The prolonged survival of microbes on surfaces in high-traffic/high-contact environments drive the need for a more consistent and passive form of surface sterilization to minimize the risk of infection. Due...

Military systems have become more complex, and the development of future advanced materials for defence applications have received much attention. Nanocellulose has been identified as a 'super versatile material' that...

The adsorption and desorption of contaminants by nanocellulose.

The wide availability and diversity of dangerous microbes poses a considerable problem for health professionals and in the development of new healthcare products. Numerous studies have been conducted to develop membrane filters that have antibacterial properties to solve this problem. Without proper protective filter equipment, healthcare providers, essential workers, and the general public are exposed to the risk of infection. A combination of nanotechnology and biosorption is expected to offer a new and greener approach to improve the usefulness of polysaccharides as an advanced membrane filtration material. Nanocellulose is among the emerging materials of this century and several studies have proven its use in filtering microbes. Its high specific surface area enables the adsorption of various microbial species, and its innate porosity can separate various molecules and retain microbial objects. Besides this, the presence of an abundant OH groups in nanocellulose grants its unique surface modification, which can increase its filtration efficiency through the formation of affinity interactions toward microbes. In this review, an update of the most relevant uses of nanocellulose as a new class of membrane filters against microbes is outlined. Key advancements in surface modifications of nanocellulose to enhance its rejection mechanism are also critically discussed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first review focusing on the development of nanocellulose as a membrane filter against microbes.

In this paper, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were functionalized by acid treatment and further functionalized with dodecylamine and were designated as CNT-carboxylic and CNT-amide, respectively. Then, functionalized CNTs produced were characterized with various methods to verify the attachment of a functional group. Performance of the functionalized CNTs in the detection of benzene gas was monitored at room temperature. The sample was dropped cast on the interdigitated transducer (IDT), and the changes in resistivity were recorded by a digital multimeter in a customized chamber under controlled humidity (∼55%) environment. Based on the findings, it showed that the functionalized CNTs provide an extra active area for interaction between the gas analyte and CNTs, thus increasing their response and improving the sensitivity of the sensing material.