Surface modification of mesoporous membranes by fluoro-silane coupling reagent for CO2 separation

The potential of hybrid organic–inorganic membranes for separating organic molecules from air, based on solubility selective mechanism, was evaluated. Alumina and titana membranes with average pore size near 4 nm were surface modified using trimethoxysilane fluorinated coupling reagent. The permeabilities to helium, nitrogen, methane, ethane, propane, butane and carbon dioxide were evaluated at feed pressures lying between (1.5 × 10⁵ and 3.5 × 10⁵ Pa) 1.5 and 3.5 bar and permeate outlet near 1 × 10⁵ Pa (1 bar). The permeabilities of the grafted membranes generally decreased by about two to three orders of magnitude compared with the untreated membranes. The CO₂/N₂ permselectivity increased significantly in the case of the TiO₂ grafted membrane. The membranes performances were compared and the TiO₂ grafted membrane exhibits higher permselectivity and permeability, so that, it is a good candidate for CO₂ to N₂ separation and CO₂ to hydrocarbon separation.     

Effects of synthesis parameters on the microstructure and phase structure of porous 316L stainless steel supported TiO2 membranes

Porous stainless steel (PSS) supported TiO₂ membrane was synthesized from colloidal TiO₂ sol by the sol–gel technique. Morphology and phase structure of the obtained membranes were regulated through optimizing the synthesis parameters including organic binders, aging periods of the parent sol and concentrations of the casting solutions as well as the sintering temperatures. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) 1750 was found to be feasible to fabricate TiO₂ membrane with relatively flat surface and homogeneous morphology without crack. The aging period of the parent sol, which was revealed to be very important to the morphology of the particles deposited in the membranes on PSS, was decided to be 24 h. The concentration, under which the membranes could avoid macro-pores and have a uniform thickness of approximately 8 μm, was regulated to 0.0036 mol/l. Besides, a homogeneous microstructure with grain sizes of 0.08–0.2 μm was obtained in the membrane with a pure rutile phase when sintered at 850 °C. The obtained PSS supported TiO₂ membrane with homogeneous microstructure and rutile phase may be very promising for practical applications.     

Electrorheological behavior of urea-doped mesoporous TiO2 suspensions

A type of anhydrous electrorheological (ER) material of urea-doped mesoporous TiO₂ is synthesized by in micelle-assisted incorporation urea molecules during mesoporous TiO₂ synthesis. TEM, XRD demonstrate that the material had mesoporous structure, while the FT-IR spectra and the nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherms show urea molecules have been fixed in the channel of the mesoporous TiO₂. The ER behavior of the suspensions of urea-doped mesoporous TiO₂ in silicone oil with the different volume fractions was investigated under an applied electric field. It is found that the suspensions show visible electrorheological behavior which are compared with that of pure TiO₂. The dopants of urea molecules change the conductivity of the particles, and produce a proper conductivity of 10⁻⁷ S m⁻¹ with the molar ratio of urea/Ti = 0.2. Dielectric spectra of the ER fluid was measured to examine the peak of ″ should appear in the frequency range of 10²–10⁵ Hz and have a large Δ′ in this frequency range. The interfacial particle polarization model can exactly explain the ER behavior of this material.     

Preparation and characterization of SiO2/TiO2 composite microspheres with microporous SiO2 core/mesoporous TiO2 shell

SiO₂/TiO₂ composite microspheres with microporous SiO₂ core/mesoporous TiO₂ shell structures were prepared by hydrolysis of titanium tetrabutylorthotitanate (TTBT) in the presence of microporous silica microspheres using hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) as a surface esterification agent and porous template, and then dried and calcined at different temperatures. The as-prepared products were characterized with differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetric (DTA/TG), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption. The results showed that composite particles were about 1.8 μm in diameter, and had a spherical morphology and a narrow size distribution. Uniform mesoporous titania coatings on the surfaces of microporous silica microspheres could be obtained by adjusting the HPC concentration to an optimal concentration of about 3.2 mmol L⁻¹. The anatase and rutile phase in the SiO₂/TiO₂ composite microspheres began to form at 700 and 900 °C, respectively. At 700 °C, the specific surface area and pore volume of the SiO₂/TiO₂ composite microspheres were 552 and 0.652 mL g⁻¹, respectively. However, at 900 °C, the specific surface area and pore volume significantly decreased due to the phase transformation from anatase to rutile.     

Photocatalytic water treatment with different TiO2 nanoparticles and hydrophilic/hydrophobic layer silicate adsorbents

The degradation of 2-chlorophenol (2-CP) was investigated by a combination of TiO₂-based photocatalysis and adsorption. Three combined systems were compared: (i) TiO₂ was intercalated into the interlamellar space of a hydrophilic montmorillonite by means of a heterocoagulation process (TiO₂ pillared montmorillonite, TPM); (ii) TiO₂ was hydrothermally crystallized on hexadecylpyridinium chloride-treated montmorillonite (HDPM-T); (iii) hexadecylpyridinium chloride-treated montmorillonite (HDPM) was used as adsorbent and Degussa P25 TiO₂ as photocatalyst (HDPM/TiO₂).

The process of mineralization of the organic substrate was characterized by measuring the total organic carbon (TOC) and total inorganic chloride contents, while the degradation of 2-CP and the formation of intermediates were followed by HPLC. The adsorbent-photocatalyst systems were characterized by X-ray diffraction measurements. In all the investigated systems, the degradation of 2-CP was accompanied by a continuous decrease in TOC content. The most advantageous situation was found with HDPM/TiO₂, for which the highest rate of oxidation of 2-CP was observed. In this case the photocatalytically recovered adsorbent may be re-used without further regeneration. A significantly lower 2-CP degradation rate was observed when TiO₂ was fixed on layer silicates. When TPM was applied, only a rather low decrease in TOC content was observed during 10 h of irradiation, i.e. only slight mineralization of the organic pollutant occurred, which is probably due to the low crystallinity and small size of the TiO₂ particles. In the case of HDPM-T, the observed quite high reduction in TOC content shows that the hydrothermally processed TiO₂ sample may compete with the Degussa P25, but the degradation of the organic pollutant is accompanied by a continuous destruction of the adsorbent.     

有机体系中纳米TiO2 / ZrO2修饰电极的制备及电催化活性

The complexes Ti(OCH₂CH₂O)₂ and Zr(OCH₂CH₂O)₂ were directly synthesized by using HOCH₂CH₂OH dissolution in 50 mL flask. The nano-ZrO₂ / TiO₂ powders were prepared by a direct sol-gel synthesis using the above solution and followed by drying at 400 ℃ for 2 h. The complexes were characterized by FTIR and ¹H NMR. XRD and TEM were used to investigate the structure of nano-ZrO₂ / TiO₂. The results show that the complexes containing ^-OCH₂CH₂O^- group could prevent the precursor from agglomeration and sintering during the hydrolysis and calcination process. The ZrO₂ / TiO₂ powders of 20～35 nm was thus obtained in a high purity. The highly active nano-ZrO₂ / TiO₂ modified electrode was prepared by using daubing and calcination. The electro-catalytic activities of this electrode in (COOH)₂ were investigated. The discharge current of nano-ZrO₂ / TiO₂ electrode increased obviously. In preparative electrolysis under optimal conditions, the average yield and current efficiency for HOOC-CHO were 84.7% and 91.6 %, respectively.     

Acidity enhancement of SBA mesoporous molecular sieve by modification with SO4/ZrO2

The SO₄²⁻/ZrO₂ modified SBA mesoporous molecular sieves were prepared and characterized by XRD, N₂ adsorption, TG/DTG/DTA and IR pyridine chemisorption. The acidity of the molecular sieve was greatly enhanced after modification, and IR pyridine chemisorption results revealed that Lewis acidity was dominant in these samples. The catalytic activities of the modified molecular sieves towards strong and medium strong acid catalyzed reactions were lower than those of bulk SO₄²⁻/ZrO₂, but higher than those of Al-containing SBA molecular sieve from direct synthesis, whereas the activities of all these catalysts for weak acid catalyzed reaction were close to each other.     

Liquid phase mononitration of chlorobenzene over WOx/ZrO2: A study of catalyst and reaction parameters

To study the effect of W concentration and activation temperature of the catalysts a series of WO_x/ZrO₂ samples with varying concentration of W (10–25 wt.%) were prepared and activated at 650/750 °C. XRD of sample shows 15 wt.% W stabilizes the tetragonal phase of zirconia up to 750 °C. Above and less than 15 wt.% shows peaks corresponding to monoclinic WO₃ and monoclinic ZrO₂, respectively. Further, the tungsten modification stabilizes the specific surface area of ZrO₂. There is an increase in the surface area observed up to 15 wt.% W, which declines on further increase in the concentration. The NH₃ TPD confirms the presence of acid sites with varying strength from the broad desorption profile. The 15 wt.% W and activated at 750 °C shows maximum acidity. The results of the nitration reaction of chlorobezene imply the 15 wt.% W and activation at 750 °C shows maximum activity. Not only yield, a better para-selectivity is also achieved with WO_x/ZrO₂ samples. Effect of activation temperature, W concentration and reaction parameters such as reaction temperature, reaction time, the presence of solvent and solvent free medium on activity and selectivity are studied in details.     

Structural characterization and photocatalytic activity of hollow binary ZrO2/TiO2 oxide fibers

The formation of hollow binary ZrO₂/TiO₂ oxide fibers using mixed precursor solutions was achieved by activated carbon fibers templating technique combined with solvothermal process. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), N₂ adsorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis, and infrared (IR) spectroscopy. The binary oxide system shows the anatase-type TiO₂ and tetragonal phase of ZrO₂, and the introduction of ZrO₂ notably inhibits the growth of TiO₂ nanocrystallites. Although calcined at 575 °C, all hollow ZrO₂/TiO₂ fibers exhibit higher surface areas (>113 m²/g) than pure TiO₂ hollow fibers. The Pyridine adsorption on ZrO₂/TiO₂ sample indicates the presence of stronger surface acid sites. Such properties bring about that the binary oxide system possesses higher efficiency and durable activity stability for photodegradation of gaseous ethylene and trichloromethane than P25 TiO₂. In addition, the macroscopic felt form for the resulting materials is more beneficial for practical applications than traditional catalysts forms.     

表面修饰TiO2、ZrO2纳米微粒的DSC、TGA表征

采用ＤＳＣ及ＴＧＡ技术对制备的表面为硬脂酸修饰的二氧化钛及二氧化锆纳米微粒的热性能进行了研究，结合透射电的分析表征，结果表明，我们所得的ＴｉＯ２，ＺｒＯ２纳米微粒表面确为硬脂民修饰，由于其纳米微粒核的存在使其表面修饰层的熔点温度高；此外表面修饰纳米闰由于其大的比表面积和不稳定的晶体结构使其分别在７１０Ｋ左右产生粘着和型变。     

Properties of PWA/ZrO2-doped phosphosilicate glass composite membranes for low-temperature H2/O2 fuel cell applications

Phosphosilicate doped with a mixture of phosphotungstic acid and zirconium oxide (PWA/ZrO₂–P₂O₂–SiO₂) was investigated as potential glass composite membranes for use as H₂/O₂ fuel cell electrolytes. The glass membranes were studied with respect to their structural and thermal properties, proton conductivity, pore characteristics, hydrogen permeability, and performance in fuel cell tests. Thermal analysis including TG and DTA confirmed that the glass was thermally stable up to 400 °C. The dependence of the conductivity on the humidity was discussed based on the PWA content in the glass composite membranes. The proton transfer in the nanopores of the PWA/ZrO₂–P₂O₅–SiO₂ glasses was investigated and it was found that a glass with a pore size of ∼3 nm diameters was more appropriate for fast proton conduction. The hydrogen permeability rate was calculated at various temperatures, and was found to be comparatively higher than for membranes based on Nafion^®. The performance of a membrane electrolyte assembly (MEA) was influenced by its PWA content; a power density of 43 mW/cm² was obtained at 27 °C and 30% relative humidity for a PWA/ZrO₂–P₂O₅–SiO₂ glass membrane with a composition of 6–2–5–87 mol% and 0.2 mg/cm² of Pt/C loaded on the electrode.     

Catalytic oxidation of no to NO2 over Cr/TiO2 and Cu/TiO2 under oxidizing atmosphere

The catalytic activity of Cr/TiO₂ and Cu/TiO₂ for the oxidation of NO under an oxidizing atmosphere has been examined. Both catalysts had excellent ability for the oxidation of NO to NO₂ in the temperature range of 350–400°C.     

A new route for the fabrication of TiO2 ultrafiltration membranes with suspension derived from a wet chemical synthesis

Titania ultrafiltration membranes were successfully fabricated by a new route, which was directly derived from the nanoparticles suspension that was the intermediate product prior to dry and calcine in the synthesis of nanoparticle by a wet chemical method. The morphology and the crystal structure of the prepared membrane were analyzed by SEM and XRD. The effect of various dipping time on the membrane thickness was investigated. The rejection of the bovine serum albumin (BSA, 67,000 Da) was used to evaluate the separation characteristics of these membranes, and the relationship between the dipping time and the optimization thickness of the membrane was built on the base of the data of the pure water flux. SEM images showed that the surface of the membrane was defect-free and XRD revealed that the titania crystalline phase was pure anatase. The membrane thickness increased linearly with the square root of the dipping time and the dipping time of 30 s was necessary to form a defect-free titania layer on the top of supports. The titania layer derived from the dipping time of 30 s could be of thickness of 5.9 μm and an average pore size of 60 nm. The pure water permeability of the membrane was 860 × 10⁻⁵ L/(m² h Pa) (860 L/(m² h bar)), and the BSA rejections of the membranes prepared reached to 90% after 20 min running.     

纳米结构TiO2/PS及TiO2空心球的自组装与表征

以TiCl₄的盐酸溶液配制的TiO₂溶胶为前驱体, 以聚苯乙烯微球为载体, 在表面活性剂存在下, 通过逐层自组装技术制备了纳米结构TiO₂/PS及TiO₂空心球. 利用XRD, SEM, TG-DTA等对复合颗粒进行了表征. 研究表明: 纳米结构TiO₂/PS的组成、结构、形貌和粒度可通过溶胶酸度、组装时水解反应温度、煅烧温度、硫酸根的加入量来控制.     

花状CeO2/TiO2异质结的构筑及光催化性能

采用溶剂热法制备了三维花状CeO₂/TiO₂异质结光催化剂,然后以甲基橙(MO)为模拟有机污染物,在氙灯照射下考察了其光催化活性。结果表明,花状结构由纳米片和纳米颗粒复合而成,纳米片上均匀地附着CeO₂颗粒。Ce/Ti的物质的量之比(n_Ce/n_Ti)和溶剂热时间影响异质结的光催化性能,当n_Ce/n_Ti=0.1、溶剂热时间为6 h时,CeO₂/TiO₂的光催化活性达到最佳,氙灯照射50 min的降解率达95%,光催化活性优于纯TiO₂,这主要是CeO₂和TiO₂形成了异质结,有利于光生电子和空穴的分离。     

Effect of the rhenium additive to VOx/TiO2 and MoOx/TiO2 catalysts on their properties in oxidative dehydrogenation of propane

VO_x/TiO₂ and MoO_x/TiO₂ catalysts with the addition of Re (Re/V or Mo = 0.5) were synthetized and tested in oxidative dehydrogenation of propane and in reduction by propane. XPS measurements showed depletion of the surface in Re. The Re additive does not affect the total conversion of propane, but increases the selectivity to propene. The effect is more pronounced for the MoO_x/TiO₂ catalyst. The increase in the selectivity to propene is accompanied with the increase in the reducibility of the catalysts.     

Preparation and characterization of mesoporous TiO2-CeO2 nanopowders respond to visible wavelength

Mesoporous TiO₂-CeO₂ nanopowders responding to visible wavelength were synthesized by using a surfactant assisted sol-gel technique. They were obtained using metal alkoxide precursors modified with acetylacetone (ACA) and laurylamine hydrochloride (LAHC) as surfactant. The samples were characterized by XRD, nitrogen adsorption isotherm, SEM, TEM, and selected area electron diffraction (SAED), respectively. The 95 mol% TiO₂-5 mol% CeO₂ system yielded single anatase phase, however, further addition of the CeO₂ formed cubic CeO₂ structure while anatase TiO₂ decreased. Additions of 5 and 10 mol% CeO₂ increased the surface area, but those of 25, 50, and 75 mol% CeO₂ did not affect it very much. By using this mixed metal oxides system, TiO₂ can be modified to respond to the visible wavelength. The mixed metal oxides had catalytic activity (evaluating the formation rate of I₃⁻) about 2-3 times higher than pure CeO₂, while nanosize anatase type TiO₂ materials had no catalytic activity under visible light. The catalytic activity was almost proportional to the specific surface area. The formation rate of I₃⁻ was much improved by changing the calcination temperature and calcination period. Highest catalytic activity in this study was obtained for the 50 mol% TiO₂-50 mol% CeO₂ nanopowders calcined at 250 °C for 24 h.     

CeO2/TiO2光催化剂的制备及其可见光脱氮性能

采用溶胶-凝胶和浸渍掺杂两步法合成了CeO₂/TiO₂光催化剂,并对催化剂的理化结构进行表征分析;以吡啶-正辛烷体系为模拟油品氮源,研究了该催化剂在可见光作用下的光催化脱氮行为,并探究了光催化脱氮的最佳反应条件。 结果表明,掺杂的铈主要以CeO₂的形式存在,且增强了催化剂在可见光区的吸收;在可见光辐照150 min的条件下,铈的掺杂量质量分数为8%,所制备的CeO₂/TiO₂催化剂投入量为1.0 g/L时,模拟油品中吡啶的脱氮率高达76.45%。     

胶原纤维为模版制备TiO2及La/TiO2纳米纤维及光催化活性研究

以胶原纤维为模版分别负载钛(Ti4+)或钛(Ti4+)和镧(La3+),在高温下煅烧制得TiO2和La/TiO2纳米纤维。通过扫描电镜(SEM)、场发射扫描电镜(FESEM)、X-射线衍射(XRD)、比表面积和孔径分析、X-射线光电子能谱(XPS)、紫外可见光谱(UV-Vis)等对这2种纳米纤维的结构和物理性能进行了表征。结果表明,TiO2和La/TiO2较完整地保持了胶原纤维的纤维状结构。在600~800℃范围内随着煅烧温度的升高,TiO2和La/TiO2的晶粒尺寸逐渐增大,晶格常数发生各相异性的变化。La/TiO2的相变温度在700~800℃之间,明显高于未掺杂TiO2的相变温度。N2吸附-脱附等温线按Langmiur分类为Ⅳ类,表明TiO2和La/TiO2纳米纤维具有介孔结构。与Degussa P25相比,TiO2和La/TiO2吸收光谱范围明显红移。当以可见光为光源进行酸性橙Ⅱ光助催化降解反应时,TiO2和La/TiO2纳米纤维均表现出比Degussa P25更高的催化活性。     

CoOx-CeOx/ZrO2催化氧化NO性能及抗SO2毒化研究

采用浸渍法制备了一系列CoO_x-CeO_x/ZrO₂催化剂,探讨了催化剂载体、Co含量、Co/Ce配比等对Co基催化剂催化氧化NO活性的影响及其机理。ZrO₂负载的Co氧化物具有优良的低温NO催化氧化活性,铈的添加进一步提高了催化剂的低温活性。其促进机制主要是提高了催化剂吸附氧的能力及改善了Co在催化剂表面的分散。同时,掺杂铈使得催化剂抗SO₂能力有一定增强,呈现出选择性毒化机制。