Interview with Prof. Protima Rauwel—Winner of the Nanomaterials Best Paper Award
We are delighted to invite the winner of the Nanomaterials 2023 Best Paper Award, Prof. Protima Rauwel, to discuss the article, “Revealing the Dependency of Dye Adsorption and Photocatalytic Activity of ZnO Nanoparticles on Their Morphology and Defect States”. The paper was published in Nanomaterials (ISSN: 2079-4991) and has received a significant amount of positive feedback from our readers.
Name: Prof. Protima Rauwel
Affiliation: Estonian Aviation Academy, Estonia
Research interests: nanotechnology, photocatalysis, batteries, LED, ZnO, Oxides, graphene, CNT
Prof. Protima Rauwel obtained her PhD in 2005 from the University of Caen, France. She subsequently conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Aveiro, Portugal, and the University of Oslo, Norway. In Estonia, she has served as Chair Professor of energy applications and is currently a Professor of applied nanotechnology. Her expertise lies in the optical and nanoscale characterization of materials, as well as in the synthesis and application of nanomaterials. These materials are applied in photodiodes, photocatalysis, and photoelectrochemical diodes. She has also contributed to several interdisciplinary research projects in nanomedicine. Her current research at the Estonian Aviation Academy focuses on the use of nanoadditives in sustainable aviation fuels to reduce carbon emissions and promote environmental sustainability. More broadly, she is committed to developing sustainable materials and minimizing environmental impact in various applications. She holds three patents, and has authored over one hundred articles, five books or thematic issues, and several book chapters.
The following is a short interview with Prof. Protima Rauwel:
1. Congratulations on your published paper and the award it has received! Could you briefly introduce your research focus and the key findings of the award-winning paper? What inspired this work?
Our study was designed to investigate the degradation of organic dyes, including methylene blue, assisted by ZnO nanoparticles. ZnO is a very versatile material with numerous applications. Its photocatalytic properties are well known; therefore, we decided to take the study of these properties a step further. In this work, the size and morphology of the nanoparticles were considered as parameters influencing their efficiency. In fact, surface defects play a very important role, and faceted ZnO nanoparticles are highly efficient due to the high catalytic activity of their exposed facets.
2. What were the biggest challenges you faced during this research, and how did you overcome them?
The biggest challenge was to understand the specific surface of these nanoparticles and their role in the photocatalytic activity. It is important to note that when these nanoparticles are suspended in a liquid, the colloidal particles have a larger specific surface area. However, when studying the specific surface using BET, the nanoparticles are in powder form and therefore agglomerated. Consequently, correlating the specific surface area with the photocatalytic properties was not straightforward.
3. What are the potential applications or long-term impacts of your award-winning research? How might it benefit industry or society?
Now that we have understood that highly defective and faceted ZnO nanoparticles are capable of degrading organic contaminants under UV and sunlight, this means they can be used for water remediation under real conditions. Additionally, these nanoparticles are stable for at least five cycles of dye degradation, with very little loss in efficiency. This suggests that they can also be used to degrade recalcitrant organic contaminants such as pesticides and pharmaceuticals in aqueous media.
4. What are your next research steps? Will you continue to explore themes related to this work?
We have already moved forward since this activity and have synthesized Cu-based nanostructures and graphitic carbon nitride for dye degradation; several publications are already available. Graphitic carbon nitride is produced from plants and therefore promotes the circular economy initiative through the use of sustainable raw materials. We have also been working on the extraction of heavy metals from aqueous sources for a long time using cobalt nanoparticles. Nanoparticles are becoming increasingly important for environmental remediation.
5. Based on your experience, what advice would you give to early career researchers working in nanotechnology or materials science?
I would tell them to pursue their ideas; unless we try, we won’t be able to improve or learn. If you have an idea, find a team that supports it and work together. Teamwork is very important. Also, employing synthesis routes that use non-toxic and environmentally friendly materials is essential if the final aim is to find an industrial application.
6. Why did you choose to publish your work in Nanomaterials? What factors influenced your decision?
We were editing a Special Issue in Nanomaterials and therefore considered it important to personally contribute to the thematic issue. It conveys a message to the readership about the editors’ active involvement in creating a topical edition supported by their own contributions. I firmly believe that it adds value to the Special Issue when editors include a research paper from their own group.
7. As a best paper award winner, what suggestions do you have for Nanomaterials to further enhance its service or impact?
I think Nanomaterials is a very good multidisciplinary journal that publishes work across all disciplines of nanotechnology. However, I believe that the number of published papers could be reduced in order to achieve a more focused publishing model, which would also imply adopting a different reviewing approach. Nevertheless, these open access publications are generally interesting and attract a large readership, which is excellent.