Synthesis and characterization of X (X = Ni or Fe) modified BaTiO3 for effective degradation of Reactive Red 120 dye under UV-A light and its biological activity.

For the sustainable advancement of industrial expansion that is environmentally conscious, harmful dyes must be removed from wastewater. Untreated effluents containing colors have the potential to harm the ecosystem and pose major health risks to people, animals, and aquatic life. Here, we have fabricated Ni or Fe modified with BaTiO3 materials and effectively utilized them for Reactive Red 120 (RR 120) dye degradation under UV-A light. The synthesized materials were characterized, and their structural, and photo-physical properties were reported. Phase segregation was not present in the XRD pattern, as evidenced by the absence of secondary phase peaks linked to iron, nickel, or oxides. Low metal ion concentrations may be the cause of this, and the presence of those elements was confirmed by XPS measurements. The Raman spectra of the BaTiO3/Ni and BaTiO3/Fe samples show a widened peak at 500 cm-1, which suggests that Ni or Fe are efficiently loaded onto the BaTiO3. RR 120 dye photodegradation under UV light conditions was effectively catalyzed by BaTiO3/Fe, as evidenced by its superior performance in the UV irradiation technique over both BaTiO3 and BaTiO3/Ni. Compared to bare BaTiO3, both metal-modified materials efficiently degraded the RR 120 dye. Acidic pH facilitated the degradation process, which makes sense given that the heterogeneous photo-Fenton reaction was the mechanism of degradation along with BaTiO3 sensitization. High-acidity sewage can be dangerous and carcinogenic, and conventional biological treatment methods are not appropriate for managing it. In the current investigation, it may be used to treat color effluents with extremely low pH levels. Additionally, the ability of the produced nanocomposites to inhibit the growth of twenty pathogens was examined, along with two fungi, fifteen Gram-negative Bacilli (GNB), one Gram-positive Bacilli (GPB), and two Gram-positive Cocci (GBC).

Rational construction of MOF derived α-Fe2O3/g-C3N4 composite for effective photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants and electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction.

In recent years, researchers have been actively investigating metal oxide-based materials with narrow bandgaps due to their potential applications toward wastewater treatment and oxygen evolution reactions (OER). In this study, we successfully synthesized g-C3N4 (GCN), Fe2O3, and Fe2O3/g-C3N4 (FGCN) using thermal polymerization and hydrothermal methods. We characterized the physicochemical and structural properties of these materials through various analytical techniques including XRD, FT-IR, UV-DRS, XPS, FE-SEM, and HR-TEM analyses, confirming the effective construction of the FGCN composite catalyst. We evaluated the photocatalytic activity of Fe2O3, GCN, and FGCN composite catalysts by assessing their ability to degrade rhodamine B (RhB) and crystal violet (CV) by exposing them to sunlight for 150 min. Among these catalysts, the FGCN composite demonstrated excellent photocatalytic performance, achieving 93 % and 95 % degradation of RhB and CV, respectively, under 150 min of sunlight exposure. The developed Fe2O3/g-C3N4@Nickel foam (FGCN@NF) composite catalyst exhibits remarkable OER performance, with a reduced Tafel slope of 64 mV/dec and a low overpotential of 290 mV at a current density of 10 mA/cm2 and shows excellent durable performance over a long time (15 h). Total Organic Carbon (TOC) analysis confirmed the mineralization of both dyes. The photocatalytic performance remained largely unchanged after five consecutive experiments, demonstrating excellent reusability and photostability. Trapping experiments revealed that O2●- is the main species responsible for the photocatalytic decomposition of various dyes by the FGCN composite catalyst. Therefore, the development of a versatile photo/electrocatalytic system that can efficiently promote energy conversion in environmental applications has attracted great attention.

Hierarchical 3D porous trimetallic palladium-iron and cobalt on nickel foam as electrocatalyst for large current density oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline seawater.

Electrolysis in seawater is a low-cost but difficult method of producing hydrogen. Herein, self-assembled hierarchical three-dimensional (3D) porous trimetallic palladium-iron and cobalt oxide anchored on a cheap and high surface area nickel foam (NF) (PdFeCo3-xO4/NF) were synthesized using a simple and low-cost impregnation-hydrothermal and thermal reduction strategy. The as-fabricated PdFeCo3-xO4/NF electrode showed both superhydrophilic and superaerophobic properties, which favored the fat removal of oxygen bubbles from the electrode surface owing to the close interaction between the electrode and electrolyte. Furthermore, the significant synergistic effect of trimetallics and the NF-matrix resulted in substantially enhanced oxygen evolution reaction (OER) intrinsic activity. The self-assembled PdFeCo3-xO4/NF catalyst exhibited critical low overpotentials of 300 and 340 mV to achieve an extremely large current density of 100 mA cm-2 in 1 M KOH solution and 1 M KOH seawater. Cell voltages as low as 1.44 and 1.51 V were required to drive 10 mA cm-2 in alkaline solution and seawater electrolytes for the full cell overall water splitting performance. This work suggests a promising strategy for developing next-generation electrocatalysts appropriate for natural seawater with cost-effective.

MoS2/S@g-CN Composite Electrode for L-Tryptophan Sensing.

L-tryptophan (L-TRP) is an essential amino acid responsible for the establishment and maintenance of a positive nitrogen equilibrium in the nutrition of human beings. Therefore, it is vital to quantify the amount of L-tryptophan in our body. Herein, we report the MoS2/S@g-CN-modified glassy carbon electrode for the electrochemical detection of L-tryptophan (L-TRP). The MoS2/S@g-CN composite was successfully synthesized using an efficient and cost-effective hydrothermal method. The physical and chemical properties of the synthesized composite were analyzed using powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX). The crystallite size of the composite was calculated as 39.4 nm, with porous balls of MoS2 decorated over the S@g-CN surface. The XPS spectrum confirmed the presence of Mo, S, O, C, and N elements in the sample. The synthesized nanocomposite was further used to modify the glassy carbon (GC) electrode (MoS2/S@g-CN/GC). This MoS2/S@g-CN/GC was used for the electrochemical detection of L-TRP using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques. For the purpose of comparison, the effects of the scanning rate and the concentration of L-TRP on the current response for the bare GC, S@g-CN/GC, MoS2/GC, and MoS2/S@g-CN/GC were studied in detail. The MoS2/S@g-CN-modified GC electrode exhibited a rational limit of detection (LoD) of 0.03 µM and a sensitivity of 1.74 µA/ µMcm2, with excellent stability, efficient repeatability, and high selectivity for L-TRP detection.

Fabrication of an Azithromycin Sensor.

Azithromycin (AZY) is a well-known top-prioritized antibiotic and is used by humans in strong concentrations. However, the side effects of the AZY antibiotic may cause some serious and significant damage to humans and the environment. Thus, there is a need to develop effective and sensitive sensors to monitor accurate concentrations of AZY. In the last decade, electrochemistry-based sensors have received enormous attention from the scientific community because of their high sensitivity, selectivity, cost-effectiveness, fast response, rapid detection response, simple fabrication, and working principle. It is important to mention that electrochemical sensors rely on the properties of electrode modifiers. Hence, the selection of electrode materials is of great significance when designing and developing efficient and robust electrochemical sensors. In this study, we fabricated an AZY sensor by utilizing a molybdenum disulfide/titanium aluminum carbide (MoS2@Ti3AlC2) composite as the electrode material. The MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite was synthesized via a simple sonication process. The synthesized MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite was characterized using a powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) method to examine the phase purity and formation of the MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to study the surface morphological features of the prepared MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite, whereas energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX) was adopted to determine the elemental composition of the prepared MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite. The glassy carbon (GC) electrode was modified with the prepared MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite and applied as the AZY sensor. The sensing performance of the MoS2@Ti3AlC2 composite-modified GC electrode was studied using linear sweep voltammetry. The sensor demonstrated excellent performance when determining AZY and showed a good detection limit of 0.009 µM with a sensitivity of 6.77 µA/µM.cm2.

Titanium Carbide (Ti3C2Tx) MXene as Efficient Electron/Hole Transport Material for Perovskite Solar Cells and Electrode Material for Electrochemical Biosensors/Non-Biosensors Applications.

Recently, two-dimensional (2D) MXenes materials have received enormous attention because of their excellent physiochemical properties such as high carrier mobility, metallic electrical conductivity, mechanical properties, transparency, and tunable work function. MXenes play a significant role as additives, charge transfer layers, and conductive electrodes for optoelectronic applications. Particularly, titanium carbide (Ti3C2Tx) MXene demonstrates excellent optoelectronic features, tunable work function, good electron affinity, and high conductivity. The Ti3C2Tx has been widely used as electron transport (ETL) or hole transport layers (HTL) in the development of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Additionally, Ti3C2Tx has excellent electrochemical properties and has been widely explored as sensing material for the development of electrochemical biosensors. In this review article, we have summarized the recent advances in the development of the PSCs using Ti3C2Tx MXene as ETL and HTL. We have also compiled the recent progress in the fabrication of biosensors using Ti3C2Tx-based electrode materials. We believed that the present mini review article would be useful to provide a deep understanding, and comprehensive insight into the research status.