Zn(ferulate)-LSH Systems as Multifunctional Filters

Excessive UV solar radiation exposure causes human health risks; therefore, the study of multifunctional filters is important to skin UV protective ability and also to other beneficial activities to the human organism, such as reduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) responsible for cellular damages. Potential multifunctional filters were obtained by intercalating of ferulate anions into layered simple metal hydroxides (LSH) through anion exchange and precipitation at constant pH methods. Ultrasound treatment was used in order to investigate the structural changes in LSH-ferulate materials. Structural and spectroscopic analyses show the formation of layered materials composed by a mixture of LSH intercalated with ferulate anions, where carboxylate groups of ferulate species interact with LSH layers. UV-VIS absorption spectra and in vitro SPF measurements indicate that LSH-ferulate systems have UV shielding capacity, mainly UVB protection. The results of reactive species assays show the ability of layered compounds in capture DPPH^•, ABTS^•+, ROO^•, and HOCl/OCl⁻ reactive species. LSH-ferulate materials exhibit antioxidant activity and singular optical properties that enable their use as multifunctional filters.     

Toxicity of Zn-Fe Layered Double Hydroxide to Different Organisms in the Aquatic Environment

The application of layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanomaterials as catalysts has attracted great interest due to their unique structural features. It also triggered the need to study their fate and behavior in the aquatic environment. In the present study, Zn-Fe nanolayered double hydroxides (Zn-Fe LDHs) were synthesized using a co-precipitation method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and nitrogen adsorption-desorption analyses. The toxicity of the home-made Zn-Fe LDHs catalyst was examined by employing a variety of aquatic organisms from different trophic levels, namely the marine photobacterium Vibrio fischeri, the freshwater microalga Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, the freshwater crustacean Daphnia magna, and the duckweed Spirodela polyrhiza. From the experimental results, it was evident that the acute toxicity of the catalyst depended on the exposure time and type of selected test organism. Zn-Fe LDHs toxicity was also affected by its physical state in suspension, chemical composition, as well as interaction with the bioassay test medium.     

Slow Relaxation of the Magnetization in Anilato-Based Dy(III) 2D Lattices

The search for two- and three-dimensional materials with slow relaxation of the magnetization (single-ion magnets, SIM and single-molecule magnets, SMM) has become a very active area in recent years. Here we show how it is possible to prepare two-dimensional SIMs by combining Dy(III) with two different anilato-type ligands (dianions of the 3,6-disubstituted-2,5-dihydroxy-1,4-benzoquinone: C₆O₄X₂²⁻, with X = H and Cl) in dimethyl sulfoxide (dmso). The two compounds prepared, formulated as: [Dy₂(C₆O₄H₂)₃(dmso)₂(H₂O)₂]·2dmso·18H₂O (1) and [Dy₂(C₆O₄Cl₂)₃(dmso)₄]·2dmso·2H₂O (2) show distorted hexagonal honeycomb layers with the solvent molecules (dmso and H₂O) located in the interlayer space and in the hexagonal channels that run perpendicular to the layers. The magnetic measurements of compounds 1, 2 and [Dy₂(C₆O₄(CN)Cl)₃(dmso)₆] (3), a recently reported related compound, show that the three compounds present slow relaxation of the magnetization. In compound 1 the SIM behaviour does not need the application of a DC field whereas 2 and 3 are field-induced SIM (FI-SIM) since they show slow relaxation of the magnetization when a DC field is applied. We discuss the differences observed in the crystal structures and magnetic properties based on the X group of the anilato ligands (H, Cl and Cl/CN) in 1–3 and in the recently reported derivative [Dy₂(C₆O₄Br₂)₃(dmso)₄]·2dmso·2H₂O (4) with X = Br, that is also a FI-SIM.     

Robust nickel silicate catalysts with high Ni loading for CO2 methanation

CO₂ is the main component of greenhouse gases and also an important carbon source. The hydrogenation of CO₂ to methane using Ni-based catalysts can not only alleviate CO₂ emissions but also obtain useful fuels. However, Ni-based catalysts face one major problem of the sintering of Ni nanoparticles in the process of CO₂ methanation. Thus, this work has synthesized a series of efficient and robust nickel silicate catalysts (NiPS−X) with different nickel content derived from nickel phyllosilicate by the hydrothermal method. It was found that the Ni loading plays a critical role in the structure and catalytic performance of the NiPS−X catalysts. The catalytic performance gradually increases with the increase of Ni loading. In particular, the highly dispersed NiPS-1.6 catalyst with a high Ni loading of 34.3 wt% could obtain the CO₂ conversion greater than 80%, and the methane selectivity was close to 100% for 48 h at 330 °C and the GHSV of 40,000 mL g⁻¹ h⁻¹. The excellent catalytic property can be assigned to the high dispersion of Ni nanoparticles and the strong interaction between the active component and the carrier, which is derived from a unique layered silicate structure with lots of nickel phyllosilicate and a large number of Lewis acid sites.     

Synthesis and characterization of a family of layered trichalcogenides for assisted hydrogen photogeneration

Three layered trisulfides (TiS₃, ZrS₃, HfS₃) have been synthesized by solid–gas reaction between metal and sulfur in a vacuum sealed ampoule at 550 °C during 60 h. The samples used in this work were prepared from a colloidal suspension of powder of each one of the metal trisulfides (MS₃, M = Ti, Zr, Hf) in ethanol and deposited on titanium disks and quartz substrates by ”drop coating” technique. These samples have been characterized by X‐ray diffraction, energy dispersive analysis of X‐ray and scanning electron microscopy. The obtained direct optical band gaps are 1.0 ± 0.1 eV, 2.0 ± 0.1 eV and 2.2 ± 0.1 eV for TiS₃, ZrS₃ and HfS₃, respectively. Photoelectrochemical measurements in 0.5 M Na₂SO₃ have been carried out to characterize the MS₃/electrolyte interface. The flat‐band potentials (V_fb) vs. Ag/AgCl measured by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) are –0.84 ± 0.02 V (TiS₃), –0.93 ± 0.02 V (ZrS₃) and –0.92 ± 0.02 V (HfS₃). Hydrogen generation was investigated in a photoelectrochemical cell (PEC) with MS₃ as photoanodes under white light illumination of 200 ± 20 mW/cm² at external bias potentials of 0.3 V vs. Ag/AgCl. Hydrogen evolution flows have been quantified by quadrupole mass spectrometry (QMS) reaching instantaneous values up to 19 ± 2 nmol H₂/min cm² with TiS₃ as photoanode.     

服役温度对多壁碳纳米管/Li1.18Ni0.15Co0.15Mn0.52O2复合正极材料性能的影响

通过煅烧的方式制得多壁碳纳米管(MWCNT)质量分数为3%的MWCNT/Li1.18Ni0.15Co0.15Mn0.52O2锂离子电池复合正极材料,并测试了复合正极材料在不同服役温度环境下的电化学性能:-20和60℃下服役时,其放电容量分别高达169、303 mAh·g^-1,且展示出良好的倍率性能和循环稳定性。结合电化学阻抗测试结果可知,MWCNT均匀附着在层状粒子的表面,有效减少了电解液对电极材料的侵蚀,阻碍了表面膜的生成,同时提高了材料的电子电导率。     

Charge carrier decay and diffusion in organic–inorganic CH3NH3PbI3–xClx perovskite based solar cell

In recent years, organic–inorganic lead halides attracted widespread interest, mainly due to their impressive photoconversion properties and low‐cost solution processing. In this study, we employed small amplitude transient photovoltage and photocurrent spectroscopy to investigate charge transport and recombination properties of perovskite CH₃NH₃PbI_3–xCl_x solar cell under realistic light harvesting conditions (<1 sun). Cell structure resembles outlay commonly found in organic photovoltaics, with perovskite absorber being sandwiched between two thin layers of organic polymers. Tested device displayed high power conversion efficiency (10.3%), good fill factor and negligible hysteresis effect. Fundamental device parameters were characterized at various open‐circuit voltages (V_oc) by examination of small voltage and current perturbations created by the low intensity pulsed laser excitations. The obtained results exhibit long charge carrier lifetimes and fast charge transport over the full range of applied optical bias, as well as remarkable diffusion lengths exceeding 1 μm. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Single‐Layered Ultrasmall Nanoplates of MoS2 Embedded in Carbon Nanofibers with Excellent Electrochemical Performance for Lithium and Sodium Storage

The preparation and electrochemical storage behavior of MoS₂ nanodots—more precisely single‐layered ultrasmall nanoplates—embedded in carbon nanowires has been studied. The preparation is achieved by an electrospinning process that can be easily scaled up. The rate performance and cycling stability of both lithium and sodium storage were found to be outstanding. The storage behavior is, moreover, highly exciting from a fundamental point of view, as the differences between the usual storage modes—insertion, conversion, interfacial storage—are beneficially blurred. The restriction to ultrasmall reaction domains allows for an almost diffusion‐less and nucleation‐free “conversion”, thereby resulting in a high capacity and a remarkable cycling performance.     

Telluride Misfit Layer Compounds: [(PbTe)1.17]m(TiTe2)n

Telluride misfit layer compounds are reported for the first time. These compounds were synthesized using a novel approach of structurally designing a precursor that would form the desired product upon low‐temperature annealing, which allows the synthesis of kinetically stable products that do not appear on the equilibrium phase diagram. Four new compounds of the [(PbTe)_1.17]_m(TiTe₂)_n family are reported, and their structures were examined by a variety of X‐ray diffraction techniques.     

A Bifunctional Perovskite Catalyst for Oxygen Reduction and Evolution

La_0.3(Ba_0.5Sr_0.5)_0.7Co_0.8Fe_0.2O_3?δ is a promising bifunctional perovskite catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction and the oxygen evolution reaction. This catalyst has circa 10 nm‐scale rhombohedral LaCoO₃ cobaltite particles distributed on the surface. The dynamic microstructure phenomena are attributed to the charge imbalance from the replacement of A‐site cations with La³⁺ and local stress on Co‐site sub‐lattice with the cubic perovskite structure.