In this work, a novel design for the NiO/TiO2 heterojunction solar cells is presented. Highly-pure nanopowders prepared by dc reactive magnetron sputtering technique were used to form the heterojunctions. The electrical characteristics of the proposed design were compared to those of a conventional thin film heterojunction design prepared by the same technique. A higher efficiency of 300% was achieved by the proposed design. This attempt can be considered as the first to fabricate solar cells from highly-pure nanopowders of two different semiconductors.

This work investigates the properties of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanocomposite films with varying multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) content, ranging from 2 to 8 wt.%. The films were prepared using a solution casting method and characterized using UV-visible spectroscopy, optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and tensile tests. The prepared PVA/MWCNT nanocomposite films exhibited optical band gap values ranging from 3.5 eV to 5.3 eV. XRD analysis confirmed the semi-crystalline nature of these nanocomposites. Mechanical properties, including hardness, yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and Young's modulus, were enhanced by increasing MWCNT content by up to 8%. Contact angle measurements showed an increase in hydrophobicity with in

The root lesion nematode, Pratylenchus neglectus, is one of the most damaging nematodes to affect wheat worldwide. The nematode is widely distributed in Montana, primarily affecting winter wheat within the state. Managing the nematode primarily involves rotation to resistant and moderately resistant crops (peas, lentils, and barley). A nematode survey was conducted across the state nearly 10 years after an initial survey, to reassess the nematode threat and assess the impact of changing trends in crop rotations. To assess the broad applicability of rotation crops to control P. neglectus across Montana, greenhouse trials were conducted to challenge rotational crops using eight populations of P. neglectus collected from geographicall

The preparation of the title compound, C₂₆H₂₅N, was achieved by the condensation of an ethanolic mixture of benzaldehyde, cyclohexanone and ammonium acetate in a 2:1:1 molar ratio. There are two crystallographically independent molecules in the asymmetric unit. The two cyclohexyl rings adopt ananti-envelope conformation with the benzyl moiety adopting acisconformation with respect to the nitrogen atom of the phenanthridine segment. In the crystal, molecules are linked through C—H...N interactions into hydrogen-bonded chains that are further arranged into distinct layers by weak offset π–π interactions.

Copper zinc tin sulfide selenide, Cu2 ZnSn(S1−x Se x)4 , absorbers are promising earth-abundant and environmentally benign materials for low-cost photovoltaic applications. This study investigates the structural and optical properties of Cu 2 ZnSn(S1−x Se x)4 nanostructured thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition using melt-quenched targets with selenium compositions x = 0.0–1.0. X-ray diffraction revealed that films with low selenium content remained amorphous, whereas higher selenium incorporation promoted the formation of polycrystalline kesterite–stannite phases with preferred orientations along (112), (200), (220), and (312). The crystallite size increased from 12.3 to 17.9 nm as selenium reached x = 1.0, indicating enha

 In this work, nanostructure aluminum oxide thin films were deposited on glass substrates using a direct current (DC) magnetic reactive sputtering (MRS) technique. A gaseous mixture of argon and oxygen at different mixing ratios was used to synthesize Al2O3 nanoparticles. After extracting Al2O3 powder from the glass substrate, X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were used to analyze the structural and morphological properties of the synthesized thin films. The effect of deposition time on the spectral properties, as well as on the size of the nanoparticles, was determined.

Liquid-liquid membrane extraction technique, pertraction, using three types of solvents (methyl isobutyl ketone, n-butyl acetate, and n-amyl acetate) was used for recovery of penicillin V from simulated fermentation broth under various operating conditions of pH value (4-6) for feed and (6-8) for receiver phase, time (0-40 min), and agitation speed (300-500 rpm) in a batch laboratory unit system. The optimum conditions for extraction were at pH of 4 for feed, and 8 for receiver phase, rotation speed of 500 rpm, time of 40 min, and solvent of MIBK as membrane, where more than 98% of penicillin was extracted.