scholarly journals Photocatalytic and Electrocatalytic Properties of NGr-ZnO Hybrid Materials

Nanomaterials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1473 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florina Pogacean ◽  
Maria Ştefan ◽  
Dana Toloman ◽  
Adriana Popa ◽  
Cristian Leostean ◽  
...  

N-doped graphene-ZnO hybrid materials with different N-doped graphene:ZnO wt% ratios (1:10; 1:20; 1:30) were prepared by a simple and inexpensive sol-gel method. The materials denoted NGr-ZnO-1 (1:10), NGr-ZnO-2 (1:20), and NGr-ZnO-3 (1:30) were investigated with advanced techniques and their morpho-structural, photocatalytic, and electrocatalytic properties were reported. Hence, pure N-doped graphene sample contains flakes with the size ranging from hundreds of nanometers to micrometers. In the case of all NGr-ZnO hybrid materials, the flakes appear heavily decorated with ZnO nanoparticles, having a cauliflower-like morphology. The X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) investigation of N-doped graphene sample revealed that it was formed by a mixture of graphene oxide, few-and multi-layer graphene. After the ZnO nanoparticles were attached to graphene, major diffraction peaks corresponding to crystalline planes of ZnO were seen. The qualitative and quantitative compositions of the samples were further evidenced by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In addition, UV photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) spectra allowed the determination of the ionization energy and valence band maxima. The energy band alignment of the hybrid materials was established by combining UV–Vis with UPS results. A high photocatalytic activity of NGr-ZnO samples against rhodamine B solution was observed. The associated reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was monitored by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR)-spin trapping technique. In accordance with bands alignment and identification of radical species, the photocatalytic mechanism was elucidated.

2015 ◽  
Vol 1118 ◽  
pp. 20-27
Author(s):  
Jing Yang ◽  
Bao Song Li ◽  
Xiang Huo ◽  
Hao Xu ◽  
Hai Yun Hou

Pd/SiO2 organic-inorganic hybrid materials were prepared by adding PdCl2 into methyl-modified silica sol. The Pd/SiO2 hybrid materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The effects of calcination temperature and Pd-doping on the phase transition of Pd element and the thermal stability of CH3 group in the Pd/SiO2 organic-inorganic hybrid materials were investigated. The results showed that the reduced metallic Pd0 exhibits good thermal stability under H2 atmosphere in the calcination process. Pd element in noncalcined Pd/SiO2 materials exists in PdCl2 form, calcination at 200 °C in a H2 atmosphere produces some metallic Pd0 and calcinations at 350 °C results in the complete transformation of Pd2+ to metallic Pd0. With the increase of calcination temperature, the Pd0 particle sizes increase and the hydrophobic Si−CH3 bands decrease in intensity. As the calcination temperature is greater than or equal to 350 °C, the loading of metallic Pd0 nearly has no influence on the chemical structure but, with the increase of Pd content, the formed Pd0 particle size increases. To keep the hydrophobicity of Pd/SiO2 membrane materials, the optimal calcination temperature is about 350 °C under H2 atmosphere.


2008 ◽  
Vol 93 (9) ◽  
pp. 092907 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuo-Hsing Kao ◽  
Shiow-Huey Chuang ◽  
Woei-Cherng Wu ◽  
Tien-Sheng Chao ◽  
Jian-Hao Chen ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abualiz Modwi ◽  
Abdullah S. Al-Ayed ◽  
Damra E. Mustafa ◽  
Abdulaziz A. Bagabas ◽  
M. R. Elamin ◽  
...  

Abstract Employing plant extracts to obtain nanomaterials is an ecofriendly and highly appreciated synthetic approach. In this work a simple, green chemistry method, based on sol–gel, was used for ZnO nanoparticles synthesis by using two Sudanese medicinal plant extracts: Adanosia digitata (ZnO-A) and Balanites aegyptiaca (ZnO-B) under ultrasonic energy. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the formation of wurtzite hexagonal ZnO nanostructures, while the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis displayed their diverse morphologies. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) data showed the impact of extract via the variation in of the O1s and Zn2p3/2 and Zn2p1/2 orbitals binding energy of Zn–O. The UV-visible investigation indicated a variation of bandgap energy (E g ), where the ZnO nanoparticles displayed the lowest E g . The synthesized nanomaterials have exhibited high photocatalytic efficiency towards the methylene blue (MB) dye. The findings revealed the possibility of obtaining nanoparticles with tailored properties by using plants extracts.


Separations ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Chukwuka Bethel Anucha ◽  
Ilknur Altin ◽  
Emin Bacaksız ◽  
Tayfur Kucukomeroglu ◽  
Masho Hilawie Belay ◽  
...  

Abatement of contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs) in water sources has been widely studied employing TiO2 based heterogeneous photocatalysis. However, low quantum energy yield among other limitations of titania has led to its modification with other semiconductor materials for improved photocatalytic activity. In this work, a 0.05 wt.% CuWO4 over TiO2 was prepared as a powder composite. Each component part synthesized via the sol-gel method for TiO2, and CuWO4 by co-precipitation assisted hydrothermal method from precursor salts, underwent gentle mechanical agitation. Homogenization of the nanopowder precursors was performed by zirconia ball milling for 2 h. The final material was obtained after annealing at 500 °C for 3.5 h. Structural and morphological characterization of the synthesized material has been achieved employing X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) N2 adsorption–desorption analysis, Scanning electron microscopy-coupled Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS) for optical characterization. The 0.05 wt.% CuWO4-TiO2 catalyst was investigated for its photocatalytic activity over carbamazepine (CBZ), achieving a degradation of almost 100% after 2 h irradiation. A comparison with pure TiO2 prepared under those same conditions was made. The effect of pH, chemical scavengers, H2O2 as well as contaminant ion effects (anions, cations), and humic acid (HA) was investigated, and their related influences on the photocatalyst efficiency towards CBZ degradation highlighted accordingly.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandre Pancotti ◽  
Dener Pereira Santos ◽  
Dielly Oliveira Morais ◽  
Mauro Vinícius de Barros Souza ◽  
Débora R. Lima ◽  
...  

AbstractIn this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of NiFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 nanoparticles (NPs) which are widely used in the biomedical area. There is still limited knowledge how the properties of these materials are influenced by different chemical routes. In this work, we investigated the effect of heat treatment over cytotoxicity of cobalt and niquel ferrites NPs synthesized by sol-gel method. Then the samples were studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy Analysis (FTIR), and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The average crystallite sizes of the particles were found to be in the range of 20–35 nm. The hemocompatibility (erythrocytes and leukocytes) was checked. Cytotoxicity results were similar to those of the control test sample, therefore suggesting hemocompatibility of the tested materials.


Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 3583
Author(s):  
Junying Yang ◽  
Minye Huang ◽  
Shengsen Wang ◽  
Xiaoyun Mao ◽  
Yueming Hu ◽  
...  

In this study, a magnetic copper ferrite/montmorillonite-k10 nanocomposite (CuFe2O4/MMT-k10) was successfully fabricated by a simple sol-gel combustion method and was characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the Brunner–Emmett–Teller (BET) method, vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). For levofloxacin (LVF) degradation, CuFe2O4/MMT-k10 was utilized to activate persulfate (PS). Due to the relative high adsorption capacity of CuFe2O4/MMT-k10, the adsorption feature was considered an enhancement of LVF degradation. In addition, the response surface methodology (RSM) model was established with the parameters of pH, temperature, PS dosage, and CuFe2O4/MMT-k10 dosage as the independent variables to obtain the optimal response for LVF degradation. In cycle experiments, we identified the good stability and reusability of CuFe2O4/MMT-k10. We proposed a potential mechanism of CuFe2O4/MMT-k10 activating PS through free radical quenching tests and XPS analysis. These results reveal that CuFe2O4/MMT-k10 nanocomposite could activate the persulfate, which is an efficient technique for LVF degradation in water.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kangqiang Huang ◽  
Li Chen ◽  
Jianwen Xiong ◽  
Meixiang Liao

The Fe-N co-doped TiO2nanocomposites were synthesized by a sol-gel method and characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-vis) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Then the photocatalytic inactivation of Fe-N-doped TiO2on leukemia tumors was investigated by using Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay. Additionally, the ultrastructural morphology and apoptotic percentage of treated cells were also studied. The experimental results showed that the growth of leukemic HL60 cells was significantly inhibited in groups treated with TiO2nanoparticles and the photocatalytic activity of Fe-N-TiO2was significantly higher than that of Fe-TiO2and N-TiO2, indicating that the photocatalytic efficiency could be effectively enhanced by the modification of Fe-N. Furthermore, when 2 wt% Fe-N-TiO2nanocomposites at a final concentration of 200 μg/mL were used, the inactivation efficiency of 78.5% was achieved after 30-minute light therapy.


2011 ◽  
Vol 268-270 ◽  
pp. 356-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Song Lin ◽  
C. H. Wen ◽  
Liang He

Mn, Fe doped ZnO powders (Zn0.95-xMnxFe0.05O2, x≤0.05) were synthesized by an ameliorated sol-gel method, using Zn(CH3COO)2, Mn(CH3COO)2and FeCl2as the raw materials, with the addition of vitamin C as a kind of chemical reducer. The resulting powder was subsequently compacted under pressure of 10 MPa at the temperature of 873K in vacuum. The crystal structure and magnetic properties of Zn0.95-xMnxFe0.05O2powder and bulk samples have been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to study chemical valence of manganese, iron and zinc in the samples. The x-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that Zn0.95-xMnxFe0.05O (x≤0.05) samples were single phase with the ZnO-like wurtzite structure. No secondary phase was found in the XRD spectrum. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed that Fe and Mn existed in Zn0.95-xMnxFe0.05O2samples in Fe2+and Mn2+states. The results of VSM experiment proved the room temperature ferromagnetic properties (RTFP) of Mn, Fe co-doped ZnO samples.


2007 ◽  
Vol 111 (40) ◽  
pp. 11850-11857 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabrina S. Jedlicka ◽  
Jenna L. Rickus ◽  
Dmitry Y. Zemlyanov

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