Hany S. Abdo

Antibacterial effect of carbon nanofibers containing Ag nanoparticles

Silver nanoparticles imbedded in polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibers and converted into carbon nanofibers by calcination was obtained in a simple three-step process. The first step involves conversion of silver ions to metallic silver nanoparticles, through reduction of silver nitrate with dilute solution of PAN. The second step involves electrospinning of viscous PAN solution containing silver nanoparticles, thus obtaining PAN nanofibers containing silver nanoparticles. The third step was converting PAN/Ag composites into carbon nanofibers containing silver nanoparticles. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that the diameter of the nanofibers ranged between 200 and 800 nm. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) showed silver nanoparticles dispersed on the surface of the carbon nanofibers. The obtained fiber was fully characterized by measuring and comparing the FTIR spectra and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) diagrams of PAN nanofiber with and without imbedded silver nanoparticles, in order to show the effect of silver nanoparticles on the electrospun fiber properties. The obtained carbon/Ag composites were tested as gram-class-independent antibacterial agent. The electrosorption of different salt solutions with the fabricated carbon/Ag composite film electrodes was studied.

Corrosion Inhibition of Cast Iron in Arabian Gulf Seawater by Two Different Ionic Liquids

In this paper we report on the corrosion inhibition of cast iron in Arabian Gulf seawater by two different ionic liquids namely, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([EMIm]Cl) and 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium chloride ([Py1,4]Cl). The inhibiting influence of the employed ionic liquids was investigated by weight loss, open circuit potential electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic potentiodynamic polarization. The results show the corrosion inhibition impact of the employed ionic liquids (ILs). Compared with [Py1,4]Cl, [EMIm]Cl shows a higher inhibition efficiency at a short immersion time, for the examined ILs concentrations. However, [Py1,4]Cl exhibits a higher efficiency upon increasing the immersion time indicating the persistence of the inhibiting influence. The corrosion inhibition of the employed ionic liquids is attributed to the adsorption of the cations of the ionic liquids onto the surface of cast iron forming a corrosion barrier.

Titanium Carbide Nanofibers-Reinforced Aluminum Compacts, a New Strategy to Enhance Mechanical Properties

TiC nanofibers reinforced Al matrix composites were produced by High Frequency Induction Heat Sintering (HFIHS).The titanium carbide nanofibers with an average diameter of 90 nm are first prepared by electrospinning technique and high temperature calcination process. A composite solution containing polyacrylonitrile and titanium isopropoxide is first electrospun into the nanofibers, which are subsequently stabilized and then calcined to produce the desired TiC nanofibers. The X-ray diffraction pattern and transmission electron microscopy results show that the main phase of the as-synthesized nanofibers is titanium carbide. The TiC nanofibers is then mixed with the aluminum powders and introduced into high frequency induction heat sintering (HFIHS) to produce composites of TiC nanofibers reinforced aluminum matrix. The potential application of the TiC nanofibers reinforced aluminum matrix composites was systematically investigated. 99.5% relative density and around 85 HV (833 MPa) Vickers hardness of the Al reinforced with 5 wt % TiC nanofiber has been obtained. Furthermore, the sample of Al contains 5 wt % TiC, has the highest value of compression and yield strength of about 415 and 350 MPa, respectively. The ductility of the Al/5 wt % TiC showed increasing with increasing the TiC contents.

Corrosion Behavior of Cast Iron in Freely Aerated Stagnant Arabian Gulf Seawater

In this work, the results obtained from studying the corrosion of cast iron in freely aerated stagnant Arabian Gulf seawater (AGS) at room temperature were reported. The study was carried out using weight-loss (WL), cyclic potentiodynamic polarization (CPP), open-circuit potential (OCP), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements and complemented by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) investigations. WL experiments between two and 10 days’ immersion in the test electrolyte indicated that the weight-loss the cast iron increases with increasing the time of immersion. CPP measurements after 1 h and 24 h exposure period showed that the increase of time decreases the corrosion via decreasing the anodic and cathodic currents, as well as decreasing the corrosion current and corrosion rate and increasing the polarization resistance of the cast iron. EIS data confirmed the ones obtained by WL and CPP that the increase of immersion time decreases the corrosion of cast iron by increasing its polarization resistance.

Physical, mechanical, chemical and thermal properties of nanoscale graphene oxide-poly methylmethacrylate composites

The purpose of this laboratory study was to formulate and characterize the graphene oxide-poly(methyl methacrylate) resin composite with an intended use as bone cement. Graphene oxide was fabricated through ultrasonication route. The autopolymerization resin (Eco Cryl Cold, Protechno, Vilamalla Girona, Spain) was used to prepare the specimens of required dimensions for different testing parameters. The control group (C-group) was prepared as such. However, for GO1-group, 0.024 wt/wt.-% of graphene oxide was incorporated in a resin matrix and GO2-group was a composite with 0.048 wt/wt.-% of graphene oxide in a resin matrix. TEM examination of graphene oxide sheets demonstrated them in the range of ∼500 nm to ∼2 µm. The mechanical properties were characterized using three-point bending and wear resistance, while material properties were assessed through transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry and thermo-gravimetric analysis. The results suggest that 0.024 wt/wt.-% and 0.048 wt/wt.-% of loading of GO have no effect on the physiochemical characteristics. However, thermal characteristics might slightly be improved. According to the analysis of variance results (p < 0.05, n = 5), wear resistance and bending strength of both GO1 and GO2 groups significantly improved compared to C-group. The bending strength of GO2 improved to 87.0 ± 7.2 MPa from 65.9 ± 11.5 MPa of C-group. Scanning electron microscopy examination of the fractured surface demonstrated granule like structure where the graphene oxide sheets might be covered inside PMMA. The use of GO-PMMA composites favorably enhances the mechanical properties of bone cement.

Electrical Conductivity Behavior of Biopolymer Composites

Interest in the study of biopolymer system has been continuously growing as a result of a variety of promising applications such as in electronics, medicine, food packaging, bioplastics, and coating. Characteristics such as being electrically conductive, biosafe, renewable, biodegradable, and carbon neutral have made application of biopolymer important in the production of environment friendly products. However, conventional polymer has been reported to have a few limitations in their properties. Biopolymer itself normally is not conductive. Inorganic nanofillers are being added to the biopolymer matrix to enhance its electrical conductivity which greatly differ from the conventional biopolymer and exhibit unexpected properties. Therefore, different types of nanofillers have been produced for this purpose. The effect of the kind of biopolymer base and also filler material on the electronic conductivity of the composite will probably be investigated and reviewed in this work.

Effect of Nickel Content on the Corrosion Resistance of Iron-Nickel Alloys in Concentrated Hydrochloric Acid Pickling Solutions

The effect of Ni content on the resistance against corrosion of Fe-36% Ni and Fe-45% Ni alloys in 1 M hydrochloric acid pickling solution was reported. Various electrochemical and spectroscopic techniques such as potentiodynamic cyclic polarization (CPP), open-circuit potential (OCP), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), potentiostatic current-time (PCT), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) have been employed. CPP measurements indicated that the corrosion current and corrosion rate recorded lower values for the alloy that had higher nickel content. OCP curves proved that the presence of high Ni content shifts the absolute potential to the positive potential direction. EIS results revealed that the surface and polarization resistances were much higher for the alloy with higher Ni content. PCT curves also showed that the absolute currents were lower for Fe-45% Ni alloy. All results were in good agreement with others and confirmed clearly that the corrosion resistance in HCl solutions for Fe-45% Ni alloy was higher than that obtained for Fe-45% Ni alloy.

Processing and Thermal Properties of Multiwall Carbon Nanotube/Bismuth Antimony Telluride Composites for Nuclear Energy Applications

In this work the effects of ball milling and carbon nanotubes incorporation on the thermal conductivities of the bulk BiSbTe composites were evaluated. The coarse BiSbTe particles were obtained by crushing BiSbTe lumps and subsequently high energy ball milling was employed in an inert environment to form the fine BiSbTe powder. Multiwall carbon nanotubes in different (0.0, 0.5 and 1.5) vol. % were uniformly mixed in the BiSbTe powder through a combination of ultra-sonication and ball milling, and then processed by rapid high frequency induction heated sintering (HFIHS) to achieve fully dense nanocomposite. Thermal diffusivity of the composites was evaluated and heat capacity was approximated using Pyrocerarm as a reference material. The effect of carbon nanotubes inclusion and BiSbTe particle size reduction on the thermal conductivity was studied from 300 to 500 K. The results show a significant reduction in the thermal conductivity due to the enhanced thermal boundary interface resistance correlated with the fine microstructure/nanostructure in the composites as compared to pristine bulk bismuth antimony telluride.