The control of the thermocapillary assembly of colloidal particle clusters is important for a variety of applications, including the creation of photonic crystals for microelectronics and optoelectronics, membrane formation for biotechnology, and surface cleaning for laboratory-on-chip devices. The aim of the current work is to understand the main mechanisms influencing the assembly of such clusters, which are the object of our research. Here we consider a two-dimensional mathematical model describing the transfer of particles by a thermocapillary flow in an unevenly heated cell during the evaporation of a liquid. This gave us the opportunity to study one of the main processes that triggers the formation of a particle cluster. Whether the particle will move with the flow or stop at the heater, becoming the basis for the cluster, is determined by the ratio between gravity and the drag force. The results of numerical calculations show that, for small particle concentrations, their fraction entering the cluster decreases as the volumetric heat flux density Q increases. The reason for this is an increase in the thermocapillary flow with an increase in the volumetric heat flux Q. In our conclusion, it reduces the probability of particles entering the cluster.

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) has become the preferred material for joint liners due to its excellent wear resistance and chemical stability. This study provides a basic investigation into how water absorption influences the tribological behavior and mechanical characteristics of UHMWPE. The surface plastic deformation layer formed during UHMWPE wear was found to exhibit significant changes after water absorption. Experimental results demonstrate that water absorption not only reduces the friction coefficient of the material by 7.79%, but also exacerbates plastic deformation, resulting in an increase of wear up to 4-fold compared to the control group. Raman spectroscopy analysis further confirmed a notable rise in surface crystallinity after water absorption. Indentation tests show water absorption decreases indentation depth. Molecular simulation results suggest that water absorption in UHMWPE chains tends to reduce the inter-molecular interactions and thereby facilitates the formation of ordered arrangements of surface polyethylene, leading to an anisotropic distribution, i.e., ordered alignment in parallel to the frictional direction, and anisotropic mechanical properties. The anisotropic distribution of surface polymer chains during friction, which was also strengthened after water absorption, in turn increases the resistance to indention. The investigation results of the tribological properties and mechanical characteristics of water-absorbed UHMWPE may provide useful insights for the evaluation and performance of artificial joints.

eLiposomes are oil-in-water nanoemulsions encapsulated in the internal pool of liposomes. When creating such systems, the main challenge is understanding the conditions for the formation of various structures in the confined space of liposomes. In this study, we propose a method for calculating the attractive and repulsive forces between an oil droplet and the internal surface of a hollow sphere with the purpose to simulate the nanoemulsion stability in the interior of eLiposomes. The motion of oil droplets and their interaction with the internal surface of a liposome are simulated using Langevin dynamics. At a low liposome charge of –10 mV, oil droplets are adsorbed on the internal surface of liposomes to form structures that may be referred to as inverted colloidosomes. If the charge of the oil droplets in the nanoemulsion is also low and equal to –10 mV, the adsorbed oil droplets form regions with a dense hexagonal packing on the internal surface of the liposomes. When the charge on the oil droplets in the nanoemulsion is high and equal to –50 mV, the droplets repulse each other and are located at some distance, thereby forming a layer with a loose packing. Such multicompartment systems (inverted colloidosomes) are promising carriers for hydrophobic, hydrophilic, and amphiphilic drug compounds.

Traditional methods for quantitative identification of bacteria require long time, which substantially limits their operational efficiency. This paper proposes a rapid and simple method for counting S. aureus 209p and E. coli K12 bacterial cells on the basis of indirect surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) using gold nanostar and nanorod tags conjugated with 4-nitrothiophenol. An increase in the SERS signal has been shown to depend on the number of nanoparticle-labeled bacterial cells. The developed procedure has appeared to be efficient both for the direct measurement of the signal from the freshly prepared complex and for measuring the signal from the cellular precipitate after centrifugation. The most statistically reliable results have been obtained using gold nanostars under the conditions of the direct precipitate-free measurement of the SERS signal from the bacteria complex.

Reduced graphene oxide nanosheets were synthesized using Asparagus officinalis (shatavari) leaves plant extract. Plant extract containing functional groups involvement in reduction of graphene oxide identified using functional group detection technique Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The pure crystal structure of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheets (NSs) was confirmed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed ultrathin graphene nanosheets morphology having thickness less than 7.5 nm. UV-Visible spectra of rGO shows absorption peak mainly at 279 nm. The elemental composition of rGO was studied by energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) confirms phytochemical reduction graphene oxide (GO). Specific surface area of rGO is 135 m2/g measured by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) technique. rGO NSs showed enhanced anticancer activity against human breast cancer cell line MDA-MB-231 tumour cells with 45 μg/mL. IC50 value emphasizing its role in biomedical field.

This study uses wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) plant extract as a reducing agent in a green synthesis technique to create silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). Numerous analytical methods, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), UV-visible spectroscopy, and zeta potential analysis, were used to characterize the synthesized AgNPs. The results revealed the successful synthesis of AgNPs with an average size of approximately 25 nm and a face-centered cubic (FCC) crystalline structure. Furthermore, the synthesized AgNPs effectively removed direct yellow 4 (DY4) dye from aqueous solutions, displaying a maximum adsorption capacity of 92 mg/g. The adsorption kinetics of DY4 on AgNPs followed the pseudo-second-order model, indicating that chemisorption mechanisms predominantly govern the adsorption process. Additionally, the adsorption isotherms of DY4 on the surface of AgNPs adhered closely to the Langmuir isotherm model, suggesting monolayer adsorption on the uniform surface of AgNPs through strong adsorbate-adsorbent interactions. Moreover, the AgNPs demonstrated promising potential for reusability, as evidenced by the retention of approximately 97% adsorption efficiency even after undergoing four consecutive adsorption-desorption cycles. This highlights the robustness and durability of the AgNPs as effective adsorbents for wastewater treatment applications.

The isothermal molecular dynamics method and the LAMMPS software package have been employed to perform a comparative study of the stability of Pd5000Ni5000@Pt5000, Pt5000Ni5000@Pd5000, and Pt5000Pd5000@Ni5000 core-shell nanostructures during gradual heating from 300 to 2200 K. It has been revealed that all three homotopes retain their core–shell morphology up to the onset of melting. However, the ternary Pt5000Ni5000@Pd5000 nanoparticles have been found to be most stable: their melting begins at a higher temperature, and they partly inherit the core–shell morphology even after the completion of melting. A conclusion has been inferred about the relation between the higher stability of PtNi@Pd nanostructures and the effect of Pd surface segregation in ternary Pt–Pd–Ni nanoparticles. In turn, the pronounced surface segregation of Pd is explained by the fact that it is this component that has the lowest specific surface energy.

The present study focuses on the formulation and evaluation of a nanoemulsion-based cream (nanocream) using green ingredients, aimed at enhancing performance, stability, and sustainability. The nanoemulsion was developed through the low-energy phase inversion temperature (PIT) method, which successfully protected green bioactive compounds like vitamin E, cinnamon oil, jojoba oil, and peppermint oil from degradation. A series of nanoemulsions were prepared using varying ratios of oils and surfactants and evaluated for stability, transparency, and droplet size. The optimized nanoemulsion, with a mean droplet size of 121.3 ± 1.1 nm and a low polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.094 ± 0.001, demonstrated high uniformity and stability. This optimized nanoemulsion was further used as the cream’s aqueous phase, forming a nanocream that exhibits enhanced permeation of nanoscale bioactives through a membrane and improved overall performance characteristics. In vitro membrane permeation studies revealed that the optimized nanocream achieved a permeation rate of 97.1%, substantially outperforming the control cream. In vitro antimicrobial studies showed comparable efficacy to standard market preparations containing synthetic agents. The nanocream also demonstrated long-term stability over six months, maintaining structural integrity without phase separation or significant changes in pH and spreadability. The nanoemulsion-based cream formulated with eco-friendly ingredients hence offers enhanced skin permeation, superior bioactive delivery, and stable performance, making it a promising candidate for topical skincare and antimicrobial applications.

The adsorption of Cu2+, Zn2+ and Fe3+ ions in a ternary system on waste zeolite 4A was examined under various experimental conditions (concentration, pH, solid/liquid ratio and temperature).The physicochemical and micro-structural characterization (X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis) techniques were applied. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was highlighted the bands characteristic of functional groups Me-(H2O), O–H (H2O), C–O, Me–Si–OH, Me–O and Si–OH of 4A and adsorbed by Cu2+, Fe3+ and Zn2+ ions (CFZ4A). The nature and coordination environment of these species were demonstrated by Ultraviolet-Visible Spectroscopy. The results show that the experimental adsorption capacities of the studied ions in the ternary system were respectively 79.125, 47.207 and 95.185 mg/g for Cu2+, Zn2+ and Fe3+. Temkin, Dubinin-Radushkevich and Freundlich equilibrium models give the best fit for the Cu2+, Zn2+ and Fe3+ ions according to R2 and the minimum values of Akaike information criteria. Elovich and Double exponential kinetics models are most appropriate to describe the adsorption data of Cu2+ and Zn2+ ions and Johnson-Mehl-Avrami model describes well the Fe3+ ions. The increase in temperature leads to a decrease in the free energy which indicates that the reaction is spontaneous and more favorable at high temperatures. The fixation of copper, zinc and iron ions in a ternary system on the waste of commercial zeolite 4A shows certain selectivity according to the following order: Fe3+> Cu2+>Zn2+.