Effect of NaCl on the properties of Eu-doped Ca-α-SiAlON phosphors prepared by combustion synthesis

Eu-doped Ca-α-SiAlON phosphors, featuring high phase purity, uniform particle size of 3–5 μm and good luminescent properties with a yellow emission spectrum under blue light excitation, were prepared by a highly efficient combustion synthesis (CS) method. A certain amount of NaCl was applied as an innovative additive to regulate and control the properties of synthesized phosphors. Further, the effects of NaCl additive in the CS system were systematically investigated and rational proposed. It was found that the effect on accelerating nitridation and crystallization played a dominant role in the reaction as the content of NaCl was less than 6 wt%, while the effect of absorbing reaction heat through vaporization was dominant with the further-increased content of NaCl. The intensity of the emission spectrum for the sample doped with 6 wt% of NaCl was remarkably enhanced, nearly 40% more than the sample which was not NaCl-doped. Moreover, a continuous blue-shift phenomenon in emission spectra was observed with the increased content of NaCl.     

The effects of PVP surfactant in the direct and indirect hydrothermal synthesis processes of ceria nanostructures

CeO₂ nanostructures with completely different morphologies were successfully prepared using the same cerium source and mineralizer through the direct and indirect hydrothermal methods with different introducing strategies of PVP surfactant. The CeO₂ nanostructures tend to form the morphologies of nano-flowers and nano-cubes through the indirect and direct hydrothermal methods, respectively. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses revealed that both as-prepared nanostructures are composed of CeO₂ with a standard fluorite structure. The different synthesis mechanisms and corresponding chemical evolutions of the as-prepared CeO₂ nanostructures are discussed based on the different introducing strategies of PVP surfactant in the direct and indirect hydrothermal processes. Investigation of the UV-shielding ability of both CeO₂ nanostructures suggested that the UV absorbance of the nano-flowers is much higher than that of the nano-cubes.     

New vacancied and Dy3+-doped molybdates – Their structure,thermal stability,electrical and magnetic properties

Microcrystalline samples of new Cd_1–3xDy_2x⌷_xMoO₄ solid solution with limited homogeneity (0<x≤0.2222) and cationic vacancies (denoted as ⌷) were prepared by a high-temperature solid state reaction. The XRD data and SEM analysis showed that as-prepared ceramics crystallize in the tetragonal scheelite type symmetry (space group I4₁/a) with the crystallite size varying between ~2 and ~20 µm. A systematic change in lattice constants, a and c, as well as in lattice parameter ratio c/a with an increase of Dy content was observed. Dy-doped molybdates are paramagnets with the antiferromagnetic short-range interaction and spin-orbit coupling. Optical and electrical investigations proved Cd_1–3xDy_2x⌷_xMoO₄ solid solution to be in the insulating state of E_g>3 eV at room temperature and the thermally activated conduction of the Arrhenius-type above 350 K. Moreover, the I-V characteristics provided the evidence of symmetrical and non-linear behavior typical of charge carrier emission weakly induced by the temperature. Relative dielectric permittivity ε_r below 10 as well as loss tangent tanδ below 0.15 do not substantially depend both on the temperature in the range of 76–400 K and the frequency in the range of 5·10²–1·10⁶ Hz. These results are interpreted in the framework of the acceptor and donor vacancy centers.     

Coupling CoFe2O4 and SnS2 nanoparticles with reduced graphene oxide as a high-performance electromagnetic wave absorber

The reduced graphene oxide (RGO)/CoFe₂O₄/SnS₂ composites have been successfully synthesized by two-step hydrothermal processes. TEM results show that CoFe₂O₄ and SnS₂ nanoparticles with both diameters about 5–10 nm are well dispersed on the surface of graphene. Compared with RGO/CoFe₂O₄ composites, the as-prepared RGO/CoFe₂O₄/SnS₂ composites exhibit excellent electromagnetic (EM) wave absorption properties in terms of both the maximum reflection loss and the absorption bandwidth. The maximum reflection loss of RGO/CoFe₂O₄/SnS₂ composites is −54.4 dB at 16.5 GHz with thickness of only 1.6 mm and the absorption bandwidth with the reflection loss below −10 dB is up to 12.0 GHz (from 6.0 to 18.0 GHz) with a thickness in the range of 1.5–4.0 mm. And especially, they cover the whole X band (8.0–12.0 GHz), which could be used for military radar and direct broadcast satellite (DBS).     

Framework materials containing polyoxovanadates as building units: synthesis and characterization of (N2H5)2[M3(H2O)12V18O42(EO4)]·24H2O (M = Mg,Ca) and Li6[Mn3(H2O)12V18O42(EO4)]·24H2O (E = V,S)

The reaction of an aqueous solution of lithium vanadate with hydrazinium sulfate results in a dark-colored solution that reacts with magnesium sulfate heptahydrate, calcium sulfate dihydrate, and manganese(II) chloride tetrahydrate to yield single crystals of (N₂H₅)₂[M₃(H₂O)₁₂V₁₈O₄₂(EO₄)]·24H₂O (M = Mg, Ca) and Li₆[Mn₃(H₂O)₁₂V₁₈O₄₂(EO₄)]·24H₂O (E = V, S), respectively. The crystal structures of the new solids consist of interpenetrating three-dimensional networks of {V₁₈O₄₂(EO₄)} clusters interlinked via bridging {M(H₂O)₄} (M = Mg, Ca, Mn) groups. The voids in these structures are occupied by lattice water and ion exchangeable cations.     

Energy storage properties of MgO-doped 0.5Bi0·5Na0·5TiO3-0.5SrTiO3 ceramics

0.5Bi_0·5Na_0·5TiO₃-0.5SrTiO₃-x wt% MgO (x = 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 3.0) ceramics were fabricated via solid-state method. The effect of MgO doped on energy storage properties, dielectric performance, phase structure and microstructures of 0.5Bi_0·5Na_0·5TiO₃-0.5SrTiO₃ (BNST) ceramics were studied systemically. The Mg²⁺ substituted Ti⁴⁺ site in BNST, which was confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) result. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) images show that all the ceramic samples exhibit uniform and compact morphologies. The temperature dependent permittivity exhibits frequency dispersion, indicating that the ceramic samples are typical relaxor ferroelectrics. It was found that MgO doped BNST can significant improve the breakdown strength (E_b) of samples from 109 kV/cm to 227 kV/cm, which results in a great enhancement on energy storage density. The sample of x = 3.0 has the largest energy storage density (2.17 J/cm³), which is twice as much as the BNST. Consequently, we consider that MgO-doped BNST ceramics are able to be a promising candidate in the field of pulsed-power devices.     

高性能铁电吸波材料

铁电材料由于具有高极化以及良好的化学、热稳定性等性质,在微波吸收领域得到了广泛关注。过去二十年,开展了大量关于铁电吸波材料的研究。系统地综述了铁电材料微波吸收的损耗机制与几类典型铁电材料的微波吸收性能。在损耗机制方面,详细论述了铁电材料的电损耗机制,包括介电损耗、电导损耗及界面损耗机制,同时对于多铁材料与铁电-磁杂化复合材料,分析了磁损耗机制以及磁-介电损耗协同机制,并对各类损耗的形成原因及作用机理进行了总结。在微波吸收性能方面,重点阐述了近些年BiFeO3基与BaTiO3基等铁电材料的微波吸收表现,包括单相材料、掺杂材料及复合材料,并对其在室温及高温下的微波吸收性能进行了比较,同时基于材料的结构、微结构与微波吸收强度及有效吸收带宽等参数的演变联系,对其微波响应机制进行了归纳。最后详细分析了影响铁电微波吸收材料发展所面临的关键问题,并对其未来的研究方向进行了展望。     

Preparation of α-SnWO4 hierarchical spheres by Bi3+-doping and their enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible light

Bi-doped α-SnWO₄ porous spheres assembled by thin plates were prepared by a simple hydrothermal process without any template. The effects of Bi³⁺ ions on the microstructure and photocatalytic activity of α-SnWO₄ were investigated. The doping of Bi can induce a shape transformation from nanoplates of pure α-SnWO₄ to hierarchical spheres of Bi-doped samples. The photocatalytic activities of the as-prepared samples were evaluated by photocatalytic de-colorization of methyl orange (MO) under visible light irradiation. Bi-doped α-SnWO₄ samples exhibit better photocatalytic property than pure α-SnWO₄, and the optimal Bi-doping concentration is around 0.5 at%. The enhanced photocatalytic properties of Bi-doped α-SnWO₄ spheres can be ascribed to the porous hierarchical structure and the introduction of defects induced by Bi-doping, which improve visible-light absorption and allow the efficient charge separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Bi-doped α-SnWO₄ has a great potential in industrial water treatment due to its satisfactory recyclability and stability.