TY  - JOUR
A1  - Kupsch, Andreas
A1  - Mueller, Bernd R.
A1  - Lange, Axel
A1  - Bruno, Giovanni
T1  - Microstructure characterisation of ceramics via 2D and 3D X-ray refraction techniques
JF  - Journal of the European Ceramic Society
N2  - 3D imaging techniques are very fashionable nowadays, and allow enormous progress in understanding ceramic microstructure, its evolution, and its link to mechanical, thermal, and transport properties. In this feature article, we report the use of a powerful, yet not so wide-spread, set of X-ray techniques based on refraction effects. X-ray refraction allows determining internal specific surface (surface per unit volume) in a non-destructive fashion, position and orientation sensitive, and with a nanometric detectability. While the techniques are limited by the X-ray absorption of the material under investigation, we demonstrate showcases of ceramics and composite materials, where understanding of process parameter influence or simply of microstructural parameters could be achieved in a way unrivalled even by high-resolution techniques such as electron microscopy or computed tomography. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
KW  - X-ray refraction
KW  - Porosity
KW  - Specific surface
KW  - Crack detection
KW  - Composites
Y1  - 2017
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2016.12.031
SN  - 0955-2219
SN  - 1873-619X
VL  - 37
SP  - 1879
EP  - 1889
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Unuabonah, Emmanuel I.
A1  - Kolawole, Matthew O.
A1  - Agunbiade, Foluso O.
A1  - Omorogie, Martins O.
A1  - Koko, Daniel T.
A1  - Ugwuja, Chidinma G.
A1  - Ugege, Leonard E.
A1  - Oyejide, Nicholas E.
A1  - Günter, Christina
A1  - Taubert, Andreas
T1  - Novel metal-doped bacteriostatic hybrid clay composites for point-of-use disinfection of water
JF  - Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
N2  - This study reports the facile microwave-assisted thermal preparation of novel metal-doped hybrid clay composite adsorbents consisting of Kaolinite clay, Carica papaya seeds and/or plantain peels (Musa paradisiaca) and ZnCl2. Fourier Transformed IR spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis are employed to characterize these composite adsorbents. The physicochemical analysis of these composites suggests that they act as bacteriostatic rather than bacteriacidal agents. This bacterostactic action is induced by the ZnO phase in the composites whose amount correlates with the efficacy of the composite. The composite prepared with papaya seeds (PS-HYCA) provides the best disinfection efficacy (when compared with composite prepared with Musa paradisiaca peels-PP-HYCA) against gram-negative enteric bacteria with a breakthrough time of 400 and 700 min for the removal of 1.5 x10(6) cfu/mL S. typhi and V. cholerae from water respectively. At 10(3) cfu/mL of each bacterium in solution, 2 g of both composite adsorbents kept the levels the bacteria in effluent solutions at zero for up to 24 h. Steam regeneration of 2 g of bacteria-loaded Carica papaya prepared composite adsorbent shows a loss of ca. 31% of its capacity even after the 3rd regeneration cycle of 25 h of service time. The composite adsorbent prepared with Carica papaya seeds will be useful for developing simple point-of-use water treatment systems for water disinfection application. This composite adsorbent is comparatively of good performance and shows relatively long hydraulic contact times and is expected to minimize energy intensive traditional treatment processes.
KW  - Kaolinite
KW  - Composites
KW  - Bacteria
KW  - Breakthrough time
KW  - Regeneration
Y1  - 2017
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2017.04.017
SN  - 2213-3437
VL  - 5
SP  - 2128
EP  - 2141
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Oxford
ER  -