Cu-doped ZnO/Ag/CuO heterostructure: superior photocatalysis and charge transfer.

Doped semiconductor heterostructures have superior properties compared to their components. In this study, we observed the synthesis of Cu-doped ZnO/Ag/CuO heterostructure with the presence of charge transfer and visible light-harvesting properties resulting from doping and heterojunction. The porous heterostructures were prepared using the bottom-up combustion (BUC) approach. This method generated porous heterostructures by eliminating gaseous by-products. X-ray diffraction (XRD) optimization revealed that the ideal conditions included 1.00 g of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), a synthesis temperature of 50 °C, and a 1 hour calcination time. Introducing copper (Cu) into the zinc oxide (ZnO) lattice caused a high-angle shift in the XRD pattern peaks. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) images and XRD patterns confirmed the formation of Cu-doped ZnO/Ag/CuO (c-zac) heterostructures. Elemental mapping analysis confirmed the even surface distribution of Ag metal. The c-zac heterostructures exhibited superior optoelectrical and charge transfer properties compared to single ZnO. The heterostructures demonstrated improved methylene blue (MB) dye degradation potential (k = 0.065 min-1) compared to single ZnO (k = 0.0041 min-1). This photocatalytic potential is attributed to enhanced light absorption and charge transfer properties. The extended visible light absorption resulted from CuO and Ag's surface plasmon resonance properties. The selected 15c-zac heterostructure also performed well in a reusability photocatalytic test, remaining effective until the 3rd cycle. Consequently, this heterostructure holds promise for scaling up as a catalyst for environmental remediation.

Investigation of Corrosion Inhibition of Mild Steel in 0.5 M H2SO4 with Lachancea fermentati Inhibitor Extracted from Rotten Grapefruits (Vitis vinifera): Adsorption, Thermodynamic, Electrochemical, and Quantum Chemical Studies.

Corrosion inhibition of mild steel (MS) was studied using Lachancea fermentati isolate in 0.5 M H2SO4, which was isolated from rotten grapes (Vitis vinifera) via biofilm formation. Biofilm over the MS surface was asserted by employing FT-IR and FE-SEM with EDXS, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), AFM, and DFT-ESP techniques. The weight loss experiments and temperature studies supported the physical adsorption behavior of the corrosion inhibitors. The maximum inhibition efficiency (IE) value (90%) was observed at 293 K for 9 × 106 cfu/mL of Lachancea fermentati isolate. The adsorption of Lachancea fermentati isolate on the surface of MS confirms Langmuir's adsorption isotherm model, and the -ΔG values indicate the spontaneous adsorption of inhibitor over the MS surface. Electrochemical studies, such as potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) and EIS were carried out to investigate the charge transfer (CT) reaction of the Lachancea fermentati isolate. Tafel polarization curves reveal that the Lachancea fermentati isolate acts as a mixed type of inhibitor. The Nyquist plots (EIS) indicate the increase in charge transfer resistance (Rct) and decrease of double-layer capacitance (Cdl) values when increasing the concentration of Lachancea fermentati isolate. The spectral studies, such as UV-vis and FT-IR, confirm the formation of a complex between MS and the Lachancea fermentati isolate inhibitor. The formation of biofilm on the MS surface was confirmed by FE-SEM, EDXS, and XPS analysis. The proposed bioinhibitor shows great potential for the corrosion inhibition of mild steel in acid media.

In Situ Green Synthesis of Co3O4@ZnO Core-Shell Nanoparticles Using Datura stramonium Leaf Extract: Antibacterial and Antioxidant Studies.

Investigating and synthesizing potent antibacterial NPs using biological methods is highly preferred, and it involves nontoxic, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly chemicals and methods. Antibiotic drug resistance and oxidative stress have become a serious public health issue worldwide. Hence, the key objective of this study was to biologically synthesize and characterize the potent antibacterial Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles for the antibacterial application. The radical scavenging ability of green synthesized Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles was also determined. In this study, Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles (CZCS NPs) have been synthesized using three different core to shell materials ratios of Co3O4 to ZnO (0.5 : 0.25 CZCS (1), 0.5 : 0.5 CZCS (2), and 0.5 : 0.75 M CZCS (3)) by employing Datura stramonium leaf extract. The polycrystalline nature of Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles was investigated using the XRD and SAED characterization techniques. The investigated nanostructure of Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles appeared with Co3O4 as the core and ZnO as an outer shell. Additionally, a variety of physicochemical properties of the nanoparticles were determined using various characterization techniques. The average crystallite sizes of CZCS (1), CZCS (2), and CZCS (3) were found to be 24 ± 1.4, 22 ± 1.5, and 25 ± 1.5 nm, respectively. The band gap energy values for CZCS (1), CZCS (2), and CZCS (3) determined from the UV-DRS data were found to be 2.75, 2.76, and 2.73 eV, respectively. The high inhibition activities against S. aureus, S. pyogenes, E. coli, and P. aeruginosa bacterial strains were obtained for the small size CZCS (2) nanoparticles at the concentration of 100 mg/mL with 22 ± 0.34, 19 ± 0.32, 18 ± 0.45, and 17 ± 0.32 mm values, respectively. The high inhibition performance of CZCS (2) nanoparticles against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria which is even above the control drug ampicillin is because of its small size and synergistic effect. The percentage scavenging activity of Co3O4@ZnO core-shell nanoparticles was also studied and CZCS (2) nanoparticles showed a good scavenging capacity (86.87%) at 500 µg/mL with IC50 of 209.26 µg/mL.

Processing and characterization of egg shell derived nano-hydroxyapatite synthetic bone for Orthopaedic and Arthroscopy implants and substitutes in dentistry.

The present work is focused on the nano-Hydroxyapatite (nHAp) synthesis with two different Indian breed Aseel and Kadaknath eggshells. The alloplast implants were developed through the foam replica method with polyurethane 45-PPI as a porous template. The synthesized nHAp was characterized by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The FE-SEM images of the nHAp showed the one dimensional clustered nanoparticles and the X-ray diffraction spectrum confirms that the major phase was hydroxyapatite with a small trace of ß-tricalcium phosphate. The maximum compression strength of the sample was 5.49 ± 0.12 MPa which is in the range of the compression strength of human trabecular bone. The thermal and degradability studies results confirmed that these are highly stable and provides necessary a resorption needed for new bone tissue formation. Besides, the antimicrobial activity against tested human microbiome are satisfactory and the cell viability towards MG 63 human osteoblast-like cells provides a potential pathway for developing the nHAp implants for bone tissue engineering.

Insight into nanocrystal synthesis: from precursor decomposition to combustion.

Nanotechnology-based synthesis of nanoscale materials has appealed to the attention of scientists in the modern scientific community. In the bottom-up approach, atoms start to aggregate/agglomerate and form nuclei within the minimum and maximum supersaturation range. Once nuclei are generated above the critical-free energy/radius, the growth is initiated by obeying the LaMar model with a slight extra simple growth by diffusion advancement. The in situ real-time liquid phase analysis using STEM, AFM, and XAS techniques is used to control precursor decomposition to the nanocrystal formation process and should be a non-stoppable technique. Solution combustion synthesis (SCS) is a time-/energy-efficient self-sustained process that produces mass-/ion transport active porous materials. SCS also permits the synthesis of evenly distributed-doped and hybrid-nanomaterials, which are beneficial in tuning crucial properties of the materials. The growth and development of nanocrystals, dehydrating the sol in the presence of a surfactant or/and fuel results in combustion once it arrives at the ignition temperature. Besides, the kinetic and thermodynamics controlled architecture-directing agent-assisted SCS offers colloidal nanocrystal framework formation, which is currently highly applicable for energy devices. This short review provides insightful information that adds to the existing nanocrystal synthesis process and solution combustion synthesis and recommends future directions in the field.