Electrochemical properties of nanostructured porous gold electrodes in biofouling solutions.

The effect of electrode porosity on the electrochemical response of redox active molecules (potassium ferricyanide, ruthenium(III) hexammine, and ferrocene methanol) in the presence of bovine serum albumin or fibrinogen was studied at macroporous (pore diameter: 1200 nm), hierarchical (1200/60 nm), and nanoporous (<50 nm) gold. These electrodes were prepared using standard templating or dealloying techniques, and cyclic voltammetry (CV) was utilized to evaluate the effect of protein adsorption on the electron transfer of the diffusing redox probes. Following exposure to albumin (or fibrinogen) under near neutral pH conditions, planar gold electrodes showed an immediate reduction in Faradaic peak current and increase in peak splitting for potassium ferricyanide.

Shape- and size-controlled synthesis in hard templates: sophisticated chemical reduction for mesoporous monocrystalline platinum nanoparticles.

Here we report a novel hard-templating strategy for the synthesis of mesoporous monocrystalline Pt nanoparticles (NPs) with uniform shapes and sizes. Mesoporous Pt NPs were successfully prepared through controlled chemical reduction using ascorbic acid by employing 3D bicontinuous mesoporous silica (KIT-6) and 2D mesoporous silica (SBA-15) as a hard template. The particle size could be controlled by changing the reduction time.

Mesoporous Co3O4 for low temperature CO oxidation: effect of calcination temperatures on their catalytic performance.

Mesoporous Co3O4 particles are prepared by using mesoporous silica KIT-6 (with double gyroid Ia-3d symmetry) as a hard-template and Co(No3)2 x 6H2O as an inorganic precursor. In the former section, we investigate the effect of the calcination temperatures at which the Co salts are converted into Co3O4 inside the mesopores on the textural parameters of the products. The results of N2 adsorption-desorption analysis indicates that the calcination temperatures do not obviously affect the textural parameters such as the surface areas and pore volumes.

Direct synthesis of nanoporous carbon nitride fibers using Al-based porous coordination polymers (Al-PCPs).

We report a new synthetic route for preparation of nanoporous carbon nitride fibers with graphitic carbon nitride polymers, by calcination of Al-based porous coordination polymers (Al-PCPs) with dicyandiamide (DCDA) under a nitrogen atmosphere.

Fabrication of mesoporous carbons with rod and winding road like morphology using NbSBA-15 templates.

Here we demonstrate for the first time the fabrication hexagonally ordered mesoporous carbon materials with different morphology and pore diameters using NbSBA-15 mesoporous silica template with different niobium content. The materials were characterized by several characterization techniques such as XRD, HRSEM, HRTEM, elemental mapping, ICP-AES, and EDS analysis. We also demonstrate that the morphology of the materials can be controlled by simply tuning the morphology of the parent NbSBA-15 template, whose morphology can be tuned by adjusting the loading of niobium in the framework wall structure of SBA-15.

Breakthrough and future: nanoscale controls of compositions, morphologies, and mesochannel orientations toward advanced mesoporous materials.

Currently, ordered mesoporous materials prepared through the self-assembly of surfactants have attracted growing interests owing to their special properties, including uniform mesopores and a high specific surface area. Here we focus on fine controls of compositions, morphologies, mesochannel orientations which are important factors for design of mesoporous materials with new functionalities. This Review describes our recent progress toward advanced mesoporous materials.

Extraction mechanisms of charged organic dye molecules into silica-surfactant nanochannels in a porous alumina membrane.

Extraction mechanisms of charged organic dye molecules are examined for an assembly of silica-surfactant nanochannels with a channel diameter of 3.4 nm, which is formed inside the pores of an anodic alumina membrane by a surfactant-template method. Experimental results confirm that the extraction mechanism depends on the sign of a charge of the dye molecules.