In this study, an improved process was proposed for the synthesis of structure-controlled Cu2O nanoparticles, using a simplified wet chemical method at room temperature. A chemical solution route was established to synthesize Cu2O crystals with various sizes and morphologies. The structure, morphology, and optical properties of Cu2O nanoparticles were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, SEM (scanning electron microscope), and UV-Vis spectroscopy. By adjusting the aqueous mixture solutions of NaOH and NH2OH•HCl, the synthesis of Cu2O crystals with different morphology and size could be realized. Strangely, it was found that the change in the ratio of de-ionized water and NaOH aqueous solution led to the synthesis of Cu2O crystals of different sizes, while the morphology of Cu2O crystals was not affected. The synthesized Cu2O crystal samples were used as photocatalysts for methyl orange (MO) dye decomposition, as a model molecule, to evaluate the photocatalytic activities. However, under 200 watts of a visible light source, there are four samples with and without graphene-based nanocomposite of Cu2O NPs. The results showed that, compared with roughly spherical, irregular but thick plates, brick and small granule spheres shaped Cu2O nanoparticles provided better activity. The Cu2O sample with irregular but thick platelet-like shapes, having an average particle size of 0.53 µm, exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity (99.08% degradation). In addition, by reducing the size of Cu2O particles and preparing their graphene composition, one can fabricate a sample (Cu2-Cu2Gr) with the highest efficiency which has significantly better photocatalytic activity in comparison to the others. This work represents an innovative strategy for pre-the-case production of nanomaterials with shapes and sizes, that is, Cu2O crystals, with excellent photocatalytic activity through compositing with graphene
Background: Measuring implant stability is an important issue in predicting treatment success. Dental implant stability is usually measured through resonance frequency analysis (RFA). Osstell® RFA devices can be used with transducers (Smartpeg™) that correspond to the implants used as well as with transducers designed for application with Penguin® RFA devices (Multipeg™). Aims: This study aims to assess the reliability of a MultiPeg™ transducer with an Osstell® device in measuring dental implant stability. Materials and Methods: Sixteen healthy participants who required dental implant treatment were enrolled in this study. Implant stability was measured by using an Osstell® device with two transducers, namely, Smartpeg™ and M
... Show MoreAryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is a potent ligand for AhR and a known carcinogen. While AhR activation by TCDD leads to significant immunosuppression, how this translates into carcinogenic signal is unclear. Recently, we demonstrated that activation of AhR by TCDD in naïve C57BL6 mice leads to massive induction of myeloid derived-suppressor cells (MDSCs). In the current study, we investigated the role of the gut microbiota in TCDD-mediated MDSC induction. TCDD caused significant alterations in the gut microbiome, such as increases in Prevotella and Lactobacillus, while decreasing Sutterella and Bacteroides. Fecal transplants from TCDD-treated
... Show MoreObjective: To determine the ability of uVDBP to discern SRNS from steroid-sensitive nephrotic syndrome (SSNS) in Iraqi children. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled children with SRNS (n=31) and SSNS (n=32) from the pediatric nephrology clinic of Babylon Hospital for Maternity and Pediatrics over three months. Patients' characteristics in terms of demographics, clinical data, and urinary investigations were collected. Quantitative analysis of uVDBP levels was undertaken via a commercially available ELISA kit. Results: The median uVDBP values were significantly higher (p-value<0.001) in the SRNS group (median=10.26, IQR=5.91 μg/mL) than in the SSNS group (median=0.953, IQR=4.12 μg/mL). A negative correlati
... Show MoreBackground: White-spot lesion is one of the problems associated with the fixed orthodontic treatment. The aims of this in-vitro study were to investigate enamel damage depth on adhesive removal when the adhesive were surrounded by sound, demineralized or demineralized enamel that had been re-mineralized prior to adhesive removal using 10% Nano-Hydroxy apatite and to determine the effect of three different adhesive removal techniques. Materials and methods: Composite resin adhesive (3M Unitek) was bonded to 60 human upper premolars teeth which were randomly divided in to three groups each containing ten sound teeth and ten teeth with demineralized and re-mineralized lesions adjacent to the adhesive. A window of 2 mm was prepared on the bucca
... Show MoreMJ Abbas, AK Hussein, Journal of Physical Education, 2019
Nowadays, most of the on-chip plasmonic single-photon sources emit an unpolarized stream of single photons that demand a subsequent polarizer stage in a practical quantum cryptography system. In this paper, we numerically demonstrated the coupling of the light emitted from a quantum emitter (QE) at 700 nm wavelength to the propagation mode supported by an on-chip hybrid plasmonic waveguide (HPW) polarization rotator. Our results proved that the light emitted is linearly polarized at 0º, 45º/−45º, and 90º with propagation lengths of 5 μm, 3.3 μm, and 3.9 μm, respectively. Moreover, high power-conversion efficiency was obtained from an applied transverse magnetic (TM) mode (0º-polarization) to a transverse electric (TE) (90º-polari
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