Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 79 in total

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  1. Perumal V, Hashim U, Gopinath SC, Haarindraprasad R, Liu WW, Poopalan P, et al.
    PLoS One, 2015;10(12):e0144964.
    PMID: 26694656 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0144964
    The creation of an appropriate thin film is important for the development of novel sensing surfaces, which will ultimately enhance the properties and output of high-performance sensors. In this study, we have fabricated and characterized zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films on silicon substrates, which were hybridized with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to obtain ZnO-Aux (x = 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 nm) hybrid structures with different thicknesses. Nanoscale imaging by field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed increasing film uniformity and coverage with the Au deposition thickness. Transmission electron microscopy analysis indicated that the AuNPs exhibit an increasing average diameter (5-10 nm). The face center cubic Au were found to co-exist with wurtzite ZnO nanostructure. Atomic force microscopy observations revealed that as the Au content increased, the overall crystallite size increased, which was supported by X-ray diffraction measurements. The structural characterizations indicated that the Au on the ZnO crystal lattice exists without any impurities in a preferred orientation (002). When the ZnO thickness increased from 10 to 40 nm, transmittance and an optical bandgap value decreased. Interestingly, with 50 nm thickness, the band gap value was increased, which might be due to the Burstein-Moss effect. Photoluminescence studies revealed that the overall structural defect (green emission) improved significantly as the Au deposition increased. The impedance measurements shows a decreasing value of impedance arc with increasing Au thicknesses (0 to 40 nm). In contrast, the 50 nm AuNP impedance arc shows an increased value compared to lower sputtering thicknesses, which indicated the presence of larger sized AuNPs that form a continuous film, and its ohmic characteristics changed to rectifying characteristics. This improved hybrid thin film (ZnO/Au) is suitable for a wide range of sensing applications.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  2. Lee KM, Lai CW, Ngai KS, Juan JC
    Water Res, 2016 Jan 01;88:428-448.
    PMID: 26519627 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2015.09.045
    Today, a major issue about water pollution is the residual dyes from different sources (e.g., textile industries, paper and pulp industries, dye and dye intermediates industries, pharmaceutical industries, tannery and craft bleaching industries, etc.), and a wide variety of persistent organic pollutants have been introduced into our natural water resources or wastewater treatment systems. In fact, it is highly toxic and hazardous to the living organism; thus, the removal of these organic contaminants prior to discharge into the environment is essential. Varieties of techniques have been employed to degrade those organic contaminants and advanced heterogeneous photocatalysis involving zinc oxide (ZnO) photocatalyst appears to be one of the most promising technology. In recent years, ZnO photocatalyst have attracted much attention due to their extraordinary characteristics. The high efficiency of ZnO photocatalyst in heterogeneous photocatalysis reaction requires a suitable architecture that minimizes electron loss during excitation state and maximizes photon absorption. In order to further improve the immigration of photo-induced charge carriers during excitation state, considerable effort has to be exerted to further improve the heterogeneous photocatalysis under UV/visible/solar illumination. Lately, interesting and unique features of metal doping or binary oxide photocatalyst system have gained much attention and became favourite research matter among various groups of scientists. It was noted that the properties of this metal doping or binary oxide photocatalyst system primarily depend on the nature of the preparation method and the role of optimum dopants content incorporated into the ZnO photocatalyst. Therefore, this paper presents a critical review of recent achievements in the modification of ZnO photocatalyst for organic contaminants degradation.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  3. Perumal V, Hashim U, Gopinath SC, Haarindraprasad R, Foo KL, Balakrishnan SR, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2015 Jul 16;5:12231.
    PMID: 26178973 DOI: 10.1038/srep12231
    Hybrid gold nanostructures seeded into nanotextured zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoflowers (NFs) were created for novel biosensing applications. The selected 'spotted NFs' had a 30-nm-thick gold nanoparticle (AuNP) layer, chosen from a range of AuNP thicknesses, sputtered onto the surface. The generated nanohybrids, characterized by morphological, physical and structural analyses, were uniformly AuNP-seeded onto the ZnO NFs with an average length of 2-3 μm. Selective capture of molecular probes onto the seeded AuNPs was evidence for the specific interaction with DNA from pathogenic Leptospirosis-causing strains via hybridization and mis-match analyses. The attained detection limit was 100 fM as determined via impedance spectroscopy. High levels of stability, reproducibility and regeneration of the sensor were obtained. Selective DNA immobilization and hybridization were confirmed by nitrogen and phosphorus peaks in an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The created nanostructure hybrids illuminate the mechanism of generating multiple-target, high-performance detection on a single NF platform, which opens a new avenue for array-based medical diagnostics.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  4. Azizi S, Mahdavi Shahri M, Mohamad R
    Molecules, 2017 Jun 08;22(6).
    PMID: 28594362 DOI: 10.3390/molecules22060831
    In the present study, ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized in zerumbone solution by a green approach and appraised for their ability to absorb Pb(II) ions from aqueous solution. The formation of as-synthesized NPs was established by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and UV-visible studies. The XRD and TEM analyses revealed high purity and wurtzite hexagonal structure of ZnO NPs with a mean size of 10.01 ± 2.6 nm. Batch experiments were performed to investigate the impact of process parameters viz. Pb(II) concentration, pH of solution, adsorbent mass, solution temperature, and contact time variations on the removal efficiency of Pb(II). The adsorption isotherm data provided that the adsorption process was mainly monolayer on ZnO NPs. The adsorption process follows pseudo-second-order reaction kinetic. The maximum removal efficiencies were 93% at pH 5. Thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy change (ΔH⁰), free energy change (ΔG⁰), and entropy change (ΔS⁰) were calculated; the adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. The good efficiency of the as-synthesized NPs makes them attractive for applications in water treatment, for removal of heavy metals from aqueous system.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  5. Tu Y, Ahmad N, Briscoe J, Zhang DW, Krause S
    Anal Chem, 2018 07 17;90(14):8708-8715.
    PMID: 29932632 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.8b02244
    Light-addressable potentiometric sensors (LAPS) are of great interest in bioimaging applications such as the monitoring of concentrations in microfluidic channels or the investigation of metabolic and signaling events in living cells. By measuring the photocurrents at electrolyte-insulator-semiconductor (EIS) and electrolyte-semiconductor structures, LAPS can produce spatiotemporal images of chemical or biological analytes, electrical potentials and impedance. However, its commercial applications are often restricted by their limited AC photocurrents and resolution of LAPS images. Herein, for the first time, the use of 1D semiconducting oxides in the form of ZnO nanorods for LAPS imaging is explored to solve this issue. A significantly increased AC photocurrent with enhanced image resolution has been achieved based on ZnO nanorods, with a photocurrent of 45.7 ± 0.1 nA at a light intensity of 0.05 mW, a lateral resolution as low as 3.0 μm as demonstrated by images of a PMMA dot on ZnO nanorods and a pH sensitivity of 53 mV/pH. The suitability of the device for bioanalysis and bioimaging was demonstrated by monitoring the degradation of a thin poly(ester amide) film with the enzyme α-chymotrypsin using LAPS. This simple and robust route to fabricate LAPS substrates with excellent performance would provide tremendous opportunities for bioimaging.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  6. Ridhuan NS, Abdul Razak K, Lockman Z
    Sci Rep, 2018 09 13;8(1):13722.
    PMID: 30213995 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-32127-5
    Highly oriented ZnO nanorod (NR) arrays were fabricated on a seeded substrate through a hydrothermal route. The prepared ZnO nanorods were used as an amperometric enzyme electrode, in which glucose oxidase (GOx) was immobilised through physical adsorption. The modified electrode was designated as Nafion/GOx/ZnO NRs/ITO. The morphology and structural properties of the fabricated ZnO nanorods were analysed using field-emission scanning electron microscope and X-ray diffractometer. The electrochemical properties of the fabricated biosensor were studied by cyclic voltammetry and amperometry. Electrolyte pH, electrolyte temperature and enzyme concentration used for immobilisation were the examined parameters influencing enzyme activity and biosensor performance. The immobilised enzyme electrode showed good GOx retention activity. The amount of electroactive GOx was 7.82 × 10-8 mol/cm2, which was relatively higher than previously reported values. The Nafion/GOx/ZnO NRs/ITO electrode also displayed a linear response to glucose ranging from 0.05 mM to 1 mM, with a sensitivity of 48.75 µA/mM and a low Michaelis-Menten constant of 0.34 mM. Thus, the modified electrode can be used as a highly sensitive third-generation glucose biosensor with high resistance against interfering species, such as ascorbic acid, uric acid and L-cysteine. The applicability of the modified electrode was tested using human blood samples. Results were comparable with those obtained using a standard glucometer, indicating the excellent performance of the modified electrode.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  7. Jafarzadeh S, Rhim JW, Alias AK, Ariffin F, Mahmud S
    J Sci Food Agric, 2019 Apr;99(6):2716-2725.
    PMID: 30350410 DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.9439
    BACKGROUND: Active food packaging films with improved properties and strong antimicrobial activity were prepared by blending mixed nanomaterials with different ratio [1:4 (40 mg:160 mg), 3:2 (120 mg: 80 mg), 0:5 (0 mg: 200 mg) and 5:0 (200 mg:0 mg)] of ZnO and kaolin with semolina using a solvent casting method and used for the packaging of low moisture mozzarella cheese to test the effect of packaging on the quality change of the cheese for long-term (up to 72 days) refrigerated storage.

    RESULTS: Compared with the neat semolina film, mechanical strength (TS) of the nanocomposite films increased significantly (increase in 21-65%) and water vapor barrier (WVP) and O2 gas barrier (OP) properties decreased significantly (decrease in 43-50% and 60-65%, respectively) depending on the blending ratio of ZnO and kaolin nanoclay. The nanocomposite films also exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against bacteria (E. coli and S. aureus), yeast (C. albicans), and mold (A. niger). The nanocomposite packaging films were effectively prevented the growth of microorganisms (coliforms, total microbial, and fungi) of the cheese during storage at low-temperature and showed microbial growth of less than 2.5 log CFU/g after 72 days of storage compared to the control group, and the quality of the packaged cheese was still acceptable.

    CONCLUSION: The semolina-based nanocomposite films, especially Sem/Z3 K2 film, were effective for packaging of low moisture mozzarella cheese to maintain the physicochemical properties (pH, moisture, and fat content) and quality (color, taste, texture, and overall acceptability) of the cheese as well as preventing microbial growth (coliforms, total microbial, and fungi). © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry
  8. Jahan S, Alias YB, Bakar AFBA, Yusoff IB
    J Environ Sci (China), 2018 Oct;72:140-152.
    PMID: 30244741 DOI: 10.1016/j.jes.2017.12.022
    The toxicity and kinetic uptake potential of zinc oxide (ZnO) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanomaterials into the red bean (Vigna angularis) plant were investigated. The results obtained revealed that ZnO, due to its high dissolution and strong binding capacity, readily accumulated in the root tissues and significantly inhibited the physiological activity of the plant. However, TiO2 had a positive effect on plant physiology, resulting in promoted growth. The results of biochemical experiments implied that ZnO, through the generation of oxidative stress, significantly reduced the chlorophyll content, carotenoids and activity of stress-controlling enzymes. On the contrary, no negative biochemical impact was observed in plants treated with TiO2. For the kinetic uptake and transport study, we designed two exposure systems in which ZnO and TiO2 were exposed to red bean seedlings individually or in a mixture approach. The results showed that in single metal oxide treatments, the uptake and transport increased with increasing exposure period from one week to three weeks. However, in the metal oxide co-exposure treatment, due to complexation and competition among the particles, the uptake and transport were remarkably decreased. This suggested that the kinetic transport pattern of the metal oxide mixtures varied compared to those of its individual constituents.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry
  9. Nordin N, Ho LN, Ong SA, Ibrahim AH, Lee SL, Ong YP
    Chemosphere, 2019 Jan;214:614-622.
    PMID: 30292044 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2018.09.144
    The hybrid system of photocatalytic fuel cell - peroxi-coagulation (PFC-PC) is a sustainable and green technology to degrade organic pollutants and generate electricity simultaneously. In this study, three different types of photocatalysts: TiO2, ZnO and α-Fe2O3 were immobilized respectively on carbon cloth (CC), and applied as photoanodes in the photocatalytic fuel cell of this hybrid system. Photocatalytic fuel cell was employed to drive a peroxi-coagulation process by generating the external voltage accompanying with degrading organic pollutants under UV light irradiation. The degradation efficiency of Amaranth dye and power output in the hybrid system of PFC-PC were evaluated by applying different photoanode materials fabricated in this study. In addition, the effect of light on the photocurrent of three different photoanode materials was investigated. In the absence of light, the reduction of photocurrent percentage was found to be 69.7%, 17.3% and 93.2% in TiO2/CC, ZnO/CC and α-Fe2O3/CC photoanodes, respectively. A maximum power density (1.17 mWcm-2) and degradation of dye (93.8%) at PFC reactor were achieved by using ZnO/CC as photoanode. However, the different photoanode materials at PFC showed insignificant difference in dye degradation trend in the PC reactor. Meanwhile, the degradation trend of Amaranth at PFC reactor was influenced by the recombination rate, electron mobility and band gap energy of photocatalyst among different photoanode materials.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  10. Aljuboury DA, Palaniandy P, Abdul Aziz HB, Feroz S, Abu Amr SS
    Water Sci Technol, 2016 Sep;74(6):1312-1325.
    PMID: 27685961
    The aim of this study is to investigate the performance of combined solar photo-catalyst of titanium oxide/zinc oxide (TiO2/ZnO) with aeration processes to treat petroleum wastewater. Central composite design with response surface methodology was used to evaluate the relationships between operating variables for TiO2 dosage, ZnO dosage, air flow, pH, and reaction time to identify the optimum operating conditions. Quadratic models for chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC) removals prove to be significant with low probabilities (<0.0001). The obtained optimum conditions included a reaction time of 170 min, TiO2 dosage (0.5 g/L), ZnO dosage (0.54 g/L), air flow (4.3 L/min), and pH 6.8 COD and TOC removal rates of 99% and 74%, respectively. The TOC and COD removal rates correspond well with the predicted models. The maximum removal rate for TOC and COD was 99.3% and 76%, respectively at optimum operational conditions of TiO2 dosage (0.5 g/L), ZnO dosage (0.54 g/L), air flow (4.3 L/min), reaction time (170 min) and pH (6.8). The new treatment process achieved higher degradation efficiencies for TOC and COD and reduced the treatment time comparing with other related processes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  11. Ng KH, Cheng YW, Khan MR, Cheng CK
    J Environ Manage, 2016 Dec 15;184(Pt 3):487-493.
    PMID: 27784576 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2016.10.034
    This paper reports on the optimization of palm oil mill effluent (POME) degradation in a UV-activated-ZnO system based on central composite design (CCD) in response surface methodology (RSM). Three potential factors, viz. O2 flowrate (A), ZnO loading (B) and initial concentration of POME (C) were evaluated for the significance analysis using a 2(3) full factorial design before the optimization process. It is found that all the three main factors were significant, with contributions of 58.27% (A), 15.96% (B) and 13.85% (C), respectively, to the POME degradation. In addition, the interactions between the factors AB, AC and BC also have contributed 4.02%, 3.12% and 1.01% to the POME degradation. Subsequently, all the three factors were subjected to statistical central composite design (CCD) analysis. Quadratic models were developed and rigorously checked. A 3D-response surface was subsequently generated. Two successive validation experiments were carried out and the degradation achieved were 55.25 and 55.33%, contrasted with 52.45% for predicted degradation value.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  12. Moghaddam AB, Moniri M, Azizi S, Rahim RA, Ariff AB, Saad WZ, et al.
    Molecules, 2017 May 24;22(6).
    PMID: 28538674 DOI: 10.3390/molecules22060872
    The potential ability of a new yeast strain, Pichia kudriavzevii, in the synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) through a green method was explored in this study. The effect of reaction time (12, 24 and 36 h) on the structure of the resulting ZnO nanoparticles was investigated. From the XRD and TEM results, the ZnO-NPs with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and a particle crystal size of ~10-61 nm was formed at different reaction times. Combing XRD, TEM, and PL results, it was revealed that the sample prepared at intermediate duration (24 h) has the most favorable nanosized structure with the lowest defect concentration. The biomedical properties of ZnO-NPs as free radical scavenging activity, cytotoxicity and antibacterial agents were characterized. Biosynthesized ZnO-NPs showed strong DPPH free radical scavenging and a dose dependent toxicity with non-toxic effects on Vero cells for concentrations below 190 µg/mL. Desirable bactericidal activity was shown by the ZnO-NPs on Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aurous) and Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Serratia marcescens). A maximum inhibition zone of ~19 mm was observed for Staphylococcus epidermidis at a concentration of 100 µg/mL for sample prepared at 24 h. The results from this study reveal that ZnO-NPs possesses potential for many medical and industrial applications.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  13. Rahmat F, Fen YW, Anuar MF, Omar NAS, Zaid MHM, Matori KA, et al.
    Molecules, 2021 Feb 18;26(4).
    PMID: 33670482 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26041061
    In this paper, the structural and optical properties of ZnO-SiO2-based ceramics fabricated from oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) were investigated. The OPEFB waste was burned at 600, 700 and 800 °C to form palm ash and was then treated with sulfuric acid to extract silica from the ash. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses confirmed the existence of SiO2 in the sample. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) showed that the particles displayed an irregular shape and became finer after leaching. Then, the solid-state method was used to produce the ZnO-SiO2 composite and the samples were sintered at 600, 800, 1000, 1200 and 1400 °C. The XRD peaks of the Zn2SiO4 showed high intensity, which indicated high crystallinity of the composite. FESEM images proved that the grain boundaries were larger as the temperature increased. Upon obtaining the absorbance spectrum from ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, the energy band gaps obtained were 3.192, 3.202 and 3.214 eV at room temperature, 600 and 800 °C, respectively, and decreased to 3.127, 2.854 and 2.609 eV at 1000, 1200 and 1400 °C, respectively. OPEFB shows high potential as a silica source in producing promising optical materials.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry
  14. Talari MK, Abdul Majeed AB, Tripathi DK, Tripathy M
    Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo), 2012;60(7):818-24.
    PMID: 22790812
    The application of nanomaterials has gained considerable momentum in various fields in recent years due to their high reactivity, excellent surface properties and quantum effects in the nanometer range. The properties of zinc oxide (ZnO) vary with its crystallite size or particle size and often nanocrystalline ZnO is seen to exhibit superior physical and chemical properties due to their higher surface area and modified electronic structure. ZnO nanoparticles are reported to exhibit strong bacterial inhibiting activity and silver (Ag) has been extensively used for its antimicrobial properties since ages. In this study, Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by mechanochemical processing in a high energy ball mill and investigated for antimicrobial activity. The nanocrystalline nature of zinc oxide was established by X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies. It is seen from the XRD data obtained from the samples, that crystallite size of the zinc oxide nanoparticles is seen to decrease with increasing Ag addition. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) data also supported the nanoparticle formation during the synthesis. The doped nanoparticles were subjected to antimicrobial investigation and found that both increase in Ag content and decrease in particle size contributed significantly towards antimicrobial efficiency. It was also observed that Ag doped ZnO nanoparticles possess enhanced antimicrobial potential than that of virgin ZnO against the studied microorganisms of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  15. Abdollahi Y, Abdullah AH, Gaya UI, Zainal Z, Yusof NA
    Environ Technol, 2012 Jun;33(10-12):1183-9.
    PMID: 22856288
    The effective removal of o-cresol is currently both an environmental and economic challenge. ZnO is not only an efficient photocatalyst but is also cost effective, as its photoabsorption can extend from the ultraviolet (UV) to the visible range thereby allowing the use of inexpensive visible light sources, such as sunlight. The principal objective of the present work is to investigate the visible light-driven removal of o-cresol from aqueous solution in the presence of 1.0 wt% Mn-doped ZnO. To measure the efficiency ofphotodegradation, the variables studied included the amount ofphotocatalyst, concentration of o-cresol, pH and irradiation time. The concentration ofo-cresol and residual organic carbon was monitored using a UV-visible spectrophotometer, ultra high-pressure liquid chromatography and a total organic carbon analyser. The optimum conditions under which the photodegradation of o-cresol was most favourable corresponded to 1.5 g/l ZnO, 35 ppm o-cresol and pH 9. The ZnO-1 wt% Mn photoprocess has demonstrated reusability for more than three times, which warrants its scale-up from laboratory- to in industrial-scale application.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry
  16. Yeow ST, Shahar A, Abdul Aziz N, Anuar MS, Yusof YA, Taip FS
    Drug Des Devel Ther, 2011;5:465-9.
    PMID: 22162640 DOI: 10.2147/DDDT.S25047
    To investigate the effect of feed preparation characteristics and operational parameters on mixing homogeneity in a convective batch ribbon mixer.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry
  17. Abdullah WR, Zakaria A, Ghazali MS
    Int J Mol Sci, 2012;13(4):5278-89.
    PMID: 22606043 DOI: 10.3390/ijms13045278
    High demands on low-voltage electronics have increased the need for zinc oxide (ZnO) varistors with fast response, highly non-linear current-voltage characteristics and energy absorption capabilities at low breakdown voltage. However, trade-off between breakdown voltage and grain size poses a critical bottle-neck in the production of low-voltage varistors. The present study highlights the synthesis mechanism for obtaining praseodymium oxide (Pr(6)O(11)) based ZnO varistor ceramics having breakdown voltages of 2.8 to 13.3 V/mm through employment of direct modified citrate gel coating technique. Precursor powder and its ceramics were examined by means of TG/DTG, FTIR, XRD and FESEM analyses. The electrical properties as a function of Pr(6)O(11) addition were analyzed on the basis of I-V characteristic measurement. The breakdown voltage could be adjusted from 0.01 to 0.06 V per grain boundary by controlling the amount of Pr(6)O(11) from 0.2 to 0.8 mol%, without alteration of the grain size. The non-linearity coefficient, α, varied from 3.0 to 3.5 and the barrier height ranged from 0.56 to 0.64 eV. Breakdown voltage and α lowering with increasing Pr(6)O(11) content were associated to reduction in the barrier height caused by variation in O vacancies at grain boundary.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  18. Abdollahi Y, Abdullah AH, Zainal Z, Yusof NA
    Int J Mol Sci, 2012;13(1):302-15.
    PMID: 22312253 DOI: 10.3390/ijms13010302
    Photocatalytic degradation of p-cresol was carried out using ZnO under UV irradiation. The amount of photocatalyst, concentration of p-cresol and pH were studied as variables. The residual concentration and mineralization of p-cresol was monitored using a UV-visible spectrophotometer and total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer, respectively. The intermediates were detected by ultra high pressure liquid chromatography (UPLC). The highest photodegradation of p-cresol was observed at 2.5 g/L of ZnO and 100 ppm of p-cresol. P-cresol photocatalytic degradation was favorable in the pH range of 6-9. The detected intermediates were 4-hydroxy-benzaldehyde and 4-methyl-1,2-benzodiol. TOC studies show that 93% of total organic carbon was removed from solution during irradiation time. Reusability shows no significant reduction in photocatalytic performance in photodegrading p-cresol.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  19. Tharsika T, Haseeb AS, Akbar SA, Sabri MF, Hoong WY
    Sensors (Basel), 2014;14(8):14586-600.
    PMID: 25116903 DOI: 10.3390/s140814586
    An inexpensive single-step carbon-assisted thermal evaporation method for the growth of SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures is described, and the ethanol sensing properties are presented. The structure and phases of the grown nanostructures are investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. XRD analysis indicates that the core-shell nanostructures have good crystallinity. At a lower growth duration of 15 min, only SnO2 nanowires with a rectangular cross-section are observed, while the ZnO shell is observed when the growth time is increased to 30 min. Core-shell hierarchical nanostructures are present for a growth time exceeding 60 min. The growth mechanism for SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanowires and hierarchical nanostructures are also discussed. The sensitivity of the synthesized SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures towards ethanol sensing is investigated. Results show that the SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures deposited at 90 min exhibit enhanced sensitivity to ethanol. The sensitivity of SnO2-core/ZnO-shell nanostructures towards 20 ppm ethanol gas at 400 °C is about ~5-times that of SnO2 nanowires. This improvement in ethanol gas response is attributed to high active sensing sites and the synergistic effect of the encapsulation of SnO2 by ZnO nanostructures.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
  20. Al-Hada NM, Saion EB, Shaari AH, Kamarudin MA, Flaifel MH, Ahmad SH, et al.
    PLoS One, 2014;9(8):e103134.
    PMID: 25093752 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0103134
    A facile thermal-treatment route was successfully used to synthesize ZnO nanosheets. Morphological, structural, and optical properties of obtained nanoparticles at different calcination temperatures were studied using various techniques. The FTIR, XRD, EDX, SEM and TEM images confirmed the formation of ZnO nanosheets through calcination in the temperature between 500 to 650 °C. The SEM images showed a morphological structure of ZnO nanosheets, which inclined to crumble at higher calcination temperatures. The XRD and FTIR spectra revealed that the samples were amorphous at 30 °C but transformed into a crystalline structure during calcination process. The average particle size and degree of crystallinity increased with increasing calcination temperature. The estimated average particle sizes from TEM images were about 23 and 38 nm for the lowest and highest calcination temperature i.e. 500 and 650 °C, respectively. The optical properties were determined by UV-Vis reflection spectrophotometer and showed a decrease in the band gap with increasing calcination temperature.
    Matched MeSH terms: Zinc Oxide/chemistry*
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