Yingju Liu

Photoreduction of CO2 to methanol over Bi2S3/CdS photocatalyst under visible light irradiation

Abstract The Bi 2 S 3 , CdS and Bi 2 S 3 /CdS photocatalysts were prepared by direct reactions between their corresponding salt and thiourea in a hydrothermal autoclave. The photocatalytic activities of these photocatalysts for reducing CO 2 to CH 3 OH under visible light irradiation have been investigated. The results show that the photocatalytic activity and visible light response of Bi 2 S 3 are higher than those of CdS. The Bi 2 S 3 modification can enhance the photocatalytic activity and visible light response of CdS. The photocatalytic activity of Bi 2 S 3 /CdS hetero-junction photocatalyst was the highest and the highest yields of methanol was 613 μmol/g when the weight proportion of Bi 2 S 3 to CdS was 15%, which was about three times as large as that of CdS or two times of that of Bi 2 S 3 .

Rational Construction of Strongly Coupled Metal–Metal Oxide–Graphene Nanostructure with Excellent Electrocatalytic Activity and Durability

The interaction within heterogeneous nanostructures can provide a great opportunity to radically enhance their electrocatalytic properties and increase their activity and durability. Here a rational, simple, and integrated strategy is reported to construct uniform and strongly coupled metal-metal oxide-graphene nanostructure as an electrocatalyst with high performance. We first simply synthesized the interacted SnO2-prGO (protected and reduced graphene oxide) hybrid with SnO2 nanoparticles (∼4 nm) selectively anchored on the oxygenated defects of rGO using an in situ redox and hydrolysis reaction. After the deposition of Pt, uniform Pt NPs are found to contact intimately and exclusively with the SnO2 phase in the SnO2-prGO hybrid. This constructed nanostructure (Pt-SnO2-prGO) exhibits significantly improved electrocatalytic activity (2.19-fold) and durability (2.08-fold) toward methanol oxidation over that of the state-of-the-art Pt/C catalyst. The detailed explanation of the strong coupling between SnO2 and graphene as well as between Pt and SnO2 is discussed, revealing that such a process can be used to immobilize various metal catalysts on metal-oxide-decorated catalysts for realizing advanced catalytic systems with enhanced performance.

Growth–Dissolution–Regrowth Transitions of Fe3O4 Nanoparticles as Building Blocks for 3D Magnetic Nanoparticle Clusters under Hydrothermal Conditions

Magnetic nanoparticle clusters (MNCs) are a class of secondary structural materials that comprise chemically defined nanoparticles assembled into clusters of defined size. Herein, MNCs are fabricated through a one-pot solvothermal reaction featuring self-limiting assembly of building blocks and the controlled reorganization process. Such growth-dissolution-regrowth fabrication mechanism overcomes some limitations of conventional solvothermal fabrication methods with regard to restricted available feature size and structural complexity, which can be extended to other oxides (as long as one can be chelated by EDTA-2Na). Based on this method, the nanoparticle size of MNCs is tuned between 6.8 and 31.2 nm at a fixed cluster diameter of 120 nm, wherein the critical size for superparamagnetic-ferromagnetic transition is estimated from 13.5 to 15.7 nm. Control over the nature and secondary structure of MNCs gives an excellent model system to understand the nanoparticle size-dependent magnetic properties of MNCs. MNCs have potential applications in many different areas, while this work evaluates their cytotoxicity and Pb(2+) adsorption capacity as initial application study.

Constructing Multifunctional Metallic Ni Interface Layers in the g-C3N4 Nanosheets/Amorphous NiS Heterojunctions for Efficient Photocatalytic H2 Generation

The construction of exceptionally robust and high-quality semiconductor-cocatalyst heterojunctions remains a grand challenge toward highly efficient and durable solar-to-fuel conversion. Herein, novel graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheets decorated with multifunctional metallic Ni interface layers and amorphous NiS cocatalysts were fabricated via a facile three-step process: the loading of Ni(OH)2 nanosheets, high-temperature H2 reduction, and further deposition of amorphous NiS nanosheets. The results demonstrated that both robust metallic Ni interface layers and amorphous NiS can be utilized as electron cocatalysts to markedly boost the visible-light H2 evolution over g-C3N4 semiconductor. The optimized g-C3N4-based photocatalyst containing 0.5 wt % Ni and 1.0 wt % NiS presented the highest hydrogen evolution of 515 μmol g-1 h-1, which was about 2.8 and 4.6 times as much as those obtained on binary g-C3N4-1.0%NiS and g-C3N4-0.5%Ni, respectively. Apparently, the metallic Ni interface layers play multifunctional roles in enhancing the visible-light H2 evolution, which could first collect the photogenerated electrons from g-C3N4, and then accelerate the surface H2-evolution reaction kinetics over amorphous NiS cocatalysts. More interestingly, the synergetic effects of metallic Ni and amorphous NiS dual-layer electron cocatalysts could also improve the TEOA-oxidation capacity through upshifting the VB levels of g-C3N4. Comparatively speaking, the multifunctional metallic Ni layers are dominantly favorable for separating and transferring photoexcited charge carriers from g-C3N4 to amorphous NiS cocatalysts owing to the formation of Schottky junctions, whereas the amorphous NiS nanosheets are mainly advantageous for decreasing the thermodynamic overpotentials for surface H2-evolution reactions. It is hoped that the implantation of multifunctional metallic interface layers can provide a versatile approach to enhance the photocatalytic H2 generation over different semiconductor-cocatalyst heterojunctions.

Metal-free carbon nanotube–SiC nanowire heterostructures with enhanced photocatalytic H2 evolution under visible light irradiation

In this report, metal-free multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)–SiC nanowire 1D–1D nanoheterostructures were successfully synthesized by an in situ chemical reaction between MWCNTs and silicon powder. A vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) mechanism was found to be responsible for in situ growth of SiC nanowires along MWCNTs. The structure, morphology and composition of the as-obtained MWCNT–SiC 1D–1D samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and UV-vis absorption spectroscopy. The H2 evolution photoactivities of the resultant MWCNT–SiC nanoheterostructures under visible light irradiation were also investigated. Results showed that the metal-free MWCNT–SiC 1D–1D nanoheterostructures exhibited the highest H2 evolution rate among all samples, up to 108 μmol g−1 h−1, which was 3.1 times higher than that of pure SiC without MWCNTs. It suggests that the H2 evolution activity enhancement of the MWCNT–SiC 1D–1D nanocomposites under visible light irradiation is mainly attributed to the synergistic effects of enhanced separation efficiency of photogenerated hole–electron pairs at the MWCNT–SiC interfaces, improved crystallinity, unique 1D–1D nanoheterostructures and increased visible light absorption. The present work not only gives new insights into the underlying photocatalysis mechanism of the metal-free MWCNT–SiC 1D–1D nanoheterostructures but also provides a versatile strategy to design 1D–1D nanocomposite photocatalysts, with great potential applications in photocatalytic H2 generation or environmental pollutant degradation.

A multi-walled carbon nanotubes-poly(L-lysine) modified enantioselective immunosensor for ofloxacin by using multi-enzyme-labeled gold nanoflower as signal enhancer.

The enantioselective detection of trace amounts of ofloxacin is very important in many fields. In this work, an enantioselective and sensitive electrochemical immunosensor was constructed for the detection of chiral antibiotic ofloxacin based on a dual amplification strategy using multiwall carbon nanotubes-poly(L-lysine) as a matrix to immobilize the antigen and multi-enzyme-antibody functionalized gold nanoflowers as an electrochemical detection label. The fabrication process of the dual-amplified immunosensor was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, cyclic voltammogram and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, respectively. After the optimization of the experimental conditions, a competitive immunoassay, i.e., the association ability with the corresponding antibody between the captured antigen and free S-OFL or R-OFL in the solution, showed that the immunosensor exhibited a sensitive response to S-OFL in the range from 0.26 to 25.6 ng/mL with a detection limit of 0.15 ng/mL as well as a sensitive response to R-OFL in the range from 0.37 to 12.8 ng/mL with a detection limit of 0.30 ng/mL. Along with the acceptable sensitivity and stability, the S-OFL or R-OFL immunosensor showed selective ability to its corresponding enantiomer, suggesting this amplification strategy may hold a potential application in the detection of OFL in food or environment.

Electrochemical immunoassay of benzo[a]pyrene based on dual amplification strategy of electron-accelerated Fe3O4/polyaniline platform and multi-enzyme-functionalized carbon sphere label

An electrochemical immunosensor, basing on a dual amplification strategy by employing a biocompatible Fe(3)O(4)/polyaniline/Nafion (Fe(3)O(4)/PANI/Nafion) layer as sensor platform and multi-enzyme-antibody functionalized highly-carbonized spheres (multi-HRP-HCS-Ab(2)) as label, was constructed for sensitive detection of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP). The stable film, Fe(3)O(4)/PANI/Nafion, can not only immobilize biomolecules, but also catalyze the reduction of hydrogen peroxide, indicating an accelerated electron transfer pathway of the platform. The experimental conditions, including the concentration of Nafion, concentration of Fe(3)O(4)/polyaniline (Fe(3)O(4)/PANI), pH of the detection solution and concentrations of biomolecules, were studied in detail. Basing on a competitive immunoassay, the current change was proportional to the logarithm of BaP concentration in the range of 8 pM and 2 nM with the detection limit of 4 pM. The proposed immunosensor exhibited acceptable reproducibility and stability. This new type of dual amplification strategy may provide potential applications for the detection of environmental pollutants.

Ultra-thin SiC layer covered graphene nanosheets as advanced photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution

Herein, for the first time, ultra-thin SiC nanoparticles or ultra-thin layer covered graphene nanosheets were successfully prepared via using a facile in situ vapor–solid reaction. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, UV-visible spectroscopy, photoluminescence spectra analysis, Raman spectra, transient photocurrent responses and transmission electron microscopy. The photocatalytic activities were also evaluated by H2 evolution from pure water or water containing Na2S as an electron donor. The resulting SiC–graphene hybrids show enhanced photocatalytic H2-evolution activities in the presence of an electron donor. Especially, the graphene nanosheet and SiC nanocrystal hybrids show the highest photocatalytic activity in H2 production under visible light, which is about 10 times higher than that of the SiC nanocrystals. The enhanced activities of the SiC–graphene hybrids can be attributed to their 2D nanosheet structures, large surface area, enhanced visible-light absorption and rapid interfacial charge transfer from SiC to graphene. Our results can provide an effective approach to synthesize graphene-based heterogeneous nanocomposites for a wide variety of potential applications in solar energy conversion and storage, separation, and purification processes.

Tin dioxide@carbon core-shell nanoarchitectures anchored on wrinkled graphene for ultrafast and stable lithium storage.

The SnO2@C@GS composites as a new type of 3D nanoarchitecture have been successfully synthesized by a facile hydrothermal process followed by a sintering strategy. Such a 3D nanoarchitecture is made up of SnO2@C core-shell nanospheres and nanochains anchored on wrinkled graphene sheets (GSs). Transmission electron microscopy shows that these core-shell nanoparticles consist of 3-9 nm diameter secondary SnO2 nanoparticles embedded in about 50 nm diameter primary carbon nanospheres. Large quantities of core-shell nanoparticles are uniformly attached to the surface of wrinkled graphene nanosheets, with a portion of them further connected into nanochains. This new 3D nanoarchitecture consists of two different kinds of carbon-buffering matrixes, i.e., the carbon layer produced by glucose carbonization and the added GS template, leading to enhanced lithium storage properties. The lithium-cycling properties of the SnO2@C@GS composite have been evaluated by galvanostatic discharge-charge cycling and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Results show that the SnO2@C@GS composite has discharge capacities of 883.5, 845.7, and 830.5 mA h g(-1) in the 20th, 50th and 100th cycles, respectively, at a current density of 200 mA g(-1) and delivers a desirable discharge capacity of 645.2 mA h g(-1) at a rate of 1680 mA g(-1). This new 3D nanoarchitecture exhibits a high capability and excellent cycling and rate performance, holding great potential as a high-rate and stable anode material for lithium storage.

Prolactin plays a stimulatory role in ovarian follicular development and egg laying in chicken hens

The aim of this study was to show a stimulatory role in ovarian follicle development by prolactin (PRL) in chicken hens. In experiment 1, anti-PRL antibodies were generated in hen plasma by intramuscular administrations of recombinant PRL antigen. Egg laying remained at levels lower (P < 0.05) in the PRL-immunized group than in the BSA-immunized group of hens, whereas development of incubation was depressed in the former but not the latter group. Throughout the experiment, plasma PRL concentrations were lower in the PRL-immunized hens than in non-incubating control hens; LH concentrations were similar between the PRL- and BSA-immunized hens until the end of the experiment when LH was lower in the BSA-immunized hens (P < 0.05). In experiment 2, anti-PRL receptor (PRLR) antibodies were raised in hens with the use of immunizations against recombinant PRLR extracellular domain. Immunization against PRLR initially increased the egg-laying rate when measured under the short photoperiod (12 h) but blocked the laying rate increase that occurred in the BSA-immunized control hens when the photoperiod was extended from 12 to 16 h. The development of incubation behavior was not affected by immunization against PRLR nor was plasma PRL or LH concentration. In experiment 3, when the egg-laying rate was depressed in PRL immunization hens, developmental speed of large white follicles was found to be slower than in the BSA-immunized control hens (P < 0.05). These results indicate that immunization against PRL slows down ovarian follicular development and reduces hen egg-laying performance, suggesting that PRL plays a stimulatory role in ovarian follicular development in chicken hens.