Journal

Stopping, opening, and redirecting fluid flow in paper-based microfluidic devices using thermoresponsive gelatin valves

Abdolali Mehrjou, Seyed Hamid Safiabadi Tali, Mohsen Ghiasi Tarzi, Zubi Sadiq and Sana Jahanshahi-Anbuhi

The advancement of microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (mPADs) toward complex biochemical assays is hindered by the lack of reliable, low-cost fluid-control strategies capable of providing def... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Biodegradable films based on alfalfa cellulosic residue and carrageenan blends for sustainable food packaging

Sandeep Paudel, Srinivas Janaswamy

Plastic remains a dominant packaging material, but its non-biodegradability poses significant environmental and health concerns. Although starches, proteins, and lipids offer biodegradable alternative... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

A Mechanistic, Architecture-Dependent Study Combining Experiments and Molecular Dynamics to Explain AMP Release from GO–PEI Coatings

Adriana de América, María José Fritte, Paola Alarcón, Karel Mena-Ulecia, Gonzalo Recio-Sánchez, Klaus Rischka, Marcos Rocha Diniz Silva, Matheus Santos Dias, Camila Marchetti Maroneze, Cecilia de Carvalho Castro Silva and Jacobo Hernandez-Montelongo

This study investigates two graphene oxide (GO)-based coating architectures on urinary catheter substrates—layered (PEI+GO) and embedded (PEI/GO)—loaded with antimicrobial peptides (E14LKK and fLFB), ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

A dip-and-read capacitive electrochemical sensor for orthophosphate monitoring

Geisianny Moreira, Alex B Shaw, Nafisa Amin, Wei Gao, Debabrata Sahoo and Eric S McLamore

Phosphorus (P) is a finite, essential resource critical for agriculture, yet its unsustainable management through excessive fertilizer application leads to significant environmental degradation, inclu... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Sustainable soyhull-derived cellulose films reinforced with chitosan for improved functional properties

Sumi Regmi , Srinivas Janaswamy

Agro-industrial residues are promising sources of renewable polymers for biodegradable materials; however, their practical application is often limited by inadequate mechanical strength and moisture r... View More

Read Full Article

Journal

Valorization of Wheat Straw Cellulose into Biodegradable Packaging Films for Fresh Produce Preservation

Sharad Bhattarai, Srinivas Janaswamy

The growing environmental impact of petroleum-based plastic packaging has accelerated the development of biodegradable materials from renewable resources. In this study, cellulose extracted from wheat... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Corrosion Resistance and Wettability of Selective Plated Copper-based Coatings Containing Silver Particles

Radostina Yankova, Ivan Rusev, Ina Koleva, Deyan Veselinov

This study investigates the corrosion resistance and wettability of selective plated copper-based coatings incorporating silver particles. The coatings were deposited onto 316L stainless steel substra... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Fully inkjet-printed poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)/graphene electrodes for electroanalytical sensing with pH switchable selectivity

Samuele Scotti, Andreas Lesch

Fully inkjet-printed electrochemical sensors, based on a graphene electrode coated with cross-linked poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm), are presented. The PNIPAAm coating is realized by combined i... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Rheology of Cellulose Nanocrystal and Fumed Silica Suspensions: Influence of Ionic Surfactants

Rajinder Pal, Joshua Richards, Anuva Pal

Nanomaterials such as cellulose nanocrystals and fumed silica are emerging as excellent thickeners for liquids in a variety of practical applications. Surfactants are often incorporated into the thick... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Zein Protein Nanoparticles: Fabrication and Rheology of Their Dispersions in Polysaccharides

Siyi Li, Rajinder Pal

Zein protein nanoparticles are fabricated in two anionic polysaccharides, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and xanthan gum (XG), using the anti-solvent method. The rheological behavior and surface... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Biomaterials with droplet microfluidics

Yangteng Ou (欧阳滕), Zexiang Han (韩泽翔), Shenglin Cai (蔡盛林), Jan R. Heck, Zenon Toprakcioglu, Ziyi Yu (余子夷), David A. Weitz, Tuomas P. J. Knowles

Generating biomaterials with controlled structure, morphology and physicochemical properties is a key enabler of modern bioengineering, with applications in areas ranging from tissue engineering to dr... View More

Read Full Article

Journal

Core–Shell Nanoparticle Additive Enables High-Efficacy Antimicrobial Coatings

Ricardo Ortega; Zhengtao Yang; Serkan Demirci; Tiago A Twedt; Utsav Kumar Dey; Fei Liu; Thamer Sabri M Rawah; Nubia Resende De Macedo; Juan-Carlos Mora-Diaz; Luis G. Gimenez-Lirola; Shan Jiang

Microbial proliferation on surfaces poses a persistent challenge for applications requiring hygienic or sterile environments. Hydantoin-based antimicrobials are attractive N-halamine precursors becaus... View More

Read Full Article

Journal

Do-it-yourself screen printing of electrochemical paper-based analytical devices with water treatment and sandwiched electrodes for amplified signal

Seyed Hamid Safiabadi Tali, Rozhin Saebi, Abdolali Mehrjou, Farzad Mirzaie, Zubi Sadiq, Marc-Antoni Goulet, Sana Jahanshahi-Anbuhi

Electrochemical paper-based analytical devices (ePADs) provide a low-cost, portable, and sensitive platform for diverse analytical applications. While screen printing is widely used for electrode fabr... View More

Read Full Article

Journal

UV Responsive, Bottlebrush Structured Silicone Elastomers: Synthesis, Healing, and Application

Miao Huo, David R. Clarke

A series of bottlebrush silicone elastomers have been synthesized by using a solvent-free process based on hydrosilylation and thiol–ene reactions. The use of thiol-functionalized PDMS effectively sup... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Influence of Added Surfactants on the Rheology and Surface Activity of Polymer Solutions

Rajinder Pal and Chung-Chi Sun

Steady-shear rheology and surface-activity of surfactant-polymer solutions were investigated experimentally. Four different polymers were studied: cationic hydroxyethyl cellulose, non-ionic hydroxyeth... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Influence of Cellulose Nanocrystals and Surfactants on Catastrophic Phase Inversion and Stability of Emulsions

Daniel Kim and Rajinder Pal

This study presents the first quantitative comparison of catastrophic phase inversion behavior of water-in-oil emulsions stabilized by nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) and molecular surfactants with di... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Engineering Asymmetric Nanoscale Vesicles for mRNA and Protein Delivery to Cells

Chenjing Yang, Julian Menge, Nene Zhvania, Miao Yu, Hualiang Yang, Dong Chen, Zongli Zheng, David A. Weitz, Kevin Jahnke

The delivery of therapeutics to cells is crucial for the treatment and prevention of diseases. To enhance targeting and protect therapeutics from degradation, they are often encapsulated in drug deliv... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Fullerene-like amorphous carbon nitride film surface properties and evaluating the initial adsorption kinetics of albumin and fibrinogen

Jason Maley, Mikhail Foursa, Sepehr Khatir, W.J. (Chris) Zhang, Akira Hirose, and Ramaswami Sammynaiken

Fullerene-like amorphous carbon nitride films (FL-CNx) were prepared onto gold substrates by hot-wire plasma graphite sputtering using different %N2 in the Ar plasma discharge. Atomic force microscopy... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Green Valorization of Alfalfa into Sustainable Lignocellulosic Films for Packaging Applications

Sandeep Paudel and Srinivas Janaswamy

Plastic-based materials dominate the packaging industry. However, their non-biodegradability has increased the need for sustainable alternatives. Biopolymers, mainly lignocellulose from agricultural r... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Effect of mechanical instrumentation on titanium implant surface properties

Mohammed Alabbad, Nick Silikas, Andrew Thomas

Objective To assess the impact of mechanical decontamination using rotary brushes on the surface topography, elemental composition, roughness, and wettability of titanium implant surfaces. Methods... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Multifunctional, Flexible, Electrospun Lignin/PLA Micro/Nanofiber Mats from Softwood Kraft, Hardwood Alcell, and Switchgrass CELF Lignin

Dorota B. Szlek, Emily L. Fan and Margaret W. Frey

Herein, biobased 1:1 lignin/polylactic acid (PLA) blends are electrospun into micro- and nanofiber mats. Lignin samples originating from softwood, hardwood, and switchgrass biomass, extracted through ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Steady Shear Rheology and Surface Activity of Polymer-Surfactant Mixtures

Qiran Lu, Rajinder Pal

Understanding the interactions between polymers and surfactants is critical for designing advanced fluid systems used in applications such as enhanced oil recovery, drilling, and chemical processing. ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Fluorophilic boronic acid copolymer surfactant for stabilization of complex emulsion droplets with fluorinated oil

Zhang Wu, Brendan T. Deveney, Jörg G. Werner, Stefano Aime and David A. Weitz

A fluorosurfactant is synthesized by the copolymerization of fluoroacrylate and boronic acid acrylamide monomers to stabilize fluorinated oil droplets. The copolymer surfactant couples with diols or p... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Combinational regenerative inductive effect of bio-adhesive hybrid hydrogels conjugated with hiPSC-derived myofibers and its derived EVs for volumetric muscle regeneration

Jiseong Kim , Myung Chul Lee , Jieun Jeon , Alejandra Rodríguez-delaRosa , Yori Endo , Da-Seul Kim , Andrea Donaxi Madrigal-Salazar , Jeong Wook Seo , Hyeseon Lee , Ki-Tae Kim , Jae-I Moon , Seung Gwa Park , Mariana Carolina Lopez-Pacheco , Abdulhameed F. Alkhateeb , Nebras Sobahi , Nicole Bassous , Wenpeng Liu , Jae Seo Lee , Seongsoo Kim , Dilara Yilmaz Aykut , Mahmoud Lotfi Nasr , Mohammad Asif Hussain , Soo-Hong Lee , Woo-Jin Kim , Olivier Pourquié , Indranil Sinha , Su Ryon Shin

In regenerative medicine, extracellular vesicles (EVs) possess the potential to repair injured cells by delivering modulatory factors. However, the therapeutic effect of EVs in large-scale tissue defe... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Effect of Polymer Concentration on the Rheology and Surface Activity of Cationic Polymer and Anionic Surfactant Mixtures

Chung-Chi Sun and Rajinder Pal

The effects of polymer concentration on rheology, surface tension, and electrical conductivity of polymer–surfactant mixtures are investigated experimentally. The polymer studied is a cationic quatern... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Influence of Surfactants on the Rheological Behavior of Nanocrystal Suspension

Anuva Pal and Rajinder Pal

The influence of surfactants on the steady shear rheology of cellulose nanocrystal (referred to as NCC) suspension was investigated. Two surfactants, anionic sodium lauryl sulfate (referred to as Step... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Plasma Treatment to Remove Titanium Surface Contaminants and Improve Implant Biocompatibility: An In Vitro Study

Kailing Ho, Takahiko Shiba, Chia-Yu Chen and David M. Kim

Plasma technology is an emerging method for implant surface decontamination and modification. This in vitro study evaluates the effects of plasma treatment on fibroblast and osteoblast adhesion, proli... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Development of Portable and Easy-to-Use Chemo/Biosensors

Seyed Hamid Safiabadi Tali

Low-cost, portable, and easy-to-use analytical devices are essential for applications ranging from healthcare and environmental monitoring to biotechnology and forensics. Microfluidic paperbased analy... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Drug Delivery System Based on an Antibacterial Layer-by-Layer Coating on Urinary Catheters: An Experimental and Simulation Approach

Ruth Pulido, Nelson Naveas, Francisco Javier Fernández-Alonso, Miguel Manso-Silván, Leonardo Soriano, Carlos Torres-Ulloa, Karel Mena-Ulecia , Gonzalo Recio-Sánchez, Juan Paulo Garcia-Sandoval and Jacobo Hernández-Montelongo

Urinary catheters (UCs) are critical in biomedical applications, but prolonged use increases the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), a leading cause of healthcare-associated... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Engineering Functional Microcapsules for Controlled Cargo Delivery

Zhang Wu

Microcapsules are a tiny container on the order of 100 μm with a typical structure made of an aqueous core and a solid shell. They are widely used in cargo delivery application because of its unique c... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Engineering chitosan-silk fibroin laminates for use as strong, tough, and biodegradable alternatives to plastic packaging

Chelsea Xia

Plastics are strong, resilient, and lightweight materials that have become essential to modern life. However, the mass production of plastic has also generated 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Membrane performance evaluation and residual fouling characterization in a thermophilic submerged AnMBR treating pulp and paper primary sludge at varying solids retention times

Alnour Bokhary, Mathew Leitch, Baoqiang Liao

Despite being an obvious challenge, residual membrane fouling is often underestimated and insufficiently investigated. Enhanced elucidation of residual fouling is imperative for the development of opt... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Biodegradable films from soyhull cellulosic residue with UV protection and antioxidant properties improve the shelf-life of post-harvested raspberries

Sumi Regmi , Srinivas Janaswamy

Post-harvest loss of fruits and vegetables, and health risks and environmental impact of current plastic packaging warrant new biodegradable packaging. To this end, cellulosic residue from agricultura... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Batch-to-Batch Variation in Laser-Inscribed Graphene (LIG) Electrodes for Electrochemical Sensing

Yifan Tang, Geisianny A. Moreira, Diana Vanegas, Shoumen P. A. Datta, Eric S. McLamore

Laser-inscribed graphene (LIG) is an emerging material for micro-electronic applications and is being used to develop supercapacitors, soft actuators, triboelectric generators, and sensors. The fabric... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Flow and clogging of capillary droplets

Yuxuan Cheng , Benjamin F. Lonial , Shivnag Sista , David J. Meer , Anisa Hofert , Eric R. Weeks , Mark D. Shattuck , Corey S. O'Hern

Capillary droplets form due to surface tension when two immiscible fluids are mixed. We describe the motion of gravity-driven capillary droplets flowing through narrow constrictions and obstacle array... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Corncob-derived biodegradable packaging films: A sustainable solution for raspberry post-harvest preservation

Sandeep Paudel , Srinivas Janaswamy

Plastic food packaging, with its harmful migration of microplastics and nanoplastics into food, presents significant ecological imbalance and human health risks. In this regard, using food and agricul... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Bio-based ski wax: Prototype develoment, hydrophobicity, hardness, biodegradation and glide performance on snow

Skedung Lisa, Almgren Stenberg, Erica Blomberg Saitton, David (Contributor), Hallstenson Karin (Contributor)

Replacing petroleum-based with bio-based ingredients in articles and chemical products is one important step towards reducing the environmental impact, and promoting circular economy practices, aligni... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Influence of Mixed Solvent in the Morphology and Hydrophobicity of Electrospun Polystyrene Porous Fibers

Guilherme Henrique França Melo, Uttandaraman Sundararaj

Electrospun polystyrene (PS) fibers are produced using a mixed solvent of chloroform and n,n-dimethylformamide (DMF) to investigate the influence of the solvent ratio on the fiber surface morphology a... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Rheology finds distinct glass and jamming transitions in emulsions

Cong Cao , Jianshan Liao , Victor Breedveld , Eric R. Weeks

We study the rheology of monodisperse and bidisperse emulsions with various droplet sizes (1–2 μm diameter). Above a critical volume fraction ϕc, these systems exhibit solid-like behavior and a yield ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Development of Eco-Friendly Packaging Films from Soyhull Lignocellulose: Towards Valorizing Agro-Industrial Byproducts

Sumi Regmi, Sandeep Paudel, Srinivas Janaswamy

Due to their inability to biodegrade, petroleum-based plastics pose significant environmental challenges by disrupting aquatic, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems. Additionally, the widespread presenc... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

A Study of the Material Properties of Ski Wax and Friction at the Ski-Snow Interface

Cushman, Lorenz Marie

The historical development of ski wax, aimed at enhancing glide on snow, has lacked a quantitative, scientific understanding of wax material properties and the friction mechanisms at the ski-snow inte... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Novel Antibacterial Resin Coating for Dental Provisional Crowns to Suppress Biofilms and Inhibit Secondary Caries

Ibrahim Ba-Armah, Mohammad Alenizy, Nader Almutairi, Heba Alqarni, Abdullah Alhussein, Radi Masri, Gary D. Hack, Thomas W. Oates, Jirun Sun, Michael D. Weir, Hockin H. K. Xu

Provisional crowns are often used in dentistry for prolonged periods, but bacterial attachment and dental plaque often lead to gingival inflammation and secondary caries. The aims of this research wer... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Temperature-Dependent Performance Analysis of Marketed Low-Fluorinated Nordic Ski Glide Wax

CLARA KRAMER

In the ski industry, the performance mechanisms of ski glide wax are a heavily debated topic. Waxes are applied to the bottom of polymer ski bases to modify the performance properties, oftentimes for ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Polyethylene-based Microfluidic System Approaches to Achieve Adaptive Visible and Thermal Camouflage Applications

Sun, Xiaoruo, University of Alberta

Camouflage represents a critical skill in both nature and combat zones, as it enables concealment from potential threats. With the advancement of visual and infrared-sensitive surveillance equipment, ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Laser Inscribed Graphene Aptasensor for Detection of Apple Stem Pitting Virus

Yifan Tang, Clemson University

Apple stem pitting virus (ASPV) is a latent RNA virus that could cause significant loss to apple production; early-stage field diagnosis could reduce the economic loss caused by ASPV infection. Biosen... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Superhydrophobicity mechanism of refoliated quaking aspen leaves after complete defoliation by LDD (gypsy, spongy) moth caterpillars

Xin Sui , Jason Tam , Harald Keller , Wenyan Liang , Uwe Erb

Complete defoliation of trees due to periodic LDD (Lymantria dispar dispar) moth outbreaks in many parts of the world is a significant stress factor for the survival of individual trees and entire for... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Engineered detection zone to enhance color uniformity on paper microfluidics fabricated via Parafilm®-heating-laser-cutting

Seyed Hamid Safiabadi Tali , Hasti Hajimiri , Zubi Sadiq , Sana Jahanshahi-Anbuhi

In this article, we first report a simple fabrication technique to create Parafilm®-laminated microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (µPADs) with a high resolution and then introduce novel engine... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Effect of Polydopamine-RGD Peptide Coating on the Adhesion of Cultured Fibroblasts on Polymethylmethacrylate Provisional Custom Abutment Materials

Mui Philip, University of Maryland School of Dentistry

Cellular attachment properties of the temporary and prosthetic abutment is one of the important factors for creating optimal peri-implant soft tissue around the implant. Surface modifications appear t... View More

Read Full Article

Thesis

Glassy and Jammed Systems: Structures and Dynamics

Cao, Cong, Emory University

Soft materials are usually composed of basic units much larger than atomic scale. For example, colloids are 10 nm to 10 µm solid particles dispersed in a liquid phase; emulsions consist of two immisci... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Imaging of Non-conducting Beam Sensitive Materials Using Scanning Electron Microscopy: Practical Applications of ESEM and LVSEM

Patel Medhavi Bhavesh, University of Toronto

Non-conducting and beam sensitive materials like polymers are utilized extensively in modern industry. With growing interest in leveraging the capabilities of these materials by optimizing their morph... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Conference Paper

Polymer Interfaces with Small-Scale Biological Systems and the Impact on Sperm Viability

Jeffrey Bates , Kenneth Aston , Benjamin Emery , Ashwin Velraj , Abhishek Pachauri , Parker Toews , Meredith Humphreys

The use of assisted reproductive technologies has become more widely adopted and readily available to couples who struggle with infertility, and the collection of viable sperm samples is critical to t... View More

Read Full Article

Journal

Effect of organic loading rates on the membrane performance of a thermophilic submerged anaerobic membrane bioreactor for primary sludge treatment from a pulp and paper mill

A. Bokhary , M. Leitch , B.Q. Liao

The effect of organic loading rates (OLRs) on membrane performance and mixed-liquor suspended solids (MLSS) properties were examined using a laboratory-scale thermophilic submerged anaerobic membrane ... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Buffer Components Incorporate into the Framework of Polyserotonin Nanoparticles and Films during Synthesis

Keuna Jeon , Justin Andrei Asuncion , Alexander Lucien Corbett , Tiange Yuan , Meera Patel , Nesha May Octavio Andoy , Christian Titus Kreis , Oleksandr Voznyy , Ruby May Arana Sullan

Polyserotonin nanoparticles (PSeNP) and films are bioinspired nanomaterials that have potential in biomedical applications and surface coatings. As studies on polyserotonin (PSe) nanoparticles and fil... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Design and implementation of environment chamber for interfacial phenomenon processes

Gurdeep Saini, York University

With the goal of simulating the environmental conditions necessary for various droplet related phenomenon, a portable environment chamber was built and tested in this thesis. The “House of Quality” de... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Development of a Dual-Modal Microfluidic Paper-Based Analytical Device for the Quantitative and Qualitative Detection of The Total Hardness of Water

Oyewunmi, Oyejide Damilola, Concordia University

A dip-and-read microfluidic paper-based analytical device (μPAD) was developed for the qualitative and quantitative detection of the total hardness of water. To create well-defined hydrophobic barrier... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Thesis

Advanced separation and anaerobic digestion technologies for value-added bioproducts and biofuel from pulp and paper mill wastes

Alnour M. A. Bokhary

In the first research project, the extraction of hemicellulose from the process water and synthetic hydrolyzate using liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) was examined. Specifically, the effects of the main... View More

Read Full Article Analysis

Journal

Dual-Modal Assay Kit for the Qualitative and Quantitative Determination of the Total Water Hardness Using a Permanent Marker Fabricated Microfluidic Paper-Based Analytical Device

Oyejide Damilola Oyewunmi , Seyed Hamid Safiabadi-Tali , Sana Jahanshahi-Anbuhi

A dip-and-read microfluidic paper-based analytical device (µPAD) was developed for the qualitative and quantitative detection of the total hardness of water. To create well-defined hydrophobic barrier... View More

Read Full Article Analysis