Guilong Zhang

Optical emission spectroscopy study of the influence of nitrogen on carbon nanotube growth

In-situ optical emission spectroscopy was used to systematically study the influence of nitrogen on the growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by microwave-plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition at different CH, concentrations in a CH4/N-2 gas mixture. The results show that CN and C-2 co-exist in the plasma and emission intensities of the two species. are correlated. The morphology and microstructure of the samples vary with the CH4 concentration. Well aligned nanotubes are obtained at 20% CH4. With the participation of N-2, the CNTs present a polymerized nanobell structure. More importantly, the length and thickness of each nanobell can be modulated by varying the CH4 concentration. Without N-2, conventional cylindrical CNTs are obtained

Composite of functional mesoporous silica and DNA: an enzyme-responsive controlled release drug carrier system.

An efficient enzyme-responsive controlled release carrier system was successfully fabricated using single-stranded DNA encapsulated functional mesoporous silica nanoparticles. Mesoporous silica nanoparticles were initially fabricated through hydrolysis of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) in cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTAC) solution, and the surface of nanoparticles could be encapsulated with single-stranded DNA. This nanomaterial has excellent bioactivity and its hydrolysate cannot cause damage to normal cell, thus the biocompatibility of the nanomaterial is improved. In addition, this nanomaterial showed an excellent drug release performance when loaded with drugs, which would be helpful to increase the treatment efficiency and decrease side effects of drugs.

Hydroxylated Mesoporous Nanosilica Coated by Polyethylenimine Coupled with Gadolinium and Folic Acid: A Tumor-Targeted T1 Magnetic Resonance Contrast Agent and Drug Delivery System

A pH-responsive nanoplatform, hydroxylated mesoporous nanosilica (HMNS) coated by polyethylenimine (PEI) coupled with gadolinium and folic acid (FA) (Gd-FA-Si), was designed to deliver anticancer drug targeting and to promote contrast effect for tumor cells using magnetic resonance (MR) spectrometer. Doxorubicin (DOX) was chosen as the anticancer drug and loaded into nanopores of HMNS, then its release in simulated body fluid could be controlled through adjusting the pH. This nanoplatform could significantly enhance the MR contrast effect, and the highest theoretical relaxivity per nanoplatform could even be approximately 1.28 × 10(6) mm(-1)s(-1) because of the high Gd payload (2.61 × 10(5) per nanoplatform). The entire system possessed a high targeting performance to Hela and MDA-MB-231 cells because the FA located in the system could specifically bind to the folate-receptor sites on the surface of cell. Compared with free DOX, the nanoplatform presented a higher cell inhibition effect on the basis of cell assay. Therefore, this nanoplatform could be potentially applied as a tumor-targeted T1 MR contrast agent and pH-sensitive drug carrier system.

Controlling pesticide loss by natural porous micro/nano composites: straw ash-based biochar and biosilica.

Pesticide sprayed onto plant leaves tends to discharge into the environment through rainwater washing, leaching, and volatilization, resulting in severe pollution to soil, water, and air. Here, to control pesticide loss, we developed a loss-control pesticide (LCP) by adding straw ash-based biochar and biosilica (BCS) to traditional pesticide. BCS possesses a porous micro/nano structure and thus can adsorb a large amount of pesticide molecules to form pesticide-BCS complexes that tend to be retained by the rough surface of plant leaves, displaying a high adhesion performance on the leaves; therefore, the pesticide loss decreases, sufficient pesticide for the plant is supplied, and the pollution risk of the pesticide can be substantially lowered.

Immediate remediation of heavy metal (Cr(VI)) contaminated soil by high energy electron beam irradiation.

This work developed an immediate and high-performance remediation method for Cr(VI) contaminated soil (CCS) using high energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation. The result indicated that, compared with γ-ray irradiation, HEEB irradiation displayed a significant reduction efficiency on Cr(VI) in CCS to Cr(III) with substantially lower toxicity, which was mainly attributed to the reduction effects of electrons, hydrated electrons, and reductive radicals generated in the irradiation process of HEEB. This work could provide a one-step and effective method for the remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil (HMCS).

Remediation of Cr(VI) contaminated soil using long-duration sodium thiosulfate supported by micro-nano networks.

In this work, a long-duration remediation agent (LRA) on hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) was developed using sodium thiosulfate (ST) supported by attapulgite (ATP) micro-nano networks induced through high-energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation. The ATP networks could effectively reduce the leaching amount of Cr(VI) in soil. More importantly, the ATP networks could significantly control the leaching behavior of ST, and then prolong the duration and increase the reduction efficiency of ST on Cr(VI). As a result, LRA displayed high performance on controlling the migration of Cr(VI) and reducing Cr(VI) to Cr(III). Additionally, pot experiment indicated that LRA could effectively decrease the absorbed amount of Cr(VI) in corn, and reduce the inhibition effect of Cr(VI) on the growth of corn. Therefore, this work could provide a facile approach to remediate the Cr(VI)-contaminated soil and lower the harmful effect of Cr(VI) on crop.

Synthesis of a Multifunctional Graphene Oxide-Based Magnetic Nanocomposite for Efficient Removal of Cr(VI)

A novel magnetic nanocomposite was synthesized using graphene oxide (GO), polyethylenimine (PEI), and Fe3O4 to removal hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) from water and soil. Therein, GO was functionalized with plenty of -NH2 by the modification of PEI through an amidation reaction, and the resulting GO/PEI reacted with FeSO4·7H2O and NaBH4 to obtain RGO/PEI/Fe3O4 (the optimal one is designated as ORPF) through an oxidation-reduction reaction. ORPF could effectively adsorb Cr(VI) through electrostatic attraction, and the adsorbed Cr(VI) ions were partially reduced to trivalent chromium (Cr(III)) with low toxicity by RGO (π electron). Afterward, the resulting ORPF-Cr could be conveniently removed from water with a magnet, achieving the maximum Cr(VI) removal capacity of 266.6 mg/g. Importantly, ORPF, once carried by sponge particles, could efficiently remove Cr(VI) from soil, and the resulting mixture could be facilely collected with a magnet on a filter net. Besides, the leaching experiment suggested that, when supported by filter paper, ORPF was able to decrease the number of leached Cr(VI) ions and meanwhile reduce them to Cr(III). This work provides a promising approach to remediate Cr(VI)-contaminated water and soil using a nanocomposite, which has a huge number of application prospects.

A pH-Responsive Yolk-Like Nanoplatform for Tumor Targeted Dual-Mode Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Chemotherapy

Incorporation of T1 and T2 contrast material in one nanosystem performing their respective MR contrast role and simultaneously serving as an efficient drug delivery system (DDS) has a significant potential application for clinical diagnosis and chemotherapy of cancer. However, inappropriate incorporation always encountered many issues, such as low contact area of T1 contrast material with water-proton, inappropriate distance between T2 contrast material and water molecule, and undesirable disturbance of T2 contrast material for T1 imaging. Those issues seriously limited the T1 or T2 contrast effect. In this work, we developed a yolk-like Fe3O4@Gd2O3 nanoplatform functionalized by polyethylene glycol and folic acid (FA), which could efficiently exert their tumor targeted T1-T2 dual-mode MR imaging and drug delivery role. First, this nanoplatform possessed a high longitudinal relaxation rate (r1) (7.91 mM-1 s-1) and a stronger transverse relaxation rate (r2) (386.5 mM-1 s-1) than that of original Fe3O4 (268.1 mM-1 s-1). Second, cisplatin could be efficiently loaded into this nanoplatform (112 mg/g) and showed pH-responsive release behavior. Third, this nanoplatform could be effectively internalized by HeLa cells with time and dosage dependence. Fourth, the FA receptor-mediated nanoplatform displayed excellent T1-T2 dual mode MR contrast enhancement and anticancer activity both in vitro and in vivo. Fifth, no apparent toxicity for vital organs was observed with systemic delivery of the nanoplatform in vivo. Thus, this nanoplatform could be a potential nanotheranostic for tumor targeted T1-T2 dual-mode MR imaging and chemotherapy.

In situ degradation of antibiotic residues in medical intravenous infusion bottles using high energy electron beam irradiation

This study reported an immediate approach for the degradation of three antibiotic (amoxicillin, ofloxacin, and cefradine) residues in medical intravenous infusion bottles (MIIBs) using high energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation. The effects of irradiation doses, initial concentrations, initial pH, and scavengers of active radicals on the degradation of three antibiotic residues (ARs) were investigated, and the results displayed that 97.02%, 97.61% and 96.87% of amoxicillin, ofloxacin, and cefradine residues could be degraded in situ through HEEB irradiation respectively. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) analysis demonstrated that ARs were mainly decomposed into inorganic ions and alkanes. Typically, the detailed degradation mechanism of ARs was also investigated, and the dominant active particle inducing the degradation of antibiotics during the HEEB irradiation process was demonstrated to be hydroxyl radical.

Reducing the pollution risk of pesticide using nano networks induced by irradiation and hydrothermal treatment

Traditional pesticides (TP) often do not adhere tightly to crop foliage. They can easily enter the surrounding environment through precipitation and volatilization. This can result in the pollution of the surrounding soil, water, and air. To reduce pesticide pollution, we developed a loss-control pesticide (LCP) by adding attapulgite with a nano networks structure fabricated using high energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation and hydrothermal treatment to TP. HEEB irradiation effectively dispersed originally aggregated attapulgite through modified thermal, charge, and physical effects. Hydrothermal treatment further enhanced the dispersion of attapulgite to form nano porous networks via thermal and wet expansion effects, which are beneficial for pesticide binding. An LCP has improved retention on crop leaf surfaces. It has a higher adhesion capacity, reduced leaching and volatilization, and extended residual activity compared with the TP formulation. The treatment increases the residual activity of pesticides on crop foliage and decreases environmental pollution.