Multiwalled carbon nanotubes grafted chitosan nanobiocomposite: A prosperous functional nanomaterials for glucose biosensor application

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) grafted chitosan (CS) nanowire (NW) was prepared by phase separation method. Glucose oxidase (GOx) was sequentially immobilized into MWNT-CS-NW to obtain MWNT-CS-NW/GOx biosensor. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) images of MWNT-CS-NW/GOx reveals the existence of MWNT and CS. Cyclic voltammetry and amperometry were used to evaluate the electrochemical determination of glucose. The MWNT-CS-NW/GOx biosensor shows an excellent performance for glucose at +0.34 V with a high sensitivity (5.03 μA/mM) and lower response time (3 s) in a wide concentration range of 1-10 mM (correlation coefficient of 0.9988). In addition, MWNT-CS-NW/GOx biosensor possesses better reproducibility, storage stability and there is negligible interference from other electroactive components.     

Electrospun MgO/Nylon 6 Hybrid Nanofibers for Protective Clothing

Nano-Micro Letters - Magnesia (MgO) nanoparticles were produced from magnesite ore (MgCO3) using ball mill. The crystalline size, morphology and specific SSA were characterized by X-ray diffraction...     

TiO2 nanoparticle embedded nitrogen doped electrospun helical carbon nanofiber-carbon nanotube hybrid anode for lithium-ion batteries

TiO₂ nanoparticles decorated nitrogen (N) doped helical carbon nanofiber (CNF)-carbon nanotube (CNT) hybrid material is prepared by low-cost electrospinning technique followed by hydrothermal method. Morphological investigations establish helical structure of CNFs with hierarchical growth of CNTs around CNFs. The hybrid material shows a high specific surface area of 295.17 m² g^?1 with nanoporous structure. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic studies establish Ti–O–C/Ti–C bond mediated charge transfer channel between TiO₂ nanoparticles and carbon structures with the success of N doping in CNFs. The electrospun hybrid material delivered high reversible charge capacities of 316 mAh g^?1 (100th cycle) and 244 mAh g^?1 (100th cycle) at a current density of 75 mA g^?1 and 186 mA g^?1 respectively. The charge capacities obtained for different applied current densities are higher than the conventional graphitic microporous microbeads anode. Results indicate that the hybrid material reported here shows high performance compare to graphite for LIBs.     

Surface modification technique to enhance metallurgical and mechanical properties of alloy C-276 weldment by laser shock peening without coating

Microsegregation of alloying elements is prone to hot cracking in the weldment of alloy C-276. The formation of topologically close packed phases P and µ is largely responsible for the hot cracking. The present study articulates the effect of laser shock peening (LSP) to improve the metallurgical and mechanical properties of the weld joint. The weld joint was fabricated by pulsed current gas tungsten arc welding (PCGTAW) using an ERNiCrMo-3 filler wire. LSP without coating was carried out on the cap surface of the weldment. Microstructural studies were carried out to compare the as-welded and laser-peened microstructure on the fusion zone. The results show that a fine equiaxed dendritic structure was observed in both conditions. EDS analysis was carried out to evaluate the microsegregation of alloying elements. EDS analysis indicates that there are no secondary intermetallic phases. X-ray diffraction analysis was carried out to evaluate the phase change and crystallite size in the as-welded and laser shock peened fusion zone. The result shows 48.99% reduction in crystallite size after LSP. Hardness and tensile strength results indicate there is a consequential increase in laser shock peened specimen compared with as-welded specimen.     

Magnetic, optical and structural studies on Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles

The influences of annealing effects have been explored on the crystallinity, morphology, optical and magnetic properties of Ag–ZnO nanostructures prepared by a simple sol–gel method. X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscope, high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM), vibrating sample magnetometer and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) have been used to characterize the crystal structures, surface morphology, magnetic and optical properties of the pure ZnO and Ag–ZnO nanostructures respectively. The synthesized Ag–ZnO nanostructures are found to have hexagonal wurtzite crystal structures and their grain size increases while lattice strain decreases on annealing. From HRTEM observation, it is found that the annealed samples show nanorod like structures with Ag nanoparticles (NPs) embedded on the surface. Due to annealing effect, Ag–ZnO shows higher saturation magnetization at room temperature.