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.
Objective: Schiff’s and Mannich bases of isatins are an important group of heterocyclic compounds which are of great importance in medicinal chemistry as antimicrobial agents. In the vision of these facts, new bis-Schiff bases and Mannich bases of isatins were synthesized. Methods: Three different bis-Schiff bases (3a-c) have been synthesized by reacting isatin, 5-fluoroisatin and 5-methoxy isatin with thiophene-2- carboxaldehyde using hydrazine hydrate to link between the carbonyl compounds, and then these bis- Schiff bases were condensed with two different secondary amines (piperidine and morpholine) separately, and formaldehyde to form the Mannich bases (4a-c and 5a-f), respectively. Results: The structures of the newly synthesized com
... Show MoreThe objective of the study is developing a procedure for production and characterization of rice husk ash (RHA). The effects of rice husk (RH) amount, burning/cooling conditions combined with stirring on producing of RHA with amorphous silica, highest SiO2, lowest loss on ignition (LOI), uniform particle shape distribution and nano structured size have been studied. It is concluded that the best amount is 20 g RH in 125 ml evaporating dish Porcelain with burning for 2 h at temperature 700 °C combined with cooling three times during burning to produce RHA with amorphous silica, SiO2 90.78% and LOI 1.73%. On the other hand, cooling and stirring times affect the variation of nano structured size and particle shape dis
... Show MoreAluminum oxide (ALO) was grafted by acrylic acid monomer (AlO-AM) and then, it was polymerized to produce alumina grafted poly(acrylic acid) (AlO-AP). The prepared AlO-AM and AlO-AP were characterized by Fourier-transform infrared, differential scanning calorimetry , thermogravemetric analyzer and particle size distribution. Adsorption equilibrium isotherms, adsorption kinetics and thermodynamic studies of the batch adsorption process were used to examine the fundamental adsorption properties of phenol (P) and p-chlorophenol (PCP). The experimental equilibrium adsorption data were analyzed by three widely used two-parameters Langmuir, Freundlich and DubininRadushkevich isotherms. The maximum P and PCP adsorption capacities based on t
... Show MoreKlebsiella pneumoniae are Gram-negative which cause many diseases such as urinary tract infections, respiratory tract infections and septicemia. Inulinase is an enzyme used in food manufacture and pharmaceuticals. Inulinase is used in decreasing lipid ratio and, cholesterol in blood and considered as a prebiotic factor inside intestine. Many microorganisms can produce inulinase, such as yeast, fungi and bacteria; among such bacteria: Bacillus spp., Arthrobacter spp., and Pseudomonas spp. but there are no studies about inulinase production by K. pneumoniae have been reported. So the current study aims at investing the ability of producing and purification inulinase by K. pneumoniae. Method: K. pneumoniae were isolated from many hospitals and
... Show MoreSoft clays are generally characterized by low shear strength, low permeability and high compressibility. An effective method to accelerate consolidation of such soils is to use vertical drains along with vacuum preloading to encourage radial flow of water. In this research numerical modeling of prefabricated vertical drains with vacuum pressure was done to investigate the effect of using vertical drains together with vacuum pressure on the degree of saturation of fully and saturated-unsaturated soft soils. Laboratory experiments were conducted by using a specially-designed large consolidometer cell where a central drain was installed and vacuum pressure was applied. All tests were conducted
... Show MoreThe purpose of this paper is to identifying the relationship between some visual functions and the level of achievement of air rifle shooting among young Iraqi female, and identifying the relationship between some functional variables of the respiratory and nervous systems at the level of achievement of air rifle shooting among young Iraqi female. The researchers used the descriptive approach in the correlative relationships style for its suitability and the research problem. The researchers determined the research community by the intentional method represented by (10) young female shooters who represent the national team with air rifle shooting effectiveness, and who represent (100%) of the research community. One of the most important re
... Show MoreFe, Co and Sb nanopowders were fruitfully prepared by electrical wire explosion method in Double distilled and de-ionized water (DDDW) media. The formation of iron, cobalt and antimony (FeCoSb) alloy nanopowder was monitored by X-ray diffraction. The x-ray diffraction pattern indicates that there are iron, cobalt and antimony peaks. Optical properties of this alloy nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Visible absorption spectra. The absorption peak position is shifted to the lower wavelengths when the current increases. That means the mean size of the nanoparticles controlled by changing the magnitude of the current. The surface morphological analysis is carried out by employing Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Particles with varies
... Show MoreIn this work, samples of Cd2Si1-xGexO4 prepared by powder technology for (x = 0, 0.3, 0.6) were studied. The effect of (Ge) additives at different ratio of Ge (x=0, 0.3, 0.6) on the behavior of dielectric constant, dielectric loss and a,c conductivity were measured as a function of temperature at a selected frequencies (0.01 – 10) MHz in the temperature range 298 K to 473 K. The dielectric constant and dielectric loss obtained different behavior with the additives of (Ge). The activation energy for the electrical conduction process was studied.