Min Sonication Time Research Articles

Synthesis of Curcumin Nanoparticles from Raw Turmeric Rhizome.

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) has been used as a spice and a medicinal herb since ancient times. The main active ingredient of turmeric is curcumin, a polyphenol that helps prevent and control neurological, respiratory, cardiovascular, metabolic, inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases and some cancers. However, curcumin has drawbacks such as low water-solubility, poor absorption, fast metabolism, quick systemic elimination, low bioavailability, poor pharmacokinetics, low stability, and low penetration targeting efficacy. To overcome these drawbacks, a common method used is encapsulating curcumin in nanocarriers for targeted delivery. However, the degraded products of nanocarriers have raised concerns. In this research, we synthesized nanoparticles of curcumin, nanocurcumin without using nanocarriers. To do so, curcumin was soxhlet extracted from raw turmeric rhizome. The stock solutions of different curcumin concentrations prepared in dichloromethane were added to boiling water at different flow rates and sonicated for different time intervals. An average particle size of 82 ± 04 nm was obtained with 5.00 mg/mL stock solution concentration, at 0.10 mL/min flow rate and 30 min sonication time. The particle size tends to increase with the flow rate and the concentration of curcumin in the stock solution but decreases with the sonication time. X-ray diffraction shows sharp and intense diffraction peaks for curcumin, indicating its identity and high crystallinity, but nanocurcumins are amorphous. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy spectra confirm the presence of all the functional groups of curcumin in nanocurcumin. Transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy images show the perfectly spherical morphology of nanocurcumin. Although curcumin is not water-soluble, nano-curcumin formulations are freely dispersible in water.

Ultrasound assisted one step in-situ preparation and characterization of rGO-WO3 nanocomposite for degradation of organic dyes

The present work focuses on preparation of reduced graphene oxide-WO3 (rGO/WO3) nanocomposite using ultrasound assisted method. It is expected that the intense environment created by ultrasound will help reduce particle size of WO3 deposited on the graphene oxide nanosheets. Successful formation of rGO/WO3 nanocomposite was confirmed with the use of different characterization techniques. The use of ultrasound in the preparation of nanocomposites plays very important role in its formation. The rGO/WO3 nanocomposites prepared by varying reaction conditions like type of sonication, sonication time, concentration of acidic medium, and initial quantity of graphene oxide (GO) were further used in methylene blue (MB) dye degradation experiments to study the effect of various preparation conditions. rGO/WO3 nanocomposite photocatalyst prepared using low HCl concentration (3.0 M), bath sonication (75 min sonication time) and 40 mg GO loading in nanocomposite exhibited maximum degradation of MB dye (81.56%). Further, this nanocomposite photocatalyst was used to investigate magnitude of degradation of various dyes which revealed that the degradation rate follows the order as crystal violet>methylene blue>brilliant green.

Enhanced catalytic activity of silver nanoparticles loaded into Fe3O4 nanoparticles towards reduction of 4-nitrophenol, degradation of organic dyes and oxidation of o-phenylenediamine

In this study, ultrasonication method was used to load silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) on the pre-synthesized magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4). A mixture of silver nitrate solution and pre-synthesized Fe3O4 was sonicated for designated period of time and resulted in silver nanoparticles doped Fe3O4. The formation of AgNPs was directly confirmed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Furthermore, surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (SEIRA) was used to confirm the formation of AgNPs indirectly. The relatively enhanced IR spectrum for the probe molecule, p-nitrothiophenol (p-NTP) that has been incubated with silver doped magnetic nanoparticles (AgNPs/Fe3O4) rather than Fe3O4 alone ascertains the formation of AgNPs. The catalytic activites of the particles were investigated using 4-nitrophenol and o-phenylene diamine (OPD) as reductant and peroxidase substrates respectively. The results show that AgNPs/Fe3O4 exhibited enhanced catalytic activities than Fe3O4 alone. The rate constants of AgNPs/Fe3O4 showing effect of sonication time for preparation of the catalyst using 15 mM of AgNO3 solution were investigated and a rate constant of 2.1 × 10−2 s−1 was achieved for 60 min sonication time. The potential of the substrate in detection of ascorbic acid was demonstrated via inhibiting the peroxidase-like activity in the presence of ascorbic acid.

A short time bioactive compounds extraction from Cucurbita pepo seed using continuous ultrasound‐assisted extraction

This study aimed to investigate the effect of acoustic cavitation on phenolic compounds recovery from Cucurbita pepo seed using continuous ultrasound-assisted extraction (CUAE) as a green extraction process. A Box–Behnken response surface design was carried out to investigate and optimize the CUAE independent variables, including concentration of hydroethanolic solvent, biomass to solvent ratio, and sonication time on the total extractable phenols (TEP). The optimized conditions were 70.98% v/v concentration of hydroethanolic solvent, 1:26.49 g/mL ratio of biomass to solvent, and 55.38 min sonication time, under which the predicted TEP was 14.01 mg GAE/g. The determination of DPPH and HO free radical scavenging abilities revealed that the extract had a good ability to scavenge these free radicals and polyphenol concentration was positively correlated with antiradical capacity (AC). The gas chromatography–mass spectrophotometer (GC/MS) analysis revealed that C. pepo seed extract is a potential source of essential fatty acids (39% of total fatty acids). From the results, the phenolic compounds and essential fatty acids from C. pepo seeds could be obtained using the cavitation phenomenon during short time extraction. The AC of product was considerably influenced by the CUAE process mode, while the fatty acid composition was almost constant. The microstructure of cells was investigated using scanning electron microscope (SEM), which confirmed the cell disruption by acoustic cavitation technology.

Ultrasound-assisted preparation of double nano-emulsions loaded with glycyrrhizic acid in the internal aqueous phase and skim milk as the external aqueous phase

In this study, response surface methodology (RSM) based on central composite rotatable design applied to encapsulate glycyrrhizic acid (GA), within the ultrasound-assisted double emulsions. Three independent variables considered as the 10–30% weight of the internal aqueous phase (W1) in the primary-emulsion (W1/O), 6–10% of polyglycerol-polyricinoleate (PGPR) as the surfactant in the oil phase, and 4–6 min sonication-time; dependent variables for optimal W1/O emulsion fabrication were droplet-size, poly-dispersity-index (PDI), and sedimentation-index. Then, 5–25% wt. of the W1/O emulsion dispersed into the skim milk as an external aqueous phase (W2) to form double-emulsions (W1/O/W2) through sonication for 1–5 min. The lowest droplet-size and sedimentation-index obtained for the W1/O emulsions formulated by 19% W1 in the W1/O emulsion, 6% PGPR and a sonication time of 6 min. Two optimal-conditions for preparation of double-emulsions were determined based on the results of encapsulation efficiency, droplet-size, and viscosity as follows: the first optimum treatment (15% W1/O and 3 min sonication) and the second optimal conditions (24% W1/O and 4 min sonication). The encapsulation efficiency of GA in these double-emulsions was 92%. The emulsions stored for 7 days at 37 °C showed instability (2-phase separation). In addition, droplet-size and encapsulation-efficiency increased and decreased during storage, respectively.

Optimization, physicochemical characterization, and antimicrobial activity of a novel simvastatin nano-niosomal gel against E. coli and S. aureus

Niosomes, as a kind of drug delivery system, is widely used for the topical delivery of lipophilic drugs. Optimization of niosomes plays an essential role in enhancing their therapeutic efficiencies. This study aims to prepare an optimized niosomal formulation of simvastatin (nSIM), a lipophilic member of statins, through the experiment (Response Surface methodology). Optimized niosomes were characterized in size, polydispersity index (PDI), entrapment efficiency (EE), stability, releasing pattern, and antimicrobial activity. The different molar ratio of surfactant and cholesterol were applied to prepare various formulation of simvastatin loaded niosome. Mean particle size and size distribution were analyzed by dynamic light scattering. Antibacterial activity was determined by MIC and MBC tests against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The release rate of simvastatin from noisome nanoparticles was studied by the Franz diffusion cell method. The release pattern was studied through zero order, first order, Higuchi, Korsmeyer-Peppas, and Hixson-Crowell kinetics models. Optimized niosomes were obtained by span 80, drug to cholesterol ratio of 0.4 with 7 min sonication time. Mean particle size, PDI, zeta potential, and entrapment efficiency (EE%) of optimized nSIM were obtained about 168 nm, 0.34, -32.40, and 96 %, respectively. The niosomes significantly decreased the drug's releasing rate and enhanced antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. Coli. It was found that the release pattern of drug followed the Higuchi kinetic model which means drug release is by diffusion. Overall, our findings indicated that the prepared simvastatin loaded niosomes showed good stability and biological properties than free drug. Our study suggests that niosomal formulation could be considered as a promising strategy for the delivery of poor water-soluble drugs that enhance antibacterial activity.

Enrichment of patchouli alcohol in patchouli oil by aiding sonication in hydrotropic extraction

Patchouli alcohol, a tricyclic sesquiterpene, is a vital component of patchouli essential oil which is primarily isolated from the aerial part of Pogostemon cablin and is majorly used in fragrance industries. An intensified technique of hydrotropy coupled with sonication was investigated to enhance the purity of patchouli alcohol in patchouli oil using four different hydrotropes viz., resorcinol, p-toluene sulphonic acid, sodium salicylate, and sodium cumene sulphonate. The influence of various parameters namely sonication time (5 and 15 min), ultrasound amplitude (20–40 %), and pulse ratio (10:50 and 30:30 s) over varying concentration of hydrotropic solution (0.2–2 M) on the patchouli alcohol content was assessed using parametric study. Amongst the four hydrotropes, sodium cumene sulphonate has provided the highest purity (96.12 %) of patchouli alcohol for 0.2 M concentration, 15 min sonication time, 40 % amplitude, and 30:30 s pulse ratio against 33.13 % in pure oil. Hydrotropy combined with ultrasound treatment has enriched the composition of patchouli alcohol in patchouli oil to a larger extent when compared with hydrotropic extraction without sonication. Further, a scale-up study has provided promising outcomes suggesting a suitable alternative technique as a sustainable solution.

Optimization of immobilization conditions of Bacillus atrophaeus FSHM2 lipase on maleic copolymer coated amine-modified graphene oxide nanosheets and its application for valeric acid esterification

The thermoalkalophilic lipase from Bacillus atrophaeus (BaL) was immobilized onto amine-functionalized graphene oxide nanosheets coated with the poly (maleic anhydride-alt-1-octadecene) copolymer (GO-NH2-PMAO) and activated with glutaraldehyde as spacer arm through interfacial activation and subsequent multipoint covalent attachment. Experimental design method was applied for optimization of immobilization conditions including GO-NH2-PMAO concentration, buffer concentration, pH, sonication time, enzyme concentration, glutaraldehyde concentration, time, and temperature. The optimum specific activity of the immobilized BaL (105.95 ± 2.37 U/mg) reached at 5 mg/mL for GO-NH2-PMAO, 25 mM of buffer, pH 6.0, 60 min sonication time, 100 mM glutaraldehyde, 60 U/mL of enzyme, and 4 h of immobilization time at 25 °C, which was very close to the predicted amount (106.08 ± 1.42 U/mg). Maximum immobilization yield (81.35%) and efficiency (277.63%) were determined in optimal immobilization conditions. The obtained results clearly indicated that the immobilized BaL exhibited better stability at extreme temperature and pH than the free BaL. At temperature of 90 °C and pH 11, more than 90% of the initial activity of the immobilized BaL was retained. Furthermore, the immobilized BaL retained about 90% of its initial activity after 10 days of storage and 6 cycles of application. The esterification studies showed that maximum bioconversion of valeric acid to pentyl valerate using the free BaL (34.5%) and the immobilized BaL (96.3%) occurred in the xylene medium after 48 h of incubation at 60 °C. Therefore, the BaL immobilized on GO-NH2-PMAO was introduced as an effective biocatalyst to synthesize green apple flavour ester.

Ultrasonically assisted removal of toxic dye using Iranian bituminous coal based-activated carbon: synthesis, characterization, modeling, equilibrium and kinetic studies

Bituminous coal as an abundant natural resource in Iran was successfully employed to facile synthesis nanoparticle and nanosheets of activated carbon (AC) for refinement of methylene blue (MB) effluent. The structural features of prepared carbon nanoparticles and nanosheets were determined by BJH (Barret–Joyner–Halenda), TEM (transmission electron microscopy), FTIR (Fourier transform infrared), SEM (scanning electron microscopy) and XRD (X-ray diffraction) analysis. A combination of central composite design (CCD) with response surface methodology (RSM) has been applied to obtain a model and optimize the influencing variables on MB elimination by produced AC. More specifically, the impacts of influencing variables including sonication time, dye concentration, adsorbent mass, and temperature have been inspected. A total of 31 experiment sets were designed to achieve maximum adsorption percentage (R%) and adsorption capacity (qe). The best adsorption percentage, equal to 100%, was obtained under optimum conditions set as 0.20 g of adsorbent, MB concentration of 10.81 mg L−1, temperature equal to 44.2 °C, and 7.3 min of sonication time. The results exhibited that the pseudo-second-order and Langmuir model suitably suited to the experimental data of adsorption. The proposed technique in comparison with the recently reported techniques for cationic dye adsorption indicates that the bituminous coal-based AC by utilizing a cleaner production process has several remarkable advantages such as the abundance of raw materials, low cost, ease of production, sustainability, fast adsorption kinetics, and high-performance index.

A feasible strategy based on high ultrasound frequency and mass spectrometry for discriminating individuals diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia through ionomic profile.

A viable and accurate method based on high-power ultrasound-assisted microextraction and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was developed to determine metals in human serum from patients with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. A simple and rapid sample preparation method using a cup-horn sonoreactor was developed. The acid concentration of HNO3 (10, 20, and 40% v/v) and HCl (1, 5, 15, and 30% v/v) of the extraction solution, the sonication time (1, 3, 6, and 10 min), and the sonication amplitude (20, 40, 60, and 80%) were evaluated. Cd, Cu, Fe, Li, Pb, and Zn were determined in serum samples from patients with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and from healthy controls. Quantitative metal recoveries using the proposed method were compared under the same conditions using an ultrasonic bath, magnetic stirring, and microwave-assisted digestion. Optimum extraction conditions were obtained using HNO3 (40% v/v) + HCl (30% v/v) as the extraction solution with 3 min sonication time and 60% sonication amplitude. Significant differences were observed among the methods compared. On application of the sample preparation method based on high-power ultrasound-assisted microextraction coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, Pb and Cd in all the studied samples were below the limit of detection of our method. Compared with healthy controls, the concentration of Cu, Li, Fe, and Zn was found to be significantly higher for the bipolar disorder group, while these metals and Li were found at a lower level for the group diagnosed with schizophrenia. Principal component analysis showed a significant separation for the groups studied based on their ionomic profiles after the application of high-power ultrasound-assisted microextraction as a sample preparation strategy.

Effect of sonication on results of ChIP-seq experiments involving PRC2 related proteins

Sonication is one of the essential strategies of chromatin fragmentation in Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay. The impact of proteins with different molecular weights generated under different duration of sonication on the results of Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) experiments involving the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) related protein EZH2, which is a histone methyltransferase, and its product H3K27me3 was investigated. The results indicate that in the promoter region or nonpromoter region, there were hardly any differences among the H3K27me3 peaks annotated genes from different duration of sonication, which suggesting that the duration of sonication had little effect on histone ChIP-seq results. In contrast, in the promoter region newly gained EZH2 peaks annonated genes at 20 min sonication time were significantly clustered in the gene ontology (GO) pathways related to actin filament bundle compared with 10 min. In the nonpromoter region, compared with 10 min, the GO pathways of newly gained EZH2 peaks annonated genes at 20 min sonication time is much more than that of lost EZH2 peaks annonated genes. And in the nonpromoter region, compared with 20 min, the GO pathways of lost EZH2 peaks annonated genes at 30 min sonication time is much more than that of newly gained EZH2 peaks annonated genes. Most of these pathways are associated with RNA polymerase II (RNAPII), organ development and cell morphogenesis. These suggest that the genomic information of EZH2 will be lost if the duration of sonication is not enough or too long. Different duration of sonication mainly affect the EZH2 peaks in PRC2 unoccupied region and the bivalent promoter in the promoter region, as well as the PRC2 occupied region, PRC2 unoccupied region and the activated enhancer in the nonpromoter region. Therefore, the sonication for the chromatin related proteins with high molecular weights need to be optimized to make chromatin fragments size vary from 100 bp to 500 bp, which will yield relatively comprehensive genomic information of the target protein. For histones, which are of small molecular weights, duration of sonication has little effect on them.

Modeling and optimization of ultrasound-assisted high performance adsorption of Basic Fuchsin by starch-capped zinc selenide nanoparticles/AC as a novel composite using response surface methodology

In this study, the starch-capped zinc selenide nanoparticles loaded on activated carbon (ST-Zn-Se-NPs-AC) composite was fabricated, and then it was used for removing Basic Fuchsin (BF) dye from aqueous solution. The ST-Zn-Se-NPs-AC composite was characterized by FE-SEM, UV–Vis, EDS, and XRD techniques. The removal percentage dependence to different variables such as initial BF concentration, pH, dosage of adsorbent, and time of sonication was investigated by Central Composite Design (CCD) under Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The quadratic model between the independent and dependent variables was predicted. A good agreement between the experimental and predicted data was achieved by the predicted model that showed the performance of the predicted model for predicting of real optimum points, and it was successfully employed to remove BF from aqueous media. The maximum removal percentage of 99.34% was obtained by the predicted model under the optimum conditions (15 mg L−1 of initial BF concentration, pH of 7.0, 12 mg of ST-Zn-Se-NPs-AC, and 6 min of sonication time), which was very close to the experimental value (99.00%). Moreover, the data were efficiently fitted by Langmuir model, and the saturation adsorption capacity (Qmax) at 25 °C for BF was discovered to be 222.72 mg g−1.

Effects of ultrasonic irradiation on crystallization kinetics, morphological and structural properties of zeolite FAU.

In this work, NaX zeolite was synthesized and the effect of ultrasound irradiation on reaction kinetics, morphological and structural properties was investigated. Ultrasound was applied, by using a plate transducer (91.8kHz), for the first time during the crystallization of zeolite NaX, at high temperature, varying the irradiation moment and its duration. Furthermore, ultrasound was applied after the crystallization by a horn-type transducer (20-24kHz) at low temperature. The effects of irradiated volume (100-300mL), sonication time (2-10min) and ultrasound power (10-200W) were studied with a power intensity up to 100W/cm2. It was found that the application of ultrasound during the first hour of crystallization resulted in 20% reduction of reaction time compared to a standard crystallization. Ultrasound can also reduce the agglomeration degree of the final powder by combining high power and long sonication time. After 5min sonication time at 0.3W/mL, the tapped density of the powder was increased by 10%, from 0.37 to 0.41g/mL. Finally, by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) it was demonstrated that ultrasound can disrupt the agglomerates without affecting the morphology of individual crystals.

Immobilization of Thermoalkalophilic Lipase from Bacillus atrophaeus FSHM2 on Amine-Modified Graphene Oxide Nanostructures: Statistical Optimization and Its Application for Pentyl Valerate Synthesis.

Synthesis of (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES)-functionalized graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets, statistical optimization of conditions for immobilization of Bacillus atrophaeus lipase (BaL) on as-synthesized support, and application of the immobilized BaL for esterification of valeric acid were carried out in this investigation. The optimum specific activity of the immobilized BaL (81.60 ± 0.28Umg-1) was achieved at 3mgmL-1 of GO-NH2, 50mM of phosphate buffer, pH 7.0, 60min sonication time, 100mM glutaraldehyde, 25UmL-1 of enzyme, and 8h immobilization time at 4°C. The immobilized BaL retained about 90% of its initial activity after 10days of storage. Moreover, about 70% of the initial activity of the immobilized BaL was retained after 10cycles of application. The results of esterification studies exhibited that maximum pentyl valerate synthesis using the free BaL (34.5%) and the immobilized BaL (92.7%) occurred in the organic solvent medium (xylene) after 48h of incubation at 60°C.

Effect of sonication time on the evaporation rate of seawater containing a nanocomposite.

Sonication time has a significant contribution to the stability and properties of nanofluids (mixtures of nanoparticles and a base fluid). Finding the optimum sonication time can help to save energy and ensure optimal design. The present study deals with the sonication time effect on the evaporation rate of seawater containing a nanocomposite (i.e., a mixture of multi-walled carbon nanotubes and graphene nanoplates). For indoor experiments, a solar simulator was employed as the radiation source. At first, the nanofluid with a concentration of 0.01% wt. was sonicated in an ultrasonic bath for different times of 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, 240 min, and the associated zeta potential values were recorded to evaluate the stability. Next, the best time function was used to appraise the effect of concentration variations (0.001, 0.002, 0.004, 0.01, 0.02 and 0.04% wt.) and the light intensities (1.6, 2.6, and 3.6 suns) on the rate of solar steam generation. The results indicate that for a concentration of 0.01% wt. and under 3.6 suns, the highest evaporation efficiency of 61.3% would be achieved at 120 min sonication time.

Optimisation of ultrasonic-assisted extraction of bioactive compounds from chokeberry pomace using response surface methodology.

Chokeberry pomace is a valuable by-product of fruit processing because of its high levels    of phenolic compounds and anthocyanins. The study was aimed to optimise chokeberry pomace extraction of total phenolic content, total anthocyanin content and antioxidant activity using response surface methodology. Response surface methodology was used to evaluate the effect of the concentration of ethanol (in the range of 60–96%) and sonication time (from 10 to 30 min) as independent variables on total phenolic content, antioxidant capacity and total anthocyanin content as the response functions. The results showed that ethanol concentration, but not sonication time, had a significant influence on total phenolic content, antioxidant activity and total anthocyanin content. The optimal extraction conditions for total phenolic content (188.5 mg GAE/g DM) and antioxidant capacity (49.2 mM Tr/100 g DM) were 60% ethanol and 20 min sonication time. The optimal conditions in the case of total anthocyanin content (89.3 mg C3GE/g) were an 65% ethanol concentration and 13 min sonication time. The development of optimal extraction parameters should allow food producers to use efficient, cost-effective and environmentally friendly technology to isolate biologically active molecules from chokeberry pomace, while the selected extract could be a component of health-promoting bioactive products.

Construction of molecularly imprinted nanoparticles by employing ultrasound waves for selective determination of doxepin from human plasma samples: Modeling and optimization.

In this work, molecularly imprinted nanoparticles (MINPs) were applied as selective adsorbent for ultrasound-assisted micro-solid-phase extraction (UAMSPE) of doxepin (DP) from human plasma samples, which was then cleaned up, pre-concentrated and subjected to HPLC. The MINPs were synthesized based on a non-covalent approach by precipitation polymerization utilizing methacrylic acid and styrene as functional monomers, DP as template, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross-linker and 2,2-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as initiator. The obtained MINPs were characterized by Fourier transform-infrared and field emission scanning electron microscopy. Factors influencing the efficiency of UAMSPE such as sonication time, volume of eluent solvent and amount of sorbent were investigated using a central composite design and the optimal points were identified as 4 min of sonication time, 380 μL of eluent solvent and 30 mg of sorbent. Under optimized conditions, the proposed method has linear responses in the range of 0.2-2000 ng mL-1 , with a satisfactory limit of detection of 0.04 ng mL-1 and limit of quantification of 0.11 ng mL-1 .

Titanium oxide nanoparticles loaded onto activated carbon prepared from bio-waste watermelon rind for the efficient ultrasonic-assisted adsorption of congo red and phenol red dyes from wastewaters

The simultaneous ultrasonic-assisted removal of Congo red (CR) and phenol red (Ph R) dyes from the aqueous solutions was accomplished by using titanium oxide (TiO2) nanoparticles (NPs) loaded onto activated carbon (AC) prepared from bio-waste watermelon rind (WR), referred to as TiO2–NPs–ACWR. The TiO2–NPs–ACWR was characterized by FT-IR, FESEM, SEM, EDX, BET, and TGA techniques. To simplify the optimization process, the pH effect was first studied via one-variable-at-a-time method. The influences of the other parameters such as sonication time, initial dyes concentrations, and adsorbent dosage were then evaluated by central composite design (CCD) combined with desirability function. The optimum conditions consisted of pH 4.3, 0.04 g of TiO2–NPs–ACWR, 8.22 min of sonication time, and initial concentrations of 45.9 mg L−1 and 14.7 mg L−1 for Ph R and CR, respectively, which resulted in high removal percentages (100.24% for Ph R and 101.45% for CR). Besides, the adsorption capacities were 55.6 mg g−1 for Ph R and 17 mg/g for CR. The adsorption equilibrium study showed that Langmuir model had adequate competence for the description and evaluation of the adsorption process. Kinetics study was carried out at various time intervals. The results indicated that adsorption processes can be fitted and predicated by the pseudo-second-order model.

Anti-solvent sonocrystallization for nano-range particle size of telmisartan through Taguchi and Box–Behnken design

This study investigates the effect of process parameters [like solvent to anti-solvent ratio (1:2–1:4), injection rate (1–10 mL/min), drug concentration (5–15 mg/mL), crystallization temperature (20–30 °C), sonication amplitude (20–60%), and sonication time (2–15 min)] on drug particle size and morphology via anti-solvent sonocrystallization using the design of experiment approach. A six-factor, three-level experimental design using Taguchi’s L18 orthogonal array has been employed to obtain nano-range particle size of recrystallized drug at lab scale batch study. The particle size obtained using optimum conditions obtained by Taguchi method was further improved by Box–Behnken design. The optimum conditions obtained by Box–Behnken design were 1:3 solvent to anti-solvent ratio, 9.87 mL/min injection rate, 11.09 mg/mL drug concentration, 20 °C crystallization temperature, 8.6 min of sonication time, and 40% of sonication amplitude, which provided the optimized particle size of 143.6 nm. Various analytical tools were employed to characterize the sample obtained at the optimum condition. This statistical approach can further be explored to obtain nano-range particle size of other biopharmaceutical classification system class II drugs having poor water solubility via anti-solvent sonocrystallization.

Encapsulation of lactoferrin into rapeseed phospholipids based liposomes: Optimization and physicochemical characterization

Rapeseed phospholipids (RP), extracted from a residue of the oil processing, were used to elaborate liposomes for the encapsulation of lactoferrin (LF). Response surface methodology was used to evaluate the effect of RP concentration (3–12 mg/mL), stigmasterol concentration (0–3 mg/mL), and sonication time (0–20 min) on the encapsulation efficiency (EE) and particle size. Commercial soy phospholipids (SP) were used to prepare liposomes under the same conditions. Results show that RP-liposomes have a higher EE and a smaller particle size than those obtained using SP. Optimal conditions for the preparation of small LF-loaded RP-liposomes (<200 nm) with the highest EE were: 10.18 mg/mL of RP, 2.23 mg/mL of stigmasterol, and 4.05 min of sonication time. EE, particle size, polydispersity index, and ζ-potential of LF-loaded RP-liposomes were: 91.94 ± 0.61%, 148.57 ± 2.76 nm, 0.23 ± 0.01, and −31.03 ± 1.83 mV, respectively. Morphology confirmed the size, spherical shape and smooth surface of the LF-loaded RP-liposomes. These results suggest that RP-liposomes offer a novel option for stabilizing LF.