Showing papers in "Bulletin of Chemical Reaction Engineering & Catalysis in 2019"

Synthesis of Titania Doped Copper Ferrite Photocatalyst and Its Photoactivity towards Methylene Blue Degradation under Visible Light Irradiation

Abstract: This paper reports the photocatalytic decomposition of methylene blue (MB) over titania doped copper ferrite, CuFe 2 O 4 /TiO 2 with 50 wt% loading, synthesized via sol-gel method. The synthesized photocatalyst was characterized by X-ray diffraction, UV-vis diffuse reflectance, and photoluminescence, Mott-Schottky (MS) analysis and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV). The catalyst loadings were varied from 0.25 – 1.0 g/L and the optimum catalyst loading found to be 0.5 g/L. At the optimum loading, the conversion achieved was 83.7%. The other loadings produced slightly lower conversions at 82.7%, 80.6% and 80.0%, corresponding to 0.25, 1 and 0.75 g/L after 3 hours of irradiation. The study on the effect of initial concentration indicated that 20 ppm as the optimum concentration, tested with 0.5 g/L catalyst loading. The spent catalyst was used for the recyclability test and demonstrated a high longevity with a degradation efficiency less than 6 % for each time interval. The novelty of this study lies on the new application of photocatalytic material, CuFe 2 O 4 /TiO 2 on thiazine dye that shows remarkable activity and reusability performance under visible light irradiation. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Synthesis of Chitosan/Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles Stabilized by Chitosan via Microwave Heating

Abstract: Nowadays, zinc oxide (ZnO) has attracted attention in research and development because of its remarkable antibacterial properties. Chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles were successfully synthesized via microwave heating. The objectives of this work were to investigate the effect of stabilizer, power heating and time heating on size of chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles and to determine antibacterial activity against pathogenic bacteria, where chitosan was used as a stabilizing agent. Chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles were analyzed by Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), and Zetasizer instrument. The power heating and time heating were varied from 400 to 800 Watt and 4 to 8 minutes, respectively. The presence of chitosan has role on preventing the nanoparticles from agglomeration by producing a milky solution of chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles without any suspensions. The increase of power and time heating improved the size of nanoparticles. The peak in FTIR spectrum at around 427 cm -1 was confirmed the existence of the ZnO phase. XRD patterns showed that the chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles materials were pure phase with average crystalline size is 130 nm. FESEM revealed that chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles were uniformly distributed with the mean value of size is 70 nm and spherical shaped. Further impact of power and time heating on the size of the chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles can be shown by a nanoparticles size distribution with the average of 30 to 90 nm. The results showed that chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles have displayed an antibacterial inhibition zone against Gram-positive S. aureus and Gram-negative E. coli which 16.0 and 13.3 mm, respectively. Chitosan/ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized in this work presented have potential application to prevent bacterial infections. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

A Green Synthesis of Polylimonene Using Maghnite-H+, an Exchanged Montmorillonite Clay, as Eco-Catalyst

Abstract: A new green polymerization technique to synthesis polylimonene (PLM) is carried out in this work. This technique consists of using Maghnite-H + as eco-catalyst to replace Friedel-Crafts catalysts which are toxics. Maghnite-H + is a montmorillonite silicate sheet clay which is prepared through a simple exchange process. Polymerization experiments are performed in bulk and in solution using CH 2 Cl 2 as solvent. Effect of reaction time, temperature and amount of catalyst is studied, in order to find the optimal reaction conditions. The polymerization in solution leads to the best yield (48.5%) at -5°C for a reaction time of 6 h but the bulk polymerization, that is performed at 25°C, remains preferred even if the yield is lower (40.3%) in order to respect the principles of a green chemistry which recommend syntheses under mild conditions, without solvents and at room temperature. The structure of the obtained polymer (PLM) is confirmed by FT-IR and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance of proton ( 1 H-NMR). The glass transition temperature (Tg) of the polylimonene is defined using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and is between 113°C and 116°C. The molecular weight of the obtained polymer is determined by Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) analysis and is about 1360 g/mol. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Removal of iron (II) using intercalated Ca/Al layered double hydroxides with [α-SiW12O40]4-.

Abstract: Ca/Al layered double hydroxide (LDH) was successfully synthesized by co-precipitation method at pH 11 under room temperature condition then followed by calcination at 800 o C. The synthesized Ca/Al LDH was further intercalated with Keggin ion [α-SiW 12 O 40 ] 4- in order to prepare the intercalated form of Ca/Al LDH. The synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and used as an adsorbent for iron(II) removal from the aqueous medium. The adsorption performance was investigated by studying the kinetics and thermodynamic properties of the adsorption process. The results showed that pristine Ca/Al LDH exhibited diffraction peak at 2θ about 20 o which corresponds to the layer structure of the LDH material. For the intercalated Ca/Al LDH, the diffraction observed at 2θ around 30-40 o indicated that the [α-SiW 12 O 40 ] 4- was successfully intercalated into the interlayer space of Ca/Al LDH. Furthermore, the intercalated Ca/Al LDH showed higher adsorption capacity toward iron(II) than the pristine form of Ca/Al LDH. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

PEGylated MoS2 Nanosheets: A Dual Functional Photocatalyst for Photodegradation of Organic Dyes and Photoreduction of Chromium from Aqueous Solution

Abstract: This article reports the synthesis of PEGylated microspheres of MoS 2 nanosheets through the hydrothermal method and its application in rhodamine B and methylene blue dyes photodegradation, and photoreduction of chromium(VI) to chromium(III) in water under illumination with visible light. The catalyst was characterized using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR), Thermo-gravimetric Analysis (TGA), and UV-Vis spectroscopies. XRD result reveals the MoS 2 nanosheets to be present in the hexagonal phase of MoS 2 . SEM, TEM, and HRTEM images show that the synthesised sample has spherical shapes made up of several thin sheets of MoS 2 . The catalyst showed visible light responsivity with a calculated band gap of 1.92 eV. The MoS 2 nanosheets exhibited high degradation efficiency against both dyes. The RhB and MB dyes experienced degradation efficiencies of 97.30 % (RhB) and 98.05 % (MB) in 75 min 90 min, respectively. The MoS 2 photocatalyst is also observed to be effective in photocatalytic reduction of Cr(VI) and displayed 91.05% reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) in 75 min. The results reveal that the synthesised MoS 2 nanosheet is a good photocatalytic material for degradation of dyes and reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) in water. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Synergistic corrosion inhibition effect of rice husk extract and KI for Mild steel in H2SO4 Solution

Abstract: The corrosion inhibition of rice husk extract for bio-corrosion in mild steel in 1 M of H 2 SO 4 solution and the effect of adding potassium iodide were investigated using the weight-loss method with a variable solution temperature and various bio-inhibitor concentrations. The addition of potassium iodide can significantly increase the efficiency of rice husk extract. The highest efficiency is 95.89% at 1,250 ppm of inhibitor concentration at a temperature of 313 K. The inhibition efficiency of rice husk extract is synergistically increased with the addition of potassium iodide. The characteristics of the adsorption inhibitors were assessed using the Langmuir isotherm adsorption approach at all studied concentrations and temperatures. The synergy of rice husk extract and potassium iodide was examined using thermodynamic and kinetic parameters. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Microwave-assisted Synthesis of ZnO Nanoparticles Stabilized with Gum Arabic: Effect of Microwave Irradiation Time on ZnO Nanoparticles Size and Morphology

Abstract: The conventional heating methods of nanoparticle synthesis regularly depend on the energy inputs from outer heat sources that resulted high energy intake and low reaction competences. In this paper ZnO nanoparticles stabilized with gum arabic are synthesized using precipitating method assisted by simple and cost effective microwave heating technique. The objective of this work is to investigate the effect of microwave irradiation time towards ZnO nanoparticles morphology and size. The effect of microwave irradiation time has been investigated at 2, 4, 6, and 10 minutes. Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) was employed to measure the size of ZnO nanoparticles. Ultraviolet–Visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) were used for the characterization of the ZnO nanoparticles. UV-vis absorption spectrum was found in the range of 350 nm indicating the absorption peak of ZnO nanoparticles. FTIR spectra showed peaks range from 424 to 475 cm – 1 which indicating standard of Zn–O stretching. The presence of (100), (002), and (101) planes were apparent in the XRD result, indicating the crystalline phase of ZnO nanoparticles. The increase in the microwave irradiation time affected the processes of nucleation and crystal growth promoted larger ZnO nanoparticles size. Microwave irradiation time at 2 minutes was selected as the best microwave irradiation time for smallest ZnO nanoparticles averaging about 168 nm sizes based on DLS analysis. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Influence of Phosphoric Acid Modification on Catalytic Properties of γ-χ Al2O3 Catalysts for Dehydration of Ethanol to Diethyl Ether

Abstract: In this present work, diethyl ether, which is currently served as promising alternative fuel for diesel engines, was produced via catalytic dehydration of ethanol over H 3 PO 4 -modified g-c Al 2 O 3 catalysts. The impact of H 3 PO 4 addition on catalytic performance and characteristics of catalysts was investigated. While catalytic dehydration of ethanol was performed in a fixed-bed microreactor at the temperature ranging from 200oC to 400oC under atmospheric pressure, catalyst characterization was conducted by inductively coupled plasma (ICP), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N 2 physisorption, temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia (NH 3 -TPD) and thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. The results showed that although the H 3 PO 4 addition tended to decrease surface area of catalyst resulting in the reduction of ethanol conversion, the Al 2 O 3 containing 5 wt% of phosphorus (5P/Al 2 O 3 ) was the most suitable catalyst for the catalytic dehydration of ethanol to diethyl ether since it exhibited the highest catalytic ability regarding diethyl ether yield and the quantity of coke formation as well as it had similar long-term stability to conventional Al 2 O 3 catalyst. The NH 3 -TPD profiles of catalysts revealed that catalysts containing more weak acidity sites were preferred for dehydration of ethanol into diethyl ether and the adequate promotion of H 3 PO 4 would lower the amount of medium surface acidity with increasing catalyst weak surface acidity. Nevertheless, when the excessive amount of H 3 PO 4 was introduced, it caused the destruction of catalysts structure, which resulted in the catalyst incapability due to the decrease in active surface area and pore enlargement. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Bio-kerosene and Bio-gasoil from Coconut Oils via Hydrocracking Process over Ni-Fe/HZSM-5 Catalyst

Abstract: In this study, hydrocracking of coconut oil over Ni-Fe/HZSM-5 catalyst was carried out in a batch reactor under different reaction temperature. Coconut oil is proposed as one of the potential feedstock for biofuel production. The Ni-Fe/HZSM-5 catalyst was prepared by incipient wetness impregnation method. The characterization of Ni-Fe/HZSM-5 catalyst by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDAX), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET). The chemical composition of biofuel was analyzed by Gas-Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). The results from the GC-MS analysis showed that the hydrocracking reaction over 10 % (Ni-Fe)/HZSM-5 catalyst at temperature of 375 o C obtained the highest hydrocarbon content (contained 49.4% n-paraffin, 26.93 % isoparaffin, 3.58 % olefin) and the highest yield of bio-gasoil 38.6 % in the biofuel liquid hydrocarbon. Pentadecane (n-C 15 ) and heptadecane (n-C 17 ) were the most abundant hydrocarbon compounds in biofuel liquid hydrocarbon. Decarboxylation and/or decarbonylation was the dominant reaction pathways in this process. Based on the result, the reaction temperature had a significant effect on the distribution of biofuel composition and yield of biofuel from coconut oil. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Design of a Synthetic Zinc Oxide Catalyst over Nano-Alumina for Sulfur Removal by Air in a Batch Reactor

Abstract: Owing to the environmental regulations with respect to sulfur content and continuing challenges of finding a suitable catalyst of such impurity, a driving force for the development of more efficient technologies a deep research on new oxidative catalysts is considered an important issue in fuel quality improvement. Thus, the present study shows a novel percent of nano-catalyst with 18% zinc oxide (ZnO) of active component over nano-alumina that has not been reported in the public domain for sulfur removal from kerosene fuel by air (oxidative desulfurization (ODS) method). Where, such percent of the active component on the nano-alumina helps to add one or two atoms of oxygen to sulfur content in the kerosene. The nano-catalyst (ZnO/nano-alumina-particles composite) is prepared by precipitation of zinc oxide and loaded over nano-alumina in one-step. The activity of the prepared catalyst was tested utilizing ODS process of kerosene fuel by air in a batch reactor. A set of experiments were conducted with a wide range of operating conditions, where the reaction temperature was ranged from 150 to 190oC, the reaction time from 30 to 50 min and the catalyst weight from 0.4 to 1 g. The experimental results showed that the chemical nature of zinc oxides showed higher conversion (70.52%) at reaction temperature of 190 oC, reaction time of 50 min, and 1 g catalyst weight used in the batch reactor. A kinetic model related to the sulfur removal from kerosene via ODS process in the batch reactor was also investigated in this study for the purpose of estimating the best kinetic parameters of the relevant reactions. The results showed that the prepared catalyst (ZnO over nano-alumina) can be applied confidently to reactor design, operation and control in addition to improve the fuel quality. Following the kinetic model of ODS process, a very well agreement between the experimental and predicted results is obtained. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Synthesis of KCC-1 using rice husk ash for Pb removal from aqueous solution and petrochemical wastewater

Abstract: A silica-rich rice husk ash (RHA, 95.44% SiO 2 ) was used as a silica precursor in the synthesis of KCC-1 for Pb(II) removal. The extraction of silica was carried out under several extraction methods (alkali fusion (AF), reflux (RF) and microwave heating (MW)) and extraction parameters (NaOH/RHA mass ratio, fusion temperature and H 2 O/NaOH-fused RHA mass ratio). The highest silica content was obtained using AF method at extraction conditions of NaOH/RHA mass ratio = 2, fusion temperature = 550 oC, and H 2 O/NaOH-fused RHA mass ratio = 4, with silica concentration of 85,490 ppm. TEM, FTIR, and BET analyses revealed the synthesized KCC-1 has fibrous morphology with surface area of 220 m 2 /g. The synthesized KCC-1 showed good performance in removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solution (74%) and petrochemical wastewater (70%). The analyses of petrochemical wastewater revealed that the adsorption process using synthesized KCC-1 effectively decreased the concentration of COD (489 mg/L to 106 mg/L), BOD (56 mg/L to 34 mg/L) and Pb(II) (22.8 mg/L to 6.71 mg/L). This study affirmed that KCC-1 was successfully synthesized using RHA as silica precursor and applied as an efficient adsorbent for Pb(II) removal. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Production of Triacetin by Microwave Assisted Esterification of Glycerol Using Activated Natural Zeolite

Abstract: Triacetin, an alternative biodiesel additive, was prepared by esterification of glycerol with acetic acid in the presence of chemically activated natural zeolite. The esterification was carried out in a small reaction flask under microwave irradiation. The catalyst was characterized for its morphology by SEM and its chemical composition by X-ray Diffraction (XRD). The Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) micrograph indicates improved surface area of the zeolite, while the XRD analysis shows an increase in Si/Al ratio from natural zeolite to 6.042 and its crystallinity value of 12.23%. The Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR) analysis obtained showed that microwave-heated samples have an esters group spectrum of triacetin at 1702 cm -1 . The conversion value of glycerol was more than 95% at molar ratio of the reactants 1:9 and catalyst loading of 3%. The selectivities for monoacetin, diacetin and triacetin were 80.1%, 15.4%, and 4.5% at 60 minutes, and 43.0%, 48.6%, and 8.3% at 90 minutes. It shows that the conversion took place in consecutive steps and the use of microwave allows the reaction proceeding at milder condition. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Preparation of Polyaniline Emeraldine Salt for Conducting-Polymer-Activated Counter Electrode in Dye Sensitized Solar Cell (DSSC) using Rapid-Mixing Polymerization at Various Temperature

Abstract: Polyaniline Emeraldine Salt (PANI ES) as a conductive polymer has been used as a Pt-free counter electrode materials in DSSC. In this study, polymerization temperature was varied at relatively high temperature from 308 to 348 K with respect to the standard low polymerization temperature at 273 K. The synthesis held in varied high-temperature to study the effect of synthesis condition resulted to the performance as counter electrode in DSSC. The effect of high-temperature synthesis condition gives interesting results, the FTIR-ATR spectra show the presence of vibrational modes of phenazine structure obtained at high polymerization temperature, indicate the changing in the chain geometry. Raman Spectroscopy shows the decrease of the I 1194 /I 1623 intensity ratio that can be interpreted that the degree-of-freedom of C-H bond bending mode decreases in the benzenoid ring, while the stretching mode degree-of-freedom along the chain is preserved or increased. The electrical conductivity profile has changed from metal-like at low-temperature into a semiconductor-like profile at high-temperature. Scanning Electron Microscope images reveals that a change in the morphology of PANI ES with temperature. At low-temperature (273 K) the morphology has a globular shape, while at high-temperature it tends to form nanorod structure. DSSC device with highest efficiency is attained for PANI ES polymerized at 273 K (1.91%) due to its high conductivity. The lowest efficiency is observed in device using PANI ES synthesized at 328 K (1.15%) due to its low conductivity due to the formation of phenazine structure. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Effects of ion exchange process on catalyst activity and plasma-assisted reactor toward cracking of palm oil into biofuels.

Abstract: Biofuels can be produced through a conventional catalytic cracking system and/or a hybrid catalytic-plasma cracking system. This paper was focused on studying effect of Na + ion exchange to HY-Zeolite catalyst on catalyst performance to convert palm oil into biofuels over a conventional continuous fixed bed catalytic cracking reactor and comparing the catalytic cracking performance when carried out in a continuous hybrid catalytic-plasma reactor. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Bruneuer-Emmet-Teller (BET) surface area methods. The biofuels product were analyzed using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) to determine the hydrocarbons composition of biofuels product. From the results, ion exchange process of Na + into HY-Zeolite catalyst decreases the catalyst activity due to decreasing the number of active sites caused by blocking of Na + ion. The selectivity to gasoline ranges achieved 34.25% with 99.11% total conversion when using HY catalyst over conventional continuous fixed bed reactor system. Unfortunately, the selectivity to gasoline ranges decreased to 13.96% and the total conversion decrease slightly to 98.06% when using NaY-Zeolite catalyst. As comparison when the cracking reaction was carried out in a hybrid catalytic-plasma reactor using a spent residual catalytic cracking (RCC) catalyst, the high energetics electron from plasma can improve the reactor performance, where the conversion and yield were increased and the selectivity to lower ranges of hydrocarbons was increased. However, the last results were potential to be intensively studied with respect to relation between reactor temperature and plasma-assisted catalytic reactor parameters. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Cyclohexanone Oxidation over H3PMo12O40 Heteropolyacid via Two Activation Modes Microwave Irradiation and Conventional Method

Abstract: The adipic acid (AA), important precursor for Nylon production, was synthesized from cyclohexanoneoxidation by two ways, microwaves irradiation and conventional method (under reflux) using H 3 PMo 12 O 40 heteropolyacid as catalyst in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. In the order to increase the AA yield, several parameters as cyclohexanone/catalyst ratio, H 2 O 2 concentration, solvent nature (H 2 O, CH 3 CO 2 H, and CH 3 OH, CHCl 3 and CH 3 CN) and cyclohexanol addition to cyclohexanone were examined. For both activation modes, the highest AA yields are of 26-28%. Whereas, with microwaves irradiation, the time gain is much more attractive 30 min compared to 20 h. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Synthesis of 2,2,4-Trimethyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-1,5-benzodiazepine using Treated Natural Zeolite Catalyst

Abstract: The cyclocondensation of 1,2-phenylenediamine and acetone in the presence of treated natural zeolite catalyst (TNZ) under solvent-free condition has been done. The research consisted of three steps. The first step was treatment of natural zeolite by mixing this material in hydrochloric acid solution at 50 °C for 1 hour to be followed by soaking the zeolite in ammonium chloride solution for 5 days. The second step was solvent-free condensation of 1,2-phenylenediamine and acetone using TNZ at 50 °C for 2 hours with weight ratio variation of catalyst, i.e. 15, 30, 45, and 60% (wt/wt). The third step was to study catalyst reusability for the condensation reaction. Based on TLC, FTIR, and 1 H NMR analyses, the condensation afforded 2,2,4-trimethyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-1,5-benzodiazepine as the product in 73% yield with the optimum of catalyst loading at 30% (wt/wt). The reusability test showed that the catalyst can be reused for the cyclocondensation for four times. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Ethanol Dehydrogenation to Acetaldehyde over Activated Carbons-Derived from Coffee Residue

Abstract: This study focuses on the production of acetaldehyde from ethanol by catalytic dehydrogenation using activated carbon catalysts derived from coffee ground residues and commercial activated carbon catalyst. For the synthesis of activated carbon catalysts, coffee ground residues were chemical activated with ZnCl 2 (ratio 1:3) followed by different physical activation. All prepared catalysts were characterized with various techniques such as nitrogen physisorption (BET and BJH methods), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), temperature programmed desorption (CO 2 -TPD and NH 3 -TPD), X-ray Difraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The dehydrogenation of vaporized ethanol was performed to test the catalytic activity and product distribution. Testing catalytic activity by operated in a fixed-bed continuous flow micro-reactor at temperatures ranged from 250 to 400 °C. It was found that the AC-D catalyst (using calcination under carbon dioxide flow at 600 °C, 4 hours for physical activation) exhibited the highest catalytic activity, while all catalysts show high selectivity to acetaldehyde (more than 90%). Ethanol conversion apparently increased with increased reaction temperature. At 400 oC, the AC-D catalyst gave the highest ethanol conversion of 47.9% and yielded 46.8% of acetaldehyde. The highest activity obtained from AC-D catalyst can be related to both Lewis acidity and Lewis basicity because the dehydrogenation of ethanol uses both Lewis acid and Lewis basic sites for this reaction. To investigate the stability of catalyst, the AC-D catalyst showed quite constant ethanol conversion for 10 h. Therefore, the synthesized activated carbon from coffee ground residues is promising to be used in dehydrogenation of ethanol. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Synthesis of Spherical Nanostructured g-Al2O3 Particles using Cetyltrimethylammonium Bromide (CTAB) Reverse Micelle Templating

Abstract: We demonstrated the synthesis of spherical nanostructured g-Al 2 O 3 using reverse micelle templating to enhance the surface area and reactant accessibility. Three different surfactants were used in this study: benzalkonium chloride (BZK), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). We obtained spherical nanostructured particles only using CTAB that form a reverse micelle emulsion. The particles have wide size distribution with an average size of 2.54 mm. The spherical particles consist of nanoplate crystallites with size 20-40 nm randomly arranged forming intercrystallite spaces. The crystalline phase of as-synthesized and calcined particles was boehmite and g-Al 2 O 3, respectively as determined by XRD analysis. Here, the preserved particle morphology during boehmite to g-Al 2 O 3 transformation opens a facile route to synthesize g-Al 2 O 3 particles with complex morphology. The specific surface area of synthesized particles is 201 m 2 /g, which is around five times higher than the conventional g-Al 2 O 3 (Aldrich 544833). Spherical nanostructured g-Al 2 O 3 provides wide potential applications in catalysis due to its high density closed packed structure, large surface area, and high accessibility. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Silver Nanoparticles Supported on Chitosan as a Green and Robust Heterogeneous Catalyst for Direct Synthesis of Nitrogen Heterocyclic Compounds under Green Conditions

Abstract: The catalytic efficiency of silver nanoparticles supported on chitosan as a green, robust, and efficient nanocatalyst for the direct synthesis of biologically active compounds, such as: imidazole derivatives as well as pyrazine scaffolds through multi-component reactions strategy, have been demonstrated. In this work, imidazole derivatives were achieved via pseudo four-component reactions by utilization of benzaldehydes, benzils, anilines, and ammonium acetate under solvent-free conditions. Moreover, pyrazine scaffolds were synthesized through a three-component reaction of phenylenediamine derivatives, isocyanides and various ketones in water. The main advantages of this protocol are the reusability of the catalyst, operational simplicity, mild reaction conditions, and high-yielding. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Kinetic of Adsorption Process of Sulfonated Carbon-derived from Eichhornia crassipes in the Adsorption of Methylene Blue Dye from Aqueous Solution

Abstract: The evaluation of kinetic adsorption process of sulfonated carbon-derived from Eichhornia crassipes in the adsorption of methylene blue dye from aqueous solution has been carried out. The sulfonated carbon-derived from E. crassipes (EGS-600) was prepared by carbonation of E. crassipes powder at 600 °C for 1 h, followed by sulfonation with concentrated sulfuric acid for 3 h. The physical properties of the adsorbents were characterized by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and nitrogen adsorption-desorption studies. Adsorption study using methylene blue dye was carried out by varying the contact time and initial dye concentration for investigated kinetics adsorption models. The effect of varying temperature was used to determine the thermodynamic parameter value of ΔG, ΔH, and ΔS. The results showed that the equilibrium adsorption capacity was 98% when EGS-600 is used as an adsorbent. The methylene blue dye adsorption onto adsorbent takes place spontaneity and follows a pseudo-second-order adsorption kinetic model. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Carbon-containing hydroxyapatite obtained from fish bone as low-cost mesoporous material for methylene blue adsorption

Abstract: The carbon-containing hydroxyapatite has been synthesized using the fish bone obtained from East Kalimantan, Indonesia. The synthesis was conducted at varying calcination temperature (300-700 °C) and duration time (1-5 h). The carbon-containing hydroxyapatite were characterized by using Nitrogen adsorption-desorption, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Differential thermal analysis (DTA). The carbon-containing hydroxyapatite nanoparticles consisted of the mesoporous structure with a specific surface area of 159 m 2 .g -1 and pore size of 44 A. The carbon-containing hydroxyapatite nanoparticles were utilized as the adsorbent for the removal of methylene blue by varying the contact time, initial dye concentration, pH, adsorbent dosage and temperature. The maximum amount of adsorption capacity was 56.49 mg.g -1 . The adsorption was well fitted with the Langmuir adsorption model (R 2 ~ 0.998) and the pseudo-second-order model. This indicated that the dye molecules were adsorbed on the surface-active site of carbon-containing hydroxyapatite via chemical binding, forming an adsorbate monolayer. Hence, the adsorption capability corresponds to the physical properties such as the surface area and pore volume of hydroxyapatite because the larger surface area consists of higher binding sites for the adsorption. Thermodynamic parameters, including the Gibbs free energy (ΔG), enthalpy (ΔH), and entropy (ΔS), indicated that the adsorption of methylene blue onto the carbon-containing hydroxyapatite nanoparticles was spontaneous. Thus, carbon-containing hydroxyapatite nanoparticles can be applied as a low-cost adsorbent for the treatment of industrial effluents that are contaminated with the methylene blue. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Tuning the Morphology of Ag3PO4 Photocatalysts with an Elevated Concentration of KH2PO4

Abstract: Tuning the morphology of Ag 3 PO 4 photocatalysts with an elevated concentration of KH 2 PO 4 have been successfully conducted. This photocatalyst was prepared by starting material of AgNO 3 and KH 2 PO 4 . The KH 2 PO 4 aqueous solution with five concentrations of 0.10 M, 0.15 M, 0.30 M, 0.45 M, and 0.60 M was reacted with AgNO 3 aqueous solution. The products were characterized using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy (DRS), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The concentration of KH 2 PO 4 significantly affected the morphology, size, and crystallinity of catalyst. The morphology of Ag 3 PO 4 may be tuned with the synthesis using an elevated concentration of KH 2 PO 4 . The sample with the synthesis using 0.15 M of KH 2 PO 4 exhibited the excellent photocatalytic activity. The high photocatalytic activity was caused by the small size of mixed morphology of sphere and tetrahedron, high crystallinity and defect sites. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Green Synthesis of [EMIm]Ac Ionic Liquid for Plasticizing MC-based Biopolymer Electrolyte Membranes

Abstract: Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are favorable power source devices at the last two decades, owing to high energy density, rechargeable, long life cycle, portable, safe, rechargeable, good performance and friendly environment. To support their development, in this research has been successfully prepared polymer electrolyte membrane, a main component of LIBs, based on 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([EMIm]Ac) ionic liquid-plasticized methyl cellulose/lithium perchlorate (MC/LiClO 4 ). [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid was easy synthesized by metathesis reaction between 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide ([EMIm]Br) ionic liquid and potassium acetate (CH 3 COOK) at ambient temperature, for 1 hour. [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid was functional groups analyzed with Fourier Transform Infra-red (FT-IR) and structural analyzed with 1 H-Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and 13 C-NMR. [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid-plasticized MC/LiClO 4 biopolymer electrolyte membrane was prepared by casting solution, with [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid content, 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30% (w/w). Effect of 15% (w/w) [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid incorporation to MC/LiClO 4 showed the best condition and selected as the optimum condition with conductivity, tensile strength, elongation break, and thermal stability of 9.160×10 -3 S.cm -1 , 24.19 MPa, 36.43%, ~256 and ~370 oC, respectively. These results confirm that [EMIm]Ac ionic liquid can plasticize biopolymer electrolyte membranes of MC/LiClO 4 to be appealing performances to fulfill the LIB’s separator requirement. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Kinetic Study of Saponin Extraction from Sapindus rarak DC by Ultrasound-Assisted Extraction Methods

Abstract: Saponin is an important plant-derived compound that is commonly found in sapindaceae plants, such as Sapindus rarak DC. Saponin is extensively used in plenty of industries as a detergent or emulsifying agent in cleansers, shampoos, and cosmetics. The extraction of saponin was previously studied and shows that the extraction assisted by ultrasonic waves was found to be an effective method. However, the previous studies have rarely examined the extraction kinetic study of the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE). In the present study, the extraction of saponin from Sapindus rarak DC and its extraction kinetics is conducted. The results show that the highest saponin yield of 354.92 (mg of saponin per gram of dry feed) was obtained from the extraction using a solid-to-liquid (S/L) ratio of 1:50 (w/v) at 50 °C. The amount of extracted saponin increased with the increase of extraction temperature as well as the solute ratio in the solution. However, increasing the temperature to 60 °C decreased the saponin yield. The results of a simple kinetics study of saponin extraction also show that the second-order kinetics model can better describe the UAE process, with an R 2 value of 0.929 and a rate coefficient of 0.00495 L.g -1 .min -1 . The experimental results agree well with the practical calculations obtained using the second-order kinetics model based on an average error of 6.79%. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Kinetic Study of Anaerobic Digestion of Ketchup Industry Wastewater in a Three-stages Anaerobic Baffled Reactor (ABR)

Abstract: The anaerobic digestion of the ketchup industry’s wastewater in a three-stage 60 L capacity baffled reactor has been studied. The effect of concentrations of the initial chemical oxygen demand (2727.3-12086.7 mg/L), on the ABR performance and kinetic models were investigated. The ABR performance was evaluated by measuring the concentrations of each compartment of the COD, calculating its percentage removal, and the acquired data were fitted to the kinetic models. From the initial input, the three-stage ABR successfully removed 90 % of COD, for the initial COD until the concentration was 5324.6 mg/L it achieved stationary phase with HRT 5-10 days, while for initial COD until the concentration was 12086.7 mg/L is attained, the stationary was at 10 days. The kinetic model of second order Grau was suitable for the data, with k 2 of 0.6061 d -1 and R 2 of 0.9955. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Operating Conditions and Composition Effect on the Hydrogenation of Carbon Dioxide Performed over CuO/ZnO/Al2O3 Catalysts

Abstract: A series of catalysts constituted of mixed copper and zinc oxides supported on alumina were prepared by co-precipitation method. The cooper content was in the 10-90 wt.% range. Their catalytic behavior in the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide to methanol was investigated at high pressure (up to 75 bars). The catalysts were characterized by elemental analysis, N 2 -adsorption, N 2 O-chemisorptions, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The catalysts showed a clear activity in the hydrogenation reaction that could be correlated to the surface area of the metallic copper and to the reaction pressure. The CuO/ZnO/Al 2 O 3 catalyst with a Cu/Zn/Al weight ratio of 60/30/10, exhibits the highest carbon dioxide conversion and methanol selectivity. Finally, a mechanism pathway has been proposed on copper active sites of (Cu 0 /Cu I ) oxidation state. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Algerian Acid Activated Clays as Efficient Catalysts for a Green Synthesis of Solketal by Chemoselective Acetalization of Glycerol with Acetone

Abstract: The production of solketal and conversion of glycerol takes a major importance in the field of the sustainability of the biodiesel industry. The synthesis of (2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolan-4-yl)methanol by the acetalization of glycerol with acetone successfully applied out using various Algerian acid activated clays (maghnia-H + ) under autogenous pressure and without solvent. The acid catalyst clays are prepared by an easy technique by activation with the available and low-cost Maghnia clay. The purified Maghnia clay named ALC and the resulting series of acid-activated clays AL1, AL2, AL3, and AL4 are characterized by X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) investigation, N 2 -adorption/desorption Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, X-rays Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infra Red (FT-IR) spectroscopy, SEM microscopy and the cation exchange capacity (CEC) with copper bisethylenediamine complex method, in order to study the effect of activation at the acid and the catalytic behaviour in the acetalization reaction. The results show a high catalytic activity whose that the yield of solketal production interest reached 95 % at a temperature of 40 °C for a reaction time of 48 hours with full selectivity and glycerol conversion reaching up to 89 %. A mechanistic is proposed to explain the chemoselective of solketal production. These results indicate the potential of this Algerian acid activated clays catalysts for the acetalization of glycerol for an environmentally benign process. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Cymbopogon nardus Mediated Synthesis of Ag Nanoparticles for the Photocatalytic Degradation of 2,4-Dicholorophenoxyacetic Acid

Abstract: Advanced extraction method such as simultaneous ultrasonic–hydrodistillation (UAE–HD) extraction method has been proved to increased extraction yield of plant material yet the application of this method in the preparation of metal nanoparticles has not been studied. In this study, Cymbopogon nardus (C.N) extracted via UAE-HD extraction method was used to synthesis silver (Ag) nanoparticles. XRD and TEM analysis confirms the formation of spherical shape Ag nanoparticles with size ranging between 10-50 nm. FTIR spectra suggest the presence of bioactive compounds in the C.N leaves extract that may responsible to the stabilization and reduction of Ag ions (Ag + ) to metallic Ag nanoparticles (Ag 0 ). The TPC analysis successfully proved that huge number of phenolic compound greatly involved in the nanoparticles synthesis process. Next, the catalytic activity of the synthesized Ag nanoparticles was tested towards the degradation of 2,4-Dicholorophenoxyacetic acid herbicide with remarkable degradation performance up to 98%. Kinetic study confirms that surface reaction was the controlling step of the catalytic process. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved

Facile Template In-Situ Fabrication of ZnCo2O4 Nanoparticles with Highly Photocatalytic Activities under Visible-Light Irradiation

Abstract: High specific surface area ZnCo 2 O 4 nanoparticles were prepared via a sacrificial template accelerated hydrolysis by using nanoparticles of ZnO with highly polar properties as a template. The obtained ZnCo 2 O 4 nanoparticles were characterized by the method of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area measurements, Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The obtained nanoparticles were performed as a photocatalyst for the degradation of methylene blue in aqueous solution under visible irradiation. The photocatalytic degradation rate of methylene blue onto the synthesized ZnCo 2 O 4 was higher than that of commercial ZnO and synthesized ZnO template. Copyright © 2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved.

Valorization of the Phosphate Fertilizers Catalytic Activity in 1-(Benzothiazolylamino) Methyl-2-Naphthol Derivatives Synthesis

Abstract: The present work focused on developing a new protocol of the 1-(benzothiazolylamino) methyl-2-naphthol derivatives synthesis by condensation of three compounds, i.e. aromatic 2-naphthol, 2-aminobenzothiazole and aldehyde. Furthermore, this reaction was carried out in the presence of three heterogeneous phosphate catalysts: monoammonium phosphates (MAP), diammonium phosphate (DAP), and trisuperphosphate (TSP). Moreover, this method offered many advantages, such as: very high yields, shorter reaction times, and the catalysts, can be easily recovered and reused without any loss of their catalytic activities. Copyright ©2019 BCREC Group. All rights reserved