Evaluation of Antifungal Activity of Ag Nanoparticles Synthetized by Green Chemistry against Fusarium solani and Rhizopus stolonifera.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) have aroused great interest for applications as fungicides in agriculture. This study reports the synthesis of AgNPs by green chemistry using silver nitrate (AgNO3) as the precursor agent and a coriander leaf extract as the reducing agent and surfactant. The evaluation of their antifungal properties was carried out when placed in contact with Fusarium solani and Rhizopus stolonifer phytopathogens. The extract and AgNP characterizations were performed using UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The evaluation of antifungal properties was carried out by exposing the phytopathogens to different concentrations of AgNPs in PDA (Potato Dextrose Agar). It was found that it was possible to identify the presence of flavones and flavonoids in the extract, compounds that were also involved in the synthesis process of AgNPs. In addition, the UV-Vis analysis of the obtained AgNPs by green chemistry showed resonance peaks at around 428 nm. Furthermore, a high distribution of AgNP sizes, with high concentrations of below 100 nm, was identified, according to DLS measurements. Using SEM images, the information provided by DLS was confirmed, and a crystallite size of 29.24 nm was determined with the help of XRD measurements. Finally, when exposing the phytopathogens to the action of AgNPs, it was concluded that, at a concentration of 1 mg/mL AgNPs, their growth was totally inhibited.

Temperature effect in physicochemical and bioactive behavior of biogenic hydroxyapatite obtained from porcine bones.

Biogenic hydroxyapatite (BHAp) is a widely used material in the biomedical area due to its similarities with the bone tissue mineral phase. Several works have been spotlighted on the thermal behavior of bone. However, little research has focused on determining the influence of calcination temperature in the physicochemical and bioactive properties of BHAp. In this work, a study of the physicochemical properties' changes and bioactive response of BHAp produced from porcine femur bones using calcination temperatures between 900 to 1200 °C was conducted. The samples' structural, morphological, and compositional changes were determined using XRD, SEM, and FTIR techniques. XRD results identified three temperature ranges, in which there are structural changes in BHAp samples and the presence of additional phases. Moreover, FTIR results corroborated that B-type substitution is promoted by increasing the heat treatment temperature. Likewise, samples were immersed in a simulated biological fluid (SBF), following the methodology described by Kokubo and using ISO 23317:2014 standard, for 3 and 7 days. FTIR and SEM results determined that the highest reaction velocity was reached for samples above 1000 °C, due to intensity increasing of phosphate and carbonate bands and bone-like apatite morphologies, compared to other temperatures evaluated.

Unveiling a Scaling and Universal Behavior for the Magnetocaloric Effect in Cubic Crystal Structures: A Monte Carlo Simulation.

The magnetocaloric effect and the universal character for the magnetic entropy change regarding the cubic crystal structures (SC, BCC, FCC) were investigated, in a qualitative way, using Monte Carlo simulations. A classical Heisenberg Hamiltonian with nearest neighbors, and next nearest neighbors interactions was implemented. In order to compute the critical temperature of the system depending on the coordination number, it was calculated the dependence of the magnetization and magnetic susceptibility as a function of temperature. Magnetic field dependence on the magnetization for isothermal processes was performed considering a magnetocrystalline anisotropy term. In this way, the magnetic entropy change (ΔSm) was computed. Results show that the rescaled ΔSm as well as the exponent (n) characterizing the field dependence of the magnetic entropy change curves, collapse onto a single curve for the studied crystal structures. By this reason, it can be assured that ΔSm exhibits a universal behavior regarding the strength and contribution of the magnetic exchange energy to the total magnetic energy.

Optimal phase space sampling for Monte Carlo simulations of Heisenberg spin systems.

We present an adaptive algorithm for the optimal phase space sampling in Monte Carlo simulations of 3D Heisenberg spin systems. Based on a golden rule of the Metropolis algorithm which states that an acceptance rate of [Formula: see text] is ideal to efficiently sample the phase space, the algorithm adaptively modifies a cone-based spin update method keeping the acceptance rate close to [Formula: see text]. We have assessed the efficiency of the adaptive algorithm through four different tests and contrasted its performance with that of other common spin update methods. In systems at low and high temperatures and anisotropies, the adaptive algorithm proved to be the most efficient for magnetization reversal and for the convergence to equilibrium of the thermal averages and the coercivity in hysteresis calculations. Thus, the adaptive algorithm can be used to significantly reduce the computational cost in Monte Carlo simulations of 3D Heisenberg spin systems.

Critical and compensation behavior of a mixed spin-5/2 and spin-3/2 Ising antiferromagnetic system in a core/shell nanowire.

In this work, Monte Carlo simulations based on metropolis algorithm were performed to study the critical and compensation temperatures of a core-shell nanowire with spins [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], respectively, considering an Ising antiferromagnetic system. The influence of nearest neighbors exchange interactions and crystal field anisotropy on the critical and compensation behaviors of the system has been analyzed. The effects of the nanowire height in the critical and compensation temperatures were evaluated. The results show that, for a system with given values of exchange interaction constants and crystal field anisotropy, a compensation point only appears if two requirements are satisfied. First, the weight of the core magnetization in the total magnetization must be greater than the weight of the shell magnetization at zero temperature. And second, the exchange constant of shell ions must be greater than a certain value. This value is, at the same time, greater than the exchange constant of core ions. The critical and compensation temperatures are very sensitive to variations in the exchange constant of the shell ions and core ions, respectively, while the crystal field anisotropy affects both temperatures.

Monte Carlo simulation of the hysteresis phenomena on ferromagnetic nanotubes.

In this work the hysteretic properties of single wall ferromagnetic nanotubes were studied. Hysteresis loops were computed on the basis of a classical Heisenberg model involving nearest neighbor interactions and using a Monte Carlo method implemented with a single spin movement Metropolis dynamics. Nanotubes with square and hexagonal unit cells were studied varying their diameter, temperature and magneto-crystalline anisotropy. Effects of the diameter were found stronger in the square unit cell magnetic nanotubes (SMNTs) than in the hexagonal unit cell magnetic nanotubes (HMNTs). The ferromagnetic behavior was observed in SMNTs at higher temperature than in HMNTs. Moreover in both cases, SMNTs and HMNTs, the magneto-crystalline anisotropy in the longitudinal direction showed a linear correspondence with the coercive field.

Magnetic properties of nanocomposites formed by magnetic nanoparticles embedded in a non-magnetic matrix: a simulation approach.

In this work, simulations of magnetic properties of nanocomposites formed by magnetic nanoparticles embedded in a non magnetic matrix are presented. These simulations were carried by means of the Monte Carlo Method and Heisenberg model. Properties as magnetization and Hysteresis loops were obtained varying different parameters as the nanoparticle size, distance between nanoparticles and temperature. The model employed includes interaction between ions belonging to each nanoparticle and also the interaction between nanoparticles. Results show that the magnetization and the coercive force decrease as a function of the nanoparticles distance.