Search

Cerium vanadate/modified bentonite (CeVO 4 /mbt) nanocomposite with different composition percentages was synthesized through a simple one-step hydrothermal method at 180 ℃, and then its photocatalytic activity was evaluated by decolorizing methylene blue (MB) in an aqueous solution under light exposure. In order to increase the surface area as an important parameter in photocatalytic processes, bentonite was modified by ball mill method. The structural and optical properties of the synthesized composites were determined by XRD, FT-IR, DRS, FESEM, EDS, and BET measurements. XRD and EDS results confirmed the successful synthesis of pure CeVO 4 . FESEM images and EDS mapping showed a proper distribution of rice-like CeVO 4 nanoparticles on bentonite. The removal efficiency of MB with only 0.1 g of CeVO 4 /mbt nanocomposite in 15 min was about 99%, which is significant compared to neat bentonite and pure CeVO 4 with efficiency of 30% and 57%. The mentioned nanocomposite followed the first-order kinetics, had a reaction rate constant equal to 0.1483 min -1 , and showed acceptable stability in five consecutive cycles., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

In order to improve the desulfurization efficiency of petroleum derivatives, Ce 0.5 Bi 0.5 VO 4 /rGO nanocomposite was synthesized by sonochemical method. The prepared nanocomposites were characterized by XRD, FESEM, EDS, FT-IR, BET, and DRS analyses. XRD analysis shows that the synthesized nanocomposite is amorphous. FESEM images showed that nanostructures with a smaller particle size distribution were synthesized under optimal conditions, i.e. controlling the synthesis temperature between 0 and 5 °C. The results of desulfurization showed that nanocomposites containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO) have higher photocatalytic efficiency than pure samples, the main reason of which can be better charge separation in the samples through the π electron in the rGO structure. The highest amount of desulfurization of CeVO 4 /rGO, BiVO 4 /rGO, and Ce 0.5 Bi 0.5 VO 4 /rGO nanocomposites was 95.62, 91.25, and 96.38%, respectively, after exposure to UV light for 40 min. The enhancement of photocatalytic activity of Ce 0.5 Bi 0.5 VO 4 /rGO composite could be attributed to the efficient separation of electron-hole pairs and the inhibition of recombination. Desulfurization in the presence of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide increased the efficiency by 12%, which is a significant amount., (© 2023. Springer Nature Limited.)

In the present study, the superhydrophobic coating was synthesized by spherical silica nanostructures modified with organosilane compounds for glass surfaces. To optimize the conditions in terms of cost-effectiveness and create a super-hydrophobic coating with a high contact angle, the response surface method of the central composite design (CCD) model was performed for the StÖber method, and the contact angle was defined as the response surface for the model. Tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) was used as a precursor and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) was used to modify the surface of a spherical silica nanostructure synthesized by a one-step sol-gel method using a base catalyst. The accuracy of the research was checked by the contact angle measurement test and an angle of 162° was obtained. XRD, FT-IR, EDS, SEM, DLS, and AFM analyzes were performed to investigate the synthesis of silica nanostructure. Chemical resistance was performed in acidic, neutral, and alkaline environments and the contact angles were 127°, 134°, and 90°, respectively, which indicates that the coating created on the surface glass has good chemical resistance in acidic and neutral environments., (© 2023. This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.)

Three photocatalyst-adsorbents consist of Zn 0.97 Mn 0.03 O, Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O, and Zn 0.92 Mn 0.08 O were synthesized by hydrothermal method and calcined at 800 °C. The structural and optical properties of the sample Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O were characterized by using XRD; TEM; SEM; EDS; DLS; and DRS. The surface of the sample Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O consists of nano-particles (<100 nm) and nano-holes (18.4 nm), also the band-gap of it was obtained 2.89 eV. Adsorption and photo-degradation of methyl orange (MO) dye was investigated in darkness and under visible light irradiation (200 W tungsten). The sample Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O showed the most decolorization efficiency in the shortest time, so that 0.15 g of it adsorbed and destroyed the MO dye molecules (99 ± 1 %) in 40 s under irradiation. The most adsorption capacity of Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O was obtained 30.06 mg/g and the mechanism of the dye adsorption was investigated by using BET analysis and zeta potential. Also the adsorption isotherm and kinetics were calculated for describing the adsorption of MO onto the Zn 0.94 Mn 0.06 O., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Here, we offer an easy and eco-friendly sonochemical pathway to fabricate Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 nanostructures and nanocomposites with the help of Morus nigra extract as a new kind of capping agent. For the first time, the performance of Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 -based ceramic nanostructure materials has been compared upon NO x abatement. Diverse kinds of techniques have been employed to specify purity and check the attributes of the fabricated Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 -based nanostructurs by Morus nigra extract. Outcomes revealed the successful fabrication of Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 nanostructures and nanocomposites applying Morus nigra extract through sonochemical pathway. All nanostructured samples have been fabricated through ultrasonic probe with power of 60 W (18 KHz). Further, the fabricated Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 -based ceramic nanostructure materials can be applied as potential nanocatalysts with appropriate performance for propane-SCR-NO x , since the conversion of NO x to N 2 for the best sample (Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 -ZrO 2 nanocomposite) was 70%. In addition, in case of Nd 2 Zr 2 O 7 -ZrO 2 nanocomposite, the outlet quantity of CO as an unfavorable and unavoidable product was lower than the rest., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this paper, for the first time, composite nanostructures of Cu 2 O-CeO 2 were prepared by a facile and single-step sonochemical method for thiophene photocatalytic oxidative desulfurization. Sonication was performed utilizing a high-intensity ultrasonic probe with a maximum output power of 80 Wcm -3 and operating frequency at 20 kHz. The direct effect of ultrasonic waves on the composition and morphology of the obtained products was also evaluated and it was found that under ultrasonic irradiation, Cu 2 O-CeO 2 can be produced while the main product in the absence of ultrasonic waves is CuO-CeO 2 . Cu 2 O-CeO 2 exhibits much higher photocatalytic efficiency (84%) than CuO-CeO 2 (39%) due to its higher light absorption and electron synergistic effect. The effect of Ce:Cu on photocatalytic efficiency was examined by considering the ratios of 1:0.25, 1:1, 0.5:1, and 0.25:1 and yields of 64, 81, 84, and 76% were obtained, respectively. This indicates that there is an optimal value for the Ce:Cu ratio in the Cu 2 O-CeO 2 nanocomposite., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this paper, doped CeO 2 nanostructures with various percentages of copper were synthesized via a simple sonochemical method. Sonication was conducted using a high-intensity ultrasonic probe operating at 20 kHz with a maximum power output of 80 Wcm -3 . The effects of different parameters such as ultrasonic time and power, solvent, and OH - source on the morphology of final products were well investigated. XRD, EDS, XPS, SEM, TEM, and DRS analyzes were utilized for precise identification of as-synthesized samples. Then, the adsorption capability in the dark and photocatalytic activity of nanostructures under visible light were evaluated for methyl orange degradation. The results showed that doped samples have a very favorable adsorption in the dark and 5 wt% Cu/CeO 2 with flower-like morphology can adsorb more than 99% of the color at 45 min. Also, photocatalytic activity under visible light showed a degradation of more than 81% and 99% for samples 2 wt% Cu/CeO 2 and 5 wt% Cu/CeO 2 , respectively, after 45 min., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This paper reports on the synthesis of Cu/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 nanocomposites via a facile sonochemical-assisted approach using new starting reactants. This study was conducted to synthesis and photocatalytic evaluation of the Cu/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 nanocomposite in vacuum conditions. The XRD results showed that Cu/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 and CuO/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 nanocomposites could be obtained after annealing at 600 °C for 3 h in vacuum conditions and in the air, respectively. The effects of Cu:Zn:Al ratio, ultrasonic irradiation, power, time, and capping agent on the product composition and morphology were also studied. Finally, the efficiency of various as-synthesized Cu/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 nanocomposites for decolorization of methylene blue were evaluated. According to the results, using ultrasonic irradiation and annealing under vacuum, the efficiency is improved up to 100%. Because in this situation Cu/Cu 2 O/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 is formed, which has a better absorption (due to Cu 2 O) and conductivity (due to Cu) than CuO/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 for the photocatalysis process., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Tellurium inherently tends to form 1-D structures and while the 0-D Te nanostructures have better properties and applications in solar cell. In the present study, 0-D Te nanostructures including rice-like and spherical nanoparticles with the particle size of 15-40nm were successfully synthesized via a facile sonochemical method. In the absence of ultrasonic irradiation nanorods were produced while performing the reaction under ultrasonic waves (at 200W for 30min) led to the formation of nanoparticles. Finally, the efficiency of various as-synthesized Te nanostructures in quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) were evaluated. Using rice-like nanoparticles led to increase in J SC , V OC , FF and η parameters from 1.22, 0.54, 0.49 and 0.32% to 1.57, 0.64, 0.63 and 0.63%, respectively, compared with nanorods., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this study, tellurium (Te) nanostructures were synthesized via a facile sonochemical method by reducing TeCl 4 to Te under ultrasonic irradiation in methanol. Moreover, by carrying out the reaction in an alkaline environment TeO 2 nanoparticles were produced. According to our knowledge, it is the first time that without secondary reducing agent Te 4+ are reduced to Te. Also, the effects of ultrasonic power, irradiation time, solvent, and surfactant on the morphology and particle size of Te nanostructures were investigated. The obtained products were characterized by XRD, SEM, EDS, FT-IR and DRS., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In this work, two natural sources, including pomegranate peel extract and cochineal dye were employed for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles. The natural silver complex from pomegranate peel extract resulted in nano-sized structures through solution-phase method, but this method was not efficient for cochineal dye-silver precursor and the as-formed products were highly agglomerated. Therefore, an alternative facile solid-state approach was investigated as for both natural precursors and the results showed successful production of well-dispersed nanoparticles with narrow size distribution for cochineal dye-silver precursor. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM).

Selenium (Se) nanostructures were synthesized by a sonochemical method using SeCl₄ as a new precursor for Se nanostructures. Moreover, hydrazine, potassium borohydride, and thioglycolic acid were used as reducing reagents in aqueous solution. Ultrasonic power, irradiation time, reducing agent, solvent, HCl, NaOH, and the surfactant were changed in order to investigate the effect of preparation parameters on the morphology and particle size of selenium. The obtained Se with different morphologies and sizes was characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, EDS, and DRS. The selenium nanostructures exhibited enhanced photocatalytic activity in the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation. Furthermore, to examine the solar cell application of as-synthesized selenium nanostructure, FTO/TiO₂/Se/Pt-FTO and FTO/Se/CdS/Pt-FTO structures were created by deposited selenium film on top of the TiO₂ layer and FTO glass prepared by Doctor's blade method, respectively., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)