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This article reviews the application of highly heat and pressure resistant polyimide material for the development of membranes/materials that exhibit unique super-wettability, the characteristics pivotal for the efficient separation of oil-water mixture and emulsion. The polymerization of imide monomer in polyimide brings about the required porosity in the material, which in turn renders the crucial surface roughness, which is instrumental for establishing the desired super-wettability on the polyimide based membrane materials, in addition to the mechanical and thermal robustness. The membrane as the oil-water filtering medium can be either oil passing or water passing depends on the individual wettability of the membrane surface for oil and water, which in turn depend on the respective solid-liquid interfacial energy and the hierarchical surface roughness. Superhydrophobic/superoleophobic wetting characteristic of the surface repels water and allows oil to pass through the membrane medium, and the major disadvantage of this kind of oil/water separation is the rapid oil fouling of the membrane pores and the consequent less efficiency for oil water separation. On the other hand, the membrane surface engineered to have the Superhydrophilic/underwater superoleophobic wetting characteristics can be water passing, and the easy fouling of the membrane surface can be minimized. In the case of polyimide materials, there are lot of scopes to engineer the physical properties like surface energy and surface roughness of the membrane surface in order to obtain the required wettability. There have been many works focused on the application of different variants of polyimide materials for developing membrane for oil water separation. In this review, we present an itemized review of various works on polyimide materials based oil/water separation in terms of chemical, physical, structural and surface characteristics of the material. [Display omitted] • Innovative polyimide based membrane surfaces that exhibit unique super-wettability. • Special wetting/non-wetting surfaces for oil-water mixture and emulsion separations. • Novel review of these membranes/materials for high performance oil-water separation. • State-of-the-art advances of polyimide based super-wettable membranes are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semiconducting membranes integrated with nanomaterials have placed themselves in new emerging researches tremendously for seawater desalination, oil-water separation, disinfection, removal of inorganic as well as organic pollutants. Howbeit, only nanoparticles unified membranes show quite a lot lags in their performance, although some of these particles associated with the demerits of high cost. In contrast, graphitic carbon nitride incorporated membranes offered improved aforementioned properties corresponding to absolute essential qualities such as cost-effective, environmentally friendly, easy-to-operate, green manufacturing, anti-fouling, and low energy consumption. Moreover, their high mechanical strength, high stability against harsh environment and long-term utilization without flux reduction are strong plus. Even though there are some undeniable downsides of these membranes in real world applications as bulk synthesis, consistent dispersion of graphitic carbon nitride, low photocatalytic efficiency etc. Accordingly, in the present article, these frailties of the membranes having graphitic carbon nitride as a filler and their respective synthesis procedures and properties are discussed. A comprehensive analysis over the application of semiconducting graphitic carbon nitride incorporated membranes with and without special surface modification; and exploration of the future challenges and difficulties associated to these membranes are also reviewed. Consequently, the current article provides brief overview about graphitic carbon nitride integrated composite membranes as well as their applications, and it finished up with new thoughts of further improvements/modifications to overcome their shortcomings in actual environmental conditions. • Highly efficient and economic g-C 3 N 4 integrated advanced membranes. • Cutting-edge membranes with g-C 3 N 4 as filler substance are specifically considered. • Novel review of these membranes offering production of clean water. • A brill overview on sustainable, green, and clean applications of these membranes. • Deals with emphatic gaps, future challenges, and their possible viable solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the samples of the ZnFe2O4 (ZFO) spinel ferrites nanoparticles (SFNPs), Co0.5Ni0.5Ga0.01Gd0.01Fe1.98O4 (CNGaGdFO) SFNPs and (Co0.5Ni0.5Ga0.01Gd0.01Fe1.98O4)x/(ZnFe2O4)y (x:y = 1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 2:1, 3:1 and 4:1) (CNGaGdFO)x/(ZFO)y spinel ferrite nanocomposites (NC) have been synthesized by both sol-gel and Green pulsed laser ablation in liquid (PLAL) approaches. All products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning and transmission electron microscopies (SEM and TEM), elemental mappings and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). It was objected to tune the magnetic properties of a soft spinel ferrite material with a softer one by mixing them with different fractions. Some key findings are as follows. M-H investigations revealed the exhibition of ferrimagnetic phases for all synthesized samples (except ZnFe2O4) that were synthesized by sol-gel or PLAL methods at both 300 K and 10 K. ZnFe2O4 ferrite NPs exhibits almost paramagnetic feature at 300 K and glass-like phase at very low temperatures below 19.23 K. At RT analyses, maximum saturation magnetization (MS) of 66.53 emu/g belongs to nanocomposite samples that was synthesized by sol-gel method and x:y ratio of 1:3. At 10 K analyses, MS,max = 118.71 emu/g belongs to same nanocomposite samples with ratio of 1:3. Maximum coercivities are 625 Oe belonging to CNGaGdFO and 3564 Oe belonging to NC sample that was obtained by sol-gel route having the 3:1 ratio. Squareness ratio (SQRs = Mr/MS) of NC sample (sol-gel, 4:1 ratio) is 0.371 as maximum and other samples have much lower values until a minimum of 0.121 (laser, 3:1) assign the multi-domain wall structure for all samples at 300 K. At 10 K data, just CNGaGdFO has 0.495 SQR value assigning single domain nature. The maximum values of effective crystal anisotropy constant (Keff) are 5.92 × 104 Erg/g and 2.4 × 105 Erg/g belonging to CNGaGdFO at 300 K and 10 K, respectively. Further, this sample has an internal anisotropy field Ha of 1953 Oe as largest at 300 K. At 10 K another sample (sol-gel, 3:1 ratio) has Ha,max of 11138 Oe which can also be classified as a soft magnetic material similar to other samples. Briefly, most magnetic parameters of NCs that were synthesized by sol-gel route are stronger than magnetic parameters of the NCs that were synthesized by PLAL at both temperatures. Some NC samples were observed to have stronger magnetic data as compared to magnetic parameters of Co0.5Ni0.5Ga0.01Gd0.01Fe1.98O4 NPs at 10 K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visible-light active, silicon carbide (SiC) anchored graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) nanocomposites (g-CN-SiC), with different SiC concentrations were synthesized using pulsed laser ablation in liquid (PLAL). Initially g-CN was synthesized by simple thermal pyrolysis, and subsequently SiC was loaded on the g-CN polymer network by PLAL to obtain g-CN-SiC polymeric-inorganic nanocomposites. The proper formation of g-CN-SiC nanocomposites is proven by XRD, SEM, TEM, and the elemental composition and the variation of elemental peaks in the nanocomposite due to the change of chemical environment was studied by XPS analysis. The synthesized g-CN-SiC were tested for their applicability as a catalyst in the process of photo-electrochemical water splitting for hydrogen production, a simple step ahead towards the realization of energy efficient fuel cells. The hydrogen production was quantified by measuring photocurrent density in the linear sweep voltammetry, and it was found that when g-CN-SiC is used in the photoanode, the measured photocurrent is consistently more than that produced by g-CN photoanode, with the highest observed photocurrent density for g-CN-SiC with 10 % SiC content, accounting for a seven-fold increase of photocurrent compared to pure g-CN. Enhanced visible light absorbance, and reduced photo-generated charge recombination in g-CN-SiC, observed in the absorption and photoluminescence spectra respectively can be attributed to the improved photo electrochemical activity of g-CN-SiC based photoanode in the process of water splitting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a membrane based, water passing, and gravity driven oil-water separation system using a separating membrane, with superhydrophilic-underwater superoleophobic surface wettability is presented. The surface with this unique wettability was realized by spray coating, locally synthesized palladium-doped tungsten oxide nanoparticles on the stainless steel mesh membranes. When oil water mixture comes in contact with the coated surface, the oil-water-solid system enters into Cassie wettability state, due to the micro-nano-hierarchical surface roughness. In the Cassie state, the water partially comes in contact with the air filled pits repels the oil in the oil water mixture, and this leads the surface to become under water superoleophobic. When the coated membrane of the uniquely engineered wettability is used in the oil water separating system, the water in the oil water mixture instantly passed through the membrane, while retaining the oil content on the top, which led to the oil water separation efficiency as high as 99.99 %. In addition to the improved separation efficiency, the fouling up of the membrane is almost completely eliminated, as the oil practically does not come in contact with the membrane surface, and this ensures the durability of the membrane for multiple uses. The reclaimed water could be contaminated with oil borne bacteria, which needs to be removed, and as palladium doped WO 3 is a proven visible light active photo-catalyst, the coating of this particular material can pave a way to develop a multi-functional system, that can simultaneously carry out oil-water separation, and demineralization of organic pollutants from the filtered water, with visible light irradiation. The morphological and structural characterizations of the surface along with the wettability studies were carried out to elucidate the high separation efficiency of the coated membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanocomposites of cadmium sulfide-tungsten trioxide (CdS@WO 3), with different CdS content (2.5 %, 5 % and 10 %) in WO 3 were synthesized by laser defect engineering in liquid (LDL). In the characterization studies, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) studies showed the perfect anchoring of CdS nanoparticles on the surface of bigger WO 3 nanoparticles in CdS@WO 3 nanocomposites. In the optical characterization, ultra-violet diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-DRS) indicated the narrowing down of band gap energy in CdS@WO 3 , and consequent enhancement of visible light absorption compared to pure WO 3. Also photoluminescence (PL) implied the reduced charge recombination in CdS@WO 3 , compared to that of pure WO 3 , which can be attributed to the typical Z-scheme charge transfer between the composite partners. The LDL synthesized CdS@WO 3 nanocomposites were used as (i) a photocatalyst for the degradation of Rhodamine B dye in water, (ii) anti-microbial agent against multi drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDR-PA) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria, (iii) biofilm growth retardation agent against biofilm-producing strains of MRSA and MDR-PA. In all the three applications CdS@WO 3 nanocomposite in general revealed a better performance than pure WO 3 , particularly 5 % CdS content in the composite (5 %-CdS@WO 3), was the optimum for photocatalytic degradation and 10 % CdS content in CdS@WO 3 showed the best performance in antibacterial and biofilm growth retardation applications for both bacterial strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past few years, oil-water separation techniques have been widely researched due to influences of oil pollution. The oil pollution is significantly increasing day-by-day because of ever-increasing usage of oil in daily routine of humans and industrial activities. The separation of water from oil-water emulsions/mixtures through membrane technology has provided absolute necessary qualities such as low cost, eco-friendly, easy-operation and energy efficient. To build up the filter membranes with special super-wettability properties and bearing excellent multifunctional applications is highly attractive research area in current decade. However, evolution of membrane technology suffered many deficiencies including severe fouling, short-standing against high flow speed, surface wettability disorders, non-reusable and limited application. In this review article, we outline the recent advances in membrane technology with respect to special super-wettability properties, enhanced characteristics for purpose to serve oil-water separation, and more specifically its multifunctional applications. Therefore, this study is made for membranes having other than applications, in addition to oil-water separation. Further, the wetting phenomenon of these multifunctional membranes is addressed and highlighted the brief overview of surface wetting types including Superhydrophobic-Superoleophilic membranes, Superhydrophilic-Superoleophobic membranes, and Superhydrophilic-underwater Superoleophobic membranes. Moreover, relative fabrication procedures and multifunctional applications of developed multifunctional super-wetting membranes are also discussed along with wetting behavior. Finally, the current developments and achievements for oil-water separation multifunctional super-wetting membranes are concluded. Besides, it also explores the future challenges and obstacles associated to these membranes. Hence, this article provides brief overview of advancement of oil-water separation based multifunctional super-wetting membranes and ended with new thoughts of further modification/enhancement. Unlabelled Image • First review article on multifunctional membranes with super-wetting characteristics. • Up to date developments and achievements of multifunctional membranes are discussed. • Super-wetting membranes' materials with their applications are deeply described. • Application of oil-water separation and removal of toxic pollutants are demonstrated. • Besides, their possible outlook relevance with future technology is also epitomized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present research work, copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites were synthesized for the first time using advanced pulsed laser ablation in liquid (PLAL) technique for disinfection of drug-resistant pathogenic waterborne biofilm-producing bacterial strains. For this, a series of copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites were synthesized by varying the composition of copper oxide (5%, 10%, and 20%) with titanium dioxide. The pure titanium dioxide and copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites were characterized by advanced instrumental techniques. XRD, TEM, FE-SEM, EDX, elemental mapping and XPS analysis results consistently revealed the successful formation of copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites using PLAL technique. The antibacterial and antibiofilm activities of pure titanium dioxide and copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites were investigated against biofilm-producing strains of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by various methods. Our results revealed that the PLAL synthesized copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites showed enhanced anti-biofilm and antibacterial activity compared to pure titanium dioxide in a dose-dependent manner against targeted pathogens. Furthermore, the effects of pure titanium dioxide and copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites on bacterial morphology, biofilm formation, aggregation and their colonization by targeted pathogens were also examined using scanning electron microscopy. Microscopic images clearly showed that the cell envelope of almost all the cells were rumples, rough, had irregularities and abnormal appearance with the major damage being characterized by the formation of "pits". Many depressions and indentations were also seen in their cell envelope and the original shape of Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells changed from normal rod to swollen, large and elongated which indicates the loss of membrane integrity and damage of cell wall and membrane. The findings suggested that PLAL synthesized copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites have good potential for removal of biofilm or killing of pathogenic bacteria in water distribution network and for wastewater treatment, hospital and environmental applications. In addition, cytotoxic activity of pure TiO 2 and PLAL synthesized copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites against normal and healthy cells (HEK-293) and cancerous cells (HCT-116) were also evaluated by MTT assay. The MTT assay results showed no cytotoxic effects on HEK-293 cells, which suggest TiO 2 and PLAL synthesized copper oxide-titanium dioxide nanocomposites are non-toxic to the normal cells. Unlabelled Image • High-purity CuO@TiO 2 nanocomposites were synthesized by PLAL approach. • Characterization studies showed CuO NPs is well placed on the TiO 2 surface. • Applied for inactivation of harmful waterborne bacteria and biofilms • Excellent antibacterial and antibiofilm activity against drug resistant bacteria [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cadmium sulfide-graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposite was synthesized by pulsed laser ablation in liquid, and it was found from the results of optical and morphological characterizations that the proper anchoring of nanostructured cadmium sulfide on the nano-sheets of graphitic carbon nitride took place, which brought about the positive attributes such as enhanced visible light absorption and reduced photo-generated charge recombination, the key features required for an efficient photo-catalyst by solar light harvesting. The pulsed laser ablation in liquid method adopted for the synthesis of cadmium sulfide-graphitic carbon nitride has the following advantages: the shape and size of the synthesized particles can be controlled by altering the experimental parameters such as laser wavelength, pulse laser duration, the pH of the solution, the surfactants and the temperature of the solution, pulsed laser ablation in liquid method neither requires cumbersome equipment nor does it require intermediate chemicals and catalysts nor does it necessitate the post synthesis purification. The enhancement of photo-catalytic activity of cadmium sulfide-graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposite was tested for the photo-catalytic deactivation of Escherichia coli bacteria in water under visible light radiation. As anticipated, a significant improvement of photo-catalytic deactivation was observed, which is attributed to the enhanced and extended light absorption in the visible spectral region, and the formation of herterojunction between the semiconductors, which is instrumental in inhibiting the undesired recombination of photo-generated charge carriers. Quantitatively, the presence of cadmium sulfide on the graphitic carbon nitride surface contributed to a remarkable 129% increase of photo-catalytic degradation constant compared to pure graphitic carbon nitride, which resulted in the decrease of total depletion time of Escherichia coli from 156 min to 67 min with the cadmium sulfide-graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposite synthesized by pulsed laser ablation in liquid method. Our results on the efficient photo-catalytic deactivation of Escherichia coli under visible light assures that cadmium sulfide-graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposite can very well be used for photo-catalytic water purification by harvesting the abundant solar light. • Anchoring of nanostructured CdS on g-C 3 N 4 sheets using PLAL technique was performed. • Morphological, elemental and optical characterization of CdS@g-C 3 N 4 was carried out. • Enhanced visible light absorption and reduced charge recombination were observed. • Efficient photo-catalytic deactivation of E. coli under visible light was observed. • A Prospective solar light harvesting using CdS@g-C 3 N 4 can be applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• g-C 3 N 4 –CdS nanocomposites were synthesized by a nanosecond pulsed laser. • Characterization studies showed CdS NPs is well placed on the g-C 3 N 4 surface. • Improved visible light absorbance & decreased photo-generated charge recombination. • Applied for photocatalytic degradation of toxic pollutants from aqueous solutions. • Excellent photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation. Polymeric-inorganic graphitic carbon nitride-cadmium sulfide (g-C 3 N 4 -CdS) nanocomposites, with different mass ratios of CdS (5 %, 10 %, 20 % and 30 %) anchored in g-C 3 N 4 network were synthesized for the first time by laser ablation technique, using a nanosecond pulsed laser of 532 nm wavelength in water medium. The synthesized g-C 3 N 4 -CdS nanocomposites were used as a catalyst in the process of photo-catalytic degrading toxic cationic and anionic dyes in aqueous solutions under visible light irradiation. Our results revealed that g-C 3 N 4 -CdS nanocomposites, in general showed better photo-catalytic efficiency than that shown by pure g-C 3 N 4 , particularly, the nanocomposite with 20 % CdS in g-C 3 N 4 -CdS yielded the highest efficiency in the photo-catalytic degradation of both the dyes under study. The enhanced photo-catalytic degradation efficiency of g-C 3 N 4 -CdS nanocomposites, in general is mainly due to the enhanced visible light absorption brought about by the anchoring of CdS on the g-C 3 N 4 network, and also due to the reduced photo-generated charge recombination mediated by the formation of heterojunction between the two semiconducting composite partners, which are quite evident respectively from the recorded UV-DRS and PL spectra of g-C 3 N 4 -CdS nanocomposites. Besides optical characterizations, structural, elemental and morphological characterizations, using XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, HR-TEM, XPS and FT-IR were carried out and the results of this work is elucidated in the light of the characterization studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low cost, facile, feasible and potential route was applied to synthesize nickel(II) oxide nanoparticles for adsorptive removal of hazardous azo dye from aqueous solutions. The synthesized nickel(II) oxide nanoparticles were characterised by advanced analytical techniques such as X-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, selected area electron diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, elemental mapping analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The nanomaterial was utilised to probe the removal process of methyl orange dye from the aqueous solution by batch adsorption approach. The influence of pertinent factors, i.e. pH, contact time, initial concentration, dose and temperature on the efficiency of azo dye removal were tested. Moreover, isotherm, kinetics and thermodynamic studies were conducted which illustrate that the adsorption followed by Freundlich isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The results show that the adsorption was fast and 95.22% methyl orange was removed at pH 6 with 0.05 g dose. The response surface methodology was used by availing three levels and three factorial Box-Behnken design to optimise the adsorption process. The low p-value and high R2 validated the significance of the mathematical model. The three-dimensional (3D) and contour plots display the effect of various factors into the response. The optimum conditions for dye removal were optimised by Taguchi L9 (3^3) orthogonal array experimental design. The regeneration capacity and of the nickel(II) oxide nanoparticles proves its importance in industrial wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Facile fabrication of PPy-coated Ag NPs as SERS-active substrate for molecule detection. • Strong interaction between PPy and Ag nanoparticles was observed. • R6G was used as an analyte and a detection limit up to (1 × 10−9 M) was achieved. • A plausible mechanism has been highlighted in this regard. Conducting polymer coated noble metal particles, particularly polypyrrole (PPy)-coated silver (Ag) nanoparticles can be efficient and unprecedented surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) electrodes. Here in this work, a very simple and robust strategy has been adopted to achieve PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles and thereafter used for molecular detection through SERS technique. PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles were synthesized by polymerizing pyrrole in presence of Ag nanoparticles via a facile oxidative chemical polymerization approach. Field emissions scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, elemental mapping analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and UV–Visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy data revealed the formation and structure of PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles. Strong interaction between PPy and PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles was observed. As-synthesized PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles were utilized as SERS-active substrate for molecule detection. Rhodamine 6G was used as an analyte and a detection limit up to part per billion was achieved. A plausible mechanism has been highlighted in this regard. The SERS-active electrodes as investigated in this study not only provide an effective means to molecule detection in reactive environment but also facilitate a viable strategy to coat sensitive nanoparticles, such as noble and transition metal nanoparticles, with conductive polymers. To the best of our knowledge, there is no attempt taken yet to use PPy-coated Ag nanoparticles as SERS-active substrate through photodynamic approach for molecule detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemotherapy, the most commonly used therapeutic method for cancer, has the inherent constraint of low bioavailability. A number of physical cancer therapeutic treatments like radiation, ultrasound, photo-acoustic/photo thermal, microwave therapies are based on locating the afflicted sites with the help of imaging, but the serious drawbacks of these treatment options are that they damage the neighboring normal tissues and/or induce undesired cancer metastasis. In addition, these methods of treatment are very expensive and not in the reach of a common man especially in the developing countries. Therefore, innovative, less invasive and cost effective treatment methods with the help of less toxic drugs have been sought for treating cancer. In this work, photo-catalytic method of killing cancer cells, using the nanostructured silver loaded tungsten oxide (Ag/WO3) as photo-catalysts, in conjunction with broadband UV radiation is presented. Ag/WO3with two different mass ratios of Ag and WO3 (1% Ag/WO3 and 3% Ag/WO3) were synthesized, characterized and these nanostructured materials served as photo-catalysts in the process of killing cancer cells by photo-catalytic method. The advantage of loading Ag in WO3 is quite evident from the observed increase in the photo-catalytic killing of the HeLa cells. This photo-catalytic enhancement was effectively caused by the development of Schottky junction between Ag in WO3, which led to a substantial inhibition of photo-generated charge recombination and also by the stimulation of surface plasmon resonance in silver nanoparticles, which led to the enhanced visible light absorption by the material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trace organic compounds from effluent streams are not completely removed by conventional purification techniques and hence, contaminating groundwater sources. Herein, we report the removal efficiency and rejection mechanisms of three common pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs); caffeine (CFN), omeprazole (OMZ), and sulfamethoxazole (SMX), using commercial nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) membranes with different surface characteristics. The RO membranes showed near-complete removal of all PhACs with rejection rates >99%. On the other hand, retention capabilities for the NF membranes varied and were influenced by the characteristics of the PhACs, membranes, and the feed solution. In general, during long-term testing, the rejection did not show much variation and followed a trend compatible with the size exclusion (steric hindrance) mechanism. When a real matrix was used, the rejection of CFN by the more tight NF membranes, HL TFC and NFW decreased by ∼10%, whereas the removal of SMX by the loose NF membrane, XN45, increased by the same ratio. In short-term testing, the rejection of negatively charged SMX increased significantly (∼20–40%) at a higher pH of ∼8 and in the presence of salts. Fouling by the PhACs was more severe on the high-flux NF membranes, HL TFC and XN45, as witnessed by the significant change in Contact angle (CA) values (∼25–50°) as well as the flux decline (∼15%) during long-term testing. To summarize, the removal of PhACs by membranes is a complex phenomenon and depends upon a combination of several factors. • Removal efficiency of PhACs by RO membranes >99%. • For NF membranes, rejection varies from ∼40% to 95%. • Size exclusion is dominant mechanism in short- and long-term testing. • In real matrix, the changes in rejection for CFN and SMX by XN45 are opposite. • Feed pH and chemistry has most influence on SMX rejection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work deals with the synthesis of an electrically conductive polycarbazole-titanium dioxide (PCz/TiO 2 -6%) nanocomposite employing facile in-situ oxidative polymerization of carbazole monomer. In order to immobilize the yeast alcohol dehydrogenase (YADH) enzyme, the polymerization reaction was done in the presence of TiO 2 (titanium dioxide). The pristine PCz and PCz/TiO 2 -6% nanocomposites were fully characterized using Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy, Transmission electron microscopy, Thermogravimetric analysis and Differential thermal analysis. The studies revealed that the TiO 2 and YADH loading changes nanocomposite morphology in comparison to pristine PCz. YADH immobilization was efficient and successfully carried out on PCz and PCz/TiO 2 -6% nanocomposite with a loading efficiency of 67.4% and 88.2% respectively. Immobilized YADH on the PCz/TiO 2 -6% nanocomposite enhanced YADH stability, recycling efficiency, and residual activity, which makes it ideally suited for industrial applications. A total of four 3D molecular field descriptors or field points were used to characterize and define the necessary properties required for a molecule to bind into a specified active site, in a characteristic fashion. 3D molecular dynamics and a molecular docking simulation were employed to predict the modes of interactions of YADH with either PCz or PCz/TiO 2 -6%. The in vivo cytotoxicity profiles of PCz and PCz/TiO 2 -6% nanocomposite were obtained by lethality bioassay against brine shrimp nauplii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the synthesis of graphene-TiO 2 nanohybrid catalyst using different concentrations of deionized water suspended in graphene sheet as a medium in the ablation of titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) nanoparticles using an one-step pulsed laser ablation in liquid setup equipped with Nd-YAG laser (532 nm wavelength) which was kept at a laser fluence of 320 mJ/pulse, a pulse duration of 6 ns and a frequency of 10 Hz. The produced graphene-TiO 2 nanohybrids obtained is active in both the ultraviolet and visible spectral regions as explained in the UV–vis absorption spectroscopy. This property is affiliated with improved crystallinity as shown in the X-ray diffraction technique and Raman spectroscopy. A perfect interaction between TiO 2 nanoparticles and graphene sheets is confirmed by the bond formed between the surface carbon of graphene and oxygen in TiO 2 , which was obtained in the Fourier transform infrared analysis, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. This is also confirmed with the morphology obtained from the transmission electron microscopic image of the nanohybrid. The prepared graphene-TiO 2 nanohybrids were utilized as photo-catalyst and photo-anode in the degradation of methyl orange dye and dye sensitized solar cell, respectively. Improved crystallinity and reduced charge transfer resistance was observed in TiO 2 nanoparticles hybridized with 3% graphene. This leads to an improvement in the photo-conversion efficiency of the dye sensitized solar cell from 0.60% to 3.80% and an enhancement in the removal of methyl orange pollutant from 89.10% to 99.60% when degraded under UV–vis solar spectrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, substances have been detected that have always been present but have long been unnoticed; among these substances called emerging pollutants are pharmaceuticals, pesticides, cosmetics, cleaning, and personal care products, among others. Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) technology has gained extensive popularity in enhancing the treatment and reutilization of wastewater. It exhibits efficiencies ranging from 40 to 79 % for treating high organic loads such as dairy wastewater while achieving impressive rates of up to 90 % for effectively removing emerging contaminants. However, traditional MBRs with ultrafiltration or porous microfiltration membranes are not intended to remove hazardous micropollutants from water, which are constantly present in trace concentrations and can adversely affect terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Several effective techniques have been used to remove hazardous micropollutants from water, especially for hydrophilic and resistant chemicals. These tactics consist mainly of improving the operating environment, using high-retention membranes instead of porous membranes, adding functional materials to the bioreactor, and including additional procedures for effluent treatment. To ensure almost complete removal of micropollutants, the MBR can be complemented with effluent treatment, recently the use of high retention membranes, hybrid MBR-nanofiltration systems, or other processes such as electrocoagulation or advanced oxidation (AOP) have been reported. Nevertheless, additional investigation is required to assess these strategies' technical and economic viability, particularly regarding real-time effectiveness. This evaluation is crucial for identifying the most appropriate techniques for industrial applications. • Emerging membrane technology for micropollutant removal was narrated. • Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) technology for hazardous pollutant removal was illustrated. • Advanced hybrid treatment for micropollutants removal was discussed. • Advanced integrated technique for micropollutant from wastewater was elaborated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tungsten oxide is a photo-catalyst well known for many photo catalytic applications, is found to be completely inactive in the photo catalytic process of converting carbon dioxide into methanol. Tungsten oxide was made effective for this photo catalytic process by forming a composite with indium dioxide and this tungsten oxide/indium dioxide nanocomposite, in conjunction with the laser radiation of 355 nm wavelength initiated and catalyzed the reaction to give the methanol production yield as high as 496 μmol g −1 h −1 . The maximum quantum and conversion efficiencies calculated for this photochemical process after 60 min of irradiation are 2.25% and 12% respectively which is quite considerable compared to earlier reports. A reduced electron–hole recombination observed from the photoluminescence spectra was instrumental in the effectiveness of tungsten oxide/indium dioxide nanocomposite in this particular photo catalytic process despite the decrease in the UV–vis light absorption of the material revealed in the absorption spectra. The observed reduction in the electron hole combination can be attributed to the spatial charge separation that takes place in the type–II heterojunction formed between tungsten oxide and indium dioxide. Optical studies also revealed the broadening of the band gap energy of the tungsten oxide/indium dioxide nanocomposite compared to nano tungsten oxide. In addition to the optical studies, XRD, FESEM and XPS analysis of the composite material were also carried out. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cubic phase zinc peroxide nanoparticles (ZnO 2 NPs) with an average diameter of ca. 9–15 nm have been synthesized via a fast nanosecond pulse laser ablation in liquid technique (PLAL), using H 2 O 2 aqueous solution as the ablation media and a 532 nm pulsed laser as the irradiation source and low-cost zinc powder as the solid target. Both the laser energy and ablation time potentially have a substantial influence on the formation of ZnO 2 NPs. Due to its relatively high oxidation level as well as its hydrophilic wetting behavior, the as-synthesized ZnO 2 NPs exhibit efficient photocatalytic degradation ability of Rhodamine B (RB) whilst remaining stable to photodegradation. The possible mechanisms of the photocatalytic behavior have been discussed in what follows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The well-dispersed nanoparticles of Au-Ag alloys on graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ), with varying ratios of Au, were synthesized by a facile route. The diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) verified the upsurge in the intensity of characteristic surface plasmonic resonance (SPR) absorption bands with the increasing Au contents. The photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy estimated the role of surface dispersed Au-Ag alloy NPs on the luminescence properties of g-C 3 N 4 and the suppression the probable recombination of photo-generated excitons. The structural characterization by XRD and morphological assessment by SEM revealed the uniform dispersion of Au-Ag alloy nanoparticles on the surface of g-C 3 N 4 whereas XPS analysis endorsed the presence of Au and Ag in metallic form. The HRTEM analysis confirmed the homogeneous distribution of Au and Ag contents in the alloys. The photocatalytic activity of the Au-Ag/g-C 3 N 4 was evaluated in the exposure of natural sunlight and artificial visible light for the degradation of dye substrate and compared with that of g-C 3 N 4 , Ag/g-C 3 N 4 and Au/g-C 3 N 4 . The Au-Ag alloy modified g-C 3 N 4 photocatalysts exhibited significantly higher activity for the decolorization of Rhodamine B in the visible light as compared to pure, Ag and Au loaded g-C 3 N 4 that signified the contributing role of SPR in the degradation process. The individual role of SPR in the photocatalytic process was also verified by using monochromatic (532 nm) visible laser light. The mineralization ability of the synthesized alloy catalysts was estimated by TOC removal efficiency. The kinetics of the degradation/mineralization processes under various experimental conditions was also evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The nanocomposites of tungsten oxide and cadmium sulfide (WO 3 -nCdS) with different mass ratios (n = 0 %, 5 %, 15 %, 30 % and 100 %) of CdS in WO 3 were synthesized by pulsed laser ablation in liquid (PLAL). Anchoring of CdS on WO 3 brought about attractive material characteristics like, enhanced visible light absorption and reduced electron-hole recombination through the z-scheme charge transfer between WO 3 and CdS, which were experimentally confirmed by the absorption spectra and photoluminescence spectra respectively. These new features in the material resulted in the enhancement of photo catalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye under visible light; particularly WO 3 -30 %CdS nanocomposite achieved complete dye degradation in 230 min. Also, when the same nanocomposite is used as an electrode material in the supercapacitor, the areal capacitance (C a) shows an enhancement in general and reached a level as high as 68.1 m F cm−2 equivalent to 121.2 F g−1 (from charge-discharge analysis), which can be attributed to the increased surface area in the WO 3 -nCdS nanocomposite. The fabricated device exhibited sufficiently large energy density of 7.7 μWh cm-2 corresponding to high power density of 254 μW cm−2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study reports the preparation of cadmium sulfide (CdS) loaded zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructured semiconductor material and its anti-bioactivity studies against cancerous and fungus cells. For composite preparation, two different mass ratios of CdS (10 and 20 %) were loaded on ZnO (10%CdS/ZnO, 20%CdS/ZnO) using a 532 nm pulsed laser ablation in water media. The structural and morphological analyses confirmed the successful loading of nanoscaled CdS on the surface of ZnO particles, ZnO particles were largely spherical with average size ~50 nm, while CdS about 12 nm in size. The elemental and electron diffraction analyses reveal that the prepared composite, CdS/ZnO contained both CdS and ZnO, thus reaffirming the production of CdS loaded ZnO. The microscopic examination and MTT assay showed the significant impact of ZnO, CdS, and CdS loaded ZnO on human colorectal carcinoma cells (HCT-116 cells). Our results show that the prepared ZnO had better anticancer activities than individual CdS, and CdS loaded ZnO against cancerous cells. For antifungal efficacy, as-prepared nanomaterials were investigated against Candida albicans by examining minimum inhibitory/fungicidal concentration (MIC/MFC) and morphogenesis. The lowest MIC (0.5 mg/mL), and MFC values (1 mg/mL) were found for 10 and 20%CdS/ZnO. Furthermore, the morphological analyses reveal the severe damage of the cell membrane upon exposure of Candida strains to nanomaterials. The present study suggests that ZnO, CdS, and CdS loaded ZnO nanostructured materials possess potential anti-cancer and anti-fungal activities. Schematic illustration of nanosecond laser prepared NPs-cell interaction, which leads to nuclear augmentation, condensation and cell membrane disintegration. Unlabelled Image • CdS/ZnO nanocomposites were prepared by a nanosecond pulsed laser. • Characterization results confirmed the successful loading of CdS on ZnO. • Anti-bioactivities of ZnO, CdS, CdS/ZnO were studied on C. albicans and HCT-116 cells. • The nanomaterials proved as potent antifungal and anti-cancer agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are promising porous materials that have huge potential for gas separation when put in the membrane configuration. MOFs have huge potential due to certain salient features of the MOFs such as excellent pore size, ease of tuning the pore chemistry, higher surface area, and chemical and thermal stabilities. MOFs have been explored for various gas separation and storage applications. This review discusses various approaches for fabricating MOFs-based membranes for the separation of H 2 gas from a variety of feeds having various gases CO 2 , CO, N 2 , and CH 4 as impurities. The emphasis has been put on three types of membranes for H 2 separation which include MOFs-based hollow fibrous/tubular/disk membranes, MOFs-based mixed matrix membranes (MMMs), and MOFs-based stand-alone membranes. In addition, various challenges such as reducing inhomogeneity between MOFs and polymeric matrices have also been discussed. Similarly, the approaches to successfully decorating MOFs on different supports in different configurations have been explained. The possible ways of improving the MOFs-based membranes for H 2 have also been discussed., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

This paper reports the fabrication, characterization, and environmental impact analysis of a super-oleophobic (under water) and super-hydrophilic mesh membrane for oily water treatment. In order to prepare mesh membrane, Titania nanoparticles (NPs) were spray coated on mesh stainless steel followed by calcination at 500 °C. After that, the Titania-coated mesh membrane was characterized using contact angle goniometry (CA), XRD, FE-SEM, EDX and elemental mapping. The FE-SEM, EDX, elemental mapping and XRD results confirmed that the Titania NPs were successfully coated on the surface of mesh membrane. CA results demonstrated that the prepared mesh membrane is super-hydrophilic and super-oleo phobic under water conditions, making it suitable for oil/water separation. Subsequently, life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed to determine the environmental impacts of Titania NPs-coated mesh membrane fabrication process. LCA results indicate that electricity and nitrogen contributed the most toward the eighteen environmental impact categories considered for this study., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Treating oily wastewater streams such as produced water has a huge potential to resolve the issue of wastewater disposal and generate useful water for reuse. Among different techniques employed for oily wastewater (oil-in-water; O/W emulsion) treatment, membrane-based separation is advantageous owing to its lower energy consumption, recycling, ease of operation, and wider scope of tuning the active layer chemistry for enhanced performance. In line with the possibilities of enhancing the performance of the membranes for efficient O/W emulsion separation, the current work is designed to yield five different variants of polyaniline (PANI) active layers with special surface wettability features (superhyrophilic and underwater superoleophobic) on a ceramic alumina support. To achieve variants of PANI on ceramic alumina supports, emulsion polymerization was carried out, and different concentrations of initiator ammonium persulfate (APS) were applied to lead to PANI-A@Aluminum Oxide membrane, PANI-B@Aluminum Oxide membrane, PANI-C@Aluminum Oxide membrane, PANI-D@Aluminum Oxide membrane, and PANI-E@Aluminum Oxide membrane corresponding to 0.15, 0.25, 0.35, 0.5, and 1.0 M concentrations of initiator. The variation in initiator concentration resulted in different PANI growth patterns; hence, the resultant membranes showed different structural, physical, and performance features. Different characterization techniques including 1 H NMR, SEM, FE-TEM, AFM, water contact angle, XRD, EDX, and ATR-FTIR confirmed a more uniform and continuous growth of PANI (PANI-B) using a 0.25 M initiator concentration. The resultant PANI-B@Aluminum Oxide membrane showed an excellent surfactant stabilized crude O/W emulsion separation reaching >99% with a permeate flux of 2154 L m -2 h -1 (LMH) at 4 bar using a 100 ppm surfactant stabilized crude oil-in-water emulsion. The fouling and cleaning cycles revealed that the membrane can be reused with a 70% recovery of the initial permeate flux.

Reliable modeling of oily wastewater emphasizes the paramount importance of sustainable and health-conscious wastewater management practices, which directly aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) while also meeting the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO). This research explores the efficiency of utilizing polypyrrole-coated ceramic-polymeric membranes to model oily wastewater separation efficiency (SE) and permeate flux (PF) based on established experimental procedures. In this area, computational simulation still needs to be explored. The study developed predictive regression models, including robust linear regression (RLR), stepwise linear regression (SWR) and linear regression (LR) for the ceramic-polymeric porous membrane, aiming to interpret its complex performance across diverse conditions and, thus, develop its utility in oily wastewater treatment applications. Subsequently, a novel, simple average ensemble paradigm was explored to reduce errors and improve prediction skills. Prior to the development of the model, stability and reliability analysis of the data was conducted based on Philip Perron tests with the Bartlett kernel estimation method. The accuracy of the SE exhibited a high consistency, averaging 99.92% with minimal variability (standard deviation of 0.026%), potentially simplifying its prediction compared to PF. The modes were validated and evaluated using metrics like MAE, RMSE, Speed, and MSE, in addition to 2D graphical and cumulative distribution function graphs. The LR model emerged as the best with the lowest RMSE =0.21951, indicating superior prediction accuracy, followed closely by RLR with an RMSE = 0.22359. SWLR, while having the highest RMSE = 0.34573, marked its dominance in prediction speed with 110 observations per second. Notably, the RLR model justified a reduction in error by approximately 35.29% compared to SWLR. Moreover, the training efficiency of the LR model exceeded, demanding a mere 2.9252 s, marking a reduction of about 32.54% compared to SWLR. The improved simple ensemble learning proved merit over the three models regarding error accuracy. This study emphasizes the essential role of soft-computing learning in optimizing the design and performance of ceramic-polymeric membranes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Given the huge significance of organic solvents in several industrial processes, the use of membranes for recovering the solvents has evolved into an industrially viable process. The current work has been focused on studying the effect of minor changes in the chemistry of the reacting monomers on the organic solvent nanofiltration/solvent resistance nanofiltration (OSN/SRNF) performance of the membranes. The two aliphatic amines with varying aliphatic chain lengths between primary and secondary amines were selected for this purpose. Based on the structure of the resultant active layer, the Janus nanofiltration performance of the membrane was evaluated. The two membranes, 4A-TPC@crosslinked PAN and 4A-3P@crosslinked PAN were fabricated by using two different tetra-amines, 4A (N,N'-bis(3-aminopropyl)ethylenediamine) and 4A-3P (N,N'-Bis(2-aminoethyl)-1,3-propanediamine) crosslinked with terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) on a crosslinked polyacryonitrile (PAN) support through interfacial polymerization (IP). The presence of multiple hydrophobic -CH 2 - groups in the structures of the aliphatic amines 4A and 4A-3P develops hydrophobic sites in the hydrophilic polyamide active layers of the membranes. In addition, 4A has two secondary amino groups separated by ethylene (-CH 2 -CH 2 -) groups, whereas in 4A-3P, the two secondary amino groups are separated by propylene (-CH 2 -CH 2 -CH 2 -) leading to variation in the structural features and performance of the two membranes. Both membranes were fully characterized by several membrane characterization techniques and applied for OSN/SRNF using both polar (methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol) and non-polar (n-hexane and toluene) solvents. Different dyes (Congo red, Eriochrome black T, and Methylene blue) were used as model solutes during the filtration experiment. The 4A-3P-TPC@crosslinked PAN showed n-hexane and toluene flux of 109.9 LMH and 95.5 LMH, respectively. The Congo red (CR) showed the highest rejection, reaching 99.1% for the 4A-TPC@Crosslinked PAN membrane and 98.8% for the 4A-3P-TPC@Crosslinked PAN membrane., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Given the huge potential of thin film composite (TFC) nanofiltration (NF) membranes for desalination and micro-pollutant removal, two different sets of six NF membranes were synthesized. The molecular structure of the polyamide active layer was tuned by using two different cross-linkers, terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) and trimesoyl chloride (TMC), reacted with tetra-amine solution containing β-Cyclodextrin (BCD). To further tune the structure of the active layers, the time duration of interfacial polymerization (IP) was varied from 1 to 3 min. The membranes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), water contact angle (WCA), attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infra-red (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, elemental mapping and energy dispersive (EDX) analysis. The six fabricated membranes were tested for their ability to reject divalent and monovalent ions followed by rejection of micro-pollutants (pharmaceuticals). Consequently, terephthaloyl chloride turned out to be the most effective crosslinker for the fabrication of membrane active layer with tetra-amine in the presence of β-Cyclodextrin using interfacial polymerization reaction for 1 min. The membrane fabricated using TPC crosslinker (BCD-TA-TPC@PSf) showed higher % rejection for divalent ions (Na 2 SO 4 = 93%; MgSO 4 = 92%; MgCl 2 = 91%; CaCl 2 = 84%) and micro-pollutants (Caffeine = 88%; Sulfamethoxazole = 90%; Amitriptyline HCl = 92%; Loperamide HCl = 94%) compared to the membrane fabricated using TMC crosslinker (BCD-TA-TMC@PSf). For the BCD-TA-TPC@PSf membrane, the flux was increased from 8 LMH (L/m 2 .h) to 36 LMH as the transmembrane pressure was increased from 5 bar to 25 bar.

Sulphate-reducing bacteria wreaks havoc to oil pipelines, as it is an active agent for scale formation in the oil production tubing, and plugging of reservoir rock around the oil wells, and this leads to the degradation of oil quality. In this work, we synthesized copper oxide/titanium dioxide nanocomposite photocatalysts with three different mass contents of copper oxide (10%, 20% and 30%) and used them as an effective photo-catalyst in the process of photo-catalytic deactivation of sulphate-reducing bacteria. The anchoring of copper oxide on titanium dioxide brought about the following positive attributes in copper oxide/titanium dioxide nanocomposite pertained to the photo-catalyst: (i) the material transformed to visible light active with the potential to harness the more efficient visible spectral region of the solar radiation, (ii) increased surface area on the photo-catalyst enhanced the number of active reaction sites in the material, and (iii) efficiently retarded the undesired photo-generated electron hole recombination to promote the photo-catalytic activity. Although, the photo-catalyst effective under both UV and visible light, the deactivation was found to be higher in visible radiation, particularly the nanocomposite with 20%- copper oxide on titanium dioxide showed the highest photocatalytic degradation with of Sulphate-reducing bacteria with a decay constant as high as 1.38 min -1 and the total depletion time as low as 8 min. It was confirmed that the bacterial deactivation was neither due to the bactericidal effect of the nanocomposite nor due to the light mediated deactivation., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The wettability of nano-SiO 2 surface was transformed from the inherent hydrophilicity to functional superhyderophobicity by coating Trimethoxy (vinyl)silane modifier, and the resultant surface showed contrasting wettability for water and oil (Superhydrophobic and Superoleophilic), which is a desired characteristic for the membranes used in oil-water separation. Initially Trimethoxy (vinyl)silane coated SiO 2 nanoparticles (TMVS@SiO 2 ) were synthesized by hydrolysis and poly-condensation reactions, and this nano dispersion was spray coated on the annealed stainless-steel mesh surface, whose resulting hierarchical surface texture brought about the desired wettability, with the water-surface-air (θ WA ) and oil-surface-air (θ OA ) interfacial contact angles of 150° and 0° respectively. In addition to the wettability studies (contact angles), FTIR, morphological, and elemental characterizations of the TMVS@SiO 2 coated surfaces were carried out to understand the alterations that have taken place on the TMVS@SiO 2 surface that in turn rendered superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity to the surface. The FTIR absorption peaks indicate that after modifying SiO 2 with TMVS, the -OH groups on SiO 2 surface are clearly replaced by -CH 3 . The morphological studies indicated that modification of SiO 2 leads to better cross-linking between coating composition and nanoparticles and EDS spectra and elemental mapping of the modified surface showed the presence of Si, O and C elements. Finally, this surface was tested for its efficiency and stability as a membrane in the process of separating oil and water from the oily water using gravity driven method. The oil-water separation efficiency was estimated to be 99% for this membrane and also it was found to be quite stable as the surface effectively retained this oil-water separation efficiency even after 10 cycles of separation process., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The current study was planned to fabricate a new set of membranes to target multiple application areas such as desalting, removal of micropollutants and antibiofouling performance. In-situ incorporated copper oxide to MCM-41 (CuO-MCM-41) was synthesized and amine (-NH 2 ) functionalized by reacting with N1-(3-trimethoxy silylpropyl) diethylenetriamine (NTSDETA) yielding NH 2 -CuO-MCM-41. Different concentrations of NH 2 -CuO-MCM-41 were covalently cross-linked in polyamide active layer during interfacial polymerization (IP) between N, N'-bis(3-aminopropyl)ethylenediamine and terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) on polysulfone/poly ester terephthalate (PS/PET) support. The membranes were extensively characterized by Water Contact Angle (WCA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy, Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis, Elemental mapping and Powder X-ray Diffraction (PXRD). From among the different versions of X-CuO-MCM-41/PA@PS/PET membranes, the 0.05%-CuO-MCM-41/PA@PS/PET membrane showed best performance in terms of rejecting a variety of salts, micropollutants and antibiofouling. The 0.05%-CuO-MCM-41/PA@PS/PET showed >98% rejection of MgCl 2 and 78% rejection of caffeine with a permeate flux of 16 LMH at 25 bar. The 0.1-NH 2 -CuO-MCM-41inhibited S. aureus growth by 51.7%. Hence, the current strategy of membrane fabrication proved to be highly efficient for multipurpose applications in water treatment., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The photo catalytic degradation, a proven chemical process used for the decontamination of organic/inorganic pollutants and microorganisms in water was implemented. In this work for the selective killing of cervical cancer cells ( HeLa cells ) by using nano-composite of ZnO (Zinc Oxcide), WO 3 (tungsten oxide) and ( n-WO 3 /ZnO ) as a photo-catalyst under the irradiation of visible light. All the three nanostructured semiconducting materials (WO3, ZnO and n-WO3/ZnO) were synthesized by facile chemical precipitation method and their morphological and optical characterization studies were carried out to elucidate the observed enhancement in the photo-catalytic killing of HeLa cancer cells with n-WO3/ZnO as a photo-catalyst. After 60 min of photo-catalytic reaction with n-WO 3 /ZnO as a photo-catalyst, a survival viability of HeLa cancer cells as low as 15% was achieved (nearly 85% of killing), as compared to 65% of HeLa cancer cell survival viability (nearly 35% of killing) with individual use of WO 3 and ZnO as photo-catalysts under the same irradiation and experimental conditions. This improved photo-catalytic killing of HeLa cancer cells using n-WO 3 /ZnO in the visible spectral region is attributed to the enhanced visible light absorption and reduced electron hole recombination, characteristically brought about in the n-WO 3 /ZnO composite material. As photo-catalytic killing of the cancer cells can be selective, localized and reasonably efficient, in principle, this method can be considered as a non-invasive targeted treatment option for killing any type of cancer cells. HeLa cells, in particular are the cervical cancer cell and the tumors in and around cervix, containing HeLa cells can be non-surgically accessed and photo-catalytically treated with appropriate photo-catalyst and light source., (© 2020 The Author(s).)

Sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) wreaks havoc in the oil industry by being an agent for oil souring and building corrosion in pipelines and thereby degrade the quality of crude oil. Palladium nanoparticles decorated silicon carbide nanomaterial (Pd-SiC) was synthesized by a facile single step synthesis process and this nanomaterial as a photo-catalyst, as compared to pure silicon carbide (SiC) nanoparticles showed a significant enhancement in the photo-catalytic efficiency in the process of the photo-catalytic deactivation of hazardous SRB. The morphological characterization studies such as Field emission scanning electron microscopy, Transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy unambiguously revealed that SiC surface was successfully decorated with palladium (Pd) nanoparticles. Also the Pd nanoparticles decorated on the SiC surface was further substantiated by EDX and elemental mapping analysis, which clearly revealed the presence of Pd along with Si and O. The band gap energy estimated using Diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) showed the reduction of band gap energy from 2.82 eV to 2.72 eV. The observed enhancement in the efficiency of photo-catalytic deactivation of SRB with Pd-SiC can be attributed to the significant reduction in the recombination of photo-generated charge carriers, characteristically resulting from the metal (Pd) semiconductor (SiC) junction established by this synthesis process., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic surfaces were fabricated by facile spray coating of nanostructured WO 3 on stainless steel meshes and compared its performance in oil-water separation with ZnO coated meshes. The gravity driven oil-water separation system was designed using these surfaces as the separation media and it was noticed that WO 3 coated stainless steel mesh showed high separation efficiency (99%), with pore size as high as 150 µm, whereas ZnO coated surfaces failed in the process of oil-water separation when the pore exceeded 50 µm size. Since, nanostructured WO 3 is a well known catalyst, the simultaneous photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants present in the separated water from the oil water separation process were tested using WO 3 coated surfaces under UV radiation and the efficiency of this degradation was found to be quite significant. These results assure that with little improvisation on the oil water separation system, these surfaces can be made multifunctional to work simultaneously for oil-water separation and demineralization of organic pollutants from the separated water. Fabrication of the separating surface, their morphological characteristics, wettability, oil water separation efficiency and photo-catalytic degradation efficiency are enunciated.

Cancer and pathogenic microbial diseases have terribly affected human health over a longer period of time. In response to the increasing casualties due to cancer and microbial diseases, unique poly(3-methylthiophene) and poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate composite were prepared via in-situ oxidative chemical polymerization in this work. The poly(3-methylthiophene) and poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate composite were well characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy. DNA binding studies by UV-Visible and fluorescence spectroscopic investigations indicated strong binding affinities of poly(3-methylthiophene) and poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate nanocomposite; leading to structural damage of DNA. Poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate nanocomposite showed stronger interactions with DNA as compared to poly(3-methylthiophene) and from dye displacement assay it was confirmed that mode of binding of both the formulations was intercalative. The antimicrobial screening revealed that polymer and its composite displayed stronger antibacterial effects than ampicillin against Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella typhimurium. Besides, the poly(3-methylthiophene) and poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate nanocomposite showed dose dependent effects towards estrogen receptor positive breast cancer (MCF-7) and estrogen receptor negative breast cancer (MDA-MB-231) cell lines; with poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate nanocomposite showing better activities against both cell lines. In all in-vitro biological investigations, poly(3-methylthiophene)-titanium(IV)phosphate composite showed superior properties to that of the pure poly(3-methylthiophene), which encouraged us to suggest its potential as future therapeutic gear in drug delivery and other allied fields., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)