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This research delves into the challenges and prospects surrounding using low-cost pretreatment media, specifically organic waste in the form of banana peels, for reverse osmosis desalination. The banana peels are transformed into activated carbon (BPc) and combined with titanium dioxide embedded tellurium (TiO 2 /Te) to synergistically enhance the adsorption performance in the pretreatment stage of the reverse osmosis (RO) process. BPc-TiO 2 /Te composites have undergone thorough characterization showing the presence of bonding chemical groups such as O-H, C-C, C O, C C, C-O, Ti-O-Ti, and C-H bending vibrations. Morphological analysis demonstrated an evenly distributed arrangement of TiO 2 /Te particles on the BPc surface, with particle diameters ranging from 79.78 to 340 nm and an average diameter of 134 nm. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) characterization confirmed the presence of essential elements, including carbon (C), oxygen (O), titanium (Ti), and tellurium (Te), within the BPc-TiO 2 /Te composites. X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) analysis showcased a well-defined crystalline pattern of BPc-TiO 2 /Te composites, predominantly exhibiting the anatase phase. The optimal seawater concentration for the most effective performance of the BPc-TiO 2 /Te adsorbent was found to be 5000 mg/L (5 ppt), with an optimal contact time of 90 min, resulting in an impressive adsorption capacity of 46.97 mg/g with adsorption percentage of 93.94%. Compared with several studies related to BPc, the modification BPc-TiO 2 /Te composites is a novel for seawater adsorption application. The combination of BPc with TiO 2 /Te presents novel opportunities to improve the modification of pretreatment media within the reverse osmosis process. • Fabrication of BPc-TiO2/Te composite for reverse osmosis pretreatment. • Utilizing banana peel waste for seawater salinity reduction adsorption materials. • Evaluating BPc and BPc-TiO2/Te adsorption for seawater desalination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The addition of graphene (G) in to the TiO 2 anatase-carbon paste (GTC) composite electrode has been found to effectively enhance its electrochemical sensing sensitivity towards phenol. In this study, we found that the GTC electrode, which was prepared using a mixture of graphene obtained from Hummer method, TiO 2 from Degussa P25 and carbon paste, shows exceptionally high sensitivity towards the presence of phenol in electrolyte solution (H 2 SO 4 0.1 M). The presence of phenol is indicated by the appearance of oxidation peak (E pa) at potential of 0.12 V. In the typical process, the new GTC electrode can effectively detect the phenol down to 3.6620 × 10−5 μM. The electrode also exhibits excellent stability property with reproducibility relative standard deviation (%RSD R) and predicted reproducibility standard deviation (%PRSD R) recorded are as low as 1.33% and 2.83%, respectively. The response linearity can be obtained up to the phenol concentration of 10−4 μM. Nevertheless, the GTC performance is a concentration dependent with the optimum electrode is the sample using graphene and TiO 2 as low as 0.015 and 0.3 g, respectively. The preparation and the characterization of the new electrode will be discussed in the detail. Graphene-anatase TiO 2 -carbon paste composite electrode shows high performance in electrochemical sensing of phenolic compound. Image 1 • Facile synthesis of graphene-TiO2-carbon paste (GTC) nanocomposite electrode is reported. • The addition of graphene (G) in the TiO 2 anatase-carbon paste (GTC) composite electrode has effectively enhanced the electrochemical sensing sensitivity of GTC to phenol. • The GTC electrode exhibits excellent stability and reproducibility properties with %RSD R and %PRSD R as low as 1.33% and 2.83%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The photoactivity of the photoanode determines the power conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). TiO 2 has come up as a potential photoanode in DSSC but it has several drawbacks, including large trap density due to lattice defect that influences carrier transport, interfacial charge transfer, and carrier transport. Here we present an effective approach to improve the TiO 2 photoanode photoelectrical properties by chalcogenide ion doping, i.e. sulfur (S), that compensates the oxygen vacancy in the TiO 2 lattice, enhancing the photoactivity at the visible region, reducing trap density and increasing the photovoltaic process in DSSC device. S doping in the TiO 2 lattice was achieved by thiourea treatment. Our result shows that the S doping improves the interfacial charge transfer and reduced the trap density, improving the carrier lifetime and power conversion efficiency. The champion device, S-doped TiO 2 with 0.3 M thiourea treatment, produces the DSSC with power conversion efficiency as high as 4.56%, which is two times higher than the DSSC using pristine TiO 2. The S doping should find a potential approach for enhancing the photoactivity of the TiO 2 photoanode of the DSSC device. Sulfur doping in the TiO 2 lattice decreases the electronic trap density, enhancing the photocarrier dynamic in dye-sensitized solar cells. [Display omitted] • Sulfur doping in TiO 2 photoanode with special properties is presented. • Photogenerated-carrier dynamic is enhanced in DSSC using S doped-TiO 2. • S-TiO 2 photoanode improves the DSSC performances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fipronil contamination in agricultural products and livestock has become a growing concern because its long-term exposure to its toxicity effect on humans may cause the failure of organs, like kidney and liver, and neurological disorders. Early detection of this substance's presence in agricultural and livestock products should be established to minimize its fatal effect. Here, we demonstrate a fabrication of high sensing sensitivity and selectivity electrode for electrochemical detection of fipronil pesticide, i.e. molecularly imprinted polyaniline modified graphene/TiO 2 nanocomposite (Gr/TiO 2 @MIP-PANi). The results show that the composite electrode is extremely sensitive to the fipronil by showing a highly active electron transfer with an oxidation potential as low as 0.21 V. The sensing sensitivity of the composite electrode also exhibits excellent linearity to the fipronil concentration within a range of 1.0 mM–8.0 mM. This gives the limit of detection (LoD) value as low as 0.74 mM. Our analysis also showed that the existence of facile diffusion of fipronil onto the composite electrode is the key factor for the high sensing sensitivity of the composite electrode. In addition, the composite electrode also demonstrate a high selectivity properties as it can detect the presence of 5 mM fipronil in the 5 mM profenofos interference compound. These results signify that the new Gr/TiO 2 @MIP-PANi nanocomposite electrode should find extensively used for sensitive and selective detection of fipronil in food products. Molecularly imprinted polyaniline modified graphene/TiO 2 ncomposite electrode promotes an active electron transfer with fipronil pesticide for highly sensitive fipronil detection. [Display omitted] • Synthesis of molecularly imprinted polyaniline modified graphene/TiO 2 nanocomposite electrode is presented. • The composite electrode provides an active electron transfer with fipronil pesticide for a high sensing sensitivity. • The electrode exhibits excellent selectivity to fipronil detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]