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Full-Text Articles in Chemistry

Understanding The Influence Of Interfacial Chemistry In Core, Core/Shell And Core/Shell/Shell Quantum Dots On Their Fluorescence Properties, Omondi Bernard Omogo May 2014

Understanding The Influence Of Interfacial Chemistry In Core, Core/Shell And Core/Shell/Shell Quantum Dots On Their Fluorescence Properties, Omondi Bernard Omogo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals (quantum dots) have received a great deal of attention due to their superior size tunable properties and promising applications in many areas. Some of the most practical areas of their applications include light emitting diodes (LED), photovoltaic and biological studies. Synthetic methods of these crystals is becoming more established with new strategies being reported every now and then. However, quantitative studies connecting the processes at the interface, namely core-ligand, core-shell and shell-shells, to the overall quantum dots fluorescence properties are not well understood. Specifically for cores, relating surface-atoms interactions, solvents, ligands nature, density and functional groups on …


In Situ Detection On Electrochemical Chloride Removal Of Reinforcement In Concrete By Combined Ph/Cl- Probes, Jing-Jing Wang, Shi-Gang Dong, Xiao-Juan Zhang, Hong-Wei Lv, Yun-Chang Wu, Rong-Gui Du, Chang-Jian Lin Apr 2014

In Situ Detection On Electrochemical Chloride Removal Of Reinforcement In Concrete By Combined Ph/Cl- Probes, Jing-Jing Wang, Shi-Gang Dong, Xiao-Juan Zhang, Hong-Wei Lv, Yun-Chang Wu, Rong-Gui Du, Chang-Jian Lin

Journal of Electrochemistry

In this work, the concrete samples polluted by chloride ion were electrochemically treated using galvanostatic technique, and the distributions of chloride ion concentration and pH value in the polluted concretes were in-situ monitored by embedding a combined pH/Cl- probe during the electrochemical chloride removal. The corrosion behaviors of reinforcing steel in the concrete were simultaneously studied by using linear polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques (EIS). The micro environment of the concrete and corrosion rate of steel were explored during the electrochemical chloride removal. It was indicated that the Cl- concentration in the concrete pore solution decreased with …


Preparation And Electrochemical Performances Of Cofe2O4/Gns Nanocomposites As Anode Material For Lithium Ion Battery, Mo-Chao Cai, Sen-Rong Cai, Ming-Sen Zheng, Quan-Feng Dong Apr 2014

Preparation And Electrochemical Performances Of Cofe2O4/Gns Nanocomposites As Anode Material For Lithium Ion Battery, Mo-Chao Cai, Sen-Rong Cai, Ming-Sen Zheng, Quan-Feng Dong

Journal of Electrochemistry

The CoFe2O4/GNS was synthesized by a simple one-pot solvothermal method. The results obtained by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that the CoFe2O4 particles with sizes of 15 nm dispersed on the surface of graphene uniformly. Electrochemical tests indicated that the CoFe2O4/GNS nanocomposite exhibited excellent cyclic stability with almost 95.8% capacity retention after 100 cycles at the current density of 500 mA·g-1 and delivered a high reversible capacity of 482 mAh·g-1 at the current density of 2 A·g-1.


Synthesis Of Platinum Nanocrystallites And Possible Electrocatalytic Properties For Methanol, Lei-Lei Lu, Bao-Zhong Du, Sha Sun, Jin-Fen Niu, Jie Zhao Apr 2014

Synthesis Of Platinum Nanocrystallites And Possible Electrocatalytic Properties For Methanol, Lei-Lei Lu, Bao-Zhong Du, Sha Sun, Jin-Fen Niu, Jie Zhao

Journal of Electrochemistry

Platinum nanocrystallites were synthesized by the colloidal method using oxamide as the stabilizer. The morphologies and electrocatalytic performances for methanol of platinum nanocrystallites prepared at different pH values and with different reactant ratios of precursor and stabilizer were investigated. It was found that the platinum nanocrystallites synthesized at pH=5 and with the reactant ratio of 1:20 showed the best electrocatalytic activity for methanol. The peak current density reached up to 1709 μA·cm-2. Furthermore, the electrocatalytic activity of platinum nanocrystallites for methanol reduced significantly although the cyclic voltammograms in the blank solution were not obviously changed after exposing in …


Fabrication And Electrochemical Properties Of Graphene-Zno Nanocomposite, Chuan-Ling Men, Wan Wang, Jun Cao Apr 2014

Fabrication And Electrochemical Properties Of Graphene-Zno Nanocomposite, Chuan-Ling Men, Wan Wang, Jun Cao

Journal of Electrochemistry

In this work, the graphene-ZnO nanocomposite was successfully synthesized through a one-step solvothermal approach, using ethylene glycol as the solvent and reducing agent. The ZnO particles could be attached to the surfaces and edges of graphene sheet. The electrochemical performance of the nanocomposite was investigated by performing cyclic voltammetry, A.C. impedance and chronopotentiometry tests in 6 mol·L-1 KOH. The results showed that the graphene-ZnO nanocomposite exhibited a nice electrochemical specific capacitance of 115 F·g-1 determined in cyclic voltammetry test, or 71 F·g-1 evaluated in chronopotentiometry test and good reversible charge/discharge behavior.


Electrochemical Behavior Of Ionic Liquid Confined Into Nanopores Of Silica Gel Matrix, Zuo-Peng Li, Ya-Qiong Wen, Mei-Xia Wu, Yong Guo Apr 2014

Electrochemical Behavior Of Ionic Liquid Confined Into Nanopores Of Silica Gel Matrix, Zuo-Peng Li, Ya-Qiong Wen, Mei-Xia Wu, Yong Guo

Journal of Electrochemistry

Imidazolium Ionic liquids (ILs) nano aggregates confined into nanopores of silica gel matrices (ILs-sg) modified electrodes were prepared by sol-gel process and characterized by cyclic voltammetry. Furthermore, the amounts of 15% ~ 28% ILs-sg and nano aggregates coated with ILs silica gel (ILs/sg) were prepared and their conductivities were evaluated by performing electrochemical AC impedance measurements from 20 oC to 80 oC. The abnormal results showed that, 1) comparing with the bulk IL, the confined IL had a positive shift effect of Fc/Fc+ redox potential; 2) when IL confined into a nanospace, the electrochemical stability became poor; 3) …


The Development Of 6.7% Efficient Copper Zinc Indium Selenide Devices From Copper Zinc Indium Sulfide Nanocrystal Inks, Brian Kemp Graeser Apr 2014

The Development Of 6.7% Efficient Copper Zinc Indium Selenide Devices From Copper Zinc Indium Sulfide Nanocrystal Inks, Brian Kemp Graeser

Open Access Theses

As solar cell absorber materials, alloys of CuIn(S,Se)2 and Zn(S,Se) provide an opportunity to reduce the usage of indium along with the ability to tune the band gap. Here we report successful synthesis of alloyed (CuInS2 )0.5(ZnS)0.5 nanocrystals by a method that solely uses oleylamine as the liquid medium for synthesis. The reactive sintering of a thin film of these nanocrystals via selenization at 500 °C results in a uniform composition alloy (CuIn(S,Se)2 )0.5 (Zn(S,Se)) 0.5 layer with micron size grains. Due to the large amount of zinc in the film, the sintered grains exhibit the zinc blende structure instead …


Size-Dependent Interactions Of Metal Nanoparticles With Fluorophores And Semiconductors, Liyana A. Wajira Ariyadasa Apr 2014

Size-Dependent Interactions Of Metal Nanoparticles With Fluorophores And Semiconductors, Liyana A. Wajira Ariyadasa

Dissertations

In recent years, nanoscale metallic particles have gained considerable interest due to their potential applications in advanced technology. Despite such interest, synthetic procedures that produce gram-scale, well-defined metallic nanoparticles with controlled size and shape, especially with diameters less than 5 nm remains a challenge. Our work has focused on developing synthetic procedures that produce well-defined platinum and palladium metal nanoparticles in the 1-5 nm size range. Thioether ligands were used as stabilizers and resulted in metal nanoparticles with controlled size. The nanoparticles were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy …


Pulse Electrodeposition Of Pd-Ni Alloy Nanoparticles For Electrocatalytic Oxidation Of Formic Acid, Fang-Zu Yang, Jun-Pei Yue, Zhong-Qun Tian, Shao-Min Zhou Feb 2014

Pulse Electrodeposition Of Pd-Ni Alloy Nanoparticles For Electrocatalytic Oxidation Of Formic Acid, Fang-Zu Yang, Jun-Pei Yue, Zhong-Qun Tian, Shao-Min Zhou

Journal of Electrochemistry

The Pd-Ni alloy nanoparticles with nickel atomic contents of 12.0%, 16.4% and 22.6% were successfully electrodeposited from a Pd-Ni alloy electrolyte by square wave pulse plating. The alloy nanoparticles were in the spherical shape with a diameter of 50 ~ 80 nm. As the growth potential of the alloy was negatively shifted, the nickel content of the alloy was increased, and the size of the nanoparticles was almost the same, whereas the number, the degree of crosslinking and the real active area of the nanoparticles were increased. As the nickel content of the alloy nanoparticles increased, the peak current for …


Surface Structure And Electrochemical Performance Of Zno Coated Lini1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2, Chang-Wei Liu, Yu Wang, Yu-Zhong Guo, Lu-Lu Dan, Jian-Hua Wang Feb 2014

Surface Structure And Electrochemical Performance Of Zno Coated Lini1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2, Chang-Wei Liu, Yu Wang, Yu-Zhong Guo, Lu-Lu Dan, Jian-Hua Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The surface of LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 particles were modified by ZnO. Surface structure and electrochemical properties of the coated materials were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electrochemical tests. The results show that a ZnO coating affects the surface composition of LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 particles. The surface contents of nickel and manganese increase with the amount of ZnO coating. ZnO can react with LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 and a complex oxide is formed during the heat-treatment at above 400 oC. The …


Design And Development Of A Novel Glucose Biosensor Based On The Ferrocene-Functionalized Fe3O4 Nanoparticles/Carbon Nanotubes/Chitosan Nanocomposite Film Modified Electrode, Hua-Ping Peng, Dai-Jun Zha, Wei Chen, Ai-Lin Liu, Xin-Hua Lin Feb 2014

Design And Development Of A Novel Glucose Biosensor Based On The Ferrocene-Functionalized Fe3O4 Nanoparticles/Carbon Nanotubes/Chitosan Nanocomposite Film Modified Electrode, Hua-Ping Peng, Dai-Jun Zha, Wei Chen, Ai-Lin Liu, Xin-Hua Lin

Journal of Electrochemistry

A novel platform for the fabrication of glucose biosensor was successfully constructed by entrapping glucose oxidase (GOD) in a ferrocene monocarboxylic acid-aminated Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles conjugate (FMC-AFNPs)/chitosan (CS)/multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) nanocomposite. The formation of FMC-AFNPs could effectively prevent the leakage of ferrocene and retain its electrochemical activity. This GOD/FMC-AFNPs/CS/MWNTs matrix provided a biocompatible microenvironment for retaining the native activity of the immobilized GOD. Moreover, the presence of MWNTs enhanced the charge-transport properties of the composite and facilitated electron transfer between the GOD and the electrode for the electrocatalysis of glucose. Under the optimal conditions the designed …


Underpotential Deposition Of Germanium On Au(111) And Pt(111) Surfaces In Ionic Liquids, Xu-Fen Xie, Jia-Wei Yan, Jing-Hong Liang, Ji-Jun Li, Meng Zhang, Bing-Wei Mao Feb 2014

Underpotential Deposition Of Germanium On Au(111) And Pt(111) Surfaces In Ionic Liquids, Xu-Fen Xie, Jia-Wei Yan, Jing-Hong Liang, Ji-Jun Li, Meng Zhang, Bing-Wei Mao

Journal of Electrochemistry

The underpotential deposition (UPD) of germanium (Ge) in BMIPF6 ionic liquids on Au(111) and Pt(111) surfaces have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and in-situ scannin tunneling microscopy (STM). The CV results show that there are two reduction peaks related to the electrodeposition of Ge. The first reduction peak appeared in the CV curve may cover the transformation of Ge4+ to Ge2+ and the UPD of Ge. The second reduction peak corresponds to the bulk deposition of Ge. In-situ STM study suggests that the two UPD layers of Ge are formed on Au(111) and Pt(111) surfaces. The …


A New Nonenzymatic Glucose Sensor Based On The Cuo Nanoplatelets, Yan-Cai Li, Fu-Ying Huang, Shun-Xing Li, Jie Chen, Shu-Qing Feng, Fei Wang Feb 2014

A New Nonenzymatic Glucose Sensor Based On The Cuo Nanoplatelets, Yan-Cai Li, Fu-Ying Huang, Shun-Xing Li, Jie Chen, Shu-Qing Feng, Fei Wang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The CuO nanoplatelets were synthesized by hydrothermal method. The structure and morphology of the CuO nanoplatelets were characterized by TEM and XRD. A new nonenzymatic glucose sensor was constructed by immobilizing the CuO nanoplatelets on glassy carbon electrode with Nafion. The electrochemical performance of the CuO/Nafion/GCE for the detection of glucose was investigated by cyclic voltammetry and current-time curve. The experiment results showed that the linear dependence of the sensor was 0.01 to 0.3 mmol·L-1 for glucose with a sensitivity of 1783.58 μA·mmol-1·L·cm-2, and the detection limit of the sensor was 0.80 μmol·L-1 (S/N …


Property Enhancements Of Dielectric Nanoparticles Via Surface Functionalization, Andrew Byro Feb 2014

Property Enhancements Of Dielectric Nanoparticles Via Surface Functionalization, Andrew Byro

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis describes the surface modification of barium strontium titanate nanoparticles for use in polymer/ceramic composite thin film capacitors with resultant improved dielectric and film-making properties. Phosphonic acid-type ligands proved to be most effective for surface conjugation to the surface of the barium strontium titanate nanoparticles. Amine-terminated ligands proved to be effective at removing surface adsorbed water before being almost entirely removed during the sample washing stage. Carboxylic acid terminated ligands proved to adhere less well to the nanoparticle than the phosphonic acid, but resulted in thin films with a higher dielectric constant, which was more stable in the measured …


Fabrication And Assembly Of Patchy Particles With Uniform Patches, Zhenping He Feb 2014

Fabrication And Assembly Of Patchy Particles With Uniform Patches, Zhenping He

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Patchy colloidal particles have been widely studied as the self-assembly building blocks to illustrate their potential for forming complex structures. The parameters affecting the final assembly structures include (i) patch size, shape, and number per particle, (ii) their relative positions, and (iii) the surface properties of the patch material. Recent computational studies have highlighted the impact of patch shape on assembly structure; however, there are only a limited number of methods that can provide control over patch shape and size. In this thesis, a template is introduced to the Glancing Angle Vapor Deposition method (GLAD) to create surface anisotropy on …


Precursors And Processes For The Growth Of Metallic First Row Transition Metal Films By Atomic Layer Deposition, Lakmal Charidu Kalutarage Jan 2014

Precursors And Processes For The Growth Of Metallic First Row Transition Metal Films By Atomic Layer Deposition, Lakmal Charidu Kalutarage

Wayne State University Dissertations

As a result of the continuous miniaturization of microelectronics devices, atomic layer deposition (ALD) has gained much attention in the recent years. ALD allows the deposition of ultra-thin conformal films with accurate thickness control due to the self-limiting growth mechanism. The microelectronics industry requires the growth of metallic first row transition metal films by ALD. Due to the positive electrochemical potentials, the ALD growth of noble metal thin films has been well developed in the past. By contrast, the ALD growth of first row transition metal films remains poorly documented. The reasons for this scarcity include the lack of suitable …


First-Principles Study Of The Electric Field Effect On The Water-Adsorbed Rutile Titanium Dioxide Surface, Abraham L. Hmiel Jan 2014

First-Principles Study Of The Electric Field Effect On The Water-Adsorbed Rutile Titanium Dioxide Surface, Abraham L. Hmiel

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

TiO2 is a semiconducting material that has been used extensively in many industrial applications, and recently has become a candidate for photocatalytic water splitting, fuel cell anode support materials, sensors, and other novel nanodevices. The interface of TiO2 with water, historically well-studied but still poorly understood, presents a ubiquitous environmental challenge towards the ultimate practical usefulness of these technologies. Ground-state density functional theory (DFT) calculations studying the characteristics of molecular adsorption on model surfaces have been studied for decades, showing constant improvement in the description of the energetics and electronic structure at interfaces. These simulations are invaluable in the …


Enhancing The Insulation Of Wide-Range Spectrum In The Pva/N Thin Film By Doping Zno Nanowires, Yu-Chen Lin, Ching-Hsiang Vhen, Liang-Yih Chen, Shih-Chieh Hsu, Shizhi Qian Jan 2014

Enhancing The Insulation Of Wide-Range Spectrum In The Pva/N Thin Film By Doping Zno Nanowires, Yu-Chen Lin, Ching-Hsiang Vhen, Liang-Yih Chen, Shih-Chieh Hsu, Shizhi Qian

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

In this study, polyvinyl alcohol/nitrogen (PVA/N) hybrid thin films doped with sharp-sword ZnO nanowires with insulating effect and wide-range spectrum are demonstrated for the first time. PVA/N doped ZnO nanocomposites were developed by blending PVA and N-doped ZnO nanowires in water at room temperature. Measurements from the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman, and photoluminescence emission (PL) spectra of the products show that nitrogen is successfully doped into the ZnO wurtzite crystal lattice. In addition, the refractive index of PVA/N doped ZnO hybrid thin films can be controlled by varying the doped ZnO nanowires under different …


Visible-Light Photocatalyzed Cross-Linking Of Diacetylene Ligands By Quantum Dots To Improve Their Aqueous Colloidal Stability, Marion G. Götz, Hiroko Takeuchi, Matthew J. Goldfogel, Julia M. Warren, Brandon D. Fennel, Colin D. Heyes Jan 2014

Visible-Light Photocatalyzed Cross-Linking Of Diacetylene Ligands By Quantum Dots To Improve Their Aqueous Colloidal Stability, Marion G. Götz, Hiroko Takeuchi, Matthew J. Goldfogel, Julia M. Warren, Brandon D. Fennel, Colin D. Heyes

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Ligand cross-linking is known to improve the colloidal stability of nanoparticles, particularly in aqueous solutions. However, most cross-linking is performed chemically, in which it is difficult to limit interparticle cross-linking, unless performed at low concentrations. Photochemical cross-linking is a promising approach but usually requires ultraviolet (UV) light to initiate. Using such high-energy photons can be harmful to systems in which the ligand–nanoparticle bond is fairly weak, as is the case for the commonly used semiconductor quantum dots (QDs). Here, we introduce a novel approach to cross-link thiolated ligands on QDs by utilizing the photocatalytic activity of QDs upon absorbing visible …


Addressing Public Health Risks Of Persistent Pollutants Through Nutritional Modulation And Biomimetic Nanocomposite Remediation Platforms, Bradley J. Newsome Jan 2014

Addressing Public Health Risks Of Persistent Pollutants Through Nutritional Modulation And Biomimetic Nanocomposite Remediation Platforms, Bradley J. Newsome

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Due to their relative chemical stability and ubiquity in the environment, chlorinated organic contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pose significant health risks and enduring remediation challenges. Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) provide a novel platform for sensing/remediation of these toxicants, in addition to the growing use of NPs in many industrial and biomedical applications, but there remains concern for their potential long-term health effects. Research highlighted herein also represents a transdisciplinary approach to address human health challenges associated with exposure to PCBs and NPs. The objectives of this dissertation research are two-fold, 1) to develop effective methods for capture/sensing and remediation …


Controllable Synthesis Of Dispersed Spherical Fe3O4 Nanoparticles As Lithium-Inserted Materials, Hong-Li Zou, Wei-Shan Li Dec 2013

Controllable Synthesis Of Dispersed Spherical Fe3O4 Nanoparticles As Lithium-Inserted Materials, Hong-Li Zou, Wei-Shan Li

Journal of Electrochemistry

Dispersed spherical Fe3O4 nanoparticles were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. The influences of odecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (DTAB) concentration on the morphology and particle size of the as-prepared Fe3O4 were studied. Electrochemical performance of the as-prepared sample as anode materials of lithium ion battery was investigated. It is found that the as-prepared sample exhibits superior rate performance and cycle performance. The nano-sized materials provide structural stability and favor the transfer of lithium ions.


Synthesis And Electrochemical Performance Of Nano Licopo4 By Polyol Method, Fei Wang, Yang Jun Dec 2013

Synthesis And Electrochemical Performance Of Nano Licopo4 By Polyol Method, Fei Wang, Yang Jun

Journal of Electrochemistry

High potential LiCoPO4 cathode material was synthesized by polyol method. Carbon layer of ca. 3 nm thick was coated on the LiCoPO4 surfaces by chemical vapor deposition from methylbenzene. Crystalline structure, morphology and electrochemical performance of the sample were studied by XRD, SEM, TEM, CV and galvanostatic charge/discharge curve. The synthesized material via polyol method showed a pure phase of LiCoPO4. The LiCoPO4/C electrode delivered a high discharge capacity of 132 mAh·g-1 and maintained 78% of the initial capacity after 50 cycles at 0.1C rate. The two-step extraction/insertion behavior of Li+ in …


Surface Composition Structure And Electrochemical Performance Of Aluminum Doped Lifepo4, Huai-Fang Shang, Wei-Feng Huang, Wang-Sheng Hu, Ding-Guo Xia, Zi-Yu Wu Dec 2013

Surface Composition Structure And Electrochemical Performance Of Aluminum Doped Lifepo4, Huai-Fang Shang, Wei-Feng Huang, Wang-Sheng Hu, Ding-Guo Xia, Zi-Yu Wu

Journal of Electrochemistry

Despite there are many successful reports about the preparation of electrode materials with surface coating for lithium ion batteries, the study in surface self-coating of cathode materials using segregation of doping elements and their electrochemical properties is still very rare. The LiFePO4 particles with rich-Al on the surface were synthesized by one step solvothermal route. TEM results demonstrated that the surface of the obtained LiFePO4 particles was well-covered by the amorphous coating. The soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) component analyses revealed that the amorphous coating was composed of LiFe1-xAlxPO …


Assessing Different Zeolitic Adsorbents For Their Potential Use In Kr And Xe Separation, Breetha Alagappan Dec 2013

Assessing Different Zeolitic Adsorbents For Their Potential Use In Kr And Xe Separation, Breetha Alagappan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Separation of Kr from Xe is an important problem in spent nuclear fuel fission gas management. The energy intensive and expensive cryogenic distillation method is currently used to separate these gases. In this thesis, we have carried out the research into appropriate sorbents for the separation of Kr and Xe using pressure swing adsorption. We have examined zeolites using gas adsorption studies as they have the potential to be more cost effective than other sorbents. Zeolites are microporous aluminosilicates and have ordered pore structures. The pores in zeolites have extra-framework cations are substantially free to move. The mobility of cations …


Nitroxide-Functionalized Graphene Oxide From Graphite Oxide, Yazmin I. Avila-Vega, Cesar C. Leyva-Porras, Marcela Mireles, Manuel Quevedo-Lopez, Javier Macossay-Torres, Jose Bonilla-Cruz Nov 2013

Nitroxide-Functionalized Graphene Oxide From Graphite Oxide, Yazmin I. Avila-Vega, Cesar C. Leyva-Porras, Marcela Mireles, Manuel Quevedo-Lopez, Javier Macossay-Torres, Jose Bonilla-Cruz

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Chemistry)

A facile method for preparing functionalized graphene oxide single layers with nitroxide groups is reported herein. Highly oxidized graphite oxide (GO=90.6%) was obtained, slightly modifying an improved Hummer’s method. Oxoammonium salts (OS) were investigated to introduce nitroxide groups to GO, resulting in a one-step functionalization and exfoliation. The mechanisms of functionalization/exfoliation are proposed, where the oxidation of aromatic alcohols to ketone groups, and the formation of alkoxyamine species are suggested. Two kinds of functionalized graphene oxide layers (GOFT1 and GOFT2) were obtained by controlling the amount of OS added. GOFT1 and GOFT2 exhibited a high interlayer spacing (d0001 = 1.12nm), …


Synthesis Of Pani/Nihcf Nanocomposite Particles And Eqcm Measurement Of Ion Exchange Properties In Solutions Containing Cd2+, Yu-Jiao Yang, Xiao-Gang Hao, Xu-Li Ma, Zhong-De Wang, Zhong-Lin Zhang, Nian-Chen Han Oct 2013

Synthesis Of Pani/Nihcf Nanocomposite Particles And Eqcm Measurement Of Ion Exchange Properties In Solutions Containing Cd2+, Yu-Jiao Yang, Xiao-Gang Hao, Xu-Li Ma, Zhong-De Wang, Zhong-Lin Zhang, Nian-Chen Han

Journal of Electrochemistry

The PANI/NiHCF nanocomposite particles were synthesized on the CNTs-modified Pt substrate by one-step co-polymerization using cyclic voltammetry. Electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM) technique was adopted to investigate the polymerization process of the nanocomposite particles and the mechanism of ion exchange in aqueous solution containing Cd2+. The morphology and structure of the as-prepared composite particles were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Combined with cyclic voltammetry (CV) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), the electrochemical behavior and the mechanism of ion exchange were also investigated in electrolytes of Cd2+ …


Applications Of Spectroscopic Ellipsometry In Corrosion Investigation, Ling-Jie Li, Yu-Ling He, Jing-Lei Lei, Sheng Tao Zhang Oct 2013

Applications Of Spectroscopic Ellipsometry In Corrosion Investigation, Ling-Jie Li, Yu-Ling He, Jing-Lei Lei, Sheng Tao Zhang

Journal of Electrochemistry

As a highly-sensitive and non-destructive in situ technique, spectroscopic ellipsometry has been widely applied in corrosion investigation to acquire the dynamic information of the “electrode-medium” interface during corrosion. This paper lays out some representative demonstrations in several established optical models used to interpret data obtained with spectroscopic ellipsometry in corrosion investigation. In addition, the latest trends in development of this technique are analyzed.


An Investigation Of Thin Films Formed On Zinc By Spectroscopic Ellipsometry, Juan Zuo, Ying Chen, Chang-Jian Lin, Andreas Erbe Oct 2013

An Investigation Of Thin Films Formed On Zinc By Spectroscopic Ellipsometry, Juan Zuo, Ying Chen, Chang-Jian Lin, Andreas Erbe

Journal of Electrochemistry

The formation of natural oxide films on polycrystalline zinc surface, the growth of natural oxide films in different atmospheres, as well as the electrochemical process of metal zinc in alkaline carbonate solution, studied recently by using spectroscopic ellipsometry in our group, are introduced. The objective of this paper is to outline that the optical, electrical properties, the change and growth kinetics of zinc metal oxide film on the surface can be investigated by in-situ and ex-situ ellipsometry, which makes significant sense to evaluate the overall performance of zinc oxide layer.


Graphene Quantum Dots Enhanced Electrochemical Performance Of Polypyrrole As Supercapacitor Electrode, Kun Wu, Si-Zhe Xu, Xue-Jiao Zhou, Hai-Xia Wu Aug 2013

Graphene Quantum Dots Enhanced Electrochemical Performance Of Polypyrrole As Supercapacitor Electrode, Kun Wu, Si-Zhe Xu, Xue-Jiao Zhou, Hai-Xia Wu

Journal of Electrochemistry

With an objective to develop electrode materials with high specific capacitance and good stability, a completely new nanocomposite of Polypyrrole (PPY) and graphene quantum dots (GQD) was successfully obtained through in-situ polymerization of pyrrole in the presence of GQD suspension. The obtained composites with different mass ratios were characterized by X-Ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). GQD enhanced electrochemical performance of PPY and, as supercapacitor electrodes, the PPY/GQD composites with the mass ratio of PPY to GQD at 50:1 showed a competitive specific capacitance of 485 F·g-1 at a scan rate of …


Synthesis Of Platinum And Platinum-Copper Branched Nanoparticles For Electrooxidation Of Methanol, Eric Courtland Taylor Aug 2013

Synthesis Of Platinum And Platinum-Copper Branched Nanoparticles For Electrooxidation Of Methanol, Eric Courtland Taylor

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Platinum and Pt alloys are among the most important heterogeneous catalysts for many organic reactions and electrochemical reactions associated with the fuel cell technologies. How to reduce Pt usage while maintaining the performance of the catalysts becomes a subject for intensive research in materials chemistry. For heterogeneous catalysis, the catalytic reactivity and selectivity are strongly correlated with different crystallographic facets exposed on the surface. The facets with high-index planes whose Miller indices with at one is larger than unity are generally more active than those with low-index planes (e.g., {100}, {111}, and {110}). Tuning the morphology of the nanoparticles to …