.%). Moreover, Fe-NDC-MOF managed to entrap Doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX.HCl, a widely used chemotherapeutic drug) in an attempt to alleviate its serious side effects on healthy cells (especially cardiotoxicity). The encapsulation efficiency and capacity were found to be 67.5%, and 11.8 wt.%, respectively. It was concluded that, Fe-NDC-MOF can be utilized to design smart targeted anticancer drug delivery systems.
Nowadays, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are integrated into many biological systems like in vitro and in vivo imaging, cancer therapy, and drug delivery. The stability of AuNPs as drug carriers in a drug delivery system is poorly investigated which could result in less efficient treatments. Coating AuNPs with different biological coatings can have different optical, thermal, and chemical properties which results in variant stability limits in different environments. Investigating the adsorption process of biological coatings on the surface of AuNPs is essential to control the biological interactions of functionalized AuNPs. The goal of this project is to study the stability of coated AuNPs in different environmental. The biocompatible coatings of AuNPs used are polyethylene glycol (PEG), and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). In this project, the coated AuNPs are destabilized with different concentrations of different acids, salts, and bases, and the changes can be measured using UV-Vis light, and dynamic light scattering (DLS).
Approaches used to treat cancer, with the most prominently used being chemotherapy, have detrimental effects on patients' health. Doxorubicin, a chemotherapeutic agent, alters normal cellular functions and can cause many fatal side effects, such as cell loss and congestive heart failure. Smart Drug Delivery Systems (DDS), such as liposomes, is a novel approach which can deliver a cytotoxic agent into the tumor without affecting healthy cells. Liposomes are nanocarriers capable of delivering an encapsulated cytotoxic agent, such as Doxorubicin, to specific tumor tissue or organ. A moiety, such as an RGD motif, can be attached to the liposome's surface. This modification increases the efficacy of such liposomes by actively targeting specific receptors which are overexpressed in certain types of cancer cells. Ultrasound waves can be used to trigger the liposomes into releasing their encapsulated content, such as the chemotherapeutic agent, at the tumor site. The triggered release of these liposomes is to be studied using low frequency (20kHz) ultrasound, at several power densities, by monitoring the fluorescence of a model drug (calcein). The presentation will outline the preparation of the smart DDS (liposomes), evaluate its success as a nanocarrier, as well as its stability and storage, and analyze its drug release and sensitivity to ultrasound.
CO2 utilization has the potential to support the deployment of CO2 capture technologies through the sale of CO2 based products. This work will evaluate a novel process which combines CO2 utilization with the treatment of reject brines. This is accomplished with the use of a calcined layered double hydroxide (Mg-Al-OH) to remove Cl- from the brine giving an alkaline solution which is then bubbled with CO2 to produce sodium bicarbonate. The sorbent is re-generated via ion exchange. This process holds promise as it is able to address two environmental problems while generating valuable chemical products.
The removal of the anionic dye methyl orange (MO) from aqueous solutions is investigated in batch setup using new class of porous material called metal organic frameworks (MOFs) as promising potential adsorbents. The experimental work examines the adsorption kinetics and thermodynamics of MO on three MOFs including: Cu-BTC, ZIF-8, and Fe-BTC. The preliminary results show that at the same MO initial concentration (15 mg/L) and same amount of adsorbent (100 mg), Fe-BTC has the highest removal efficiency of 97%, followed by ZIF-8 (60%), and finally Cu-BTC (50%). In addition, the kinetic study shows that adsorption of MO on all three adsorbents followed a pseudo-second-order kinetics model with regression constant (R2) in the range of 0.996 - 1.000. All experiments were performed at room temperature (25 ?C) and pH of 5.3.
The utilization of inexpensive renewable and waste resources for producing high added-value products can have positive implications in the sustainable economy of the future. This concept has been the main motivation behind our research, which focuses on the development of versatile adsorbents from inexpensive bioresources and waste feedstock. In this project, lignin, an abundant natural polymer, was blended with recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate), a widely used commodity plastic, and spun into nanofibers of controlled diameter via the electrospinning technique. The nanofibers were carbonized and activated under N2 and CO2 respectively at 600 oC, and transformed into activated carbon nanofibers (ACNFs). These ACNFs have a mesoporous structure with BET surface area around 314 m2/g and average pore width 6.7 nm. The ACNFs were treated with HNO3 in order to increase their active sites for adsorption. Their adsorption capacity was assessed through batch adsorption experiments, for the removal of Pb2+ from aqueous solutions. The ACNFs exhibited an adsorption capacity of 23.75 mg/g.
Rather than use a 3-stage membrane separation system (i.e. MF, UF, and RO process in succession), this project seeks to develop a 1-stage nanofiltration (NF) system to reduce energy consumption and cost. The NF membranes are mixed matrix membranes (MMM) consisting of functionalized fillers from emerging nanomaterials in wastewater treatment - graphene oxide, cyclodextrin and polydopamine - that can simultaneously remove heavy metals, organics, microbes, and suspended solids. These functionalized nanofillers are incorporated into a polyethersulfone (PES) polymer matrix. So far, the highest water flux of 157 LMH has been obtained from the MMM consisting of cyclodextrin nanofiller functionalized with positively charged polyetherimide. Unexpectedly, this membrane also gave the highest rejection of trace contaminants from the treated wastewater, i.e. 90% of trace COD, 88% of trace Fe2+, 92% of trace Cr6+, and 91% of trace Zn2+. Meanwhile, the membranes functionalized with maleic acid and chitosan have shown higher structural integrity due to crosslinking action of these molecules.
Cooling takes up to seventy percent of the power produced in the region, with much of this cooling provided by district cooling systems (DCS). In cooling systems, water provides the main heat transfer medium. Hence, the cooling industry takes up a considerable share of the water demand in the country. The large energy and water requirements for DCS function has prompted a great motivation towards optimizing DCS systems. The effective treatment of cooling water would minimize the issue and limit the consumption. Here, the impact of water quality on DCS performance has been investigated, across several systems in the country, through testing its chemical and biological parameters. The findings show that the system makeup water is clean across sites and the extent of its deterioration is site specific. Following steps will evaluate ultrafiltration as a potential treatment strategy for process water reuse in local DCSs.
The carbon dioxide (CO2) internal corrosion of carbon steel (CS) pipeline has been one of the major issues in the oil and gas industry. In this work, some electrochemical techniques, such as Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and Linear Polarization Resistance (LPR), have been employed to study the film persistency of 3 anodic adsorption corrosion inhibitors (CI) on 1080 CS samples in stirred cells. 1% wt. NaCl solution was used with bubbling CO2 in the system. The results indicate that all of the 3 CIs' protection degrade to platform values after a film formation process and CI-A performs much resistant than the others. However, the maximum inhibition resistance? 6.13 kohms comes from CI-B. The corrosion resistance data collected from the LPR and EIS are in good agreement.
There are several advantages, either environmental or economical, of using waste-based composites over ordinary composites. This study aims to provide a preliminary evaluation on the possibility of using the bauxite residue (BR) as a filler in thermoset matrices of an insulating material to reduce the heat loss in buildings. Bauxite residue (BR) is a primary waste in alumina refineries. Unsaturated polyester blended with the filler with a given (BR) concentration (0-60 vol.%) was transformed into solid upon thermoset process. The solid samples produced have been then subjected to different physical and mechanical tests to come up with a product formulation having optimum properties. The results revealed that the BR proved to be a good filler that can be used with unsaturated polyester to produce stable composite. The low value of thermal conductivity (0.08-0.149 W/(m.K)) and very low water retention (< 1.65%) of BR-polyester composite showed promise for constructive applications as a thermal insulator.
