Ceramic nanomatriaLs for Chemical Industry

Key Properties: 

    High Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ ratio; strong redox cycling    

Applications:

  Cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanocubes, particularly those in the 20–100 nm size range, exhibit unique industrial advantages due to their:

• Well-defined      cubic shape (exposed {100} facets)
• High surface area and oxygen storage capacity (OSC)
• Redox      properti

Key Properties: 

    High Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ ratio; strong redox cycling    

Applications:

  Cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanocubes, particularly those in the 20–100 nm size range, exhibit unique industrial advantages due to their:

• Well-defined      cubic shape (exposed {100} facets)
• High surface area and oxygen storage capacity (OSC)
• Redox      properties (Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ cycling)
• Strong  UV absorption and free radical scavenging

These properties make CeO₂ nanocubes valuable in a wide range of sectors from catalysis and energy to cosmetics, biomedicine, and environmental technologies. 

Industrial Applications of Cerium Oxide Nanocubes (20–100 nm)

1. 🧪 Catalysis (Automotive & Industrial)

📌 Applications:

• Three-Way Catalysts (TWCs) in automobiles (CO, NOₓ, hydrocarbon removal)
• Catalyst  support for noble metals (Pt, Pd, Rh)
• Oxidation      catalysts (CO oxidation, VOC destruction, soot combustion)
• Water-gas  shift reactions, methane reforming, Fischer–Tropsch sthesis

🔍 Advantage nanocubes?

• Exposed {100} facets enhance catalytic activity
• High oxygen storage/release and Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ redox cycling
• Thermal      stability and reusability in harsh environments

2. 🧼 Environmental Remediation

📌 Applications:

• Removal  of organic dyes, phenols, and pollutants from wastewater
• Photocatalytic degradation of pesticides and industrial effluents
• Adsorption of heavy metals (e.g., arsenic, lead, chromium)

🔍 Advantage

• Surface defects and Ce³⁺ sites enhance redox-driven degradation
• High surface area for pollutant adsorption
• Stable and recyclable

3. 💨 Fuel Cells and Energy Devices

📌 Applications:

• Electrolytes or catalyst layers in SOFCs (Solid Oxide Fuel Cells)
• Hydrogen production via water-gas shift or reforming reactions
• Oxygen sensors

🔍 Advantage

• High ionic conductivity (especially Gd-doped CeO₂)
• Thermal      and chemical stability
• Redox capability promotes hydrogen release and oxygen mobility

4. 💊 Biomedical & Pharmaceutical

📌 Applications:

• Antioxidant  agents (neutralize reactive oxygen species - ROS)
• Wound  healing, anti-inflammatory creams, radioprotection
• Drug delivery platforms (surface-modified CeO₂ nanocubes)
• Biosensors

🔍 Advantage

• Cubic CeO₂ has better ROS scavenging than spherical CeO₂
• Biocompatible      in small doses
• Nanocubes provide better cellular uptake and surface reactivity

⚠️ Note: In vivo applications are still under regulation and toxicological study.

5. 🎨 UV-Blocking & Protective Coatings

📌 Applications:

• Sunscreens,      UV-shielding cosmetics
• UV-resistant  coatings for plastics, fabrics, and paints
• Anti-corrosion  coatings

🔍 Advantage

• Strong UV absorption (better than ZnO or TiO₂ in some cases)
• Nanocubes      form stable, transparent layers
• Prevents free radical formation

6. 🔋 Battery and Supercapacitor Materials

📌 Applications:

• Electrode additives in Li-ion batteries
• Hybrid nanocomposites for supercapacitors

🔍 Advantage

• Improves electron conductivity and redox stability
• Nanocubic      shape helps in uniform dispersion and improved kinetics

7. 🔬 Polishing (CMP) Applications

📌 Applications:

• Ultra-precise polishing of optical lenses, silicon wafers, and glass
• Used in chemical mechanical planarization in semiconductor fabs

🔍 Advantage

• High hardness (Mohs ~6.5)
• Controlled morphology for scratch-free polishing

Cubes reduce surface damage compared to irregular CeO₂ 

Key Properties:

   Oxygen‑vacancy rich surfaces; enhanced catalytic activity 

Applications:

Cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanorods, especially in the 20–100 nm size range, are widely used across industrial, environmental, energy, and biomedical sectors. 

Their rod-like shape exposes more reactive crystal facets (e.g., {110}, {100}), offering enhan

Key Properties:

   Oxygen‑vacancy rich surfaces; enhanced catalytic activity 

Applications:

Cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanorods, especially in the 20–100 nm size range, are widely used across industrial, environmental, energy, and biomedical sectors. 

Their rod-like shape exposes more reactive crystal facets (e.g., {110}, {100}), offering enhanced catalytic activity, oxygen storage capacity, and redox behavior compared to spherical or cubic CeO₂ particles.

Industrial Applications of Cerium Oxide Nanorods (20–100 nm)

1. 🧪 Catalysis and Catalyst Supports

📌 Applications:

• Automotive      Three-Way Catalysts (TWCs)
• CO      oxidation, VOC abatement, diesel soot combustion
• Water–gas      shift reaction, methane reforming

🔍 Advantage nanorods?

• Expose      highly active {110} facets → greater redox activity
• Better      oxygen storage/release due to anisotropic structure
• Enhanced      metal dispersion when used as support (e.g., for Pt, Pd, Cu)

2. 💨 Environmental Remediation

📌 Applications:

• Degradation      of dyes and organic pollutants in wastewater
• Photocatalytic      oxidation of pesticides and pharmaceuticals
• Heavy      metal adsorption (e.g., Cr⁶⁺, Pb²⁺)

🔍 Advantage?

• High      surface area + redox cycling → effective pollutant breakdown
• Nanorods      resist agglomeration → reusable in flow systems
• ROS      (reactive oxygen species) generation under UV or visible light

3. 🔋 Energy Storage & Conversion

📌 Applications:

• Solid      oxide fuel cells (SOFCs): electrolyte or electrode additive
• Electrocatalyst     in H₂ production (electrolysis, reforming)
• Battery      electrode materials (e.g., Li-ion or Ni–MH cells)

🔍Advantage?

• Enhanced      ionic conductivity and Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ cycling
• Rod-like      morphology improves electron/ion transport pathways
• Thermal      and chemical stability under cycling

4. 💊 Biomedicine & Health Care (Emerging Use)

📌 Applications:

• Antioxidant      nanomedicine (ROS scavenger)
• Radioprotective      agents for healthy tissues in cancer therapy
• Anti-inflammatory      and wound-healing creams
• Drug      delivery platforms

🔍 Advantage?

• Nanorods      have stronger catalase- and superoxide-mimetic activity than      nanospheres
• Better      cellular uptake and sustained bioactivity
• Ce³⁺/Ce⁴⁺ cycling helps neutralize harmful radicals

⚠️ Still under active research for clinical translation. Regulatory clearance required.

5. 🔬 Sensing and Detection

📌 Applications:

• Gas      sensors: CO, NH₃, H₂S, ethanol
• Electrochemical      biosensors

🔍 Advantage?

• Redox-active      surface enables fast charge transfer
• Rod      morphology offers higher surface-to-volume ratio
• Stable      under harsh gas/vapor conditions

6. 🧼 UV-Protective Coatings & Additives

📌 Applications:

• UV-blocking      paints and polymers
• Cosmetic      sunscreens
• Anti-aging      coatings for plastics and fabrics

🔍 Advantage?

• High      UV absorption and photostability
• Low      toxicity and environmental impact
• Nanorod      shape improves dispersion in coating matrices

7. ⚙️ Mechanical Polishing (CMP)

📌 Applications:

• Precision      polishing of glass, optics, silicon wafers
• Used      in CMP (Chemical Mechanical Planarization) slurries

🔍 Advantage?

• Nanorods      offer anisotropic polishing action
• Less      abrasive than spherical particles

Can be functionalized for selective material removal 

Key Properties:

    Large surface area; tunable shell thickness 

Applications:

Cerium oxide (CeO₂) hollow nanospheres in the 20–100 nm size range have unique structural and surface properties that make them highly valuable across catalysis, environmental engineering, energy, and biomedical industries. 

Their high surface area-to-volume r

Key Properties:

    Large surface area; tunable shell thickness 

Applications:

Cerium oxide (CeO₂) hollow nanospheres in the 20–100 nm size range have unique structural and surface properties that make them highly valuable across catalysis, environmental engineering, energy, and biomedical industries. 

Their high surface area-to-volume ratio, low density, and tunability of porosity provide key advantages over solid CeO₂ nanoparticles.

Industrial Applications of CeO₂ Hollow Nanospheres (20–100 nm)

1. 🧪 Catalysis & Catalyst Supports

📌 Applications:

• Automotive      three-way catalysts (TWC)
• CO      oxidation, VOC decomposition, NOₓ reduction
• Supported      metal catalysts (e.g., Pt, Pd, Ni, Au)

🔍 Advantage of hollow nanospheres?

• High      surface area allows more active sites
• Hollow      interior facilitates reactant diffusion and gas exchange
• Redox-active      Ce⁴⁺/Ce³⁺     cycling aids oxygen release/storage (OSC)

2. 💨 Environmental Remediation

📌 Applications:

• Photocatalytic      degradation of dyes, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals
• Adsorption      of heavy metals (Cr⁶⁺, Pb²⁺)      and organics from wastewater
• Catalytic      ozonation and Fenton-like reactions

🔍 Advantage?

• Hollow      structure enhances light harvesting and reaction kinetics
• ROS      (reactive oxygen species) generation from surface Ce³⁺/oxygen      vacancies
• Porosity      enables multiple adsorption–desorption cycles

3. 🔋 Energy Storage & Conversion

📌 Applications:

• Electrodes      and electrolytes for Li-ion and Na-ion batteries
• Supercapacitor      electrode materials
• Fuel      cell catalyst support

🔍 Advantage?

• Hollow      CeO₂ spheres offer:
  • Shorter       ion/electron diffusion paths
  • More       active surface area
  • Mechanical       buffering (resist volume expansion during cycling)

    

4. 💊 Biomedical & Therapeutic (Emerging)

📌 Applications:

• Antioxidant      nanomedicine for treating oxidative stress
• Drug      delivery carriers (hollow core for drug loading)
• Radioprotective      and anti-inflammatory agents
• Imaging      contrast agents

🔍Advantage?

• Hollow      nanostructure enables high drug payload
• Ce³⁺     acts as a free radical scavenger (nanozyme behavior)
• Surface      modifiable for targeted delivery

⚠️ Under investigation; industrial biomedical use requires regulatory clearance.

5. 🔬 Sensing and Detection

📌 Applications:

• Electrochemical      and optical sensors for gases (CO, NO₂, ethanol)
• Biosensors     for glucose, dopamine, and H₂O₂ detection

🔍 Advantage?

• Hollow      CeO₂ provides:
  • High       surface area for probe attachment
  • Enhanced       signal transduction via oxygen vacancies
  • Better       stability and sensitivity

    

6. 🧼 UV Protection and Coatings

📌 Applications:

• UV-protective      sunscreens and cosmetic creams
• Protective      coatings for plastics, wood, or textiles

🔍 Advantage?

• Strong      UV absorption without photocatalytic degradation of matrix
• Low      density → transparent coatings
• Hollow      shell improves spreadability and coverage

7. 🏗️ Polishing & Abrasive Applications

📌 Applications:

• Chemical      mechanical planarization (CMP) slurries for semiconductors
• Fine      polishing of optical lenses, glass, and ceramics

🔍 Advantage?

• Hollow      spheres reduce scratching and surface damage
• Good      mechanical strength and uniform removal rates