Yueming Li

P25-Graphene Composite as a High Performance Photocatalyst

Herein we obtained a chemically bonded TiO(2) (P25)-graphene nanocomposite photocatalyst with graphene oxide and P25, using a facile one-step hydrothermal method. During the hydrothermal reaction, both of the reduction of graphene oxide and loading of P25 were achieved. The as-prepared P25-graphene photocatalyst possessed great adsorptivity of dyes, extended light absorption range, and efficient charge separation properties simultaneously, which was rarely reported in other TiO(2)-carbon photocatalysts. Hence, in the photodegradation of methylene blue, a significant enhancement in the reaction rate was observed with P25-graphene, compared to the bare P25 and P25-CNTs with the same carbon content. Overall, this work could provide new insights into the fabrication of a TiO(2)-carbon composite as high performance photocatalysts and facilitate their application in the environmental protection issues.

Noncovalent DNA decorations of graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide toward water-soluble metal–carbon hybrid nanostructures via self-assembly

Non-covalent DNA decorations on the basal planes of graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide nanosheets are realized. The resulting DNA–carbon bioconjugates (DNA–GO or DNA–RGO) bearing multiple thiol groups tagged on DNA strands are then employed to scaffold the two-dimensional self-assembly of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) into metal–carbon hybrid nanostructures (namely AuNP–DNA–GO or AuNP–DNA–RGO) that may find important applications in various aspects. The resulting heteronanostructures incorporating metal nanoparticles obtained by self-assembly are highly stable and water-soluble, and can be easily isolated by gel electrophoresis to guarantee high purity. Thanks to the noncovalent features of this method, either GO or RGO do not suffer from any permanent alterations of their structures and properties. In addition, the nanoparticles still maintain their optical absorbance after being assembled, and the assembly process is highly specific. This self-assembly based method for constructing heterostructured materials is excellent at overcoming any incompatibilities between nanoparticle syntheses and the formation of hybrid structures. As a result, this strategy is easily adaptable to various other materials other than gold nanoparticles and also favors the combinatorial assembly of multiple nanophases on a single nanosheet.

Ordered Assembly of NiCo2O4 Multiple Hierarchical Structures for High-Performance Pseudocapacitors

The design and development of nanomaterials has become central to the advancement of pseudocapacitive performance. Many one-dimensional nanostructures (1D NSs), two-dimensional nanostructures (2D NSs), and three-dimensional hierarchical structures (3D HSs) composed of these building blocks have been synthesized as pseudocapacitive materials via different methods. However, due to the unclear assembly mechanism of these NSs, reports of HSs simultaneously assembled from two or more types of NSs are rare. In this article, NiCo2O4 multiple hierarchical structures (MHSs) composed of 1D nanowires and 2D nanosheets are simply grown on Ni foam using an ordered two-step hydrothermal synthesis followed by annealing processing. The low-dimensional nanowire is found to hold priority in the growth order, rather than the high-dimensional nanosheet, thus effectively promoting the integration of these different NSs in the assembly of the NiCo2O4 MHSs. With vast electroactive surface area and favorable mesoporous architecture, the NiCo2O4 MHSs exhibit a high specific capacitance of up to 2623.3 F g(-1), scaled to the active mass of the NiCo2O4 sample at a current density of 1 A g(-1). A nearly constant rate performance of 68% is achieved at a current density ranging from 1 to 40 A g(-1), and the sample retains approximately 94% of its maximum capacitance even after 3000 continuous charge-discharge cycles at a consistently high current density of 10 A g(-1).

Strong reduced graphene oxide–polymer composites: hydrogels and wires

By in situ chemical reduction of graphite oxide (GO) mixed with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), we successfully fabricated reduced graphene oxide (rGO)–PVA composite hydrogels with improved dispersion and load transfer in their composites. The rGO–PVA composite wires were made by thermal-drawing or by directly drawing from the rGO–PVA dispersion and their mechanical properties were rapidly evaluated using a microfabricated tuning fork device. It was found that the Youngs modulus of the polymer composites increase by ca. 200% with only 0.68 vol % addition of the rGO. The thermal properties of the composites were studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and it was observed that the addition of graphene to PVA greatly improves the thermal stability of the composites. Raman spectroscopy revealed the existence of an interaction between the graphene and the polymer via the shift in the vibration bands of the graphene in the composites.

High performance binderless TiO2 nanowire arrays electrode for lithium-ion battery

Binderless lithium ion battery electrode fabricated by anodizing Ti foil, in which TiO2 nanowire serves as active materials and unreacted Ti foil as the current collector, exhibited high electrochemical performance.

Microstructure and thermal characteristic of Si-coated multi-walled carbon nanotubes

The carbon nanotube (CNT) is a promising reinforcement material for manufacturing metal-or ceramic-based composites. However, CNTs are prone to interact with the matrix in a reactive atmosphere that often alters the structure and properties of CNTs and depresses their reinforcing effect. To overcome this problem, a protective silicon layer has been deposited on multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) using cycled vacuum-feeding chemical vapour deposition by the in situ decomposition of gaseous SiH4. The silicon coating is well covered and continuous with a cubic-phase structure. It effectively improves the thermal stability of MWNTs by acting as a protective film, which inhibits and delays the onset of oxidation. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) reveals that the oxidation of Si-coated MWNTs occurs at a temperature of 676.3 °C, which is 105.1 °C higher than that of uncoated MWNTs, and the weight loss decreases with the increasing thickness of silicon coating.

Direct electrochemistry of hemoglobin immobilized in CuO nanowire bundles

It is one of main challenges to find the suitable materials to enhance the direct electron transfer between the electrode and redox protein for direct electrochemistry field. Nano-structured metal oxides have attracted considerable interest because of unique properties, well biocompatibility, and good stability. In this paper, the copper oxide nanowire bundles (CuO NWBs) were prepared via a template route, and the bioelectrochemical performances of hemoglobin (Hb) on the CuO NWBs modified glass carbon electrodes (denoted as Hb-CuO NWBs/GC) were studied. TEM and XRD were used to characterize the morphology and structure of the as synthesized CuO NWBs. Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) proved that Hb in the CuO NWBs matrix could retain its native secondary structure. A pair of well-defined and quasi-reversible redox peaks at approximately -0.325 V (vs. Ag/AgCl saturated KCl) were shown in the cyclic voltammogram curve for the Hb-CuO NWBs/GC electrode, which indicated the direct electrochemical behavior. The Hb-CuO NWBs/GC electrode also displayed a good electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of hydrogen peroxide. These results indicate that the CuO NWBs are good substrates for immobilization of biomolecules and might be promising in the fields of (bio) electrochemical analysis.

Preparation of Ce- and La-Doped Li4Ti5O12 Nanosheets and Their Electrochemical Performance in Li Half Cell and Li4Ti5O12/LiFePO4 Full Cell Batteries

This work reports on the synthesis of rare earth-doped Li4Ti5O12 nanosheets with high electrochemical performance as anode material both in Li half and Li4Ti5O12/LiFePO4 full cell batteries. Through the combination of decreasing the particle size and doping by rare earth atoms (Ce and La), Ce and La doped Li4Ti5O12 nanosheets show the excellent electrochemical performance in terms of high specific capacity, good cycling stability and excellent rate performance in half cells. Notably, the Ce-doped Li4Ti5O12 shows good electrochemical performance as anode in a full cell which LiFePO4 was used as cathode. The superior electrochemical performance can be attributed to doping as well as the nanosized particle, which facilitates transportation of the lithium ion and electron transportation. This research shows that the rare earth doped Li4Ti5O12 nanosheets can be suitable as a high rate performance anode material in lithium-ion batteries.

MOF-derived, CeO x -modified CoP/carbon composites for oxygen evolution and hydrogen evolution reactions

Development of low-cost, highly efficient catalysts for water splitting is required to replace precious metal catalysts. CeOx-modified CoP@carbon composites are prepared via Ce-doped metal–organic frameworks. The as-prepared CeOx-modified CoP@carbon composites have excellent electrocatalytic activity with respect to the oxygen evolution reaction, for which an overpotential (η) up tou2009~u2009313xa0mV is achieved at the current density of 10xa0mAxa0cm−2. In addition, CeOx-modified CoP@carbon composites show an overpotential of up to 127xa0mV at the current density of 10xa0mAxa0cm−2 for the hydrogen evolution reaction, showing excellent catalytic activity for water splitting.