Over the years, scarcity of fresh potable water has increased the demand for clean water. Meanwhile, with the advent of nanotechnology, the use of nanomaterials for photocatalytic degradation of pollutants in wastewaters has increased. Herein, a new type of nanohybrids of La- and Mn-codoped bismuth ferrite (BFO) nanoparticles embedded into transition-metal carbide sheets (MXene–Ti 3 C 2 ) were prepared by a low-cost double-solvent sol–gel method and investigated for their catalytic activity in dark and photoinduced conditions. The photoluminescence results showed that pure BFO has the highest electron hole recombination rate as compared to all the codoped BFO/Ti 3 C 2 nanohybrids. The higher electron–hole pair generation rate of the nanohybrids provides a suitable environment for fast degradation of organic dye molecules. The band gap of the prepared nanohybrid was tuned to 1.73 eV. Moreover, the BLFO/Ti 3 C 2 and BLFMO-5/Ti 3 C 2 degraded 92 and 93% of the organic pollutant, respectively, from water in dark and remaining in the light spectrum. Therefore, these synthesized nanohybrids could be a promising candidate for catalytic and photocatalytic applications in future.

The current environmental and potable water crisis requires technological advancement to tackle the issues caused by different organic pollutants. Herein, we report the degradation of organic pollutants such as Congo Red and acetophenone from aqueous media using visible light irradiation. To harvest the solar energy for photocatalysis, we fabricated a nanohybrid system composed of bismuth ferrite nanoparticles with two-dimensional (2D) MXene sheets, namely, the BiFeO3 (BFO)/Ti3C2 (MXene) nanohybrid, for enhanced photocatalytic activity. The hybrid BFO/MXene is fabricated using a simple and low-cost double-solvent solvothermal method. The SEM and TEM images showed that the BFO nanoparticles are attached onto the surface of 2D MXene sheets. The photocatalytic degradation achieved by the hybrid is found to be 100% in 42 min for the organic dye (Congo Red) and 100% for the colorless aqueous pollutant (acetophenone) in 150 min. The BFO/MXene hybrid system exhibited a large surface area of 147 m2 g–1 measured via the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller sorption–desorption technique, which is found to be the largest among all BFO nanoparticles and derivatives. The photoluminescence spectra indicate a low electron–hole recombination rate. Fast and efficient degradation of organic molecules is caused by two factors: larger surface area and lower electron–hole recombination rate, which makes the BFO/MXene nanohybrid a highly efficient photocatalyst and a promising candidate for many future applications.

The green synthesis of nanoparticles has emerged as a cost-effective and environmentally benign technique. The present study describes the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) using a seed extract of Cydonia oblonga. The conditions were optimized by adjusting pH, temperature, time and amount of seed extract. The nanoparticles produced were characterized by different techniques, namely UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier transmission infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy. The formation of Ag-NPs was confirmed by UV-visible spectroscopic analysis. FTIR analysis was performed to identify the biomolecules, which played a key role in the reduction of Ag ? ions. XRD confirmed that the silver nanoparticles possessed face-centered cubic structure. The green chemistry approach has proven that Ag-NPs can be synthesized by using plant extract in which biomolecules effectively act as capping and reducing agent.

Transition metal carbides (TMCs) have recently emerged as competent members among the family of two-dimensional (2D) materials, owing to their promising applications.