Au@CuO Core-Shell and Au@CuSe Yolk-Shell Nanocrystals as Promising Photocatalysts in Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting and Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production.

In this work, we demonstrated the practical use of Au@CuO core-shell and Au@CuSe yolk-shell nanocrystals as photocatalysts in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting and photocatalytic hydrogen (H) production. The samples were prepared by conducting a sequential ion-exchange reaction on a Au@CuO core-shell nanocrystal template. Au@CuO and Au@CuSe displayed enhanced charge separation as the Au core and yolk can attract photoexcited electrons from the CuO and CuSe shells.

Size and temperature dependence of photoluminescence of hybrid perovskite nanocrystals.

In this work, we studied the effects of particles' size and temperature on the photoluminescence (PL) of CHNHPbBr perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs), with the PNC size controlled by varying the surface passivating ligands. The structural and optical properties of the PNCs were investigated using UV-Vis and PL spectroscopy, revealing strong quantum confinement effects. Temperature dependent PL measurements showed the spectral blue shift of the PL peak for the small PNCs (3.

Facet-Dependent Photocatalytic Behaviors of ZnS-Decorated CuO Polyhedra Arising from Tunable Interfacial Band Alignment.

ZnS particles were grown over CuO cubes, octahedra, and rhombic dodecahedra for examination of their facet-dependent photocatalytic behaviors. After ZnS growth, CuO cubes stay photocatalytically inactive. ZnS-decorated CuO octahedra show enhanced photocatalytic activity, resulting from better charge carrier separation upon photoexcitation.

TiO Nanowire-Supported Sulfide Hybrid Photocatalysts for Durable Solar Hydrogen Production.

As the feet of clay, photocorrosion induced by hole accumulation has placed serious limitations on the widespread deployment of sulfide nanostructures for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. Developing sufficiently stable electrodes to construct durable PEC systems is therefore the key to the realization of solar hydrogen production. Here, an innovative charge-transfer manipulation concept based on the aligned hole transport across the interface has been realized to enhance the photostability of InS electrodes toward PEC solar hydrogen production.

Fully Depleted Ti-Nb-Ta-Zr-O Nanotubes: Interfacial Charge Dynamics and Solar Hydrogen Production.

Poor kinetics of hole transportation at the electrode/electrolyte interface is regarded as a primary cause for the mediocre performance of n-type TiO photoelectrodes. By adopting nanotubes as the electrode backbone, light absorption and carrier collection can be spatially decoupled, allowing n-type TiO, with its short hole diffusion length, to maximize the use of the available photoexcited charge carriers during operation in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. Here, we presented a delicate electrochemical anodization process for the preparation of quaternary Ti-Nb-Ta-Zr-O mixed-oxide (denoted as TNTZO) nanotube arrays and demonstrated their utility in PEC water splitting.

Safety and efficacy of self-assembling bubble carriers stabilized with sodium dodecyl sulfate for oral delivery of therapeutic proteins.

Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) is generally regarded as a potent permeability enhancer in oral formulations; however, one concern related to the use of any permeation enhancer is its possible absorption of unwanted toxins during the period of epithelial permeability enhancement. In this work, the safety and efficacy of an SDS-containing bubble carrier system that is developed from an orally administered enteric-coated capsule are evaluated. The bubble carriers comprise diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) dianhydride, sodium bicarbonate (SBC), SDS, and insulin.

Metal-Particle-Decorated ZnO Nanocrystals: Photocatalysis and Charge Dynamics.

Understanding of charge transfer processes is determinant to the performance optimization for semiconductor photocatalysts. As a representative model of composite photocatalysts, metal-particle-decorated ZnO has been widely employed for a great deal of photocatalytic applications; however, the dependence of charge carrier dynamics on the metal content and metal composition and their correlation with the photocatalytic properties have seldom been reported. Here, the interfacial charge dynamics for metal-decorated ZnO nanocrystals were investigated and their correspondence with the photocatalytic properties was evaluated.

ZnO-Au-SnO2 Z-scheme photoanodes for remarkable photoelectrochemical water splitting.

For the first time a ZnO nanorod-based Z-scheme heterostructure system was proposed and realized for efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting. The samples were prepared by depositing a thin layer of SnO2 on the Au surface of Au particle-decorated ZnO nanorods. For ZnO-Au-SnO2 nanorods, the embedded Au can mediate interfacial charge transfer by promoting electron transfer from the conduction band of SnO2 to the valence band of ZnO.

A facile green antisolvent approach to Cu2+-doped ZnO nanocrystals with visible-light-responsive photoactivities.

An environmentally benign antisolvent method has been developed to prepare Cu(2+)-doped ZnO nanocrystals with controllable dopant concentrations. A room temperature ionic liquid, known as a deep eutectic solvent (DES), was used as the solvent to dissolve ZnO powders. Upon the introduction of the ZnO-containing DES into a bad solvent which shows no solvation to ZnO, ZnO was precipitated and grown due to the dramatic decrease of solubility.