Catalytic degradation of toxic organic dye using an aluminum-doped Cu0.4Zn0.6-xAlxFe2O4 (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6) spinel ferrite in a photo-Fenton system

Catalytic activity of spinel ferrite in breaking down toxic dye materials are promising due to their uniqueness. In this study, aluminum-doped copper zinc ferrite, Cu_0.4Zn_0.6-xAl_xFe₂O₄ (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6), a catalyst for toxic dye degradation is synthesized through chemical co-precipitation route. The formation of the spinel ferrite catalyst is initially confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectra, which shows the frequency of metal-oxygen bond vibration at 539 and 427 cm⁻¹ attributed to the tetrahedral and octahedral sites respectively. Higher intensity sharp peak of X-ray diffraction for (311) plane is the evidence for the phase purity and the formation of spinel ferrite. The crystallite size is found to decrease with the increase of Al³⁺ ion. The surface structure of the obtained particles is investigated using a scanning electron microscope. Analyses of the material's magnetic characteristics using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) revealed that it is, in fact, a soft magnet, as evidenced by the loop of its hysteresis, which is narrow. The catalytic degradation of methylene blue dye under the mechanism of the photo-Fenton process is studied with the obtained spinel ferrites and the result is found to be as high as 96.5%. The process follows pseudo-second order kinetics and the Langmuir isotherm.     

Ecofriendly Zinc Oxide-Decorated Poly-3-hydroxyalkanoate—graft—Poly-Methyl Acrylate Copolymer Film for Photocatalysis-Mediated Water Treatment

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - The application of microbiologically produced polymer, i.e., medium-chain-length poly-3-hydroxyalkanoate (mcl-PHA), in environmental remediation technology...     

Carbon nanotubes from waste cooking palm oil as adsorbent materials for the adsorption of heavy metal ions

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In this work, waste cooking palm oil (WCPO)-based carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with encapsulated iron (Fe) nanoparticles have been successfully produced...     

Sandstones of unexpectedly high diffusibility

Measurements have been made of diffusion coefficients (D(i)=-mass flux/concentration gradient) using a double reservoir, steady-state method with two tracers, CaBr(2) and amino-G-acid, on intact samples of Triassic red-bed sandstone from northwest England. Diffusibility (D'=D(i)/diffusion coefficient in water) averages 0.124, ranging between 0.075 and 0.215 (porosity 0.1 to 0.24), very similar for the two tracers. Implied tortuosities (actual path length/straight line length) average 1.21 (range 1.06 to 1.47), with constrictivities close to 1. In comparison with limited red-bed sandstone data from elsewhere, these D' values are up to 4 times greater, and tortuosity correspondingly lower. Re-interpretation of formation factor data from previous studies on shallow sandstone samples also from northwest England confirms that diffusibility is significantly higher in these sandstones than others from similar palaeoenvironment/stratigraphic units. The lower tortuosities appear to result from the relatively high permeability, open fabric of the rock, properties likely to be present in shallow sandstone systems used for water supply. It is concluded that diffusion rates may, in some shallow freshwater-containing continental sandstone systems, be significantly greater than is implied by estimates of sandstone diffusibility current in the literature.     

Use of Membrane Collectors in Electrostatic Precipitators

ABSTRACT

Membrane collection surfaces, developed and patented by researchers at Ohio University, were used to replace steel plates in a dry electrostatic precipitator (ESP). Such replacement facilitates tension-based rapping, which shears the adhered particle layer from the collector surface more effectively than hammer-based rapping. Tests were performed to measure the collection efficiency of the membranes and to quantify the potential improvements of this novel cleaning technique with respect to re-entrainment. Results indicate that even semiconductor materials (e.g., carbon fibers) collect ash nearly as efficiently as steel plates, potentially indicating that collection surface resistivity is primarily dictated by the accumulated ash layer and not by the underlying plate conductivity. In addition, virtually all sheared particles separated from the collecting membranes fell within the boundary layer of the membrane, indicating extremely low potential for re-entrainment.     

Electrochemical and optical sensors made of composites of metal–organic frameworks and carbon-based materials. A review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Rapid and selective sensing of biological substances and pollutants is developing rapidly in medicine and environmental sciences. Sensing performance depends on...