Microplastic pollution in Himalayan lakes: assessment, risks, and sustainable remediation strategies

• Sameeksha Rawat,
• S. M. Tauseef and
• Madhuben Sharma

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 2144–2167, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.148

• more surface area, allowing for better interaction with MPs [76]. The incorporation of GO in composite materials not only improves photocatalytic activity, but it also serves a second purpose by adsorbing MPs prior to degradation. The utilization of photocatalysts that have been engineered with defects

• support matrix for these composites, stabilizing the photocatalyst and enhancing its interaction with MPs [78]. Another novel strategy is the use of multifunctional nanomaterials, such as ZnO–CuO composites, which have both antibacterial and strong photocatalytic activity. These substances provide long

Electrical, photocatalytic, and sensory properties of graphene oxide and polyimide implanted with low- and medium-energy silver ions

• Josef Novák,
• Eva Štěpanovská,
• Petr Malinský,
• Vlastimil Mazánek,
• Jan Luxa,
• Ulrich Kentsch and
• Zdeněk Sofer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1794–1811, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.123

• atomic force microscopy. Electrical properties as a function of air humidity were evaluated using a two-point method, and photocatalytic activity was tested by monitoring the UV-induced decomposition of rhodamine B. The results demonstrate that ion implantation significantly reduces surface resistivity

• and enhances both the photocatalytic activity and humidity sensitivity of GO and PI. The most pronounced improvements occurred at higher fluences, where defect generation and partial deoxygenation contributed to optimal performance. Ion implantation thus represents an effective approach for tuning the

• various metallic ions available for ion implantation, Ag offers a unique combination of properties that make it particularly suitable for simultaneous enhancement of conductivity, humidity sensitivity, and photocatalytic activity [4]. Ag exhibits high electrical conductivity, strong catalytic activity

Nanotechnology-based approaches for the removal of microplastics from wastewater: a comprehensive review

• Nayanathara O Sanjeev,
• Manjunath Singanodi Vallabha and
• Rebekah Rubidha Lisha Rabi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1607–1632, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.114

• processes [96]. The particle size of photocatalysts plays a very important role in the recombination of electrons and holes. Smaller particles exhibit higher photocatalytic activity due to their increased surface area, which allows for greater adsorption of pollutants and enhanced production of hydroxyl

• of photo-induced charge carriers [98]. Tofa et al. [99] studied the photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanorods for breaking down LDPE, a common microplastic found in wastewater. Experimental results led to the proposal of a detailed degradation pathway. The process initiates when hydroxyl and superoxide

Photocatalytic degradation of ofloxacin in water assisted by TiO₂ nanowires on carbon cloth: contributions of H₂O₂ addition and substrate absorbability

• Iram Hussain,
• Lisha Zhang,
• Zhizhen Ye and
• Jin-Ming Wu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1567–1579, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.111

• performed at room temperature. A TOC-L CPH analyzer (SHIMADZU, Japan) was used to detect total organic carbon (TOC). Photocatalytic activity for OFL removal The photocatalytic activity was evaluated through the photodegradation of 50 mL aqueous solutions of OFL at initial concentrations of 50, 75, 100, and

• , the content of hydroxyl groups in CC/HTNW is evaluated to be ca. 52%, which reduced to approximately 16% after the final air calcination, suggesting abundant residual surface oxygen vacancies in CC/NW-450 °C. These vacancies are beneficial for enhancing photocatalytic activity [26][27]. Photocatalytic

• reaction rate constants are shown in Figure 5b. Not surprisingly, the photocatalytic activity decreases with increasing OFL initial concentration (50, 75, 100, and 200 ppm), with the reaction rate constant declining (0.169, 0.142, 0.135, and 0.103 h−1, respectively). The high photocatalytic performance at

Laser processing in liquids: insights into nanocolloid generation and thin film integration for energy, photonic, and sensing applications

• Akshana Parameswaran Sreekala,
• Pooja Raveendran Nair,
• Jithin Kundalam Kadavath,
• Bindu Krishnan,
• David Avellaneda Avellaneda,
• M. R. Anantharaman and
• Sadasivan Shaji

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1428–1498, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.104

Enhancing the photoelectrochemical performance of BiOI-derived BiVO₄ films by controlled-intensity current electrodeposition

• Huu Phuc Dang,
• Khanh Quang Nguyen,
• Nguyen Thi Mai Tho and
• Tran Le

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1289–1301, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.94

• efficient charge separation and transport. Previous studies have reported that the (121), (040), and (010) facets of monoclinic BiVO4 contribute to enhanced photocatalytic activity by serving as active sites for oxidation and reduction reactions [32][33]. In particular, the large surface area of the (010

• . Overall, these results demonstrate that the optimized BiVO4(326) configuration provides improved photocatalytic activity by enhancing charge transport, reducing recombination, and maximizing the active surface area for efficient PEC water splitting. The LSV results revealed that the photoanodes fabricated

Influence of ion beam current on the structural, optical, and mechanical properties of TiO₂ coatings: ion beam-assisted vs conventional electron beam evaporation

• Agata Obstarczyk and
• Urszula Wawrzaszek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1097–1112, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.81

• TiO2 coatings (Figure 1). Therefore, post-deposition annealing becomes one of the key pathways in controlling the structure, morphology, and photocatalytic activity of TiO2 films [3]. After post-process annealing, all thin films exhibited peaks related to the (101) and (004) planes of anatase, for

Quantification of lead through rod-shaped silver-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles using an electrochemical approach

• Ravinder Lamba,
• Gaurav Bhanjana,
• Neeraj Dilbaghi,
• Vivek Gupta and
• Sandeep Kumar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 422–434, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.33

• , India Department of Physics, Punjab Engineering College (Deemed to be University), Chandigarh, 160012, India 10.3762/bjnano.16.33 Abstract Special features of zinc oxide nanoparticles have drawn a lot of interest due to their wide bandgap, high surface area, photocatalytic activity, antimicrobial

Emerging strategies in the sustainable removal of antibiotics using semiconductor-based photocatalysts

• Yunus Ahmed,
• Keya Rani Dutta,
• Parul Akhtar,
• Md. Arif Hossen,
• Md. Jahangir Alam,
• Obaid A. Alharbi,
• Hamad AlMohamadi and
• Abdul Wahab Mohammad

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 264–285, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.21

• advanced methods, including sol–gel, hydrothermal, solvothermal, precipitation and template-assisted techniques [53]. The synthesis method chosen often depends on factors such as the desired crystal structure, particle size, surface area, and photocatalytic activity required for the specific application

• effective segregation of light-induced charge carriers allows the CB of the second semiconductor and the VB of the first semiconductor to engage in reduction and oxidation processes, thus enhancing the photocatalytic activity. Although type-II heterojunctions can restrict photogenerated charge recombination

• applications where natural light is abundant. Although TiO2 has a high photocatalytic activity under UV light, its practical use is limited because of rapid electron–hole recombination and insufficient visible light absorption [65]. Hence, it is critical to develop effective strategies to enhance TiO2 activity

Clays enhanced with niobium: potential in wastewater treatment and reuse as pigment with antibacterial activity

• Silvia Jaerger,
• Patricia Appelt,
• Mario Antônio Alves da Cunha,
• Fabián Ccahuana Ayma,
• Ricardo Schneider,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Fauze Jacó Anaissi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 141–154, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.13

• +) favoring of the BEOx catalyst hindered its photocatalytic activity [8]. In a study by Asencios et al. (2019) [8], niobium-modified clay was explored for the photocatalysis of rhodamine B dye, yielding removal rates close to 95%. Additionally, Lacerda et al. (2020) [25] achieved up to 90% efficiency in the

Characterization of ZnO nanoparticles synthesized using probiotic Lactiplantibacillus plantarum GP258

• Prashantkumar Siddappa Chakra,
• Aishwarya Banakar,
• Shriram Narayan Puranik,
• Vishwas Kaveeshwar,
• C. R. Ravikumar and
• Devaraja Gayathri

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 78–89, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.8

• showed significant photocatalytic activity by degrading methylene blue under UV illumination, achieving a remarkable 74.15% decolorization within 60 min, with a slightly lower energy of UV light, that is, 392 nm whereas above authors reported 385 nm. Our ZnO NPs shows a zeta potential value of −60 mV

• quantify the surface electric charge of the ZnO NPs, assessing their stability. DLS measurements followed with an acquisition time of 120 s per run, providing data for the intensity-weighted size distribution. The photocatalytic activity was analyzed by studying the degradation of methylene blue in a 20

Mn-doped ZnO nanopowders prepared by sol–gel and microwave-assisted sol–gel methods and their photocatalytic properties

• Cristina Maria Vlăduț,
• Crina Anastasescu,
• Silviu Preda,
• Oana Catalina Mocioiu,
• Simona Petrescu,
• Jeanina Pandele-Cusu,
• Dana Culita,
• Veronica Bratan,
• Ioan Balint and
• Maria Zaharescu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1283–1296, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.104

• catalyst is generally associated with low photocatalytic activity. Accordingly, various modifiers of semiconductor nanomaterials are used to enhance separation of the photogenerated charges, causing a corresponding decrease of PL emission. The correlation between photoluminescence and photocatalytic

• signal of the SG sample (assigned to surface oxygen vacancies and defects) and can be further analyzed taking into account the photocatalytic test results. Photocatalytic activity Oxidative photodegradation of oxalic acid in aqueous solution (Figure 13) was used to compare the catalytic activity of the

• role of the ROS in photomineralization of oxalic acid over the two investigated catalysts can be assumed. The authors’ previous photocatalytic studies concerning the photodegradation of oxalic acid emphasized the dependence of photocatalytic activity on catalyst morphology [55]. The importance of the

Photocatalytic methane oxidation over a TiO₂/SiNWs p–n junction catalyst at room temperature

• Qui Thanh Hoai Ta,
• Luan Minh Nguyen,
• Ngoc Hoi Nguyen,
• Phan Khanh Thinh Nguyen and
• Dai Hai Nguyen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1132–1141, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.92

• forces generated charge carriers to move in opposite directions and suppresses charge recombination. Besides, surface morphology and optical properties of the the p–n TiO2/SiNWs catalyst are also beneficial for the photocatalytic activity. It is expected that the results of this study will provide

• TiO2/SiNWs photocatalyst. Note that after each cycle, the reactor was completely evacuated, and fresh gases were refilled for the following run. The photocatalytic activity of p–n TiO2/SiNWs remained almost unchanged after four consecutive reaction cycles, indicating a high recyclability in the batch

• reactor. Plausible charge transport mechanism Figure 8 shows a schematic mechanism of the photocatalytic activity of the p–n TiO2/SiNWs hierarchical structures. According to previous studies the energy bandgaps of p-Si and n-type TiO2 were assumed to be 1.1 eV and 3.3 eV, respectively [54][55][56

Intermixing of MoS₂ and WS₂ photocatalysts toward methylene blue photodegradation

• Maryam Al Qaydi,
• Nitul S. Rajput,
• Michael Lejeune,
• Abdellatif Bouchalkha,
• Mimoun El Marssi,
• Steevy Cordette,
• Chaouki Kasmi and
• Mustapha Jouiad

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 817–829, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.68

•  10 is obtained using the calculated conduction and valence bands positions. The more effective and faster electron transfer kinetics of MoS2/WS2 should account for the enhanced photocatalytic activity under irradiation. The PD process can take place as per the following two mechanisms: Or as follows

Green synthesis of biomass-derived carbon quantum dots for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue

• Dalia Chávez-García,
• Mario Guzman,
• Viridiana Sanchez and
• Rubén D. Cadena-Nava

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 755–766, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.63

• emission when excited at 900 nm and down-conversion emission in the blue region. The photocatalytic activity of CQDs, under sunlight irradiation, in MB degradation has been confirmed by various studies [32][33][34][35][36][37][38]. In this research, samples synthesized with nitric acid exhibited the best

• a continuous emission xenon light source (190–900 nm). All the samples were dispersed in deionized water and analyzed with an excitation wavelength of 350 and 900 nm in aqueous medium. Photocatalytic evaluation The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized CQDs was studied for the photodegradation

• ) with a 1 cm path length quartz cell. To evaluate the photocatalytic activity of the CQDs, a suspension containing CQDs and MB (10 ppm initial concentration of MB) was placed in a baker under constant stirring. Before initiating the light irradiation, the suspension was stirred for 20 min at 400 rpm in

Simultaneous electrochemical determination of uric acid and hypoxanthine at a TiO₂/graphene quantum dot-modified electrode

• Vu Ngoc Hoang,
• Dang Thi Ngoc Hoa,
• Nguyen Quang Man,
• Le Vu Truong Son,
• Le Van Thanh Son,
• Vo Thang Nguyen,
• Le Thi Hong Phong,
• Ly Hoang Diem,
• Kieu Chan Ly,
• Ho Sy Thang and
• Dinh Quang Khieu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 719–732, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.60

• electrochemistry, combining GQDs with semiconductors, especially TiO2, has been of interest. For example, GQDs have been successfully introduced into TiO2 [17] to enhance its photocatalytic activity. John Peter et al. reported TiO2/GQDs as anodes for enhancing the short-circuit current in solar cells [18]. The

Exfoliation of titanium nitride using a non-thermal plasma process

• Priscila Jussiane Zambiazi,
• Dolores Ribeiro Ricci Lazar,
• Larissa Otubo,
• Rodrigo Fernando Brambilla de Souza,
• Almir Oliveira Neto and
• Cecilia Chaves Guedes-Silva

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 631–637, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.53

• ferromagnetic properties and demonstrated high visible-light photocatalytic activity when loaded onto titania nanotube arrays. Titanium nitride (TiN) has gained recognition as an advanced engineering material because of its outstanding chemical and thermal stability, extreme hardness, and electrical

Aero-ZnS prepared by physical vapor transport on three-dimensional networks of sacrificial ZnO microtetrapods

• Veaceslav Ursaki,
• Tudor Braniste,
• Victor Zalamai,
• Emil Rusu,
• Vladimir Ciobanu,
• Vadim Morari,
• Daniel Podgornii,
• Pier Carlo Ricci,
• Rainer Adelung and
• Ion Tiginyanu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 490–499, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.44

• in vacuum, as shown in Figure 5b. As it has been shown previously, the oxygen vacancy defects in nanocomposite materials can act as active centers during photocatalytic oxidation processes by capturing photoinduced electrons, thus contributing to a substantial improvement of photocatalytic activity

Nanomaterials for photocatalysis and applications in environmental remediation and renewable energy

• Viet Van Pham and
• Wee-Jun Ong

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 722–724, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.58

• studies [20][21][22]. Besides, Nhu et al. [23] used rosin as a green chemical approach to fabricate ZnO nanoparticles, exhibiting a high photocatalytic activity for both methylene blue (100%) and methyl orange (82.78%) decomposition after 210 min under UV radiation. Moreover, the advantages in the

Titania nanoparticles for photocatalytic degradation of ethanol under simulated solar light

• Evghenii Goncearenco,
• Iuliana P. Morjan,
• Claudiu Teodor Fleaca,
• Florian Dumitrache,
• Elena Dutu,
• Monica Scarisoreanu,
• Valentin Serban Teodorescu,
• Alexandra Sandulescu,
• Crina Anastasescu and
• Ioan Balint

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 616–630, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.51

• differences in crystal structure are reflected in direct or indirect electron transitions. The bandgaps of anatase and rutile differ only by 0.2 eV, but can influence significantly the creation of electron–hole pairs, resulting in an increase of the photocatalytic activity. Anatase has a higher decomposition

• efficiency than rutile [14][31], while the highest photocatalytic activity has been found in mixed anatase/rutile TiO2 [13][32]. One possible explanation is that the difference in the crystal structure and chemical bonding results in different ionization potentials and electron affinities. Exploiting these

• ratio between anatase and rutile that yields the highest photocatalytic activity. Thus, the main scope of this study is to find the best process parameters for the pyrolysis synthesis of TiO2 powders. Another part is to obtain powders with specific mixtures of the crystallographic phases (anatase/rutile

Bismuth-based nanostructured photocatalysts for the remediation of antibiotics and organic dyes

• Akeem Adeyemi Oladipo and
• Faisal Suleiman Mustafa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 291–321, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.26

• -light spectrum. Additionally, the reverse bond between the cation and anion is more favourable for the production and transportation of holes, which facilitates photocatalytic activity. Because of this, significant efforts have been made to synthesise bismuth-based nanomaterials (BiVO4, Bi5O7I-MoO3

• photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes and antibiotics in water. The general synthesis of nanometre-sized photocatalytic materials based on bismuth employing energy-efficient techniques is examined. A critical review is also given of ways to improve the photocatalytic activity of the photocatalysts. An

• charges and, hence, increase photocatalytic activity, metallic bismuth can function as a direct plasmonic photocatalyst (similar to Au and Ag) or a co-catalyst [77]. Also, the unique layered crystal structure of Aurivillius-type bismuth oxide-based semiconductors allows for the induction of an internal

Non-stoichiometric magnetite as catalyst for the photocatalytic degradation of phenol and 2,6-dibromo-4-methylphenol – a new approach in water treatment

• Joanna Kisała,
• Anna Tomaszewska and
• Przemysław Kolek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1531–1540, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.126

• SEM reveals the maximum size of the particles. The catalytic activity of commercially available M1 and M2 was evaluated through the photocatalytic degradation of phenol and DBMP. The photocatalytic activity was compared with the efficiency of ozonolysis. The photocatalytic efficiency is improved by

• . Photocatalytic degradation of phenols The photocatalytic activity of M1 and M2 was evaluated by the photocatalytic degradation of PhOH and DBMP. First, 750 cm3 (1.064 × 10−3 mol·L−1) of aqueous phenol solution was placed into the reactor. The pH of the solution was adjusted to 8 ± 0.1 with 0.1 mol·L−1 NaOH. Then

A TiO₂@MWCNTs nanocomposite photoanode for solar-driven water splitting

• Anh Quynh Huu Le,
• Ngoc Nhu Thi Nguyen,
• Hai Duy Tran,
• Van-Huy Nguyen and
• Le-Hai Tran

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1520–1530, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.125

• photocatalytic activity in the studied potential window. This confirms that the combination of TiO2 and MWCNTs enhances the visible-light absorption of the nanocomposite, even under weak light illuminance (dark conditions), which leads to the enhancement of the current density of the TiO2@MWCNTs electrode. At

LED-light-activated photocatalytic performance of metal-free carbon-modified hexagonal boron nitride towards degradation of methylene blue and phenol

• Nirmalendu S. Mishra and
• Pichiah Saravanan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1380–1392, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.114

• conditions. The linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) studies were conducted under both dark and light conditions with a scanning speed of 5 mV/s. Photocatalytic activity The LED-light-driven photocatalysis experiments were performed in a 250 mL conical flask containing 50 mg of the as-synthesized material and 200

• photocatalytic process [24]. The MBN-80 also exhibited a lower LDB and charge transit time through the depletion layer (charge transit time ∝ (LDebye)2), meaning a lower recombination of the charge carriers leading to an enhanced photocatalytic activity [29]. The same could again be justified through the width

• . Furthermore, a substantial reduction in the photocatalytic activity was observed when AgNO3 and p-benzoquinone were added into the reaction system. The introduction of AgNO3 resulted in the capture of electrons from the reaction mixture which disrupts the generation of O2−• through the O2/O2−• reduction

Recent trends in Bi-based nanomaterials: challenges, fabrication, enhancement techniques, and environmental applications

• Vishal Dutta,
• Ankush Chauhan,
• Ritesh Verma,
• C. Gopalkrishnan and
• Van-Huy Nguyen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1316–1336, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.109

• than Bi5+. The earlier compounds have been examined more thoroughly than the latter. The overlap of O 2p and Bi 6s orbitals in the valence band (VB) of Bi3+-containing compounds improves photogenerated charge mobility and, hence, improves photocatalytic activity [22][23]. Furthermore, except for BiOF

• times greater CO2 adsorption and enhanced light absorption. The enhanced properties were reflected in the photocatalytic activity, resulting in a rate of methanol synthesis of 75 mol·g−1·h−1, which was much greater than the rate produced by the unaltered Bi2WO6. As a result of the decrease in

• obtained. They found that Bi5O7Br effectively converts molecular oxygen to superoxide radicals and hydroxyl radicals in visible light. Under UV–vis irradiation, Bi5O7Br showed a higher photocatalytic activity in the degradation of rhodamine B (RhB) dye than BiOBr. The addition of Bi5O7Br photocatalysis to