A review of carbon-based and non-carbon-based catalyst supports for the selective catalytic reduction of nitric oxide

• Shahreen Binti Izwan Anthonysamy,
• Syahidah Binti Afandi,
• Mehrnoush Khavarian and
• Abdul Rahman Bin Mohamed

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 740–761, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.68

• practically evaluated. In recent years, many abatement technologies including dry and wet techniques have been utilised in industrial boilers and power plants to control NOx emissions. Post-combustion such as selective catalytic reduction (SCR), non-selective catalytic reduction (NSCR), adsorption, corona

Mechanistic insights into plasmonic photocatalysts in utilizing visible light

• Kah Hon Leong,
• Azrina Abd Aziz,
• Lan Ching Sim,
• Pichiah Saravanan,
• Min Jang and
• Detlef Bahnemann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 628–648, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.59

• ). The so called green synthesis of Au and Ag are suitably used in clinical and biomedical fields because it is free of toxic chemicals and non-polar solvents. Numerous researches have proved that Au and Ag NPs can be synthesized from the chemicals extracted from plants and microorganisms such as fungi

• , algae, bacteria and yeasts [156][157][158][159][160][161]. Different types of biomolecules available in plants, for example, polysaccharides, phenolics, or flavonoids are capable of producing metal nanoparticles of different sizes and shapes [162]. This phytosynthesis is more favourable than that which

Colloidal solution of silver nanoparticles for label-free colorimetric sensing of ammonia in aqueous solutions

• Alessandro Buccolieri,
• Antonio Serra,
• Gabriele Giancane and
• Daniela Manno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 499–507, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.48

• –vis spectroscopy; Introduction Important sources of ammonia include synthetic fertilizers, oceans, the burning of biomass, the decomposition of plants, natural land [1] and the chemical industry [2]. Ammonia is also an organic compound normally produced by human metabolism [3] through the urea cycle

Optimal fractal tree-like microchannel networks with slip for laminar-flow-modified Murray’s law

• Dalei Jing,
• Shiyu Song,
• Yunlu Pan and
• Xiaoming Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 482–489, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.46

• , in tree branches and leaf veins of plants, all of which can provide inspiration for the optimal design of the channel layout to achieve the optimal mass and heat transfer [3][4][5]. These branched networks are known to have excellent performance in transport processes of heat and mass, and have been

Kinetics of solvent supported tubule formation of Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) wax on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) investigated by atomic force microscopy

• Sujit Kumar Dora,
• Kerstin Koch,
• Wilhelm Barthlott and
• Klaus Wandelt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 468–481, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.45

• Biodiversity of Plants, University of Bonn, Venusbergweg 22, 53115 Bonn, Germany Institute of Experimental Physics, University of Wroclaw, pl. M. Borna 9, 50-204 Wrocław, Poland 10.3762/bjnano.9.45 Abstract The time dependence of the formation of lotus wax tubules after recrystallization from various

• (intracuticular wax) or deposited over the cutin surface (epicuticular wax) of primary plant organs. Being the first point of contact between plants and environment, the cuticle provides protection against water loss and external environmental stresses. Other important functions include control of transpiration

• concentration of wax molecules in the applied solution and the presence of any foreign substances, e.g., water or salts in the wax solution. In plants, the transport of wax molecules from the location of synthesis inside the cells onto the cuticle is discussed as co-transport of the wax components with water

Humidity-dependent wound sealing in succulent leaves of Delosperma cooperi – An adaptation to seasonal drought stress

• Olga Speck,
• Mark Schlechtendahl,
• Florian Borm,
• Tim Kampowski and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 175–186, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.20

• evolution, plants evolved various reactions to wounding. Fast wound sealing and subsequent healing represent a selective advantage of particular importance for plants growing in arid habitats. An effective self-sealing function by internal deformation has been found in the succulent leaves of Delosperma

• the last 3.8 billion years of biological evolution, plants have increasingly evolved diverse mechanisms of wound reactions. High selective pressure on the development of self-repair in the plant kingdom and the independent evolution of various mechanisms of self-repair in the different plant groups

• initial wound reaction protects the plants from infection by pathogens and may help to inhibit overcritical water loss. These sealing effects give time for the subsequent self-healing of the injury resulting in the disappearance of the fissure, which is structurally repaired in terms of the (partial

Review on optofluidic microreactors for artificial photosynthesis

• Xiaowen Huang,
• Jianchun Wang,
• Tenghao Li,
• Jianmei Wang,
• Min Xu,
• Weixing Yu,
• Abdel El Abed and
• Xuming Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 30–41, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.5

• and coenzyme regeneration. NPS is naturally an optofluidic system since the cells (typical size 10 to 100 µm) of green plants, algae, and cyanobacteria enable light capture, biochemical and enzymatic reactions and the related material transport in a microscale, aqueous environment. The long history of

• devastating problems to be solved, and artificial photosynthesis (APS) is considered to be the most promising and viable method [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. As the name implies, APS is the human replication of natural photosynthesis (NPS). NPS is a very important process in plants and other organisms which

• or methane [45][46]. Additionally, with the consumption of CO2, APS possibly provides a solution to the greenhouse effect and global warming. Unlike human beings, plants have no need to use CO2 as a clean fuel or for to reduce the greenhouse effect. They simply “consume” CO2 to produce carbohydrates

Surfactant-induced enhancement of droplet adhesion in superhydrophobic soybean (Glycine max L.) leaves

• Oliver Hagedorn,
• Ingo Fleute-Schlachter,
• Hans Georg Mainx,
• Viktoria Zeisler-Diehl and
• Kerstin Koch

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2345–2356, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.234

• higher plant surfaces, represents the interface between plants and their environment and accomplishes essential functions to ensure the maintenance of a terrestrial plant life, such as the reduction of water loss [1], control of gas exchange [2][3], protection from harmful UV radiation [4] and aiding

• tissues (shoots, leaves, fruits) of higher plants [10][11]. It is built up by a network of the cross-linked ester-like biopolymer, cutin, with integrated (intracuticular) and superimposed (epicuticular) waxes [12][13]. A large diversity of epicuticular wax chemistry and morphology has been described [14

• efficacy in pest control by spray application techniques. Experimental Plant material Plants of the black soybean Glycine max L. convar. max var. nigra-lutescens “Schwarze Poppelsdorfer” were cultivated in the trial fields of the Botanical Gardens of the University of Bonn (acquisition number BONN-19242

Air–water interface of submerged superhydrophobic surfaces imaged by atomic force microscopy

• Markus Moosmann,
• Thomas Schimmel,
• Wilhelm Barthlott and
• Matthias Mail

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1671–1679, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.167

• Markus Moosmann Thomas Schimmel Wilhelm Barthlott Matthias Mail Nees Institute for Biodiversity of Plants, University of Bonn, Venusbergweg 22, D-53115 Bonn, Germany Institute of Applied Physics and Institute of Nanotechnology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1

• sensory systems. Biological surfaces are the basis of the discovery and are models for the development of biomimetic surfaces. The conquest of land some 450 million years ago led to the evolution of an almost endless variety of surface structures and functionalities in plants and animals [3]. One of the

• sputter-coated onto the surface to enhance their conductivity. Biological role models of air-retaining Salvinia effect surfaces. a) The floating fern Salvinia molesta has one of the most complex surface structures in plants. Reproduced with permission from [5], copyright 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co

Treatment of fly ash from power plants using thermal plasma

• Sulaiman Al-Mayman,
• Ibrahim AlShunaifi,
• Abdullah Albeladi,
• Imed Ghiloufi and
• Saud Binjuwair

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1043–1048, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.105

• , Saudi Arabia 10.3762/bjnano.8.105 Abstract Fly ash from power plants is very toxic because it contains heavy metals. In this study fly ash was treated with a thermal plasma. Before their treatment, the fly ash was analyzed by many technics such as X-ray fluorescence, CHN elemental analysis, inductively

• glassy. Keywords: fly ash; power plant; stabilization/solidification; surface characterization; thermal plasma; Introduction Fly ash is a residue material produced in power plants. This fly ash contains a high level of residual carbon [1], and it contains also transition metals (Fe, Mn, and Co) and

• hospital wastes, and organohalogen wastes [11]. The first objective of the present study was to characterize the fly ash from power plants using heavy fuel oils in Saudi Arabia. After the characterization, the fly ash will be treated by thermal plasma system built in the laboratory at KACST, which is based

Needs and challenges for assessing the environmental impacts of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs)

• Michelle Romero-Franco,
• Hilary A. Godwin,
• Muhammad Bilal and
• Yoram Cohen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 989–1014, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.101

Biological and biomimetic materials and surfaces

• Stanislav Gorb and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 403–407, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.42

• surfaces. From everyday life experience, we all know that during watering or rainfall, water rolls off the leaves of many plants in the form of spherical droplets leaving the leaves themselves entirely dry. This effect can be seen in an especially impressive manner on the leaves of the sacred lotus

• biomimetic application [9]. In addition to the fields of botanical–biomimetic research, Wilhelm Barthlott has significantly contributed to many other fields of botany, for example, systematics and functional morphology of carnivorous plants and epiphytic cacti, biogeography/biodiversity and pollination

• shrubby monocotyledons plants with an emphasis on the structure–function relationships in Dracaena marginata stems [11]. Based on the results of microscopy and mechanical testing, a model of mechanical interactions between tissues and vascular bundles in the D. marginata stem was generated, and the

Innovations from the “ivory tower”: Wilhelm Barthlott and the paradigm shift in surface science

• Christoph Neinhuis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 394–402, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.41

• , the unique natural history of isolated rocky outcrops called inselbergs, or the global distribution of biodiversity), plant surfaces and especially the tremendous diversity of minute structures on leaves, fruits, seeds and other parts of plants represent a common thread through 40 years of scientific

• as well as their natural history in connection with a botanic garden, which was keeping extensive collections, being at his disposal. During his approach to conduct broad surveys among various groups of plants, he soon recognized that certain structures were not distributed randomly but

• characteristic for distinct genera, families or higher-order groups. One of the first structures studied in detail were seeds [3][4][5][6][7][8]. Apart from the sole description of structures based on the surveys functional aspects of plants were always considered as well [3][6][9][10][11]. Soon, and even more

Performance of natural-dye-sensitized solar cells by ZnO nanorod and nanowall enhanced photoelectrodes

• Saif Saadaoui,
• Mohamed Aziz Ben Youssef,
• Moufida Ben Karoui,
• Rached Gharbi,
• Emanuele Smecca,
• Vincenzina Strano,
• Salvo Mirabella,
• Alessandra Alberti and
• Rosaria A. Puglisi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 287–295, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.31

• Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Catania, via S. Sofia 64, Catania, Italy 10.3762/bjnano.8.31 Abstract In this work, two natural dyes extracted from henna and mallow plants with a maximum absorbance at 665 nm were studied and used as sensitizers in the fabrication of dye-sensitized solar

• dyes extracted from henna and mallow plants. We discuss also their application to different semiconductor structures. The photoelectrode is regarded as an important part in the DSSC where it represents the electron generator of the cell. Solar cell parameters, such as open-circuit voltage (Voc), short

• and mallow plants in different concentrations and at various immersion times. Furthermore, we analyzed the properties of the different used dyes and we reported the most anchoring-dominant molecules. By studying different gases used in the annealing process, we noted that the FG gave the most

When the going gets rough – studying the effect of surface roughness on the adhesive abilities of tree frogs

• Niall Crawford,
• Thomas Endlein,
• Jonathan T. Pham,
• Mathis Riehle and
• W. Jon P. Barnes

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2116–2131, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.201

• distributed over their surfaces. Indeed, cuticular folds have been demonstrated to be slippery for beetles [9][10], and stomata also contribute to a leaf’s roughness. Additionally, on some plants (e.g., the stems of Macaranga trees), one may find epicuticular wax crystals [11]. In Macaranga, the resulting

• an artificial insect leg, Song et al. [46] claim that, in situations where both claws and pads are both operating, the total force may even exceed the sum of the forces that either system, acting on its own, would have produced. A number of plants have evolved structures that deter insects (e.g

• ., Macaranga trees [12]) or attempt to capture them (e.g., pitcher plants [47]). In both cases, the surfaces will be slippery or otherwise non-adhesive. In many cases, the slipperiness is produced by surfaces covered by epicuticular wax crystals, which break off, contaminating the insect’s adhesive pads [48

The cleaner, the greener? Product sustainability assessment of the biomimetic façade paint Lotusan^® in comparison to the conventional façade paint Jumbosil^®

• Florian Antony,
• Rainer Grießhammer,
• Thomas Speck and
• Olga Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2100–2115, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.200

• developments were derived from biological examples over the last years [5][6][7]. The analysis of plant surfaces as contribution to the systematics of plants lead to the discovery of the operating principle of the self-cleaning effect of plant surfaces. This was brought into the construction market as

“Sticky invasion” – the physical properties of Plantago lanceolata L. seed mucilage

• Agnieszka Kreitschitz,
• Alexander Kovalev and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1918–1927, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.183

• characteristic of plants that grow in dry or disturbed habitats [1][3]. The presence of mucilage results in different benefits for the plant including (1) fixation of diaspores to the ground, (2) water supply essential for germinating an embryo or (3) egzo- and endozoochoric dispersal by animals [1][2][3

Biomechanics of selected arborescent and shrubby monocotyledons

• Tom Masselter,
• Tobias Haushahn,
• Samuel Fink and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1602–1619, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.154

• plants. To date, while the variation of physical properties from top to base and centre to periphery, as well as the underlying structural features, are well known in many dicotyledonous trees [1], these property shifts are still hardly studied in tree-like monocotyledons. This knowledge deficit is

• largely caused by a lack of interest for empirical data for monocotyledon stems and is a result of their insignificance as constructional material in many (industrialized) countries with the major exception of bamboo culms [2]. Results for physical properties of dicot plants cannot be transferred to

• investigations on the branching mechanics of “woody” monocots. In addition, these data can be incorporated in finite element models at cell and tissue level that mirror the anisotropy and the stress–strain behaviour of the investigated plants at stem level [6][7]. This allows for a deepened understanding of the

Development of adsorptive membranes by confinement of activated biochar into electrospun nanofibers

• Mehrdad Taheran,
• Mitra Naghdi,
• Satinder K. Brar,
• Emile Knystautas,
• Mausam Verma,
• Rao. Y. Surampalli and
• Jose. R. Valero

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1556–1563, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.149

• concentration in feed stream was set to 200 ppb since the reported values for the influent and effluents of wastewater treatment plants ranged from 1.2 ppb in municipal wastewater to 32 ppm in pharmaceutical wastewater [32][33][34]. Therefore, the studied concentrations were reasonably in the relevant

Surface roughness rather than surface chemistry essentially affects insect adhesion

• Matt W. England,
• Tomoya Sato,
• Makoto Yagihashi,
• Atsushi Hozumi,
• Stanislav N. Gorb and
• Elena V. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1471–1479, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.139

• the past decade [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. There are countless examples of functional surfaces inspired by plants, such as lotus leaves [5][13] and the pitchers of carnivorous plants [9][14] that can be used to tune the wetting/de-wetting properties of surfaces on various substrates

• and experimental designs were used. In some of these studies, insect species that are strongly specialized to host plants whose leaf surfaces have very specific surface energies (water CA about 80°), such as the beetle Galerucella nympheae which lives on the leaf surface of the water lily, the maximum

Influence of ambient humidity on the attachment ability of ladybird beetles (Coccinella septempunctata)

• Lars Heepe,
• Jonas O. Wolff and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1322–1329, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.123

• as water condensation became visible on the substrate or moistening of substrate and/or pad surface ([14][56] and this study). In nature, animals are constantly exposed to certain humidity. Most of insects live on plants containing a humid boundary layer in the vicinity of the plant surface. The

Fabrication and characterization of branched carbon nanostructures

• Sharali Malik,
• Yoshihiro Nemoto,
• Hongxuan Guo,
• Katsuhiko Ariga and
• Jonathan P. Hill

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1260–1266, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.116

• recently, Masselter et al. have correlated the functional morphology of branching in plants with mechanical behavior and concluded that the concepts generated have a high potential for implementation in the development of branched fiber-reinforced technical composites [16]. With respect to electrical and

Voltammetric determination of polyphenolic content in pomegranate juice using a poly(gallic acid)/multiwalled carbon nanotube modified electrode

• Refat Abdel-Hamid and
• Emad F. Newair

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1104–1112, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.103

• phenolic content; Introduction Gallic acid (GA) is a natural polyphenolic compound found in fruits, vegetables and several other plants [1]. The study of the role of GA in providing better therapeutic outcomes against arsenic-induced toxicity showed that GA is effective against arsenic-induced oxidative

Templated green synthesis of plasmonic silver nanoparticles in onion epidermal cells suitable for surface-enhanced Raman and hyper-Raman scattering

• Marta Espina Palanco,
• Klaus Bo Mogensen,
• Marina Gühlke,
• Zsuzsanna Heiner,
• Janina Kneipp and
• Katrin Kneipp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 834–840, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.75

• demonstrate a templated green preparation of enhancing plasmonic nanoparticles and suggest a new route to deliver silver nanoparticles as basic building blocks of plasmonic nanosensors to plants by the uptake of solutions of metal salts. Keywords: biotemplates; green preparation; onion; plasmonic

• the last decade, so-called “green synthesis” came into the focus of interest, since many molecules typically available in biological living matter have the capability to reduce silver and gold salts. It has been demonstrated that plants and also microorganisms such as algae, fungi, yeasts, and

• bacteria provide chemicals suitable for the preparation of metal nanoparticles [13][14]. For example, different parts of plants contain polysaccharides, phenolics, or flavonoids, to mention only a few compounds, which could serve as reducing and also stabilizing agents. The preparation of silver and gold

Comparative kinematical analyses of Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) snap traps

• Simon Poppinga,
• Tim Kampowski,
• Amélie Metzger,
• Olga Speck and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 664–674, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.59

• Centre for Interactive Materials and Bio-Inspired Technologies (FIT), Georges-Köhler-Allee 105, 79110 Freiburg, Germany 10.3762/bjnano.7.59 Abstract Although the Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) can be considered as one of the most extensively investigated carnivorous plants, knowledge is still scarce

• evolved a remarkable trapping system that functions as well in air as under water, and which can be considered as an optimized system for nutrient acquisition of a carnivorous plant growing in seasonally inundated habitats. Similar reports on carnivorous plants with traps functioning under different

• our understanding of this (in)famous carnivore and opens up novel perspectives for future studies. Experimental Plant material We analyzed healthy, well-watered and potted adult D. muscipula plants as well as half-year-old seedlings, all cultivated in a temperate greenhouse of the Botanic Garden