The Government College of Science Wahdat Road (GCS) in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan is located along the Wahdat Road in the locality of Allama Iqbal Town (hence its name). The college was founded on 8 August 1973; M. A. Saeed was its first principal.You can search Science Point on YouTube to be on the YouTube channel for Science Students. A.
The regio- and stereoselectivity, molecular mechanism, and catalytic effect of the Lewis acid (LA) AlCl2Et on the Diels-Alder (DA) reaction between methyl 3-hydroxy-2-methylenepentanoate (hydroxy-ester dienophile, HED) 1 and isoprene (IP) 2 were investigated using density functional theory within the framework of Molecular Electron Density Theory (MEDT) at the ωB97X-D/def2-TZVP level. Coordination of the AlCl2Et significantly activates the dienophile HED 1 and lowers the activation energies of the transition state structure (TS), thereby accelerating the DA reaction. The calculated free energy profiles indicate that the reaction preferentially proceeds through the exo pathway, leading to the exo DA adduct as the major product. The high global electron density transfer (GEDT) values obtained from natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis indicate a polar character, while bonding evolution theory (BET) analysis shows that the reaction proceeds through a highly asynchronous one-step bond formation process, with the two C–C bonds forming to different extents at the TS. In addition, a predictive investigation of an alternative HACD 4 shows that this substrate exhibits lower activation barriers than HED 1 in the presence of the AlCl2Et catalyst, suggesting enhanced reactivity for the DA reaction.
Industrial wastewater pollution arising from organic dyes and toxic heavy metal ions represents a serious environmental and public health challenge, demanding sustainable and multifunctional remediation strategies. In this study, NiO-SnO2 nanocomposites (NCs) were synthesized via an eco-friendly green solution combustion route using ground nut powder as a bio-derived fuel and systematically explored for environmental and luminescent applications. The resulting materials were comprehensively characterized using XRD, FT-IR, UV-DRS, SEM, TEM, and PL techniques, confirming their crystalline heterostructure, nanoscale morphology, and visible light activity. Among the different compositions, the 1:0.5 NiO-SnO2 NCs sample demonstrated superior photocatalytic performance toward visible-light-driven Rhodamine B (RdB) dye degrading and hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) reduction, governed by the surface charge near the point of zero charge (pHPZC=8.35). The NiO-SnO2 NCs exhibited excellent reusability across multiple cycles. Beyond, these NCs showed strong photo-luminescence and high colour purity, enabling their application in latent fingerprint detection. This dual functionality illustrates the potential of NiO-SnO2 NCs as eco-friendly, multifunctional materials suitable for both environmental and forensic applications, contributing to sustainable waste management and advanced biometric identification.
Quinoline–chalcone derivatives were synthesized via the Claisen–Schmidt condensation using a base catalyst in methanol at room temperature. The structures of the synthesized compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, mass spectrometry, 1H NMR, and IR spectroscopy. Compounds 5a and 5b exhibited good in vitro antibacterial activity with zones of inhibition ranging from 20 to 21 mm. Among the tested compounds, 5a and 5d demonstrated the strongest antifungal potency. Molecular docking analysis revealed that compound 5a exhibited a glide score of –8.6 kcal/mol, indicating strong binding interactions with the tyrosine kinase domain of the human EGFR protein (PDB ID: 4WKQ). Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed for 100 ns using Desmond software to evaluate the stability and dynamic behavior of the protein–ligand complex for the most potent derivative 5a. In silico ADME analysis predicted a favorable pharmacokinetic profile, suggesting drug-like properties for the synthesized compounds.
Zn2V2O7:Sm (1-9 mol %) Nanoparticles (NPs), denoted as ZV:Sm, are synthesized for the first time using a solution combustion method mediated by Menthaspicata leaves extract. The doping of Sm3+ induces a shift in the hkl planes, indicating alignment with the monoclinic crystal structure and the C2/c(2/m) space group characteristic of the ZV host matrix. Additionally, a transition in surface morphology is noted, transitioning from irregularly shaped nanoparticles to hexagonal ones as the dopant concentration varies. The crystallite size, determined via Scherrer's method, concurs closely with transmission electron microscopy analysis. Moreover, analysis of the UV-Visible absorption spectra using Tauc's plot illustrates a modulation of the optical band gap, shifting from 3.03 to 2.94 eV with increasing dopant concentration. Upon excitation at 300 nm, Sm3+-doped ZV NPs exhibit characteristic spectra which arises due to 4G5/2-6H5/2 and 4G5/2-6H7/2 transition. Through experimentation, the optimal doping content is determined to be 3 mol%, which arises due to dipole dipole transition between the dopant ions and host matrix. CIE coordinates fall well within the orange-red region with increasing dopant concentration, while the average color-coordinated temperature of 3131 K suggests a warmer appearance which finds applications in photography, decorative lighting, public spaces, stage lighting, museums, galleries, etc. Electrochemical studies and Galvanostatic Charge-Discharge (GCD) analysis showed super capacitance values between 93.73 to 150.59 F/g at a scan rate of 10 mV/s, with an increasing dopant concentration, underscoring the material's potential for use in energy storage and display technologies.
Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) is a well-known packaging material; however, its major drawback is the lack of inherent antibacterial properties, which are essential for preventing food spoilage. In the present work, we developed a method to enhance the antibacterial properties of PVA thin films by incorporating nanoparticles (NPs) into the films. Undoped and cobalt (Co)-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were synthesized using PVA as a capping agent. The nanoparticles were prepared via chemical precipitation and microwave-assisted methods, and characterized using UV-Visible spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). The crystallite sizes of the undoped and Co-doped ZnO were found to be 30.6 nm and 22.9 nm, respectively. SEM imaging revealed variations in surface morphology with different concentrations of PVA capping. PVA thin films containing 0.1
