Volume Ratio Of Solution Research Articles

Heavy metal sorption in biosorbents – Using spent grain from the brewing industry

The sorption properties of brewer's spent grain (BSG) were assessed in terms of its usefulness in removing heavy metals from solutions. The specific objectives of the investigation involved studying sorption equilibrium and kinetics, assessing the influence of other cations on sorption efficiency, and examining the possibility of bed regeneration. The studies were carried out in a static system, with a constant ratio of solution volume to biosorbent mass, and using a flow through system. The affinity of metal cations to BSG functional groups was established and increased in the series: Mn2+ ≈ Zn2+ < Ni2+ < Cd2+ < Cu2+ < Pb2+. The BSG's sorption capacities (mmol g−1), determined using the Langmuir model, ranged from 0.020 (Mn) to 0.041 (Pb), with measurements of uncertainty not exceeding 20%. It was determined that a relatively high concentration of calcium cations (7.5 mmol L−1) versus copper cation concentration (0.03 mmol L−1) in solution, restricted the sorption efficiency by approximately 80%. The optimum pH of the solution used to carry out the sorption was determined to be within the range of 4.5–5.5. It was found that the functional groups of the BSG lose their efficacy over consecutive sorption and desorption cycles due to being blocked, or due to their chemical decomposition. This indicated that the proper interpretation of the results requires a statistical assessment of the measurements of uncertainty and of the uncertainty of determination of the sorption parameters.

A facile approach for preparation of PSt@TiO2 navel-like hollow Janus particles and its enhanced UV absorption performance

With anisotropic particles attracting much attention for both theoretical and practical application considerations, it was critical to simply manufacture the special morphology particles with different structure or/and surface chemistry. Herein, a novel one-step dissolution template method was described to prepare PSt@TiO2 (Polystyrene @ Titania) navel-like hollow Janus particles (NHJPs). These NHJPs could be obtained simply with dissolution of sulfonated-PSt core template only by regulating the volume ratio of tetrahydrofuran-ethanol solution. The morphologies of these particles were characterized by SEM and TEM. The FT-IR, XPS, XRD and TGA were performed to determine the composition. The formation mechanism of NHJPs was also studied, and the morphology could be control by regulating the dissolution time and the solubility parameters of solvent. The NHJPs showed excellent ultraviolet absorption and the band gap of NHJPs was obtained by UVDRS, which was further proved their highly attractive for photocatalytic materials. Moreover, the preparation method of the PSt@TiO2 NHJPs presented here was scalable and can be extended to other similar systems.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGY FOR OBTAINING OF TENESTROL SUBSTANCE OF ESTROGENIC AC-TION FROM THE AERIAL PARTS OF FERULA TENUISECTA

Extraction of the sum of esters of the sesquiterpene alcohols from the aerial part of Ferula tenuisecta and purification of obtained extract were studied, allowing in following to get the final substance without green coloration. It was determined the optimum adsorbent – actuated coal and its amount for removing the green coloration of water-alcohol extract from used raw materials. It was found that for the purification of the bottoms of water-alcohol extract, five-fold treatment with extractive petrol in a volume ratio of water solution – solvent 2:1 is necessary, and for extraction esters from a purified water solution – three-fold extraction with ethyl acetate in a volume ratio of water solution – solvent 2:1.&#x0D; It was used a filler to effective drying the substance of Tenestrol. The microcrystalline cellulose in a weight ratio from 1:8 to 1:10 to the raw material was chosen as the optimum filler.&#x0D; Technology for obtain of substance of esters of sesquiterpene alcohols with estrogenic action from the aerial part of Ferula tenuisecta was developed and called “Tenestrol”. From this technology substance "Tenestrol" with yield of 3.8% by weight of the raw material is obtained, which contains not less 20% of the esters.

Enhanced phenol hydrogenation for cyclohexanone production by membrane dispersion

Continuous liquid-phase phenol hydrogenation to cyclohexanone over Pd/Al2O3 was conducted in a membrane dispersion based fixed-bed reactor system. The effects of membrane structure on the phenol hydrogenation and gas–liquid two-phase flow were investigated by experimental results coupled with computational studies. The phenol conversion and cyclohexanone yield can be effectively improved by selecting suitable pore size and channel number of membrane. Gas holdup, axial fluid velocity and gas distribution predicted by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) studies provide insights into the relationship between membrane structure and catalytic efficiency. As compared to the phenol conversion and cyclohexanone yield obtained by direct feeding of hydrogen, those are enhanced substantially in the presence of membrane dispersion at the conditions of high LHSV and low hydrogen/phenol aqueous solution volume ratio. A phenol conversion above 85.6% and a cyclohexanone selectivity at ∼98% can be achieved in a continuous phenol hydrogenation to cyclohexanone of 50 h. This work will provide guidance for the green cyclohexanone production.

Synthesis and Characterization of Titanium (iv) Oxide Loaded with Silver Nano Particles Thin Films

This research investigates effect of annealing temperature on the optical properties of titanium dioxide loaded with silver nanoparticles (TiO2: AgNPs) thin films deposited on glass substrate by spin–coating technique. Silver nanoparticles was prepared using laguminosae-paplionodeae extracts as a reducing agent for silver nitrate and commercially available titanium (iv) oxide was used. Deposition of TiO2:AgNPs blend solution was done in different volume ratio. The blend solution volume ratio of (1:0.2) was deposited at 7 different thicknesses with different speed of revolution per minutes (rpm) for 30 seconds. Annealing of 16 samples deposited at 1000 rpm on the glass substrate was carried out at temperature range of 50°C to 425°C with 10°C interval in a tubular furnance. It is observed from the results that the peak absorption of photon energy occurred at 375°C in the visible range of the wavelength spectrum. Optimal thickness for peak absorbance of the TiO2:AgNPs blend layer occurred at 115 nm in the visible spectrum and at the corresponding spin speed of 1000 rpm. Optimized fabrication process with blend layer thickness of 115 nm yielded the best absorbance at annealed temperature of 375°C in the visible spectrum. The volume ratio of (1:0.2) gave the peak absorption at 0.75 a u. The band gap energy of the blend thin film is 3.58 eV at 375°C in the visible range of wavelength spectrum. It is revealed from the result that the light absorption, broadened absorption spectral range and thermal stability of titanium (iv) oxide film could be enhanced using silver nanoparticles. The results can be therefore used as a guideline for improving the design and fabrication of organic solar cells.

Phase-transfer method synthesis hydroxyethyl cellulose lauryl ether

This article provided a phase-transfer method to synthesize hydrophobic modify HEC with 1-bromododecane (1-BD). The synthesis of hydroxyethyl cellulose lauryl ether (HECLE) by an etherification reaction between hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) and 1-bromododecane (1-BD) using water and tetramethylene oxide as the solvent and tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) as the phase transfer agent. A series of HECLEs with different substitution degrees were obtained by changing reaction temperature and the volume ratio of HEC aqueous solution to tetramethylene oxide. The molecular structures of obtained HECLEs were confirmed by FT-IR and H NMR. And the properties of HECLEs were tested by particle size analysis, rheological testing and pyrene probe method. HECLEs with DS range of 0.21–1.95 showed typical properties of amphiphilic polymers and self-assembled into aggregates in aqueous solution because of hydrophobic interaction. The sizes of aggregates and critical aggregate concentrations (CAC) were found correlated with the molecular structure of polymers, and were varied in the range of 2–4 μm and 0.019–0.088 mg/ml, respectively. Furthermore, the apparent viscosity under low shear and thickening nature of HECLEs with modification by moderately grafting lauryl group were increased in contrast with native HEC. Therefore, HECLEs can be applied as hydrophobic active compounds for coating, and in many areas.

Green Synthesis of Ag Nanoparticles Using Grape Stalk Waste Extract for the Modification of Screen-Printed Electrodes.

The chemical synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) by using an environmentally friendly methodology for their preparation is presented. Thus, considering that plants possess components that can act as reducing agents and stabilizers in nanoparticles’ production, the synthesis of Ag-NPs by using an extract aqueous solution of grape stalk waste as a reducing and capping agent is studied. First, the total polyphenols and reducing sugars contained in the produced extracts at different conditions are characterized. After that, Ag-NPs are synthesized regarding the interaction of Ag ions (from silver nitrate) and the grape stalk extract. The effect of temperature, contact time, extract/metal solution volume ratio and pH solution in the synthesis of metal nanoparticles are also studied. Different sets of nanoparticle samples are characterized by means of Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-Ray for qualitative chemical identification. Ag-NPs with an average diameter of 27.7 ± 0.6 nm are selected to proof their suitability for sensing purposes. Finally, screen-printed electrodes modified with Ag-NPs are tested for the simultaneous stripping voltammetric determination of Pb(II) and Cd(II). Results indicate good reproducibility, sensitivity and limits of detection around 2.7 µg L−1 for both metal ions.

Decision table in Rough Set as a new chemometric approach for synthesis optimization: Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots as the example

Decision table (DT) in Rough Set was first proposed as a new chemometric approach for the optimization of synthesis strategy in this work. The fluorescence (FL) performance optimization of Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots was utilized as an example to illustrate the analysis procedure and verify the rationality of DT. Five condition attributes (namely synthesis conditions) were first reduced to be three through the analysis of FL intensity (decision attribute) and attribute reduction of the first DT. Two core attributes were confirmed: the volume ratio of ZnSO4 and Na2S solution, the volume of MnCl2 solution. It was then found that the latter was the most important condition attribute from attribute reduction of the second DT and the optimal synthesis strategy was obtained. The results were then verified by the use of single factor analysis and orthogonal experiment. Finally, it is concluded that the proposed method has the advantages of attribute reduction, core attribute determination and no requirement on evenly distributed conditions despite the need of certain mathematical knowledge. More importantly, it presents superiority for synthesis optimization when handling larger number of condition attributes due to attribute reduction. DT might be a new chemometric approach for the optimization of materials synthesis with multiple factors.

Amine wetting evaluation on hydrophobic silane modified polyvinylidene fluoride/silicoaluminophosphate zeolite membrane for membrane gas absorption

Membrane wetting in membrane gas absorption is undesirable as it reduces the gas transfer in wet pores. This work aims to understand the improvement of membrane hydrophobicity using fluoroalkyl silane and its effects on membrane properties, separation performance and membrane wetting by amine. Polyvinylidene fluoride/silicoaluminophosphate zeolite membranes were prepared using non-solvent induced phase separation technique and then immersed into a mixture of (3,3,3-trifluoropropyl) trimethoxysilane and ethanol solution (volume ratio of 1: 100) for 20 min. The post-modification resulted in a slight improvement of water contact angle and liquid entry pressure. Hence, the highest CO2 absorption flux of 4.48 ± 0.36 × 10−4 mol.m−2. s−1 was achieved using silanated membrane, about 25 % of improvement in comparison to the neat membrane. The absorption flux of humid gas was slightly reduced (-16 %) due to pore wetting. Fluoroalkyl silane could be used to prevent water wetting, resulting improvement of CO2 absorption. The membranes were immersed in diethanolamine solution (2 M) for 50 h before characterization using goniometer, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscope. The incorporation of zeolite reduced membrane wetting because membrane swelling could be prevented. The unfavorable interaction between fluoroalkyl and amine groups induced severe membrane wetting by amine.

Bipolar membrane electrodialysis for the recycling of ammonium chloride wastewater: Membrane selection and process optimization

Here, bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED) with BP-A configuration is employed to convert ammonium chloride wastewater into hydrochloric acid and ammonium hydroxide to overcome the shortcomings of conventional treatment methods First, different commercial anion exchange membranes (TWEDA2, AMV, JAM-II and CJMA-2) and bipolar membranes (BP-1, BPM-I and FBM) were used to conduct the BMED process. Results show that AMV and BPM-I are regarded as the optimum membranes in consideration of process performance, energy consumption and process cost comprehensively. Second, BMED process is optimized by changing current density, initial NH4Cl concentration and initial volume ratio of acid solution and NH4Cl solution. Results indicate that as current density increases from 70 to 90mA/cm2, energy consumption and generated HCl concentration can increase from 1.51 to 2.83 kWh/kg HCl and 2.45 to 2.84mol/L respectively, and the total process cost of 70mA/cm2 is the highest (0.80$/kg HCl); meanwhile, increasing initial NH4Cl concentration can increase energy consumption, generated acid concentration and total process cost; in addition, with the increment of initial volume ratio from 0.5 to 1.0, energy consumption varies between 1.46 and 1.62 kWh/kg HCl and generated acid concentration improves from 1.95 to 2.71mol/L, while total process cost decreases from 0.63 to 0.42$/kg HCl. In short, based on these results, the optimum operation condition is that current density is 80mA/cm2, initial NH4Cl concentration is 1mol/L and initial volume ratio of acid solution and NH4Cl solution is 0.67–0.83.

Solvent-assisted heat treatment for enhanced chemical stability and mechanical strength of meta-aramid nanofibers

Meta-aramid exhibits excellent chemical stability and mechanical strength owing to its rigid crystal structure. However, the crystal structure is destroyed when meta-aramid nanofibers (mANFs) are fabricated by electrospinning, which results in nanofibers with poor performance characteristics. Here, we present a facile solvent-assisted heat treatment for the efficient crystallization of mANFs. The optimal volume ratio of the co-solvent solution was determined to be 6:5:100 (DMAc:ethylene glycol:water), and the optimal crystallization temperature 120 °C. The crystallinity of the mANFs obtained under these optimized conditions (mANF-6-120) is higher than the crystallinity of mANFs heat-treated at 300 °C (mANF-HT). As a result, mANF-6-120 exhibits superior chemical stability and mechanical strength compared to mANF-HT. After immersion in DMAc for 48 h, the weight of mANF-6-120 is reduced to 28% of its original weight, whereas the relative remaining weight of mANF-HT is less than 8%. The value of Young’s modulus of mANF-6-120 is 1.7 times higher than that of mANF-HT. The crystallization process developed in this study requires less energy and is less expensive than the conventional high-temperature heat treatment process. The meta-aramid nanofiber mat obtained using the proposed process shows great promise for application to water purification and the treatment of polluted air.

A Study on DSLM Transporting the Rare Earth Metal La (III) with a Carrier of PC-88A.

This paper studies transmission behavior of La (III) in dispersed supported liquid membrane (DSLM) of dispersed phase constituted by dispersed supported liquid membrane solution and HCl solution with polyvinylidene fluoride membrane (PVDF) as support and kerosene as membrane solvent, with 2-ethyl hexyl phosphonic acid-single-2-ethyl hexyl ester (PC-88A) and two-(2-ethyl hexyl) phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) as mobile carrier. It also investigates the influence of La (III) transmission by the material liquid acidity, initial concentration of La (III), HCI concentration, membrane solution, and HCI solution volume ratio, resolving agent and carrier concentration, as well as concluding that the optimal transmission and separation conditions are dispersed phase of 4.00 mol/L HCl concentration, 30:30 volume ratio of membrane solution, and HCl solution, within 0.160 mol/L controlled carrier concentration and 4.00 pH value of material liquid. Under the optimal conditions, the La (III) initial concentration of material liquid phase is 8.00 × 10–5 mol/L mol/L, 125 min, and 93.9% migration rate. Under the condition of unchanged acidity of resolving phase, HCL, H2SO4, and HNO3 as resolving agent, at 125th min, the migration rates of La (III) are 93.9%, 94.0%, and 87.8%, respectively. HCl solution, H2SO4 solution, and HNO3 solution have a certain effect on the La (III) resolution, of which 4.00 mol/L HCl solution and 2.00 mol/L H2SO4 solution are better. The effect of HNO3 is slightly lower than HCl and H2SO4.

Multiwalled carbon nanotubes incorporated with or without amino groups for aqueous Pb(II) removal: Comparison and mechanism study

A novel amino-functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNTs @SiO2-NH2) was prepared via co-condensation using etraethyl orthosilicate and 3-aminopropyl trimethoxysilane for effective removal of Pb(II) from water. The Pb (II) adsorption efficiencies of MWCNTs and MWCNTs@SiO2-NH2 were compared and the change of morphology features was assessed in batch adsorption experiments. The characterization analysis like XRD, FITR and XPS revealed that amino groups were successfully grafted on the MWCNTs. Adsorption results demonstrated that the best TEOS/APTMS loading ratio was about 10:3 based on their solution volume ratio. Compared to the poor Pb(II) adsorption capacity of pristine MWCNTs, the maximum adsorption capacity of MWCNTs@SiO2-NH2 was greatly improved to 147mg/g after amination treatment. Pb(II) adsorption onto MWCNTs@SiO2-NH2 was strongly pH-dependent and the optimal aqueous pH was about 5. Moreover, the pseudo-second-order kinetics model and Langmuir isotherm model could well describe the Pb(II) adsorption process by MWCNTs@SiO2-NH2. Thermodynamics analysis illustrated that the Pb(II) adsorption was spontaneous and endothermic. FTIR and XPS analysis of MWCNTs@SiO2-NH2 after adsorption demonstrated the complexation between amino groups and Pb(II) played a vital role in the adsorption mechanism. Findings from the present study suggested that successful Pb(II) removal could be achieved using such novel adsorbent composite with optimized process.

Encapsulation of purple corn and blueberry extracts in alginate-pectin hydrogel particles: Impact of processing and storage parameters on encapsulation efficiency

Purple corn (PC) and blueberry (BB) extracts were encapsulated in alginate-pectin hydrogel particles to protect anthocyanins (ACNs) from degradation. Combinations of alginate to pectin ratios at 82 to 18% and 43 to 57% and total gum concentrations (TGC) at 2.2% and 2.8% TGC were prepared to encapsulate both PC and BB ACN. The alginate-pectin hydrogel particles containing PC or BB extracts were produced by dripping solution into pH 1.2 buffer. Blueberry extract encapsulation efficiency was significantly higher than that of purple corn extract due to ACN chemical structure differences and the compatibility between the ACN structures and alginate-pectin hydrogel structure at the low pH environment. Effect of initial ACN concentration in droplets, particle shape, alginate to pectin ratio, TGC, ACN source, and curing bath conditions on encapsulation efficiency after curing (EEm) was investigated. The initial ACN concentration and particle shape didn't influence the EEm, while the alginate to pectin ratio, TGC, ACN source and the pH of the curing bath showed significant effect on the EEm. The EEm was improved from 26% to 65% for PC ACN and from 48% to 116% for BB ACN by augmenting curing bath with ACN at various concentrations. The ACN retention during storage (ARs) in hydrogel particles stored in pH 3.0 buffer was improved at low temperature and high particle weight to solution volume ratio. Higher amount of ACN was retained in the hydrogel particles when spherical particles were used. Encapsulation in hydrogel particles significantly reduced the anthocyanin photodegradation upon exposure to fluorescence light. The degradation of ACN was described with a first-order kinetics with half-life values of 630 h for encapsulated PC ACN and 58 h for PC ACN aqueous solution. Hydrogel production and subsequent storage conditions can be optimized to increase the anthocyanin delivered to human body using the low pH beverages such as fruit juices as a delivery vehicle.

Implementation of Tube Radial Distribution Chromatography by Using a Commercially Available HPLC System.

Tube radial distribution chromatography based on tube radial distribution flow, or annular flow, in an open-tubular capillary has been reported. The chromatographic system requires specific instruments and treatments for microfluidic flow in the capillary tube. In this study, we have developed a new model of tube radial distribution chromatography, which is comprised of a commercially available HPLC system without any packed separation columns. Separation is performed in an open-tubular pipe (100-μm inner diameter and 350-cm length; temperature, 5°C) connected between the pump and the detector in the HPLC system. An analyte solution is introduced with a sample injector (2-μL volume) and a ternary water/acetonitrile/ethyl acetate mixed solution (volume ratio of 3:8:2) is delivered as an eluent solution into the pipe at a flow rate of 10-μL min-1. Fused silica and stainless pipes can separate 1-naphthol and 2,6-naphthalenedisulfonic acid, but a polyetheretherketone pipe cannot. The obtained data provides an important clue to practical developments in separation science.

Efficient extraction and enrichment of rare earth from diluent aqueous solution by organic hollow sphere

Extraction of rare earths from leach aqueous solution by conventional chemical precipitation brings severe amino-nitrogen pollution. In this work, a novel method was developed by organic hollow sphere to extract and enrich Er(III), a model middle-heavy rare earth ion, from diluent aqueous solution. The organic hollow sphere is a core–shell structure, in which the core is composed of gas phase and the shell is a thin layer of organic extractant. The effects of flow rates of gas phase and/or organic extractant on Er(III) extraction rate were investigated. The results demonstrated that the flow rate of gas phase played more important role than that of organic extractant in the extraction rate of Er(III). Accompanied by the achievement of a large volume ratio (1000:1) of aqueous solution to organic extractant, the enrichment ratio (100) of the rare-earth ions could reach a significant level, which is much higher than that by conventional methods. The lower flow rate of organic extractant is more beneficial to Er(III) enrichment. It demonstrates that the newly developed extraction technique in this work is promising, and as a result the development of organic hollow sphere extraction process for the recovery of REs is straightforwardly envisaged.

An Improved Method for Determination of Cyanide Content in Bitter Almond Oil.

An improved colorimetric method for determination of cyanide content in bitter almond oil was developed. The optimal determination parameters were as follows: volume ratio of hydrochloric acid to bitter almond oil (v/v), 1.5:1; holding time for hydrolysis, 120 min; and volume ratio of distillation solution to bitter almond oil (v/v), 8:1. Analytical results showed that the relative standard deviations (SDs) of determinations were less than 10%, which satisfies the test requirements. The results of high-performance liquid chromatography and measurements exhibited a significant correlation (R = 0.9888, SD = 0.2015). Therefore, the improved colorimetric method can be used to determine cyanide content in bitter almond oil.

Effect of MWCNT Filler on Properties and Flux of Chitosan/ PEG based Nanocomposites Membranes

Biopolymer are expected to be environmentally compatible and to have great potential application as membranes material. The chitosan-poly (ethylene glycol)/PEG based composite membranes was successfully synthesized via inversed phase method. The effect of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) as nanofiller on properties and performances of composite membranes were intensively evaluated. The membrane was prepared by mixing of chitosan and PEG solutions at the same composition ratio while MWCNT amount in the mixture was varied. The synthesized membrane was characterized by means of FTIR spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), contact angle, and tensile strength measurement. The performance of composite membrane on filtration was evaluated in term of flux (permeability) and rejection (rejection) tests. The results showed that the optimum volume ratio of composite membrane solution was found at 30:10:7.5 for chitosan/ PEG/ MWCNT, respectively, as indicated by the largest flux. Insertion of MWCNT nanofiller notably enhanced hydrophilicity, porosity, and mechanical properties of composites membranes that are confirmed by contact angle, SEM images and elongation forces value, respectively. The MWCNT nanofiller remarkably increased both of flux and rejection of composite membranes up to 60 Lm2h-1 and 96%, respectively. The remarkable enhancement of composite membrane performance is attributed to the effective interaction of MWCNT with polymeric matrix.

Synthesis of silver nanoparticles mediated by endophytic fungi associated with orchids and its antibacterial activity

Silver nanoaprticles (SNPs) has been known to be one of the promising nanomateirals that demonstrated antimicrobial activity significantly. In this study, 13 endophytic fungi strains were isolated from orchids, Dendrobium nobile, Dendrobium hibiki, and Oncidium altissimum. Two strains namely KDH5 and VDN3B were reported for the synthesis of SNPs by using 1 mM and 10 mM of silver nitrate solutions respectively. The present of SNOs was observed in wavelength ranging from 400 nm to 450 nm corresponding to the plasmon absorbance of SNPs. By applying various volume ratio of silver nitrate solution to fungal extracellular metabolites filtrate (FEMF), the UV-Vis spectrum showed an increasing trend of absorption intensity indicated that the concentration of SNPs synthesized is volume ratio-dependent. Scanning Electron microscopy image showed various diameter of SNPs present and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) quantified the surface composition containing of 41.62 weight percentage of silver element. The antibacterial efficacy of synthesized SNPs was evaluated by Kirby-Bauer and time-dependent growth inhibition assays against several selected pathogenic bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus, Micrococcus luteus, Salmonella Typhi, Enterobacter aerogenes, Serratia marcescens and Escherichia coli. SNPs synthesized by FEMF from KHD5 and VDN3B showed highest effectiveness against E. coli, M. luteus and E. aerogenes at higher volume ratio respectively. Very interestingly, molecular identification proved that KDH5 and VDN3B as the strain of Podosordaria muli and Xylaria feejeensis which both were isolated from Dendrobium sp.

Size controlled fabrication of cellulose nanoparticles for drug delivery applications

Spherically shaped cellulose nanoparticles with average particle diameter range between 70 and 365 nm were fabricated from cotton fibers by a simple nanoprecipitation method. The average particle diameter of cellulose nanoparticles could be precisely controlled by modulating the synthesis conditions such as cellulose solution concentration and volume ratio of solvent/non-solvent. Methylene blue (MB) as a model hydrophilic drug was loaded onto cellulose nanoparticles via the in-situ nanoprecipitation process. The loading efficiency and release profile of MB were observed to be affected by the average particle diameter of cellulose nanoparticles.