C. Heath Turner

The critical role of surfactants in the growth of cobalt nanoparticles.

We report a combined experimental and computational study on the critical role of surfactants in the nucleation and growth of Co nanoparticles synthesized by chemical routes. By varying the surfactant species, Co nanoparticles of different morphologies under similar reaction conditions (e.g., temperature and Co-precursor concentration) were produced. Depending on the surfactant species, the growth of Co nanoparticles followed three different growth pathways. For example, with surfactants oleic acid (OA) and trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) used in combination, Co nanoparticles followed a diffusional growth pathway, leading to single crystalline nanoparticles. Multiple-grained nanoparticles, through an aggregation process, were formed with the combination of surfactants OA and dioctylamine (DOA). Further, an Ostwald ripening process was observed in the case of TOPO alone. Complementary electronic structure calculations were used to predict the optimized Co-surfactant complex structures and to quantify the binding energy between the surfactants (ligands) and the Co atoms. These calculations were further applied to predict the Co nanoparticle nucleation and growth processes based on the stability of Co-surfactant complexes.

Synthesis and Growth Mechanism of Iron Oxide Nanowhiskers

Iron oxide nanowhiskers with dimensions of approximately 2 × 20 nm were successfully synthesized by selectively heating an iron oleate complex. Such nanostructures resulted from the difference in the ligand coordination microenvironments of the Fe(III) oleate complex, according to our electronic structure calculations and thermogravimetric analysis. A ligand-directed growth mechanism was subsequently proposed to rationalize the growth process. The formation of the nanowhiskers provides a unique example of shape-controlled nanostructures, offering additional insights into nanoparticle synthesis.

First-principles Study of Methane Dehydrogenation on a Bimetallic Cu/Ni(111) Surface

We present density-functional theory calculations of the dehydrogenation of methane and CH(x) (x=1-3) on a Cu/Ni(111) surface, where Cu atoms are substituted on the Ni surface at a coverage of 14 monolayer. As compared to the results on other metal surfaces, including Ni(111), a similar activation mechanism with different energetics is found for the successive dehydrogenation of CH(4) on the Cu/Ni(111) surface. In particular, the activation energy barrier (E(act)) for CH-->C+H is found to be 1.8 times larger than that on Ni(111), while E(act) for CH(4)-->CH(3)+H is 1.3 times larger. Considering the proven beneficial effect of Cu observed in the experimental systems, our findings reveal that the relative E(act) in the successive dehydrogenation of CH(4) plays a key role in impeding carbon formation during the industrial steam reforming of methane. Our calculations also indicate that previous scaling relationships of the adsorption energy (E(ads)) for CH(x) (x=1-3) and carbon on pure metals also hold for several Ni(111)-based alloy systems.

Simulation of chemical reaction equilibria by the reaction ensemble Monte Carlo method: a review†

Understanding and predicting the equilibrium behaviour of chemically reacting systems in highly non-ideal environments is critical to many fields of science and technology, including solvation, nanoporous materials, catalyst design, combustion and propulsion science, shock physics and many more. A method with recent success in predicting the equilibrium behaviour of reactions under non-ideal conditions is the reaction ensemble Monte Carlo method (RxMC). RxMC has been applied to reactions confined in porous solids or near solid surfaces, reactions at high temperature and/or high pressure, reactions in solution and at phase interfaces. The only required information is a description of the intermolecular forces among the system molecules and standard free-energy data for the reacting components. Extensions of the original method include its combination with algorithms for systems involving phase equilibria, constant-enthalpy and constant-internal energy adiabatic conditions, a method to include reaction kinetics, a method to study the dynamics of reacting systems, and a mesoscale method to simulate long-chain molecule phase separation. This manuscript surveys the various applications and adaptations of the RxMC method to date. Additionally, the relationship between the RxMC method and other techniques that simulate chemical reaction behaviour is given, along with insight into some technical nuances not found in the pioneering papers.

Formation mechanism and composition distribution of FePt nanoparticles

Self-assembled FePt nanoparticle arrays are candidate structures for ultrahigh density magnetic storage media. One of the factors limiting their application to this technology is particle-to-particle compositional variation. This variation will affect the A1 to L10 transformation as well as the magnetic properties of the nanoparticles. In the present study, an analysis is provided for the formation mechanism of these nanoparticles when synthesized by the superhydride reduction method. Additionally, a comparison is provided of the composition distributions of nanoparticles synthesized by the thermal decomposition of Fe(CO)5 and the reduction of FeCl2 by superhydride. The latter process produced a much narrower composition distribution. A thermodynamic analysis of the mechanism is described in terms of free energy perturbation Monte Carlo simulations.

Mechanism of Bismuth Telluride Exfoliation in an Ionic Liquid Solvent

Bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) is a well-known thermoelectric material that has a layered crystal structure. Exfoliating Bi2Te3 to produce two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets is extremely important because the exfoliated nanosheets possess unique properties, which can potentially revolutionize several material technologies such as thermoelectrics, heterogeneous catalysts, and infrared detectors. In this work, ionic liquid (IL) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([C4mim]Cl) is used to exfoliate Bi2Te3 nanoplatelets. In both experiments and in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, the Bi2Te3 nanoplatelets yield a stable dispersion of 2D nanosheets in the IL solvent, and our MD simulations provide molecular-level insight into the kinetics and thermodynamics of the exfoliation process. An analysis of the dynamics of Bi2Te3 during exfoliation indicates that the relative translation (sliding apart) of adjacent layers caused by IL-induced forces plays an important role in the process. Moreover, an evaluation of the MD trajectories and electrostatic interactions indicates that the [C4mim](+) cation is primarily responsible for initiating Bi2Te3 layer sliding and separation, while the Cl(-) anion is less active. Overall, our combined experimental and computational investigation highlights the effectiveness of IL-assisted exfoliation, and the underlying molecular-level insights should accelerate the development of future exfoliation techniques for producing 2D chalcogenide materials.

Platinum Attachments on Iron Oxide Nanoparticle Surfaces

Platinum nanoparticles supported on metal oxide surfaces have shown great potential as heterogeneous catalysts to accelerate electrochemical processes, such as the oxygen reduction reaction in fuel cells. Recently, the use of magnetic supports has become a promising research topic for easy separation and recovery of catalysts using magnets, such as Pt nanoparticles supported on iron oxide nanoparticles. The attachment of Pt on iron oxide nanoparticles is limited by the wetting ability of the Pt (metal) on ceramic surfaces. A study of Pt nanoparticle attachment on iron oxide nanoparticle surfaces in an organic solvent is reported, which addresses the factors that promote or inhibit such attachment. It was discovered that the Pt attachment strongly depends on the capping molecules of the iron oxide seeds and the reaction temperature. For example, the attachment of Pt nanoparticles on oleic acid coated iron oxide nanoparticles was very challenging, because of the strong binding between the carboxylic groups ...

Electrostatic potential within the free volume space of imidazole-based solvents: insights into gas absorption selectivity.

In this work, a variety of molecular simulation tools are used to help characterize the selective absorption of CO2 and CH4 in imidazole-based solvents. We focus our efforts on a series of 1-n-alkyl-2-methyl-imidazoles and ether-functionalized imidazoles, over a temperature range from 293 to 353 K, and we perform detailed analysis of the free volume. We find that the electrostatic potential within the solvent free volume cavities provides a useful indication of the selective absorption of CO2 and CH4. The electrostatic potential calculation is significantly faster than the direct calculation of the chemical potential, and tests with the 1-n-alkyl-2-methyl-imidazoles and the ether-functionalized imidazoles indicate that this may be a useful screening tool for other solvents.

Molecular dynamics simulation of the Al2O3 film structure during atomic layer deposition

Based on an understanding of atomic layer deposition (ALD) from prior experimental and computational results, all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are used to model the Al2O3 film structure and composition during ALD processing. By separating the large time-scale surface reactions from the small time-scale structural relaxation, we have focused on the growth dynamics of amorphous Al2O3 films at the atomic scale. The simulations are able to reproduce some important properties and growth mechanisms of Al2O3 ALD films, and hence provide a bridge between atomic-level information and experimental measurements. Information about the evolution of the microscopic structures of the Al2O3 films is generated, and the influence of operation parameters on the Al2O3 ALD process. The simulations predict a strong influence of the initial surface composition and process temperature on the surface roughness, growth rate and growth mode of the deposited films.

Tuning the Adsorption Interactions of Imidazole Derivatives with Specific Metal Cations

In this work, we report a computational study of the interactions between metal cations and imidazole derivatives in the gas phase. We first performed a systematic assessment of various density functionals and basis sets for predicting the binding energies between metal cations and the imidazoles. We find that the M11L functional in combination with the 6-311++G(d,p) basis set provides the best compromise between accuracy and computational cost with our metal···imidazole complexes. We then evaluated the binding of a series of metal cations, including Li(+), Na(+), K(+), Co(2+), Ni(2+), Cu(2+), Zn(2+), Cd(2+), Ba(2+), Hg(2+), and Pb(2+), with several substituted imidazole derivatives. We find that electron-donating groups increase the metal-binding energy, whereas electron-withdrawing groups decrease the metal-binding energy. Furthermore, the binding energy trends can be rationalized by the hardness of the metal cations and imidazole derivatives, providing a quick way to estimate the metal···imidazole binding strength. This insight can enable efficient screening protocols for identifying effective imidazole-based solvents and membranes for metal adsorption and provide a framework for understanding metal···imidazole interactions in biological systems.