Influence of surface states on the evaluation of the flat band potential of TiO(2).

Flat band potential (Vfb) is one of the most important physical parameters to study and understand semiconductor materials. However, the influence of surface states on the evaluating Vfb of titanium oxide (TiO2) and other semiconductor materials through a Mott-Schottky plot is ignored. Our study indicated that the influence of surface states should be introduced into the corresponding equivalent circuit even when the kinetic process did not occur.

Photocatalytic degradation of RhB over TiO2 bilayer films: effect of defects and their location.

TiO(2) bilayer films with a normal surface (Ns-TiO(2)), surface defects (Sd-TiO(2)), and interface defects (Id-TiO(2)) were successfully prepared by a combination of cold plasma treatment (CPT) and sol-gel dip-coating technology. The photodegradation of rhodamine B (RhB) over these as-prepared TiO(2) films was investigated via UV-vis irradiation. Results indicate that the three kinds of films exhibit very different photodegradation processes for RhB.

Efficient photocatalytic degradation of volatile organic compounds by porous indium hydroxide nanocrystals.

Nanosized porous In(OH)(3) photocatalysts with high surface areas (as much as 110 m(2)*g(-1)) were successfully synthesized by peptization of colloidal precipitates under ultrasound radiation. The resulting catalysts were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis, nitrogen adsorption, transition electron microscopy, and UV-vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by the gas-phase decomposition of several volatile organic pollutants (acetone, benzene, and toluene) under UV light illumination and were compared with that of the commercial titania (Degussa P25).

Biosafety level 3 laboratory for autopsies of patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome: principles, practices, and prospects.

Background: During the outbreak of the emergent severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) infection, >30% of the approximately 8000 infected persons were health care workers. The highly infectious nature of SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) compelled our pathologists to consider biosafety issues in the autopsy room and for tissue processing procedures.

Methods: A specially designed biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) autopsy laboratory was constructed and divided into a clean area, a semicontaminated area, a contaminated area, and 2 buffer zones.