Resilient polymeric materials such as silicone elastomers are currently used for maxillofacial prostheses construction but the strength of these materials and their clinical performance need to be optimized with the addition of reinforcing fillers. This study investigates the effect of zirconia nanopowder addition on tear strength, tensile strength, elongation at break, Shore A hardness, surface roughness and cytotoxicity of VST-50 maxillofacial silicone. Silicone base was mixed with different amounts (1%, 2% and 3%) of zirconia nanopowder using a vacuum mixer. Silicone without filler was used as control for comparison. Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy were utilized to assess the efficiency of high-shear vacuum mixing as filler dispersion method and the surface topography, respectively. Both SEM and AFM images showed that the zirconia nanopowder were distributed fairly well within the polymer. Statistically, highly significant increase in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness with non-significant decrease in elongation at break and non-significant increase in surface roughness were seen with 1% and 2% groups. Whereas with 3% group, there was significant improvement in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness but there was significant undesirable decrease in elongation and increase in roughness. Cytotoxicity test revealed that the addition of zirconia nanopowder was nontoxic to Rat Embryonic Fibroblast (REF) cells and there was non-significant change in the cell viability of all study groups after 24- and 72-hours incubation periods. In conclusion, the addition of 2% by weight nano zirconia to VST-50 maxillofacial silicone could be beneficial in enhancing its performance.
The performance grading system (superpave) has provided means to incorporate binder characteristics with
pavement failure types. It’s a comprehensive system that relates climate, traffic conditions and aging with
critical pavement distress. The objective of this paper is to develop an improved asphalt binder grading
system for Iraq based on the principal of superpave. The country was divided into different zones according
to the highest and lowest temperature ranges and traffic loading. The Performance graded binder proposed
for each zone was compared with some States of USA that have same hot weather of Iraq by using Long
Term Pavement Performance (LTPP v3.1) software. Iraqi asphalt samples were tested using the Supe
A colloidal indium oxide (In2O3) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized pulsed laser ablation (PLA) of indium plate placed on the bottom of the quartz vessel containing (3ml) of pure ethanol. The influence laser energy on the properties of the formed nano-particles were characterized by using atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet Visible (UV-Vis) technique, and electrical properties measurements. The XRD revealed the crystallization structure of In2O3 nanoparticles and all the films having preferential orientation along (222) plane and intensity increases with increasing laser energy, The UV–Visible spect
... Show MorePolypyrrole/silver (PPy/Ag) nanocomposites was synthesized via a chemical oxidative method. The AFM analysis is performed to study the surface roughness, morphology and size distribution of the PPy particles and PPy-ag nanocomposites. The results indicated that as the concentration of Ag in the nanocomposite increases, the roughness also increases. The size of nanoparticles was also evaluated and found in the range of 15 nm to 125 nm. The PPy/Ag nanocomposites exhibited an effectiveness against Gram-negative Escherichia coli showing an inhibition zone of 4mm and displayed poor efficacy against Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus. Based on given adequate antibacterial characteristics of PPy/Ag nanocomposites, it can be identified as
... Show MoreBaTiO3 thin films have been deposited on Si (111) and glass substrates by using pulsed laser deposition technique. The films were characterized by using X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscope and optical transmission spectra. The films growth on Si after annealing at 873K showed a polycrystalline nature, and exhibited tetragonal structure, while on glass substrate no growth was noticed at that temperature. UV-VIS transmittance measurements showed that the films are highly transparent in the visible wavelength region and near-infrared region for sample annealing on glass substrate. The optical gap of the film were calculated from the curve of absorption coefficient (αhν) 2 vs. hν and was found tobe 3.6 eV at substrate temperature 5
... Show MoreThis researchs the preparation of particulate polymer composites from Alkyd resin and Iraqi Burn Kaolin which were added as (20%,30%,40%,50%)and comparing with the polymer. It studied Thermal conductivity and Dielectric strength for both of the Alkyd resin and the Composite Material. The result showed an increase in Dielectric strength after adding the Iraqi Burn Kaolin , also the Thermal conductivity was increased by adding the Iraqi Burn Kaolin .
In this work, nanostructure porous silicon surface was prepared using electrochemical etching method under different current densities. I have studied the surface morphology and photoluminescence (PL) of three samples prepared at current densities 20, 30 and 40 mA/cm2 at fixed etching time 10 min. The atomic force microscopy (AFM) images of porous silicon showed that the nanocrystalline silicon pillars and voids over the entire surface has irregular and randomly distributed. Photoluminescence study showed that the emission peaks centered at approximately (600 – 612nm) corresponding energies (2.06 – 2.02eV).
While current-voltage characteristics shows, as the current density increase the current flow in the forward bias is decreasi
The solution casting method was used to prepare a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)/Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) nanocomposite with Graphene (Gr). Field Effect Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) and Fourier Transformer Infrared (FTIR) were used to characterize the surface morphology and optical properties of samples. FESEM images revealed a uniform distribution of graphene within the PVP-MWCNT nanocomposite. The FTIR spectra confirmed the nanocomposite information is successful with apperaring the presence of primary distinct peaks belonging to vibration groups that describe the prepared samples.. Furthermore, found that the DC electrical conductivity of the prepared nanocomposites increases with increasing MWCNT concentratio
... Show MoreThin a-:H films were grown successfully by fabrication of designated ingot followed by evaporation onto glass slides. A range of growth conditions, Ge contents, dopant concentration (Al and As), and substrate temperature, were employed. Stoichiometry of the thin films composition was confirmed using standard surface techniques. The structure of all films was amorphous. Film composition and deposition parameters were investigated for their bearing on film electrical and optical properties. More than one transport mechanism is indicated. It was observed that increasing substrate temperature, Ge contents, and dopant concentration lead to a decrease in the optical energy gap of those films. The role of the deposition conditions on value
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