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Physical Processes (bio-synthesis) in the Production of Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and Applications

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A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2015) | Viewed by 34800

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Nikolaos Michailidis

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Physical Metallurgy Laboratory (PML), Mechanical Engineering Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

A great number of live plants and plant extracts have been successfully used to obtain metal and metal oxide nanoparticles of different sizes and shapes (spheres, cubes, pyramids, triangular, decahedral, hexagonal, etc.), with distinct surface area and dispersity characteristics. However, the exact mechanisms involved in biosynthesis have not been fully identified and there is still much work needed in this direction.

In this Special Issue, research and review articles are welcome to cover the biosynthetic parameters for producing metal and metal oxide nanoparticles using microorganisms, whole plants, plant tissue and fruits, plant extracts, marine algae, honey, etc. The Issue aims to identify the mechanisms involved and to classify them so as to produce, on demand, particles of specific sizes and geometry, surface area, and dispersity, so as to target specific applications. The advantages and disadvantages of the various physicochemical and plant biosynthesis methods are expected to be analyzed.

Other issues to be discussed concern the particular structural characteristics and properties of nanoparticles that result from plant biosynthesis. A discussion may touch upon the agents within a plant extract and their effect on the stabilization or functionalization of nanoparticle surfaces. These aspects may also impact nanoparticle toxicity and other nanoparticle characteristics. For example, the long-term stability of such particles often result from stabilizing agents, such as tannin, chitosan, flavonoids, etc.

The wide range of applications for these unique nanoparticles in medicine, diagnostics and therapeutics, drug delivery, BAM (Brain Analysis Imaging), cellular marking, energy, antibacterial and antifouling protection (for metals, ceramics, polymers, textiles, papers, water treatment, and environmental protection), agriculture, food packaging, catalysis, petrochemistry, cosmetics, forensic sciences, etc. will be explored.

Dr. Nikolaos Michailidis
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Metal nanoparticles
Metal oxide nanoparticles
Biosynthesis
Applications

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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457 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Green Nanocomposites from Renewable Plant Oils and Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxanes

by Takashi Tsujimoto, Hiroshi Uyama, Shiro Kobayashi, Hisao Oikawa and Mikio Yamahiro

Metals 2015, 5(3), 1136-1147; https://doi.org/10.3390/met5031136 - 30 Jun 2015

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 4523

Abstract

Green nanocomposites based on renewable plant oils and polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS) have been developed. An acid-catalyzed curing of epoxidized plant oils with oxirane-containing POSS derivatives produced transparent nanocomposite coatings with high gloss surface, in which the organic and inorganic components were linked via covalent bonds. The hardness and mechanical strength were improved by the incorporation of the POSS unit into the organic polymer matrix. Nanostructural analyses of the nanocomposites showed the formation of homogeneous structures at the micrometer scale. On the other hand, such improvements of the coating and mechanical properties were not observed in the composite without covalent bonds between the plant oil-based polymer and POSS unit. The study demonstrates the correlation between the nanostructure of composites and macroscopic properties. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical Processes (bio-synthesis) in the Production of Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and Applications)

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847 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synergic Role of Self-Interstitials and Vacancies in Indium Melting

by Roberto Montanari and Alessandra Varone

Metals 2015, 5(2), 1061-1072; https://doi.org/10.3390/met5021061 - 16 Jun 2015

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 4866

Abstract

Precursor effects of indium melting have been investigated by means of Mechanical Spectroscopy (MS) and High Temperature X-ray Diffraction (HT-XRD). MS tests evidenced a sharp drop of dynamic modulus in the temperature range between 418 K and 429 K (melting point). At 429 K, HT-XRD showed partial grain re-orientation, peak profile broadening, in particular in the lower part, and peak shift towards lower angles. Experimental results are consistent with density increase of self-interstitials and vacancies in the crystal lattice before melting. Self-interstitials and vacancies play a synergic role in the solid–liquid (S-L) transformation. The increase of self-interstitials over a temperature range of about 10 K before melting has the effect of weakening interatomic bonds (modulus drop) that favors the successive vacancy formation. Finally, the huge increase of vacancy concentration above 428 K leads to the collapse of crystal lattice (melting). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical Processes (bio-synthesis) in the Production of Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and Applications)

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Review

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1465 KiB

Open AccessReview

Nanotoxicology of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles

by Amedea B. Seabra and Nelson Durán

Metals 2015, 5(2), 934-975; https://doi.org/10.3390/met5020934 - 03 Jun 2015

Cited by 176 | Viewed by 25146

Abstract

This review discusses recent advances in the synthesis, characterization and toxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles obtained mainly through biogenic (green) processes. The in vitro and in vivo toxicities of these oxides are discussed including a consideration of the factors important for safe use of these nanomaterials. The toxicities of different metal oxide nanoparticles are compared. The importance of biogenic synthesized metal oxide nanoparticles has been increasing in recent years; however, more studies aimed at better characterizing the potent toxicity of these nanoparticles are still necessary for nanosafely considerations and environmental perspectives. In this context, this review aims to inspire new research in the design of green approaches to obtain metal oxide nanoparticles for biomedical and technological applications and to highlight the critical need to fully investigate the nanotoxicity of these particles. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physical Processes (bio-synthesis) in the Production of Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and Applications)

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