Nanomaterials and Their Composites for Environmental Remediation

Dear Colleagues,

As modern civilization progresses, several types of pollutants are released into the environment as a result of human activities and industrial processes. There are, for example, many air pollutants, such as particulate matter (PM_2.5, particles with a diameter of 2.5 μm or less; PM₁₀, particles with a diameter of 10 μm or less), gases (carbon dioxide, CO₂; carbon monoxide, CO; formaldehyde, HCHO), biological molecules (bacteria, viruses), and so forth. Severe water pollution containing organic dyes and pesticides, inorganic metal ions, and biological pollutants (bacteria, viruses, algae) is also widespread. Environmental pollution and the energy crises are continuing to thwart society's long-term growth and have a negative impact on people’s quality of life all over the world. Remediation of the environment has grown exceedingly challenging. Therefore, there is an urgent need to establish effective ways of reducing or eliminating pollution in the environment. Due of its relatively interdisciplinary nature, nanotechnology has a wide range of potential applications in this context. The use of nanomaterials to remediate the environment can play a crucial role because the properties of nanoparticles (NPs) (such as electronic, optical, magnetic, and catalytic properties) can be engineered by the engineering of size and shape of NPs. Nanotechnology renders an opportunity to manipulate shape, size, and physical and chemical properties such as surface to volume ratio, structure, dispersibility, reactivity, etc. Nanomaterials have the potential to increase reactivity and leverage surface chemistry compared to traditional approaches. Modification of nanomaterials is possible by functionalizing or grafting with different functional groups, which can be very useful to target specific pollutants. Thus, the remediation process can be very efficient. Tunable parameters/properties in the case of nanomaterials, such as size, morphology, and porosity, make them advantageous over conventional methods. Hence, techniques based on nanomaterials are beneficial for the treatment of natural/industrial/domestic wastewater, soils, sediments, mine tailings, and polluted atmosphere. Specifically, this topic will provide the most recent advances and perspectives on novel nanomaterials (metal-based, metal-oxide-based, and carbon-based), architectures, and strategies, considering but not limited to the fields of:

• Nanomaterials synthesis via different novel approaches and their environmental remotion applications;
• Sustainable synthesis of nanomaterials using plant materials, microorganisms, bacteria, algae, and various biowastes, including vegetable waste, fruit peel waste, eggshell, and agricultural waste, in the context of a clean environment; materials that are environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and avoid the use of toxic chemicals;
• Modification of metal nanoparticles for the fabrication of analytical sensors for the monitoring of water pollutants;
• Functionalization of metal/metal oxide NPs with carbon-based materials for photocatalysis, antimicrobial, and heavy metal ion sensing;
• Environmental applications of green nanomaterials, including wastewater treatment and water remediation, air treatment, and water and air pollutant monitoring;
• Core–shell-based nanomaterials for water purification and biological applications.

Dr. Mikhael Bechelany
Dr. Jagpreet Singh
Topic Editors