Al-doped ZnO (AZO) samples were prepared using a modified sol–gel route and charaterized by means of trasmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction and photoluminescence analysis. Resistive planar devices based on thick films of AZO deposited on interdigitated alumina substrates were fabricated and investigated as UV light activated CO sensors. CO sensing tests were performed in both dark and illumination condition by exposing the samples to UV radiation ( λ = 400 nm).Under UV light, Al-doped ZnO gas sensors operated at lower temperature than in dark. Furthermore, by photoactivation we also promoted CO sensitivity and made signal recovery of AZO sensors faster. Results demonstrate that Al-doped ZnO might be a promising sensing material for the detection of CO under UV illumination.

The ZnO-based visible-LED photocatalytic degradation and mineralization of two typical cyanotoxins, microcystin-LR (MC-LR), and anatoxin-A were examined. Al-doped ZnO nanoparticle photocatalysts, in Al:Zn ratios between 0 and 5 at.%, were prepared via sol-gel method and exhaustively characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms. With both cyanotoxins, increasing the Al content enhances the degradation kinetics, hence the use of nanoparticles with 5 at.% Al content (A5ZO). The dosage affected both cyanotoxins similarly, and the photocatalytic degradation kinetics improved with photocatalyst concentrations between 0.5 and 1.0 g L⁻¹. Nevertheless, the pH study revealed that the chemical state of a species decisively facilitates the mutual interaction of cyanotoxin and photocatalysts. A5ZO nanoparticles achieved better outcomes than other photocatalysts to date, and after 180 min, the mineralization of anatoxin-A was virtually complete in weak alkaline medium, whereas only 45% of MC-LR was in neutral conditions. Moreover, photocatalyst reusability is clear for anatoxin-A, but it is adversely affected for MC-LR.