Green synthesis of multifunctional carbon quantum dots: An approach in cancer theranostics.

Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have gained significant growing attention in the recent past due to their peculiar characteristics including smaller size, high surface area, photoluminescence, chemical stability, facile synthesis and functionalization possibilities. They are carbon nanostructures having less than 10 nm size with fluorescent properties. In recent years, the scientific community is curiously adopting biomass precursors for the preparation of CQDs over the chemical compounds. These biomass sources are sustainable, eco-friendly, inexpensive, widely available and convert waste into valuable materials. Hence in our work the fundamental understating of diverse fabrication methodologies of CQDs, and the types of raw materials employed in recent times, are all examined and correlated comprehensively. Their unique combination of remarkable properties, together with the ease with which they can be fabricated, makes CQDs as promising materials for applications in diverse biomedical fields, in particular for bio-imaging, targeted drug delivery and phototherapy for cancer treatment. The mechanism for luminescence is of considerable significance for leading the synthesis of CQDs with tunable fluorescence emission. Therefore, it is aimed to explore and provide an updated review on (i) the recent progress on the different synthesis methods of biomass-derived CQDs, (ii) the contribution of surface states or functional groups on the luminescence origin and (iii) its potential application for cancer theranostics, concentrating on their fluorescence properties. Finally, we explored the challenges in modification for the synthesis of CQDs from biomass derivatives and the future scope of CQDs in phototherapy for cancer theranostics.

A sustainable green synthesis of functionalized biocompatible carbon quantum dots from Aloe barbadensis Miller and its multifunctional applications.

Herein, we demonstrated a sustainable green approach for the preparation of fluorescent biocompatible carbon quantum dots by microwave-assisted reflux synthesis from Aloe barbadensis Miller (Aloe vera) extract. The Transmission Electron Microscopic images reveal that the as-prepared CQDs are spherical with less than 5 nm in size. The CQDs are amorphous, showed an excitation-independent behaviour, emitted blue fluorescence and have a fluorescence quantum yield of 31%. The presence of -OH groups contributed to the blue emission and helped CQDs to disperse uniformly in an aqueous solution. The prepared CQDs were employed as a photocatalyst for the environmental remediation to degrade the anionic dye, eosin yellow under visible light irradiation. The results showed that the CQDs exhibited excellent photocatalytic efficiency of 98.55% within 80 min and a 100% efficiency within 100 min. Further, the cytotoxic properties of as-prepared CQDs are investigated in the MCF-7 breast cancer cell line using MTT assay. The results demonstrated a notable reduction in cell viability in a dose-subjected manner, and the cell viability decreased to 50% (IC50) at a concentration of 52.2 ± 1.35 µg/mL. Furthermore, cellular internalization of CQDs in breast cancer cells is studied. As expected, CQDs are found to internalize by the cancer cells with blue emission as revealed by fluorescence microscope. In the end, CQDs in human breast cancer cells demonstrate the anti-proliferative effect and are found to be an impressive fluorescent probe for live-cell imaging, paving a path for its potential biomedical applications.

Facile hydrothermal synthesis of carbon-coated cobalt ferrite spherical nanoparticles as a potential negative electrode for flexible supercapattery.

Battery type electrodes would replace the currently available pseudocapacitive electrodes by the cause of high energy density and long discharge time. In this regard, battery type carbon coated CoFe2O4 spherical nanoparticles is prepared by the facile hydrothermal method and tested as the possible negative electrode for supercapattery applications. The phase purity, electronic states of elements, and the presence of carbon is inferred through various sophisticated techniques. The calculated surface area of CoFe2O4 and carbon coated CoFe2O4 are found to be 9 and 26 m2 g-1, respectively. The morphological analysis confirms the formation of uniform CoFe2O4 nanospheres (∼25 nm) with a thin layer of carbon coating (∼2 nm). The amorphous carbon coating over CoFe2O4 nanosphere is identified via high-resolution transmission electron microscope. The observed peak and plateau regions in the cyclic voltammogram and galvanostatic charge/discharge curves reveals the battery-type charge storage behaviour of the material. The carbon coated CoFe2O4 delivers the maximum length capacitance of 9.9 F m-1 at 1 mV s-1 with a useful lifespan over 5000 cycles. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy reveals that the carbon-coated CoFe2O4 delivers the low charge transfer resistance than CoFe2O4. Further, the fabricated supercapattery provides the energy density of 160 × 10-8 Wh cm-1 at a power density of 67.2 µW cm-1. As well as, the device shows 93% of coulombic efficiency and 75% of the specific capacitance retention over 11,000 cycles. Overall, it is believed that the carbon-coated CoFe2O4 can serve as a good candidate for flexible supercapatteries.

Biomass-derived porous carbon modified glass fiber separator as polysulfide reservoir for Li-S batteries.

Biomass-derived porous carbon has been considered as a promising sulfur host material for lithium-sulfur batteries because of its high conductive nature and large porosity. The present study explored biomass-derived porous carbon as polysulfide reservoir to modify the surface of glass fiber (GF) separator. Two different carbons were prepared from Oak Tree fruit shells by carbonization with and without KOH activation. The KOH activated porous carbon (AC) provides a much higher surface area (796 m2 g-1) than pyrolized carbon (PC) (334 m2 g-1). The R factor value, calculated from the X-ray diffraction pattern, revealed that the activated porous carbon contains more single-layer sheets with a lower degree of graphitization. Raman spectra also confirmed the presence of sp3-hybridized carbon in the activated carbon structure. The COH functional group was identified through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy for the polysulfide capture. Simple and straightforward coating of biomass-derived porous carbon onto the GF separator led to an improved electrochemical performance in Li-S cells. The Li-S cell assembled with porous carbon modified GF separator (ACGF) demonstrated an initial capacity of 1324 mAh g-1 at 0.2 C, which was 875 mAh g-1 for uncoated GF separator (calculated based on the 2nd cycle). Charge transfer resistance (Rct) values further confirmed the high ionic conductivity nature of porous carbon modified separators. Overall, the biomass-derived activated porous carbon can be considered as a promising alternative material for the polysulfide inhibition in Li-S batteries.

Surfactant-free hydrothermal synthesis of hierarchically structured spherical CuBi2O4 as negative electrodes for Li-ion hybrid capacitors.

Hierarchically structured spherical CuBi2O4 particles were prepared using a facile hydrothermal method without using a surfactant over various hydrothermal reaction periods. The prepared CuBi2O4 samples were examined via X-ray diffraction (XRD), which confirmed the formation of a tetragonal crystal structure. The morphological features were analyzed using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), which elucidated the construction of the hierarchical microspherical CuBi2O4 particles. The plausible growth mechanism of the hierarchical structure was explained in terms of a time-dependent synthesis process and its crystal structure. The uniform hierarchical CuBi2O4 microspheres were used to fabricate a Li-ion hybrid capacitor (Li-HC) along with activated carbon (AC), the generated device delivers a stable specific capacitance of 26.5 F g(-1) over 1500 cycles at a high current density of 1000 mA g(-1) and a capacity retention of ∼86%. The AC/CB2 Li-ion hybrid cell exhibits high energy density and power density values of 24 W h kg(-1) and 300 W kg(-1), respectively.

Hydrothermal synthesis and electrochemical performances of 1.7 V NiMoO4⋠xH2O||FeMoO4 aqueous hybrid supercapacitor.

One-dimensional (1D) NiMoO4⋅xH2O nanorods and ß-FeMoO4 microrods are successfully synthesized by simple hydrothermal method without using any organic solvents. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns reveal the single phase formation of nickel molybdate (NiMoO4⋅xH2O) and pure monoclinic phase of ß-FeMoO4. The growth of one dimensional morphology of both the molybdates are identified from scanning and transmission electron microscopes (SEM and TEM). The cyclic voltammogram envisage the pseudocapacitance behavior of NiMoO4⋅xH2O and ß-FeMoO4 through the reversible redox reactions of Ni(3+)/Ni(2+) and Fe(3+)/Fe(2+) ions. An asymmetric supercapacitor is fabricated using NiMoO4⋅xH2O nanorods and ß-FeMoO4 as a positive and negative electrode, respectively. The ß-FeMoO4||NiMoO4⋅xH2O asymmetric supercapacitor delivers a capacitance of 81 F g(-1) at a current density of 1 mA cm(-2). The cell exhibits a high energy density of 29 W h kg(-1) and good cycling stability even after 1000 cycles.

The sonochemical synthesis and characterization of Cu(1-x)Ni(x)WO4 nanoparticles/nanorods and their application in electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

Cu(1-x)Ni(x)WO(4) (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0) nanoparticles/nanorods have been prepared by a novel sonochemical method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as the structure directing agent. The prepared materials have been characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), x-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and BET specific surface area. The electrocatalytic activity towards the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) has been studied for the Ni(2+)-substituted CuWO(4) nanoparticles by using linear sweep voltammogram measurements in a 1 M H(2)SO(4) solution. Cu(0.4)Ni(0.6)WO(4) (-473 mA cm(-2) at -1 V) shows a better catalytic activity than native CuWO(4) (-300 mA cm(-2) at -1 V).