Decoding Upconversion-Emitting Phase in Complex Composites Through Single-Particle-Level Upconversion Imaging and Density Functional Theory Calculations.

The crystal structure and phase stability of a host lattice plays an important role in efficient upconversion phenomena. In stable hosts, lanthanides doping should not generally change the crystal structure of the host itself. But when phase of a system drastically changes after lanthanide doping resulting in multiple phases, accurate identification of upconverting phase remains a challenge.

Ho-SiAlON Ceramics as Green Phosphors under Ultra-Violet Excitations.

In most inorganic phosphors, increasing the concentration of activators inevitably causes the concentration quenching effect, resulting in reduced emission intensity at a high level of activator doping and the conventional practice is to limit the activator concentration to avoid the quenching. In contrast, SiAlON ceramics preserve their chemical composition over a very wide range of doping of activator ions, which favors the adjustment and optimization of the luminescence properties avoiding concentration quenching. Here, we investigate the photoluminescence properties of Ho-doped SiAlON (Ho-SiAlON) ceramics phosphors prepared by the hot-press method.

A sustainable composite of rice-paper/BaMoO nanoparticles for the photocatalytic elimination of the recalcitrant 2,6-dichlorobenzamide (BAM) pesticide in drinking water and its mechanisms of degradation.

This research reports the use of biodegradable and flexible composites for the removal of the 2,6-dichlorobenzamide (BAM) pesticide from drinking water. Rice paper (a biodegradable substrate) and Ag/BaMoO (MOBA) nanoparticles were employed to fabricate these composites. The SEM images showed that the MOBA nanoparticles with sizes of 300-800 nm decorated the surface of the biodegradable substrate and formed porous agglomerates, which have sizes of 1-3 μm.

Current status on synthesis, properties and applications of CsPbX(X = Cl, Br, I) perovskite quantum dots/nanocrystals.

The quantum confinement effect and interesting optical properties of cesium lead halide (CsPbX; X = Cl, Br, I) perovskite quantum dots (QDs) and nanocrystals (NCs) have given a new horizon to lighting and photonic applications. Given the exponential rate at which scientific results on CsPbXNCs are published in the last few years, it can be expected that the research in CsPbXNCs will further receive increasing scientific interests in the near future and possibly lead to great commercial opportunities to realize these materials based practical applications. With the rapid progress in the single-photon emitting CsPbXQDs and NCs, practical applications of the quantum technologies such as single-photon emitting light-emitting diode, quantum lasers, quantum computing might soon be possible.

Effects of Annealing Temperature on the Crystal Structure, Morphology, and Optical Properties of Peroxo-Titanate Nanotubes Prepared by Peroxo-Titanium Complex Ion.

This study addresses the effects of annealing temperatures (up to 500 °C) on the crystal structure, morphology, and optical properties of peroxo groups (-O-O-) containing titanate nanotubes (PTNTs). PTNTs, which possess a unique tubular morphology of layered-compound-like hydrogen titanate structure (approximately 10 nm in diameter), were synthesized using peroxo-titanium (Ti-O-O) complex ions as a precursor under very mild conditions-temperature of 100 °C and alkali concentration of 1.5 M-in the precursor solution.

Enhancement of NOx photo-oxidation by Fe- and Cu-doped blue TiO.

The present work is focused on the removal of NOx with reduced blue TiO with Fe (blue Fe-TiO)- and Cu (blue Cu-TiO)-doped photocatalyst. TiO was reduced via lithium in EDA (blue TiO). Fe and Cu ions were doped in the reduced TiO (blue Fe-TiO and blue Cu-TiO).

Electronic structure, thermodynamic stability and high-temperature sensing properties of Er-α-SiAlON ceramics.

α-SiAlON ceramics have been in use as engineering ceramics in the most arduous industrial environments such as molten metal handling, cutting tools, gas turbine engines, extrusion molds, thermocouple sheaths, protective cover for high-temperature sensors, etc., owing to their outstanding mechanical, thermal and chemical stability. Taking advantage of the intrinsic properties of α-SiAlONs, we investigate, in this paper, the possibility of using the Er-doped α-SiAlON (Er-α-SiAlON) ceramic as a high-temperature sensing material via its unique near-infrared to visible upconversion property.

Microwave hydrothermal synthesis and upconversion properties of BiVO nanoparticles.

Nanomaterials are the subject of extensive investigations due to their applications in medicine, multimodal imaging, volumetric displays, and photonics. Here, lanthanide-doped bismuth vanadate (BiVO) upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) have been reported. The nanoparticles have been synthesized by a microwave hydrothermal method.

Visible light driven MoS/α-NiMoO ultra-thin nanoneedle composite for efficient Staphylococcus aureus inactivation.

MoS/α-NiMoO ultra-thin nanoneedle composite was synthesized by microwave hydrothermal process in one step. The nanocomposite revealed the complete destruction of multidrug resistant Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) within 150 min under visible light irradiation.

Visible light-Driven AgBr/AgCl@MIL-101(Fe) Composites For Removal of Organic Contaminant From Wastewater.

Microwave-solvothermal synthesized MIL-101(Fe) was successfully loaded by silver halides (AgCl and AgBr) by simple precipitation method. The XRD, FESEM mapping, XPS and DRS measurements reveal the successful fabrication of composite photocatalyst. The results suggested that silver halides altered surface charge, surface area and pore size distribution of MIL-101(Fe).

Influence of SiC and TiC nanoparticles reinforcement on the microstructure, tribological, and scratch resistance behavior of electroless Ni-P coatings.

Two different ceramic carbide nanoparticles (SiC, and TiC) were separately incorporated into the Ni-P matrix via the electroless deposition method. As prepared Ni-P, Ni-P-SiC, and Ni-P-TiC coatings were subjected to heat treatment at 400 °C for 1 h. The surface morphology, microstructural transformation, Vicker's microhardness, tribological and scratch resistance properties were studied with reference to the different carbide reinforcements as well as heat treatment.

Morphologies controlled ZnO for inactivation of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in solar light.

The different morphology and size of the zinc oxide (ZnO) were synthesized by a co-precipitation process via variation of calcination temperature from 400 °C to 900 °C. The nanorod, flower, hexagon, pentagon, and microflambeau morphologies were obtained. The flower morphology of ZnO tends to inactivate multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P.

Bimetallic MOF-templated synthesis of alloy nanoparticle-embedded porous carbons for oxygen evolution and reduction reactions.

Pyrolysis of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) to produce metal nanoparticles embedded inside a porous carbon matrix (M@PC) has drawn a lot of attention in recent years. Notably, Fe nanoparticles trapped in a carbon matrix (Fe@PC) have been reported to efficiently promote oxygen evolution and reduction reactions (OER/ORR). However, research on the effect of doping in Fe particles has been scarce because of the difficulty in synthesizing alloys of small size at elevated temperature.

Upconversion luminescence properties of BaMoO: Yb, Ln (Ln = Er/Tm, Er/Tm/Ho) micro-octahedrons.

Yb, Ln (Ln = Er/Tm, Er/Tm/Ho) doped BaMoO micro-octahedrons were synthesized by a hydrothermal process. The as-prepared phosphors were characterized by x-ray powder diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, elemental mapping, energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The upconversion luminescence properties of the samples were investigated under 980 nm near infrared excitation.

Understanding the multifunctionality in Cu-doped BiVO semiconductor photocatalyst.

A visible light-induced, Cu-doped BiVO photocatalyst was synthesized by a microwave hydrothermal method. The photocatalytic efficiency was investigated in the degradation of model water pollutants like Methylene Blue (dye) and ibuprofen (pharmaceuticals), as well as the inactivation of Escherichia coli (bacteria). The Cu-doped BiVO samples showed better efficiency than undoped BiVO, and the 1wt.

Microwave hydrothermal synthesis and upconversion properties of Yb/Er doped YVO nanoparticles.

Yb and Er doped YVO (Yb/Er:YVO) nanoparticles with highly efficient near-infrared to visible upconversion properties have been synthesized by microwave hydrothermal process. Uniform-sized Yb/Er:YVO nanoparticles were synthesized within 1 h at 140 °C which is relatively faster than the conventional hydrothermal process. Under 980 nm laser excitation, strong green and less strong red emissions are observed which are attributed to H, S to I and F to I transitions of Er respectively.

Fabrication of Ag-decorated BiOBr-mBiVO dual heterojunction composite with enhanced visible light photocatalytic performance for degradation of malachite green.

A visible light active Ag-decorated BiVO-BiOBr dual heterojunction photocatalyst was prepared using a facile hydrothermal method, followed by the photodeposition of Ag. The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized samples was investigated by monitoring the change in malachite green (MG) concentration upon visible light irradiation. The synthesized sample was highly effective for the degradation of non-biodegradable MG.

Insight Into Malachite Green Degradation, Mechanism and Pathways by Morphology-Tuned α-NiMoO Photocatalyst.

The microwave hydrothermal process was used for the synthesis of various morphologies of α-NiMoO by simply adjusting the pH during experimental conditions. The effect of morphology/size on the photocatalytic performances for degradation of malachite green (MG) has been investigated under UV-Vis/visible light irradiation. Nanorod morphology has strong tendency to degrade (88.

Visible-light-induced Ag/BiVO semiconductor with enhanced photocatalytic and antibacterial performance.

An Ag-loaded BiVO visible-light-driven photocatalyst was synthesized by the microwave hydrothermal method followed by photodeposition. The photocatalytic performance of the synthesized samples was evaluated on a mixed dye (methylene blue and rhodamine B), as well as bisphenol A in aqueous solution. Similarly, the disinfection activities of synthesized samples towards the Gram-negative Escherichia coli (E.

Graphene Coating via Chemical Vapor Deposition for Improving Friction and Wear of Gray Cast Iron at Interfaces.

This study reports the influence of CVD-graphene on the tribological performance of gray cast iron (GCI) from the internal combustion engine (ICE) cylinder liners by performing a ball-on-disk friction tests. The graphene-coated specimen exhibited a significant reduction (∼53%) of friction as compared to that of the uncoated specimen, whereas wear resistance increased by 2- and 5-fold regarding the wear of specimen and ball, respectively. Extremely low shear strength and highly lubricating nature of graphene contribute to the formation of a lubricative film between the sliding surfaces and decreases the interaction between surfaces in the dry environment.

Ag-BaMoO: Er/Yb photocatalyst for antibacterial application.

Silver loaded and Er/Yb doped BaMoO octahedron microcrystals were fabricated by microwave hydrothermal process. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and Ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflection spectroscopy (UV-Vis DRS). The antibacterial application of samples were investigated by visible light irradiation and disk-diffusion method towards representative Gram-negative pathogen (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive pathogen (methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus).

Visible-light-driven photocatalytic water oxidation catalysed by iron-based metal-organic frameworks.

An iron-based metal-organic framework, MIL-101(Fe), promotes photocatalytic water oxidation to produce oxygen from aqueous silver nitrate solution under visible-light irradiation. The finely dispersed iron-oxo clusters embedded as nodes of the porous framework would contribute importantly to the efficient promotion of the reaction as compared to bulk hematite (α-Fe2O3).

Microwave Assisted Hydrothermal Synthesis and Structural Characterization of TiO2 Nanotubes.

This paper reports the microwave hydrothermal synthesis of TiO2 nanotubes and their characterization. Structural properties of the as synthesized materials were investigated by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Raman Spectroscopy. Results revealed that the TiO2 nanotubes consists of different layers of titanates (Na2Ti4O9, H2Ti5O11 x H2O, ZnTiO3).

Effect of Simultaneous Sonication with Horn and Plate Types on the Preparation of Few Layer Graphite.

The effect of different ultrasonication types on the production of few layer graphite (FLG) from graphite powder (270 μm) in ethanol was systematically investigated. Ultrasonic irradiation was done by using plate type (23.3 kHz, 500 W), horn type (20 kHz, 500 W), and combination of both types for 3 hr at room temperature.

Decrease in the urine cotinine concentrations of Korean non-smokers between 2009 and 2011 following implementation of stricter smoking regulations.

This study aimed to determine if there was an association between the implementation of smoking regulation policies and the urine cotinine concentrations of Korean non-smokers. The subjects of this study were 4612 non-smoking Korean citizens (aged 19 or older) selected from the first stage of the Korean National Environmental Health Survey conducted by the National Institute of Environmental Research from 2009 to 2011. Cotinine concentrations in urine were measured by GC-MS (limit of detection: 0.