Capturing the colloidal microplastics with plant-based nanocellulose networks

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilona Leppänen ◽  
Timo Lappalainen ◽  
Tiia Lohtander ◽  
Christopher Jonkergouw ◽  
Suvi Arola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Aquatic Organisms ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Recovery Techniques ◽  
Hygroscopic Nature ◽  
Sequential Adsorption ◽  
Colloidal Fraction ◽  
Binding Mechanisms

Abstract Microplastics accumulate to various aquatic organisms causing serious health issues, and they have raised concerns about human health by entering our food chain. The recovery techniques for the most challenging colloidal fraction even for the analytical purposes are limited. Here we show how hygroscopic nanocellulose network acts as an ideal capturing material even for the tiniest nanoplastic particles. We reveal that the entrapment of particles from the aqueous environment is a result of the network’s hygroscopic nature - a feature which is further intensified with the high surface area. We determine the nanoplastic binding mechanisms using surface sensitive methods, and interpret the results with the random sequential adsorption (RSA) model. The microplastic uptake does not rely on any specific interfacial interaction but rather on the water transport behavior of nanocellulose. These findings hold potential for the explicit quantification of the microplastics from different environments, and eventually, provide solutions to collect those directly on-site where they are produced.

scholarly journals Toxicity Studies on Graphene-Based Nanomaterials in Aquatic Organisms: Current Understanding

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (16) ◽  
pp. 3618
Author(s):  
Nemi Malhotra ◽  
Oliver B. Villaflores ◽  
Gilbert Audira ◽  
Petrus Siregar ◽  
Jiann-Shing Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Aquatic Organisms ◽  
Current Understanding ◽  
Toxic Effects ◽  
Fish Cell ◽  
Conductivity Electron ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Aquatic Food ◽  
Living Organisms

Graphene and its oxide are nanomaterials considered currently to be very promising because of their great potential applications in various industries. The exceptional physiochemical properties of graphene, particularly thermal conductivity, electron mobility, high surface area, and mechanical strength, promise development of novel or enhanced technologies in industries. The diverse applications of graphene and graphene oxide (GO) include energy storage, sensors, generators, light processing, electronics, and targeted drug delivery. However, the extensive use and exposure to graphene and GO might pose a great threat to living organisms and ultimately to human health. The toxicity data of graphene and GO is still insufficient to point out its side effects to different living organisms. Their accumulation in the aquatic environment might create complex problems in aquatic food chains and aquatic habitats leading to debilitating health effects in humans. The potential toxic effects of graphene and GO are not fully understood. However, they have been reported to cause agglomeration, long-term persistence, and toxic effects penetrating cell membrane and interacting with cellular components. In this review paper, we have primarily focused on the toxic effects of graphene and GO caused on aquatic invertebrates and fish (cell line and organisms). Here, we aim to point out the current understanding and knowledge gaps of graphene and GO toxicity.

Application of response surface methodology to optimize the fabrication of ZnCl2-activated carbon from sugarcane bagasse for the removal of Cu2+

2017 ◽  
Vol 75 (9) ◽  
pp. 2047-2055 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thuan Van Tran ◽  
Quynh Thi Phuong Bui ◽  
Trinh Duy Nguyen ◽  
Van Thi Thanh Ho ◽  
Long Giang Bach
Keyword(s):  
Response Surface Methodology ◽  
Activated Carbon ◽  
Response Surface ◽  
Sugarcane Bagasse ◽  
Interactive Effect ◽  
Chemical Activation ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Activation Temperature

The present study focused on the application of response surface methodology to optimize the fabrication of activated carbon (AC) from sugarcane bagasse for adsorption of Cu2+ ion. The AC was synthesized via chemical activation with ZnCl2 as the activating agent. The central composite design based experiments were performed to assess the individual and interactive effect of influential parameters, including activation temperature, ZnCl2 impregnation ratio and activation time on the AC yield and removal of Cu2+ ion from the aqueous environment. The statistically significant, well-fitting quadratic regression models were successfully developed as confirmed by high F- and low P-values (<0.0001), high correlation coefficients and lack-of-fit tests. Accordingly, the optimum AC yield and removal efficiency of Cu2+ were predicted, respectively, as 48.8% and 92.7% which were approximate to the actual values. By applying the predicted optimal parameters, the AC shows a surprisingly high surface area of around 1,500 m2/g accompanied by large pore volume and narrow micropore size at low fabrication temperature.

scholarly journals Defect Engineering in Metal‒Organic Frameworks as Futuristic Options for Purification of Pollutants in an Aqueous Environment

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuhua Cao ◽  
Xin Mi ◽  
Xiang Li ◽  
Bo Wang
Keyword(s):  
Water Purification ◽  
Active Sites ◽  
High Surface ◽  
Metal Organic Frameworks ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Structural Diversity ◽  
Aqueous Environment ◽  
Defect Engineering ◽  
Geometric Framework ◽  
Metal Organic

Clean water scarcity is becoming an increasingly important worldwide issue. The water treatment industry is demanding the development of novel effective materials. Defect engineering in nanoparticles is among the most revolutionary of technologies. Because of their high surface area, structural diversity, and tailorable ability, Metal‒Organic Frameworks (MOFs) can be used for a variety of purposes including separation, storage, sensing, drug delivery, and many other issues. The application in wastewater treatment associated with water stable MOF‒based materials has been an emerging research topic in recent decades. Defect engineering is a sophisticated technique used to manufacture defects and to change the geometric framework of target compounds. Since MOFs have a series of designable structures and active sites, tailoring properties in MOFs by defect engineering is a novel concept. Defect engineering can excavate hidden active sites in MOFs, which can lead to better performance in many fields. Therefore, this technology will open new opportunities in water purification processes. However, there has been little effort to comprehensively discuss this topic. In this review, we provide an overview of the development of defect engineered MOFs for water purification processes. Furthermore, we discuss the potential applications of defect engineered materials.

In Situ microscopy of the anodic etching of silicon

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 232-233
Author(s):  
Frances M. Ross ◽  
Peter C. Searson
Keyword(s):  
Composite Structures ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Selective Etching ◽  
Silicon On Insulator ◽  
Second Phase ◽  
Porous Layers ◽  
New Class ◽  
Porous Semiconductors

Porous semiconductors represent a relatively new class of materials formed by the selective etching of a single or polycrystalline substrate. Although porous silicon has received considerable attention due to its novel optical properties1, porous layers can be formed in other semiconductors such as GaAs and GaP. These materials are characterised by very high surface area and by electrical, optical and chemical properties that may differ considerably from bulk. The properties depend on the pore morphology, which can be controlled by adjusting the processing conditions and the dopant concentration. A number of novel structures can be fabricated using selective etching. For example, self-supporting membranes can be made by growing pores through a wafer, films with modulated pore structure can be fabricated by varying the applied potential during growth, composite structures can be prepared by depositing a second phase into the pores and silicon-on-insulator structures can be formed by oxidising a buried porous layer. In all these applications the ability to grow nanostructures controllably is critical.

Electron holography of catalysts

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 416-417
Author(s):  
A. K. Datye ◽  
D. S. Kalakkad ◽  
L. F. Allard ◽  
E. Völkl
Keyword(s):  
Heterogeneous Catalysts ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Nano Particles ◽  
Phase Image ◽  
Electron Holography ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Phase Information ◽  
Particle Structure

The active phase in heterogeneous catalysts consists of nanometer-sized metal or oxide particles dispersed within the tortuous pore structure of a high surface area matrix. Such catalysts are extensively used for controlling emissions from automobile exhausts or in industrial processes such as the refining of crude oil to produce gasoline. The morphology of these nano-particles is of great interest to catalytic chemists since it affects the activity and selectivity for a class of reactions known as structure-sensitive reactions. In this paper, we describe some of the challenges in the study of heterogeneous catalysts, and provide examples of how electron holography can help in extracting details of particle structure and morphology on an atomic scale.Conventional high-resolution TEM imaging methods permit the image intensity to be recorded, but the phase information in the complex image wave is lost. However, it is the phase information which is sensitive at the atomic scale to changes in specimen thickness and composition, and thus analysis of the phase image can yield important information on morphological details at the nanometer level.

Structure and composition of metal particles in Pt-Sn/Al2O3 bimetallic catalysts

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 278-279
Author(s):  
A. Sachdev ◽  
J. Schwank
Keyword(s):  
Bimetallic Catalysts ◽  
Bimetallic Catalyst ◽  
Size Structure ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Metal Particles ◽  
Alloy Formation ◽  
Particle Size Range ◽  
Oxide Supports ◽  
Petroleum Fractions

Platinum - tin bimetallic catalysts have been primarily utilized in the chemical industry in the catalytic reforming of petroleum fractions. In this process the naphtha feedstock is converted to hydrocarbons with higher octane numbers and high anti-knock qualities. Most of these catalysts contain small metal particles or crystallites supported on high surface area insulating oxide supports. The determination of the structure and composition of these particles is crucial to the understanding of the catalytic behavior. In a bimetallic catalyst it is important to know how the two metals are distributed within the particle size range and in what way the addition of a second metal affects the size, structure and composition of the metal particles. An added complication in the Pt-Sn system is the possibility of alloy formation between the two elements for all atomic ratios.

Intercalation of First Row Transition Metals inside Covalent-Organic Frameworks (COF): a Strategy to Fine Tune the Electronic Properties of Porous Crystalline Materials

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srimanta Pakhira ◽  
Jose Mendoza-Cortes
Keyword(s):  
Transition Metal ◽  
Transition Metals ◽  
Electronic Properties ◽  
High Surface ◽  
Electronic Devices ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Main Role ◽  
Covalent Organic Frameworks ◽  
Porous Network ◽  
Crystalline Materials

<div>Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have emerged as an important class of nano-porous crystalline materials with many potential applications. They are intriguing platforms for the design of porous skeletons with special functionality at the molecular level. However, despite their extraordinary properties, it is difficult to control their electronic properties, thus hindering the potential implementation in electronic devices. A new form of nanoporous material, COFs intercalated with first row transition metal is proposed to address this fundamental drawback - the lack of electronic tunability. Using first-principles calculations, we have designed 31 new COF materials <i>in-silico</i> by intercalating all of the first row transition metals (TMs) with boroxine-linked and triazine-linked COFs: COF-TM-x (where TM=Sc-Zn and x=3-5). This is a significant addition considering that only 187 experimentally COFs structures has been reported and characterized so far. We have investigated their structure and electronic properties. Specifically, we predict that COF's band gap and density of states (DOSs) can be controlled by intercalating first row transition metal atoms (TM: Sc - Zn) and fine tuned by the concentration of TMs. We also found that the $d$-subshell electron density of the TMs plays the main role in determining the electronic properties of the COFs. Thus intercalated-COFs provide a new strategy to control the electronic properties of materials within a porous network. This work opens up new avenues for the design of TM-intercalated materials with promising future applications in nanoporous electronic devices, where a high surface area coupled with fine-tuned electronic properties are desired.</div>

Tenacious Mass Transfer Limitations Drive Catalytic Selectivity during Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Reduction

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kailun Yang ◽  
Recep Kas ◽  
Wilson A. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Surface Area ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Catalyst Layer ◽  
Active Surface ◽  
Active Surface Area ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Copper Electrodes ◽  
Surface Enhanced ◽  
Local Current

<p>This study evaluated the performance of the commonly used strong buffer electrolytes, i.e. phosphate buffers, during CO<sub>2</sub> electroreduction in neutral pH conditions by using in-situ surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (SEIRAS). Unfortunately, the buffers break down a lot faster than anticipated which has serious implications on many studies in the literature such as selectivity and kinetic analysis of the electrocatalysts. Increasing electrolyte concentration, surprisingly, did not extend the potential window of the phosphate buffers due to dramatic increase in hydrogen evolution reaction. Even high concentration phosphate buffers (1 M) break down within the potentials (-1 V vs RHE) where hydrocarbons are formed on copper electrodes. We have extended the discussion to high surface area electrodes by evaluating electrodes composed of copper nanowires. We would like highlight that it is not possible to cope with high local current densities on these high surface area electrodes by using high buffer capacity solutions and the CO<sub>2</sub> electrocatalysts are needed to be evaluated by casting thin nanoparticle films onto inert substrates as commonly employed in fuel cell reactions and up to now scarcely employed in CO<sub>2</sub> electroreduction. In addition, we underscore that normalization of the electrocatalytic activity to the electrochemical active surface area is not the ultimate solution due to concentration gradient along the catalyst layer.This will “underestimate” the activity of high surface electrocatalyst and the degree of underestimation will depend on the thickness, porosity and morphology of the catalyst layer. </p> <p> </p>

Activated carbon from molasses efficiency for Cr(VI), Pb(II) and Cu(II) adsorption: A mechanistic study

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chem Int
Keyword(s):  
Activated Carbon ◽  
Phosphoric Acid ◽  
Sugar Industry ◽  
Chemical Activation ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Mechanistic Study ◽  
Acid Mixture ◽  
Maximum Adsorption Capacity ◽  
Good Potential

Activated carbon was prepared from molasses, which are natural precursors of vegetable origin resulting from the sugar industry. A simple elaboration process, based on chemical activation with phosphoric acid, was proposed. The final product, prepared by activation of molasses/phosphoric acid mixture in air at 500°C, presented high surface area (more than 1400 m2/g) and important maximum adsorption capacity for methylene blue (625 mg/g) and iodine (1660 mg/g). The activated carbon (MP2(500)) showed a good potential for the adsorption of Cr(VI), Cu(II) and Pb(II) from aqueous solutions. The affinity for the three ions was observed in the following order Cu2+ Cr6+ Pb2+. The process is governed by monolayer adsorption following the Langmuir model, with a correlation coefficient close to unity.

Functionalized Nano-graphene Oxide as Multi-modal Clinic for Effective Drug Delivery

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 3768-3771
Author(s):  
Soumitra Satapathi ◽  
Rutusmita Mishra ◽  
Manisha Chatterjee ◽  
Partha Roy ◽  
Somesh Mohapatra
Keyword(s):  
Drug Delivery ◽  
Graphene Oxide ◽  
Cancer Cell ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Cancer Cell Line ◽  
Xrd Analysis ◽  
Graphene Derivatives ◽  
Nano Graphene

Nano-materials based drug delivery modalities to specific organs and tissues has become one of the critical endeavors in pharmaceutical research. Recently, two-dimensional graphene has elicited considerable research interest because of its potential application in drug delivery systems. Here we report, the drug delivery applications of PEGylated nano-graphene oxide (nGO-PEG), complexed with a multiphoton active and anti-cancerous diarylheptanoid drug curcumin. Specifically, graphene-derivatives were used as nanovectors for the delivery of the hydrophobic anticancer drug curcumin due to its high surface area and easy surface functionalization. nGO was synthesized by modified Hummer’s method and confirmed by XRD analysis. The formation of nGO, nGO-PEG and nGO-PEG-Curcumin complex were monitored through UV-vis, IR spectroscopy. MTT assay and AO/EB staining found that nGO-PEG-Curcumin complex afforded highly potent cancer cell killing in vitro with a human breast cancer cell line MCF7.

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