The corrosion behavior of certain steels under extremely oxidative conditions, simulating the impact of water radiolysis on stainless steels, has been investigated. Radiolysis generates aggressive species, including radicals, solvated electrons, and hydrogen peroxide, potentially leading to corrosion over time in materials typically considered resistant. To expedite the kinetics of this phenomenon, drastic conditions were employed, involving high concentrations of peroxide in a strongly acidic environment. Under these conditions, corrosion can manifest rapidly. The varied responses of different steels are contingent upon their inherent nature and chemical composition, notably the chromium and nickel content. Steels with higher chromium and nickel concentrations exhibit increased resistance to corrosion, even in such severe environments. Microscopic corrosion mechanisms involve pitting and intergranular corrosion. Pitting results in the formation of craters on surfaces, while intergranular corrosion leads to the detachment of grains.

The poor prognosis of pancreatic cancer requires novel treatment options. This review examines the evolution of radiopharmaceuticals in the treatment of pancreatic cancer. Established strategies such as peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) offer targeted and effective treatment, compared to conventional treatments. However, there are currently no radiopharmaceuticals approved for the treatment of pancreatic cancer in Europe, which requires further research and novel approaches. New radiopharmaceuticals including radiolabeled antibodies, peptides, and nanotechnological approaches are promising in addressing the challenges of pancreatic cancer therapy. These new agents may offer more specific targeting and potentially improve efficacy compared to traditional therapies. Further research is needed to optimize efficacy, address limitations, and explore the overall potential of these new strategies in the treatment of this aggressive and harmful pathology.

Hydrogels represent a versatile class of materials with remarkable potential as three-dimensional matrices for nanoparticle integration. This study explores the mechanism of silver nanoparticle formation within a polyacrylamide–alginate hybrid hydrogel, employing a controlled reduction–oxidation reaction between silver nitrate (AgNO₃) and sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) across a temperature gradient (5–70 °C). Characterization techniques, including Raman, infrared, and UV-Vis spectroscopies, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy, were employed to analyze the structural and optical properties of the nanoparticles and the hydrogel. The results show that, as the temperature rose, nanoparticle numbers decreased, while their size increased. Consistently octahedral in shape and averaging 100–120 nm, these nanoparticles revealed a temperature-dependent growth pattern, with rare larger crystals emerging more frequently at higher temperatures. The findings highlight the potential of hybrid hydrogels as effective matrices for the incorporation of metal nanoparticles, paving the way for applications in drug delivery, biosensing, and antimicrobial treatments.

Hydrogel films are a promising class of materials due to their peculiar property of retaining water as well as responding to external stimuli. In contrast with conventional hydrogels, films provide enhanced responsiveness along with greater compliance to be integrated into devices as well as on surfaces. This review is designed to comprehensively explore the many aspects of hydrogel films. It covers the principles of gelation; preparation methods, such as solvent casting, spin coating, and photolithography; and characterization. This review also presents the most common polymers (both natural and synthetic) utilized for the preparation of the hydrogel, the systems, such as nanoparticles, liposomes and hybrid metal–organic structure, that can be used as additives and the aspects related to the biocompatibility of hydrogels. In the second part, this review discusses the potential applications of hydrogel films and the challenges that still need to be overcome. Particular attention is given to biomedical applications, such as drug delivery, wound healing, and tissue engineering, but environmental and agricultural uses are also explored. Finally, this review presents recent examples of real-world applications of hydrogel films and explores the possibility they have for a wide variety of needs.

Hydrogel films receive significant attention among researchers because they combine increased stimuli responsiveness and faster responses to the already excellent properties of their component materials. However, their preparation is complex and requires that many difficulties are overcome. The present work presents a new study regarding the preparation of pure and nanoparticle-loaded alginate-based films by spin-coating. Two-microliter solutions of sodium alginate and calcium chloride with different concentrations were deposited on a glass substrate and subjected to rapid rotations of between 100 and 1000 RPM. Film formation can be achieved by optimizing the ratio between the viscosity of the solutions, depending on their concentrations and the rotation speed. When these conditions are in the right range, a homogeneous film is obtained, showing good adherence to the substrate and uniform thickness. Films containing silver nanoparticles were prepared, exploiting the reaction between sodium borohydride and silver nitrate. The two reagents were added to the sodium alginate and calcium nitrate solution, respectively. Their concentration is the driving force for the formation of a uniform film: particles of about 50 nm that are well-dispersed throughout the film are obtained using AgNO₃ at 4 mM and NaBH₄ at 2 or 0.2 mM; meanwhile, at higher concentrations, one can also obtain the precipitation of inorganic crystals.

Ag₂MoO₄ crystals were prepared by a precipitation method by mixing parent solutions of silver nitrate and sodium molybdate. The effects of experimental parameters such as temperature, concentration, and pH were studied. The samples were found to be crystalline, pure, and monophasic in all cases, except in the case of very low pH. The precipitation leads to the formation of the cubic phase β and no secondary phase is present within the limits of detection of XRD and Raman spectroscopy. However, in some cases, at high temperature and high pH, silver oxide nanoparticles form on the surfaces of the crystals, which create a fluorescence background in the Raman spectra, which is otherwise absent. Analyses with the electron microscope have highlighted that the most common crystalline shape is octahedral, which is the most prevalent at low temperatures and pH around 7, but others are also possible, in particular at high temperatures. No growth occurs after precipitation, so crystals with different appearances form at the same time.