The root bark extract of the Maerua oblongifolia plant in the green synthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO₂ NPs) for photocatalytic degradation of toxic pollutants and antibacterial activities was implemented in this study. The root bark extract served as a novel capping and reducing agent for the first time. Characterization of the TiO₂ NPs was conducted by using visual observation, ultraviolet visible spectrometry (UV-Vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques, confirming their successful synthesis. The TiO₂ NPs exhibited maximum absorbance at 323 nm and an average particle size of 19.58 nm; the conjugations and existences of Ti-O and OH vibrational bands were revealed by the FTIR spectrum. The photocatalytic activities of the TiO₂ NPs were investigated by using solar irradiation as an energy source for aqueous solutions of methyl orange (MO) and methylene blue (MB) dyes. The TiO₂ NPs showed strong photocatalytic activities by degrading 97.23% MB and 91.8% MO under optimized conditions. Degradation behavior was investigated by isotherms and kinetics models, with the Langmuir isotherms (R²: 0.996, 0.979) and Langmuir–Hinshelwood (R²: 0.998, 0.997) highest correlation coefficients for MB and MO, respectively. Moreover, the antibacterial efficacy of the green-synthesized TiO₂ NPs and the results indicated higher antibacterial activities on Gram-negative bacteria (27 ± 0.52).

We report the phase behavior of amorphous/semicrystalline conjugated polymer blends composed of low bandgap poly[2,6-(4,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl)-4H-cyclopenta [2,1-b;3,4-b′]dithiophene) -alt-4,7(2,1,3-benzothiadiazole)] (PCPDTBT) and poly{(N,N′-bis(2-octyldodecyl)naphthalene -1,4,5,8-bis(dicarboximide)-2,6-diyl)-alt-5,5′-(2,2′-bithiophene)} (P(NDI2OD-T2)). As usual in polymer blends, these two polymers are immiscible because ΔS_m ≈ 0 and ΔH_m > 0, leading to ΔG_m > 0, in which ΔS_m, ΔH_m, and ΔG_m are the entropy, enthalpy, and Gibbs free energy of mixing, respectively. Specifically, the Flory–Huggins interaction parameter (χ) for the PCPDTBT /P(NDI2OD-T2) blend was estimated to be 1.26 at 298.15 K, indicating that the blend was immiscible. When thermally analyzed, the melting and crystallization point depression was observed with increasing PCPDTBT amounts in the blends. In the same vein, the X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns showed that the π-π interactions in P(NDI2OD-T2) lamellae were diminished if PCPDTBT was incorporated into the blends. Finally, the correlation of the solid-liquid phase transition and structural information for the blend system may provide insight for understanding other amorphous/semicrystalline conjugated polymers used as active layers in all-polymer solar cells, although the specific morphology of a film is largely affected by nonequilibrium kinetics.

Phase diagrams of n-type low bandgap poly{(N,N′-bis(2-octyldodecyl)naphthalene -1,4,5,8-bis(dicarboximide)-2,6-diyl)-alt-5,5′,-(2,2′-bithiophene)} (P(NDI2OD-T2)) solutions and blends were constructed. To this end, we employed the Flory–Huggins (FH) lattice theory for qualitatively understanding the phase behavior of P(NDI2OD-T2) solutions as a function of solvent, chlorobenzene, chloroform, and p-xylene. Herein, the polymer–solvent interaction parameter (χ) was obtained from a water contact angle measurement, leading to the solubility parameter. The phase behavior of these P(NDI2OD-T2) solutions showed both liquid–liquid (L–L) and liquid–solid (L–S) phase transitions. However, depending on the solvent, the relative position of the liquid–liquid phase equilibria (LLE) and solid–liquid phase equilibria (SLE) (i.e., two-phase co-existence curves) could be changed drastically, i.e., LLE > SLE, LLE ≈ SLE, and SLE > LLE. Finally, we studied the phase behavior of the polymer–polymer mixture composed of P(NDI2OD-T2) and regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-dyil) (r-reg P3HT), in which the melting transition curve was compared with the theory of melting point depression combined with the FH model. The FH theory describes excellently the melting temperature of the r-reg P3HT/P(NDI2OD-T2) mixture when the entropic contribution to the polymer–polymer interaction parameter (χ = 116.8 K/T − 0.185, dimensionless) was properly accounted for, indicating an increase of entropy by forming a new contact between two different polymer segments. Understanding the phase behavior of the polymer solutions and blends affecting morphologies plays an integral role towards developing polymer optoelectronic devices.

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The sugar industry faces significant challenges in achieving high purity and maximizing yield during production, particularly in the crucial clarification stage. Effective clarifying agents are essential for this process. Activated carbon has emerged as a highly suitable adsorbent for removing impurities from sugarcane juice, due to its strong adsorption capacity. This study focuses on preparing nano activated carbon (NAC) derived from mixed fruit peels for clarifying sugarcane juice. Using Design-Expert software, we optimized the experimental parameters for NAC production, determining the optimal conditions: carbonization at 410 °C for 100 min with an acid impregnation ratio of 1. Under these conditions, the resulting NAC achieved a yield of 74.86%, a fixed carbon content of 89.25 ± 0.38%, and a specific surface area of 650.87 ± 0.26 m² g⁻¹. Characterization by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy revealed that the NAC had an average particle size of 24.46 nm, with a predominant particle size distribution between 20 and 30 nm. The optimization of NAC for cane juice clarification yielded impressive results under optimal conditions: a NAC dose of 0.01%, pH of 4, temperature of 90 °C, duration of 20 min, and agitation speed of 100 rpm, resulting in a turbidity reduction to 1760.6 NTU, a settling rate of 0.09 cm min⁻¹, a mud volume of 6.66 mL per 100 mL, and a color removal efficiency of 97.4%. Additionally, we examined the physicochemical properties of the NAC, the juice posttreatment, and the final sugar product. The findings demonstrate that NAC synthesized from mixed fruit peels exhibits a high carbon yield and a high specific surface area, highlighting its potential as an effective biosorption material. The synthesized NAC demonstrated excellent clarification efficiency, making it an advantageous clarifying agent for sugarcane juice processing and sulfur-free sugar production. This research has significant implications for waste management, particularly in reducing landfill pollution, while also contributing to the development of value-added products that enhance bioresource management.