Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur

About: Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur is a education organization based out in Kharagpur, India. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Natural rubber & Dielectric. The organization has 16887 authors who have published 38658 publications receiving 714526 citations.

Biocompatible mesoporous silica-coated superparamagnetic manganese ferrite nanoparticles for targeted drug delivery and MR imaging applications

Abstract: Multifunctional mesoporous silica-coated superparamagnetic manganese ferrite (MnFe2O4) nanoparticles (M-MSN) were synthesized and evaluated for targeted drug delivery and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) applications. MnFe2O4 nanoparticles were prepared by solvothermal route and were silica-coated by surface silylation using sol-gel reactions. Subsequently, silylation was done using (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane in presence of a surfactant (CTAB), followed by selective etching of the surfactant molecules that resulted in amine-functionalized superparamagnetic nanoparticles (NH2-MSN). Further modification of the surface of the NH2-MSN with targeting (folate) or fluorescent (RITC) molecules resulted in M-MSN. The formation of the M-MSN was proved by several characterization techniques viz. XRD, XPS, HRTEM, FESEM, VSM, BET surface area measurement, FTIR, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The M-MSN were loaded with anticancer drug Doxorubicin and the efficacy of the DOX loaded M-MSN was evaluated through in vitro cytotoxicity, fluorescence microscopy, and apoptosis studies. The in vivo biocompatibility of the M-MSN was demonstrated in a mice-model system. Moreover, the M-MSN also acted as superior MRI contrast agent owing to a high magnetization value as well as superparamagnetic behavior at room temperature. These folate-conjugated nanoparticles (FA-MSN) exhibited stronger T2-weighted MRI contrast towards HeLa cells as compared to the nanoparticles without folate conjugation, justifying their potential importance in MRI based diagnosis of cancer. Such M-MSN with a magnetic core required for MRI imaging, a porous shell for carrying drug molecules, a targeting moeity for cancer cell specificity and a fluorescent molecule for imaging, all integrated into a single system, may potentially serve as an excellent material in biomedical applications.

Evaluation of wet air oxidation as a pretreatment strategy for bioethanol production from rice husk and process optimization

Abstract: The pretreatment of rice husk by the wet air oxidation (WAO) technique was investigated by means of a statistically designed set of experiments. Reaction temperature, air pressure, and reaction time were the process parameters considered. WAO pretreatment of rice husk increased the cellulose content of the solid fraction by virtue of lignin removal and hemicellulose solubilization. The cellulose recovery was around 92%, while lignin recovery was in the tune of 8–20%, indicating oxidation of a bulk quantity of lignin. The liquid fraction was found to be rich in hexose and pentose sugars, which could be directly utilized as substrate for ethanol fermentation. The WAO process was optimized by multi-objective numerical optimization with the help of MINITAB 14 suite of statistical software, and an optimum WAO condition of 185 °C, 0.5 MPa, and 15 min was predicted and experimentally validated to give 67% (w/w) cellulose content in the solid fraction, along with 89% lignin removal, and 70% hemicellulose solubilization; 13.1 gl −1 glucose and 3.4 gl −1 xylose were detected in the liquid fraction. The high cellulose content and negligible residual lignin in the solid fraction would greatly facilitate subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis, and result in improved ethanol yields from rice husk.

Preparation, development, outcomes, and application versatility of carbon fiber-based polymer composites: a review

Abstract: The high strength to weight ratio of carbon fiber has made it as an attractive energy-saving material over the conventional strength-bearing materials like steel. Realizing the trend, the high-weight steel is being progressively replaced by the low-weight and corrosion-resistant carbon fiber composites in many strength applications. The carbon fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composite (PMC) have thereby become forefront material in aerospace, automobile, sporting goods, and other applications which demand high strength and high modulus. Moreover, the gradual reduction of its cost curtsy to the extensive research in the field of carbon fiber technology in recent years has been opened its market in different construction applications. This review is the discussion of carbon fiber loaded a variety of polymer matrix composites where the structural importance of these composites has been emphasized. The objective of this discussion is to provide information on the whole spectrum of carbon fiber-based polymeric composites. It also includes brief discussion about preparation and properties of carbon fibers along with processing, fabrication, and structural applications of these carbon fiber-based polymer composites.