ISEL - Eng. Quim. Biol. - Posters
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Browsing ISEL - Eng. Quim. Biol. - Posters by Author "Costa, Alexandra"
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- An AFM, TEM, XRD and luminescence study of carbon nanomaterials obtained from cork industry wastewaterPublication . Prata, José Virgílio; Monteiro, O. C.; Silvestre, António Jorge; Viana, A. S.; Costa, AlexandraQuercus suber L. (cork oak) contributes significantly to the economies of several European Union countries. The industrial processing of cork planks involves a cooking operation in which the textural and plastic properties of cork are improved. The resulting wastewater (ca. 400 L/ton of processed cork) is rich in water-soluble extractives, namely phenol- and polyphenol-based compounds and pectins. While the presence of these and other compounds usually defy several spent water treatment processes owing to their inherent poor biodegradability, they represente otherwise a huge opportunity to produce high-valued carbon-based materials.
- Bright nanoparticles for an even brighter future: efficient production of luminescent carbon nanodots from olive mill wastewaterPublication . Sousa, D. A.; Costa, Alexandra; Alexandre, M. R.; Prata, José VirgílioCarbon nanodots (CNDs) are a very recent class of spherical-shaped nanosized carbon materials possessing average typical diameters < 10 nm. Since the very first reports on carbon dots,1,2 a variety of methods (top-down and bottom-up strategies), carbon sources and passivating agents, have dealt with their synthesis.3 The bottom-up approach, encompassing the use of pyrolytic/solvothermal processes, is more amenable for large-scale production and can cope with a large diversity of carbon precursors, either from natural or synthetic sources, typically endowed with acid, alcohol and amine functionalities.4 Some of the interesting CNDs properties include tunable photoluminescence, outstanding photostability and negligible cytotoxicity. These unique properties have prompted their intense and widespread use in several fields, such as fluorescent bioimaging and nanomedicine, chemo/biosensing, photocatalysis and optoelectronics.4
- Carbon nanodots from olive mill wastewater: a sustainable routePublication . Sousa, D. A.; Costa, Alexandra; Alexandre, M. R.; Prata, José VirgílioOlive oils are obtained from the fruit of the olive tree (Olea europaea L.) by combined mechanical and physical operations. Portugal has a significant production of olive oil (76 k tonnes/year over the last 5 years, 2010-2015) [1]. Olive oil is typically obtained by two main processes: batch press and continuous centrifugation. Depending on the particular process used, 200-1600 L of olive mill wastewater (OMWW) is produced per tonne of processed olives. Taken the lowest of these values, an estimate points to around 15 million L of OMWW may be produced each year in Portugal. The OMWW exhibits very low biodegradability parameters which pose serious issues for its treatment. Sustainable production of high-valued carbon materials from industrial lowvalued and problematic wastes is particularly appealing and highly desirable.
- Evaluation of the molecular architecture of fluorescence calix[4]arene-based sensors in detection of toxic metalsPublication . Costa, Alexandra; Barata, Patrícia; Fialho, Carina B.; Prata, José VirgílioChemical sensors have been playing a crucial role in analytical chemistry, bio-medicinal science and environmental chemistry. Chemosensors offer na accurate and low-cost finding of anions, cations, enzymes and toxic metal ions with high selectivity and sensitivity. In this regard, many organic compounds have been synthesized and are being used as successful chemosensors, however calixarenes offer distinct advantage in term of selectivity and the easy incorporation of a fluorophore into the structure. Cation complexing ligands containing calix[4]arene have been used to obtain more selective metal ions receptors. Herein, we report fluorescente calix[4]arene-based sensors with diferente molecular architecture [3] and their potentialities to address the detection of toxic metals. Using fluorescence as the signal transduction technique, experiments have shown that CALIX-OCP-2-CBZs are the most sensitiveto Cu.
- Influence of extraction process on the luminescent properties of carbon nanomaterials derived from olive mill wastewatersPublication . Sousa, D. A.; Costa, Alexandra; Alexandre, M. R.; Prata, José VirgílioIn an accompanying communication [1], we have revealed that nanosized carbon materials could be easily obtained from olive mil wastewater (OMWW) using green, sustainable and simple technological processes. In this contribution we will essentially focus on the study of the impact of the effluent nature on the structural, morphological and luminescente characteristics of synthesized carbon nanodots (CNDs).
- Metal ion recognition induced by calix[4]arene carbazole containing polymersPublication . D. Barata, Patrícia; Costa, Alexandra; Fialho, Carina B.; Prata, José VirgílioSensing and recognition of ions and neutral molecules via synthetic receptors are of current interest in supramolecular chemistry because of their significant importance in several areas, such as chemistry, biology and environment. Compared with small molecules, polymers-based sensors displayed several importante advantages like signal amplification. In this way, the incorporation of molecular receptors such as calixarenes with conjugated polymer backbones is expected to enhance the signaling events related to a host–guest interaction. The preorganized binding sites, easy derivatization and flexible three-dimensional steric structures make calixarenes ideal construction platforms for molecular design to generate fluorescente receptors. The use of calixarenes as supramolecular scaffolds for this type of architectures has been explored and the sensing abilities of resultant polymers toward metal and molecular ions established. Based on the high sensitivity shown by the non-polymeric analogue CALIX-OCP-CBZ (notshown), to toxic metal cations, we decide two extend the sensing study to polymer materials. Herein, we report the preliminar results of the chemosensing ability of a new bicyclic calix[4]arene-carbazole-polymer (CALIX-OCP-PPE-CBZ) towards the detection of toxic metals in fluid phase.
- Novel bicyclic fluorescent calix[4]arene-based sensors for toxic metalsPublication . Costa, Alexandra; Fialho, Carina B.; Barata, Patrícia; Prata, José VirgílioCalix[4]arene has been widely exploited as the basic molecular framework for many fluorescent chemosensors in the construction of selective binding sites given its structural rigidity (particularly important when the recognition and reporting events are to be undertaken in fluid phase), various conformations, and facile introduction of fluorophores. Exploring the inherent capabilities of certain fluorescent calixarene scaffolds for establishing strong host:guest interactions, several sensing materials have been recently developed by us [1]. In the same line of research new bicyclic calix[4]arene-based fluorescent chemosensors containing amides as coordination sites (ionophore) and carbazole segments as fluorescent signaling moieties (CALIX-AMD-CBZ) are being developed and that are expected to have high ability toward the detection of metallic cations in solution. However its complex synthesis and characterization has led to the use of a similar compound based on narrow rim 1,3-oxacyclophane tethered calix[4]arene derivatives integrating the same fluorescent segments (CALIX-OCP-2-CBZ) [2] as fluorophore in the present communication. Herein we report the most significant photophysical properties and sensory capabilities of CALIX-OCP-2-CBZ towards divalent ions (Cd2+, Cu2+, Hg2+, Pb2+) by fluorescence spectroscopy in fluid phase.
- On the nature of carbon nanodots photoluminescence from olive wastesPublication . Costa, Alexandra; Prata, José VirgílioA great structural diversity of carbon nanodots (CNDs) have been obtained in the last ten years by a variety of methods, carbon sources, additives and/or passivating agents, and operation parameters. Not unexpectedly, many properties diverge owing to disparate structural features. The photoluminescence (PL) is one of them. A vast literature is already available on this topic, with findings that are somehow apparently contradictory. At least three possible origins of PL in CNDs have been identified: i) quantum confinement effects associated with the sp2 domains of the carbon core; ii) surface states lying in the edges of sp2 carbogenic core; iii) molecular states originating from molecular species embedded or covalently linked to the carbon matrix.