Search

The Gd-doped ZnO/SnO2 nanocomposites with various atomic percentages (0, 0.5, 0.8, and 1.2 at%) of gadolinium (coded as GdZS0, GdZS1, GdZS2, and GdZS3) was synthesis via the sol–gel method and explored for photodegradation against dye solutions exposing solar light irradiation. The synthesized nanocomposites were characterized employing the XRD, FTIR, FE-SEM, Raman spectroscopy, BET analysis and UV–Vis spectrophotometer. The FE-SEM results indicated that the formation of nanoparticles to nanoflowers covered with Gd ions was observed with an increased doping concentration of Gd. The optical bandgap was evaluated and found in the range of 3.21–3.27 eV for GdZS nanocomposites. The GdZS nano-photocatalysts were investigated against the degradation of different organic dyes and GdZS3 shows the highest degradation efficiencies of 99.3%, 98.3% and 99.4% towards MO, MB and RhB dyes, respectively at neutral pH in aqueous media. Before and after photodegradation. Biological oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand tests to make estimations of mineralization. The investigations are very promising for the degradation process in rare earth doped metal oxide nanocomposites. A plausible photodegradation mechanism of synthesized nanocomposites under investigation has also been proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noble metal-free nickel manganese oxysulfide (NiMnOS) catalysts were successfully prepared via a facile and eco-friendly approach at a low synthesis temperature of 90 °C in a water bath. The catalysts were synthesized by varying Ni: Mn molar ratios such as 25:75, 50:50, 75:25 and abbreviated as NiMnOS-25, NiMnOS-50, and NiMnOS-75, respectively. The bare NiOS and MnOS were also prepared for comparison purposes. The characterizations of the prepared samples were conducted with different techniques, and the catalytic activity was investigated through the reduction of methylene blue (MB) dye in the presence of NaBH4 in an aqueous solution. Among the prepared catalysts, NiMnOS-25 exhibited excellent performance and reduced 98.46% of MB within 5 min. However, NiOS, NiMnOS-50, NiMnOS-75, and MnOS were reduced 9.6%, 98.41%, 97.04%, and 6.40% of MB dye, respectively, within 7 min. The catalytic reduction activity could be mainly attributed to the synergistic effects of the metals (Ni and Mn), more exposed active sites. Therefore, the bimetal NiMnOS catalyst could be a promising candidate for the reduction of organic dyes in wastewater treatment technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, eco-friendly chitosan-polyvinylpyrrolidone composite (CS-PVP) was synthesized from a facile one-pot reaction at room temperature and characterized using Fourier transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and elemental mapping. Characterization results confirmed the successful synthesis of CS-PVP with rough surface morphology, good crystallinity and good thermal stability with the Tpeak of the first decomposition at 330 °C. Therefore, a batch experiment was carried out in order to remove eosin Y (EY) dye from the aqueous solution using CS-PVP. The effect of initial pH solution, sorbent dose and contact time on the removal efficiency of EY were considered. Result predicted that the adsorption capacity increased with the solution pH decreased from 5 to 3. The maximum adsorption capacity was 77.24 mg/g (98%) at pH solution of 3, adsorbent dose of 0.02 g and 180 min contact time. In addition, the adsorption process of EY was well fitted by the pseudo-first order (PFO) kinetic model and the Freundlich isotherm. The adsorption mechanism of EY using CS-PVP composite can be attributed to the different electrostatic attractions, hydrogen bonding and n–π interaction. The desorption studies of EY dye from the surface of PVP-CS showed that it is reusable. The thermodynamic parameters for adsorption of EY using CS-PVP were calculated and results confirmed that the adsorption is endothermic and spontaneous. This process is simple, low-cost and high effective in organic dye remove using the as-prepared CS-PVP composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, new chitosan Schiff base functionalized malic acid (CS-SB/MA) and its Fe2O3 (CS-SB/MA/Fe) composite were prepared through a simple route and characterized by different techniques including FT-IR, XRD, TGA, DSC, FESEM, and BET. The characterization results indicated that the desired compounds, CS-SB/MA and CS-SB/MA/Fe, were successfully prepared. In addition, the adsorption of Eosin Y (EY) from aqueous solution using the as-prepared compound, CS-SB/MA/Fe, was studied. The influence of important parameters such as pH solution and contact time were also studied and reported. EY adsorption by the as-prepared CS-SB/MA/Fe2O3 composite was found to be optimal at a pH solution of 5, a contact time of 90 min, and an adsorbent dosage of 0.02 g. The maximum removal percentage and adsorption capacity were calculated to be 93.56% and 65.52 mg/g, respectively. The EY adsorption followed by the pseudo-second-order (PSO) kinetic model as a chemisorption process including different interactions between anionic groups of EY and the functional groups of CS-SB/MA/Fe. Therefore, the prepared chitosan-base adsorbent, CS-SB/MA/Fe, has great potential application for the removal of organic dyes from wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sol–gel materials based on SiO2 and TiO2 precursors are attractive as a new platform for planar photonics. Particularly interesting are those based on organically modified silica (ORMOSIL), which may improve the luminescent properties of organic dyes. However, their microstructurization remains a challenge as it requires optimization of various technological stages. Here, we report the structurization of thin layers based on ORMOSIL precursor and titanium(IV) ethoxide (TET) containing luminescent rhodamine B (RhB) dye. Films were fabricated using sol–gel synthesis and dip-coating method. Depending on the time of annealing performed at 200 °C, layers with different thicknesses (300–760 nm) and refractive indices (RI) (1.51–1.68) were obtained. Combining photolithography and wet-chemical etching processes made it possible to fabricate well-separated sol–gel waveguides and discs of different diameters. The etching time in buffered hydrofluoric acid (BHF) affected the depth of the etched luminescent microstructures. Additionally, it was found that a longer layer's annealing time increased the etching selectivity of the substrate over the sol–gel layer. This enabled the obtaining of under-etched sol–gel goblet microstructures. Selected samples were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). UV–Vis photoluminescence measurements showed that long heat treatment also influenced the emission spectrum's shape. The stability of the films under ambient conditions was established using spectroscopic ellipsometry. It was proven that films heat-treated at 200 °C did not change their properties during storage time of around 2 months. Relatively high RI, luminescent properties, and structurization potential make these microstructures interesting for application in integrated photonic devices, e.g., light amplifiers or sensing systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacterial cellulose (BC)/kappa carrageenan (κ-C) hydrogel was synthesized via in-situ method by inoculating the κ-C into the Acetobacter xylinum cell culture medium. The structural features of the hydrogel was characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. The presence of both biopolymers in the hydrogel was confirmed by the O–H stretching of BC at 3390 cm−1 and the sulfate group (-SO3) of κ-C at 1226 cm−1. Scanning electron microscope images of the hydrogel showed A 3-D network of fibrils with high porosity. The enhanced swelling capacity of the hydrogel in water at pH 7 is due to the combined number of hydrophilic groups from BC and κ-C. The conductivity of the hydrogel increased with increasing κ-C due to the increased number of sulfate groups (-SO3). The hydrogel had the ability to adsorb organic dyes; Congo red, Crystal violet and Methylene blue from neutral water at 27 °C. All the dyes fitted the pseudo second order kinetic model and followed both the Langmuir and the Freundlich adsorption isotherms indicating monolayer adsorption on heterogeneous surfaces. The ΔGoad was negative indicating spontaneous physisorption for the three dyes. The prepared hydrogel being environmentally friendly also showed an improved ability to adsorb the organic dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The accuracy of surgery for patients with solid tumors can be greatly improved through fluorescence-guided surgery (FGS). However, existing FGS technologies have limitations due to their low penetration depth and sensitivity/selectivity, which are particularly prevalent in the relatively short imaging window (< 900 nm). A solution to these issues is near-infrared-II (NIR-II) FGS, which benefits from low autofluorescence and scattering under the long imaging window (> 900 nm). However, the inherent self-assembly of organic dyes has led to high accumulation in main organs, resulting in significant background signals and potential long-term toxicity. Methods: We rationalize the donor structure of donor–acceptor-donor-based dyes to control the self-assembly process to form an ultra-small dye nanocluster, thus facilitating renal excretion and minimizing background signals. Results: Our dye nanocluster can not only show clear vessel imaging, tumor and tumor sentinel lymph nodes definition, but also achieve high-performance NIR-II imaging-guided surgery of tumor-positive sentinel lymph nodes. Conclusion: In summary, our study demonstrates that the dye nanocluster-based NIR-II FGS has substantially improved outcomes for radical lymphadenectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polysaccharides are widely represented in plants and bacteria, where they are distinguished by their extraordinary structural diversity and the performance of various functions. To study the functions of polysaccharides, their fluorescent labeling is needed. This review discusses methods for introducing fluorescent labels into polysaccharides by chemical modification of certain functional groups of these complex biopolymers, as well as using the so-called bioorthogonal reactions, which allow labeling in a cell without affecting its viability. In addition to modification with organic dyes, the possibility of using quantum dots and coordination compounds of lanthanides is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photo-Fenton catalysis plays an important role in the degradation of organic pollutants in environmental sewage. In this paper, magnetic 0D/1D ZnFe2O4/ZnCO3 rod-like nanocomposites were fabricated by a simple one-pot solvothermal method, and then the produced magnetic 0D/1D ZnFe2O4/ZnO rod-like nanocomposites were formed via calcination at high temperature. The obtained 0D/1D ZnFe2O4/ZnCO3 has been fully investigated by x-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometry. Furthermore, the photocatalytic Fenton reaction of these two catalysts has been preliminarily evaluated for the degradation performance of organic dyes and antibiotics in wastewater. The results showed that, under visible-light irradiation, the ZnFe2O4/ZnCO3 composite material and its product, ZnFe2O4/ZnO, after high-temperature firing can achieve more than 90% photo-Fenton catalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) and tetracycline (TC) within 30 min, superior to that of ZnFe2O4, ZnCO3 , and ZnO monomers due to their larger specific surface area and more active sites. The magnetization saturation values of ZnFe2O4/ZnCO3-2 and ZnFe2O4/ZnO-2 were, respectively, around 34.20 emu/g and 15.00 emu/g, indicating that both have good magnetic recovery properties. After five cycles of experiments, the photo-Fenton catalytic properties of ZnFe2O4/ZnCO3-2 and ZnFe2O4/ZnO-2 on TC decreased slightly within 30 min, but the Fenton catalytic properties of RhB still maintained more than 98%, indicating that both have good magnetic recovery properties and strong structural stability. A possible photo-Fenton catalytic mechanism has been proposed based on free radical identification, electrochemical impedance spectra, photocurrent curves, and a Mott–Schottky diagram. This study provided two catalysts with excellent performance for the photo-Fenton catalytic degradation of pollutants in water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encapsulating luminescent dyes within delignified wood templates is a promising strategy for developing wood-based composite luminescent materials. However, the interactions between the nanopore structure of delignified wood, the loading efficiency of luminescent dyes, and the resulting luminescent properties of these composites remains unclear. In this study, we developed a series of wood-based luminescent composites using delignified wood templates as a dispersion platform for encapsulating classical organic fluorescent dyes. By extensively exploring the interrelationships among the delignification degree, organic dye loading efficiency, and luminescence properties, we uncovered the influence of delignified wood templates on the luminescent characteristics of wood-based luminescent composites. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the luminescent color could be controlled by encapsulating varying proportions of blue-, green- and red-fluorescent dyes, thus enabling the achievement of full-color fluorescence in wood-based luminescent composites. These wood-based luminescent composites hold great promise for applications in data anti-counterfeiting and light-emitting diode technology, offering valuable theoretical support for the development and utilization of innovative wood-based luminescent composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industries persistently contribute to environmental pollution by releasing a multitude of harmful substances, including organic dyes, which represent a significant hazard to human health. As a result, the demand for effective adsorbents in wastewater treatment technology is steadily increasing so as to mitigate or eradicate these environmental risks. In response to this challenge, we have developed an advanced composite known as MOF-5/Cellulose aerogel, utilizing the Pampas plant as a natural material in the production of cellulose aerogel. Our investigation focused on analyzing the adsorption and flexibility characteristics of this novel composite for organic dye removal. Additionally, we conducted tests to assess the aerogel's reusability and determined that its absorption rate remained consistent, with the adsorption capacity of the MOF-5/cellulose aerogel composite only experiencing a marginal 5% reduction. Characterization of the material was conducted through XRD analysis, revealing the cubic structure of MOF aerogel particles under scanning electron microscopy. Our study unequivocally demonstrates the superior adsorption capabilities of the MOF-5/cellulose aerogel composite, particularly evident in its efficient removal of acid blue dye, as evaluated meticulously using UV–Vis spectrophotometric techniques. Notably, our findings revealed an impressive 96% absorption rate for the anionic dye under acidic pH conditions. Furthermore, the synthesized MOF-5/cellulose aerogel composite exhibited Langmuir isotherm behavior and followed pseudo-second-order kinetics during the absorption process. With its remarkable absorption efficiency, MOF-5/cellulose aerogel composites are poised to emerge as leading adsorbents for water purification and various other applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ionic liquids attached to Bi7O9I3 fibers (located in the space between two fibers) can hold zinc oxide nanoparticles (NPs) well in this space and lead to the creation of a bifunctional nanocatalyst with high power (referred to as IL@Bi7O9I3-ZnO). The environmentally friendly and promising approach of photocatalytic degradation of organic dye residues serves as a means to address challenges that pose a threat to life forms. Here, an extremely effective Z-scheme heterojunction light-driven catalyst was deliberately formulated, constructed, and effectively employed for the eradication of erythrosine, methyl violet, and eriochrome black T. The outcomes acquired from the study revealed that the quantity of ZnO quantum dots directly impacts the degradation yield. The incorporation of quantum dots within the light-driven catalyst structure resulted in an enhancement in light-harvesting capability, charge transfer efficiency, and electron transfer rate. The evaluation of catalyst activity encompassed an examination of different elements in the catalyst used for producing and eliminating natural dyes. A prudent method has been suggested to optimize the collaboration between the Bi7O9I3 and ZnO groups at the nanoparticle locations on the catalyst, allowing for its recovery and subsequent reuse without any significant loss in reactivity for a minimum of ten successive cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: The world's energy and environmental requirements are changing due to rapid population growth and industrial growth, and solar cells can be used to meet these demands. Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are solar cells in which energy conversion occurs via a process similar to photosynthesis in plants. DSSC development is still in its infancy. DSSCs can operate under cloudy conditions and indirect sunlight and have attracted considerable attention due to their low cost and high efficiency. We designed two metal-free TPA-based dyes (Dye2 and Dye3) based on the reference dye Mg207 (Dye1) by increasing the donor strength of the molecule, as such dyes have shown enhanced efficiency in DSSCs. Moreover, the triphenylamine (TPA) moiety has been demonstrated to be a good donor that prevents charge recombination. Intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) from the donor to acceptor moiety was found in the sensitizers, and electrons were promoted to the conduction band (CB) of the TiO2 semiconductor. The negative binding energy of the dye@TiO2 clusters indicated that dye adsorption on the semiconductor surface was stable. The double donor increased the electron injection and electronic coupling constants in Dye2 and Dye3, indicating that these newly designed dyes have superior charge injection capacity. Accordingly, the efficiencies of DSSCs with Dye2 and Dye3 were 9.77% and 9.62%, respectively, and substitution with the TPA unit at the -R1 and -R2 positions in Dye1 resulted in better power conversion compared to the parent compound (9.09%). Increased donor strength improved photovoltaic performance by increasing current density and light-harvesting efficiency. This is a good molecular design approach for preparing targeted donor- π -acceptor (D- π -A) organic dyes with high DSSC efficiency. Methods: To predict the charge transport and optoelectronic characteristics of the TPA dyes, quantum chemical calculations were carried out using Gaussian16. The ground-state (S0) optimized geometries of the sensitizers were computed by utilizing DFT at the B3LYP/6-31G** level. The absorption spectra (λ max) were computed by employing TD-DFT with various functionals (B3LYP, PBE1PBE, CAM-B3LYP, and BHandHLYP) in the gas and solvent (DCM) phases. Among the studied functionals, BHandHLYP was found to be best at successfully reproducing the experimental data. Thus, the absorption spectra of the newly designed dyes and dye@TiO2 were calculated at the BHandHLYP/6-31G** level. The dye@TiO2 cluster optimizations were carried out at the B3LYP/6-31G**(LANL2DZ) level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles with diverse morphologies were synthesized using an economical and environmentally friendly co-precipitation method. The samples underwent characterization through X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive spectra analysis. The photocatalytic degradation capabilities of the synthesized samples were assessed using organic dyes and antibiotics as model pollutants. SEM images revealed nanospheres, nanorods, and nanotubes structures of ZnO under three distinct conditions. The average crystallite sizes of hexagonal wurtzite ZnO samples were determined using Debye–Scherrer's formula from the full width at half maximum of XRD peaks, resulting in sizes of 52.80, 57.23, and 78.02 nm for ZnO nanospheres (ZnO-S), ZnO nanotubes (ZnO-T), and ZnO nanorods (ZnO-R), respectively. The optical band gap energies were measured at 3.25, 3.26, and 3.28 eV for ZnO-S, ZnO-T, and ZnO-R, respectively, demonstrating lower values compared to bulk ZnO (3.37 eV). Photocatalytic efficiency assessment using methylene blue indicated that ZnO-S exhibited the highest degradation efficiency (98.64%), followed by ZnO-T (97.63%) and ZnO-R (59.94%) under optimized conditions of 0.05 g/L catalyst dose, 90-min irradiation time, 130-W light intensity, and 1-mg/L methylene blue concentration. ZnO-S demonstrated effective photocatalysis in the ofloxacin degradation with a rate constant of 0.0112 min−1. According to a study on photocatalytic mechanisms, hydroxyl radicals play an important role in the degradation of pollutants. The photocatalyst maintains high photocatalytic efficiency even after five uses. Collectively, ZnO with different morphologies holds promise as a potential catalyst for environmental protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantitative interference and its benefits on organic dye energy levels were examined in this study. The dye combined with the material had an absorption coefficient of 0.285 at 657 nm, according to UV–visible spectroscopy. From the results obtained, we observed a clear difference in the intensity of the absorption spectrum, which indicates that the energy levels of the dye have short absorption times. We also observed a decrease in the FWHM value, which indicates that the dye possesses a specific and sharp absorption effect. Rhodamine 6G was chosen as the optical material for its ability to be used to produce optical filters by controlling the inverse distribution between energy levels, allowing adjustments to be made immediately. The energy gap is greatly improved due to the use of Cu nanomaterials, as they cause a decrease in the free path and an increase in reflections, resulting in an increase in the absorption cross section. This optimization contributes to improved absorption efficiency and increased visual outcomes. Rhodamine 6G dye and copper nanoparticles were used in the experiment to study how quantum interference affects light absorption of an organic dye. The goal was to improve how well the dye absorbs light and get better optical results. The study came to the conclusion that quantum interference and improvements to nanostructures can be used to improve the energy levels and absorption efficiency of organic dyes. This will help to develop more advanced photonic applications in the future and make optical technology more useful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulsed underwater direct current discharge is considered as a tool for a one-step process for ferrite synthesis and organic dye removal. The formation of cobalt, nickel and titanium ferrites during the discharge firing process was confirmed by methods of dynamic light scattering and X-ray phase analysis. The transformation of dye molecules (fluorescein, methylene green) during the combined action of plasma and ferrites was detected by UV absorption spectroscopy. The contributions of the separate action of plasma and ferrites to the process of dye removal from the solution were investigated. It was found that the synthesized structures have a high sorption capacity. It was found that fluorescein can be used as an indicator for the presence of nickel ferrites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, undoped and copper-doped ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) were successfully synthesized using a gliding arc discharge (GAD) plasma technique, which is a sustainable, cost-effective, and scalable method. This method offers several advantages over traditional synthesis methods. The synthesized NPs were characterized by various techniques to understand their physicochemical properties. XRD analysis confirmed the presence of characteristic peaks of pure ZnO, while doped samples exhibited additional peaks corresponding to CuO crystal planes, indicating the successful incorporation of Cu into the lattice. As obvious, bare ZnO showed absorption peak at 378 nm corresponding to the band gap of 3.21 eV. The band gap of Cu-doped samples increased systematically, i.e., 3.35 eV for 2% Cu, 3.47 eV for 4% Cu, and 3.66 eV for 6% Cu. SEM images revealed aggregation and increase in particle size with the increasing in Cu concentration. EDAX analysis revealed a decrease in the weight percentage of oxygen and zinc with the increase in Cu concentration, suggesting structural changes within the lattice. Furthermore, the antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, antioxidant activity, and photocatalytic activity against three different organic dyes such as Brilliant Cresyl Blue (BCB), Methylene Blue (MB), and Congo Red (CR) was studied. It is found that the photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs varies with Cu concentration, leading to a decrease in its performance. The antibacterial activity of the NPs was also assessed, with undoped ZnO NPs showing dose-dependent effects against bacteria, while the Cu-doped ZnO NPs exhibited decreased efficacy. Interestingly, Cu doping significantly enhanced the antioxidant activity of the NPs compared to the undoped ZnO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional (2D) materials have recently drawn interest in various applications due to their superior electronic properties, high specific surface area, and surface activity. However, studies on the catalytic properties of the 2D counterpart of V2O5 are scarce. In the present study, the catalytic properties of 2D V2O5 vis-à-vis bulk V2O5 for the degradation of methylene blue dye are discussed for the first time. The 2D V2O5 catalyst was synthesized using a modified chemical exfoliation technique. A massive increase in the electrochemically active surface area of 2D V2O5 by one order of magnitude greater than that of bulk V2O5 was observed in this study. Simultaneously, ~ 7 times increase in the optical absorption coefficient of 2D V2O5 significantly increases the number of photogenerated electrons involved in the catalytic performance. In addition, the surface activity of the 2D V2O5 catalyst is enhanced by generating surface oxygen vacancy defects. In the current study, we have achieved ~ 99% degradation of 16 ppm dye using the 2D V2O5 nanosheet catalysts under UV light exposure with a remarkable degradation rate constant of 2.31 min−1, which is an increase of the order of 102 from previous studies using V2O5 nanostructures and nanocomposites as catalysts. Since the enhanced photocatalytic activity emerged from the surface and optical properties of the catalyst, the current study shows great promise for the future application of 2D V2O5 in photo- and electrocatalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1540, in Ingolstadt, Germany, the influential astronomer and printer Peter Apian produced the Astronomicum Caesareum: a printed and hand-coloured astronomical book visualising the Ptolemaic universe through the use of diagrams and wheelcharts, worthy of his imperial patron, Charles V. About 130 copies have survived to this day, with varying degrees of paper quality and level of decoration, and only eleven volumes are considered deluxe copies. We thoroughly analysed one deluxe volume held at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, and compared the results with four (one deluxe and three standard) other copies from institutions in the UK. A non-invasive analytical protocol was applied, including extensive microscopy, fibre-optic reflectance spectroscopy (FORS), X-ray spectroscopy (XRF), macroscale XRF (MA-XRF) and Raman spectroscopy. The most interesting pages were chosen based on art-historical evidence and the variety of the colour palette, including on volvelles (wheelcharts) and coats of arms. Following a systematic approach, we analysed the same pages in each volume, gathering information on the colour palette in all the volumes. The type of paper and the presence of watermarks were also documented. A wide range of materials was identified in the five copies, including red, purple and yellow organic dyes, lead white, verdigris, vermilion, azurite, indigo, smalt, and lead–tin yellow. Mosaic gold was used to embellish certain paint passages in the deluxe volumes and metals (gold and silver) were applied on some pages. The comprehensive findings were essential to identify specific traits related to Apian's workshop, to differentiate deluxe from standard copies, to suggest an order of production of the copies, and to provide new information on this landmark book and more generally in an under-researched field of study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, a Bi2S3/Cu2S was successfully synthesized via a simple one-step wet impregnation process. The compositional behavior and electrical and optical properties of photocatalysts were investigated in detail. Photocatalytic technology has shown great promise in wastewater treatment, splitting water to hydrogen, and converting CO2 to fuel. Researchers or scientist are attempting to design sulfate-based heterojunction photocatalytic systems in order to develop novel photocatalysts with excellent performance. Photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye and tetracycline (TC) drug under visible light irradiation was used to assess the photocatalytic activity of as-prepared samples. As a result, 2:1% wt of Bi2S3/Cu2S heterostructure composite revealed superior visible light degradation performing of MB dye, and TC drug efficiency as 90.2% and 87.5%, respectively. The prepared hybrid photocatalyst has demonstated a potential for use in the photocatalytic degradation of antibiotic durgs and dyes, indicating a promissing future for its application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Together with the rapid growth of technology, the discharge of wastewater from industry into environment had become a hot topic among society nowadays. More attention had been given to the development of water treatment techniques. In this study, sonocatalysis was proposed to degrade the organic pollutants using silver-doped zinc oxide (Ag-ZnO) nanoparticles which were synthesized via green synthesis process using Clitoria ternatea Linn (Asian Pigeonwings flower). The characterization results revealed that the incorporation of Ag into the ZnO lattice decreased the crystallite size and increased the specific surface area of ZnO nanoparticles. It is noteworthy that about 98% of sonocatalytic degradation efficiency of malachite green (MG) was successfully achieved within 30 min in the presence of 5 wt.% Ag-ZnO with 1.0 g/L of catalyst loading under 500 mg/L of initial dye concentration, 80 W of ultrasonic power, 45 kHz of ultrasound frequency, and 2.0 mM of oxidant concentration. The kinetic study showed that the sonocatalytic degradation of organic dye was fitted well into second-order kinetic model with high R2 value (0.9531). In the thermodynamic study, negative value of standard Gibbs free energy and low value of activation energy (+ 24.43 kJ/mol) were obtained in the sonocatalytic degradation of MG using the green-synthesized Ag-ZnO sample. Highlights: • Facile synthesis of silver-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles using plant extract which act as reducing and stabilizing agents • Optical, physical, and chemical characterization of green-synthesized nanomaterials were performed • Evaluation of sonocatalytic degradation of organic dye using green-synthesized nanomaterials • Sonocatalytic behavior, kinetic and thermodynamic studies of sonocatalytic reaction [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid industrialization and ever-growing human activities have caused more and more serious water pollution in the last few decades, posing great threats towards both human health and ecological environment. Organic dyes, as one of the major water pollutants, are usually toxic, chemically stable, and hard to degrade. In this paper, a novel PCN-222(Zn)/GO composite was obtained by combining porphyrin-based metal organic framework material PCN-222(Zn) with graphene oxide (GO). The structure and morphology of the composite were characterized by FTIR, XRD, SEM, and optical microscopy. The thermal stability and optical properties were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and fluorescence spectroscopy. PCN-222(Zn) and PCN-222(Zn)/GO were used as both adsorbents and photocatalysts for the adsorption and visible light photodegradation of organic dye methylene blue in aqueous solutions. It is found that the blending of GO can improve the photocatalytic degradation activity of PCN-222(Zn) towards organic dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The release of industrial effluents into fresh water is a major contributor of water contamination. Therefore, it is highly desirable to develop a viable solution to this alarming issue to improve the quality of clean water. To enhance the photocatalytic efficiency and hence utilization ratio of CuO, a series of CuO–FeSe2 composites with different varying contents of FeSe2 were prepared through facile synthetic methods. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive X-rays (EDX) analysis verified that the samples were successfully prepared without any contaminating phases. The average crystallite sizes of CuO and FeSe2 were computed to be 29 and 21 nm respectively. For the CuO–FeSe2 composites, the crystallite sizes varied between 25 and 27 nm. The morphology of CuO was comprised of needle-shaped structures, whereas that of FeSe2 was observed to be flower-shaped structures comprising of irregular crystals. A red shift in the bandgap of CuO–FeSe2 composites was observed with the increase in FeSe2 concentration. The prepared photocatalysts were utilized to evaluate their efficiency under visible light against Rhodamine B (RhB). Among all the prepared composites, CuO–75% FeSe2 revealed a remarkable performance and degraded 96% RhB in 180 min. Rate constants for the degradation of the dye were determined by applying the Langmuir–Hinshelwood model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Azo compounds find use in many areas of science, displaying crucial properties for important applications as photoconductive organic pigments, fluorescent quenchers, paints, cosmetics, inks, and in the large and valuable dye industry. Due to the unstable intermediates, and the exothermic and fast reactions used in their synthesis, high value azo compounds are excellent candidates for continuous flow manufacturing. This comprehensive review covers the progress made to date on developing continuous flow systems for azo synthesis and reflects on the main challenges still to be addressed, including scale up, conversion, product purity, and environmental impact. The further development of integrated continuous flow processes has the potential to help tackle these challenges and deliver improved methods for azo compound generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic dyes can inflict environmental harm and pose risks to human health, thereby presenting challenges in their treatment within industrial wastewater. Currently, numerous research groups have conducted investigations on the adsorption of organic dyes in industrial wastewater. Herein, this work focuses on the selective adsorption approach towards dyes molecules based on an Anderson-type polyoxometalate (noted as POM-1) as potential adsorbent, which has been functionalized with organic ligands to enhance its negative charge. Adsorption experiments revealed that POM-1 displayed efficient adsorption capabilities towards the cationic dye methyl blue with almost complete adsorption within 25 min, and the adsorption rate was calculated as 98%. A rapid and consecutive filtering experiments have also been performed and further proved the excellent adsorption behavior of POM-1 towards MB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organic pollutant detection has caused widespread concern regarding due to their potential environmental and human health risks. In this work, a nitrogen-doped titanium dioxide/silver oxide (N-TiO2/Ag2O) composite has been designed as a sensitive photoelectrochemical (PEC) monitoring platform of organic dyes. Sensitive determination relies on the outstanding PEC performance of N-TiO2/Ag2O. The improved PEC performance stems from the effective separation of photocarriers and the extended light response range provided by the narrowing bandgap and a p–n junction with N-TiO2/Ag2O. The N-TiO2/Ag2O electrode exhibits a photocurrent density of up to 2.2 mA/cm2, demonstrating three times increase compared with the photocurrent density observed with the pure TiO2 film. The linear detection range for rhodamine B (RhB), methylene blue (MB), and methyl orange (MO) is 0.2 ng/mL to 10 μg/mL with an ultrasensitive detection limit of 0.2 ng/mL without bias voltage. Due to the outstanding photocurrent density and sensitive response to organic pollutants, the N-TiO2/Ag2O PEC sensor provided a promising analytical method to detect environmental organic dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water contamination caused by textile dyes can affect human health, calling for effective treatment method. Here, we report the preparation of MgFe2O4/C composite through hydrothermal method to adsorb three dyes including rhodamine B, methyl orange (MO) and acid yellow 17 (AY) in water. MgFe2O4/C obtained a surface area of 692.32 m2/g and MgFe2O4 particles were well-dispersed on porous carbon matrix. Taguchi experimental design (L16) was conducted to test the effect of four factors, including initial concentration, adsorbent dosage, contact time and pH at different four levels. pH was a first-ranked factor for adsorption of all three dyes with the highest contribution between 33.20 and 55.61%. The highest capacity (158.12 mg/g) was determined for MO dye adsorption under a concentration of 40 mg/L, pH 3, a dose of 0.05 g/L, and a duration of 240 min. The experiments of MgFe2O4/C reusability were performed, reaching at least fourth cycles offering potential for reuse. It is recommended that Taguchi orthogonal array design can be well adopted to reach the best condition of organic dyes adsorption by MgFe2O4/C composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dyes can be determined as a substance that creates many environmental issues leading to the death of aquatic life, plants and all living organisms. Dye removal can be done by several physical, chemical and biological methods, including the photocatalytic method. Photocatalysis is a method in which light energy is used to degrade the dye. This technique is low-cost and eco-friendly, and it degrades many harmful substances from organic dyes compared to other techniques. The prime aim of the present work is to degrade the largely used organic dyes such as methylene blue, malachite green and crystal violet using EDTA-doped FeZnS2 and Leishman stain-doped FeZnS2 thin films. The doped FeZnS2 thin films were fabricated using the co-precipitation method. Thin fabricated films are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and UV–Visible spectroscopy (UV). These characterization studies show an active photo response indicating effective dye degradation. Based on the absorption studies of UV spectroscopy measurements after 60 min, the degradation efficiency of methylene blue, crystal violet and malachite green using EDTA-doped FeZnS2 are 76, 85 and 90, respectively. Similarly, the degradation efficiency after 60 min of methylene blue, crystal violet and malachite green using Leishman stain-doped FeZnS2 are 82, 79 and 89, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water pollutants of non-biodegradable toxic aromatic dye including Methylene blue (MB) and Rhodamine (RhB) are extremely carcinogenic thiazines used in various industries such as leather industry, paper industry, and the dyeing industry. The presence of dyes in wastewater causes severe threats to human health that are responsible for various harmful chronic or acute diseases and also shows an adverse impact on the environment as it reduces transparency and is harmful to water microorganisms. To overcome severe issues, many traditional techniques have been used to remove toxic pollutants, but these methods are insufficient to remove chemically stable dyes that remain in the treated wastewater. However, the photocatalytic degradation process is an efficient approach to degrade the dye up to the maximum extent with improved efficiency. Therefore, in this work, a new class of two-dimensional (2D) transition metal carbide of Titanium Carbide (Ti3C2Tx) MXene material was used for the organic dyes degradation such as MB and RhB using a photocatalytic process. A layered structure of hexagonal lattice symmetry of Ti3C2Tx MXene was successfully synthesized from the Titanium Aluminum Carbide of Ti3AlC2 bulk phase using an exfoliation process. Further, the XRD spectrum confirms the transformation of bulk MAX phase having (002) plane at 9.2° to Ti3C2Tx MXene of (002) plane at 8.88° confirms the successful removal of Al layer from MAX phase. A smooth, transparent, thin sheet-like morphology of Ti3C2Tx nanosheet size were found to be in the range of 70 to 150 nm evaluated from TEM images. Also, no holes or damages in the thin sheets were found after the treatment with strong hydrofluoric acid confirms the formation Ti3C2Tx layered sheets. The synthesized Ti3C2Tx MXene possesses excellent photocatalytic activity for the degradation of dyes MB, RhB, and mixtures of MB and RhB dyes. MB dye degraded with a degradation percentage efficiency of 99.32% in 30 min, while RhB dye was degraded upto 98.9% in 30 min. Also, experiments were conducted for degradation of mixture of MB and RhB dyes by UV light, and the degradation percentage efficiency were found to be 98.9% and 99.75% for mixture of MB and RhB dye in 45 min, respectively. Moreover, reaction rate constant (k) was determined for each dye of MB, RhB, and mixtures of MB and RhB and was found to be 0.0215 min−1 and 0.0058 min−1, and for mixtures, it was 0.0020 min−1 and 0.009 min−1, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research investigates the synthesis of sodium alginate–iron oxide nanocomposites (SAL-Fe3O4) through the co-precipitation method, with a focus on the impact of gelation time. SAL-Fe3O4 nanocomposites were precipitated from Fe2(SO4)3 and FeSO4 under an alkaline medium in the presence of sodium alginate, maintaining a stoichiometric balance using a molar ratio of 1:2 for iron (III) Fe3+ to iron (II) Fe2+ ions precursors. Two types of SAL-Fe3O4 nanocomposites were prepared by varying the gelation time of sodium alginate to 3 and 24 h. Extensive characterization was performed using UV, FTIR, XRD and SEM with EDX analysis techniques to evaluate the properties of the nanocomposites. Fourier-Transformed infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis provided insights into the presence of sodium alginate on the SAL-Fe3O4 nanocomposite surface and the bonding characteristics within the polymer. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis was employed to determine lattices, phases, and preferred crystal orientations (texture) of the nanocomposites. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was utilized to examine morphology, microstructures, dimensions, and size of the prepared nanocomposites. Energy-Dispersive X-ray (EDX) was used for the analysis of the elemental composition of the nanocomposites. Additionally, the catalytic efficiency of SAL-Fe3O4 nanocomposites was evaluated through the catalytic degradation of organic dyes using hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) as the oxidizing agent. The degradation processes were monitored by UV-visible spectrophotometry and the apparent rate constant (kapp), degradation time, percentage (%) degradation, degradation concentration and half-life values of different organic dyes were studied and compared, highlighting the influence of gelation time on the degradation efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxic organic dyes (colorants) are one of the main causes of water pollution that releases destructive effluents in the environment. To overcome this issue, a fundamental need to produce a novel, efficient catalyst for the degradation and mineralization of dye mixtures has arisen. The objective of this research is to develop an eminent Ni-doped magnetic carbon aerogel (Ni-MCA) catalyst using graft co-polymerization method having xanthan gum as backbone doped with Ni-magnetic nanoparticles (Ni-MNPs), that do not show agglomeration and easy to separate. The examination revealed that Ni-MCA provided exceptional magnetic characteristics (Ms = 52.75 emu/g) and potent catalytic activity for the degradation of mono- as well as binary-dye solutions of Congo red (CR) and methyl green (MG) dyes. The formation was verified by various characterization techniques such as FTIR, VSM, XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, and EDX mapping. Interestingly, Ni-MCA shows faster result on anionic dye CR up to 97% with degradation rate of 5.647 × 10−1 min−1, and MG dye shows degradation of 95.7% with the degradation rate of 2.169 × 10−1 min−1, while dye mixture is showing 90% degradation with rate of 2.159 × 10−1 min−1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of evaluating the adsorption and fluorescent properties of azolotriazine compounds and phases based on cadmium sulfide quantum dots in vapors of volatile organic compounds (biomarkers of living systems) are considered. The adsorption properties of phases based on organic dyes and encapsulated semiconductors towards vapors of alcohols, ketones, amines, acids, ammonia, and aldehydes are investigated using direct high-sensitivity piezoelectric quartz microweighing. The spectral properties and their variations in analyte vapors are investigated using various spectroscopy methods (absorption, photoluminescence). The research results are compared, and the potential for optimizing this stage is assessed. It is proposed to evaluate the consistency of methods for predicting changes in fluorescent properties in test systems for volatile organic compounds using the Kendall coefficient of concordance, W. The highest level of agreement (W = 0.89) was observed between the methods of spectrofluorimetry and direct vapor microweighing upon adsorption on phases being potential fillers of test systems. A correlation between the results obtained by different fluorescence methods (visual plate test systems and fluorimetry of phases on paper substrates) is 0.80, which confirms a high degree of consistency in assessments using them in the degree of interaction between the analytes and organic, combined fluorochromes. The methods closely related in the nature of the analytical response do not exhibit better agreement than the method of direct vapor microweighing on microphases of fluorimetric reagents of different nature (cadmium sulfide quantum dots/chitosan, organic azolotriazine compounds, mixed phases). This, in turn, enables the selection of simpler, more available, and more rapid methods and means of analysis in routine experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photothermal nanoparticles are recent materials which provide additional capacity supply during the photocatalytic reactions. Iron disulfide (FeS2) nanoparticles with unique chemical and optical properties effectively absorb the full broad spectrum and convert the solar energy into chemical energy owing to its small band gap energy of 1.5 eV. However, the fast electron–hole pair recombination reduces the efficiency of FeS2 and depresses the redox reaction. In this novel research, FeS2/CeO2 heterojunctions are prepared for successful decomposition of rhodamine B dye as toxic pollutant belonging to xanthene dye group. CeO2 nanoparticles are fabricated through sol–gel procedure via triton- × 100 as pore directing agent. Nanoparticle's FeS2 is developed by the precipitating process under a N2-atmospheric condition. Various amounts of FeS2 particles were deposited in ultrasonic bath onto the surface of CeO2. The nanostructures, crystalline and optical properties of the solid specimens are evaluated by scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) with Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), x-ray diffraction (XRD), photoluminescence (PL) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) techniques. The photocatalytic efficiency of CeO2, FeS2 and various compositions of FeS2/CeO2 heterojunction was deliberated via following the decomposition of rhodamine B dye under UV radiation at 365 nm. FeS2 efficiently transfers the absorbability of the nanocomposite to deep visible region by decreasing the band gap energy of CeO2 from 2.3 to 1.5 eV revealing that FeS2 determines the optical properties of the nanocomposites. The charge transportation proceeds through type (I) heterojunction with accumulation of the massive charge carriers in the valence and conduction bands of FeS2 nanoparticles. The novel nanocomposite with strong absorbability of nearly full absorption spectrum could be an effective photocatalyst for decomposition of toxic organic dye from various sources of water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water, essential for all life, faces contamination challenges due to industrialization and unchecked urban development, producing pollutants such as organic dyes, detergents, heavy metals, and pesticides. This has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental concerns in recent years, with a particular emphasis on organic dyes due to their demonstrated health-related concerns. In this context, this paper reviews the use of photocatalysis as a wastewater treatment method, highlighting its significant potential for removing organic dyes from aqueous solutions. Additionally, the focus is on the design, development, performance enhancement, and overall research progress in fabricating graphene-based semiconductor nanocomposites as photocatalysts. Representative examples are discussed, emphasizing the potential of these nanocomposites in degrading toxic organic dyes through photocatalysis. The enhanced photoactivity is attributed to the synergistic effects of graphene and semiconductor materials, leading to improved light absorption, charge separation, and reactive oxygen species generation. This comprehensive review provides valuable insights to advance wastewater treatment technologies and address environmental impacts caused by organic dye pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to effectively remove toxic organic dyes from aquatic systems has become an increasingly critical issue in the recent years. In pursuit of this objective, polydopamine (PDA)-binary ZIF-8/UiO-66 (MOFs) was synthesized and incorporated into cellulose acetate (CA), producing ZIF-8/UiO-66/PDA@CA composite nanofibers under meticulously optimized conditions. The potential of fabricated nanofibers to remove cationic methylene blue (MB) dye was investigated. Various analysis tools including FTIR, XRD, SEM, zeta potential, BET, tensile strength testing, and XPS were employed. Results revealed a substantial leap in tensile strength, with ZIF-8/UiO-66/PDA@CA registering an impressive 2.8 MPa, as a marked improvement over the neat CA nanofibers (1.1 MPa). ZIF-8/UiO-66/PDA@CA nanofibers exhibit an outstanding adsorption capacity of 82 mg/g, notably outperforming the 22.4 mg/g capacity of neat CA nanofibers. In binary dye systems, these nanofibers exhibit a striking maximum adsorption capacity of 108 mg/g, establishing their eminence in addressing the complexities of wastewater treatment. Furthermore, the adsorption data fitted to the Langmuir isotherm, and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The fabricated nanofiber demonstrates good reproducibility and durability, consistently upholding its performance over five cycles. This suite of remarkable attributes collectively underscores its potential as a robust, durable, and highly promising solution for the effective and efficient removal of pernicious MB dye, in the context of both water quality improvement and environmental preservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work demonstrated enhanced adsorption capabilities of lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) synthesized via a straightforward hydrotropic method compared to pristine lignin (PL) powder for removing methylene blue dye from aqueous solutions. Kraft lignin was used as a precursor and p-toluenesulfonic acid as the hydrotrope to produce spherical LNPs with ~ 200 nm diameter. Extensive characterization by SEM, AFM, DLS, zeta potential, and BET verified successful fabrication of microporous LNPs with fourfold higher specific surface area (14.9 m2/g) compared to PL (3.4 m2/g). Significantly reduced particle agglomeration and rearranged surface chemistry (zeta potential of −13.3 mV) arising from the self-assembly of lignin fractions under hydrotropic conditions enabled the application of LNPs and superior adsorbents compared to PL. Batch adsorption experiments exhibited up to 14 times higher methylene blue removal capacity, from 20.74 for PL to 127.91 mg/g for LNPs, and ultrafast equilibrium uptake within 3 min for LNPs compared to 10 min for PL. Kinetic modeling based on pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order equations revealed chemisorption as the predominant mechanism, with a rate constant of 0.032825 g/mg·h for LNPs—over an order of magnitude higher than PL (0.07125 g/mg·h). Isotherm modeling indicated Langmuir monolayer adsorption behavior on relatively uniform lignin surface functional groups. The substantially augmented adsorption performance of LNPs arose from the increased surface area and abundance of surface functional groups, providing greater accessibility of chemically active binding sites for rapid dye uptake. Overall, this work demonstrates that tailoring lignin nanoparticle structure and surface chemistry via scalable hydrotropic synthesis is a simple and sustainable approach for producing highly efficient lignin-based nano-adsorbents for organic dye removal from industrial wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, visible-light-driven photocatalysis attracts much concerns in the remediation of environmental organic pollutants. In this study, the cerium doped biochar was fabricated through the hydrothermal method, and served as an efficient photocatalyst towards rhodamine B degradation under visible light irradiation. Almost 100% of rhodamine B was removed by 2.0 g·L−1 cerium doped biochar after 60 min of visible light irradiation at pH 3, but only about 25.50% and 29.60% of rhodamine B was removed by cerium dioxide and biochar under identical conditions. The degradation process coincided well with the pseudo-first-order kinetic model, and the photodegradation rate constant of cerium doped biochar was 0.0485·min−1, which was respectively 97 and 44 times that of biochar (0.0005·min−1) and cerium dioxide (0.0011·min−1). According to the trapping experiments and electron spin resonance spectroscopy analysis, h+, O2−∙ and ∙OH all participated in the degradation of rhodamine B in the cerium doped biochar photocatalytic systems, and the function of h+ and ∙OH was dominated. Consequently, the biochar could not only be an excellent carrier for supporting cerium dioxide, but also greatly improved its photocatalytic activity. The band gap of cerium doped biochar was narrower than cerium dioxide, which could improve the separation and migration of photogenerated electron–hole pairs under visible-light excitation, thus ultimately enhanced the degradation of rhodamine B. This work provided a deeper understanding of the preparation of biochar-based photocatalyst and its application in the remediation of environmental organic pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxic organic dyes-containing wastewater treatment by adsorption and photocatalytic techniques is widely applied, but adsorbents and photocatalysts are often synthesized through chemical methods, leading to secondary pollution by released chemicals. Here, we report a benign method using Tecoma stans floral extract to produce MgFe2O4/ZnO (MGFOZ) nanoparticles for adsorption and photocatalytic degradation of coomassie brilliant blue (CBB) dye. Green MGFOZ owned a surface area of 9.65 m2/g and an average grain size of 54 nm. This bio-based nanomaterial showed higher removal percentage and better recyclability (up to five cycles) than green MgFe2O4 and ZnO nanoparticles. CBB adsorption by MGFOZ was examined by kinetic and isotherm models with better fittings of Bangham and Langmuir or Temkin. RSM-based optimization was conducted to reach an actual adsorption capacity of 147.68 mg/g. Moreover, MGFOZ/visible light system showed a degradation efficiency of 89% CBB dye after 120 min. CBB adsorption can be controlled by both physisorption and chemisorption while •O2- and •OH radicals are responsible for photo-degradation of CBB dye. This study suggested that MGFOZ can be a promising adsorbent and catalyst for removal of organic dyes in water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study employed the hydrothermal approach to graft chitosan functionalized-SiO2 nanoparticles with an aromatic aldehyde (salicylaldehyde, SA) to obtain an organic–inorganic nanohybrid composite of salicylaldehyde-based chitosan Schiff base/SiO2 (CTS-SA/SiO2) for uptake of an acidic azo dye (acid red 88, AR88) from aqueous media. The effects of A: CTS-SA/SiO2 dose (0.02–0.1 g), B: pH (4–10), and C: time (10–90 min) on the adsorption performance of CTS-SA/SiO2 towards AR88 were studied systematically by the Box–Behnken Design (BBD). The CTS-SA/SiO2 dosage, pH, and contact time resulted in maximum dye elimination (76.46%) of AR88, according to the results of the BBD model. These variables were 0.093 g of CTS-SA/SiO2, pH 4.5, and 87.4 min. The pseudo-second order and Langmuir isotherm provide an account of the experimental results for AR88 adsorption by CTS-SA/SiO2. The calculated maximum Langmuir adsorption capacity for CTS-SA/SiO2 is equal to 184.2 mg/g. The high adsorption of AR88 onto the CTS-SA/SiO2 can be mainly ascribed to electrostatic forces between the protonated CTS-SA/SiO2 and the AR88 anions, along with n–π, π–π, and H-bond interactions. This research demonstrates that CTS-SA/SiO2 has promising potential as an adsorbent for organic dye removal from water systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research article introduces the unexplored synergistic effect of amorphous titanium dioxide and phosphorus-doped carbon nanodot hybrid [C-TiO2(am)] for the ultrafast adsorption of methylene blue and crystal violet dyes. The hybrid eliminates 98% of methylene blue dye (MB) at a concentration of 32 mg/L and 96% of crystal violet dye at a concentration of 62 mg/L from the aqueous solution within 5 min of contact time at ambient temperature. The incorporation of phosphorus-doped carbon nanodot in amorphous TiO2 modifies the oxygen vacancy, which enhances the material's affinity for organic dyes like MB and crystal violet. The significance of defects on the adsorption efficiency of C-TiO2 (am) is obtained and compared with that of amorphous titanium dioxide [TiO2(am)] and the crystalline phase of hybrid (C-TiO2). The dye removal percentages of TiO2 (am) and C-TiO2 are ca.3% and ca.32%, respectively, which is feeble compared to the dye removal percentage of C-TiO2 (am) (ca. 98%). The possible mechanism of organic dye adsorption of C-TiO2 (am) is derived through the detailed discussion of porosity, morphology, functional groups, and chemical compositions. The impact of temperature on dye adsorption and removal rate is determined using non-linear regression analysis. The remarkable characteristic adsorption features of C-TiO2 (am) suggest that it can be considered as a new potential adsorbent for water purification. The remarkable characteristic adsorption features of C-TiO2 (am) suggest that it can be considered as a new potential adsorbent for water purification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial wastewater has detrimental impacts on aquatic ecosystems and the environment. Among the significant contributors to water pollution are organic dyes, which are frequently released into untreated outflow water. Hence, effective degradation of these dyes and their derivatives using heterogeneous photocatalysts is imperative before discharge. In this study, we successfully synthesized a novel nanocomposite by g-C3N4 coupled with TiO2 and decorated it with Ni followed by cost-effective methods. Immaculate g-C3N4 coupled with TiO2 (TiO2+) and modified with nickel (Ni+) was synthesized through melamine calcination followed by hydrothermal processing. Characterization through diverse electro-analytical techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), was conducted on the novel photocatalysts. XRD results revealed their high crystallinity, enhanced through modification. The effectiveness of these photocatalysts in degrading the organic dye methylene blue (MB) under UV–Vis light was thoroughly investigated. It also investigated how the results were affected by important factors involving contact time, dye and photocatalyst dosages, pH, and reusability. Among the photocatalysts, the composite g-C3N4-TiO2s, decorated with Ni, exhibited exceptional performance, displaying substantial degradation efficacy. The findings demonstrate that the novel g-C3N4-based photocatalysts are highly efficient at degrading organic dyes, so the work is expected to be the best contribution in the photodegradation study of organic contaminants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A highly flexible and cost-effective copper tape decorated with silver nanoparticles (Cu-TAg) has been developed for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) sensing of multi-hazardous environmental pollutants. Highly ordered and spherical-shaped silver nanoarrays have been fabricated using a low-cost thermal evaporation method. The structural, morphological, and optical properties of Cu-TAg sensors have been studied and correlated to the corresponding SERS performances. The size of nanoparticles has been successively tuned by varying the deposition time from 5 to 25 s. The nanoparticle sizes were enhanced with an increase in the evaporation time. SERS investigations have revealed that the sensing potential is subsequently improved with an increase in deposition time up to 10 s and then deteriorates with further increase in Ag deposition. The highest SERS activity was acquired for an optimum size of ~ 37 nm; further simulation studies confirmed this observation. Moreover, Cu-TAg sensors exhibited high sensitivity, reproducibility, and recycling characteristics to be used as excellent chemo-sensors. The lower detection limit estimation revealed that it can sense even in the pico-molar range for sensing of rhodamine 6G and methylene blue. The estimated enhancement factor of the sensor is found to be 9.4 × 107. Molecular-specific sensing of a wide range of pollutants such as rhodamine 6G, alizarin red, methylene blue, butylated hydroxy anisole, and penicillin–streptomycin is demonstrated with high efficiencies for micromolar spiked samples. Copper tape functionalized with Ag arrays thus demonstrated to be a promising candidate for low-cost and reusable chemo-sensors for environmental remediation applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leather dyeing is a critical step in leather manufacturing, as it is responsible for providing leather products with an eye-catching visual aspect and adequate quality properties to meet customers' expectations. This step is becoming more and more challenging as the leather industry advances hand in hand with new environmentally friendly policies and regulations to achieve a safer and healthier planet by replacing the highly polluting Cr-based leather tanning technology with greener alternatives. As a result, achieving high-performance dyeing of organic chrome-free leather is one of the bottlenecks for the sustainable development of the leather industry. Herein, we propose a novel strategy to fabricate an isocyanate-based oligomeric dye (IBD) with high coloring capabilities (component content higher than 62.8%) based on toluene 2,4-diisocyanate and reactive red dye 180. This material has been tested for the dyeing of biomass-derived aldehyde (BDA)-tanned leather with excellent outcomes. The experimental results showed that the crust leather dyed with our novel IBD dyeing agent had higher color fastness and better fullness than the leather dyed with conventional anionic (CAD) or reactive red 180 (RRD-180) dyes. These excellent and promising results open new avenues in manufacturing high-performance organic Cr-free leather products and help to ensure the sustainable transition of the leather industry from Cr-based leather tanning to more sustainable alternatives, maintaining the final quality of the leather products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, nanoscience explores the potential of nanoparticles due to their extraordinary properties compared to bulk materials. The synthesis of metal nanoparticles using plant extracts is a very promising method for environmental remediation, which gets global attention due to pollution-led global warming. In the present study, iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) were successfully synthesized by the green method using Vernonia amygdalina plant leaf extract as a natural reducing and capping agent. Biosynthesized FeNPs were characterized with different analytical techniques such as UV–visible, FT-IR, XRD, and SEM. The analysis revealed the formation of amorphous FeNPs with an irregular morphology and non-uniform distribution in size and shape. The average particle size was approximately 2.31 µm. According to the catalytic degradation investigation, the FeNPs produced via the green approach are highly effective in breaking down both CV and MB into non-toxic products, with a maximum degradation efficiency of 97.47% and 94.22%, respectively, when the right conditions are met. The kinetics study exhibited a high correlation coefficient close to unity (0.999) and (0.995) for the degradation of MB and CV, respectively, for the zero-order pseudo-kinetics model, which describes the model as highly suitable for the degradation of both dyes by FeNPs compared to other models. The reusability and stability of biosynthesized nano-catalysts were studied and successfully used as efficient catalysts with a slight decrease in the degradation rate more than four times. The results from this study illustrate that green synthesized FeNPs offer a cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and efficient means for the catalytic degradation of organic dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, core–shell magnetic nanoparticles are modified with imidazolium-tagged phosphine and propylene glycol moieties and used for the stabilization of bimetallic AuCu nanoparticles. The structure and morphology of the prepared material are identified with SEM, TEM, XRD, XPS, atomic absorption spectroscopy, Fourier translation infrared spectroscopy, and a vibrating sample magnetometer. This hydrophilic magnetic bimetallic catalyst is applied in the reduction of toxic nitroarenes and reductive degradation of hazardous organic dyes such as methyl orange (MO), methyl red (MR), and rhodamine B (RhB), as well as in the degradation of tetracycline (TC). This magnetic AuCu catalyst indicated superior activity in all three mentioned reactions in comparison with its single metal Au and Cu analogs. This catalyst is recycled for 17 consecutive runs in the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol without a significant decrease in catalytic activity and recycled catalyst is characterized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a composite ZnO/MoS2/AuNPs supported on carbon fiber cloth (CFC) was prepared by progressively growing ZnO nanorods array, MoS2 nanosheets and AuNPs on CFC for sensitive SERS detection and efficient photocatalytic degradation of organic dye pollutants. The ZnO/MoS2 heterojunctions showed a significant CM effect and further decorating AuNPs with EM effect improved the detection limit of crystal violet (CV) from 10–6 to 10–13 M. The composite can be used for qualitative SERS detection of CV or Nile blue in standard solution or real samples with high stability and good stability. The enhancement mechanisms of CFC/ZnO/MoS2 and CFC/ZnO/MoS2/AuNPs were discussed based on corresponding characterizations and calculations. The composite also showed efficient photocatalysis for dye degradation. The ZnO/MoS2 heterojunction played a key role in enhancing the charge separation rate and improving the photocatalytic performance. The materials achieved degradation efficiencies of 71.4% for CV (1.5 × 10–5 M) after 60 min irradiation under visible light. The active radical species were investigated and possible degradation approach were proposed. Such composite with both SERS enhancement and visible light photodegradation ability has great promise in environment monitoring and remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent progress in the development of MnO2-based micromotors has shown the immense potential of these motile devices to remediate environmental contamination. However, the production of such micromotors on an industrial scale through a facile, efficient and reproducible process remains challenging. The present work aimed to address this issue using naturally occurring and abundant pine pollen (PP) grains. The immersion of PP in potassium permanganate (KMnO4) solutions was found to generate MnO2 nanoparticles (NPs) on the PP surfaces, the amount and distribution of which was readily adjusted by varying the coating time. Because of the asymmetrical shape of the PP grains, the MnO2/PP composites exhibited rapid self-propulsion at a maximum speed of 360.686 μm/s (approximately eight body lengths/s) in low-concentration hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) solutions. The ability of these materials to remediate heavy metal pollutants was also examined and was evidently increased by a factor of 1.5 compared with static counterparts. These composites could also be recovered and reused over three consecutive cycles. The competitive cost, continuous motion and superior decontamination capacity of these materials suggests potential applications in the rapid removal or degradation of heavy metal ions, toxic organic dyes, pathogenic bacteria and other pollutants in wastewater. These micromotors represent a new approach to the utilization of natural materials in environmental remediation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) on the fluorescence and phosphorescence intensity of organic dye molecules was studied theoretically and experimentally. A theoretical model that takes into account nonradiative transfer of excitation energy from a molecule to an NP and the changes in the rates of spontaneous emission and light absorption by a molecule near an NP was proposed to calculate the luminescence intensity of a molecule in the presence of a plasmonic NP. Numerical estimates for an erythrosine molecule and a silver NP showed that the greatest increase in luminescence was observed at distances of 4–8 nm between the molecule and the NP surface. Experimentally observed changes in luminescence spectra and shortening of the erythrosine triplet state lifetime in poly(vinyl alcohol) films doped with silver NPs were explained using the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functionalized conjugated microporous polymers (CMPs) containing amino, imino, and hydrazine groups are synthesized by the Sonogashira–Hagihara coupling reaction. Notably, the porosities, thermal stabilities, and morphologies of the CMPs can be controlled by the introduction of functional groups. Here, the relationships between the functional groups and photocatalytic performance are discussed for the first time. The CMP nanowires exhibit excellent photocatalytic performance in organic pollutant degradation: the degradation rate obtained by CMP-I3 bearing naphthalene groups via an imine bond is > 99.99%, and ~ 99.71% of the degradation activity is maintained after five cycles. Notably, the excellent photocatalytic properties of CMP-I3 are imparted by the introduction of the naphthalene groups, which reduced the band gap. The improved charge-transfer activity accounts for the highest and lowest photocurrent intensity and resistance achieved, respectively. Furthermore, the photocatalytic mechanism of CMPs reveals that the superoxide anion is the main active substance in the photocatalytic degradation of dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photocatalysis promotes eco-friendly reactions under mild conditions, and among photocatalytic agents are dyes, which have good redox potential in their excited states. The aim of the current contribution was to design a novel series of coumarins based on DFT analysis of their photochemical properties. The coumarin amide group serves as a linking group to cinnamic acid, allowing for electron delocalization throughout the system and the stabilization of the anionic and cationic species. An electronic structure analysis was performed by calculating vertical excitations and emissions, obtaining conceptual DFT chemical descriptors and nonlinear optical parameters (e.g., first static hyperpolarizability β). The novel coumarin derivatives display a reduction in the HOMO–LUMO energy gap from 6.11 to 4.2 eV, large oscillator strength (1.93), efficient nonlinear optical behavior, and excellent redox potential. Hence, they are promising compounds for photocatalytic activity. The present work shows a series of computational parameters that can be considered for the design of a molecule with potential photocatalytic activity, evaluating in this instance a series of new coumarins, promising from the computational point of view [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]