Showing papers by "Sergey M. Zharkov published in 2018"

Structural Phase Transformations in Al/Pt Bilayer Thin Films during the Solid-State Reaction

Abstract: A sequence of phases forming during the solid-phase reaction in Al/Pt bilayer thin films has been investigated by in situ electron diffraction. It is shown that the amorphous PtAl2 phase forms first during the solid-phase reaction initiated by heating. Upon further heating, PtAl2, Pt2Al3, PtAl, and Pt3Al crystalline phases sequentially form, which is qualitatively consistent with an effective formation heat model. The content of phases forming during the reaction has been quantitatively analyzed and the structural phase transformations have been examined.

Colloidal and Deposited Products of the Interaction of Tetrachloroauric Acid with Hydrogen Selenide and Hydrogen Sulfide in Aqueous Solutions

Abstract: The reactions of aqueous gold complexes with H2Se and H2S are important for transportation and deposition of gold in nature and for synthesis of AuSe-based nanomaterials but are scantily understood. Here, we explored species formed at different proportions of HAuCl4, H2Se and H2S at room temperature using in situ UV-vis spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta-potential measurement and ex situ Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electron diffraction, X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Raman spectroscopy. Metal gold colloids arose at the molar ratios H2Se(H2S)/HAuCl4 less than 2. At higher ratios, pre-nucleation “dense liquid” species having the hydrodynamic diameter of 20–40 nm, zeta potential −40 mV to −50 mV, and the indirect band gap less than 1 eV derived from the UV-vis spectra grow into submicrometer droplets over several hours, followed by fractional nucleation in the interior and coagulation of disordered gold chalcogenide. XPS found only one Au+ site (Au 4f7/2 at 85.4 eV) in deposited AuSe, surface layers of which partially decomposed yielding Au0 nanoparticles capped with elemental selenium. The liquid species became less dense, the gap approached 2 eV, and gold chalcogenide destabilized towards the decomposition with increasing H2S content. Therefore, the reactions proceed via the non-classical mechanism involving “dense droplets” of supersaturated solution and produce AuSe1−xSx/Au nanocomposites.

Bio-hybridization of nanobactericides with cellulose films for effective treatment against members of ESKAPE multi-drug-resistant pathogens

Abstract: The rapid expansion of drug-resistant pathogens has created huge global impact and development of novel antimicrobial leads is one of the top priority studies in the current scenario. The present study aims to develop bio-hybridized nanocellulose films which comprise of phytogenic silver nanobactericides. The nanobactericides were synthesized by treating 1 mM silver nitrate with aqueous extract of Chamerion angustifolium which reduced the metal salt to produce polydispersed nanobactericides which were tested against the members of ESKAPE drug-resistant communities. The synthesized silver nanobactericides were subjected to characterization with UV–visible spectra which displayed maximum absorbance at 408 nm. The bio-molecular interaction of phyto-constituents to mediate synthesis and stabilization of nanobactericides was studied with Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) which depicted functional groups associated with nanobactericides. The crystalline nature was studied with X-ray diffraction (XRD) which showed Bragg’s intensities at 2θ angle which denoted (111), (200), (220), and (311) planes. The morphological characteristics of silver nanobactericides were defined with transmission electron Microscopy (TEM) image which displayed polydispersity of silver nanobactericides with size ranging from 2 to 40 nm. The synthesized nanobactericides showed a significant activity against MRSA strain with 21 mm zone of inhibition. The minimal inhibitory concentration of silver nanobactericides to inhibit the growth of test pathogens was also determined which ranged between 0.625 and 1.25 μg/ml. The silver nanobactericides were bio-hybridized onto nanocellulose films produced by Komagataeibacter xylinus B-12068 culture strain. The films were dried to determine the mechanical properties which showed increased in Young’s modulus and tensile strength in comparison with control bacterial cellulose films. Overall, the results obtained in the present investigation are promising enough to report bactericidal activity of bio-hybridized nanobactericidal films against ESKAPE. These communities are reported to cause severe threats to all forms of lives irrespective to their habitats which can lead to huge economical crisis.

Microstructure and Phase Composition of the Two-Phase Ceramic Synthesized from Titanium Oxide and Zinc Oxide

Abstract: We have made investigations of the phase formation and microstructure on the ceramics obtained from a starting nanopowder mixture with the weight ratio ZnO : TiO2 = 4 : 1. Ceramic is obtained at different sintering temperatures, namely, 948, 1223 and 1473 К. Using the characterization methods of electron microscopy, energy dispersive microanalysis and X-ray diffraction phase analysis it has been shown that the ceramics structure is consisted of two dispersed phases of Zn2TiO4 and ZnO with the grain sizes being in range 0,5-1 μm. It has been found also that, at ceramic`s sintering temperature of 1223 К, the solid phase interactions are completed with the structure ZnO : Zn2TiO4 ≈ 1 : 1,5 phase ratio.

Agglomeration behavior of lipid-capped gold nanoparticles

Abstract: The current investigation deciphers aggregation pattern of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and lipid-treated AuNPs when subjected to aqueous sodium chloride solution with increasing ionic strengths (100–400 nM). AuNPs were synthesized using 0.29 mM chloroauric acid and by varying the concentrations of trisodium citrate (AuNP1 1.55 mM, AuNP2 3.1 mM) and silver nitrate (AuNP3 5.3 μM, AuNP4 10.6 μM) with characteristic LSPR peaks in the range of 525–533 nm. TEM analysis revealed AuNPs to be predominantly faceted nanocrystals with the average size of AuNP1 to be 35 ± 5 nm, AuNP2 15 ± 5 nm, AuNP3 30 ± 5 nm, and AuNP4 30 ± 5 nm and the zeta-average for AuNPs were calculated to be 31.23, 63.80, 26.08, and 28 nm respectively. Induced aggregation was observed within 10 s in all synthesized AuNPs while lipid-treated AuNP2 (AuNP2-L) was found to withstand ionic interferences at all concentration levels. However, lipid-treated AuNPs synthesized using silver nitrate and 1.55 mM trisodium citrate (AuNP3, AuNP4) showed much lower stability. The zeta potential values of lipid-treated AuNPs (AuNP1-L-1x/200, − 17.93 ± 1.02 mV; AuNP2-L-1x/200, − 21.63 ± 0.70; AuNP3-L-1x/200, − 14.54 ± 0.90; AuNP3-L-1x/200 − 13.77 ± 0.83) justified these observations. To summarize, AuNP1 and AuNP2 treated with lipid mixture 1 equals or above 1x/200 or 1x/1000 respectively showed strong resistance against ionic interferences (up to 400 mM NaCl). Use of lipid mixture 1 for obtaining highly stable AuNPs also provided functional arms of various lengths which can be used for covalent coupling.