Catalytic activity of Zr and Ag co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles on the reduction of 4-nitrophenol, degradation of methylene blue and methyl orange was studied using sodium borohydride as reducing agent. The nanoparticles were characterized using X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, selected area electron diffraction and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The rate of the reduction/degradation was found to increase with increasing amount of the photocatalyst which could be attributed to higher dispersity and small size of the nanoparticles. The catalytic activity of Zr and Ag co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles showed no significant difference even after recycling the catalyst four times indicating a promising potential for industrial application of the prepared photocatalyst.

Sivakumar A

Department of Chemistry

School of Advanced Sciences

Vellore Campus

Naraginti S

Stephen F.B

Radhakrishnan A

Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) is a private university located in&nbsp;Tamil Nadu, India. Founded in 1984, as Vellore Engineering College, the institution offers 20 undergraduate, 34 postgraduate, four integrated and four research programs. It has campuses in Vellore, Amravati, Bhopal and Chennai.

VIT is one of the top ranked private universities in India according to NIRF, THE and QS Rankings.&nbsp;Govt. of India has recognized&nbsp;VIT, Vellore as an&nbsp;Institution of Eminence. This has allowed VIT to take independent quality initiatives and move up in world ranking.

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VIT University

Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy

Bioactivity of nanomaterials largely depends on its size, shape and crystalline nature. In this work, the smaller sized spherical shaped nano-zirconia (ZrO2 NPs) (of ~ 9 to 11 nm) was fabricated and studied its biological activity especially antioxidant and cytotoxicity against human colon carcinoma (HCT-116) and human lung carcinoma (A-549) cell lines. To have its real applications in biological aspects readily available Eucalyptus globulus (E. globulus) leaf extract was used as an effective capping and reducing agent for its synthesis. The prepared ZrO2 NPs was characterized by using different sophisticated instrumentations such as UV–visible spectrophotometer, XRD, FTIR, TEM, SAED, EDX, DLS and fluorescence spectroscopy. Cellular mitochondrial activity i.e. cell viability was measured by MTT assay and anti-oxidant activity was determined by DPPH assay. The smaller sized ZrO2 NPs showed strong antioxidant activity as well as cytotoxicity on human cancer cell lines. Comparative cytotoxic studies were conducted on human cancerous cell lines using different techniques. Results confirmed the efficient anti-cancer activities of the fabricated ZrO2 NPs towards the tested cell lines as well as efficient anti-oxidant activity. This is the first study in which E. globulus leaf extract was used to synthesize smaller spherical shaped ZrO2 NPs for improved bioactivity i.e. antioxidant and cytotoxicity. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.

Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology

Nano-zirconia – Evaluation of its antioxidant and anticancer activity

Due to their small size and unique physico-chemical characteristics, nanomaterials have gained importance in the agri-food sector, notably in preservation and packaging. Future applications will focus on shelf life, food quality, safety, fortification and biosensors for contaminated or spoiled food, irrigating water and drinking water. Different types and shapes of nanomaterials are being used depending upon the needs and nature of the work in agriculture and water quality management. Here we review the application of nanotechnology in agriculture. The major points discussed are: (1) Nanomaterials for agriculture and water quality management. (2) Research interests such as nanoscale carriers, fabricated xylem vessels, nanolignocellulosic materials, clay nanotubes, photocatalysis, bioremediation of resistant pesticides, disinfectants, agricultural wastewater treatment, nanobarcode technology, quantum dots for staining bacteria and nanobiosensors. (3) Nanotechnological applications for agriculture, which includes nanolignodynamic metallic particles, photocatalysis, desalination, removal of heavy metals and wireless nanosensors. © 2017, Springer International Publishing AG.

Environmental Chemistry Letters

Applications of nanotechnology in agriculture and water quality management

Biogenic silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) synthesized by Sterculia acuminata fruit extract was characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, XRD, TEM, FTIR, PSA, and Zeta potential studies. Formation of AgNPs is initially confirmed by UV-vis spectroscopic studies with the characteristic band at 426 nm. TEM and XRD reports revealed that AgNPs are highly crystalline and spherical in shape with average particle size of ∼10 nm. PSA studies revealed that average particle size of AgNPs is 10.3 nm which is in close agreement with TEM reports. FTIR studies indicated the presence of different functional groups on the surface of the AgNPs indicating the stability of AgNPs by capping of biomolecules onto the surface which is further supported by zeta potential studies with the negative zeta potential value of -39.2 mV. Further catalytic efficiency synthesized AgNPs was evaluated for the reduction/degradation of various organic dyes such as 4-nitrophenol (4-NP), methylene blue (MB), methyl orange (MO), phenol red (PR) and direct blue 24 (DB24). It was found that degradation of MB and DB24 was faster than that of other dyes. This is the first report on degradation of organic dyes PR and DB24 using NaBH4 as reducing agent in the presence of catalytic amount of AgNPs. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering

Biofabricated silver nanoparticles as green catalyst in the degradation of different textile dyes

This work is focused on sol-gel synthesis of silver and strontium co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles and their utilization as photo-catalysts in degradation of two textile dyes. Effect of pH, intensity of light, amount of photo-catalyst, concentration of dye, sensitizers, etc., were studied to optimize conditions for obtaining enhanced photo-catalytic activity of synthesized nanoparticles. XRD, BET, HR-TEM, EDAX and UV-Vis (diffused reflectance mode) techniques were used to characterize the nanoparticles. Interestingly, band gap of Sr and Ag co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles showed considerable narrowing (2.6 eV) when compared to Ag doped TiO2 (2.7 eV) and undoped TiO2 (3.17 eV) nanoparticles. Incorporation of Ag and Sr in the lattice of TiO2 could bring isolated energy levels near conduction and valence bands thus narrowing band gap. The XRD analysis shows that both Ag and Sr nanoparticles are finely dispersed on the surface of titania framework, without disturbing its crystalline structure. TEM images indicate that representative grain sizes of Ag-doped TiO2 &amp; Sr and Ag co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles are in the range of 8-20 nm and 11-25 nm, respectively. Effective degradation of Direct Green-6 (DG-6) and Reactive Blue-160 (RB-160) under UV and visible light has been achieved using the photo-catalysts. Sr and Ag co-doped TiO2 photo-catalysts showed higher catalytic activity during degradation process in visible region when compared to Ag-doped and undoped TiO2 nanoparticles which could be attributed to the interactive effect caused by band gap narrowing and enhancement in charge separation. For confirming degradation of the dyes, total organic carbon (TOC) content was monitored periodically. © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Enhanced photo-catalytic activity of Sr and Ag co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles for the degradation of Direct Green-6 and Reactive Blue-160 under UV &amp; visible light

Application of nanotechnology in the agro-food sector is one of the fastest growing fields in nano-research. The increase in number of the publications, patents and intellectual property rights in the field of nano-agri-food and recent research trends in food processing, packaging, nutraceutical delivery, quality control and functional food is by itself an evidence of the above statement. Government organizations, scientists, inventors as well as industries are coming up with new techniques, protocols and products that have a direct application of nanotechnology in agriculture and food products.This review provides a detailed overview of the application of nanotechnology in the field of agriculture, and food science & technology. Additionally, a brief idea about the classification of nanomaterials, synthesis and characterization techniques is discussed. Some exciting thoughts are also discussed on nanotechnological applications in agricultural practices including nano-agri for enhanced productivity, agricultural water quality management (WQM), product processing, storage and quality control with nano-sensors. The risk assessment and safety concerns with respect to nano agro-food research have also been highlighted. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

Food Research International

Nanotechnology in agro-food: From field to plate

Powder Technology

β-Ag2S–ZnO as a novel sunshine photocatalyst for the effective degradation of RR 120 dye

Dielectric characterization and catalytic activity studies of nickel chloride doped carboxymethyl cellulose films

Materials Research Bulletin

Dilute magnetic semi-conductor properties of Ga/Al/Co-codoped ZnO oxides

J. Mater. Chem.

Tubular nanocomposite catalysts based on size-controlled and highly dispersed silver nanoparticles assembled on electrospun silicananotubes for catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol

Science of Advanced Materials

A Facile Method for Preparation of Ag Nanoparticle Loaded MCM-41 and Study of Its Catalytic Activity for Reduction of 4-Nitrophenol

Zirconium and silver co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles as visible light catalyst for reduction of 4-nitrophenol, degradation of methyl orange and methylene blue

Journal	Data powered by TypesetSpectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy
Publisher	Data powered by TypesetElsevier BV
ISSN	1386-1425
Open Access	0