Surface Coating of Amorphous TiOx Enables Efficient Vapor-fed Photocatalytic Overall Water Splitting with Substantial Apparent Quantum Yield

Photocatalytic overall water splitting represents a promising strategy for sustainable hydrogen production. However, photocorrosion and dissolution of photocatalysts and cocatalysts are common concern for the solid-liquid phase reaction. Recently, the above issues could be addressed by Domen and coworkers, when the photocatalytic water splitting was conducted in the presence of water vapor, which dramatically restrain the undesired corrosion of the photocatalysts and cocatalysts. Besides, surface decoration of hygroscopic TiO_x layer promotes adsorption of water molecules and prevents the corrosion process. In addition, vapor-fed photocatalytic water splitting remains considerable apparent quantum yield compared with the liquid water photocatalytic overall water splitting at pressurized condition, which endows great potential in practical application.     

Invisible Security Ink Based on Water‐Soluble Graphitic Carbon Nitride Quantum Dots

Stimuli‐responsive photoluminescent (PL) materials have been widely used as fluorescent ink for data security applications. However, traditional fluorescent inks are limited in maintaining the secrecy of information because the inks are usually visible by naked eyes either under ambient light or UV‐light illumination. Here, we introduced metal‐free water‐soluble graphitic carbon nitride quantum dots (g‐CNQDs) as invisible security ink for information coding, encryption, and decryption. The information written by the g‐CNQDs is invisible in ambient light and UV light, but it can be readable by a fluorescence microplate reader. Moreover, the information can be encrypted and decrypted by using oxalic acid and sodium bicarbonate as encryption reagent and decryption reagent, respectively. Our findings provide new opportunities for high‐level information coding and protection by using water‐soluble g‐CNQDs as invisible security ink.     

Molecular Engineering of Conjugated Polybenzothiadiazoles for Enhanced Hydrogen Production by Photosynthesis

The search for metal‐free organic photocatalysts for H₂ production from water using visible light remains a key challenge. Reported herein is a molecular structural design of pure organic photocatalysts, derived from conjugated polybenzothiadiazoles, for photocatalytic H₂ evolution using visible light. By alternating the substitution position of the electron‐withdrawing benzothiadizole unit on the phenyl unit as a comonomer, various polymers with either one‐ or three‐dimensional structures were synthesized and the effect of the molecular structure on their catalytic activity was investigated. Photocatalytic H₂ evolution efficiencies up to 116 μmol h^?1 were observed by employing the linear polymer based on a phenyl‐benzothiadiazole alternating main chain, with an apparent quantum yield (AQY) of 4.01 % at 420 nm using triethanolamine as the sacrificial agent.     

卤素驱动石墨二炔带隙的打开以实现光催化全解水

本文通过杂化密度泛函理论研究了卤素(F、Cl和Br)功能化的石墨二炔的能带结构. 结果表明修饰的石墨二炔的带隙能随着卤素原子对的增加而增加;同时,价带顶的位置受卤素原子电负性大小的影响：当石墨二炔表面的卤素原子数目相同时,卤素原子的电负性越大,改性后石墨二炔的价带顶的位置越深. 另外,计算结果表明石墨二炔的带隙可以通过不同卤素原子的适当混合修饰来有效调节,不同卤素原子混合修饰的石墨二炔的价带底和导带顶跨越了水的氧化还原电位. 通过热力学分析进一步证明,不同卤素原子混合修饰的石墨二炔比单一卤素修饰的石墨二炔表现出更好的光催化水全解反应活性. 这项工作对于如何设计更高效的全解水光催化剂提供了洞见.     

三核笼状茂铁咪唑受体的合成与阴离子识别

以间三苯酚为原料与不同的二溴代烷反应得到不同链长的三溴中间体1a~1c,再与二茂铁甲基咪唑反应得到不同臂长的三核茂铁咪唑阴离子受体2a~2c.利用循环伏安法(CV)、差分脉冲伏安法(DPV)和核磁共振氢谱(1H NMR)研究了受体与阴离子的结合特性.电化学滴定实验结果表明,受体2a~2c在乙腈溶液中均能很好地识别F-;核磁滴定结果表明,受体2a~2c在DMSO-d6中与阴离子通过(C—H)+…anion氢键作用形成1∶1络合物,F-的滴加同时对受体产生去质子化效应;阴离子识别实验结果表明,三核茂铁咪唑受体能很好地选择性识别F-.     

化学镀法制备CoP量子点修饰g-C3N4用于光催化产氢（英文）

光催化分解水制氢被认为是解决当前能源危机和环境污染问题的重要途径之一.在众多光催化剂中,石墨相氮化碳(g-C3N4)因其具有高的热稳定性、高的化学稳定性、合适的能带位置以及成本低廉等优点,受到光催化领域研究者的广泛关注,成为研究热点.然而,由于g-C3N4的禁带宽度较大(Eg=2.7 eV),导致其对可见光的响应较差,而且光生电子-空穴对在其中易于复合,从而导致其光催化产氢活性较低.已有研究表明,助催化剂可以有效地促进催化剂中光生载流子的分离和传输,从而提高光催化剂的光催化活性和氢气的产生速率.目前使用最广泛的助催化剂多为贵金属(Au,Ag,Pt和Pd等),然而贵金属储量低、成本高,极大地限制了其实际应用.因而,开发适用于光催化水分解制氢的非贵金属助催化剂成为该领域的研究热点.其中,用非贵金属助催化剂修饰g-C3N4制备高效光催化剂分解水制氢技术引起了人们极大的兴趣.过渡金属磷化物(FeP,CoP,CuP,NiP等)是一种有效的光催化辅助催化剂.然而,这些金属磷化物的合成通常使用有毒的有机磷化合物和白磷或涉高温煅烧.特别是在传统水热法制备金属磷化物过程中会释放大量氢气,导致容器内压力过高,造成较大的安全问题.据报道,在这些磷化物中,磷化钴由于其合适的能带结构和较高的导电性,作为光催化分解水助催化剂受到了广泛关注.然而,截至目前,关于磷化钴作为助催化剂用于光催化的实用技术报道很少,特别是在温和条件下制备磷化钴修饰的g-C3N4复合光催化剂的研究还有待进行.本文研究了以CoP作为助催化剂来改进g-C3N4(制备g-C3N4/CoP),并用于光催化水裂解制氢气.复合光催化剂g-C3N4/CoP经由两步反应合成.第一步采用尿素热分解法制备g-C3N4,第二步通过化学镀法将CoP修饰在g-C3N4表面.采用XRD,TEM,UV-DRS和XPS等手段表征了g-C3N4/CoP光催剂的性质.结果表明,CoP以量子点(QDs)形式均匀分布在g-C3N4表面,显著提高了g-C3N4的光催化活性.不同CoP负载量的样品中,g-C3N4/CoP-4%表现出优异的光催化活性,H2生成速率为936μmol g^-1 h^-1,甚至高于4%Pt负载的g-C3N4(H2的生成速率仅为665μmol g^-1 h^-1).从紫外可见光谱上看,g-C3N4在451 nm达到吸收波长上限,但与CoP复合后,g-C3N4/CoP-4%的吸收波长上限延展到497 nm.此外,光致发光和光电流测试结果证实,将CoP量子点负载到g-C3N4上不仅可以降低光生电荷-空穴对的复合,而且可以改善光生e--h+对的转移,从而提高光催化剂的产氢性能.这项工作为开发高效的非贵金属助催化剂修饰g-C3N4的技术提供了一个可行策略,所制材料在光催化制氢领域显示出潜在的应用前景.     

经由MOFs煅烧制得多孔Fe2O3表面修饰十二烷基磺酸钠:一种高活性且易回收的燃油脱氮光催化剂（英文）

化石燃料燃烧的排放物是目前最严重的环境污染源,其中含氮有机物燃烧产生的NOx等是污染大气和形成雾霾的主要污染物.伴随石油存量的不断减少、重质石油的更多利用以及机动车的大规模增加,由此引起的污染问题日趋严重,因此发展高效的燃油脱氮技术对保护环境意义重大.光催化氧化是近几十年发展起来的新型高级氧化还原技术,由于其可以利用太阳光且在室温下进行,成本低易于进行,是一类理想的燃油脱氮技术.在众多光催化材料中,α-Fe2O3无毒、廉价且具有合适的带隙(2.3 eV),是目前公认较好的光催化材料.然而,在光催化过程中α-Fe2O3较快的电子-空穴复合速度以及过低的比表面积极大降低了其效率.通常,选择性地设计高比表面的多孔半导体金属氧化物被认为是一种简单且实效的提高光催化反应效率的方法.近年来,以金属有机框架结构(MOFs)为硬模板制备多孔金属氧化物的方法逐渐获得了科学家们的关注,这主要得益于热稳定性差的MOFs本身可以通过调控金属离子以及配体种类从而实现原位均匀的调节和修饰半导体金属氧化物,而且可以作为获得多孔性材料的基底.本文通过水热法合成了一种典型的MOFs即MIL-100(Fe).利用MIL-100(Fe)材料自身多孔性及热不稳定性,采用自模板法煅烧制备成多孔Fe2O3.制得的多孔Fe2O3亲油性较差,进行模拟燃油脱氮光催化反应时相互之间容易聚集成团,无法均匀分散于燃油体系中,导致光催化脱氮效率较低.因此,若能对所得多孔Fe2O3进行表面修饰使其亲油性增强并可均匀分散于于燃油体系中,无疑将促进底物的吸附,从而提高光催化燃油脱氮效果.Fe2O3表面带有正电荷,因此我们巧妙地选用一种阴离子表面活性剂十二烷基磺酸钠(SDS)作为修饰剂,采用简单的静电自组装方法制备了SDS/Fe2O3光催化剂.选用吡啶脱氮作为探针反应,考察了SDS/Fe2O3复合光催化剂的可见光光催化性能.结果表明,与未使用修饰剂的Fe2O3相比,SDS/Fe2O3中长链烷基的存在使其表面亲油性增强,能够在模拟燃油溶液中更加均匀地分散进而提高了脱氮效率.其中煅烧温度为450 C且修饰0.25%SDS的样品活性最佳,可见光(λ≥420 nm)照射240 min后吡啶的脱氮率接近100%.     

石墨相氮化碳纳米管的合成及光催化产氢性能

通过硬模板法,采用氰胺前驱物和二氧化硅纳米管(SiO₂-NTs)模板,合成石墨相氮化碳纳米管(CN-NTs)光催化剂。采用扫描电镜(SEM)、透射电镜(TEM)、X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、傅立叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、氮气吸附/脱附测试、紫外可见漫反射光谱(UV-Vis DRS)、荧光光谱、热重分析(TGA)等手段对CN-NTs催化剂的结构与性能进行表征。结果表明,CN-NTs的化学组成是石墨相氮化碳(g-C₃N₄),形貌为均匀的纳米管,且是介孔材料。与体相氮化碳(B-CN)和介孔石墨相氮化碳(mpg-CN)相比,CN-NTs的光吸收带边蓝移到440 nm,荧光发射谱的峰强减弱。在可见光(λ>420 nm)照射下,CN-NTs具有较高的光催化分解水活性,产氢速率为58 μmol/h,且表现出良好的光催化活性稳定性和化学结构稳定性。研究结果表明纳米管状结构能有效促进g-C₃N₄半导体激子解离,提高光生电子-空穴的分离效率,进而显著优化g-C₃N₄的光催化产氢性能。     

Rational design of ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn2S4 nanocomposites as efficient noble-metal-free photocatalyst for hydrogen evolution under visible light

The NiS/CQDs nanocomposite (CQDs represents carbon quantum dots), with a mass ratio of NiS/CQDs to be 1.19:1 based on the ICP result, was obtained via a facile hydrothermal method from a mixture of CQDs, Ni(OAc)₂ and Na₂S. The self-assembly of ZnIn₂S₄ microspheres on the surface of NiS/CQDs was realized under microwave conditions to obtain a ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite. The as-obtained NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite was fully characterized, and its photocatalytic hydrogen evolution under visible light irradiation was investigated. The ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ nanocomposite showed superior photocatalytic activity for hydrogen evolution than ternary CQDs/NiS/ZnIn₂S₄, which was obtained by deposition of NiS in the preformed CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄. The superior photocatalytic performance of ternary NiS/CQDs/ZnIn₂S₄ is ascribed to the introduction of CQDs, which act as a bridge to promote the vectorial transfer of photo-generated electrons from ZnIn₂S₄ to NiS. This result suggests that the rational design and fabrication of ternary CQDs-based systems are important for the efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. This study provides a strategy for developing highly efficient noble-metal-free photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution using CQDs as a bridge to promote the charge transfer in the nanocomposite.     

Assessing Density Functionals for Describing Methane Dissociative Chemisorption on Pt(110)-(2×1) Surface

In this work, we explore the suitability of several density functionals with the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and beyond for describing the dissociative chemisorption of methane on the reconstructed Pt(110)-(2\begin{document}$ \times $\end{document}1) surface. The bulk and surface structures of the metal, methane adsorption energy, and dissociation barrier are used to assess the functionals. A van der Waals corrected GGA functional (optPBE-vdW) and a meta-GGA functional with van der Waals correction (MS PBEl-rVV10) are selected for ab initio molecular dynamics calculations of the sticking probability. Our results suggest that the use of these two functionals may lead to a better agreement with existing experimental results, thus serving as a good starting point for future development of reliable machine-learned potential energy surfaces for the dissociation of methane on the Pt(110)-(2\begin{document}$ \times $\end{document}1) surface.