Latest ArticlesCarbon dots (CDs) have attracted considerable attention as a new type of fluorescent carbon nanomaterial because of their excellent optical properties, biocompatibility, and high electrical conductivity. Research on CDs has been conducted for nearly two decades and has focused on numerous precursors, various synthesis conditions and properties and applications of CDs. Biomass is critical in the green development of CDs because of its low cost, environmental friendliness, and sustainable properties. This review focuses on the advantages and applications of biomass-derived CDs. In addition, the challenges of photobleaching, toxicity, and stability of biomass-based CDs are discussed in detail. Lastly, the prospects and challenges of biomass-derived CDs are highlighted.
NH3 in ambient air directly leads to an increase in the aerosol content in the air. These substances lead to the formation of haze to various environmental problems after atmospheric circulation and diffusion. Controlling NH3 emissions caused by ammonia escaping from mobile and industrial sources can effectively reduce the NH3 content in ambient air. Among the various NH3 removal methods, the selective catalytic oxygen method (NH3-SCO) is committed to oxidizing NH3 to environmentally harmless H2O and N2; therefore, it is the most valuable and ideal ammonia removal method. In this review, the characteristics of loaded and core-shell catalysts in NH3-SCO have been reviewed in the context of catalyst structure-activity relationships, and the H2O resistance and SO2 resistance of the catalysts are discussed in the context of practical application conditions. Then the effects of the valence state of the active center, oxygen species on the catalyst surface, dispersion of the active center and acidic sites on the catalyst performance are discussed comprehensively. Finally, the shortcomings of the existing catalysts are summarized and the catalyst development is discussed based on the existing studies.
The past few years have witnessed power conversion efficiency (PCE) of organic solar cells (OSCs) skyrocketing to the value of 20% due to the outstanding advantages of organic photoactive materials. The latter, which consist of donor and acceptor materials, indeed play important roles in OSCs, and particularly one building block has attracted considerable research attention, namely benzothiadiazole (BT). The diversity of OSCs based on the BT structure have indeed sprung up, and the progressive increase in PCE values is more than just eye-catching since it heralds a renewal and bright future of OSCs. This review analyzes significant studies that have led to these remarkable progresses and focuses on the most effective BT small-molecules and BT polymers for OSC reported in the last decades. The pivotal structure–property relationships, donor–acceptor matching criteria, and morphology control approaches are gathered and discussed in this paper. Lastly, we summarize the remaining challenges and offer a personal perspective on the future advance and improvement of OSCs.
Polystyrene resins (PS) have been practical ion exchangers for radionuclides removal from water. However, nonspecific effects of ion exchange groups continue to be a major obstacle for emergency treatment with coexisting ions of high concentrations. The selectivity for Cs+ enables zirconium phosphate (ZrP) to be the most promising inorganic sorbent for radioactive cesium extraction, despite being difficult to synthesize and causing excessive pressure loss in fixed-bed reactors due to fine powder. Herein, through facile confined crystallization in host macropores, we prepared PS confined α-ZrP nanocrystalline (ZrP-PS). Size-screen sorption of layered α-ZrP and sulfonic acid group preconcentration of PS synergistically enable a considerably higher Cs+ affinity of ZrP-PS than PS, as confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. ZrP-PS demonstrated remarkable cesium sequestration performance in both batch and continuous experiments, with a high adsorption capacity of 269.58 mg/g, a rapid equilibrium within 80 min, and a continuous effluent volume of 2300 L/kg sorbents. Given the excellent selectivity for Cs+ and flexibility to separate from treated water, ZrP-PS holds great promise as purification packages for the emergency treatment of radioactively contaminated water.
In this study, magnesium and coconut shell carbon (CSC) were prepared by a ball milled process and used for water disinfection with adsorbing tiny amounts of copper(Ⅱ). Dissolved oxygen (DO) was reduced to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) via a two-electron pathway by Mg corrosion. Cu(Ⅱ) in the wastewater will be enriched on the CSC surface and efficiently catalyzes H2O2 for inactivating E. coli. The results show that E. coli with an initial concentration of approximately 106 CFU/mL was under the detection limit (< 4 CFU/mL) within 15 min. All of the Cu(Ⅱ) could be adsorbed by the composite and catalyzed H2O2 to different active species. The quenching experiments, electron spin resonance (ESR) capture measurements and the UV-vis spectroscopy detection confirmed the present of the hydroxyl radicals (•OH), superoxide radicals (•O2−) and Cu(Ⅲ). Different with tradition Fenton like process, Cu(Ⅲ), rather than radicals, played the major role during the Mg-CSC/Cu(Ⅱ) process. In addition to the cellular membrane damage, most of the bacterial genomic DNA was also be degraded and the bacterial reactivation was avoided. The Mg-CSC/Cu(Ⅱ) process also showed a satisfied disinfection performance in real wastewater treatment. Overall, this study provides a new strategy for water disinfection.
Aqueous rechargeable ammonium-ion batteries (AIBs) have drew considerable attention because of their capacity for high rates, low cost, and high safety. However, developing desired electrodes requiring stable structure in the aqueous fast ammoniation/de-ammoniation becomes urgent. Herein, an ammonium ion full battery using Cu3[Fe(CN)6]2 (CuHCF) acting to be a cathode and barium vanadate (BVO) acting to be an anode is described. Its excellent electrochemical behavior of Prussian blue analogs and the perfectly matched lattice structure of NH4+ is expected. And the open structure of vanadium compounds satisfies the fast ammoniation/de-ammoniation of NH4+ is also achieved. As a result of these synergistic effects, the BVO//CuHCF full cell retains 80.5 percent of its capacity following 1000 cycling. These achievements provide new ideas for developing low-cost and long-life AIBs.
Malignant tumors are the main diseases threatening human life. Using precise theranostics to diagnose and cure tumors has emerged as a new method to improve patient survival. Based on the current development of precise tumor imaging, image-guided tumor therapy has received widespread attention because it is beneficial for developing precise treatment of tumors, has the potential to improve the efficacy of tumor therapy and reduce the incidence of adverse side effects. Nanoprobes, which are nanomaterial functionalized with specific biomolecules, have intrigued intense interest due to their great potential in monitoring biorecognition and biodetection evens. Benefiting from the unique advantages of nanomaterials, including the easy surface functionalization, the unique imaging performances, and the high drug loading capacity, nanoprobes have become a powerful tool to simultaneously realize tumor precise imaging, diagnosis, and therapy. This review introduces the non-invasive tumor precise imaging and highlights the recent advances of image-guided oncotherapy mediated by nanoprobes in anti-tumor drug delivery, tumor precise surgical navigation, chemodynamic therapy, and phototherapy. Finally, a perspective on the challenge and future direction of nanoprobes in imaging-guided tumor theranostics is also discussed.
Paper-based biosensors are widely employed in point-of-care testing (POCT) due to their convenience, portability, low cost, and ease of use. This study reports an integrated distance-based paper biosensor fabricated with a mesoporous membrane coated with stimuli-responsive polymer. The detection of α-amylase (AMY) using amylopectin-coated mesoporous membrane is demonstrated as an example. After introducing the AMY solution, it is observed that the aqueous solution flows along the paper strip due to AMY-catalyzed hydrolysis of amylopectin. The flow distance is proportional to the concentration of AMY with a detection limit as low as 4 mU/mL. In addition, the detection of AMY is demonstrated in human serum. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of acarbose on AMY is evaluated. This reagent-free and disposable biosensor allows single-step rapid detection of the analyte. This approach is very promising for the development of user-friendly, equipment-free, and cost-effective biosensors with remarkable sensitivity and excellent selectivity for disease diagnosis and hypoglycemic drug screening.
Electrosynthesis of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an on-site method that enables independent distribution applications in many fields due to its small-scale and sustainable features. The crucial point remains developing highly active, selective and cost-effective electrocatalysts. The electrosynthesis of H2O2 in acidic media is more practical owing to its stability and no need for further purification. We herein report a phosphorus and selenium tuning Co-based non-precious catalyst (CoPSe) toward two-electron oxygen reduction reaction (2e– ORR) to produce H2O2 in acidic media. The starting point of using both P and Se is finding a balance between strong ORR activity of CoSe and weak activity of CoP. The results demonstrated that the CoPSe catalyst exhibited the optimized 2e– ORR activity compared with CoP and CoSe. It disclosed an onset potential of 0.68 V and the H2O2 selectivity 76%-85% in a wide potential range (0–0.5 V). Notably, the CoPSe catalyst overcomes a significant challenge of a narrow-range selectivity for transition-metal based 2e– ORR catalysts. Finally, combining with electro-Fenton reaction, an on-site system was constructed for efficient degradation of organic pollutants. This work provides a promising non-precious Co-based electrocatalyst for the electrosynthesis of H2O2 in acidic media.
Photocatalytic activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) has garnered a lot of interest in the field of wastewater treatment. Herein, a plasmonic Ag nanoparticles decorated MIL-101(Fe) hybrid was synthesized through a photodeposition process. Upon light irradiation, the Ag/MIL-101(Fe) exhibit reinforced photocatalytic activities for elimination of bisphenol A (BPA) with PMS. The optimized 2.0% Ag/MIL-101(Fe) composite presented the highest photocatalytic activity with kinetic constant k of 0.102 min−1, which was about 10-fold of the pristine MIL-101(Fe). Loading of plasmonic Ag into MIL-101(Fe) boosts photoinduced carrier separation and accelerates PMS activation to generate strong oxidative radicals. Photoelectrochemical tests and multiple spectroscopic studies confirmed the promoted charge carrier separation and transfer capability of Ag/MIL-101(Fe). Combining the results of radical trapping experiments and electron spin resonance (ESR), the formed SO4•−, •OH, •O2− and 1O2 had a significant role in the photocatalytic process. According to intermediate study, the degradation pathway was studied, and the possible mechanism was proposed.
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