Concerns over the potential risks of nanomaterials to ecosystem have been raised, as it is highly possible that nanomaterials could be released to the environment and result in adverse effects on living organisms. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the main greenhouse gases. The level of CO2 keeps increasing and subsequently causes a series of environmental problems, especially for agricultural cro...

Here we demonstrate that the photoactivity of Au-decorated TiO2 electrodes for photoelectrochemical water oxidation can be effectively enhanced in the entire UV-visible region from 300 to 800 nm by manipulating the shape of the decorated Au nanostructures. The samples were prepared by carefully depositing Au nanoparticles (NPs), Au nanorods (NRs), and a mixture of Au NPs and NRs on the surface ...

Two different nanosized TiO2-based catalysts supported onto glass with tailored photocatalytic properties upon irradiation by UV light were successfully employed for the degradation of nalidixid acid, a widely diffused antibacterial agent of environmental relevance known to be non-biodegradable. Anatase rod-like TiO2 nanocrystals (TiO2NRs) and a semiconductor oxide-noble metal nanocomposite TiO...

The present study reports on the introduction of various nanocatalysts containing nickel (Ni) nanoparticles (NPs) embedded within TiO2 nanofibers and TiO2 microparticles. Typically, a sol-gel consisting of titanium isopropoxide and Ni NPs was prepared to produce TiO2 nanofibers by the electrospinning process. Similarly, TiO2 microparticles containing Ni were prepared using a sol-gel syntheses p...

Living organisms are continuously exposed to a wide variety of oxidative radicals. Therefore, there is a constant demand for exogenous antioxidant supply. In this regard, one of these exogenous antioxidants with well established potency, quercetin has been utilized in various formulations. Yet due to its poor water solubility, its extensive applications are limited so far. In this study, TiO2 n...

In this paper, a facile method was proposed to load CeO2 nanoparticles (NPs) on anodic TiO2 nanotube (NT) arrays, which leads to a formation of CeO2/TiO2 heterojunctions. Highly ordered anatase phase TiO2 NT arrays were fabricated by using anodic oxidation method, then these individual TiO2 NTs were used as tiny "nano-containers" to load a small amount of Ce(NO3)3 solutions. The loaded anodic T...

Tunable spectrum-response is desired for efficient photo-energy transformation. Blu-ray (~405 nm) and polarization sensitive Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite films are thus fascinating in application of fast-response and high-density optical memory device. The Ag/TiO2 film has the ability of replicating hologram based on optical coherence by laser-stimulated dissolution of Ag nanoparticles (NPs). The rate...

BACKGROUND Use of engineered nanoparticles (NPs) in consumer products is resulting in NPs in drinking water sources. Subsequent NP breakthrough into treated drinking water is a potential exposure route and human health threat. OBJECTIVES In this study we investigated the breakthrough of common NPs--silver (Ag), titanium dioxide (TiO2), and zinc oxide (ZnO)--into finished drinking water follow...

The mechanism of plasmon-induced charge separation of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) on TiO2 was investigated with the help of anionic ligands. Au NPs are oxidized in the presence of KX (X = SCN, Br or Cl), chiefly via direct oxidation to [AuX4](-). The reactivity of Au NPs depends on the solution pH, the type of anion ligands and the excitation wavelength, suggesting that the photopotential of Au...

Background Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticels (NPs), one of the most abundantly utilized nanomaterials, was widely used in industry, cosmetics, and biomedicine. There have been reported that TiO2 NPs aggravates respiratory symptoms by induce pulmonary inflammation. However, the mechanisms of these effects have not been extensively studied yet. We aimed to investigate inflammation in rabbit l...