Nanoscale & Nanoscale Advances Blog

Reduced graphene oxide platform for food toxin detection

28 Jan 2013

Scientists in India have developed a platform to identify the food toxin aflatoxin B₁, a fungus found in rice, dried fruits and cocoa beans. The toxin can be carcinogenic. The team’s system involved depositing reduced graphene oxide (RGO) onto indium tin oxide and covalently attaching antibodies for the toxin to the RGO layer. The label-free system displays high sensitivity with a detection limit of 0.12 ngmL^-1.

Read more of this Nanoscale article today:

Electrophoretically deposited reduced graphene oxide platform for food toxin detection
Saurabh Srivastava, Vinod Kumar, Md Azahar Ali, Pratima R. Solanki, Anchal Srivastava,
Gajjala Sumana, Preeti Suman Saxena, Amish G. Joshi, B. D. Malhotra
DOI: 10.1039/C3NR32242D

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Editor’s choice: nanostructured polymer and dye-sensitized solar cells

24 Jan 2013

By Rowan Frame, Commissioning Editor.

Nanoscale Advisory Board Member Prof. Zhiqun Lin is an expert in nanostructured polymer solar cells and dye-sensitized solar cells, and has selected some of his favorite articles recently published in these fields in Nanoscale.

Read our Editor’s choice selection today:

Reviews:

Confocal ultrafast pump–probe spectroscopy: a new technique to explore nanoscale composites
Tersilla Virgili , Giulia Grancini , Egle Molotokaite , Inma Suarez-Lopez , Sai Kiran Rajendran , Andrea Liscio , Vincenzo Palermo , Guglielmo Lanzani , Dario Polli and Giulio Cerullo
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11896C

Conjugated polymers/semiconductor nanocrystals hybrid materials preparation, electrical transport properties and applications
Peter Reiss , Elsa Couderc , Julia De Girolamo and Adam Pron
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00403K

Recent advances in hybrids of carbon nanotube network films and nanomaterials for their potential applications as transparent conducting films
Seung Bo Yang , Byung-Seon Kong , Dae-Hwan Jung , Youn-Kyoung Baek , Chang-Soo Han , Sang-Keun Oh and Hee-Tae Jung
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00855A

Semiconductor nanostructure-based photovoltaic solar cells
Genqiang Zhang , Scott Finefrock , Daxin Liang , Gautam G. Yadav , Haoran Yang , Haiyu Fang and Yue Wu
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10152H

Atomic layer deposition for nanofabrication and interface engineering
Monan Liu, Xianglin Li, Siva Krishna Karuturi, Alfred Iing Yoong Tok and Hong Jin Fan
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11875K

Oxide nanowires for solar cell applications
Qifeng Zhang, Supan Yodyingyong, Junting Xi, Daniel Myers and Guozhong Cao
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11595F

Nanoengineering and interfacial engineering of photovoltaics by atomic layer deposition
Jonathan R. Bakke, Katie L. Pickrahn, Thomas P. Brennan and Stacey F. Bent
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10349K

TiO2 nanotubes and their application in dye-sensitized solar cells
Poulomi Roy, Doohun Kim, Kiyoung Lee, Erdmann Spiecker and Patrik Schmuki
DOI: 10.1039/B9NR00131J

Oxide nanowire networks and their electronic and optoelectronic characteristics
Nripan Mathews, Binni Varghese, Cheng Sun, Velmurugan Thavasi, Björn P. Andreasson, Chornghaur H. Sow , Seeram Ramakrishna and Subodh G. Mhaisalkar
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR00285B

Original research:

Efficient Light Trapping in Inverted Polymer Solar Cells by Randomly Nanostructured Electrode Using Monodispersed Polymer Nanoparticles
Bumjoon Kim , Dongjin Kang , Hyunbum Kang , Changsoon Cho , Kihyun Kim , Seonju Jeong and Jung-Yong Lee
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR33160H

Solution-processed, nanostructured hybrid solar cells with broad spectral sensitivity and stability
Renjia Zhou , Ying Zheng , Lei Qian , Yixing Yang , Paul H. Holloway and Jiangeng Xue
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR30210A

Light concentration and redistribution in polymer solar cells by plasmonic nanoparticles
Jinfeng Zhu , Mei Xue , Ryan Hoekstra , Faxian Xiu , Baoqing Zeng and Kang L. Wang
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11920J

Charge photogeneration in hybrid solar cells: A comparison between quantum dots and in situ grown CdS
Luke X. Reynolds , Thierry Lutz , Simon Dowland , Andrew MacLachlan , Simon King and Saif A. Haque
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR12081J

Exciton diffusion and charge transfer dynamics in nano phase-separated P3HT/PCBM blend films
Hai Wang , Hai-Yu Wang , Bing-Rong Gao , Lei Wang , Zhi-Yong Yang , Xiao-Bo Du , Qi-Dai Chen , Jun-Feng Song and Hong-Bo Sun
DOI: 10.1039/C0NR01002B

Annealing effects on the photovoltaic performance of all-conjugated poly(3-alkylthiophene) diblock copolymer-based bulk heterojunction solar cells
Ming He , Wei Han , Jing Ge , Weijie Yu , Yuliang Yang , Feng Qiu and Zhiqun Lin
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10293A

Synergistic effect of surface plasmon resonance and constructed hierarchical TiO2 spheres for dye-sensitized solar cells
Yumin Liu, Haowei Zhai, Feng Guo, Niu Huang, Weiwei Sun, Chenghao Bu, Tao Peng, Jikang Yuan and Xingzhong Zhao
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR31954C

Large-scale synthesis of Cu2SnS3 and Cu1.8S hierarchical microspheres as efficient counter electrode materials for quantum dot sensitized solar cells
Jun Xu, Xia Yang, Tai-Lun Wong and Chun-Sing Lee
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR31724A

Densely aligned rutile TiO2 nanorod arrays with high surface area for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells
Miaoqiang Lv, Dajiang Zheng, Meidan Ye, Lan Sun, Jing Xiao, Wenxi Guo and Changjian Lin
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR31431B

Highly efficient and completely flexible fiber-shaped dye-sensitized solar cell based on TiO2 nanotube array
Zhibin Lv, Jiefeng Yu, Hongwei Wu, Jian Shang, Dan Wang, Shaocong Hou, Yongping Fu, Kai Wu and Dechun Zou
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11532H

Dye-sensitized solar cells based on a nanoparticle/nanotube bilayer structure and their equivalent circuit analysis
Xukai Xin, Jun Wang, Wei Han, Meidan Ye and Zhiqun Lin
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11617K

Graphene supported nickel nanoparticle as a viable replacement for platinum in dye sensitized solar cells
Reeti Bajpai, Soumyendu Roy, Neha kulshrestha, Javad Rafiee, Nikhil Koratkar and D. S. Misra
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR11127F

Nanostructure control of graphene-composited TiO2 by a one-step solvothermal approach for high performance dye-sensitized solar cells
Ziming He, Guanhong Guai, Jing Liu, Chunxian Guo, Joachim Say Chye Loo, Chang Ming Li and Timothy Thatt Yang Tan
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR11300C

Preparation of TiO2 nanowires/nanotubes using polycarbonate membranes and their uses in dye-sensitized solar cells
Dong Kyu Roh, Rajkumar Patel, Sung Hoon Ahn, Dong Jun Kim and Jong Hak Kim
DOI: 10.1039/C1NR10525F

If you enjoyed this selection, you may also be interested in our collection of recent Nanoscale articles on energy research.

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New method to target malaria: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

22 Jan 2013

By Hannah Porter, Publishing Assistant.

Malaria is a highly infectious and potentially fatal mosquito-borne disease. It affects millions of people each year; however, no effective vaccines exist. Now, scientists from Spain have discovered a new strategy to target the disease.

Plasmodium falciparum, the most deadly species of malaria parasite, infects red blood cells (RBCs) and changes their structure. The infected RBCs then bind to the walls of blood vessels in tissues, such as the brain and lungs, through a phenomenon known as sequestration. This allows the malaria parasites to replicate. Infected RBCs can also bind to non-infected RBCs, forming clumps known as rosettes, which narrows the blood vessels and can be fatal. The formation of rosettes is thought to be mediated by a protein called PfEMP1, which is expressed at the surface of infected RBCs. So, disrupting the activity of this protein could help prevent rosette formation and the onset of severe malaria.

Red blood cells infected with the malaria parasite can clump together and cause deadly blockages © Shutterstock

Interested to know more? Read the full article in Chemistry World here…

Read the article from Nanoscale:

Demonstration of specific binding of heparin to Plasmodium falciparum-infected vs. non-infected red blood cells by single-molecule force spectroscopy
Juan José Valle-Delgado , Patricia Urbán and Xavier Fernàndez-Busquets
Nanoscale, 2013, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR32821F

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Magnetic nanoparticles show potential use as gene delivery vehicles

09 Jan 2013

By Heather Montgomery, Deputy Editor.

Lee Barrett is a guest web-writer for Nanoscale. He is currently a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Strathclyde, UK.

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a potential magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) gene delivery vehicle by functionalising superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles with an amphiphilic stearic acid-modified gene transfection agent, polyethylenimine (PEI).

The stearic acid-PEI conjugates were used to form clusters of SPIO nanoparticles via self-assembly. The stearic acid-PEI-SPIO nanocomplexes were employed as MRI contrast agents and displayed an imaging sensitivity limit of 1.5 µg ml^-1 Fe, which is essential for effective molecular imaging applications. The authors demonstrated that the nanoparticle conjugates could be used to effectively shield minicircle (mc) DNA from enzymatic degradation, with transefected MCF-7 cells revealing increased luciferase expression with minimal cytotoxicity. The magnetic nanoparticle conjugates show potential use in nanomedicine for non-invasive MRI gene delivery.

By Dr Lee Barrett

Read this Nanoscale article in full today:

Self-assembled magnetic theranostic nanoparticles for highly sensitive MRI of minicircle DNA delivery
Qian Wan, Lisi Xie, Lin Gao, Zhiyong Wang, Xiang Nan, Hulong Lei, Xiaojing Long, Zhi-Ying Chen, Cheng-Yi He, Gang Liu, Xin Liu and Bensheng Qiu
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR32438E

Scheme showing: cell with nanoparticle + minicircle DNA and Gene delivery goes to MR imaging and Gene expression

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Bactericides reach new depths: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

07 Dec 2012

By Hannah Porter, Publishing Assistant.

P. aeruginosa: (A) without treatment; treated with (B) bismuth nanoparticles; (C) x-rays; (D) x-rays and bismuth nanoparticles

Scientists in the US and China have come up with a low-risk treatment for bacterial infections in a deep wound.

Treating infections has long been a challenge for healthcare professionals, and infections caused by drug resistant bacteria have made this task even more difficult to manage. Recently, the genome of an MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) outbreak in a hospital was sequenced to identify the source of infection, track its spread and avoid an outbreak.1 Such extreme measures of tracing infection need an equally tough bactericide. X-ray irradiation is known to have bactericidal properties; however, the high doses needed and the associated risks have restricted its use in vivo.

Interested to know more? Read the full article in Chemistry World here…

Read the article from Nanoscale:

Targeted nanoparticles for enhanced X-ray radiation killing of multidrug-resistant bacteria
Yang Luo, Mainul Hossain, Chaoming Wang, Yong Qiao, Jincui An, Liyuan Ma and Ming Su
Nanoscale, 2012, Accepted Manuscript
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR33154C

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Functionalised graphene nanosheets with excellent solubility and stability

26 Nov 2012

By Heather Montgomery, Deputy Editor.

Functionalised graphene nanosheets have been produced in a green, fast and controllable method by scientists in China. The team used aqueous polycation electrolyte branch poly(ethylenimine) as both a stabiliser and a reducing agent to make the graphene nanosheets, which displayed high solubility and long-term stability in aqueous solution.

The nanosheets did not aggregate and they could be dispersed in aqueous solutions, alkaline solutions, salt solutions and organic solvents. The nanosheets can be used as effective and controllable building templates for applications in various fields, they say.

Read this HOT research in Nanoscale today:

Highly concentrated polycations-functionalized graphene nanosheets with excellent solubility and stability, and its fast，facile and controllable assembly of multiple nanoparticles
Zhaozi Lv, Xuan Yang and Erkang Wang
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR33395C

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Incorporating diatoms in DSSCs leads to 30% improvement in energy conversion efficiency

19 Nov 2012

By Heather Montgomery, Deputy Editor.

Diatoms are photosynthetic microorganisms, found in marine and fresh water environments, which possess a porous silica exoskeleton called a frustule. Scientists in Australia and Canada coated the frustule with titanium dioxide nanoparticles – well known for their light harvesting properties – and incorporated the resulting material into dye sensitised solar cells (DSSCs). The DSSCs containing the frustules showed an efficiency increase of 30% compared to the titania coating alone, which the authors attribute to enhanced light scattering and trapping. The synthetic procedure is also inexpensive and simple.

Read the full details of this exciting Nanoscale communication today:

Diatom frustules as light traps enhance DSSC efficiency
Jeremiah Toster, K. Swaminathan Iyer, Wanchun Xiang, Federico Rosei, Leone Spiccia and Colin L. Raston
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR32716C

Table of contents image

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Oil loving membranes for oil spill clean-ups: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

13 Nov 2012

By Hannah Porter, Publishing Assistant.

Researchers in China have made a new type of membrane that can separate oil from water and could potentially be used in oil spills, such as the one in the Gulf of Mexico. The membrane works by interacting differently with the substances as it is both superhydrophobic and superoleophilic, so that it repels water but attracts oil. This means that the oil is absorbed through the membrane, but the water can’t penetrate.

Oil and water separation using the membrane. The water and oil were dyed by methyl blue and oil red, respectively

The membrane is made from a polymerised fluorinated polybenzoxazine (F-PBZ) layer on top of cellulose acetate nanofibres. The scientists used an electrospinning technique (in which a viscous liquid is passed through a conducting needle to form a thread) to create a porous structure that makes the membrane even better at absorbing the oil.

Interested to know more? Read the full article in Chemistry World here…

Read the article from Nanoscale:

In situ polymerization approach to the synthesis of superhydrophobic and superoleophilic nanofibrous membranes for oil/water separation
Yanwei Shang , Yang Si , Aikifa Raza , Liping Yang , Xue Mao , Bin Ding and Jianyong Yu
Nanoscale, 2012, Accepted Manuscript
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR33063F

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Smaller, more affordable scaffold to open up new possibilities for DNA origami

09 Nov 2012

By Heather Montgomery, Deputy Editor.

Folding DNA to make new nanoscale shapes – so called DNA origami – has potential applications including in drug delivery and immobilising enzymes. The 7249 nucleotide-long M13mp18 strand is frequently used in DNA origami, but it is expensive, its long length makes it more prone to strand cleavage and it can be difficult to analyse on the molecular level.

Scientists in Germany have come up with a convenient method for making a 704 nucleotide-long fragment, which is suitable for making small origami structures, is large enough to analyse by TEM and is more affordable.

Read this HOT Nanoscale article in full today:

M1.3 – A Small Scaffold for DNA Origami
Clemens Richert, Hassan Said, Verena Schüller, Fabian Eber, Christina Wege and Tim Liedl
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR32393A

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Hybrid assemblies with switchable luminescence – potential LED materials

01 Nov 2012

By Heather Montgomery, Deputy Editor.

Researchers based at the Chinese Academy of Sciences have prepared a composite electrode of organic–inorganic polymers and Pyronin Y-doped silica nanoparticles, which was coated with poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), in the presence of phosphododecamolybdic acid (PMo₁₂).

The fluoresence of the nanoparticles can be switched on and off in aqueous solution by oxidation and reduction of the PEDOT, with fast colouration and bleaching of the film.

The materials have potential applications in organic LEDs and other photoelectric devices.

Reversible electroswitchable luminescence in thin films of organic–inorganic hybrid assemblies
Yanling Zhai, Lihua Jin, Chengzhou Zhu, Peng Hu, Lei Han, Erkang Wang and Shaojun Dong
DOI: 10.1039/C2NR32623J

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Nanoscale & Nanoscale Advances Blog

Reduced graphene oxide platform for food toxin detection

Editor’s choice: nanostructured polymer and dye-sensitized solar cells

New method to target malaria: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

Magnetic nanoparticles show potential use as gene delivery vehicles

Bactericides reach new depths: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

Functionalised graphene nanosheets with excellent solubility and stability

Incorporating diatoms in DSSCs leads to 30% improvement in energy conversion efficiency

Oil loving membranes for oil spill clean-ups: Nanoscale article in Chemistry World

Smaller, more affordable scaffold to open up new possibilities for DNA origami

Hybrid assemblies with switchable luminescence – potential LED materials

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