Sonochemical Production of Nanomaterials

This book discusses the ultrasonic synthesis, characterization and application of various nanoparticles, as well as the ultrasonic synthesis of metal and inorganic nanoparticles such as noble metals, transition metals, semiconductors, nanocomposites, alloys and catalysts. In addition, it describes the engineering of micro- and nanosystems using ultrasound-responsive biomolecules. In acoustic cavitation, unique phenomena based on bubbles dynamics, extreme high-temperature and pressure conditions, radical reactions, extreme heating and cooling rates, strong shockwaves, and microstreaming are generated, and under certain conditions, mist generation (atomization of a liquid) is effectively induced by ultrasonic irradiation. These unique phenomena can be used to produce various high-performance functional metal and inorganic nanoparticles.
Nanoparticles and nanomaterials are key materials in advancing nanotechnology and as such ultrasound and sonochemical techniques for producing nanoparticles and nanomaterials have been actively studied for the last two decades. Although a few professional books related to 'ultrasound' and 'nanomaterials' have been published, these mainly target professional researchers. This book covers this topic in a way that appeals to graduate students, researchers and engineers.


Francesca Cavalieri is a Future Fellow in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at The University of Melbourne. She has interdisciplinary expertise in synthesis and structure/function characterization of soft biomaterials based on natural and synthetic macromolecules such as proteins, polysaccharides nucleic acids and hydrophilic polymers. Her research focuses on the interaction of biomacromolecules with biological systems as well as synthetic approaches, including ultrasound, to the design of novel biomaterials.

Kenji Okitsu, is a professor in the Graduate School of Humanities and Sustainable System Sciences at Osaka Prefecture University in Japan. His major research focus is on the sonochemical synthesis of metal nanoparticles, sonochemical degradation of hazardous organic chemicals and analysis of the chemical and physical effect of acoustic cavitation.

Sukhvir Kaur Bhangu is currently a PhD (Chemistry) students at University of Melbourne, Australia. She did Bachelor of Science (Chemistry) in 2013 from Guru Nanak Dev University, Punjab, India and Master in Science (Chemistry) in 2015 from University of Melbourne, Australia. She has  been involved in different research projects dealing with the applications of ultrasound in different research areas such as sonocrystallisation, synthesis of nanomaterials for biomedical applications, biodiesel synthesis etc.

Enrico Colombo completed his PhD in science (Chemistry ) at the University of Melbourne in early 2018, after completing his M.Sc. and B.Sc. at the University of Milna, Italy. His PhD thesis work was focused on the study of acoustic cavitation for the synthesis of different nanostructured materials for food/drug delivery applications. In addition, his research work required  the use of ultrasonic techniques for the synthesis of photocatalysts  to be used in continuous flow through reactors.  Currently, he is employed as a bioanalytical scientist at CSL Limited where he develops analytical assays for the analysis of recombinant proteins.
Professor Muthupandian Ashokkumar (Ashok) is a Physical Chemist who specializes in Sonochemistry, teaches undergraduate and postgraduate Chemistry and is a senior academic staff member of the School of Chemistry, University of Melbourne. Ashok is a renowned sonochemist, with more than 20 years of experience in this field, and has developed a number of novel techniques to characterize acoustic cavitation bubbles and has made major contributions of applied sonochemistry to the Materials, Food and Dairy industry. His research team has developed a novel ultrasonic processing technology for improving the functional properties of dairy ingredients. Recent research also involves the ultrasonic synthesis of functional nano- and biomaterials that can be used in energy production, environmental remediation and diagnostic and therapeutic medicine. He is the Deputy Director of an Australian Research Council Funded Industry Transformation Research Hub (ITRH; Industry Partner: Mondelez International) and leading the Encapsulation project. He has received about $ 15 million research grants to support his research work that includes several industry projects. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Ultrasonics Sonochemistry, an international journal devoted to sonochemistry research with a Journal Impact Factor of 4.3). He has edited/co-edited several books and special issues for journals; published -360 refereed papers (H-Index: 49) in high impact international journals and books; and delivered over 150 invited/keynote/plenary lectures at international conferences and academic institutions. Ashok has successfully organised 10 national/international scientific conferences/workshops and managed a number of national and international competitive research grants. He has served on a number of University of Melbourne management committees and scientific advisory boards of external scientific organizations. Ashok is the recipient of several prizes, awards and fellowships, including the Grimwade Prize in Industrial Chemistry. He is a Fellow of the RACI since 2007.