Engineering of Multifunctional Nanocomposite Membranes for Wastewater Treatment: Oil/Water Separation and Dye Degradation.

Multifunctional membrane technology has gained tremendous attention in wastewater treatment, including oil/water separation and photocatalytic activity. In the present study, a multifunctional composite nanofiber membrane is capable of removing dyes and separating oil from wastewater, as well as having antibacterial activity. The composite nanofiber membrane is composed of cellulose acetate (CA) filled with zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) in a polymer matrix and dipped into a solution of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs). Membrane characterization was performed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and water contact angle (WCA) studies were utilized to evaluate the introduced membranes. Results showed that membranes have adequate wettability for the separation process and antibacterial activity, which is beneficial for water disinfection from living organisms. A remarkable result of the membranes' analysis was that methylene blue (MB) dye removal occurred through the photocatalysis process with an efficiency of ~20%. Additionally, it exhibits a high separation efficiency of 45% for removing oil from a mixture of oil-water and water flux of 20.7 L.m-2 h-1 after 1 h. The developed membranes have multifunctional properties and are expected to provide numerous merits for treating complex wastewater.

Biosynthesis, Spectrophotometric Follow-Up, Characterization, and Variable Antimicrobial Activities of Ag Nanoparticles Prepared by Edible Macrofungi.

The biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) could play a significant role in the development of commercial antimicrobials. Herein, the biosynthesis of Ag NPs was studied using the edible mushroom Pleurotus floridanus, and following its formation, spectrophotometry was used to detect the best mushroom content, pH, temperature, and silver concentration. After that, the morphology was described via transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and nanoscale-size particles were found ranging from 11 to 13 nm. The best conditions of Ag content and pH were found at 1.0 mM and 11.0, respectively. In addition, the best mushroom extract concentration was found at 30 g/L. According to XRD analysis, the crystal structure of the formed amorphous Ag NPs is cubic with a space group of fm-3m and a space group number of 225. After that, the function groups at the surface of the prepared Ag NPs were studied via FTIR analysis, which indicated the presence of C=O, C-H, and O-H groups. These groups could indicate the presence of mushroom traces in the Ag NPs, which was confirmed via the amorphous characteristics of Ag NPs from the XRD analysis. The prepared Ag NPs have a high impact against different microorganisms, which could be attributed to the ability of Ag NPs to penetrate the cell bacterial wall.

Different additives of gold nanoparticles and lithium oxide loaded chitosan based films; controlling optical and structural properties, evaluating cell viability.

Natural chitosan-based films (CS) were fabricated by changing ingredient corporations between gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), lithium oxide (Li2O), and graphene oxide (GO). A Series of films with different components were obtained. The structural examination is executed by XRD, FTIR, and EDX to analyze crystal structure, chemical bonding, and chemical contents, respectively. The findings illustrated that, the Li2O@CS exhibited the lowest contact angle with 70 ± 4.6°. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) displayd rod-shaped AuNPs with an average length of 0.3 µm and an average width of 90 nm. The refractive index of CS recorded 2.142, while AuNPs/Li2O/GO@CS slightly declined to 2.085. Concerning AuNPs/Li2O/GO@CS, the detected cell viability percentage of normal lung cells among the usage of 156.25 µg/mL is 98.91%, while 9.77 µg/mL achieved 125.78%. Therefore, combining AuNPs, GO and Li2O within the CS matrix results in films of boosted biocompatibility and can be suggested for medical applications.

Advanced Protective Films Based on Binary ZnO-NiO@polyaniline Nanocomposite for Acidic Chloride Steel Corrosion: An Integrated Study of Theoretical and Practical Investigations.

Due to their thermal stability characteristics, polymer/composite materials have typically been employed as corrosion inhibitors in a variety of industries, including the maritime, oil, and engineering sectors. Herein, protective films based on binary ZnO-NiO@polyaniline (ZnNiO@PANE) nanocomposite were intended with a respectable yield. The produced nanocomposite was described using a variety of spectroscopic characterization methods, including dynamic light scattering (DLS), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) approaches, in addition to other physicochemical methods, including X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and selected area electron diffraction (SAED). By using open-circuit potentials (OCP) vs. time, electrochemical impedance spectroscopic (EIS), and potentiodynamic polarization (PDP) methods, the inhibitory effects of individual PANE and ZnNiO@PANE on the mild steel alloy corrosion in HCl/NaCl solution were assessed. The ZnNiO@PANE composite performed as mixed-type inhibitors, according to PDP findings. PANE polymer and ZnNiO@PANE composite at an optimal dose of 200 mg/L each produced protective abilities of 84.64% and 97.89%, respectively. The Langmuir isotherm model is used to explain the adsorption of ZnNiO@PANE onto MS alloy. DFT calculations showed that the prepared materials' efficiency accurately reflects their ability to contribute electrons, whereas Monte Carlo (MC) simulations showed that the suitability and extent of adsorption of the ZnNiO@PANE molecule at the metal interface determine the materials' corrosion protection process.

Synthesis and Characterization of the Mixed Metal Oxide of ZnO-TiO2 Decorated by Polyaniline as a Protective Film for Acidic Steel Corrosion: Experimental, and Computational Inspections.

In this work, the preparation, characterization, and evaluation of a novel nanocomposite using polyaniline (PANi) functionalized bi-metal oxide ZnO-TiO2 (ZnTiO@PANi) as shielding film for carbon steel (CS)-alloy in acidic chloride solution at 298 K was studied. Different spectroscopic characterization techniques, such as UV-visible spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering (DLS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) approaches, as well as other physicochemical methods, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), were used to describe the produced nanocomposites. The significance of these films lies in the ZnO-TiO2 nanoparticle's functionalization by polyaniline, a material with high conductivity and electrochemical stability in acidic solutions. The mechanistic findings of the corrosion inhibition method were obtained by the use of electrochemical methods including open-circuit potentials (OCP) vs. time, potentiodynamic polarization (PDP), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results indicate that the synthesized ZnTiO@PANi is a powerful acidic corrosion inhibitor, and its inhibition effectiveness is 98.86% in the presence of 100 ppm. Additionally, the charge transfer resistance (Rp) value augmented from 51.8 to 432.7, and 963.7 Ω cm2 when the dose of PANi, and ZnTiO@PANi reached 100 ppm, respectively. The improvement in Rp and inhibition capacity values with an increase in nanocomposite dose is produced by the nanocomposite additives covering a larger portion of the surface, resulting in a decrease in alloy corrosion. By identifying the probable regions for molecule adsorption on the steel substrate, theoretical and computational studies provided significant details regarding the corrosion mitigation mechanism. The possibility of substituting old poisonous small substances with inexpensive and non-hazardous polymeric materials as shielding layers for utilization in the oilfield sectors is an important suggestion made by this research.

Electrocatalysis of Methanol Oxidation in Alkaline Electrolytes over Novel Amorphous Fe/Ni Biphosphate Material Prepared by Different Techniques.

In this work, novel phosphate materials based on bimetallic character (Fe and Ni) were introduced by different chemical fabrication methods, the reflux method (FeNiP-R) and the sol-gel technique (FeNiP-S), and evaluated as non-precious electrodes for methanol electrooxidation in KOH electrolytes. The designed FeNiP-R and FeNiP-S samples were investigated using different characterization techniques, namely TEM, SEM, XPS, BET, DLS, and FT-IR, to describe the impact of the fabrication technique on the chemistry, morphology, and surface area. The characterization techniques indicate the successful fabrication of nanoscale-sized particles with higher agglomeration by the sol-gel technique compared with the reflux strategy. After that, the electrochemical efficiency of the fabricated FeNiP-R and FeNiP-S as electrodes for electrocatalytic methanol oxidation was studied through cyclic voltammetry (CV) at different methanol concentrations and scan rates in addition to impedance analysis and chronoamperometric techniques. From electrochemical analyses, a sharp improvement in the obtained current values was observed in both electrodes, FeNiP-R and FeNiP-S. During the MeOH electrooxidation over FeNiP-S, the current value was improved from 0.14 mA/cm2 at 0.402 V to 2.67 mA/cm2 at 0.619 V, which is around 109 times the current density value (0.0243 mA/cm2 at 0.62 V) found in the absence of MeOH. The designed FeNiP-R electrode showed an improved electrocatalytic character compared with FeNiP-S at different methanol concentrations up to 80 mmol/L. The enhancement of the anodic current density and charge transfer resistance indicates the methanol electrooxidation over the designed bimetallic Fe/Ni-phosphates.

Electrochemical Impedance Investigation of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Based on Electrospun TiO2 Nanofibers Photoanodes.

This work investigates an electrochemical impedance analysis based on synthesized TiO2 nanofibers (NFs) photoanodes, which were fabricated via electrospinning and calcination. The investigated photoanode substrate NFs were studied in terms of physicochemical tools to investigate their morphological character, crystallinity, and chemical contents via scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. As a result, the studied photoanode substrate NFs were applied to fabricate dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs), and the electrochemical impedance analysis (EIS) was studied in terms of equivalent circuit fitting and impacts of N-doping, the latter of which was approved via XPS analysis. N-doping has a considerable role in the enhancement of charge transfers, which could be due to the strong interactions between active-site N atoms and the used photosensitizer.

Drug Delivery System Based on Carboxymethyl Cellulose Containing Metal-Organic Framework and Its Evaluation for Antibacterial Activity.

A novel drug delivery system based on carboxymethyl cellulose containing copper oxide at melamine and zinc oxide at melamine framework (CMC-Cu-MEL and CMC-Zn-MEL) was prepared by the hydrothermal route. Synthesized nanocomposites were characterized by FTIR, SEM, and Raman spectroscopy. In addition, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) images were applied to confirm the particle size and diffraction pattern of the prepared nanocomposites. Furthermore, the crystallinity of the synthesized CMC, CMC-Cu-MEL, and CMC-Zn-MEL materials was studied via X-ray diffraction (XRD). Estimating the transport exponent, which discloses the solvent diffusion and chain relaxation processes, and the Ritger-Peppas kinetic model theory were used to control the TC release mechanism from CMC-Cu-MEL and CMC-Zn-MEL. Additionally, the CMC-Cu-MEL and CMC-Zn-MEL containing TC had the highest activity index percents of 99 and 106% against S. aureus and 93 and 99% against E. coli, respectively. The tailored CMC-Cu-MEL and CMC-Zn-MEL for drug delivery systems are expected to be feasible and efficient.

Facile Synthesis and Characterization of CeO2-Nanoparticle-Loaded Carboxymethyl Cellulose as Efficient Protective Films for Mild Steel: A Comparative Study of Experiential and Computational Findings.

Corrosion is considered to be the most severe problem facing alloys and metals, one that causes potentially dangerous industrial issues such as the deterioration of buildings and machinery, and corrosion in factory tanks and pipelines in petroleum refineries, leading to limited lifetime and weak efficacy of such systems. In this work, novel CeO2-nanoparticle-loaded carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) was successfully prepared by using a simple method. The structural configuration of the prepared CeO2-nanoparticle-loaded CMC was investigated by FE-SEM/EDX, TEM, FT-IR, and thermal analyses. The corrosion protection proficiency of uncoated and coated mild steel with CeO2-CMC systems in 1.0 M HCl solutions was studied by EOCP-time, EIS, and PDP tools. Moreover, the relationship between the structure of coating films and their corrosion protection was confirmed by DFT calculation and MC simulation. The obtained findings from the studied methods showed that the prepared CeO2-CMC-coated films reported high corrosion resistance. The protection capacity augmented with ceria presents an increase of up to 3% to achieve 98.4%. DFT calculation and MC simulation confirmed the influence of the chemical construction of coated films on its protection capacity, which was in accordance with the experimental results.

Experimental and In-Silico Computational Modeling of Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles Functionalized by Gelatin as an Eco-Friendly Anti-Corrosion Barrier on X60 Steel Alloys in Acidic Environments.

An eco-friendly and a facile route successfully prepared novel cerium oxide nanoparticles functionalized by gelatin. The introduced CeO2@gelatin was investigated in terms of FE-SEM, EDX, TEM, chemical mapping, FT-IR, and (TGA) thermal analyses. These characterization tools indicate the successful synthesis of a material having CeO2 and gelatin as a composite material. The prepared composite CeO2@gelatin was used as an environment-friendly coated film or X60 steel alloys in acidizing oil well medium. Moreover, the effect of CeO2 percent on film composition was investigated. LPR corrosion rate, Eocp-time, EIS, and PDP tools determined the corrosion protection capacity. The CeO2@gelatin composite exhibited high protection capacity compared to pure gelatin; in particular, 5.0% CeO2@gelatin coating film shows the highest protection capacity (98.2%), with long-term anti-corrosive features. The % CeO2@gelatin-coated films formed the protective adsorbed layer on the steel interface by developing a strong bond among nitrogen atoms in the CeO2@gelatin film and the electrode interface. Surface morphology using FESEM measurements confirmed the high efficiency of the fabricated CeO2@gelatin composite on the protection X60 steel alloys. DFT calculations and MC simulations were explored to study the relations between the protection action and the molecular construction of the coated systems, which were in good alignment with the empirical findings.

Enhanced Conductivity and Antibacterial Behavior of Cotton via the Electroless Deposition of Silver.

In this study, the surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) technique and electroless deposition of silver (Ag) were used to prepare a novel multi-functional cotton (Cotton-Ag), possessing both conductive and antibacterial behaviors. It was found that the optimal electroless deposition time was 20 min for a weight gain of 40.4%. The physical and chemical properties of Cotton-Ag were investigated. It was found that Cotton-Ag was conductive and showed much lower electrical resistance, compared to the pristine cotton. The antibacterial properties of Cotton-Ag were also explored, and high antibacterial activity against both Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was observed.

Polymer brush-grafted ZnO-modified cotton for efficient oil/water separation with abrasion/acid/alkali resistance and temperature "switch" property.

A novel super-hydrophobic cotton material was fabricated via the grafting of PGMA polymer brush and the subsequent immobilization of ZnO nanoparticles and octyltriethoxysilane (OTES). The modified cotton showed a high water contact angle (WCA) of above 151° for all the water droplet with the pH ranging from 1 to 14, and was stable (WCA > 150°) in ammonia or acetic anhydride solutions. In addition, the tensile strength of the modified cotton was 2.05 times that of the original one. However, little change in the superhydrophobicity (WCA > 150°) was observed even after rubbing the modified cotton with 50 g weight for a thousand times. Furthermore, the modified cotton showed the interesting temperature "switch" phenomenon, which endowed the change of the wettability with the change of the temperature. The modified cotton material exhibited enhanced oil-water separation performance with good mechanical stability, pH and abrasion resistance, as well as the "switch" property.

Towards improved protein anti-fouling and anti-microbial properties of poly (vinylidene fluoride) membranes by blending with lactate salts-based polyurea as surface modifiers.

It is a big challenge to develop membrane fouling-resistant materials for long-term water filtration applications in order to reduce the operating cost. Herein, for the first time, we have proposed the utilization of lactate salts-based polyurea additives as surface modifiers (SMs) to endow anti-microbial and anti-protein activities which increase the life of poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane filters in terms of attaining anti-fouling properties for prolonged and stable water flux in water treatment. Membrane fouling was examined by taking into account the important influencing factors such as surface hydrophilicity and functional lactate groups present on the surface. The results showed that the surface hydrophilicity was enhanced leading to higher water flux of the PVDF membrane blended with sodium lactate-based polyurea (Na-PVDF) (174.2 L m-2 h-1), which was almost 12 times higher than that of the neat PVDF membrane. The fabricated SMs-blended PVDF membranes displayed satisfactory rejection and fouling resistant performance for the bovine serum albumin (BSA) molecules. The PVDF membrane blended with zinc lactate-based polyurea (Zn-PVDF) ensured effective anti-microbial activity against bacteria and fungi. Besides, the SMs-blended PVDF membranes displayed a higher zone of inhibition (ZOI) and higher colony reduction than the neat PVDF membranes in the anti-microbial test. The long-term water filtration test carried out after 200 days showed that PVDF membranes blended with SMs retained more than 90% of the original water flux, suggesting the long-term stability of SMs in the PVDF matrix. Therefore, the synergistic effect of SMs can be considered as an important life enhancer of polymeric membrane materials in the field of membrane technology.

A facile chemical synthesis of CuxNi(1-x)Fe2O4 nanoparticles as a nonprecious ferrite material for electrocatalytic oxidation of acetaldehyde.

In the present work, Cu-doped nickel ferrite (CuxNi(1-x)Fe2O4) nanoparticles (CuNFNPs) were chemically fabricated by adding citric acid as a capping agent followed by combustion and calcination for acetaldehyde oxidation reaction (AOR) in KOH electrolytes. The as-prepared CuNFNPs were studied in terms of Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area analyses. The morphology of CuNFNPs has sponges-structure containing irregular pores. Additionally, XRD analysis indicated that the prepared CuNFNPs have a cubic-crystals ferrite without the existence of impurities and the crystal size around 20.2 nm. The electrooxidation of acetaldehyde by the presented CuNFNPs was investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in -OH media. Furthermore, the effects of -OH and acetaldehyde on the electrocatalytic performance were studied with and without Cu-doping in addition to EIS and CA studies which confirm the high-performance of CuNFNPs as an electrocatalyst for AOR.

Facile synthesis of TiO2/ZrO2 nanofibers/nitrogen co-doped activated carbon to enhance the desalination and bacterial inactivation via capacitive deionization.

Capacitive deionization, as a second generation electrosorption technique to obtain water, is one of the most promising water desalination technologies. Yet; in order to achieve high CDI performance, a well-designed structure of the electrode materials is needed, and is in high demand. Here, a novel composite nitrogen-TiO2/ZrO2 nanofibers incorporated activated carbon (NACTZ) is synthesized for the first time with enhanced desalination efficiency as well as disinfection performance towards brackish water. Nitrogen and TiO2/ZrO2 nanofibers are used as the support of activated carbon to improve its low capacitance and hydrophobicity, which had dramatically limited its adequacy during the CDI process. Importantly, the as-fabricated NACTZ nanocomposite demonstrates enhanced electrochemical performance with significant specific capacitance of 691.78 F g-1, low internal resistance and good cycling stability. In addition, it offers a high capacitive deionization performance of NACTZ yield with electrosorptive capacity of 3.98 mg g-1, and, good antibacterial effects as well. This work will provide an effective solution for developing highly performance and low-cost design for CDI electrode materials.

A Multifunctional Zinc Oxide/Poly(Lactic Acid) Nanocomposite Layer Coated on Magnesium Alloys for Controlled Degradation and Antibacterial Function.

In the present work, magnesium (Mg) AZ31 alloy was coated with a multifunctional membrane layer composed of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) embedded in a poly(lactic acid) (PLA) matrix. We aimed to produce a stable coating that would be used to control the degradation rate of the Mg alloy and promote a local antibacterial activity. ZnO NPs were dispersed at 5 and 10 wt % in a PLA solution and dip-coated onto the AZ31 substrate. Surface topography, chemical composition, thickness, electrochemical corrosion performance, mass variation, antibacterial activity, adhesion performance, and cytotoxicity of an uncoated control and coated alloys were investigated. The results indicated that the incorporation of ZnO NPs at various concentrations affords a dramatic control over surface topography and degradation rates under in vitro and in vivo environmental conditions when compared to the uncoated Mg alloy control. In addition, the results confirmed that the coated layer exerts antibacterial properties and supports cell growth, indicating this system may have utility for bone tissue engineering applications.

Facile synthesis of GO@SnO2/TiO2 nanofibers and their behavior in photovoltaics.

Chemical doping is a widely-used strategy to improve the performance of TiO2 for the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). However, the effect of two efficient dopants has been rarely investigated. We present the synthesis of GO@SnO2/TiO2 nanofibers (NFs) by a facile method using electrospinning and hydrothermal processes. The synthesized NFs are described in terms of morphology, crystallinity and chemistry through FESEM, TEM, HR-TEM, XRD, EDX, XPS, FT-IR and Raman spectra. As the results, the axial ratio and the average diameter of NFs decreased after the hydrothermal treatment and calcination process, respectively. The prepared Titania-based nanofibers have 81.82% anatase and 18.18% rutile-structure. The developed materials are applied as working electrodes of DSCs. The photovoltaic performances showed that the efficiency of the device employed GO@SnO2/TiO2 photoanode gave 5.41%, which was higher than those of cells fabricated with SnO2/TiO2 NFs (3.41%) and GO@TiO2 NFs (4.52%) photoanodes. The photovoltaic parameters such as Jsc, Voc, FF and Rct are calculated and found to be 11.19mAcm-2, 0.72V, 0.67 and 9.26Ω, respectively. The high photovoltaic response of DSC based of GO@SnO2/TiO2 NFs may be attributed to the large surface area of the NFs, and the low electron recombination. Furthermore, the start-stop switches of the cell devices with the developed photoanode affirmed the stability and photovoltaic performance of the cell.

Co/Cr-Decorated Carbon Nanofibers as Novel and Efficacious Electrocatalyst for Ethanol Oxidation in Alkaline Medium.

In this work, Co/Cr nanoparticles-decorated carbon nanofibers were studied as a platinum-free catalyst for electrooxidation of ethanol in the alkaline medium. The investigated nano composites were prepared by simple, high yield and effective technique; electrospinning of cobalt acetate, chromium acetate and polyvinyl alcohol as a polymer precursor at 20 kV followed by calcination under inert atmosphere at 900 °C for 2 h. The suitable physicochemical characterizations such as XRD, SEM, TEM, TEM mapping, Line TEM-EDX and FE-SEM indicated the formation of pure CoCr nanoparticles allocated in/on carbon nanofibers. Electro catalytic activity measurements showed that the investigated Co­Cr carbon nanofibers can be effectively utilized in ethanol electrooxidation in 1 mol/l KOH solution. The observed current density was 105 mA/cm2 which is considered high value for non-precious electrocatalyst. Also, study the influence of Cr content in Cr­Co alloy toward ethanol oxidation was investigated to obtain the most effective composition. The suitable Cr concentration found to be 10% of Co content.

Efficiency enhancement of dye-sensitized solar cells by use of ZrO2-doped TiO2 nanofibers photoanode.

Due to the good stability and convenient optical properties, TiO2 nanostructures still the prominent photoanode materials in the Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSCs). However, the well-known low bandgap energy and weak adsorption affinity for the dye distinctly constrain the wide application. This work discusses the impact of Zr-doping and nanofibrous morphology on the performance and physicochemical properties of TiO2. Zr-doped TiO2 nanofibers (NFs), with various zirconia content (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2wt%) were prepared by calcination of electrospun mats composed of polyvinyl acetate, titanium isopropoxyl and zirconium n-propoxyl. For all formulations, the results have shown that the prepared materials are continuous, randomly oriented, and good morphology nanofibers. The average diameter decreased from 353.85nm to 210.78nm after calcination without a considerable influence on the nanofibrous structure regardless the zirconia content. XRD result shows that there is no Rutile nor Brookite phases in the obtained material and the average crystallite size of the sample is affected by the presence of Zr-doping and changed from 23.01nm to 37.63nm for TiO2 and Zr-doped TiO2, respectively. Optical studies have shown Zr-doped TiO2 NFs have more absorbance in the visible region than that of pristine TiO2 NFs; the maximum absorbance is corresponding to the NFs having 1wt% zirconia. The improved spectra of Zr-doped TiO2 in the visible region is attributed to the heterostructure composition resulting from Zr-doping. The absorption bandgaps were calculated using Tauc model as 3.202 and 3.217 for pristine and Zr (1wt%)-doped TiO2 NFs, respectively. Furthermore, in Dye-sensitized Solar Cells, utilizing Zr (1wt%)-doped TiO2 nanofibers achieved higher efficiency of 4.51% compared to the 1.61% obtained from the pristine TiO2 NFs.

A review on versatile applications of transition metal complexes incorporating Schiff bases.

Schiff bases and their complexes are versatile compounds synthesized from the condensation of an amino compound with carbonyl compounds and widely used for industrial purposes and also exhibit a broad range of biological activities including antifungal, antibacterial, antimalarial, antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and antipyretic properties. Many Schiff base complexes show excellent catalytic activity in various reactions and in the presence of moisture. Over the past few years, there have been many reports on their applications in homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. The high thermal and moisture stabilities of many Schiff base complexes were useful attributes for their application as catalysts in reactions involving at high temperatures. The activity is usually increased by complexation therefore to understand the properties of both ligands and metal can lead to the synthesis of highly active compounds. The influence of certain metals on the biological activity of these compounds and their intrinsic chemical interest as multidentate ligands has prompted a considerable increase in the study of their coordination behaviour. Development of a new chemotherapeutic Schiff bases and their metal complexes is now attracting the attention of medicinal chemists. This review compiles examples of the most promising applied Schiff bases and their complexes in different areas.