Decorating ZnCdS with C,N Co-Doped CoP: An Efficient Dual-Functional Photocatalyst for H Evolution and 2,5-Diformylfuran Oxidation.

Photocatalytic H evolution and biomass-derived alcohol oxidation is a cooperative way for improving the utilization of photogenerated charge carriers. Herein, a highly efficient photocatalyst was fabricated by decorating ZnCdS with a C,N codoped CoP polyhedron (referred to as CoP, derived from ZIF-67), and then it was used for H evolution and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) oxidation. For the optimized sample (20% CoP/ZnCdS), the generated H rate is significantly enhanced from that of the HMF aqueous solution with 2,5-diformylfuran (DFF) as a concomitant product, about 31.

Fabrication of 2D/2D BiOBr/g-CN with efficient photocatalytic activity and clarification of its mechanism.

Precise regulation of photoexcited charge carriers for separation and transportation is a core requirement for practical application in the photocatalysis field. Herein, a 2D/2D BiOBr/g-CN heterojunction is prepared by a self-assembly method and exhibits enhanced and stable activity for photocatalytic degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) and norfloxacin (NFA) under visible light. Compared to pure g-CN, the kinetic constants of BPA and NFA degradation over BiOBr/g-CN are enhanced by about 14.

Construction and performance of a simple and efficient g-CN photocatalytic hydrogen production system.

Surface and bulk structure modification is an effective strategy to improve the photocatalytic performance of g-CN (CN). In this work, dilute NaOH solution was used to regulate the CN structure for enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Characterization results indicate that after treatment with dilute NaOH solution, the surface of CN was hydroxylated, resulting in the change of CN structure and the increase of BET specific surface area.

Accelerating Nickel-Based Molecular Construction via DFT Guidance for Advanced Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production.

Understanding the nickel-based molecular catalyst structure and functional relationship is crucial for catalytic hydrogen production in aqueous solutions. Density functional theory (DFT) provides mature theoretical knowledge for efficient catalyst design, significantly reducing catalyst synthesis time and energy consumption. In the present work, three molecular catalysts, Ni(qbz)(pys) (qbz = 2-quinoline benzimidazole) (), Ni(qbo)(pys) (qbo = 2-quinoline benzothiazole) (), and Ni(pbz)(pys) (pbz = 4-chloro-2,2-pyridylbenzimidazole) () (pys = 2-mercaptopyridine), were designed and synthesized and exhibit a high performance for H generation in aqueous solution with a lamp (λ ≥ 400 nm) under visible light irradiation.

The Hole-Tunneling Heterojunction of Hematite-Based Photoanodes Accelerates Photosynthetic Reaction.

Single-atom metal-insulator-semiconductor (SMIS) heterojunctions based on Sn-doped Fe O nanorods (SF NRs) were designed by combining atomic deposition of an Al O overlayer with chemical grafting of a RuO hole-collector for efficient CO -to-syngas conversion. The RuO -Al O -SF photoanode with a 3.0 nm thick Al O overlayer gave a >5-fold-enhanced IPCE value of 52.

Theoretical study on the DNA interaction properties of copper(II) complexes.

Theoretical studies on DNA-cleavage and DNA-binding properties of a series of Cu(II) complexes [Cu(bimda)(diimine)] 1-5 have been carried out by density functional theory (DFT). The optimized structures of Cu(II) complexes were docked into parallel, antiparallel and mixed G-quadruplexes, with which the binding energies of complexes 1-5 were obtained. The cytotoxicities of these complexes can be predicted preliminarily by the binding energies.

Rational synthesis of MnCdS for enhanced photocatalytic H evolution: Effects of S precursors and the feed ratio of Mn/Cd on its structure and performance.

Rational synthesis of photocatalytic materials is an effective way to improve their performance. In this work, to optimize the S precursors, a series of MnCdS (MCS) were first hydrothermally synthesized with the prevalent thiourea (TA), thioacetamide (TAA) and L-cysteine (L-Cys) as the S sources. The optimum feed ratio of Mn/Cd was then determined based on the optimized S precursor.

Noble metal-free 0D-1D NiS/CdS nanocomposites toward highly efficient photocatalytic contamination removal and hydrogen evolution under visible light.

The development of stable noble metal-free photocatalysts with efficient separation and transportation of the photogenerated electrons-holes is of crucial importance for promoting the application of photocatalysis technology. Herein, we propose an electron transfer strategy by reasonable design and fabrication of novel 0D NiSx nanosheets as a co-catalyst on the surface of 1D CdS nanorods (CdS-NRs) to enhance photocatalytic hydrogen evaluation and contamination (Cr(vi), rhodamine B and bisphenol A) removal in water. Under visible light irradiation, the 0D-1D NiSx/CdS-NR nanocomposite with 1.

Ultra-low content of Pt modified CdS nanorods: Preparation, characterization, and application for photocatalytic selective oxidation of aromatic alcohols and reduction of nitroarenes in one reaction system.

A series of Pt nanoparticles (with size of 3-4 nm) decorated CdS nanorods were prepared via a simple solvothermal method. The samples were then used for photocatalytic selective oxidation (SO) of aromatic alcohols and reduction (SR) of nitroarenes in one reaction system. The platinized samples showed enhanced activity for the conversions than pristine CdS as Pt can serve as e trapping and reaction sites, by which the recombination of photoinduced charge carriers can be suppressed and the adsorption of reactants and the SR of nitroarenes can be promoted.

Optimizing the precursor of sulfur source for hydrothermal synthesis of high performance CdS for photocatalytic hydrogen production.

Although the CdS photocatalyst has been extensively investigated, a rational hydrothermal synthesis route is still required to prepare highly active CdS for H evolution reaction (HER). To optimize the precursor of the sulfur source, three prevalent organic sulfur sources of thiourea (TA), thioacetamide (TAA) and l-cysteine (l-Cys) were used for hydrothermal synthesis of CdS. Their effects on the crystallographic structure, morphology, optical property, band structure, and photocatalytic HER performance of the products were then investigated systematically.

Theoretical Studies on DNA-Cleavage Mechanism of Copper(II) Complexes: Probing Generation of Reactive Oxygen Species.

Theoretical studies on DNA-cleavage properties of [Cu(bba)(diimine)] 1-4 have been carried out using density functional theory (DFT) and docking methods. The optimized structures of Cu(II) complexes were docked into DNA, glutathiones (GSH), and ascorbic acids (VC) so that the corresponding docking models were obtained. To explore DNA-cleavage properties of Cu(II) complexes, the docking models of complexes with GSH and VC were further optimized using DFT method, while the docking models of complexes with DNA were optimized using QM/MM method because DNA is a supramolecular system.

Solvothermal synthesis of CdInS photocatalyst for selective photosynthesis of organic aromatic compounds under visible light.

Ternary chalcogenide semiconductor, cadmium indium sulfide (CdInS), was prepared by a simple solvothermal method using ethylene glycol as a solvent, as well as indium chloride tetrahydrate (InCl4HO), cadmium nitrate tetrahydrate [Cd(NO)4HO], and thiacetamide (TAA) as precursors. The resulted sample was subject to a series of characterizations. It is the first time to use CdInS sample as a visible light-driven photocatalyst for simultaneous selective redox transformation of organic aromatic compounds.

Design of a direct Z-scheme photocatalyst: preparation and characterization of Bi₂O₃/g-C₃N₄ with high visible light activity.

A direct Z-scheme photocatalyst Bi2O3/g-C3N4 was prepared by ball milling and heat treatment methods. The photocatalyst was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), UV-vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy (DRS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface areas, photoluminescence technique (PL), and electron spin resonance (ESR) technology. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by degradation of methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B (RhB).

Fabrication, characterization and mechanism of a novel Z-scheme photocatalyst NaNbO3/WO3 with enhanced photocatalytic activity.

Development of semiconductor photocatalysts with simultaneous high photooxidation and photoreduction performance is always a hot topic in the photocatalytic field. In this article, a highly active Z-scheme NaNbO3/WO3 photocatalyst was prepared by a facile ball milling method, even though either NaNbO3 or WO3 exhibited relatively much lower photocatalytic activity. The photocatalyst was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electron spin resonance technology (ESR), photoluminescence (PL) spectra and UV-Vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy (DRS).

One-pot synthesis of ZnO2/ZnO composite with enhanced photocatalytic performance for organic dye removal.

The ZnO2/ZnO photocatalysts with various ZnO2 contents were prepared by one-pot synthesis method using ZnO and H2O2 as raw materials. The photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, UV-vis DRS, SEM, EDS, FT-IR spectra, fluorescence emission spectra, and BET specific area. The photocatalytic performance of the photocatalyst was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange (MO) and rhodamine B (RhB).

Ball milled h-BN: an efficient holes transfer promoter to enhance the photocatalytic performance of TiO2.

High activity hexagonal-BN (h-BN)/TiO(2) composite photocatalysts were prepared by ball milling method. The structural and optical properties of the samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS), and fluorescence emission spectra. The effect of the loading amount of h-BN and the ball milling time on the photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB) was investigated.

In situ preparation of novel p-n junction photocatalyst BiOI/(BiO)2CO3 with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity.

Novel p-n junction photocatalysts BiOI/(BiO)2CO3 with different contents of BiOI were in situ synthesized by etching (BiO)2CO3 precursor with hydroiodic acid (HI) solution. X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) were employed to study the structures, morphologies and optical properties of the as-prepared samples. Under visible light (λ>420 nm), BiOI/(BiO)2CO3 hybrid displayed much higher photocatalytic activity than pure (BiO)2CO3 and BiOI for the degradation of methyl orange (MO).

Hydrogen production over titania-based photocatalysts.

Because of their relatively high efficiency, high photostability, abundance, low cost, and nontoxic qualities, titania-based photocatalysts are still the most extensively studied materials for the photocatalytic production of hydrogen from water. The effects of the chemical and physical properties of titania, including crystal phase, crystallinity, particle size, and surface area, on its photoactivity towards hydrogen generation have been identified by various investigations. The high overpotential for hydrogen generation, rapid recombination of photogenerated electrons and holes, rapid reverse reaction of molecular hydrogen and oxygen, and inability to absorb visible light are considered the most important factors that restrict the photoactivity of titania, and strategies to overcome these barriers have been developed.

Urea-based hydrothermal growth, optical and photocatalytic properties of single-crystalline In(OH)3 nanocubes.

Nearly monodisperse single-crystalline In(OH)(3) nanocubes were successfully synthesized using In(NO(3))(3) x 4.5 H(2)O as indium source in the presence of urea and cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) by a two-step hydrothermal process: the stock solution was heated at 70 degrees C for 24 h and then at 120 degrees C for 12 h. The structure and morphology of the resultant In(OH)(3) samples were determined by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).