Negative thermal quenching CsPbBr3 glass-ceramic based on intrinsic radiation and vacancy defect co-induced dual-emission

Halide perovskite glass-ceramic has recently moved into the center of the attention of perovskite research due to their potential for temperature sensing. However, quantum dots glass-ceramic with excellent luminescence performance still needs to be combined with rare-earth (RE) ions to accurately measure temperature. In this work, a novel non-RE doped dual-emission (460 nm and 512 nm) CsPbBr₃ quantum dots was obtained in telluride glass via the friction crystallization method, where 512 nm was derived from intrinsic luminescence of quantum dots, and 460 nm was originated from thermally induced bromine vacancy, which can be used for temperature sensing. Fluorescence intensity ratio results indicate that the relative sensitivity of dual-emission could reach 5.6 % K^?1 at 323 K. The discovery of non-RE doped CsPbBr₃ QDs glass-ceramic with negative thermal quenching uncovers a new optional sensing glass material that surpass traditional RE-doped QDs glass by their tunability and sensitivity.     

Mesoporous yolk-shell structure Bi2MoO6 microspheres with enhanced visible light photocatalytic activity

Mesoporous yolk-shell structure Bi₂MoO₆ (BMO-YS) microspheres were successfully synthesized via a facile solvothermal route in Bi₂MoO₆ precursor solution. The morphology, structure and photocatalytic performance of the BMO-YS in the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, nitrogen adsorption–desorption, UV–vis absorption spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance spectra, respectively. The as-prepared BMO-YS mainly consists of microspheres with diameters of about 1.5 μm. The photocatalytic studies reveal that the BMO-YS not only exhibits optimum photocatalytic performance, which may be attributed to the excellent charge separation characteristics and the enhanced light absorption offered by its unique yolk-shell structure, but also possesses excellent recyclability for photocatalysis.     

Low temperature synthesis of plate-like Na0.5Bi0.5TiO3 via molten salt method

In this study, plate-like Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃ (BNT) templates with perovskite structure were obtained by two-step molten salt synthesis (MSS) method at a low temperature. Firstly, Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ precursors were synthesized at 1030 °C in NaCl–KCl molten salt. Secondly, plate-like Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃ particles with perovskite structure were obtained from plate-like layer-structured ferroelectric ceramic of Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ by topochemical microcrystal conversion method. Result showed that excessive Na₂CO₃ was beneficial to facilitate the low temperature synthesis. In the case of an excess of 30 mol% Na₂CO₃, plate-like BNT particles could be obtained by synthesis at temperatures ranging from 760 °C to 800 °C, which indicated a flexible processing route. Also, it has been observed that plate-like BNT particles show a high aspect ratio with 1 μm in thickness and 10–20 μm in length. These Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃ plate-like particles can be good candidates for the preparation of lead-free BNT-based piezoelectric ceramics with oriented grain microstructure.     

A novel anions and cations co-doped strategy for developing high-performance cobalt-free cathode for intermediate-temperature proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells

The sluggish activity of cathode at intermediate-temperature limits commercialization of proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells (H-SOFCs). In this investigation, a novel cathode of Ba_0.95Ca_0.05Fe_0.85Sn_0.05Y_0.1O_2.9−δF_0.1 was successfully developed by co-doping of anion F and cations Ca, Sn, Y. We studied the effect of F⁻-doping on phase structure, electrical conductivity and electrochemical properties of the cell. Compared with Ba_0.95Ca_0.05Fe_0.85Sn_0.05Y_0.1O_3−δ, F⁻-doped Ba_0.95Ca_0.05Fe_0.85Sn_0.05Y_0.1O_3−δ exhibited higher conductivity. Composite cathode consisting of Ba_0.95Ca_0.05Fe_0.85Sn_0.05Y_0.1O_2.9−δF_0.1 and Sm_0.2Ce_0.8O_2−δ was applied in H-SOFCs with BaZr_0.1Ce_0.7Y_0.2O_3−δ electrolyte which achieves an encouraging performance with the maximum power density of 1050 mW cm⁻² and polarization resistance of 0.04 Ω cm² at 700 °C. The result of First-principles calculations based on spin-polarized Density Functional Theory shows that doping of F⁻ reduces the activation energy required for migration of oxygen ions. These results demonstrate that the anions and cations co-doped strategy can provide a new horizon for the cathode in H-SOFCs.     

Photoluminescence of (ZnO)X-Z(SiO2)Y:(MnO)Z green phosphors prepared by direct thermal synthesis: The effect of ZnO/SiO2 ratio and Mn2+ concentration on luminescence

Green light emitting Zn₂SiO₄:Mn²⁺ phosphors have been synthetised by the solid-state reaction in ambient atmosphere at 1300 °C for 2 h, with ZnO, SiO₂ and MnO₂ as the reagents. The ZnO/SiO₂ molar ratio varied from 2 to 0.5. The doping level was in a lower concentration range (0.01≤x≤0.05). The effect of both the Mn²⁺ concentration and ZnO/SiO₂ molar ratio on luminescence intensity and decay was investigated in detail. The microstructure and phase composition of prepared phosphors were characterised by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). XRD results indicate that the pure α-Zn₂SiO₄ phase with rhombohedral structure was obtained after heat treatment. The prepared phosphors exhibit a strong green emission centred at 525 nm from the ⁴T₁→⁶A₁ forbidden transition. The highest emission intensity was observed for phosphors with ZnO/SiO₂ molar ratio equal to 1.0, and the Mn²⁺ concentration x=0.03 (ZSMn3). The emission intensity of the ZSMn3 phosphor is comparable with the commercial Zn₂SiO₄:Mn²⁺ phosphor. The decay curves can be characterised by double exponential function. After fitting a fast component τ₁∼2 ms and a slow component τ₂∼10 ms were obtained. The decay times decrease significantly with increasing Mn²⁺ concentration. The decay time and luminescence mechanism depend on the excitation light wavelength. Temperature dependent luminescence of the ZSMn3 phosphor in the temperature range of 25–200 °C was studied.     

Conductive nonwetting flexible substrate

In this paper an easy method to prepare flexible conductive substrates has been demonstrated. The substrates are mainly PET (PolyEthyleneTerephthalate), on which AgNW (silver nanowire) were deposited by spin casting method. For adhesion purpose a common cosmetic material has been utilized. The material provides versatile features to these coated substrates, including robustness, hydrophobicity with transparent bracing of nanowires (NW) with the flexible substrate. Four probe conductivity measurement shows the resistivity is 12 Ω/cm and is comparable to that of commercially available indium tin oxide (ITO) coated substrates. This method is cheap, easy and can be used for different objectives like flexible thin film photovoltaic, light emitting diodes, photosensors etc.     

Atomic layer deposition of platinum thin films on anodic aluminium oxide templates as surface-enhanced Raman scattering substrates

Platinum thin films are deposited on anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) templates by atomic layer deposition (ALD). The highly ordered island-like platinum nanostructures formed on the AAO template produce a high Raman scattering signal because of the periodical hexagonal arrangement. As an illustration, dramatic enhancement is achieved using Rhodamine 6G (R6G) as a molecular probe.Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) show that the gap between the island-like structures is below 10 nm. Owing to activation by the incident laser beam, the localized electromagnetic field on the platinum island surface can be dramatically enhanced by the sub-10 nm regime subsequently amplifying the Raman signal. Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) calculation matches the experimental phenomena suggesting that the excellent surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) characteristics of the platinum structure arise from the high density and abundance of hot spots. Because the platinum film is inert in air, the SERS enhancing substrate can be used reliably in many trace chemical and biological detection applications.     

Crystal structure,luminescent properties and white light emitting diode application of Ba3GdNa(PO4)3F:Eu2+ single-phase white light-emitting phosphor

A series of single-phase white-light-emitting phosphors, Eu²⁺-activated Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F phosphors were synthesized by solid-state reactions. The crystal structure of Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F was been identified by Rietveld refinement of X-ray diffraction pattern. The Eu²⁺-activated Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F phosphors exhibit broad excitation spectra from 250 to 420 nm, which matched well with the n-UV LED chips. Under the excitation of 365 nm, the emission spectrum almost covered the entire visible region including two emission bands peaked at 472 nm and 640 nm. Three different Eu²⁺ emission centers in Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F:Eu²⁺ phosphor were confirmed by their fluorescence decay lifetimes. The optimal concentration of Eu²⁺ in Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F:xEu²⁺ was 3 mol% and the corresponding concentration quenching mechanism was verified to be exchange coupling interaction. Furthermore, the white light-emitting diode fabricated with Ba₃GdNa(PO₄)₃F:0.05Eu²⁺ phosphor and a 370 nm UV chip has a CIE of (0.3267, 0.2976) with a color-rendering index of 78.4 at the CCT of 5287 K.     

Low-temperature catalytic destruction of chlorinated VOCs over cerium oxide

Cerium oxide was used as the catalyst for the catalytic destruction of chlorinated VOCs, and trichloroethylene catalytic destruction as a model reaction was investigated in detail. It was found that cerium oxide has a high catalytic activity for the low-temperature catalytic destruction of various chlorinated VOCs. The main products in the catalytic destruction of trichloroethylene are HCl, Cl₂, CO₂, and trace CO, and C₂HCl is a reaction intermediate, and the presence of an excess of water (30,000 ppm) in the feed stream would inhibit the catalytic performance of CeO₂ catalyst, but improve the selectivity of HCl.     

Extrusion of AlSBA-15 molecular sieves: An industrial point of view

AlSBA-15 in the powder form with different n_Si/n_Al ratios (45, 136 and 215) were synthesized by hydrothermal technique. The powdered materials were made into cylindrical extrudates with the addition of bentonite as a binder. The AlSBA-15 materials were characterized by XRD, N₂ adsorption, AAS and thermogravimetric analysis. The orderly growth of AlSBA-15 is evidenced by its XRD. The surface area of the powder catalyst is around 950 m²/g and that of extrudate is close to 600 m²/g. Vapor phase alkylation of phenol with tert-butanol was carried out over the extrudates of AlSBA-15 as a model reaction. The activity of AlSBA-15 extrudates follows the order: AlSBA-15 Si/Al = 45 > AlSBA-15 Si/Al = 136 > AlSBA-15 Si/Al = 215. The reaction products were found to be 2-TBP, 4-TBP and 2,4-DTBP. The selectivity to para tertiary butylation is higher than other reactions.