Mahabubur Rahman Chowdhury- Doctor of Technology : Chemical Engineering
- Associate Professor at Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Mahabubur Rahman Chowdhury
- Doctor of Technology : Chemical Engineering
- Associate Professor at Cape Peninsula University of Technology
I lead a nanomaterial lab. Our research interests are in novel functional nanomaterials and their application.
About
48
Publications
37,147
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854
Citations
Introduction
I am a chemical engineer with a PhD majoring in nanomaterials science, working as a senior lecturer and research group leader in South Africa. I study the physical chemistry of nanomaterials, their structural and functional assessment, and their deployment in water treatment and electrochemical biosensor.
Current institution
Additional affiliations
June 2016 - July 2020
Position
- Professor (Associate)
Description
- Lecturing core chemical engineering courses, and supervise postgrad students. Leader of the functional materials research group.
February 2014 - June 2016
Position
- PostDoc Position
Description
- My current research interest is in developing visible light responsive materials for energy and environmental research.
Education
February 2011 - April 2014
January 2009 - December 2010
January 2004 - December 2008
Publications
Publications (48)
Clean water is vital for societal progress, however, the pollution caused by dyes presents a significant global challenge. Dye-contaminated industrial effluent overwhelms wastewater treatment facilities, causing harm to water bodies and ecosystems. This study demonstrates the synthesis of Co3O4 nanoparticles using spent coffee extract as a bioreduc...
The unique electrochemical and electronic properties of Cu x O (Cu 2 O/CuO) give it merit to be used in the development of electronic devices. This paper presents the facile chemical route for the development of a sensitive, accurate, and low‐cost nitrate electrochemical sensor based on undoped and Sn‐doped Cu x O thin film electrodes. Various char...
The crude oil recovery process is frequently associated with the formation of stable emulsions due to factors such as turbulent flow in pipelines and the presence of surface-active substances that naturally occur in crude oil. These emulsions are undesirable for the petroleum industry because their destruction/treatment adds to the overall producti...
Catalyst slurries (inks) were prepared with and without thermal treatment to determine the support/ionomer structures and interactions in the catalyst layer (CL) which impact on membrane electrode performance and durability. The thermal treatment of the ink has a nominal effect on the ionomer/support structure in which the carbon support is non-gra...
Cupric oxide (CuO) has been used as a non-enzymatic glucose sensor for decades. However, there is a paucity of publications on bare CuO-based photo electrochemical (PEC) glucose detection. In this study, a photo active CuO thin film was electrodeposited onto conductive glass and its band gap was tuned by etching in NH3 solution. A 6W light-emitting...
In recent years, many researchers have begun to shift their focus onto the synthesis of nanomaterials as this field possesses an immense potential that may provide incredible technological advances in the near future. The downside of conventional synthesis techniques, such as co-precipitation, sol-gel and hydrothermal methods, is that they necessit...
To decrease the cost of fuel cell manufacturing, the amount of platinum (Pt) in the catalyst layer needs to be reduced. In this study, ionomer gradient membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) were designed to reduce Pt loading without sacrificing performance and lifetime. A two-layer stratification of the cathode was achieved with varying ratios of 28...
The present work provides a soft chemical route for simultaneous nitrogen doping and (CH6N3+, NH3+)-functionalization of post deposited Co3O4 thin film. The Co3O4 thin film was prepared by metal-organic decomposition (MOD) on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate and hydrothermally treated in the presence of amino acid, L-Arginine. The L-Arginin...
The development of low cost and high‐efficiency electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is essential for a number of applications in the field of energy conversion and storage. Herein, we present an efficient OER electrocatalyst in the form of thin (Fe,Ni) 9 S 8 nanosheets (FNS NSs) anchored on a three‐dimensional (3D) conductive s...
In recent years, many researchers have begun to shift their focus onto the synthesis of nanomaterials as this field possesses immense potential that may provide incredible technological advances in the near future. The downside of conventional synthesis techniques, such as co-precipitation, sol-gel and hydrothermal methods, is that they necessitate...
The importance of developing molecular diagnostic aimed at detecting low concentrations of protein biomarkers, that are present in early stages of breast cancer cannot be over emphasised. This is driven in large part by the need to fabricate minimally- or non-invasive, portable, rapid and less expensive testing technologies. In this context, the ca...
Emulsions are undesirable in the petroleum industry, as these often lead to numerous problems such as the corrosion of equipment, high-pressure drop in the pipeline, high pumping cost, and poisoning of the catalyst in upstream facilities, thus, add to the overall production cost. These emulsions are mostly encountered during enhanced oil recovery (...
In this data in brief article dataset of plasma-assisted nitrogen doping of a binderless, spin-coated CuO-NiO mixed oxide thin film was presented (Palmer et al., 2020). A comparison of the CuO, N-CuO/Cu2O, CuO:NiO and N-CuO/Cu2O:NiO are presented. The as prepared films were used for the application of a glucose sensor. The nitrogen doped species, g...
In this study plasma-assisted nitrogen doping of a CuO–NiO mixed oxide thin film was presented. The as prepared film was also applied as a glucose sensor. The nitrogen species generated during plasma ignition resulted in a beneficial phase transformation of CuO to Cu2O. Characterisation techniques such as XRD, SEM, EIS and Hall Effect etc. measurem...
CuO nanoparticle functionalized thin film electrode has been fabricated on fluorine doped tin oxide coated conductive glass using an efficient facile solution deposition technique for non-enzymatic electrochemical detection of glucose. The CuO nanoparticulate thin film exhibited an excellent electrochemical response towards glucose oxidation, high...
In this study, CuO thin film has been prepared using a solution deposition process for the non-enzymatic electrocatalytic oxidation of glucose. The structure of the CuO was analyzed using X-ray diffraction technique while its electrocatalytic performance was investigated using cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The as-prepared CuO electrode...
Human breath investigation offers a non-invasive and quick strategy for recognizing different volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are markers for various diseases. Scientists have shown that breath acetone is a successful biomarker of Type 2 diabetes which is the most common type of diabetes. The generation of acetone is a consequence of the bod...
Different methods and processes of optimizing the yield of biogas are currently being explored globally. In this study, the use of Iron oxide nanoparticles as an additive to improve the biogas production was carried out. Iron oxide nanoparticles (ION) were synthesized by hydrothermal method. And subsequently, the biomethane potential test was condu...
Urban rivers are often heavily impacted by treated and untreated wastewater discharge containing excessive pollution loads that can severely reduce water
quality. The release of municipal wastewater in water resources is a common feature of the urbanization process. Wastewater derived from industries, agriculture, and the general population contain...
Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) characteristics were investigated in a laboratory-scale simulated wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) developed as per the prescribed
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD 303A) specifications. Nanoparticle physiochemical and morphology characteristics were
assessed at various stages of the simulate...
We report on the non-enzymatic glucose sensing ability of elemental Cu doped Co 3 O 4 thin film deposited on FTO in this study. A facile chemical solution method was used to substitute elemental Cu into the Co 3 O 4 host lattice. The morphology of the electrode was characterized by XRD, SEM, HRTEM, SAED and EELS. The as prepared thin film exhibited...
Advanced oxidation process (AOP) based on sulphate radical generated by peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation is a promising area for environmental remediation. One of the biggest drawbacks of heterogeneous PMS activation is catalyst instability and metal ion leaching. In this study, a simple organic binder mediated route was explored to substitute Ti...
https://patentscope.wipo.int/search/en/detail.jsf?docId=WO2018011727
In this study, we report on the selective of fructose on Co3O4 thin film electrode surface. A facile chemical solution deposition technique was used to fabricate Co3O4 thin film on fluorine doped tin oxide, FTO, glass. Electrode characterization was done using XRD, HRTEM, SEM, AFM, and EIS. The constructed sensor exhibited two distinctive linear ra...
A facile chemical solution deposition via two-step spin coating technique was used to fabricate nano-particulate novel Sn doped Co3O4 thin film for glucose sensor and fuel cell applications. Substitution of Sn into Co3O4 host lattice lead to a remarkable increase in the electrocatalytic activity of the Co3O4 electrode material. Film thickness playe...
A simple solution based deposition process has been used to fabricate Zn doped Co3O4 electrode as an electrocatalyst for non-enzymatic oxidation of glucose. XRD, HRTEM, SEM, EELS, AFM, EIS was used to characterise the electrode. The addition of Zn as dopant on Co3O4 resulted in enhanced electrochemical performance of Zn:Co3O4 material compared to p...
In this work we report on the good photocatalytic properties of β-FeOOH/TiO2 heterojunction material for the inactivation of E.coli. XRD, HRTEM, EELS, ELNEFS was used to characterise the as prepared material. 1 log reduction of the initial bacterial population was achieved after 45 minutes of irradiation in the presence of 0.1 mL of hydrogen peroxi...
The scarcity of rapid and large scale synthesis of functional materials hinders the progress from the laboratory scale to commercial applications. In this study, we report a rapid and large scale synthesis of micron size (1.3 μm) Co3O4 octahedron particles enclosed by (111) facets. The octahedron particles were composed of ±25 nm rectangular/cube s...
In this contribution, we have shown that mining waste derived Fe3 + can be used to enhance the photocatalytic activity of TiO2. This will allow us to harness a waste product from the mines, and utilize it to enhance TiO2 photocatalytic waste water treatment efficiency. An organic linker mediated route was utilized to create a composite of TiO2 and...
Photocatalytic performance of β-FeOOH/TiO2 heterojunction structure, created from ultra-small β-FeOOH nanorods (2-6 nm dia.) and spherical anatase phase of TiO2 nanoparticles (~100 nm), is reported in this study. Three different β-FeOOH mol % of (2, 5 and 10%) β-FeOOH/TiO2 composite was prepared. 5%β-FeOOH/TiO2 composite material showed the highest...
In this study we report on the organic linker mediated fabrication and catalytic activity of a novel β-FeOOH/NiO composite material for the first time. Four-chlorophenol (4-CP) was used as a target molecule to evaluate the catalytic activity of the composite material in ozonation reactions. Three different β-FeOOH loadings, labelled 2, 5 and 10% β-...
In this paper, we report on the catalytic properties of ultra-small β-FeOOH nanorods in ozonation of 4-Chlorophenol (4-CP). XRD, TEM, EDS, SAED, FTIR and BET were used to characterize the prepared material. Interaction between O3 and β-FeOOH was evident from the FTIR spectra. The removal efficiency of 4-CP was significantly enhanced in the presence...
This paper describes the homogeneous precipitation of β-FeOOH nanorods (±5 nm dia.) in alcohol—water mixed solvents. Four alcohols, butanol (BuOH), propanol (PrOH), ethanol (EtOH) and methanol (MeOH), were mixed with water as the solvents to evaluate the effect of alcohols on the β-FeOOH particle characteristics under different hydrothermal process...
Based on the proposition that a quantitative and qualitative relationship between alcohol surface tension and particle growth exists, the effect of four different organic solvents on the growth kinetics of β-FeOOH (akaganeite) nanorods have been evaluated in this study. Two-stage growth of akaganeite nanorods have been observed in the presence of b...
A lack of experimental data and predictive models prompted the determination of loss characteristics of four sharp square-edged orifices for laminar to turbulent flow regime (1 ≤ Re ≤ 100000). Novel experimental data for β ratios of 0.36, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.7 obtained with Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids and an empirical correlation for predicting p...
A lack of experimental data and predictive models prompted the determination of loss characteristics of four sharp
square-edged orifices for laminar to turbulent flow regime (1 ≤ Re ≤ 100,000). Novel experimental data for ˇ ratios of
0.36, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.7 obtained with Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids and an empirical correlation for predicting...
Questions
Questions (5)
There is a trend going on where PhD graduates and post docs coming out from big labs have numerous publications (not necessarily as a first author). Upon questioning them one finds out that they might have just did a small section of the experiments or did analyse a data (may be XRD or TEM etc.), not necessarily have written up the manuscript or contributed in deep discussion in the manuscript. Is it ethical?
I got some BET results. When i plot the relative pressure (P/Po) against the volume adsorbed the curve goes to negative (below the x axis). What does this means. And after a certain point the desorption curve is below the adsorption curve. It should have been the opposite. Can somebody please help. I can send the xcel files if somebody is interested to help analyse the data.
I am looking for publications or book where the valence band and conduction band edge potential values with energy band gap values of single and multiwalled carbon nanotubes are determined and presented. Please help
I would like to measure energy band gap of semiconductor material. The Uv-Vis we have takes only liquid sample but not powder. Can anybody please provide me with a method for measuring eg of semiconductor material? Or literature may be where they have done it.
Recently I have read few papers that developed techniques to measure surface tension at high temperature and pressure. The techniques they have utilized is bubble pressure technique (Published in chemical engineering data) and pendant drop technique (Published in Fuel). I have contacted both authors if I can use their facility to measure some data as the editor will accept my paper once I have shown the experimental data. But none of them have replied. So I would like to know if any of you know which lab or university has the similar facility so I can contact them to measure the surface tension in high temperature and pressure.
