Ambient template synthesis of multiferroic MnWO4 nanowires and nanowire arrays

The current report describes the systematic synthesis of polycrystalline, multiferroic MnWO₄ nanowires and nanowire arrays with controllable chemical composition and morphology, using a modified template-directed methodology under ambient room-temperature conditions. We were able to synthesize nanowires measuring 55±10, 100±20, and 260±40 nm in diameter, respectively, with lengths ranging in the microns. Extensive characterization of as-prepared samples has been performed using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution TEM, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Magnetic behavior in these systems was also probed.     

Preparation and characterization of BiFeO3 ceramic

From the technological point of view, the mutual control of electric and magnetic properties is an attractive possibility, but the number of candidate materials is limited. One of them, BiFeO₃, has critical conditions for synthesizing single phase since the temperature stability range of the phase is very narrow. Hence, various aspects of BiFeO₃ system have to be studied.

Fine particles of BiFeO₃ are obtained using a wet chemical route (combustion technique) and compared with the same product prepared by classic solid state reaction. The sintering programs have been varied in order to investigate the mechanism reactions and to show the relation between the microstructures and the magnetoelectric behavior.

The samples are characterized by using various techniques: X-ray diffraction (XRD) study is carried out for phase determination and lattice parameter calculations; scanning electron microscopy (SEM-EDX) and TEM to find out grain size and morphology; differential thermal analysis (DTA) to determine transformations of the starting materials. The obtained bulk materials were characterized (density, porosity, etc.) and correlated with the phase composition present in the samples. Electric and magnetic properties were evaluated.

This study underlines the role of the preparation route on the structural and morphological characteristic of the obtained materials and their influence on the magnetoelectric behavior.     

Synthesis of ordered Al nanowire arrays

Ordered Al nanowire arrays with the same nanowire density but the diameters decrease radially embedded in one piece of anodic alumina membranes were successfully fabricated by two-step synthesis: electrodeposition of Zn and replacement in AlCl₃ solution. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected-area electron diffraction techniques were used to characterize the Al nanowires obtained. SEM and TEM images taken from the different areas of Al nanowire arrays show that we can control the growth of aligned Al nanowires with different diameters in a single process at the same time. The investigation results not only have potential applications in photoelectric devices but also open up a new method for fabricating nano-scale materials.     

Template synthesis and characterization of PbTiO3 nanowire arrays from aqueous solution

Highly ordered PbTiO₃ nanowire arrays were first reported by fabricating within the pores of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template in the aqueous solution by liquid-phase deposition method. The structure and morphology of PbTiO₃ nanowire arrays were characterized by SEM and TEM, respectively. The XRD result shows that desired stoichiometric composition could be easily obtained preparing the treatment solution during post-annealing in order to crystallize the nanowires. TEM analyses confirmed that the obtained nanowires composed of large crystals than others made by sol-gel methods. Finally, a possible growth mechanism of the PbTiO₃ nanowires is discussed.     

Design of highly ordered Ag-SrTiO3 nanotube arrays for photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange

Ag-SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays were successfully prepared for the degradation of methyl orange (MO) under ultraviolet irradiation. In order to form highly ordered SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays, the preparation of TiO₂ nanotube arrays by anodic oxidation of titanium foil in different electrolytes was investigated. The selected organic solvents in electrolytes include glycerol, dimethyl sulfoxide and glycol. The results indicate that the morphology of TiO₂ nanotube arrays prepared in glycol containing ammonium fluoride electrolyte is more regular. Then SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays were synthesized by a hydrothermal method using TiO₂ nanotube arrays as the precursor. In order to further improve the photocatalytic activity of SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays, Ag nanoparticles were loaded on SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays by two sets of experiments. The loaded Ag results in an enhancement of photocatalytic activity of SrTiO₃ nanotube arrays. Moreover, the effect of pH on the photocatalytic degradation of MO was also studied.     

较为宽松条件下水热合成铁酸铋粉体

Bismuth ferrite(BiFeO₃) powders were hydrothermally synthesized by using FeCl₃·6H₂O and BiCl₃ as staring materials, NaOH as a mineralizer and NH₄Cl as an additive. The results show that pure BiFeO₃ powders can be synthesized under loose hydrothermal conditions of reaction temperature ranging from 140 to 230 ℃ and NaOH concentration ranging from 2 mol·L^-1 to 5 mol·L^-1. Moreover, the morphologies of the products can be controlled by changing the hydrothermal conditions.     

Electrodeposited fabrication of highly ordered Pd nanowire arrays for alcohol electrooxidation

Highly ordered Pd nanowire arrays (NWAs) are prepared using a porous aluminum oxide template by pulse electrodeposition. The obtained Pd nanowire arrays with the diameter of 50 nm and length of 850 nm have been characterized by scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, and high resolution transmission electron microscope. Meanwhile, the electrocatalytic activity of Pd NWAs electrodes for methanol and isopropanol oxidation in alkaline media is studied. It is found that the obtained nanostructures exhibit excellent catalytic activity for alcohol electrooxidation. The isopropanol oxidation shows the higher activity on Pd NWAs electrode than methanol in alkaline medium.     

Raman scattering from La-substituted BiFeO3-PbTiO3

Polycrystalline samples of pure BiFeO₃-PbTiO₃ (BF-PT) and those upon substituting Bi by La up to 50% (x≤0.5) were synthesized using a solid-state reaction method. A composition-driven tetragonal-cubic transition, identified from X-ray diffraction, was found to occur at x=0.4. We report the phonon spectra of pure and La-substituted BF-PT and its assignment. From the behavior of total Raman intensity, the origin of the symmetry-forbidden Raman spectra is identified to lie in substitutional disorder. The dependence of splitting of A₁-E modes and that of the LO-TO modes on composition are obtained and their consequences on ionicity are discussed.     

Ultrasensitive fluorometric determination of hydrogen peroxide and glucose by using multiferroic BiFeO3 nanoparticles as a catalyst

BiFeO₃ magnetic nanoparticles (BFO MNPs) are used as a catalyst to develop an ultrasensitive method for the determination of H₂O₂. It is found that BFO MNPs can catalyze the decomposition of H₂O₂ to produce OH radicals, which in turn oxidize the weakly fluorescent benzoic acid to a strongly fluorescent hydroxylated product with a maximum emission at 405 nm. This makes it possible to sensitively quantify traces of H₂O₂. Under optimized conditions, the fluorescence intensity is observed to be well linearly correlated with H₂O₂ concentration from 2.0 × 10⁻⁸ to 2.0 × 10⁻⁵ mol L⁻¹ with a detection limit of 4.5 × 10⁻⁹ mol L⁻¹ (S/N = 3). In addition, a selective method for glucose determination is developed by using both glucose oxidase and BFO MNPs, which has a linear range for glucose concentration from 1.0 × 10⁻⁶ to 1.0 × 10⁻⁴ mol L⁻¹ with a detection limit of 5.0 × 10⁻⁷ mol L⁻¹. These new methods have been successfully applied for the determination of H₂O₂ in rainwater and glucose in human serum samples.     

漂浮型BiFeO3/膨胀珍珠岩的制备及其可见光催化性能

利用水热法制备了新颖的、漂浮型的膨胀珍珠岩(EP)负载BiFeO₃(BiFeO₃/EP)复合光催化材料。采用X射线衍射(XRD)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、X射线光电子能谱仪(XPS)和紫外可见漫反射(UV-Vis-DRS)对制备的复合材料进行了表征与分析。SEM和TEM结果清楚地表明BiFeO₃纳米粒子已被负载到EP表面。与纯BiFeO₃相比,BiFeO₃/EP复合材料明显提高了对可见光的吸收能力,减小了带隙宽度,在可见光下对亚甲基蓝(MB)的降解表现出更强的光催化活性。其中,70%BiFeO₃/EP复合材料对MB染料废水的光催化活性最高,其光催化反应一级速率常数是纯BiFeO₃的2.2倍。由于质轻中空的特点,制备的BiFeO₃/EP颗粒漂浮在液面上,有利于相分离和反应后光催化剂的回收。材料的重复性试验表明,复合材料在MB光降解过程中是相当稳定的。     

溶剂热法制备BiFeO_3基纳米颗粒光催化剂及其性能

以聚酰胺-胺(PAMAM)树形分子为稳定剂,采用溶剂热法制得了纯相BiFeO_3纳米颗粒(A)和BiFeO_3/Bi_(25)FeO_(40)/Fe_2O_3复合纳米颗粒(B),并采用HRTEM、XRD、UV-Vis、SQUID对其结构和性能进行了表征。2种颗粒结晶良好,粒径小于10 nm,能有效光催化降解亚甲基蓝,磁性回收率分别为74.6%(A)和90.2%(B)。BiFeO_3/Bi_(25)FeO_(40)/Fe_2O_3复合纳米颗粒的光催化与磁性能均优于纯相BiFeO_3纳米颗粒,是因为复合纳米颗粒含有多种相,相界面存在异质结构有利于光生载流子的分离和迁移,并且对可见光的吸收能力更强。     

Template induced sol-gel synthesis of highly ordered LaNiO3 nanowires

The highly ordered LaNiO₃ nanowires of the rare-earth perovskite-type composite oxide were controlled synthesized within a porous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template by means of sol-gel method using nitrate as raw materials and citric acid as chelating agent. The results of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed that the obtained LaNiO₃ nanowires had a uniform length and diameter, which were determined by the thickness and the pore diameter of the applied AAO template. The results of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the selected-area electron diffraction (SAED) indicated that the LaNiO₃ nanowires were perovskite-type crystalline structures. Furthermore, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and the energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy demonstrated that the stoichiometric LaNiO₃ was formed.     

溶剂热法制备BiFeO3基纳米颗粒光催化剂及其性能

以聚酰胺-胺（PAMAM）树形分子为稳定剂,采用溶剂热法制得了纯相BiFeO₃纳米颗粒（A）和BiFeO₃/Bi₂₅FeO40/Fe₂O₃复合纳米颗粒（B）,并采用HRTEM、XRD、UV-Vis、SQUID对其结构和性能进行了表征。2种颗粒结晶良好,粒径小于10 nm,能有效光催化降解亚甲基蓝,磁性回收率分别为74.6%（A）和90.2%（B）。BiFeO₃/Bi₂₅FeO40/Fe₂O₃复合纳米颗粒的光催化与磁性能均优于纯相BiFeO₃纳米颗粒,是因为复合纳米颗粒含有多种相,相界面存在异质结构有利于光生载流子的分离和迁移,并且对可见光的吸收能力更强。     

Photocatalytic decompositions of gaseous HCHO and methylene blue with highly ordered TiO2 nanotube arrays

The highly ordered Ti O₂nanotubes（NTs） were fabricated by the anodic oxidation method.Their morphology,structure and crystalline phase were characterized by scanning electron microscopy（SEM） and X-ray diffractometer（XRD）.The effects of morphology,specific surface area,pore structures and photocatalytic activity of the Ti O₂ NTs were investigated.UV–vis spectra analysis showed that its light absorption had been extended to the visible light range.The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples was evaluated by photocatalytic oxidation of gaseous HCHO and MB aqueous solution.The samples had better adhesion strength in the dark and showed a higher photocatalytic activity than nanoparticles.Especially,with ultraviolet light pretreatment,the nanotubes exhibited more stable active for photocatalytic decomposition and the photodecomposition rate remained at high level after 3 cycles of the photocatalysis experiment.Thus,how the number of surface active group ·OH increased and the mechanism for the great improvement for the photocatalytic activity are discussed.     

铁酸铋粉体:硝酸钾辅助水热合成的形貌调控及可见光催化性能(英文)

利用硝酸钾作为辅助矿化剂,采用水热法合成了不同尺寸和形貌的铁酸铋粉体,探索了硝酸钾的加入量对产物的尺寸和形貌的影响。采用X射线衍射、扫描电镜和透射电镜以及漫反射光谱对制备的铁酸铋粉体的相结构、微观形貌以及光吸收特性进行了表征。结果显示,随着尺寸的减小,粉体的吸收带边发生蓝移。可见光降解刚果红实验表明,粒径小的铁酸铋纳米粉体颗粒具有更好的可见光催化活性。     

Synthesis and characterization of MgF2 and KMgF3 nanorods

MgF₂ nanorods with diameters of 60-100 nm were synthesized by a microemulsion method. Subsequent hydrothermal reaction of as-synthesized MgF₂ nanorods and KF at 240°C for 3 days or 140°C for 7 days resulted in KMgF₃ nanorods, which retained the rod-like morphology of the source material MgF₂ in the reaction process. The morphology of as-synthesized MgF₂ strongly depended on the molar ratio between water and the surfactant CTAB and the concentration of CTAB.     

Electrochemical synthesis of ordered alumina nanowire arrays

Ordered Al₂O₃ nanowire arrays embedded in the nanochannels of anodic alumina membranes (AAMs) were synthesized by electrodepostion at room temperature. Our synthetic route yielded large quantities of Al₂O₃ nanowires of uniform size and shape that are ~40 μm long with diameters of 70 nm. The Al₂O₃ nanowire structures were characterized by scanning and transmission electron microscopies, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Electronic Publication     

A Raman study of multiferroic LuMnO3

Magnetic and dielectric measurements confirm the multiferroic nature of LuMnO₃. Raman spectra of LuMnO₃ have been recorded in the 77–800 K range covering both the antiferromagnetic transition at 90 K and the ferroelectric–paraelectric transition at 750 K. The changes in the phonon modes frequencies and band-widths indicate the presence of phonon–spin coupling in the antiferromagnetically ordered phase. The ferroelectric–paraelectric transition is accompanied by the broadening and disappearance of many of the phonon modes. Some of the phonon modes also show anomalies at the ferroelectric transition.