Electron Transport Chains Promote Selective Photocatalytic Conversion of CO to Methanol.

The photocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO) into "liquid sunshine" methanol (CHOH) using semiconductor catalysts has garnered significant attention. Increasing the number of effective electrons and regulating reaction pathways is the key to improving the activity and selectivity of CHOH. Due to the electron transport properties of semiconductor heterojunctions and reduced graphene oxide (rGO), a CoS/CoS-rGO nanocomposite was constructed and applied to the photocatalytic reduction of CO to CHOH.

Non-Metal Sulfur Doping of Indium Hydroxide Nanocube for Selectively Photocatalytic Reduction of CO to CH: A "One Stone Three Birds" Strategy.

Photocatalytic CO reduction is considered as a promising strategy for CO utilization and producing renewable energy, however, it remains challenge in the improvement of photocatalytic performance for wide-band-gap photocatalyst with controllable product selectivity. Herein, the sulfur-doped In(OH) (In(OH)S-z) nanocubes are developed for selective photocatalytic reduction of CO to CH under simulated light irradiation. The CH yield of the optimal In(OH)S-1.

electrochemical Mn vacancies in CoMnHCF for a high level of zinc storage.

CoMnHCF is utilized in aqueous sodium/zinc mixed ion batteries and exhibits a high reversible capacity with good rate and cycle performances. At 0.05 A g current density, the CoMnHCF can deliver a specific capacity for 180.

Ternary CdS@MoS-CoO Multiheterojunction Photocatalyst for Boosting Photocatalytic H Evolution.

Turning the carrier dynamics in heterojunction photocatalysts is a direct and effective strategy for improving the solar energy conversion efficiency of photocatalysts. Herein, we report a ternary CdS@MoS-CoO multiheterojunction photocatalyst consisting of the p-n junction of MoS-CoO and the type-I junction of CdS@MoS, wherein MoS located at the frontier between CdS and CoO acts as an intermediate bridge. The type-I junction allows the directional transfer of photoinduced charge from CdS to MoS, suppressing the photocorrosion of CdS.

Pine Dendritic Bi/BiOBr Photocatalyst for Efficient Degradation of Antibiotics.

Constructing Bi/BiO ( = Cl, Br) heterostructures with unique electron transfer channels enables charge carriers to transfer unidirectionally at the metal/semiconductor junction and inhibits the backflow of photogenerated carriers. Herein, novel pine dendritic Bi/BiO ( = Cl, Br) nanoassemblies with multiple electron transfer channels have been successfully synthesized with the assistance of l-cysteine (l-Cys) through a one-step solvothermal method. Such a pine dendritic Bi/BiOBr photocatalyst shows excellent activity toward the degradation of many antibiotics such as tetracycline (TC), norfloxacin, and ciprofloxacin.

Excellent upconversion luminescence and temperature sensing performance of CdMoO:Er,Yb phosphors.

In this paper, Er/Yb co-doped CdMoO phosphors were prepared by a traditional high temperature solid state reaction method. Based on the 3D network structure of the CdMoO host and the efficient Er/Yb upconversion luminescence combinations, excellent green emission properties were observed when the prepared sample is irradiated with a laser at about 980 nm. For optical temperature sensors based on the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR), the prepared phosphors have excellent sensitivity to temperature in the range of 293 to 473 K.

An Open-Framework Structured Material: [Ni(en)][Fe(CN)] as a Cathode Material for Aqueous Sodium- and Potassium-Ion Batteries.

Open-framework structured materials such as Prussian blue analogues and sodium superionic conductor (NASICON) materials have been regarded as promising electrode candidates for aqueous batteries. These materials exhibit outstanding long cycle stability and high rate capacity retention, due to their high ion diffusive rate in the crystal and the stable structure maintenance in the electrochemical reaction process. Herein, an open-framework structured material [Ni(en)][Fe(CN)] (NienHCF) is prepared and first used as a cathode material for aqueous sodium- and potassium-ion batteries.

Bifunctional application of LaBWO:Bi,Sm phosphors with strong orange-red emission and sensitive temperature sensing properties.

Through a solid-phase reaction technique, Sm and Bi co-doped LaBWO phosphors with high emission intensity and sensitive temperature sensing properties have been successfully synthesized. Based on XRD Rietveld refinement, the optimized crystal structure was used as the original model to calculate the band structure and partial density of states (PDOS) by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The luminescence characteristics of Sm and Bi co-doped LaBWO phosphors were measured and analyzed.

Synthesis of Molecular Imprinted BiVO⁴ with Enhanced Adsorption and Photocatalytic Properties Towards Target Contaminants.

Selective photocatalysis is a very promising direction to improve the activities of photocatalysts. Combining the technique of molecular imprinting (MIP) with heterogeneous photocatalysis can be an appealing approach to achieve our aim. Herein, using the MIP technique, the monoclinic MIP-BiVO₄ was successfully synthesized by the presence of rhodamine B (RhB) during the hydrothermal synthesis.

Bismuth atom tailoring of indium oxide surface frustrated Lewis pairs boosts heterogeneous CO photocatalytic hydrogenation.

The surface frustrated Lewis pairs (SFLPs) on defect-laden metal oxides provide catalytic sites to activate H and CO molecules and enable efficient gas-phase CO photocatalysis. Lattice engineering of metal oxides provides a useful strategy to tailor the reactivity of SFLPs. Herein, a one-step solvothermal synthesis is developed that enables isomorphic replacement of Lewis acidic site In ions in InO by single-site Bi ions, thereby enhancing the propensity to activate CO molecules.

Plasmonic Titanium Nitride Facilitates Indium Oxide CO Photocatalysis.

Nanoscale titanium nitride TiN is a metallic material that can effectively harvest sunlight over a broad spectral range and produce high local temperatures via the photothermal effect. Nanoscale indium oxide-hydroxide, In O (OH) , is a semiconducting material capable of photocatalyzing the hydrogenation of gaseous CO ; however, its wide electronic bandgap limits its absorption of photons to the ultraviolet region of the solar spectrum. Herein, the benefits of both nanomaterials in a ternary heterostructure: TiN@TiO @In O (OH) are combined.

Black indium oxide a photothermal CO hydrogenation catalyst.

Nanostructured forms of stoichiometric InO are proving to be efficacious catalysts for the gas-phase hydrogenation of CO. These conversions can be facilitated using either heat or light; however, until now, the limited optical absorption intensity evidenced by the pale-yellow color of InO has prevented the use of both together. To take advantage of the heat and light content of solar energy, it would be advantageous to make indium oxide black.

The Multiple Promotion Effects of Ammonium Phosphate-Modified AgPO on Photocatalytic Performance.

Phosphate ( ) modification of semiconductor photocatalysts such as TiO, CN, BiVO, and etc. has been shown positive effect on the enhancement of photocatalytic performance. In the present study, we demonstrate a novel one-pot surface modification route on AgPO photocatalyst by ammonium phosphate [(NH)PO], which combines modification with ammonium ( ) etching to show multiple effects on the structural variation of AgPO samples.

Building a Bridge from Papermaking to Solar Fuels.

Black liquor, an industrial waste product of papermaking, is primarily used as a low-grade combustible energy source. Despite its high lignin content, the potential utility of black liquor as a feedstock in products manufacturing, remains to be exploited. Demonstrated here in is the use of black liquor as a primary feed-stock for synthesizing graphene quantum dots that exhibit both up-conversion and photoluminescence when excited using visible/near-infrared radiation, thereby enabling the photosensitization of ultraviolet-absorbing TiO nanosheets.

Polymorph selection towards photocatalytic gaseous CO hydrogenation.

Titanium dioxide is the only known material that can enable gas-phase CO photocatalysis in its anatase and rutile polymorphic forms. Materials engineering of polymorphism provides a useful strategy for optimizing the performance metrics of a photocatalyst. In this paper, it is shown that the less well known rhombohedral polymorph of indium sesquioxide, like its well-documented cubic polymorph, is a CO hydrogenation photocatalyst for the production of CHOH and CO.

Room-Temperature Activation of H by a Surface Frustrated Lewis Pair.

Surface frustrated Lewis pairs (SFLPs) have been implicated in the gas-phase heterogeneous (photo)catalytic hydrogenation of CO to CO and CH OH by In O (OH) . A key step in the reaction pathway is envisioned to be the heterolysis of H on a proximal Lewis acid-Lewis base pair, the SFLP, the chemistry of which is described as In⋅⋅⋅In-OH + H → In-OH ⋅⋅⋅In-H . The product of the heterolysis, thought to be a protonated hydroxide Lewis base In-OH and a hydride coordinated Lewis acid In-H , can react with CO to form either CO or CH OH.

A new five-coordinated copper compound for efficient degradation of methyl orange and Congo red in the absence of UV-visible radiation.

A new copper-based coordination compound Cu(2,2'-bipy)(pfbz) (1) (where 2,2'-bipy = 2,2'-bipyridine; pfbz = pentafluorobenzoate), was hydrothermally synthesized and structurally characterized. Compound 1 having a binuclear structure consists of two copper cations and two oxygen atoms alternately in a plane square arrangement. In the presence of very small amounts of HO, the catalytic properties of compound 1 for the degradation of methyl orange (MO) are excellent in the absence of UV-visible radiation.

Effects of Annealing on the Microstructures and UV and Visible Light-Induced Photocatalytic Activities of Indium Hydroxide Nanocubes.

This work initiated a systematic study on the thermal treatment for In(OH)3 photocatalysts and its impact on their microstructures and photocatalytic properties. The phase transformation process from In(OH)3 to In2O3 was investigated by XRD, TG, DRS and ion etching XPS technologies. The results demonstrated that the formation of In2O3 phase occurred from surface to inside of bulk In(OH)3 and a heterojunction structure between In2O3 and In(OH)3 was formed.

Relationship between surface hydroxyl groups and liquid-phase photocatalytic activity of titanium dioxide.

Both theories and experiments show that surface hydroxyl radicals (OH) are the most important intermediate species in the photocatalytic process. As a source of OH, surface hydroxyl (OH) groups play an important role in its generation. In this paper, the OH groups were divided into surface acidic hydroxyl (OH(a)) and surface basic hydroxyl (OH(b)) groups.

Porous SnIn4S8 microspheres in a new polymorph that promotes dyes degradation under visible light irradiation.

Porous SnIn(4)S(8) microspheres were initially synthesized through a facile solvothermal approach and were investigated as visible-light driven photocatalysts for dyes degradation in polluted water. The photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, N(2) adsorption-desorption, and UV-vis diffuse reflectance techniques. Results demonstrated that the as-synthesized SnIn(4)S(8) was of a new tetragonal polymorph, showing a band-gap of 2.

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).

Surface doping for photocatalytic purposes: relations between particle size, surface modifications, and photoactivity of SnO(2):Zn2+ nanocrystals.

Highly crystalline SnO(2) nanocrystals with and without Zn(2+) doping were directly prepared by a solvothermal method. By systematic characterizations using x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, infrared spectra, and UV-vis spectra, it is demonstrated that all samples crystallized in a single phase of rutile structure, and that upon Zn(2+) doping particle sizes closer to the exciton Bohr radius (2.7 nm) of SnO(2) were achieved, while the particle size of SnO(2) nanoparticles was as large as about 12 nm without Zn(2+) doping.

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).