Organic dots (O-dots) for theranostic applications: preparation and surface engineering

Organic dots is a term used to represent materials including graphene quantum dots and carbon quantum dots because they rely on the presence of other atoms (O, H, and N) for their photoluminescence or fluorescence properties. They generally have a small size (as low as 2.5 nm), and show good photostability under prolonged irradiation. The excitation and emission wavelengths of O-dots can be tailored according to their synthetic procedure, where although their quantum yield is quite low compared with organic dyes, this is partly compensated by their large absorption coefficients. A wide range of strategies have been used to modify the surface of O-dots for passivation, improving their solubility and biocompatibility, and allowing the attachment of targeting moieties and therapeutic cargos. Hybrid nanostructures based on O-dots have been used for theranostic applications, particularly for cancer imaging and therapy. This review covers the synthesis, physics, chemistry, and characterization of O-dots. Their applications cover the prevention of protein fibril formation, and both controlled and targeted drug and gene delivery. Multifunctional therapeutic and imaging platforms have been reported, which combine four or more separate modalities, frequently including photothermal or photodynamic therapy and imaging and drug release. © 2021 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Nonlinear Buckling Analysis of Nano-composite Beam with Initial Geometrical Imperfection using Finite Element Method

In this research, the nonlinear buckling analysis of Functionally Graded (FG) nano-composite beam reinforced by various distributions of Boron Nitrid Nanotube (BNNT) is investigated under electro-thermodynamical loading with considering initial geometrical imperfection. The analysis is performed based on nonlocal elasticity theory and using the Finite Element Method (FEM). Various distributions of BNNT along the beam’s thickness are considered as uniform and decreasing-increasing functionally graded; and the extended mixture model is used to estimate the properties of nano-composite beam. The elastic medium around the smart nano-composite beam is modeled as elastic foundation. The governing equations of equilibrium are derived using energy method and nonlocal elasticity theory; and the critical buckling load is obtained for various boundary conditions such as simply-simply supported (S-S) and clamped-clamped (C-C) using the FEM. The results indicate that with an increase in the geometrical imperfection parameter, the stiffness of nano-composite beam increases and consequently the stability of the system increases. The effect of FG-X distribution type is more than uniform distributions. Also, the critical buckling load of nano-composite beam increases with an increase in the electric field and elastic foundation