Enhanced photocatalytic degradation of nigrosine dye from its aqueous solution using La2Ce2O7 nanoparticles

172-179In the present work, removal of nigrosine dye from its aqueous solution via combined photocatalysis and adsorption has been reported using ternary catalyst lanthanum cerate under visible light. The catalyst has been synthesized by citric acid assisted sol-gel method. XRD graph reveals that the average crystallite size of sample is found to be approximate 4.0 nm having cubic fluorite structure. There is 64.45% oxygen. 17.76% lanthanum and 17.79% cerium atoms present in the material, as observed by EDS result. FESEM results shows that obtained particles are in the form of rice grain shape arranged densely in homogeneous manner. TGA curve shows that there is a evaporation of moisture, nitrate and carbon. Two exothermic peaks are observed at about 170°C and 200°C in the DTA curve. The UV-Visible spectrum gives the band gap of lanthanum cerate and it is 3.0 eV. A spectrophotometer has been used to follow the photocatalytic degradation of nigrosine dye at specific intervals of time. The effect of various parameters such as pH, concentration of dye, photocatalyst dosage and light intensity has been studied on the rate of degradation. A tentative mechanism for degradation of nigrosine has been proposed involving superoxide and hydroperoxyl radicals as main oxidizing species

4,5-Dimethoxy-2-nitrobenzohydrazides and 1-(1-Benzylpiperidin-4-yl)ethan-1-ones as Potential Antioxidant/Cholinergic Endowed Small Molecule Leads

The objective of this research is to generate leads for developing our ultimate poly-active molecules with utility in central nervous system (CNS) diseases. Indeed, poly-active molecules capable of mitigating brain free radical damage while enhancing acetylcholine signaling (via cholinesterase inhibition) are still being sought for combating Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We differentiate “poly-active” agents from “multi-target” ones by defining them as single molecular entities designed to target only specific contributory synergistic pharmacologies in a disease. For instance, in AD, free radicals either initiate or act in synergy with other pharmacologies, leading to disease worsening. For this preliminary report, a total of 14 (i.e., 4,5-dimethoxy-2-nitrobenzohydrazide plus 1-(1-benzylpiperidin-4-yl)ethan-1-one) derivatives were synthesized and screened, in silico and in vitro, for their ability to scavenge free radicals and inhibit acetylcholinesterase (AChE)/butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) enzymes. Overall, six derivatives (4a, 4d, 4e, 4f, 4g, 9b) exhibited potent (\u3e30%) antioxidant properties in the oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay. The antioxidant values were either comparable or more potent than the comparator molecules (ascorbic acid, resveratrol, and trolox). Only three compounds (4d, 9a, 9c) yielded modest AChE/BuChE inhibitions (\u3e10%). Please note that a SciFinder substance data base search confirmed that most of the compounds reported herein are new, except 9a and 9c which are also commercially available

Visible light driven photocatalytic degradation of brilliant green dye using graphene oxide/copper oxide binary composite

157-166In the present work, photocatalytic degradation of brilliant green has been carried out using graphene oxide/copper oxide (GO/CuO) composite as photocatalyst under visible light. GO/CuO composite has been prepared by hydrothermal method. It has been characterized by XRD, FESEM and FT-IR spectroscopy. The rate of degradation of dye has been monitored spectrophotometrically by measuring absorbance of dye after regular time intervals. The effect of various parameters such as pH, concentration of dye, photocatalyst dosage and light intensity on the rate of reaction has been studied. Various parameters like chemical oxygen demand (COD), conductance, pH, TDS, salinity and dissolved oxygen (DO) for the reaction mixture before and after photocatalytic degradation have been determined. Reusability of the synthesized catalyst has also been assessed