Article
Chemistry, Applied
Sergio Belda-Marco, Maria Angeles Lillo-Rodenas, Maria Carmen Roman-Martinez
Summary: TiO2-Cu photocatalysts containing different copper species were used for the photoreforming of cellulose in water at room temperature with UV light. Copper was found to have a positive effect, with a mixture of Cu(I) and Cu(II) species favoring the process. Among the catalysts, the one prepared by simple impregnation without heat treatment showed the highest hydrogen production.
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
M. Rumayor, J. Corredor, M. J. Rivero, I. Ortiz
Summary: Identifying sustainable energy vectors is crucial for achieving a climate-neutral society. Photoreforming technology offers a promising approach to convert biomass waste into clean hydrogen fuel, but there are challenges to overcome. This study assesses the environmental impacts of photoreforming and compares it with other technologies, highlighting its potential in sustainable H-2 production.
JOURNAL OF CLEANER PRODUCTION
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Feng Chen, Hong-Fei Feng, Wei Luo, Ping Wang, Huo-Gen Yu, Jia-Jie Fan
Summary: In order to achieve highly efficient hydrogen production, it is crucial to increase interfacial active sites on graphene-based photocatalysts. The CoSx-rGO/TiO2 composite photocatalyst showed significantly higher hydrogen evolution activity compared to TiO2, with the synergistic effect between CoSx nanodots and rGO nanosheets playing a key role in enhancing photocatalytic performance. This study provides innovative ideas for the development of new highly efficient and cost-effective photocatalytic materials.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Gianguido Ramis, Elnaz Bahadori, Ilenia Rossetti
Summary: The photoreforming of glucose over TiO2 photocatalyst was studied with different photoreactors, focusing on the effect of various reaction conditions. Pressure was found to be particularly significant, decreasing hydrogen evolution rate but improving substrate conversion. Additionally, the photoconversion of levulinic acid was investigated for the first time, with high hydrogen productivity achieved.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Thurga Devi Munusamy, Sim Yee Chin, Md Maksudur Rahman Khan
Summary: This research focuses on producing hydrogen from synthetic wastewater using CuO@exfoliated g-C3N4 nanoheterojunction as a photocatalyst, resulting in significantly enhanced hydrogen production compared to other catalysts.
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Enqi Bu, Xiaowei Chen, Carlos Lopez-Cartes, Fernando Cazana, Antonio Monzon, Javier Martinez-Lopez, Juan Jose Delgado
Summary: Two types of carbon-titania hybrid materials were studied to understand the charge separation mechanism and its effect on ethanol photoreforming hydrogen production. The unique design of these materials promoted the migration of photogenerated holes and reduced the recombination rate, resulting in enhanced photocatalytic activity. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of charge separation and highlights the need for further research in this area.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Marica Muscetta, Laura Clarizia, Marco Race, Roberto Andreozzi, Raffaele Marotta, Ilaria Di Somma
Summary: Several studies have demonstrated that combining TiO2 and Cu2O enhances photocatalytic activity by creating a heterojunction that extends light absorption in the visible spectrum and reduces electron-hole recombination. Ball milling is an effective method for preparing photocatalysts, and the optimal conditions for synthesizing a Cu2O-TiO2 photocatalyst have been identified (1%wt. Cu2O in TiO2 prepared by ball-milling at 200 rpm and 1 min milling time). The photocatalytic hydrogen generation efficiency has been optimized by considering sacrificial species, temperature, and pH, achieving a light-to-chemical energy efficiency of 8%. Additionally, the system has shown potential for hydrogen production under direct solar light, with 60% attributed to visible light and 40% attributed to UV light.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Heng Zhao, Xinti Yu, Chao-Fan Li, Wenbei Yu, Aiguo Wang, Zhi-Yi Hu, Steve Larter, Yu Li, Md Golam Kibria, Jinguang Hu
Summary: This study demonstrates an improved selectivity in glucose photoreforming for coproduction of hydrogen and arabinose under neutral conditions using carbon quantum dots (CQDs) modified TiO2 composites. The colored CQDs in the composites enhance the glucose to arabinose conversion selectivity and efficient hydrogen evolution in water. The work not only offers new insights into CQDs-assisted biomass valorization and hydrogen coproduction, but also suggests a potential application for solar energy utilization in a noble-metal-free system.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Patricia Garcia-Munoz, Niels P. Zussblatt, Bradley F. Chmelka, Victor A. de la Pena O'Shea, Fernando Fresno
Summary: The photocatalytic activity of iron-grafted mesoporous Pt/TiO2 catalysts for hydrogen production from water-ethanol mixtures was investigated. Results showed that Fe is primarily located on the catalyst surfaces as Fe2O3 and does not dope the TiO2 structure. The catalyst with the lowest iron content exhibited the highest activity for ethanol dehydrogenation, attributed to the higher surface dispersion of Fe and efficient formation of a surface heterojunction between Fe2O3 and TiO2 that favors charge separation.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Inorganic & Nuclear
Fernando Plascencia-Hernandez, Elim Albiter, Ghazzal Mohamed Nawfal, Christophe Colbeau-Justin, Hynd Remita, Heriberto Pfeiffer, Miguel A. Valenzuela
Summary: Noble metal-free CuXO/TiO2 composites show enhanced photocatalytic activity for H2 production. Surface modification of TiO2 with Cu species promotes effective separation of photogenerated carriers and facilitates the photoreduction of protons and photooxidation of methanol.
INORGANIC CHEMISTRY COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Junggou Kwon, Kyoungjun Choi, Murielle Schreck, Tian Liu, Elena Tervoort, Markus Niederberger
Summary: The study presents a facile method for nitrogen doping monolithic titanium dioxide nanoparticle-based aerogels to activate them for visible light, demonstrating significant enhancement in visible light-driven photocatalytic H-2 production by balancing dopant concentration and defects to improve optical absorption and charge separation efficiency.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Zhen Sun, Junxiang Wang, Sen Lu, Guan Zhang
Summary: Solar reforming of cellulosic biomass into hydrogen is a promising approach for sustainable utilization of biomass waste and renewable energy development. This study proposes a strategy that combines enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose with photocatalytic H2 production, and synthesizes a high-performance titanium dioxide photocatalyst. By optimizing the conditions for enzymatic hydrolysis and photocatalytic reaction, and using the enzymatic depolymerized products as sacrificial agents, efficient hydrogen production from water is achieved.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Atsushi Kobayashi
Summary: Biomass photoreforming is a promising method for clean energy production. A new photoredox cascade catalyst was fabricated to improve contact between heterogeneous photocatalysts and biomass substrates. Under blue-light irradiation, this catalyst efficiently produced hydrogen and regenerated the catalytically active species.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Giacomo Provinciali, Jonathan Filippi, Alessandro Lavacchi, Stefano Caporali, Martina Banchelli, Manuel Serrano-Ruiz, Maurizio Peruzzini, Maria Caporali
Summary: A new hetero-structure TiO2/BP/CoP photocatalyst has been developed, which significantly increases the H-2 production by promoting the transfer of photogenerated electrons. The addition of BP to TiO2 increases the H-2 evolution rate up to 4 times, while integrating CoP nanoparticles further promotes H-2 production up to 37 times higher than pristine TiO2.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Anna Y. Kurenkova, Tatiana B. Medvedeva, Nikolay Gromov, Andrey Bukhtiyarov, Evgeny Y. Gerasimov, Svetlana Cherepanova, Ekaterina A. Kozlova
Summary: The photoreforming of rice and corn starch with simultaneous hydrogen production was investigated over a Cd0.7Zn0.3S-based photocatalyst under visible light irradiation. The study focused on the influence of starch pretreatment conditions on the reaction rate. The maximum rate of H-2 evolution was found to be 730 mu mol h(-1) g(-1) in the solution obtained after starch hydrolysis in 5 M NaOH at 70 degrees C.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Luigi Santamaria, Pasqualino Maddalena, Stefano Lettieri
Summary: In this study, the time-resolved photoluminescence of zinc oxide crystals was analyzed. It was found that within a certain range of laser excitation, the process could be accurately described using second-order kinetics. A new method for data analysis was proposed, which provided information on fundamental physical quantities.
Editorial Material
Chemistry, Physical
Stefano Lettieri, Michele Pavone
Article
Materials Science, Ceramics
Ambra Fioravanti, Sara Morandi, Alberto Rubin Pedrazzo, Claudio Cecone, Maela Manzoli, Marco Zanetti, Pierangiola Bracco, Mauro Mazzocchi, Stefano Lettieri, Pietro Marani, Maria Cristina Carotta
Summary: The present study investigates the efficiency of chemo-resistive effects in semiconductor metal oxides for gas sensing, focusing on the relationship between specific surface area and performance. The results show that materials with higher surface area perform better, regardless of the synthetic method used.
CERAMICS INTERNATIONAL
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Analytical
Valentina Gargiulo, Michela Alfe, Laura Giordano, Stefano Lettieri
Summary: The main requirement of sensor devices is to measure and monitor the concentration of specific chemical and/or gaseous species, leading to the development of various types of sensors based on the characteristics of active materials. Well-defined transduction methods such as the oxidation (or reduction) of analytes in electrochemical reactors, optical techniques, and chemiresistive responses to gas adsorption are commonly employed. Recent trends involve the use of specific classes of materials like ionic liquids and metal-organic frameworks for chemical sensing applications.
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Anushka Garg, Nagaraj P. Shetti, Soumen Basu, Mallikarjuna N. Nadagouda, Tejraj M. Aminabhavi
Summary: PFAS possess unique characteristics, making them resistant to degradation and leading to limitations in the development of new technologies. This review provides insights into various PFAS destruction technologies, their classifications, exposure scenarios, detection methods, and the mechanism of PFAS degradation during thermal processes.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Laura Clarizia, Giuseppe Vitiello, Robert Bericat Vadell, Jacinto Sa, Raffaele Marotta, Ilaria Di Somma, Roberto Andreozzi, Giuseppina Luciani
Summary: The existing literature survey reports on the effect of preparation methods of metal-based semiconductor photocatalysts on photocatalytic H-2 generation are rare and conflicting. In this study, we compared different copper/titania-based photocatalysts for H-2 generation prepared by photodeposition and impregnation methods. Our study aimed to establish a correlation between physicochemical/electronic properties and photocatalytic performances for H-2 generation through material characterization and kinetic modeling. The results showed that H-2 generation photoefficiency over impregnated CuxOy/TiO2 is related to an even distribution of Cu(0)/Cu(I) on TiO2 and extended charge carrier lifetime and separation.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Haesung Lee, Sanghyeon Kim, Aebin Sin, Gwangmin Kim, Sanaullah Khan, Mallikarjuna N. Nadagouda, Endalkachew Sahle-Demessie, Changseok Han
Summary: This paper reviews the pretreatment methods currently used for microplastics (MPs) analysis in soil and freshwater sediments. It includes sample processing, pretreatment, and characterization methods, as well as analytical tools, MPs characteristics, and quantity. Although the advantages of each pretreatment method have been investigated, it is still challenging to determine a universal pretreatment method due to sample variability. Standard pretreatment methods are highly required for various environmental matrices.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Emmanuele Parisi, Fabio Borbone, Antonio Carella, Stefano Lettieri, Amedeo Capobianco, Andrea Peluso, Roberto Centore
Summary: Imines obtained by condensation of 4-hydroxybenzohydrazide with carbonyl compounds have a remarkable tendency to crystallize in acentric and polar space groups. Extensive study of imines obtained by condensation with aromatic aldehydes showed that 47% of the crystal structures in this class of compounds exhibit acentric phases, which is significantly higher than the 22% frequency in the Cambridge Structural Database. The presence of complex chains of H-bonded molecules and strong transverse bond dipole moments contribute to the high success in achieving acentric and polar structures in this class of compounds.
CRYSTAL GROWTH & DESIGN
(2023)
Review
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
M. Calabrese, D. Russo, A. di Benedetto, R. Marotta, R. Andreozzi
Summary: Formates are promising salts for hydrogen storage, capable of catalytically converting to bicarbonate and being regenerated under moderate pressure. However, there are still challenges to be addressed, such as reaction kinetics, stability, cyclability, and increasing energetic density. This work critically reviews the current state and highlights theoretical limitations and applicative shortcomings, providing perspective on future research. Despite the existing bottlenecks, there is promising room for improvement, with state-of-the-art catalytic systems potentially reaching 72% energetic efficiency, which could be improved up to 90%.
RENEWABLE & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Polymer Science
Marcella Salvatore, Francesco Reda, Fabio Borbone, I. Komang Januariyasa, Pasqualino Maddalena, Stefano Luigi Oscurato
Summary: We propose a simple diffractive method for measuring the refractive index of homogeneous solid thin films by structuring the surface with a diffraction grating. The refractive index of a soft-moldable material is successfully estimated by incorporating the measured topography and diffraction efficiency of the grating into a scalar theory-based diffraction model. This method provides a simple and widely accessible optical characterization of materials, useful in material science and photonics applications, without the need for specialized expertise and equipment.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Marica Muscetta, Laura Clarizia, Marco Race, Roberto Andreozzi, Raffaele Marotta, Ilaria Di Somma
Summary: Several studies have demonstrated that combining TiO2 and Cu2O enhances photocatalytic activity by creating a heterojunction that extends light absorption in the visible spectrum and reduces electron-hole recombination. Ball milling is an effective method for preparing photocatalysts, and the optimal conditions for synthesizing a Cu2O-TiO2 photocatalyst have been identified (1%wt. Cu2O in TiO2 prepared by ball-milling at 200 rpm and 1 min milling time). The photocatalytic hydrogen generation efficiency has been optimized by considering sacrificial species, temperature, and pH, achieving a light-to-chemical energy efficiency of 8%. Additionally, the system has shown potential for hydrogen production under direct solar light, with 60% attributed to visible light and 40% attributed to UV light.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Sanny Verma, Tae Lee, Endalkachew Sahle-Demessie, Mohamed Ateia, Mallikarjuna N. Nadagouda
Summary: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals containing carbon-fluorine (C-F) bonds, which have been widely used in various industrial and consumer products. PFAS pollution is a global concern due to their omnipresence in the environment and adverse health effects. Effective treatment technologies are needed for the removal and degradation of PFAS from water sources.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL ADVANCES
(2023)
Review
Engineering, Environmental
Sushil R. Kanel, Tonoy K. Das, Rajender S. Varma, Sudarshan Kurwadkar, Sudip Chakraborty, Tista Prasai Joshi, Achintya N. Bezbaruah, Mallikarjuna N. Nadagouda
Summary: This article summarizes the forms and sources of arsenic in the environment, as well as its migration and potential health risks in groundwater. It also evaluates the remediation technologies and their applicability, and discusses the implementation limitations in developing countries and small communities.
ACS ENVIRONMENTAL AU
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Shuyan Guan, Jing Ding, Qingliang Zhao, Fan Liu, Qingwei Gao, Mallikarjuna N. Nadagouda, Abdulaziz Al-Anazi
Summary: This study investigated the transformation and reaction mechanisms of dissolved organic matter (DOM) during electrocoagulation (EC) and persulfate enhanced electrocoagulation (EC/PS) processes for bio-treated landfill leachate (BLL). The results showed that coupling persulfate with EC enhanced the removal efficiency of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC). The analysis of sediments generated by EC and EC/PS suggested that precipitation was the main contributor to DOM removal during the EC/PS process. These findings help understand the role of persulfate in landfill leachate treatment and reevaluate its advantages and limitations as an oxidant.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Gennaro Vincenzo Sannino, Adriana Pecoraro, Pasqualino Maddalena, Annalisa Bruno, Paola Delli Veneri, Michele Pavone, Ana Belen Munoz-Garcia
Summary: Recent experiments have shown that moderate Mg doping in SnO2 plays a beneficial role in perovskite solar cells. Density functional theory calculations reveal that low Mg contents increase the open circuit potential (V-OC) by pushing up the conduction band minimum (CBM) of SnO2, while high dopant concentration leads to interstitial Mg defects and the formation of intra-gap band states, resulting in lower V-OC and decreased performance of the solar cells. These findings provide new insights into the effects of Mg doping in SnO2 and highlight the tunable structural and defect properties for tailored electronic features in ETL materials.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY & FUELS
(2023)
