Silver-decorated SrTiO3 nanoparticles for high-performance supercapacitors and effective remediation of hazardous pollutants

SrTiO3/Ag nanocomposites were synthesized using a facile wet impregnation method, employing rigorous experimental techniques for comprehensive characterization. XRD, FTIR, UV, PL, FESEM, and HRTEM were meticulously utilized to elucidate their structural, functional, morphological, and optical properties. The electrochemical performance of the SrTiO3/Ag nanocomposite was rigorously assessed, revealing an impressive specific capacitance of 850 F/g at a current density of 1 A. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activity of the SrTiO3/Ag nanocomposite was rigorously examined using methylene blue (MB) dye, and the results were outstanding. After 120 min of UV irradiation, the nanocomposite exhibited an exceptional MB dye degradation efficiency exceeding 88%. The SrTiO3/Ag nanocomposite represents an exemplary catalyst in terms of efficiency, cost-effectiveness, environmental compatibility, and reusability. The electron and superoxide radicals play a chief role in the MB dye degradation process. The inclusion of Ag within the SrTiO3 matrix facilitated the formation of a conductive nano-network, ultimately resulting in superior capacitive and photocatalytic performance.

Enhanced dye degradation performance enabled by swift electron mediator decorated WO3/g-C3N4/V2O5 hybrid nanomaterials

Organic pollutants such as dyes and pharmaceutical drugs have become a significant environmental problem due to their unrestricted discharge, especially in water bodies. As a result, an economically viable and environmentally friendly approach to their degradation in water bodies is required and the incorporation of metal tungstate with single metal oxide has attracted attention due to its potential ability towards the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants. The work demonstrates a WO₃/g-C₃N₄/V₂O₅ nanocomposite synthesized using a facile route wet impregnation method. The results revealed that WO₃/g-C₃N₄/V₂O₅ nanocomposites are suitable, mainly for their better surface properties, enhanced visible-light absorption, and preferred band positions. Besides that, the degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye is carried out and demonstrated that the complete degradation occurs over 120 min using 10 mg L^-1 of WO₃/g-C₃N₄/V₂O₅ nanocomposite under UV-visible-light irradiation. The scavenger experimental result implies that the photogenerated free electrons and superoxide radials are important role in MB dye degradation. In addition, a possible mechanism is proposed for the photocatalytic activity of WO₃/g-C₃N₄/V₂O₅ nanocomposite. Moreover, the stability analysis demonstrated that the WO₃/g-C₃N₄/V₂O₅ nanocomposite can be recycled multiple times.

Designing the heterostructured FeWO4/FeS2 nanocomposites for an enhanced photocatalytic organic dye degradation

The present study, reports a facile approach for the synthesis of FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanocomposites were demonstrated through hydrothermal method. The surface morphology, crystalline structure, chemical composition, optical properties of the prepared samples was analysed by different various technique. The result observed analysis indicates that, the formation of heterojunction by 2:1 wt.% of FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanohybrid has the lowest recombination rate of electron-hole pairs and the least electron transfer resistance. Due to its the broad absorption spectral range and preferable energy band gap, the (2:1) FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanohybrid photocatalyst exhibits an excellent ability to remove MB dye when exposed to UV-Vis. Light irradiation. Its photocatalytic activity of (2:1) FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanohybrid is higher than other as prepared samples due to its synergistic effects, enhanced light absorption and high charge carrier separation. Radical trapping experimental result implies that the photo-generated free electrons and hydroxyl radials are essential to degrade the MB dye. Furthermore, a possible future mechanism for FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanocomposites photocatalytic activity was discussed. Moreover, the recyclability analysis demonstrated that the FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanocomposites can be recycled multiple times. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of 2:1 FeWO₄/FeS₂ nanocomposites is promising for the further application of visible light driven photocatalyst in wastewater treatment.

Construction of SnO2/CuO/rGO nanocomposites for photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants and antibacterial applications

Water contamination by reactive dyes is a serious concern for human health and the environment. In this study, we prepared high efficient SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites for reactive dye degradation. For structural analysis of SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites, XRD, UV-Vis DRS, SEM, TEM-EDAX, and XPS analysis were used to characterize the physicochemical properties of the material. The characterization results confirmed great crystallinity, purity, and optical characteristics features. For both Rhodamine B (RhB) and Reactive Red 120 (RR120) degradation processes, SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites were tested for their photocatalytic degradation performance. The SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites have expressed the degradation rate exposed to 99.6% of both RhB and RR120 dyes. The main reason behind the photocatalytic degradation was due to the formation of OH radical's generation by the composite materials. Moreover, the antibacterial properties of synthesized SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites were studied against E. coli, S. aureus, B. subtilis and P. aeroginosa and exhibited good antibacterial activity against the tested bacterial strains. Thus, the synthesized SnO₂/CuO/rGO nanocomposites are a promising photocatalyst and antibacterial agent. Furthermore, mechanisms behind the antibacterial effects will be ruled out in near future.

Modification of reinforced hollow fiber membranes with WO3 nanosheets for treatment of textile wastewater by membrane bioreactor

In this study, performance of braid reinforced hollow fiber membrane containing polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) embedded with tungsten trioxide (WO₃) nanosheets in a membrane bioreactor (MBR) was examined for textile wastewater treatment. The WO₃ nanosheets was synthesized and blended at different concentrations (0.1-0.02 wt%) in casting solutions of the membranes. The WO₃ nanosheets characterized using various tests such as XRD, FTIR, SEM, EDS, dot-mapping, and TEM. Furthermore, the effects of the increased WO₃ nanosheets into the PVDF matrix on the membrane morphology, hydrophilicity, permeability, antifouling, and COD and color removal efficiency was investigated. The addition of 0.1 wt% of the nanosheets reduces the water contact angle from 69.3° to 62.5° while increasing overall porosity from 37.5 to 43.2%. COD and color removal for PVDF/0.10 wt% WO₃ membrane was between 86-89% and 72-76%, respectively. While the TMP of modified WO₃ membranes did not significantly increase due to antimicrobial properties of the WO₃ nanosheets, the TMP of the pure PVDF membrane increase, indicating considerable cake layer fouling. The results of this study showed that modification of PVDF braid reinforced hollow fiber membrane using WO₃ nanosheets is promising membrane for MBR systems.

Constructing Z-scheme g-C3N4/TiO2 heterostructure for promoting degradation of the hazardous dye pollutants

The use of dyes and segments has increased widely in recent years, but it poses a serious health risk to ecosystems. In this work, TiO₂ and two-dimensional g-C₃N₄ nanosheets (g-CN) were fabricated through co-precipitation and thermal polymerization technique, respectively. The g-CN-TiO₂ photocatalyst (1: 3, 2: 2, 3: 1) in various weight percentages was prepared using a simple impregnation process. The photocatalytic behaviour of the g-CN, TiO₂ NPs, and different weight percentages of g-CN-TiO₂ photocatalyst was evaluated against methylene blue (MB) dye under UV-visible light illumination. Compared to pristine and other weight percentages of the g-CN-TiO₂ nanocomposite, the optimized g-CN-TiO₂ nanocomposite (3:1) showed promoted performance against MB dye. The enriched catalytic efficiency can be accredited to the low amount of TiO₂ nanoparticles deposited on gCN nanosheets, possibly due to the boosted transport properties of the electron-hole pairs. The enriched photocatalytic behaviour can be attributed to the development of the Z-scheme system between TiO₂ and g-CN. The current study is an outstanding demonstration of the development of maximum catalytic efficiency for destroying hazardous chemical dyes.

Hydrothermally activated TiO2 nanoparticles with a C-dot/g-C3N4 heterostructure for photocatalytic enhancement

Dye degradation via photocatalysis technology has been investigated intensively to tackle environmental issues and energy crisis concerns. In this study, a newly designed ternary photocatalyst was facilely prepared by a simple one-pot hydrothermal process by directly mixing TiO₂ nanoparticles with carbon dots (C-dots) and graphitic carbon nitride (g-C₃N₄). The optimized precursor treatments and heterostructure components show significantly enhanced photodegradation activity towards organic dyes Rhodamine B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB). Excellent photocatalytic activities were achieved owing to the better attachment of anatase-type TiO₂ nanoparticle-aggregations to the C-dots/g-C₃N₄ (CC) nanocomposite, which impressively displays superhydrophilicity by employing the hydrothermal activation process. FT-IR spectra revealed that the hydrothermal treatment could remarkably increase the coupling interactions between TiO₂ nanoparticles and the CC nanosheets within the ternary catalyst, enhancing the photocatalytic activity. Thus, it was concluded that this ternary photocatalyst is highly suitable for the remediation of dye-contaminated wastewater.

Polytype wurtzite-nH ZnS (n = 2 and 8): facile synthesis and photocatalytic hydrogen production under sacrificial reagents

Zinc sulfide, as an excellent catalyst, has attracted a lot of attention from scholars owing to its photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from water splitting in the ultraviolet (UV) region.

Rod-Shaped Carbon Aerogel-Assisted CdS Nanocomposite for the Removal of Methylene Blue Dye and Colorless Phenol

A carbon aerogel (CA)-assisted CdS nanocomposite was prepared by hydrothermal process and was investigated as a photocatalyst towards the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye and colorless phenol under visible light irradiation (VLI). CdS have attracted wide attention due to their relatively narrow band gap for the visible light effect and the suitably negative potential of the conduction band (CB) edge for the neutralization of H+ ions. The obtained characterization results suggest that the CA-assisted CdS nanocomposite has enhanced photophysical properties, a more surface area, and the desired morphology at the nm scale. Under optimization, CdS CA 8% shows superior catalytic activity for degradation compared with other samples. The photocatalytic activities of the as-synthesized samples were examined under VLI through the MB and phenol degradation. Compared with pure CA and CdS, the CA (8%)-assisted CdS nanoparticles (NPs) offer significantly enhanced photocatalytic efficiency for MB and phenol. The mechanism of photocatalytic reaction was examined by adding various scavengers, and the results revealed that the holes generated in CA (8%)-assisted CdS NPs have a crucial impact on the visible light photocatalytic process. The improved photocatalytic degradation was due to the strong interaction between the CA and CdS NPs.