Facile fabrication of amorphous Al/Fe based metal-organic framework as effective heterogeneous fenton catalyst for environmental remediation

This study presents a facile preparation and durable amorphous Fe and Al-based MOF nanoplate (AlFe-BTC MOFs) catalyst with notable stability in Fenton reactions. Rigorous characterization using XRD, HR-TEM, and BET confirms the amorphous nature of the synthesized AlFe-BTC MOFs, revealing mesopores (3.4 nm diameter), a substantial surface area (232 m2/g), and a pore volume of 0.69 cc/g. XPS analysis delineates distinct Al2p and Fe2p binding energy values, signifying specific chemical bonding. FE-SEM elemental mapping elucidates the distinctive distribution of Fe and Al within the framework of AlFe-BTC MOFs. In catalytic activity testing, the amorphous AlFe-BTC MOFs exhibited outstanding performance, achieving complete degradation of Methylene blue (MB) dye and 78% TOC removal over 45 min of treatment under mild reaction conditions. The catalyst's durability was assessed, revealing about 75% TOC removal and complete dye decomposition over five successive recycles, with less than 1 mg/L of Fe and Al leaching. UV-Vis spectra revealed the destruction of MB dye over multiple recycling studies. Based on this finding, the amorphous AlFe-BTC MOF nanoplates emerge as a promising solution for efficient dye removal from industrial wastewater, underscoring their potential in advanced environmental remediation processes.

Effective Ru/CNT Cathode for Rechargeable Solid-State Li-CO2 Batteries

An effective Ru/CNT electrocatalyst plays a crucial role in solid-state lithium-carbon dioxide batteries. In the present article, ruthenium metal decorated on a multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is introduced as a cathode for the lithium-carbon dioxide batteries with Li_1.5Al_0.5Ge_1.5(PO₄)₃ solid-state electrolyte. The Ru/CNT cathode exhibits a large surface area, maximum discharge capacity, excellent reversibility, and long cycle life with low overpotential. The electrocatalyst achieves improved electrocatalytic performance for the carbon dioxide reduction reaction and carbon dioxide evolution reaction, which are related to the available active sites. Using the Ru/CNT cathode, the solid-state lithium-carbon dioxide battery exhibits a maximum discharge capacity of 4541 mA h g^-1 and 45 cycles of battery life with a small voltage gap of 1.24 V compared to the CNT cathode (maximum discharge capacity of 1828 mA h g^-1, 25 cycles, and 1.64 V as voltage gap) at a current supply of 100 mA g^-1 with a cutoff capacity of 500 mA h g^-1. Solid-state lithium-carbon dioxide batteries have shown promising potential applications for future energy storage.

Green synthesis of lignin nanorods/g-C3N4 nanocomposite materials for efficient photocatalytic degradation of triclosan in environmental water

Triclosan (TCS) is a common anti-microbial ingredient in pharmaceutical and personal care products. The usage of TCS was banned by the United States Food and Drug Administration (in 2016) due to its potential health risks. However, TCS has been frequently detected in the aquatic environment. Therefore, it is vital to design low-cost and highly efficient photocatalysts to enhance TCS's photocatalytic degradation in wastewater treatment to eliminate its toxicity to environmental health. In this study, we developed a highly efficient catalyst by incorporating lignin nanorods (LNRs) into graphitic carbon nitride (GCN) nanomaterials as green LNRs/GCN-based nanocomposite photocatalysts for the effective degradation of TCS in waters. LNRs/GCN nanosheets (NSs) and LNRs/GCN-NRs based nanocomposite materials were prepared using a simple wet-impregnation method. The surface morphology and optical properties of as-synthesized materials were well-characterized using FE-SEM, XRD, XPS, and UV-DRS. The photocatalyst (LNRs/GCN-NRs) material showed maximum TCS degradation efficiency of 99.9% and a high rate constant of 0.0661 min^-1 under pH-10 with crucial reactive spices (OH and O₂^-), and excellent cycling performance (over five cycles) within 90 min of UV-light illumination. LNRs/GCN-NRs nanocomposite indicated enhanced photocatalytic performances for TCS degradation due to its strong synergistic effect between LNRs and GCN-NRs as bifunctional catalyst substrate morphology with efficient bandgap energy and accessible active sites compared to LNRs/GCN-NSs. Therefore, LNRs/GCN-NRs nanocomposite was observed to be a highly-active, low-cost, stable, eco-friendly, and efficient photocatalyst for complete degradation of TCS under UV-light irradiation.