Ionic liquid functionalized polymer composite nanotubes toward dye decomposition

Effect of boramidic acid modified carbon nanotubes on neurological, morphological and physiological responses of zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos and larvae

This study aimed to determine the potential toxicological effects of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), their modifications with ethylenediamine (ED) and boric acid (BA) on aquatic organisms. Specifically, the research focused on the morphological, physiological, and histopathological-immuno-histochemical responses in zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos and larvae, via applying different concentrations of CNTs, CNT-ED, and CNT-ED-BA (Control, 5, 10, and 20 mg/L). The results indicated that 20 mg/L CNT nanoparticles were toxic to zebrafish larvae, with mortality rates increasing with CNT and CNT-ED concentrations, reaching 36.7 % at the highest CNT concentration. The highest dose caused considerable degeneration, necrosis, DNA damage, and apoptosis, as evidenced by histopathological and immunohistochemical tests. In contrast, despite their high concentration, CNT-ED-BA nanoparticles exhibited low toxicity. Behavioral studies revealed that CNT and CNT-ED nanoparticles had a more significant impact on sensory-motor functions compared to CNT-ED-BA nanoparticles. These findings suggest that modifying the nanosurface with boric acid, resulting in boramidic acid, can reduce the toxicity induced by CNT and CNT-ED.

Development of Environmentally Friendly Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization

Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) is one of the most successful techniques for the preparation of well-defined polymers with controllable molecular weights, narrow molecular weight distributions, specific macromolecular architectures, and precisely designed functionalities. ATRP usually involves transition-metal complex as catalyst. As the most commonly used copper complex catalyst is usually biologically toxic and environmentally unsafe, considerable interest has been focused on iron complex, enzyme, and metal-free catalysts owing to their low toxicity, inexpensive cost, commercial availability and environmental friendliness. This review aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of iron catalyst used in normal, reverse, AGET, ICAR, GAMA, and SARA ATRP, enzyme as well as metal-free catalyst mediated ATRP in the point of view of catalytic activity, initiation efficiency, and polymerization controllability. The principle of ATRP and the development of iron ligand are briefly discussed. The recent development of enzyme-mediated ATRP, the latest research progress on metal-free ATRP, and the application of metal-free ATRP in interdisciplinary areas are highlighted in sections. The prospects and challenges of these three ATRP techniques are also described in the review.