Highly Selective CO2 Electroreduction to CH4 by In Situ Generated Cu2O Single-Type Sites on a Conductive MOF: Stabilizing Key Intermediates with Hydrogen Bonding

It is still a great challenge to achieve high selectivity of CH₄ in CO₂ electroreduction reactions (CO₂RR) because of the similar reduction potentials of possible products and the sluggish kinetics for CO₂ activation. Stabilizing key reaction intermediates by single type of active sites supported on porous conductive material is crucial to achieve high selectivity for single product such as CH₄. Here, Cu₂O(111) quantum dots with an average size of 3.5 nm are in situ synthesized on a porous conductive copper-based metal–organic framework (CuHHTP), exhibiting high selectivity of 73 % towards CH₄ with partial current density of 10.8 mA cm⁻² at −1.4 V vs. RHE (reversible hydrogen electrode) in CO₂RR. Operando infrared spectroscopy and DFT calculations reveal that the key intermediates (such as *CH₂O and *OCH₃) involved in the pathway of CH₄ formation are stabilized by the single active Cu₂O(111) and hydrogen bonding, thus generating CH₄ instead of CO.     

Fluorescence studies of the interaction between chloramphenicol and nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots and determination of chloramphenicol in chicken feed

Chloramphenicol (CAP) is a veterinary antibiotic that has been banned due to its severe side effects in humans. Through the application of manure, veterinary antibiotics can enter the soil, where they can be taken up by crops and vegetables and pose a potential health hazard to humans. Thus, it is highly desirable to develop a rapid and sensitive tool for on-site detection of CAP to ensure food safety and to control the abuse of antibiotics. To this end, nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots (N-GQDs) were successfully prepared via microwave-assisted synthesis using citric acid and urea as carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively. Analytical results suggested that the interaction between N-GQDs and CAP could occurs via π-π stacking, which quenched N-GQD fluorescence. CAP spiked into chicken feed could be rapidly extracted with ethanol and quantified based on N-GQD fluorescence quenching without further separation. This method showed good recovery (97–102.6%), a low detection limit (1.8 ppm), and was not affected by interference from florfenicol, and thiamphenicol, legal substitute antibiotics. This method has excellent potential for determination of CAP in livestock feed and soil.     

氮掺杂碳点的制备及其对阿莫西林高灵敏检测

以天然物质石斛为原料,一步水热法合成高荧光量子产率的氮掺杂碳点(NCDs),通过透射电子显微镜(TEM)、X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、紫外-可见光吸收图谱(UV-Vis)及荧光光谱(PL)对合成的NCDs进行表征。 实验结果显示合成的NCDs发强烈的蓝色荧光,呈现为球形或准球形,均匀分散,尺寸范围在1~5 nm;其表面含有丰富的COOH、OH和NH₂等水溶性基团,最佳激发和发射波长分别为350和435 nm,且具有良好的发光稳定性。 通过测定,合成的NCDs的荧光量子产率高达29.19%。在pH=7.4的缓冲溶液中测定不同物质对NCDs的荧光影响,相同条件下发现只有阿莫西林能够对NCDs荧光进行明显猝灭,表明合成的NCDs可选择性的识别阿莫西林,通过NCDs的荧光强度变化构建一种可灵敏检测阿莫西林的传感器,检测线性范围为2.6~30 μmol/L,检出限为0.15 μmol/L。     

Ag3PO4量子点/石墨相氮化碳纳米片复合光催化剂的制备及其对苯甲醇选择性氧化活性

以热氧化剥离法得到的超薄石墨相氮化碳(g-C₃N₄)纳米片为载体,首次在室温条件下,制备了系列Ag₃PO₄量子点/g-C₃N₄纳米片复合光催化剂;通过透射电子显微镜(TEM)、高分辨透射电子显微镜(HRTEM)、X射线衍射(XRD)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、紫外-可见漫反射光谱(UV-Vis DRS)、荧光光谱(PL),对复合光催化剂的形貌、结构和光学性质进行了表征,考察了系列光催化剂对苯甲醇的光催化选择性氧化性能。 结果表明,粒径为3~5 nm Ag₃PO₄颗粒均匀分散g-C₃N₄纳米片上,结晶度良好。 以乙腈为溶剂时,当m(Ag₃PO₄)/m(g-C₃N₄)=0.6时,苯甲醇具有32.1%的最大转化率,对产物苯甲醛具有90%的最高选择性;活性物种捕捉实验结果表明,该催化氧化反应的主要活性物是光生空穴的氧化作用,能带计算结果表明,该复合催化剂结构具有合适的苯甲醇的氧化电位而选择性生成苯甲醛。     

碳量子点在八面双锥和纳米片TiO2上的光催化

依次用溶剂热法和水热法制备得到暴露(101)晶面的八面双锥体二氧化钛OBP-TiO2和不同碳负载量的N-CDs/OBP-TiO2复合催化剂,以及暴露(001)晶面的纳米片二氧化钛TNS和不同碳负载量的N-CDs/TNS复合催化剂。利用TEM、XRD、XPS等表征手段对这2类复合催化剂的形貌结构、化学成分等作了鉴定。系统研究了碳量子点负载量对可见光降解RhB的光催化性能影响。实验发现,由于N-CDs的加入,均能较大提高2类复合催化剂的光催化性能。(101)高裸露晶面N-CDs/OBP-TiO2比(001)高裸露晶面N-CDs/TNS的光催化活性高。     

荧光碳点的制备及银离子辅助的点亮型识别青霉胺

以半胱氨酸为原料,通过一步热解法制备了荧光碳点（CDs）,并采用透射电镜（TEM）、动态光散射（DLS）、X射线能谱分析（XPS）、紫外可见吸收光谱（UV-Vis）和荧光光谱（FL）对其进行了表征。结果表明该碳点平均尺寸为3.12 nm,且表现出了良好的荧光特性。银离子能够与碳点结合进而通过光诱导的电子转移有效猝灭碳点的荧光。青霉胺得益于其与重金属离子的配位作用,能够与银离子结合使得后者离开碳点表面从而实现荧光恢复。基于此,我们建立了银离子辅助的碳点荧光点亮型识别青霉胺的新方法。该方法的线性范围为8~500 μmol·L^-1,检出限为5.62 μmol·L^-1。该荧光体系用于尿液样品测定,回收率在97.17%~102.05%范围内。     

Synthesis of carbon dots with a tunable photoluminescence and their applications for the detection of acetone and hydrogen peroxide

Carbon dots(CDs) with multi-color emissive properties and a high photoluminescent quantum yield(PLQY) have attracted great attention recently due to their potential applications in chemical,environmental,biological and photo-electronic fields.Solvent-dependent effect in photoluminescence provides a facial and effective approach to tune the emission of CDs.In this study,green emissive nitrogen-doped carbon dots(N-CDs) are synthesized from p-hydroquinone and ethylenediamine through a simple hydrothermal method.The as-prepared N-CDs possess a robust excitation-independent green luminescence and a high PLQY of up to 15.9%.Further spectroscopic characterization indicates that the high PLQY is achieved by the balance of nitrogen doping states and the surface passivation extent in CDs.The N-CDs also exhibit solvent-dependent multi-color emissive property and distinct PLQY in different solvents(the maximum can reach up to 25.3%).Furthermore,the as-prepared N-CDs are applied as fluorescence probes to detect acetone and H2O2 in water.This method has exhibited a low detection limit of acetone(less than 0.1 %) and a quick and linear response to the H_2O_2 with the concentration from 0 to 120 μmol/L.This work broadens the knowledge of applying CDs as probes in the bio and chemical sensing fields.     

CeO2 quantum dots doped Ni-Co hydroxide nanosheets for ultrahigh energy density asymmetric supercapacitors

By integrating the merits of lanthanide elements and quantum dots, we firstly design CeO₂ quantum dots doped Ni-Co hydroxide nanosheet via a controllable synthetic strategy, which exhibits a large specific capacitance (1370.7 F/g at 1.0 A/g) and a good cyclic stability (90.6% retention after 4000 cycles). Moreover, we assemble an aqueous asymmetric supercapacitor with the obtained material, which has an extremely high energy density (108.9 Wh/kg at 378 W/kg) and outstanding cycle stability (retaining 88.1% capacitance at 2.0 A/g after 4000 cycles).     

Semiconductor Quantum Dots as Components of Photoactive Supramolecular Architectures

Luminescent quantum dots (QDs) are colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals consisting of an inorganic core covered by a molecular layer of organic surfactants. Although QDs have been known for more than thirty years, they are still attracting the interest of researchers because of their unique size-tunable optical and electrical properties arising from quantum confinement. Moreover, the controlled decoration of the QD surface with suitable molecular species enables the rational design of inorganic-organic multicomponent architectures that can show a vast array of functionalities. This minireview highlights the recent progress in the use of surface-modified QDs – in particular, those based on cadmium chalcogenides – as supramolecular platforms for light-related applications such as optical sensing, triplet photosensitization, photocatalysis and phototherapy.     

Photoactivated Fluorescence Enhancement in F,N‐Doped Carbon Dots with Piezochromic Behavior

Photoactivation in CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) on UV/Vis light exposure improves photoluminescence (PL) and photostability. However, it was not observed in fluorescent carbon quantum dots (CDs). Now, photoactivated fluorescence enhancement in fluorine and nitrogen co‐doped carbon dots (F,N‐doped CDs) is presented. At 1.0 atm, the fluorescence intensity of F,N‐doped CDs increases with UV light irradiation (5 s–30 min), accompanied with a blue‐shift of the fluorescence emission from 586 nm to 550 nm. F,N‐doped CDs exhibit photoactivated fluorescence enhancement when exposed to UV under high pressure (0.1 GPa). F,N‐doped CDs show reversible piezochromic behavior while applying increasing pressure (1.0 atm to 9.98 GPa), showing a pressure‐triggered aggregation‐induced emission in the range 1.0 atm–0.65 GPa. The photoactivated CDs with piezochromic fluorescence enhancement broadens the versatility of CDs from ambient to high‐pressure conditions and enhances their anti‐photobleaching.