Gel Cleaning in Heritage: Comparison of the Water Release among Gels and Traditional Pads.

Water release is a crucial aspect when considering cleaning effects on water-sensitive materials. In conservation practice, a water-based cleaning method which limits water release is very often needed. Unfortunately, this is not accompanied by an appropriate measure of the effectively released water.

A New Life for Tionite Industrial Waste: Regeneration Strategy towards Photocatalytic Applications.

Industrial waste management is an urgent problem to solve possibly by recycling, reuse and recovery of resources. In this framework, the sludge of the TiO manufacturing, called tionite, is of certain interest because it contains metallic oxide-bearing impurities, dangerous to the environment. Hence, we propose a strategy to recover TiO from tionite, towards its effective re-use as a photocatalyst.

The Chemistry of Chelation for Built Heritage Cleaning: The Removal of Copper and Iron Stains.

Chelators are widely used in conservation treatments to remove metal stains from marble, travertine, and limestone surfaces. In the current review the chemical aspects underlying the use of chelators for the removal of copper and iron stains from built heritage are described and clear criteria for the selection of the most efficient stain removal treatment are given. The main chelator structural features are outlined and the operating conditions for effective metal stain removal (pH, time of application, etc.

PFAS-free superhydrophobic chitosan coating for fabrics.

In view of health and environmental concerns, together with the upcoming restrictive regulations on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), less impactful materials must be explored for the hydrophobization of surfaces. Polysaccharides, and especially chitosan, are being explored for their desirable properties of film formation and ease of modification. We present a PFAS-free chitosan superhydrophobic coating for textiles deposited through a solvent-free method.

Recent Advances on Porous Siliceous Materials Derived from Waste.

In recent years, significant efforts have been made in view of a transition from a linear to a circular economy, where the value of products, materials, resources, and waste is maintained as long as possible in the economy. The re-utilization of industrial and agricultural waste into value-added products, such as nanostructured siliceous materials, has become a challenging topic as an effective strategy in waste management and a sustainable model aimed to limit the use of landfill, conserve natural resources, and reduce the use of harmful substances. In light of these considerations, nanoporous silica has attracted attention in various applications owing to the tunable pore dimensions, high specific surface areas, tailorable structure, and facile post-functionalization.

Synthesis and Characterization of Alkoxysilane-Bearing Photoreversible Cinnamic Side Groups: A Promising Building-Block for the Design of Multifunctional Silica Nanoparticles.

The present study reports on the synthesis of a new alkoxysilane-bearing light-responsive cinnamyl group and its application as a surface functionalization agent for the development of SiO nanoparticles (NPs) with photoreversible tails. In detail, cinnamic acid (CINN) was activated with -hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) to obtain the corresponding NHS-ester (CINN-NHS). Subsequently, the amine group of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) was acylated with CINN-NHS leading to the generation of a novel organosilane, CINN-APTES, which was then exploited for decorating SiO NPs.

Magnetic Composites of Dextrin-Based Carbonate Nanosponges and Iron Oxide Nanoparticles with Potential Application in Targeted Drug Delivery.

Magnetically driven nanosponges with potential application as targeted drug delivery systems were prepared via the addition of magnetite nanoparticles to the synthesis of cyclodextrin and maltodextrin polymers crosslinked with 1,1'-carbonyldiimidazole. The magnetic nanoparticles were obtained separately via a coprecipitation mechanism involving inorganic iron salts in an alkaline environment. Four composite nanosponges were prepared by varying the content of magnetic nanoparticles (5 wt% and 10 wt%) in the cyclodextrin- and maltodextrin-based polymer matrix.

The "Lab4treat" Outreach Experience: Preparation of Sustainable Magnetic Nanomaterials for Remediation of Model Wastewater.

The Lab4treat experience has been developed to demonstrate the use of magnetic materials in environmental applications. It was projected in the frame of the European project Mat4Treat, and it was tested several times in front of different audiences ranging from school students to the general public in training and/or divulgation events. The experience lends itself to discuss several aspects of actuality, physics and chemistry, which can be explained by modulating the discussion depth level, in order to meet the interests of younger or more experienced people and expand their knowledge.

Chitosan-derived biochars obtained at low pyrolysis temperatures for potential application in electrochemical energy storage devices.

N-rich biochars were obtained via pyrolysis treatment of chitosan (a low-cost biopolymer from natural biomasses) at mild conditions (in the 284 °C-540 °C range), thus offering an energy efficient and low carbon footprint synthesis. These low surface area N-doped biochars were morphologically and physicochemically characterized, and tested as hosting material in lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries. Sulfur/biochars cathodes thus obtained showed good capacity retention and improved Coulombic efficiency compared to a standard N-rich high surface area carbon and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) reference substrates.

Cementitious composite materials for thermal energy storage applications: a preliminary characterization and theoretical analysis.

The lack of robust and low-cost sorbent materials still represents a formidable technological barrier for long-term storage of (renewable) thermal energy and more generally for Adsorptive Heat Transformations-AHT. In this work, we introduce a novel approach for synthesizing cement-based composite sorbent materials. In fact, considering the number of available hygrosopic salts that can be accommodated into a cementitious matrix-whose morphological properties can be also fine-tuned-the new proposed in situ synthesis paves the way to the generation of an entire new class of possible sorbents for AHT.

An Analytical Mini-Review on the Compression Strength of Rubberized Concrete as a Function of the Amount of Recycled Tires Crumb Rubber.

Since waste tires constitute a serious environmental concern, several studies are devoted to the use of finely divided recycled rubber for the production of rubberized concrete by partial substitution of the mineral aggregate fraction. The introduction of rubber into concrete presents several advantages (e.g.

The Innovation Comes from the Sea: Chitosan and Alginate Hybrid Gels and Films as Sustainable Materials for Wastewater Remediation.

The growing utilization of renewable and residual biomasses for environmental preservation and remediation are important goals to be pursued to minimize the environmental impact of human activities. In this paper, sodium alginate (derived from brown algae) was crosslinked using chitosan (mainly derived from the exoskeleton of crustaceans) in the presence of biowaste-derived substances isolated from green compost (BBS-GC), to produce hydrogels and dried films. The obtained materials were tested as adsorbents for wastewater remediation.

Sustainable Magnetic Materials (from Chitosan and Municipal Biowaste) for the Removal of Diclofenac from Water.

The photodegradation of an aqueous solution of diclofenac (DCF) has been attempted in the presence of hydrogen peroxide and organic/inorganic hybrid magnetic materials under simulated and real solar light. The hybrid magnetic materials have been prepared via coprecipitation synthesis starting from iron(II) and iron(III) inorganic salts in the presence of bioderived organic products (i.e.

The Effects of Conflict on Fertility: Evidence From the Genocide in Rwanda.

Our study analyzes the fertility effects of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. We study the effects of violence on both the duration time to the first birth in the early post-genocide period and on the total number of post-genocide births per woman up to 15 years following the conflict. We use individual-level data from Demographic and Health Surveys, estimating survival and count data models.

Tips and Tricks for the Surface Engineering of Well-Ordered Morphologically Driven Silver-Based Nanomaterials.

Particularly-shaped silver nanostructures are successfully applied in many scientific fields, such as nanotechnology, catalysis, (nano)engineering, optoelectronics, and sensing. In recent years, the production of shape-controlled silver-based nanostructures and the knowledge around this topic has grown significantly. Hence, on the basis of the most recent results reported in the literature, a critical analysis around the driving forces behind the synthesis of such nanostructures are proposed herein, pointing out the important role of surface-regulating agents in driving crystalline growth by favoring (or opposing) development along specific directions.

Block copolymers for designing nanostructured porous coatings.

Highly ordered porous coatings find applications in many fields, such as nanotechnology, microfluidics and nanofluidics, membrane separation, and sensing. In recent years, there has been great interest regarding the synthesis of isoporous and well-ordered (in)organic coatings for the production of highly selective functional membranes. Among the different strategies that have been proposed to date for preparing these porous thin coatings, one simple route involves the use of self-assembled amphiphilic block copolymers either as the porogen (acting as sacrificial templating agents for the production of inorganic architectures) or as a source of the porogen (by self-assembly for the production of polymeric substrates).

New Insights on the Photodegradation of Caffeine in the Presence of Bio-Based Substances-Magnetic Iron Oxide Hybrid Nanomaterials.

The exploitation of organic waste as a source of bio-based substances to be used in environmental applications is gaining increasing interest. In the present research, compost-derived bio-based substances (BBS-Cs) were used to prepare hybrid magnetic nanoparticles (HMNPs) to be tested as an auxiliary in advanced oxidation processes. Hybrid magnetic nanoparticles can be indeed recovered at the end of the treatment and re-used in further water purification cycles.

From biowaste to magnet-responsive materials for water remediation from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

Composted urban biowaste-derived substances (BBS-GC) are used as carbon sources for the preparation of carbon-coated magnet-sensitive nanoparticles obtained via co-precipitation method and the subsequent thermal treatment at 550 °C under nitrogen atmosphere. A multitechnique approach has been applied to investigate the morphology, magnetic properties, phase composition, thermal stability of the obtained magnet-sensitive materials. In particular, pyrolysis-induced modifications affecting the BBS-GC/carbon shell were highlighted.

Packed hybrid silica nanoparticles as sorbents with thermo-switchable surface chemistry and pore size for fast extraction of environmental pollutants.

Thermoresponsive poly(-isopropylacrylamide)-grafted silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) have been synthesized and fully characterized by ATR-FTIR, TGA, HRTEM, BET and DLS analysis. Hybrid solid phase extraction (SPE) beds with tuneable pore size and switchable surface chemistry were prepared by packing the polymer-grafted nanoparticles inside SPE cartridges. The cartridges were tested by checking the thermo-regulated elution of model compounds, namely methylene blue, caffeine and amoxicillin.

Sustainable magnet-responsive nanomaterials for the removal of arsenic from contaminated water.

In this study, chitosan and bio-based substances (BBS) obtained from composted biowaste were used as stabilizers for the synthesis of magnet-sensitive nanoparticles (NPs) via coprecipitation method. A pyrolysis treatment was carried out on both biopolymers at 550°C, and their consequent conversion into a carbon matrix was followed by means of different physicochemical characterization techniques (mainly FTIR spectroscopy and XRD), whereas magnetic properties were evaluated by magnetization curves. The prepared materials were tested in water remediation processes from arsenic (As) species (both inorganic and organic forms).

Reactive Hypersaline Route: One-Pot Synthesis of Porous Photoactive Nanocomposites.

Herein, porous photoactive nanocomposites are prepared by a simple one-pot synthesis approach using a salt and aqueous media. Within this reactive hypersaline route, the salt not only serves in the structuring of the composite but also becomes an integral active part of it. Here, the addition of sodium thiocyanate to a titania precursor guides, on the one hand, the formation of needle-shaped nanoparticles and, on the other hand, forms yellow compound isoperthiocyanic acid, which is homogeneously incorporated into the porous nanocomposite.

Polystyrene--poly(ethylene oxide) copolymers as templates for stacked, spherical large-mesopore silica coatings: dependence of silica pore size on the PS/PEO ratio.

Large-mesopore silica films with a narrow pore size distribution and high porosity have been obtained by a sol-gel reaction of a silicon oxide precursor (TEOS) and using polystyrene--poly(ethylene oxide) (PS--PEO) copolymers as templates in an acidic environment. PS--PEO copolymers with different molecular weight and composition have been studied in order to assess the effects of the block length on the pore size of the templated silica films. The changes in the morphology of the porous systems have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy and a systematic analysis has been carried out, evidencing the dependence between the hydrophilic/hydrophobic ratio of the two polymer blocks and the size of the final silica pores.

Study of the adhesive properties versus stability/aging of hernia repair meshes after deposition of RF activated plasma polymerized acrylic acid coating.

In order to confer adhesive properties to commercial polypropylene (PP) meshes, a surface plasma-induced deposition of poly-(acrylic acid) (PPAA) is performed. Once biomaterials were functionalized, different post-deposition treatments (i.e.

Selective porous gates made from colloidal silica nanoparticles.

Highly selective porous films were prepared by spin-coating deposition of colloidal silica nanoparticles on an appropriate macroporous substrate. Silica nanoparticles very homogenous in size were obtained by sol-gel reaction of a metal oxide silica precursor, tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), and using polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) copolymers as soft-templating agents. Nanoparticles synthesis was carried out in a mixed solvent system.