Effect of sub-acute exposure to TiO_2 nanoparticles on oxidative stress and histopathological changes in Juvenile Carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Increasing application of nanotechnology highlights the need to clarify and understand nanotoxicity. Mammalian and in vitro studies have raised concerns about the toxicity of titanium dioxide nanoparticles （TiO2-NPs）, but there are limited data on ecotoxicity to aquatic organisms. In this work, the sub-acute toxicity of TiO2-NPs to carp （Cyprinus carpio） was assessed. Superoxide dismutase （SOD）, catalase （CAT） and peroxidase （POD） activities and lipid peroxidation （LPO） levels in liver, gill and brain tissues of carps varied with concentration of TiO2-NPs suspensions and exposure time （up to 8 d）. As a result, 100 and 200 mg/L TiO2-NPs caused statistically significant decrease in SOD, CAT and POD activities and significant increase in LPO levels in tissues （P 〈 0.05）, suggesting that the fish exposed to these two concentrations of TiO2-NPs suffered from the oxidative stress. The extent of depletion of antioxidant enzymes activities and the elevation of LPO in the liver was the greatest, indicating that the liver might be the most susceptible organ to TiO2-NPs exposure. In addition, carps had gill pathologies including edema and thickening of gill lamellae as well as gill filaments, and liver pathologies including necrotic and apoptosis hepatocytes after exposed to 100 and 200 mg/L TiO2-NPs for 20 d. These results indicated a potential risk from TiO2-NPs released into the aqueous environment.

STM and STS investigations of Ce-doped TiO_2 nanoparticles

Ce-doped titanium oxide nanoparticles were investigated in the paper. The surface structures of undoped and Ce-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were observed by scanning tunneling microscopy （STM）. The experimental results of scanning tunneling spectroscopy （STS） show that the surface electronic structures of TiO2 nanoparticles are modified by introducing new electronic states in the surface band gap through cerium ion doping. The results are discussed in terms of the influence of doping concentration on the surface band gap of TiO2.

Electrochemical determination of vitamin C in the presence of uric acid by a novel TiO_2 nanoparticles modified carbon paste electrode

The electrochemical behavior of vitamin C（ascorbic acid or AA） is investigated on the surface of a carbon-paste electrode modified with TiO2 nanoparticles and 2,2＇-（1,2 butanediylbis（nitriloethylidyne））-bis-hydroquinone（BBNBH）.The prepared modified electrode showed an efficient catalytic role in the electrochemical oxidation of AA,leading to remarkable decrease in oxidation overpotential and enhancement of the kinetics of the electrode reaction.This modified electrode exhibits well-separated oxidation peaks for AA and uric acid（UA）.The modified electrode is successfully applied for the accurate determination of AA in pharmaceutical preparations.

Effect of TiO_2 Nanoparticles on Photochromism of WO_3 Colloids

WO2 and TiO2 colMds were synthesized by the hydrolysis technique and part of the TiO2 colloid was treated by means of the hydrothermal method. The photochromic performances of the resulting materials obtained via combining the WO3 colloid with the treated TiO2 colloid and the non-treated TiO2 colloid, respectively, are very different. The TiO2 colloid without hydrothermal treatment can effectively improve the photochromic performance of the WO3colloid. The TiO2 nanoparticles were investigated in detail by XRD, TEM, surface photovohage spectra（SPS） and field-induced surface photovoltage spectrometry（FISPS）. The photochromism mechanism of WO3 colloid is discussed.

INFLUENCE OF THE ALIGNMENT OF TiO_2 NANOPARTICLES ON OPTICAL AND STRUCTURAL PROPERTIES OF POLY(PHENYLENEVINYLENE) FILMS

A series of poly(phenylenevinylene) (PPV)/titanium oxide (TiO_2)nanocomposites with different contents of TiO_2 nanoparticles were prepared from mixtures of PPVprecursor and titanium butoxide ethanol solution in a sol- gel process. TEM images showed theformation of the connected network of TiO_2 nanoparticles with a higher content of TiO_2, whichresulted in the titanium butoxide hydrolyzed to form Ti organic compound. Meanwhile, the conjugationof PPV polymer chains can be interrupted by the TiO_2 network structure. The PL spectra revealedthat the emitted light of the PPV/TiO_2 nanocomposites blue shifted without fine structure and thePL intensity enhanced when the TiO_2 network formed. In the lifetime spectroscopy of positronannihilation, the structural properties of the PPV dominated the character of the nanocomposites, inwhich the formation of the omicron -Ps was presented in free volume polymer, when the content ofTiO_2 was below 10 percent. Further increasing the content of TiO_2 nanoparticle introduced muchmore vacancies, vacancy clusters and grain boundaries at their interfaces, which led to thecorresponding lifetime and intensity close to that of the nano- TiO_2 bulk materials. With the TiO_2content of 50 percent of long lifetime. These phenomena suggested that the optical and structuralproperties of the PPV/TiO_2 nanocomposites are dependent on the interfacial structure between PPVand TiO_2 nanoparticles.

Fabrication and characteristics of rutile TiO_2 nanoparticles induced by laser ablation

The laser ablation technique was employed to prepare TiO2 nanoparticles by pulsed laser ablation of a titanium target immersed in the poly-(vinylpyrrolidone) solution using wavelength of 1 064 nm. The as-prepared products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results indicate that the rutile TiO2 nanoparticles are synthesized at room temperature and the average size is about 35 nm with narrow size distribution. A possible formation mechanism was discussed and the UV-vis absorption and photoluminescence were measured. The optical study shows that rutile nanoparticle possesses direct optical transition with band gap of 3.15 eV.

Preparation of TiO_2 Nanoparticles Coated Cotton Fibers at Low Temperature and Their Photocatalytic Activity

TiO_2 nanoparticles coated cotton fiber composite was successfully prepared by using a sol-gel method at low temperature(about 100℃) using tetrabutyl-titanate [Ti(OBu)_4] as raw material.The preparation of the TiO_2 colloid and the composite were described.The properties of resulting materials were characterized by SEM and XRD,the photocatalytic degradation performance was tested using methylene blue(MB) as the target pollutant in aqueous solution.The results showed that the amorphous TiO_2 nanoparticles were distributed evenly on the outer surfaces of cotton fibers,which shows efficient photocatalytic properties when exposed to UV light,the degradation rate of MB reached 95.35% under the conditions of catalyst dosage 2.5 g/L,MB concentration 50 mg/L,irradiation time 120 min,and pH 10,and the photocatalytic activity of TiO_2/cotton fibers remained above 90% of its activity as-prepared after being used four times,the degradation rate of MB could reach 88.78% when irradiation time was 120 min.The photocatalytic degradation of MB could be properly described by the first-order kinetic law.By comparison of the removal rates of MB with and without UV light,it could be affirmed that the disappearance of MB was due to photodegradation rather than adsorption on cotton fibers.

Self-assembly of Ag-TiO_2 Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Characterization and Catalytic Application

The formation of Ag clusters on titanium oxide （TiO2） nanoparticles was achieved by self-assembly process and calcination. The obtained nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and ultraviolet visible spectroscopy （UV-Vis）, and conventional techniques （XRD, TEM and UV-Vis） were used to identify Ag particles on the TiO2 surfaces. The results show that Ag-TiO2 particles can be applied to improve catalytic activity of the epoxidation of styrene oxides. Styrene oxide is the main product of catalytic reaction with H2O2 as the oxidant by using Ag-TiO2 nanoparticles as catalysts. High catalytic activitity of styrene oxide can be obtainable at 80 ℃. The reaction temperature, reaction time, the molar ratio of H2O2/styrene and solvent affect greatly the catalytic epoxidation of styrene.

TiO_2 nanoparticle-based electron transport layer with improved wettability for efficient planar-heterojunction perovskite solar cell

The electron transport layer （ETL） plays an important role in planar heterojunction perovskite solar cell （PSCs）, by affecting the light-harvesting, electron injection and transportation processes, and especially the crystal- lization of perovskite absorber. In this work, we utilized a commercial TKD-TiO2 nanoparticle with a small diameter of 6 nm for the first time to prepare a compact ETL by spin coating. The packing of small-size particles endowed TKD-TiO2 ETL an appropriate surface-wettability, which is beneficial to the crystallization of perovskite deposited via solution-processed method. The uniform and high-transmittance TKD-TiO2 films were successfully incorporated into PSCs as ETLs. Further careful optimization of ETL thickness gave birth to a highest power conversion efficiency of 11.0%, which was much higher than that of PSC using an ETL with the same thickness made by spray pyrolysis. This TKD-TiO2 provided a universal solar material suitable for the further large-scale production of PSCs. The excellent morphology and the convenient preparation method of TKD-TiO2 film gave it an extensive application in photovoltaic devices.

Porous silica nano-flowers stabilized Pt-Pd bimetallic nanoparticles as heterogeneous catalyst for efficiently synthesizing guaiacol from 2-methoxycyclohexanol

Porous silica nano-flowers(KCC-1)immobilized Pt-Pd alloy NPs(Pt-Pd/KCC-1)with different mass ratios of Pd and Pt were successfully prepared by a facile in situ one-step reduction,using hydrazinium hydroxide as a reducing agent.The as-synthesized silica nanospheres possess radial fibers with a distance of 15 nm,exhibiting a high specific surface area(443.56 m^(2)·g^(-1)).Meanwhile,the obtained Pt-Pd alloy NPs are uniformly dispersed on the silica surface with a metallic particle size of 4-6 nm,which exist as metallic Pd and Pt on the surface of monodisperse KCC-1,showing the transfer of electrons from Pd to Pt.The as-synthesized 2.5%Pt-2.5%Pd/KCC-1 exhibited excellent catalytic activity and stability for the continuous dehydrogenation of 2-methoxycyclohexanol to prepare guaiacol.Compared with Pt or Pd single metal supported catalysts,the obtained 2.5%Pt-2.5%Pd/KCC-1 shows 97.2%conversion rate of 2-methoxycyclohexanol and 76.8%selectivity for guaiacol,which attributed to the significant synergistic effect of bimetallic Pt-Pd alloy NPs.Furthermore,turn over frequency value of the obtained 2.5%Pt-2.5%Pd/KCC-1 NPs achieved 4.36 s^(-1),showing higher catalytic efficiency than other two monometallic catalysts.Reaction pathways of dehydro-aromatization of 2-methoxycyclohexanol over the obtained catalyst are proposed.Consequently,the obtained 2.5%Pt-2.5%Pd/KCC-1 NPs prove their potential in the dehydrogenation of 2-methoxycyclohexanol,while the kinetics and mechanistic study of the dehydrogenation reaction over the catalyst in a continuous fixed-bed reactor may provide valuable information for the development of green,outstanding and powerful synthetic pathway of guaiacol.

Combined proteomic and metabolomic studies on the liver of Amur sturgeon Acipenser schrenckii under titanium dioxide nanoparticle exposure

Nanomaterials,particularly titanium dioxide nanoparticles(TiO_(2)-NPs),are extensively utilized across various industries.However,their environmental release has raised concerns regarding their potential ecological and environmental impacts.The reproductive toxicity of TiO_(2)-NPs in fish species has attracted considerable attention,yet conflicting research outcomes have been reported.We investigated the effects of TiO_(2)-NPs exposure on the liver of juvenile Amur sturgeon Acipenser schrenckii using label-free proteomic and untargeted metabolomic analyses.The experiment included a control group and three groups exposed to different concentrations of TiO_(2)-NPs(low,TL;medium,TM;high,TH).Compared to the control group,9,19,and 25 proteins and 35,73,and 158 metabolites were differentially expressed in the TH,TM,and TL TiO_(2)-NP-exposed groups,respectively.The differentially expressed genes(DEGs)were enriched in the Kyoto Encyclopedia for Genes and Genomes(KEGG)pathways related to glycolysis and gluconeogenesis.Moreover,among the 126 correlated proteins,the most enriched pathways were associated with endocytosis and protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum.Notably,syringic acid was significantly downregulated across all three TiO_(2)-NP-exposed groups.To obtain a comprehensive overview of the TiO_(2)-NP-induced expression changes,a co-regulated network of proteins and metabolites associated with TiO_(2)-NPs exposure was constructed.Exposure to TiO_(2)-NPs led to enrichment and alteration of pathways related to immune responses,including endocytosis,protein processing in the endoplasmic reticulum,and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor(PPAR)signaling.In conclusion,our findings indicate that exposure to TiO_(2)-NPs might disrupt glucose metabolism and induce immune responses,thus contributing to our understanding of the environmental impacts of nanomaterials and highlighting the need for further research and development of potential mitigation strategies.

Improvement of the piezoelectricity of PVDF-HFP by CoFe_(2)O_(4)nanoparticles

High piezoelectric composite films composed of poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)(PVDF-HFP)and ferromagnetic cobalt ferrite(CoFe_(2)O_(4))(0.00 wt%to 0.2 wt%)are prepared by a solution casting method accompanied by uniaxial stretching and high electric field poling.The decisive effect of the poling electric field on the power generating capability was confirmed by the experiments.For pure PVDF-HFP films,when the maximum electric field Emax is 120 MV/m,the calibrated open circuit voltage reaches 2.93 V,which is much higher than those poled at lower electric fields(70 MV/m:1.41 V;90 MV/m:2.11 V).Furthermore,the addition of CoFe_(2)O_(4)also influences the piezoelectricity dramatically.In the samples containing 0.15 wt%CoFe_(2)O_(4),the calibrated open circuit voltage increases to the maximum value of 3.57 V.Meanwhile,the relative fraction of theβ-phase and the crystallinity degree are 99%and 48%,respectively.The effects of CoFe_(2)O_(4)nanoparticles on initial crystallization,uniaxial stretching and high electric field poling are investigated by XRD,FTIR and DSC.

Functionalized selenium nanoparticles ameliorated acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity through synergistically triggering PKCδ/Nrf2 signaling pathway and inhibiting CYP 2E1

Selenium nanoparticles(SeNPs)have been demonstrated potential for use in diseases associated with oxidative stress.Functionalized SeNPs with lower toxicity and higher biocompatibility could bring better therapeutic activity and clinical application value.Herein,this work was conducted to investigate the protective effect of Pleurotus tuber-regium polysaccharide-protein complex funtionnalized SeNPs(PTR-SeNPs)against acetaminophen(APAP)-induced oxidative injure in HepG2 cells and C57BL/6J mouse liver.Further elucidation of the underlying molecular mechanism,in particular their modulation of Nrf2 signaling pathway was also performed.The results showed that PTR-SeNPs could significantly ameliorate APAP-induced oxidative injury as evidenced by a range of biochemical analysis,histopathological examination and immunoblotting study.PTR-SeNPs could hosphorylate and activate PKCδ,depress Keap1,and increase nuclear accumulation of Nrf2,resulting in upregulation of GCLC,GCLM,HO-1 and NQO-1 expression.Besides,PTR-SeNPs suppressed the biotransformation of APAP to generate intracellular ROS through CYP 2E1 inhibition,restoring the mitochondrial morphology.Furthermore,the protective effect of PTR-SeNPs against APAP induced hepatotoxicity was weakened as Nrf2 was depleted in vivo,indicating the pivotal role of Nrf2 signaling pathway in PTR-SeNPs mediated hepatoprotective efficacy.Being a potential hepatic protectant,PTR-SeNPs could serve as a new source of selenium supplement for health-promoting and biomedical applications.

Experimental investigation of the effects of oil asphaltene content on CO_(2) foam stability in the presence of nanoparticles and sodium dodecyl sulfate

Foam stability tests were performed using sodium dodecyl sulfate(SDS)surfactant and SiO2 nanoparticles as foaming system at different asphaltene concentrations,and the half-life of CO_(2) foam was measured.The mechanism of foam stability reduction in the presence of asphaltene was analyzed by scanning electron microscope(SEM),UV adsorption spectrophotometric concentration measurement and Zeta potential measurement.When the mass ratio of synthetic oil to foam-formation suspension was 1:9 and the asphaltene mass fraction increased from 0 to 15%,the half-life of SDS-stabilized foams decreased from 751 s to 239 s,and the half-life of SDS/silica-stabilized foams decreased from 912 s to 298 s.When the mass ratio of synthetic oil to foam-formation suspension was 2:8 and the asphaltene mass fraction increased from 0 to 15%,the half-life of SDS-stabilized foams decreased from 526 s to 171 s,and the half-life of SDS/silica-stabilized foams decreased from 660 s to 205 s.In addition,due to asphaltene-SDS/silica interaction in the aqueous phase,the absolute value of Zeta potential decreases,and the surface charges of particles reduce,leading to the reduction of repulsive forces between two interfaces of thin liquid film,which in turn,damages the foam stability.

Effect of Nd3+doping on structure,microstructure,lattice distortion and electronic properties of TiO_2 nanoparticles

Doped and undoped TiCh nanoparticles were prepared by Stober method and thermally treated at 600 ℃.The effect of Nd^（3＋） ion on the structure and micro structure of anatase-phase TiCh nanocrystals was studied by Rietveld refinement method using X-ray powder diffraction data.Bond lengths,bond angles,and edges distances were analyzed.The phase formation was confirmed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy.The adjustment of Ti-0 bond length induced by the addition of Nd^（3＋） ions,reduced the octahedral distortion and altered the octahedral array in the anatase-phase TiCh nanocrystal.The changes of structure and microstructure were mainly observed for TiCh nanoparticles doped with 0.1 at.%of Nd^（3＋） ions and attributed to the cationic substitution of Ti^（4＋） ions which promoted changes in the density of states and gap band of TiCh.The dopant insertion resulted in a better structural stability of the nanocrystals that enhanced their charge transference and photocatalytic efficiency.

Homogeneous and nanomolar detection of hydrazine by indigocarmine as a mediator at the surface of TiO_2 nanoparticles modified carbon paste electrode

The homogeneous electrocatalytic oxidation of hydrazine（HZ） has been studied by indigocarmine（IND） as a mediator at the surface of TiO_2 nanoparticles modified carbon paste electrode（TNMCPE）.Cyclic voltammetry was used to study the electrochemical behavior of IND at different scan rates.The voltammetric response of the modified electrode was linear against the concentration of HZ in the ranges of 3.0×l0^（-8）-7.0×10~6 mol/L with differential pulse voltammetry method.The detection limit（3σ） was determined as 27.3 nmol/L.To evaluate the applicability of the proposed method to real samples,the modified CPE was applied to the determination of HZ in water samples.

SYNTHESIS OF HIGH PURITY TiO_2 NANOPARTICLES FROM Ti(SO_4)_2 IN PRESENCE OF EDTA AS COMPLEXING AGENT

TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by a homogeneous controlled precipitation method using industrial titanium sulfate （Ti（SO4）2）. The obtained powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscope （TEM）, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR） and ICP plasma spectrometer. EDTA was used as complexing agent to improve the purity and the formation of TiO2 nanoparticles. Experimental results indicated that the high-purity TiO2 nanoparticles were 20 nm in mean size and nearly monodispersed.

Effects of TiO_2 nanoparticles on the aquatic plant Spirodela polyrrhiza: Evaluation of growth parameters, pigment contents and antioxidant enzyme activities

Plants are essential components of all ecosystems and play a critical role in environmental fate of nanoparticles. However, the toxicological impacts of nanoparticles on plants are not well documented. Titanium dioxide nanoparticles（TiO2-NPs） are produced worldwide in large quantities for a wide range of purposes. In the present study, the uptake of TiO2-NPs by the aquatic plant Spirodela polyrrhiza and the consequent effects on the plant were evaluated.Initially, structural and morphological characteristics of the used TiO2-NPs were determined using XRD, SEM, TEM and BET techniques. As a result, an anatase structure with the average crystalline size of 8 nm was confirmed for the synthesized TiO2-NPs. Subsequently, entrance of TiO2-NPSto plant roots was verified by fluorescence microscopic images. Activity of a number of antioxidant enzymes, as well as, changes in growth parameters and photosynthetic pigment contents as physiological indices were assessed to investigate the effects of TiO2-NPs on S. polyrrhiza. The increasing concentration of TiO2-NPs led to the significant decrease in all of the growth parameters and changes in antioxidant enzyme activities. The activity of superoxide dismutase enhanced significantly by the increasing concentration of TiO2-NPs. Enhancement of superoxide dismutase activity could be explained as promoting antioxidant system to scavenging the reactive oxygen species. In contrast, the activity of peroxidase was notably decreased in the treated plants. Reduced peroxidase activity could be attributed to either direct effect of these particles on the molecular structure of the enzyme or plant defense system damage due to reactive oxygen species.

Green-chemistry Compatible Approach to TiO_2-supported PdAu Bimetallic Nanoparticles for Solvent-free 1-Phenylethanol Oxidation under Mild Conditions

Ti O2-supported Pd Au bimetallic nanoparticles(NPs) with small size and good dispersity were prepared by the room-temperature ionic liquid-assisted bimetal sputtering, which is simple, environmentally friendly, and free of additives and byproducts. Pd/Au atomic ratio can be tuned by controlling the sputtering conditions simply. High catalytic activity was found in Pd Au–NPs–Ti O2 hybrids for solvent-free selective oxidation of 1-phenylethanol using O2 as the oxidant at the low temperature of 50 °C and low pressure of 1 atm. It was found that Pd/Au ratio strongly affected the catalytical activity, and the highest conversion of about 35 % and turnover frequency of about 421 h-1were achieved at 1:1 of Pd/Au atomic ratio. The synergistic effect in Pd Au NPs was also discussed based on the comprehensive characterization results.The present approach may offer an alternative platform for future development of green-chemistry compatible bimetallic nanocatalysts.