Nanocomposite films of silver-polyvinyl alcohol (Ag/PVA) with varying silver nanoparticle concentrations (1-5 wt%) were synthesized via a solution casting technique. The films were characterized by understanding the influence of Ag content on their structural, optical, mechanical, and electrical properties. UV-Vis spectroscopy (300-800 nm) revealed a red shift in absorption peaks and a significant decrease in the optical band gap from 5.39 eV to 1.06 eV with increasing Ag concentration, indicating the formation of additional energy states within the PVA matrix. FTIR and SEM analyses confirmed the successful incorporation of nanoparticles and revealed changes in surface functionalities and morphology. Mechanically, the nanocomposites exhibited enhanced tensile strength, elongation at break, Young’s modulus, and hardness, attributed to a strong interfacial network between the Ag nanoparticles and the PVA chains. The incorporation of Ag also imparted antibacterial properties and increased hydrophobicity. Electrically, the material showed a dramatic improvement in conductivity, achieving a value of 1.5×10⁵ S/cm with just 3 wt% Ag. Furthermore, AC conductivity increased with frequency and Ag content (from 5.8×10⁻⁹ to 1.01×10⁻⁴ S/cm), while the dielectric constant decreased from 0.95 to 0.25 at 1000 kHz, confirming the role of Ag in facilitating charge transport. These findings demonstrate the great potential of Ag/PVA nanocomposites for use in flexible electronics.
In this research, the effect of reinforcing epoxy resin composites with a filler derived from chopped agriculture waste from oil palm (OP). Epoxy/OP composites were formed by dispersing (1, 3, 5, and 10 wt%) OP filler using a high-speed mechanical stirrer utilizing a hand lay-up method. The effect of adding zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles, with an average size of 10-30 nm, with different wt% (1,2,3, and 5wt%) to the epoxy/oil palm composite, on the behavior of an epoxy/oil palm composite was studied with different ratios (1,2,3, and 5wt%) and an average size of 10-30 nm. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectrometry and mechanical properties (tensile, impact, hardness, and wear rate) were used to examine the composites. The
... Show MoreIn this research, the effect of reinforcing epoxy resin composites with a filler derived from chopped agriculture waste from oil palm (OP). Epoxy/OP composites were formed by dispersing (1, 3, 5, and 10 wt%) OP filler using a high-speed mechanical stirrer utilizing a hand lay-up method. The effect of adding zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles, with an average size of 10-30 nm, with different wt% (1,2,3, and 5wt%) to the epoxy/oil palm composite, on the behavior of an epoxy/oil palm composite was studied with different ratios (1,2,3, and 5wt%) and an average size of 10-30 nm. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectrometry and mechanical properties (tensile, impact, hardness, and wear rate) were used to examine the composites. The FTIR
... Show MoreThe aim of this study is to evaluating the antibacterial activity of Laurus nobilis leaves extract on E. coli isolates. Maceration and Soxhlet apparatus were used to prepare aqueous and methanolic extracts; total phenolic content and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) were conducted to determine the active compounds in the extracts. The results showed that both Laurus nobilis methanolic and aqueous extracts have a noticeable effect on scavenging free radicals. Free radical scavenging activity. The total phenolic contents were 28.60 ±0.12 and 16.58 ±0.11mg/g in 50 mg/ml, in methanolic and aqueous extracts respectively. The antibacterial activity of Laurus nobilis leaves extracts showed that the methanolic extract was more effective than
... Show MoreIn this study, (50–110 nm) magnetic iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) nanoparticles were synthesized by pulsed laser ablation of iron target in dimethylformamide (DMF) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) solutions. The structural properties of the synthesized nanoparticles were investigated by using Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, UV–VIS absorption, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The effect of laser fluence on the characteristics of these nanoparticles was studied. Antibacterial activities of iron oxide nanoparticles were tested against Gram-positive; Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative; Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens. The results sh
... Show MoreEighty five samples were taken from patients suffering from pneumonia. Seventy-eight isolates were diagnosed as following: Staphylococcus aureus (23), klebsiella pneumoniae (29), Streptococcus pneumoniae (15), Serratia sp. (4), Haemophilus influenzae (4) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (3). The clinical isolates were tested for antibiotics sensitivity. They appeared highly resistance to penicillin G and Ampicillin at percentage 89.7 and 84.6% respectly while the results showed highly sensitivity to streptomycin at percentege of (12.8%). To study the antibacterial activity of Alium sativum, Eucalyptus microtheca leaves and Cydonia oblonga seeds extracts, five multi resistant strains were used by using agar well diffusion and disk methods at c
... Show MoreA total of nine swab samples were collected from inflamed teeth and gingiva of human’soral cavity from a dentist clinic in Baghdad. All specimens were cultured in Mitis Salivarius agar medium and the isolated bacterial pure colonies werethen identified by using VITEK2. Three samples were diagnosed and identified as Staphylococcus lentus. One of the three isolates which showed a distinctive heavy growth on the media was selected for further analysis in this study. Paper disk diffusion method was used to detect the antibacterial activityof three of mouthwash solutions (Zak, Colgate and Listerine). The results showed that “Colgate†was the most active solution with antibacterial activity compared with the other two s
... Show MoreIn this work, we have investigated optical properties of the thermally evaporation PbS/CdS thin films. The optical constant such as (refractive index n, dielectric constant εi,r and Extinction coefficient κ) of the deposition films were obtained from the analysis of the experimental recorded transmittance spectral data. The optical band gap of PbS/CdS films is calculate from (αhυ)1/2 vs. photon energy curve.