Preparation, Characterization, Dielectric Properties, and AC Conductivity of Chitosan Stabilized Metallic Oxides CoO and SrO: Experiments and Tight Binding Calculations.

Polymeric films made from chitosan (CS) doped with metal oxide (MO = cobalt (II) oxide and strontium oxide) nanoparticles at different concentrations (5, 10, 15, and 20% wt. MO/CS) were fabricated with the solution cast method. FTIR, SEM, and XRD spectra were used to study the structural features of those nanocomposite films. The FTIR spectra of chitosan showed the main characteristic peaks that are usually present, but they were shifted considerably by the chemical interaction with metal oxides. FTIR analysis of the hybrid chitosan-CoO nanocomposite exhibited notable peaks at 558 and 681 cm-1. Conversely, the FTIR analysis of the chitosan-SrO composite displayed peaks at 733.23 cm-1, 810.10 cm-1, and 856.39 cm-1, which can be attributed to the bending vibrations of Co-O and Sr-O bonds, respectively. In addition, the SEM graphs showed a noticeable morphological change on the surface of chitosan, which may be due to surface adsorption with metal oxide nanoparticles. The XRD pattern also revealed a clear change in the crystallinity of chitosan when it is in contact with metal oxide nanoparticles. The presence of characteristic signals for cobalt (Co) and strontium (Sr) are clearly shown in the EDX examinations, providing convincing evidence for their incorporation into the chitosan matrix. Moreover, the stability of the nanoparticle-chitosan coordinated bonding was verified from the accurate and broadly parametrized semi-empirical tight-binding quantum chemistry calculation. This leads to the determination of the structures' chemical hardness as estimated from the frontier's orbital calculations. We characterized the dielectric properties in terms of the real and imaginary dielectric permittivity as a function of frequency. Dielectric findings reveal the existence of extensive interactions of CoO and SrO, more pronounced for SrO, with the functional groups of CS through coordination bonding. This induces the charge transfer of the complexes between CoO and SrO and the CS chains and a decrease in the amount of the crystalline phase, as verified from the XRD patterns.

Efficient Reduction in Methylene Blue Using Palladium Nanoparticles Supported by Melamine-Based Polymer.

In this work, palladium nanoparticles, supported by polyaminals (Pd@PAN-NA), were synthesized via a reverse double solvent approach and used as a nano catalyst. The thermogravimetric and the elemental analysis revealed that the catalyst had good dispersity and improved thermal stability. The catalytic activity of the prepared Pd@PAN-NA catalyst was studied for a methylene blue chemical reaction in the presence of NaBH4 as a reducing agent. The effect of the catalyst dose, pH, and dye initial concentration were examined to optimize the chemical reduction conditions. The prepared catalyst Pd@PAN-NA removed 99.8% of methylene blue organic dye, indicating its potential effect for treating waste and contaminated water.

Electrospun Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride-Co-Hexafluoropropylene) Nanofiber Membranes for Brine Treatment via Membrane Distillation.

The major challenge for membrane distillation (MD) is the membrane wetting resistance induced by pollutants in the feed solution. The proposed solution for this issue was to fabricate membranes with hydrophobic properties. Hydrophobic electrospun poly (vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) nanofiber membranes were produced for brine treatment using the direct-contact membrane distillation (DCMD) technique. These nanofiber membranes were prepared from three different polymeric solution compositions to study the effect of solvent composition on the electrospinning process. Furthermore, the effect of the polymer concentration was investigated by preparing polymeric solutions with three different polymer percentages: 6, 8, and 10%. All of the nanofiber membranes obtained from electrospinning were post-treated at varying temperatures. The effects of thickness, porosity, pore size, and liquid entry pressure (LEP) were studied. The hydrophobicity was determined using contact angle measurements, which were investigated using optical contact angle goniometry. The crystallinity and thermal properties were studied using DSC and XRD, while the functional groups were studied using FTIR. The morphological study was performed with AMF and described the roughness of nanofiber membranes. Finally, all of the nanofiber membranes had enough of a hydrophobic nature to be used in DCMD. A PVDF membrane filter disc and all nanofiber membranes were applied in DCMD to treat brine water. The resulting water flux and permeate water quality were compared, and it was discovered that all of the produced nanofiber membranes showed good behavior with varying water flux, but the salt rejection was greater than 90%. A membrane prepared from DMF/acetone 5-5 with 10% PVDF-HFP provided the perfect performance, with an average water flux of 44 kg.m-2.h-1 and salt rejection of 99.8%.

Synthesis and Characterization of Bipyridine-Based Polyaminal Network for CO2 Capture.

The response to the high demand for decreasing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere, a new polyaminal-based polymer network was designed and successfully prepared through one-pot polycondensation reaction of melamine and [2,2'-Bipyridine]-5,5'-dicarbaldehyde. The formation of the polymer structure was confirmed by FT-IR, solid-state 13C NMR, and powder-X-ray diffraction. The porous properties of the polymeric structure were confirmed by field-emission scanning electron microscope and N2 adsorption-desorption methods at 77 K. The prepared polymer can take up 1.02 mmol/g and 0.71 mmol/g CO2 at 273 K and 298 K, respectively, despite its relatively modest Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area (160.7 m2/g), due to the existence of superabundant polar groups on the pore surfaces.

Chitosan-Strontium Oxide Nanocomposite: Preparation, Characterization, and Catalytic Potency in Thiadiazoles Synthesis.

Recently, Strontium oxide (SrO) nanoparticles (NPs) and hybrids outperformed older commercial catalysts in terms of catalytic performance. Herein, we present a microwave-assisted easy in situ solution casting approach for the manufacture of strontium oxide nanoparticles doped within a naturally occurring polymer, chitosan (CS), at varying weight percentages (2.5, 5, 10, 15, and 20 wt.% SrO/chitosan). To construct the new hybrid material as a thin film, the produced nanocomposite solutions were cast in petri dishes. The aim of the research was to synthesize these hybrid nanocomposites, characterize them, and evaluate their catalytic potential in a variety of organic processes. The strontium oxide-chitosan nanocomposites were characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscope (SEM) techniques. All the results confirmed the formation of chitosan-strontium oxide nanocomposite. FTIR spectrum of nanocomposite showed the presence of a characteristic peak of Sr-O bond. Furthermore, XRD revealed that SrO treatment increased the crystallinity of chitosan. The particle size was calculated using the Debye-Scherrer formula, and it was determined to be around 36 nm. The CS-SrO nanocomposite has been proven to be a highly efficient base promoter for the synthesis of 2-hydrazono [1,3,4]thiadiazole derivatives. To optimize the catalytic method, the reaction factors were investigated. The approach has various advantages, including higher reaction yields, shorter reaction durations, and milder reaction conditions, as well as the catalyst's reusability for several applications.

Fabrication of Cross-Linked PMMA/SnO2 Nanocomposites for Highly Efficient Removal of Chromium (III) from Wastewater.

In recent times, developments in polymer application properties have required the design of different polymer structures more than ever. Cross-linked polymers (CPs) could be considered a good candidate material for potential applications when used in conjunction with nanoparticles. Cross-linked polymethyl methacrylate nanocomposites are considered to be one of the most commonly polymeric adsorbents due to their varied and simple modification methods. A new class of C-PMMA/SnO2(a-d) nanocomposites have been fabricated as surface-selective adsorbents of Cr (III) with a good yield and different loading of SnO2 nanoparticles. The morphology, molecular structures, and thermal stability of the new cross-linked polymers were examined using a Scanning electron microscope (SEM), the Fourier Transform Infrared method (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). The adsorption study of C-PMMA/SnO2 was investigated, and an efficient level of adsorption for Cr (III) cations was detected. To evaluate the potential for the new polymers to be used as adsorbents against Cr (III) ions, the contact time, the initial concentration of Cr (III), and the effects of pH were studied. The introduction of SnO2 into the polymer network enhanced the efficiency of the adsorption of heavy metals. The C-PMMA/SnO2 is highly efficient at removing Cr (III) ions in wastewater samples at pH 6 for one hour. The adsorption study demonstrated that the adsorption capacity of C-PMMA/SnO2c for Cr (III) was 1.76 mg /g, and its adsorption isotherm agreed with the Langmuir adsorption model.

Synthesis of Naphthalene-Based Polyaminal-Linked Porous Polymers for Highly Effective Uptake of CO2 and Heavy Metals.

Studying the effect of functional groups on the porosity structure and adsorption efficiency of polymer materials is becoming increasingly interesting. In this work, a novel porous polyaminal-linked polymer, based on naphthalene and melamine (PAN-NA) building blocks, was successfully synthesized by a one-pot polycondensation method, and used as an adsorbent for both CO2 and heavy metals. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, solid-state 13 C NMR, powder X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetry were used to characterize the prepared polymer. The porous material structure was established by field-emission scanning electron microscope and N2 adsorption-desorption methods at 77 K. The polymer exhibited excellent uptake of CO2, 133 mg/g at 273 K and 1 bar. In addition, the adsorption behavior of PAN-NA for different metal cations, including Pb(II), Cr(III), Cu(II), Cd(II), Ni(II), and Ba(II), was investigated; a significant adsorption selectivity toward the Pb(II) cation was detected. The influence of pH, adsorbent dose, initial concentrations, and contact time was also assessed. Our results prove that the introduction of naphthalene in the polymer network improves the porosity and, thus, CO2 adsorption, as well as the adsorption of heavy metals.

Photocatalytic Degradation of Atrazine under Visible Light Using Novel Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 Nanocomposites.

In this work, a novel as well as an efficient photocatalyst based Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 nanoparticles have been prepared for the photocatalytic degradation of atrazine using the hydrothermal technique. In order to measure the chemical composition as well as the phase of the novel nanoparticles, different characterization techniques were applied to confirm their structures. Furthermore, the percent of Ag in the Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 nanoparticles has been investigated on the properties of Mg4Ta2O9 (physical and chemical). The phase of new Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 was confirmed via XRD data comparing with pure Mg4Ta2O9 phase. The images of the morphologies for all samples were studied using TEM with pore size distribution around 24 nm for 2.0 wt.% Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 nanocomposite. The new Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 nanoparticles have been applied for atrazine degradation using photocatalytic method. Due to the high BET surface area and low band gap, the nanoparticles with 2.0 wt.% of Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 display the best photocatalyst efficiency for atrazine degradation. Moreover, the application and the limitation of the photodegradation process were estimated. Different conditions effect on atrazine degradation such as dosages of photocatalyst and concentration of atrazine were investigated. The ability of 2.0 wt.% Ag@Mg4Ta2O9 for atrazine degradation was reused for many times with the same efficiency.