DFT studies of Si- and Al-doping effects on the acetone sensing properties of BC3 graphene

In order to find a novel sensor, reactivity and sensitivity of the intrinsic, Al- and Si-doped BC₃ graphene-like sheets to an acetone molecule were investigated by using B3LYP and ωB97X-D density functional calculations. Adsorption of acetone on the intrinsic, Al- and Si-doped BC₃ sheets releases energies of about 7.2, 36.5 and 24.8 kcal/mol, respectively, using ωB97X-D. The Si-doped sheet presents high sensitivity to acetone compared with the intrinsic and Al-doped sheets indicated by the calculated geometrical structures and electronic properties for these systems. The HOMO/LUMO energy gap of Si-doped BC₃ sheet is significantly decreased from 2.20 to 1.65 eV (B3LYP), which would result in electrical conductance increment. Thus, Si-doped sheet are expected to be a potential candidate for detecting the presence of acetone.     

DFT study on the chemical sensitivity of C3N nanotubes toward acetone

Potential application of single-walled C₃N nanotubes was investigated as chemical sensors for acetone molecules based on the density functional theory calculations. It was found that the pristine nanotube weakly adsorbs an acetone molecule with the adsorption energy of − 9.7 kcal/mol, and its electronic properties are not sensitive to this molecule. By replacing a C atom with a Si atom, the nanotube becomes a p-type semiconductor. The adsorption energy of the acetone molecule on the Si-doped nanotube becomes much more negative (E_ad=−67.4 kcal/mol). The adsorption process leads to a sizable increase in the resistance of the Si-doped tube, thereby, it can show the presence of acetone molecule, creating an electronic signal. Also, the sensitivity of these devices can be controlled by the doping level of Si atoms. By increasing the number of dopant atoms from 1 to 4, the sensitivity is gradually increased.     

Isoniazid drug adsorption on the pristine and Al-doped zinc oxide nanosheets: a molecular modeling

Experimental works have exposed that Al-doping in the structure of ZnO nanostructures intensely increases their electronic sensitivity toward various chemicals. Herein, density functional theory calculations were employed to inspect the Al-doping effect on the sensitivity of a ZnO nanosheet (ZnOS) to the isoniazid (IS) drug. The pristine ZnOS physically adsorbs an IS molecule with adsorption energy (E _ad) of ?6.8?kcal/mol, and the sensing response value of 2.3 at 298?K. Replacing a Zn atom by an Al atom strengthens the interaction, increasing the E _ad to ?20.8?kcal/mol. Also, the Al-doping significantly increases the sensing response value to 150.3 by rising the electrical conductivity of the sheet. A short recovery time of 11.3 s is predicted for the Al-ZnOS-based sensor. The water solvent somewhat strengthens the interaction of IS drug with the Al-ZnOS, increasing the sensing response from 150.3 to 175.8. We concluded that the Al-doping makes the ZnOS a promising sensor for IS drug detection.     

Ca掺杂的氧化铍纳米管吸附H2O和NH3的选择传感特

通过密度泛函计算, 借助NH₃和H₂O分子对未掺杂以及钙掺杂的BeO碳纳米管的结构和电传导性进行了研究. 结果发现,NH₃和H₂O分子可以吸附在纳米管侧壁的Be原子上,吸附能分别为约36.1和39.0 kcal/mol. 态密度分析显示BeO纳米管的电传导性在吸附后稍有变化. 对于NH₃和H₂O分子,纳米管表面的钙原子替换Be原子可使吸附能分别增加约7.4和14.7 kcal/mol. 与未掺杂纳米管不同的是,钙掺杂BeONT吸附NH₃和H₂O分子的电传导性更加敏感,且H₂O分子比NH₃分子更敏感.     

Adsorption of mercaptopurine drug on the BN nanotube,nanosheet and nanocluster: a density functional theory study

ABSTRACT

We have investigated the interaction of mercaptopurine (MP) drug with BN nanotube, nanosheet and nanocluster using density functional theory calculations in the gas phase, and aqueous solution. We predicted that the MP drug tends to be physically adsorbed on the surface of BN nanosheet with an adsorption energy (E_ad) about ?3.2?kcal/mol. The electronic properties of BN nanosheet are not affected by the MP drug, and this sheet is not a sensor. But the electronic properties of BN nanotube and nanocluster are significantly sensitive to this drug in both gas phase, and aqueous solution. The BN nanocluster suffers from a long recovery time (8.8?×?10⁸?s) because of a strong interaction (E_ad?=??28.6?kcal/mol), and this cluster is not a proper sensor for MP detection. But the BN nanotube benefits from a short recovery time about 49.5?s at room temperature, and may be a promising candidate for application in the MP sensors. The water solvent decreases the strength of interaction between the BN nanotube, and MP drug, but it does not affect the electronic sensitivity of the nanotube sensibly.     

Cyclosarin nerve agent interaction with the pristine,Stone Wales defected,and Si-doped BN nanosheets: Theoretical study

Never agent identification and disposal is vital for both civilian and military defense resources. Herein, using density functional theory calculations, the reactivity and electronic sensitivity of pristine, Stone Wales (SW) defected, and Si-doped BN (Si-BN) nanosheets toward cyclosarin nerve agent were investigated. It was found that the interaction of cyclosarin with the pristine BN sheet is very weak and also that is not energetically favorable with SW defected one. Unlike the SW defect, replacing a B atom by Si atom significantly makes the cyclosarin adsorption energetically favorable. Calculations show that the carbonyl and etheric oxygen atoms of cyclosarin attack the Si atom of Si-BN with the adsorption energies of −73.5 and −136.9 kJ/mol, respectively. The cyclosarin nerve agent can be decomposed by the Si-BN sheet which is thermodynamically highly favorable. Upon this process, the HOMO and LUMO levels are significantly unstabilized and the HOMO-LUMO gap significantly changed by about 24.2%. The cyclosarin presence and its decomposition by Si-BN sheet can be recognized because of the electrical conductivity change of the sheet.     

Theoretical study on Si-doped hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) sheet: Electronic,magnetic properties,and reactivity

The properties and reactivity of Si-doped hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) sheets were studied using density functional theory (DFT) methods. We find that Si impurity is more likely to substitute the boron site (Si_B) due to the low formation energy. Si-doping severely deforms h-BN sheet, resulting in the local curvature changes of h-BN sheet. Moreover, Si-doping introduces two spin localized states within the band gap of h-BN sheet, thus rendering the two doped systems exhibit acceptor properties. The band gap of h  -BN sheet is reduced from ∼4.70 eV$\sim 4.70\text{eV}$ to 1.24 (for Si_B) and 0.84 eV (for Si_N), respectively. In addition, Si-doped one exhibits higher activity than pristine one, endowing them wider application potential.     

A DFT study of formaldehyde adsorption on functionalized graphene nanoribbons

Density functional theory (DFT) based ab initio calculations were done to monitor the formaldehyde (CHOH) adsorptive behavior on pristine and Ni-decorated graphene sheet. Structural optimization indicates that the formaldehyde molecule is physisorbed on the pristine sheet via partly weak van der Waals attraction having the adsorption energy of about −15.7 kcal/mol. Metal decorated sheet is able to interact with the CHOH molecule, so that single Ni atoms prefer to bind strongly at the bridge site of graphene and each metal atom bound on sheet may adsorb up to four CHOH. The findings also show that the Ni decoration on graphene surface results in some changes in electronic properties of the sheet and its E_g is remained unchanged after adsorption of CHOH molecules. It is noteworthy to say that no bond cleavage was observed for the adsorption of CHOH on Ni-decorated graphene.     

Adsorption sensitivity of pristine and Al- or Si-doped boron nitride nanoflake to COCl2: a DFT study

ABSTRACT

The adsorption of phosgene (COCl₂) on pristine, Al- and Si-doped boron nitride nanoflakes (BNNFs) is studied using density functional theory calculations. The adsorption energies of the most stable complexes, formed from interaction between COCl₂ and the pristine, Al- and Si-doped BNNFs are ?28.97, ?78.71 and ?171.60?kJ/mol at the M06-2X/6-31?+?G* level of theory, respectively. It is found that COCl₂ experiences a chemisorption interaction over the doped BNNFs, significantly altering its structure with respect to the gas-phase molecule. The COCl₂ adsorption can also induce a change in the HOMO–LUMO or SOMO–LUMO energy gap of the surface. In particular, the adsorption of COCl₂ is found to decrease the HOMO–LUMO energy gap of Al-doped BNNF by about 30%. It is suggested that the Al- or Si-doped BNNFs can be considered as a potential material for detecting toxic COCl₂.     

Determination of H2S,COS, CS2 and SO2 by an aluminium nitride nanocluster: DFT studies

ABSTRACT

Density functional theory calculations were used to investigate the potential application of an AlN nanocluster in the detection of H₂S, COS, CS₂ and SO₂ gases. In overall, the order of strength of interaction of these gases with the nanocluster is as follows: SO₂ (E_ad?=??17.6?kcal/mol)?>?H₂S (E_ad?=??14.0?kcal/mol)?>?COS (E_ad?=??8.4?kcal/mol)?>?CS₂ (E_ad?=??4.5?kcal/mol). This indicates that by increasing the electric dipole moment, the adsorption energy becomes more negative. We found that the Al₁₂N₁₂ nanocluster may be a promising work function-type sensor for SO₂ gas among the studied gases. Also, it is an electronic sensor for both SO₂ and CS₂ gases but selectively acts between them because of their different effects on the electrical conductivity. It is neither work function-type nor electronic sensor for H₂S and COS gases. The AlN nanocluster benefits from a short recovery time about 7.7?s and 18.0?ms for desorption of SO₂ and CS₂ gases from its surface at room temperature, respectively. It is also concluded that this cluster can work at a humid environment.     

Theoretical study on the mechanism and kinetics of atmospheric reactions NH2OH + OOH and NH2CH3 + OOH

Mechanism and kinetics of NH₂OH + OOH and NH₂CH₃ + OOH reactions were studied at the B3LYP and M062X levels of theory using the 6-311++G(3df, 3pd) basis set. The NH₂OH + OOH and NH₂CH₃ + OOH reactions proceed through different paths which lead to different products. Transition state structure and activation energy of each path were calculated. The calculated activation energies of hydrogen abstraction reactions were smaller than 25 kcal/mol and of substitution reactions are in the range of 50–70 kcal/mol. The rate constants were calculated using transition state theory (TST) modified for tunneling effect at 273–2000 K.     

Amantadine antiparkinsonian drug adsorption on the AlN and BN nanoclusters: A computational study

To find a sensor for Amantadine (AM) antiparkinsonian drug, we studied its interaction with Al₁₂N₁₂ and B₁₂N₁₂ nanoclusters by density functional theory calculations. The AM molecule attaches via its –NH₂ group to the Al or B atoms of Al₁₂N₁₂ or B₁₂N₁₂ with Gibbs free energy change about −31.5 or −26.1 kcal/mol. Increasing the AM concentration, the interaction becomes weaker due to steric effects. The AM adsorbs on the Al₁₂N₁₂ and B₁₂N₁₂ with two different mechanisms, including electrostatic and charge transfer, respectively. The AM significantly reduces the Al₁₂N₁₂ work function from 4.50 to 3.66 eV, increasing the electron field emission. Thus, the AlN cluster may be a work function type sensor. Upon the AM adsorption on the BN cage, the HOMO level is largely destabilized, reducing the E_g from 6.84 to 5.01 eV which largely increases the electrical conductivity. This indicates that the BN cluster may be a potential electronic sensor.     

Mustard gas adsorption on the pristine and BN-doped graphynes: A computational study

The electronic sensitivity and reactivity of pristine, and BN doped graphyne (BNG) are scrutinized toward mustard gas using DFT calculations. The mustard gas weakly adsorbs via its Cl atom on the graphyne with adsorption energy about -3.1 kcal/mol and has no effect on its electrical conductivity. Replacing –C≡C– linkages with isoelectronic –BN– linkages increases the HOMO-LUMO gap (E_g) and decreases the work function and reactivity of graphyne. By mustard adsorption, the E_g of BNG decreases from 2.24 to 1.12 eV, increasing the electrical conductivity. Also, the BNG work function is considerably affected, changing the field emission electron current. Finally, a short recovery time about 0.03 s at room temperature is predicted for the mustard desorption from the surface of BNG. We also showed that the electrical conductivity change relates to the mustard concentration. The results indicate that the BNG may be a promising sensor for mustard gas.     

Adsorption of H2S at Stone–Wales defects of graphene-like BC3: a computational study

We employed density functional theory to characterise H₂S adsorption, and dissociation on the pristine and Stone–Wales (SW) defected BC₃ graphenes. H₂S is predicted to be weakly adsorbed on the pristine graphene with the adsorption energy of about 7.11 kcal/mol. Two types of SW defects were generated by rotating a C–C bond (SW-CC) or a B–C bond (SW-BC) by about 90°. We predict that, in contrast to SW-BC, dehydrogenation of H₂S is energetically more favourable on the SW-CC compared to the associative adsorption. It is also found that SW-CC formation is more favourable than the formation of SW-BC. Molecular adsorption of H₂S on both of the SW defected sheets is more favourable than that on the pristine sheet. The preferable adsorption process on the SW-BC and SW-CC defected graphene sheets is via associative and dissociative mechanisms, respectively. Furthermore, the highest occupied molecular orbital and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy gap of the SW-BC defected sheet is highly sensitive to the adsorption process which may be used for the detection of H₂S.     

Structural and electronic effects in acetone adsorption over TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> anatase clusters as the first stage of photocatalytic oxidation

Photocatalytic oxidation is used for air purification from low concentrations of organic compounds and microbiological objects. Adsorption is the first stage of photocatalytic oxidation, and adsorption constant value has direct linear influence onto the rate of oxidation at low concentration according to the Langmuir-Hinshelwood equation. The present computational investigation has been undertaken with the goal to estimate the effect of nanoparticle size in the range of 1–1.5 nm, extent of hydroxylation, surface acidity, and nanoparticle shape on adsorption of acetone over TiO₂ anatase particle facets, edges, and vertices. The anatase nanoparticles were represented by three cluster models—two of cubic shape and one of decahedral shape with exposed surfaces (001), (100), and (101). Adsorption energy was calculated with density functional tight binding (DFTB) semiempirical method and varied from ? 0.67 to ? 25.79 kcal/mol for different sites of the clusters depending on facet types and location on a facet. Mean unweighted adsorption energy of acetone increased from ? 4.49 to ? 8.16 kcal/mol for (001) facet and from ? 11.05 to ? 12.97 kcal/mol for (100) facet when the cubic cluster size increased from 3 × 3 × 1 to 4 × 4 × 1 elementary cells. For decahedral cluster, mean adsorption energy on (001) facet was ? 9.87 kcal/mol and ? 14.44 kcal/mol on (101) facets. The largest adsorption energy ? 25.60 and ? 25.79 kcal/mol was observed on grove Ti atoms on (100) facet of the largest cubic cluster and vertex atoms in decahedral cluster, respectively. Dissociative adsorption of one and two water molecules on (001) facet increased acetone adsorption energy from ? 4.02 to ? 8.20 and to ? 18.50 kcal/mol. A marked electronic effect on adsorption energy was observed for two adjacent sites on (001) facet with a similar structure but adsorption energy ? 16.40 and ? 1.40 kcal/mol. Influence of acetone adsorption on clusters’ band gap, photogenerated thermalized electron and hole location, and C=O vibration wavenumber is also reported.     

A density functional theory study of ethylene adsorption on Ni10(1 1 1), Ni13(1 0 0) and Ni10(1 1 0) surface cluster models and Ni13 nanocluster

Ethylene adsorption was studied by use of DFT/B3LYP with basis set 6-31G(d,p) in Gaussian’03 software. It was found that ethylene has adsorbed molecularly on all clusters with π adsorption mode. Relative energy values were calculated to be −50.86 kcal/mol, −20.48 kcal/mol, −32.44 kcal/mol and −39.27 kcal/mol for Ni₁₃ nanocluster, Ni₁₀(1 1 1), Ni₁₃(1 0 0) and Ni₁₀(1 1 0) surface cluster models, respectively. Ethylene adsorption energy is inversely proportional to Ni coordination number when Ni₁₀(1 1 1), Ni₁₃(1 0 0) and Ni₁₀(1 1 0) cluster models and Ni₁₃ nanocluster are compared with each other.     

The adsorption of carbon monoxide,ammonia, and wet air on gold

The work functions of gold films which were deposited on glass substrates in UHV were 0.5–0.9 eV higher than the work function of a well-baked gold sheet. The contact potential difference between a film and the sheet was reduced by wet air admitted to both surfaces at room temperature. Carbon monoxide admitted to both surfaces reduced the contact potential difference reversibly at pressures from 1 × 10^? to 2 × 10^?2 torr, and the evidence suggested that most of the change was owing to a reduction in the work function of the gold film. This reduction varied linearly with the gas pressure; it also depended on the temperature; decreasing from 2.8 eV torr^? at 17°C to < 0.25 eV torr^? at 72°C. The results for CO fitted a simple classical model, from which the mean adsorption energy for CO/Au was estimated as 11.3 ± 0.3 kcal mole^?. Ammonia at 17°C caused a similar reduction of work function at much lower pressures, ～ 10^?4 torr, and its adsorption energy was estimated as 13.6 kcal mole^?1. The films and the sheet gold were polycrystalline with their crystal orientations random in two directions, but their {100} planes were preferentially parallel to the exposed surface. The films were rougher than the sheet. The positive surface potentials for CO/Au and NH₃/Au seem to be due either to weakly bound electropositive states, or to their molecules penetrating into the sub-surface region of the film.     

Detection of hydrogen peroxide with graphyne

The effect of hydrogen peroxide on the electronic properties of graphyne has been investigated to explore the possibility of using graphyne based biosensor. We have used density functional theory to study the electronic properties of γ-graphyne in the presence of different number of hydrogen peroxide. The optimal adsorption position, orientation, and distance of hydrogen peroxide adsorbed on the graphyne sheet have been determined by calculating adsorption energy. It is found that γ-graphyne which is an intrinsic semiconductor becomes an n-type semiconductor due to the presence of hydrogen peroxide. The energy band gap of γ-graphyne is decreased by increasing the number of hydrogen peroxide. The results demonstrate that γ-graphyne is a promising candidate for biosensor application because of its electrical sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide.     

Ab-initio density functional theory study of a WO3 NH3-sensing mechanism

WO 3 bulk and various surfaces are studied by an ab-initio density functional theory technique.The band structures and electronic density states of WO 3 bulk are investigated.The surface energies of different WO 3 surfaces are compared and then the (002) surface with minimum energy is computed for its NH 3 sensing mechanism which explains the results in the experiments.Three adsorption sites are considered.According to the comparisons of the energy and the charge change between before and after adsorption in the optimal adsorption site O 1c,the NH 3 sensing mechanism is obtained.     

Chemisorption of hydrogen on titanium: Embedding theory and comparisons with small clusters

The chemisorption of H₂ on Ti(0001) is treated using an ab initio CI theory for the surface region. Dissociation of H₂ occurs above the surface but more stable 3-fold coordination sites lie closer to the surface at ～ 1.3 Å. Adsorption in adjacent 3-fold sites is less stable than in separated sites sharing only one surface atom. The calculated adsorption energy of 45 kcal/mol H₂ compares favorably with experiment. Bonding involves mainly the 4s electrons of the metal leading to hydridic hydrogens and a polarized lattice electron distribution, but d bonding and correlation effects significantly increase the binding energy. Calculations on small metal clusters also show dissociative adsorption but much larger hydrogen binding energies are obtained.