Performance of natural-dye-sensitized solar cells by ZnO nanorod and nanowall enhanced photoelectrodes

• Saif Saadaoui,
• Mohamed Aziz Ben Youssef,
• Moufida Ben Karoui,
• Rached Gharbi,
• Emanuele Smecca,
• Vincenzina Strano,
• Salvo Mirabella,
• Alessandra Alberti and
• Rosaria A. Puglisi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 287–295, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.31

• images show the formation of a thin layer between the NRs. This layering effect may be due to a reaction between the ZnO nanoparticles and the solvent in the dye solution. From these images, we notice that the number of individual hexagonal NRs is reduced and their shapes are no longer visible. This

• explained by the fact that when increasing the annealing temperature, the stability of the ZnO nanoparticles was considerably affected, which resulted in higher reaction with the dye solution. However, the DSSC assembled without an annealed photoanode side gave a slightly higher short circuit current and

Performance of colloidal CdS sensitized solar cells with ZnO nanorods/nanoparticles

• Anurag Roy,
• Partha Pratim Das,
• Mukta Tathavadekar,
• Sumita Das and
• Parukuttyamma Sujatha Devi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 210–221, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.23

• , nanoparticles lead to higher surface area than 1D nanorods which can sensitize more CdS at a particular time. In this study, we have used synthesized ZnO-based photoanodes exhibiting two different morphologies: ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO-P) and nanorods (ZnO-R) for fabricating QDSSCs. We evaluated their respective

• . ZnO nanoparticles and nanorods were synthesized by a solution-growth process, the details of which are reported elsewhere [31][32]. Fabrication of CdS-NP-sensitized ZnO-based films ZnO nanoparticle (ZnO-P) and nanorod (ZnO-R) films were fabricated by the doctor blade method on FTO glass (7 Ω/cm2) and

• of the synthesized colloidal CdS NPs. The photovoltaic performance has been monitored for the QDSSCs using ZnO nanoparticles, ZnO nanorods and a ZnO nanoparticle/nanorod mixture as photoanode materials and the synthesized CdS NPs as sensitizer. A maximum efficiency of 1.06% has been achieved in case

Organoclay hybrid materials as precursors of porous ZnO/silica-clay heterostructures for photocatalytic applications

• Marwa Akkari,
• Pilar Aranda,
• Abdessalem Ben Haj Amara and
• Eduardo Ruiz-Hitzky

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1971–1982, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.188

• first step, intermediate silica–organoclay hybrid heterostructures were prepared following a colloidal route based on the controlled hydrolysis of tetramethoxysilane in the presence of the starting organoclay. Later on, pre-formed ZnO nanoparticles (NP) dispersed in 2-propanol were incorporated under

• ultrasound irradiation to the silica–organoclay hybrid heterostructures dispersed in 2-propanol, and finally, the resulting solids were calcinated to eliminate the organic matter and to produce ZnO nanoparticles (NP) homogeneously assembled to the clay–SiO2 framework. In the case of montmorillonite the

• water solution was tested using methylene blue and ibuprofen compounds, respectively, as model of pollutants. Keywords: delamination; montmorillonite; organoclays; photocatalysis; porous clay heterostructures; sepiolite; ZnO nanoparticles; Introduction In the last decades, great effort has been

Role of RGO support and irradiation source on the photocatalytic activity of CdS–ZnO semiconductor nanostructures

• Suneel Kumar,
• Rahul Sharma,
• Vipul Sharma,
• Gurunarayanan Harith,
• Vaidyanathan Sivakumar and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1684–1697, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.161

• degradation of organic pollutants [32][33][34][35]. In one of our recent works [34], we have reported the synergistic effect of MoS2–RGO support to improve the photocatalytic performance of ZnO nanoparticles. However, the role played by RGO support in enhancing the photocatalytic performance of the

Nanostructured germanium deposited on heated substrates with enhanced photoelectric properties

• Ionel Stavarache,
• Valentin Adrian Maraloiu,
• Petronela Prepelita and
• Gheorghe Iordache

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1492–1500, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.142

• dark current and dark current density, respectively. The detectivity (D*) value is estimated in the range of 1015 Jones at about 1040 nm, which is comparable with that of ZnO nanoparticles-based photodetectors (D* ≈ 3.4 × 1015 Jones at 360 nm) [47]. The broad wavelength range (from about 450 to 1300 nm

A composite structure based on reduced graphene oxide and metal oxide nanomaterials for chemical sensors

• Vardan Galstyan,
• Elisabetta Comini,
• Iskandar Kholmanov,
• Andrea Ponzoni,
• Veronica Sberveglieri,
• Nicola Poli,
• Guido Faglia and
• Giorgio Sberveglieri

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1421–1427, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.133

• attributed to the silicon substrate. The morphology of the obtained hybrid material at different magnifications is shown in Figure 2. The ZnO nanoparticles have an average diameter of ca. 20 nm and form a porous structure of chain-like agglomerates [24]. As can be seen in the images GO platelets decorate the

• ZnO nanoparticles. Figure 3 reports the EDX spectrum and the quantitative analysis of the prepared structure. The morphological and the compositional studies confirm that the surface of ZnO nanomaterial is partially covered by GO. The variation of the C/O ratio in the GO platelets was checked by EDX

Viability and proliferation of endothelial cells upon exposure to GaN nanoparticles

• Tudor Braniste,
• Ion Tiginyanu,
• Tibor Horvath,
• Simion Raevschi,
• Serghei Cebotari,
• Marco Lux,
• Axel Haverich and
• Andres Hilfiker

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1330–1337, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.124

• nanoparticles were synthesized on a sacrificial layer of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles using hydride vapor phase epitaxy. The uptake of GaN nanoparticles by porcine endothelial cells was strongly dependent upon whether they were fixed to the substrate surface or free floating in the medium. The endothelial

• cultivation process [19]. There is, however, limited knowledge about the biocompatibility of nanostructured GaN and the impact of GaN nanoparticles on living cells. Results GaN nanoparticles with diameters ranging from 50 to 100 nm were synthesized on a sacrificial layer of ZnO nanoparticles, as depicted in

• nanoparticles. After a three-day incubation period, there was a significant decrease in the number of adherent endothelial cells after exposure to 50 and 100 µg/mL ZnO nanoparticles. In contrast, there was no significant decrease in the number of adherent endothelial cells after a three-day exposure to a

Microwave solvothermal synthesis and characterization of manganese-doped ZnO nanoparticles

• Jacek Wojnarowicz,
• Roman Mukhovskyi,
• Elzbieta Pietrzykowska,
• Sylwia Kusnieruk,
• Jan Mizeracki and
• Witold Lojkowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 721–732, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.64

• -doped zinc oxide nanoparticles; microwave solvothermal synthesis (MSS); characterization techniques of nanomaterials; physical properties of Mn2+-doped ZnO nanoparticles; Introduction Nanotechnology has triggered a new global industrial revolution of the 21st century [1]. At present it is the leading

• content, high efficiency, and surface modification [47]. MSS products are characterised by homogeneous morphology, purity, narrow size distribution and low agglomeration. The present paper contains an attempt to obtain ZnO nanoparticles with a Mn2+ dopant content of up to 25 mol %. For the synthesis we

• obtaining crystalline Zn1−xMnxO, pure in terms of phase, with a narrow particle size distribution with the nominal dopant content reaching 25 mol % and doping efficiency of circa 22%. Our paper also indicates a high potential of microwave solvothermal synthesis for obtaining doped ZnO nanoparticles. The

Bacteriorhodopsin–ZnO hybrid as a potential sensing element for low-temperature detection of ethanol vapour

• Saurav Kumar,
• Sudeshna Bagchi,
• Senthil Prasad,
• Anupma Sharma,
• Ritesh Kumar,
• Rishemjit Kaur,
• Jagvir Singh and
• Amol P. Bhondekar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 501–510, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.44

• ., specificity, sensitivity, photoactivity, concentration variability, threshold limit) and device fabrication with more precision with application specificity. Experimental ZnO thin film (ZnO-TF) preparation ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by hydrothermal growth [81][82]. Zinc acetate dihydrate (0.1 M) was

• coating (Millman, single-stage coating unit) was performed at 3000 rpm for 20 s to obtain a thin film of ZnO nanoparticles. ZnO nanorod (ZnO-NR) synthesis ZnO-NRs were grown on the ZnO-TF substrate by the hydrothermal method [36][83]. Zinc nitrate hexahydrate (0.2 M) was used as a precursor salt and was

Chemical bath deposition of textured and compact zinc oxide thin films on vinyl-terminated polystyrene brushes

• Nina J. Blumenstein,
• Caroline G. Hofmeister,
• Peter Lindemann,
• Cheng Huang,
• Johannes Baier,
• Andreas Leineweber,
• Stefan Walheim,
• Christof Wöll,
• Thomas Schimmel and
• Joachim Bill

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 102–110, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.12

• °. On the other hand, the surface decorated with a PS brush is hydrophobic with a WCA of 85°. Transesterification of polystyrene brushes During the ZnO mineralization, a modification of the PS brush was observed that leads to a hydrophilic surface, which can improve the interaction with the ZnO

• nanoparticles in solution. In the methanolic medium with an alkaline pH at elevated temperatures, a transesterification can take place as indicated in Scheme 2. This would result in a separation of the polystyrene chain (R1 in Scheme 1 and Scheme 2) from the short end group (R2 in Scheme 1 and Scheme 2

Sonochemical co-deposition of antibacterial nanoparticles and dyes on textiles

• Ilana Perelshtein,
• Anat Lipovsky,
• Nina Perkas,
• Tzanko Tzanov and
• Aharon Gedanken

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1–8, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.1

• antibacterial CuO or ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) from an aqueous solution. The solution contains both the dye and the corresponding M(CH3COO)2 (M = Zn or Cu) precursor, which undergoes hydrolysis under alkaline conditions (ammonia) to form ZnO or CuO. The cotton was colored with the dye and showed good

Nanoinformatics for environmental health and biomedicine

• Rong Liu and
• Yoram Cohen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2449–2451, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.253

• for brain cancer [13]. As an imported aspect of nanoinformatics, recent advances in data mining/machine learning of nano-data are also reported in this Thematic Series. In one study, the toxicity of ZnO nanoparticles to zebrafish (measured by mortality rate (%)) was correlated to two principal

Influence of wide band gap oxide substrates on the photoelectrochemical properties and structural disorder of CdS nanoparticles grown by the successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method

• Mikalai V. Malashchonak,
• Alexander V. Mazanik,
• Olga V. Korolik,
• Еugene А. Streltsov and
• Anatoly I. Kulak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2252–2262, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.231

• + cations on the surface of WBGO, the dependence of the CdS NP growth rate on the WBGO material may be related to the difference in the Cd2+ adsorption efficiency. The adsorption of Cd2+ on the surface of ZnO nanoparticles is extremely efficient and the maximum adsorption capacity was estimated to be 387 mg

Paramagnetism of cobalt-doped ZnO nanoparticles obtained by microwave solvothermal synthesis

• Jacek Wojnarowicz,
• Sylwia Kusnieruk,
• Tadeusz Chudoba,
• Stanislaw Gierlotka,
• Witold Lojkowski,
• Wojciech Knoff,
• Malgorzata I. Lukasiewicz,
• Bartlomiej S. Witkowski,
• Anna Wolska,
• Marcin T. Klepka,
• Tomasz Story and
• Marek Godlewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1957–1969, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.200

Template-controlled mineralization: Determining film granularity and structure by surface functionality patterns

• Nina J. Blumenstein,
• Jonathan Berson,
• Stefan Walheim,
• Petia Atanasova,
• Johannes Baier,
• Joachim Bill and
• Thomas Schimmel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1763–1768, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.180

• agglomerates grow together (j–n) resulting in a rough surface for the final morphology. Deposition mechanism of mineralized ZnO nanoparticles on amino SAMs. The negative charges represent counterions attached to the positive surface charge (Stern layer) provided by protonated amino groups (–NH3

Influence of surface chemical properties on the toxicity of engineered zinc oxide nanoparticles to embryonic zebrafish

• Zitao Zhou,
• Jino Son,
• Bryan Harper,
• Zheng Zhou and
• Stacey Harper

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1568–1579, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.160

• modification, regardless of the type, resulted in mortality at 24 hours post-fertilization (hpf) while uncoated particles did not induce significant mortality until 120 hpf. Using eight intrinsic chemical properties that relate to the outermost surface chemistry of the engineered ZnO nanoparticles, the highly

• surface ligands of engineered ZnO NPs alter their toxicity and 2) to determine if these features can be used to model the developmental toxicity of ZnO nanoparticles to embryonic zebrafish (Danio rerio) (Figure 1). Zebrafish embryos were selected as vertebrate test species as their transparent tissues

Effects of swift heavy ion irradiation on structural, optical and photocatalytic properties of ZnO–CuO nanocomposites prepared by carbothermal evaporation method

• Sini Kuriakose,
• D. K. Avasthi and
• Satyabrata Mohapatra

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 928–937, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.96

• ), during annealing at 600 °C a fraction of the excess Zn atoms evaporates by forming Zn vapor, which dissolves into the Cu–Zn eutectic nanodroplets and oxidizes forming ZnO nanoparticles. These ZnO nanoparticles formed by the catalytic action of Cu–Zn eutectic nanodroplets on the film surface combine

• evaporation of ZnO and Cu, combined with annealing. FESEM studies showed the presence of ZnO nanosheets and nanorods, which are formed by Cu–Zn alloy nanodroplets assisted oriented attachment of ZnO nanoparticles. The effects of swift heavy ion irradiation on the structural, optical, and photocatalytic

Microwave assisted synthesis and characterisation of a zinc oxide/tobacco mosaic virus hybrid material. An active hybrid semiconductor in a field-effect transistor device

• Shawn Sanctis,
• Rudolf C. Hoffmann,
• Sabine Eiben and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 785–791, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.81

• was employed to synthesize stable zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles, employing a molecular precursor. Insightful studies of the decomposition of the precursor were done using NMR spectroscopy and material characterization of the hybrid material derived from the decomposition was achieved using dynamic

• light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), grazing incidence X-ray diffractometry (GI-XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). TEM and DLS data confirm the formation of crystalline ZnO nanoparticles tethered on top of the virus template. GI-XRD investigations exhibit an orientated

• defined semiconducting nanostructures in the nanometer range, deposition of ZnO nanoparticles onto the wild type TMV (wt TMV) presents itself to be an ideal choice of material combination. Zinc oxide (ZnO) is one the most widely studied, non-toxic, n-type semiconducting inorganic oxide with a direct band

Novel ZnO:Ag nanocomposites induce significant oxidative stress in human fibroblast malignant melanoma (Ht144) cells

• Syeda Arooj,
• Samina Nazir,
• Akhtar Nadhman,
• Nafees Ahmad,
• Bakhtiar Muhammad,
• Ishaq Ahmad,
• Kehkashan Mazhar and
• Rashda Abbasi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 570–582, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.59

• nanocomposites could provide a new therapeutic option to selectively target cancer cells. Keywords: cancer therapy; cytotoxicity; photo-oxidation; ZnO:Ag nanocomposites; Introduction Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit an excellent photo-oxidation activity [1] and are considered as potential

• ) assay the cytotoxicity in vitro and the differential effect of different Ag contents in the ZnO nanoparticles affecting cell proliferation was analyzed. The photo-oxidation-mediated cytotoxicity of different NPs was investigated by irradiating the samples with daylight or keeping them in the dark. The

• significantly improves the activity of ZnO nanoparticles in visible light range thus avoiding the use of UV or infrared light. Our findings suggest that the major mechanism by which ZnO:Ag nanocomposites mediate cell death is generation of ROS and induction of oxidative stress. ROS are involved in the

Low cost, p-ZnO/n-Si, rectifying, nano heterojunction diode: Fabrication and electrical characterization

• Vinay Kabra,
• Lubna Aamir and
• M. M. Malik

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2216–2221, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.230

• using solution-processed, p-type, ZnO nanoparticles and an n-type Si substrate. p-type ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using a chemical synthesis route and characterized by XRD and a Hall effect measurement system. The device was fabricated by forming thin film of synthesized p-ZnO nanoparticles on

• using solution-processed p-ZnO nanoparticles. The current–voltage (I–V) and capacitance–voltage (C–V) characteristics of heterojunctions were analyzed, resulting in rectification ratios of 101 and 232 (at 3 V) and cut-in voltages of 1.5 V and 0.9 V under dark and UV illumination, respectively

• Figure 1 shows the X-ray diffraction pattern of p-ZnO nanoparticles. The diffraction peaks of the sample correspond to the (100), (002), (101), (110), (103), and (112) planes of reflection for the hexagonal wurtzite structure of ZnO. All of the peaks are in good agreement with the JCPDS database file

Nanomanipulation and environmental nanotechnology

• Enrico Gnecco,
• Andre Schirmeisen,
• Carlos M. Pina and
• Udo Becker

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2079–2080, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.216

• emphasis on their applicability, costs and up-scaling. A novel gas sensor based on ZnO nanoparticles doped with palladium is presented. An invaluable support comes from theory, which in combination with experimental techniques can decisively contribute to a better understanding of important nanoscale

Rapid degradation of zinc oxide nanoparticles by phosphate ions

• Rudolf Herrmann,
• F. Javier García-García and
• Armin Reller

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2007–2015, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.209

• nanoparticles are highly sensitive towards phosphate ions even at pH 7. Buffer solutions and cell culture media containing phosphate ions are able to destroy ZnO nanoparticles within a time span from less than one hour to one day. The driving force of the reaction is the formation of zinc phosphate of very low

• conditions are more resistant than those obtained in basic or neutral reaction medium. Surprisingly, the presence of a SiO2 coating does not impede the degradation of the ZnO core. In contrast to phosphate ions, β-glycerophosphate does not damage the ZnO nanoparticles. These findings should be taken into

• medium is of crucial importance for biological studies of ZnO-NP. In this context, the effect of water itself must be distinguished from that of the phosphate ions. Aggregation of ZnO nanoparticles in water was attributed to partial dissolution [9]. Morphological changes of ZnO nanocrystals under the

Current state of laser synthesis of metal and alloy nanoparticles as ligand-free reference materials for nano-toxicological assays

• Christoph Rehbock,
• Jurij Jakobi,
• Lisa Gamrad,
• Selina van der Meer,
• Daniela Tiedemann,
• Ulrike Taylor,
• Wilfried Kues,
• Detlef Rath and
• Stephan Barcikowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1523–1541, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.165

• relevant in AuAg nanoparticles, composed of two metals with deviating redox potentials. Additionally, it should be noted that ion release and oxidative stress are not necessarily independent. For example, in the case of ZnO nanoparticles the formation of ROS due to released Zn2+ ions was reported to be the

Effects of palladium on the optical and hydrogen sensing characteristics of Pd-doped ZnO nanoparticles

• Anh-Thu Thi Do,
• Hong Thai Giang,
• Thu Thi Do,
• Ngan Quang Pham and
• Giang Truong Ho

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1261–1267, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.140

• interstitials, Zn anti-site vacancies, and oxygen vacancies, it is of interest to find out whether Pd incorporated in ZnO significantly improves sensitivity and specificity for hydrogen [13][14]. In this work, we have successfully synthesized Pd-doped ZnO nanoparticles for an application as gas sensors by a low

• ability of hydrogen sensors, typical sensors based on ZnO nanoparticles have been designed. The hydrogen gas sensor based on Pd-doped ZnO shows a relative fast response compared with the undoped sample. We also investigated the hydrogen sensing characteristics of these catalytic gas sensors in the

• 10,000–40,000 ppm. An existing correlation between the PL emissions and hydrogen sensing characteristics of these gas sensors will also be discussed. Results and Discussion X-ray diffraction patterns of ZnO and Pd/ZnO nanoparticles are presented in Figure 1. All the XRD peaks are indexed by a hexagonal

Enhanced photocatalytic activity of Ag–ZnO hybrid plasmonic nanostructures prepared by a facile wet chemical method

• Sini Kuriakose,
• Vandana Choudhary,
• Biswarup Satpati and
• Satyabrata Mohapatra

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 639–650, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.75

• ) have been investigated. Increase in citrate concentration has been found to result in the formation of nanodisk-like structures, due to citrate-assisted oriented attachment of ZnO nanoparticles. The decoration of ZnO nanostructures with Ag nanoparticles resulted in a significant enhancement of the

• aggregates of ZnO nanoparticles of anisotropic shapes can be seen in the FESEM image (Figure 1a) of the pristine ZnO sample. Addition of citrate at 0.2 mM concentration resulted in an increased aggregation of the nanoparticles, as shown in Figure 1b. As the citrate concentration is increased to 10 mM, the

• concentration is increased to 20 mM, nanodisk-like structures formed due to oriented attachment of aggregating nanoparticles. It is evident from the FESEM images that above a threshold concentration trisodium citrate assists in the oriented attachment of ZnO nanoparticles and leads to the formation of nanodisk