Bibliometric analysis and recent trends on MXene research - A comprehensive review.

MXene, identified as a high performance material with superior properties, has gained significant importance in the field of applications including energy storage, photo catalysis, sensing of components and environmental pollution control. This review article is a comprehensive study on scientometric review on the research studies involving MXene and its derivatives for various applications. The aim of this study is to identify the areas of priority focused during the study period (2012-2020) and evaluate the impact of the studies in terms of different parameters. Using the suitable key words, a total of 3332 documents are identified and screened with respect to yearly count of literature, type of literature, language of publication, authors, Web of science (WoS) categories, most cited literature, author contribution, name of the affiliated institution, country of author affiliation, journals and key words. In addition, collaboration behavior and citation network are reviewed using the mapping tool. The total local citation score (TLCS) and total global citation score (TGCS) are evaluated. Based on the review data, the developments in the field of MXene applications are presented with more focus on sensing applications and photocatalysis. The top two contributing countries in the chosen field of MXene research are China and USA. Based on the number of documents published, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces and Journal of Materials Chemistry "A" are identified as the best two journals.

Methods of synthesis, characteristics, and environmental applications of MXene: A comprehensive review.

MXene, comprised of two-dimensional transition metal carbides/nitride, has emerged as a novel material suitable for environmental remediation of toxic compounds. Due to their inherent and superior physical and chemical properties, MXene is employed in separation techniques like photocatalysis, adsorption, and membrane separation. MXene is equipped with a highly hydrophilic surface, ion exchange property, and robust surface functional groups. In this review paper, a comprehensive discussion on the structural patterns, preparation, properties of MXene and its application for the removal of toxic pollutants like Radionuclide, Uranium, Thorium, and dyes is presented. The mechanism of removal of the pollutants by MXene is extensively reviewed. Synthesis of MXene based membranes, their properties, and application for water purification and properties were also discussed. This review will be highly helpful to understand critically the methods of synthesis and use of MXene material for priority environmental pollutants removal. In addition, the challenges behind the synthesis and use of MXene for decontamination of pollutants were reviewed and reported.

One-pot Synthesis of ß-acetamido-ß-(phenyl) Propiophenone using ZnO/Carbon Nanocomposites.

AIM AND OBJECTIVES: The focus of the present work is to synthesize ZnO/C composite using dextrose as carbon source by combustion method and study the comparative evaluation on one-pot synthesis of ß-acetamido- ß-(phenyl) propiophenone over ZnO nanoparticles and ZnO/C composite catalyst. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The ZnO nanoparticles has been synthesized by sol-gel method using zinc nitrate and NaOH and ZnO/Carbon composites by combustion method using zinc nitrate and dextrose as carbon source. The resulting gel was placed in a preheated muffle furnace at 400oC. The solution boils and ignites with a flame. On cooling highly amorphous powder of ZnO/Carbon composite is obtained. RESULTS: The XRD patterns reveal the hexagonal phase with Wurtzite structure and the nanocrystalline nature of the catalysts. The SEM image of ZnO/C composite showed that it contains spherical particles with an average size of 41 nm. The average particle size of the composite was around 60nm by DLS method. The catalytic activity of the ZnO/Carbon composites has been analyzed by one-pot four-component condensation of benzaldehyde, acetophenone, acetyl chloride and acetonitrile. The feed molar ratio of 1:1 (Bz:AP) and catalyst loading of 30 mol% is found to be the optimal condition for ß-acetamido ketone conversion over ZnO/carbon composite. CONCLUSION: The substantial catalytic activity of the synthesized ZnO/C composite materials was tested by one-pot four-component condensation of benzaldehyde (Bz), acetophenone (AP), acetyl chloride (AC) and acetonitrile (AN) which showed a high ß-acetamido ketone conversion under the optimized reaction conditions. It has also been found that the catalyst is very stable and reusable.