Role of Nanoparticles in Photocatalysis

The aim of this review paper is to give an overview of the development and implications of nanotechnology in photocatalysis. The topics covered include a detailed look at the unique properties of nanoparticles and their relation to photocatalytic properties. Current applications of and research into the use of nanoparticles as photocatalysts has also been reviewed. Also covered is the utilization of nanoparticles in doped, coupled, capped, sensitized and organic–inorganic nanocomposite semiconductor systems, with an effort to enhance photocatalytic and/or optical properties of commonly used semiconductor materials. The use of nanocrystalline thin films in electrochemically assisted photocatalytic processes has been included. Finally, the use of nanoparticles has made a significant contribution in providing definitive mechanistic information regarding the photocatalytic process.     

Functionalized Magnetite Nanoparticles—Synthesis,Properties, and Bio-Applications

Nanotechnology has generated tremendous hopes in recent years toward the design of advanced functional materials, especially in the bio-medical field. Nano-sized-materials such as magnetite nanoparticles display indeed fascinating physico-chemical properties that, if tuned properly, can be exploited to design new bio-diagnostic and therapeutic strategies as well as innovative biotechnology methodologies. Owing to their biocompatibility and excellent magnetic properties, magnetite nanocrystals have been the object of a tremendous amount of research in the last decade and numerous (bio)applications have been reported. Importantly, advances in the synthesis of magnetite nanoparticles enable excellent control over their size, shape, and composition. Despite these remarkable progresses, many issues remain to be overcome for these nanotechnology products to revolution the medical practice. The fine control and application of colloidal nanostructures such as magnetite nanoparticles in complex biological systems remains especially challenging. This article attempts to review the current status of magnetite nanoparticles preparation and use, with a special emphasis on bio-medical applications, but also to outline the promises and challenges associated to this emerging technology.     

Synthesis of titania/carbon nanocomposites by polymeric precursor method

Here we describe a single chemical route to obtain highly dispersed nanometric Ni particles embedded in titania/carbon matrixes (amorphous and crystalline). The synthesis of these nanocomposites is based on a polymeric precursor method. The metallic Ni nanoparticles (1-15 nm) were obtained in a single process. We also present the results of photocatalytic experiments involving a series of nanocrystalline composites based on TiO₂/carbon with embedded Ni nanoparticles as nanocatalysts for rhodamine 6G degradation in aqueous solution and investigate the effects of the structure and properties of the nanocomposites on their photocatalytic applications. The effect of the different annealing treatments on the formation of TiO₂ nanophases (anatase and/or rutile), the size of Ni particles and the role of the residual carbon phase on the final solid are also described.     

铁基软磁非晶/纳米晶合金研究进展及应用前景

非晶合金通常是将熔融的金属快速冷却、通过抑制结晶而获得的原子呈长程无序排列的金属材料.由于具有这种特殊结构,铁基软磁非晶合金具有各向同性特征、很小的结构关联尺寸和磁各向异性常数,因而具有很小的矫顽力H_c,但可和晶态材料一样具有高的饱和磁感强度B_s.优异的软磁性能促进了铁基软磁非晶合金的应用研究.目前,铁基软磁非晶/纳米晶合金带材已实现大规模工业化生产和应用,成为重要的高性能软磁材料.本文回顾了软磁非晶合金的发现和发展历程,结合成分、结构、工艺对铁基非晶/纳米晶合金软磁性能的影响,介绍了相关基础研究成果和工艺技术进步对铁基软磁非晶/纳米晶合金研发和工业化应用的重要贡献.并根据结构、性能特征将铁基软磁非晶合金研发与应用分为三个阶段,指出了目前铁基软磁非晶合金研发与应用中面临的挑战和发展方向.     

Advances in amorphous and nanocrystalline magnetic materials

Recent advances made in the area of amorphous and nanocrystalline alloys exhibiting high saturation inductions are reviewed. A new chemical composition was identified that achieves a saturation induction of 1.64 T in an iron-based amorphous alloy. This alloy, when used in electrical transformers, shows a much improved performance over the existing amorphous alloy. Nanocrystalline FeCoCuNbSiB alloys are found to have saturation induction levels reaching 1.7 T. These materials are suited for use in sensors and inductors carrying large currents. Some of these nanocrystalline alloys show a BH squareness ratio exceeding 90%, which can be utilized in pulse power devices. Recent developments in the applications of these materials are also pointed out.     

Efficient Cellular Internalization and Transport of Bowl-Shaped Polydopamine Particles

In drug delivery applications, particle-based systems have been used widely due to their physicochemical properties such as size, shape, and surface charge to achieve desirable properties in intracellular environments. The way in which nanoparticles enter a biological cell is an important factor in determining their efficacy as drug carriers, their biodistribution, and toxicity. Most research thus far has focused on the comparison of spherical and rod-like particles on cellular internalization and transport. Here, the synthesis of bowl-shaped polydopamine (PDA) mesoporous nanoparticles with an average diameter of 200 nm and well-controlled radially oriented mesochannels are reported. By incubating bowl-shaped PDA nanoparticles and spherical nanoparticles with HeLa cells, their internalization behaviors are investigated using a suite of characterization techniques. Extensive experimental results demonstrate that bowl-shaped PDA nanoparticles adhere to the cell more efficiently and a faster rate of cellular uptake of bowl-shaped nanoparticles compared to their spherical counterparts. Overall, the cellular internalization behavior of particles is shape-dependent, and such information is crucial in designing nanoparticles for biomedical applications.     

非晶态合金与氢相互作用的研究进展

非晶态合金在力学性能、耐磨耐蚀性、磁性等方面比传统晶态合金具有显著优势,是一类有优良应用前景的新型结构与功能材料.非晶态合金与氢相互作用可以产生很多有趣的物理化学现象和应用.本文从物理基础和材料应用两个方面评述非晶态合金和氢相互作用的研究进展,在物理基础研究方面,从氢在非晶态合金中的存在状态出发,讨论氢在非晶态合金中的溶解、分布、占位和扩散等相关物理问题,进而分析氢对非晶态合金的热稳定性、磁性、内耗、氢脆等的影响.在材料应用研究方面,对非晶态储氢合金、非晶态合金氢功能膜、吸氢改善非晶态合金的塑性和玻璃形成能力、氢致非晶化、利用非晶态合金制备纳米储氢材料等方面的研究进展进行评述.最后总结并展望有关非晶态合金与氢相互作用的研究和应用.     

In situ X‐ray diffraction study on the growth kinetics of NiO nanoparticles

The growth kinetics of NiO nanoparticles have been studied by in situ X‐ray diffraction using two detection systems (conventional and imaging plate). NiO nanoparticles were formed by thermal decomposition after heating of an amorphous compound formed by the coprecipitation method. It was found that the detection method using an imaging plate is more efficient than the conventional detection mode for observing changes in the crystallite growth of nanocrystalline materials. Studies have been carried out to investigate the effects of the heating rates on the particles growth. The results suggest that the growth process of the particles is accelerated when the samples are treated at low heating rates. The evolution of particles size and the diffusion coefficient obtained from X‐ray powder diffraction patterns are discussed in terms of the thermal conditions for the two types of detection.     

Transmission electron microscopy of unstained hybrid Au nanoparticles capped with PPAA (plasma-poly-allylamine): Structure and electron irradiation effects

Hybrid (organic shell–inorganic core) nanoparticles have important applications in nanomedicine. Although the inorganic components of hybrid nanoparticles can be characterized readily using conventional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques, the structural and chemical arrangement of the organic molecular components remains largely unknown. Here, we apply TEM to the physico-chemical characterization of Au nanoparticles that are coated with plasma-polymerized-allylamine, an organic compound with the formula C₃H₅NH₂. We discuss the use of energy-filtered TEM in the low-energy-loss range as a contrast enhancement mechanism for imaging the organic shells of such particles. We also study electron-beam-induced crystallization and amorphization of the shells and the formation of graphitic-like layers that contain both C and N. The resistance of the samples to irradiation by high-energy electrons, which is relevant for optical tuning and for understanding the degree to which such hybrid nanostructures are stable in the presence of biomedical radiation, is also discussed.     

Single step thermal decomposition approach to prepare supported γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles

γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles supported on MgO (macro-crystalline and nanocrystalline) were prepared by an easy single step thermal decomposition method. Thermal decomposition of iron acetylacetonate in diphenyl ether, in the presence of the supports followed by calcination, leads to iron oxide nanoparticles supported on MgO. The X-ray diffraction results indicate the stability of γ-Fe₂O₃ phase on MgO (macro-crystalline and nanocrystalline) up to 1150 °C. The scanning electron microscopy images show that the supported iron oxide nanoparticles are agglomerated while the energy dispersive X-ray analysis indicates the presence of iron, magnesium and oxygen in the samples. Transmission electron microscopy images indicate the presence of smaller γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles on nanocrystalline MgO. The magnetic properties of the supported magnetic nanoparticles at various calcination temperatures (350-1150 °C) were studied using a superconducting quantum interference device which indicates superparamagnetic behavior.     

Ar环境气压对纳米Si晶粒成核区范围的影响

为了研究不同环境气压条件下纳米Si晶粒成核区的范围,采用波长为308 nm的 XeCl脉冲准分子激光器,分别在1-200 Pa的Ar气环境下, 烧蚀高阻抗单晶Si靶,在距离烧蚀点正下方2.0 cm处水平放置一系列单晶Si 或玻璃衬底,沉积制备了纳米Si薄膜. Raman谱和X射线衍射谱测量证实了薄膜中纳米Si晶粒已经形成. 扫描电子显微镜的测量结果表明,环境气压的变化影响了衬底上纳米Si晶粒的平均尺寸及其分布范围. 根据成核区位置的确定方法,计算得出随着环境气压的增加纳米Si晶粒成核区的范围先变宽后变窄的规律. 从烧蚀动力学的角度对实验结果进行了分析.     

Formation and strain distribution of Ni/NiO core/shell magnetic nanoparticles fabricated by pulsed laser deposition

Nucleation and growth lead to substantial strain in nanoparticles embedded in a host matrix.The distribution of strain field plays an important role in the physical properties of nanoparticles.Magnetic Ni/NiO core/shell nanoparticles embedded in the amorphous Al2O3 matrix were fabricated by pulsed laser deposition.The results from a high-resolution transmission electron microscope also revealed that the core/shell nanoparticles consist of a single crystal Ni core with a faced-centered cubic structure(Space ...     

How can Mössbauer Spectrometry Contribute to the Characterization of Nanocrystalline Alloys?

A controlled annealing of amorphous precursors represents a simple way of obtaining nanocrystalline alloys featuring interesting magnetic properties suitable for technical applications. They stem from the presence of crystalline nanograins embedded in the amorphous residual matrix which determine the resulting macroscopic parameters. In order to understand correlation between the microstructure and the resulting magnetic behaviour, Mössbauer spectrometry is used as a method of local probe analysis. Possibilities of this technique are discussed and representative examples of investigation of NANOPERM-type nanocrystalline alloys are provided.     

Nanocrystalline iron-based alloys investigated by Mössbauer spectrometry

Nanocrystalline alloys exhibit great fundamental and technological interests because of their microstructural properties, and their excellent soft magnetic properties. ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectrometry is a well suitable technique to investigate Fe-based nanocrystalline alloys: its local probe behaviour permits to elucidate the nature of hyperfine interactions at different resonating iron nuclei and to distinguish their immediate atomic surroundings. We review on the recent Mössbauer developments performed on first FeCuMBSi and then FeCuBSi nanocrystalline alloys. From Mössbauer studies, one can estimate the crystalline (i.e., amorphous) fraction, the Si-content in Fe--Si nanocrystalline grains emerging from amorphous alloys of the first series, the temperature dependence of magnetic behaviours of both crystalline and amorphous phases; finally, we present a novel fitting procedure applied to FeCuBSi nanocrystalline alloys which result from bcc-Fe crystalline grains embedded in an amorphous matrix. In this case, the hyperfine structure is able to model the intergranular phase.     

Iron oxide nanopowder synthesized by electroerosion dispersion (EED) – Properties and potential for microwave applications

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) have attracted considerable interest in many fields of research and applied science due to their impressive properties. In the past, especially biomedical problems have promoted the development of MNPs. For technical applications e.g. wastewater treatment and absorption of electromagnetic waves, the existing synthesis approaches are too expensive and/or the producible quantities are too low. In this work we present a method for simple preparation of size-controlled magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles by electroerosion dispersion (EED) of carbon steel in water. We describe the synthesis method, the laboratory installation and discuss the structural, chemical and electromagnetic properties of the synthetized EED powders as well as their applicability for microwave absorption compared to other available ferrite powders.     

Influence of annealing conditions on the properties of reinforced silver-embedded silica matrix from the cheap silica source

The influence of annealing conditions on the properties of reinforced silver-embedded silica matrix was systematically investigated in the present study. The samples were prepared via a recently reported method using sodium silicate as a silica precursor. Aluminium ions were used to reinforce and improve the chemical durability of silver-embedded silica; and the mole ratio of the precursors was fixed at Al/Ag = 1. The properties of the final product were examined in relation to its counterparts; namely pure silica, aluminium-embedded silica (without silver), and silver doped silica (without aluminium). The materials were heat treated at the range of 600-1000 °C under the constant supply of argon (inert atmosphere). The properties of the final product were compared with those of the previously reported materials prepared via the same method but calcined in air. The current material was found to have pure silver nanoparticles (without AgCl nanoparticles) while the previous material had both silver and AgCl nanoparticles. The results demonstrate that materials with more desirable properties can be obtained by this newly developed technique while utilizing sodium silicate, which is relatively cheap, as a silica precursor. This may significantly boost the industrial production of the silver-embedded silicas for various applications.     

High UV-shielding Performance of Zinc Oxide/High-Density Polyethylene Nanocomposites

Zinc oxide/high-density polyethylene nanocomposites with high-UV-shielding efficiency were reported. Zinc oxide nanoparticles were synthesized by the homogeneous precipitation method and calcination of the precursor at different temperatures. Zinc oxide/high-density polyethylene nanocomposites were subsequently prepared from high-density polyethylene and as-prepared zinc oxide nanoparticles via melt mixing process. The structural properties of the as-prepared zinc oxide nanoparticles and nanocomposites were studied in detail using X-ray diffractometer, Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, thermogravimetry, differential scanning calorimeter, ultrasonic pulse echo technique, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscope. The optical properties of the obtained nanocomposites were shown to depend on zinc oxide particle size and content. The nanocomposite containing zinc oxide nanoparticles with an average particle size of 25.22 nm after calcination at 350°C was found to have the most optimal optical properties, namely high-visible light transparency and high-UV light shielding efficiency, which are desirable for many important applications.     

Research in Korea on Gas Phase Synthesis and Control of Nanoparticles

Research activity into the gas phase synthesis of nanoparticles has witnessed rapid growth on a worldwide basis, which is also reflected by Korean research efforts. Nanoparticle research is inherently a multi-disciplinary activity involving both science and engineering. In this paper, the recent studies undertaken in Korea on the gas phase synthesis and control of nanoparticles are reviewed. Studies on the synthesis of various kinds of nanoparticles are first discussed with a focus on the different types of reactors used. Recent experimental and theoretical studies and newly developed methods of measuring and modeling nanoparticle growth are also reviewed.     

In situ Mössbauer and magnetization studies of Fe–Si nanocrystallization in Fe73.5Si13.5B9Cu1Nb1 X2, with X = Nb, Zr, Mo, amorphous alloys

The Fe–Si nanosized particles were obtained by controlled partial crystallization of Fe_73.5Si_13.5B₉Cu₁Nb₁X₂ (X = Nb, Zr, Mo) amorphous alloys. In situ Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetization measurements have been used to follow the temperature-dependent magnetization of the amorphous as well as of the nanosized Fe–Si particles. Our results, for the residual amorphous and of nanoparticles phases, show that the temperature dependence of the hyperfine field and magnetization of both residual amorphous and nanocrystalline Fe(Si) phases are different from that of the as-quenched bulk amorphous or crystalline Fe₃Si alloys. Likewise, from the temperature dependence studies it was possible to determine that the onset temperature of the nanocrystallization process increases in the sequence Mo < Nb < Zr, for the same annealing conditions.     

Superparamagnetic nanoparticle ensembles

Magnetic single-domain nanoparticles constitute an important model system in magnetism. In particular, ensembles of superparamagnetic nanoparticles can exhibit a rich variety of different behaviors depending on the inter-particle interactions. Starting from isolated single-domain ferromagnetic or ferrimagnetic nanoparticles, the magnetization behavior of both non-interacting and interacting particle ensembles is reviewed. Particular attention is given to the relaxation time of the system. In the case of interacting nanoparticles the usual Néel–Brown relaxation law becomes modified. With increasing interactions, modified superparamagnetism, spin glass behavior and superferromagnetism are encountered.