Wet-chemical synthesis of nanostructured Ce-doped mixed metal ferrites for the effective removal of azo dyes from industrial discharges

Today, photocatalysis is the most cost-effective and ecologically beneficial technique for tackling the growing problem of water pollution caused by rapid industrialization. The fabrication of a new photocatalyst with quicker charge transport, superior charge separation, narrow bandgap energy, reduced electron-hole pair recombination rate, and good light-harvesting characteristics is a major challenge for materials researchers. So herein, we used the microemulsion method to synthesize Ce-doped (rare-earth metal) cobalt/nickel mixed metal ferrite (C-X@CNMF, X = 0%, 3%, 6%, 9%, 12%, and 15%). Application studies revealed that C-9@CNMF material mineralizes the Congo red (CR) dye to a greater extent than that of C-0@CNMF under visible light irradiation. At the completion of the photodegradation reaction, nanostructured C-9@CNMF material completely mineralized CR-dye, whereas only 45.11%, 49.6%, and 73.3% of the CR-dye was removed by C-0@CNMF, C-3@CNMF, and C-15@CNMF nanoparticles. The kinetic tests showed that C-9@CNMF material mineralized the CR-dye at a rate (k = 0.0336 min−1) that is approximately 6.72 times quicker than that of the C-0@CNMF sample (0.0050 min−1). Aside from that, the C-9@CNMF material showed exceptional recyclability and photo-corrosion resistance, losing just 7.5% of its photocatalytic activity after five cycles of CR-dye degradation. The dominating photocatalytic performance of the C-9@CNMF sample is mainly attributed to its nanoarchitecture (44.8 nm), larger specific surface area (57.6 m2/g), tunable bandgap (2.13 eV), and effective charge separation characteristics

Synthesis of sponge like Gd3+ doped vanadium oxide/2D MXene composites for improved degradation of industrial effluents and pathogens

Current report is based on the synthesis of Gd+3 doped V2O5 nanostructures (GVO) along with fabrication of GVO/MXene binary nanocomposite. As synthesized GVO and GVO/MXene were characterized by XRD (X-ray diffraction), FESEM (Field emission scanning electron microscopy), EDX (Energy dispersive X-ray), BET (Brunauer Emmett Teller technique) and UV–Visible spectroscopy. Diffraction and elemental analysis confirmed the substitution of Gd+3 ions in VO layers. Orthorhombic phase of VO was observed in both GVO and GVO/MXene samples with crystallite size range of 17.02–17.51 nm. FESEM analysis indicated asymmetrical VO particles and sheets distributed on MXene layers, giving out a sponge like appearance. Surface area of GVO and GVO/MXene was enhanced to 20.46 and 23.69 nm, respectively. Effect of Gd+3 contents was significant on optical properties, which reduced the band gap energy of VO to 2.33 eV. The photocatalytic performance of prepared samples was analysed by the degradation of Methylene blue (MB) under direct sunlight. Gd+3 ion doping was found useful to enhance degradation of MB up to ∼71%. Among all samples, GVO/MXene showed maximum degradation (∼92%) within 120 min. Meanwhile, GVO/MXene showed good recyclability for successive five cycles. In addition, GVO and GVO/MXene were effective antibacterial agents against Gram positive (S. aureus) and Gram negative (P. vulgaris) strains of bacteria. The results suggested that the GVO and GVO/MXene could serve as potential candidates for large scale treatment of organic pollutants and pathogens

Synthesis, characterization, photocatalytic and antibacterial properties of copper Ferrite/MXene (CuFe2O4/Ti3C2) nanohybrids

The synthesis of CuFe2O4/MXene nanohybrids was carried out via an ultrasonication approach. The prepared composite material exhibited an outstanding photocatalytic performance and antibacterial activity compared to individual CuFe2O4 (CF) and MXene. The CF nanonuts (Nns) assisted the reduced aggregation of MXene layers. The structural and morphological analysis of the presented nanohybrids were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and ultraviolet (UV)-visible spectroscopy. The obtained sheet-to-sheet linkage provided an opportunity for the degradation of organic dyes. The photocatalyst CF/MXene nanohybrids exhibited 4.5-fold higher photocatalytic activity than pristine CF. The mechanism of degradation of methylene blue dye by CF/MXene was explained through kinetic studies. This work will offer significant scientific contributions to researchers working on water desalination

Enhanced visible light driven Photocatalytic activity of MnO2 nanomaterials and their hybrid structure with carbon nanotubes

MnO _2 nanomaterials were synthesized using a simple wet redox method. Crystal structure of as prepared pure and Al doped MnO _2 nanomaterials was investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. Crystal structure was further confirmed by FTIR analysis. Morphology of pure MnO _2 , Al doped MnO _2 , MnO _2 /CNT hybrid structure and Al doped MnO _2 /CNT hybrid structure was studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed the presence of all the constituent atoms in the crystal structure of all the samples. Bandgap value was found to decrease with the modification (doping and hybrid structure). Photocatalytic efficiency of all the MnO _2 samples was studied using the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) under the visible light (solar radiation). Effect of different intermediates on the photodegradation efficiency was studied using different scavengers

Distance measurements in Au nanoparticles functionalized with nitroxide radicals and Gd3+-DTPA chelate complexes

ISSN:1463-9084ISSN:1463-907