Nanosilver-loaded PMMA bone cement (BC-AgNp) is a novel cement developed as a replacement for conventional cements. Despite its favorable properties and antibacterial activity, BC-AgNp still lacks biodegradability and bioactivity. Hence, we investigated doping with bioactive glasses (BGs) to create a new bioactive BC characterized by time-varying porosity and gradual release of AgNp. The BC Cemex was used as the base material and modified simultaneously with the AgNp and BGs: melted 45S5 and 13-93B3 glasses with various particle sizes and sol–gel derived SiO₂/CaO microparticles. The effect of BG addition was examined by microscopic analysis, an assessment of setting parameters, wettability, FTIR and UV-VIS spectroscopy, mechanical testing, and hemo- and cytocompatibility and antibacterial efficiency studies. The results show that it is possible to incorporate various BGs into BC-AgNp, which leads to different properties depending on the type and size of BGs. The smaller particles of melted BGs showed higher porosity and better antibacterial properties with the moderate deterioration of mechanical properties. The sol–gel derived BGs, however, displayed a tendency for agglomeration and random distribution in BC-AgNp. The BGs with greater solubility more efficiently improve the antibacterial properties of BC-AgNp. Besides, the unreacted MMA monomer release could negatively influence the cellular response. Despite that, cements doped with different BGs are suitable for medical applications.

Photocatalysis is regarded as a promising tool for wastewater remediation. In recent years, many studies have focused on investigating novel photocatalysts driven by visible light. In this study, K₂V₆O₁₆·nH₂O nanobelts and KV₃O₈ microplatelets were synthesized and investigated as photocatalysts. Samples were obtained via the facile method based on liquid-phase exfoliation with ion exchange. By changing the synthesis temperature (20-80 °C), different compositions, morphologies, and V⁴⁺/V⁵⁺ ratios were obtained and investigated as photocatalysts for organic dye degradation. Potassium vanadates' structural, morphological, and optical properties were characterized using X-ray diffraction(XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Physical Property Measurement System (PPMS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) with mass spectrometry (MS), N₂ adsorption, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence (PL), and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Synthesized K₂V₆O₁₆·nH₂O and KV₃O₈ showed an efficient absorption in the visible wavelength region with a narrow band gap energy of 1.80 and 1.91 eV, respectively. Their photocatalytic activity was evaluated by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under simulated solar light illumination. The KV₃O₈ microplatelets exhibited the greatest photocatalytic activity, resulting in more than 90% degradation of the dye within the first 30 min. It is suggested that the observed excellent photocatalytic performance is attributed to the high content of V⁴⁺ species. Furthermore, the influence of active species was investigated, and the mechanism responsible for the photodegradation of the MB dye was discussed for the first time for potassium vanadates.