Recent Patents on Nanotechnology - Current Issue

Single-Atom Catalysts (SACs) are heterogeneous catalysts that demonstrate exceptional efficiency and selectivity due to the use of individual metal atoms at the atomic scale. The substantial number of patents filed on SACs underscore their commercial and technological importance, highlighting their potential across various industries. SACs are increasingly applied in areas such as energy generation, environmental applications, and chemical synthesis, reflecting their growing scientific and technical importance.

The objective of this study was to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of existing literature on SACs and the use of bibliometric analysis to identify scientific output and topic patterns of research on SACs.

A bibliometric analysis was performed on 488 papers related to SACs, utilizing the Web of Science database of data collection. Analysis of Co-occurrence of keywords, trending research topics, Citation analysis, Publication areas, the five-year record of Publications, and funding sources were examined using VOS viewer, R software, and Microsoft Excel.

The analysis indicates a steady growth in publication on SACs in recent years, with China leading in research output followed closely by the USA. The highlighting of the global impact and the collaborative nature of SAC research. The study reveals a diverse range of applications and emphasizes the increasing scientific and technical focus on this subject.

This study highlights the essential role of SACs in advancing catalytic science and maps key trends, collaborations, and applications within the field. The bibliometric insights provide valuable guidance for the researchers, pointing to potential applications in energy storage, environmental remediation, and sustainable chemical synthesis. Emerging challenges, such as stability, scalability, and the development of new materials, call for further investigation to unlock the full potential of SACs. These insights support future innovation and exploration in the expanding field of SAC research.

Nanosuspension has emerged as an effective, lucrative, and unequalled approach for efficiently elevating the dissolution and bioavailability of aqueous soluble drugs. Diverse challenges persist within this domain, demanding further comprehensive investigation and exploration.

This study aims to design, develop, optimise formulation and process variables, and characterise the stabilised aqueous dissolvable nanosuspension using chlorthalidone as a BCS class-IV drug.

Nanosuspensions of the chlorthalidone drug were prepared using a combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches. Various polymers such as Pluronic L-64, F-68, F-127, and Synperonic F-108 were used as stabilisers in this research. All important processes and formulation variables, such as ultrasonication intensity and time, the concentration of the drug, organic solvent, and stabilisers that may critically influence the characteristics of the nanosuspensions, were optimised. Formulation screening was performed using the optimisation of process and formulation variables, and the optimised nanosuspension formulation was assessed for particle size, PDI, surface charge, morphology, in vitro drug release, and stability.

To select an optimised nanosuspension formulation, the effects of formulation and process variables were investigated. These variables critically influence the development of a stabilised nanosuspension. The outcomes revealed that the nanosuspension formulation containing pluronic F-68 as a stabiliser in 0.6% w/v concentration and the drug in 4 mg/ml concentration were optimized. The particle size and zeta potential of the optimised preparation were 110 nm and -27.5 mV, respectively. The in-vitro drug release of chlorthalidone drug from the optimised nanoformulation was increased up to 3-fold, approximately (88% in 90 min) compared with pure chlorthalidone drug (27% in 90 min) because of the decrease in particle size. Moreover, stability studies indicated that the crafted nanoformulation was stable at cold (4°C) as well as normal room temperature (25°C) for six months.

From the obtained results, it was concluded that the combination of top-down and bottom-up approaches employed for the fabrication of oral nanosuspension is a remunerative and lucrative approach to successfully resolve the perplexities associated with the dissolution rate of poorly aqueous soluble BCS class-IV drug moieties such as chlorthalidone. Moreover, various patents have been granted over this novel technology which have also summarized in the manuscript for the better understanding of readers.

Thin Film Transistors (TFTs) are increasingly prevalent electrical components in display products, ranging from smartphones to diagonal flat panel TVs. The limitations in existing TFT technologies, such as high-temperature processing, carrier mobility, lower ON/OFF ratio, device mobility, and thermal stability, result in the search for new semiconductor materials with superior properties.

The main objective of this present work is to fabricate the efficient Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Thin Film Transistor (TFT) for flat panel display.

Carbon Nano-Tubes (CNTs) are a promising semiconductor material for TFT devices due to their one-dimensional structure and exceptional characteristics. In this research work, the CNT-TFTs have been fabricated using nano-fabrication techniques with a spin process. The fabricated devices have been characterized for structural, morphological, and electrical characteristics.

The 20 µm channel length and 30 µm channel width fabricated device produces about 1.3 nA, which lies in the practical range of operating TFTs reported previously. Compared to reported patents and published works, this demonstrates a significant improvement.

Further guidelines and limitations of this fabrication method are also discussed for future efficient device fabrication.