Aerosol synthesis of titanium nitride nanoparticles by direct current arc discharge method

Arc discharge synthesis has industrial relevance due to its low cost and scale-up potential. The production of titanium nitride nanoparticles was achieved by direct current arc discharge in an atmospheric-pressured ambient composed of N₂ and Ar. We systematically investigated the effect of the synthesis parameters, including quench gas velocity, quench gas composition, and applied arc current, on the particle quality, yield, and size. It is found that increasing quench gas velocity enables to produce particles with a primary size of 10–15 nm, while titanium nitride particles of 20–50 nm are produced at low quench gas velocity based on scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that titanium nitride particles produced at various nitrogen compositions are almost stoichiometric, while the crystallite size increases almost 20 nm when increasing nitrogen contents in the quench gas. Quench gas composition also has a significant impact on the arc voltage as well as particle production rate. When increasing the nitrogen concentration from 20% to 100%, the production rate can be enhanced by a factor of three. Besides, raising the applied arc current from 12 A to 50 A leads to a yield enhancement of factor 10. According to the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) measurement, the increase of applied arc current has a limited impact on primary particle size. The enhancement in particle production rate is mainly reflected by the larger agglomerate sizes and agglomerate number concentration. Additionally, based on experimental observations and previous studies, a mechanism is presented to explain the growth of deposits on the cathode tip.     

Anatase/rutile-TiO2 hollow hierarchical architecture modified by SnO2 toward efficient lithium storage

Hierarchical architecture of anatase/rutile-mixed phases TiO₂ with hollow interior was successfully fabricated via a Topotactic synthetic method, including the synthesis of CaTiO₃ precursors and transforming them into TiO₂ through ion-exchange process. The as-synthesized TiO₂ hierarchical architectures as the anode materials were used as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Compared with TiO₂ samples, the TiO₂@SnO₂-5% shows the improved lithium storage capacity, cycling performance and rate properties. The impedance of the TiO₂ electrode decreases evidently after adding few amount of SnO₂. The hollow hierarchical structure with different compositions provide much more active sites, and well connect interface among anatase, rutile, and SnO₂, facilitating the electron and ion transport quickly and efficiently. Addition appropriate number of SnO₂ not only well kept the hierarchical architecture but also enhanced the capacity and conductivity of the TiO₂ sample. As a result, TiO₂@SnO₂-5% exhibited excellent lithium storage performance.     

船舶海水管路钛合金应用技术研究

钛合金以其高比强度、优良的耐海水腐蚀性能,成为未来船舶选材的热点。综述了海水管路用钛合金的材料选用、焊接技术、弯管技术、腐蚀防护以及防海生物污损等方面的研究工作进展并进行分析,证明钛合金是船舶海水管路系统的理想选择,以期推动钛合金在船舶海水管路的推广和应用。     

Photocatalytic activity of undoped and sulfur-doped TiO2 films grown by MOCVD for water treatment under visible light

Titanium dioxide ceramic coatings have been used as catalysts in green technologies for water treatment. However, without the presence of a dopant, its photocatalytic activity is limited to the ultraviolet radiation region. The photocatalytic activity and the structural characteristics of undoped and sulfur-doped TiO₂ films grown at 400 °C by metallorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) were studied. The photocatalytic behavior of the films was evaluated by methyl orange dye degradation under visible light. The results suggested the substitution of Ti⁴⁺ cations by S⁶⁺ ions into TiO₂ structure of the doped samples. SO₄^2? groups were observed on the surface. S-TiO₂ film exhibited good photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation, and the luminous intensity strongly influences the photocatalytic behavior of the S-TiO₂ films. The results supported the idea that the sulfur-doped TiO₂ films grown by MOCVD may be promising catalysts for water treatment under sunlight or visible light bulbs.     

Photo-electrochemistry of metallic titanium/mixed phase titanium oxide

In this study, the effect of potassium hydroxide concentration in anodization bath, anodization time, and calcination temperature on the photo-electrochemical behavior of metallic titanium/mixed phase titanium oxide is investigated. Further, the phase structure of a titanium oxide photocatalyst prepared on a titanium electrode through a high-voltage anodization method is examined. The study exploits photo-electrochemical, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy attenuated total reflectance (FTIR–ATR), X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopic methods to obtain better insights into the mechanism of mixed-phase titanium oxide formation. In this regard, the photo-electrochemical properties of the photocatalysts prepared in single excitation energy, violet light (410 nm), were investigated. The anodization time and the potassium hydroxide concentration in the anodization bath have significant effects on the photo-electrochemical properties of the photocatalysts. The experiments show that the effect of potassium hydroxide concentration is a function of the anodization potential applied, demonstrating different patterns as the anodization potential changes. Furthermore, FTIR-ATR, X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopic studies reveal that the extended anodization times decrease the population of OH-containing groups, leading to lower photo-electrochemical performance. On the other hand, the formation of anatase phases becomes more favorable only in the extended anodization times before application of the calcination process. Additionally, the calcination temperature has a significant impact on the anatase to rutile ratio. Finally, increasing potassium hydroxide concentration leads to the formation of an amorphous titanium oxide layer. It can be concluded that the obtained information might have a significant impact on the preparation of titanium oxide and other metal oxide photocatalysts through the high voltage anodization process.     

Mechanical behavior of electrochemically hydrogenated electron beam melting (EBM) and wrought Ti–6Al–4V using small punch test

The influence of electrochemical charging of hydrogen at j = ?5 mA/cm² for 6, 12, 48 and 96 h on the structural and the mechanical behavior of wrought and electron beam melting (EBM) Ti–6Al–4V alloys containing 6 wt% β and similar impurities level was investigated. The length of the α/β interphase boundaries in the EBM alloy was larger by 34% compared to that in the wrought alloy. The small punch test (SPT) technique was used to characterize the mechanical behavior of the non-hydrogenated and hydrogenated specimens. It was found that the maximum load and the displacement at maximum load of the wrought alloy remained nearly stable after 6 h of charging, showing a maximum decrease of ～32% and 11%, respectively. Similarly, hydrogenation of the EBM alloy resulted in a gradual degradation in mechanical properties with charging time, up to ～81% and 86% in pop-in load and displacement at the “pop-in” load, respectively. The mode of fracture of the wrought alloy changed from ductile to semi-brittle with mud-cracking in all hydrogenated specimens. In contrast, the mode of fracture of the EBM alloy changed from a mixed mode ductile-brittle fracture to brittle fracture with star-like morphology. The degraded mechanical properties of the EBM alloy are attributed to its α/β lamellar microstructure which acted as a short-circuit path and enhanced hydrogen diffusion into the bulk as well as δ_a and δ_b hydride formation on the surface. In contrast, a surface layer with higher concentration of δ_a and δ_b hydrides in the wrought alloy served as a barrier to hydrogen uptake into the bulk and increased the alloy resistivity to hydrogen embrittlement (HE). This study shows that EBM Ti–6Al–4V alloy is more susceptible to mechanical degradation due to HE than wrought Ti–6Al–4V alloy.     

The effect of titanium dioxide-supported CdSe photocatalysts enhanced for photocatalytic glucose electrooxidation under UV illumination

The wetness impregnation method was used to synthesize 0.1% CdSe/TiO₂ photocatalysts with different atomic molar ratios (90–10, 70–30, 50–50, and 30–70). These catalysts were characterized by XRD, SEM-EDX and mapping, TEM-EDS, UV–VIS spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, XPS, TPR, TPO, and TPD analyses. Cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analyses were performed to examine the photocatalytic activity for photocatalytic fuel cells (PFCs) in glucose solution in the dark and under UV illumination. The characterization analyses revealed that anatase TiO₂ formed the catalyst and electronic structure and surface properties changed when doped with metal. The photocatalytic glucose electrooxidation (PGE) results demonstrate that the 0.1% CdSe(50-50)/TiO₂ catalyst has higher photocatalytic activity, stability, and resistance than other catalysts both in the dark (2.71 mA cm^?2) and under UV illumination (7.20 mA cm^?2). These results offer a promising new type of photocatalyst for PFC applications.