Hydrophilicity and carbon chain length effects on the gas sensing properties of chemoresistive, self-assembled monolayer carbon nanotube sensors

• Juan Casanova-Cháfer,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Eduard Llobet

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 565–577, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.58

• local environment. One of the reasons for this is their high surface-to-volume ratio and hollow structure in which almost every single carbon atom is on the surface, making them suitable for the adsorption of gas molecules [6]. This capability to detect toxic air pollutants has made them ideal

• , different carbon nanotube sensors have been reported for detecting toxic pollutants emitted from vehicle exhaust [22][23], hazardous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) [24] or chemical warfare agents (CWAs) [25][26]. Usually, these modified carbon nanotubes improve the selectivity, because the chemical

• biofuels. Ethanol is added to fuels since it can act as a radical scavenger, improving air quality by diminishing the concentration of pollutants emitted from combustion engines. However, an excessive amount of ethanol in the blend can damage automotive fuel lines [35]. Additionally, by testing oxidizing

Development of an anti-pollution coating process technology for the application of an on-site PV module

• Sejin Jung,
• Wonseok Choi,
• Jung Hyun Kim and
• Jang Myoun Ko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 332–336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.32

• external surface pollutants, such as dust, yellow dust, animal excrement and rainfall sediment. These pollutants prevent sunlight from entering the PV modules and thereby degrade the power generation efficiency. Therefore, various studies have been conducted of late to effectively prevent the surface

• light transmittance of 95% or higher [5][6]. Large solar power plants are currently being installed for power generation, and a huge amount of time and cost is required for maintenance, including surface cleaning. Therefore, the introduction of a technology capable of easily removing pollutants using

• angles of the fabricated functional coating films were measured using a contact angle analyzer (Phoenix 300 Touch, S.E.O. Co., South Korea). The anti-pollution characteristics were measured using permanent markers instead of actual pollutants. This method is useful for checking the level of pollutant

Removal of toxic heavy metals from river water samples using a porous silica surface modified with a new β-ketoenolic host

• Said Tighadouini,
• Smaail Radi,
• Abderrahman Elidrissi,
• Khadija Haboubi,
• Maryse Bacquet,
• Stéphanie Degoutin,
• Mustapha Zaghrioui and
• Yann Garcia

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 262–273, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.25

• known to cause health problems even at low concentrations in living systems [3][4][5]. Among these toxic metals included on the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA’s) list of priority pollutants, zinc, lead, cadmium and copper are considered as the most hazardous. Solutions to remove heavy metals

New micro/mesoporous nanocomposite material from low-cost sources for the efficient removal of aromatic and pathogenic pollutants from water

• Emmanuel I. Unuabonah,
• Robert Nöske,
• Jens Weber,
• Christina Günter and
• Andreas Taubert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 119–131, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.11

• ; micro/mesoporous; nanocomposite; water remediation; Introduction Porous carbon-based materials and carbon/inorganic hybrid materials have extensively been used for the adsorption of pollutants, such as heavy metals or aromatic hydrocarbons, from water in developing countries [1][2][3][4]. The removal

• of such contaminants is a necessity for public health in many developing countries because these pollutants can negatively alter important biochemical processes and thus are a critical threat to the health of plants, animals, and humans [5]. In addition to chemical contaminants, the removal of

• biological pollutants from water is a key issue in water treatment and public health. According to the World Health Organization, increasing discharges of untreated sewage, in addition to agricultural runoff and wastewater from industry, have drastically reduced the quality of water around the world. The

Wet chemistry route for the decoration of carbon nanotubes with iron oxide nanoparticles for gas sensing

• Hussam M. Elnabawy,
• Juan Casanova-Chafer,
• Badawi Anis,
• Mostafa Fedawy,
• Mattia Scardamaglia,
• Carla Bittencourt,
• Ahmed S. G. Khalil,
• Eduard Llobet and
• Xavier Vilanova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 105–118, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.10

• CNTs and iron oxide have been also used for sensing ammonia and NOx [22][23]. Among those gases NO2 is considered one of the most dangerous air pollutants occurring both indoors, due to using of gas stoves, and outdoors from fuel powered motor vehicles and power plants especially in long-term exposure

In situ characterization of nanoscale contaminations adsorbed in air using atomic force microscopy

• Jesús S. Lacasa,
• Lisa Almonte and
• Jaime Colchero

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2925–2935, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.271

• specified properties during AFM operation [19][20]. Tip degradation, either tip wear or tip contamination from the sample, is mainly induced by AFM operation [18][20][21]. Other kinds of contamination that may affect the tip are organic contamination from ambient air, metallic pollutants due to the

Impact of the anodization time on the photocatalytic activity of TiO₂ nanotubes

• Jesús A. Díaz-Real,
• Geyla C. Dubed-Bandomo,
• Juan Galindo-de-la-Rosa,
• Luis G. Arriaga,
• Janet Ledesma-García and
• Nicolas Alonso-Vante

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2628–2643, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.244

• such as excellent chemical stability, photo-corrosion resistance, low cost, and low toxicity make TiO2 a material suitable for energy production and environmental applications, such as advanced oxidation processes for the decomposition of organic pollutants in water [2][3]. However, the material

Improved catalytic combustion of methane using CuO nanobelts with predominantly (001) surfaces

• Qingquan Kong,
• Yichun Yin,
• Bing Xue,
• Yonggang Jin,
• Wei Feng,
• Zhi-Gang Chen,
• Shi Su and
• Chenghua Sun

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2526–2532, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.235

• at a flame temperature up to ≈2,000 K [4], which favours the formation of nitrogen oxide (NOx) pollutants. To suppress such reactions, a lower flame temperature is targeted, but this potentially results in incomplete combustion with large CO and unburned hydrocarbon (UHC) emissions [5], which

Nanocellulose: Recent advances and its prospects in environmental remediation

• Katrina Pui Yee Shak,
• Yean Ling Pang and
• Shee Keat Mah

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2479–2498, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.232

• concerns warrant the application of bio-renewable polymers in the production of nanomaterials. In recent years, nanomaterials have displayed potential in effective detection and removal of greenhouse gases, chemical contaminants, organic pollutants, and biological agents. These materials come in various

• nanocellulose, which could be particularly useful for particle aggregation of negatively charged pollutants to coagulate and flocculate kaolin colloids as reported by Liimatainen et al. [79]. On the other hand, the utilization of green solvents (ionic liquids) as both solvent and catalyst for cellulose

• adsorbent for wastewater treatment due to its adsorption affinity towards organic pollutants. Unlike micrometre-sized cellulose, the nanometre-sized counterparts are relatively smaller in dimensional size but also possess a larger surface area with improved porosity, which limits internal diffusion and

ZnO-nanostructure-based electrochemical sensor: Effect of nanostructure morphology on the sensing of heavy metal ions

• Marina Krasovska,
• Vjaceslavs Gerbreders,
• Irena Mihailova,
• Andrejs Ogurcovs,
• Eriks Sledevskis,
• Andrejs Gerbreders and
• Pavels Sarajevs

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2421–2431, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.227

• the presence of lead and other heavy ions, even in small quantities, is an important and topical task. ZnO nanostructures are promising candidates for use in such sensors. They are sensitive to various types of contamination, including almost all heavy metal ions and organic pollutants, and show very

SERS active Ag–SiO₂ nanoparticles obtained by laser ablation of silver in colloidal silica

• Cristina Gellini,
• Francesco Muniz-Miranda,
• Alfonso Pedone and
• Maurizio Muniz-Miranda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2396–2404, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.224

• chemical reactants. These nanocomposites, which combine the adsorption properties of silica with the plasmonic properties of nanometer-sized silver, can be used for several purposes, for example, for the SERS detection of environmental contaminants such as POPs (persistent organic pollutants), as

Hierarchical heterostructures of Bi₂MoO₆ microflowers decorated with Ag₂CO₃ nanoparticles for efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic removal of toxic pollutants

• Shijie Li,
• Wei Jiang,
• Shiwei Hu,
• Yu Liu,
• Yanping Liu,
• Kaibing Xu and
• Jianshe Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2297–2305, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.214

• Treatment and Control in Textile Industry, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai 201620, China 10.3762/bjnano.9.214 Abstract Developing highly active and durable visible-light-driven photocatalysts for the degradation of toxic pollutants is of vital significance

• candidate for wastewater treatment. Keywords: antibiotic removal; Bi2MoO6; heterojunction; silver carbonate (Ag2CO3); Introduction Industrial pollutants, such as industrial dyes and antibiotics, in wastewaters pose a huge threat to the environment [1][2]. Thus, many methods for pollutant removal have been

• established. However, the conventional wastewater treatments are usually accompanied by high cost, low efficiency and other insufficiencies [2]. The decomposition and mineralization of pollutants under sunlight through photocatalysis has been demonstrated to be an effective and green technology for

Electrospun one-dimensional nanostructures: a new horizon for gas sensing materials

• Muhammad Imran,
• Nunzio Motta and
• Mahnaz Shafiei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2128–2170, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.202

• important active materials for gas sensing applications. Such highly sensitive and selective elements can be embedded in sensor nodes for internet-of-things applications or in mobile systems for continuous monitoring of air pollutants and greenhouse gases as well as for monitoring the well-being and health

• benefits and limitations for every approach. Keywords: 1D nanostructures; conductometric devices; electrospinning; gas sensors; optical sensors; resonators; Review 1 Introduction The monitoring and control of air pollutants, toxic gases and explosives has become increasingly important for human wellness

• followed by death. Gas sensors are the primary devices used for the detection and monitoring of these pollutants. Employing nanotechnology in sensor applications has significantly improved the performance of such devices, providing enhanced sensitivity, selectivity, low power consumption and high

Synthesis of a MnO₂/Fe₃O₄/diatomite nanocomposite as an efficient heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst for methylene blue degradation

• Zishun Li,
• Xuekun Tang,
• Kun Liu,
• Jing Huang,
• Yueyang Xu,
• Qian Peng and
• Minlin Ao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1940–1950, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.185

• ) oxide (Fe3O4); manganese(IV) oxide (MnO2); Introduction Organic contaminants are widely distributed in water and soil due to the excessive emissions of industrial processes, which causes a great threat to the ecosystem as well as to human health [1][2][3]. Most of the organic pollutants are toxic and

• -based catalysts, MnO2 shows good catalytic performance because of the Mn(III)/Mn(IV) redox loop and much less sludge formation due to the neutral functional pH value [11][12]. Although, the MnO2-PMS system shows good prospect in the treatment of organic pollutants, modifications focusing on the

• organic pollutants. XRD patterns of the purified diatomite and the prepared diatomite-supported composites. FTIR spectra of the purified diatomite and prepared diatomite-supported composites. The SEM images of diatomite (a), Fe3O4/diatomite (b, d), MnO2/Fe3O4/diatomite (c and e), EDX spectrum (f) and

Free-radical gases on two-dimensional transition-metal disulfides (XS₂, X = Mo/W): robust half-metallicity for efficient nitrogen oxide sensors

• Chunmei Zhang,
• Yalong Jiao,
• Fengxian Ma,
• Sri Kasi Matta,
• Steven Bottle and
• Aijun Du

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1641–1646, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.156

• results also suggest XS2 (X = Mo, W) nanosheets can act as promising nanoscale NO sensors. Keywords: free radical; half-metallicity; nitric oxide (NO); sensors; spin-polarized; Introduction Nitrogen oxide (NOx) gases, one of the most common groups of air pollutants, are known as one culprit of acid rain

Sulfur-, nitrogen- and platinum-doped titania thin films with high catalytic efficiency under visible-light illumination

• Boštjan Žener,
• Lev Matoh,
• Giorgio Carraro,
• Bojan Miljević and
• Romana Cerc Korošec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1629–1640, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.155

• of Novi Sad, Faculty of Technology, Bulevar cara Lazara 1, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia 10.3762/bjnano.9.155 Abstract Titanium dioxide photocatalysts have received a lot of attention during the past decades due to their ability to degrade various organic pollutants to CO2 and H2O, which makes them

• oxidizing species, which then oxidize adsorbed pollutants, forming CO2 and H2O as final products [7]. Because of this particularly beneficial characteristic, together with its low-cost and lack of secondary emissions [8], significant research has been focused on the use of TiO2 photocatalysis in various

Cr(VI) remediation from aqueous environment through modified-TiO₂-mediated photocatalytic reduction

• Rashmi Acharya,
• Brundabana Naik and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1448–1470, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.137

• pollutants and has mandated a maximum acceptable concentration of 50 μg L−1 in potable water [13][14][15]. Therefore, it is now of great importance to explore the efficient and economical ways for the treatment of Cr(VI)-rich wastewater. Various techniques, such as chemical reduction, ion exchange, bacterial

• transformation for the fine chemical synthesis [39][40][41][42] and (v) photodegradation of pollutants [43][44][45][46][47][48][49]. Semiconductor-based photocatalysis proceeds through following three steps: (1) absorption of light; (2) separation and transport of charge carriers; and (3) redox reactions on the

• visible-light irradiation. The authors have also reported that •CO2− radicals (produced by the reaction of hVB+ with HCO2NH4) and eCB− are responsible for the reduction of 4-nitroaniline to p-phenylenediamine over CdS/TiO2 photocatalysts [56]. Photodegradation of pollutants The principle of photocatalysis

Ag₂WO₄ nanorods decorated with AgI nanoparticles: Novel and efficient visible-light-driven photocatalysts for the degradation of water pollutants

• Shijie Li,
• Shiwei Hu,
• Wei Jiang,
• Yanping Liu,
• Yu Liu,
• Yingtang Zhou,
• Liuye Mo and
• Jianshe Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1308–1316, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.123

• , and UV–vis DRS were used to investigate the morphology and optical properties of the as-prepared AgI/Ag2WO4 catalyst. With AgI acting as the cocatalyst, the resulting AgI/Ag2WO4 heterostructure shows excellent performance in degrading toxic, stable pollutants such as rhodamine B (RhB), methyl orange

• photocatalytic performance. Keywords: AgI/Ag2WO4; nanocomposites; photocatalysis; visible light; Introduction The development of high-performance novel photocatalysts for the degradation of pollutants has received great interest due to the worsening of environmental pollution [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11

• Ag2S/Ag2WO4 [40], C3N4/Ag2WO4 [39], Bi2MoO6/Ag2WO4/Ag [42] etc., have been reported to show improved VLD performance in the degradation of pollutants. To the best of our knowledge, application of AgI/Ag2WO4 as a VLD photocatalyst for the degradation of toxic pollutants remains unreported. In this study

Electrodeposition of reduced graphene oxide with chitosan based on the coordination deposition method

• Mingyang Liu,
• Yanjun Chen,
• Chaoran Qin,
• Zheng Zhang,
• Shuai Ma,
• Xiuru Cai,
• Xueqian Li and
• Yifeng Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1200–1210, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.111

• electrochemical detection of glucose, NH3 gas, NO2 gas, ethanol and acetone [40][41][42][43]. Besides, graphene-based sensors have been used to detect phenolic compounds which are aromatic pollutants to the environment and human health [44][45]. These graphene-based sensors exhibit the high detection performance

Review on nanoparticles and nanostructured materials: history, sources, toxicity and regulations

• Jaison Jeevanandam,
• Ahmed Barhoum,
• Yen S. Chan,
• Alain Dufresne and
• Michael K. Danquah

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1050–1074, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.98

• satellite images revealed that dust storms in one region can migrate the nano and micro-sized minerals and anthropogenic pollutants to thousands of kilometers away from their origin. About 50% of the atmospheric aerosol particles that originate from dust storms in deserts are in the range of 100–200 nm [46

• -mediated natural precipitation. It has been reported that formation of CaCO3 NPs in Lake Michigan is due to weather and temperature changes [81]. These small sea salt aerosols act to transfer microorganisms and pollutants that may increase casualties in plants, animals, and humans via adverse health

• their weightless wing material [220][221][222]. Insect wing surfaces demonstrate a rough and highly ordered structure comprised of micro- and nanoscale properties to minimize their mass and protect them against wetting and pollutants. A methodical terminology to explain the structural properties of

Facile synthesis of a ZnO–BiOI p–n nano-heterojunction with excellent visible-light photocatalytic activity

• Mengyuan Zhang,
• Jiaqian Qin,
• Pengfei Yu,
• Bing Zhang,
• Mingzhen Ma,
• Xinyu Zhang and
• Riping Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 789–800, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.72

• , probably a result of the quantum confinement effect in the nanometer-sized ZnO particles. Photocatalytic degradation To test the as-synthesized samples’ ability to remove organic pollutants from waste water, the photodegradation of RhB was carried out under illumination by visible light from a 300 W Xe

Perovskite-structured CaTiO₃ coupled with g-C₃N₄ as a heterojunction photocatalyst for organic pollutant degradation

• Ashish Kumar,
• Christian Schuerings,
• Suneel Kumar,
• Ajay Kumar and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 671–685, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.62

• overall photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, the active species trapping experiments validate the major role played by superoxide radicals (O2−•) in the degradation of pollutants. Based on scavenger studies and theoretically calculated band positions, a plausible mechanism for the photocatalytic

• degradation of pollutants has been proposed and discussed. Keywords: CaTiO3; graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4); heterojunction photocatalyst; pollutant degradation; Introduction Photocatalysis is recognized as an attractive approach for environmental remediation and energy generation applications due to its

• pollutants from water very effectively. Experimental Materials Both titanium diisopropoxide bis(acetylacetonate) and dicyandiamide were purchased from Sigma-Aldrich, India. Calcium nitrate (Ca(NO3)2·4H2O), acrylamide and D-glucose were supplied by MP Biomedicals, India. Ammonia solution (NH3 about 25

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

• strengths and weaknesses, and the interaction of the plasmonic photocatalyst with pollutants as well as the role of active radical generation and identification. The review ends with a pinnacle insight into future perspectives regarding realistic applications of plasmonic photocatalysts. Keywords

• the formation and identification of ROSs and their interaction with pollutants was clearly presented. The future prospects of these sustainable photocatalysts with real-time applications for energy storage and environmental remediation were thoroughly reviewed. The present review also revealed the

Fabrication and photoactivity of ionic liquid–TiO₂ structures for efficient visible-light-induced photocatalytic decomposition of organic pollutants in aqueous phase

• Anna Gołąbiewska,
• Marta Paszkiewicz-Gawron,
• Aleksandra Sadzińska,
• Wojciech Lisowski,
• Ewelina Grabowska,
• Adriana Zaleska-Medynska and
• Justyna Łuczak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 580–590, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.54

• pollutants in aqueous and gas phases requires visible-light responsive, stable materials and a basic understanding of these materials [1][2][3][4]. Although various semiconductors are considered for environmental pollution abatement, titanium dioxide (TiO2) is still the most promising due to its stability

Influence of the preparation method on the photocatalytic activity of Nd-modified TiO₂

• Patrycja Parnicka,
• Paweł Mazierski,
• Tomasz Grzyb,
• Wojciech Lisowski,
• Ewa Kowalska,
• Bunsho Ohtani,
• Adriana Zaleska-Medynska and
• Joanna Nadolna

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 447–459, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.43

• pristine and Nd-modified TiO2 were investigated using the photocatalytic degradations of phenol in aqueous solution and of gaseous toluene. Kinetics and degradation rate of model pollutants are presented in Figure 7 and Table 4. The photodegradation of phenol was performed in aqueous solution under UV–vis

• . Based on XPS analysis, it can be seen that photocatalysts prepared via the HT method had a higher amount of hydroxy groups on the surface than those obtained by the SHT method. The hydroxy groups can act as adsorption centres on which the degradation of pollutants takes place [45]. Moreover, a high

• main active species responsible for the degradation of the model pollutants. In the presence of HT photocatalyst with scavengers similar phenomena were observed. The photocatalytic system with added ammonium oxalate and tert-butanol showed congruous degradation rates (0.58 and 0.57 μmol·dm−1·min−1