Publications by authors named "Alain Rafael Puente Santiago"

The development of high-activity photocatalysts is crucial for the current large-scale development of photocatalytic hydrogen applications. Herein, we have developed a strategy to significantly enhance the hydrogen photocatalytic activity of Cu/Pr di-atom co-modified TiO architectures by selectively anchoring Cu single atoms on the oxygen vacancies of the TiO surface and replacing a trace of Ti atoms in the bulk with rare earth Pr atoms. Calculation results demonstrated that the synergistic effect between Cu single atoms and Pr atoms regulates the electronic structure of Cu/Pr-TiO, thus promoting the separation of photogenerated carriers and their directional migration to Cu single atoms for the photocatalytic reaction.

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Endohedral mono-metallofullerenes are the prototypes to understand the fundamental nature and the unique interactions between the encapsulated metals and the fullerene cages. Herein, we report the crystallographic characterizations of four new U-based mono-metallofullerenes, namely, U@(6)-C, U@(8)-C, U@(15)-C, and U@(12)-C, among which the chiral cages (8)-C and (12)-C have never been previously reported for either endohedral or empty fullerenes. Symmetrical patterns, such as indacene, sumanene, and phenalene, and charge transfer are found to determine the metal positions inside the fullerene cages.

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Synopsis of recent research by authors named "Alain Rafael Puente Santiago"

  • - Alain Rafael Puente Santiago's recent research predominantly focuses on the development and characterization of advanced materials for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and endohedral metallofullerenes, aiming to enhance efficiency and understand fundamental interactions.
  • - In the 2024 study, Santiago and his team enhanced photocatalytic activity in Cu/Pr co-modified TiO by exploiting the synergistic effects between copper and praseodymium atoms to improve electron dynamics, which is crucial for energy applications.
  • - Another key study published in 2021 analyzed novel uranium-based mono-metallofullerenes, revealing new insights into metal-cage interactions and the structural characteristics of fullerene cages, contributing to the understanding of these complex materials.