Interfacial coupling of CuFe2O4 induced hotspots over self-assembled g-C3N4 nanosheets as an efficient photocatalytic bacterial disinfectant.

Most bacterial disinfectants contain high levels of extremely toxic and environmental hazardous chemicals, which pose a significant threat to the ecosystem. Semiconductor photocatalysis exhibits attractive prospects as an emerging greener technology for waste water disinfection. However, the fast recombination of charge carriers limits its practical application. Herein, self-assembled polymeric feather-like g-C3N4 (GCN) nanosheets modified with ferromagnetic CuFe2O4 (CFO) nanospheres were successfully applied as a reusable visible light photocatalytic disinfectant. As expected, the g-C3N4/CuFe2O4 (GCF) nanohybrid displayed superior photocatalytic inactivation efficiency of 0.157log within 120 min towards Escherichia coli DH5α (E. coli) compared with pristine GCN and CFO. The characterization results revealed the synergistic heterostructure interfaces, high surface area, and the transformative self-assembly of GCN to feather-like structure providing a rich active site for improved charge separation efficiency, and wide spectral response, therefore the superior performance of GCF. The radical trapping assay proclaimed that both O2•- and •OH radical played major role in the photocatalytic inactivation among the other reactive oxygen species (ROS). Furthermore, the chemical oxygen demand (COD), protein estimation, and DNA estimation assay results validated the cell damage caused by the photocatalyst. Besides that, GCN showed applicability in real-time wastewater samples with improved efficiency than in the saline solution. The excellent magnetic characteristics facilitated the recycling of the catalyst with insignificant leaching, magnetic induction, and distinguished separation. The results of this work signify the well-designed GCF as a high-performance and reusable photocatalyst for real-world pathogenic bacterial disinfection operations.

Novel insight on chemo-specific detection of toxic environmental chromium residues existing as recalcitrant Cr(III)-carboxyl complexes using plasmonic silver nanoplatform bi-functionalized with citrate and PVP.

Chromium (Cr) is a toxic environmental pollutant that majorly exists in trivalent and hexavalent forms. Though Cr(VI) is more dangerous than Cr(III), the trivalent Cr forms complexes with environmentally-available organic molecules. This makes them potentially harmful and difficult to detect. In this study, we have designed an ultrasensitive plasmonic nanosensor using citrate and PVP functionalized Ag nanoparticles (Ag-citrate-PVPNPs) for the detection of trivalent chromium organic complexes such as Cr(III)-EDTA (Cr-E), Cr(III)-acetate (Cr-A), Cr(III)-citrate (Cr-C) and Cr(III)-tartrate (Cr-T). The nanoparticles (NPs) were structurally characterized by XRD, SEM, HRTEM, SAED, EDX and elemental mapping. The citrate and PVP molecules played a vital role in the detection mechanism and stability of the sensor. Upon detection, the yellow-colored Ag-citrate-PVP NPs turned into different shades of brown depending on the type of the Cr complex and concentration. It was accompanied by diminishing and/or shifting UV-Visible absorbance peaks due to the aggregation of Ag-citrate-PVP NPs. Further, a linear relationship was observed between absorbance reduction and analyte concentration. The selectivity tests showed that the sensor was non-functional to other metal ions and inorganic anions. The sensor was optimized using pH and temperature studies. The mechanism of detection was elucidated with the help of characterization techniques such as Raman spectroscopy, FTIR, XPS and UV-visible spectrophotometer. The limit of detection (LOD) was found to be 3.29, 4.87, 1.76 and 1.79 nM for Cr-E, Cr-A, Cr-C and Cr-T complexes respectively. This study provides a rapid and sensitive approach for the detection of multiple Cr(III)-organic complexes present in an aqueous solution.

Plasma-assisted in-situ preparation of L-cystine functionalized silver nanoparticle: An intelligent multicolor nano-sensing of cadmium and paracetamol from environmental sample.

L-cystine (L-cys) functionalized plasmonic silver nanomaterial (Ag NPs) was fabricated toward the selective and sensitive detection of paracetamol and cadmium. The prepared L-cys-Ag nanoparticles (NPs) were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD) and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses. SEM imaging show that Ag NPs was decorated on the surface of L-cysteine 3D cubic nanosheet. L-cys-Ag NPs showed selective and sensitive detection towards paracetamol and cadmium. The interference study confirms that the presence of other metal ions didn't inhibit the detection of cadmium by L-cys-Ag NPs. The limit of detection of paracetamol and cadmium by L-cys-Ag NPs was calculated to be 1.2 and 2.82 nM respectively. In addition, the real sample detection of paracetamol on blood serum and urine, and cadmium on STP were performed and the recovery percentage was above 97%. Further, the real sample analysis was performed in tap and drinking water and the recovery percentage was more than 98%. The analytic logic gate on the multicolour detection of cadmium and paracetamol was performed for the semi-quantitative monitoring of paracetamol and cadmium by L-cys-Ag NPs. The developed L-cys-Ag NPs were found to be an effective tool for the monitoring of cadmium in environmental water bodies and paracetamol in blood and urine.

Synthesis and application of CdS nanoparticles-decorated core-shell Ag@Ni nanohybrids for visible-light spectrophotometric assay of sulfide in aqueous sample.

Novel Ag@Ni nanosphere decorated with CdS NPs (Ag@Ni-CdS NCs) was synthesized by one step chemical synthesis method. The fabricated NCs were characterized by transmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), fourier transfer infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), zeta sizer and particle size analyzer. TEM and XRD confirmed the Ag in core and Ni in shell for the effective formation of Ag@Ni core shell nanosphere. EDAX and XPS spectra of NCs confirms the formation of Ag@Ni-CdS NCs. Zeta potential and particle size of the NCs was found to be 29.5 ± 1.5 mV and 24 ± 1 nm respectively. The complete loss in the peak intensity of Ag@Ni-CdS NCs (localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR)) at ∼410 nm in presence of S2- ions was observed which indicates its selective detection towards S2- ions. The sulfide ion sensing by Ag@Ni-CdS NCs was due to the successive oxidation of Ag results in the formulation of Ag2+ ions in the system, which causes the diminishing of LSPR band of NCs. The limit of detection (LOD) of S2- ions by Ag@Ni-CdS NCs was calculated to be of 2.66 nM. The combination of CdS NPs with core-shell Ag@Ni nanosphere guides a promising strategy for S2- ions detection from environmental polluted samples.

Ag0 decorated Cr2S3 NPs embedded on PVP matrix: A colorimetric probe for selective and rapid detection of sulphide ions from environmental samples.

Globally, the environmental pollution is one of the major issues causing toxicity towards human and aquatic life. We have developed a facile and innovative sensing approach for detection of sulphide ions (S2-) present in the aqueous media using Ag0 decorated Cr2S3 NPs embedded on PVP matrix (Ag/Cr2S3-PVP). Based on the SPR phenomena, the detection of S2- ions was established. The nanohybrid was characterized using various techniques such as UV-vis spectrophotometer, High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction analysis(XRD), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The yellowish colour of Ag/Cr2S3-PVP nanohybrid turned to brown colour in presence of S2- ions. The selectivity and sensitivity of the prepared probe was studied against the other interfering metal ions. In addition, the effect of different concentration of S2- ions in the nanohybrid solution was investigated and the Limit of detection (LOD) was found to be 6.6 nM. The good linearity was found over the range of 10 nM to 100 µM with R2 value of 0.981. The paper strip based probe was developed for rapid onsite monitoring of S2- ions. The proposed method is found to be cost-effective, rapid, and simple. We have validated the practical applicability of the prepared probe for determining the concentration of S2- ions in real water samples.

Recent advances in degradation of organic pollutant in aqueous solutions using bismuth based photocatalysts: A review.

Today, a major concern associated with the environment is the water pollution occurred due to the introduction of variety of persistent organic pollutants and residual dyes from different sources (e.g., dye and dye intermediates industries, paper and pulp industries, textile industries, tannery and craft bleaching industries, pharmaceutical industries, etc.) into our natural water resources. Recently, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) by photocatalyst have garnered great attention as a new frontier promising eco-friendly and sustainable wastewater treatment technology. Utilization of the photocatalytic technology efficiently is significant for cleaner environment. Bismuth based photocatalyst have aroused widespread attention as a visible light responsive photocatalyst for waste water treatment due to their non-toxicity, low cost, modifiable morphology, and outstanding optical and chemical properties. In this review, we have dealt with the research progress on bismuth-based photocatalysts for waste water treatment. However, it seems to give limitation over pristine photocatalysts such as slow migration of charge carriers, charge carrier recombination, low visible light absorption, etc., Various bismuth based photocatalyst and its modifications via doping, heterojunction, Z-scheme etc., are discussed in detail. Further, the strategies adopted to improve the photocatalytic activity of bismuth based photocatalyst to improve the waste water treatment (mostly drugs and dyes) are critically reviewed. Also, we have discussed the bacterial inactivation by bismuth based photocatalyst. Finally, the challenges and future aspects against bismuth based photocatalyst are explored for further research.

Recent developments in architecturing the g-C3N4 based nanostructured photocatalysts: Synthesis, modifications and applications in water treatment.

Water pollution is becoming an inevitable problem in today's world. Tons and tons of wastewater with hazardous pollutants are getting discharged into the clean water bodies every day. In this regard, photocatalytic environmental remediation using nanotechnology such as the use of organic, metal and non-metal based semiconductor photocatalysts for photodegradation of pollutants has gained enormous attention in the past few decades. This review is focused particularly on graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) which is a cheap, metal-free, polymeric photoactive compound and it is used as a potential photocatalyst in wastewater treatment. Though, pristine g-C3N4 is a good photocatalyst, it has certain drawbacks such as poor visible light absorption capacity, quicker recombination of photoelectrons and holes, delayed mass and charge transfer, etc. As a result, the pristine g-C3N4 catalyst is modified into novel 0D, 1D, 2D and 3D morphologies such as nano-quantum dots, nanorods, nanotubes, nanowires, nanosheets, nanoflakes, nanospheres, nanoshells, etc. It was also tailored into novel composites along with various compounds through doping, metal deposition, heterojunction formation, etc., to enhance the photocatalytic property of pure g-C3N4. The modified catalysts showed promising photocatalytic performance such as degradation of majority of pollutants in the environment. It also showed excellent results in the removal or reduction of heavy metals. This review provides a detailed record of g-C3N4 and its diverse photocatalytic applications in the past years and it provides knowledge for the development of such similar novel compounds in the future.

Cytotoxicological evaluation of copper oxide nanoparticles on green algae, bacteria and crustacean systems.

PURPOSE: Copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles (NPs) have been utilized in several industries including textile, consumer products, medical, automobiles etc. The discharge of industrial effluents in environment increased the probability of CuO NPs contamination in the ecosystem. METHODS: The present investigation used CuO NPs to determine the toxic effect on Lyngbya species, fresh water algae isolated from natural pond, bacterial species Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus and a crustacean species Daphnia magna. RESULTS: The NPs average diameter and zeta potential was estimated to be 45 ± 3 nm and 29 ± 1.78 mV respectively. The results showed that 0.1 µg/mL CuO NPs showed the growth inhibition of 47 ± 2% on Lyngbya sp. after 5 days of incubation. The CuO NPs also showed toxic effect to bacterial systems such as P. aeruginosa and S. aureus and crustacean system D. magna. Further, there was an increased lipid peroxidation and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in algal cells observed up on NPs exposure. The exposure of NPs suppressed the antioxidant defense system. The amount of glutathione was reduced after the exposure of NPs. CONCLUSION: The study suggested the role of ROS in toxicity of algal and bacterial systems. The present study pointed out the potent toxicity of CuO NPs to the organisms present in the aquatic environment.

Effect of humic acid on the toxicity of bare and capped ZnO nanoparticles on bacteria, algal and crustacean systems.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles are one of the most extensively used nanoparticles in various commercial products. Depending on the purpose, the particles are coated with various agents including poly vinyl pyrrolidone, poly vinyl alcohol, ethylene glycol etc. As the particles are heavily used, the chance of the particles to get run off into the environment is very high. The study explains the difference in toxicity of bare and capped zinc oxide nanoparticles under various environmental conditions including humic acid and visible light against bacterial, algal and crustacean system. Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were used as model system for bacterial toxicity testing. Plate counting assay was employed for assessing the toxicity against bacteria. Chlorella pyrenoidsa was used for studying toxicity against algal system, which was evaluated using the chlorophyll estimation assay. Daphnia sp. was used for studying the toxicity in crustacean system. The particles had the ability to adsorb humic acid which further affected the stability of the particle. The study concludes that the presence of environmental factors including humic acid affects the toxicological nature of ZnO NPs.

Influence of humic acid on the stability and bacterial toxicity of zinc oxide nanoparticles in water.

The present study investigated the stability of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) by the adsorption of humic acid (HA) and the mechanism of adsorption. The effect of humic acid on NP toxicity was determined by Escherichia coli (ATCC 13534), E. coli (ATCC 25922), and Pseudomonas putida (MTCC 4910). The nanoparticles showed low zeta potential and were least stable in the absence of HA. However, the negative surface charge of the particles increased in the presence of HA (0-50mg/L) that reduced the propensity of nanoparticles to aggregate in water. A decrease in absorbance of ZnO NPs at 375 nm (plasmon peak) was noted in the presence of HA by UV-visible spectrophotometric analysis. A blue shift towards 370 nm was noted when the concentration of HA was above 20mg/L. The HA adsorbed ZnO NPs showed higher zeta potential (>-30 mV) and were highly stable. HA reduced the photocatalytic activity of ZnO and at the same time increased the photostability of ZnO.

Highly selective colorimetric detection and estimation of Hg2+ at nano-molar concentration by silver nanoparticles in the presence of glutathione.

The present study investigated the colorimetric detection of mercury (Hg(2+)) ions by using silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) in the presence of glutathione. The nanoparticles used in the study were synthesized biologically by using Polyalthia longifolia leaf extract. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by UV-visible spectrophotometer, transmission electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, particle size analyzer and zeta sizer. The particles were spherical in shape and it possesses the effective diameter of 5 nm. The zeta potential of the particles was determined to be -28.6 mV. Ag NPs-glutathione conjugates were able to detect Hg(2+) in nanomolar level. Ag NPs-glutathione conjugates upon interaction with Hg(2+) changes from yellowish brown to pale yellow and finally colorless. The study may be applied for the qualitative and quantitative estimation of mercury at very low concentration.

Enhancement of visible light photocatalytic activity of CdO modified ZnO nanohybrid particles.

Highly effective ZnO-CdO nanohybrid particles were synthesized via a hydrothermal co-precipitation method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), particle size analyzer, zeta sizer and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. ZnO-CdO-3:1 nanohybrid photocatalyst exhibited significantly enhanced photostability and photocatalytic activity for the degradation of Methylene Blue. The formation of hydroxyl radicals was measured by photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. Photocatalytic efficiency of ZnO was high at ZnO-CdO ratio of 3:1. Furthermore, this work provides an insight into the development of a new photocatalyst for the degradation of organic contaminants.

Effect of exopolysaccharides on photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanoparticles.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are largely used in consumer products and industrial applications. The increased use of such materials may lead to its release into the environment. The study used chemically synthesized ZnO NPs and characterized by using UV-visible spectrophotometer, scanning electron microscopy, particle size analyzer and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The mean diameter of the particles was found to be 55±1.2nm. The XRD patterns exhibited hexagonal structure for ZnO NPs. The photocatalytic property of ZnO NPs was evaluated based on the UV-vis spectra changes of the methylene blue solution as a function of reaction time in the presence of ZnO NPs under visible light. The study suggests that ZnO NPs can be used as an efficient photocatalyst and the environmental factor such as exopolysaccharides could mask the photocatalytic activity of NPs.

Effect of humic acid on photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanoparticles.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are widely used in consumer products including sunscreens, textiles and paints. The indiscriminate use of such materials may leads to its release into the environment. The present study evaluated the photocatalytic effect of ZnO NPs in presence of humic acid (HA), which is an important factor present largely in the environment. ZnO NPs were characterized by using UV-visible spectrophotometer, scanning electron microscopy, particle size analyzer and X-ray diffraction analysis. The mean diameter of the particles was found to be 55±2.1 nm. The XRD patterns exhibited hexagonal structure for ZnO NPs. The photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs was evaluated based on the change in UV-visible absorption spectra of the methylene blue solution as a function of reaction time under visible light source. The rate of photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue was decreased with increase in HA concentration.

Interaction of colloidal zinc oxide nanoparticles with bovine serum albumin and its adsorption isotherms and kinetics.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are widely used in medical, industrial and household application owing to excellent antimicrobial property. The biocompatibility of nanoparticles is important for specific biomedical applications. The aim of this study was to stabilize and biofunctionalize ZnO NPs using bovine serum albumin (BSA). Here we have investigated the adsorption behavior of BSA onto ZnO NPs in aqueous solutions. Influence of pH on the adsorption of BSA onto ZnO NPs was also investigated. The study suggests that the electrostatic force of attraction favors the adsorption of BSA onto ZnO NPs. The adsorption data fitted well by Freundlich isotherm compared to Langmuir isotherm. The kinetics of adsorption fitted best to pseudo-second-order.

Bioremoval of Basic Violet 3 and Acid Blue 93 by Pseudomonas putida and its adsorption isotherms and kinetics.

Basic Violet 3 and Acid Blue 93 are the most important group of synthetic colourants extensively used in textile industries for dyeing cotton, wool, silk and nylon. Release of these dye pollutants in to the environment adversely affects the human health and aquatic organisms. The present study we used Pseudomonas putida MTCC 4910 for the adsorptive removal of Basic Violet 3 and Acid Blue 93 from the aqueous solutions. The pH (4-9) and NaCl concentrations (1mM-1M) did not influence the adsorption process. The equilibrium adsorption process fitted well to Freundlich model than Langmuir model. The kinetics of adsorption fitted well by pseudo-second-order. Thus in the present study an attempt has been made to exploit the dye removal capability of P. putida MTCC 4910, and it was found to be an efficient microbe that could be used for bio removal of dyes from textile effluents.

Bacterial tolerance to silver nanoparticles (SNPs): aeromonas punctata isolated from sewage environment.

Use of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) is increasing in a large number of consumer products. Thus, the possible build-up of the nanoparticles in the environment is becoming a major concern. Aeromonas punctata isolated from sewage showed tolerance to 200 µg/ml SNPs. The growth kinetics data for A. punctata treated with nanoparticles were similar to those in the absence of nanoparticles. There was a reduction in the amount of exopolysaccharides (EPS) in bacterial culture supernatant after nanoparticle-supernatant interaction. EPS capping of the nanoparticles was confirmed by UV-visible, XRD and comparative FTIR analysis. The EPS-capped SNPs showed less toxicity to Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Micrococcus luteus compared to the uncapped ones. The study suggests capping of nanoparticles by bacterially produced EPS as a probable physiological defense mechanism.