Highly Efficient Antibacterial Polymer Composites Based on Hydrophobic Riboflavin Carbon Polymerized Dots

Development of new types of antimicrobial coatings is of utmost importance due to increasing problems with pathogen transmission from various infectious surfaces to human beings. In this study, new types of highly potent antimicrobial polyurethane composite films encapsulated by hydrophobic riboflavin-based carbon polymer dots are presented. Detailed structural, optical, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic investigations of these composites were conducted. Low-power blue light triggered the composites to eradicate Escherichia coli in 30 min, whereas the same effect toward Staphylococcus aureus was reached after 60 min. These composites also show low toxicity against MRC-5 cells. In this way, RF-CPD composites can be used for sterilization of highly touched objects in the healthcare industry

Bactericidal and antioxidant bacterial cellulose hydrogels doped with chitosan as potential urinary tract infection biomedical agent

Therapy of bacterial urinary tract infections (UTIs) and catheter associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) is still a great challenge because of the resistance of bacteria to nowadays used antibiotics and encrustation of catheters. Bacterial cellulose (BC) as a biocompatible material with a high porosity allows incorporation of different materials in its three dimensional network structure. In this work a low molecular weight chitosan (Chi) polymer is incorporated in BC with different concentrations. Different characterization techniques are used to investigate structural and optical properties of these composites. Radical scavenging activity test shows moderate antioxidant activity of these biocompatible composites whereasin vitrorelease test shows that 13.3% of chitosan is released after 72 h. Antibacterial testing of BC-Chi composites conducted on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria causing UTIs and CAUTIs (Escherichia coli,Pseudomonas aeruginosa,Klebsiella pneumoniae) and encrustation (Proteus mirabilis) show bactericidal effect. The morphology analysis of bacteria after the application of BC-Chi shows that they are flattened with a rough surface, with a tendency to agglomerate and with decreased length and width. All obtained results show that BC-Chi composites might be considered as potential biomedical agents in treatment of UTIs and CAUTIs and as a urinary catheter coating in encrustation prevention

A framework for the integration of green and lean six sigma for superior sustainability performance

Evidence suggests that Lean, Six Sigma and Green approaches make a positive contribution to the economic, social and environmental (i.e. sustainability) performance of organizations. However, evidence also suggests that organizations have found their integration and implementation challenging. The purpose of this research is therefore to present a framework that methodically guides companies through a five stages and sixteen steps process to effectively integrate and implement the Green, Lean and Six Sigma approaches to improve their sustainability performance. To achieve this, a critical review of the existing literature in the subject area was conducted to build a research gap, and subsequently develop the methodological framework proposed. The paper presents the results from the application of the proposed framework in four organizations with different sizes and operating in a diverse range of industries. The results showed that the integration of Lean Six Sigma and Green helped the organizations to averagely reduce their resources consumption from 20% to 40% and minimize the cost of energy and mass streams by 7-12%. The application of the framework should be gradual, the companies should assess their weaknesses and strengths, set priorities, and identify goals for successful implementation. This paper is one of the very first researches that presents a framework to integrate Green and Lean Six Sigma at a factory level, and hence offers the potential to be expanded to multiple factories or even supply chains

Zastosowanie testu obrabialności do intensywnego odkształcenia plastycznego

The aluminium alloy with chemical conception AlMgSi prepared by PM (powder metallurgy) technology was used. The experiments such as a ring and compression test, ECAR (equal channel angular rolling) for determination of friction coefficient, stress-strain curves and material workability based on analytical methods (Freudenthal, Cockcroft-Latham and normalized Cockcroft-Latham criteria) were performed. Numerical simulations of sample processed by ECAR was carried out by a software Deform 3D with focus on the description of stress, strain fields and workability criteria (Cockcroft-Latham and normalized Cockcroft-Latham). The prediction of fracture formations in a real ECAR sample during processing conditions was also done.Stop aluminium o składzie chemicznym AlMgSi przygotowano metodą proszkową. Wykonano badania takie jak próba ściskania swobodnego pierścieni i walcowatych, ECAR (wyciskanie w kanale kątowym z walcowaniem) w celu wyznaczenia współczynnika tarcia, krzywych naprężenie-odkształcenie oraz podatności materiału na odkształcenie z użyciem metod analitycznych (kryterium Freudenthal, Cockcroft-Latham i znormalizowane Cockcroft-Latham). Symulacje numeryczne dla próbki poddawanej procesowi ECAR przeprowadzono przy pomocy oprogramowania Deform 3D z naciskiem na opis pól sił i naprężeń oraz kryteriów obrabialności (Cockcroft-Latham i znormalizowane Cockcroft-Latham). Przeprowadzono również symulacje mozliwości tworzenia się pęknięć w rzeczywistej próbce poddanej procesowi ECAR

Antibacterial activity of 3D printed thermoplastic elastomers doped with carbon quantum dots for biomedical applications

3D printing provides a lot of varieties for the manufacturing of personalized biomedical devices. Incorporation of the nanoparticles with potential antibacterial activity to the printed materials is another added value. One example of such nanoparticles are hydrophobic carbon quantum dots (hCQDs), which are zero-dimensional redox-active materials with high chemical stability and low production costs. They produce singlet oxygen only when activated by a specific wavelength of visible blue light which allows for controlled antibacterial action and minimizes the chances of bacterial resistance emergence. We prepared and characterized polymer composites based on thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) doped with hCQDs (TPE/hCQDs). The composites were 3D printed using fused deposition modeling method. In the first set of samples, a filament of pure TPE was immersed in a solution of hCQDs (0.5 mg/mL), then 3D printed, and compared with unmodified TPE filament. The mechanical properties, swelling behavior, hardness, and thermal stability of TPE/hCQDs were compared with the pure TPE printed samples. The production of singlet oxygen was confirmed by the electron paramagnetic resonance method. The antibacterial activity of the samples was tested according to ISO 22196 against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli after one hour of exposure to blue light, which completely inhibited bacterial growth. Besides, the cytotoxicity of samples was evaluated by MTT assay, and no significant effect of the materials on cell viability was observed. 3D printed materials with antibacterial activity represent a perspective for the future, especially in the field of personalized medicine, as well as in products for other industries

40Ar/Ar30 geochronology of Burdigalian paleobotanical localities in the central Paratethys (south Slovakia)

The Lipovany and Mučín paleobotanical localities contain important floral associations within the tuff horizons, which were used for determination of subtropical to tropical climatic conditions during Early Miocene. Based on the combination of results from plagioclase and biotite 40Ar/39Ar dating, the age of the tuff deposition was around 17.3 Ma. From the Lipovany locality, the plagioclase convergent age is 17.49 ± 0.54 Ma. Biotite convergent age is 17.28 ± 0.06 Ma. The Mučín locality only provide a imprecise convergent age of 16.5 ± 1.4 Ma due to the small size of the plagioclase crystals analyzed. The results thus allowed to include the fossil subtropical flora of the studied localities to the late Ottnangian stage (upper part of the Burdigalian stage). Additionally, they also indicate late Ottnangian-Karpatian deposition age of the Salgótarján Formatio

Colloids of HEA Nanoparticles in an Imidazolium-Based Ionic Liquid Prepared by Magnetron Sputtering: Structural and Magnetic Properties

Colloids consisting of the CoCrCuFeNi high-entropy alloy nanoparticles in ionic liquid with the 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium ([BMIM]+) cation and the tetrafluorborate ([BF4]-) anion were obtained by the DC magnetron sputtering of high-entropy alloy target in vacuum, onto the surface of [BMIM.BF4] ionic liquid. The method of the nanoparticle colloid preparation is based on negligibly small vapour pressure of the ionic liquid, which allows its application in vacuum. The high-entropy alloy nanoparticle colloids were studied by HRTEM microscopy and SQUID magnetometry. Results of the structural and magnetic analyses show that the colloids contain ultra-small single-crystalline nanoparticles of an uneven shape and typical size of (2−3) nm. The nanoparticles have relatively narrow size distribution which is typical for this preparation method. The high-entropy alloy nanocolloids show complex magnetic properties that are a function of temperature, applied magnetic field and mass content of the nanoparticles in the colloids. The obtained results imply significant magnetic interactions between the ionic liquid and the high-entropy alloy nanoparticles