EFFECT OF 5-OXA-2,8-DITHIANONANE ON THE ELECTROCHEMICAL NICKEL PLATING PROCESS

The article deals with the study of the properties of 5-oxa-2,8-dithianonane as a brightening additive. The research was carried out by obtaining a shiny nickel coating at different concentrations of organic additives and different modes of electrolysis

Innovative Skin Product O/W Emulsions Containing Lignin, Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes and Graphene Oxide Nanoadditives with Enhanced Sun Protection Factor and UV Stability Properties

In the present study, oil-in-water (O/W) sunscreen emulsions were prepared containing different portions of lignin (LGN), multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and graphene oxide (GO) nanoadditives. The stability in terms of pH and viscosity of emulsions was thoroughly studied for up to 90 days, exhibiting high stability for all produced O/W emulsions. The antioxidant activity of emulsions was also analyzed, presenting excellent antioxidant properties for the emulsion that contains LGN due to its phenolic compounds. Moreover, the emulsions were evaluated for their ultraviolet (UV) radiation protection ability in terms of sun protection factor (SPF) and UV stability. SPF values varied between 6.48 and 21.24 while the emulsion containing 2% w/v MWCNTs showed the highest SPF index and all samples demonstrated great UV stability. This work hopefully aims to contributing to the research of more organic additives for cosmetic application with various purposes.

Starch Reinforcement of Raw Earth Constructions

The restoration, the protection, or the creation of earthen buildings require improving the mechanical strength of the material. The first way to do that is to use inorganic additives, but these additives change the structural properties of earth and have a high carbon footprint. In contrast, the other way to consolidate is the use of organic additives such as vegetal derivatives that rearrange the minerals in the earth, with the lowest carbon footprint as they are from waste management. After preliminary tests with ten different organic additives from traditional recipes, we found that wheat starch improves the earth strength up to 50 %. In this study, we related the mechanical strengthening to the physicochemical interactions between clays and starch. We focus on three clays that represent the three main groups of clays: kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite. For this study, we mainly focused on compressive test and rheological tests. We showed that the improvement of the mechanical strength with starch is depending on clay nature and their chemistry. Then, we can recommend formulations based on the earth nature for new sustainable buildings. Furthermore, we can understand why it was an interesting way to use starch as a strengthening agent in traditional recipes and how it could be used to repair and protect buildings made of earthen material.

Obtaining Luminous Phosphate Coatings on Steel by Cold Method

The possibility of obtaining luminous phosphate coatings on steel by cold method has been studied. Modified cold phosphating solutions containing organic additives (glycerin, trilon B, OS-20 emulsifier) were selected as the basis to maintain the pH, stabilize the solution and improve the quality and structure of the deposited coatings. To obtain the glow effect, a green phosphor based on Zn2SiO4 containing manganese as a sensitizer was added to the phosphating solution. During deposition, phosphate coatings are obtained that glow with spots, but constant mixing of the solution during deposition contributes to the uniform distribution of phosphor in the phosphate film. Luminous phosphate coatings have good protective properties, they can be used as an independent protection of steel surfaces from corrosion.

Bio-Based Waste’ Substrates for Degraded Soil Improvement—Advantages and Challenges in European Context

The area of degraded sites in the world is constantly expanding and has been a serious environmental problem for years. Such terrains are not only polluted, but also due to erosion, devoid of plant cover and organic matter. The degradation trends can be reversed by supporting remediation/reclamation processes. One of the possibilities is the introduction of biodegradable waste/biowaste substrates into the soil. The additives can be the waste itself or preformed substrates, such composts, mineral-organic fertilizers or biochar. In EU countries average value of compost used for land restoration and landfill cover was equal 4.9%. The transformation of waste in valuable products require the fulfillment of a number of conditions (waste quality, process conditions, law, local circumstances). Application on degraded land surface bio-based waste substrates has several advantages: increase soil organic matter (SOM) and nutrient content, biodiversity and activity of microbial soil communities and change of several others physical and chemical factors including degradation/immobilization of contaminants. The additives improve the water ratio and availability to plants and restore aboveground ecosystem. Due to organic additives degraded terrains are able to sequestrate carbon and climate mitigate. However, we identified some challenges. The application of waste to soil must comply with the legal requirements and meet the end of use criteria. Moreover, shorter or long-term use of bio-waste based substrate lead to even greater soil chemical or microbial contamination. Among pollutants, “emerging contaminants” appear more frequently, such microplastics, nanoparticles or active compounds of pharmaceuticals. That is why a holistic approach is necessary for use the bio-waste based substrate for rehabilitation of soil degraded ecosystems.

CaCO3 Polymorphs Used as Additives in Filament Production for 3D Printing

Nowadays, additive manufacturing—also called 3D printing—represents a well-established technology in the field of the processing of various types of materials manufacturing products used in many industrial sectors. The most common type of 3D printing uses the fused filament fabrication (FFF) method, in which materials based on thermoplastics or elastomers are processed into filaments. Much effort was dedicated to improving the properties and processing of such printed filaments, and various types of inorganic and organic additives have been found to play a beneficial role. One of them, calcium carbonate (CaCO3), is standardly used as filler for the processing of polymeric materials. However, it is well-known from its different applications that CaCO3 crystals may represent particles of different morphologies and shapes that may have a crucial impact on the final properties of the resulting products. For this reason, three different synthetic polymorphs of CaCO3 (aragonite, calcite, and vaterite) and commercially available calcite powders were applied as fillers for the fabrication of polymeric filaments. Analysis of obtained data from different testing techniques has shown significant influence of filament properties depending on the type of applied CaCO3 polymorph. Aragonite particles showed a beneficial impact on the mechanical properties of produced filaments. The obtained results may help to fabricate products with enhanced properties using 3D printing FFF technology.

Development of a biocrystallisation assay for examining effects of homeopathic preparations using cress seedlings

Background: A major challenge of homeopathic basic research is to develop test systems that yield consistent results. Outcome of plant bioassays is usually based on growth parameters (e.g. germination rate, seedling length, leaf area). Aims: We aimed to evaluate the potential of a crystallisation method with additives (“biocrystallisation”) as complementary outcome measure. This method used is based on the crystallographic phenomenon that when crystallising watery solutions of dihydrate CuCl2 in the presence of organic additives (juices/extracts), reproducible dendritic crystal structures are observed. The resulting biocrystallograms can be evaluated visually and/or by computerized image analysis. Methods: Cress seeds (Lepidium sativum L.) germinated and grew in vitro in either Stannum met. 30x or water 30x. Per experiment, six coded (blinded) 30x preparations were applied in randomized order, representing three independent replicates of the two treatments. Seedlings grew for 96 hours in darkness and were subsequently processed into a watery extract. Biocrystallisation was performed on circular glass plates in 6-fold replication per treatment group, yielding 36 biocrystallograms per experiment. A total of 15 independent experiments were performed at two independent laboratories. Biocrystallograms were scanned and analysed by computerized texture image analysis, using 15 second-order parameters as outcome measure. 3-way-ANOVA with the independent parameters treatment (n=2), internal replicate (n=3), and number of experiment (n=15) was used to analyse the data. Results: All 15 texture analysis variables yielded significant or highly significant results for the homeopathic treatment. Two variables yielded differences between the internal replicates, most probably due to a processing order effect. There were only minor differences between the results of the two laboratories. Conclusions: The texture of biocrystallograms of homeopathically treated cress exhibited specific characteristics, differentiating water 30x and Stannum met. 30x. Thus, the biocrystallisation method seems to be a promising complementary outcome measure for plant bioassays investigating effects of homeopathic preparations.

Mathematical Modeling of Cyclic Voltammogram Curves of Copper Deposition

The manufacturing of interconnects and the packaging of integrated circuits are achieved with electrodeposition of copper or other metals. In order to increase the rate of deposition, especially for the large features in packaging, forced convection is provided with certain agitation mechanisms. Although this reduces deposition time, it leads to non-uniform mass transport within each feature and between different features. Special organic additives are used in the solution during the process in order to tune the nucleation and growth of metal, as well as to modify the deposition rate and improve the uniformity. A mathematical model to describe the behavior of organic additives in conjugation with fluid flow and features of various geometry and dimensions is very much desired to facilitate chemistry and process development. In order to achieve this, the physiochemical kinetics of additive and their influence on the Cu deposition rate need to be described precisely. This presentation focuses on a method to extract the kinetic parameters describing the combined effect of multiple additives during copper deposition using rotating disk electrode (RDE). The one-dimensional steady state convection-diffusion equation for each of the chemical species including copper is solved by a semi-analytical method for a range of potentials. The boundary conditions of these differential equations are coupled on the surface of the RDE through the surface coverage of the absorbed species. The steady state of surface coverage of the species represents a dynamic equilibrium of three key processes i.e., adsorption, desorption, and consumption (incorporation). When equilibrium is achieved, the net rate of adsorption and desorption becomes equal to the rate of consumption. At each value of potential, the surface coverage of the additives is solved. At first, the solution is obtained with only one species known as suppressor and it was found that in a specific range of voltage and kinetic parameter multiple solutions of the surface coverage exist at same applied potential. This mathematically explains the S-shaped negative differential resistance (NDR) feature in experimental Cyclic Voltammogram (CV) curves. Figure 1 shows three such experimental S-shaped curves for different concentration of suppressors. The NDR region obtained in the theoretical CV curve is sensitive to the kinetic parameters of the additives. It is possible to match the theoretical and the experimental CV curves by optimizing the kinetic parameters. Determination of the kinetic parameters by particle swarm optimization using experimental data for multiple additive concentration will be discussed in detail in this talk.

effect of 1Me-3H additive on the explosive force nanothermite systems SnO2/Al and WO3/Al

Нанотермиты рассматриваются как перспективные энергонасыщенные материалы для создания пиротехнических изделий широкого спектра, ввиду их способности горения в тонких слоях, микрограммовых навесках. Однако из-за высокой чувствительности нанотермитов к электрической искре и трению, сильно осложняется их практическое использование, в связи с чем актуален поиск добавок, снижающих чувствительность, но сохраняющих приемлемые параметры взрывчатых характеристик нанотермитных композиций. В качестве таковых добавок целесообразно использовать высокоэнтальпийные вещества, отличающиеся низкой чувствительностью. Одним из таких веществ является 1-метил-3-нитро-1,2,4-триазол (1Ме-3Н). В работе представлены результаты исследования силы взрыва (F) нанотермитных систем на основе оксида олова и алюминия SnO2/Al, оксида вольфрам и алюминия WO3/Al в зависимости от содержания 1Ме-3Н. Исследован ряд составов разной рецептурной компоновки (I и II): в компоновке I – соотношение компонентов в нанотермитной композиции соответствовало максимальной расчетной теплоте взрыва (Q) при заданном содержании 1Ме-3Н; II – соотношение компонентов базовой нанотермитной пары остается неизменным в тройных смесях. В системе SnO2/Al/1Ме-3Н выявлен экстремальный характер зависимости силы взрыва F от концентрации 1Ме-3Н, при этом максимальные значения F наблюдаются при содержании добавки 10 % для обоих рецептурных компоновок: I – F = 163 %; II – F = 160 %. Для системы WO3/Al/1Ме-3Н обоих рассмотренных рецептурных компоновок наблюдается монотонное снижение силы взрыва с ростом содержания1Ме-3Н: при содержании добавки 15 % композиция теряет взрывчатые свойства (F=0 %). Нанотермитная система SnO2/Al/1Ме-3Н, как и ранее изученные CuO/Al/1Ме-3Н, Bi2O3/Al/1Ме-3Н, MoO3/Al/Ме-3Н проявляет экстремальный характер зависимости силы взрыва F от содержания 1Ме-3Н, подтверждая ранее принятые положения о механизме реакционного взаимодействия в нанотермитных композициях с органическими добавками, тогда как для композиции WO3/Al/1Ме-3Н, по-видимому, присущ отличный от принятого механизм горения, требующий дополнительных исследований. Nanothermites are considered as promising energy-saturated materials for the creation of pyrotechnic products of a wide range, due to their ability to burn in thin layers, microgram quantities. However, due to the high sensitivity of nanothermites to electric spark and friction, their use is very difficult, and therefore the search for additives that reduce sensitivity, but retain acceptable parameters of explosive characteristics of nanothermite compositions is relevant. As such additives, it is advisable to highly use enthalpy substances characterized by low sensitivity. One of these substances is 1-methyl-3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole (1Me-3H). The paper presents the results of a study of the explosion force (F) of nanothermite systems based on tin oxide and aluminum SnO2/Al, tungsten oxide and aluminum WO3/Al depending on the content of 1Me-3H. Several compositions of different prescription configuration (I and II) were studied: in the configuration, I - the ratio of components in the nanothermite composition corresponded to the maximum calculated heat of explosion (Q) at a given content of 1Me-3H; II - the ratio of the components of the base nanothermite pair remains unchanged in triple mixtures. In the SnO2/Al/1Me-3H system, the extreme nature of the dependence of the explosion force F on the concentration of 1Me-3H was revealed, while the maximum values of F were observed at an additive content of 10% for both prescription configuration: I - F = 163%; II - F = 160%. For the WO3/Al/1Me-3H system of both considered compounding arrangements, a monotonous decrease in the explosion force with an increase in the content is observed 1Me-3H: with an additive content of 15%, the composition loses explosive properties (F = 0%). The nanothermite system SnO2/Al/1Me-3H, as well as the previously studied CuO/Al/1Me-3H, Bi2O3/Al/1Me-3H, MoO3/Al/Me-3H, exhibits an extreme dependence of the explosion force F on the content of 1Me-3H, confirming the previously accepted provisions on the mechanism of reaction interaction in nanothermite compositions with organic additives, whereas the composition WO3/Al/1ME-3H, apparently, has a different combustion mechanism from the accepted one, requiring additional research.

EXPLORING THE EFFECT OF ORGANIC ADDITIVES ON PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF BITUMEN

Warm additives had wide popularity in recent years due to saving in energy and lowering emissions dealt with asphalt mixture production. Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) is produced by using foaming technology or reducing -viscosity additives of binder to enhance the rheological properties. In this study, organic-based additives (Asphaltan A and Asphaltan B) are used to investigate their effect to minimize the viscosity and lower the temperature of asphalt mixture production. Bitumen is mixed with three doses of each additive: 1, 2, and 3% of its weight. The binder viscosity was measured by rotational viscometer with and without the additives at three different temperatures. The study showed that the organic additives have a positive impact on the behavior of the binder in terms of viscosity reduction and made enhancements in terms of bitumen properties. This result could be useful in the reduction of production temperature and quantity of odour emissions.