Bacteria inside semiconductors as potential sensor elements: biochip progress

Simultaneous removal of pollutants from water using nanoparticles: A shift from single pollutant control to multiple pollutant control

The steady increase in population, coupled with the rapid utilization of resources and continuous development of industry and agriculture has led to excess amounts of wastewater with changes in its composition, texture, complexity and toxicity due to the diverse range of pollutants being present in wastewater. The challenges faced by wastewater treatment today are mainly with the complexity of the wastewater as it complicates treatment processes by requiring a combination of technologies, thus resulting in longer treatment times and higher operational costs. Nanotechnology opens up a novel platform that is free from secondary pollution, inexpensive and an effective way to simultaneously remove multiple pollutants from wastewater. Currently, there are a number of studies that have presented a myriad of multi-purpose/multifunctional nanoparticles that simultaneously remove multiple pollutants in water. However, these studies have not been collated to review the direction that nanoparticle assisted wastewater treatment is heading towards. Hence, this critical review explores the feasibility and efficiency of simultaneous removal of co-existing/multiple pollutants in water using nanomaterials. The discussion begins with an introduction of different classes of pollutants and their toxicity followed by an overview and highlights of current research on multipollutant control in water using different nanomaterials as adsorbents, photocatalysts, disinfectants and microbicides. The analysis is concluded with a look at the current attempts being made towards commercialization of multipollutant control/multifunctional nanotechnology inventions. The review presents evidence of simultaneous removal of pathogenic microorganisms, inorganic and organic compound chemical pollutants using nanoparticles. Accordingly, not only is nanotechnology showcased as a promising and an environmentally-friendly way to solve the limitations of current and conventional centralised water and wastewater treatment facilities but is also presented as a good substitute or supplement in areas without those facilities.

Interactions between Metal Oxides and Biomolecules: from Fundamental Understanding to Applications

Metallo-oxide (MO)-based bioinorganic nanocomposites promise unique structures, physicochemical properties, and novel biochemical functionalities, and within the past decade, investment in research on materials such as ZnO, TiO₂, SiO₂, and GeO₂ has significantly increased. Besides traditional approaches, the synthesis, shaping, structural patterning, and postprocessing chemical functionalization of the materials surface is inspired by strategies which mimic processes in nature. Would such materials deliver new technologies? Answering this question requires the merging of historical knowledge and current research from different fields of science. Practically, we need an effective defragmentation of the research area. From our perspective, the superficial accounting of material properties, chemistry of the surfaces, and the behavior of biomolecules next to such surfaces is a problem. This is particularly of concern when we wish to bridge between technologies in vitro and biotechnologies in vivo. Further, besides the potential practical technological efficiency and advantages such materials might exhibit, we have to consider the wider long-term implications of material stability and toxicity. In this contribution, we present a critical review of recent advances in the chemistry and engineering of MO-based biocomposites, highlighting the role of interactions at the interface and the techniques by which these can be studied. At the end of the article, we outline the challenges which hamper progress in research and extrapolate to developing and promising directions including additive manufacturing and synthetic biology that could benefit from molecular level understanding of interactions occurring between inanimate (abiotic) and living (biotic) materials.