Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Commons^™

Plasmonic Photocatalysis For Gas-Phase Degradation Of Total Volatile Organic Compounds: Theory, Experimentation, And Catalyst Stability, Amaury P. Betancourt Iii

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Plasmonic nanomaterials have become a strong contender for improving the efficiency of photocatalytic degradation of air pollutants. This study demonstrates an easy and scalable fabrication method, employing electron beam evaporation and rapid thermal annealing, for producing plasmonic photocatalysts. Samples were made by either coating silver on, or layering silica-protected (i.e., silica-coated) or unprotected (i.e., uncoated) silver beneath, the photocatalyst (either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide). Stability and catalytic performance for gas-phase toluene degradation was assessed by monitoring total volatile organic compound (TVOC) concentration versus ultraviolet-A (UV-A) illumination time in a recirculating batch reactor (plate-type flow-through). Samples were characterized using a …

Insights Into The Epitaxial Relationships Between One-Dimensional Nanomaterials And Metal Catalyst Surfaces Using Density Functional Theory Calculations, Debosruti Dutta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation involves the study of epitaxial behavior of one-dimensional nanomaterials like single-walled carbon nanotubes and Indium Arsenide nanowires grown on metallic catalyst surfaces. It has been previously observed in our novel microplasma based CVD growth of SWCNTs on Ni-Fe bimetallic nanoparticles that changes in the metal catalyst composition was accompanied by variations in the average metal-metal bond lengths of the nanoparticle and that in turn, affected nanotube chirality distributions. In this dissertation, we have developed a very simplistic model of the metal catalyst in order to explain the nanotube growth of specific nanotube chiralities on various Ni-Fe catalyst surfaces. …

Application And Characterization Of Self-Assembled Monolayers In Hybrid Electronic Systems, Michael Enoch Celesin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, we explore ultra-thin insulators of organic and inorganic composition and their potential role as high-speed rectifiers. Typical applications for these structures include IR sensing, chemical detection, high speed logic circuits, and MEMS enhancements. While there are many elements in the functional group required to create a rectifying antenna (rectenna), the primary thrust of this work is on the rectifier element itself.

To achieve these research goals, a very good understanding of quantum tunneling was required to model the underlying phenomenon of charge conduction. The development of a multi-variable optimization routine for tunneling prediction was required. MATLAB was …