Abstract
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) show great potential and bright prospect in the field of environment. It is believed that this new kind of material will bring opportunities and benefits to the environmental protection and pollution control. In recent years, a lot of CNT-based environmental technologies have been developed and applied with successful results, but the adequate understanding and large-scale industrial applications of these technologies are lacking. This paper systematically reviews current environmental applications of CNTs, including pollution treatment and environmental remediation, environmental sample analysis, environmental monitoring and sensing, and design of environment-friendly products. The adopted properties of CNTs are introduced. The main roles of CNTs in these technologies are illustrated. Additionally, the main current challenges to realizing their practical applications are analyzed and discussed, involving toxicity and ecological risks, production costs, general applicability, long-term effect, and public acceptance. Further studies should give priority to the toxicity and environmental risk of CNTs when developing new CNT-based technologies. Research on standardizing toxicity testing and risk assessment of CNTs is highly recommended and a large number of toxicity data of CNTs are needed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abdel-Ghani NT, El-Chaghaby GA, Helal FS (2015) Individual and competitive adsorption of phenol and nickel onto multiwalled carbon nanotubes. J Adv Res 6:405–415. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2014.06.001
Asadollahzadeh H, Noroozian E, Maghsoudi S (2010) Solid-phase microextraction of phthalate esters from aqueous media by electrochemically deposited carbon nanotube/polypyrrole composite on a stainless steel fiber. Anal Chim Acta 669:32–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aca.2010.04.029
Aslan S, Loebick CZ, Kang S, Elimelech M, Pfefferle LD, Tassel PR (2010) Antimicrobial biomaterials based on carbon nanotubes dispersed in poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid). Nanoscale 2:1789–1794. https://doi.org/10.1039/c0nr00329h
Baciu A, Manea F, Pop A, Pode R, Schoonman J (2017) Simultaneous voltammetric detection of ammonium and nitrite from groundwater at silver-electrodecorated carbon nanotube electrode. Process Saf Environ 108:18–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2016.05.006
Bakr AR, Rahaman MS (2017) Removal of bisphenol A by electrochemical carbon-nanotube filter: influential factors and degradation pathway. Chemosphere 185:879–887. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.07.082
Beigbeder A, Mincheva R, Pettitt ME, Callow ME, Callow JA, Claes M, Dubois P (2010) Marine fouling release silicone/carbon nanotube nanocomposite coatings: on the importance of the nanotube dispersion state. J Nanosci Nanotechnol 10:2972–2978. https://doi.org/10.1166/jnn.2010.2185
Bongu CS, Ragupathi J, Nallathamby K (2016) Exploration of MnFeO3/multiwalled carbon nanotubes composite as potential anode for lithium ion batteries. Inorg Chem 55:11644–11651. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.6b00953
Calisi A, Grimaldi A, Leomanni A, Lionetto MG, Dondero F, Schettino T (2016) Multibiomarker response in the earthworm Eisenia fetida as tool for assessing multi-walled carbon nanotube ecotoxicity. Ecotoxicology 25:677–687. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-016-1626-x
Chambers LD, Stokes KR, Walsh FC, Wood RJK (2006) Modern approaches to marine antifouling coatings. Surf Coat Technol 201:3642–3652. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2006.08.129
Chen Q, Huang Y (2017) Scale effects on evaporative heat transfer in carbon nanotube wick in heat pipes. Int J Heat Mass Transf 111:852–859. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2017.04.027
Chen H, Wang B, Gao D, Guan M, Zheng L, Ouyang H, Chai Z, Zhao Y, Feng W (2013) Broad-spectrum antibacterial activity of carbon nanotubes to human gut bacteria. Small 9:2735–2746. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.201202792
Chen M, Xu P, Zeng G, Yang C, Huang D, Zhang J (2015) Bioremediation of soils contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, petroleum, pesticides, chlorophenols and heavy metals by composting: applications, microbes and future research needs. Biotechnol Adv 33:745–755. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biotechadv.2015.05.003
Cheng M, Zeng G, Huang D, Lai C, Xu P, Zhang C, Liu Y (2016) Hydroxyl radicals based advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) for remediation of soils contaminated with organic compounds: a review. Chem Eng J 284:582–598. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2015.09.001
Chi MF, Wu WL, Du Y, Chin CJM, Lin CC (2016) Inactivation of Escherichia coli planktonic cells by multi-walled carbon nanotubes in suspensions: effect of surface functionalization coupled with medium nutrition level. J Hazard Mater 318:507–514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2016.07.013
Chouhan RS, Qureshi A, Yagci B, Gülgün MA, Ozguz V, Niazi JH (2016) Biotransformation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes mediated by nanomaterial resistant soil bacteria. Chem Eng J 298:1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2016.04.019
Currall SC, King EB, Lane N, Madera J, Turner S (2006) What drives public acceptance of nanotechnology? Nat Nanotechnol 1:153–155. https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2006.155
Das R, Ali ME, Hamid SBA, Ramakrishna S, Chowdhury ZZ (2014) Carbon nanotube membranes for water purification: a bright future in water desalination. Desalination 336:97–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2013.12.026
De Volder MFL, Tawfick SH, Baughman RH, Hart AJ (2013) Carbon nanotubes: present and future commercial applications. Science 339:535–539. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1222453
Deng S, Hou Z, Lei J, Lin D, Hu Z, Yan F, Ju H (2011) Signal amplification by adsorption-induced catalytic reduction of dissolved oxygen on nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes for electrochemiluminescent immunoassay. Chem Commun 47:12107–12109. https://doi.org/10.1039/c1cc15766c
Deng JH, Zhang XR, Zeng GM, Gong JL, Niu QY, Liang J (2013) Simultaneous removal of Cd(II) and ionic dyes from aqueous solution using magnetic graphene oxide nanocomposite as an adsorbent. Chem Eng J 226:189–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2013.04.045
Dong X, Yang L (2015) Dual functional nisin-multi-walled carbon nanotubes coated filters for bacterial capture and inactivation. J Biol Eng 9:20. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13036-015-0018-8
Edgington AJ, Roberts AP, Taylor LM, Alloy MM, Reppert J, Rao AM, Mao J, Klaine SJ (2010) The influence of natural organic matter on the toxicity of multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Environ Toxicol Chem 29:2511–2518. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.309
García-Aljaro C, Cella LN, Shirale DJ, Park M, Muñoz FJ, Yates MV, Mulchandani A (2010) Carbon nanotubes-based chemiresistive biosensors for detection of microorganisms. Biosens Bioelectron 26:1437–1441. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bios.2010.07.077
Ghaemi F, Amiri A, Yunus R (2014) Methods for coating solid-phase microextraction fibers with carbon nanotubes. TrAC Trends Anal Chem 59:133–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trac.2014.04.011
Gong JL, Wang B, Zeng GM, Yang CP, Niu CG, Niu QY, Zhou WJ, Liang Y (2009) Removal of cationic dyes from aqueous solution using magnetic multi-wall carbon nanotube nanocomposite as adsorbent. J Hazard Mater 164:1517–1522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.09.072
Gupta N, Fischer ARH, Frewer LJ (2012) Socio-psychological determinants of public acceptance of technologies: a review. Public Underst Sci 21:782–795. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662510392485
Hennion MC (1999) Solid-phase extraction: method development, sorbents, and coupling with liquid chromatography. J Chromatogr A 856:3–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0021-9673(99)00832-8
Hsu CW, Lin ZY, Chan TY, Chiu TC, Hu CC (2017) Oxidized multiwalled carbon nanotubes decorated with silver nanoparticles for fluorometric detection of dimethoate. Food Chem 224:353–358. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2016.12.095
Hu J, Shao D, Chen C, Sheng G, Li J, Wang X, Nagatsu M (2010) Plasma-induced grafting of cyclodextrin onto multiwall carbon nanotube/iron oxides for adsorbent application. J Phys Chem B 114:6779–6785. https://doi.org/10.1021/jp911424k
Ihsanullah Abbas A, Al-Amer AM, Laoui T, Al-Marri MJ, Nasser MS, Khraisheh M, Atieh MA (2016) Heavy metal removal from aqueous solution by advanced carbon nanotubes: critical review of adsorption applications. Sep Purif Technol 157:141–161. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2015.11.039
Iijima S (1991) Helical microtubules of graphitic carbon. Nature 354:56–58. https://doi.org/10.1038/354056a0
Ji L, Chen W, Bi J, Zheng S, Xu Z, Zhu D, Alvarez PJ (2010) Adsorption of tetracycline on single-walled and multi-walled carbon nanotubes as affected by aqueous solution chemistry. Environ Toxicol Chem 29:2713–2719. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.350
Jiang R, Zhu F, Luan T, Tong Y, Liu H, Ouyang G, Pawliszyn J (2009) Carbon nanotube-coated solid-phase microextraction metal fiber based on sol–gel technique. J Chromatogr A 1216:4641–4647. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2009.03.076
Jiang T, Zhang L, Ji M, Wang Q, Zhao Q, Fu X, Yin H (2013) Carbon nanotubes/TiO2 nanotubes composite photocatalysts for efficient degradation of methyl orange dye. Particuology 11:737–742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.partic.2012.07.008
Kahan DM, Braman D, Slovic P, Gastil J, Cohen G (2008) Cultural cognition of the risks and benefits of nanotechnology. Nat Nanotechnol 4:87. https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2008.341
Kang S, Herzberg M, Rodrigues DF, Elimelech M (2008) Antibacterial effects of carbon nanotubes: size does matter! Langmuir 24:6409–6413. https://doi.org/10.1021/la800951v
Keshri AK, Agarwal A (2011) Wear behavior of plasma-sprayed carbon nanotube-reinforced aluminum oxide coating in marine and high-temperature environments. J Therm Spray Technol 20:1217–1230. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11666-011-9669-2
Köhler AR, Som C, Helland A, Gottschalk F (2008) Studying the potential release of carbon nanotubes throughout the application life cycle. J Clean Prod 16:927–937. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2007.04.007
Kumar D, Kumar I, Chaturvedi P, Chouksey A, Tandon RP, Chaudhury PK (2016) Study of simultaneous reversible and irreversible adsorption on single-walled carbon nanotube gas sensor. Mater Chem Phys 177:276–282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchemphys.2016.04.028
Lalović B, Đurkić T, Vukčević M, Janković-Častvan I, Kalijadis A, Laušević Z, Laušević M (2017) Solid-phase extraction of multi-class pharmaceuticals from environmental water samples onto modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes followed by LC-MS/MS. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24:20784–20793. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-9748-0
Lam C, James JT, McCluskey R, Arepalli S, Hunter RL (2006) A review of carbon nanotube toxicity and assessment of potential occupational and environmental health risks. Crit Rev Toxicol 36:189–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408440600570233
Lei J, Ju H (2012) Signal amplification using functional nanomaterials for biosensing. Chem Soc Rev 41:2122–2134. https://doi.org/10.1039/c1cs15274b
Li Y, Wang S, Luan Z, Ding J, Xu C, Wu D (2003) Adsorption of cadmium(II) from aqueous solution by surface oxidized carbon nanotubes. Carbon 41:1057–1062. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-6223(02)00440-2
Li H, Gui X, Ji C, Li P, Li Z, Zhang L, Shi E, Zhu K, Wei J, Wang K, Zhu H, Wu D, Cao A (2012) Photocatalytic, recyclable CdS nanoparticle-carbon nanotube hybrid sponges. Nano Res 5:265–271. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-012-0206-5
Liang J, Yang Z, Tang L, Zeng G, Yu M, Li X, Wu H, Qian Y, Li X, Luo Y (2017) Changes in heavy metal mobility and availability from contaminated wetland soil remediated with combined biochar-compost. Chemosphere 181:281–288. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.04.081
Lisi S, Scarano S, Fedeli S, Pascale E, Cicchi S, Ravelet C, Peyrin E, Minunni M (2017) Toward sensitive immuno-based detection of tau protein by surface plasmon resonance coupled to carbon nanostructures as signal amplifiers. Biosens Bioelectron 93:289–292. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bios.2016.08.078
Liu H, Vecitis CD (2012) Reactive transport mechanism for organic oxidation during electrochemical filtration: mass-transfer, physical adsorption, and electron-transfer. J Phys Chem C 116:374–383. https://doi.org/10.1021/jp209390b
Liu Y, Zhao Y, Sun B, Chen C (2013) Understanding the toxicity of carbon nanotubes. Acc Chem Res 46:702–713. https://doi.org/10.1021/ar300028m
Liu Y, Liu H, Zhou Z, Wang T, Ong CN, Vecitis CD (2015) Degradation of the common aqueous antibiotic tetracycline using a carbon nanotube electrochemical filter. Environ Sci Technol 49:7974–7980. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b00870
Long F, Gong JL, Zeng GM, Chen L, Wang XY, Deng JH, Niu QY, Zhang HY, Zhang XR (2011) Removal of phosphate from aqueous solution by magnetic Fe–Zr binary oxide. Chem Eng J 171:448–455. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2011.03.102
Lowry GV, Gregory KB, Apte SC, Lead JR (2012) Transformations of nanomaterials in the environment. Environ Sci Technol 46:6893–6899. https://doi.org/10.1021/es300839e
Ma X, Dong Y, Li R (2017) Monitoring technology in composites using carbon nanotube yarns based on piezoresistivity. Mater Lett 188:45–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matlet.2016.10.085
Mamba G, Mbianda XY, Mishra AK (2015) Photocatalytic degradation of the diazo dye naphthol blue black in water using MWCNT/Gd, N, S-TiO2 nanocomposites under simulated solar light. J Environ Sci 33:219–228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jes.2014.06.052
Merkoçi A, Pumera M, Llopis X, Pérez B, del Valle M, Alegret S (2005) New materials for electrochemical sensing VI: carbon nanotubes. TrAC Trends Anal Chem 24:826–838. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trac.2005.03.019
Merli D, Ugonino M, Profumo A, Fagnoni M, Quartarone E, Mustarelli P, Visai L, Grandi MS, Galinetto P, Canton P (2011) Increasing the antibacterial effect of lysozyme by immobilization on multi-walled carbon nanotubes. J Nanosci Nanotechnol 11:3100–3106. https://doi.org/10.1166/jnn.2011.3758
Mocan T, Matea CT, Pop T, Mosteanu O, Buzoianu AD, Suciu S, Puia C, Zdrehus C, Iancu C, Mocan L (2017) Carbon nanotubes as anti-bacterial agents. Cell Mol Life Sci 74:3467–3479. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00018-017-2532-y
Mohan R, Shanmugharaj AM, Sung Hun R (2011) An efficient growth of silver and copper nanoparticles on multiwalled carbon nanotube with enhanced antimicrobial activity. J Biomed Mater Res B 96B:119–126. https://doi.org/10.1002/jbm.b.31747
Natarajan TS, Lee JY, Bajaj HC, Jo WK, Tayade RJ (2017) Synthesis of multiwall carbon nanotubes/TiO2 nanotube composites with enhanced photocatalytic decomposition efficiency. Catal Today 282:13–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cattod.2016.03.018
Oh KH (2009) Standardization trends for carbon nanotubes. Carbon Lett 10:1–4. https://doi.org/10.5714/CL.2009.10.1.001
Ong LC, Chung FL, Tan YF, Leong CO (2016) Toxicity of single-walled carbon nanotubes. Arch Toxicol 90:103–118. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00204-014-1376-6
Ozdes D, Gundogdu A, Kemer B, Duran C, Senturk HB, Soylak M (2009) Removal of Pb(II) ions from aqueous solution by a waste mud from copper mine industry: equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic study. J Hazard Mater 166:1480–1487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2008.12.073
Paiva MC, Covas JA (2016) Carbon nanofibres and nanotubes for composite applications. In: Rana S, Fangueiro R (eds) Fibrous and textile materials for composite applications. Springer Singapore, Singapore, pp 231–260. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0234-2_7
Pan B, Xing B (2008) Adsorption mechanisms of organic chemicals on carbon nanotubes. Environ Sci Technol 42:9005–9013. https://doi.org/10.1021/es801777n
Pasquini LM, Hashmi SM, Sommer TJ, Elimelech M, Zimmerman JB (2012) Impact of surface functionalization on bacterial cytotoxicity of single-walled carbon nanotubes. Environ Sci Technol 46:6297–6305. https://doi.org/10.1021/es300514s
Rahman MM, Balkhoyor HB, Asiri AM (2017) Phenolic sensor development based on chromium oxide-decorated carbon nanotubes for environmental safety. J Environ Manag 188:228–237. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2016.12.008
Ren X, Zeng G, Tang L, Wang J, Wan J, Liu Y, Yu J, Yi H, Ye S, Deng R (2018) Sorption, transport and biodegradation—an insight into bioavailability of persistent organic pollutants in soil. Sci Total Environ 610–611:1154–1163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.08.089
Robel I, Bunker BA, Kamat PV (2005) Single-walled carbon nanotube–CdS nanocomposites as light-harvesting assemblies: photoinduced charge–transfer interactions. Adv Mater 17:2458–2463. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.200500418
Roozban N, Abbasi S, Ghazizadeh M (2017) Statistical analysis of the photocatalytic activity of decorated multi-walled carbon nanotubes with ZnO nanoparticles. J Mater Sci Mater Electron 28:6047–6055. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-016-6280-9
Seyed Dorraji MS, Amani-Ghadim AR, Rasoulifard MH, Taherkhani S, Daneshvar H (2017) The role of carbon nanotube in zinc stannate photocatalytic performance improvement: experimental and kinetic evidences. Appl Catal B Environ 205:559–568. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apcatb.2017.01.002
Shao D, Hu J, Wang X (2010) Plasma induced grafting multiwalled carbon nanotube with chitosan and its application for removal of UO2 2+, Cu2+, and Pb2+ from aqueous solutions. Plasma Process Polym 7:977–985. https://doi.org/10.1002/ppap.201000062
Siegrist M, Cousin M-E, Kastenholz H, Wiek A (2007) Public acceptance of nanotechnology foods and food packaging: the influence of affect and trust. Appetite 49:459–466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2007.03.002
Song B, Zhang C, Zeng G, Gong J, Chang Y, Jiang Y (2016) Antibacterial properties and mechanism of graphene oxide-silver nanocomposites as bactericidal agents for water disinfection. Arch Biochem Biophys 604:167–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abb.2016.04.018
Song B, Zeng G, Gong J, Zhang P, Deng J, Deng C, Yan J, Xu P, Lai C, Zhang C, Cheng M (2017) Effect of multi-walled carbon nanotubes on phytotoxicity of sediments contaminated by phenanthrene and cadmium. Chemosphere 172:449–458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2017.01.032
Song B, Xu P, Zeng G, Gong J, Wang X, Yan J, Wang S, Zhang P, Cao W, Ye S (2018) Modeling the transport of sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate in riverine sediment in the presence of multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Water Res 129:20–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2017.11.003
Sun W, Jiang B, Wang F, Xu N (2015) Effect of carbon nanotubes on Cd(II) adsorption by sediments. Chem Eng J 264:645–653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2014.11.137
Tamayo FG, Turiel E, Martín-Esteban A (2007) Molecularly imprinted polymers for solid-phase extraction and solid-phase microextraction: recent developments and future trends. J Chromatogr A 1152:32–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2006.08.095
Tan X, Liu Y, Zeng G, Wang X, Hu X, Gu Y, Yang Z (2015) Application of biochar for the removal of pollutants from aqueous solutions. Chemosphere 125:70–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.12.058
Tang D, Tang J, Su B, Chen G (2010) Ultrasensitive electrochemical immunoassay of staphylococcal enterotoxin B in food using enzyme-nanosilica-doped carbon nanotubes for signal amplification. J Agric Food Chem 58:10824–10830. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf102326m
Tang WW, Zeng GM, Gong JL, Liu Y, Wang XY, Liu YY, Liu ZF, Chen L, Zhang XR, Tu DZ (2012) Simultaneous adsorption of atrazine and Cu (II) from wastewater by magnetic multi-walled carbon nanotube. Chem Eng J 211:470–478. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2012.09.102
Tang WW, Zeng GM, Gong JL, Liang J, Xu P, Zhang C, Huang BB (2014) Impact of humic/fulvic acid on the removal of heavy metals from aqueous solutions using nanomaterials: a review. Sci Total Environ 468–469:1014–1027. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.09.044
Tian Y, Jiang H, Anoshkin IV, Kauppinen LJI, Mustonen K, Nasibulin AG, Kauppinen EI (2015) A reference material of single-walled carbon nanotubes: quantitative chirality assessment using optical absorption spectroscopy. RSC Adv 5:102974–102980. https://doi.org/10.1039/C5RA23326G
Tuzen M, Saygi KO, Soylak M (2008) Solid phase extraction of heavy metal ions in environmental samples on multiwalled carbon nanotubes. J Hazard Mater 152:632–639. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2007.07.026
Vecitis CD, Schnoor MH, Rahaman MS, Schiffman JD, Elimelech M (2011) Electrochemical multiwalled carbon nanotube filter for viral and bacterial removal and inactivation. Environ Sci Technol 45:3672–3679. https://doi.org/10.1021/es2000062
Velzeboer I, Peeters ETHM, Koelmans AA (2013) Multiwalled carbon nanotubes at environmentally relevant concentrations affect the composition of benthic communities. Environ Sci Technol 47:7475–7482. https://doi.org/10.1021/es400777j
Wan J, Zeng G, Huang D, Hu L, Xu P, Huang C, Deng R, Xue W, Lai C, Zhou C, Zheng K, Ren X, Gong X (2018) Rhamnolipid stabilized nano-chlorapatite: synthesis and enhancement effect on Pb-and Cd-immobilization in polluted sediment. J Hazard Mater 343:332–339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2017.09.053
Wang P, Cao M, Wang C, Ao Y, Hou J, Qian J (2014) Kinetics and thermodynamics of adsorption of methylene blue by a magnetic graphene-carbon nanotube composite. Appl Surf Sci 290:116–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2013.11.010
Wang Y, Zhu J, Huang H, Cho HH (2015) Carbon nanotube composite membranes for microfiltration of pharmaceuticals and personal care products: capabilities and potential mechanisms. J. Membr Sci 479:165–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.memsci.2015.01.034
Wang X, Chen Y, Zheng B, Qi F, He J, Yu B, Zhang W (2017) Significant enhancement of photocatalytic activity of multi-walled carbon nanotubes modified WSe2 composite. Mater Lett 197:67–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matlet.2017.03.150
Wu H, Shi H, Zhang H, Wang X, Yang Y, Yu C, Hao C, Du J, Hu H, Yang S (2014) Prostate stem cell antigen antibody-conjugated multiwalled carbon nanotubes for targeted ultrasound imaging and drug delivery. Biomaterials 35:5369–5380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biomaterials.2014.03.038
Wu H, Lai C, Zeng G, Liang J, Chen J, Xu J, Dai J, Li X, Liu J, Chen M (2017) The interactions of composting and biochar and their implications for soil amendment and pollution remediation: a review. Crit Rev Biotechnol 37:754–764. https://doi.org/10.1080/07388551.2016.1232696
Xu P, Zeng GM, Huang DL, Lai C, Zhao MH, Wei Z, Li NJ, Huang C, Xie GX (2012) Adsorption of Pb(II) by iron oxide nanoparticles immobilized Phanerochaete chrysosporium: equilibrium, kinetic, thermodynamic and mechanisms analysis. Chem Eng J 203:423–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2012.07.048
Yang L, Chu D, Wang L, Wu X, Luo J (2016) Synthesis and photocatalytic activity of chrysanthemum-like Cu2O/carbon nanotubes nanocomposites. Ceram Int 42:2502–2509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2015.10.051
Zardini HZ, Amiri A, Shanbedi M, Maghrebi M, Baniadam M (2012) Enhanced antibacterial activity of amino acids-functionalized multi walled carbon nanotubes by a simple method. Colloids Surf B 92:196–202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfb.2011.11.045
Zhang Q, Huang JQ, Zhao MQ, Qian WZ, Wei F (2011) Carbon nanotube mass production: principles and processes. Chemsuschem 4:864–889. https://doi.org/10.1002/cssc.201100177
Zhang L, Lei C, Chen J, Yang K, Zhu L, Lin D (2015a) Effect of natural and synthetic surface coatings on the toxicity of multiwalled carbon nanotubes toward green algae. Carbon 83:198–207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbon.2014.11.050
Zhang P, Mo Z, Han L, Wang Y, Zhao G, Zhang C, Li Z (2015b) Magnetic recyclable TiO2/multi-walled carbon nanotube nanocomposite: synthesis, characterization and enhanced photocatalytic activity. J Mol Catal A Chem 402:17–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcata.2015.03.005
Zhang Y, Zeng GM, Tang L, Chen J, Zhu Y, He XX, He Y (2015c) Electrochemical sensor based on electrodeposited graphene-Au modified electrode and NanoAu carrier amplified signal strategy for attomolar mercury detection. Anal Chem 87:989–996. https://doi.org/10.1021/ac503472p
Zhang C, Lai C, Zeng G, Huang D, Yang C, Wang Y, Zhou Y, Cheng M (2016) Efficacy of carbonaceous nanocomposites for sorbing ionizable antibiotic sulfamethazine from aqueous solution. Water Res 95:103–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2016.03.014
Zhao X, Jia Q, Song N, Zhou W, Li Y (2010) Adsorption of Pb(II) from an aqueous solution by titanium dioxide/carbon nanotube nanocomposites: kinetics, thermodynamics, and isotherms. J Chem Eng Data 55:4428–4433. https://doi.org/10.1021/je100586r
Zhou W, Shan J, Jiang B, Wang L, Feng J, Guo H, Ji R (2013) Inhibitory effects of carbon nanotubes on the degradation of 14C-2,4-dichlorophenol in soil. Chemosphere 90:527. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.08.022
Zhou C, Lai C, Huang D, Zeng G, Zhang C, Cheng M, Hu L, Wan J, Xiong W, Wen M, Wen X, Qin L (2018) Highly porous carbon nitride by supramolecular preassembly of monomers for photocatalytic removal of sulfamethazine under visible light driven. Appl Catal B Environ 220:202–210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apcatb.2017.08.055
Zhu R, Zhou G, Tang F, Tong C, Wang Y, Wang J (2017) Detection of Cu2+ in water based on histidine-gold labeled multiwalled carbon nanotube electrochemical sensor. Int J Anal Chem 2017:1–8. https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/1727126
Zolfonoun E, Yousefi SR (2016) On-line extraction and determination of uranium in aqueous samples using multi-walled carbon nanotubes-coated cellulose acetate membrane. Int J Environ Anal Chem 96:203–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/03067319.2015.1137909
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful for the financial supports from National Natural Science Foundation of China (51378190, 51521006, 51579095, 51709101), the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University (IRT-13R17), Hunan Province University Innovation Platform Open Fund Project (14K020) and the Interdisciplinary Research Funds for Hunan University.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Song, B., Xu, P., Zeng, G. et al. Carbon nanotube-based environmental technologies: the adopted properties, primary mechanisms, and challenges. Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol 17, 571–590 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-018-9468-z
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-018-9468-z