A method of preparing iron oxide nanoparticles using an herbal mixture comprising Capparis spinosa, Cichorium intybus, Solanum nigrum, Cassia occidentalis, Terminalia arjuna, Achillea millefolium, and Tamarix gallica. The method produces crystalline γ-Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 nanoparticles which are superparamagnetic. The iron oxide nanoparticles are used in a method of killing or inhibiting the growth of a bacteria and/or fungus, particularly in the form of a biofilm. The nanoparticles are also used in a method of treating colon cancer.

A composite nanomaterial of ZnO impregnated by, e.g., a green copper phthalocyanine compound (CuPc) can be an efficient solar light photocatalyst for water remediation. The composite may include hollow shell microspheres and hollow nanospheres of CuPc-ZnO. CuPc may function as a templating and/or structure modifying agent, e.g., for forming hollow microspheres and/or nanospheres of ZnO particles. The composite can photocatalyze the degradation of organic pollutants such as crystal violet (CV) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid as well as microbes in water under solar light irradiation. The ZnO—CuPc composite can be stable and recyclable under solar irradiation.

The invention relates to highly luminescent nanostructures, particularly highly luminescent nanostructures comprising a ZnSe.sub.1-xTe.sub.x core and ZnS and/or ZnSe shell layers. The invention also relates to methods of producing such nanostructures.

Methods of forming spinel ferrite nanoparticles containing a chromium-substituted copper ferrite as well as properties (e.g. particle size, crystallite size, pore size, surface area) of these spinel ferrite nanoparticles are described. Methods of preventing or reducing microbe growth on a surface by applying these spinel ferrite nanoparticles onto the surface in the form of a suspension or an antimicrobial product are also described.

A method of preparing iron oxide nanoparticles using an herbal mixture comprising Capparis spinosa, Cichorium intybus, Solanum nigrum, Cassia occidentalis, Terminalia arjuna, Achillea millefolium, and Tamarix gallica. The method produces crystalline γ-Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 nanoparticles which are superparamagnetic. The iron oxide nanoparticles are used in a method of killing or inhibiting the growth of a bacteria and/or fungus, particularly in the form of a biofilm. The nanoparticles are also used in a method of treating colon cancer.

The method for manufacturing a modified aluminosilicate includes a first step of treating an aluminosilicate with an acid, a second step of primarily calcining the treated material obtained in the first step at 550° C. to 850° C., and a third step of contacting the calcined material obtained in the second step with a liquid containing one or more Group 4 elements and/or Group 5 elements, and then drying and secondarily calcining the resultant. The modified aluminosilicate includes one or more Group 4 elements and/or Group 5 elements, and exhibits an absorbance at 300 nm in an ultraviolet visible spectrum of 1.0 or higher. The method for manufacturing aromatic dihydroxy compounds includes reacting a phenol with hydrogen peroxide in the presence of a specific modified aluminosilicate.

A composite nanomaterial of ZnO impregnated by, e.g., a green copper phthalocyanine compound (CuPc) can be an efficient solar light photocatalyst for water remediation. The composite may include hollow shell microspheres and hollow nanospheres of CuPc-ZnO. CuPc may function as a templating and/or structure modifying agent, e.g., for forming hollow microspheres and/or nanospheres of ZnO particles. The composite can photocatalyze the degradation of organic pollutants such as crystal violet (CV) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid as well as microbes in water under solar light irradiation. The ZnO—CuPc composite can be stable and recyclable under solar irradiation.

Provided are an atomic layer sheet that contains boron and oxygen as framework elements, is networked by nonequilibrium couplings having boron-boron bonds, and has a molar ratio of oxygen to boron (oxygen/boron) of less than 1.5, a laminated sheet containing a plurality of such atomic layer sheets and metal ions between ones of the sheets, and a thermotropic liquid crystal and a lyotropic liquid crystal containing these. In addition, there is provided a method for manufacturing an atomic layer sheet and/or a laminated sheet containing boron and oxygen, the method including: adding MBH.sub.4, where M represents an alkali metal ion, into a solvent containing an organic solvent in an inert gas atmosphere to prepare a solution; and exposing the solution to an atmosphere containing oxygen.

A method of preparing metal nanoparticles using a fungal extract includes providing an aqueous solution including a metal salt; and combining the fungal extract with the aqueous metal salt solution to produce the metal nanoparticles. The fungal extract can be an aqueous extract of the manglicolous fungi The metal salt can be copper sulfate (CuSO.sub.4) and the metal nanoparticles can be copper nanoparticles. The metal nanoparticles can have a mean diameter in the range of from about 5 nm to about 100 nm. The copper nanoparticles can be used as an antimicrobial agent.

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally describe scintillation materials, including colloidal scintillation materials and solid scintillation materials, methods of preparing the scintillation materials, applications of the scintillation materials, methods of using the scintillation materials, and the like.