scholarly journals The Role of Birch Tar in Changing the Physicochemical and Biocidal Properties of Polylactide-Based Films

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 268
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Richert ◽  
Ewa Olewnik-Kruszkowska ◽  
Grażyna B. Dąbrowska ◽  
Henryk P. Dąbrowski

The objective of this study was to produce bactericidal polymer films containing birch tar (BT). The produced polymer films contain PLA, plasticiser PEG (5% wt.) and birch tar (1, 5 and 10% wt.). Compared to plasticised PLA, films with BT were characterised by reduced elongation at break and reduced water vapour permeability, which was the lowest in the case of film with 10% wt. BT content. Changes in the morphology of the produced materials were observed by performing scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis; the addition of BT caused the surface of the film to be non-uniform and to contain recesses. FTIR analysis of plasticised PLA/BT films showed that the addition of birch tar did not change the crystallinity of the obtained materials. According to ISO 22196: 2011, the PLA film with 10% wt. BT content showed the highest antibacterial effect against the plant pathogens A. tumefaciens, X. campestris, P. brassicacearum, P. corrugata, P. syringae. It was found that the introduction of birch tar to plasticised PLA leads to a material with biocidal effect and favourable physicochemical and structural properties, which classifies this material for agricultural and horticultural applications.

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Ross ◽  
Germán Escobar ◽  
Guillermo Sevilla ◽  
Javier Quagliano

AbstractMicro and nanocomposites of hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene (HTPB)-based polyurethanes (NPU) were obtained using five mineral fillers and Cloisite 20A nanoclay, respectively. Samples were prepared by the reaction of HTPB polyol and toluene diisocyanate (TDI), and the chain was further extended with glyceryl monoricinoleate to produce the final elastomeric polyurethanes. Mechanical and thermal properties were studied, showing that mineral fillers (20%w/w) significantly increased tensile strength, in particular nanoclay (at 5% w/w). When nanoclay-polymer dispersion was modified with a silane and hydantoin-bond promoter, elongation at break was significantly increased with respect to NPU with C20A. Thermal properties measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were not significantly affected in any case. The molecular structure of prepared micro and nanocomposites was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Interaction of fillers with polymer chains is discussed, considering the role of silanes in compatibilization of hydrophilic mineral fillers and hydrophobic polymer. The functionalization of nanoclay with HMDS silane was confirmed using FTIR. Microstructure of NPU with C20A nanoclay was confirmed by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).


Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
Ahmed M. El-Baz ◽  
Rasha A. Mosbah ◽  
Reham M. Goda ◽  
Basem Mansour ◽  
Taranum Sultana ◽  
...  

Candida albicans is the causative agent of fatal systemic candidiasis. Due to limitations of antifungals, new drugs are needed. The anti-virulence effect of plant essential oils (EOs) was evaluated against clinical C. albicans isolates including cinnamon, clove, jasmine and rosemary oils. Biofilm, phospholipase and hemolysin were assessed phenotypically. EOs were evaluated for their anti-virulence activity using phenotypic methods as well as scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Among the C. albicans isolates, biofilm, phospholipase and hemolysins were detected in 40.4, 86.5 and 78.8% of isolates, respectively. Jasmine oil showed the highest anti-biofilm activity followed by cinnamon, clove and rosemary oils. SEM and AFM analysis showed reduced adherence and roughness in the presence of EOs. For phospholipase, rosemary oil was the most inhibitory, followed by jasmine, cinnamon and clove oils, and for hemolysins, cinnamon had the highest inhibition followed by jasmine, rosemary and clove oils. A molecular docking study revealed major EO constituents as promising inhibitors of the Als3 adhesive protein, with the highest binding for eugenol, followed by 1,8-cineole, 2-phenylthiolane and cinnamaldehyde. In conclusion, EOs have a promising inhibitory impact on Candida biofilm, phospholipase and hemolysin production, hence EOs could be used as potential antifungals that impact virulence factors.


2013 ◽  
Vol 1491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayme Keist ◽  
Christine Orme ◽  
Frances Ross ◽  
Dan Steingart ◽  
Paul Wright ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThis investigation describes preliminary results of in-situ analysis of zinc deposition within an ionic liquid electrolyte utilizing electrochemical atomic force microscopy (EC AFM). From the AFM analysis, the morphology of the zinc deposition was analyzed by quantifying the surface roughness using height-height correlation functions. These results will be used to analyze the scattering data obtained from zinc deposition analysis utilizing an electrochemical ultra-small angle x-ray scattering (EC USAXS). The goal of this research is to link the early nucleation and growth behavior to the formation of detrimental morphologies.


Wear ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 418-419 ◽  
pp. 151-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan F. Gonzalez-Martinez ◽  
Erum Kakar ◽  
Stefan Erkselius ◽  
Nicola Rehnberg ◽  
Javier Sotres

Nanoscale ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (36) ◽  
pp. 13707-13716 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna D. Protopopova ◽  
Rustem I. Litvinov ◽  
Dennis K. Galanakis ◽  
Chandrasekaran Nagaswami ◽  
Nikolay A. Barinov ◽  
...  

High-resolution atomic force microscopy imaging reveals the role of fibrinogen αC regions in the early stages of fibrin self-assembly.


2000 ◽  
Vol 71 (5) ◽  
pp. 2094-2096 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takashi Nishino ◽  
Akiko Nozawa ◽  
Masaru Kotera ◽  
Katsuhiko Nakamae

2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (07) ◽  
pp. 774-778 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byung-Soon Kim ◽  
Young-A Son

In this study, self-assembled alternating film using poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDDAC) and meso-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin (MTCP) was prepared as a multilayer deposition on glass substrate. This preparation technique for dye deposition may provide new feasibilities to achieve the manufacture of ultrathin films for nanotechnology application. The deposition films were characterized by UV-vis spectrophotometer and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) analysis. The results of UV-vis spectra showed that the absorbance characteristic of the multilayer films linearly increased with an increased number of PDDAC and MTCP bilayers. AFM analysis showed the film surface was relatively uniform and the progressive growth of layers was determined.


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