Herein, we prepared a novel photocatalytic ZnO-TiO₂ loaded carbon nanofibers composites (ZnO-TiO₂-CNFs) via electrospinning technique followed by a hydrothermal process. At first, the electrospun TiO₂ NP-embedded carbon nanofibers (TiO₂-CNFs) were achieved using electrospinning and a carbonization process. Next, the ZnO particles were grown into the TiO₂-CNFs via hydrothermal treatment. The morphology, structure, and chemical compositions were studied using state-of-the-art techniques. The photocatalytic performance of the ZnO-TiO₂-CNFs composite was studied using degrading methylene blue (MB) under UV-light irradiation for three successive cycles. It was noticed that the ZnO-TiO₂-CNFs nanocomposite showed better MB removal properties than that of other formulations, which might be due to the synergistic effects of carbon nanofibers and utilized metal oxides (ZnO and TiO₂). The adsorption characteristic of carbon fibers and matched band potentials of ZnO and TiO₂ combinedly help to boost the overall photocatalytic performance of the ZnO-TiO₂-CNFs composite. The obtained results from this study indicated that it can be an economical and environmentally friendly photocatalyst.

Silicon carbide (SiC) is a very promising carbide material with various applications such as electrochemical supercapacitors, photocatalysis, microwave absorption, field-effect transistors, and sensors. Due to its enticing advantages of high thermal stability, outstanding chemical stability, high thermal conductivity, and excellent mechanical behavior, it is used as a potential candidate in various fields such as supercapacitors, water-splitting, photocatalysis, biomedical, sensors, and so on. This review mainly describes the various synthesis techniques of nanostructured SiC (0D, 1D, 2D, and 3D) and its properties. Thereafter, the ongoing research trends in electrochemical supercapacitor electrodes are fully excavated. Finally, the outlook of future research directions, key obstacles, and possible solutions are emphasized.

In this work, flexible ternary composites of cobalt-doped cadmium selenide/electrospun carbon nanofibers (Co-CdSe@ECNFs) for photocatalytic applications were fabricated successfully via electrospinning, followed by carbonization. For the fabrication of the proposed photocatalysts, Co-CdSe nanoparticles were grown in situ on the surface of ECNFs during the carbonization of precursor electrospun nanofibers obtained by dispersing Se powder in the electrospinning solution of polyacrylonitrile/N,N-Dimethylformamide (PAN/DMF) containing Cd²⁺ and Co²⁺. The photocatalytic performance of synthesized samples is investigated in the photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B (RhB) dyes. Experimental results revealed the superior photocatalytic efficiency of Co-CdSe@ECNFs over undoped samples (CdSe@ECNFs) due to the doping effect of cobalt, which is able to capture the photogenerated electrons to prevent electron–hole recombination, thereby improving photocatalytic performance. Moreover, ECNFs could play an important role in enhancing electron transfer and optical absorption of the photocatalyst. This type of fabrication strategy may be a new avenue for the synthesis of other ECNF-based ternary composites.

Activated carbons were synthesized from petroleum-based pitch and evaluated for the removal of trace siloxanes and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) from gas streams. Oxidative stabilization followed by steam activation produced high specific surface area with enlarged mesoporosity (BET up to 1620.9 m² g⁻¹), as confirmed by N₂ sorption (BET/PSD), SEM, and elemental analysis. A GC/MS-based fixed-bed assay using 5 g of adsorbent, a 100 mL min⁻¹ challenge flow, and a 30 min readout was employed to quantify performance under consistent conditions. Under these tests, siloxanes were not detected at 30 min, and H₂S decreased to 0.38 ppm. Samples with greater mesopore volume while retaining high surface area showed higher 30 min removal. Surface-chemistry analysis indicated that oxygen functionalities introduced during stabilization facilitated pore development during subsequent steam activation without substantial loss of area. Taken together, the textural and adsorption results present a coherent picture in which a micro/mesopore architecture supports siloxane and H₂S control under the stated test conditions. The study records the key testing parameters and performance values to enable practical comparison of petroleum-pitch-derived activated carbons for gas purification.