Shivaji University

In the present study, the use of low-cost, abundantly available, highly efficient and eco-friendly adsorbent wood apple shell (WAS) has been reported as an alternative to the current expensive methods of removing of malachite green (MG) dye from aqueous solution. The effects of different variables, adsorbent dosage, initial dye concentration, pH, contact time, temperature etc. were investigated and optimal experimental conditions were ascertained. The Langmuir isotherm model has given a better conformity than the Freundlich model with 80.645 mg/g as maximum adsorption capacity at 299 K. The adsorption of MG on WAS was confirmed by FTIR, SEM study, as it showed the change in characterization before and after adsorption. It was found that the Lagergren’s model could be used for the prediction of the system’s kinetics, while intraparticle diffusion study and Boyd plot were used to furnish the mechanistic study. Thermodynamic study concluded the spontaneous and endothermic nature of the adsorption. Present investigation and comparison with other reported adsorbents concluded that, WAS may be applied as a low-cost attractive option for removal of MG from aqueous solution.

Different nanostructures (Ns), such as nanobelts, nanobricks and nanosheets, of polypyrrole (PPy) were successfully fabricated on stainless steel substrates by simply varying the scan rate of deposition in the potentiodynamic mode. These PPy Ns were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and surface area measurement. The XRD analysis showed the formation of amorphous PPy thin films, and the FTIR studies confirmed characteristic chemical bonding in the PPy materials. SEM images depicted that a high scan rate of deposition can form multilayer nanosheets with high porosity leading to a system with excellent processability. The PPy nanosheets possess a higher Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area of 37.1 m2 g−1 than PPy nanobelts and nanobricks. The supercapacitive performances of different PPy Ns were evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge–discharge techniques in 0.5 M H2SO4. A maximum specific capacitance of 586 F g−1 was obtained for multilayer nanosheets at a scan rate of 2 mV s−1. In addition, impedance measurements of the different Ns of PPy electrodes were performed suggesting that the PPy electrodes with multilayer nanosheets are promising materials for the next generation high performance electrochemical supercapacitors.

A biologically active antibacterial reagent, 2–amino-6-hydroxy–4–(4-N, N-dimethylaminophenyl)-pyrimidine-5-carbonitrile (AHDMAPPC), was synthesized. It was employed to investigate the binding interaction with the bovine serum albumin (BSA) in detail using different spectroscopic methods. It exhibited antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus which are common food poisoning bacteria. The experimental results showed that the fluorescence quenching of model carrier protein BSA by AHDMAPPC was due to static quenching. The site binding constants and number of binding sites (n≈1) were determined at three different temperatures based on fluorescence quenching results. The thermodynamic parameters, enthalpy change (ΔH), free energy (ΔG) and entropy change (ΔS) for the reaction were calculated to be 15.15 kJ/mol, –36.11 kJ/mol and 51.26 J/mol K according to van't Hoff equation, respectively. The results indicated that the reaction was an endothermic and spontaneous process, and hydrophobic interactions played a major role in the binding between drug and BSA. The distance between donor and acceptor is 2.79 nm according to Förster's theory. The alterations of the BSA secondary structure in the presence of AHDMAPPC were confirmed by UV–visible, synchronous fluorescence, circular dichroism (CD) and three-dimensional fluorescence spectra. All these results indicated that AHDMAPPC can bind to BSA and be effectively transported and eliminated in the body. It can be a useful guideline for further drug design.

Today’s thin film photovoltaic technologies comprising CuInS2 (CIS), CuInGaSe2 (CIGS) and CdTe rely on elements that are costly and rare in the earth’s crust (e.g. In, Ga, Te) and are toxic (e.g. Cd). Hence, in future cost reduction and increased production, using abundantly available non-toxic elements, seem to be the main issues. Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS), having the kesterite structure, is one of the most promising absorber layer candidates for low cost thin film solar cells, because of its suitable direct band gap between 1·4 and 1·5 eV and large absorption coefficient, over 104 cm−1. Also it is composed of earth abundant and non-toxic elements, promising price reductions in future. Recently, research in this area has gained momentum due to the desirability of producing Ga, In and Cd free absorber layers and the potential to obtain new insights. Hence, a review of recent literature is urgently warranted. The CZTS progress and present status of CZTS thin film solar cells has been reviewed, with the hope of identifying new paths for productive research.

BACKGROUND: Eradication of Helicobacter pylori is an important objective in overcoming gastric diseases. Many regimens are currently available but none of them could achieve 100% success in eradication. Eugenol and cinnamaldehyde that are commonly used in various food preparations are known to possess antimicrobial activity against a wide spectrum of bacteria. AIM: The present study was performed to assess the in vitro effects of eugenol and cinnamaldehyde against indigenous and standard H. pylori strains, their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and time course lethal effects at various pH. METHODS: A total of 31 strains (29 indigenous and one standard strain of H. pylori ATCC 26695, one strain of E. coli NCIM 2089) were screened. Agar dilution method was used for the determination of drug sensitivity patterns of isolates to the commonly used antibiotics and broth dilution method for the test compounds. RESULTS: Eugenol and cinnamaldehyde inhibited the growth of all the 30 H. pylori strains tested, at a concentration of 2 mug/ml, in the 9th and 12th hours of incubation respectively. At acidic pH, increased activity was observed for both the compounds. Furthermore, the organism did not develop any resistance towards these compounds even after 10 passages grown at sub-inhibitory concentrations. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that the two bioactive compounds we tested may prevent H. pylori growth in vitro, without acquiring any resistance.

Malachite green (50 mg/L) was completely decolorized under static anoxic condition within 5 h by bacteria Kocuria rosea MTCC 1532; however decolorization was not observed at shaking condition. K. rosea have also shown decolorization of azo, triphenylmethane and industrial dyes (cotton blue, methyl orange, reactive blue 25, direct blue-6, reactive yellow 81, and red HE4B). Semi-synthetic media containing molasses, urea and sucrose have shown 100, 91, 81% decolorization respectively. Induction in the activities of malachite green reductase and DCIP reductase was observed during MG decolorization suggesting their involvement in the decolorization process. UV-Visible absorption spectrum, HPLC and FTIR analysis showed degradation of MG. Toxicity study revealed the degradation of MG into non-toxic products by K. rosea.

Mapping and monitoring of land use land cover (LULC) changes in the Himalayas is vital for sustainable development, planning and management. Based on remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) techniques, the study is an attempt to monitor the changes in LULC patterns of Rani Khola watershed of Sikkim Himalaya for the periods 1988–1996, 1996–2008 and 2008–2017. Images from Landsat-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) and Sentinel 2A (Multispectral Instrument) MSI data were used to extract land cover maps. Supervised classification using Maximum Likelihood Classifier (MLC) was applied to prepare LULC maps of the watershed. The accuracy of the classified map was assessed using a High Resolution Planet scope image and ground realities have been verified and ascertained through field observations and site specific interviews. As a result of policy changes and traditional agroforestry systems, LULC in the study watershed has undergone a series of complicated changes over the past three decades. Six major LULC classes viz; agriculture, barren land, built-up area, dense forest, open forests and water bodies have been identified and indicate that major land use in the watershed is forestry. Results shows, dense forest, built-up area and water bodies have increased by 16.40% (41.76 km2), 2.13% (5.41 km2) and 0.11% (0.28 km2) while open forest, agriculture and barren land have decreased by −13.98% (−35.59 km2), 2.83% (−7.22 km2) and −1.82% (0.4.64 km2) respectively. The analysis and findings of the study highlights important policy implications for the sustainable LULC management in the Rani Khola watershed of the Sikkim Himalaya.

The PREDICTS project-Projecting Responses of Ecological Diversity In Changing Terrestrial Systems (www.predicts.org.uk)-has collated from published studies a large, reasonably representative database of comparable samples of biodiversity from multiple sites that differ in the nature or intensity of human impacts relating to land use. We have used this evidence base to develop global and regional statistical models of how local biodiversity responds to these measures. We describe and make freely available this 2016 release of the database, containing more than 3.2 million records sampled at over 26,000 locations and representing over 47,000 species. We outline how the database can help in answering a range of questions in ecology and conservation biology. To our knowledge, this is the largest and most geographically and taxonomically representative database of spatial comparisons of biodiversity that has been collated to date; it will be useful to researchers and international efforts wishing to model and understand the global status of biodiversity.

(NCIM 2613). The antibacterial and antibiofilm activity was inversely proportional to the size of the synthesized ZnO nanoparticles. Among all prepared particles, ZnO nanoparticles with least size (~ 15 nm) prepared by refluxing zinc acetate dihydrate in diethylene glycol for 3 h exhibited remarkable antibacterial and antibiofilm activity which may serve as potential alternatives in biomedical application.

Hydrogen fuel provided via green method is renewable and environmentally friendly. However, the lack of practical storage methods has restricted its use to such an extent that hydrogen storage is currently a crucial obstacle in the development of a hydrogen economy. For mobile applications hydrogen storage system needs to be lightweight and compact. Current technologies such as compressed gas or liquefied hydrogen have severe disadvantages especially in volumetric terms compared to fossil fuels and the storage of hydrogen in light weight solids could be the solution to further enhances the energy density of hydrogen tanks. This paper reveals overview of novel solid hydrogen storage materials, highlighting their main advantages and drawbacks.

In nature, water-repellency (superhydrophobicity) is found, besides in plants, in insects and bird feathers. The booming field of biomimetics allows one to mimic nature to develop nanomaterials, nanodevices, and processes which offer desirable properties. Biomimetics means mimicking biology or nature. Inspired from nature, which reveals excellent superhydrophobicity, researchers have recently developed and implemented biomimetic superhydrophobic surfaces in a variety of smart and simple ways. Superhydrophobicity is an effect where surface roughness and chemical composition combine to generate unusual water repellent surface, causing water to bounce and roll off the surface. This review article provides the overview of the recent progress (within the last four years) in the synthesis, characterization, theoretical modelling, and applications of superhydrophobic surfaces, with focus on the different techniques used and how they have developed over the years. At last, the difficulties related to implementation of superhydrophobic surfaces in day to day life are discussed. This review can find interesting for students, scientists and industrial companies working especially on superhydrophobic surfaces.

The facile and economical electrochemical and successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) methods have been employed in order to prepare manganese oxide (MnO2) and iron oxide (Fe2O3) thin films, respectively with the fine optimized nanostructures on highly flexible stainless steel sheet. The symmetric and asymmetric flexible-solid-state supercapacitors (FSS-SCs) of nanostructured (nanosheets for MnO2 and nanoparticles for Fe2O3) electrodes with Na2SO4/Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) gel as a separator and electrolyte were assembled. MnO2 as positive and negative electrodes were used to fabricate symmetric SC, while the asymmetric SC was assembled by employing MnO2 as positive and Fe2O3 as negative electrode. Furthermore, the electrochemical features of symmetric and asymmetric SCs are systematically investigated. The results verify that the fabricated symmetric and asymmetric FSS-SCs present excellent reversibility (within the voltage window of 0-1 V and 0-2 V, respectively) and good cycling stability (83 and 91%, respectively for 3000 of CV cycles). Additionally, the asymmetric SC shows maximum specific capacitance of 92 Fg(-1), about 2-fold of higher energy density (41.8 Wh kg(-1)) than symmetric SC and excellent mechanical flexibility. Furthermore, the "real-life" demonstration of fabricated SCs to the panel of SUK confirms that asymmetric SC has 2-fold higher energy density compare to symmetric SC.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is among the top 20 causes of death worldwide and affects approximately 10% of the world adult population. CKD is a disorder that disrupts normal kidney function. Due to the increasing number of people with CKD, effective prediction measures for the early diagnosis of CKD are required. The novelty of this study lies in developing the diagnosis system to detect chronic kidney diseases. This study assists experts in exploring preventive measures for CKD through early diagnosis using machine learning techniques. This study focused on evaluating a dataset collected from 400 patients containing 24 features. The mean and mode statistical analysis methods were used to replace the missing numerical and the nominal values. To choose the most important features, Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) was applied. Four classification algorithms applied in this study were support vector machine (SVM), k-nearest neighbors (KNN), decision tree, and random forest. All the classification algorithms achieved promising performance. The random forest algorithm outperformed all other applied algorithms, reaching an accuracy, precision, recall, and F1-score of 100% for all measures. CKD is a serious life-threatening disease, with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Therefore, artificial intelligence techniques are of great importance in the early detection of CKD. These techniques are supportive of experts and doctors in early diagnosis to avoid developing kidney failure.

In recent years, use of microbial biomass for decolourization of textile industry wastewater is becoming a promising alternative in which some bacteria and fungi are used to replace present treatment processes. Saccharomyces cerevisiae MTCC 463 decolourized the triphenylmethane dyes (malachite green, cotton blue, methyl violet and crystal violet) by biosorption, showing different decolourization patterns. However, malachite green decolourized by biosorption at the initial stage and further biodegradation occurred, about 85% in plain distilled water within 7 h, and about 95.5% in 5% glucose medium within 4 h, under aerobic conditions and at room temperature. Decolourization of malachite green depends on various conditions, such as concentration of dye, concentration of cells, composition of medium and agitation. HPLC, UV-VIS, FTIR and TLC analysis of samples extracted with ethyl acetate from decolourized culture flasks confirmed the biodegradation of malachite green into several metabolites. A study of the enzymes responsible for the biodegradation of malachite green in the control and cells obtained after decolourization showed the activities of laccase, lignin peroxidase, NADH-DCIP reductase, malachite green reductase and aminopyrine N-demethylase in control cells. A significant increase in the activities of NADH-DCIP reductase and MG reductase was observed in the cells obtained after decolourization, indicating a major involvement of reductases in malachite green degradation.

Abstract Recently our modern society is demanding flexible, low‐cost, and lightweight electrochemical energy storage systems, which are very important in variety of applications ranging from portable consumer electronics to large industrial‐scale power and energy management. Among different energy storage systems, flexible supercapacitors have been considered as one of the most promising candidates due to their significant merits such as high power density along with the unique properties of being flexible, lightweight, shape versatile, and eco‐friendly in comparison to other energy storage systems. In this regard, this review article describes the principles of supercapacitors and the recent research progress on flexible supercapacitor electrodes, for which metal substrates, carbon‐based paper, conventional paper, textiles, sponges, and cables are used as substrates to fabricate high‐performance flexible supercapacitors. Finally, the future challenges and perspectives for the development of flexible supercapacitors based on bendable substrates and their applications are discussed.

The particulate composite materials of ferrite-ferroelectric ceramics viz. nickel-cobalt-copper ferrite (i.e., Ni0.94Co0.01Cu0.05Fe2O4) and barium titanate were synthesized by the double sintering ceramic technique. The presence of constituent phases in the composites was confirmed by x-ray diffraction studies. The average grain size was calculated by using a scanning electron micrograph. The electrical properties such as dc resistivity and thermo-emf were measured as a function of temperature and volume fraction of constituent phases. The ac conductivity was calculated from dielectric data in the frequency range from 100Hzto1MHz. It is concluded that the conduction in the present composites is due to small polarons. The relative dielectric constant measured as a function of applied frequency varies with the variation in the dc resistivity and molar fraction of constituent phases. It shows dispersion in the lower frequency range. The hysteresis behavior was studied to understand the magnetic properties such as saturation magnetization (Ms) and magnetic moment (μB). The static magnetoelectric (ME) voltage coefficient was measured as a function of applied dc magnetic field. It increases first and then falls down with increasing magnetic field. The variation in ME response has been explained in terms of content of ferrite phase, resistivity of composites, and intensity of magnetic field. The maximum ME conversion factor of 637μV∕cmOe was observed for the composite with 30% Ni0.94Co0.01Cu0.05Fe2O4+70% BaTiO3. These composites may be useful as phase shifters, magnetic sensors, cables, etc.

We present a novel route for the synthesis of CuO thin films. The nano-flower like nanostructures provide high surface area, and the CuO shows excellent supercapacitive properties.

The preparation of nanostructured metal oxide decorated on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) nanohybrid films through simple, scalable, additive-free, binderless, and cost-effective route has fascinated significant attention not only in fundamental research areas but also its commercial applications, in order to reduce the growing environmental pollution and the cost of electrode fabrication. Here, we report the fabrication of highly flexible electrode with NiO/MWCNTs nanohybrid thin films directly on stainless steel substrate using successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method. The impact of ratio of adsorption and reaction cycles on structural, surface areas and electrochemical properties of NiO/MWCNTs nanohybrids was investigated. X-ray diffraction measurements confirm the hybridization and face centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure of NiO in NiO/MWCNTs nanohybrids. In addition, these nanohybrids exhibit excellent surface properties such as uniform surface morphology, good surface area, pore volume, and uniform pore size distribution. The electrochemical tests demonstrate the highest specific capacitance of 1727 F g(-1) at 5 mA cm(-2) of current density with 91% capacitance retention after 2000 cycles. In addition, the Ragone plot confirms the better power and energy densities for all NiO/MWCNTs nanohybrids. The attractive electrochemical capacitive activity revealed by NiO/MWCNTs nanohybrid electrode proposes that it is an auspicious respondent for future energy storage application.

The temperature dependent morphological evolution and its effect on the electrochemical supercapacitive properties of Ni(OH)2 thin films have been systematically investigated. A temperature dependent growth mechanism model is proposed for the changes in microstructure. Different nanostructures of Ni(OH)2 thin films such as nanoplates, stacked nanoplates, nanobelts and nanoribbons have been fabricated by varying the deposition temperature. An X-ray diffraction study discloses the orientations of different nanostructures and the formation of nanocrystalline β-Ni(OH)2. Further, these Ni(OH)2 nanostructures demonstrate excellent surface properties like uniform surface morphology, good surface area, pore volume and uniform pore size distribution. The electrochemical supercapacitive properties of Ni(OH)2 nanostructures have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry, charge–discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques. The electrochemical studies of the Ni(OH)2 samples show an obvious influence of surface properties on the pseudocapacitance. The maximum specific capacitance of 357 F g−1 was evaluated for nanoplates at a scan rate of 5 mV s−1. Furthermore, all these Ni(OH)2 samples show good long-term cycling performances in KOH electrolyte. The Ragone plots ascertain good power and energy densities of all Ni(OH)2 nanostructured samples. Subsequently, electrochemical impedance measurements for the different nanostructures of Ni(OH)2 electrodes are assessed indicating that the Ni(OH)2 nanoplates structured electrodes are suitable for good capacity electrochemical supercapacitors.

Since ancient times, natural medicines have had paramount importance in bolstering biotherapeutics to treat various diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that more than 80% of the population of developing countries relies on traditional medicines, predominately herbal medicine, for their immediate medications. The drugs derived from medicinal plants have tremendous diversity with superfluous potency for managing communicable and non-communicable diseases, which diminishes the burden of modern pharmacopoeias in low and middle-developed countries. With the increasing importance and prevalence of herbal drugs, the appropriate evaluations are being implemented for their utilization. Most herbal medicines are prescribed by practical shreds of evidence and recommended in crude and semi-standardized forms. The inadequacy in pharmacological evaluation, preclinical and clinical examination of herbal drugs impedes their integration into contemporary medicinal practices. The preclinical investigation, prominently in-vivo and in-vitro studies, explores various attributes consisting of cell cytotoxicity, cell-cell interactions, intracellular activity, cell-environment interaction, gene expression studies, and metabolomics fingerprints of induced natural drugs. These pre-clinical evaluations and robust evidence consent to the safe and long-term utilization of herbal medicine to treat hideous diseases. Further, several modern practises are being considered for the precise and effective production of bioactive compounds at the commercial level. With this connection, this review illustrates the prominent sources of natural drugs, their pre-clinical assessments, the development of active drug molecules, and their commercialization in low-, middle-, and high-income countries.