THE DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF EXPERIMENTS. By Oscar Kempthorne. New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1952. 631 pp. $8.50. This book by a teacher of statistics (as well as a consultant for \"experimenters\") is a comprehensive study of the philosophical background for the statistical design of experiment. It is necessary to have some facility with algebraic notation and manipulation to be able to use the volume intelligently. The problems are presented from the theoretical point of view, without such practical examples as would be helpful for those not acquainted with mathematics. The mathematical justification for the techniques is given. As a somewhat advanced treatment of the design and analysis of experiments, this volume will be interesting and helpful for many who approach statistics theoretically as well as practically. With emphasis on the \"why,\" and with description given broadly, the author relates the subject matter to the general theory of statistics and to the general problem of experimental inference. MARGARET J. ROBERTSON

The Design and Analysis of Experiments

Electrospinning is a versatile and viable technique for generating ultrathin fibers. Remarkable progress has been made with regard to the development of electrospinning methods and engineering of electrospun nanofibers to suit or enable various applications. We aim to provide a comprehensive overview of electrospinning, including the principle, methods, materials, and applications. We begin with a brief introduction to the early history of electrospinning, followed by discussion of its principle and typical apparatus. We then discuss its renaissance over the past two decades as a powerful technology for the production of nanofibers with diversified compositions, structures, and properties. Afterward, we discuss the applications of electrospun nanofibers, including their use as "smart" mats, filtration membranes, catalytic supports, energy harvesting/conversion/storage components, and photonic and electronic devices, as well as biomedical scaffolds. We highlight the most relevant and recent advances related to the applications of electrospun nanofibers by focusing on the most representative examples. We also offer perspectives on the challenges, opportunities, and new directions for future development. At the end, we discuss approaches to the scale-up production of electrospun nanofibers and briefly discuss various types of commercial products based on electrospun nanofibers that have found widespread use in our everyday life.

Electrospinning and Electrospun Nanofibers: Methods, Materials, and Applications

Superhydrophobic surfaces have drawn a lot of interest both in academia and in industry because of the self-cleaning properties. This critical review focuses on the recent progress (within the last three years) in the preparation, theoretical modeling, and applications of superhydrophobic surfaces. The preparation approaches are reviewed according to categorized approaches such as bottom-up, top-down, and combination approaches. The advantages and limitations of each strategy are summarized and compared. Progress in theoretical modeling of surface design and wettability behavior focuses on the transition state of superhydrophobic surfaces and the role of the roughness factor. Finally, the problems/obstacles related to applicability of superhydrophobic surfaces in real life are addressed. This review should be of interest to students and scientists interested specifically in superhydrophobic surfaces but also to scientists and industries focused in material chemistry in general.

What do we need for a superhydrophobic surface? A review on the recent progress in the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces

Poly(lactic acid) modifications

Chitosan-based biomaterials for tissue engineering

This paper reviews methods of modifying polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymers to improve their properties for biomedical applications. The modification methods are discussed under three different categories: bulk, surface and other modification techniques. Surface modification techniques include physical and chemical techniques to modify polymer surfaces. Bulk modification techniques include blending, copolymerization, interpenetrating polymer networks (IPNs) and functionalization. The third category includes less common modification techniques.

© 2001 Society of Chemical Industry

Modification of polysiloxane polymers for biomedical applications: a review

Tissue engineering holds great promise to develop functional constructs resembling the structural organization of native tissues to improve or replace biological functions, with the ultimate goal of avoiding organ transplantation. In tissue engineering, cells are often seeded into artificial structures capable of supporting three-dimensional (3D) tissue formation. An optimal scaffold for tissue-engineering applications should mimic the mechanical and functional properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of those tissues to be regenerated. Amongst the various scaffolding techniques, electrospinning is an outstanding one which is capable of producing non-woven fibrous structures with dimensional constituents similar to those of ECM fibres. In recent years, electrospinning has gained widespread interest as a potential tissue-engineering scaffolding technique and has been discussed in detail in many studies. So why this review? Apart from their clear advantages and extensive use, electrospun scaffolds encounter some practical limitations, such as scarce cell infiltration and inadequate mechanical strength for load-bearing applications. A number of solutions have been offered by different research groups to overcome the above-mentioned limitations. In this review, we provide an overview of the limitations of electrospinning as a tissue-engineered scaffolding technique, with emphasis on possible resolutions of those issues. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A review of key challenges of electrospun scaffolds for tissue-engineering applications.

Wettability of porous polydimethylsiloxane surface: morphology study

Plasma surface modification of poly (l-lactic acid) and poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) films for improvement of nerve cells adhesion

Electrospinning process has been widely used to produce nanofibers from polymer blends. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and chitosan (CS) have numerous biomedical applications such as wound healing and tissue engineering. Nanofibers of CS/PVA have been prepared by many works, however, a complete physicochemical and mechanical characterization as well as cell behavior has not been reported. In this study, PVA and CS/PVA blend solutions in acetic acid 70% with different volume ratios (30/70, 50/50, and 70/30) were electrospun in constant electrospinning process parameters. The structure and morphology of nanofibrous mats were characterized by SEM, FTIR, and XRD methods. The best nanofibrous mat was achieved from the CS/PVA 30/70 blend solution regarding the electrospinning throughput. The dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) of PVA and CS/PVA 30/70 nanofibrous mats were measured which were not considered in the previous studies. DMTA results in accordance to the DSC analysis approved the partial compatibility between the two polymers, while a single glass transition temperature was not observed for the blend. The tensile strength of PVA and CS/PVA nanofibers were also reported. Results of cell behavior study indicated that the heat stabilized nanofibrous mat CS/PVA 30/70 was able to support the attachment and proliferation of the fibroblast cells.

Hamid Mirzadeh

Papers

Modification of polysiloxane polymers for biomedical applications: a review

A review of key challenges of electrospun scaffolds for tissue-engineering applications.

Wettability of porous polydimethylsiloxane surface: morphology study

Plasma surface modification of poly (l-lactic acid) and poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) films for improvement of nerve cells adhesion

Electrospinning, mechanical properties, and cell behavior study of chitosan/PVA nanofibers.