Facile Synthesis of Well-Dispersed Silver Nanoparticles on Hierarchical Flower-like Ni3Si2O5(OH)4with a High Catalytic Activity towards 4-Nitrophenol Reduction

Effect of iron treatment and equilibrium pH on the kinetics of removal of some substituted phenols from synthetic wastewater onto Nostoc sp. biomass

Substituted phenols, such as 4-Nitrophenol (4-NP) and 2,4-Dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP), that are present in industrial wastewaters are considered as priority pollutants due to their toxic effects. Their removal by biosorption presents an eco-friendly, cost-effective method. The kinetics of removal of 4-NP and 2,4-DCP by untreated Nostoc sp. (UNB) and Fe-treated Nostoc sp. biomass (FNB) were studied at three different pH (4.0, 7.0 and 9.0). The highest sorption of both phenols (2.28 mg 4-NP and 1.51 mg 2,4-DCP g^-1) coupled with the lowest cumulative percentage desorption was recorded with FNB at pH 7.0. The sorption of both phenols by UNB and FNB was best accounted for by pseudo-second-order kinetics. Compared to UNB, FNB had significantly higher equilibrium sorption capacities for both phenols at all the three pH values and also higher sorption rate constants of 4-NP at pH 4 and 9 and of 2,4-DCP at pH 4 and 7. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed that -OH and COO^- groups of UNB interacted with Fe⁺³. The sorption of 4-NP and 2,4-DCP on UNB was likely through H-bonding/structural cation bridging with the phenolic group, while their sorption onto FNB appeared to be a complexation reaction with very low reversibility.

Ag-Nanoparticle-Bearing Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Nanofiber Mats as Janus Filters for Catalysis and Separation

Hydrophilic Ag nanoparticles were pattern-deposited onto one side of an electrospun poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) nanofiber mat, yielding a Janus filter. The filter was used to separate a receiver cell from a reactor cell that contained an aqueous 4-nitrophenol/NaBH₄ solution. Upon contact with this solution, the Ag nanoparticles catalyzed the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol. After the reaction reached completion, ethyl acetate was added into the reactor to extract the product. During this process, the ethyl acetate containing 4-aminophenol also selectively permeated regions of the hydrophobic yet oleophilic PVDF mat that were not covered by Ag nanoparticles. The product was obtained after the evaporation of ethyl acetate. This paper demonstrates the first use of a Janus filter in a catalytic separatory reactor that catalyzes a chemical reaction and then facilitates the eventual separation of the formed product via filtration.

Hierarchical synthesis of silver monoliths and their efficient catalytic activity for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol

Epoch-making catalytic activities of silver monoliths against the reduction of 4-NP to 4-AP and their industrial importance.

In situ reduction of well-dispersed nickel nanoparticles on hierarchical nickel silicate hollow nanofibers as a highly efficient transition metal catalyst

Ni nanoparticles were immobilized on the hierarchically double-shell nickel silicate hollow nanofibers, the composites exhibited an excellent catalytic activity.

Facile synthesis of magnetically separable reduced graphene oxide/magnetite/silver nanocomposites with enhanced catalytic activity

In this study, the combination of magnetite (Fe3O4) with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) generates a new hybrid substrate for the dispersion of noble metal nanoparticles. Well-dispersed silver (Ag) nanoparticles loaded on the surface of Fe3O4 modified RGO are achieved by an efficient two-step approach. Through reducing Ag(+) ions, highly dispersed Ag nanoparticles are in-situ formed on the RGO/Fe3O4 substrate. It is found that the existence of Fe3O4 nanocrystals can significantly improve the dispersity and decrease the particle size of the in-situ formed Ag nanoparticles. Magnetic study reveals that the as-prepared RGO/Fe3O4/Ag ternary nanocomposites display room-temperature superparamagnetic behavior. The catalytic properties of the RGO/Fe3O4/Ag ternary nanocomposites were evaluated with the reduction of 4-nitrophenol into 4-aminophenol as a model reaction. The as-synthesized RGO/Fe3O4/Ag ternary catalysts exhibit excellent catalytic stability and much higher catalytic activity than the corresponding RGO/Ag catalyst. Moreover, the RGO/Fe3O4/Ag catalysts can be easily magnetically separated for reuse. This study further demonstrates that nanoparticles modified graphene can act as an effective hybrid substrate for the synthesis of multi-component and multifunctional graphene-based composites.

Formation of a gold–carbon dot nanocomposite with superior catalytic ability for the reduction of aromatic nitro groups in water

Probing on the synthesis of gold-carbon dot nanocomposite for catalytic reduction of aromatic nitrogroup.

In situ assembly of well-dispersed gold nanoparticles on hierarchical double-walled nickel silicate hollow nanofibers as an efficient and reusable hydrogenation catalyst

A facile route to fabricate ultrafine AuNPs immobilized on double-walled nickel silicate hollow nanofibers assembled by nanosheets has been developed.