Nanocrystalline aerogel VOx/MgO as a catalyst for oxidative dehydrogenation of propane

Nanocrystalline aerogel VO_x/MgO catalysts for the oxidative dehydrogenation of propane with high surface area and uniform vanadium distribution were synthesized by co-gelation followed by supercritical drying. The catalysts were shown to have superior performance compared to nanocrystalline VO_x/MgO catalysts prepared by impregnation.     

A technique for production of nanocrystalline cellulose with a narrow size distribution

Nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) was prepared by sulfuric acid hydrolysis of microcrystalline cellulose. A differential centrifugation technique was studied to obtain NCC whiskers with a narrow size distribution. It was shown that the volume of NCC in different fractions had an inverse relationship with relative centrifugal force (RCF). The length of NCC whiskers was also fractionized by differential RCF. The aspect ratio of NCC in different fractions had a relatively narrow range. This technique provides an easy way of producing NCC whiskers with a narrow size distribution.     

Electrodeposition of nanocrystalline zinc from acidic sulfate solutions containing thiourea and benzalacetone as additives

Nanocrystalline zinc coatings were produced by pulse electrodeposition in acid sulfate bath containing thiourea and benzalacetone additives and characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy techniques. The influence of benzalacetone concentration and pulse peak current density on the grain size and crystallographic orientation of zinc deposits was investigated. Zinc electrodeposited from additive-free solutions or with one of the two additives is not composed of nanosized crystals. The mixture additives of thiourea and benzalacetone give rise to the formation of particle-like nanocrystalline zinc with a (10ī1) random orientation. A change in peak current density from 2 to 1 A/cm² only increases the grain size from 60 to 62 nm.     

Preparation of a highly active nanocrystalline TiO2 photocatalyst from titanium oxo cluster precursor

Nanocrystalline TiO₂ (sample S1) was prepared from a titanium oxo cluster (Ti₇O₄(OEt)₂₀) precursor via a sol-gel route. This photocatalyst showed a higher photocatalytic activity than the TiO₂ (sample S2) obtained from titanium tetraisopropoxide. The samples were characterized by thermal analysis (TGA/DSC), X-ray diffraction, micro-Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, N₂ adsorption (BET surface area), infrared absorption spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The characterization results show that both samples are anatase nanocrystals with particle sizes of about 12 nm, but the more photocatalytically active sample S1 has more surface hydroxyl groups and larger surface area and pore volume than sample S2.     

Preparation of Nanocrystalline Indium Antimonide Through β-Hydride Elimination from New Indium-Antimony Single-Source Precursors

The 1:1 mole ratio reaction of t-Bu₃In with Sb(SiMe₃)₃ results in the formation of the Lewis acid-base adduct t-Bu₃In Sb(SiMe₃)₃ (1), while the dimeric compound [t-Bu₂InSb(SiMe₃)₂]₂ (2) is isolated from the 1:1 reaction of t-Bu₂InCl with Sb(SiMe₃)₃. Both the 2:1 reactions of t-Bu₂InCl with Sb(SiMe₃)₃ and t-Bu₂InCl with 2 result in the formation of the mixed-bridge compound (3), however, ¹H NMR studies suggest that this compound is unstable in solution. Thermolysis of 1, 2, and t-Bu₃Ga Sb(SiMe₃)₃ (4) results in the formation of nanocrystalline InSb or GaSb through a -hydride elimination pathway.     

Light emission from Si nanocrystals embedded in CaF2 epilayers on Si(1 1 1): Effect of rapid thermal annealing

Visible photoluminescence (PL) of nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si) embedded in single crystal CaF₂ formed on Si(1 1 1) has been studied and the influence of ex situ rapid thermal annealing (RTA) on the surface morphology and PL spectra has been studied. It has been found that the PL intensity and uniformity was improved by RTA with appropriate temperature and short annealing time.     

Evidence for a solid phase of dodecahedral C 20

Evidence is presented for the formation of a solid phase based on the smallest fullerene, C₂₀, in thin diamond-like carbon films deposited by ultraviolet laser ablation from diamond onto nickel substrates at room temperature in the presence of 10^-4 torr of cyclohexane or benzene. Laser desorption mass spectrometry from the films shows the presence of C₂₀, C₂₁ and C₂₂ species, while micro-Raman spectroscopy and electron diffraction from selected particles together with first principle density-functional calculations, indicate a cubic solid with dodecahedral C₂₀ cages as building blocks. Unlike solid C₆₀ and fully protonated C₂₀, which are bound by van der Waals forces, the proposed structure is stabilized by linking of the C₂₀ dodecahedra with bridging carbon atoms at interstitial tetrahedral sites to form a face-centered-cubic lattice with 22 carbon atoms per unit cell. Received 10 October 2002 / Received in final form 24 December 2002 Published online 6 March 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: zafar.iqbal@njit.edu     

Strong visible PL from the nc-Si thin film by Ni silicide mediated crystallization

We studied the growth of nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si) thin film exhibiting a strong room temperature photoluminescence (PL) at 1.81–2.003 eV. The amorphous silicon was crystallized by Ni silicide mediated crystallization (Ni SMC) and then Secco-etched to exhibit the PL. The PL peak energy and intensity increase with increasing the metal density on the a-Si because of the reduction in the grain size down to 2 nm. The photoluminescence energy and peak intensity depend strongly on the Secco etch time because the grain size is reduced by etching the grain boundaries.     

高介电常数TiO2纳米晶的表面态研究

将钛酸四丁酯和硬脂酸在熔融状态下混合均匀后置于冷水浴中,使其凝固成凝胶,通过控制烧结过程中氧气的含量,成功地制备出粒度均匀、介电性能好的纳米晶TiO2.通过采用X射线光电子能谱和表面光电压谱对纳米晶TiO2表面状态的分析发现,材料表面存在大量的氧空位缺陷,暴露在粒子表面上的主要是一些金属Ti4+.纳米材料的这种表面状态对其极化性质具有重要的影响,使其在接近静态条件下的低频介电常数远大于常规材料的介电常数.     

纳米晶MgSO4·5Mg(OH)2·3H2O合成与表征

纳米材料由于具有表面、体积和量子尺寸效应的特殊性而受到广泛重视[1～3]. 微米级硫氧镁晶须作为塑料添加增强和阻燃剂已有报道[4～7]. 纳米晶MgSO4*5Mg(OH)2*3H2O不仅对塑料起补强作用, 而且其粒度小, 使塑料变得更致密, 强度、韧性与防水性能大大提高. 目前纳米材料的合成方法多种多样[8～10], 本文采用水热法制得纳米硫氧镁晶粒, 产物纯度高、分散性好且粒度易控制.