Analysis of impacts of exogenous pollutant bisphenol-A penetration on soybeans roots and their biological growth.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a common chemical used in plastic production. BPA, which has the potential to be poisonous to plants, has lately emerged as a serious environmental concern owing to its extensive usage and release patterns. Prior study has only looked at how BPA affects plants up to a certain stage in their growth. The precise mechanism of toxicity, penetration of BPA, and damage to internal root tissues remains unknown. Therefore, the goal of this study was to examine the hypothesized mechanism for BPA-induced root cells by studying the effects of bisphenol A (BPA) on the ultrastructure and function of root tip cells of soybean plants. We looked at plant changes in root cell tissues after BPA exposure. Further, the biological characteristics that responded to BPA stress were investigated, and the accumulation of BPA in the root, stem, and leaf of the soybean plant was systematically investigated by using FTIR and SEM analysis. The uptake of BPA is a key internal factor that contributes to changes in biological characteristics. Our findings provide insight into how BPA could alter plant root growth, which might contribute new knowledge toward a better scientific appraisal of the possible dangers of BPA exposure for plants.

Atomic layer encapsulation of ferrocene into zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 for efficient arsenic removal from aqueous solutions.

Arsenic (As(V))-contaminated water is a major global threat to human health and the ecosystem because of its enormous toxicity, carcinogenicity, and high distribution in water streams. Thus, As(V) removal in the environmental samples has received considerable attention. Till now, numerous metal-organic framework materials have been used for the As(V) removal from the aqueous medium, but low As(V) removal and instability of the adsorbents have severely cut off their practical applications. In this study, a ferrocene-encapsulated zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (Fc-ZIF-67) material was synthesized for As(V) removal from an aqueous solution at neutral pH using a simple solution mixing process. The ferrocene encapsulation provides water-stable and structural defects to ZIF-67. Furthermore, the ferrocene molecule and imidazole linker can enhance As(V) adsorption via both chemisorption and physisorption. The novel Fc-ZIF-67 adsorbent exhibited superior As(V) adsorption performance with an adsorption capacity of 63.29 mg/g at neutral pH. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models were also used to analyze adsorption behavior.

Sustainable generation of homogeneous Fe(VI) oxidant for the room temperature removal of gaseous N2O by electro-scrubbing process.

A high valent Fe(VI) homogenous catalyst was synthesized following electrochemical route for the efficient removal of a greenhouse gas (N2O) by mediated electro catalytic oxidation (MEO) in an electro-scrubbing process. This paper describes the room temperature degradation of N2O using a consistently generable hexavalent Fe(VI) homogenous catalyst. The ferrate (VI) was electrochemically generated by employing a membrane divided cell, and quantified by monitoring the changes in the ORP (oxidation/reduction potential) along with a potentiometric titration by the chromite method using chromium Cr(III) as a titrant. In addition, the formation of ferrate (VI) was confirmed through UV-visible spectroscopy study results. The change in the ORP values from 360 mV to 253 mV and the change in concentration of electrogenerated Fe(VI) from (4 mM) to (2.9 mM) during N2O removal confirmed that N2O removal followed a mediated electrocatalytic oxidation (MEO) process. An online FTIR gas analyzer study results revealed approximately 90% degradation efficiency of N2O during the MEO process in a gas mixture containing 5 ppm N2O at a 0.2 L min-1 gas flow rate at ambient temperature. The energy efficiency for N2O removal using the Fe(VI) mediator resulted in ten times higher (0.0021 g kWh-1) than the existing MER (0.00063 g kWh-1) process. The possible consistent generation of a homogenous electrocatalyst and its degradation of greenhouse gases at ambient temperature process can be explored to a more practical level.

Cobalt-modified 2D porous organic polymer for highly efficient electrocatalytic removal of toxic urea and nitrophenol.

The urea oxidation reaction (UOR) and nitrophenol reduction are safe and key limiting reactions for sustainable energy conversion and storage. Urea and nitrophenol are abundant in industrial and agricultural wastes, human wastewater, and in the environment. Catalytic oxidative and reductive removal is the most effective process to remove urea and 4-nitrophenol from the environment, necessary to protect human health. 2D carbon-supported, cobalt nanoparticle-based materials are emerging catalysts for nitrophenol reduction and as an anode material for the UOR. In this work, cobalt modified on a porous organic polymer (CoPOP) was synthesized and carbonized at 400 and 600 °C. The formation of CoPOP was confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy, the 2D graphitic layer and amorphous carbon with cobalt metal by TEM, SEM, and PXRD, and the elemental composition by TEM mapping, EDX, and XPS. The catalytic activity for the 4-nitrophenol reduction was studied and the related electrocatalytic UOR was scientifically evaluated. The catalytic activity toward the reduction of 4-NP to 4-AP was tested with the addition of NaBH4; CoPOP-3 exhibited enhanced activity at a rate of 0.069 min-1. Furthermore, LSV investigated the catalytic activity of materials toward UOR, producing hydrogen gas, the products of which were analyzed via gas chromatography. Among the electrocatalysts studied, CoPOP-2 exhibited a lower onset potential, and the Tafel slope was 1.34 V and 80 mV dec-1. This study demonstrates that cobalt metal-doped porous organic polymers can be used as efficient catalysts to remove urea and nitrophenol from wastewater.