Publications by authors named "Vesna Despotovic"

Pure water scarcity is the most significant emerging challenge of the modern society. Various organics such as pesticides (clomazone, quinmerac), pharmaceuticals (ciprofloxacin, 17α-ethynilestradiol), and mycotoxins (deoxynivalenol) can be found in the aquatic environment. The aim of this study was to fabricate ZnO nanomaterial on the basis of banana peel extract (ZnO/BPE) and investigate its efficiency in the photocatalytic degradation of selected organics under various experimental conditions.

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This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of adsorption and photocatalysis techniques at removing the herbicide clomazone (CLO) and the antidepressant known as amitriptyline (AMI) from water. This study employed kinetic models to analyze the removal processes and assess the potential toxicity of the treated water. The structure and morphology of the prepared multi-walled carbon nanotubes were characterized as adsorbents by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared techniques, and Raman spectroscopy.

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Pure water scarcity is an emerging, all-around problem that globally affects both the life quality and the world's economy. Heterogeneous photocatalysis under solar irradiation is a promising technique for the organic pollutants (e.g.

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This work is focused on the kinetics, mineralization, and toxicological assessments of the antidepressant drug amitriptyline hydrochloride (AMI) in UV or solar illuminated aqueous suspensions of ZnO, TiO Degussa P25, and TiO Hombikat. ZnO was proven to be the most effective photocatalyst, and it was used for all further experiments under solar irradiation. The highest reaction rate was observed at 1.

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Pharmaceuticals and pesticides are emerging contaminants problematic in the aquatic environment because of their adverse effects on aquatic life and humans. In order to remove them from water, photocatalysis is one of the most modern technologies to be used. First, newly synthesized photocatalysts were successfully prepared using a sol-gel method and characterized by different techniques (XRD, FTIR, UV/Vis, BET and SEM/EDX).

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Article Synopsis
  • A study was conducted to analyze the effectiveness of TiO nanoparticles and TiO/polyaniline nanocomposites in removing pharmaceuticals (like propranolol and amitriptyline) and pesticides (such as sulcotrione and clomazone) from various water types, including double distilled water and environmental waters.
  • The research found that the degradation of propranolol and amitriptyline was more efficient in environmental waters (rivers and lakes) compared to double distilled water, while the degradation of sulcotrione and clomazone was less effective in environmental waters.
  • Both bare TiO and the TP-100 nanocomposite were effective for mineralizing propranolol and amitriptyline,
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The photocatalytic degradation of the herbicide clomazone (0.05mM) in aqueous suspensions of TiO2 Degussa P25 was examined as a function of the different operational parameters. The optimum concentration of the catalyst was found to be 0.

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A survey was undertaken to determine total fumonisins (FUMs) and deoxynivalenol (DON) in wheat and maize. Out of 75 wheat samples, 50.7% contained FUMs in the span from 27 to 614 ng/g, while 65.

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The work describes a study of the oxidation power of N-doped and undoped anatase TiO(2), as well as TiO(2) Degussa P25 suspensions for photocatalytic degradation of the herbicides RS-2-(4-chloro-o-tolyloxy)propionic acid (mecoprop) and 3,6-dichloro-pyridine-2-carboxylic acid (clopyralid) using visible and UV light. Undoped nanostructured TiO(2) powder in the form of anatase was prepared by a sol-gel route. The synthesized TiO(2), as well as TiO(2) Degussa P25 powder, were modified with urea to introduce nitrogen into the structure.

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The aim of this work was to study the efficiency of Fe- and N-doped titania suspensions in the photocatalytic degradation of the herbicides RS-2-(4-chloro-o-tolyloxy)propionic acid (mecoprop, MCPP), (4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)acetic acid (MCPA), and 3,6-dichloropyridine-2-carboxylic acid (clopyralid, CP) under the visible light (lambda > or = 400 nm) irradiation. The obtained results were compared with those of the corresponding undoped TiO(2) (rutile/anatase) and of the most frequently used TiO(2) Degussa P25. Computational modeling procedures were used to optimize geometry and molecular electrostatic potentials of MCPP, MCPA and CP and discuss the obtained results.

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