Fabrication of Ternary MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3-Based Nano Composites for Photocatalytic Dye Degradation.

The synthesis and design of low-cost visible-light-active catalysts for the photodegradation of organic dyes have been regarded as an efficient way to use solar energy in addressing environmental issues. We report the fabrication of MoS2/CdS nanoparticles functionalized with Bi2S3 nanoflakes. The ternary composites of "MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3" were synthesized in situ by a hydrothermal method at different temperatures. The changes in structural, optical, and morphological properties of the synthesized CdS/MoS2/Bi2S3 were explored. The effects of Bi2S3 on CdS/MoS2 were thoroughly studied by performing an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), a scanning electron microscope (SEM), an ultra-violet-visible spectrometer (Uv-vis), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic (FT-IR) studies of the nanoparticles. XRD confirms the cubical crystal structure of the nanoparticles. SEM studies possess the modulation in the surface morphology with the tenability in volume ratios of "MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3" composites. It was observed that the bandgaps calculated using absorption measurements could be manipulated from 2.40 eV to 0.97 eV with varying Bi2S3 in the MoS2/CdS nanostructures. FT-IR confirmed the synthesis of "MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3" nanoparticles. On allowing the visible light to fall for 120 min, it was observed that "MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3" degrades the methylene blue up to 90%. The calculated results of "MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3" suggest that the synthesized material could be a strong candidate for photodegradation applications. This research work explains the synthesis of MoS2/CdS/Bi2S3-based nanocomposites for the degradation of dye using a photocatalytic process. The final results show that this catalyst effectively degrades the dye.

Comparative study of ozonation and ozonation catalyzed by Fe-loaded biochar as catalyst to remove methylene blue from aqueous solution.

Ozone-based processes gained much attention in recent years. However, due to low oxidative stability and utilization rate, single ozonation process (SOP) is insufficient for complete mineralization of pollutants. As a result, the single ozonation process is performed in the presence of a catalyst, a process known as catalytic ozonation process (COP). A promising catalyst (Fe/BC) was prepared by impregnating iron on biochar surface to remove methylene blue from aqueous solution via heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process (HCOP). The prepared Fe/BC features were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method (BET) before and after HCOP. Furthermore, the effect of various operating parameters such as ozone dose, catalyst dose, initial dye concentration, initial pH on the efficiency of SOP and HCOP were compared. In comparison to single ozonation process, the experimental study found that heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process has the highest efficiency. At pH 7.0, approximately 76% of methylene blue is removed during single ozonation process in 60 min. Heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process showed 95% methylene blue elimination from aqueous solution. The efficiency of heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process was decreased by 52% in the presence of hydroxyl radical (●OH) scavenger, indicating that hydroxyl is the major oxidant during heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process for the removal of methylene blue from aqueous solution. Fe/BC catalyst appears to have a lot of industrial promise, as well as the ability to remove methylene blue from aqueous solution via heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process.

Fe-zeolite catalyst for ozonation of pulp and paper wastewater for sustainable water resources.

The pulp and paper industry consumes enormous quality of freshwater, leading to wastewater. It must be treated to remove pollutants, particularly residual dyestuffs, before releasing them to water bodies to avoid adverse environmental effects. The traditional wastewater treatment methods used for the pulp and paper industry are less efficient in colour and chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal. The current study is aimed at developing a novel catalyst for the catalytic ozonation of pulp and paper wastewater with better colour and COD removal for sustainable resources of clean water. The proposed catalyst is impregnated by iron on natural zeolites. Various parameters such as catalyst dose, pH, ozone dose, initial COD concentration, and reaction time are studied and optimized. The performance was evaluated by comparing the results with the single ozonation process (SOP) and catalytic ozonation process (COP). The highest COD and colour reduction efficiencies have been achieved, i.e., 71%, and 88% at a natural pH of 6.8. The proposed process achieved higher COD and colour efficiencies than the single ozonation process and catalytic ozonation process using raw zeolites. The improvement in efficiencies are 23% and 29% for SOP and 17% and 19% for COP, respectively. Hence, the results proposed the sustainability and applicability of COP to treat paper and pulp sector effluent.

Design, Development and Evaluation of Thermal Properties of Polysulphone-CNT/GNP Nanocomposites.

Polysulphone (PSU) composites with carbon nanotubes (PSU-CNT) and graphene nanoplatelets (PSU-GNP) were developed through the solution casting process, using various weight load percentages of 1, 3, 5, and 10 wt% of CNT and GNP nanofillers. The microstructural and thermal properties of the PSU-based composites were compared. The microstructural characterisation of both composites (PSU-CNTs and PSU-GNPs) showed a strong matrix-filler interfacial interaction and uniform dispersion of CNTs and GNPs in the PSU matrix. The analysis demonstrated that both the thermal conductivity and effusivity improved with the increase in the weight percentage (wt%) of CNTs and GNPs because of the percolation effect. The polysulphone-based composite containing 10 wt% CNTs showed a remarkably high thermal conductivity value of 1.13 (W/m·K), which is 163% times higher than pure PSU. While the glass transition temperature (Tg) was shifted to a higher temperature, the thermal expansion was reduced in all the PSU-CNT and PSU-GNP composites. Interestingly, the CNTs allowed homogeneous distribution and a reasonably good interfacial network of interaction with the PSU matrix, leading to better microstructural characteristics and thermal properties than those of the PSU-GNP composites. The findings highlight the importance of controlling the nature, distribution, and content of fillers within the polymeric matrix.

Exploration of Chromone-Based Thiosemicarbazone Derivatives: SC-XRD/DFT, Spectral (IR, UV-Vis) Characterization, and Quantum Chemical Analysis.

By the condensation of thiosemicarbazide with coumarin aldehyde, two novel substituted thiosemicarbazones with chemical formulae C24H25N3O3S (3a) and C26H23N3O3S (3b) have been synthesized. The synthesized compounds were resolved using SC-XRD, and structure elucidation was carried out using 1H NMR, 13C NMR, UV-visible, and FT-IR spectroscopic analyses. Computational calculations at the B3LYP/6-311+G(d,p) level of theory were performed to countercheck the experimental (UV-vis, FT-IR) findings and explore the electronic (FMO, NBO, MEP) properties of 3a-b. The nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of 3a-b were estimated using B3LYP, HF, LC-BLYP, CAM-B3LYP, M062X, and M06 functionals in combination with the 6-311+G(d,p) basis set. The crystallographic data revealed that compounds were crystallized as an orthorhombic crystal lattice with the Pbcn space group and the triclinic crystal lattice with the P̅1 space group. A good concurrence among experimental SC-XRD-generated bond lengths, bond angles, FT-IR, UV-vis, and corresponding DFT results was found, which confirms the purity of both compounds. The NBO analysis confirmed the presence of intramolecular hydrogen bonding and hyperconjugative interactions, which not only were the pivotal cause of stability of the investigated compounds but also led to an overwhelming NLO response. The energy differences calculated for HOMO/LUMO are 3.053 and 3.118 eV in 3a and 3b, respectively. The crystal 3b showed a higher value of first-order polarizability at all levels of theory than 3a. Overall results show that the crystals under investigation are polarized in nature with a good dipole moment. A comparative analysis with urea molecules clearly indicates that the studied compounds are acceptable NLO candidates and they can be used for future technological applications.