Faculty Publications
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Item Synthesis and characterization of novel water soluble derivative of Chitosan as an additive for polysulfone ultrafiltration membrane(2013) Kumar, R.; Isloor, A.M.; A.F., A.F.; Matsuura, T.A novel water soluble Chitosan derivative N-propylphosphonic Chitosan (NPPCS) having a terminal phosphonic acid group was synthesized by reacting Chitosan with Hydroxybenzotriazole (HOBt) and propylphosphonic anhydride (T3P)® via one pot reaction. The novel derivative was characterized by 1H NMR, Attenuated Total Reflectance Infra Red (ATR-IR) spectroscopy and XRD. Due to insolubility of NPPCS in organic solvents, a new process was demonstrated for blending of NPPCS with Polysulfone. The proper blending of NPPCS with Polysulfone was confirmed by ATR-IR spectroscopy. The improved hydrophilicity of PSf/NPPCS membranes was confirmed by contact angle measurement. The permeation studies showed increased flux of PSf/NPPCS membranes as compared to the pristine Polysulfone membrane. The antifouling property of PSf/NPPCS membrane was determined by Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) protein rejection studies. The membranes showed the enhanced antifouling property as compared to pristine Polysulfone membranes with a maximum of 74% flux recovery ratio (FRR) value. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.Item Structure-property relationship of sol-gel electrospun ZnO nanofibers developed for ammonia gas sensing(Academic Press Inc. apjcs@harcourt.com, 2014) Senthil, T.; Anandhan, S.Zinc oxide (ZnO) based nanomaterials have been used in various gas sensors due to the wide band gap (3.37. eV), large exciton binding energy and high mobility of charge carriers of ZnO. In this work, nanocrystalline ZnO nanofiber mats were synthesized through combined sol-gel electrospinning techniques followed by calcination, in which poly(styrene- co-acrylonitrile) and zinc acetate were used as the binder and precursor, respectively. Average diameter of the ZnO nanofibers decreased from 400 to 60. nm, while their grain size and crystallinity were enhanced by increasing the calcination temperature. Morphology and structure of the ZnO nanofiber mats were characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. ZnO nanofiber mats were found to be superhydrophilic (contact angle was close to 0°) by contact angle measurements. The sensitivity of these ZnO nanofibers in detecting gaseous ammonia was tested using an indigenous set up. Due to their high surface area and superhydrophility, these ZnO nanofiber mats were highly sensitive in sensing gaseous ammonia and the sensitivity of these mats increased as a function of their calcination temperatures. © 2014 Elsevier Inc.Item Preparation, characterization and the effect of PANI coated TiO2 nanocomposites on the performance of polysulfone ultrafiltration membranes(Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015) Pereira, V.R.; Isloor, A.M.; Ahmed, A.A.; A.F., A.F.Polysulfone ultrafiltration (UF) membranes with PANI-TiO2 (polyaniline-titania) nanocomposites and PEG 1000 (Polyethylene Glycol 1000) as additives were prepared by the phase inversion method. PANI-TiO2 nanocomposites were synthesized by coating TiO2 nanotubes with PANI via chemical oxidative polymerization. The synthesized PANI-TiO2 nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) analysis. PANI-TiO2 nanocomposites with varying concentrations (0-1.5 wt%) were dispersed in the polysulfone membrane matrix with N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) as solvent along with PEG 1000 as the pore former. The effect of addition of PANI-TiO2 nanocomposites with different concentrations (0-1.5 wt%) on the membrane structure, performance, hydrophilicity and the antifouling nature of the membranes was analyzed. PANI-TiO2 nanocomposite membranes showed better hydrophilicity, improved permeability, enhanced porosity, water uptake and good antifouling ability when compared with neat polysulfone membranes. The performance of the membranes improved with the increase in the addition of the PANI-TiO2 nanocomposite. However, the membrane performance decreased slightly at 1.5 wt% addition of PANI-TiO2 due to the agglomeration of PANI-TiO2 at higher concentration. The well performed membranes were also subjected to heavy metal ion rejection. The membranes showed a rejection of 83.75% and 73.41% during the polymer enhanced ultrafiltration (PEUF) process and a rejection of 68% and 53.78% during the UF process for Pb2+ and Cd2+ respectively. © The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique 2015.Item Probing the morphology and anti-organic fouling behaviour of a polyetherimide membrane modified with hydrophilic organic acids as additives(Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015) Hebbar, R.S.; Isloor, A.M.; A.F., A.F.; Shilton, S.J.; AlObaid, A.; Fun, H.-K.A facile approach for the preparation of an organic antifouling polymer membrane has been developed using low molecular weight organic acids as additives. The presence of these additives in the membrane was analysed by FTIR spectroscopy. The properties of the modified membranes were investigated in terms of contact angle, water uptake capacity, SEM and AFM analysis. These additives exerted a strong impact on the rheological properties of the casting solution, thereby altering the membrane morphology, surface roughness, water flux and the hydrophilicity of the membranes, as compared to those of the pristine polyetherimide (PEI) membrane. The organic antifouling properties of the modified membrane were analysed by filtering both bovine serum albumin (BSA) and humic acid solutions. The results showed that the additives exhibited a remarkable improvement in the antifouling properties (FRR of 72%) and a humic acid rejection of up to 86%. These outcomes offer new insights into the use of cheaper and readily available organic acids as additives, compared to the traditional, synthetic polymer materials as additives in membrane preparation. ©2015 The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.Item Fabrication of a novel hollow fiber membrane decorated with functionalized Fe2O3 nanoparticles: Towards sustainable water treatment and biofouling control(Royal Society of Chemistry, 2017) Hebbar, R.S.; Isloor, A.M.; Kulal, K.; Abdullah, M.S.; A.F., A.F.The development of sustainable, surface-functionalized hollow fiber membranes with advanced nanomaterials has enabled the tailoring and targeted control of their physicochemical properties. This provides the material with improved features of hydrophilicity and permeability, excellent selectivity, and superior antifouling and antimicrobial activity. We explored a new strategy using well dispersed functionalized Fe2O3 nanoparticles to fabricate a polyetherimide nanocomposite hollow fiber membrane with enhanced surface and anti-biofouling properties. To confirm the membrane modification, a series of characterizations such as contact angle, surface energy, water uptake capacity, porosity, zeta potential, and morphological analysis were performed. The permeation experiment indicated superior hydrodynamic permeability and antifouling properties with more than 95% rejection of BSA protein molecules after inclusion of a 1.5 wt% additive dosage. Moreover, the nanocomposite membrane exhibited a relatively higher normalized flux and rejection up to 94% during the filtration of hazardous natural organic matter (NOM) with differing parameters such as the feed solution pH and ionic strength. The presence of modified Fe2O3 nanoparticles in the membrane significantly inhibits the growth of bacteria and other microorganisms on the membrane surface, resulting in an enhanced anti-biofouling property. In particular, the demonstrated method illustrates a fast, facile strategy for the functionalization of Fe2O3 nanoparticles to improve the membrane properties and anti-biofouling activity, giving them great potential for effective and sustainable water treatment applications. © 2017 The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.Item Use of cellulose acetate/polyphenylsulfone derivatives to fabricate ultrafiltration hollow fiber membranes for the removal of arsenic from drinking water(Elsevier B.V., 2019) Kumar, M.; Todeti, S.; Isloor, A.M.; Gnani Peer Mohamed, G.P.S.; Siddique, I.; Ismail, N.I.; A.F., A.F.; Asiri, A.M.Cellulose acetate (CA) and cellulose acetate phthalate (CAP) were used as additives (1 wt%, 3 wt%, and 5 wt%) to prepare polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) hollow fiber membranes. Prepared hollow fiber membranes were characterized by surface morphology using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), surface roughness by atomic force microscopy (AFM), the surface charge of the membrane was analyzed by zeta potential measurement, hydrophilicity by contact angle measurement and the functional groups by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Fouling resistant nature of the prepared hollow fiber membranes was evaluated by bovine serum albumin (BSA) and molecular weight cutoff was investigated using polyethylene glycol (PEG). By total organic carbon (TOC), the percentage rejection of PEG was found to be 14,489 Da. It was found that the hollow fiber membrane prepared by the addition of 5 wt% of CAP in PPSU confirmed increased arsenic removal from water as compared to hollow fiber membrane prepared by 5 wt% of CA in PPSU. The removal percentages of arsenic with CA-5 and CAP-5 hollow fiber membrane was 34% and 41% with arsenic removal permeability was 44.42 L/m2h bar and 40.11 L/m2h bar respectively. The increased pure water permeability for CA-5 and CAP-5 hollow fiber membrane was 61.47 L/m2h bar and 69.60 L/m2 h bar, respectively. © 2019 Elsevier B.V.Item Degradation, wettability and surface characteristics of laser surface modified Mg–Zn–Gd–Nd alloy(Springer, 2020) K.r, R.; Bontha, S.; M.r, R.; Das, M.; Balla, V.K.This work evaluates the effects of laser surface modification on Mg–Zn–Gd–Nd alloy which is a potential biodegradable material for temporary bone implant applications. The laser surface melted (LSM) samples were investigated for microstructure, wettability, surface hardness and in vitro degradation. The microstructural study was carried out using scanning and transmission electron microscopes (SEM, TEM) and the phases present were analyzed using X-ray diffraction. The in vitro degradation behaviour was assessed in hank’s balanced salt solution (HBSS) by immersion corrosion technique and the effect of LSM process parameters on the wettability was analyzed through contact angle measurements. The microstructural examination showed remarkable grain refinement as well as uniform redistribution of intermetallic phases throughout the matrix after LSM. These microstructural changes increased the hardness of LSM samples with an increase in energy density. The wetting behaviour of processed samples showed hydrophilic nature when processed at lower (12.5 and 17.5 J/mm2) and intermediate energy density (22.5 and 25 J/mm2), which can potentially improve cell-materials interaction. The corrosion rate of as cast Mg–Zn–Gd–Nd alloy decreased by ~83% due to LSM. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. © 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.Item Charge-transfer interface of insulating metal-organic frameworks with metallic conduction(Nature Research, 2022) Sindhu, P.; Ananthram, K.S.; Jain, A.; Tarafder, K.; Ballav, N.Downsizing materials into hetero-structured thin film configurations is an important avenue to capture various interfacial phenomena. Metallic conduction at the interfaces of insulating transition metal oxides and organic molecules are notable examples, though, it remained elusive in the domain of coordination polymers including metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). MOFs are comprised of metal centers connected to organic linkers with an extended coordination geometry and potential void space. Poor orbitals overlap often makes these crystalline solids electrical insulators. Herein, we have fabricated hetero-structured thin film of a Mott and a band insulating MOFs via layer-by-layer method. Electrical transport measurements across the thin film evidenced an interfacial metallic conduction. The origin of such an unusual observation was understood by the first-principles density functional theory calculations; specifically, Bader charge analysis revealed significant accumulation and percolation of charge across the interface. We anticipate similar interfacial effects in other rationally designed hetero-structured thin films of MOFs. © 2022, The Author(s).Item Investigating the Wettability, Rheological, and Tribological Properties of Ammonium-Based Protic Ionic Liquids as Neat Lubricants for Steel–Steel and Steel–Aluminium Contacts(Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI), 2023) Depu Kumar Patro, B.; Suvin, P.S.; Kreivaitis, R.; Gumbyte, M.This study aims to evaluate the tribological properties of two protic ionic liquids (PILs) under different tribological conditions as a sustainable alternative for mineral oil-based neat lubricants. The synthesis of PILs in this study uses a relatively simple and less expensive method. The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy results help validate the synthesised PILs’ formation. Further, their physicochemical and tribological properties were investigated. The PILs as neat lubricants were tested on a ball-on-plate reciprocating tribometer using bearing steel–bearing steel and bearing steel–aluminium alloy friction pairs at 30 °C and 80 °C. The results show that the investigated PILs significantly reduced the coefficient of friction and wear. The dodecylamine-based PILs performed better in friction and wear reduction than the other investigated lubricants. The formation of the adsorption layer on the friction pairs was assumed to be the dominant friction and wear reduction mechanism. © 2023 by the authors.Item Insulator-to-metal-like transition in thin films of a biological metal-organic framework(Nature Research, 2023) Sindhu, P.; Ananthram, K.S.; Jain, A.; Tarafder, K.; Ballav, N.Temperature-induced insulator-to-metal transitions (IMTs) where the electrical resistivity can be altered by over tens of orders of magnitude are most often accompanied by structural phase transition in the system. Here, we demonstrate an insulator-to-metal-like transition (IMLT) at 333 K in thin films of a biological metal-organic framework (bio-MOF) which was generated upon an extended coordination of the cystine (dimer of amino acid cysteine) ligand with cupric ion (spin-1/2 system) – without appreciable change in the structure. Bio-MOFs are crystalline porous solids and a subclass of conventional MOFs where physiological functionalities of bio-molecular ligands along with the structural diversity can primarily be utilized for various biomedical applications. MOFs are usually electrical insulators (so as our expectation with bio-MOFs) and can be bestowed with reasonable electrical conductivity by the design. This discovery of electronically driven IMLT opens new opportunities for bio-MOFs, to emerge as strongly correlated reticular materials with thin film device functionalities. © 2023, The Author(s).