N/F-doping and CaCO3 surface modification was carried out in TiO2 photoelectrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The combined effect of the N/F doped TiO2 and the CaCO3 coating showed a great increase of the short-circuit current (J(sc)), and photoelectric conversion efficiency (η) of the prepared cells; the efficiency (η) was improved from 7.00% of a commercial TiO2 photoelectrode to 7.90% of an uncoated N/F-doped electrode, and to 9.09% of a N/F-doped and CaCO3 surface modified electrode. An enhanced photoresponse in N/F-doped TiO2 nanoparticles generate more photo-excited electrons, as supported by measured UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectra. A successive CaCO3 surface modification then forms a barrier on the surface of the N/F-doped TiO2 particles; the higher basicity of the CaCO3 modified TiO2 facilitates the dye adsorption, as supported by the direct measurement of the amount of adsorbed dye.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1166/jnn.2016.11073 | DOI Listing |
Environ Toxicol Chem
January 2025
Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada.
Chloride concentrations in freshwater are rising, with toxic effects on aquatic life. In temperate regions with cold winters, road salt used for deicing paved surfaces is a primary cause. There is evidence that water hardness can modify salt toxicity, but data are insufficient to inform policy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Environ Manage
January 2025
School of Environmental and Municipal Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an, 710055, China; Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an, 710055, China.
The complex pollution and nutrient-poor characteristics of surface waters result in the limited ability of conventional reactors to remove pollutants. In this study, a novel modified ceramsite material, modified with trivalent iron (Fe(III)) and fulvic acid (FA) to form ceramsite@Fe(III)@FA (HC), was used for the first time as a biocarrier to immobilize strain Cupriavidus sp. W12, constructing a biofilter to enhance nitrate (NO-N) removal in micro-polluted water.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Environ Manage
January 2025
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 211189, China; Institute of Medical Devices (Suzhou), Southeast University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215163, China.
Microbial-induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) has garnered increasing attention in the realm of building materials. Among them, urease microorganisms have been extensively investigated due to their favorable attributes, including facile reaction control, heightened mineralization efficiency, and straightforward microorganism cultivation. Nevertheless, the presence of ammonia byproducts throughout the reaction process significantly restricted its extensive utilization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAstrobiology
January 2025
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA.
Meteoritic impacts on planetary surfaces deliver a significant amount of energy that can produce prebiotic organic compounds such as cyanides, which may be a key step to the formation of biomolecules. To study the chemical processes of impact-induced organic synthesis, we simulated the physicochemical processes of hypervelocity impacts (HVI) in experiments with both high-speed C projectiles and laser ablation. In the first approach, a C beam was accelerated to collide with ammonium nitrate (NHNO) to reproduce the shock process and plume generation of meteoritic impacts on nitrogen-rich planetary surfaces.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhys Chem Chem Phys
January 2025
College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, China.
Herein, the interfacial effects on calcium carbonate clustering within two-dimensional (2D) graphene nanochannels were systematically investigated using molecular dynamics simulations. The distribution characteristics of the ions at the interface can be attributed to the ordered water layers within the 2D nanochannels. The orientation of CO is approximately perpendicular to the interface, which can be attributed to hydrogen bonding and its association with Ca at the interface region.
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