Facile synthesis of a TiO2-Al2O3-GnPs compound and its application in the photocatalytic degradation of Diuron

Alina De J. Zurita Yduarte Diana J. Gallegos Hernández URIEL ALEJANDRO SIERRA GOMEZ GLADIS JUDITH LABRADA DELGADO SALVADOR FERNANDEZ TAVIZON Pedro Jesús Herrera Franco SRINIVAS GODAVARTHI JOSE GILBERTO TORRES TORRES ADRIAN CERVANTES URIBE CLAUDIA GUADALUPE ESPINOSA GONZALEZ (2022, [Artículo])

"New ternary materials TiO2-Al2O3-GnPs (TAG) were prepared by using an innocuous sol-gel method with a slight modification for the addition of graphene nanoplatelets (GnPs), under room temperature and atmospheric pressure. The materials TiO2-Al2O3-GnPs were prepared with variations of concentration between 0.05 and 1 wt % of GnPs. In this study, we analyzed the physicochemical properties by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and UV-Vis spectroscopy, textural properties by N2 physisorption, morphology by scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM, TEM) and a chemical species analysis was carried out by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic (XPS). The photocatalytic activity of each material was evaluated in the degradation of a model molecule, Diuron, a carcinogenic and cytotoxic herbicide used in farm fields. To determine reaction selectivity and mineralization degree, the photocatalytic reaction was monitored by using UV-Vis spectroscopy and total organic carbon (TOC). In samples with higher GnPs’ concentration, a good enough specific surface area of up to 379 m2/g was observed, and reduced band gap energy (2.8 eV) with respect to TiO2 and mixed oxide (3.2 and 3.1 eV respectively), was obtained. These resulting properties were the key indicator so that the materials could be applied as photocatalysts. In the photocatalytic activity determination, TAG-0.75 was the sample that showed the best results with respect to the mixed oxide; the highest photocatalytic conversion, the reduced average life time, and increased mineralization and reaction selectivity."

Graphene nanoplatelets Mixed oxides Sol-gel Photocatalytic degradation BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA QUÍMICA QUÍMICA

Spatial Effects of Urban Transport on Air Pollution in Metropolitan Municipalities of Mexico

GERZAIN AVILES POLANCO Marco Antonio Almendárez Hernández Luis Felipe Beltrán Morales Alfredo Ortega Rubio (2022, [Artículo])

"The objective of this work was to estimate the local effects and spatial spillover effects of the number of vehicles, use of urban public transport, and population density on nitrogen oxide emissions for 405 metropolitan municipalities in Mexico in 2016. To this end, a Spatial Durbin Model was estimated. We found positive direct effects of the number of vehicles and population density and negative direct effects of the use of urban public transport. The number of vehicles in circulation had negative spillover effects on the nitrogen oxide emissions of neighboring municipalities. These results indicate that the design of public policy programs aimed at reducing air pollution in Mexico should be based on coordination across metropolitan municipalities."

private car transportation, air pollution, nitrogen oxide emissions, spatial spillover effects, metropolitan municipalities CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO METEOROLOGÍA CONTAMINACIÓN ATMOSFÉRICA CONTAMINACIÓN ATMOSFÉRICA