Microwave chemistry, recent advancements, and eco-friendly microwave-assisted synthesis of nanoarchitectures and their applications: a review

Nanomaterials have been recognized as the spine of nanoscience and nanotechnology, showing potential applications in material science, chemistry, natural chemistry, and biotechnology. However, the current trend for the synthesis of nanomaterials endures a challenge to redesign the synthetic strategies offering the use of less hazardous chemicals and reduction in the reaction time and required energy. In this context, microwave (MW)-assisted methods can be considered as a promising green strategy to synthesize the nanomaterials and nanocomposites, confirming the green chemistry approaches. Besides, MW-assisted strategies give a homogenous heating to the reaction mixture to diminish the thermal gradients in the reaction solution. This phenomenon is responsible for the reliable nucleation and growth environment, which leads to the formation of nanomaterials with uniform size distribution. The present review article includes the fundamentals of MW chemistry which is very essential to understand the mechanism and solution-phase phenomenon during the MW heating. Furthermore, we discussed the recent advancements and MW-assisted strategies and their claims toward the creation of nanostructured materials which leads to green chemistry, showing various potential applications. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.