Sample records for binary metal oxides

  1. Toxicity of binary mixtures of metal oxide nanoparticles to Nitrosomonas europaea.

    PubMed

    Yu, Ran; Wu, Junkang; Liu, Meiting; Zhu, Guangcan; Chen, Lianghui; Chang, Yan; Lu, Huijie

    2016-06-01

    Although the widely used metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) titanium dioxide NPs (n-TiO2), cerium dioxide NPs (n-CeO2), and zinc oxide NPs (n-ZnO) have been well known for their potential cytotoxicities to environmental organisms, their combined effects have seldom been investigated. In this study, the short-term binary effect of n-CeO2 and n-TiO2 or n-ZnO on a model ammonia oxidizing bacterium, Nitrosomonas europaea were evaluated based on the examinations of cells' physiological, metabolic, and transcriptional responses. The addition of n-TiO2 mitigated the negative effect of more toxic n-CeO2 and the binary toxicity (antagonistic toxicity) of n-TiO2 and n-CeO2 was generally lower than the single NPs induced one. While the n-CeO2/n-ZnO mixture exerted higher cytotoxicity (synergistic cytotoxicity) than that from single NPs. The increased addition of the less toxic n-CeO2 exaggerated the binary toxicity of n-CeO2/n-ZnO mixture although the solubility of n-ZnO was not significantly affected, which excluded the contribution of the dissolved Zn ions to the enhancement of the combined cytotoxicity. The cell membrane disturbances and NP internalizations were detected for all the NP impacted cultures and the electrostatic interactions among the two distinct NPs and the cells were expected to play a key role in mediating their direct contacts and the eventual binary nanotoxicity to the cells. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Resistive switching memory devices composed of binary transition metal oxides using sol-gel chemistry.

    PubMed

    Lee, Chanwoo; Kim, Inpyo; Choi, Wonsup; Shin, Hyunjung; Cho, Jinhan

    2009-04-21

    We describe a novel and versatile approach for preparing resistive switching memory devices based on binary transition metal oxides (TMOs). Titanium isopropoxide (TIPP) was spin-coated onto platinum (Pt)-coated silicon substrates using a sol-gel process. The sol-gel-derived layer was converted into a TiO2 film by thermal annealing. A top electrode (Ag electrode) was then coated onto the TiO2 films to complete device fabrication. When an external bias was applied to the devices, a switching phenomenon independent of the voltage polarity (i.e., unipolar switching) was observed at low operating voltages (about 0.6 VRESET and 1.4 VSET). In addition, it was confirmed that the electrical properties (i.e., retention time, cycling test and switching speed) of the sol-gel-derived devices were comparable to those of vacuum deposited devices. This approach can be extended to a variety of binary TMOs such as niobium oxides. The reported approach offers new opportunities for preparing the binary TMO-based resistive switching memory devices allowing a facile solution processing.

  3. Atomic-Scale Tuning of Layered Binary Metal Oxides for High Temperature Moving Assemblies

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-06-01

    AFRL-OSR-VA-TR-2015-0166 Atomic-Scale Tuning of Layered Binary Metal OxideS ASHLIE MARTINI UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA MERCED Final Report 06/01/2015...Assemblies 5a.  CONTRACT NUMBER 5b.  GRANT NUMBER FA9550-12-1-0221 5c.  PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER 6.  AUTHOR(S) ASHLIE MARTINI 5d.  PROJECT NUMBER 5e...ABSTRACT UU 18.  NUMBER        OF        PAGES 19a.  NAME OF RESPONSIBLE PERSON ASHLIE MARTINI Standard Form 298 (Rev. 8/98) Prescribed by ANSI Std. Z39.18

  4. Photocatalytic activity of binary metal oxide nanocomposites of CeO2/CdO nanospheres: Investigation of optical and antimicrobial activity.

    PubMed

    Magdalane, C Maria; Kaviyarasu, K; Vijaya, J Judith; Siddhardha, Busi; Jeyaraj, B

    2016-10-01

    We report the synthesis of high quality CeO2-CdO binary metal oxide nanocomposites were synthesized by a simple chemical precipitation and hydrothermal method. Cerium nitrate and cadmium nitrate were used as precursors. Composition, structure and morphology of the nanocomposites were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). XRD pattern proves that the final product has cubic phase and the particle size diameter of the nanocomposites are 27nm, XRD results also indicated that the crystalline properties of the nanocomposite were improved without affecting the parent lattice, FESEM analysis indicates that the product is composed of spherical particles in clusters. The morphological and optical properties of CeO2-CdO nanosamples were characterized by HRTEM and DRS spectroscopy. The IR results showed high purity of products and indicated that the nanocomposites are made up of CeO2 and CdO bonds. Absorption spectra exhibited an upward shift in characteristic peaks caused by the addition of transition metal oxide, suggesting that crystallinity of both the metal oxide is improved due to specific doping level. TGA plots further confirmed the purity and stability of nanomaterials prepared. Hence the nanocomposite has cubic crystal lattice and form a homogeneous solid structure. From the result, Cd(2+) ions are embedded in the cubic crystal lattice of ceria. The growth rate increases which are ascribed to the cationic doping with a lower valence cation. Ce-Cd binary metal oxide nanocomposites showed antibacterial activity, it showed the better growth inhibition towards p.aeruginosa. Exploit of photodegradation and photocatalytic activity of large scale synthesis of CeO2-CdO binary metal oxide nanocomposites was reported. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Binary metal oxide nanoparticle incorporated composite multilayer thin films for sono-photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gokul, Paramasivam; Vinoth, Ramalingam; Neppolian, Bernaurdshaw; Anandhakumar, Sundaramurthy

    2017-10-01

    We report reduced graphene oxide (rGO) supported binary metal oxide (CuO-TiO2/rGO) nanoparticle (NP) incorporated multilayer thin films based on Layer-by-Layer (LbL) assembly for enhanced sono-photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange under exposure to UV radiation. Multilayer thin films were fabricated on glass and quartz slides, and investigated using scanning electron microscopy and UV-vis spectroscopy. The loading of catalyst NPs on the film resulted in the change of morphology of the film from smooth to rough with uniformly distributed NPs on the surface. The growth of the control and NP incorporated films followed a linear regime as a function of number of layers. The%degradation of methyl orange as a function of time was investigated by UV-vis spectroscopy and total organic carbon (TOC) measurements. Complete degradation of methyl orange was achieved within 13 h. The amount of NP loading in the film significantly influenced the%degradation of methyl orange. Catalyst reusability studies revealed that the catalyst thin films could be repeatedly used for up to five times without any change in photocatalytic activity of the films. The findings of the present study support that the binary metal oxide catalyst films reported here are very useful for continuous systems, and thus, making it an option for scale up.

  6. Synthesis and characterization of binary titania-silica mixed oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Budhi, Sridhar

    A series of binary titania-silica mixed oxides were synthesized by the sol-gel method at room temperature. The mixed oxides were prepared that involved the hydrolysis of titanium isopropoxide and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) by co-solvent induced gelation usually in acidic media. The resulting gels were dried, calcined and then characterized by powder X-ray diffractometric studies, nitrogen sorption studies (at 77K), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Raman microscopy and transmission electron microscopic studies. The nitrogen sorption studies indicate that the specific surface areas, pore volume, pore diameter and pore size distribution of the mixed oxides were substantially enhanced when non-polar solvents such as toluene, p-xylene or mesitylene were added as co-solvents to the synthesis gel. Transmission electron microscopic (TEM) studies confirm the results obtained from the nitrogen sorption studies. Our results indicate that we can obtain binary metal oxides possessing high surface area and large pore volumes with tunable pore size distribution at room temperature. Photocatalytic evaluation of the mixed oxides is currently in progress.

  7. Metal Oxide/Graphene Composites for Supercapacitive Electrode Materials.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Gyoung Hwa; Baek, Seungmin; Lee, Seungyeol; Kim, Sang-Wook

    2016-04-05

    Graphene composites with metal or metal oxide nanoparticles have been extensively investigated owing to their potential applications in the fields of fuel cells, batteries, sensing, solar cells, and catalysis. Among them, much research has focused on supercapacitor applications and have come close to realization. Composites include monometal oxides of cobalt, nickel, manganese, and iron, as well as their binary and ternary oxides. In addition, their morphological control and hybrid systems of carbon nanotubes have also been investigated. This review presents the current trends in research on metal oxide/graphene composites for supercapacitors. Furthermore, methods are suggested to improve the properties of electrochemical capacitor electrodes. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  8. Semiconducting transition metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Lany, Stephan

    2015-07-22

    Open shell transition metal oxides are usually described as Mott or charge transfer insulators, which are often viewed as being disparate from semiconductors. Based on the premise that the presence of a correlated gap and semiconductivity are not mutually exclusive, this work reviews electronic structure calculations on the binary 3d oxides, so to distill trends and design principles for semiconducting transition metal oxides. This class of materials possesses the potential for discovery, design, and development of novel functional semiconducting compounds, e.g. for energy applications. In order to place the 3d orbitals and the sp bands into an integrated picture, band structure calculations should treat both contributions on the same footing and, at the same time, account fully for electron correlation in the 3d shell. Fundamentally, this is a rather daunting task for electronic structure calculations, but quasi-particle energy calculations in GW approximation offer a viable approach for band structure predictions in these materials. Compared to conventional semiconductors, the inherent multivalent nature of transition metal cations is more likely to cause undesirable localization of electron or hole carriers. Therefore, a quantitative prediction of the carrier self-trapping energy is essential for the assessing the semiconducting properties and to determine whether the transport mechanism is a band-like large-polaron conduction or a small-polaron hopping conduction. An overview is given for the binary 3d oxides on how the hybridization between the 3d crystal field symmetries with the O-p orbitals of the ligands affects the effective masses and the likelihood of electron and hole self-trapping, identifying those situations where small masses and band-like conduction are more likely to be expected. The review concludes with an illustration of the implications of the increased electronic complexity of transition metal cations on the defect physics and doping, using

  9. Shock waves in binary oxides memristors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tesler, Federico; Tang, Shao; Dobrosavljević, Vladimir; Rozenberg, Marcelo

    2017-09-01

    Progress of silicon based technology is nearing its physical limit, as minimum feature size of components is reaching a mere 5 nm. The resistive switching behavior of transition metal oxides and the associated memristor device is emerging as a competitive technology for next generation electronics. Significant progress has already been made in the past decade and devices are beginning to hit the market; however, it has been mainly the result of empirical trial and error. Hence, gaining theoretical insight is of essence. In the present work we report a new connection between the resistive switching and shock wave formation, a classic topic of non-linear dynamics. We argue that the profile of oxygen ions that migrate during the commutation in insulating binary oxides may form a shock wave, which propagates through a poorly conductive region of the device. We validate the scenario by means of model simulations.

  10. Effects of surface poisons on the oxidation of binary alloys

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hagan, P.S.; Polizzotti, R.S.; Luckman, G.

    1985-10-01

    A system of reaction-diffusion equations describing the oxidation of binary alloys in environments containing small amounts of surface poisons is analyzed. These poisons reduce the oxygen flux into the alloy, which causes the alloy to oxidize in two stages.During the initial stage, the oxidation reaction occurs in a stationary boundary layer at the alloy surface. Consequently, a thin zone containing a very high concentration of the metal oxide is created at the alloy surface. During the second stage, the oxidation reaction occurs in a moving boundary layer. This leads to a Stefan problem, which is analyzed by using asymptotic andmore » numerical techniques. By comparing the solutions to those of alloys in unpoisoned environments, it is concluded that surface poisons can lead to the formation of protective external oxide scales in alloys which would not normally form such scales. 11 references.« less

  11. In situ arsenic oxidation and sorption by a Fe-Mn binary oxide waste in soil.

    PubMed

    McCann, Clare M; Peacock, Caroline L; Hudson-Edwards, Karen A; Shrimpton, Thomas; Gray, Neil D; Johnson, Karen L

    2018-01-15

    The ability of a Fe-Mn binary oxide waste to adsorb arsenic (As) in a historically contaminated soil was investigated. Initial laboratory sorption experiments indicated that arsenite [As(III)] was oxidized to arsenate [As(V)] by the Mn oxide component, with concurrent As(V) sorption to the Fe oxide. The binary oxide waste had As(III) and As(V) adsorption capacities of 70mgg -1 and 32mgg -1 respectively. X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure and Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure at the As K-edge confirmed that all binary oxide waste surface complexes were As(V) sorbed by mononuclear bidentate corner-sharing, with 2 Fe at ∼3.27Ǻ. The ability of the waste to perform this coupled oxidation-sorption reaction in real soils was investigated with a 10% by weight addition of the waste to an industrially As contaminated soil. Electron probe microanalysis showed As accumulation onto the Fe oxide component of the binary oxide waste, which had no As innately. The bioaccessibility of As was also significantly reduced by 7.80% (p<0.01) with binary oxide waste addition. The results indicate that Fe-Mn binary oxide wastes could provide a potential in situ remediation strategy for As and Pb immobilization in contaminated soils. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Adsorption of divalent metals to metal oxide nanoparicles: Competitive and temperature effects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grover, Valerie Ann

    The presence of metals in natural waters is becoming a critical environmental and public health concern. Emerging nanotechnology and the use of metal oxide nanoparticles has been identified as a potential remediation technique in removing metals from water. However, practical applications are still being explored to determine how to apply their unique chemical and physical properties for full scale remediation projects. This thesis investigates the sorption properties of Cd(II), Cu(II), Pb(II) and Zn(II) to hematite (alpha-Fe2O3) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles in single- and binary-adsorbate systems. Competitive sorption was evaluated in 1L batch binary-metal systems with 0.05g/L nano-hematite at pH 8.0 and pH 6.0. Results indicate that the presence of a secondary metal can affect the sorption process depending upon the molar ratios, such as increased or reduced adsorption. Thermodynamic properties were also studied in order to better understand the effects of temperature on equilibrium and kinetic adsorption capabilities. Understanding the thermodynamic properties can also give insight to determine if the sorption process is a physical, chemical or ion exchange reaction. Thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy (DeltaH), entropy (DeltaS), and Gibbs free energy (DeltaG) were evaluated as a function of temperature, pH, and metal concentration. Results indicate that Pb(II) and Cu(II) adsorption to nano-hematite was an endothermic and physical adsorption process, while Zn(II) and Cd(II) adsorption was dependent upon the adsorbed concentration evaluated. However, metal adsorptions to nano-titanium dioxide were all found to be endothermic and physical adsorption processes; the spontaneity of metal adsorption was temperature dependent for both metal oxide nanoparticles.

  13. New spectroscopic binary companions of giant stars and updated metallicity distribution for binary systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bluhm, P.; Jones, M. I.; Vanzi, L.; Soto, M. G.; Vos, J.; Wittenmyer, R. A.; Drass, H.; Jenkins, J. S.; Olivares, F.; Mennickent, R. E.; Vučković, M.; Rojo, P.; Melo, C. H. F.

    2016-10-01

    We report the discovery of 24 spectroscopic binary companions to giant stars. We fully constrain the orbital solution for 6 of these systems. We cannot unambiguously derive the orbital elements for the remaining stars because the phase coverage is incomplete. Of these stars, 6 present radial velocity trends that are compatible with long-period brown dwarf companions. The orbital solutions of the 24 binary systems indicate that these giant binary systems have a wide range in orbital periods, eccentricities, and companion masses. For the binaries with restricted orbital solutions, we find a range of orbital periods of between ~97-1600 days and eccentricities of between ~0.1-0.4. In addition, we studied the metallicity distribution of single and binary giant stars. We computed the metallicity of a total of 395 evolved stars, 59 of wich are in binary systems. We find a flat distribution for these binary stars and therefore conclude that stellar binary systems, and potentially brown dwarfs, have a different formation mechanism than planets. This result is confirmed by recent works showing that extrasolar planets orbiting giants are more frequent around metal-rich stars. Finally, we investigate the eccentricity as a function of the orbital period. We analyzed a total of 130 spectroscopic binaries, including those presented here and systems from the literature. We find that most of the binary stars with periods ≲30 days have circular orbits, while at longer orbital periods we observe a wide spread in their eccentricities. Based on observations collected at La Silla - Paranal Observatory under programs IDs IDs 085.C-0557, 087.C.0476, 089.C-0524, 090.C-0345, 096.A-9020 and through the Chilean Telescope Time under programs IDs CN2012A-73, CN2012B-47, CN2013A-111, CN2013B-51, CN2014A-52 and CN2015A-48.

  14. Mono-component versus binary isotherm models for Cu(II) and Pb(II) sorption from binary metal solution by the green alga Pithophora oedogonia.

    PubMed

    Kumar, Dhananjay; Singh, Alpana; Gaur, J P

    2008-11-01

    The sorption of Cu(II) and Pb(II) by Pithophora markedly decreased as the concentration of the secondary metal ion, Cu(II) or Pb(II), increased in the binary metal solution. However, the test alga showed a greater affinity to sorb Cu(II) than Pb(II) from the binary metal solution. Mono-component Freundlich, Langmuir, Redlich-Peterson and Sips isotherms successfully predicted the sorption of Cu(II) and Pb(II) from both single and binary metal solutions. None of the tested binary sorption isotherms could realistically predict Cu(II) and Pb(II) sorption capacity and affinity of the test alga for the binary metal solutions of varying composition, which mono-component isotherms could very well accomplish. Hence, mono-component isotherm modeling at different concentrations of the secondary metal ion seems to be a better option than binary isotherms for metal sorption from binary metal solution.

  15. Spinel-structured metal oxide on a substrate and method of making same by molecular beam epitaxy

    DOEpatents

    Chambers, Scott A.

    2006-02-21

    A method of making a spinel-structured metal oxide on a substrate by molecular beam epitaxy, comprising the step of supplying activated oxygen, a first metal atom flux, and at least one other metal atom flux to the surface of the substrate, wherein the metal atom fluxes are individually controlled at the substrate so as to grow the spinel-structured metal oxide on the substrate and the metal oxide is substantially in a thermodynamically stable state during the growth of the metal oxide. A particular embodiment of the present invention encompasses a method of making a spinel-structured binary ferrite, including Co ferrite, without the need of a post-growth anneal to obtain the desired equilibrium state.

  16. Method of producing homogeneous mixed metal oxides and metal-metal oxide mixtures

    DOEpatents

    Quinby, Thomas C.

    1978-01-01

    Metal powders, metal oxide powders, and mixtures thereof of controlled particle size are provided by reacting an aqueous solution containing dissolved metal values with excess urea. Upon heating, urea reacts with water from the solution leaving a molten urea solution containing the metal values. The molten urea solution is heated to above about 180.degree. C. whereupon metal values precipitate homogeneously as a powder. The powder is reduced to metal or calcined to form oxide particles. One or more metal oxides in a mixture can be selectively reduced to produce metal particles or a mixture of metal and metal oxide particles.

  17. Preparation of uniform nanoparticles of ultra-high purity metal oxides, mixed metal oxides, metals, and metal alloys

    DOEpatents

    Woodfield, Brian F.; Liu, Shengfeng; Boerio-Goates, Juliana; Liu, Qingyuan; Smith, Stacey Janel

    2012-07-03

    In preferred embodiments, metal nanoparticles, mixed-metal (alloy) nanoparticles, metal oxide nanoparticles and mixed-metal oxide nanoparticles are provided. According to embodiments, the nanoparticles may possess narrow size distributions and high purities. In certain preferred embodiments, methods of preparing metal nanoparticles, mixed-metal nanoparticles, metal oxide nanoparticles and mixed-metal nanoparticles are provided. These methods may provide tight control of particle size, size distribution, and oxidation state. Other preferred embodiments relate to a precursor material that may be used to form nanoparticles. In addition, products prepared from such nanoparticles are disclosed.

  18. Using Dopants to Tune Oxygen Vacancy Formation in Transition Metal Oxide Resistive Memory.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Hao; Stewart, Derek A

    2017-05-17

    Introducing dopants is an important way to tailor and improve electronic properties of transition metal oxides used as high-k dielectric thin films and resistance switching layers in leading memory technologies, such as dynamic and resistive random access memory (ReRAM). Ta 2 O 5 has recently received increasing interest because Ta 2 O 5 -based ReRAM demonstrates high switching speed, long endurance, and low operating voltage. However, advances in optimizing device characteristics with dopants have been hindered by limited and contradictory experiments in this field. We report on a systematic study on how various metal dopants affect oxygen vacancy formation in crystalline and amorphous Ta 2 O 5 from first principles. We find that isoelectronic dopants and weak n-type dopants have little impact on neutral vacancy formation energy and that p-type dopants can lower the formation energy significantly by introducing holes into the system. In contrast, n-type dopants have a deleterious effect and actually increase the formation energy for charged oxygen vacancies. Given the similar doping trend reported for other binary transition metal oxides, this doping trend should be universally valid for typical binary transition metal oxides. Based on this guideline, we propose that p-type dopants (Al, Hf, Zr, and Ti) can lower the forming/set voltage and improve retention properties of Ta 2 O 5 ReRAM.

  19. High Temperature Reactions of Uranium Dioxide with Various Metal Oxides

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1956-02-20

    manganese, nickel , lead, and tin. Subtracting the total of these impurities from the oxygen remainder would give a more nearly 1:2 uranium -oxygen ratio. The...Astin, Dire~ctor High -Temperature Reactions of Uranium Dioxide With Various Metal Oxides Acceson For NTIS CRAWI DTfC TAB Unannounced D JustifiCation...1 2. The uranium -oxygen system ------------------------------------- 1 3. Binary systems containing

  20. Wide binaries in Tycho-Gaia II: metallicities, abundances and prospects for chemical tagging

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Andrews, Jeff J.; Chanamé, Julio; Agüeros, Marcel A.

    2018-02-01

    From our recent catalogue based on the first Gaia data release (TGAS), we select wide binaries in which both stars have been observed by the Radial Velocity Experiment (RAVE) or the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST). Using RAVE and LAMOST metallicities and RAVE Mg, Al, Si, Ti and Fe abundances, we find that the differences in the metallicities and elemental abundances of components of wide binaries are consistent with being due to observational uncertainties, in agreement with previous results for smaller and more restricted samples. The metallicity and elemental abundance consistency between wide binary components presented in this work confirms their common origin and bolsters the status of wide binaries as 'mini-open clusters'. Furthermore, this is evident that wide binaries are effectively co-eval and co-chemical, supporting their use for, e.g. constraining age-activity-rotation relations, the initial-final mass relation for white dwarfs and M-dwarf metallicity indicators. Additionally, we demonstrate that the common proper motion, common parallax pairs in TGAS with the most extreme separations (s ≳ 0.1 pc) typically have inconsistent metallicities, radial velocities or both and are therefore likely to be predominantly comprised of random alignments of unassociated stars with similar astrometry, in agreement with our previous results. Finally, we propose that wide binaries form an ideal data set with which we can test chemical tagging as a method to identify stars of common origin, particularly because the stars in wide binaries span a wide range of metallicities, much wider than that spanned by nearby open clusters.

  1. Photochemical metal organic deposition of metal oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Law, Wai Lung (Simon)

    This thesis pertains to the study of the deposition of metal oxide thin films via the process of Photochemical Metal Organic Deposition (PMOD). In this process, an amorphous metal organic precursor thin film is subjected to irradiation under ambient conditions. Fragmentation of the metal precursor results from the photoreaction, leading to the formation of metal oxide thin films in the presence of oxygen. The advantage of PMOD lies in its ability to perform lithography of metal oxide thin film without the application of photoresist. The metal organic precursor can be imaged directly by photolysis through a lithography mask under ambient conditions. Thus the PMOD process provides an attractive alternative to the conventional VLSI fabrication process. Metal carboxylates and metal acetylacetonates complexes were used as the precursors for PMOD process in this thesis. Transition metal carboxylate and metal acetylacetonate complexes have shown previously that when deposited as amorphous thin films, they will undergo fragmentation upon photolysis, leading to the formation of metal oxide thin films under ambient conditions. In this thesis, the formation of main group metal oxides of aluminum, indium and tin, as well as the formation of rare-earth metal oxides of cerium and europium by PMOD from its corresponding metal organic precursor will be presented. The nature of the photoreactions as well as the properties of the thin films deposited by PMOD will be investigated. Doped metal oxide thin films can also be prepared using the PMOD process. By mixing the metal precursors prior to deposition in the desired ratio, precursor films containing more than one metal precursor can be obtained. Mixed metal oxide thin films corresponding to the original metal ratio, in the precursor mixture, can be obtained upon photolysis under ambient conditions. In this thesis, the properties of doped metal oxide thin films of europium doped aluminum oxide as well as tin doped indium oxide thin

  2. Cyclic Catalytic Upgrading of Chemical Species Using Metal Oxide Materials

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    White, James H. (Inventor); Rolfe, Sara L. (Inventor); Schutte, Erick J. (Inventor)

    2013-01-01

    Processes are disclosure which comprise alternately contacting an oxygen-carrying catalyst with a reducing substance, or a lower partial pressure of an oxidizing gas, and then with the oxidizing gas or a higher partial pressure of the oxidizing gas, whereby the catalyst is alternately reduced and then regenerated to an oxygenated state. In certain embodiments, the oxygen-carrying catalyst comprises at least one metal oxide-containing material containing a composition having the following formulas: (a) Ce(sub x)B(sub y)B'(sub z)B''O(sub gamma; wherein B=Ba, Sr, Ca, or Zr; B'=Mn, Co, and/or Fe; B''=Cu; 0.01binary metal oxides.

  3. Cyclic catalytic upgrading of chemical species using metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    White, James H; Schutte, Erick J; Rolfe, Sara L

    2013-05-07

    Processes are disclosure which comprise alternately contacting an oxygen-carrying catalyst with a reducing substance, or a lower partial pressure of an oxidizing gas, and then with the oxidizing gas or a higher partial pressure of the oxidizing gas, whereby the catalyst is alternately reduced and then regenerated to an oxygenated state. In certain embodiments, the oxygen-carrying catalyst comprises at least one metal oxide-containing material containing a composition having the following formulas: (a) Ce.sub.xB.sub.yB'.sub.zB''O.sub..delta., wherein B=Ba, Sr, Ca, or Zr; B'=Mn, Co, and/or Fe; B''=Cu; 0.01binary metal oxides.

  4. Microstructural Characterization of Base Metal Alloys with Conductive Native Oxides for Electrical Contact Applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Senturk, Bilge Seda

    Metallic contacts are a ubiquitous method of connecting electrical and electronic components/systems. These contacts are usually fabricated from base metals because they are inexpensive, have high bulk electrical conductivities and exhibit excellent formability. Unfortunately, such base metals oxidize in air under ambient conditions, and the characteristics of the native oxide scales leads to contact resistances orders of magnitude higher than those for mating bare metal surface. This is a critical technological issue since the development of unacceptably high contact resistances over time is now by far the most common cause of failure in electrical/electronic devices and systems. To overcome these problems, several distinct approaches are developed for alloying base metals to promote the formation of self-healing inherently conductive native oxide scales. The objective of this dissertation study is to demonstrate the viability of these approaches through analyzing the data from Cu-9La (at%) and Fe-V binary alloy systems. The Cu-9 La alloy structure consists of eutectic colonies tens of microns in diameter wherein a rod-like Cu phase lies within a Cu6La matrix phase. The thin oxide scale formed on the Cu phase was found to be Cu2O as expected while the thicker oxide scale formed on the Cu6La phase was found to be a polycrystalline La-rich Cu2O. The enhanced electrical conductivity in the native oxide scale of the Cu-9La alloy arises from heavy n-type doping of the Cu2O lattice by La3+. The Fe-V alloy structures consist of a mixture of large elongated and equiaxed grains. A thin polycrystalline Fe3O4 oxide scale formed on all of the Fe-V alloys. The electrical conductivities of the oxide scales formed on the Fe-V alloys are higher than that formed on pure Fe. It is inferred that this enhanced conductivity arises from doping of the magnetite with V+4 which promotes electron-polaron hopping. Thus, it has been demonstrated that even in simple binary alloy systems one

  5. Destructive Clustering of Metal Nanoparticles in Chalcogenide and Oxide Glassy Matrices.

    PubMed

    Shpotyuk, M V; Shpotyuk, O I; Cebulski, J; Kozyukhin, S

    2016-12-01

    The energetic χ-criterion is developed to parameterize difference in the origin of high-order optical non-linearity associated with metallic atoms (Cu, Ag, Au) embedded destructively in oxide- and chalcogenide glasses. Within this approach, it is unambiguously proved that covalent-bonded networks of soft semiconductor chalcogenides exemplified by binary As(Ge)-S(Se) glasses differ essentially from those typical for hard dielectric oxides like vitreous silica by impossibility to accommodate pure agglomerates of metallic nanoparticles. In an excellence according to known experimental data, it is suggested that destructive clustering of nanoparticles is possible in Cu-, Ag-, and Au-ion-implanted dielectric oxide glass media, possessing a strongly negative χ-criterion. Some recent speculations trying to ascribe equally this ability to soft chalcogenide glasses despite an obvious difference in the corresponding bond dissociation energies have been disclosed and criticized as inconclusive.

  6. Extracting metals directly from metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Wai, Chien M.; Smart, Neil G.; Phelps, Cindy

    1997-01-01

    A method of extracting metals directly from metal oxides by exposing the oxide to a supercritical fluid solvent containing a chelating agent is described. Preferably, the metal is an actinide or a lanthanide. More preferably, the metal is uranium, thorium or plutonium. The chelating agent forms chelates that are soluble in the supercritical fluid, thereby allowing direct removal of the metal from the metal oxide. In preferred embodiments, the extraction solvent is supercritical carbon dioxide and the chelating agent is selected from the group consisting of .beta.-diketones, halogenated .beta.-diketones, phosphinic acids, halogenated phosphinic acids, carboxylic acids, halogenated carboxylic acids, and mixtures thereof. In especially preferred embodiments, at least one of the chelating agents is fluorinated. The method provides an environmentally benign process for removing metals from metal oxides without using acids or biologically harmful solvents. The chelate and supercritical fluid can be regenerated, and the metal recovered, to provide an economic, efficient process.

  7. Extracting metals directly from metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Wai, C.M.; Smart, N.G.; Phelps, C.

    1997-02-25

    A method of extracting metals directly from metal oxides by exposing the oxide to a supercritical fluid solvent containing a chelating agent is described. Preferably, the metal is an actinide or a lanthanide. More preferably, the metal is uranium, thorium or plutonium. The chelating agent forms chelates that are soluble in the supercritical fluid, thereby allowing direct removal of the metal from the metal oxide. In preferred embodiments, the extraction solvent is supercritical carbon dioxide and the chelating agent is selected from the group consisting of {beta}-diketones, halogenated {beta}-diketones, phosphinic acids, halogenated phosphinic acids, carboxylic acids, halogenated carboxylic acids, and mixtures thereof. In especially preferred embodiments, at least one of the chelating agents is fluorinated. The method provides an environmentally benign process for removing metals from metal oxides without using acids or biologically harmful solvents. The chelate and supercritical fluid can be regenerated, and the metal recovered, to provide an economic, efficient process. 4 figs.

  8. Metal oxide-polymer composites

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wellinghoff, Stephen T. (Inventor)

    1997-01-01

    A method of making metal oxide clusters in a single stage by reacting a metal oxide with a substoichiometric amount of an acid in the presence of an oxide particle growth terminator and solubilizer. A method of making a ceramer is also disclosed in which the metal oxide clusters are reacted with a functionalized polymer. The resultant metal oxide clusters and ceramers are also disclosed.

  9. Metal oxide-polymer composites

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wellinghoff, Stephen T. (Inventor)

    1994-01-01

    A method of making metal oxide clusters in a single stage by reacting a metal oxide with a substoichiometric amount of an acid in the presence of an oxide particle growth terminator and solubilizer. A method of making a ceramer is also disclosed in which the metal oxide clusters are reacted with a functionalized polymer. The resultant metal oxide clusters and ceramers are also disclosed.

  10. Design and synthesis of magnetic binary metal oxides nanocomposites through dopamine chemistry for highly selective enrichment of phosphopeptides.

    PubMed

    Wang, Mengyi; Sun, Xueni; Li, Yan; Deng, Chunhui

    2016-03-01

    In this work, for the first time, magnetic binary metal oxides nanocomposites which integrated Zr and Ti into one entity on an atomic scale on polydopamine coated magnetic graphene (magG/PD/(Zr-Ti)O4 ) was designed and synthesized, and applied to the enrichment of phosphopeptides. The newly prepared magG/PD/(Zr-Ti)O4 composites gathered the advantages of large surface area, superparamagnetism, biocompatibility and the enhanced affinity properties to phosphopeptides. MagG/PD/ZrO2 , magG/PD/TiO2 , as well as the simple physical mixture of them were introduced to compare with magG/PD/(Zr-Ti)O4 composites. High sensitivity (1 pg/μL or 4.0 × 10(-11) M) and selectivity (weight ratio of β-casein and BSA reached up to 1:8000) toward phosphopeptides were also presented for magG/PD/(Zr-Ti)O4 composites. Additionally, mouse brain tissue was chose as the real samples to further investigate the phosphopeptides enrichment ability of this new material. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Structure-Reactivity Relationships in Multi-Component Transition Metal Oxide Catalysts FINAL Report

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Altman, Eric I.

    2015-10-06

    The focus of the project was on developing an atomic-level understanding of how transition metal oxide catalysts function. Over the course of several renewals the specific emphases shifted from understanding how local structure and oxidation state affect how molecules adsorb and react on the surfaces of binary oxide crystals to more complex systems where interactions between different transition metal oxide cations in an oxide catalyst can affect reactivity, and finally to the impact of cluster size on oxide stability and reactivity. Hallmarks of the work were the use of epitaxial growth methods to create surfaces relevant to catalysis yet tractablemore » for fundamental surface science approaches, and the use of scanning tunneling microscopy to follow structural changes induced by reactions and to pinpoint adsorption sites. Key early findings included the identification of oxidation and reduction mechanisms on a tungsten oxide catalyst surface that determine the sites available for reaction, identification of C-O bond cleavage as the rate limiting step in alcohol dehydration reactions on the tungsten oxide surface, and demonstration that reduction does not change the favored reaction pathway but rather eases C-O bond cleavage and thus reduces the reaction barrier. Subsequently, a new reconstruction on the anatase phase of TiO 2 relevant to catalysis was discovered and shown to create sites with distinct reactivity compared to other TiO 2 surfaces. Building on this work on anatase, the mechanism by which TiO 2 enhances the reactivity of vanadium oxide layers was characterized and it was found that the TiO 2 substrate can force thin vanadia layers to adopt structures they would not ordinarily form in the bulk which in turn creates differences in reactivity between supported layers and bulk samples. From there, the work progressed to studying well-defined ternary oxides where synergistic effects between the two cations can induce catalytic properties not seen for

  12. High-resolution spectroscopy of extremely metal-poor stars from SDSS/Segue. II. Binary fraction

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Aoki, Wako; Suda, Takuma; Beers, Timothy C.

    2015-02-01

    The fraction of binary systems in various stellar populations of the Galaxy and the distribution of their orbital parameters are important but not well-determined factors in studies of star formation, stellar evolution, and Galactic chemical evolution. While observational studies have been carried out for a large sample of nearby stars, including some metal-poor Population II stars, almost no constraints on the binary nature for extremely metal-poor (EMP; [Fe/H] <−3.0) stars have yet been obtained. Here we investigate the fraction of double-lined spectroscopic binaries and carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars, many of which could have formed as pairs of low-mass and intermediate-massmore » stars, to estimate the lower limit of the fraction of binary systems having short periods. The estimate is based on a sample of very metal-poor stars selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and observed at high spectral resolution in a previous study by Aoki et al. That survey reported 3 double-lined spectroscopic binaries and 11 CEMP stars, which we consider along with a sample of EMP stars from the literature compiled in the SAGA database. We have conducted measurements of the velocity components for stacked absorption features of different spectral lines for each double-lined spectroscopic binary. Our estimate indicates that the fraction of binary stars having orbital periods shorter than 1000 days is at least 10%, and possibly as high as 20% if the majority of CEMP stars are formed in such short-period binaries. This result suggests that the period distribution of EMP binary systems is biased toward short periods, unless the binary fraction of low-mass EMP stars is significantly higher than that of other nearby stars.« less

  13. Oxidation of diesel soot on binary oxide CuCr(Co)-based monoliths.

    PubMed

    Soloviev, Sergiy O; Kapran, Andriy Y; Kurylets, Yaroslava P

    2015-02-01

    Binary oxide systems (CuCr2O4, CuCo2O4), deposited onto cordierite monoliths of honeycomb structure with a second support (finely dispersed Al2O3), were prepared as filters for catalytic combustion of diesel soot using internal combustion engine's gas exhausts (O2, NOx, H2O, CO2) and O3 as oxidizing agents. It is shown that the second support increases soot capacity of aforementioned filters, and causes dispersion of the particles of spinel phases as active components enhancing thereby catalyst activity and selectivity of soot combustion to CO2. Oxidants used can be arranged with reference to decreasing their activity in a following series: O3≫NO2>H2O>NO>O2>CO2. Ozone proved to be the most efficient oxidizing agent: the diesel soot combustion by O3 occurs intensively (in the presence of copper chromite based catalyst) even at closing to ambient temperatures. Results obtained give a basis for the conclusion that using a catalytic coating on soot filters in the form of aforementioned binary oxide systems and ozone as the initiator of the oxidation processes is a promising approach in solving the problem of comprehensive purification of automotive exhaust gases at relatively low temperatures, known as the "cold start" problem. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  14. Evaluation of natural organic matter adsorption on Fe-Al binary oxide: Comparison with single metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Kim, Kyung-Jo; Jang, Am

    2017-10-01

    The adsorption characteristics of three types of standard natural organic matter (NOM) on iron-aluminum (Fe-Al) binary oxide (FAO) and heated aluminum oxide (HAO) under natural surface water condition were investigated using various adsorption isotherms and kinetic models. FAO was synthesized by Fe oxide and Al oxide, mixed using the sol-gel hydrothermal method, and aluminum sulfate was used to make HAO. The amount of adsorbed NOM was increased to 79.6 mg g -1 for humic acid (HA), 101.1 mg g -1 for sodium alginate (SA) in the FAO, but the maximum adsorption capacity of bovine serum albumin (BSA) (461.3 mg g -1 ) was identified on the HAO. The adsorption of HA, BSA, and SA dramatically increased (>70%) on FAO in 5 min and HA was significantly removed (90%) among the three NOM. Mutual interaction among the adsorbed NOM (BSA) occurred on the HAO surface during adsorption due to formation of monolayer by protein molecules at neutral pH. The pseudo second order clearly represented the adsorption kinetics for both adsorbents. The equilibrium isotherm data of FAO was better exhibited by the Langmuir isotherm model than by the Freundlich isotherm, but HAO was a slightly non-linear Langmuir type. Also, the free energy, enthalpy, and entropy of adsorption were determined from the thermodynamic experiments. Adsorption on FAO was spontaneous and an exothermic process. Fluorescence excitation-emission matrix (FEEM) spectra were used to elucidate the variation in organic components. The results obtained suggests that the significant changes in the surface property of the adsorbent (large surface area, increased crystalline intensity, and fine particle size) were effectively determined by the Fe-synthesized Al oxide mixed using the sol-gel hydrothermal method. The results also suggest that the changes enhanced the adsorption capacity, whereby three NOM were notably removed on FAO regardless of NOM characteristics (hydrophobic and hydrophilic). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier

  15. Cohesive energy and structural parameters of binary oxides of groups IIA and IIIB from diffusion quantum Monte Carlo

    DOE PAGES

    Santana, Juan A.; Krogel, Jaron T.; Kent, Paul R. C.; ...

    2016-05-03

    We have applied the diffusion quantum Monte Carlo (DMC) method to calculate the cohesive energy and the structural parameters of the binary oxides CaO, SrO, BaO, Sc 2O 3, Y 2O 3 and La 2O 3. The aim of our calculations is to systematically quantify the accuracy of the DMC method to study this type of metal oxides. The DMC results were compared with local and semi-local Density Functional Theory (DFT) approximations as well as with experimental measurements. The DMC method yields cohesive energies for these oxides with a mean absolute deviation from experimental measurements of 0.18(2) eV, while withmore » local and semi-local DFT approximations the deviation is 3.06 and 0.94 eV, respectively. For lattice constants, the mean absolute deviation in DMC, local and semi-local DFT approximations, are 0.017(1), 0.07 and 0.05 , respectively. In conclusion, DMC is highly accurate method, outperforming the local and semi-local DFT approximations in describing the cohesive energies and structural parameters of these binary oxides.« less

  16. Metal oxide films on metal

    DOEpatents

    Wu, Xin D.; Tiwari, Prabhat

    1995-01-01

    A structure including a thin film of a conductive alkaline earth metal oxide selected from the group consisting of strontium ruthenium trioxide, calcium ruthenium trioxide, barium ruthenium trioxide, lanthanum-strontium cobalt oxide or mixed alkaline earth ruthenium trioxides thereof upon a thin film of a noble metal such as platinum is provided.

  17. Metal Composition and Polyethylenimine Doping Capacity Effects on Semiconducting Metal Oxide-Polymer Blend Charge Transport.

    PubMed

    Huang, Wei; Guo, Peijun; Zeng, Li; Li, Ran; Wang, Binghao; Wang, Gang; Zhang, Xinan; Chang, Robert P H; Yu, Junsheng; Bedzyk, Michael J; Marks, Tobin J; Facchetti, Antonio

    2018-04-25

    Charge transport and film microstructure evolution are investigated in a series of polyethylenimine (PEI)-doped (0.0-6.0 wt%) amorphous metal oxide (MO) semiconductor thin film blends. Here, PEI doping generality is broadened from binary In 2 O 3 to ternary (e.g., In+Zn in IZO, In+Ga in IGO) and quaternary (e.g., In+Zn+Ga in IGZO) systems, demonstrating the universality of this approach for polymer electron doping of MO matrices. Systematic comparison of the effects of various metal ions on the electronic transport and film microstructure of these blends are investigated by combined thin-film transistor (TFT) response, AFM, XPS, XRD, X-ray reflectivity, and cross-sectional TEM. Morphological analysis reveals that layered MO film microstructures predominate in PEI-In 2 O 3 , but become less distinct in IGO and are not detectable in IZO and IGZO. TFT charge transport measurements indicate a general coincidence of a peak in carrier mobility (μ peak ) and overall TFT performance at optimal PEI doping concentrations. Optimal PEI loadings that yield μ peak values depend not only on the MO elemental composition but also, equally important, on the metal atomic ratios. By investigating the relationship between the MO energy levels and PEI doping by UPS, it is concluded that the efficiency of PEI electron-donation is highly dependent on the metal oxide matrix work function in cases where film morphology is optimal, as in the IGO compositions. The results of this investigation demonstrate the broad generality and efficacy of PEI electron doping applied to electronically functional metal oxide systems and that the resulting film microstructure, morphology, and energy level modifications are all vital to understanding charge transport in these amorphous oxide blends.

  18. Methods for synthesizing metal oxide nanowires

    DOEpatents

    Sunkara, Mahendra Kumar; Kumar, Vivekanand; Kim, Jeong H.; Clark, Ezra Lee

    2016-08-09

    A method of synthesizing a metal oxide nanowire includes the steps of: combining an amount of a transition metal or a transition metal oxide with an amount of an alkali metal compound to produce a mixture; activating a plasma discharge reactor to create a plasma discharge; exposing the mixture to the plasma discharge for a first predetermined time period such that transition metal oxide nanowires are formed; contacting the transition metal oxide nanowires with an acid solution such that an alkali metal ion is exchanged for a hydrogen ion on each of the transition metal oxide nanowires; and exposing the transition metal oxide nanowires to the plasma discharge for a second predetermined time period to thermally anneal the transition metal oxide nanowires. Transition metal oxide nanowires produced using the synthesis methods described herein are also provided.

  19. X-ray binary formation in low-metallicity blue compact dwarf galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brorby, M.; Kaaret, P.; Prestwich, A.

    2014-07-01

    X-rays from binaries in small, metal-deficient galaxies may have contributed significantly to the heating and reionization of the early Universe. We investigate this claim by studying blue compact dwarfs (BCDs) as local analogues to these early galaxies. We constrain the relation of the X-ray luminosity function (XLF) to the star formation rate (SFR) using a Bayesian approach applied to a sample of 25 BCDs. The functional form of the XLF is fixed to that found for near-solar metallicity galaxies and is used to find the probability distribution of the normalization that relates X-ray luminosity to SFR. Our results suggest that the XLF normalization for low-metallicity BCDs (12+log(O/H) < 7.7) is not consistent with the XLF normalization for galaxies with near-solar metallicities, at a confidence level 1-5 × 10- 6. The XLF normalization for the BCDs is found to be 14.5± 4.8 ({M}_{⊙}^{-1} yr), a factor of 9.7 ± 3.2 higher than for near-solar metallicity galaxies. Simultaneous determination of the XLF normalization and power-law index result in estimates of q = 21.2^{+12.2}_{-8.8} ({M}_{⊙}^{-1} yr) and α = 1.89^{+0.41}_{-0.30}, respectively. Our results suggest a significant enhancement in the population of high-mass X-ray binaries in BCDs compared to the near-solar metallicity galaxies. This suggests that X-ray binaries could have been a significant source of heating in the early Universe.

  20. Ab initio atomistic thermodynamics study on the oxidation mechanism of binary and ternary alloy surfaces

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Shi-Yu, E-mail: buaasyliu@gmail.com; Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong; Liu, Shiyang

    Utilizing a combination of ab initio density-functional theory and thermodynamics formalism, we have established the microscopic mechanisms for oxidation of the binary and ternary alloy surfaces and provided a clear explanation for the experimental results of the oxidation. We construct three-dimensional surface phase diagrams (SPDs) for oxygen adsorption on three different Nb-X(110) (X = Ti, Al or Si) binary alloy surfaces. On the basis of the obtained SPDs, we conclude a general microscopic mechanism for the thermodynamic oxidation, that is, under O-rich conditions, a uniform single-phase SPD (type I) and a nonuniform double-phase SPD (type II) correspond to the sustainedmore » complete selective oxidation and the non-sustained partial selective oxidation by adding the X element, respectively. Furthermore, by revealing the framework of thermodynamics for the oxidation mechanism of ternary alloys through the comparison of the surface energies of two separated binary alloys, we provide an understanding for the selective oxidation behavior of the Nb ternary alloy surfaces. Using these general microscopic mechanisms, one could predict the oxidation behavior of any binary and multi-component alloy surfaces based on thermodynamics considerations.« less

  1. The close binary frequency of Wolf-Rayet stars as a function of metallicity in M31 and M33

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Neugent, Kathryn F.; Massey, Philip, E-mail: kneugent@lowell.edu, E-mail: phil.massey@lowell.edu

    Massive star evolutionary models generally predict the correct ratio of WC-type and WN-type Wolf-Rayet stars at low metallicities, but underestimate the ratio at higher (solar and above) metallicities. One possible explanation for this failure is perhaps single-star models are not sufficient and Roche-lobe overflow in close binaries is necessary to produce the 'extra' WC stars at higher metallicities. However, this would require the frequency of close massive binaries to be metallicity dependent. Here we test this hypothesis by searching for close Wolf-Rayet binaries in the high metallicity environments of M31 and the center of M33 as well as in themore » lower metallicity environments of the middle and outer regions of M33. After identifying ∼100 Wolf-Rayet binaries based on radial velocity variations, we conclude that the close binary frequency of Wolf-Rayets is not metallicity dependent and thus other factors must be responsible for the overabundance of WC stars at high metallicities. However, our initial identifications and observations of these close binaries have already been put to good use as we are currently observing additional epochs for eventual orbit and mass determinations.« less

  2. Removal of thallium from aqueous solutions using Fe-Mn binary oxides.

    PubMed

    Li, Huosheng; Chen, Yongheng; Long, Jianyou; Li, Xiuwan; Jiang, Daqian; Zhang, Ping; Qi, Jianying; Huang, Xuexia; Liu, Juan; Xu, Ruibing; Gong, Jian

    2017-09-15

    In this study, Fe-Mn binary oxides, which harbor the strong oxidative power of manganese dioxide and the high adsorption capacity of iron oxides, were synthesized for Tl(I) removal using a concurrent chemical oxidation and precipitation method. The adsorption of Tl onto the Fe-Mn adsorbent was fast, effective, and selective, with equilibrium sorption reaching over 95% under a broad operating pH (3-12), and high ionic strength (0.1-0.5mol/L). The adsorption can be well fitted with both Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, and the kinetics can be well described by the pseudo-second-order model. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra suggest that surface complexation, oxidation and precipitation were the main mechanisms for the removal of Tl. This study shows that the Fe-Mn binary oxides could be a promising adsorbent for Tl removal. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Design of Nickel-Based Cation-Disordered Rock-Salt Oxides: The Effect of Transition Metal (M = V, Ti, Zr) Substitution in LiNi0.5M0.5O2 Binary Systems.

    PubMed

    Cambaz, Musa Ali; Vinayan, Bhaghavathi P; Euchner, Holger; Johnsen, Rune E; Guda, Alexander A; Mazilkin, Andrey; Rusalev, Yury V; Trigub, Alexander L; Gross, Axel; Fichtner, Maximilian

    2018-06-20

    Cation-disordered oxides have been ignored as positive electrode material for a long time due to structurally limited lithium insertion/extraction capabilities. In this work, a case study is carried out on nickel-based cation-disordered Fm3 ̅m LiNi 0.5 M 0.5 O 2 positive electrode materials. The present investigation targets tailoring the electrochemical properties for nickel-based cation-disordered rock-salt by electronic considerations. The compositional space for binary LiM +3 O 2 with metals active for +3/+4 redox couples is extended to ternary oxides with LiA 0.5 B 0.5 O 2 with A = Ni 2+ and B = Ti 4+ , Zr 4+ , and V +4 to assess the impact of the different transition metals in the isostructural oxides. The direct synthesis of various new unknown ternary nickel-based Fm3̅ m cation-disordered rock-salt positive electrode materials is presented with a particular focus on the LiNi 0.5 V 0.5 O 2 system. This positive electrode material for Li-ion batteries displays an average voltage of ∼2.55 V and a high discharge capacity of 264 mAhg -1 corresponding to 0.94 Li. For appropriate cutoff voltages, a long cycle life is achieved. The charge compensation mechanism is probed by XANES, confirming the reversible oxidation and reduction of V 4+ /V 5+ . The enhancement in the electrochemical performances within the presented compounds stresses the importance of mixed cation-disordered transition metal oxides with different electronic configuration.

  4. Thin film hydrous metal oxide catalysts

    DOEpatents

    Dosch, Robert G.; Stephens, Howard P.

    1995-01-01

    Thin film (<100 nm) hydrous metal oxide catalysts are prepared by 1) synthesis of a hydrous metal oxide, 2) deposition of the hydrous metal oxide upon an inert support surface, 3) ion exchange with catalytically active metals, and 4) activating the hydrous metal oxide catalysts.

  5. Arsenate uptake and arsenite simultaneous sorption and oxidation by Fe-Mn binary oxides: influence of Mn/Fe ratio, pH, Ca2+, and humic acid.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Gaosheng; Liu, Huijuan; Qu, Jiuhui; Jefferson, William

    2012-01-15

    Arsenate retention, arsenite sorption and oxidation on the surfaces of Fe-Mn binary oxides may play an important role in the mobilization and transformation of arsenic, due to the common occurrence of these oxides in the environment. However, no sufficient information on the sorption behaviors of arsenic on Fe-Mn binary oxides is available. This study investigated the influences of Mn/Fe molar ratio, solution pH, coexisting calcium ions, and humic acids have on arsenic sorption by Fe-Mn binary oxides. To create Fe-Mn binary oxides, simultaneous oxidation and co-precipitation methods were employed. The Fe-Mn binary oxides exhibited a porous crystalline structure similar to 2-line ferrihydrite at Mn/Fe ratios 1:3 and below, whereas exhibited similar structures to δ-MnO(2) at higher ratios. The As(V) sorption maximum was observed at a Mn/Fe ratio of 1:6, but As(III) uptake maximum was at Mn/Fe ratio 1:3. However, As(III) adsorption capacity was much higher than that of As(V) at each Mn/Fe ratio. As(V) sorption was found to decrease with increasing pH, while As(III) sorption edge was different, depending on the content of MnO(2) in the binary oxides. The presence of Ca(2+) enhanced the As(V) uptake under alkaline pH, but did not significantly influence the As(III) sorption by 1:9 Fe-Mn binary oxide; whereas the presence of humic acid slightly reduced both As(V) and As(III) uptake. These results indicate that As(III) is more easily immobilized than As(V) in the environment, where Fe-Mn binary oxides are available as sorbents and they represent attractive adsorbents for both As(V) and As(III) removal from water and groundwater. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Dynamics of stellar black holes in young star clusters with different metallicities - II. Black hole-black hole binaries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ziosi, Brunetto Marco; Mapelli, Michela; Branchesi, Marica; Tormen, Giuseppe

    2014-07-01

    In this paper, we study the formation and dynamical evolution of black hole-black hole (BH-BH) binaries in young star clusters (YSCs), by means of N-body simulations. The simulations include metallicity-dependent recipes for stellar evolution and stellar winds, and have been run for three different metallicities (Z = 0.01, 0.1 and 1 Z⊙). Following recent theoretical models of wind mass-loss and core-collapse supernovae, we assume that the mass of the stellar remnants depends on the metallicity of the progenitor stars. We find that BH-BH binaries form efficiently because of dynamical exchanges: in our simulations, we find about 10 times more BH-BH binaries than double neutron star binaries. The simulated BH-BH binaries form earlier in metal-poor YSCs, which host more massive black holes (BHs) than in metal-rich YSCs. The simulated BH-BH binaries have very large chirp masses (up to 80 M⊙), because the BH mass is assumed to depend on metallicity, and because BHs can grow in mass due to the merger with stars. The simulated BH-BH binaries span a wide range of orbital periods (10-3-107 yr), and only a small fraction of them (0.3 per cent) is expected to merge within a Hubble time. We discuss the estimated merger rate from our simulations and the implications for Advanced VIRGO and LIGO.

  7. Oxidation and reduction in irradiated binary crystals of resorcinol and progesterone

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Box, Harold C.; Budzinski, Edwin E.

    1985-12-01

    The binary single crystals of resorcinol and progesterone were x-irradiated at 4.2 K. The semiquinone of resorcinol was generated by radiation induced oxidation. The oxidation and reduction products were identified from ESR and ENDOR measurements. (AIP)

  8. Electrocatalyst for alcohol oxidation in fuel cells

    DOEpatents

    Adzic, Radoslav R.; Marinkovic, Nebojsa S.

    2001-01-01

    Binary and ternary electrocatalysts are provided for oxidizing alcohol in a fuel cell. The binary electrocatalyst includes 1) a substrate selected from the group consisting of NiWO.sub.4 or CoWO.sub.4 or a combination thereof, and 2) Group VIII noble metal catalyst supported on the substrate. The ternary electrocatalyst includes 1) a substrate as described above, and 2) a catalyst comprising Group VIII noble metal, and ruthenium oxide or molybdenum oxide or a combination thereof, said catalyst being supported on said substrate.

  9. Lithium metal reduction of plutonium oxide to produce plutonium metal

    DOEpatents

    Coops, Melvin S.

    1992-01-01

    A method is described for the chemical reduction of plutonium oxides to plutonium metal by the use of pure lithium metal. Lithium metal is used to reduce plutonium oxide to alpha plutonium metal (alpha-Pu). The lithium oxide by-product is reclaimed by sublimation and converted to the chloride salt, and after electrolysis, is removed as lithium metal. Zinc may be used as a solvent metal to improve thermodynamics of the reduction reaction at lower temperatures. Lithium metal reduction enables plutonium oxide reduction without the production of huge quantities of CaO--CaCl.sub.2 residues normally produced in conventional direct oxide reduction processes.

  10. Graphene-supported metal oxide monolith

    DOEpatents

    Worsley, Marcus A.; Baumann, Theodore F.; Biener, Juergen; Biener, Monika A.; Wang, Yinmin; Ye, Jianchao; Tylski, Elijah

    2017-01-10

    A composition comprising at least one graphene-supported metal oxide monolith, said monolith comprising a three-dimensional structure of graphene sheets crosslinked by covalent carbon bonds, wherein the graphene sheets are coated by at least one metal oxide such as iron oxide or titanium oxide. Also provided is an electrode comprising the aforementioned graphene-supported metal oxide monolith, wherein the electrode can be substantially free of any carbon-black and substantially free of any binder.

  11. Properties of binary transition-metal arsenides (TAs)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Saparov, Bayrammurad; Mitchell, Jonathan E.; Sefat, Athena S.

    2012-08-01

    We present thermodynamic and transport properties of transition-metal (T) arsenides, TAs, with T = Sc to Ni (3d), Zr, Nb, Ru (4d), Hf and Ta (5d). Characterization of these binaries is carried out with powder x-ray diffraction, temperature- and field-dependent magnetization and resistivity, temperature-dependent heat capacity, Seebeck coefficient, and thermal conductivity. All binaries show metallic behavior except TaAs and RuAs. TaAs, NbAs, ScAs and ZrAs are diamagnetic, while CoAs, VAs, TiAs, NiAs and RuAs show approximately Pauli paramagnetic behavior. FeAs and CrAs undergo antiferromagnetic ordering below TN ≈ 71 K and TN ≈ 260 K, respectively. MnAs is a ferromagnet below TC ≈ 317 K and undergoes hexagonal-orthorhombic-hexagonal transitions at TS ≈ 317 K and 384 K, respectively. For TAs, Seebeck coefficients vary between + 40 and - 40 μV K-1 in the 2-300 K range, whereas thermal conductivity values stay below 18 W m-1 K-1. The Sommerfeld coefficients γ are less than 10 mJ K-2 mol-1. At room temperature with application of 8 T magnetic field, large positive magnetoresistance is found for TaAs (˜25%), MnAs (˜90%) and NbAs (˜75%).

  12. Metal oxide nanostructures with hierarchical morphology

    DOEpatents

    Ren, Zhifeng; Lao, Jing Yu; Banerjee, Debasish

    2007-11-13

    The present invention relates generally to metal oxide materials with varied symmetrical nanostructure morphologies. In particular, the present invention provides metal oxide materials comprising one or more metallic oxides with three-dimensionally ordered nanostructural morphologies, including hierarchical morphologies. The present invention also provides methods for producing such metal oxide materials.

  13. Mesoporous metal oxide graphene nanocomposite materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A.; Kou, Rong; Wang, Donghai

    2016-05-24

    A nanocomposite material formed of graphene and a mesoporous metal oxide having a demonstrated specific capacity of more than 200 F/g with particular utility when employed in supercapacitor applications. A method for making these nanocomposite materials by first forming a mixture of graphene, a surfactant, and a metal oxide precursor, precipitating the metal oxide precursor with the surfactant from the mixture to form a mesoporous metal oxide. The mesoporous metal oxide is then deposited onto a surface of the graphene.

  14. In Situ Electrochemical Oxidation Tuning of Transition Metal Disulfides to Oxides for Enhanced Water Oxidation

    DOE PAGES

    Chen, Wei; Wang, Haotian; Li, Yuzhang; ...

    2015-07-15

    The development of catalysts with earth-abundant elements for efficient oxygen evolution reactions is of paramount significance for clean and sustainable energy storage and conversion devices. Our group demonstrated recently that the electrochemical tuning of catalysts via lithium insertion and extraction has emerged as a powerful approach to improve catalytic activity. Here we report a novel in situ electrochemical oxidation tuning approach to develop a series of binary, ternary, and quaternary transition metal (e.g., Co, Ni, Fe) oxides from their corresponding sulfides as highly active catalysts for much enhanced water oxidation. The electrochemically tuned cobalt–nickel–iron oxides grown directly on the three-dimensionalmore » carbon fiber electrodes exhibit a low overpotential of 232 mV at current density of 10 mA cm –2, small Tafel slope of 37.6 mV dec –1, and exceptional long-term stability of electrolysis for over 100 h in 1 M KOH alkaline medium, superior to most non-noble oxygen evolution catalysts reported so far. The materials evolution associated with the electrochemical oxidation tuning is systematically investigated by various characterizations, manifesting that the improved activities are attributed to the significant grain size reduction and increase of surface area and electroactive sites. This work provides a promising strategy to develop electrocatalysts for large-scale water-splitting systems and many other applications.« less

  15. Method for plating with metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Silver, Gary L.; Martin, Frank S.

    1994-08-23

    A method of plating hydrous metal oxides on at least one substrate, which method is indifferent to the electrochemical properties of the substrate, and comprises reacting metallic ions in aqueous solution with an appropriate oxidizing agent such as sodium hypochlorite or calcium sulfite with oxygen under suitable conditions of pH and concentration such that oxidation and precipitation of metal oxide are sufficiently slow to allow satisfactory plating of metal oxide on the substrate.

  16. Method for plating with metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Silver, G.L.; Martin, F.S.

    1994-08-23

    A method is disclosed of plating hydrous metal oxides on at least one substrate, which method is indifferent to the electrochemical properties of the substrate, and comprises reacting metallic ions in aqueous solution with an appropriate oxidizing agent such as sodium hypochlorite or calcium sulfite with oxygen under suitable conditions of pH and concentration such that oxidation and precipitation of metal oxide are sufficiently slow to allow satisfactory plating of metal oxide on the substrate. 1 fig.

  17. Oxide film on metal substrate reduced to form metal-oxide-metal layer structure

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Youngdahl, C. A.

    1967-01-01

    Electrically conductive layer of zirconium on a zirconium-oxide film residing on a zirconium substrate is formed by reducing the oxide in a sodium-calcium solution. The reduced metal remains on the oxide surface as an adherent layer and seems to form a barrier that inhibits further reaction.

  18. Micro/nanostructured porous Fe-Ni binary oxide and its enhanced arsenic adsorption performances.

    PubMed

    Liu, Shengwen; Kang, Shenghong; Wang, Guozhong; Zhao, Huijun; Cai, Weiping

    2015-11-15

    A simple method is presented to synthesize micro/nano-structured Fe-Ni binary oxides based on co-precipitation and subsequent calcination. It has been found that the Fe-Ni binary oxides are composed of the porous microsized aggregates built with nanoparticles. When the atomic ratio of Fe to Ni is 2 to 1 the binary oxide is the micro-scaled aggregates consisting of the ultrafine NiFe2O4 nanoparticles with 3-6nm in size, and shows porous structure with pore diameter of 3nm and a specific surface area of 245m(2)g(-1). Such material is of abundant surface functional groups and has exhibited high adsorption performance to As(III) and As(V). The kinetic adsorption can be described by pseudo-second order model and the isothermal adsorption is subject to Langmuir model. The maximum adsorption capacity on such Fe-Ni porous binary oxide is up to 168.6mgg(-1) and 90.1mgg(-1) for As(III) and As(V), respectively, which are much higher than the arsenic adsorption capacity for most commercial adsorbents. Such enhanced adsorption ability for this material is mainly attributed to its porous structure and high specific surface area as well as the abundant surface functional groups. Further experiments have revealed that the influence of the anions such as sulfate, carbonate, and phosphate, which commonly co-exist in water, on the arsenic adsorption is insignificant, exhibiting strong adsorption selectivity to arsenic. This micro/nano-structured porous Fe-Ni binary oxide is hence of good practicability to be used as a highly efficient adsorbent for arsenic removal from the real arsenic-contaminated waters. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Metal oxide nanorod arrays on monolithic substrates

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gao, Pu-Xian; Guo, Yanbing; Ren, Zheng

    A metal oxide nanorod array structure according to embodiments disclosed herein includes a monolithic substrate having a surface and multiple channels, an interface layer bonded to the surface of the substrate, and a metal oxide nanorod array coupled to the substrate surface via the interface layer. The metal oxide can include ceria, zinc oxide, tin oxide, alumina, zirconia, cobalt oxide, and gallium oxide. The substrate can include a glass substrate, a plastic substrate, a silicon substrate, a ceramic monolith, and a stainless steel monolith. The ceramic can include cordierite, alumina, tin oxide, and titania. The nanorod array structure can includemore » a perovskite shell, such as a lanthanum-based transition metal oxide, or a metal oxide shell, such as ceria, zinc oxide, tin oxide, alumina, zirconia, cobalt oxide, and gallium oxide, or a coating of metal particles, such as platinum, gold, palladium, rhodium, and ruthenium, over each metal oxide nanorod. Structures can be bonded to the surface of a substrate and resist erosion if exposed to high velocity flow rates.« less

  20. Ce-Sn binary oxide catalyst for the selective catalytic reduction of NOx by NH3

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Zhiming; Feng, Xu; Zhou, Zizheng; Feng, Yongjun; Li, Junhua

    2018-01-01

    Ce-Sn binary oxide catalysts prepared by the hydrothermal method have been investigated for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx with NH3. Compared with pure CeO2 and SnO2, Ce-Sn binary oxide catalyst showed significantly higher NH3-SCR activity. Moreover, Ce-Sn catalyst showed high resistance against H2O and SO2. The high catalytic performance of Ce-Sn binary oxide is attributed to the synergetic effect between Ce and Sn species, which not only enhances the redox property of the catalyst but also increases the Lewis acidity, thus promoting the adsorption and activation of NH3 species, which contributes to improving the NH3-SCR performance.

  1. Metal atom oxidation laser

    DOEpatents

    Jensen, R.J.; Rice, W.W.; Beattie, W.H.

    1975-10-28

    A chemical laser which operates by formation of metal or carbon atoms and reaction of such atoms with a gaseous oxidizer in an optical resonant cavity is described. The lasing species are diatomic or polyatomic in nature and are readily produced by exchange or other abstraction reactions between the metal or carbon atoms and the oxidizer. The lasing molecules may be metal or carbon monohalides or monoxides.

  2. Mesoporous metal oxides and processes for preparation thereof

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Suib, Steven L.; Poyraz, Altug Suleyman

    A process for preparing a mesoporous metal oxide, i.e., transition metal oxide. Lanthanide metal oxide, a post-transition metal oxide and metalloid oxide. The process comprises providing an acidic mixture comprising a metal precursor, an interface modifier, a hydrotropic ion precursor, and a surfactant; and heating the acidic mixture at a temperature and for a period of time sufficient to form the mesoporous metal oxide. A mesoporous metal oxide prepared by the above process. A method of controlling nano-sized wall crystallinity and mesoporosity in mesoporous metal oxides. The method comprises providing an acidic mixture comprising a metal precursor, an interface modifier,more » a hydrotropic ion precursor, and a surfactant; and heating the acidic mixture at a temperature and for a period of time sufficient to control nano-sized wall crystallinity and mesoporosity in the mesoporous metal oxides. Mesoporous metal oxides and a method of tuning structural properties of mesoporous metal oxides.« less

  3. Nanostructured Mn-Fe Binary Mixed Oxide: Synthesis, Characterization and Evaluation for Arsenic Removal.

    PubMed

    Pillewan, Pradnya; Mukherjee, Shrabanti; Bansiwal, Amit; Rayalu, Sadhana

    2014-07-01

    Adsorption of arsenic on bimetallic Mn and Fe mixed oxide was carried out using both field as well as simulated water. The material was synthesized using hydrothermal method and characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms were computed using batch adsorption studies to determine the adsorption capacity of Mn-Fe binary mixed oxide for arsenic. Adsorption capacity for MFBMO obtained from Freundlich model was found to be 2.048 mg/g for simulated water and 1.084 mg/g for field water. Mn-Fe binary mixed oxide was found to be effective adsorbent for removal of arsenic from water.

  4. Metals and lipid oxidation. Contemporary issues.

    PubMed

    Schaich, K M

    1992-03-01

    Lipid oxidation is now recognized to be a critically important reaction in physiological and toxicological processes as well as in food products. This provides compelling reasons to understand what causes lipid oxidation in order to be able to prevent or control the reactions. Redox-active metals are major factors catalyzing lipid oxidation in biological systems. Classical mechanisms of direct electron transfer to double bonds by higher valence metals and of reduction of hydroperoxides by lower valence metals do not always account for patterns of metal catalysis of lipid oxidation in multiphasic or compartmentalized biological systems. To explain why oxidation kinetics, mechanisms, and products in molecular environments which are both chemically and physically complex often do not follow classical patterns predicted by model system studies, increased consideration must be given to five contemporary issues regarding metal catalysis of lipid oxidation: hypervalent non-heme iron or iron-oxygen complexes, heme catalysis mechanism(s), compartmentalization of reactions and lipid phase reactions of metals, effects of metals on product mixes, and factors affecting the mode of metal catalytic action.

  5. Metal atom oxidation laser

    DOEpatents

    Jensen, R.J.; Rice, W.W.; Beattie, W.H.

    1975-10-28

    A chemical laser which operates by formation of metal or carbon atoms and reaction of such atoms with a gaseous oxidizer in an optical resonant cavity is described. The lasing species are diatomic or polyatomic in nature and are readily produced by exchange or other abstraction reactions between the metal or carbon atoms and the oxidizer. The lasing molecules may be metal or carbon monohalides or monoxides. (auth)

  6. Surface protected lithium-metal-oxide electrodes

    DOEpatents

    Thackeray, Michael M.; Kang, Sun-Ho

    2016-04-05

    A lithium-metal-oxide positive electrode having a layered or spinel structure for a non-aqueous lithium electrochemical cell and battery is disclosed comprising electrode particles that are protected at the surface from undesirable effects, such as electrolyte oxidation, oxygen loss or dissolution by one or more lithium-metal-polyanionic compounds, such as a lithium-metal-phosphate or a lithium-metal-silicate material that can act as a solid electrolyte at or above the operating potential of the lithium-metal-oxide electrode. The surface protection significantly enhances the surface stability, rate capability and cycling stability of the lithium-metal-oxide electrodes, particularly when charged to high potentials.

  7. Catalytic production of metal carbonyls from metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Sapienza, Richard S.; Slegeir, William A.; Foran, Michael T.

    1984-01-01

    This invention relates to the formation of metal carbonyls from metal oxides and specially the formation of molybdenum carbonyl and iron carbonyl from their respective oxides. Copper is used here in admixed form or used in chemically combined form as copper molybdate. The copper/metal oxide combination or combined copper is utilized with a solvent, such as toluene and subjected to carbon monoxide pressure of 25 atmospheres or greater at about 150.degree.-260.degree. C. The reducing metal copper is employed in catalytic concentrations or combined concentrations as CuMoO.sub.4 and both hydrogen and water present serve as promoters. It has been found that the yields by this process have been salutary and that additionally the catalytic metal may be reused in the process to good effect.

  8. Catalytic production of metal carbonyls from metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Sapienza, R.S.; Slegeir, W.A.; Foran, M.T.

    1984-01-06

    This invention relates to the formation of metal carbonyls from metal oxides and specially the formation of molybdenum carbonyl and iron carbonyl from their respective oxides. Copper is used here in admixed form or used in chemically combined form as copper molybdate. The copper/metal oxide combination or combined copper is utilized with a solvent, such as toluene and subjected to carbon monoxide pressure of 25 atmospheres or greater at about 150 to 260/sup 0/C. The reducing metal copper is employed in catalytic concentrations or combined concentrations as CuMoO/sub 4/ and both hydrogen and water present serve as promoters. It has been found that the yields by this process have been salutary and that additionally the catalytic metal may be reused in the process to good effect. 3 tables.

  9. Mesoporous Transition Metal Oxides for Supercapacitors.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yan; Guo, Jin; Wang, Tingfeng; Shao, Junfeng; Wang, Dong; Yang, Ying-Wei

    2015-10-14

    Recently, transition metal oxides, such as ruthenium oxide (RuO₂), manganese dioxide (MnO₂), nickel oxides (NiO) and cobalt oxide (Co₃O₄), have been widely investigated as electrode materials for pseudo-capacitors. In particular, these metal oxides with mesoporous structures have become very hot nanomaterials in the field of supercapacitors owing to their large specific surface areas and suitable pore size distributions. The high specific capacities of these mesoporous metal oxides are resulted from the effective contacts between electrode materials and electrolytes as well as fast transportation of ions and electrons in the bulk of electrode and at the interface of electrode and electrolyte. During the past decade, many achievements on mesoporous transition metal oxides have been made. In this mini-review, we select several typical nanomaterials, such as RuO₂, MnO₂, NiO, Co₃O₄ and nickel cobaltite (NiCo₂O₄), and briefly summarize the recent research progress of these mesoporous transition metal oxides-based electrodes in the field of supercapacitors.

  10. Method for producing metal oxide nanoparticles

    DOEpatents

    Phillips, Jonathan [Santa Fe, NM; Mendoza, Daniel [Santa Fe, NM; Chen, Chun-Ku [Albuquerque, NM

    2008-04-15

    Method for producing metal oxide nanoparticles. The method includes generating an aerosol of solid metallic microparticles, generating plasma with a plasma hot zone at a temperature sufficiently high to vaporize the microparticles into metal vapor, and directing the aerosol into the hot zone of the plasma. The microparticles vaporize in the hot zone into metal vapor. The metal vapor is directed away from the hot zone and into the cooler plasma afterglow where it oxidizes, cools and condenses to form solid metal oxide nanoparticles.

  11. Stoichiometry control of complex oxides by sequential pulsed-laser deposition from binary-oxide targets

    DOE PAGES

    Herklotz, Andreas; Dorr, Kathrin; Ward, Thomas Zac; ...

    2015-04-03

    To have precise atomic layer control over interfaces, we examine the growth of complex oxides through the sequential deposition from binary targets by pulsed laser deposition. In situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) is used to control the growth and achieve films with excellent structural quality. The growth from binary oxide targets is fundamentally different from single target growth modes and shows more similarities to shuttered growth by molecular beam epitaxy. The RHEED intensity oscillations of non-stoichiometric growth are consistent with a model of island growth and accumulation of excess material on the surface that can be utilized to determinemore » the correct stoichiometry for growth. Correct monolayer doses can be determined through an envelope frequency in the RHEED intensity oscillations. In order to demonstrate the ability of this growth technique to create complex heterostructures, the artificial n = 2 and 3 Sr n+1Ti nO 3 n+1 Ruddlesden-Popper phases are grown with good long-range order. Furthermore, this method enables the precise unit-cell level control over the structure of perovskite-type oxides, and thus the growth of complex materials with improved structural quality and electronic functionality.« less

  12. Dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode for efficient electrocatalytic water oxidation.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Peili; Li, Lin; Nordlund, Dennis; Chen, Hong; Fan, Lizhou; Zhang, Biaobiao; Sheng, Xia; Daniel, Quentin; Sun, Licheng

    2018-01-26

    Electrochemical water splitting requires efficient water oxidation catalysts to accelerate the sluggish kinetics of water oxidation reaction. Here, we report a promisingly dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode, prepared via dealloying with an electrodeposited nickel-iron-copper alloy as a precursor, as the catalyst for water oxidation. The as-prepared core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode is characterized with porous oxide shells and metallic cores. This tri-metal-based core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode exhibits a remarkable activity toward water oxidation in alkaline medium with an overpotential of only 180 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm -2 . The core-shell NiFeCu electrode exhibits pH-dependent oxygen evolution reaction activity on the reversible hydrogen electrode scale, suggesting that non-concerted proton-electron transfers participate in catalyzing the oxygen evolution reaction. To the best of our knowledge, the as-fabricated core-shell nickel-iron-copper is one of the most promising oxygen evolution catalysts.

  13. Aerosol-spray diverse mesoporous metal oxides from metal nitrates.

    PubMed

    Kuai, Long; Wang, Junxin; Ming, Tian; Fang, Caihong; Sun, Zhenhua; Geng, Baoyou; Wang, Jianfang

    2015-04-21

    Transition metal oxides are widely used in solar cells, batteries, transistors, memories, transparent conductive electrodes, photocatalysts, gas sensors, supercapacitors, and smart windows. In many of these applications, large surface areas and pore volumes can enhance molecular adsorption, facilitate ion transfer, and increase interfacial areas; the formation of complex oxides (mixed, doped, multimetallic oxides and oxide-based hybrids) can alter electronic band structures, modify/enhance charge carrier concentrations/separation, and introduce desired functionalities. A general synthetic approach to diverse mesoporous metal oxides is therefore very attractive. Here we describe a powerful aerosol-spray method for synthesizing various mesoporous metal oxides from low-cost nitrate salts. During spray, thermal heating of precursor droplets drives solvent evaporation and induces surfactant-directed formation of mesostructures, nitrate decomposition and oxide cross-linking. Thirteen types of monometallic oxides and four groups of complex ones are successfully produced, with mesoporous iron oxide microspheres demonstrated for photocatalytic oxygen evolution and gas sensing with superior performances.

  14. Aerosol-spray diverse mesoporous metal oxides from metal nitrates

    PubMed Central

    Kuai, Long; Wang, Junxin; Ming, Tian; Fang, Caihong; Sun, Zhenhua; Geng, Baoyou; Wang, Jianfang

    2015-01-01

    Transition metal oxides are widely used in solar cells, batteries, transistors, memories, transparent conductive electrodes, photocatalysts, gas sensors, supercapacitors, and smart windows. In many of these applications, large surface areas and pore volumes can enhance molecular adsorption, facilitate ion transfer, and increase interfacial areas; the formation of complex oxides (mixed, doped, multimetallic oxides and oxide-based hybrids) can alter electronic band structures, modify/enhance charge carrier concentrations/separation, and introduce desired functionalities. A general synthetic approach to diverse mesoporous metal oxides is therefore very attractive. Here we describe a powerful aerosol-spray method for synthesizing various mesoporous metal oxides from low-cost nitrate salts. During spray, thermal heating of precursor droplets drives solvent evaporation and induces surfactant-directed formation of mesostructures, nitrate decomposition and oxide cross-linking. Thirteen types of monometallic oxides and four groups of complex ones are successfully produced, with mesoporous iron oxide microspheres demonstrated for photocatalytic oxygen evolution and gas sensing with superior performances. PMID:25897988

  15. Fe-Mn binary oxide incorporated into diatomite as an adsorbent for arsenite removal: preparation and evaluation.

    PubMed

    Chang, Fangfang; Qu, Jiuhui; Liu, Huijuan; Liu, Ruiping; Zhao, Xu

    2009-10-15

    Fe-Mn binary oxide incorporated into diatomite (FMBO-diatomite) was prepared by a simple coating method, and exhibited high oxidation and adsorption ability for arsenite [As(III)]. After being incorporated by Fe-Mn binary oxide, the surface area of diatomite increased 36%, and the pore volume increased five times. The pHzpc of FMBO-diatomite was determined to be 8.1. These characteristics are responsible for the increased As(III) adsorption efficiency. The adsorption equilibria of As(III) on FMBO-diatomite were described well by a Langmuir isotherm model due to the homogeneous distribution of Fe-Mn binary oxide on a diatomite surface. As(III) was oxidized into As(V), and then adsorbed by FMBO-diatomite. The oxidation and adsorption efficiencies for As(III) depended deeply on the pH of solution. When the pH was raised to 8.1, the As(III) adsorption efficiency of FMBO-diatomite was almost equal to the As(III) oxidation efficiency. Silicate and phosphate had negative effects on As(III) adsorption. Also the influence of silicate and phosphate with the pH variation was different.

  16. Mesoporous Transition Metal Oxides for Supercapacitors

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Yan; Guo, Jin; Wang, Tingfeng; Shao, Junfeng; Wang, Dong; Yang, Ying-Wei

    2015-01-01

    Recently, transition metal oxides, such as ruthenium oxide (RuO2), manganese dioxide (MnO2), nickel oxides (NiO) and cobalt oxide (Co3O4), have been widely investigated as electrode materials for pseudo-capacitors. In particular, these metal oxides with mesoporous structures have become very hot nanomaterials in the field of supercapacitors owing to their large specific surface areas and suitable pore size distributions. The high specific capacities of these mesoporous metal oxides are resulted from the effective contacts between electrode materials and electrolytes as well as fast transportation of ions and electrons in the bulk of electrode and at the interface of electrode and electrolyte. During the past decade, many achievements on mesoporous transition metal oxides have been made. In this mini-review, we select several typical nanomaterials, such as RuO2, MnO2, NiO, Co3O4 and nickel cobaltite (NiCo2O4), and briefly summarize the recent research progress of these mesoporous transition metal oxides-based electrodes in the field of supercapacitors. PMID:28347088

  17. Micro- and Nanostructured Metal Oxide Chemical Sensors for Volatile Organic Compounds

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Alim, M. A.; Penn, B. G.; Currie, J. R., Jr.; Batra, A. K.; Aggarwal, M. D.

    2008-01-01

    Aeronautic and space applications warrant the development of chemical sensors which operate in a variety of environments. This technical memorandum incorporates various kinds of chemical sensors and ways to improve their performance. The results of exploratory investigation of the binary composite polycrystalline thick-films such as SnO2-WO3, SnO2-In2O3, SnO2-ZnO for the detection of volatile organic compound (isopropanol) are reported. A short review of the present status of the new types of nanostructured sensors such as nanobelts, nanorods, nanotube, etc. based on metal oxides is presented.

  18. Reactive metal-oxide interfaces: A microscopic view

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Picone, A.; Riva, M.; Brambilla, A.; Calloni, A.; Bussetti, G.; Finazzi, M.; Ciccacci, F.; Duò, L.

    2016-03-01

    Metal-oxide interfaces play a fundamental role in determining the functional properties of artificial layered heterostructures, which are at the root of present and future technological applications. Magnetic exchange and magnetoelectric coupling, spin filtering, metal passivation, catalytic activity of oxide-supported nano-particles are just few examples of physical and chemical processes arising at metal-oxide hybrid systems, readily exploited in working devices. These phenomena are strictly correlated with the chemical and structural characteristics of the metal-oxide interfacial region, making a thorough understanding of the atomistic mechanisms responsible of its formation a prerequisite in order to tailor the device properties. The steep compositional gradient established upon formation of metal-oxide heterostructures drives strong chemical interactions at the interface, making the metal-oxide boundary region a complex system to treat, both from an experimental and a theoretical point of view. However, once properly mastered, interfacial chemical interactions offer a further degree of freedom for tuning the material properties. The goal of the present review is to provide a summary of the latest achievements in the understanding of metal/oxide and oxide/metal layered systems characterized by reactive interfaces. The influence of the interface composition on the structural, electronic and magnetic properties will be highlighted. Particular emphasis will be devoted to the discussion of ultra-thin epitaxial oxides stabilized on highly oxidizable metals, which have been rarely exploited as oxide supports as compared to the much more widespread noble and quasi noble metallic substrates. In this frame, an extensive discussion is devoted to the microscopic characterization of interfaces between epitaxial metal oxides and the Fe(001) substrate, regarded from the one hand as a prototypical ferromagnetic material and from the other hand as a highly oxidizable metal.

  19. Molecular Level Coating of Metal Oxide Particles

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    McDaniel, Patricia R. (Inventor); St.Clair, Terry L. (Inventor)

    2002-01-01

    Polymer encapsulated metal oxide particles are prepared by combining a polyamide acid in a polar osmotic solvent with a metal alkoxide solution. The polymer was imidized and the metal oxide formed simultaneously in a refluxing organic solvent. The resulting polymer-metal oxide is an intimately mixed commingled blend, possessing, synergistic properties of both the polymer and preceramic metal oxide. The encapsulated metal oxide particles have multiple uses including, being useful in the production of skin lubricating creams, weather resistant paints, as a filler for paper. making ultraviolet light stable filled printing ink, being extruded into fibers or ribbons, and coatings for fibers used in the production of composite structural panels.

  20. Molecular Level Coating for Metal Oxide Particles

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    McDaniel, Patricia R. (Inventor); Saint Clair, Terry L. (Inventor)

    2000-01-01

    Polymer encapsulated metal oxide particles are prepared by combining a polyamide acid in a polar aprotic solvent with a metal alkoxide solution. The polymer was imidized and the metal oxide formed simultaneously in a refluxing organic solvent. The resulting polymer-metal oxide is an intimately mixed commingled blend, possessing synergistic properties of both the polymer and preceramic metal oxide. The encapsulated metal oxide particles have multiple uses including, being useful in the production of skin lubricating creams, weather resistant paints, as a filler for paper, making ultraviolet light stable filled printing ink, being extruded into fibers or ribbons, and coatings for fibers used in the production of composite structural panels.

  1. Method of making controlled morphology metal-oxides

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ozcan, Soydan; Lu, Yuan

    2016-05-17

    A method of making metal oxides having a preselected morphology includes preparing a suspension that includes a solvent, polymeric nanostructures having multiplicities of hydroxyl surface groups and/or carboxyl surface groups, and a metal oxide precursor. The suspension has a preselected ratio of the polymeric nanostructures to the metal oxide precursor of at least 1:3, the preselected ratio corresponding to a preselected morphology. Subsequent steps include depositing the suspension onto a substrate, removing the solvent to form a film, removing the film from the substrate, and annealing the film to volatilize the polymeric nanostructures and convert the metal oxide precursor tomore » metal oxide nanoparticles having the preselected morphology or to a metal oxide nanosheet including conjoined nanoparticles having the preselected morphology.« less

  2. Microbial-mediated method for metal oxide nanoparticle formation

    DOEpatents

    Rondinone, Adam J.; Moon, Ji Won; Love, Lonnie J.; Yeary, Lucas W.; Phelps, Tommy J.

    2015-09-08

    The invention is directed to a method for producing metal oxide nanoparticles, the method comprising: (i) subjecting a combination of reaction components to conditions conducive to microbial-mediated formation of metal oxide nanoparticles, wherein said combination of reaction components comprise: metal-reducing microbes, a culture medium suitable for sustaining said metal-reducing microbes, an effective concentration of one or more surfactants, a reducible metal oxide component containing one or more reducible metal species, and one or more electron donors that provide donatable electrons to said metal-reducing microbes during consumption of the electron donor by said metal-reducing microbes; and (ii) isolating said metal oxide nanoparticles, which contain a reduced form of said reducible metal oxide component. The invention is also directed to metal oxide nanoparticle compositions produced by the inventive method.

  3. Dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode for efficient electrocatalytic water oxidation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhang, Peili; Li, Lin; Nordlund, Dennis

    Electrochemical water splitting requires efficient water oxidation catalysts to accelerate the sluggish kinetics of water oxidation reaction. Here in this paper, we report a promisingly dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode, prepared via dealloying with an electrodeposited nickel-iron-copper alloy as a precursor, as the catalyst for water oxidation. The as-prepared core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode is characterized with porous oxide shells and metallic cores. This tri-metal-based core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode exhibits a remarkable activity toward water oxidation in alkaline medium with an overpotential of only 180 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm -2. The core-shell NiFeCu electrode exhibits pH-dependent oxygenmore » evolution reaction activity on the reversible hydrogen electrode scale, suggesting that non-concerted proton-electron transfers participate in catalyzing the oxygen evolution reaction. To the best of our knowledge, the as-fabricated core-shell nickel-iron-copper is one of the most promising oxygen evolution catalysts.« less

  4. Dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode for efficient electrocatalytic water oxidation

    DOE PAGES

    Zhang, Peili; Li, Lin; Nordlund, Dennis; ...

    2018-01-26

    Electrochemical water splitting requires efficient water oxidation catalysts to accelerate the sluggish kinetics of water oxidation reaction. Here in this paper, we report a promisingly dendritic core-shell nickel-iron-copper metal/metal oxide electrode, prepared via dealloying with an electrodeposited nickel-iron-copper alloy as a precursor, as the catalyst for water oxidation. The as-prepared core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode is characterized with porous oxide shells and metallic cores. This tri-metal-based core-shell nickel-iron-copper electrode exhibits a remarkable activity toward water oxidation in alkaline medium with an overpotential of only 180 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm -2. The core-shell NiFeCu electrode exhibits pH-dependent oxygenmore » evolution reaction activity on the reversible hydrogen electrode scale, suggesting that non-concerted proton-electron transfers participate in catalyzing the oxygen evolution reaction. To the best of our knowledge, the as-fabricated core-shell nickel-iron-copper is one of the most promising oxygen evolution catalysts.« less

  5. A metallic metal oxide (Ti5O9)-metal oxide (TiO2) nanocomposite as the heterojunction to enhance visible-light photocatalytic activity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, L. H.; Deng, Z. X.; Xiao, J. X.; Yang, G. W.

    2015-06-01

    Coupling titanium dioxide (TiO2) with other semiconductors is a popular method to extend the optical response range of TiO2 and improve its photon quantum efficiency, as coupled semiconductors can increase the separation rate of photoinduced charge carriers in photocatalysts. Differing from normal semiconductors, metallic oxides have no energy gap separating occupied and unoccupied levels, but they can excite electrons between bands to create a high carrier mobility to facilitate kinetic charge separation. Here, we propose the first metallic metal oxide-metal oxide (Ti5O9-TiO2) nanocomposite as a heterojunction for enhancing the visible-light photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanoparticles and we demonstrate that this hybridized TiO2-Ti5O9 nanostructure possesses an excellent visible-light photocatalytic performance in the process of photodegrading dyes. The TiO2-Ti5O9 nanocomposites are synthesized in one step using laser ablation in liquid under ambient conditions. The as-synthesized nanocomposites show strong visible-light absorption in the range of 300-800 nm and high visible-light photocatalytic activity in the oxidation of rhodamine B. They also exhibit excellent cycling stability in the photodegrading process. A working mechanism for the metallic metal oxide-metal oxide nanocomposite in the visible-light photocatalytic process is proposed based on first-principle calculations of Ti5O9. This study suggests that metallic metal oxides can be regarded as partners for metal oxide photocatalysts in the construction of heterojunctions to improve photocatalytic activity.

  6. A metallic metal oxide (Ti5O9)-metal oxide (TiO2) nanocomposite as the heterojunction to enhance visible-light photocatalytic activity.

    PubMed

    Li, L H; Deng, Z X; Xiao, J X; Yang, G W

    2015-01-26

    Coupling titanium dioxide (TiO2) with other semiconductors is a popular method to extend the optical response range of TiO2 and improve its photon quantum efficiency, as coupled semiconductors can increase the separation rate of photoinduced charge carriers in photocatalysts. Differing from normal semiconductors, metallic oxides have no energy gap separating occupied and unoccupied levels, but they can excite electrons between bands to create a high carrier mobility to facilitate kinetic charge separation. Here, we propose the first metallic metal oxide-metal oxide (Ti5O9-TiO2) nanocomposite as a heterojunction for enhancing the visible-light photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanoparticles and we demonstrate that this hybridized TiO2-Ti5O9 nanostructure possesses an excellent visible-light photocatalytic performance in the process of photodegrading dyes. The TiO2-Ti5O9 nanocomposites are synthesized in one step using laser ablation in liquid under ambient conditions. The as-synthesized nanocomposites show strong visible-light absorption in the range of 300-800 nm and high visible-light photocatalytic activity in the oxidation of rhodamine B. They also exhibit excellent cycling stability in the photodegrading process. A working mechanism for the metallic metal oxide-metal oxide nanocomposite in the visible-light photocatalytic process is proposed based on first-principle calculations of Ti5O9. This study suggests that metallic metal oxides can be regarded as partners for metal oxide photocatalysts in the construction of heterojunctions to improve photocatalytic activity.

  7. Facile synthesis of multi-shell structured binary metal oxide powders with a Ni/Co mole ratio of 1:2 for Li-Ion batteries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Choi, Seung Ho; Park, Sun Kyu; Lee, Jung-Kul; Kang, Yun Chan

    2015-06-01

    Multi-shell structured binary transition metal oxide powders with a Ni/Co mole ratio of 1:2 are prepared by a simple spray drying process. Precursor powder particles prepared by spray drying from a spray solution of citric acid and ethylene glycol have completely spherical shape, fine size, and a narrow size distribution. The precursor powders turn into multi-shell powders after a post heat-treatment at temperatures between 250 and 800 °C. The multi-shell structured powders are formed by repeated combustion and contraction processes. The multi-shell powders have mixed crystal structures of Ni1-xCo2O4-x and NiO phases regardless of the post-treatment temperature. The reversible capacities of the powders post-treated at 250, 400, 600, and 800 °C after 100 cycles are 584, 913, 808, and 481 mA h g-1, respectively. The low charge transfer resistance and high lithium ion diffusion rate of the multi-shell powders post-treated at 400 °C with optimum grain size result in superior electrochemical properties even at high current densities.

  8. Nanostructured iron(III)-copper(II) binary oxide: a novel adsorbent for enhanced arsenic removal from aqueous solutions.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Gaosheng; Ren, Zongming; Zhang, Xiwang; Chen, Jing

    2013-08-01

    To obtain a highly efficient and low-cost adsorbent for arsenic removal from water, a novel nanostructured Fe-Cu binary oxide was synthesized via a facile co-precipitation method. Various techniques including BET surface area measurement, powder XRD, SEM, and XPS were used to characterize the synthetic Fe-Cu binary oxide. It showed that the oxide was poorly crystalline, 2-line ferrihydrite-like and was aggregated with many nanosized particles. Laboratory experiments were performed to investigate adsorption kinetics, adsorption isotherms, pH adsorption edge and regeneration of spent adsorbent. The results indicated that the Fe-Cu binary oxide with a Cu: Fe molar ratio of 1:2 had excellent performance in removing both As(V) and As(III) from water, and the maximal adsorption capacities for As(V) and As(III) were 82.7 and 122.3 mg/g at pH 7.0, respectively. The values are favorable, compared to those reported in the literature using other adsorbents. The coexisting sulfate and carbonate had no significant effect on arsenic removal. However, the presence of phosphate obviously inhibited the arsenic removal, especially at high concentrations. Moreover, the Fe-Cu binary oxide could be readily regenerated using NaOH solution and be repeatedly used. The Fe-Cu binary oxide could be a promising adsorbent for both As(V) and As(III) removal because of its excellent performance, facile and low-cost synthesis process, and easy regeneration. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Electrocatalytic N-Doped Graphitic Nanofiber - Metal/Metal Oxide Nanoparticle Composites.

    PubMed

    Tang, Hongjie; Chen, Wei; Wang, Jiangyan; Dugger, Thomas; Cruz, Luz; Kisailus, David

    2018-03-01

    Carbon-based nanocomposites have shown promising results in replacing commercial Pt/C as high-performance, low cost, nonprecious metal-based oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts. Developing unique nanostructures of active components (e.g., metal oxides) and carbon materials is essential for their application in next generation electrode materials for fuel cells and metal-air batteries. Herein, a general approach for the production of 1D porous nitrogen-doped graphitic carbon fibers embedded with active ORR components, (M/MO x , i.e., metal or metal oxide nanoparticles) using a facile two-step electrospinning and annealing process is reported. Metal nanoparticles/nanoclusters nucleate within the polymer nanofibers and subsequently catalyze graphitization of the surrounding polymer matrix and following oxidation, create an interconnected graphite-metal oxide framework with large pore channels, considerable active sites, and high specific surface area. The metal/metal oxide@N-doped graphitic carbon fibers, especially Co 3 O 4 , exhibit comparable ORR catalytic activity but superior stability and methanol tolerance versus Pt in alkaline solutions, which can be ascribed to the synergistic chemical coupling effects between Co 3 O 4 and robust 1D porous structures composed of interconnected N-doped graphitic nanocarbon rings. This finding provides a novel insight into the design of functional electrocatalysts using electrospun carbon nanomaterials for their application in energy storage and conversion fields. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  10. Methods of producing adsorption media including a metal oxide

    DOEpatents

    Mann, Nicholas R; Tranter, Troy J

    2014-03-04

    Methods of producing a metal oxide are disclosed. The method comprises dissolving a metal salt in a reaction solvent to form a metal salt/reaction solvent solution. The metal salt is converted to a metal oxide and a caustic solution is added to the metal oxide/reaction solvent solution to adjust the pH of the metal oxide/reaction solvent solution to less than approximately 7.0. The metal oxide is precipitated and recovered. A method of producing adsorption media including the metal oxide is also disclosed, as is a precursor of an active component including particles of a metal oxide.

  11. Nanostructured transition metal oxides useful for water oxidation catalysis

    DOEpatents

    Frei, Heinz M; Jiao, Feng

    2013-12-24

    The present invention provides for a composition comprising a nanostructured transition metal oxide capable of oxidizing two H.sub.2O molecules to obtain four protons. In some embodiments of the invention, the composition further comprises a porous matrix wherein the nanocluster of the transition metal oxide is embedded on and/or in the porous matrix.

  12. High-Speed Binary-Output Image Sensor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fossum, Eric; Panicacci, Roger A.; Kemeny, Sabrina E.; Jones, Peter D.

    1996-01-01

    Photodetector outputs digitized by circuitry on same integrated-circuit chip. Developmental special-purpose binary-output image sensor designed to capture up to 1,000 images per second, with resolution greater than 10 to the 6th power pixels per image. Lower-resolution but higher-frame-rate prototype of sensor contains 128 x 128 array of photodiodes on complementary metal oxide/semiconductor (CMOS) integrated-circuit chip. In application for which it is being developed, sensor used to examine helicopter oil to determine whether amount of metal and sand in oil sufficient to warrant replacement.

  13. Systematic study of metal-insulator-metal diodes with a native oxide

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Donchev, E.; Gammon, P. M.; Pang, J. S.; Petrov, P. K.; Alford, N. McN.

    2014-10-01

    In this paper, a systematic analysis of native oxides within a Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) diode is carried out, with the goal of determining their practicality for incorporation into a nanoscale Rectenna (Rectifying Antenna). The requirement of having a sub-10nm oxide scale is met by using the native oxide, which forms on most metals exposed to an oxygen containing environment. This, therefore, provides a simplified MIM fabrication process as the complex, controlled oxide deposition step is omitted. We shall present the results of an investigation into the current-voltage characteristics of various MIM combinations that incorporate a native oxide, in order to establish whether the native oxide is of sufficient quality for good diode operation. The thin native oxide layers are formed by room temperature oxidation of the first metal layer, deposited by magnetron sputtering. This is done in-situ, within the deposition chamber before depositing the second metal electrode. Using these structures, we study the established trend where the bigger the difference in metal workfunctions, the better the rectification properties of MIM structures, and hence the selection of the second metal is key to controlling the device's rectifying properties. We show how leakage current paths through the non-optimised native oxide control the net current-voltage response of the MIM devices. Furthermore, we will present the so-called diode figures of merit (asymmetry, non-linearity and responsivity) for each of the best performing structures.

  14. Stoichiometry control of complex oxides by sequential pulsed-laser deposition from binary-oxide targets

    DOE PAGES

    Herklotz, A.; Dörr, Kathrin; Ward, T. Z.; ...

    2015-04-03

    In this paper, to have precise atomic layer control over interfaces, we examine the growth of complex oxides through the sequential deposition from binary targets by pulsed laser deposition. In situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) is used to control the growth and achieve films with excellent structural quality. The growth from binary oxide targets is fundamentally different from single target growth modes and shows more similarities to shuttered growth by molecular beam epitaxy. The RHEED intensity oscillations of non-stoichiometric growth are consistent with a model of island growth and accumulation of excess material on the surface that can bemore » utilized to determine the correct stoichiometry for growth. Correct monolayer doses can be determined through an envelope frequency in the RHEED intensity oscillations. In order to demonstrate the ability of this growth technique to create complex heterostructures, the artificial n = 2 and 3 Sr n +1Ti n O 3 n +1 Ruddlesden-Popper phases are grown with good long-range order. Finally, this method enables the precise unit-cell level control over the structure of perovskite-type oxides, and thus the growth of complex materials with improved structural quality and electronic functionality.« less

  15. Adsorption of arsenite and arsenate on binary and ternary magnetic nanocomposites with high iron oxide content

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ramos Guivar, Juan A.; Bustamante D., Angel; Gonzalez, J. C.; Sanches, Edgar A.; Morales, M. A.; Raez, Julia M.; López-Muñoz, María-José; Arencibia, Amaya

    2018-10-01

    Bare maghemite nanoparticles (Nps), binary, and ternary magnetic nanocomposites prepared with titanium dioxide (TiO2) and graphene oxide (GO) were synthesized by a facile and cheap co-precipitation chemical route, and used as magnetic nanoadsorbents to remove arsenite (As(III)) and arsenate (As(V)) from water. The structural, morphological, magnetic and surface properties were analyzed by XRD, TEM microscopy, FTIR and Raman vibrational spectroscopy, Mössbauer technique and N2 adsorption-desorption measurements. It was found that materials were composed of maghemite nanoparticles with crystallites diameters varying from 9 to 13 nm for bare Nps, binary and ternary nanocomposites, these nanocomposites contain a high percentage of maghemite phase (80%). The presence of TiO2 and GO in the binary and ternary materials was also confirmed. All the samples were found to show magnetic properties and a slight porosity, with a specific surface area that increases up to 82 m2/g when the metal oxides Nps were supported on GO. The aqueous arsenic adsorption performance was studied from kinetic and equilibrium point of view, and the pH adsorption capacity dependence was evaluated aiming to explain the adsorption mechanism. The three nanocomposites prepared in this work exhibit high adsorption capacity for arsenic species, with values of maximum adsorption capacity ranging from 83.1 to 110.4 mg/g for As(III) and from 90.2 to 127.2 mg/g for As(V) from bare to ternary nanocomposites, being possible to be separated with a permanent magnet of neodymium (Nd) in less than 10 min. Therefore, these nanosystems can be proposed as good adsorbents for both arsenic species from water.

  16. Oxidized film structure and method of making epitaxial metal oxide structure

    DOEpatents

    Gan, Shupan [Richland, WA; Liang, Yong [Richland, WA

    2003-02-25

    A stable oxidized structure and an improved method of making such a structure, including an improved method of making an interfacial template for growing a crystalline metal oxide structure, are disclosed. The improved method comprises the steps of providing a substrate with a clean surface and depositing a metal on the surface at a high temperature under a vacuum to form a metal-substrate compound layer on the surface with a thickness of less than one monolayer. The compound layer is then oxidized by exposing the compound layer to essentially oxygen at a low partial pressure and low temperature. The method may further comprise the step of annealing the surface while under a vacuum to further stabilize the oxidized film structure. A crystalline metal oxide structure may be subsequently epitaxially grown by using the oxidized film structure as an interfacial template and depositing on the interfacial template at least one layer of a crystalline metal oxide.

  17. Wall-like hierarchical metal oxide nanosheet arrays grown on carbon cloth for excellent supercapacitor electrodes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huang, Zongyu; Zhang, Zhen; Qi, Xiang; Ren, Xiaohui; Xu, Guanghua; Wan, Pengbo; Sun, Xiaoming; Zhang, Han

    2016-07-01

    Recently, considerable efforts have been made to satisfy the future requirements of electrochemical energy storage using novel functional electrode materials. Binary transition metal oxides (BTMOs) possess multiple oxidation states that enable multiple redox reactions, showing higher supercapacitive properties than single component metal oxides. In this work, a facile hydrothermal method is provided for the synthesis of wall-like hierarchical metal oxide MMoO4 (M = Ni, Co) nanosheet arrays, which are directly grown on flexible carbon cloth for use as advanced binder-free electrodes for supercapacitors. By virtue of their intriguing structure, the resulted active material nanosheets with a high specific surface area can provide a large electroactive region, which could facilitate easy accession of electrolyte ions and fast charge transport, resulting in an enhanced electrochemical performance. Separately, the as-synthesized MMoO4 (M = Ni, Co) samples have exhibited superior specific capacitances (1483 F g-1 of NiMoO4 and 452 F g-1 of CoMoO4 at a current density of 2 A g-1), as well as excellent cycling stability (93.1% capacitance retention of NiMoO4 and 95.9% capacitance retention of CoMoO4 after 2000 cycles). The results show that the binder-free electrodes constructed by deposition of MMoO4 (M = Ni, Co) nanosheets on carbon cloth are promising candidates for the application of supercapacitors.Recently, considerable efforts have been made to satisfy the future requirements of electrochemical energy storage using novel functional electrode materials. Binary transition metal oxides (BTMOs) possess multiple oxidation states that enable multiple redox reactions, showing higher supercapacitive properties than single component metal oxides. In this work, a facile hydrothermal method is provided for the synthesis of wall-like hierarchical metal oxide MMoO4 (M = Ni, Co) nanosheet arrays, which are directly grown on flexible carbon cloth for use as advanced binder

  18. Conducting metal oxide and metal nitride nanoparticles

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    DiSalvo, Jr., Francis J.; Subban, Chinmayee V.

    Conducting metal oxide and nitride nanoparticles that can be used in fuel cell applications. The metal oxide nanoparticles are comprised of for example, titanium, niobium, tantalum, tungsten and combinations thereof. The metal nitride nanoparticles are comprised of, for example, titanium, niobium, tantalum, tungsten, zirconium, and combinations thereof. The nanoparticles can be sintered to provide conducting porous agglomerates of the nanoparticles which can be used as a catalyst support in fuel cell applications. Further, platinum nanoparticles, for example, can be deposited on the agglomerates to provide a material that can be used as both an anode and a cathode catalyst supportmore » in a fuel cell.« less

  19. GRAVITATIONAL WAVE BACKGROUND FROM BINARY MERGERS AND METALLICITY EVOLUTION OF GALAXIES

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nakazato, Ken’ichiro; Sago, Norichika; Niino, Yuu, E-mail: nakazato@artsci.kyushu-u.ac.jp

    The cosmological evolution of the binary black hole (BH) merger rate and the energy density of the gravitational wave (GW) background are investigated. To evaluate the redshift dependence of the BH formation rate, BHs are assumed to originate from low-metallicity stars, and the relations between the star formation rate, metallicity and stellar mass of galaxies are combined with the stellar mass function at each redshift. As a result, it is found that when the energy density of the GW background is scaled with the merger rate at the local universe, the scaling factor does not depend on the critical metallicitymore » for the formation of BHs. Also taking into account the merger of binary neutron stars, a simple formula to express the energy spectrum of the GW background is constructed for the inspiral phase. The relation between the local merger rate and the energy density of the GW background will be examined by future GW observations.« less

  20. Process for producing metal compounds from graphite oxide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hung, Ching-Cheh (Inventor)

    2000-01-01

    A process for providing elemental metals or metal oxides distributed on a carbon substrate or self-supported utilizing graphite oxide as a precursor. The graphite oxide is exposed to one or more metal chlorides to form an intermediary product comprising carbon, metal, chloride, and oxygen This intermediary product can be flier processed by direct exposure to carbonate solutions to form a second intermediary product comprising carbon, metal carbonate, and oxygen. Either intermediary product may be further processed: a) in air to produce metal oxide; b) in an inert environment to produce metal oxide on carbon substrate; c) in a reducing environment to produce elemental metal distributed on carbon substrate. The product generally takes the shape of the carbon precursor.

  1. Process for Producing Metal Compounds from Graphite Oxide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hung, Ching-Cheh (Inventor)

    2000-01-01

    A process for providing elemental metals or metal oxides distributed on a carbon substrate or self-supported utilizing graphite oxide as a precursor. The graphite oxide is exposed to one or more metal chlorides to form an intermediary product comprising carbon. metal. chloride. and oxygen This intermediary product can be flier processed by direct exposure to carbonate solutions to form a second intermediary product comprising carbon. metal carbonate. and oxygen. Either intermediary product may be further processed: a) in air to produce metal oxide: b) in an inert environment to produce metal oxide on carbon substrate: c) in a reducing environment. to produce elemental metal distributed on carbon substrate. The product generally takes the shape of the carbon precursor.

  2. Metal-Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Mixture Toxicity in Hyalella azteca. 2. Metal Accumulation and Oxidative Stress as Interactive Co-toxic Mechanisms.

    PubMed

    Gauthier, Patrick T; Norwood, Warren P; Prepas, Ellie E; Pyle, Greg G

    2015-10-06

    Mixtures of metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are commonly found in aquatic environments. Emerging reports have identified that more-than-additive mortality is common in metal-PAH mixtures. Individual aspects of PAH toxicity suggest they may alter the accumulation of metals and enhance metal-derived reactive oxygen species (ROS). Redox-active metals (e.g., Cu and Ni) are also capable of enhancing the redox cycling of PAHs. Accordingly, we explored the mutual effects redox-active metals and PAHs have on oxidative stress, and the potential for PAHs to alter the accumulation and/or homeostasis of metals in juvenile Hyalella azteca. Amphipods were exposed to binary mixtures of Cu, Cd, Ni, or V, with either phenanthrene (PHE) or phenanthrenequinone (PHQ). Mixture of Cu with either PAH produced striking more-than-additive mortality, whereas all other mixtures amounted to strictly additive mortality following 18-h exposures. We found no evidence to suggest that interactive effects on ROS production were involved in the more-than-additive mortality of Cu-PHE and Cu-PHQ mixtures. However, PHQ increased the tissue concentration of Cu in juvenile H. azteca, providing a potential mechanism for the observed more-than-additive mortality.

  3. Ternary and coupled binary zinc tin oxide nanopowders: Synthesis, characterization, and potential application in photocatalytic processes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ivetić, T.B., E-mail: tamara.ivetic@df.uns.ac.rs; Finčur, N.L.; Đačanin, Lj. R.

    2015-02-15

    Highlights: • Mechanochemically synthesized nanocrystalline zinc tin oxide (ZTO) powders. • Photocatalytic degradation of alprazolam in the presence of ZTO water suspensions. • Coupled binary ZTO exhibits enhanced photocatalytic activity compared to ternary ZTO. - Abstract: In this paper, ternary and coupled binary zinc tin oxide nanocrystalline powders were prepared via simple solid-state mechanochemical method. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Raman and reflectance spectroscopy were used to study the structure and optical properties of the obtained powder samples. The thermal behavior of zinc tin oxide system was examined through simultaneous thermogravimetric-differential scanning calorimetric analysis. The efficiencies of ternary (Zn{sub 2}SnO{submore » 4} and ZnSnO{sub 3}) and coupled binary (ZnO/SnO{sub 2}) zinc tin oxide water suspensions in the photocatalytic degradation of alprazolam, short-acting anxiolytic of the benzodiazepine class of psychoactive drugs, under UV irradiation were determined and compared with the efficiency of pure ZnO and SnO{sub 2}.« less

  4. High surface area, electrically conductive nanocarbon-supported metal oxide

    DOEpatents

    Worsley, Marcus A.; Han, Thomas Yong-Jin; Kuntz, Joshua D.; Cervantes, Octavio; Gash, Alexander E.; Baumann, Theodore F.; Satcher, Jr., Joe H.

    2015-07-14

    A metal oxide-carbon composite includes a carbon aerogel with an oxide overcoat. The metal oxide-carbon composite is made by providing a carbon aerogel, immersing the carbon aerogel in a metal oxide sol under a vacuum, raising the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol to atmospheric pressure, curing the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol at room temperature, and drying the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol to produce the metal oxide-carbon composite. The step of providing a carbon aerogel can provide an activated carbon aerogel or provide a carbon aerogel with carbon nanotubes that make the carbon aerogel mechanically robust.

  5. High surface area, electrically conductive nanocarbon-supported metal oxide

    DOEpatents

    Worsley, Marcus A; Han, Thomas Yong-Jin; Kuntz, Joshua D; Cervanted, Octavio; Gash, Alexander E; Baumann, Theodore F; Satcher, Jr., Joe H

    2014-03-04

    A metal oxide-carbon composite includes a carbon aerogel with an oxide overcoat. The metal oxide-carbon composite is made by providing a carbon aerogel, immersing the carbon aerogel in a metal oxide sol under a vacuum, raising the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol to atmospheric pressure, curing the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol at room temperature, and drying the carbon aerogel with the metal oxide sol to produce the metal oxide-carbon composite. The step of providing a carbon aerogel can provide an activated carbon aerogel or provide a carbon aerogel with carbon nanotubes that make the carbon aerogel mechanically robust.

  6. Reduction of spalling in mixed metal oxide desulfurization sorbents by addition of a large promoter metal oxide

    DOEpatents

    Poston, J.A.

    1997-12-02

    Mixed metal oxide pellets for removing hydrogen sulfide from fuel gas mixes derived from coal are stabilized for operation over repeated cycles of desulfurization and regeneration reactions by addition of a large promoter metal oxide such as lanthanum trioxide. The pellets, which may be principally made up of a mixed metal oxide such as zinc titanate, exhibit physical stability and lack of spalling or decrepitation over repeated cycles without loss of reactivity. The lanthanum oxide is mixed with pellet-forming components in an amount of 1 to 10 weight percent.

  7. Reduction of spalling in mixed metal oxide desulfurization sorbents by addition of a large promoter metal oxide

    DOEpatents

    Poston, James A.

    1997-01-01

    Mixed metal oxide pellets for removing hydrogen sulfide from fuel gas mixes derived from coal are stabilized for operation over repeated cycles of desulfurization and regeneration reactions by addition of a large promoter metal oxide such as lanthanum trioxide. The pellets, which may be principally made up of a mixed metal oxide such as zinc titanate, exhibit physical stability and lack of spalling or decrepitation over repeated cycles without loss of reactivity. The lanthanum oxide is mixed with pellet-forming components in an amount of 1 to 10 weight percent.

  8. Self-assembly of metal nanostructures on binary alloy surfaces

    PubMed Central

    Duguet, T.; Han, Yong; Yuen, Chad; Jing, Dapeng; Ünal, Barış; Evans, J. W.; Thiel, P. A.

    2011-01-01

    Deposition of metals on binary alloy surfaces offers new possibilities for guiding the formation of functional metal nanostructures. This idea is explored with scanning tunneling microscopy studies and atomistic-level analysis and modeling of nonequilibrium island formation. For Au/NiAl(110), complex monolayer structures are found and compared with the simple fcc(110) bilayer structure recently observed for Ag/NiAl(110). We also consider a more complex codeposition system, (Ni + Al)/NiAl(110), which offers the opportunity for fundamental studies of self-growth of alloys including deviations for equilibrium ordering. A general multisite lattice-gas model framework enables analysis of structure selection and morphological evolution in these systems. PMID:21097706

  9. Quantum Mechanical Studies of Large Metal, Metal Oxide, and Metal Chalcogenide Nanoparticles and Clusters

    DOE PAGES

    Fernando, Amendra; Weerawardene, K. L. Dimuthu M.; Karimova, Natalia V.; ...

    2015-04-21

    Here, metal, metal oxide, and metal chalcogenide materials have a wide variety of applications. For example, many metal clusters and nanoparticles are used as catalysts for reactions varying from the oxidation of carbon monoxide to the reduction of protons to hydrogen gas. Noble metal nanoparticles have unique optical properties such as a surface plasmon resonance for large nanoparticles that yield applications in sensing and photonics. In addition, a number of transition metal clusters are magnetic. Metal oxide clusters and surfaces are commonly used as catalysts for reactions such as water splitting. Both metal oxide and metal chalcogenide materials can bemore » semiconducting, which leads to applications in sensors, electronics, and solar cells. Many researchers have been interested in studying nanoparticles and/or small clusters of these materials. Some of the system sizes under investigation have been experimentally synthesized, which enables direct theory–experiment comparison. Other clusters that have been examined theoretically are of interest as models of larger systems or surfaces. Often, the size-dependence of their properties such as their HOMO–LUMO gap, magnetic properties, optical properties, etc., is of interest.« less

  10. Oxidation-Mediated Fingering in Liquid Metals

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eaker, Collin B.; Hight, David C.; O'Regan, John D.; Dickey, Michael D.; Daniels, Karen E.

    2017-10-01

    We identify and characterize a new class of fingering instabilities in liquid metals; these instabilities are unexpected due to the large interfacial tension of metals. Electrochemical oxidation lowers the effective interfacial tension of a gallium-based liquid metal alloy to values approaching zero, thereby inducing drastic shape changes, including the formation of fractals. The measured fractal dimension (D =1.3 ±0.05 ) places the instability in a different universality class than other fingering instabilities. By characterizing changes in morphology and dynamics as a function of droplet volume and applied electric potential, we identify the three main forces involved in this process: interfacial tension, gravity, and oxidative stress. Importantly, we find that electrochemical oxidation can generate compressive interfacial forces that oppose the tensile forces at a liquid interface. The surface oxide layer ultimately provides a physical and electrochemical barrier that halts the instabilities at larger positive potentials. Controlling the competition between interfacial tension and oxidative (compressive) stresses at the interface is important for the development of reconfigurable electronic, electromagnetic, and optical devices that take advantage of the metallic properties of liquid metals.

  11. 40 CFR 721.5549 - Lithiated metal oxide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Lithiated metal oxide. 721.5549... Substances § 721.5549 Lithiated metal oxide. (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as lithiated metal oxide (LiNiO2) (PMN P-96-19...

  12. 40 CFR 721.5549 - Lithiated metal oxide.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 30 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Lithiated metal oxide. 721.5549... Substances § 721.5549 Lithiated metal oxide. (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as lithiated metal oxide (LiNiO2) (PMN P-96-19...

  13. The chemical and catalytic properties of nanocrystalline metal oxides prepared through modified sol-gel synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carnes, Corrie Leigh

    The goal of this research was to synthesize, characterize and study the chemical properties of nanocrystalline metal oxides. Nanocrystalline (NC) ZnO, CuO, NiO, Al2O3, and the binary Al2O 3/MgO and ZnO/CuO were prepared through modified sol gel methods. These NC metal oxides were studied in comparison to the commercial (CM) metal oxides. The samples were characterized by XRD, TGA, FTIR, BET, and TEM. The NC samples were all accompanied by a significant increase in surface area and decrease in crystallite size. Several chemical reactions were studied to compare the NC samples to the CM samples. One of the reactions involved a high temperature reaction between carbon tetrachloride and the oxide to form carbon dioxide and the corresponding metal chloride. A similar high temperature reaction was conducted between the metal oxide and hydrogen sulfide to form water and the corresponding metal sulfide. A room temperature gas phase adsorption was studied where SO2 was adsorbed onto the oxide. A liquid phase adsorption conducted at room temperature was the destructive adsorption of paraoxon (a toxic insecticide). In all reactions the NC samples exhibited greater activity, destroying or adsorbing a larger amount of the toxins compared to the CM samples. To better study surface area effects catalytic reactions were also studied. The catalysis of methanol was studied over the nanocrystalline ZnO, CuO, NiO, and ZnO/CuO samples in comparison to their commercial counterparts. In most cases the NC samples proved to be more active catalysts, having higher percent conversions and turnover numbers. A second catalytic reaction was also studied, this reaction was investigated to look at the support effects. The catalysis of cyclopropane to propane was studied over Pt and Co catalysts. These catalysts were supported onto NC and CM alumina by impregnation. By observing differences in the catalytic behavior, support effects have become apparent.

  14. High temperature, oxidation resistant noble metal-Al alloy thermocouple

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Smialek, James L. (Inventor); Gedwill, Michael G. (Inventor)

    1994-01-01

    A thermocouple is disclosed. The thermocouple is comprised of an electropositive leg formed of a noble metal-Al alloy and an electronegative leg electrically joined to form a thermocouple junction. The thermocouple provides for accurate and reproducible measurement of high temperatures (600 - 1300 C) in inert, oxidizing or reducing environments, gases, or vacuum. Furthermore, the thermocouple circumvents the need for expensive, strategic precious metals such as rhodium as a constituent component. Selective oxidation of rhodium is also thereby precluded.

  15. Toxic effect of metal cation binary mixtures to the seaweed Gracilaria domingensis (Gracilariales, Rhodophyta).

    PubMed

    Mendes, Luiz Fernando; Stevani, Cassius Vinicius; Zambotti-Villela, Leonardo; Yokoya, Nair Sumie; Colepicolo, Pio

    2014-01-01

    The macroalga Gracilaria domingensis is an important resource for the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and biotechnology industries. G. domingensis is at a part of the food web foundation, providing nutrients and microelements to upper levels. As seaweed storage metals in the vacuoles, they are considered the main vectors to magnify these toxic elements. This work describes the evaluation of the toxicity of binary mixtures of available metal cations based on the growth rates of G. domingensis over a 48-h exposure. The interactive effects of each binary mixture were determined using a toxic unit (TU) concept that was the sum of the relative contribution of each toxicant and calculated using the ratio between the toxicant concentration and its endpoint. Mixtures of Cd(II)/Cu(II) and Zn(II)/Ca(II) demonstrated to be additive; Cu(II)/Zn(II), Cu(II)/Mg(II), Cu(II)/Ca(II), Zn(II)/Mg(II), and Ca(II)/Mg(II) mixtures were synergistic, and all interactions studied with Cd(II) were antagonistic. Hypotheses that explain the toxicity of binary mixtures at the molecular level are also suggested. These results represent the first effort to characterize the combined effect of available metal cations, based on the TU concept on seaweed in a total controlled medium. The results presented here are invaluable to the understanding of seaweed metal cation toxicity in the marine environment, the mechanism of toxicity action and how the tolerance of the organism.

  16. Growth of vertically aligned nanowires in metal-oxide nanocomposites: kinetic Monte-Carlo modeling versus experiments.

    PubMed

    Hennes, M; Schuler, V; Weng, X; Buchwald, J; Demaille, D; Zheng, Y; Vidal, F

    2018-04-26

    We employ kinetic Monte-Carlo simulations to study the growth process of metal-oxide nanocomposites obtained via sequential pulsed laser deposition. Using Ni-SrTiO3 (Ni-STO) as a model system, we reduce the complexity of the computational problem by choosing a coarse-grained approach mapping Sr, Ti and O atoms onto a single effective STO pseudo-atom species. With this ansatz, we scrutinize the kinetics of the sequential synthesis process, governed by alternating deposition and relaxation steps, and analyze the self-organization propensity of Ni atoms into straight vertically aligned nanowires embedded in the surrounding STO matrix. We finally compare the predictions of our binary toy model with experiments and demonstrate that our computational approach captures fundamental aspects of self-assembled nanowire synthesis. Despite its simplicity, our modeling strategy successfully describes the impact of relevant parameters like the concentration or laser frequency on the final nanoarchitecture of metal-oxide thin films grown via pulsed laser deposition.

  17. Unified computational model of transport in metal-insulating oxide-metal systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tierney, B. D.; Hjalmarson, H. P.; Jacobs-Gedrim, R. B.; Agarwal, Sapan; James, C. D.; Marinella, M. J.

    2018-04-01

    A unified physics-based model of electron transport in metal-insulator-metal (MIM) systems is presented. In this model, transport through metal-oxide interfaces occurs by electron tunneling between the metal electrodes and oxide defect states. Transport in the oxide bulk is dominated by hopping, modeled as a series of tunneling events that alter the electron occupancy of defect states. Electron transport in the oxide conduction band is treated by the drift-diffusion formalism and defect chemistry reactions link all the various transport mechanisms. It is shown that the current-limiting effect of the interface band offsets is a function of the defect vacancy concentration. These results provide insight into the underlying physical mechanisms of leakage currents in oxide-based capacitors and steady-state electron transport in resistive random access memory (ReRAM) MIM devices. Finally, an explanation of ReRAM bipolar switching behavior based on these results is proposed.

  18. Metal oxide composite dosimeter method and material

    DOEpatents

    Miller, Steven D.

    1998-01-01

    The present invention is a method of measuring a radiation dose wherein a radiation responsive material consisting essentially of metal oxide is first exposed to ionizing radiation. The metal oxide is then stimulating with light thereby causing the radiation responsive material to photoluminesce. Photons emitted from the metal oxide as a result of photoluminescence may be counted to provide a measure of the ionizing radiation.

  19. Interfacial Metal-Oxide Interactions in Resistive Switching Memories.

    PubMed

    Cho, Deok-Yong; Luebben, Michael; Wiefels, Stefan; Lee, Kug-Seung; Valov, Ilia

    2017-06-07

    Metal oxides are commonly used as electrolytes for redox-based resistive switching memories. In most cases, non-noble metals are directly deposited as ohmic electrodes. We demonstrate that irrespective of bulk thermodynamics predictions an intermediate oxide film a few nanometers in thickness is always formed at the metal/insulator interface, and this layer significantly contributes to the development of reliable switching characteristics. We have tested metal electrodes and metal oxides mostly used for memristive devices, that is, Ta, Hf, and Ti and Ta 2 O 5 , HfO 2 , and SiO 2 . Intermediate oxide layers are always formed at the interfaces, whereas only the rate of the electrode oxidation depends on the oxygen affinity of the metal and the chemical stability of the oxide matrix. Device failure is associated with complete transition of short-range order to a more disordered main matrix structure.

  20. Charge transport in metal oxide nanocrystal-based materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Runnerstrom, Evan Lars

    There is probably no class of materials more varied, more widely used, or more ubiquitous than metal oxides. Depending on their composition, metal oxides can exhibit almost any number of properties. Of particular interest are the ways in which charge is transported in metal oxides: devices such as displays, touch screens, and smart windows rely on the ability of certain metal oxides to conduct electricity while maintaining visible transparency. Smart windows, fuel cells, and other electrochemical devices additionally rely on efficient transport of ionic charge in and around metal oxides. Colloidal synthesis has enabled metal oxide nanocrystals to emerge as a relatively new but highly tunable class of materials. Certain metal oxide nanocrystals, particularly highly doped metal oxides, have been enjoying rapid development in the last decade. As in myriad other materials systems, structure dictates the properties of metal oxide nanocrystals, but a full understanding of how nanocrystal synthesis, the processing of nanocrystal-based materials, and the structure of nanocrystals relate to the resulting properties of nanocrystal-based materials is still nascent. Gaining a fundamental understanding of and control over these structure-property relationships is crucial to developing a holistic understanding of metal oxide nanocrystals. The unique ability to tune metal oxide nanocrystals by changing composition through the introduction of dopants or by changing size and shape affords a way to study the interplay between structure, processing, and properties. This overall goal of this work is to chemically synthesize colloidal metal oxide nanocrystals, process them into useful materials, characterize charge transport in materials based on colloidal metal oxide nanocrystals, and develop ways to manipulate charge transport. In particular, this dissertation characterizes how the charge transport properties of metal oxide nanocrystal-based materials depend on their processing and

  1. Photochemical route for accessing amorphous metal oxide materials for water oxidation catalysis.

    PubMed

    Smith, Rodney D L; Prévot, Mathieu S; Fagan, Randal D; Zhang, Zhipan; Sedach, Pavel A; Siu, Man Kit Jack; Trudel, Simon; Berlinguette, Curtis P

    2013-04-05

    Large-scale electrolysis of water for hydrogen generation requires better catalysts to lower the kinetic barriers associated with the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Although most OER catalysts are based on crystalline mixed-metal oxides, high activities can also be achieved with amorphous phases. Methods for producing amorphous materials, however, are not typically amenable to mixed-metal compositions. We demonstrate that a low-temperature process, photochemical metal-organic deposition, can produce amorphous (mixed) metal oxide films for OER catalysis. The films contain a homogeneous distribution of metals with compositions that can be accurately controlled. The catalytic properties of amorphous iron oxide prepared with this technique are superior to those of hematite, whereas the catalytic properties of a-Fe(100-y-z)Co(y)Ni(z)O(x) are comparable to those of noble metal oxide catalysts currently used in commercial electrolyzers.

  2. Thermodynamics of Liquid Alkali Metals and Their Binary Alloys

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thakor, P. B.; Patel, Minal H.; Gajjar, P. N.; Jani, A. R.

    2009-07-01

    The theoretical investigation of thermodynamic properties like internal energy, entropy, Helmholtz free energy, heat of mixing (ΔE) and entropy of mixing (ΔS) of liquid alkali metals and their binary alloys are reported in the present paper. The effect of concentration on the thermodynamic properties of Ac1Bc2 alloy of the alkali-alkali elements is investigated and reported for the first time using our well established local pseudopotential. To investigate influence of exchange and correlation effects, we have used five different local field correction functions viz; Hartree(H), Taylor(T), Ichimaru and Utsumi(IU), Farid et al. (F) and Sarkar et al. (S). The increase of concentration C2, increases the internal energy and Helmholtz free energy of liquid alloy Ac1Bc2. The behavior of present computation is not showing any abnormality in the outcome and hence confirms the applicability of our model potential in explaining the thermodynamics of liquid binary alloys.

  3. The MSFC complementary metal oxide semiconductor (including multilevel interconnect metallization) process handbook

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bouldin, D. L.; Eastes, R. W.; Feltner, W. R.; Hollis, B. R.; Routh, D. E.

    1979-01-01

    The fabrication techniques for creation of complementary metal oxide semiconductor integrated circuits at George C. Marshall Space Flight Center are described. Examples of C-MOS integrated circuits manufactured at MSFC are presented with functional descriptions of each. Typical electrical characteristics of both p-channel metal oxide semiconductor and n-channel metal oxide semiconductor discrete devices under given conditions are provided. Procedures design, mask making, packaging, and testing are included.

  4. Synthesis of Oxides Containing Transition Metals

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-07-09

    metal oxide single crystals by the electrolysis of molten salts containing mixtures of the appropriate oxides. Andreiux and Bozon (33-34) were able to...examples of unusual transition metal oxides which can be prepared (usually as single crystals) by electrolysis of fused salts . Summary The methods of...ferrites with the composition MFe 204 involved the thermal decomposition of oxalate (3) or pyridinate salts (1). The synthesis of ferrites from mixed

  5. 40 CFR 721.4610 - Mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.4610... Substances § 721.4610 Mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxides (PMN P-98-0002...

  6. 40 CFR 721.10006 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.10006... Substances § 721.10006 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxide (PMN P-99-511...

  7. 40 CFR 721.4610 - Mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 30 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.4610... Substances § 721.4610 Mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxides (PMN P-98-0002...

  8. 40 CFR 721.10006 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.10006... Substances § 721.10006 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxide (PMN P-99-511...

  9. 40 CFR 721.4610 - Mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.4610... Substances § 721.4610 Mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxides (PMN P-98-0002...

  10. 40 CFR 721.4610 - Mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.4610... Substances § 721.4610 Mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxides (PMN P-98-0002...

  11. 40 CFR 721.10006 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.10006... Substances § 721.10006 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxide (PMN P-99-511...

  12. 40 CFR 721.4610 - Mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.4610... Substances § 721.4610 Mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxides (PMN P-98-0002...

  13. 40 CFR 721.10006 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.10006... Substances § 721.10006 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as mixed metal oxide (PMN P-99-511...

  14. 40 CFR 721.5548 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 30 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.5548... Substances § 721.5548 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as a mixed metal oxide (PMN P-97-956) is...

  15. 40 CFR 721.5548 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.5548... Substances § 721.5548 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as a mixed metal oxide (PMN P-97-956) is...

  16. 40 CFR 721.5548 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.5548... Substances § 721.5548 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as a mixed metal oxide (PMN P-97-956) is...

  17. 40 CFR 721.5548 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.5548... Substances § 721.5548 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as a mixed metal oxide (PMN P-97-956) is...

  18. 40 CFR 721.5548 - Mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mixed metal oxide (generic). 721.5548... Substances § 721.5548 Mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as a mixed metal oxide (PMN P-97-956) is...

  19. Ammonia release method for depositing metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Silver, Gary L.; Martin, Frank S.

    1994-12-13

    A method of depositing metal oxides on substrates which is indifferent to the electrochemical properties of the substrates and which comprises forming ammine complexes containing metal ions and thereafter effecting removal of ammonia from the ammine complexes so as to permit slow precipitation and deposition of metal oxide on the substrates.

  20. Dextran templating for the synthesis of metallic and metal oxide sponges

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Walsh, Dominic; Arcelli, Laura; Ikoma, Toshiyuki; Tanaka, Junzo; Mann, Stephen

    2003-06-01

    Silver or gold-containing porous frameworks have been used extensively in catalysis, electrochemistry, heat dissipation and biofiltration. These materials are often prepared by thermal reduction of metal-ion-impregnated porous insoluble supports (such as alumina and pumice), and have surface areas of about 1 m2 g-1, which is typically higher than that obtained for pure metal powders or foils prepared electrolytically or by infiltration and thermal decomposition of insoluble cellulose supports. Starch gels have been used in association with zeolite nanoparticles to produce porous inorganic materials with structural hierarchy, but the use of soft sacrificial templates in the synthesis of metallic sponges has not been investigated. Here we demonstrate that self-supporting macroporous frameworks of silver, gold and copper oxide, as well as composites of silver/copper oxide or silver/titania can be routinely prepared by heating metal-salt-containing pastes of the polysaccharide, dextran, to temperatures between 500 and 900 °C. Magnetic sponges were similarly prepared by replacing the metal salt precursor with preformed iron oxide (magnetite) nanoparticles. The use of dextran as a sacrificial template for the fabrication of metallic and metal oxide sponges should have significant benefits over existing technologies because the method is facile, inexpensive, environmentally benign, and amenable to scale-up and processing.

  1. Direct electrochemical reduction of metal-oxides

    DOEpatents

    Redey, Laszlo I.; Gourishankar, Karthick

    2003-01-01

    A method of controlling the direct electrolytic reduction of a metal oxide or mixtures of metal oxides to the corresponding metal or metals. A non-consumable anode and a cathode and a salt electrolyte with a first reference electrode near the non-consumable anode and a second reference electrode near the cathode are used. Oxygen gas is produced and removed from the cell. The anode potential is compared to the first reference electrode to prevent anode dissolution and gas evolution other than oxygen, and the cathode potential is compared to the second reference electrode to prevent production of reductant metal from ions in the electrolyte.

  2. CO-oxidation catalysts: Low-temperature CO oxidation over Noble-Metal Reducible Oxide (NMRO) catalysts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Herz, Richard K.

    1990-01-01

    Oxidation of CO to CO2 is an important reaction technologically and environmentally and a complex and interesting reaction scientifically. In most cases, the reaction is carried out in order to remove CO as an environmental hazard. A major application of heterogeneous catalysts is catalytic oxidation of CO in the exhaust of combustion devices. The reaction over catalysts in exhaust gas is fast and often mass-transfer-limited since exhaust gases are hot and O2/CO ratios are high. The main challenges to catalyst designers are to control thermal sintering and chemical poisoning of the active materials. The effect of the noble metal on the oxide is discussed, followed by the effect of the oxide on the noble metal, the interaction of the noble metal and oxide to form unique catalytic sites, and the possible ways in which the CO oxidation reaction is catalyzed by the NMRO materials.

  3. Synthesis and applications of nanoporous perovskite metal oxides

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Xiubing; Zhao, Guixia

    2018-01-01

    Perovskite-type metal oxides have been widely investigated and applied in various fields in the past several decades due to their extraordinary variability of compositions and structures with targeted physical and chemical properties (e.g., redox behaviour, oxygen mobility, electronic and ionic conductivity). Recently, nanoporous perovskite metal oxides have attracted extensive attention because of their special morphology and properties, as well as superior performance. This minireview aims at summarizing and reviewing the different synthesis methods of nanoporous perovskite metal oxides and their various applications comprehensively. The correlations between the nanoporous structures and the specific performance of perovskite oxides are summarized and highlighted. The future research directions of nanoporous perovskite metal oxides are also prospected. PMID:29862001

  4. Bismuth silicate glass containing heavy metal oxide as a promising radiation shielding material

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Elalaily, Nagia A.; Abou-Hussien, Eman M.; Saad, Ebtisam A.

    2016-12-01

    Optical and FTIR spectroscopic measurements and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) properties have been utilized to investigate and characterize the given compositions of binary bismuth silicate glasses. In this work, it is aimed to study the possibility of using the prepared bismuth silicate glasses as a good shielding material for γ-rays in which adding bismuth oxide to silicate glasses causes distinguish increase in its density by an order of magnitude ranging from one to two more than mono divalent oxides. The good thermal stability and high density of the bismuth-based silicate glass encourage many studies to be undertaken to understand its radiation shielding efficiency. For this purpose a glass containing 20% bismuth oxide and 80% SiO2 was prepared using the melting-annealing technique. In addition the effects of adding some alkali heavy metal oxides to this glass, such as PbO, BaO or SrO, were also studied. EPR measurements show that the prepared glasses have good stability when exposed to γ-irradiation. The changes in the FTIR spectra due to the presence of metal oxides were referred to the different housing positions and physical properties of the respective divalent Sr2+, Ba2+ and Pb2+ ions. Calculations of optical band gap energies were presented for some selected glasses from the UV data to support the probability of using these glasses as a gamma radiation shielding material. The results showed stability of both optical and magnetic spectra of the studied glasses toward gamma irradiation, which validates their irradiation shielding behavior and suitability as the radiation shielding candidate materials.

  5. Ammonia release method for depositing metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Silver, G.L.; Martin, F.S.

    1994-12-13

    A method is described for depositing metal oxides on substrates which is indifferent to the electrochemical properties of the substrates and which comprises forming ammine complexes containing metal ions and thereafter effecting removal of ammonia from the ammine complexes so as to permit slow precipitation and deposition of metal oxide on the substrates. 1 figure.

  6. X-ray Absorption Study of Graphene Oxide and Transition Metal Oxide Nanocomposites.

    PubMed

    Gandhiraman, Ram P; Nordlund, Dennis; Javier, Cristina; Koehne, Jessica E; Chen, Bin; Meyyappan, M

    2014-08-14

    The surface properties of the electrode materials play a crucial role in determining the performance and efficiency of energy storage devices. Graphene oxide and nanostructures of 3d transition metal oxides were synthesized for construction of electrodes in supercapacitors, and the electronic structure and oxidation states were probed using near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure. Understanding the chemistry of graphene oxide would provide valuable insight into its reactivity and properties as the graphene oxide transformation to reduced-graphene oxide is a key step in the synthesis of the electrode materials. Polarized behavior of the synchrotron X-rays and the angular dependency of the near-edge X-ray absorption fine structures (NEXAFS) have been utilized to study the orientation of the σ and π bonds of the graphene oxide and graphene oxide-metal oxide nanocomposites. The core-level transitions of individual metal oxides and that of the graphene oxide nanocomposite showed that the interaction of graphene oxide with the metal oxide nanostructures has not altered the electronic structure of either of them. As the restoration of the π network is important for good electrical conductivity, the C K edge NEXAFS spectra of reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites confirms the same through increased intensity of the sp 2 -derived unoccupied states π* band. A pronounced angular dependency of the reduced sample and the formation of excitonic peaks confirmed the formation of extended conjugated network.

  7. Photocatalytic activity of nanostructured ZnO-ZrO2 binary oxide using fluorometric method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ibrahim, M. M.

    2015-06-01

    Evaluation of the photocatalytic activity of ZnO-ZrO2 nanomaterials using fluorescence based technique has rarely been reported. In the present work, ZnO-ZrO2 mixed oxides coupled with various ZnO dosages (0, 10, 30, 50, 70 wt%) were prepared by impregnation method. These nanomaterials were characterized by studying their structural, surface and optical properties. The photocatalytic activity in term of quantitative determination of the active oxidative species (radOH) produced on the surface of binary oxide was evaluated using fluorescent probe method. The interaction between ZnO and ZrO2 was affected on the photocatalytic efficiency of mixture. The results show that, the addition of ZnO to ZrO2 decreased the electron-hole recombination and increased the rate of radOH radicals formation. 50 wt% ZnO-ZrO2 photocatalyst exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity. The profound effect of binary oxide catalyst was generally considered due to the high surface area, small particle size, high monoclinic phase of ZrO2 content, low band gap and the presence of surface OH groups.

  8. Defining a Materials Database for the Design of Copper Binary Alloy Catalysts for Electrochemical CO2 Conversion.

    PubMed

    Lee, Chan Woo; Yang, Ki Dong; Nam, Dae-Hyun; Jang, Jun Ho; Cho, Nam Heon; Im, Sang Won; Nam, Ki Tae

    2018-01-24

    While Cu electrodes are a versatile material in the electrochemical production of desired hydrocarbon fuels, Cu binary alloy electrodes are recently proposed to further tune reaction directionality and, more importantly, overcome the intrinsic limitation of scaling relations. Despite encouraging empirical demonstrations of various Cu-based metal alloy systems, the underlying principles of their outstanding performance are not fully addressed. In particular, possible phase segregation with concurrent composition changes, which is widely observed in the field of metallurgy, is not at all considered. Moreover, surface-exposed metals can easily form oxide species, which is another pivotal factor that determines overall catalytic properties. Here, the understanding of Cu binary alloy catalysts for CO 2 reduction and recent progress in this field are discussed. From the viewpoint of the thermodynamic stability of the alloy system and elemental mixing, possible microstructures and naturally generated surface oxide species are proposed. These basic principles of material science can help to predict and understand metal alloy structure and, moreover, act as an inspiration for the development of new binary alloy catalysts to further improve CO 2 conversion and, ultimately, achieve a carbon-neutral cycle. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  9. Metal/oxide interfacial effects on the selective oxidation of primary alcohols

    PubMed Central

    Zhao, Guofeng; Yang, Fan; Chen, Zongjia; Liu, Qingfei; Ji, Yongjun; Zhang, Yi; Niu, Zhiqiang; Mao, Junjie; Bao, Xinhe; Hu, Peijun; Li, Yadong

    2017-01-01

    A main obstacle in the rational development of heterogeneous catalysts is the difficulty in identifying active sites. Here we show metal/oxide interfacial sites are highly active for the oxidation of benzyl alcohol and other industrially important primary alcohols on a range of metals and oxides combinations. Scanning tunnelling microscopy together with density functional theory calculations on FeO/Pt(111) reveals that benzyl alcohol enriches preferentially at the oxygen-terminated FeO/Pt(111) interface and undergoes readily O–H and C–H dissociations with the aid of interfacial oxygen, which is also validated in the model study of Cu2O/Ag(111). We demonstrate that the interfacial effects are independent of metal or oxide sizes and the way by which the interfaces were constructed. It inspires us to inversely support nano-oxides on micro-metals to make the structure more stable against sintering while the number of active sites is not sacrificed. The catalyst lifetime, by taking the inverse design, is thereby significantly prolonged. PMID:28098146

  10. Three-electrode metal oxide reduction cell

    DOEpatents

    Dees, Dennis W.; Ackerman, John P.

    2008-08-12

    A method of electrochemically reducing a metal oxide to the metal in an electrochemical cell is disclosed along with the cell. Each of the anode and cathode operate at their respective maximum reaction rates. An electrolyte and an anode at which oxygen can be evolved, and a cathode including a metal oxide to be reduced are included as is a third electrode with independent power supplies connecting the anode and the third electrode and the cathode and the third electrode.

  11. Three-Electrode Metal Oxide Reduction Cell

    DOEpatents

    Dees, Dennis W.; Ackerman, John P.

    2005-06-28

    A method of electrochemically reducing a metal oxide to the metal in an electrochemical cell is disclosed along with the cell. Each of the anode and cathode operate at their respective maximum reaction rates. An electrolyte and an anode at which oxygen can be evolved, and a cathode including a metal oxide to be reduced are included as is a third electrode with independent power supplies connecting the anode and the third electrode and the cathode and the third electrode.

  12. Recent applications of liquid metals featuring nanoscale surface oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Neumann, Taylor V.; Dickey, Michael D.

    2016-05-01

    This proceeding describes recent efforts from our group to control the shape and actuation of liquid metal. The liquid metal is an alloy of gallium and indium which is non-toxic, has negligible vapor pressure, and develops a thin, passivating surface oxide layer. The surface oxide allows the liquid metal to be patterned and shaped into structures that do not minimize interfacial energy. The surface oxide can be selectively removed by changes in pH or by applying a voltage. The surface oxide allows the liquid metal to be 3D printed to form free-standing structures. It also allows for the liquid metal to be injected into microfluidic channels and to maintain its shape within the channels. The selective removal of the oxide results in drastic changes in surface tension that can be used to control the flow behavior of the liquid metal. The metal can also wet thin, solid films of metal that accelerates droplets of the liquid along the metal traces .Here we discuss the properties and applications of liquid metal to make soft, reconfigurable electronics.

  13. Oxide surfaces and metal/oxide interfaces studied by grazing incidence X-ray scattering

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Renaud, Gilles

    Experimental determinations of the atomic structure of insulating oxide surfaces and metal/oxide interfaces are scarce, because surface science techniques are often limited by the insulating character of the substrate. Grazing incidence X-ray scattering (GIXS), which is not subject to charge effects, can provide very precise information on the atomic structure of oxide surfaces: roughness, relaxation and reconstruction. It is also well adapted to analyze the atomic structure, the registry, the misfit relaxation, elastic or plastic, the growth mode and the morphology of metal/oxide interfaces during their growth, performed in situ. GIXS also allows the analysis of thin films and buried interfaces, in a non-destructive way, yielding the epitaxial relationships, and, by variation of the grazing incidence angle, the lattice parameter relaxation along the growth direction. On semi-coherent interfaces, the existence of an ordered network of interfacial misfit dislocations can be demonstrated, its Burger's vector determined, its ordering during in situ annealing cycles followed, and sometimes even its atomic structure can be addressed. Careful analysis during growth allows the modeling of the dislocation nucleation process. This review emphasizes the new information that GIXS can bring to oxide surfaces and metal/oxide interfaces by comparison with other surface science techniques. The principles of X-ray diffraction by surfaces and interfaces are recalled, together with the advantages and properties of grazing angles. The specific experimental requirements are discussed. Recent results are presented on the determination of the atomic structure of relaxed or reconstructed oxide surfaces. A description of results obtained during the in situ growth of metal on oxide surfaces is also given, as well as investigations of thick metal films on oxide surfaces, with lattice parameter misfit relaxed by an array of dislocations. Recent work performed on oxide thin films having

  14. Lithium metal oxide electrodes for lithium batteries

    DOEpatents

    Thackeray, Michael M [Naperville, IL; Kim, Jeom-Soo [Naperville, IL; Johnson, Christopher S [Naperville, IL

    2008-01-01

    An uncycled electrode for a non-aqueous lithium electrochemical cell including a lithium metal oxide having the formula Li.sub.(2+2x)/(2+x)M'.sub.2x/(2+x)M.sub.(2-2x)/(2+x)O.sub.2-.delta., in which 0.ltoreq.x<1 and .delta. is less than 0.2, and in which M is a non-lithium metal ion with an average trivalent oxidation state selected from two or more of the first row transition metals or lighter metal elements in the periodic table, and M' is one or more ions with an average tetravalent oxidation state selected from the first and second row transition metal elements and Sn. Methods of preconditioning the electrodes are disclosed as are electrochemical cells and batteries containing the electrodes.

  15. Metal-oxide-based energetic materials and synthesis thereof

    DOEpatents

    Tillotson, Thomas M. , Simpson; Randall, L [Livermore, CA; Hrubesh, Lawrence W [Pleasanton, CA

    2006-01-17

    A method of preparing energetic metal-oxide-based energetic materials using sol-gel chemistry has been invented. The wet chemical sol-gel processing provides an improvement in both safety and performance. Essentially, a metal-oxide oxidizer skeletal structure is prepared from hydrolyzable metals (metal salts or metal alkoxides) with fuel added to the sol prior to gelation or synthesized within the porosity metal-oxide gel matrix. With metal salt precursors a proton scavenger is used to destabilize the sol and induce gelation. With metal alkoxide precursors standard well-known sol-gel hydrolysis and condensation reactions are used. Drying is done by standard sol-gel practices, either by a slow evaporation of the liquid residing within the pores to produce a high density solid nanocomposite, or by supercritical extraction to produce a lower density, high porous nanocomposite. Other ingredients may be added to this basic nanostructure to change physical and chemical properties, which include organic constituents for binders or gas generators during reactions, burn rate modifiers, or spectral emitters.

  16. Aerosol chemical vapor deposition of metal oxide films

    DOEpatents

    Ott, K.C.; Kodas, T.T.

    1994-01-11

    A process of preparing a film of a multicomponent metal oxide including: forming an aerosol from a solution comprised of a suitable solvent and at least two precursor compounds capable of volatilizing at temperatures lower than the decomposition temperature of said precursor compounds; passing said aerosol in combination with a suitable oxygen-containing carrier gas into a heated zone, said heated zone having a temperature sufficient to evaporate the solvent and volatilize said precursor compounds; and passing said volatilized precursor compounds against the surface of a substrate, said substrate having a sufficient temperature to decompose said volatilized precursor compounds whereby metal atoms contained within said volatilized precursor compounds are deposited as a metal oxide film upon the substrate is disclosed. In addition, a coated article comprising a multicomponent metal oxide film conforming to the surface of a substrate selected from the group consisting of silicon, magnesium oxide, yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide, sapphire, or lanthanum gallate, said multicomponent metal oxide film characterized as having a substantially uniform thickness upon said substrate.

  17. Transition metal-catalyzed oxidation of sulfur(IV) oxides. Atmospheric-relevant processes and mechanisms

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Brandt, C.; Eldik, R. van

    1995-01-01

    The transition metal-catalyzed oxidation of sulfur(IV) oxides has been known for more than 100 years. There is a significant lack of information on the actual role of the transition metal-catalyzed reactions, and much of the earlier work was performed without a detailed knowledge of the chemical system. For this reason attention is focused on the role of transition metal ions in the oxidation of sulfur(IV) oxides in terms of the coordination chemistry involved, as well as the stability and chemical behavior of the various participating species. The oxidation process of sulfur(IV) oxides plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry (e.g.more » acid rain formation) as well as industrial processes (e.g. desulfurization of plume gases and ore). The present report deals with the mechanism of the transition metal-catalyzed oxidation of sulfur(IV) oxides with the aim to discuss this in terms of atmospheric and chemical processes. In addition, the authors would like to emphasize the key role of oxygen in these processes. 1,076 refs.« less

  18. Metal ion binding to iron oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ponthieu, M.; Juillot, F.; Hiemstra, T.; van Riemsdijk, W. H.; Benedetti, M. F.

    2006-06-01

    The biogeochemistry of trace elements (TE) is largely dependent upon their interaction with heterogeneous ligands including metal oxides and hydrous oxides of iron. The modeling of TE interactions with iron oxides has been pursued using a variety of chemical models. The objective of this work is to show that it is possible to model the adsorption of protons and TE on a crystallized oxide (i.e., goethite) and on an amorphous oxide (HFO) in an identical way. Here, we use the CD-MUSIC approach in combination with valuable and reliable surface spectroscopy information about the nature of surface complexes of the TE. The other objective of this work is to obtain generic parameters to describe the binding of the following elements (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) onto both iron oxides for the CD-MUSIC approach. The results show that a consistent description of proton and metal ion binding is possible for goethite and HFO with the same set of model parameters. In general a good prediction of almost all the collected experimental data sets corresponding to metal ion binding to HFO is obtained. Moreover, dominant surface species are in agreement with the recently published surface complexes derived from X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) data. Until more detailed information on the structure of the two iron oxides is available, the present option seems a reasonable approximation and can be used to describe complex geochemical systems. To improve our understanding and modeling of multi-component systems we need more data obtained at much lower metal ion to iron oxide ratios in order to be able to account eventually for sites that are not always characterized in spectroscopic studies.

  19. Method for converting uranium oxides to uranium metal

    DOEpatents

    Duerksen, Walter K.

    1988-01-01

    A process is described for converting scrap and waste uranium oxide to uranium metal. The uranium oxide is sequentially reduced with a suitable reducing agent to a mixture of uranium metal and oxide products. The uranium metal is then converted to uranium hydride and the uranium hydride-containing mixture is then cooled to a temperature less than -100.degree. C. in an inert liquid which renders the uranium hydride ferromagnetic. The uranium hydride is then magnetically separated from the cooled mixture. The separated uranium hydride is readily converted to uranium metal by heating in an inert atmosphere. This process is environmentally acceptable and eliminates the use of hydrogen fluoride as well as the explosive conditions encountered in the previously employed bomb-reduction processes utilized for converting uranium oxides to uranium metal.

  20. Lithium metal oxide electrodes for lithium batteries

    DOEpatents

    Thackeray, Michael M.; Johnson, Christopher S.; Amine, Khalil; Kang, Sun-Ho

    2010-06-08

    An uncycled preconditioned electrode for a non-aqueous lithium electrochemical cell including a lithium metal oxide having the formula xLi.sub.2-yH.sub.yO.xM'O.sub.2.(1-x)Li.sub.1-zH.sub.zMO.sub.2 in which 0metal ion with an average trivalent oxidation state selected from two or more of the first row transition metals or lighter metal elements in the periodic table, and M' is one or more ions with an average tetravalent oxidation state selected from the first and second row transition metal elements and Sn. The xLi.sub.2-yH.sub.y.xM'O.sub.2.(1-x)Li.sub.1-zH.sub.zMO.sub.2 material is prepared by preconditioning a precursor lithium metal oxide (i.e., xLi.sub.2M'O.sub.3.(1-x)LiMO.sub.2) with a proton-containing medium with a pH<7.0 containing an inorganic acid. Methods of preparing the electrodes are disclosed, as are electrochemical cells and batteries containing the electrodes.

  1. Binary CMOS image sensor with a gate/body-tied MOSFET-type photodetector for high-speed operation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Choi, Byoung-Soo; Jo, Sung-Hyun; Bae, Myunghan; Kim, Sang-Hwan; Shin, Jang-Kyoo

    2016-05-01

    In this paper, a binary complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor with a gate/body-tied (GBT) metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET)-type photodetector is presented. The sensitivity of the GBT MOSFET-type photodetector, which was fabricated using the standard CMOS 0.35-μm process, is higher than the sensitivity of the p-n junction photodiode, because the output signal of the photodetector is amplified by the MOSFET. A binary image sensor becomes more efficient when using this photodetector. Lower power consumptions and higher speeds of operation are possible, compared to the conventional image sensors using multi-bit analog to digital converters (ADCs). The frame rate of the proposed image sensor is over 2000 frames per second, which is higher than those of the conventional CMOS image sensors. The output signal of an active pixel sensor is applied to a comparator and compared with a reference level. The 1-bit output data of the binary process is determined by this level. To obtain a video signal, the 1-bit output data is stored in the memory and is read out by horizontal scanning. The proposed chip is composed of a GBT pixel array (144 × 100), binary-process circuit, vertical scanner, horizontal scanner, and readout circuit. The operation mode can be selected from between binary mode and multi-bit mode.

  2. Solder for oxide layer-building metals and alloys

    DOEpatents

    Kronberg, James W.

    1992-01-01

    A low temperature solder and method for soldering an oxide layer-building metal such as aluminum, titanium, tantalum or stainless steel. The comosition comprises tin and zinc; germanium as a wetting agent; preferably small amounts of copper and antimony; and a grit, such as silicon carbide. The grit abrades any oxide layer formed on the surface of the metal as the germanium penetrates beneath and loosens the oxide layer to provide good metal-to-metal contact. The germanium comprises less than aproximatley 10% by weight of the solder composition so that it provides sufficient wetting action but does not result in a melting temperature above approximately 300.degree. C. The method comprises the steps rubbing the solder against the metal surface so the grit in the solder abrades the surface while heating the surface until the solder begins to melt and the germanium penetrates the oxide layer, then brushing aside any oxide layer loosened by the solder.

  3. Solder for oxide layer-building metals and alloys

    DOEpatents

    Kronberg, J.W.

    1992-09-15

    A low temperature solder and method for soldering an oxide layer-building metal such as aluminum, titanium, tantalum or stainless steel is disclosed. The composition comprises tin and zinc; germanium as a wetting agent; preferably small amounts of copper and antimony; and a grit, such as silicon carbide. The grit abrades any oxide layer formed on the surface of the metal as the germanium penetrates beneath and loosens the oxide layer to provide good metal-to-metal contact. The germanium comprises less than approximately 10% by weight of the solder composition so that it provides sufficient wetting action but does not result in a melting temperature above approximately 300 C. The method comprises the steps rubbing the solder against the metal surface so the grit in the solder abrades the surface while heating the surface until the solder begins to melt and the germanium penetrates the oxide layer, then brushing aside any oxide layer loosened by the solder.

  4. Nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A.; Choi, Daiwon; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2013-10-15

    Nanocomposite materials comprising a metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene material. The nanocomposite materials exhibit a specific capacity of at least twice that of the metal oxide material without the graphene at a charge/discharge rate greater than about 10 C.

  5. Nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A.; Choi, Daiwon; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2012-09-04

    Nanocomposite materials comprising a metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene material. The nanocomposite materials exhibit a specific capacity of at least twice that of the metal oxide material without the graphene at a charge/discharge rate greater than about 10C.

  6. Nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A.; Choi, Daiwon; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2015-06-30

    Nanocomposite materials comprising a metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene material. The nanocomposite materials exhibit a specific capacity of at least twice that of the metal oxide material without the graphene at a charge/discharge rate greater than about 10 C.

  7. Aerosol chemical vapor deposition of metal oxide films

    DOEpatents

    Ott, Kevin C.; Kodas, Toivo T.

    1994-01-01

    A process of preparing a film of a multicomponent metal oxide including: forming an aerosol from a solution comprised of a suitable solvent and at least two precursor compounds capable of volatilizing at temperatures lower than the decomposition temperature of said precursor compounds; passing said aerosol in combination with a suitable oxygen-containing carrier gas into a heated zone, said heated zone having a temperature sufficient to evaporate the solvent and volatilize said precursor compounds; and passing said volatilized precursor compounds against the surface of a substrate, said substrate having a sufficient temperature to decompose said volatilized precursor compounds whereby metal atoms contained within said volatilized precursor compounds are deposited as a metal oxide film upon the substrate is disclosed. In addition, a coated article comprising a multicomponent metal oxide film conforming to the surface of a substrate selected from the group consisting of silicon, magnesium oxide, yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide, sapphire, or lanthanum gallate, said multicomponent metal oxide film characterized as having a substantially uniform thickness upon said FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the field of film coating deposition techniques, and more particularly to the deposition of multicomponent metal oxide films by aerosol chemical vapor deposition. This invention is the result of a contract with the Department of Energy (Contract No. W-7405-ENG-36).

  8. Oxide reduction during triggered-lightning fulgurite formation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jones, B. E.; Jones, K. S.; Rambo, K. J.; Rakov, V. A.; Jerald, J.; Uman, M. A.

    2005-03-01

    In this study triggered-lightning induced fulgurites were formed in 99.9% pure binary oxides of manganese (MnO) and nickel (NiO) in order to study oxide reduction mechanisms. The fulgurite formation process involved packing the oxide in PVC holders and using the standard rocket-and-wire technique to trigger a lightning strike through the oxide at the International Center for Lightning Research and Testing in Camp Blanding, Florida. These two oxides were chosen from the thermodynamic extrapolation of the oxide stability using the Ellingham Diagram. This diagram indicates that NiO is significantly less stable than MnO. Fulgurites from the pure oxides were analyzed in a scanning electron microscope (SEM); secondary electron images, backscattered images and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were used to determine the microstructure and composition of the fulgurites. SEM/EDS analysis of the NiO and MnO prior to fulgurite formation confirmed they were pure binary oxides with no metallic contamination. After fulgurite formation, it was found that the nickel oxide fulgurite contained metallic nickel particles; the manganese oxide fulgurite showed no metallic phase formation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) examination confirmed that the MnO was a pure oxide with no sign of metallic phase formation. However, TEM results of the NiO showed that approximately 50% of the NiO was reduced to metallic face-centered cubic Ni. The Ni and NiO were observed to be coherent with the [1 0 0]Ni//[1 0 0]NiO and [1 1 0]Ni//[1 1 0]NiO. These results are consistent with the aforementioned thermodynamic stability calculations and show that the presence of carbonaceous material or mixtures of oxides is not necessary for oxide reduction during fulgurite formation. These studies do not rule out the possibility that electrolysis plays a role in oxide reduction. However, these fulgurites were made simultaneously during the same lightning strike and therefore were subjected to the same

  9. Metals, toxicity and oxidative stress.

    PubMed

    Valko, M; Morris, H; Cronin, M T D

    2005-01-01

    Metal-induced toxicity and carcinogenicity, with an emphasis on the generation and role of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, is reviewed. Metal-mediated formation of free radicals causes various modifications to DNA bases, enhanced lipid peroxidation, and altered calcium and sulfhydryl homeostasis. Lipid peroxides, formed by the attack of radicals on polyunsaturated fatty acid residues of phospholipids, can further react with redox metals finally producing mutagenic and carcinogenic malondialdehyde, 4-hydroxynonenal and other exocyclic DNA adducts (etheno and/or propano adducts). Whilst iron (Fe), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), vanadium (V) and cobalt (Co) undergo redox-cycling reactions, for a second group of metals, mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd) and nickel (Ni), the primary route for their toxicity is depletion of glutathione and bonding to sulfhydryl groups of proteins. Arsenic (As) is thought to bind directly to critical thiols, however, other mechanisms, involving formation of hydrogen peroxide under physiological conditions, have been proposed. The unifying factor in determining toxicity and carcinogenicity for all these metals is the generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Common mechanisms involving the Fenton reaction, generation of the superoxide radical and the hydroxyl radical appear to be involved for iron, copper, chromium, vanadium and cobalt primarily associated with mitochondria, microsomes and peroxisomes. However, a recent discovery that the upper limit of "free pools" of copper is far less than a single atom per cell casts serious doubt on the in vivo role of copper in Fenton-like generation of free radicals. Nitric oxide (NO) seems to be involved in arsenite-induced DNA damage and pyrimidine excision inhibition. Various studies have confirmed that metals activate signalling pathways and the carcinogenic effect of metals has been related to activation of mainly redox-sensitive transcription factors, involving NF-kappaB, AP-1 and p53

  10. Internal zone growth method for producing metal oxide metal eutectic composites

    DOEpatents

    Clark, Grady W.; Holder, John D.; Pasto, Arvid E.

    1980-01-01

    An improved method for preparing a cermet comprises preparing a compact having about 85 to 95 percent theoretical density from a mixture of metal and metal oxide powders from a system containing a eutectic composition, and inductively heating the compact in a radiofrequency field to cause the formation of an internal molten zone. The metal oxide particles in the powder mixture are effectively sized relative to the metal particles to permit direct inductive heating of the compact by radiofrequency from room temperature. Surface melting is prevented by external cooling or by effectively sizing the particles in the powder mixture.

  11. Transition Metal Oxides for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction: Influence of the Oxidation States of the Metal and its Position on the Periodic Table.

    PubMed

    Toh, Rou Jun; Sofer, Zdeněk; Pumera, Martin

    2015-11-16

    Electrocatalysts have been developed to meet the needs and requirements of renewable energy applications. Metal oxides have been well explored and are promising for this purpose, however, many reports focus on only one or a few metal oxides at once. Herein, thirty metal oxides, which were either commercially available or synthesized by a simple and scalable method, were screened for comparison with regards to their electrocatalytic activity towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). We show that although manganese, iron, cobalt, and nickel oxides generally displayed the ability to enhance the kinetics of oxygen reduction under alkaline conditions compared with bare glassy carbon, there is no significant correlation between the position of a metal on the periodic table and the electrocatalytic performance of its respective metal oxides. Moreover, it was also observed that mixed valent (+2, +3) oxides performed the poorest, compared with their respective pure metal oxides. These findings may be of paramount importance in the field of renewable energy. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  12. Enhanced photoelectrochemical activity in all-oxide heterojunction devices based on correlated "metallic" oxides.

    PubMed

    Apgar, Brent A; Lee, Sungki; Schroeder, Lauren E; Martin, Lane W

    2013-11-20

    n-n Schottky, n-n ohmic, and p-n Schottky heterojunctions based on TiO2 /correlated "metallic" oxide couples exhibit strong solar-light absorption driven by the unique electronic structure of the "metallic" oxides. Photovoltaic and photocatalytic responses are driven by hot electron injection from the "metallic" oxide into the TiO2 , enabling new modalities of operation for energy systems. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  13. 40 CFR 721.10500 - Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.10500 Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and... mixed metal oxides (PMN P-06-341) is subject to reporting under this section for the significant new...

  14. 40 CFR 721.10500 - Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.10500 Acrylated mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and... mixed metal oxides (PMN P-06-341) is subject to reporting under this section for the significant new...

  15. Process for etching mixed metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Ashby, Carol I. H.; Ginley, David S.

    1994-01-01

    An etching process using dicarboxylic and tricarboxylic acids as chelating etchants for mixed metal oxide films such as high temperature superconductors and ferroelectric materials. Undesirable differential etching rates between different metal oxides are avoided by selection of the proper acid or combination of acids. Feature sizes below one micron, excellent quality vertical edges, and film thicknesses in the 100 Angstom range may be achieved by this method.

  16. Application of a mixed metal oxide catalyst to a metallic substrate

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sevener, Kathleen M. (Inventor); Lohner, Kevin A. (Inventor); Mays, Jeffrey A. (Inventor); Wisner, Daniel L. (Inventor)

    2009-01-01

    A method for applying a mixed metal oxide catalyst to a metallic substrate for the creation of a robust, high temperature catalyst system for use in decomposing propellants, particularly hydrogen peroxide propellants, for use in propulsion systems. The method begins by forming a prepared substrate material consisting of a metallic inner substrate and a bound layer of a noble metal intermediate. Alternatively, a bound ceramic coating, or frit, may be introduced between the metallic inner substrate and noble metal intermediate when the metallic substrate is oxidation resistant. A high-activity catalyst slurry is applied to the surface of the prepared substrate and dried to remove the organic solvent. The catalyst layer is then heat treated to bind the catalyst layer to the surface. The bound catalyst layer is then activated using an activation treatment and calcinations to form the high-activity catalyst system.

  17. Method for inhibiting oxidation of metal sulfide-containing material

    DOEpatents

    Elsetinow, Alicia; Borda, Michael J.; Schoonen, Martin A.; Strongin, Daniel R.

    2006-12-26

    The present invention provides means for inhibiting the oxidation of a metal sulfide-containing material, such as ore mine waste rock or metal sulfide taiulings, by coating the metal sulfide-containing material with an oxidation-inhibiting two-tail lipid coating (12) thereon, thereby inhibiting oxidation of the metal sulfide-containing material in acid mine drainage conditions. The lipids may be selected from phospholipids, sphingolipids, glycolipids and combinations thereof.

  18. Oxidation stress evolution and relaxation of oxide film/metal substrate system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dong, Xuelin; Feng, Xue; Hwang, Keh-Chih

    2012-07-01

    Stresses in the oxide film/metal substrate system are crucial to the reliability of the system at high temperature. Two models for predicting the stress evolution during isothermal oxidation are proposed. The deformation of the system is depicted by the curvature for single surface oxidation. The creep strain of the oxide and metal, and the lateral growth strain of the oxide are considered. The proposed models are compared with the experimental results in literature, which demonstrates that the elastic model only considering for elastic strain gives an overestimated stress in magnitude, but the creep model is consistent with the experimental data and captures the stress relaxation phenomenon during oxidation. The effects of the parameter for the lateral growth strain rate are also analyzed.

  19. Process for etching mixed metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Ashby, C.I.H.; Ginley, D.S.

    1994-10-18

    An etching process is described using dicarboxylic and tricarboxylic acids as chelating etchants for mixed metal oxide films such as high temperature superconductors and ferroelectric materials. Undesirable differential etching rates between different metal oxides are avoided by selection of the proper acid or combination of acids. Feature sizes below one micron, excellent quality vertical edges, and film thicknesses in the 100 Angstrom range may be achieved by this method. 1 fig.

  20. Metal Oxide Solubility and Molten Salt Corrosion.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1982-03-29

    METAL OXIDE SOLUBILITY AND MOLTEN SALT CORROSION .(U) MAR 82 K H STERN UNCLASSI E DL R L-4772NL EL .2. MICROCOPY RESOLUTION TEST CHART NATIONAL BURALU...21 l 7 3 ..... l DTIC NSPECT I" ’I cCPY INSECE( METAL OXIDE SOLUBILITY AND MOLTEN SALT CORROSION I. INTRODUCTION Molten ...discussed in terms of its importance to the understanding of molten salt corrosion . II. PROTECTIVE COATINGS Since most structural metals and alloys are

  1. Polymer-assisted aqueous deposition of metal oxide films

    DOEpatents

    Li, DeQuan [Los Alamos, NM; Jia, Quanxi [Los Alamos, NM

    2003-07-08

    An organic solvent-free process for deposition of metal oxide thin films is presented. The process includes aqueous solutions of necessary metal precursors and an aqueous solution of a water-soluble polymer. After a coating operation, the resultant coating is fired at high temperatures to yield optical quality metal oxide thin films.

  2. Simulation of thermally induced processes of diffusion and phase formation in layered binary metallic systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rusakov, V. S.; Sukhorukov, I. A.; Zhankadamova, A. M.; Kadyrzhanov, K. K.

    2010-05-01

    Results of the simulation of thermally induced processes of diffusion and phase formation in model and experimentally investigated layered binary metallic systems are presented. The physical model is based on the Darken phenomenological theory and on the mechanism of interdiffusion of components along the continuous diffusion channels of phases in the two-phase regions of the system. The simulation of processes in the model systems showed that the thermally stabilized concentration profiles in two-layer binary metallic systems are virtually independent of the partial diffusion coefficients; for the systems with the average concentration of components that is the same over the sample depth, the time of the thermal stabilization of the structural and phase state inhomogeneous over the depth grows according to a power law with increasing thickness of the system in such a manner that the thicknesses of the surface layers grow, while the thickness of the intermediate layer approaches a constant value. The results of the simulation of the processes of diffusion and phase formation in experimentally investigated layered binary systems Fe-Ti and Cu-Be upon sequential isothermal and isochronous annealings agree well with the experimental data.

  3. Electrochromic device containing metal oxide nanoparticles and ultraviolet blocking material

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Garcia, Guillermo; Koo, Bonil; Gregoratto, Ivano

    An electrochromic device includes a nanostructured transition metal oxide bronze layer that includes one or more transition metal oxide and one or more dopant. The electrochromic device also includes nanoparticles containing one or more transparent conducting oxide (TCO), a solid state electrolyte, a counter electrode, and at least one protective layer to prevent degradation of the one or more nanostructured transition metal oxide bronze. The nanostructured transition metal oxide bronze selectively modulates transmittance of near-infrared (NIR) and visible radiation as a function of an applied voltage to the device.

  4. Method for making monolithic metal oxide aerogels

    DOEpatents

    Droege, M.W.; Coronado, P.R.; Hair, L.M.

    1995-03-07

    Transparent, monolithic metal oxide aerogels of varying densities are produced using a method in which a metal alkoxide solution and a catalyst solution are prepared separately and reacted. The resulting hydrolyzed-condensed colloidal solution is gelled, and the wet gel is contained within a sealed, but gas permeable, containment vessel during supercritical extraction of the solvent. The present invention is especially advantageous for making metal oxides other than silica that are prone to forming opaque, cracked aerogels. 6 figs.

  5. Method for making monolithic metal oxide aerogels

    DOEpatents

    Droege, Michael W.; Coronado, Paul R.; Hair, Lucy M.

    1995-01-01

    Transparent, monolithic metal oxide aerogels of varying densities are produced using a method in which a metal alkoxide solution and a catalyst solution are prepared separately and reacted. The resulting hydrolyzed-condensed colloidal solution is gelled, and the wet gel is contained within a sealed, but gas permeable, containment vessel during supercritical extraction of the solvent. The present invention is especially advantageous for making metal oxides other than silica that are prone to forming opaque, cracked aerogels.

  6. Conductive metal oxide film and method of making

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Windisch, C.F. Jr.; Exarhos, G.J.

    1999-11-23

    The present invention is a method for reducing a dopant in a film of a metal oxide wherein the dopant is reduced and the first metal oxide is substantially not reduced. The method of the present invention relies upon exposing the film to reducing conditions for a predetermined time and reducing a valence of the metal from a positive valence to a zero valence and maintaining atoms with a zero valence in an atomic configuration within the lattice structure of the metal oxide. According to the present invention, exposure to reducing conditions may be achieved electrochemically or achieved in anmore » elevated temperature gas phase.« less

  7. Conductive metal oxide film and method of making

    DOEpatents

    Windisch, Jr., Charles F.; Exarhos, Gregory J.

    1999-01-01

    The present invention is a method for reducing a dopant in a film of a metal oxide wherein the dopant is reduced and the first metal oxide is substantially not reduced. The method of the present invention relies upon exposing the film to reducing conditions for a predetermined time and reducing a valence of the metal from a positive valence to a zero valence and maintaining atoms with a zero valence in an atomic configuration within the lattice structure of the metal oxide. According to the present invention, exposure to reducing conditions may be achieved electrochemically or achieved in an elevated temperature gas phase.

  8. Synthesis of metal-metal oxide catalysts and electrocatalysts using a metal cation adsorption/reduction and adatom replacement by more noble ones

    DOEpatents

    Adzic, Radoslav; Vukmirovic, Miomir; Sasaki, Kotaro

    2010-04-27

    The invention relates to platinum-metal oxide composite particles and their use as electrocatalysts in oxygen-reducing cathodes and fuel cells. The invention particularly relates to methods for preventing the oxidation of the platinum electrocatalyst in the cathodes of fuel cells by use of these platinum-metal oxide composite particles. The invention additionally relates to methods for producing electrical energy by supplying such a fuel cell with an oxidant, such as oxygen, and a fuel source, such as hydrogen. The invention also relates to methods of making the metal-metal oxide composites.

  9. Method of producing solution-derived metal oxide thin films

    DOEpatents

    Boyle, Timothy J.; Ingersoll, David

    2000-01-01

    A method of preparing metal oxide thin films by a solution method. A .beta.-metal .beta.-diketonate or carboxylate compound, where the metal is selected from groups 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 of the Periodic Table, is solubilized in a strong Lewis base to form a homogeneous solution. This precursor solution forms within minutes and can be deposited on a substrate in a single layer or a multiple layers to form a metal oxide thin film. The substrate with the deposited thin film is heated to change the film from an amorphous phase to a ceramic metal oxide and cooled.

  10. Method of producing adherent metal oxide coatings on metallic surfaces

    DOEpatents

    Lane, Michael H.; Varrin, Jr., Robert D.

    2001-01-01

    Provided is a process of producing an adherent synthetic corrosion product (sludge) coating on metallic surfaces. The method involves a chemical reaction between a dry solid powder mixture of at least one reactive metal oxide with orthophosphoric acid to produce a coating in which the particles are bound together and the matrix is adherent to the metallic surface.

  11. Merging black hole binaries: the effects of progenitor's metallicity, mass-loss rate and Eddington factor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giacobbo, Nicola; Mapelli, Michela; Spera, Mario

    2018-03-01

    The first four gravitational wave events detected by LIGO were all interpreted as merging black hole binaries (BHBs), opening a new perspective on the study of such systems. Here we use our new population-synthesis code MOBSE, an upgraded version of BSE, to investigate the demography of merging BHBs. MOBSE includes metallicity-dependent prescriptions for mass-loss of massive hot stars. It also accounts for the impact of the electron-scattering Eddington factor on mass-loss. We perform >108 simulations of isolated massive binaries, with 12 different metallicities, to study the impact of mass-loss, core-collapse supernovae and common envelope on merging BHBs. Accounting for the dependence of stellar winds on the Eddington factor leads to the formation of black holes (BHs) with mass up to 65 M⊙ at metallicity Z ˜ 0.0002. However, most BHs in merging BHBs have masses ≲ 40 M⊙. We find merging BHBs with mass ratios in the 0.1-1.0 range, even if mass ratios >0.6 are more likely. We predict that systems like GW150914, GW170814 and GW170104 can form only from progenitors with metallicity Z ≤ 0.006, Z ≤ 0.008 and Z ≤ 0.012, respectively. Most merging BHBs have gone through a common envelope phase, but up to ˜17 per cent merging BHBs at low metallicity did not undergo any common envelope phase. We find a much higher number of mergers from metal-poor progenitors than from metal-rich ones: the number of BHB mergers per unit mass is ˜10-4 M_{⊙}^{-1} at low metallicity (Z = 0.0002-0.002) and drops to ˜10-7 M_{⊙}^{-1} at high metallicity (Z ˜ 0.02).

  12. Metal oxide porous ceramic membranes with small pore sizes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, Marc A.; Xu, Qunyin

    1992-01-01

    A method is disclosed for the production of metal oxide ceramic membranes of very small pore size. The process is particularly useful in the creation of titanium and other transition metal oxide membranes. The method utilizes a sol-gel process in which the rate of particle formation is controlled by substituting a relatively large alcohol in the metal alkoxide and by limiting the available water. Stable, transparent metal oxide ceramic membranes are created having a narrow distribution of pore size, with the pore diameter being manipulable in the range of 5 to 40 Angstroms.

  13. Metal oxide porous ceramic membranes with small pore sizes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, Marc A.; Xu, Qunyin

    1991-01-01

    A method is disclosed for the production of metal oxide ceramic membranes of very small pore size. The process is particularly useful in the creation of titanium and other transition metal oxide membranes. The method utilizes a sol-gel process in which the rate of particle formation is controlled by substituting a relatively large alcohol in the metal alkoxide and by limiting the available water. Stable, transparent metal oxide ceramic membranes are created having a narrow distribution of pore size, with the pore diameter being manipulable in the range of 5 to 40 Angstroms.

  14. Practical performance and its efficiency of arsenic removal from groundwater using Fe-Mn binary oxide.

    PubMed

    Chang, Fangfang; Qu, Jiuhui; Liu, Ruiping; Zhao, Xu; Lei, Pengju

    2010-01-01

    A treatment unit packed by granular adsorbent of Fe-Mn binary oxide incorporated into diatomite (FMBO(1:1)-diatomite) was studied to remove arsenic from anaerobic groundwater without any pre-treatment or post-treatment. The raw anaerobic groundwater containing 35-45 microg/L of arsenic was collected from suburb of Beijing. Arsenic (III) constituted roughly 60%-80% of the total arsenic content. Approximately 7,000 bed volumes (ratio of effluent volume to adsorbent volume) treated water with arsenic concentration below 10 microg/L were produced in the operation period of four months. The regeneration of FMBO (1:1)-diatomite had been operated for 15 times. In the first stage, the regeneration process significantly improved the adsorption capacity of FMBO (1:1)-diatomite. With increased loading amount of Fe-Mn binary oxide, the adsorption capacity for arsenic decreased 20%-40%. Iron and manganese in anaerobic groundwater were oxidized and adsorptive filtrated by FMBO (1:1)-diatomite efficiently. The final concentrations of iron and manganese in effluents were nearly zero. The continued safe performance of the treatment units proved that adsorbent FMBO (1:1)-diatomite had high oxidation ability and exhibited strong adsorptive filtration.

  15. Role of metal oxides in chemical evolution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamaluddin

    2013-06-01

    Steps of chemical evolution have been designated as formation of biomonomers followed by their polymerization and then to modify in an organized structure leading to the formation of first living cell. Formation of small molecules like amino acids, organic bases, sugar etc. could have occurred in the reducing atmosphere of the primitive Earth. Polymerization of these small molecules could have required some catalyst. In addition to clay, role of metal ions and metal complexes as prebiotic catalyst in the synthesis and polymerization of biomonomers cannot be ruled out. Metal oxides are important constituents of Earth crust and that of other planets. These oxides might have adsorbed organic molecules and catalyzed the condensation processes, which may have led to the formation of first living cell. Different studies were performed in order to investigate the role of metal oxides (especially oxides of iron and manganese) in chemical evolution. Iron oxides (goethite, akaganeite and hematite) as well as manganese oxides (MnO, Mn2O3, Mn3O4 and MnO2) were synthesized and their characterization was done using IR, powder XRD, FE-SEM and TEM. Role of above oxides was studied in the adsorption of ribose nucleotides, formation of nucleobases from formamide and oligomerization of amino acids. Above oxides of iron and manganese were found to have good adsorption affinity towards ribose nucleotides, high catalytic activity in the formation of several nucleobases from formamide and oligomerization of glycine and alanine. Characterization of products was performed using UV, IR, HPLC and ESI-MS techniques. Presence of hematite-water system on Mars has been suggested to be a positive indicator in the chemical evolution on Mars.

  16. Method for producing nanostructured metal-oxides

    DOEpatents

    Tillotson, Thomas M.; Simpson, Randall L.; Hrubesh, Lawrence W.; Gash, Alexander

    2006-01-17

    A synthetic route for producing nanostructure metal-oxide-based materials using sol-gel processing. This procedure employs the use of stable and inexpensive hydrated-metal inorganic salts and environmentally friendly solvents such as water and ethanol. The synthesis involves the dissolution of the metal salt in a solvent followed by the addition of a proton scavenger, which induces gel formation in a timely manner. Both critical point (supercritical extraction) and atmospheric (low temperature evaporation) drying may be employed to produce monolithic aerogels and xerogels, respectively. Using this method synthesis of metal-oxide nanostructured materials have been carried out using inorganic salts, such as of Fe.sup.3+, Cr.sup.3+, Al.sup.3+, Ga.sup.3+, In.sup.3+, Hf.sup.4+, Sn.sup.4+, Zr.sup.4+, Nb.sup.5+, W.sup.6+, Pr.sup.3+, Er.sup.3+, Nd.sup.3+, Ce.sup.3+, U.sup.3+ and Y.sup.3+. The process is general and nanostructured metal-oxides from the following elements of the periodic table can be made: Groups 2 through 13, part of Group 14 (germanium, tin, lead), part of Group 15 (antimony, bismuth), part of Group 16 (polonium), and the lanthanides and actinides. The sol-gel processing allows for the addition of insoluble materials (e.g., metals or polymers) to the viscous sol, just before gelation, to produce a uniformly distributed nanocomposites upon gelation. As an example, energetic nanocomposites of Fe.sub.xO.sub.y gel with distributed Al metal are readily made. The compositions are stable, safe, and can be readily ignited to thermitic reaction.

  17. 40 CFR 721.5315 - Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.5315 Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance... nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide. (PMN P-02-90) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  18. 40 CFR 721.5315 - Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.5315 Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance... nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide. (PMN P-02-90) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  19. 40 CFR 721.5315 - Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.5315 Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance... nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide. (PMN P-02-90) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  20. 40 CFR 721.5315 - Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 32 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide... Specific Chemical Substances § 721.5315 Nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide (generic). (a) Chemical substance... nickel, cobalt mixed metal oxide. (PMN P-02-90) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  1. Morphology engineering of high performance binary oxide electrodes.

    PubMed

    Chen, Kunfeng; Sun, Congting; Xue, Dongfeng

    2015-01-14

    Advances in materials have preceded almost every major technological leap since the beginning of civilization. On the nanoscale and microscale, mastery over the morphology, size, and structure of a material enables control of its properties and enhancement of its usefulness for a given application, such as energy storage. In this review paper, our aim is to present a review of morphology engineering of high performance oxide electrode materials for electrochemical energy storage. We begin with the chemical bonding theory of single crystal growth to direct the growth of morphology-controllable materials. We then focus on the growth of various morphologies of binary oxides and their electrochemical performances for lithium ion batteries and supercapacitors. The morphology-performance relationships are elaborated by selecting examples in which there is already reasonable understanding for this relationship. Based on these comprehensive analyses, we proposed colloidal supercapacitor systems beyond morphology control on the basis of system- and ion-level design. We conclude this article with personal perspectives on the directions toward which future research in this field might take.

  2. Synthesis of Mesoporous Metal Oxides by Structure Replication: Thermal Analysis of Metal Nitrates in Porous Carbon Matrices

    PubMed Central

    Weinberger, Christian; Roggenbuck, Jan; Hanss, Jan; Tiemann, Michael

    2015-01-01

    A variety of metal nitrates were filled into the pores of an ordered mesoporous CMK-3 carbon matrix by solution-based impregnation. Thermal conversion of the metal nitrates into the respective metal oxides, and subsequent removal of the carbon matrix by thermal combustion, provides a versatile means to prepare mesoporous metal oxides (so-called nanocasting). This study aims to monitor the thermally induced processes by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), coupled with mass ion detection (MS). The highly dispersed metal nitrates in the pores of the carbon matrix tend to react to the respective metal oxides at lower temperature than reported in the literature for pure, i.e., carbon-free, metal nitrates. The subsequent thermal combustion of the CMK-3 carbon matrix also occurs at lower temperature, which is explained by a catalytic effect of the metal oxides present in the pores. This catalytic effect is particularly strong for oxides of redox active metals, such as transition group VII and VIII metals (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni), Cu, and Ce. PMID:28347073

  3. Water Oxidation Mechanisms of Metal Oxide Catalysts by Vibrational Spectroscopy of Transient Intermediates.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Miao; Frei, Heinz

    2017-05-05

    Water oxidation is an essential reaction of an artificial photosystem for solar fuel generation because it provides electrons needed to reduce carbon dioxide or protons to a fuel. Earth-abundant metal oxides are among the most attractive catalytic materials for this reaction because of their robustness and scalability, but their efficiency poses a challenge. Knowledge of catalytic surface intermediates gained by vibrational spectroscopy under reaction conditions plays a key role in uncovering kinetic bottlenecks and provides a basis for catalyst design improvements. Recent dynamic infrared and Raman studies reveal the molecular identity of transient surface intermediates of water oxidation on metal oxides. Combined with ultrafast infrared observations of how charges are delivered to active sites of the metal oxide catalyst and drive the multielectron reaction, spectroscopic advances are poised to play a key role in accelerating progress toward improved catalysts for artificial photosynthesis.

  4. Nanostructured Metal Oxides and Sulfides for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries.

    PubMed

    Liu, Xue; Huang, Jia-Qi; Zhang, Qiang; Mai, Liqiang

    2017-05-01

    Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries with high energy density and long cycle life are considered to be one of the most promising next-generation energy-storage systems beyond routine lithium-ion batteries. Various approaches have been proposed to break down technical barriers in Li-S battery systems. The use of nanostructured metal oxides and sulfides for high sulfur utilization and long life span of Li-S batteries is reviewed here. The relationships between the intrinsic properties of metal oxide/sulfide hosts and electrochemical performances of Li-S batteries are discussed. Nanostructured metal oxides/sulfides hosts used in solid sulfur cathodes, separators/interlayers, lithium-metal-anode protection, and lithium polysulfides batteries are discussed respectively. Prospects for the future developments of Li-S batteries with nanostructured metal oxides/sulfides are also discussed. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  5. Metal Oxide Gas Sensors: Sensitivity and Influencing Factors

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Chengxiang; Yin, Longwei; Zhang, Luyuan; Xiang, Dong; Gao, Rui

    2010-01-01

    Conductometric semiconducting metal oxide gas sensors have been widely used and investigated in the detection of gases. Investigations have indicated that the gas sensing process is strongly related to surface reactions, so one of the important parameters of gas sensors, the sensitivity of the metal oxide based materials, will change with the factors influencing the surface reactions, such as chemical components, surface-modification and microstructures of sensing layers, temperature and humidity. In this brief review, attention will be focused on changes of sensitivity of conductometric semiconducting metal oxide gas sensors due to the five factors mentioned above. PMID:22294916

  6. Binary fingerprints at fluctuation-enhanced sensing.

    PubMed

    Chang, Hung-Chih; Kish, Laszlo B; King, Maria D; Kwan, Chiman

    2010-01-01

    We have developed a simple way to generate binary patterns based on spectral slopes in different frequency ranges at fluctuation-enhanced sensing. Such patterns can be considered as binary "fingerprints" of odors. The method has experimentally been demonstrated with a commercial semiconducting metal oxide (Taguchi) sensor exposed to bacterial odors (Escherichia coli and Anthrax-surrogate Bacillus subtilis) and processing their stochastic signals. With a single Taguchi sensor, the situations of empty chamber, tryptic soy agar (TSA) medium, or TSA with bacteria could be distinguished with 100% reproducibility. The bacterium numbers were in the range of 2.5 × 10(4)-10(6). To illustrate the relevance for ultra-low power consumption, we show that this new type of signal processing and pattern recognition task can be implemented by a simple analog circuitry and a few logic gates with total power consumption in the microWatts range.

  7. Emerging Applications of Liquid Metals Featuring Surface Oxides

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Gallium and several of its alloys are liquid metals at or near room temperature. Gallium has low toxicity, essentially no vapor pressure, and a low viscosity. Despite these desirable properties, applications calling for liquid metal often use toxic mercury because gallium forms a thin oxide layer on its surface. The oxide interferes with electrochemical measurements, alters the physicochemical properties of the surface, and changes the fluid dynamic behavior of the metal in a way that has, until recently, been considered a nuisance. Here, we show that this solid oxide “skin” enables many new applications for liquid metals including soft electrodes and sensors, functional microcomponents for microfluidic devices, self-healing circuits, shape-reconfigurable conductors, and stretchable antennas, wires, and interconnects. PMID:25283244

  8. Single and binary adsorption of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions using sugarcane cellulose-based adsorbent.

    PubMed

    Wang, Futao; Pan, Yuanfeng; Cai, Pingxiong; Guo, Tianxiang; Xiao, Huining

    2017-10-01

    A high efficient and eco-friendly sugarcane cellulose-based adsorbent was prepared in an attempt to remove Pb 2+ , Cu 2+ and Zn 2+ from aqueous solutions. The effects of initial concentration of heavy metal ions and temperature on the adsorption capacity of the bioadsorbent were investigated. The adsorption isotherms showed that the adsorption of Pb 2+ , Cu 2+ and Zn 2+ followed the Langmuir model and the maximum adsorptions were as high as 558.9, 446.2 and 363.3mg·g -1 , respectively, in single component system. The binary component system was better described with the competitive Langmuir isotherm model. The three dimensional sorption surface of binary component system demonstrated that the presence of Pb 2+ decreased the sorption of Cu 2+ , but the adsorption amount of other metal ions was not affected. The result from SEM-EDAX revealed that the adsorption of metal ions on bioadsorbent was mainly driven by coordination, ion exchange and electrostatic association. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Electrical and Magnetic Properties of Binary Amorphous Transition Metal Alloys.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liou, Sy-Hwang

    The electrical, superconductive and magnetic properties of several binary transition metal amorphous and metastable crystalline alloys, Fe(,x)Ti(,100-x) (30 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 100), Fe(,x)Zr(,100-x) (20 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 93), Fe(,x)Hf(,100-x) (20 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 100), Fe(,x)Nb(,100 -x) (22 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 85), Ni(,x)Nb(,100-x) (20 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 80), Cu(,x)Nb(,100-x) (10 (LESSTHEQ) x (LESSTHEQ) 90) were studied over a wide composition range. Films were made using a magnetron sputtering system, and the structure of the films was investigated by energy dispersive x-ray diffraction. The composition region of each amorphous alloys system was determined and found in good agreement with a model proposed by Egami and Waseda. The magnetic properties and hyperfine interactions in the films were investigated using a conventional Mossbauer spectrometer and a ('57)Co in Rh matrix source. In all Fe-early transition metal binary alloys systems, Fe does not retain its moment in the low iron concentration region and the result is that the critical concentration for magnetic order (x(,c)) is much larger than anticipated from percolation considerations. A direct comparison between crystalline alloys and their amorphous counterparts of the same composition illustrate no clear correlation between crystalline and amorphous states. Pronounced discontinuities in the magnetic properties with variation in Fe content of all Fe-early transition metal alloys at phase boundaries separating amorphous and crystalline states have been observed. This is caused by the differences in the atomic arrangement and the electronic structure between crystalline and amorphous solids. The temperature dependence of resistivity, (rho)(T), of several binary amorphous alloys of Fe-TM (where TM = Ti, Zr, Hf, Nb etc.) has been studied from 2K to 300K. The Fe-poor (x < x(,c)) samples and the Fe-rich (x > x(,c)) samples have distinctive differences in (rho)(T) at low temperature

  10. Development of techniques for processing metal-metal oxide systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson, P. C.

    1976-01-01

    Techniques for producing model metal-metal oxide systems for the purpose of evaluating the results of processing such systems in the low-gravity environment afforded by a drop tower facility are described. Because of the lack of success in producing suitable materials samples and techniques for processing in the 3.5 seconds available, the program was discontinued.

  11. Metal/metal oxide doped oxide catalysts having high deNOx selectivity for lean NOx exhaust aftertreatment systems

    DOEpatents

    Park, Paul W.

    2004-03-16

    A lean NOx catalyst and method of preparing the same is disclosed. The lean NOx catalyst includes a ceramic substrate, an oxide support material, preferably .gamma.-alumina, deposited on the substrate and a metal promoter or dopant introduced into the oxide support material. The metal promoters or dopants are selected from the group consisting of indium, gallium, tin, silver, germanium, gold, nickel, cobalt, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, chromium, cerium, vanadium, oxides thereof, and combinations thereof. The .gamma.-alumina preferably has a pore volume of from about 0.5 to about 2.0 cc/g; a surface area of between about 80 to 350 m.sup.2 /g; an average pore size diameter of between about 3 to 30 nm; and an impurity level of less than or equal to 0.2 weight percent. In a preferred embodiment the .gamma.-alumina is prepared by a sol-gel method, with the metal doping of the .gamma.-alumina preferably accomplished using an incipient wetness impregnation technique.

  12. Plasmonically sensitized metal-oxide electron extraction layers for organic solar cells.

    PubMed

    Trost, S; Becker, T; Zilberberg, K; Behrendt, A; Polywka, A; Heiderhoff, R; Görrn, P; Riedl, T

    2015-01-16

    ZnO and TiOx are commonly used as electron extraction layers (EELs) in organic solar cells (OSCs). A general phenomenon of OSCs incorporating these metal-oxides is the requirement to illuminate the devices with UV light in order to improve device characteristics. This may cause severe problems if UV to VIS down-conversion is applied or if the UV spectral range (λ < 400 nm) is blocked to achieve an improved device lifetime. In this work, silver nanoparticles (AgNP) are used to plasmonically sensitize metal-oxide based EELs in the vicinity (1-20 nm) of the metal-oxide/organic interface. We evidence that plasmonically sensitized metal-oxide layers facilitate electron extraction and afford well-behaved highly efficient OSCs, even without the typical requirement of UV exposure. It is shown that in the plasmonically sensitized metal-oxides the illumination with visible light lowers the WF due to desorption of previously ionosorbed oxygen, in analogy to the process found in neat metal oxides upon UV exposure, only. As underlying mechanism the transfer of hot holes from the metal to the oxide upon illumination with hν < Eg is verified. The general applicability of this concept to most common metal-oxides (e.g. TiOx and ZnO) in combination with different photoactive organic materials is demonstrated.

  13. Defect Chemistry and Plasmon Physics of Colloidal Metal Oxide Nanocrystals.

    PubMed

    Lounis, Sebastien D; Runnerstrom, Evan L; Llordés, Anna; Milliron, Delia J

    2014-05-01

    Plasmonic nanocrystals of highly doped metal oxides have seen rapid development in the past decade and represent a class of materials with unique optoelectronic properties. In this Perspective, we discuss doping mechanisms in metal oxides and the accompanying physics of free carrier scattering, both of which have implications in determining the properties of localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) in these nanocrystals. The balance between activation and compensation of dopants limits the free carrier concentration of the most common metal oxides, placing a ceiling on the LSPR frequency. Furthermore, because of ionized impurity scattering of the oscillating plasma by dopant ions, scattering must be treated in a fundamentally different way in semiconductor metal oxide materials when compared with conventional metals. Though these effects are well-understood in bulk metal oxides, further study is needed to understand their manifestation in nanocrystals and corresponding impact on plasmonic properties, and to develop materials that surpass current limitations in free carrier concentration.

  14. Powerful Oxidizing Agents for the Oxidative Deintercalation of Lithium from Transition Metal Oxides

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-08-16

    22217 11 TITLE dnrcluae Sec’.r/ 2 ’als.rit,catC Powerful Oxidizing Agents for the Oxidative Deintercalation of Lithium from Transition Metal Oxides...0 d dlentity by block number) FIELD GROUP SUB GROUP Oxidizing Agents, Lithium Oxides I - Deintercalation 19 AbS*RA?, trne on-tsxes~e it necessary...anid enit’y oy 010ck .1Uf~oer. N02+ andMoF6 are shown to be powerful oxidizing agents for the deintercalation of lithium from Li~oO2 an 62Ct . The

  15. Synthesis of Lithium Metal Oxide Nanoparticles by Induction Thermal Plasmas.

    PubMed

    Tanaka, Manabu; Kageyama, Takuya; Sone, Hirotaka; Yoshida, Shuhei; Okamoto, Daisuke; Watanabe, Takayuki

    2016-04-06

    Lithium metal oxide nanoparticles were synthesized by induction thermal plasma. Four different systems-Li-Mn, Li-Cr, Li-Co, and Li-Ni-were compared to understand formation mechanism of Li-Me oxide nanoparticles in thermal plasma process. Analyses of X-ray diffractometry and electron microscopy showed that Li-Me oxide nanoparticles were successfully synthesized in Li-Mn, Li-Cr, and Li-Co systems. Spinel structured LiMn₂O₄ with truncated octahedral shape was formed. Layer structured LiCrO₂ or LiCoO₂ nanoparticles with polyhedral shapes were also synthesized in Li-Cr or Li-Co systems. By contrast, Li-Ni oxide nanoparticles were not synthesized in the Li-Ni system. Nucleation temperatures of each metal in the considered system were evaluated. The relationship between the nucleation temperature and melting and boiling points suggests that the melting points of metal oxides have a strong influence on the formation of lithium metal oxide nanoparticles. A lower melting temperature leads to a longer reaction time, resulting in a higher fraction of the lithium metal oxide nanoparticles in the prepared nanoparticles.

  16. Experimental bandstructure of the 5 d transition metal oxide IrO2

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kawasaki, Jason; Nie, Yuefeng; Uchida, Masaki; Schlom, Darrell; Shen, Kyle

    2015-03-01

    In the 5 d iridium oxides the close energy scales of spin-orbit coupling and electron-electron correlations lead to emergent quantum phenomena. Much research has focused on the ternary iridium oxides, e.g. the Ruddlesden-Poppers An + 1BnO3 n + 1 , which exhibit behavior from metal to antiferromagnetic insulator ground states, share common features with the cuprates, and may host a number of topological phases. The binary rutile IrO2 is another important 5 d oxide, which has technological importance for spintronics due to its large spin Hall effect and also applications in catalysis. IrO2 is expected to share similar physics as its perovskite-based cousins; however, due to bond-length distortions of the IrO6 octahedra in the rutile structure, the extent of similarities remains an open question. Here we use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to perform momentum-resolved measurements of the electronic structure of IrO2 . IrO2 thin films were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on TiO2 (110) substrates using an Ir e-beam source and distilled ozone. Films were subsequently transferred through ultrahigh vacuum to a connected ARPES system. Combined with first-principles calculations we explore the interplay of spin-orbit coupling and correlations in IrO2 .

  17. Multiscale model of metal alloy oxidation at grain boundaries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sushko, Maria L.; Alexandrov, Vitaly; Schreiber, Daniel K.; Rosso, Kevin M.; Bruemmer, Stephen M.

    2015-06-01

    High temperature intergranular oxidation and corrosion of metal alloys is one of the primary causes of materials degradation in nuclear systems. In order to gain insights into grain boundary oxidation processes, a mesoscale metal alloy oxidation model is established by combining quantum Density Functional Theory (DFT) and mesoscopic Poisson-Nernst-Planck/classical DFT with predictions focused on Ni alloyed with either Cr or Al. Analysis of species and fluxes at steady-state conditions indicates that the oxidation process involves vacancy-mediated transport of Ni and the minor alloying element to the oxidation front and the formation of stable metal oxides. The simulations further demonstrate that the mechanism of oxidation for Ni-5Cr and Ni-4Al is qualitatively different. Intergranular oxidation of Ni-5Cr involves the selective oxidation of the minor element and not matrix Ni, due to slower diffusion of Ni relative to Cr in the alloy and due to the significantly smaller energy gain upon the formation of nickel oxide compared to that of Cr2O3. This essentially one-component oxidation process results in continuous oxide formation and a monotonic Cr vacancy distribution ahead of the oxidation front, peaking at alloy/oxide interface. In contrast, Ni and Al are both oxidized in Ni-4Al forming a mixed spinel NiAl2O4. Different diffusivities of Ni and Al give rise to a complex elemental distribution in the vicinity of the oxidation front. Slower diffusing Ni accumulates in the oxide and metal within 3 nm of the interface, while Al penetrates deeper into the oxide phase. Ni and Al are both depleted from the region 3-10 nm ahead of the oxidation front creating voids. The oxide microstructure is also different. Cr2O3 has a plate-like structure with 1.2-1.7 nm wide pores running along the grain boundary, while NiAl2O4 has 1.5 nm wide pores in the direction parallel to the grain boundary and 0.6 nm pores in the perpendicular direction providing an additional pathway for oxygen

  18. Metal oxide electrocatalysts for alternative energy technologies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pacquette, Adele Lawren

    This dissertation focuses on the development of metal oxide electrocatalysts with varying applications for alternative energy technologies. Interest in utilizing clean, renewable and sustainable sources of energy for powering the planet in the future has received much attention. This will address the growing concern of the need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. The facile synthesis of metal oxides from earth abundant metals was explored in this work. The electrocatalysts can be incorporated into photoelectrochemical devices, fuel cells, and other energy storage devices. The first section addresses the utilization of semiconductors that can harness solar energy for water splitting to generate hydrogen. An oxysulfide was studied in order to combine the advantageous properties of the stability of metal oxides and the visible light absorbance of metal chalcogenides. Bi 2O2S was synthesized under facile hydrothermal conditions. The band gap of Bi2O2S was smaller than that of its oxide counterpart, Bi2O3. Light absorption by Bi 2O2S was extended to the visible region (>600 nm) in comparison to Bi2O3. The formation of a composite with In 2O3 was formed in order to create a UV irradiation protective coating of the Bi2O2S. The Bi2O2S/In 2O3 composite coupled with a dye CrTPP(Cl) and cocatalysts Pt and Co3O4 was utilized for water splitting under light irradiation to generate hydrogen and oxygen. The second section focuses on improving the stability and light absorption of semiconductors by changing the shapes and morphologies. One of the limitations of semiconductor materials is that recombination of electron-hole pairs occur within the bulk of the materials instead of migration to the surface. Three-dimensional shapes, such as nanorods, can prevent this recombination in comparison to spherical particles. Hierarchical structures, such as dendrites, cubes, and multipods, were synthesized under hydrothermal conditions, in order to reduce recombination and improve

  19. Method of adhesion between an oxide layer and a metal layer

    DOEpatents

    Jennison, Dwight R.; Bogicevic, Alexander; Kelber, Jeffry A.; Chambers, Scott A.

    2004-09-14

    A method of controlling the wetting characteristics and increasing the adhesion between a metal and an oxide layer. By introducing a negatively-charged species to the surface of an oxide layer, layer-by-layer growth of metal deposited onto the oxide surface is promoted, increasing the adhesion strength of the metal-oxide interface. The negatively-charged species can either be deposited onto the oxide surface or a compound can be deposited that dissociates on, or reacts with, the surface to form the negatively-charged species. The deposited metal adatoms can thereby bond laterally to the negatively-charged species as well as vertically to the oxide surface as well as react with the negatively charged species, be oxidized, and incorporated on or into the surface of the oxide.

  20. Amorphous semiconducting and conducting transparent metal oxide thin films and production thereof

    DOEpatents

    Perkins, John; Van Hest, Marinus Franciscus Antonius Maria; Ginley, David; Taylor, Matthew; Neuman, George A.; Luten, Henry A.; Forgette, Jeffrey A.; Anderson, John S.

    2010-07-13

    Metal oxide thin films and production thereof are disclosed. An exemplary method of producing a metal oxide thin film may comprise introducing at least two metallic elements and oxygen into a process chamber to form a metal oxide. The method may also comprise depositing the metal oxide on a substrate in the process chamber. The method may also comprise simultaneously controlling a ratio of the at least two metallic elements and a stoichiometry of the oxygen during deposition. Exemplary amorphous metal oxide thin films produced according to the methods herein may exhibit highly transparent properties, highly conductive properties, and/or other opto-electronic properties.

  1. Metal oxide resistive random access memory based synaptic devices for brain-inspired computing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gao, Bin; Kang, Jinfeng; Zhou, Zheng; Chen, Zhe; Huang, Peng; Liu, Lifeng; Liu, Xiaoyan

    2016-04-01

    The traditional Boolean computing paradigm based on the von Neumann architecture is facing great challenges for future information technology applications such as big data, the Internet of Things (IoT), and wearable devices, due to the limited processing capability issues such as binary data storage and computing, non-parallel data processing, and the buses requirement between memory units and logic units. The brain-inspired neuromorphic computing paradigm is believed to be one of the promising solutions for realizing more complex functions with a lower cost. To perform such brain-inspired computing with a low cost and low power consumption, novel devices for use as electronic synapses are needed. Metal oxide resistive random access memory (ReRAM) devices have emerged as the leading candidate for electronic synapses. This paper comprehensively addresses the recent work on the design and optimization of metal oxide ReRAM-based synaptic devices. A performance enhancement methodology and optimized operation scheme to achieve analog resistive switching and low-energy training behavior are provided. A three-dimensional vertical synapse network architecture is proposed for high-density integration and low-cost fabrication. The impacts of the ReRAM synaptic device features on the performances of neuromorphic systems are also discussed on the basis of a constructed neuromorphic visual system with a pattern recognition function. Possible solutions to achieve the high recognition accuracy and efficiency of neuromorphic systems are presented.

  2. Method for continuous synthesis of metal oxide powders

    DOEpatents

    Berry, David A.; Haynes, Daniel J.; Shekhawat, Dushyant; Smith, Mark W.

    2015-09-08

    A method for the rapid and continuous production of crystalline mixed-metal oxides from a precursor solution comprised of a polymerizing agent, chelated metal ions, and a solvent. The method discharges solution droplets of less than 500 .mu.m diameter using an atomizing or spray-type process into a reactor having multiple temperature zones. Rapid evaporation occurs in a first zone, followed by mixed-metal organic foam formation in a second zone, followed by amorphous and partially crystalline oxide precursor formation in a third zone, followed by formation of the substantially crystalline mixed-metal oxide in a fourth zone. The method operates in a continuous rather than batch manner and the use of small droplets as the starting material for the temperature-based process allows relatively high temperature processing. In a particular embodiment, the first zone operates at 100-300.degree. C., the second zone operates at 300-700.degree. C., and the third operates at 700-1000.degree. C., and fourth zone operates at at least 700.degree. C. The resulting crystalline mixed-metal oxides display a high degree of crystallinity and sphericity with typical diameters on the order of 50 .mu.m or less.

  3. Field-assisted nanopatterning of metals, metal oxides and metal salts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Jun-Fu; Miller, Glen P.

    2009-02-01

    The tip-based nanofabrication method called field-assisted nanopatterning or FAN has now been extended to the transfer of metals, metal oxides and metal salts onto various receiving substrates including highly ordered pyrolytic graphite, passivated gold and indium-tin oxide. Standard atomic force microscope tips were first dip-coated using suspensions of inorganic compounds in solvent. The films prepared in this manner were non-uniform and contained inorganic nanoparticles. Tip-based nanopatterning on chosen substrates was conducted under high electric field conditions. The same tip was used for both nanofabrication and imaging. Arbitrary patterns were formed with dimensions that ranged from tens of microns to sub-20 nm and were controlled by tuning the tip bias during fabrication. Most tip-based nanopatterning techniques are limited in terms of the type of species that can be deposited and the type of substrates onto which the deposition occurs. With the successful deposition of inorganic species reported here, FAN is demonstrated to be a truly versatile tip-based nanofabrication technique that is useful for the deposition of a wide variety of both organic and inorganic species including small molecules, large molecules and polymers.

  4. Mesoporous carbon incorporated metal oxide nanomaterials as supercapacitor electrodes.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Hao; Ma, Jan; Li, Chunzhong

    2012-08-08

    Supercapacitors have attracted huge attention in recent years as they have the potential to satisfy the demand of both huge energy and power density in many advanced technologies. However, poor conductivity and cycling stability remains to be the major challenge for its widespread application. Various strategies have been developed for meeting the ever-increasing energy and power demands in supercapacitors. This Research News article aims to review recent progress in the development of mesoporous carbon incorporated metal oxide nanomaterials, especially metal oxide nanoparticles confined in ordered mesoporous carbon and 1D metal oxides coated with a layer of mesoporous carbon for high-performance supercapacitor applications. In addition, a recent trend in supercapacitor development - hierarchical porous graphitic carbons (HPGC) combining macroporous cores, mesoporous walls, and micropores as an excellent support for metal oxides - is also discussed.

  5. Bioaccessibility of micron-sized powder particles of molybdenum metal, iron metal, molybdenum oxides and ferromolybdenum--Importance of surface oxides.

    PubMed

    Mörsdorf, Alexander; Odnevall Wallinder, Inger; Hedberg, Yolanda

    2015-08-01

    The European chemical framework REACH requires that hazards and risks posed by chemicals, including alloys and metals, that are manufactured, imported or used in different products (substances or articles) are identified and proven safe for humans and the environment. Metals and alloys need hence to be investigated on their extent of released metals (bioaccessibility) in biologically relevant environments. Read-across from available studies may be used for similar materials. This study investigates the release of molybdenum and iron from powder particles of molybdenum metal (Mo), a ferromolybdenum alloy (FeMo), an iron metal powder (Fe), MoO2, and MoO3 in different synthetic body fluids of pH ranging from 1.5 to 7.4 and of different composition. Spectroscopic tools and cyclic voltammetry have been employed to characterize surface oxides, microscopy, light scattering and nitrogen absorption for particle characterization, and atomic absorption spectroscopy to quantify released amounts of metals. The release of molybdenum from the Mo powder generally increased with pH and was influenced by the fluid composition. The mixed iron and molybdenum surface oxide of the FeMo powder acted as a barrier both at acidic and weakly alkaline conditions. These findings underline the importance of the surface oxide characteristics for the bioaccessibility of metal alloys. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Spin-on metal oxide materials with high etch selectivity and wet strippability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Huirong; Mullen, Salem; Wolfer, Elizabeth; McKenzie, Douglas; Rahman, Dalil; Cho, JoonYeon; Padmanaban, Munirathna; Petermann, Claire; Hong, SungEun; Her, YoungJun

    2016-03-01

    Metal oxide or metal nitride films are used as hard mask materials in semiconductor industry for patterning purposes due to their excellent etch resistances against the plasma etches. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) or atomic layer deposition (ALD) techniques are usually used to deposit the metal containing materials on substrates or underlying films, which uses specialized equipment and can lead to high cost-of-ownership and low throughput. We have reported novel spin-on coatings that provide simple and cost effective method to generate metal oxide films possessing good etch selectivity and can be removed by chemical agents. In this paper, new spin-on Al oxide and Zr oxide hard mask formulations are reported. The new metal oxide formulations provide higher metal content compared to previously reported material of specific metal oxides under similar processing conditions. These metal oxide films demonstrate ultra-high etch selectivity and good pattern transfer capability. The cured films can be removed by various chemical agents such as developer, solvents or wet etchants/strippers commonly used in the fab environment. With high metal MHM material as an underlayer, the pattern transfer process is simplified by reducing the number of layers in the stack and the size of the nano structure is minimized by replacement of a thicker film ACL. Therefore, these novel AZ® spinon metal oxide hard mask materials can potentially be used to replace any CVD or ALD metal, metal oxide, metal nitride or spin-on silicon-containing hard mask films in 193 nm or EUV process.

  7. Metal oxide-encapsulated dye-sensitized photoanodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hupp, Joseph T.; Son, Ho-Jin

    2016-01-12

    Dye-sensitized semiconducting metal oxide films for photoanodes, photoanodes incorporating the films and DSCs incorporating the photoanodes are provided. Also provided are methods for making the dye sensitized semiconducting metal oxide films. The methods of making the films are based on the deposition of an encapsulating layer of a semiconducting metal oxide around the molecular anchoring groups of photosensitizing dye molecules adsorbed to a porous film of the semiconducting metal oxide. The encapsulating layer of semiconducting metal oxide is formed in such a way that it is not coated over the chromophores of the adsorbed dye molecules and, therefore, allows themore » dye molecules to remain electrochemically addressable.« less

  8. Anaerobic Nitrate-Dependent Metal Bio-Oxidation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weber, K.; Knox, T.; Achenbach, L. A.; Coates, J. D.

    2007-12-01

    Direct biological oxidation of reduced metals (Fe(II) and U(IV)) coupled to nitrate reduction at circumneutral pH under anaerobic conditions has been recognized in several environments as well as pure culture. Several phylogentically diverse mesophilic bacteria have been described as capable of anaerobic, nitrate-dependent Fe(II) oxidation (NFOx). Our recent identification of a freshwater mesophilic, lithoautotroph, Ferrutens nitratireducens strain 2002, capable of growth through NFOx presents an opportunity to further study metal bio- oxidation. Continuing physiological studies revealed that in addition to Fe(II) oxidation, strain 2002 is capable of oxidizing U(IV) (4 μM) in washed cell suspensions with nitrate serving as the electron acceptor. Pasteurized cultures exhibited abiotic oxidation of 2 μM U(IV). Under growth conditions, strain 2002 catalyzed the oxidation of 12 μM U(IV) within a two week period. Cultures amended with sodium azide, an electron transport inhibitor, demonstrated limited oxidation (7 μM) similar to pasteurized cultures, supporting the direct role of electron transport in U(IV) bio-oxidation. The oxidation of U(IV) coupled denitrification at circumneutral pH would yield enough energy to support anaerobic microbial growth (ΔG°'= -460.36 kJ/mole). It is currently unknown whether or not strain 2002 can couple this metabolism to growth. The growth of F. nitratireducens strain 2002 utilizing Fe(II) as the sole electron donor was previously demonstrated. The amount of U(IV) (~12 μM) that strain 2002 oxidized under similar autotrophic growth conditions yields 0.0019 kJ, enough energy for the generation of ATP (5.3 x 10-20 kJ ATP-1), but not enough energy for cell replication as calculated for nitrate-dependent Fe(II) oxidizing conditions (0.096 kJ) assuming a similar metabolism. In addition to F. nitratireducens strain 2002, a nitrate-dependent Fe(II) oxidizing bacterium isolated from U contaminated groundwater, Diaphorobacter sp. strain

  9. Plasmonically sensitized metal-oxide electron extraction layers for organic solar cells

    PubMed Central

    Trost, S.; Becker, T.; Zilberberg, K.; Behrendt, A.; Polywka, A.; Heiderhoff, R.; Görrn, P.; Riedl, T.

    2015-01-01

    ZnO and TiOx are commonly used as electron extraction layers (EELs) in organic solar cells (OSCs). A general phenomenon of OSCs incorporating these metal-oxides is the requirement to illuminate the devices with UV light in order to improve device characteristics. This may cause severe problems if UV to VIS down-conversion is applied or if the UV spectral range (λ < 400 nm) is blocked to achieve an improved device lifetime. In this work, silver nanoparticles (AgNP) are used to plasmonically sensitize metal-oxide based EELs in the vicinity (1–20 nm) of the metal-oxide/organic interface. We evidence that plasmonically sensitized metal-oxide layers facilitate electron extraction and afford well-behaved highly efficient OSCs, even without the typical requirement of UV exposure. It is shown that in the plasmonically sensitized metal-oxides the illumination with visible light lowers the WF due to desorption of previously ionosorbed oxygen, in analogy to the process found in neat metal oxides upon UV exposure, only. As underlying mechanism the transfer of hot holes from the metal to the oxide upon illumination with hν < Eg is verified. The general applicability of this concept to most common metal-oxides (e.g. TiOx and ZnO) in combination with different photoactive organic materials is demonstrated. PMID:25592174

  10. Metal-organic framework derived hollow polyhedron metal oxide posited graphene oxide for energy storage applications.

    PubMed

    Ramaraju, Bendi; Li, Cheng-Hung; Prakash, Sengodu; Chen, Chia-Chun

    2016-01-18

    A composite made from hollow polyhedron copper oxide and graphene oxide was synthesized by sintering a Cu-based metal-organic framework (Cu-MOF) embedded with exfoliated graphene oxide. As a proof-of-concept application, the obtained Cu(ox)-rGO materials were used in a lithium-ion battery and a sodium-ion battery as anode materials. Overall, the Cu(ox)-rGO composite delivers excellent electrochemical properties with stable cycling when compared to pure CuO-rGO and Cu-MOF.

  11. Recent progress in high performance and reliable n-type transition metal oxide-based thin film transistors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kwon, Jang Yeon; Kyeong Jeong, Jae

    2015-02-01

    This review gives an overview of the recent progress in vacuum-based n-type transition metal oxide (TMO) thin film transistors (TFTs). Several excellent review papers regarding metal oxide TFTs in terms of fundamental electron structure, device process and reliability have been published. In particular, the required field-effect mobility of TMO TFTs has been increasing rapidly to meet the demands of the ultra-high-resolution, large panel size and three dimensional visual effects as a megatrend of flat panel displays, such as liquid crystal displays, organic light emitting diodes and flexible displays. In this regard, the effects of the TMO composition on the performance of the resulting oxide TFTs has been reviewed, and classified into binary, ternary and quaternary composition systems. In addition, the new strategic approaches including zinc oxynitride materials, double channel structures, and composite structures have been proposed recently, and were not covered in detail in previous review papers. Special attention is given to the advanced device architecture of TMO TFTs, such as back-channel-etch and self-aligned coplanar structure, which is a key technology because of their advantages including low cost fabrication, high driving speed and unwanted visual artifact-free high quality imaging. The integration process and related issues, such as etching, post treatment, low ohmic contact and Cu interconnection, required for realizing these advanced architectures are also discussed.

  12. Method and apparatus for the production of metal oxide powder

    DOEpatents

    Harris, Michael T.; Scott, Timothy C.; Byers, Charles H.

    1993-01-01

    The present invention provides a method for preparing metal oxide powder. A first solution, which is substantially organic, is prepared. A second solution, which is an aqueous solution substantially immiscible in the first solution, is prepared and delivered as drops to the first solution. The drops of the second solution are atomized by a pulsed electric field forming micro-drops of the second solution. Reagents in the first solution diffuse into and react with reactants in the micro-drops of the second solution forming metal hydroxide or oxalate particles. The metal hydroxide or metal oxalate particles are then recovered and dried to produce the metal oxide powder. An apparatus for preparing a metal oxide powder is also disclosed.

  13. Method and apparatus for the production of metal oxide powder

    DOEpatents

    Harris, Michael T.; Scott, Timothy C.; Byers, Charles H.

    1992-01-01

    The present invention provides a method for preparing metal oxide powder. A first solution, which is substantially organic, is prepared. A second solution, which is an aqueous solution substantially immiscible in the first solution, is prepared and delivered as drops to the first solution. The drops of the second solution are atomized by a pulsed electric field forming micro-drops of the second solution. Reagents in the first solution diffuse into and react with reactants in the micro-drops of the second solution forming metal hydroxide or oxalate particles. The metal hydroxide or metal oxalate particles are then recovered and dried to produce the metal oxide powder. An apparatus for preparing a metal oxide powder is also disclosed.

  14. Cytotoxicity, permeability, and inflammation of metal oxide nanoparticles in human cardiac microvascular endothelial cells: cytotoxicity, permeability, and inflammation of metal oxide nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Sun, Jing; Wang, Shaochuang; Zhao, Dong; Hun, Fei Han; Weng, Lei; Liu, Hui

    2011-10-01

    Wide applications and extreme potential of metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) increase occupational and public exposure and may yield extraordinary hazards for human health. Exposure to NPs has a risk for dysfunction of the vascular endothelial cells. The objective of this study was to assess the cytotoxicity of six metal oxide NPs to human cardiac microvascular endothelial cells (HCMECs) in vitro. Metal oxide NPs used in this study included zinc oxide (ZnO), iron(III) oxide (Fe(2)O(3)), iron(II,III) oxide (Fe(3)O(4)), magnesium oxide (MgO), aluminum oxide (Al(2)O(3)), and copper(II) oxide (CuO). The cell viability, membrane leakage of lactate dehydrogenase, intracellular reactive oxygen species, permeability of plasma membrane, and expression of inflammatory markers vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1, macrophage cationic peptide-1, and interleukin-8 in HCMECs were assessed under controlled and exposed conditions (12-24 h and 0.001-100 μg/ml of exposure). The results indicated that Fe(2)O(3), Fe(3)O(4), and Al(2)O(3) NPs did not have significant effects on cytotoxicity, permeability, and inflammation response in HCMECs at any of the concentrations tested. ZnO, CuO, and MgO NPs produced the cytotoxicity at the concentration-dependent and time-dependent manner, and elicited the permeability and inflammation response in HCMECs. These results demonstrated that cytotoxicity, permeability, and inflammation in vascular endothelial cells following exposure to metal oxide nanoparticles depended on particle composition, concentration, and exposure time. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011

  15. Multiscale model of metal alloy oxidation at grain boundaries

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sushko, Maria L., E-mail: maria.sushko@pnnl.gov; Alexandrov, Vitaly; Schreiber, Daniel K.

    2015-06-07

    High temperature intergranular oxidation and corrosion of metal alloys is one of the primary causes of materials degradation in nuclear systems. In order to gain insights into grain boundary oxidation processes, a mesoscale metal alloy oxidation model is established by combining quantum Density Functional Theory (DFT) and mesoscopic Poisson-Nernst-Planck/classical DFT with predictions focused on Ni alloyed with either Cr or Al. Analysis of species and fluxes at steady-state conditions indicates that the oxidation process involves vacancy-mediated transport of Ni and the minor alloying element to the oxidation front and the formation of stable metal oxides. The simulations further demonstrate thatmore » the mechanism of oxidation for Ni-5Cr and Ni-4Al is qualitatively different. Intergranular oxidation of Ni-5Cr involves the selective oxidation of the minor element and not matrix Ni, due to slower diffusion of Ni relative to Cr in the alloy and due to the significantly smaller energy gain upon the formation of nickel oxide compared to that of Cr{sub 2}O{sub 3}. This essentially one-component oxidation process results in continuous oxide formation and a monotonic Cr vacancy distribution ahead of the oxidation front, peaking at alloy/oxide interface. In contrast, Ni and Al are both oxidized in Ni-4Al forming a mixed spinel NiAl{sub 2}O{sub 4}. Different diffusivities of Ni and Al give rise to a complex elemental distribution in the vicinity of the oxidation front. Slower diffusing Ni accumulates in the oxide and metal within 3 nm of the interface, while Al penetrates deeper into the oxide phase. Ni and Al are both depleted from the region 3–10 nm ahead of the oxidation front creating voids. The oxide microstructure is also different. Cr{sub 2}O{sub 3} has a plate-like structure with 1.2–1.7 nm wide pores running along the grain boundary, while NiAl{sub 2}O{sub 4} has 1.5 nm wide pores in the direction parallel to the grain boundary and 0.6 nm pores in the

  16. Growth and sacrificial oxidation of transition metal nanolayers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tsarfati, Tim; Zoethout, Erwin; van de Kruijs, Robbert; Bijkerk, Fred

    2009-04-01

    Growth and oxidation of Au, Pt, Pd, Rh, Cu, Ru, Ni and Co layers of 0.3-4.3 nm thickness on Mo have been investigated with ARPES and AFM. Co and Ni layers oxidize while the Mo remains metallic. For nobler metals, the on top O and oxidation state of subsurface Mo increase, suggesting sacrificial e - donation by Mo. Au and Cu, in spite of their significantly lower surface free energy, grow in islands on Mo and actually promote Mo oxidation. Applications of the sacrificial oxidation in nanometer thin layers exist in a range of nanoscopic devices, such as nano-electronics and protection of e.g. multilayer X-ray optics for astronomy, medicine and lithography.

  17. Process for Making a Noble Metal on Tin Oxide Catalyst

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, Patricia; Miller, Irvin; Upchurch, Billy

    2010-01-01

    To produce a noble metal-on-metal oxide catalyst on an inert, high-surface-area support material (that functions as a catalyst at approximately room temperature using chloride-free reagents), for use in a carbon dioxide laser, requires two steps: First, a commercially available, inert, high-surface-area support material (silica spheres) is coated with a thin layer of metal oxide, a monolayer equivalent. Very beneficial results have been obtained using nitric acid as an oxidizing agent because it leaves no residue. It is also helpful if the spheres are first deaerated by boiling in water to allow the entire surface to be coated. A metal, such as tin, is then dissolved in the oxidizing agent/support material mixture to yield, in the case of tin, metastannic acid. Although tin has proven especially beneficial for use in a closed-cycle CO2 laser, in general any metal with two valence states, such as most transition metals and antimony, may be used. The metastannic acid will be adsorbed onto the high-surface-area spheres, coating them. Any excess oxidizing agent is then evaporated, and the resulting metastannic acid-coated spheres are dried and calcined, whereby the metastannic acid becomes tin(IV) oxide. The second step is accomplished by preparing an aqueous mixture of the tin(IV) oxide-coated spheres, and a soluble, chloride-free salt of at least one catalyst metal. The catalyst metal may be selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium, ruthenium, gold, and rhodium, or other platinum group metals. Extremely beneficial results have been obtained using chloride-free salts of platinum, palladium, or a combination thereof, such as tetraammineplatinum (II) hydroxide ([Pt(NH3)4] (OH)2), or tetraammine palladium nitrate ([Pd(NH3)4](NO3)2).

  18. Metal sulfide initiators for metal oxide sorbent regeneration

    DOEpatents

    Turk, Brian S.; Gupta, Raghubir P.

    2001-01-01

    A process of regenerating a sulfided sorbent is provided. According to the process of the invention, a substantial portion of the energy necessary to initiate the regeneration reaction is provided by the combustion of a particulate metal sulfide additive. In using the particulate metal sulfide additive, the oxygen-containing gas used to regenerate the sulfided sorbent can be fed to the regeneration zone without heating or at a lower temperature than used in conventional processes wherein the regeneration reaction is initiated only by heating the oxygen-containing gas. The particulate metal sulfide additive is preferably an inexpensive mineral ore such as iron pyrite which does not adversely affect the regeneration or corresponding desulfurization reactions. The invention further includes a sorbent composition comprising the particulate metal sulfide additive in admixture with an active metal oxide sorbent capable of removing one or more sulfur compounds from a sulfur-containing gas stream.

  19. Metal sulfide initiators for metal oxide sorbent regeneration

    DOEpatents

    Turk, Brian S.; Gupta, Raghubir P.

    1999-01-01

    A process of regenerating a sulfided sorbent is provided. According to the process of the invention, a substantial portion of the energy necessary to initiate the regeneration reaction is provided by the combustion of a particulate metal sulfide additive. In using the particulate metal sulfide additive, the oxygen-containing gas used to regenerate the sulfided sorbent can be fed to the regeneration zone without heating or at a lower temperature than used in conventional processes wherein the regeneration reaction is initiated only by heating the oxygen-containing. The particulate metal sulfide additive is preferably an inexpensive mineral ore such as iron pyrite which does not adversely affect the regeneration or corresponding desulfurization reactions. The invention further includes a sorbent composition comprising the particulate metal sulfide additive in admixture with an active metal oxide sorbent capable of removing one or more sulfur compounds from a sulfur-containing gas stream.

  20. Metal sulfide initiators for metal oxide sorbent regeneration

    DOEpatents

    Turk, B.S.; Gupta, R.P.

    1999-06-22

    A process of regenerating a sulfided sorbent is provided. According to the process of the invention, a substantial portion of the energy necessary to initiate the regeneration reaction is provided by the combustion of a particulate metal sulfide additive. In using the particulate metal sulfide additive, the oxygen-containing gas used to regenerate the sulfided sorbent can be fed to the regeneration zone without heating or at a lower temperature than used in conventional processes wherein the regeneration reaction is initiated only by heating the oxygen-containing gas. The particulate metal sulfide additive is preferably an inexpensive mineral ore such as iron pyrite which does not adversely affect the regeneration or corresponding desulfurization reactions. The invention further includes a sorbent composition comprising the particulate metal sulfide additive in admixture with an active metal oxide sorbent capable of removing one or more sulfur compounds from a sulfur-containing gas stream. 1 fig.

  1. Multilevel metallization method for fabricating a metal oxide semiconductor device

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hollis, B. R., Jr.; Feltner, W. R.; Bouldin, D. L.; Routh, D. E. (Inventor)

    1978-01-01

    An improved method is described of constructing a metal oxide semiconductor device having multiple layers of metal deposited by dc magnetron sputtering at low dc voltages and low substrate temperatures. The method provides multilevel interconnections and cross over between individual circuit elements in integrated circuits without significantly reducing the reliability or seriously affecting the yield.

  2. A Comprehensive Review of Glucose Biosensors Based on Nanostructured Metal-Oxides

    PubMed Central

    Rahman, Md. Mahbubur; Saleh Ahammad, A. J.; Jin, Joon-Hyung; Ahn, Sang Jung; Lee, Jae-Joon

    2010-01-01

    Nanotechnology has opened new and exhilarating opportunities for exploring glucose biosensing applications of the newly prepared nanostructured materials. Nanostructured metal-oxides have been extensively explored to develop biosensors with high sensitivity, fast response times, and stability for the determination of glucose by electrochemical oxidation. This article concentrates mainly on the development of different nanostructured metal-oxide [such as ZnO, Cu(I)/(II) oxides, MnO2, TiO2, CeO2, SiO2, ZrO2, and other metal-oxides] based glucose biosensors. Additionally, we devote our attention to the operating principles (i.e., potentiometric, amperometric, impedimetric and conductometric) of these nanostructured metal-oxide based glucose sensors. Finally, this review concludes with a personal prospective and some challenges of these nanoscaled sensors. PMID:22399911

  3. Dissolution of Fe(III) (hydr) oxides by metal-EDTA complexes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ngwack, Bernd; Sigg, Laura

    1997-03-01

    The dissolution of Fe(III)(hydr)oxides (goethite and hydrous ferric oxide) by metal-EDTA complexes occurs by ligand-promoted dissolution. The process is initiated by the adsorption of metal-EDTA complexes to the surface and is followed by the dissociation of the complex at the surface and the release of Fe(III)EDTA into solution. The dissolution rate is decreased to a great extent if EDTA is complexed by metals in comparison to the uncomplexed EDTA. The rate decreases in the order EDTA CaEDTA ≫ PbEDTA > ZnEDTA > CuEDTA > Co(II)EDTA > NiEDTA. Two different rate-limiting steps determine the dissolution process: (1) detachment of Fe(III) from the oxide-structure and (2) dissociation of the metal-EDTA complexes. In the case of goethite, step 1 is slower than step 2 and the dissolution rates by various metals are similar. In the case of hydrous ferric oxide, step 2 is rate-limiting and the effect of the complexed metal is very pronounced.

  4. Method and apparatus for the production of metal oxide powder

    DOEpatents

    Harris, M.T.; Scott, T.C.; Byers, C.H.

    1992-06-16

    The present invention provides a method for preparing metal oxide powder. A first solution, which is substantially organic, is prepared. A second solution, which is an aqueous solution substantially immiscible in the first solution, is prepared and delivered as drops to the first solution. The drops of the second solution are atomized by a pulsed electric field forming micro-drops of the second solution. Reagents in the first solution diffuse into and react with reactants in the micro-drops of the second solution forming metal hydroxide or oxalate particles. The metal hydroxide or metal oxalate particles are then recovered and dried to produce the metal oxide powder. An apparatus for preparing a metal oxide powder is also disclosed. 2 figs.

  5. Process for making a noble metal on tin oxide catalyst

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Upchurch, Billy T. (Inventor); Davis, Patricia (Inventor); Miller, Irvin M. (Inventor)

    1989-01-01

    A quantity of reagent grade tin metal or compound, chloride-free, and high-surface-area silica spheres are placed in deionized water, followed by deaerating the mixture by boiling and adding an oxidizing agent, such as nitric acid. The nitric acid oxidizes the tin to metastannic acid which coats the spheres because the acid is absorbed on the substrate. The metastannic acid becomes tin oxide upon drying and calcining. The tin-oxide coated silica spheres are then placed in water and boiled. A chloride-free precious metal compound in aqueous solution is then added to the mixture containing the spheres, and the precious metal compound is reduced to a precious metal by use of a suitable reducing agent such as formic acid. Very beneficial results were obtained using the precious metal compound tetraammine platinum(II) hydroxide.

  6. Mesoporous metal oxide microsphere electrode compositions and their methods of making

    DOEpatents

    Paranthaman, Mariappan Parans; Liu, Hansan; Brown, Gilbert M.; Sun, Xiao-Guang; Bi, Zhonghe

    2016-12-06

    Compositions and methods of making are provided for mesoporous metal oxide microspheres electrodes. The mesoporous metal oxide microsphere compositions comprise (a) microspheres with an average diameter between 200 nanometers (nm) and 10 micrometers (.mu.m); (b) mesopores on the surface and interior of the microspheres, wherein the mesopores have an average diameter between 1 nm and 50 nm and the microspheres have a surface area between 50 m.sup.2/g and 500 m.sup.2/g. The methods of making comprise forming composite powders. The methods may also comprise refluxing the composite powders in a basic solution to form an etched powder, washing the etched powder with an acid to form a hydrated metal oxide, and heat-treating the hydrated metal oxide to form mesoporous metal oxide microspheres.

  7. Nanostructured carbon-metal oxide composite electrodes for supercapacitors: a review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhi, Mingjia; Xiang, Chengcheng; Li, Jiangtian; Li, Ming; Wu, Nianqiang

    2012-12-01

    This paper presents a review of the research progress in the carbon-metal oxide composites for supercapacitor electrodes. In the past decade, various carbon-metal oxide composite electrodes have been developed by integrating metal oxides into different carbon nanostructures including zero-dimensional carbon nanoparticles, one-dimensional nanostructures (carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers), two-dimensional nanosheets (graphene and reduced graphene oxides) as well as three-dimensional porous carbon nano-architectures. This paper has described the constituent, the structure and the properties of the carbon-metal oxide composites. An emphasis is placed on the synergistic effects of the composite on the performance of supercapacitors in terms of specific capacitance, energy density, power density, rate capability and cyclic stability. This paper has also discussed the physico-chemical processes such as charge transport, ion diffusion and redox reactions involved in supercapacitors.

  8. Nanostructured carbon-metal oxide composite electrodes for supercapacitors: a review.

    PubMed

    Zhi, Mingjia; Xiang, Chengcheng; Li, Jiangtian; Li, Ming; Wu, Nianqiang

    2013-01-07

    This paper presents a review of the research progress in the carbon-metal oxide composites for supercapacitor electrodes. In the past decade, various carbon-metal oxide composite electrodes have been developed by integrating metal oxides into different carbon nanostructures including zero-dimensional carbon nanoparticles, one-dimensional nanostructures (carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers), two-dimensional nanosheets (graphene and reduced graphene oxides) as well as three-dimensional porous carbon nano-architectures. This paper has described the constituent, the structure and the properties of the carbon-metal oxide composites. An emphasis is placed on the synergistic effects of the composite on the performance of supercapacitors in terms of specific capacitance, energy density, power density, rate capability and cyclic stability. This paper has also discussed the physico-chemical processes such as charge transport, ion diffusion and redox reactions involved in supercapacitors.

  9. Method of physical vapor deposition of metal oxides on semiconductors

    DOEpatents

    Norton, David P.

    2001-01-01

    A process for growing a metal oxide thin film upon a semiconductor surface with a physical vapor deposition technique in a high-vacuum environment and a structure formed with the process involves the steps of heating the semiconductor surface and introducing hydrogen gas into the high-vacuum environment to develop conditions at the semiconductor surface which are favorable for growing the desired metal oxide upon the semiconductor surface yet is unfavorable for the formation of any native oxides upon the semiconductor. More specifically, the temperature of the semiconductor surface and the ratio of hydrogen partial pressure to water pressure within the vacuum environment are high enough to render the formation of native oxides on the semiconductor surface thermodynamically unstable yet are not so high that the formation of the desired metal oxide on the semiconductor surface is thermodynamically unstable. Having established these conditions, constituent atoms of the metal oxide to be deposited upon the semiconductor surface are directed toward the surface of the semiconductor by a physical vapor deposition technique so that the atoms come to rest upon the semiconductor surface as a thin film of metal oxide with no native oxide at the semiconductor surface/thin film interface. An example of a structure formed by this method includes an epitaxial thin film of (001)-oriented CeO.sub.2 overlying a substrate of (001) Ge.

  10. First Principles Calculations of Transition Metal Binary Alloys: Phase Stability and Surface Effects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aspera, Susan Meñez; Arevalo, Ryan Lacdao; Shimizu, Koji; Kishida, Ryo; Kojima, Kazuki; Linh, Nguyen Hoang; Nakanishi, Hiroshi; Kasai, Hideaki

    2017-06-01

    The phase stability and surface effects on binary transition metal nano-alloy systems were investigated using density functional theory-based first principles calculations. In this study, we evaluated the cohesive and alloying energies of six binary metal alloy bulk systems that sample each type of alloys according to miscibility, i.e., Au-Ag and Pd-Ag for the solid solution-type alloys (SS), Pd-Ir and Pd-Rh for the high-temperature solid solution-type alloys (HTSS), and Au-Ir and Ag-Rh for the phase-separation (PS)-type alloys. Our results and analysis show consistency with experimental observations on the type of materials in the bulk phase. Varying the lattice parameter was also shown to have an effect on the stability of the bulk mixed alloy system. It was observed, particularly for the PS- and HTSS-type materials, that mixing gains energy from the increasing lattice constant. We furthermore evaluated the surface effects, which is an important factor to consider for nanoparticle-sized alloys, through analysis of the (001) and (111) surface facets. We found that the stability of the surface depends on the optimization of atomic positions and segregation of atoms near/at the surface, particularly for the HTSS and the PS types of metal alloys. Furthermore, the increase in energy for mixing atoms at the interface of the atomic boundaries of PS- and HTSS-type materials is low enough to overcome by the gain in energy through entropy. These, therefore, are the main proponents for the possibility of mixing alloys near the surface.

  11. Reactivity of Metal Oxide Sorbents for Removal of H{sub 2}S

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kwon, K.C.; Crowe, E.R.

    1996-12-31

    Removal of hydrogen sulfide contained in hot coal gases produced from integrated gasification combined cycle power generation systems is required to protect downstream combustion turbines from being corroded with sulfur compounds. Removal of sulfur compounds from hot coal gas products is investigated by using various metal oxide sorbents and membrane separation methods. The main requirements of these metal oxide sorbents are durability and high sulfur loading capacity during absorption-regeneration cycles. In this research, durable metal oxide sorbents were formulated. Reactivity of the formulated metal oxide sorbents with simulated coal gas mixtures was examined to search for an ideal sorbent formulationmore » with a high-sulfur loading capacity suitable for removal of hydrogen sulfide from coal gases. The main objectives of this research are to formulate durable metal oxide sorbents with high-sulfur loading capacity by a physical mixing method, to investigate reaction kinetics on the removal of sulfur compounds from coal gases at high temperature and pressure, to study reaction kinetics on the regeneration of sulfided sorbents, to identify effects of hydrogen partial pressures and moisture on equilibrium/dynamic absorption of hydrogen sulfide into formulated metal oxide sorbents as well as initial reaction rates of H{sub 2}S with formulated metal oxide sorbents, and to evaluate intraparticular diffusivity of H{sub 2}S into formulated sorbents at various reaction conditions. The metal oxide sorbents such as TU-1, TU-19, TU-24, TU-25 and TU-28 were formulated with zinc oxide powder as an active sorbent ingredient, bentonite as a binding material and titanium oxide as a supporting metal oxide.« less

  12. A general melt-injection-decomposition route to oriented metal oxide nanowire arrays

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Han, Dongqiang; Zhang, Xinwei; Hua, Zhenghe; Yang, Shaoguang

    2016-12-01

    In this manuscript, a general melt-injection-decomposition (MID) route has been proposed and realized for the fabrication of oriented metal oxide nanowire arrays. Nitrate was used as the starting materials, which was injected into the nanopores of the anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane through the capillarity action in its liquid state. At higher temperature, the nitrate decomposed into corresponding metal oxide within the nanopores of the AAO membrane. Oriented metal oxide nanowire arrays were formed within the AAO membrane as a result of the confinement of the nanopores. Four kinds of metal oxide (CuO, Mn2O3, Co3O4 and Cr2O3) nanowire arrays are presented here as examples fabricated by this newly developed process. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy studies showed clear evidence of the formations of the oriented metal oxide nanowire arrays. Formation mechanism of the metal oxide nanowire arrays is discussed based on the Thermogravimetry and Differential Thermal Analysis measurement results.

  13. Metal/silicon Interfaces and Their Oxidation Behavior - Photoemission Spectroscopy Analysis.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yeh, Jyh-Jye

    Synchrotron radiation photoemission spectroscopy was used to study Ni/Si and Au/Si interface properties on the atomic scale at room temperature, after high temperature annealing and after oxygen exposures. Room temperature studies of metal/Si interfaces provide background for an understanding of the interface structure after elevated temperature annealing. Oxidation studies of Si surfaces covered with metal overlayers yield insight about the effect of metal atoms in the Si oxidation mechanisms and are useful in the identification of subtle differences in bonding relations between atoms at the metal/Si interfaces. Core level and valence band spectra with variable surface sensitivities were used to study the interactions between metal, Si, and oxygen for metal coverages and oxide thickness in the monolayer region. Interface morphology at the initial stage of metal/Si interface formation and after oxidation was modeled on the basis of the evolutions of metal and Si signals at different probing depths in the photoemission experiment. Both Ni/Si and Au/Si interfaces formed at room temperature have a diffusive region at the interface. This is composed of a layer of metal-Si alloy, formed by Si outdiffusion into the metal overlayer, above a layer of interstitial metal atoms in the Si substrate. Different atomic structures of these two regions at Ni/Si interface can account for the two different growth orientations of epitaxial Ni disilicides on the Si(111) surface after thermal annealing. Annealing the Au/Si interface at high temperature depletes all the Au atoms except for one monolayer of Au on the Si(111) surface. These phenomena are attributed to differences in the metal-Si chemical bonding relations associated with specific atomic structures. After oxygen exposures, both the Ni disilicide surface and Au covered Si surfaces (with different coverages and surface orderings) show silicon in higher oxidation states, in comparison to oxidized silicon on a clean surface

  14. Ultrasmall PdmMn1-mOx binary alloyed nanoparticles on graphene catalysts for ethanol oxidation in alkaline media

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ahmed, Mohammad Shamsuddin; Park, Dongchul; Jeon, Seungwon

    2016-03-01

    A rare combination of graphene (G)-supported palladium and manganese in mixed-oxides binary alloyed catalysts (BACs) have been synthesized with the addition of Pd and Mn metals in various ratios (G/PdmMn1-mOx) through a facile wet-chemical method and employed as an efficient anode catalyst for ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) in alkaline fuel cells. The as prepared G/PdmMn1-mOx BACs have been characterized by several instrumental techniques; the transmission electron microscopy images show that the ultrafine alloyed nanoparticles (NPs) are excellently monodispersed onto the G. The Pd and Mn in G/PdmMn1-mOx BACs have been alloyed homogeneously, and Mn presents in mixed-oxidized form that resulted by X-ray diffraction. The electrochemical performances, kinetics and stability of these catalysts toward EOR have been evaluated using cyclic voltammetry in 1 M KOH electrolyte. Among all G/PdmMn1-mOx BACs, the G/Pd0.5Mn0.5Ox catalyst has shown much superior mass activity and incredible stability than that of pure Pd catalysts (G/Pd1Mn0Ox, Pd/C and Pt/C). The well dispersion, ultrafine size of NPs and higher degree of alloying are the key factor for enhanced and stable EOR electrocatalysis on G/Pd0.5Mn0.5Ox.

  15. Displacement method and apparatus for reducing passivated metal powders and metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Morrell,; Jonathan S. , Ripley; Edward, B [Knoxville, TN

    2009-05-05

    A method of reducing target metal oxides and passivated metals to their metallic state. A reduction reaction is used, often combined with a flux agent to enhance separation of the reaction products. Thermal energy in the form of conventional furnace, infrared, or microwave heating may be applied in combination with the reduction reaction.

  16. Metal-Organic-Framework-Derived Yolk-Shell-Structured Cobalt-Based Bimetallic Oxide Polyhedron with High Activity for Electrocatalytic Oxygen Evolution.

    PubMed

    Yu, Zhou; Bai, Yu; Liu, Yuxuan; Zhang, Shimin; Chen, Dandan; Zhang, Naiqing; Sun, Kening

    2017-09-20

    The development of inexpensive, efficient, and environmentally friendly catalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is of great significant for green energy utilization. Herein, binary metal oxides (M x Co 3-x O 4 , M = Zn, Ni, and Cu) with yolk-shell polyhedron (YSP) structure were fabricated by facile pyrolysis of bimetallic zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (MCo-ZIFs). Benefiting from the synergistic effects of metal ions and the unique yolk-shell structure, M x Co 3-x O 4 YSP displays good OER catalytic activity in alkaline media. Impressively, Zn x Co 3-x O 4 YSP shows a comparable overpotential of 337 mV at 10 mA cm -2 to commercial RuO 2 and exhibits superior long-term durability. The high activity and good stability reveals its promising application.

  17. Characterization, sorption, and exhaustion of metal oxide nanoparticles as metal adsorbents

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Engates, Karen Elizabeth

    Safe drinking water is paramount to human survival. Current treatments do not adequately remove all metals from solution, are expensive, and use many resources. Metal oxide nanoparticles are ideal sorbents for metals due to their smaller size and increased surface area in comparison to bulk media. With increasing demand for fresh drinking water and recent environmental catastrophes to show how fragile water supplies are, new approaches to water conservation incorporating new technologies like metal oxide nanoparticles should be considered as an alternative method for metal contaminant adsorbents from typical treatment methods. This research evaluated the potential of manufactured iron, anatase, and aluminum nanoparticles (Al2O3, TiO2, Fe2O3) to remove metal contaminants (Pb, Cd, Cu, Ni, Zn) in lab-controlled and natural waters in comparison to their bulk counterparts by focusing on pH, contaminant and adsorbent concentrations, particle size, and exhaustive capabilities. Microscopy techniques (SEM, BET, EDX) were used to characterize the adsorbents. Adsorption experiments were performed using 0.01, 0.1, or 0.5 g/L nanoparticles in pH 8 solution. When results were normalized by mass, nanoparticles adsorbed more than bulk particles but when surface area normalized the opposite was observed. Adsorption was pH-dependent and increased with time and solid concentration. Aluminum oxide was found to be the least acceptable adsorbent for the metals tested, while titanium dioxide anatase (TiO2) and hematite (alpha-Fe2O3) showed great ability to remove individual and multiple metals from pH 8 and natural waters. Intraparticle diffusion was likely part of the complex kinetic process for all metals using Fe2O3 but not TiO 2 nanoparticles within the first hour of adsorption. Adsorption kinetics for all metals tested were described by a modified first order rate equation used to consider the diminishing equilibrium metal concentrations with increasing metal oxides, showing faster

  18. Pulsed photonic fabrication of nanostructured metal oxide thin films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bourgeois, Briley B.; Luo, Sijun; Riggs, Brian C.; Adireddy, Shiva; Chrisey, Douglas B.

    2017-09-01

    Nanostructured metal oxide thin films with a large specific surface area are preferable for practical device applications in energy conversion and storage. Herein, we report instantaneous (milliseconds) photonic synthesis of three-dimensional (3-D) nanostructured metal oxide thin films through the pulsed photoinitiated pyrolysis of organometallic precursor films made by chemical solution deposition. High wall-plug efficiency-pulsed photonic irradiation (xenon flash lamp, pulse width of 1.93 ms, fluence of 7.7 J/cm2 and frequency of 1.2 Hz) is used for scalable photonic processing. The photothermal effect of subsequent pulses rapidly improves the crystalline quality of nanocrystalline metal oxide thin films in minutes. The following paper highlights pulsed photonic fabrication of 3-D nanostructured TiO2, Co3O4, and Fe2O3 thin films, exemplifying a promising new method for the low-cost and high-throughput manufacturing of nanostructured metal oxide thin films for energy applications.

  19. Efficient oxidation and sorption of arsenite using a novel titanium(IV)-manganese(IV) binary oxide sorbent.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Wei; Liu, Caihong; Zheng, Tong; Ma, Jun; Zhang, Gaosheng; Ren, Guohui; Wang, Lu; Liu, Yulei

    2018-04-19

    Owing to the high toxicity and mobility, the removal of arsenite (As(III)) is significantly more difficult than arsenate (As(V)), thus representing a major challenge in arsenite-contaminated water treatment. For efficient elimination of As(III), we successfully fabricated a novel Ti-Mn binary oxide via a simultaneous oxidation and coprecipitation process. The amorphous oxide was aggregated from nanosized particles with a high specific surface area of 349.5 m 2 /g. It could effectively oxidize As(III) to As(V) and had a high As(III) sorption capacity of 107.0 mg/g. As(III) sorption occurred rapidly and equilibrium was achieved within 24 h. The kinetic data was well fitted by the pseudo-second-order equation, indicating a chemical sorption process. The material was almost independent upon the presence of competitive ions. The As(III) removal by the sorbent is a combined process coupled oxidation with sorption, where the MnO 2 content is mainly responsible for oxidizing As(III) to As(V) and the formed As(V) is then adsorbed onto the surface of amorphous TiO 2 content, through replacing the surface hydroxyl group or the adsorbed As(III) and forming inner-sphere surface complexes. Furthermore, the arsenic-containing oxide could be effectively regenerated and reused. The bi-functional sorbent could be used as a potentially attractive sorbent for As(III) removal in drinking water treatment and environmental remediation. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  20. Mixed Metal Oxides of the Type CoxZn1-xFe2O4 as Photocatalysts for Malachite Green Degradation Under UV Light Irradiation.

    PubMed

    Tzvetkov, Martin; Milanova, Maria; Cherkezova-Zheleva, Zara; Spassova, Ivanka; Valcheva, Evgenia; Zaharieva, Joana; Ivan, Mitov

    2017-06-01

    A combination of thermal and mechanical (high energy ball milling) treatment was applied in an attempt to obtain polycrystalline mixed metal binary and ternary oxides of the type CoxZn1-xFe2O4 (x = 0; 0.25; 0.5; 0.75; 1). The synthetic procedure used successfully produced single-phased, homogeneous ZnFe2O4, CoFe2O4, and Co0.75Zn0.25Fe2O4, as well as mixed oxides, whose composition depended both on the duration of the high energy ball milling and the ratio Zn(II)/Co(II). The formation of spinel-like structures was proved by XRD, Mössbauer spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. For the characterization of the samples low-temperature N2 adsorption, UV/Vis spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy were applied. The energy band gap of the samples was calculated, suggesting they are promising photocatalysts. The decomposition of the Malachite Green in model water solutions under UV-light irradiation was successfully achieved in the presence of the samples as photocatalysts. The highest rate constant was obtained for the sample synthesized at longer milling time in combination with higher Zn(II)/Co(II) ratio. The photocatalytic activity of the ternary mixed oxides was compared with the pure hematite, α-Fe2O3, and the binary ZnFe2O4 and CoFe2O4 ferrites with spinel structure that were treated in the same way. A synergetic effect of α-Fe2O3 and the spinel-like structure on the photocatalytic properties of ternary mixed metal oxides was detected.

  1. Cryochemical method for forming spherical metal oxide particles from metal salt solutions

    DOEpatents

    Tinkle, M.C.

    1973-12-01

    A method is described of preparing small metal oxide spheres cryochemically utilizing metal salts (e.g., nitrates) that cannot readily be dried and calcined without loss of sphericity of the particles. Such metal salts are cryochemically formed into small spheres, partially or completely converted to an insoluble salt, and dried and calcined. (Official Gazette)

  2. Morphological Control of Metal Oxide-Doped Zinc Oxide and Application to Cosmetics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goto, Takehiro; Yin, Shu; Sato, Tsugio; Tanaka, Takumi

    2012-06-01

    Zinc oxide shows excellent transparency and ultraviolet radiation shielding ability, and is used for various cosmetics.1-3 However, it possesses high catalytic activity and lower dispersibility. Therefore, spherical particles of zinc oxide have been synthesized by soft solution reaction using zinc nitrate, ethylene glycol, sodium hydroxide and triethanolamine as starting materials. After dissolving these compounds in water, the solution was heated at 90°C for 1 h to form almost mono-dispersed spherical zinc oxide particles. The particle size changed depending on zinc ion concentration, ethylene glycol concentration and so on. Furthermore, with doping some metal ions, the phtocatalytic activity could be decreased. The obtained monodispersed metal ion-doped spherical zinc oxides showed excellent UV shielding ability and low photocatalytic activity. Therefore, they are expected to be used as cosmetics ingredients.

  3. Metal oxide nanostructures and their gas sensing properties: a review.

    PubMed

    Sun, Yu-Feng; Liu, Shao-Bo; Meng, Fan-Li; Liu, Jin-Yun; Jin, Zhen; Kong, Ling-Tao; Liu, Jin-Huai

    2012-01-01

    Metal oxide gas sensors are predominant solid-state gas detecting devices for domestic, commercial and industrial applications, which have many advantages such as low cost, easy production, and compact size. However, the performance of such sensors is significantly influenced by the morphology and structure of sensing materials, resulting in a great obstacle for gas sensors based on bulk materials or dense films to achieve highly-sensitive properties. Lots of metal oxide nanostructures have been developed to improve the gas sensing properties such as sensitivity, selectivity, response speed, and so on. Here, we provide a brief overview of metal oxide nanostructures and their gas sensing properties from the aspects of particle size, morphology and doping. When the particle size of metal oxide is close to or less than double thickness of the space-charge layer, the sensitivity of the sensor will increase remarkably, which would be called "small size effect", yet small size of metal oxide nanoparticles will be compactly sintered together during the film coating process which is disadvantage for gas diffusion in them. In view of those reasons, nanostructures with many kinds of shapes such as porous nanotubes, porous nanospheres and so on have been investigated, that not only possessed large surface area and relatively mass reactive sites, but also formed relatively loose film structures which is an advantage for gas diffusion. Besides, doping is also an effective method to decrease particle size and improve gas sensing properties. Therefore, the gas sensing properties of metal oxide nanostructures assembled by nanoparticles are reviewed in this article. The effect of doping is also summarized and finally the perspectives of metal oxide gas sensor are given.

  4. Metal Oxide Nanostructures and Their Gas Sensing Properties: A Review

    PubMed Central

    Sun, Yu-Feng; Liu, Shao-Bo; Meng, Fan-Li; Liu, Jin-Yun; Jin, Zhen; Kong, Ling-Tao; Liu, Jin-Huai

    2012-01-01

    Metal oxide gas sensors are predominant solid-state gas detecting devices for domestic, commercial and industrial applications, which have many advantages such as low cost, easy production, and compact size. However, the performance of such sensors is significantly influenced by the morphology and structure of sensing materials, resulting in a great obstacle for gas sensors based on bulk materials or dense films to achieve highly-sensitive properties. Lots of metal oxide nanostructures have been developed to improve the gas sensing properties such as sensitivity, selectivity, response speed, and so on. Here, we provide a brief overview of metal oxide nanostructures and their gas sensing properties from the aspects of particle size, morphology and doping. When the particle size of metal oxide is close to or less than double thickness of the space-charge layer, the sensitivity of the sensor will increase remarkably, which would be called “small size effect”, yet small size of metal oxide nanoparticles will be compactly sintered together during the film coating process which is disadvantage for gas diffusion in them. In view of those reasons, nanostructures with many kinds of shapes such as porous nanotubes, porous nanospheres and so on have been investigated, that not only possessed large surface area and relatively mass reactive sites, but also formed relatively loose film structures which is an advantage for gas diffusion. Besides, doping is also an effective method to decrease particle size and improve gas sensing properties. Therefore, the gas sensing properties of metal oxide nanostructures assembled by nanoparticles are reviewed in this article. The effect of doping is also summarized and finally the perspectives of metal oxide gas sensor are given. PMID:22736968

  5. Parameters Free Computational Characterization of Defects in Transition Metal Oxides with Diffusion Quantum Monte Carlo

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Santana, Juan A.; Krogel, Jaron T.; Kent, Paul R.; Reboredo, Fernando

    Materials based on transition metal oxides (TMO's) are among the most challenging systems for computational characterization. Reliable and practical computations are possible by directly solving the many-body problem for TMO's with quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) methods. These methods are very computationally intensive, but recent developments in algorithms and computational infrastructures have enabled their application to real materials. We will show our efforts on the application of the diffusion quantum Monte Carlo (DMC) method to study the formation of defects in binary and ternary TMO and heterostructures of TMO. We will also outline current limitations in hardware and algorithms. This work is supported by the Materials Sciences & Engineering Division of the Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

  6. Fluidized reduction of oxides on fine metal powders without sintering

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hayashi, T.

    1985-01-01

    In the process of reducing extremely fine metal particles (av. particle size or = 1000 angstroms) covered with an oxide layer, the metal particles are fluidized by a gas flow contg. H, heated, and reduced. The method uniformly and easily reduces surface oxide layers of the extremely fine metal particles without causing sintering. The metal particles are useful for magnetic recording materials, conductive paste, powder metallurgy materials, chem. reagents, and catalysts.

  7. Solid-State Diffusional Behaviors of Functional Metal Oxides at Atomic Scale.

    PubMed

    Chen, Jui-Yuan; Huang, Chun-Wei; Wu, Wen-Wei

    2018-02-01

    Metal/metal oxides have attracted extensive research interest because of their combination of functional properties and compatibility with industry. Diffusion and thermal reliability have become essential issues that require detailed study to develop atomic-scaled functional devices. In this work, the diffusional reaction behavior that transforms piezoelectric ZnO into magnetic Fe 3 O 4 is investigated at the atomic scale. The growth kinetics of metal oxides are systematically studied through macro- and microanalyses. The growth rates are evaluated by morphology changes, which determine whether the growth behavior was a diffusion- or reaction-controlled process. Furthermore, atom attachment on the kink step is observed at the atomic scale, which has important implications for the thermodynamics of functional metal oxides. Faster growth planes simultaneously decrease, which result in the predominance of low surface energy planes. These results directly reveal the atomic formation process of metal oxide via solid-state diffusion. In addition, the nanofabricated method provides a novel approach to investigate metal oxide evolution and sheds light on diffusional reaction behavior. More importantly, the results and phenomena of this study provide considerable inspiration to enhance the material stability and reliability of metal/oxide-based devices. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  8. Oxidation catalysts comprising metal exchanged hexaaluminate wherein the metal is Sr, Pd, La, and/or Mn

    DOEpatents

    Wickham, David [Boulder, CO; Cook, Ronald [Lakewood, CO

    2008-10-28

    The present invention provides metal-exchanged hexaaluminate catalysts that exhibit good catalytic activity and/or stability at high temperatures for extended periods with retention of activity as combustion catalysts, and more generally as oxidation catalysts, that make them eminently suitable for use in methane combustion, particularly for use in natural gas fired gas turbines. The hexaaluminate catalysts of this invention are of particular interest for methane combustion processes for minimization of the generation of undesired levels (less than about 10 ppm) of NOx species. Metal exchanged hexaaluminate oxidation catalysts are also useful for oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOC), particularly hydrocarbons. Metal exchanged hexaaluminate oxidation catalysts are further useful for partial oxidation, particularly at high temperatures, of reduced species, particularly hydrocarbons (alkanes and alkenes).

  9. Kinetic and catalytic analysis of mesoporous metal oxides on the oxidation of Rhodamine B

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xaba, Morena S.; Noh, Ji-Hyang; Mokgadi, Keabetswe; Meijboom, Reinout

    2018-05-01

    In this study, we demonstrate the synthesis and catalytic activity of different mesoporous transition metal oxides, silica (SiO2), copper oxide (CuO), chromium oxide (Cr2O3), iron oxide (Fe2O3) cobalt oxide (Co3O4), cerium oxide (CeO2) and nickel oxide (NiO), on the oxidation of a pollutant dye, Rhodamine B (RhB). These metal oxides were synthesized by inverse micelle formation method and characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), adsorption-desorption isotherms (BET) and H2-temperature programmed reduction (TPR). UV-vis spectrophotometry was used to monitor the time-resolved absorbance of RhB at λmax = 554 nm. Mesoporous copper oxide was calcined at different final heating temperatures of 250, 350, 450 and 550 °C, and each mesoporous copper oxide catalyst showed unique physical properties and catalytic behavior. Mesoporous CuO-550 with the smallest characteristic path length δ, proved to be the catalyst of choice for the oxidation of RhB in aqueous media. We observed that the oxidation of RhB in aqueous media is dependent on the crystallite size and characteristic path length of the mesoporous metal oxide. The Langmuir-Hinshelwood model was used to fit the experimental data and to prove that the reaction occurs on the surface of the mesoporous CuO. The thermodynamic parameters, EA, ΔH#, ΔS# and ΔG# were calculated and catalyst recycling and reusability were demonstrated.

  10. Electron microscopy study of gold nanoparticles deposited on transition metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Akita, Tomoki; Kohyama, Masanori; Haruta, Masatake

    2013-08-20

    Many researchers have investigated the catalytic performance of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) supported on metal oxides for various catalytic reactions of industrial importance. These studies have consistently shown that the catalytic activity and selectivity depend on the size of GNPs, the kind of metal oxide supports, and the gold/metal oxide interface structure. Although researchers have proposed several structural models for the catalytically active sites and have identified the specific electronic structures of GNPs induced by the quantum effect, recent experimental and theoretical studies indicate that the perimeter around GNPs in contact with the metal oxide supports acts as an active site in many reactions. Thus, it is of immense importance to investigate the detailed structures of the perimeters and the contact interfaces of gold/metal oxide systems by using electron microscopy at an atomic scale. This Account describes our investigation, at the atomic scale using electron microscopy, of GNPs deposited on metal oxides. In particular, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) are valuable tools to observe local atomic structures, as has been successfully demonstrated for various nanoparticles, surfaces, and material interfaces. TEM can be applied to real powder catalysts as received without making special specimens, in contrast to what is typically necessary to observe bulk materials. For precise structure analyses at an atomic scale, model catalysts prepared by using well-defined single-crystalline substrates are also adopted for TEM observations. Moreover, aberration-corrected TEM, which has high spatial resolution under 0.1 nm, is a promising tool to observe the interface structure between GNPs and metal oxide supports including oxygen atoms at the interfaces. The oxygen atoms in particular play an important role in the behavior of gold/metal oxide

  11. Clustered atom-replaced structure in single-crystal-like metal oxide

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Araki, Takeshi; Hayashi, Mariko; Ishii, Hirotaka; Yokoe, Daisaku; Yoshida, Ryuji; Kato, Takeharu; Nishijima, Gen; Matsumoto, Akiyoshi

    2018-06-01

    By means of metal organic deposition using trifluoroacetates (TFA-MOD), we replaced and localized two or more atoms in a single-crystalline structure having almost perfect orientation. Thus, we created a new functional structure, namely, clustered atom-replaced structure (CARS), having single-crystal-like metal oxide. We replaced metals in the oxide with Sm and Lu and localized them. Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy results, where the Sm signal increases with the Lu signal in the single-crystalline structure, confirm evidence of CARS. We also form other CARS with three additional metals, including Pr. The valence number of Pr might change from 3+ to approximately 4+, thereby reducing the Pr–Ba distance. We directly observed the structure by a high-angle annular dark-field image, which provided further evidence of CARS. The key to establishing CARS is an equilibrium chemical reaction and a combination of additional larger and smaller unit cells to matrix cells. We made a new functional metal oxide with CARS and expect to realize CARS in other metal oxide structures in the future by using the above-mentioned process.

  12. Multiscale model of metal alloy oxidation at grain boundaries

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sushko, Maria L.; Alexandrov, Vitali Y.; Schreiber, Daniel K.

    2015-06-07

    High temperature intergranular oxidation and corrosion of metal alloys is one of the primary causes of materials degradation in nuclear systems. In order to gain insights into grain boundary oxidation processes, a mesoscale metal alloy oxidation model at experimentally relevant length scales is established by combining quantum Density Functional Theory (DFT) and mesoscopic Poisson-Nernst-Planck/classical DFT with predictions focused on Ni alloyed with either Cr or Al. Analysis of species and fluxes at steady-state conditions indicates that the oxidation process involves vacancy-mediated transport of Ni and the minor alloying element to the oxidation front and the formation of stable metal oxides.more » The simulations further demonstrate that the mechanism of oxidation for Ni-5Cr and Ni-4Al is qualitatively different. Intergranular oxidation of Ni-5Cr involves the selective oxidation of the minor element and not matrix Ni, due to slower diffusion of Ni relative to Cr in the alloy and due to the significantly smaller energy gain upon the formation of nickel oxide compared to that of Cr2O3. This essentially one-component oxidation process results in continuous oxide formation and a monotonic Cr vacancy distribution ahead of the oxidation front, peaking at alloy/oxide interface. In contrast, Ni and Al are both oxidized in Ni-4Al forming a mixed spinel NiAl2O4. Different diffusivities of Ni and Al give rise to a complex elemental distribution in the vicinity of the oxidation front. Slower diffusing Ni accumulates in the oxide and metal within 3 nm of the interface, while Al penetrates deeper into the oxide phase. Ni and Al are both depleted from the region 3–10 nm ahead of the oxidation front creating voids. The oxide microstructure is also different. Cr2O3 has a plate-like structure with 1.2 - 1.7 nm wide pores running along the grain boundary, while NiAl2O4 has 1.5 nm wide pores in the direction parallel to the grain boundary and 0.6 nm pores in the perpendicular

  13. Development of metal oxide impregnated stilbite thick film ethanol sensor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mahabole, M. P.; Lakhane, M. A.; Choudhari, A. L.; Khairnar, R. S.

    2016-05-01

    This paper presents the study of the sensing efficiency of Titanium oxide/ Stilbite and Copper oxide /Stilbite composites towards detection of hazardous pollutants like ethanol. Stilbite based composites are prepared by physically mixing zeolite with metal oxides namely TiO2 and CuO with weight ratios of 25:75, 50:50 and 75:25. The resulting sensor materials are characterized by X-ray diffraction and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy techniques. Composite sensors are fabricated in the form of thick film by using screen printing technique. The effect of metal oxide concentration on various ethanol sensing parameters such as operating temperature, maximum uptake capacity and response/recovery time are investigated. The results indicate that metal oxide impregnated stilbite composites have great potential as low temperature ethanol sensor.

  14. Metal Oxide Nanomaterial QNAR Models: Available Structural Descriptors and Understanding of Toxicity Mechanisms

    PubMed Central

    Ying, Jiali; Zhang, Ting; Tang, Meng

    2015-01-01

    Metal oxide nanomaterials are widely used in various areas; however, the divergent published toxicology data makes it difficult to determine whether there is a risk associated with exposure to metal oxide nanomaterials. The application of quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR) modeling in metal oxide nanomaterials toxicity studies can reduce the need for time-consuming and resource-intensive nanotoxicity tests. The nanostructure and inorganic composition of metal oxide nanomaterials makes this approach different from classical QSAR study; this review lists and classifies some structural descriptors, such as size, cation charge, and band gap energy, in recent metal oxide nanomaterials quantitative nanostructure activity relationship (QNAR) studies and discusses the mechanism of metal oxide nanomaterials toxicity based on these descriptors and traditional nanotoxicity tests. PMID:28347085

  15. Elemental Metals or Oxides Distributed on a Carbon Substrate or Self-Supported and the Manufacturing Process Using Graphite Oxide as Template

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hung, Ching-Chen (Inventor)

    1999-01-01

    A process for providing elemental metals or metal oxides distributed on a carbon substrate or self-supported utilizing graphite oxide as a percursor. The graphite oxide is exposed to one or more metal chlorides to form an intermediary product comprising carbon, metal, chloride, and oxygen. This intermediary product can be further processed by direct exposure to carbonate solutions to form a second intermediary product comprising carbon, metal carbonate, and oxygen. Either intermediary product may be further processed: a) in air to produce metal oxide; b) in an inert environment to produce metal oxide on carbon substrate; c) in a reducing environment to produce elemental metal distributed on carbon substrate. The product generally takes the shape of the carbon precursor.

  16. Elemental Metals or Oxides Distributed on a Carbon Substrate or Self-Supported and the Manufacturing Process Using Graphite Oxide as Template

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hung, Ching-Cheh (Inventor)

    1999-01-01

    A process for providing elemental metals or metal oxides distributed on a carbon substrate or self-supported utilizing graphite oxide as a precursor. The graphite oxide is exposed to one or more metal chlorides to form an intermediary product comprising carbon, metal, chloride, and oxygen. This intermediary product can be further processed by direct exposure to carbonate-solutions to form a second intermediary product comprising carbon, metal carbonate, and oxygen. Either intermediary product may be further processed: a) in air to produce metal oxide; b) in an inert environment to produce metal oxide on carbon substrate; c) in a reducing environment to produce elemental metal distributed on carbon substrate. The product generally takes the shape of the carbon precursor.

  17. The Effect of Metal Oxide on Nanoparticles from Thermite Reactions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moore, Lewis Ryan

    2006-01-01

    The purpose of this research was to determine how metal oxide used in a thermite reaction can impact the production of nanoparticles. The results showed the presence of nanoparticles (less than 1 micron in diameter) of at least one type produced by each metal oxide. The typical particles were metallic spheres, which ranged from 300 nanometers in…

  18. 3D Architectured Graphene/Metal Oxide Hybrids for Gas Sensors: A Review

    PubMed Central

    Xia, Yi; Li, Ran; Chen, Ruosong; Wang, Jing; Xiang, Lan

    2018-01-01

    Graphene/metal oxide-based materials have been demonstrated as promising candidates for gas sensing applications due to the enhanced sensing performance and synergetic effects of the two components. Plenty of metal oxides such as SnO2, ZnO, WO3, etc. have been hybridized with graphene to improve the gas sensing properties. However, graphene/metal oxide nanohybrid- based gas sensors still have several limitations in practical application such as the insufficient sensitivity and response rate, and long recovery time in some cases. To achieve higher sensing performances of graphene/metal oxides nanocomposites, many recent efforts have been devoted to the controllable synthesis of 3D graphene/metal oxides architectures owing to their large surface area and well-organized structure for the enhanced gas adsorption/diffusion on sensing films. This review summarizes recent advances in the synthesis, assembly, and applications of 3D architectured graphene/metal oxide hybrids for gas sensing. PMID:29735951

  19. A liquid metal reaction environment for the room-temperature synthesis of atomically thin metal oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zavabeti, Ali; Ou, Jian Zhen; Carey, Benjamin J.; Syed, Nitu; Orrell-Trigg, Rebecca; Mayes, Edwin L. H.; Xu, Chenglong; Kavehei, Omid; O'Mullane, Anthony P.; Kaner, Richard B.; Kalantar-zadeh, Kourosh; Daeneke, Torben

    2017-10-01

    Two-dimensional (2D) oxides have a wide variety of applications in electronics and other technologies. However, many oxides are not easy to synthesize as 2D materials through conventional methods. We used nontoxic eutectic gallium-based alloys as a reaction solvent and co-alloyed desired metals into the melt. On the basis of thermodynamic considerations, we predicted the composition of the self-limiting interfacial oxide. We isolated the surface oxide as a 2D layer, either on substrates or in suspension. This enabled us to produce extremely thin subnanometer layers of HfO2, Al2O3, and Gd2O3. The liquid metal-based reaction route can be used to create 2D materials that were previously inaccessible with preexisting methods. The work introduces room-temperature liquid metals as a reaction environment for the synthesis of oxide nanomaterials with low dimensionality.

  20. Thermochemical analyses of the oxidative vaporization of metals and oxides by oxygen molecules and atoms

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kohl, F. J.; Leisz, D. M.; Fryburg, G. C.; Stearns, C. A.

    1977-01-01

    Equilibrium thermochemical analyses are employed to describe the vaporization processes of metals and metal oxides upon exposure to molecular and atomic oxygen. Specific analytic results for the chromium-, platinum-, aluminum-, and silicon-oxygen systems are presented. Maximum rates of oxidative vaporization predicted from the thermochemical considerations are compared with experimental results for chromium and platinum. The oxidative vaporization rates of chromium and platinum are considerably enhanced by oxygen atoms.

  1. Reactor process using metal oxide ceramic membranes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, Marc A.

    1994-01-01

    A reaction vessel for use in photoelectrochemical reactions includes as its reactive surface a metal oxide porous ceramic membrane of a catalytic metal such as titanium. The reaction vessel includes a light source and a counter electrode. A provision for applying an electrical bias between the membrane and the counter electrode permits the Fermi levels of potential reaction to be favored so that certain reactions may be favored in the vessel. The electrical biasing is also useful for the cleaning of the catalytic membrane. Also disclosed is a method regenerating a porous metal oxide ceramic membrane used in a photoelectrochemical catalytic process by periodically removing the reactants and regenerating the membrane using a variety of chemical, thermal, and electrical techniques.

  2. Reactor process using metal oxide ceramic membranes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, M.A.

    1994-05-03

    A reaction vessel for use in photoelectrochemical reactions includes as its reactive surface a metal oxide porous ceramic membrane of a catalytic metal such as titanium. The reaction vessel includes a light source and a counter electrode. A provision for applying an electrical bias between the membrane and the counter electrode permits the Fermi levels of potential reaction to be favored so that certain reactions may be favored in the vessel. The electrical biasing is also useful for the cleaning of the catalytic membrane. Also disclosed is a method regenerating a porous metal oxide ceramic membrane used in a photoelectrochemical catalytic process by periodically removing the reactants and regenerating the membrane using a variety of chemical, thermal, and electrical techniques. 2 figures.

  3. Metal-oxide-metal point contact junction detectors. [detection mechanism and mechanical stability

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Baird, J.; Havemann, R. H.; Fults, R. D.

    1973-01-01

    The detection mechanism(s) and design of a mechanically stable metal-oxide-metal point contact junction detector are considered. A prototype for a mechanically stable device has been constructed and tested. A technique has been developed which accurately predicts microwave video detector and heterodyne mixer SIM (semiconductor-insulator-metal) diode performance from low dc frequency volt-ampere curves. The difference in contact potential between the two metals and geometrically induced rectification constitute the detection mechanisms.

  4. A molecular cross-linking approach for hybrid metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Jung, Dahee; Saleh, Liban M A; Berkson, Zachariah J; El-Kady, Maher F; Hwang, Jee Youn; Mohamed, Nahla; Wixtrom, Alex I; Titarenko, Ekaterina; Shao, Yanwu; McCarthy, Kassandra; Guo, Jian; Martini, Ignacio B; Kraemer, Stephan; Wegener, Evan C; Saint-Cricq, Philippe; Ruehle, Bastian; Langeslay, Ryan R; Delferro, Massimiliano; Brosmer, Jonathan L; Hendon, Christopher H; Gallagher-Jones, Marcus; Rodriguez, Jose; Chapman, Karena W; Miller, Jeffrey T; Duan, Xiangfeng; Kaner, Richard B; Zink, Jeffrey I; Chmelka, Bradley F; Spokoyny, Alexander M

    2018-04-01

    There is significant interest in the development of methods to create hybrid materials that transform capabilities, in particular for Earth-abundant metal oxides, such as TiO 2 , to give improved or new properties relevant to a broad spectrum of applications. Here we introduce an approach we refer to as 'molecular cross-linking', whereby a hybrid molecular boron oxide material is formed from polyhedral boron-cluster precursors of the type [B 12 (OH) 12 ] 2- . This new approach is enabled by the inherent robustness of the boron-cluster molecular building block, which is compatible with the harsh thermal and oxidizing conditions that are necessary for the synthesis of many metal oxides. In this work, using a battery of experimental techniques and materials simulation, we show how this material can be interfaced successfully with TiO 2 and other metal oxides to give boron-rich hybrid materials with intriguing photophysical and electrochemical properties.

  5. A molecular cross-linking approach for hybrid metal oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jung, Dahee; Saleh, Liban M. A.; Berkson, Zachariah J.; El-Kady, Maher F.; Hwang, Jee Youn; Mohamed, Nahla; Wixtrom, Alex I.; Titarenko, Ekaterina; Shao, Yanwu; McCarthy, Kassandra; Guo, Jian; Martini, Ignacio B.; Kraemer, Stephan; Wegener, Evan C.; Saint-Cricq, Philippe; Ruehle, Bastian; Langeslay, Ryan R.; Delferro, Massimiliano; Brosmer, Jonathan L.; Hendon, Christopher H.; Gallagher-Jones, Marcus; Rodriguez, Jose; Chapman, Karena W.; Miller, Jeffrey T.; Duan, Xiangfeng; Kaner, Richard B.; Zink, Jeffrey I.; Chmelka, Bradley F.; Spokoyny, Alexander M.

    2018-03-01

    There is significant interest in the development of methods to create hybrid materials that transform capabilities, in particular for Earth-abundant metal oxides, such as TiO2, to give improved or new properties relevant to a broad spectrum of applications. Here we introduce an approach we refer to as `molecular cross-linking', whereby a hybrid molecular boron oxide material is formed from polyhedral boron-cluster precursors of the type [B12(OH)12]2-. This new approach is enabled by the inherent robustness of the boron-cluster molecular building block, which is compatible with the harsh thermal and oxidizing conditions that are necessary for the synthesis of many metal oxides. In this work, using a battery of experimental techniques and materials simulation, we show how this material can be interfaced successfully with TiO2 and other metal oxides to give boron-rich hybrid materials with intriguing photophysical and electrochemical properties.

  6. Structure of metal-oxide Ti-Ta-(Ti,Ta)xOy coatings during spark alloying and induction-thermal oxidation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Koshuro, V.; Fomin, A.; Fomina, M.; Rodionov, I.; Brzhozovskii, B.; Martynov, V.; Zakharevich, A.; Aman, A.; Oseev, A.; Majcherek, S.; Hirsch, S.

    2016-08-01

    The study focuses on combined spark alloying of titanium and titanium alloy surface and porous matrix structure oxidation. The metal-oxide coatings morphology is the result of melt drop transfer, heat treatment, and oxidation. The study establishes the influence of technological regimes of alloying and oxidation on morphological heterogeneity of metal- oxide system Ti-Ta-(Ti,Ta)xOy.

  7. CATALYTIC OXIDATION OF DIMETHYL SULFIDE WITH OZONE: EFFECT OF PROMOTER AND PHYSICO-CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF METAL OXIDE CATALYSTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    This study reports improved catalytic activities and stabilities for the oxidation of dimethyl sulfide (DMS), a major pollutant of pulp and paper mills. Ozone was used as an oxidant and Cu, Mo, V, Cr and Mn metal oxides, and mixed metal oxides support on y-alumina as catalysts ov...

  8. Are metallothioneins equally good biomarkers of metal and oxidative stress?

    PubMed

    Figueira, Etelvina; Branco, Diana; Antunes, Sara C; Gonçalves, Fernando; Freitas, Rosa

    2012-10-01

    Several researchers investigated the induction of metallothioneins (MTs) in the presence of metals, namely Cadmium (Cd). Fewer studies observed the induction of MTs due to oxidizing agents, and literature comparing the sensitivity of MTs to different stressors is even more scarce or even nonexistent. The role of MTs in metal and oxidative stress and thus their use as a stress biomarker, remains to be clearly elucidated. To better understand the role of MTs as a biomarker in Cerastoderma edule, a bivalve widely used as bioindicator, a laboratory assay was conducted aiming to assess the sensitivity of MTs to metal and oxidative stressors. For this purpose, Cd was used to induce metal stress, whereas hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), being an oxidizing compound, was used to impose oxidative stress. Results showed that induction of MTs occurred at very different levels in metal and oxidative stress. In the presence of the oxidizing agent (H2O2), MTs only increased significantly when the degree of oxidative stress was very high, and mortality rates were higher than 50 percent. On the contrary, C. edule survived to all Cd concentrations used and significant MTs increases, compared to the control, were observed in all Cd exposures. The present work also revealed that the number of ions and the metal bound to MTs varied with the exposure conditions. In the absence of disturbance, MTs bound most (60-70 percent) of the essential metals (Zn and Cu) in solution. In stressful situations, such as the exposure to Cd and H2O2, MTs did not bind to Cu and bound less to Zn. When organisms were exposed to Cd, the total number of ions bound per MT molecule did not change, compared to control. However the sort of ions bound per MT molecule differed; part of the Zn and all Cu ions where displaced by Cd ions. For organisms exposed to H2O2, each MT molecule bound less than half of the ions compared to control and Cd conditions, which indicates a partial oxidation of thiol groups in the cysteine

  9. Interaction of Metal Oxides with Biomolecules: Implication in Astrobiology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamaluddin; Iqubal, Md. Asif

    2014-08-01

    Steps of chemical evolution have been designated as formation of biomonomers followed by their polymerization and then to modify in an organized structure leading to the formation of first living cell. Polymerization of biomonomers could have required some catalyst. In addition to clay, role of metal ions and metal complexes as prebiotic catalyst in the synthesis and polymerization of biomonomers cannot be ruled out. Metal oxides are important constituents of Earth crust and that of other planets. These oxides might have adsorbed organic molecules and catalyzed the condensation processes, which may have led to the formation of first living cell. Different studies were performed in order to investigate the role of metal oxides (especially oxides of iron and manganese) in chemical evolution. Iron oxides (goethite, akaganeite and hematite) as well as manganese oxides (MnO, Mn2O3, Mn3O4 and MnO2) were synthesized and their characterization was done using IR, powder XRD, FE-SEM and TEM. Role of above oxides was studied in the adsorption of ribose nucleotides, formation of nucleobases from formamide and oligomerization of amino acids. Above oxides of iron and manganese were found to have good adsorption affinity towards ribose nucleotides, high catalytic activity in the formation of several nucleobases from formamide and oligomerization of glycine and alanine. Characterization of products was performed using UV, IR, HPLC and ESI-MS techniques. Presence of hematite-water system on Mars has been suggested to be a positive indicator in the chemical evolution on Mars.

  10. Area-Selective Atomic Layer Deposition of Metal Oxides on Noble Metals through Catalytic Oxygen Activation

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Area-selective atomic layer deposition (ALD) is envisioned to play a key role in next-generation semiconductor processing and can also provide new opportunities in the field of catalysis. In this work, we developed an approach for the area-selective deposition of metal oxides on noble metals. Using O2 gas as co-reactant, area-selective ALD has been achieved by relying on the catalytic dissociation of the oxygen molecules on the noble metal surface, while no deposition takes place on inert surfaces that do not dissociate oxygen (i.e., SiO2, Al2O3, Au). The process is demonstrated for selective deposition of iron oxide and nickel oxide on platinum and iridium substrates. Characterization by in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry, transmission electron microscopy, scanning Auger electron spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirms a very high degree of selectivity, with a constant ALD growth rate on the catalytic metal substrates and no deposition on inert substrates, even after 300 ALD cycles. We demonstrate the area-selective ALD approach on planar and patterned substrates and use it to prepare Pt/Fe2O3 core/shell nanoparticles. Finally, the approach is proposed to be extendable beyond the materials presented here, specifically to other metal oxide ALD processes for which the precursor requires a strong oxidizing agent for growth. PMID:29503508

  11. Apparatus enables accurate determination of alkali oxides in alkali metals

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dupraw, W. A.; Gahn, R. F.; Graab, J. W.; Maple, W. E.; Rosenblum, L.

    1966-01-01

    Evacuated apparatus determines the alkali oxide content of an alkali metal by separating the metal from the oxide by amalgamation with mercury. The apparatus prevents oxygen and moisture from inadvertently entering the system during the sampling and analytical procedure.

  12. Ultralow-power complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor inverters constructed on Schottky barrier modified nanowire metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistors.

    PubMed

    Ma, R M; Peng, R M; Wen, X N; Dai, L; Liu, C; Sun, T; Xu, W J; Qin, G G

    2010-10-01

    We show that the threshold voltages of both n- and p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistors (MOSFETs) can be lowered to close to zero by adding extra Schottky contacts on top of nanowires (NWs). Novel complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) inverters are constructed on these Schottky barrier modified n- and p-channel NW MOSFETs. Based on the high performances of the modified n- and p-channel MOSFETs, especially the low threshold voltages, the as-fabricated CMOS inverters have low operating voltage, high voltage gain, and ultra-low static power dissipation.

  13. Method of making metal oxide ceramic membranes with small pore sizes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, Marc A.; Xu, Qunyin

    1992-01-01

    A method for the production of metal oxide ceramic membranes is composed of very small pore size. The process is particularly useful in the creation of titanium and other transition metal oxide membranes. The method utilizes a sol-gel process in which the rate of particle formation is controlled by substituting a relatively large alcohol in the metal alkoxide and by limiting the available water. Stable, transparent metal oxide ceramic membranes are created having a narrow distribution of pore size, with the pore diameter being manipulable in the range of 5 to 40 Angstroms.

  14. Development of metal oxide impregnated stilbite thick film ethanol sensor

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mahabole, M. P., E-mail: kashinath.bogle@gmail.com; Lakhane, M. A.; Choudhari, A. L.

    This paper presents the study of the sensing efficiency of Titanium oxide/ Stilbite and Copper oxide /Stilbite composites towards detection of hazardous pollutants like ethanol. Stilbite based composites are prepared by physically mixing zeolite with metal oxides namely TiO{sub 2} and CuO with weight ratios of 25:75, 50:50 and 75:25. The resulting sensor materials are characterized by X-ray diffraction and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy techniques. Composite sensors are fabricated in the form of thick film by using screen printing technique. The effect of metal oxide concentration on various ethanol sensing parameters such as operating temperature, maximum uptake capacity and response/recoverymore » time are investigated. The results indicate that metal oxide impregnated stilbite composites have great potential as low temperature ethanol sensor.« less

  15. The friction and wear of metals and binary alloys in contact with an abrasive grit of single-crystal silicon carbide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Miyoshi, K.; Buckley, D. H.

    1979-01-01

    Sliding friction experiments were conducted with various metals and iron-base binary alloys (alloying elements Ti, Cr, Mn, Ni, Rh and W) in contact with single crystal silicon carbide riders. Results indicate that the friction force in the plowing of metal and the groove height (corresponding to the wear volume of the groove) decrease linearly as the shear strength of the bulk metal increases. The coefficient of friction and groove height generally decrease, and the contact pressure increases with an increase in solute content of binary alloys. There appears to be very good correlation of the solute to iron atomic ratio with the decreasing rate of change of coefficient of friction, the decreasing rate of change of groove height and the increasing rate of change of contact pressure with increasing solute content. These rates of change increase as the solute to iron atomic radius ratio increases or decreases from unity.

  16. New Perspectives on Oxidized Genome Damage and Repair Inhibition by Pro-Oxidant Metals in Neurological Diseases

    PubMed Central

    Mitra, Joy; Guerrero, Erika N.; Hegde, Pavana M.; Wang, Haibo; Boldogh, Istvan; Rao, Kosagi Sharaf; Mitra, Sankar; Hegde, Muralidhar L.

    2014-01-01

    The primary cause(s) of neuronal death in most cases of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, are still unknown. However, the association of certain etiological factors, e.g., oxidative stress, protein misfolding/aggregation, redox metal accumulation and various types of damage to the genome, to pathological changes in the affected brain region(s) have been consistently observed. While redox metal toxicity received major attention in the last decade, its potential as a therapeutic target is still at a cross-roads, mostly because of the lack of mechanistic understanding of metal dyshomeostasis in affected neurons. Furthermore, previous studies have established the role of metals in causing genome damage, both directly and via the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), but little was known about their impact on genome repair. Our recent studies demonstrated that excess levels of iron and copper observed in neurodegenerative disease-affected brain neurons could not only induce genome damage in neurons, but also affect their repair by oxidatively inhibiting NEIL DNA glycosylases, which initiate the repair of oxidized DNA bases. The inhibitory effect was reversed by a combination of metal chelators and reducing agents, which underscore the need for elucidating the molecular basis for the neuronal toxicity of metals in order to develop effective therapeutic approaches. In this review, we have focused on the oxidative genome damage repair pathway as a potential target for reducing pro-oxidant metal toxicity in neurological diseases. PMID:25036887

  17. OBSERVATIONS OF BINARY STARS WITH THE DIFFERENTIAL SPECKLE SURVEY INSTRUMENT. V. TOWARD AN EMPIRICAL METAL-POOR MASS–LUMINOSITY RELATION

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Horch, Elliott P.; Van Altena, William F.; Demarque, Pierre

    2015-05-15

    In an effort to better understand the details of the stellar structure and evolution of metal-poor stars, the Gemini North telescope was used on two occasions to take speckle imaging data of a sample of known spectroscopic binary stars and other nearby stars in order to search for and resolve close companions. The observations were obtained using the Differential Speckle Survey Instrument, which takes data in two filters simultaneously. The results presented here are of 90 observations of 23 systems in which one or more companions was detected, and six stars where no companion was detected to the limit ofmore » the camera capabilities at Gemini. In the case of the binary and multiple stars, these results are then further analyzed to make first orbit determinations in five cases, and orbit refinements in four other cases. The mass information is derived, and since the systems span a range in metallicity, a study is presented that compares our results with the expected trend in total mass as derived from the most recent Yale isochrones as a function of metal abundance. These data suggest that metal-poor main-sequence stars are less massive at a given color than their solar-metallicity analogues in a manner consistent with that predicted from the theory.« less

  18. Metal oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors for flexible electronics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petti, Luisa; Münzenrieder, Niko; Vogt, Christian; Faber, Hendrik; Büthe, Lars; Cantarella, Giuseppe; Bottacchi, Francesca; Anthopoulos, Thomas D.; Tröster, Gerhard

    2016-06-01

    The field of flexible electronics has rapidly expanded over the last decades, pioneering novel applications, such as wearable and textile integrated devices, seamless and embedded patch-like systems, soft electronic skins, as well as imperceptible and transient implants. The possibility to revolutionize our daily life with such disruptive appliances has fueled the quest for electronic devices which yield good electrical and mechanical performance and are at the same time light-weight, transparent, conformable, stretchable, and even biodegradable. Flexible metal oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors (TFTs) can fulfill all these requirements and are therefore considered the most promising technology for tomorrow's electronics. This review reflects the establishment of flexible metal oxide semiconductor TFTs, from the development of single devices, large-area circuits, up to entirely integrated systems. First, an introduction on metal oxide semiconductor TFTs is given, where the history of the field is revisited, the TFT configurations and operating principles are presented, and the main issues and technological challenges faced in the area are analyzed. Then, the recent advances achieved for flexible n-type metal oxide semiconductor TFTs manufactured by physical vapor deposition methods and solution-processing techniques are summarized. In particular, the ability of flexible metal oxide semiconductor TFTs to combine low temperature fabrication, high carrier mobility, large frequency operation, extreme mechanical bendability, together with transparency, conformability, stretchability, and water dissolubility is shown. Afterward, a detailed analysis of the most promising metal oxide semiconducting materials developed to realize the state-of-the-art flexible p-type TFTs is given. Next, the recent progresses obtained for flexible metal oxide semiconductor-based electronic circuits, realized with both unipolar and complementary technology, are reported. In particular

  19. Metal oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors for flexible electronics

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Petti, Luisa; Vogt, Christian; Büthe, Lars

    The field of flexible electronics has rapidly expanded over the last decades, pioneering novel applications, such as wearable and textile integrated devices, seamless and embedded patch-like systems, soft electronic skins, as well as imperceptible and transient implants. The possibility to revolutionize our daily life with such disruptive appliances has fueled the quest for electronic devices which yield good electrical and mechanical performance and are at the same time light-weight, transparent, conformable, stretchable, and even biodegradable. Flexible metal oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors (TFTs) can fulfill all these requirements and are therefore considered the most promising technology for tomorrow's electronics. This reviewmore » reflects the establishment of flexible metal oxide semiconductor TFTs, from the development of single devices, large-area circuits, up to entirely integrated systems. First, an introduction on metal oxide semiconductor TFTs is given, where the history of the field is revisited, the TFT configurations and operating principles are presented, and the main issues and technological challenges faced in the area are analyzed. Then, the recent advances achieved for flexible n-type metal oxide semiconductor TFTs manufactured by physical vapor deposition methods and solution-processing techniques are summarized. In particular, the ability of flexible metal oxide semiconductor TFTs to combine low temperature fabrication, high carrier mobility, large frequency operation, extreme mechanical bendability, together with transparency, conformability, stretchability, and water dissolubility is shown. Afterward, a detailed analysis of the most promising metal oxide semiconducting materials developed to realize the state-of-the-art flexible p-type TFTs is given. Next, the recent progresses obtained for flexible metal oxide semiconductor-based electronic circuits, realized with both unipolar and complementary technology, are reported. In

  20. Antimicrobial Activity of Nitric Oxide-Releasing Ti-6Al-4V Metal Oxide

    PubMed Central

    Reger, Nina A.; Meng, Wilson S.; Gawalt, Ellen S.

    2017-01-01

    Titanium and titanium alloy materials are commonly used in joint replacements, due to the high strength of the materials. Pathogenic microorganisms can easily adhere to the surface of the metal implant, leading to an increased potential for implant failure. The surface of a titanium-aluminum-vanadium (Ti-6Al-4V) metal oxide implant material was functionalized to deliver an small antibacterial molecule, nitric oxide. S-nitroso-penicillamine, a S-nitrosothiol nitric oxide donor, was covalently immobilized on the metal oxide surface using self-assembled monolayers. Infrared spectroscopy was used to confirm the attachment of the S-nitrosothiol donor to the Ti-Al-4V surface. Attachment of S-nitroso-penicillamine resulted in a nitric oxide (NO) release of 89.6 ± 4.8 nmol/cm2 under physiological conditions. This low concentration of nitric oxide reduced Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis growth by 41.5 ± 1.2% and 25.3 ± 0.6%, respectively. Combining the S-nitrosothiol releasing Ti-6Al-4V with tetracycline, a commonly-prescribed antibiotic, increased the effectiveness of the antibiotic by 35.4 ± 1.3%, which allows for lower doses of antibiotics to be used. A synergistic effect of ampicillin with S-nitroso-penicillamine-modified Ti-6Al-4V against S. epidermidis was not observed. The functionalized Ti-6Al-4V surface was not cytotoxic to mouse fibroblasts. PMID:28635681

  1. Microstructure of a base metal thick film system. [Glass frit with base metal oxide addition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mentley, D.E.

    1976-06-01

    A base metal thick film conductor system using glass frits with base metal oxide additions was investigated as metallization for hybrid microcircuits. Application of previous work on wetting and chemical bonding was made to this system. The observation of changes in the properties of the thick film was made by photomicrographs of screened samples and sheet resistivity measurements. In addition to the chemical and wetting properties, the effect of glass frit particle size on conductivity was also analyzed. The base metal oxide addition was found to produce a more consistent thick film conductor at low volume percentages of metal bymore » inhibiting the formation of low melting redox reaction products.« less

  2. Sensitivity and Limitations of Structures from X-ray and Neutron-Based Diffraction Analyses of Transition Metal Oxide Lithium-Battery Electrodes

    DOE PAGES

    Liu, Hao; Liu, Haodong; Lapidus, Saul H.; ...

    2017-06-21

    Lithium transition metal oxides are an important class of electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Binary or ternary (transition) metal doping brings about new opportunities to improve the electrode’s performance and often leads to more complex stoichiometries and atomic structures than the archetypal LiCoO 2. Rietveld structural analyses of X-ray and neutron diffraction data is a widely-used approach for structural characterization of crystalline materials. But, different structural models and refinement approaches can lead to differing results, and some parameters can be difficult to quantify due to the inherent limitations of the data. Here, through the example of LiNi 0.8Co 0.15Al 0.05Omore » 2 (NCA), we demonstrated the sensitivity of various structural parameters in Rietveld structural analysis to different refinement approaches and structural models, and proposed an approach to reduce refinement uncertainties due to the inexact X-ray scattering factors of the constituent atoms within the lattice. Furthermore, this refinement approach was implemented for electrochemically-cycled NCA samples and yielded accurate structural parameters using only X-ray diffraction data. The present work provides the best practices for performing structural refinement of lithium transition metal oxides.« less

  3. Sensitivity and Limitations of Structures from X-ray and Neutron-Based Diffraction Analyses of Transition Metal Oxide Lithium-Battery Electrodes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Hao; Liu, Haodong; Lapidus, Saul H.

    Lithium transition metal oxides are an important class of electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Binary or ternary (transition) metal doping brings about new opportunities to improve the electrode’s performance and often leads to more complex stoichiometries and atomic structures than the archetypal LiCoO 2. Rietveld structural analyses of X-ray and neutron diffraction data is a widely-used approach for structural characterization of crystalline materials. But, different structural models and refinement approaches can lead to differing results, and some parameters can be difficult to quantify due to the inherent limitations of the data. Here, through the example of LiNi 0.8Co 0.15Al 0.05Omore » 2 (NCA), we demonstrated the sensitivity of various structural parameters in Rietveld structural analysis to different refinement approaches and structural models, and proposed an approach to reduce refinement uncertainties due to the inexact X-ray scattering factors of the constituent atoms within the lattice. Furthermore, this refinement approach was implemented for electrochemically-cycled NCA samples and yielded accurate structural parameters using only X-ray diffraction data. The present work provides the best practices for performing structural refinement of lithium transition metal oxides.« less

  4. Synthesis of metal silicide at metal/silicon oxide interface by electronic excitation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lee, J.-G., E-mail: jglee36@kims.re.kr; Nagase, T.; Yasuda, H.

    The synthesis of metal silicide at the metal/silicon oxide interface by electronic excitation was investigated using transmission electron microscopy. A platinum silicide, α-Pt{sub 2}Si, was successfully formed at the platinum/silicon oxide interface under 25–200 keV electron irradiation. This is of interest since any platinum silicide was not formed at the platinum/silicon oxide interface by simple thermal annealing under no-electron-irradiation conditions. From the electron energy dependence of the cross section for the initiation of the silicide formation, it is clarified that the silicide formation under electron irradiation was not due to a knock-on atom-displacement process, but a process induced by electronic excitation.more » It is suggested that a mechanism related to the Knotek and Feibelman mechanism may play an important role in silicide formation within the solid. Similar silicide formation was also observed at the palladium/silicon oxide and nickel/silicon oxide interfaces, indicating a wide generality of the silicide formation by electronic excitation.« less

  5. Novel Co- or Ni-Mn binary oxide catalysts with hydroxyl groups for NH3-SCR of NOx at low temperature

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gao, Fengyu; Tang, Xiaolong; Yi, Honghong; Zhao, Shunzheng; Wang, Jiangen; Shi, Yiran; Meng, Xiaomi

    2018-06-01

    Novel hydroxyl-containing Me-Mn binary oxides (Me = Co, Ni) were prepared for the selective catalytic reduction of NOx with NH3 by a combined complexation-esterification method. The binary oxides of Co-MnOx and Ni-MnOx with mixed crystal phases of Mn3O4 and Co3O4, Mn2O3 and NiMnO3 were obtained at 550 °C. SCR activity decreased in the order of Mn3O4-Co3O4-OH > Mn2O3-NiMnO3-OH > Mn2O3-OH > Mn3O4-OH, benefiting from the high concentration of chemisorbed oxygen and effective electron transformation of cations. Mn2O3-containing catalysts had better selectivity to N2 than those containing Mn3O4. Higher selectivity to N2O over Mn3O4-containing catalysts was attributed to the depth dehydrogenation of coordinated NH3 by the active oxygen species with lower Mnsbnd O band energy. The typical Eley-Rideal mechanism over Mn3O4-OH and Mn3O4-Co3O4-OH, and the additional formation pathway of NH4NO3 species over Mn2O3-OH and Mn2O3-NiMnO3-OH catalysts were proposed via the in-situ DRIFTS experiments. Although the Co and Ni elements had a good role in delaying the poisoning of SO2, these catalysts were eventually sulfated by SO2 over the postponement, which might due to the metal sulfate and ammonia hydrogensulfite species.

  6. Inhibiting Metal Oxide Atomic Layer Deposition: Beyond Zinc Oxide

    DOE PAGES

    Sampson, Matthew D.; Emery, Jonathan D.; Pellin, Michael J.; ...

    2017-04-05

    The atomic layer deposition (ALD) of several metal oxides is selectivity inhibited on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au and the eventual nucleation mechanism is investigated. The inhibition ability of the SAM is significantly improved by the in situ H 2-plasma pretreatment of the Au substrate prior to gas-phase deposition of a long-chain alkanethiol, 1-dodecanethiol (DDT). This more rigorous surface preparation inhibits even aggressive oxide ALD precursors, including trimethylaluminum and water, for at least 20 cycles. We study the effect that ALD precursor purge times, growth temperature, alkanethiol chain length, alkanethiol deposition time, and plasma treatment time have on Almore » 2O 3 ALD inhibition. This is the first example of Al 2O 3 ALD inhibition from a vapor-deposited SAM. Inhibition of Al 2O 3, ZnO, and MnO ALD processes are compared, revealing the versatility of this selective surface treatment. As a result, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and grazing incidence x-ray fluorescence (GIXRF) further reveals insight into the mechanism by which the well-defined surface chemistry of ALD may eventually be circumvented to allow metal oxide nucleation and growth on SAM-modified surfaces.« less

  7. Inhibiting Metal Oxide Atomic Layer Deposition: Beyond Zinc Oxide

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sampson, Matthew D.; Emery, Jonathan D.; Pellin, Michael J.

    The atomic layer deposition (ALD) of several metal oxides is selectivity inhibited on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au and the eventual nucleation mechanism is investigated. The inhibition ability of the SAM is significantly improved by the in situ H 2-plasma pretreatment of the Au substrate prior to gas-phase deposition of a long-chain alkanethiol, 1-dodecanethiol (DDT). This more rigorous surface preparation inhibits even aggressive oxide ALD precursors, including trimethylaluminum and water, for at least 20 cycles. We study the effect that ALD precursor purge times, growth temperature, alkanethiol chain length, alkanethiol deposition time, and plasma treatment time have on Almore » 2O 3 ALD inhibition. This is the first example of Al 2O 3 ALD inhibition from a vapor-deposited SAM. Inhibition of Al 2O 3, ZnO, and MnO ALD processes are compared, revealing the versatility of this selective surface treatment. As a result, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and grazing incidence x-ray fluorescence (GIXRF) further reveals insight into the mechanism by which the well-defined surface chemistry of ALD may eventually be circumvented to allow metal oxide nucleation and growth on SAM-modified surfaces.« less

  8. Regeneration of sulfated metal oxides and carbonates

    DOEpatents

    Hubble, Bill R.; Siegel, Stanley; Cunningham, Paul T.

    1978-03-28

    Alkali metal or alkaline earth metal carbonates such as calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate found in dolomite or limestone are employed for removal of sulfur dioxide from combustion exhaust gases. The sulfated carbonates are regenerated to oxides through use of a solid-solid reaction, particularly calcium sulfide with calcium sulfate to form calcium oxide and sulfur dioxide gas. The regeneration is performed by contacting the sulfated material with a reductant gas such as hydrogen within an inert diluent to produce calcium sulfide in mixture with the sulfate under process conditions selected to permit the sulfide-sulfate, solid-state reaction to occur.

  9. Raman spectroscopy of sputtered metal-graphene and metal-oxide-graphene interfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Ching-Tzu; Gajek, Marcin; Freitag, Marcus; Kuroda, Marcelo; Perebeinos, Vasili; Raoux, Simone

    2012-02-01

    In this talk, we report our recent development in sputtering deposition of magnetic and non-magnetic metal and metal-oxide thin films on graphene for applications in spintronics and nanoeleoctronics. TEM and SEM images demonstrate homogeneous coverage, uniform thickness, and good crystallinity of the sputtered films. Raman spectroscopy shows that the structure of the underlying graphene is well preserved, and the spectral weight of the defect D mode is comparable to that of the e-beam evaporated samples. Most significantly, we report the first observation of graphene-enhanced surface excitations of crystalline materials. Specifically, we discover two pronounced dispersive Raman modes at the interface of graphene and the nickel-oxide and cobalt-oxide films which we attribute to the strong light absorption and high-order resonant scattering process in the graphene layer. We will present the frequency-dependent, polarization-dependent Raman data of these two modes and discuss their microscopic origin.

  10. Free-Standing Metal Oxide Nanoparticle Superlattices Constructed with Engineered Protein Containers Show in Crystallo Catalytic Activity.

    PubMed

    Lach, Marcel; Künzle, Matthias; Beck, Tobias

    2017-12-11

    The construction of defined nanostructured catalysts is challenging. In previous work, we established a strategy to assemble binary nanoparticle superlattices with oppositely charged protein containers as building blocks. Here, we show that these free-standing nanoparticle superlattices are catalytically active. The metal oxide nanoparticles inside the protein scaffold are accessible for a range of substrates and show oxidase-like and peroxidase-like activity. The stable superlattices can be reused for several reaction cycles. In contrast to bulk nanoparticle-based catalysts, which are prone to aggregation and difficult to characterize, nanoparticle superlattices based on engineered protein containers provide an innovative synthetic route to structurally defined heterogeneous catalysts with control over nanoparticle size and composition. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Structural, electronic and chemical properties of metal/oxide and oxide/oxide interfaces and thin film structures

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lad, Robert J.

    1999-12-14

    This project focused on three different aspects of oxide thin film systems: (1) Model metal/oxide and oxide/oxide interface studies were carried out by depositing ultra-thin metal (Al, K, Mg) and oxide (MgO, AlO{sub x}) films on TiO{sub 2}, NiO and {alpha}-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} single crystal oxide substrates. (2) Electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) oxygen plasma deposition was used to fabricate AlO{sub 3} and ZrO{sub 2} films on sapphire substrates, and film growth mechanisms and structural characteristics were investigated. (3) The friction and wear characteristics of ZrO{sub 2} films on sapphire substrates in unlubricated sliding contact were studied and correlated with filmmore » microstructure. In these studies, thin film and interfacial regions were characterized using diffraction (RHEED, LEED, XRD), electron spectroscopies (XPS, UPS, AES), microscopy (AFM) and tribology instruments (pin-on-disk, friction microprobe, and scratch tester). By precise control of thin film microstructure, an increased understanding of the structural and chemical stability of interface regions and tribological performance of ultra-thin oxide films was achieved in these important ceramic systems.« less

  12. Metal Ions, Not Metal-Catalyzed Oxidative Stress, Cause Clay Leachate Antibacterial Activity

    PubMed Central

    Otto, Caitlin C.; Koehl, Jennifer L.; Solanky, Dipesh; Haydel, Shelley E.

    2014-01-01

    Aqueous leachates prepared from natural antibacterial clays, arbitrarily designated CB-L, release metal ions into suspension, have a low pH (3.4–5), generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and H2O2, and have a high oxidation-reduction potential. To isolate the role of pH in the antibacterial activity of CB clay mixtures, we exposed three different strains of Escherichia coli O157:H7 to 10% clay suspensions. The clay suspension completely killed acid-sensitive and acid-tolerant E. coli O157:H7 strains, whereas incubation in a low-pH buffer resulted in a minimal decrease in viability, demonstrating that low pH alone does not mediate antibacterial activity. The prevailing hypothesis is that metal ions participate in redox cycling and produce ROS, leading to oxidative damage to macromolecules and resulting in cellular death. However, E. coli cells showed no increase in DNA or protein oxidative lesions and a slight increase in lipid peroxidation following exposure to the antibacterial leachate. Further, supplementation with numerous ROS scavengers eliminated lipid peroxidation, but did not rescue the cells from CB-L-mediated killing. In contrast, supplementing CB-L with EDTA, a broad-spectrum metal chelator, reduced killing. Finally, CB-L was equally lethal to cells in an anoxic environment as compared to the aerobic environment. Thus, ROS were not required for lethal activity and did not contribute to toxicity of CB-L. We conclude that clay-mediated killing was not due to oxidative damage, but rather, was due to toxicity associated directly with released metal ions. PMID:25502790

  13. Physicochemical of pillared clays prepared by several metal oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rinaldi, Nino; Kristiani, Anis

    2017-03-01

    Natural clays could be modified by the pillarization method, called as Pillared Clays (PILCs). PILCs have been known as porous materials that can be used for many applications, one of the fields is catalysis. PILCs as two dimensional materials are interesting because their structures and textural properties can be controlled by using a metal oxide as the pillar. Different metal oxide used as the pillar causes different properties results of pillared clays. Usually, natural smectite clays/bentonites are used as a raw material. Therefore, a series of bentonite pillared by metal oxides was prepared through pillarization method. Variation of metals pillared into bentonite are aluminium, chromium, zirconium, and ferro. The physicochemical properties of catalysts were characterized by using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) and Barret-Joyner-Halenda (BJH) analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) measurement. Noteworthy characterization results showed that different metals pillared into bentonite affected physical and chemical properties, i.e. basal spacing, surface area, pore size distribution, thermal stability and acidity.

  14. Mesoporous metal oxide microsphere electrode compositions and their methods of making

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Parans Paranthaman, Mariappan; Bi, Zhonghe; Bridges, Craig A.

    Compositions and methods of making are provided for treated mesoporous metal oxide microspheres electrodes. The compositions include microspheres with an average diameter between about 200 nanometers and about 10 micrometers and mesopores on the surface and interior of the microspheres. The methods of making include forming a mesoporous metal oxide microsphere composition and treating the mesoporous metal oxide microspheres by at least annealing in a reducing atmosphere, doping with an aliovalent element, and coating with a coating composition.

  15. Influence of Fe(2+)-catalysed iron oxide recrystallization on metal cycling.

    PubMed

    Latta, Drew E; Gorski, Christopher A; Scherer, Michelle M

    2012-12-01

    Recent work has indicated that iron (oxyhydr-)oxides are capable of structurally incorporating and releasing metals and nutrients as a result of Fe2+-induced iron oxide recrystallization. In the present paper, we briefly review the current literature examining the mechanisms by which iron oxides recrystallize and summarize how recrystallization affects metal incorporation and release. We also provide new experimental evidence for the Fe2+-induced release of structural manganese from manganese-doped goethite. Currently, the exact mechanism(s) for Fe2+-induced recrystallization remain elusive, although they are likely to be both oxide-and metal-dependent. We conclude by discussing some future research directions for Fe2+-catalysed iron oxide recrystallization.

  16. Nanostructured Metal Oxides for Stoichiometric Degradation of Chemical Warfare Agents.

    PubMed

    Štengl, Václav; Henych, Jiří; Janoš, Pavel; Skoumal, Miroslav

    2016-01-01

    Metal oxides have very important applications in many areas of chemistry, physics and materials science; their properties are dependent on the method of preparation, the morphology and texture. Nanostructured metal oxides can exhibit unique characteristics unlike those of the bulk form depending on their morphology, with a high density of edges, corners and defect surfaces. In recent years, methods have been developed for the preparation of metal oxide powders with tunable control of the primary particle size as well as of a secondary particle size: the size of agglomerates of crystallites. One of the many ways to take advantage of unique properties of nanostructured oxide materials is stoichiometric degradation of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) pollutants on their surfaces.

  17. Processing and synthesis of multi-metallic nano oxide ceramics via liquid-feed flame spray pyrolysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Azurdia, Jose Antonio

    The liquid-feed flame spray pyrolysis (LF-FSP) process aerosolizes metal-carboxylate precursors dissolved in alcohol with oxygen and combusts them at >1500°C. The products are quenched rapidly (˜10s msec) to < 400°C. By selecting the appropriate precursor mixtures, the compositions of the resulting oxide nanopowders can be tailored easily, which lends itself to combinatorial studies of systems facilitating material property optimization. The resulting nanopowders typically consist of single crystal particles with average particle sizes (APS) < 35 nm, specific surface areas (SSA) of 20-60 m2/g and spherical morphology. LF-FSP provides access to novel single phase nanopowders, known phases at compositions outside their published phase diagrams, intimate mixing at nanometer length scales in multi metallic oxide nanopowders, and control of stoichiometry to ppm levels. The materials produced may exhibit unusual properties including structural, catalytic, and photonic ones and lower sintering temperatures. Prior studies used LF-FSP to produce MgAl2O4 spinel for applications in transparent armor and IR radomes. In these studies, a stable spinel structure with a (MgO)0.1(Al2O3)0.9 composition well outside the known phase field was observed. The work reported here extends this observation to two other spinel systems: Al2O3-NiO, Al2O3-CoOx; followed by three series of transition metal binary oxides, NiO-CoO, NiO-MoO3, NiO-CuO. The impetus to study spinels derives both from the fact that a number of them are known transparent ceramics, but also others offer high SSAs coupled with unusual phases that suggest potentially novel catalytic materials. Because LF-FSP provides access to any composition, comprehensive studies of the entire tie-lines were conducted rather than just compositions of value for catalytic applications. Initial efforts established baseline properties for the nano aluminate spinels, then three binary transition metal oxide sets (Ni-Co, Ni-Mo and Ni

  18. Non-uniform solute segregation at semi-coherent metal/oxide interfaces

    DOE PAGES

    Choudhury, Samrat; Aguiar, Jeffery A.; Fluss, Michael J.; ...

    2015-08-26

    The properties and performance of metal/oxide nanocomposites are governed by the structure and chemistry of the metal/oxide interfaces. Here we report an integrated theoretical and experimental study examining the role of interfacial structure, particularly misfit dislocations, on solute segregation at a metal/oxide interface. We find that the local oxygen environment, which varies significantly between the misfit dislocations and the coherent terraces, dictates the segregation tendency of solutes to the interface. Depending on the nature of the solute and local oxygen content, segregation to misfit dislocations can change from attraction to repulsion, revealing the complex interplay between chemistry and structure atmore » metal/oxide interfaces. These findings indicate that the solute chemistry at misfit dislocations is controlled by the dislocation density and oxygen content. As a result, fundamental thermodynamic concepts – the Hume-Rothery rules and the Ellingham diagram – qualitatively predict the segregation behavior of solutes to such interfaces, providing design rules for novel interfacial chemistries.« less

  19. Parasitic resistive switching uncovered from complementary resistive switching in single active-layer oxide memory device

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhu, Lisha; Hu, Wei; Gao, Chao; Guo, Yongcai

    2017-12-01

    This paper reports the reversible transition processes between the bipolar and complementary resistive switching (CRS) characteristics on the binary metal-oxide resistive memory devices of Pt/HfO x /TiN and Pt/TaO x /TiN by applying the appropriate bias voltages. More interestingly, by controlling the amplitude of the negative bias, the parasitic resistive switching effect exhibiting repeatable switching behavior is uncovered from the CRS behavior. The electrical observation of the parasitic resistive switching effect can be explained by the controlled size of the conductive filament. This work confirms the transformation and interrelationship among the bipolar, parasitic, and CRS effects, and thus provides new insight into the understanding of the physical mechanism of the binary metal-oxide resistive switching memory devices.

  20. Long term high temperature oxidation characteristics of La and Cu alloyed ferritic stainless steels for solid oxide fuel cell interconnects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Swaminathan, Srinivasan; Lee, Young-Su; Kim, Dong-Ik

    2016-09-01

    To ensure the best performance of solid oxide fuel cell metallic interconnects, the Fe-22 wt.% Cr ferritic stainless steels with various La contents (0.006-0.6 wt.%) and Cu addition (1.57 wt.%), are developed. Long-term isothermal oxidation behavior of these steels is investigated in air at 800 °C, for 2700 h. Chemistry, morphology, and microstructure of the thermally grown oxide scale are examined using XPS, SEM-EDX, and XRD techniques. Broadly, all the steels show a double layer consisting of an inner Cr2O3 and outer (Mn, Cr)3O4. Distinctly, in the La-added steels, binary oxides of Cr, Mn and Ti are found at the oxide scale surface together with (Mn, Cr)3O4. Furthermore, all La-varied steels possess the metallic Fe protrusions along with discontinuous (Mn, Cr)3O4 spinel zones at the oxide scale/metal interface and isolated precipitates of Ti-oxides in the underlying matrix. Increase of La content to 0.6 wt.% is detrimental to the oxidation resistance. For the Cu-added steel, Cu is found to segregate strongly at the oxide scale/metal interface which inhibits the ingress of oxygen thereby suppressing the subscale formation of (Mn, Cr)3O4. Thus, Cu addition to the Fe-22Cr ferritic stainless steels benefits the oxidation resistance.

  1. Nanostructured metal oxide-based materials as advanced anodes for lithium-ion batteries.

    PubMed

    Wu, Hao Bin; Chen, Jun Song; Hng, Huey Hoon; Lou, Xiong Wen David

    2012-04-21

    The search for new electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has been an important way to satisfy the ever-growing demands for better performance with higher energy/power densities, improved safety and longer cycle life. Nanostructured metal oxides exhibit good electrochemical properties, and they are regarded as promising anode materials for high-performance LIBs. In this feature article, we will focus on three different categories of metal oxides with distinct lithium storage mechanisms: tin dioxide (SnO(2)), which utilizes alloying/dealloying processes to reversibly store/release lithium ions during charge/discharge; titanium dioxide (TiO(2)), where lithium ions are inserted/deinserted into/out of the TiO(2) crystal framework; and transition metal oxides including iron oxide and cobalt oxide, which react with lithium ions via an unusual conversion reaction. For all three systems, we will emphasize that creating nanomaterials with unique structures could effectively improve the lithium storage properties of these metal oxides. We will also highlight that the lithium storage capability can be further enhanced through designing advanced nanocomposite materials containing metal oxides and other carbonaceous supports. By providing such a rather systematic survey, we aim to stress the importance of proper nanostructuring and advanced compositing that would result in improved physicochemical properties of metal oxides, thus making them promising negative electrodes for next-generation LIBs.

  2. Statistical mechanics of binary mixture adsorption in metal-organic frameworks in the osmotic ensemble.

    PubMed

    Dunne, Lawrence J; Manos, George

    2018-03-13

    Although crucial for designing separation processes little is known experimentally about multi-component adsorption isotherms in comparison with pure single components. Very few binary mixture adsorption isotherms are to be found in the literature and information about isotherms over a wide range of gas-phase composition and mechanical pressures and temperature is lacking. Here, we present a quasi-one-dimensional statistical mechanical model of binary mixture adsorption in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) treated exactly by a transfer matrix method in the osmotic ensemble. The experimental parameter space may be very complex and investigations into multi-component mixture adsorption may be guided by theoretical insights. The approach successfully models breathing structural transitions induced by adsorption giving a good account of the shape of adsorption isotherms of CO 2 and CH 4 adsorption in MIL-53(Al). Binary mixture isotherms and co-adsorption-phase diagrams are also calculated and found to give a good description of the experimental trends in these properties and because of the wide model parameter range which reproduces this behaviour suggests that this is generic to MOFs. Finally, a study is made of the influence of mechanical pressure on the shape of CO 2 and CH 4 adsorption isotherms in MIL-53(Al). Quite modest mechanical pressures can induce significant changes to isotherm shapes in MOFs with implications for binary mixture separation processes.This article is part of the theme issue 'Modern theoretical chemistry'. © 2018 The Author(s).

  3. Statistical mechanics of binary mixture adsorption in metal-organic frameworks in the osmotic ensemble

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dunne, Lawrence J.; Manos, George

    2018-03-01

    Although crucial for designing separation processes little is known experimentally about multi-component adsorption isotherms in comparison with pure single components. Very few binary mixture adsorption isotherms are to be found in the literature and information about isotherms over a wide range of gas-phase composition and mechanical pressures and temperature is lacking. Here, we present a quasi-one-dimensional statistical mechanical model of binary mixture adsorption in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) treated exactly by a transfer matrix method in the osmotic ensemble. The experimental parameter space may be very complex and investigations into multi-component mixture adsorption may be guided by theoretical insights. The approach successfully models breathing structural transitions induced by adsorption giving a good account of the shape of adsorption isotherms of CO2 and CH4 adsorption in MIL-53(Al). Binary mixture isotherms and co-adsorption-phase diagrams are also calculated and found to give a good description of the experimental trends in these properties and because of the wide model parameter range which reproduces this behaviour suggests that this is generic to MOFs. Finally, a study is made of the influence of mechanical pressure on the shape of CO2 and CH4 adsorption isotherms in MIL-53(Al). Quite modest mechanical pressures can induce significant changes to isotherm shapes in MOFs with implications for binary mixture separation processes. This article is part of the theme issue `Modern theoretical chemistry'.

  4. Redox switching and oxygen evolution at oxidized metal and metal oxide electrodes: iron in base.

    PubMed

    Lyons, Michael E G; Doyle, Richard L; Brandon, Michael P

    2011-12-28

    Outstanding issues regarding the film formation, redox switching characteristics and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalytic behaviour of multicycled iron oxyhydroxide films in aqueous alkaline solution have been revisited. The oxide is grown using a repetitive potential multicycling technique, and the mechanism of the latter hydrous oxide formation process has been discussed. A duplex layer model of the oxide/solution interphase region is proposed. The acid/base behaviour of the hydrous oxide and the microdispersed nature of the latter material has been emphasised. The hydrous oxide is considered as a porous assembly of interlinked octahedrally coordinated anionic metal oxyhydroxide surfaquo complexes which form an open network structure. The latter contains considerable quantities of water molecules which facilitate hydroxide ion discharge at the metal site during active oxygen evolution, and also charge compensating cations. The dynamics of redox switching has been quantified via analysis of the cyclic voltammetry response as a function of potential sweep rate using the Laviron-Aoki electron hopping diffusion model by analogy with redox polymer modified electrodes. Steady state Tafel plot analysis has been used to elucidate the kinetics and mechanism of oxygen evolution. Tafel slope values of ca. 60 mV dec(-1) and ca. 120 mV dec(-1) are found at low and high overpotentials respectively, whereas the reaction order with respect to hydroxide ion activity changes from ca. 3/2 to ca. 1 as the potential is increased. These observations are rationalised in terms of a kinetic scheme involving Temkin adsorption and the rate determining formation of a physisorbed hydrogen peroxide intermediate on the oxide surface. The dual Tafel slope behaviour is ascribed to the potential dependence of the surface coverage of adsorbed intermediates.

  5. In situ-generated metal oxide catalyst during CO oxidation reaction transformed from redox-active metal-organic framework-supported palladium nanoparticles

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    The preparation of redox-active metal-organic framework (ra-MOF)-supported Pd nanoparticles (NPs) via the redox couple-driven method is reported, which can yield unprotected metallic NPs at room temperature within 10 min without the use of reducing agents. The Pd@ra-MOF has been exploited as a precursor of an active catalyst for CO oxidation. Under the CO oxidation reaction condition, Pd@ra-MOF is transformed into a PdOx-NiOy/C nanocomposite to generate catalytically active species in situ, and the resultant nanocatalyst shows sustainable activity through synergistic stabilization. PMID:22898143

  6. Catalysts Based on Earth-Abundant Metals for Visible Light-Driven Water Oxidation Reaction.

    PubMed

    Lin, Junqi; Han, Qing; Ding, Yong

    2018-06-04

    Exploration of water oxidation catalyst (WOC) with excellent performance is the key for the overall water splitting reaction, which is a feasible strategy to convert solar energy to chemical energy. Although some compounds composed of noble metals, mainly Ru and Ir, have been reported to catalyze water oxidation with high efficiency, catalysts based on low-cost and earth-abundant transition metals are essential for realizing economical and large-scale light-driven water splitting. Various WOCs containing earth-abundant metals (mainly Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu) have been utilized for visible light-driven water oxidation in recent years. In this Personal Account, we summarize our recent developments in WOCs based on earth-abundant transition metals including polyoxometalates (POMs), metal oxides or bimetal oxides, and metal complexes containing multidentate ligand scaffolds for visible light-driven water oxidation reaction. © 2018 The Chemical Society of Japan & Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  7. Solution processed metal oxide thin film hole transport layers for high performance organic solar cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Steirer, K. Xerxes; Berry, Joseph J.; Chesin, Jordan P.

    2017-01-10

    A method for the application of solution processed metal oxide hole transport layers in organic photovoltaic devices and related organic electronics devices is disclosed. The metal oxide may be derived from a metal-organic precursor enabling solution processing of an amorphous, p-type metal oxide. An organic photovoltaic device having solution processed, metal oxide, thin-film hole transport layer.

  8. Metal-Organic Framework-Derived Nanoporous Metal Oxides toward Supercapacitor Applications: Progress and Prospects.

    PubMed

    Salunkhe, Rahul R; Kaneti, Yusuf V; Yamauchi, Yusuke

    2017-06-27

    Transition metal oxides (TMOs) have attracted significant attention for energy storage applications such as supercapacitors due to their good electrical conductivity, high electrochemical response (by providing Faradaic reactions), low manufacturing costs, and easy processability. Despite exhibiting these attractive characteristics, the practical applications of TMOs for supercapacitors are still relatively limited. This is largely due to their continuous Faradaic reactions, which can lead to major changes or destruction of their structure as well phase changes (in some cases) during cycling, leading to the degradation in their capacitive performance over time. Hence, there is an immediate need to develop new synthesis methods, which will readily provide stable porous architectures, controlled phase, as well as useful control over dimensions (1-D, 2-D, and 3-D) of the metal oxides for improving their performance in supercapacitor applications. Since its discovery in late 1990s, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have influenced many fields of material science. In recent years, they have gained significant attention as precursors or templates for the derivation of porous metal oxide nanostructures and nanocomposites for next-generation supercapacitor applications. Even though these materials have widespread applications and have been widely studied in terms of their structural features and synthesis, it is still not clear how these materials will play an important role in the development of the supercapacitor field. In this review, we will summarize the recent developments in the field of MOF-derived porous metal oxide nanostructures and nanocomposites for supercapacitor applications. Furthermore, the current challenges along with the future trends and prospects in the application of these materials for supercapacitors will also be discussed.

  9. Production of crystalline refractory metal oxides containing colloidal metal precipitates and useful as solar-effective absorbers

    DOEpatents

    Narayan, Jagdish; Chen, Yok

    1983-01-01

    This invention is a new process for producing refractory crystalline oxides having improved or unusual properties. The process comprises the steps of forming a doped-metal crystal of the oxide; exposing the doped crystal in a bomb to a reducing atmosphere at superatmospheric pressure and a temperature effecting precipitation of the dopant metal in the crystal lattice of the oxide but insufficient to effect net diffusion of the metal out of the lattice; and then cooling the crystal. Preferably, the cooling step is effected by quenching. The process forms colloidal precipitates of the metal in the oxide lattice. The process may be used, for example, to produce thermally stable black MgO crystalline bodies containing magnetic colloidal precipitates consisting of about 99% Ni. The Ni-containing bodies are solar-selective absorbers, having a room-temperature absorptivity of about 0.96 over virtually all of the solar-energy spectrum and exhibiting an absorption edge in the region of 2 .mu.m. The process parameters can be varied to control the average size of the precipitates. The process can produce a black MgO crystalline body containing colloidal Ni precipitates, some of which have the face-centered-cubic structure and others of which have the body-centered cubic structure. The products of the process are metal-precipitate-containing refractory crystalline oxides which have improved or unique optical, mechanical, magnetic, and/or electronic properties.

  10. Multi-metal oxide ceramic nanomaterial

    DOEpatents

    O'Brien, Stephen; Liu, Shuangyi; Huang, Limin

    2016-06-07

    A convenient and versatile method for preparing complex metal oxides is disclosed. The method uses a low temperature, environmentally friendly gel-collection method to form a single phase nanomaterial. In one embodiment, the nanomaterial consists of Ba.sub.AMn.sub.BTi.sub.CO.sub.D in a controlled stoichiometry.

  11. Preventing Bacterial Infections using Metal Oxides Nanocoatings on Bone Implant

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Duceac, L. D.; Straticiuc, S.; Hanganu, E.; Stafie, L.; Calin, G.; Gavrilescu, S. L.

    2017-06-01

    Nowadays bone implant removal is caused by infection that occurs around it possibly acquired after surgery or during hospitalization. The purpose of this study was to reveal some metal oxides applied as coatings on bone implant thus limiting the usual antibiotics-resistant bacteria colonization. Therefore ZnO, TiO2 and CuO were synthesized and structurally and morphologically analized in order to use them as an alternative antimicrobial agents deposited on bone implant. XRD, SEM, and FTIR characterization techniques were used to identify structure and texture of these nanoscaled metal oxides. These metal oxides nanocoatings on implant surface play a big role in preventing bacterial infection and reducing surgical complications.

  12. Electronic doping of transition metal oxide perovskites

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cammarata, Antonio, E-mail: cammaant@fel.cvut.cz; Rondinelli, James M.

    2016-05-23

    CaFeO{sub 3} is a prototypical negative charge transfer oxide that undergoes electronic metal-insulator transition concomitant with a dilation and contraction of nearly rigid octahedra. Altering the charge neutrality of the bulk system destroys the electronic transition, while the structure is significantly modified at high charge content. Using density functional theory simulations, we predict an alternative avenue to modulate the structure and the electronic transition in CaFeO{sub 3}. Charge distribution can be modulated using strain-rotation coupling and thin film engineering strategies, proposing themselves as a promising avenue for fine tuning electronic features in transition metal-oxide perovskites.

  13. Method of CO and/or CO.sub.2 hydrogenation using doped mixed-metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Shekhawat, Dushyant; Berry, David A.; Haynes, Daniel J.; Abdelsayed, Victor; Smith, Mark W.; Spivey, James J.

    2015-10-06

    A method of hydrogenation utilizing a reactant gas mixture comprising a carbon oxide and a hydrogen agent, and a hydrogenation catalyst comprising a mixed-metal oxide containing metal sites supported and/or incorporated into the lattice. The mixed-metal oxide comprises a perovskite, a pyrochlore, a fluorite, a brownmillerite, or mixtures thereof doped at the A-site or the B-site. The metal site may comprise a deposited metal, where the deposited metal is a transition metal, an alkali metal, an alkaline earth metal, or mixtures thereof. Contact between the carbon oxide, hydrogen agent, and hydrogenation catalyst under appropriate conditions of temperature, pressure and gas flow rate generate a hydrogenation reaction and produce a hydrogenated product made up of carbon from the carbon oxide and some portion of the hydrogen agent. The carbon oxide may be CO, CO.sub.2, or mixtures thereof and the hydrogen agent may be H.sub.2. In a particular embodiment, the hydrogenated product comprises an alcohol, an olefin, an aldehyde, a ketone, an ester, an oxo-product, or mixtures thereof.

  14. Benzyl Alcohol-Mediated Versatile Method to Fabricate Nonstoichiometric Metal Oxide Nanostructures.

    PubMed

    Qamar, Mohammad; Adam, Alaaldin; Azad, Abdul-Majeed; Kim, Yong-Wah

    2017-11-22

    Nanostructured metal oxides with cationic or anionic deficiency find applications in a wide range of technological areas including the energy sector and environment. However, a facile route to prepare such materials in bulk with acceptable reproducibility is still lacking; many synthesis techniques are still only bench-top and cannot be easily scaled-up. Here, we report that the benzyl alcohol (BA)-mediated method is capable of producing a host of nanostructured metal oxides (MO x , where M = Ti, Zn, Ce, Sn, In, Ga, or Fe) with inherent nonstoichiometry. It employs multifunctional BA as a solvent, a reducing agent, and a structure-directing agent. Depending on the oxidation states of metal, elemental or nonstoichiometric oxide forms are obtained. Augmented photoelectrochemical oxidation of water under visible light by some of these nonstoichiometric oxides highlights the versatility of the BA-mediated synthesis protocol.

  15. A Comprehensive Review of One-Dimensional Metal-Oxide Nanostructure Photodetectors

    PubMed Central

    Zhai, Tianyou; Fang, Xiaosheng; Liao, Meiyong; Xu, Xijin; Zeng, Haibo; Yoshio, Bando; Golberg, Dmitri

    2009-01-01

    One-dimensional (1D) metal-oxide nanostructures are ideal systems for exploring a large number of novel phenomena at the nanoscale and investigating size and dimensionality dependence of nanostructure properties for potential applications. The construction and integration of photodetectors or optical switches based on such nanostructures with tailored geometries have rapidly advanced in recent years. Active 1D nanostructure photodetector elements can be configured either as resistors whose conductions are altered by a charge-transfer process or as field-effect transistors (FET) whose properties can be controlled by applying appropriate potentials onto the gates. Functionalizing the structure surfaces offers another avenue for expanding the sensor capabilities. This article provides a comprehensive review on the state-of-the-art research activities in the photodetector field. It mainly focuses on the metal oxide 1D nanostructures such as ZnO, SnO2, Cu2O, Ga2O3, Fe2O3, In2O3, CdO, CeO2, and their photoresponses. The review begins with a survey of quasi 1D metal-oxide semiconductor nanostructures and the photodetector principle, then shows the recent progresses on several kinds of important metal-oxide nanostructures and their photoresponses and briefly presents some additional prospective metal-oxide 1D nanomaterials. Finally, the review is concluded with some perspectives and outlook on the future developments in this area. PMID:22454597

  16. Benchmarking nanoparticulate metal oxide electrocatalysts for the alkaline water oxidation reaction

    DOE PAGES

    Jung, Suho; McCrory, Charles C. L.; Ferrer, Ivonne M.; ...

    2016-11-27

    Nanoparticulate metal-oxide catalysts are among the most prevalent systems for alkaline water oxidation. However, comparisons of the electrochemical performance of these materials have been challenging due to the different methods of attachment, catalyst loadings, and electrochemical test conditions reported in the literature. Here in this paper, we have leveraged a conventional drop-casting method that allows for the successful adhesion of a wide range of nanoparticulate catalysts to glassy-carbon electrode surfaces. We have applied this adhesion method to prepare catalyst films from 16 crystalline metal-oxide nanoparticles with a constant loading of 0.8 mg cm -2, and evaluated the resulting nanoparticulate filmsmore » for the oxygen evolution reaction under conditions relevant to an integrated solar fuels device. In general, the activities of the adhered nanoparticulate films are similar to those of thin-film catalysts prepared by electrodeposition or sputtering, achieving 10 mA cm -2 current densities per geometric area at overpotentials of ~0.35–0.5 V.« less

  17. Efficient removal of arsenic from water using a granular adsorbent: Fe-Mn binary oxide impregnated chitosan bead.

    PubMed

    Qi, Jianying; Zhang, Gaosheng; Li, Haining

    2015-10-01

    A novel sorbent of Fe-Mn binary oxide impregnated chitosan bead (FMCB) was fabricated through impregnating Fe-Mn binary oxide into chitosan matrix. The FMCB is sphere-like with a diameter of 1.6-1.8 mm, which is effective for both As(V) and As(III) sorption. The maximal sorption capacities are 39.1 and 54.2 mg/g, respectively, outperforming most of reported granular sorbents. The arsenic was mainly removed by adsorbing onto the Fe-Mn oxide component. The coexisting SO4(2-), HCO3(-) and SiO3(2-) have no great influence on arsenic sorption, whereas, the HPO4(2-) shows negative effects. The arsenic-loaded FMCB could be effectively regenerated using NaOH solution and repeatedly used. In column tests, about 1500 and 3200 bed volumes of simulated groundwater containing 233 μg/L As(V) and As(III) were respectively treated before breakthrough. These results demonstrate the superiority of the FMCB in removing As(V) and As(III), indicating that it is a promising candidate for arsenic removal from real drinking water. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Platinum redispersion on metal oxides in low temperature fuel cells.

    PubMed

    Tripković, Vladimir; Cerri, Isotta; Nagami, Tetsuo; Bligaard, Thomas; Rossmeisl, Jan

    2013-03-07

    We have analyzed the aptitude of several metal oxide supports (TiO(2), SnO(2), NbO(2), ZrO(2), SiO(2), Ta(2)O(5) and Nb(2)O(5)) to redisperse platinum under electrochemical conditions pertinent to the Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) cathode. The redispersion on oxide supports in air has been studied in detail; however, due to different operating conditions it is not straightforward to link the chemical and the electrochemical environment. The largest differences reflect in (1) the oxidation state of the surface (the oxygen species coverage), (2) temperature and (3) the possibility of platinum dissolution at high potentials and the interference of redispersion with normal working potential of the PEMFC cathode. We have calculated the PtO(x) (x = 0, 1, 2) adsorption energies on different metal oxides' surface terminations as well as inside the metal oxides' bulk, and we have concluded that NbO(2) might be a good support for platinum redispersion at PEMFC cathodes.

  19. Inverse oxide/metal catalysts in fundamental studies and practical applications: A perspective of recent developments

    DOE PAGES

    Rodriguez, José A.; Liu, Ping; Graciani, Jesús; ...

    2016-06-21

    Inverse oxide/metal catalysts have shown to be excellent systems for studying the role of the oxide and oxide–metal interface in catalytic reactions. These systems can have special structural and catalytic properties due to strong oxide–metal interactions difficult to attain when depositing a metal on a regular oxide support. Oxide phases that are not seen or are metastable in a bulk oxide can become stable in an oxide/metal system opening the possibility for new chemical properties. Using these systems, it has been possible to explore fundamental properties of the metal–oxide interface (composition, structure, electronic state), which determine catalytic performance in themore » oxidation of CO, the water–gas shift and the hydrogenation of CO 2 to methanol. Recently, there has been a significant advance in the preparation of oxide/metal catalysts for technical or industrial applications. In conclusion, one goal is to identify methods able to control in a precise way the size of the deposited oxide particles and their structure on the metal substrate.« less

  20. Methods of making metal oxide nanostructures and methods of controlling morphology of same

    DOEpatents

    Wong, Stanislaus S; Hongjun, Zhou

    2012-11-27

    The present invention includes a method of producing a crystalline metal oxide nanostructure. The method comprises providing a metal salt solution and providing a basic solution; placing a porous membrane between the metal salt solution and the basic solution, wherein metal cations of the metal salt solution and hydroxide ions of the basic solution react, thereby producing a crystalline metal oxide nanostructure.

  1. Control of cerium oxidation state through metal complex secondary structures

    DOE PAGES

    Levin, Jessica R.; Dorfner, Walter L.; Carroll, Patrick J.; ...

    2015-08-11

    A series of alkali metal cerium diphenylhydrazido complexes, M x(py) y[Ce(PhNNPh) 4], M = Li, Na, and K, x = 4 (Li and Na) or 5 (K), and y = 4 (Li), 8 (Na), or 7 (K), were synthesized to probe how a secondary coordination sphere would modulate electronic structures at a cerium cation. The resulting electronic structures of the heterobimetallic cerium diphenylhydrazido complexes were found to be strongly dependent on the identity of the alkali metal cations. When M = Li + or Na +, the cerium(III) starting material was oxidized with concomitant reduction of 1,2-diphenylhydrazine to aniline. Reductionmore » of 1,2-diphenylhydrazine was not observed when M = K +, and the complex remained in the cerium(III) oxidation state. Oxidation of the cerium(III) diphenylhydrazido complex to the Ce( IV) diphenylhydrazido one was achieved through a simple cation exchange reaction of the alkali metals. As a result, UV-Vis spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, electrochemistry, magnetic susceptibility, and DFT studies were used to probe the oxidation state and the electronic changes that occurred at the metal centre.« less

  2. Metal oxide nanostructures: preparation, characterization and functional applications as chemical sensors.

    PubMed

    Zappa, Dario; Bertuna, Angela; Comini, Elisabetta; Kaur, Navpreet; Poli, Nicola; Sberveglieri, Veronica; Sberveglieri, Giorgio

    2017-01-01

    Preparation and characterization of different metal oxide (NiO, WO 3 , ZnO, SnO 2 and Nb 2 O 5 ) nanostructures for chemical sensing are presented. p-Type (NiO) and n-type (WO 3 , SnO 2 , ZnO and Nb 2 O 5 ) metal oxide nanostructures were grown on alumina substrates using evaporation-condensation, thermal oxidation and hydrothermal techniques. Surface morphologies and crystal structures were investigated through scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Furthermore, different batches of sensors have been prepared, and their sensing performances towards carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide have been explored. Moreover, metal oxide nanowires have been integrated into an electronic nose and successfully applied to discriminate between drinking and contaminated water.

  3. Method for making monolithic metal oxide aerogels

    DOEpatents

    Coronado, Paul R.

    1999-01-01

    Transparent, monolithic metal oxide aerogels of varying densities are produced using a method in which a metal alkoxide solution and a catalyst solution are prepared separately and reacted. The resulting hydrolyzed-condensed colloidal solution is gelled, and the wet gel is contained within a sealed, but gas permeable, containment vessel during supercritical extraction of the solvent. The containment vessel is enclosed within an aqueous atmosphere that is above the supercritical temperature and pressure of the solvent of the metal alkoxide solution.

  4. Metal Inhibition of Growth and Manganese Oxidation in Pseudomonas putida GB-1

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pena, J.; Sposito, G.

    2009-12-01

    Biogenic manganese oxides (MnO2) are ubiquitous nanoparticulate minerals that contribute to the adsorption of nutrient and toxicant metals, the oxidative degradation of various organic compounds, and the respiration of metal-reducing bacteria in aquatic and terrestrial environments. The formation of these minerals is catalyzed by a diverse and widely-distributed group of bacteria and fungi, often through the enzymatic oxidation of aqueous Mn(II) to Mn(IV). In metal-impacted ecosystems, toxicant metals may alter the viability and metabolic activity of Mn-oxidizing organisms, thereby limiting the conditions under which biogenic MnO2 can form and diminishing their potential as adsorbent materials. Pseudomonas putida GB-1 (P. putida GB-1) is a model Mn-oxidizing laboratory culture representative of freshwater and soil biofilm-forming bacteria. Manganese oxidation in P. putida GB-1 occurs via two single-electron-transfer reactions, involving a multicopper oxidase enzyme found on the bacterial outer membrane surface. Near the onset of the stationary phase of growth, dark brown MnO2 particles are deposited in a matrix of bacterial cells and extracellular polymeric substances, thus forming heterogeneous biomineral assemblages. In this study, we assessed the influence of various transition metals on microbial growth and manganese oxidation capacity in a P. putida GB-1 culture propagated in a nutrient-rich growth medium. The concentration-response behavior of actively growing P. putida GB-1 cells was investigated for Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn at pH ≈ 6 in the presence and absence of 1 mM Mn. Toxicity parameters such as EC0, EC50 and Hillslope, and EC100 were obtained from the sigmoidal concentration-response curves. The extent of MnO2 formation in the presence of the various metal cations was documented 24, 50, 74 and 104 h after the metal-amended medium was inoculated. Toxicity values were compared to twelve physicochemical properties of the metals tested. Significant

  5. Regenerable MgO promoted metal oxide oxygen carriers for chemical looping combustion

    DOEpatents

    Siriwardane, Ranjani V.; Miller, Duane D.

    2014-08-19

    The disclosure provides an oxygen carrier comprised of a plurality of metal oxide particles in contact with a plurality of MgO promoter particles. The MgO promoter particles increase the reaction rate and oxygen utilization of the metal oxide when contacting with a gaseous hydrocarbon at a temperature greater than about 725.degree. C. The promoted oxide solid is generally comprised of less than about 25 wt. % MgO, and may be prepared by physical mixing, incipient wetness impregnation, or other methods known in the art. The oxygen carrier exhibits a crystalline structure of the metal oxide and a crystalline structure of MgO under XRD crystallography, and retains these crystalline structures over subsequent redox cycles. In an embodiment, the metal oxide is Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, and the gaseous hydrocarbon is comprised of methane.

  6. Metal oxide nanoparticles with low toxicity.

    PubMed

    Ng, Alan Man Ching; Guo, Mu Yao; Leung, Yu Hang; Chan, Charis M N; Wong, Stella W Y; Yung, Mana M N; Ma, Angel P Y; Djurišić, Aleksandra B; Leung, Frederick C C; Leung, Kenneth M Y; Chan, Wai Kin; Lee, Hung Kay

    2015-10-01

    A number of different nanomaterials produced and incorporated into various products are rising. However, their environmental hazards are frequently unknown. Here we consider three different metal oxide compounds (SnO2, In2O3, and Al2O3), which have not been extensively studied and are expected to have low toxicity. This study aimed to comprehensively characterize the physicochemical properties of these nanomaterials and investigate their toxicity on bacteria (Escherichia coli) under UV illumination and in the dark, as well as on a marine diatom (Skeletonema costatum) under ambient illumination/dark (16-8h) cycles. The material properties responsible for their low toxicity have been identified based on comprehensive experimental characterizations and comparison to a metal oxide exhibiting significant toxicity under illumination (anatase TiO2). The metal oxide materials investigated exhibited significant difference in surface properties and interaction with the living organisms. In order for a material to exhibit significant toxicity, it needs to be able to both form a stable suspension in the culture medium and to interact with the cell walls of the test organism. Our results indicated that the observed low toxicities of the three nanomaterials could be attributed to the limited interaction between the nanoparticles and cell walls of the test organisms. This could occur either due to the lack of significant attachment between nanoparticles and cell walls, or due to their tendency to aggregate in solution. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Electronically conducting metal oxide nanoparticles and films for optical sensing applications

    DOEpatents

    Ohodnicki, Jr., Paul R.; Wang, Congjun; Andio, Mark A

    2014-09-16

    The disclosure relates to a method of detecting a change in a chemical composition by contacting a conducting oxide material with a monitored stream, illuminating the conducting oxide material with incident light, collecting exiting light, monitoring an optical signal based on a comparison of the incident light and the exiting light, and detecting a shift in the optical signal. The conducting metal oxide has a carrier concentration of at least 10.sup.17/cm.sup.3, a bandgap of at least 2 eV, and an electronic conductivity of at least 10.sup.-1 S/cm, where parameters are specified at the gas stream temperature. The optical response of the conducting oxide materials is proposed to result from the high carrier concentration and electronic conductivity of the conducting metal oxide, and the resulting impact of changing gas atmospheres on that relatively high carrier concentration and electronic conductivity. These changes in effective carrier densities and electronic conductivity of conducting metal oxide films and nanoparticles are postulated to be responsible for the change in measured optical absorption associated with free carriers. Exemplary conducting metal oxides include but are not limited to Al-doped ZnO, Sn-doped In.sub.2O.sub.3, Nb-doped TiO.sub.2, and F-doped SnO.sub.2.

  8. Electrochemical Synthesis of Binary Carbides of Tungsten and Iron (Nickel, Cobalt) in Halide-Oxide Melts at 823 K

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kushkhov, Hasbi; Adamokova, Marina; Kvashin, Vitalij; Kardanov, Anzor; Gramoteeva, Svetlana

    2007-12-01

    Iron, cobalt and nickel powders are used as binding components for the production of articles of tungsten carbide by the hot pressing method. This fact and the unique properties of binary carbides of tungsten-iron triad metals encouraged the search for new ways of their synthesis. In the present work, the attempt to synthezise binary tungsten-nickel (cobalt, iron) carbides in molten KCl-NaCl-CsCl at 823 K was made. As a result of voltammetry research, it was established that in eutectic KCl-NaCl-CsCl melts the deposition potentials ofWand Ni (Co, Fe) differ by 150 - 350 mV from each other, which makes their co-deposition difficult. It is possible to shift the deposition potentials of tungsten and metals of the iron triad metals towards each other by changing the acid-base properties of the melt. The products of electrolysis in these molten system were identified by X-ray analysis. They are mixtures of tungsten and nickel (cobalt, iron) carbides: Ni2W4C, W6C2.54; Co3W3C, Co6W6C, W2C, Co3C; FeW3C.

  9. One-Dimensional Metal-Oxide Nanostructures for Solar Photocatalytic Water-Splitting

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Fengyun; Song, Longfei; Zhang, Hongchao; Luo, Linqu; Wang, Dong; Tang, Jie

    2017-08-01

    Because of their unique physical and chemical properties, one-dimensional (1-D) metal-oxide nanostructures have been extensively applied in the areas of gas sensors, electrochromic devices, nanogenerators, and so on. Solar water-splitting has attracted extensive research interest because hydrogen generated from solar-driven water splitting is a clean, sustainable, and abundant energy source that not only solves the energy crisis, but also protects the environment. In this comprehensive review, the main synthesis methods, properties, and especially prominent applications in solar water splitting of 1-D metal-oxides, including titanium dioxide (TiO2), zinc oxide (ZnO), tungsten trioxide (WO3), iron oxide (Fe2O3), and copper oxide (CuO) are fully discussed.

  10. Experimental study of compatibility of reduced metal oxides with thermal energy storage lining materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    El-Leathy, Abdelrahman; Danish, Syed Noman; Al-Ansary, Hany; Jeter, Sheldon; Al-Suhaibani, Zeyad

    2016-05-01

    Solid particles have been shown to be able to operate at temperatures higher than 1000 °C in concentrated solar power (CSP) systems with thermal energy storage (TES). Thermochemical energy storage (TCES) using metal oxides have also found to be advantageous over sensible and latent heat storage concepts. This paper investigates the compatibility of the inner lining material of a TES tank with the reduced metal oxide. Two candidate metal oxides are investigated against six candidate lining materials. XRD results for both the materials are investigated and compared before and after the reduction of metal oxide at 1000°C in the presence of lining material. It is found that the lining material rich in zirconia is suitable for such application. Silicon Carbide is also found non-reacting with one of the metal oxides so it needs to be further investigated with other candidate metal oxides.

  11. Design of optimum solid oxide membrane electrolysis cells for metals production

    DOE PAGES

    Guan, Xiaofei; Pal, Uday B.

    2015-12-24

    Oxide to metal conversion is one of the most energy-intensive steps in the value chain for metals production. Solid oxide membrane (SOM) electrolysis process provides a general route for directly reducing various metal oxides to their respective metals, alloys, or intermetallics. Because of its lower energy use and ability to use inert anode resulting in zero carbon emission, SOM electrolysis process emerges as a promising technology that can replace the state-of-the-art metals production processes. In this paper, a careful study of the SOM electrolysis process using equivalent DC circuit modeling is performed and correlated to the experimental results. Finally, amore » discussion on relative importance of each resistive element in the circuit and on possible ways of lowering the rate-limiting resistive elements provides a generic guideline for designing optimum SOM electrolysis cells.« less

  12. Photoinduced electron transfer from semiconductor quantum dots to metal oxide nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Tvrdy, Kevin; Frantsuzov, Pavel A; Kamat, Prashant V

    2011-01-04

    Quantum dot-metal oxide junctions are an integral part of next-generation solar cells, light emitting diodes, and nanostructured electronic arrays. Here we present a comprehensive examination of electron transfer at these junctions, using a series of CdSe quantum dot donors (sizes 2.8, 3.3, 4.0, and 4.2 nm in diameter) and metal oxide nanoparticle acceptors (SnO(2), TiO(2), and ZnO). Apparent electron transfer rate constants showed strong dependence on change in system free energy, exhibiting a sharp rise at small driving forces followed by a modest rise further away from the characteristic reorganization energy. The observed trend mimics the predicted behavior of electron transfer from a single quantum state to a continuum of electron accepting states, such as those present in the conduction band of a metal oxide nanoparticle. In contrast with dye-sensitized metal oxide electron transfer studies, our systems did not exhibit unthermalized hot-electron injection due to relatively large ratios of electron cooling rate to electron transfer rate. To investigate the implications of these findings in photovoltaic cells, quantum dot-metal oxide working electrodes were constructed in an identical fashion to the films used for the electron transfer portion of the study. Interestingly, the films which exhibited the fastest electron transfer rates (SnO(2)) were not the same as those which showed the highest photocurrent (TiO(2)). These findings suggest that, in addition to electron transfer at the quantum dot-metal oxide interface, other electron transfer reactions play key roles in the determination of overall device efficiency.

  13. Fabrication of highly ordered 2D metallic arrays with disc-in-hole binary nanostructures via a newly developed nanosphere lithography

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Xi; Guo, Wei; Wang, Xixi; Liao, Mingdun; Gao, Pingqi; Ye, Jichun

    2017-11-01

    2D metallic arrays with binary nanostructures derived from a nanosphere lithography (NSL) method have been rarely reported. Here, we demonstrate a novel NSL strategy to fabricate highly ordered 2D gold arrays with disc-in-hole binary (DIHB) nanostructures in large scale by employing a sacrificing layer combined with a three-step lift-off process. The structural parameters of the resultant DIHB arrays, such as periodicity, hole diameter, disc diameter and thicknesses can be facilely controlled by tuning the nanospheres size, etching condition, deposition angle and duration, respectively. Due to the intimate interactions between two subcomponents, the DIHB arrays exhibit both an extraordinary high surface-enhanced Raman scattering enhancement factor up to 5 × 108 and a low sheet resistance down to 1.7 Ω/sq. Moreover, the DIHB array can also be used as a metal catalyzed chemical etching catalytic pattern to create vertically-aligned Si nano-tube arrays for anti-reflectance application. This strategy provides a universal route for synthesizing other diverse binary nanostructures with controlled morphology, and thus expands the applications of the NSL to prepare ordered nanostructures with multi-function.

  14. Controlled Synthesis and Utilization of Metal and Oxide Hybrid Nanoparticles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Crane, Cameron

    This dissertation reports the development of synthetic methods concerning rationally-designed, hybrid, and multifunctional nanomaterials. These methods are based on a wet chemical, solution phase approach that utilizes the knowledge of synthetic organic and inorganic chemistry to generate building blocks in solution for the growth of nanocrystals and hybrid nanostructures. This work builds on the prior knowledge of shape-controlled synthesis of noble metal nanocrystals and expands into the challenging realm of the more reactive first row transition metals. Specifically, a microemulsion sol-gel method was developed to synthesize Au-SiO2 dimers as precursors for the synthesis of segmented heterostructures of noble metals that can be used for catalysis. This microemulsion sol-gel method was modified to synthesize an aqueous suspension of oxidation-resistant Cu-SiO2 core-shell nanoparticles that can be used for sensing and catalysis. A thermal decomposition approach was developed, wherein zero-valence metal precursor complexes in the presence of seed nanoparticles produced metal-metal oxide core-shell structures with well-controlled shell thickness. This method was demonstrated on AuCu 3-Fe3O4, AuCu3-NiO, and AuCu3 -MnO core-shell systems. Switching the core from AuCu3 alloy to pure Cu, this method could extend to Cu-Fe3O4 and Cu-MnO systems. Further etching the Cu core in these core-shell structures led to the formation of the hollow metal oxides which provides a versatile route to hollow nanostructures of metal oxides. This work develops the synthetic library of tools for the production of hybrid nanostructures with multiple functionalities.

  15. A molecular catalyst for water oxidation that binds to metal oxide surfaces

    PubMed Central

    Sheehan, Stafford W.; Thomsen, Julianne M.; Hintermair, Ulrich; Crabtree, Robert H.; Brudvig, Gary W.; Schmuttenmaer, Charles A.

    2015-01-01

    Molecular catalysts are known for their high activity and tunability, but their solubility and limited stability often restrict their use in practical applications. Here we describe how a molecular iridium catalyst for water oxidation directly and robustly binds to oxide surfaces without the need for any external stimulus or additional linking groups. On conductive electrode surfaces, this heterogenized molecular catalyst oxidizes water with low overpotential, high turnover frequency and minimal degradation. Spectroscopic and electrochemical studies show that it does not decompose into iridium oxide, thus preserving its molecular identity, and that it is capable of sustaining high activity towards water oxidation with stability comparable to state-of-the-art bulk metal oxide catalysts. PMID:25757425

  16. Tuning Selectivity of CO 2 Hydrogenation Reactions at the Metal/Oxide Interface

    DOE PAGES

    Kattel, Shyam; Liu, Ping; Chen, Jingguang G.

    2017-06-26

    The chemical transformation of CO 2 not only mitigates the anthropogenic CO 2 emission into the Earth’s atmosphere but also produces carbon compounds that can be used as precursors for the production of chemicals and fuels. The activation and conversion of CO 2 can be achieved on multifunctional catalytic sites available at the metal/oxide interface by taking advantage of the synergy between the metal nanoparticles and oxide support. In this paper, we look at the recent progress in mechanistic studies of CO 2 hydrogenation to C1 (CO, CH 3OH, and CH 4) compounds on metal/oxide catalysts. On this basis, wemore » are able to provide a better understanding of the complex reaction network, grasp the capability of manipulating structure and combination of metal and oxide at the interface in tuning selectivity, and identify the key descriptors to control the activity and, in particular, the selectivity of catalysts. In conclusion, we also discuss challenges and future research opportunities for tuning the selective conversion of CO 2 on metal/oxide catalysts.« less

  17. Gas-generated thermal oxidation of a coordination cluster for an anion-doped mesoporous metal oxide.

    PubMed

    Hirai, Kenji; Isobe, Shigehito; Sada, Kazuki

    2015-12-18

    Central in material design of metal oxides is the increase of surface area and control of intrinsic electronic and optical properties, because of potential applications for energy storage, photocatalysis and photovoltaics. Here, we disclose a facile method, inspired by geochemical process, which gives rise to mesoporous anion-doped metal oxides. As a model system, we demonstrate that simple calcination of a multinuclear coordination cluster results in synchronic chemical reactions: thermal oxidation of Ti8O10(4-aminobenzoate)12 and generation of gases including amino-group fragments. The gas generation during the thermal oxidation of Ti8O10(4-aminobenzoate)12 creates mesoporosity in TiO2. Concurrently, nitrogen atoms contained in the gases are doped into TiO2, thus leading to the formation of mesoporous N-doped TiO2. The mesoporous N-doped TiO2 can be easily synthesized by calcination of the multinuclear coordination cluster, but shows better photocatalytic activity than the one prepared by a conventional sol-gel method. Owing to an intrinsic designability of coordination compounds, this facile synthetic will be applicable to a wide range of metal oxides and anion dopants.

  18. Porous metal oxide microspheres from ion exchange resin

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Picart, S.; Parant, P.; Caisso, M.; Remy, E.; Mokhtari, H.; Jobelin, I.; Bayle, J. P.; Martin, C. L.; Blanchart, P.; Ayral, A.; Delahaye, T.

    2015-07-01

    This study is devoted to the synthesis and the characterization of porous metal oxide microsphere from metal loaded ion exchange resin. Their application concerns the fabrication of uranium-americium oxide pellets using the powder-free process called Calcined Resin Microsphere Pelletization (CRMP). Those mixed oxide ceramics are one of the materials envisaged for americium transmutation in sodium fast neutron reactors. The advantage of such microsphere precursor compared to classical oxide powder is the diminution of the risk of fine dissemination which can be critical for the handling of highly radioactive powders such as americium based oxides and the improvement of flowability for the filling of compaction chamber. Those millimetric oxide microspheres incorporating uranium and americium were synthesized and characterizations showed a very porous microstructure very brittle in nature which occurred to be adapted to shaping by compaction. Studies allowed to determine an optimal heat treatment with calcination temperature comprised between 700-800 °C and temperature rate lower than 2 °C/min. Oxide Precursors were die-pressed into pellets and then sintered under air to form regular ceramic pellets of 95% of theoretical density (TD) and of homogeneous microstructure. This study validated thus the scientific feasibility of the CRMP process to prepare bearing americium target in a powder free manner.

  19. Low-Temperature UV-Assisted Fabrication of Metal Oxide Thin Film Transistor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhu, Shuanglin

    Solution processed metal oxide semiconductors have attracted intensive attention in the last several decades and have emerged as a promising candidate for the application of thin film transistor (TFT) due to their nature of transparency, flexibility, high mobility, simple processing technique and potential low manufacturing cost. However, metal oxide thin film fabricated by solution process usually requires a high temperature (over 300 °C), which is above the glass transition temperature of some conventional polymer substrates. In order to fabricate the flexible electronic device on polymer substrates, it is necessary to find a facile approach to lower the fabrication temperature and minimize defects in metal oxide thin film. In this thesis, the electrical properties dependency on temperature is discussed and an UV-assisted annealing method incorporating Deep ultraviolet (DUV)-decomposable additives is demonstrated, which can effectively improve electrical properties solution processed metal oxide semiconductors processed at temperature as low as 220 °C. By studying a widely used indium oxide (In2O3) TFT as a model system, it is worth noted that compared with the sample without UV treatment, the linear mobility and saturation mobility of UV-annealing sample are improved by 56% and 40% respectively. Meanwhile, the subthreshold swing is decreased by 32%, indicating UV-treated device could turn on and off more efficiently. In addition to pure In2O3 film, the similar phenomena have also been observed in indium oxide based Indium-Gallium-Zinc Oxide (IGZO) system. These finding presented in this thesis suggest that the UV assisted annealing process open a new route to fabricate high performance metal oxide semiconductors under low temperatures.

  20. Surface plasmon dispersion analysis in the metal-oxide-metal tunnel diode

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Donohue, J. F.; Wang, E. Y.

    1987-01-01

    A detailed model of surface plasmon dispersion in the metal-oxide-metal tunnel diode is presented in order to clarify the spectral emission from this diode. The model predicts the location of the spectral peaks and the emission between the peaks by considering the effects of retardation on the surface plasmon. A nonradiative mode is found to play a major role in the transition from the visible to UV peaks in the diode spectra.

  1. Process and apparatus for generating elemental sulfur and re-usable metal oxide from spent metal sulfide sorbents

    DOEpatents

    Ayala, Raul E.; Gal, Eli

    1995-01-01

    A process and apparatus for generating elemental sulfur and re-usable metal oxide from spent metal-sulfur compound. Spent metal-sulfur compound is regenerated to re-usable metal oxide by moving a bed of spent metal-sulfur compound progressively through a single regeneration vessel having a first and second regeneration stage and a third cooling and purging stage. The regeneration is carried out and elemental sulfur is generated in the first stage by introducing a first gas of sulfur dioxide which contains oxygen at a concentration less than the stoichiometric amount required for complete oxidation of the spent metal-sulfur compound. A second gas containing sulfur dioxide and excess oxygen at a concentration sufficient for complete oxidation of the partially spent metal-sulfur compound, is introduced into the second regeneration stage. Gaseous sulfur formed in the first regeneration stage is removed prior to introducing the second gas into the second regeneration stage. An oxygen-containing gas is introduced into the third cooling and purging stage. Except for the gaseous sulfur removed from the first stage, the combined gases derived from the regeneration stages which are generally rich in sulfur dioxide and lean in oxygen, are removed from the regenerator as an off-gas and recycled as the first and second gas into the regenerator. Oxygen concentration is controlled by adding air, oxygen-enriched air or pure oxygen to the recycled off-gas.

  2. Preparation of bioactive titania films on titanium metal via anodic oxidation.

    PubMed

    Cui, X; Kim, H-M; Kawashita, M; Wang, L; Xiong, T; Kokubo, T; Nakamura, T

    2009-01-01

    To research the crystal structure and surface morphology of anodic films on titanium metal in different electrolytes under various electrochemical conditions and investigate the effect of the crystal structure of the oxide films on apatite-forming ability in simulated body fluid (SBF). Titanium oxide films were prepared using an anodic oxidation method on the surface of titanium metal in four different electrolytes: sulfuric acid, acetic acid, phosphoric acid and sodium sulfate solutions with different voltages for 1 min at room temperature. Anodic films that consisted of rutile and/or anatase phases with porous structures were formed on titanium metal after anodizing in H(2)SO(4) and Na(2)SO(4) electrolytes, while amorphous titania films were produced after anodizing in CH(3)COOH and H(3)PO(4) electrolytes. Titanium metal with the anatase and/or rutile crystal structure films showed excellent apatite-forming ability and produced a compact apatite layer covering all the surface of titanium after soaking in SBF for 7d, but titanium metal with amorphous titania layers was not able to induce apatite formation. The resultant apatite layer formed on titanium metal in SBF could enhance the bonding strength between living tissue and the implant. Anodic oxidation is believed to be an effective method for preparing bioactive titanium metal as an artificial bone substitute even under load-bearing conditions.

  3. 40 CFR 721.10044 - Metal oxide, modified with alkyl and vinyl terminated polysiloxanes (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 31 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Metal oxide, modified with alkyl and... SUBSTANCES Significant New Uses for Specific Chemical Substances § 721.10044 Metal oxide, modified with alkyl... to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as metal oxide, modified with alkyl...

  4. 40 CFR 721.10147 - Acrylate derivative of alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10147 Section 721.10147 Protection of Environment... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to... ester and mixed metal oxides (PMN P-07-198) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  5. 40 CFR 721.10147 - Acrylate derivative of alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10147 Section 721.10147 Protection of Environment... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to... ester and mixed metal oxides (PMN P-07-198) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  6. 40 CFR 721.10147 - Acrylate derivative of alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10147 Section 721.10147 Protection of Environment... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to... ester and mixed metal oxides (PMN P-07-198) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  7. 40 CFR 721.10574 - Alkylcarboxy polyester acrylate reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10574 Section 721.10574 Protection of Environment... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (PMN P-09-48) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  8. 40 CFR 721.10147 - Acrylate derivative of alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10147 Section 721.10147 Protection of Environment... alkoxysilylalkane ester and mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to... ester and mixed metal oxides (PMN P-07-198) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  9. 40 CFR 721.10574 - Alkylcarboxy polyester acrylate reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10574 Section 721.10574 Protection of Environment... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses... reaction products with mixed metal oxides (PMN P-09-48) is subject to reporting under this section for the...

  10. Facile self-assembly and stabilization of metal oxide nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Charbonneau, Cecile; Holliman, Peter J; Davies, Matthew L; Watson, Trystan M; Worsley, David A

    2015-03-15

    This paper describes a facile method of self-assembling different metal oxide nanoparticles into nanostructured materials via di-carboxylate linkers (oxalic acid) using TiO2 as an example. In this method, the di-carboxylate linkers react with surface hydroxyls on metal oxide nanoparticles forming covalent, ester-like bonds, which enable the binding of two metal oxide particles, one at either end of the linker and facilitates efficient self-assembly of one group of metal oxide nanoparticles homogeneously distributed onto the surface of another group. The oxalate linkers can then be removed by thermal decomposition. This approach is shown to be effective using differently-sized TiO2 nanoparticles, namely in-house synthesized 3-5nm anatase nanocrystals and Degussa P25 titania particles (mean 21nm particle size). Our data show that the application of a high temperature heat treatment (450°C for 30min), conventionally applied to achieve a stable porous structure by thermal decomposition of the linker molecules and by inducing inter-particle necking, damages the surface area of the nanostructured material. However, here we show that sintering at 300°C for 30min or by flash near infrared radiation sintering for 12s efficiently decomposes the oxalate linkers and stabilizes the nanostructure of the material whilst maintaining its high surface area. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Rational design of binder-free noble metal/metal oxide arrays with nanocauliflower structure for wide linear range nonenzymatic glucose detection

    PubMed Central

    Li, Zhenzhen; Xin, Yanmei; Zhang, Zhonghai; Wu, Hongjun; Wang, Peng

    2015-01-01

    One-dimensional nanocomposites of metal-oxide and noble metal were expected to present superior performance for nonenzymatic glucose detection due to its good conductivity and high catalytic activity inherited from noble metal and metal oxide respectively. As a proof of concept, we synthesized gold and copper oxide (Au/CuO) composite with unique one-dimensional nanocauliflowers structure. Due to the nature of the synthesis method, no any foreign binder was needed in keeping either Au or CuO in place. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt in combining metal oxide and noble metal in a binder-free style for fabricating nonenzymatic glucose sensor. The Au/CuO nanocauliflowers with large electrochemical active surface and high electrolyte contact area would promise a wide linear range and high sensitive detection of glucose with good stability and reproducibility due to its good electrical conductivity of Au and high electrocatalytic activity of CuO. PMID:26068705

  12. Wafer-scale two-dimensional semiconductors from printed oxide skin of liquid metals

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carey, Benjamin J.; Ou, Jian Zhen; Clark, Rhiannon M.; Berean, Kyle J.; Zavabeti, Ali; Chesman, Anthony S. R.; Russo, Salvy P.; Lau, Desmond W. M.; Xu, Zai-Quan; Bao, Qiaoliang; Kevehei, Omid; Gibson, Brant C.; Dickey, Michael D.; Kaner, Richard B.; Daeneke, Torben; Kalantar-Zadeh, Kourosh

    2017-02-01

    A variety of deposition methods for two-dimensional crystals have been demonstrated; however, their wafer-scale deposition remains a challenge. Here we introduce a technique for depositing and patterning of wafer-scale two-dimensional metal chalcogenide compounds by transforming the native interfacial metal oxide layer of low melting point metal precursors (group III and IV) in liquid form. In an oxygen-containing atmosphere, these metals establish an atomically thin oxide layer in a self-limiting reaction. The layer increases the wettability of the liquid metal placed on oxygen-terminated substrates, leaving the thin oxide layer behind. In the case of liquid gallium, the oxide skin attaches exclusively to a substrate and is then sulfurized via a relatively low temperature process. By controlling the surface chemistry of the substrate, we produce large area two-dimensional semiconducting GaS of unit cell thickness (~1.5 nm). The presented deposition and patterning method offers great commercial potential for wafer-scale processes.

  13. Wafer-scale two-dimensional semiconductors from printed oxide skin of liquid metals.

    PubMed

    Carey, Benjamin J; Ou, Jian Zhen; Clark, Rhiannon M; Berean, Kyle J; Zavabeti, Ali; Chesman, Anthony S R; Russo, Salvy P; Lau, Desmond W M; Xu, Zai-Quan; Bao, Qiaoliang; Kevehei, Omid; Gibson, Brant C; Dickey, Michael D; Kaner, Richard B; Daeneke, Torben; Kalantar-Zadeh, Kourosh

    2017-02-17

    A variety of deposition methods for two-dimensional crystals have been demonstrated; however, their wafer-scale deposition remains a challenge. Here we introduce a technique for depositing and patterning of wafer-scale two-dimensional metal chalcogenide compounds by transforming the native interfacial metal oxide layer of low melting point metal precursors (group III and IV) in liquid form. In an oxygen-containing atmosphere, these metals establish an atomically thin oxide layer in a self-limiting reaction. The layer increases the wettability of the liquid metal placed on oxygen-terminated substrates, leaving the thin oxide layer behind. In the case of liquid gallium, the oxide skin attaches exclusively to a substrate and is then sulfurized via a relatively low temperature process. By controlling the surface chemistry of the substrate, we produce large area two-dimensional semiconducting GaS of unit cell thickness (∼1.5 nm). The presented deposition and patterning method offers great commercial potential for wafer-scale processes.

  14. Wafer-scale two-dimensional semiconductors from printed oxide skin of liquid metals

    PubMed Central

    Carey, Benjamin J.; Ou, Jian Zhen; Clark, Rhiannon M.; Berean, Kyle J.; Zavabeti, Ali; Chesman, Anthony S. R.; Russo, Salvy P.; Lau, Desmond W. M.; Xu, Zai-Quan; Bao, Qiaoliang; Kavehei, Omid; Gibson, Brant C.; Dickey, Michael D.; Kaner, Richard B.; Daeneke, Torben; Kalantar-Zadeh, Kourosh

    2017-01-01

    A variety of deposition methods for two-dimensional crystals have been demonstrated; however, their wafer-scale deposition remains a challenge. Here we introduce a technique for depositing and patterning of wafer-scale two-dimensional metal chalcogenide compounds by transforming the native interfacial metal oxide layer of low melting point metal precursors (group III and IV) in liquid form. In an oxygen-containing atmosphere, these metals establish an atomically thin oxide layer in a self-limiting reaction. The layer increases the wettability of the liquid metal placed on oxygen-terminated substrates, leaving the thin oxide layer behind. In the case of liquid gallium, the oxide skin attaches exclusively to a substrate and is then sulfurized via a relatively low temperature process. By controlling the surface chemistry of the substrate, we produce large area two-dimensional semiconducting GaS of unit cell thickness (∼1.5 nm). The presented deposition and patterning method offers great commercial potential for wafer-scale processes. PMID:28211538

  15. Porous nanoarchitectures of spinel-type transition metal oxides for electrochemical energy storage systems.

    PubMed

    Park, Min-Sik; Kim, Jeonghun; Kim, Ki Jae; Lee, Jong-Won; Kim, Jung Ho; Yamauchi, Yusuke

    2015-12-14

    Transition metal oxides possessing two kinds of metals (denoted as AxB3-xO4, which is generally defined as a spinel structure; A, B = Co, Ni, Zn, Mn, Fe, etc.), with stoichiometric or even non-stoichiometric compositions, have recently attracted great interest in electrochemical energy storage systems (ESSs). The spinel-type transition metal oxides exhibit outstanding electrochemical activity and stability, and thus, they can play a key role in realising cost-effective and environmentally friendly ESSs. Moreover, porous nanoarchitectures can offer a large number of electrochemically active sites and, at the same time, facilitate transport of charge carriers (electrons and ions) during energy storage reactions. In the design of spinel-type transition metal oxides for energy storage applications, therefore, nanostructural engineering is one of the most essential approaches to achieving high electrochemical performance in ESSs. In this perspective, we introduce spinel-type transition metal oxides with various transition metals and present recent research advances in material design of spinel-type transition metal oxides with tunable architectures (shape, porosity, and size) and compositions on the micro- and nano-scale. Furthermore, their technological applications as electrode materials for next-generation ESSs, including metal-air batteries, lithium-ion batteries, and supercapacitors, are discussed.

  16. Photoinduced electron transfer from semiconductor quantum dots to metal oxide nanoparticles

    PubMed Central

    Tvrdy, Kevin; Frantsuzov, Pavel A.; Kamat, Prashant V.

    2011-01-01

    Quantum dot-metal oxide junctions are an integral part of next-generation solar cells, light emitting diodes, and nanostructured electronic arrays. Here we present a comprehensive examination of electron transfer at these junctions, using a series of CdSe quantum dot donors (sizes 2.8, 3.3, 4.0, and 4.2 nm in diameter) and metal oxide nanoparticle acceptors (SnO2, TiO2, and ZnO). Apparent electron transfer rate constants showed strong dependence on change in system free energy, exhibiting a sharp rise at small driving forces followed by a modest rise further away from the characteristic reorganization energy. The observed trend mimics the predicted behavior of electron transfer from a single quantum state to a continuum of electron accepting states, such as those present in the conduction band of a metal oxide nanoparticle. In contrast with dye-sensitized metal oxide electron transfer studies, our systems did not exhibit unthermalized hot-electron injection due to relatively large ratios of electron cooling rate to electron transfer rate. To investigate the implications of these findings in photovoltaic cells, quantum dot-metal oxide working electrodes were constructed in an identical fashion to the films used for the electron transfer portion of the study. Interestingly, the films which exhibited the fastest electron transfer rates (SnO2) were not the same as those which showed the highest photocurrent (TiO2). These findings suggest that, in addition to electron transfer at the quantum dot-metal oxide interface, other electron transfer reactions play key roles in the determination of overall device efficiency. PMID:21149685

  17. Role of Oxidative Stress in Transformation Induced by Metal Mixture

    PubMed Central

    Martín, Silva-Aguilar; Emilio, Rojas; Mahara, Valverde

    2011-01-01

    Metals are ubiquitous pollutants present as mixtures. In particular, mixture of arsenic-cadmium-lead is among the leading toxic agents detected in the environment. These metals have carcinogenic and cell-transforming potential. In this study, we used a two step cell transformation model, to determine the role of oxidative stress in transformation induced by a mixture of arsenic-cadmium-lead. Oxidative damage and antioxidant response were determined. Metal mixture treatment induces the increase of damage markers and the antioxidant response. Loss of cell viability and increased transforming potential were observed during the promotion phase. This finding correlated significantly with generation of reactive oxygen species. Cotreatment with N-acetyl-cysteine induces effect on the transforming capacity; while a diminution was found in initiation, in promotion phase a total block of the transforming capacity was observed. Our results suggest that oxidative stress generated by metal mixture plays an important role only in promotion phase promoting transforming capacity. PMID:22191014

  18. 40 CFR 721.10148 - Acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10148 Section 721.10148 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL... mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal...

  19. 40 CFR 721.10148 - Acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10148 Section 721.10148 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL... mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal...

  20. 40 CFR 721.10148 - Acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10148 Section 721.10148 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL... mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal...

  1. 40 CFR 721.10148 - Acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal oxides (generic).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... with mixed metal oxides (generic). 721.10148 Section 721.10148 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL... mixed metal oxides (generic). (a) Chemical substance and significant new uses subject to reporting. (1) The chemical substance identified generically as acryloxy alkanoic alkane derivative with mixed metal...

  2. Metal-induced oxidative stress in terrestrial macrolichens.

    PubMed

    Kováčik, Jozef; Dresler, Sławomir; Peterková, Viera; Babula, Petr

    2018-07-01

    Short-term (24 h) responses of Cladonia arbuscula subsp. mitis and Cladonia furcata to copper (CuII) or chromium (CrIII) excess (10 or 100 μM) were compared. C. arbuscula accumulated more Cu and Cr at higher metal doses but both species revealed depletion of K and/or Ca amount. Not only Cu but also Cr typically elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation (fluorescence microscopy detection of total ROS and hydrogen peroxide) and depleted nitric oxide (NO) signal, with Cu showing more negative impact on lipid peroxidation (BODIPY 581/591 C11 staining reagent). Metals and staining reagents also affected anatomical responses and photobiont/mycobiont visibility. Principally different impact of Cu and Cr was observed at antioxidative metabolites level, indicating various ways of metal-induced ROS removal and/or metal chelation: Cu strongly depleted glutathione (GSH) and stimulated phytochelatin 2 (PC2) content while ascorbic acid accumulation was depleted by Cu and stimulated by Cr. Subsequent experiment with GSH biosynthetic inhibitor (buthionine sulfoximine, BSO) revealed that 48 h of exposure is needed to deplete GSH and BSO-induced depletion of GSH and PC2 amounts under Cu or Cr excess elevated ROS but depleted NO. These data suggest close relations between thiols, NO and appearance of oxidative stress (ROS generation) under metallic stress also in lichens. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Deposition behavior of mixed binary metallic powders in cold spraying process

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, X. L.; Mou, S. J.; Wu, X. K.; Zhang, J. S.

    2011-10-01

    In the present study, Zn/Al composite coating was selected for the typical case to study the deposition behavior and the deformation of binary mixing particles in cold spraying process by means of an experiment and numerical simulation. The experimental results demonstrated that the coating had a dense microstructure, and that Zn and Al were uniformly distributed in the coating. Al particles deformed more severely than Zn particles, and extensively deformed Al particles had a local jet-metallic mixing area. The steel substrate underwent a small amount of deformation when impacted by Zn particles, whereas the substrate did not deform when impacted by Al particles. XRD results show that the Zn/Al composite coating did not form a new phase, and only resulted in the mechanical mixing of Zn and Al, producing a pseudo-alloy coating. In addition, a binary Zn/Al multiparticle impact was first simulated using the finite element analysis software ANSYS/LS-DYNA. The effective plastic strain contour, which enabled the description of the particle deposit procedure, was demonstrated. The plastic deformation evolution of Zn and Al particles in the composite coating was analyzed individually, and the curves of effective plastic strain versus time of typical monitored elements at the edge of the Zn and Al particles were plotted. The simulations showed good concordance with the experimental results.

  4. Biomarker sensing using nanostructured metal oxide sensors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalyanasundaram, Krithika

    Resistive Chemical sensors are those gas sensitive materials, typically semiconducting metal oxides, that change their electrical properties in response to a change in the ambient. The key features of a chemosensor are sensitivity, selectivity, response time and sensor stability. The hypothesis of this work is that, since metal oxides are polymorphic compounds, the crystal structure of the specific polymorph determines the relative gas selectivity of the material; also that the morphology of the sensing element determines the gas sensitivity limit. This work focuses on the synthesis of nanostructured metal oxides for chemosensors used in selective 'biomarker' detection. Biomarkers are chemical compounds, products of human metabolism which act as specific disease markers. The biomarkers studied in this work include NO, isoprene, NH3, ethanol and acetone which can all be found in exhaled human breath and which allow the non-invasive detection of a range of diseases. Sensors based on three different metal oxides-MoO3, WO 3, and TiO2 were fabricated using sol-gel, electrospinning and spray pyrolysis techniques and tested both as single elements and in an array configuration (electronic nose). The effects of the processing method used, grain size and shape and crystal phase of the material produced, and temperature effects of postsynthesis processing and sensing have been evaluated. Structural characterization has been carried out using X-Ray Diffraction, Scanning and High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy, while spectroscopic measurements using XPS, Raman and In-situ FTIR provide valuable information about the surface-analyte interactions. This work has shown that the use of monoclinic polymorph of WO3 yields a selective response to NO, while the other phase of the same oxide give a non-selective chemical response. The orthorhombic phase of MoO 3 exhibits specificity to NH3. An explanation for the variable sensing properties is given based on the gas

  5. Metal accumulation and oxidative stress biomarkers in octopus (Octopus vulgaris) from Northwest Atlantic.

    PubMed

    Semedo, Miguel; Reis-Henriques, Maria Armanda; Rey-Salgueiro, Ledicia; Oliveira, Marta; Delerue-Matos, Cristina; Morais, Simone; Ferreira, Marta

    2012-09-01

    Metals are ubiquitous in the environment and accumulate in aquatic organisms and are known for their ability to enhance the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In aquatic species, oxidative stress mechanisms have been studied by measuring antioxidant enzyme activities and oxidative damages in tissues. The aim of this study was to apply and validate a set of oxidative stress biomarkers and correlate responses with metal contents in tissues of common octopus (Octopus vulgaris). Antioxidant enzyme activity (catalase--CAT, superoxide dismutase--SOD and glutathione S-transferases--GST), oxidative damages (lipid peroxidation--LPO and protein carbonyl content--PCO) and metal content (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd and As) in the digestive gland and arm of octopus, collected in the NW Portuguese coast in different periods, were assessed after capture and after 14 days in captivity. CAT and SOD activities were highly responsive to fluctuations in metal concentrations and able to reduce oxidative damage, LPO and PCO in the digestive gland. CAT activity was also positively correlated with SOD and GST activities, which emphasizes that the three enzymes respond in a coordinated way to metal induced oxidative stress. Our results validate the use of oxidative stress biomarkers to assess metal pollution effects in this ecological and commercial relevant species. Moreover, octopus seems to have the ability to control oxidative damage by triggering an antioxidant enzyme coordinated response in the digestive gland. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Facile solid-state synthesis of oxidation-resistant metal nanoparticles at ambient conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Kyu Hyung; Jung, Hyuk Joon; Lee, Ju Hee; Kim, Kyungtae; Lee, Byeongno; Nam, Dohyun; Kim, Chung Man; Jung, Myung-Hwa; Hur, Nam Hwi

    2018-05-01

    A simple and scalable method for the synthesis of metal nanoparticles in the solid-state was developed, which can produce nanoparticles in the absence of solvents. Nanoparticles of coinage metals were synthesized by grinding solid hydrazine and the metal precursors in their acetates and oxides at 25 °C. The silver and gold acetates converted completely within 6 min into Ag and Au nanoparticles, respectively, while complete conversion of the copper acetate to the Cu sub-micrometer particles took about 2 h. Metal oxide precursors were also converted into metal nanoparticles by grinding alone. The resulting particles exhibit distinctive crystalline lattice fringes, indicating the formation of highly crystalline phases. The Cu sub-micrometer particles are better resistant to oxidation and exhibit higher conductivity compared to conventional Cu nanoparticles. This solid-state method was also applied for the synthesis of platinum group metals and intermetallic Cu3Au, which can be further extended to synthesize other metal nanoparticles.

  7. Chronic exposure to iron oxide, chromium oxide, and nickel oxide fumes of metal dressers in a steelworks

    PubMed Central

    Jones, J. Graham; Warner, C. G.

    1972-01-01

    Graham Jones, J., and Warner, C. G. (1972).Brit. J. industr. Med.,29, 169-177. Chronic exposure to iron oxide, chromium oxide, and nickel oxide fumes of metal dressers in a steelworks. Occupational and medical histories, smoking habits, respiratory symptoms, chest radiographs, and ventilatory capacities were studied in 14 steelworkers employed as deseamers of steel ingots for periods of up to 16 years. The men were exposed for approximately five hours of each working shift to fume concentrations ranging from 1·3 to 294·1 mg/m3 made up mainly of iron oxide with varying proportions of chromium oxide and nickel oxide. Four of the men, with 14 to 16 years' exposure, showed radiological evidence of pneumoconiosis classified as ILO categories 2 or 3. Of these, two had pulmonary function within the normal range and two had measurable loss of function, moderate in one case and mild in the other. Many observers would diagnose these cases as siderosis but the authors consider that this term should be reserved for cases exposed to pure iron compounds. The correct diagnosis is mixed-dust pneumoconiosis and the loss of pulmonary function is caused by the effects of the mixture of metallic oxides. It is probable that inhalation of pure iron oxide does not cause fibrotic pulmonary changes, whereas the inhalation of iron oxide plus certain other substances obviously does. Images PMID:5021996

  8. Dimensionally stable metallic hydride composition

    DOEpatents

    Heung, Leung K.

    1994-01-01

    A stable, metallic hydride composition and a process for making such a composition. The composition comprises a uniformly blended mixture of a metal hydride, kieselguhr, and a ballast metal, all in the form of particles. The composition is made by subjecting a metal hydride to one or more hydrogen absorption/desorption cycles to disintegrate the hydride particles to less than approximately 100 microns in size. The particles are partly oxidized, then blended with the ballast metal and the kieselguhr to form a uniform mixture. The mixture is compressed into pellets and calcined. Preferably, the mixture includes approximately 10 vol. % or more kieselguhr and approximately 50 vol. % or more ballast. Metal hydrides that can be used in the composition include Zr, Ti, V, Nb, Pd, as well as binary, tertiary, and more complex alloys of La, Al, Cu, Ti, Co, Ni, Fe, Zr, Mg, Ca, Mn, and mixtures and other combinations thereof. Ballast metals include Al, Cu and Ni.

  9. Metal Oxide Vertical Graphene Hybrid Supercapacitors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Meyyappan, Meyya (Inventor)

    2018-01-01

    A metal oxide vertical graphene hybrid supercapacitor is provided. The supercapacitor includes a pair of collectors facing each other, and vertical graphene electrode material grown directly on each of the pair of collectors without catalyst or binders. A separator may separate the vertical graphene electrode materials.

  10. Effect of surface oxide films on the properties of pulse electric-current sintered metal powders

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xie, Guoqiang; Ohashi, Osamu; Yamaguchi, Norio; Wang, Airu

    2003-11-01

    Metallic powders with various thermodynamic stability oxide films (Ag, Cu, and Al powders) were sintered using a pulse electric-current sintering (PECS) process. Behavior of oxide films at powder surfaces and their effect on the sintering properties were investigated. The results showed that the sintering properties of metallic powders in the PECS process were subject to the thermodynamic stability of oxide films at particles surfaces. The oxide films at Ag powder surfaces are decomposed during sintering with the contact region between the particles being metal/metal bond. The oxide films at Cu powder surfaces are mainly broken via loading pressure at a low sintering temperature. At a high sintering temperature, they are mainly dissolved in the parent metal, and the contact regions turn into the direct metal/metal bonding. Excellent sintering properties can be received. The oxide films at Al powder surfaces are very stable, and cannot be decomposed and dissolved, but broken by plastic deformation of particles under loading pressure at experimental temperatures. The interface between particles is partially bonded via the direct metal/metal bonding making it difficult to achieve good sintered properties.

  11. Controlling Surface Chemistry of Gallium Liquid Metal Alloys to Enhance their Fluidic Properties

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ilyas, Nahid; Cumby, Brad; Cook, Alexander; Durstock, Michael; Tabor, Christopher; Materials; Manufacturing Directorate Team

    Gallium liquid metal alloys (GaLMAs) are one of the key components of emerging technologies in reconfigurable electronics, such as tunable radio frequency antennas and electronic switches. Reversible flow of GaLMA in microchannels of these types of devices is hindered by the instantaneous formation of its oxide skin in ambient environment. The oxide film sticks to most surfaces leaving unwanted metallic residues that can cause undesired electronic properties. In this report, residue-free reversible flow of a binary alloy of gallium (eutectic gallium indium) is demonstrated via two types of surface modifications where the oxide film is either protected by an organic thin film or chemically removed. An interface modification layer (alkyl phosphonic acids) was introduced into the microfluidic system to modify the liquid metal surface and protect its oxide layer. Alternatively, an ion exchange membrane was utilized as a 'sponge-like' channel material to store and slowly release small amounts of HCl to react with the surface oxide of the liquid metal. Characterization of these interfaces at molecular level by surface spectroscopy and microscopy provided with mechanistic details for the interfacial interactions between the liquid metal surface and the channel materials.

  12. Development of Efficient and Stable Inverted Bulk Heterojunction (BHJ) Solar Cells Using Different Metal Oxide Interfaces

    PubMed Central

    Litzov, Ivan; Brabec, Christoph J.

    2013-01-01

    Solution-processed inverted bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells have gained much more attention during the last decade, because of their significantly better environmental stability compared to the normal architecture BHJ solar cells. Transparent metal oxides (MeOx) play an important role as the dominant class for solution-processed interface materials in this development, due to their excellent optical transparency, their relatively high electrical conductivity and their tunable work function. This article reviews the advantages and disadvantages of the most common synthesis methods used for the wet chemical preparation of the most relevant n-type- and p-type-like MeOx interface materials consisting of binary compounds AxBy. Their performance for applications as electron transport/extraction layers (ETL/EEL) and as hole transport/extraction layers (HTL/HEL) in inverted BHJ solar cells will be reviewed and discussed. PMID:28788423

  13. Development of Efficient and Stable Inverted Bulk Heterojunction (BHJ) Solar Cells Using Different Metal Oxide Interfaces.

    PubMed

    Litzov, Ivan; Brabec, Christoph J

    2013-12-10

    Solution-processed inverted bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells have gained much more attention during the last decade, because of their significantly better environmental stability compared to the normal architecture BHJ solar cells. Transparent metal oxides (MeO x ) play an important role as the dominant class for solution-processed interface materials in this development, due to their excellent optical transparency, their relatively high electrical conductivity and their tunable work function. This article reviews the advantages and disadvantages of the most common synthesis methods used for the wet chemical preparation of the most relevant n -type- and p -type-like MeO x interface materials consisting of binary compounds A x B y . Their performance for applications as electron transport/extraction layers (ETL/EEL) and as hole transport/extraction layers (HTL/HEL) in inverted BHJ solar cells will be reviewed and discussed.

  14. The Strength of the Metal. Aluminum Oxide Interface

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pepper, S. V.

    1984-01-01

    The strength of the interface between metals and aluminum oxide is an important factor in the successful operation of devices found throughout modern technology. One finds the interface in machine tools, jet engines, and microelectronic integrated circuits. The strength of the interface, however, should be strong or weak depending on the application. The diverse technological demands have led to some general ideas concerning the origin of the interfacial strength, and have stimulated fundamental research on the problem. Present status of our understanding of the source of the strength of the metal - aluminum oxide interface in terms of interatomic bonds are reviewed. Some future directions for research are suggested.

  15. Carbon monoxide oxidation over three different states of copper: Development of a model metal oxide catalyst

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jernigan, Glenn Geoffrey

    1994-10-01

    Carbon monoxide oxidation was performed over the three different oxidation states of copper -- metallic (Cu), copper (I) oxide (Cu 2O), and copper (II) oxide (CuO) as a test case for developing a model metal oxide catalyst amenable to study by the methods of modern surface science and catalysis. Copper was deposited and oxidized on oxidized supports of aluminum, silicon, molybdenum, tantalum, stainless steel, and iron as well as on graphite. The catalytic activity was found to decrease with increasing oxidation state (Cu > Cu 2O > CuO) and the activation energy increased with increasing oxidation state (Cu, 9 kcal/molmore » < Cu 2O, 14 kcal/mol < CuO, 17 kcal/mol). Reaction mechanisms were determined for the different oxidation states. Lastly, NO reduction by CO was studied. A Cu and CuO catalyst were exposed to an equal mixture of CO and NO at 300--350 C to observe the production of N 2 and CO 2. At the end of each reaction, the catalyst was found to be Cu 2O. There is a need to study the kinetics of this reaction over the different oxidation states of copper.« less

  16. Method for heat treating and sintering metal oxides with microwave radiation

    DOEpatents

    Holcombe, Cressie E.; Dykes, Norman L.; Meek, Thomas T.

    1989-01-01

    A method for microwave sintering materials, primarily metal oxides, is described. Metal oxides do not normally absorb microwave radiation at temperatures ranging from about room temperature to several hundred degrees centrigrade are sintered with microwave radiation without the use of the heretofore required sintering aids. This sintering is achieved by enclosing a compact of the oxide material in a housing or capsule formed of a oxide which has microwave coupling properties at room temprature up to at least the microwave coupling temperature of the oxide material forming the compact. The heating of the housing effects the initial heating of the oxide material forming the compact by heat transference and then functions as a thermal insulator for the encased oxide material after the oxide material reaches a sufficient temperature to adequately absorb or couple with microwave radiation for heating thereof to sintering temperature.

  17. Development of structure-activity relationship for metal oxide nanoparticles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Rong; Zhang, Hai Yuan; Ji, Zhao Xia; Rallo, Robert; Xia, Tian; Chang, Chong Hyun; Nel, Andre; Cohen, Yoram

    2013-05-01

    Nanomaterial structure-activity relationships (nano-SARs) for metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) toxicity were investigated using metrics based on dose-response analysis and consensus self-organizing map clustering. The NP cellular toxicity dataset included toxicity profiles consisting of seven different assays for human bronchial epithelial (BEAS-2B) and murine myeloid (RAW 264.7) cells, over a concentration range of 0.39-100 mg L-1 and exposure time up to 24 h, for twenty-four different metal oxide NPs. Various nano-SAR building models were evaluated, based on an initial pool of thirty NP descriptors. The conduction band energy and ionic index (often correlated with the hydration enthalpy) were identified as suitable NP descriptors that are consistent with suggested toxicity mechanisms for metal oxide NPs and metal ions. The best performing nano-SAR with the above two descriptors, built with support vector machine (SVM) model and of validated robustness, had a balanced classification accuracy of ~94%. An applicability domain for the present data was established with a reasonable confidence level of 80%. Given the potential role of nano-SARs in decision making, regarding the environmental impact of NPs, the class probabilities provided by the SVM nano-SAR enabled the construction of decision boundaries with respect to toxicity classification under different acceptance levels of false negative relative to false positive predictions.Nanomaterial structure-activity relationships (nano-SARs) for metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) toxicity were investigated using metrics based on dose-response analysis and consensus self-organizing map clustering. The NP cellular toxicity dataset included toxicity profiles consisting of seven different assays for human bronchial epithelial (BEAS-2B) and murine myeloid (RAW 264.7) cells, over a concentration range of 0.39-100 mg L-1 and exposure time up to 24 h, for twenty-four different metal oxide NPs. Various nano-SAR building models were

  18. Sorption mechanisms of metals to graphene oxide

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Showalter, Allison R.; Duster, Thomas A.; Szymanowski, Jennifer E. S.

    2016-05-01

    Environmental toxic metal contamination remediation and prevention is an ongoing issue. Graphene oxide is highly sorptive for many heavy metals over a wide pH range under different ionic strength conditions. We present x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy results investigating the binding environment of Pb(II), Cd(II) and U(VI) ions onto multi-layered graphene oxide (MLGO). Analysis indicates that the dominant sorption mechanism of Pb to MLGO changes as a function of pH, with increasing inner sphere contribution as pH increases. In contrast, the sorption mechanism of Cd to MLGO remains constant under the studied pH range. This adsorption mechanism is anmore » electrostatic attraction between the hydrated Cd+2 ion and the MLGO surface. The U(VI), present as the uranyl ion, changes only subtly as a function of pH and is bound to the surface via an inner sphere bond. Knowledge of the binding mechanism for each metal is necessary to help in optimizing environmental remediation or prevention in filtration systems.« less

  19. Self assembled multi-layer nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A; Choi, Daiwon; Kou, Rong; Nie, Zimin; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2013-10-22

    Nanocomposite materials having at least two layers, each layer consisting of one metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene layer were developed. The nanocomposite materials will typically have many alternating layers of metal oxides and graphene layers, bonded in a sandwich type construction and will be incorporated into an electrochemical or energy storage device.

  20. Self assembled multi-layer nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Aksay, Ilhan A; Choi, Daiwon; Kou, Rong; Nie, Zimin; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2015-04-28

    Nanocomposite materials having at least two layers, each layer consisting of one metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene layer were developed. The nanocomposite materials will typically have many alternating layers of metal oxides and graphene layers, bonded in a sandwich type construction and will be incorporated into an electrochemical or energy storage device.

  1. Self assembled multi-layer nanocomposite of graphene and metal oxide materials

    DOEpatents

    Liu, Jun; Choi, Daiwon; Kou, Rong; Nie, Zimin; Wang, Donghai; Yang, Zhenguo

    2014-09-16

    Nanocomposite materials having at least two layers, each layer consisting of one metal oxide bonded to at least one graphene layer were developed. The nanocomposite materials will typically have many alternating layers of metal oxides and graphene layers, bonded in a sandwich type construction and will be incorporated into an electrochemical or energy storage device.

  2. The crystal chemistry of inorganic metal borohydrides and their relation to metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Černý, Radovan; Schouwink, Pascal

    2015-12-01

    The crystal structures of inorganic homoleptic metal borohydrides are analysed with respect to their structural prototypes found amongst metal oxides in the inorganic databases such as Pearson's Crystal Data [Villars & Cenzual (2015). Pearson's Crystal Data. Crystal Structure Database for Inorganic Compounds, Release 2014/2015, ASM International, Materials Park, Ohio, USA]. The coordination polyhedra around the cations and the borohydride anion are determined, and constitute the basis of the structural systematics underlying metal borohydride chemistry in various frameworks and variants of ionic packing, including complex anions and the packing of neutral molecules in the crystal. Underlying nets are determined by topology analysis using the program TOPOS [Blatov (2006). IUCr CompComm. Newsl. 7, 4-38]. It is found that the Pauling rules for ionic crystals apply to all non-molecular borohydride crystal structures, and that the latter can often be derived by simple deformation of the close-packed anionic lattices c.c.p. and h.c.p., by partially removing anions and filling tetrahedral or octahedral sites. The deviation from an ideal close packing is facilitated in metal borohydrides with respect to the oxide due to geometrical and electronic considerations of the BH4(-) anion (tetrahedral shape, polarizability). This review on crystal chemistry of borohydrides and their similarity to oxides is a contribution which should serve materials engineers as a roadmap to design new materials, synthetic chemists in their search for promising compounds to be prepared, and materials scientists in understanding the properties of novel materials.

  3. Plasmonic transparent conducting metal oxide nanoparticles and films for optical sensing applications

    DOEpatents

    Ohodnicki, Jr., Paul R; Wang, Congjun; Andio, Mark A

    2014-01-28

    The disclosure relates to a method of detecting a change in a chemical composition by contacting a doped oxide material with a monitored stream, illuminating the doped oxide material with incident light, collecting exiting light, monitoring an optical signal based on a comparison of the incident light and the exiting light, and detecting a shift in the optical signal. The doped metal oxide has a carrier concentration of at least 10.sup.18/cm.sup.3, a bandgap of at least 2 eV, and an electronic conductivity of at least 10.sup.1 S/cm, where parameters are specified at a temperature of 25.degree. C. The optical response of the doped oxide materials results from the high carrier concentration of the doped metal oxide, and the resulting impact of changing gas atmospheres on that relatively high carrier concentration. These changes in effective carrier densities of conducting metal oxide nanoparticles are postulated to be responsible for the change in measured optical absorption associated with free carriers. Exemplary doped metal oxides include but are not limited to Al-doped ZnO, Sn-doped In.sub.2O.sub.3, Nb-doped TiO.sub.2, and F-doped SnO.sub.2.

  4. Electrocatalytic oxidation of small organic molecules in acid medium: enhancement of activity of noble metal nanoparticles and their alloys by supporting or modifying them with metal oxides.

    PubMed

    Kulesza, Pawel J; Pieta, Izabela S; Rutkowska, Iwona A; Wadas, Anna; Marks, Diana; Klak, Karolina; Stobinski, Leszek; Cox, James A

    2013-11-01

    Different approaches to enhancement of electrocatalytic activity of noble metal nanoparticles during oxidation of small organic molecules (namely potential fuels for low-temperature fuel cells such as methanol, ethanol and formic acid) are described. A physical approach to the increase of activity of catalytic nanoparticles (e.g. platinum or palladium) involves nanostructuring to obtain highly dispersed systems of high surface area. Recently, the feasibility of enhancing activity of noble metal systems through the formation of bimetallic (e.g. PtRu, PtSn, and PdAu) or even more complex (e.g. PtRuW, PtRuSn) alloys has been demonstrated. In addition to possible changes in the electronic properties of alloys, specific interactions between metals as well as chemical reactivity of the added components have been postulated. We address and emphasize here the possibility of utilization of noble metal and alloyed nanoparticles supported on robust but reactive high surface area metal oxides (e.g. WO 3 , MoO 3 , TiO 2 , ZrO 2 , V 2 O 5 , and CeO 2 ) in oxidative electrocatalysis. This paper concerns the way in which certain inorganic oxides and oxo species can act effectively as supports for noble metal nanoparticles or their alloys during electrocatalytic oxidation of hydrogen and representative organic fuels. Among important issues are possible changes in the morphology and dispersion, as well as specific interactions leading to the improved chemisorptive and catalytic properties in addition to the feasibility of long time operation of the discussed systems.

  5. Electrocatalytic oxidation of small organic molecules in acid medium: enhancement of activity of noble metal nanoparticles and their alloys by supporting or modifying them with metal oxides

    PubMed Central

    Kulesza, Pawel J.; Pieta, Izabela S.; Rutkowska, Iwona A.; Wadas, Anna; Marks, Diana; Klak, Karolina; Stobinski, Leszek; Cox, James A.

    2013-01-01

    Different approaches to enhancement of electrocatalytic activity of noble metal nanoparticles during oxidation of small organic molecules (namely potential fuels for low-temperature fuel cells such as methanol, ethanol and formic acid) are described. A physical approach to the increase of activity of catalytic nanoparticles (e.g. platinum or palladium) involves nanostructuring to obtain highly dispersed systems of high surface area. Recently, the feasibility of enhancing activity of noble metal systems through the formation of bimetallic (e.g. PtRu, PtSn, and PdAu) or even more complex (e.g. PtRuW, PtRuSn) alloys has been demonstrated. In addition to possible changes in the electronic properties of alloys, specific interactions between metals as well as chemical reactivity of the added components have been postulated. We address and emphasize here the possibility of utilization of noble metal and alloyed nanoparticles supported on robust but reactive high surface area metal oxides (e.g. WO3, MoO3, TiO2, ZrO2, V2O5, and CeO2) in oxidative electrocatalysis. This paper concerns the way in which certain inorganic oxides and oxo species can act effectively as supports for noble metal nanoparticles or their alloys during electrocatalytic oxidation of hydrogen and representative organic fuels. Among important issues are possible changes in the morphology and dispersion, as well as specific interactions leading to the improved chemisorptive and catalytic properties in addition to the feasibility of long time operation of the discussed systems. PMID:24443590

  6. Synthesis of metal oxide nanoparticles via a robust ``solvent-deficient'' method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, Stacey J.; Huang, Baiyu; Liu, Shengfeng; Liu, Qingyuan; Olsen, Rebecca E.; Boerio-Goates, Juliana; Woodfield, Brian F.

    2014-11-01

    We report an efficient, general methodology for producing high-surface area metal oxide nanomaterials for a vast range of metal oxides, including at least one metal oxide nanomaterial from nearly every transition metal and semi-metal group in the periodic table (groups 3-4 and 6-15) as well as several from the lanthanide group (see Table 1). The method requires only 2-3 simple steps; a hydrated metal salt (usually a nitrate or chloride salt) is ground with bicarbonate (usually NH4HCO3) for 10-30 minutes to form a precursor that is then either untreated or rinsed before being calcined at relatively low temperatures (220-550 °C) for 1-3 hours. The method is thus similar to surfactant-free aqueous methods such as co-precipitation but is unique in that no solvents are added. The resulting ``solvent-deficient'' environment has interesting and unique consequences, including increased crystallinity of the products over other aqueous methods and a mesoporous nature in the inevitable agglomerates. The products are chemically pure and phase pure with crystallites generally 3-30 nm in average size that aggregate into high surface area, mesoporous agglomerates 50-300 nm in size that would be useful for catalyst and gas sensing applications. The versatility of products and efficiency of the method lend its unique potential for improving the industrial viability of a broad family of useful metal oxide nanomaterials. In this paper, we outline the methodology of the solvent-deficient method using our understanding of its mechanism, and we describe the range and quality of nanomaterials it has produced thus far.We report an efficient, general methodology for producing high-surface area metal oxide nanomaterials for a vast range of metal oxides, including at least one metal oxide nanomaterial from nearly every transition metal and semi-metal group in the periodic table (groups 3-4 and 6-15) as well as several from the lanthanide group (see Table 1). The method requires only 2

  7. Transition metal-catalyzed oxidation of atmospheric sulfur: Global implications for the sulfur budget

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alexander, Becky; Park, Rokjin J.; Jacob, Daniel J.; Gong, Sunling

    2009-01-01

    We use observations of the oxygen-17 excess (Δ17O) of sulfate in the Arctic to quantify the sulfate source from aqueous SO2 (S(IV)) oxidation by O2 catalyzed by transition metals. Due to the lack of photochemically produced OH and H2O2 in high latitudes during winter, combined with high anthropogenic SO2 emissions in the Northern Hemisphere, oxidation by O3 is predicted to dominate sulfate formation during winter in this region. However, Δ17O measurements of sulfate aerosol collected in Alert, Canada, are not consistent with O3 as the dominant oxidant and indicate that a S(IV) oxidant with near-zero Δ17O values (O2) is important during winter. We use a global chemical transport model to interpret quantitatively the Alert observations and assess the global importance of sulfate production by Fe(III)- and Mn(II)-catalyzed oxidation of S(IV) by O2. We scale anthropogenic and natural atmospheric metal concentrations to primary anthropogenic sulfate and dust concentrations, respectively. The solubility and oxidation state of these metals is determined by cloud liquid water content, source, and sunlight. By including metal-catalyzed S(IV) oxidation, the model is consistent with the Δ17O magnitudes in the Alert data during winter. Globally, we find that this mechanism contributes 9-17% to sulfate production. The inclusion of metal-catalyzed oxidation does not resolve model discrepancies with surface SO2 and sulfate observations in Europe. Oxygen isotope measurements of sulfate aerosols collected near anthropogenic and dust sources of metals would help to verify the importance of this sulfur oxidation pathway.

  8. A review on chemiresistive room temperature gas sensors based on metal oxide nanostructures, graphene and 2D transition metal dichalcogenides.

    PubMed

    Joshi, Nirav; Hayasaka, Takeshi; Liu, Yumeng; Liu, Huiliang; Oliveira, Osvaldo N; Lin, Liwei

    2018-03-10

    Room-temperature (RT) gas sensing is desirable for battery-powered or self-powered instrumentation that can monitor emissions associated with pollution and industrial processes. This review (with 171 references) discusses recent advances in three types of porous nanostructures that have shown remarkable potential for RT gas sensing. The first group comprises hierarchical oxide nanostructures (mainly oxides of Sn, Ni, Zn, W, In, La, Fe, Co). The second group comprises graphene and its derivatives (graphene, graphene oxides, reduced graphene oxides, and their composites with metal oxides and noble metals). The third group comprises 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (mainly sulfides of Mo, W, Sn, Ni, also in combination with metal oxides). They all have been found to enable RT sensing of gases such as NOx, NH 3 , H 2 , SO 2 , CO, and of vapors such as of acetone, formaldehyde or methanol. Attractive features also include high selectivity and sensitivity, long-term stability and affordable costs. Strengths and limitations of these materials are highlighted, and prospects with respect to the development of new materials to overcome existing limitations are discussed. Graphical Abstract The review summarizes the most significant progresses related to room temperature gas sensing by using hierarchical oxide nanostructures, graphene and its derivatives and 2D transition metal dichalcogenides, highlighting the peculiar gas sensing behavior with enhanced selectivity, sensitivity and long-term stability.

  9. Role of metal oxides in the thermal degradation of poly(vinyl chloride)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gupta, M.C.; Viswanath, S.G.

    Thermal degradation of poly(vinyl chloride) has been studied in the presence of metal oxides by a thermogravimetric method. It follows a two-step mechanism. In the first step chlorine free radical is formed as in the case of pure PVC, and in the second step chlorine free radical replaces oxygen from metal oxide to form metal chloride and oxygen free radical. Subsequently, the oxygen free radical abstracts hydrogen from PVC. Formation of metal chloride is the rate-controlling step. The metal chlorides formed during the thermal degradation either volatilize or decompose simultaneously to lower metallic chlorides depending on the boiling point ormore » the volatilization temperature.« less

  10. Solution-Processed Metal Oxides as Efficient Carrier Transport Layers for Organic Photovoltaics.

    PubMed

    Choy, Wallace C H; Zhang, Di

    2016-01-27

    Carrier (electron and hole) transport layers (CTLs) are essential components for boosting the performance of various organic optoelectronic devices such as organic solar cells and organic light-emitting diodes. Considering the drawbacks of conventional CTLs (easily oxidized/unstable, demanding/costly fabrication, etc.), transition metal oxides with good carrier transport/extraction and superior stability have drawn extensive research interest as CTLs for next-generation devices. In recent years, many research efforts have been made toward the development of solution-based metal oxide CTLs with the focus on low- or even room-temperature processes, which can potentially be compatible with the deposition processes of organic materials and can significantly contribute to the low-cost and scale-up of organic devices. Here, the recent progress of different types of solution-processed metal oxide CTLs are systematically reviewed in the context of organic photovoltaics, from synthesis approaches to device performance. Different approaches for further enhancing the performance of solution-based metal oxide CTLs are also discussed, which may push the future development of this exciting field. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Transition-Metal-Controlled Inorganic Ligand-Supported Non-Precious Metal Catalysts for the Aerobic Oxidation of Amines to Imines.

    PubMed

    Yu, Han; Zhai, Yongyan; Dai, Guoyong; Ru, Shi; Han, Sheng; Wei, Yongge

    2017-10-09

    Most state-of-art transition-metal catalysts usually require organic ligands, which are essential for controlling the reactivity and selectivity of reactions catalyzed by transition metals. However, organic ligands often suffer from severe problems including cost, toxicity, air/moisture sensitivity, and being commercially unavailable. Herein, we show a simple, mild, and efficient aerobic oxidation procedure of amines using inorganic ligand-supported non-precious metal catalysts 1, (NH 4 ) n [MMo 6 O 18 (OH) 6 ] (M=Cu 2+ ; Fe 3+ ; Co 3+ ; Ni 2+ ; Zn 2+ , n=3 or 4), synthesized by a simple one-step method in water at 100 °C, demonstrating that the catalytic activity and selectivity can be significantly improved by changing the central metal atom. In the presence of these catalysts, the catalytic oxidation of primary and secondary amines, as well as the coupling of alcohols and amines, can smoothly proceed to afford various imines with O 2 (1 atm) as the sole oxidant. In particular, the catalysts 1 have transition-metal ion core, and the planar arrangement of the six Mo VI centers at their highest oxidation states around the central heterometal can greatly enhance the Lewis acidity of catalytically active sites, and also enable the electrons in the center to delocalize onto the six edge-sharing MO 6 units, in the same way as ligands in traditional organometallic complexes. The versatility of this methodology maybe opens a path to catalytic oxidation through inorganic ligand-coordinated metal catalysis. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  12. Anchoring and promotion effects of metal oxides on silica supported catalytic gold nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Luo, Jingjie; Ersen, Ovidiu; Chu, Wei; Dintzer, Thierry; Petit, Pierre; Petit, Corinne

    2016-11-15

    The understanding of the interactions between the different components of supported metal doped gold catalysts is of crucial importance for selecting and designing efficient gold catalysts for reactions such as CO oxidation. To progress in this direction, a unique supported nano gold catalyst Au/SS was prepared, and three doped samples (Au/SS@M) were elaborated. The samples before and after test were characterized by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). It is found that the doping metal species prefer to be located on the surface of gold nanoparticles and that a small amount of additional reductive metal leads to more efficient reaction. During the catalytic test, the nano-structure of the metal species transforms depending on its chemical nature. This study allows one to identify and address the contribution of each metal on the CO reaction in regard to oxidative species of gold, silica and dopants. Metal doping leads to different exposure of interface sites between Au and metal oxide, which is one of the key factors for the change of the catalytic activity. The metal oxides help the activation of oxygen by two actions: mobility inside the metal bulk and transfer of water species onto of gold nanoparticles. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  13. Instability analysis of charges trapped in the oxide of metal-ultra thin oxide-semiconductor structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aziz, A.; Kassmi, K.; Maimouni, R.; Olivié, F.; Sarrabayrouse, G.; Martinez, A.

    2005-09-01

    In this paper, we present the theoretical and experimental results of the influence of a charge trapped in ultra-thin oxide of metal/ultra-thin oxide/semiconductor structures (MOS) on the I(Vg) current-voltage characteristics when the conduction is of the Fowler-Nordheim (FN) tunneling type. The charge, which is negative, is trapped near the cathode (metal/oxide interface) after constant current injection by the metal (Vg<0). Of particular interest is the influence on the Δ Vg(Vg) shift over the whole I(Vg) characteristic at high field (greater than the injection field (>12.5 MV/cm)). It is shown that the charge centroid varies linearly with respect to the voltage Vg. The behavior at low field (<12.5 MV/cm) is analyzed in référence A. Aziz, K. Kassmi, Ka. Kassmi, F. Olivié, Semicond. Sci. Technol. 19, 877 (2004) and considers that the trapped charge centroid is fixed. The results obtained make it possible to analyze the influence of the injected charge and the applied field on the centroid position of the trapped charge, and to highlight the charge instability in the ultra-thin oxide of MOS structures.

  14. Direct chemical reduction of neptunium oxide to neptunium metal using calcium and calcium chloride

    DOE PAGES

    Squires, Leah N.; Lessing, Paul

    2016-01-13

    A process of direct reduction of neptunium oxide to neptunium metal using calcium metal as the reducing agent is discussed. After reduction of the oxide to metal, the metal is separated by density from the other components of the reaction mixture and can easily removed upon cooling. Furthermore, the direct reduction technique consistently produces high purity (98%–99% pure) neptunium metal.

  15. Reduction of metal oxides through mechanochemical processing

    DOEpatents

    Froes, Francis H.; Eranezhuth, Baburaj G.; Senkov, Oleg N.

    2000-01-01

    The low temperature reduction of a metal oxide using mechanochemical processing techniques. The reduction reactions are induced mechanically by milling the reactants. In one embodiment of the invention, titanium oxide TiO.sub.2 is milled with CaH.sub.2 to produce TiH.sub.2. Low temperature heat treating, in the range of 400.degree. C. to 700.degree. C., can be used to remove the hydrogen in the titanium hydride.

  16. Customized binary and multi-level HfO2-x-based memristors tuned by oxidation conditions.

    PubMed

    He, Weifan; Sun, Huajun; Zhou, Yaxiong; Lu, Ke; Xue, Kanhao; Miao, Xiangshui

    2017-08-30

    The memristor is a promising candidate for the next generation non-volatile memory, especially based on HfO 2-x , given its compatibility with advanced CMOS technologies. Although various resistive transitions were reported independently, customized binary and multi-level memristors in unified HfO 2-x material have not been studied. Here we report Pt/HfO 2-x /Ti memristors with double memristive modes, forming-free and low operation voltage, which were tuned by oxidation conditions of HfO 2-x films. As O/Hf ratios of HfO 2-x films increase, the forming voltages, SET voltages, and R off /R on windows increase regularly while their resistive transitions undergo from gradually to sharply in I/V sweep. Two memristors with typical resistive transitions were studied to customize binary and multi-level memristive modes, respectively. For binary mode, high-speed switching with 10 3 pulses (10 ns) and retention test at 85 °C (>10 4 s) were achieved. For multi-level mode, the 12-levels stable resistance states were confirmed by ongoing multi-window switching (ranging from 10 ns to 1 μs and completing 10 cycles of each pulse). Our customized binary and multi-level HfO 2-x -based memristors show high-speed switching, multi-level storage and excellent stability, which can be separately applied to logic computing and neuromorphic computing, further suitable for in-memory computing chip when deposition atmosphere may be fine-tuned.

  17. Hierarchical Assembly of Multifunctional Oxide-based Composite Nanostructures for Energy and Environmental Applications

    PubMed Central

    Gao, Pu-Xian; Shimpi, Paresh; Gao, Haiyong; Liu, Caihong; Guo, Yanbing; Cai, Wenjie; Liao, Kuo-Ting; Wrobel, Gregory; Zhang, Zhonghua; Ren, Zheng; Lin, Hui-Jan

    2012-01-01

    Composite nanoarchitectures represent a class of nanostructured entities that integrates various dissimilar nanoscale building blocks including nanoparticles, nanowires, and nanofilms toward realizing multifunctional characteristics. A broad array of composite nanoarchitectures can be designed and fabricated, involving generic materials such as metal, ceramics, and polymers in nanoscale form. In this review, we will highlight the latest progress on composite nanostructures in our research group, particularly on various metal oxides including binary semiconductors, ABO3-type perovskites, A2BO4 spinels and quaternary dielectric hydroxyl metal oxides (AB(OH)6) with diverse application potential. Through a generic template strategy in conjunction with various synthetic approaches— such as hydrothermal decomposition, colloidal deposition, physical sputtering, thermal decomposition and thermal oxidation, semiconductor oxide alloy nanowires, metal oxide/perovskite (spinel) composite nanowires, stannate based nanocompostes, as well as semiconductor heterojunction—arrays and networks have been self-assembled in large scale and are being developed as promising classes of composite nanoarchitectures, which may open a new array of advanced nanotechnologies in solid state lighting, solar absorption, photocatalysis and battery, auto-emission control, and chemical sensing. PMID:22837702

  18. Spin-on metal oxide materials for N7 and beyond patterning applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mannaert, G.; Altamirano-Sanchez, E.; Hopf, T.; Sebaai, F.; Lorant, C.; Petermann, C.; Hong, S.-E.; Mullen, S.; Wolfer, E.; Mckenzie, D.; Yao, H.; Rahman, D.; Cho, J.-Y.; Padmanaban, M.; Piumi, D.

    2017-04-01

    There is a growing interest in new spin on metal oxide hard mask materials for advanced patterning solutions both in BEOL and FEOL processing. Understanding how these materials respond to plasma conditions may create a competitive advantage. In this study patterning development was done for two challenging FEOL applications where the traditional Si based films were replaced by EMD spin on metal oxides, which acted as highly selective hard masks. The biggest advantage of metal oxide hard masks for advanced patterning lays in the process window improvement at lower or similar cost compared to other existing solutions.

  19. Ball lightning from atmospheric discharges via metal nanosphere oxidation: from soils, wood or metals.

    PubMed

    Abrahamson, John

    2002-01-15

    The slow (diffusion-limited) oxidation of metal nanoparticles has previously been proposed as the mechanism for ball lightning energy release, and argued to be the result of a normal lightning strike on soil. Here this basic model of networked nanoparticles is detailed further, and extended to lightning strikes on metal structures, and also to the action of other storm-related discharges or man-made discharges. The basic model predicted the important properties of "average" observed ball lightning, and the extension in this paper also covers high-energy examples of ball lightning. Laboratory checks of the theory are described, and predictions given of what conditions are necessary for observing ball lightning in the laboratory. Key requirements of the model are a sheltered region near the strike foot and starting materials which can generate a metal vapour under intensive heating, including soil, wood or a metal structure. The evolution of hydrocarbons (often plastics) along with metal vapour can ensure the local survival of the metal vapour even in an oxidizing atmosphere. Subsequent condensation of this vapour to metallic nanoparticles in networks provides the coherence of a ball structure, which also releases light over an extended time. Also discussed is the passage of ball lightning through a sheet of building material, including glass, and its occasional charring of flesh on close contact.

  20. Evolution of Optical Binary Fraction in Sparse Stellar Systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Zhongmu; Mao, Caiyan

    2018-05-01

    This work studies the evolution of the fraction of optical binary stars (OBF; not including components such as neutron stars and black holes), which is caused by stellar evolution, and the contributions of various binaries to OBF via the stellar population synthesis technique. It is shown that OBF decreases from 1 to about 0.81 for stellar populations with the Salpeter initial mass function (IMF), and to about 0.85 for the case of the Kroupa IMF, on a timescale of 15 Gyr. This result depends on metallicity, slightly. The contributions of binaries varying with mass ratio, orbital period, separation, spectral types of primary and secondary, contact degree, and pair type to OBF are calculated for stellar populations with different ages and metallicities. The contribution of different kinds of binaries to OBF depends on age and metallicity. The results can be used for estimating the global OBF of star clusters or galaxies from the fraction of a kind of binary. It is also helpful for estimating the primordial and future binary fractions of sparse stellar systems from the present observations. Our results are suitable for studying field stars, open clusters, and the outer part of globular clusters, because the OBF of such objects is affected by dynamical processes, relatively slightly, but they can also be used for giving some limits for other populations.

  1. Composition formulas of Fe-based transition metals-metalloid bulk metallic glasses derived from dual-cluster model of binary eutectics.

    PubMed

    Naz, Gul Jabeen; Dong, Dandan; Geng, Yaoxiang; Wang, Yingmin; Dong, Chuang

    2017-08-22

    It is known that bulk metallic glasses follow simple composition formulas [cluster](glue atom) 1 or 3 with 24 valence electrons within the framework of the cluster-plus-glue-atom model. Though the relevant nearest-neighbor cluster can be readily identified from a devitrification phase, the glue atoms remains poorly defined. The present work is devoted to understanding the composition rule of Fe-(B,P,C) based multi-component bulk metallic glasses, by introducing a cluster-based eutectic liquid model. This model regards a eutectic liquid to be composed of two stable liquids formulated respectively by cluster formulas for ideal metallic glasses from the two eutectic phases. The dual cluster formulas are first established for binary Fe-(B,C,P) eutectics: [Fe-Fe 14 ]B 2 Fe + [B-B 2 Fe 8 ]Fe ≈ Fe 83.3 B 16.7 for eutectic Fe 83 B 17 , [P-Fe 14 ]P + [P-Fe 9 ]P 2 Fe≈Fe 82.8 P 17.2 for Fe 83 P 17 , and [C-Fe 6 ]Fe 3  + [C-Fe 9 ]C 2 Fe ≈ Fe 82.6 C 17.4 for Fe 82.7 C 17.3 . The second formulas in these dual-cluster formulas, being respectively relevant to devitrification phases Fe 2 B, Fe 3 P, and Fe 3 C, well explain the compositions of existing Fe-based transition metals-metalloid bulk metallic glasses. These formulas also satisfy the 24-electron rule. The proposition of the composition formulas for good glass formers, directly from known eutectic points, constitutes a new route towards understanding and eventual designing metallic glasses of high glass forming abilities.

  2. Pulsed laser deposited metal oxide thin films mediated controlled adsorption of proteins

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Se Jin

    Several metal oxide thin films were grown on Si substrate by pulsed laser deposition for controlling adsorption of proteins. No intentional heating of substrate and introduction of oxygen gas during growth were employed. Additionally, fibrinogen, bovine serum albumin (BSA), and lysozyme were used as model protein in this study. The film properties such as cyratllinity, surface roughness, surface electrical charge and chemistry were investigated by many techniques in order to obtain the relationship with protein adsorption. Firstly, as grown Ta2O5 and ZnO thin film were used to study the effects of surface charge on the behaviors of BSA and lysozyme adsorption. The protein thickness results by ellipsometry showed that negatively charged Ta2O5 had a stronger affinity to positively charged lysozyme, while positively charged ZnO had a stronger affinity to negatively charged BSA. The results confirmed electrostatic interaction due to surface charge is one of main factors for determining adsorption of proteins. Furthermore, annealing studies were performed by heat treatment of as grown Ta2O5 and ZnO at 800°C in air ambience. Annealed Ta2O5 thin film had almost wetting property (from 10.02° to less than 1˜2°) and the change of cystallinity (from amorphous to cyrsalline) while annealed ZnO thin film had a reduced contact angle (from 75.65° to 39.41°) and remained to crystalline structure. The fibrinogen thickness on annealed Ta2O5 film was increased compared with as grown sample, while heat treated ZnO film showed much reduction of fibrinogen adsorption. Binary Ta-Zn oxide thin films (TZ) were grown by preparing PLD target composed of 50 wt% Ta2O5 and 50 wt% ZnO. This binary film had IEP pH 7.1 indicating nearly neutral charge in pH 7.4 PBS solution, and hydrophilic property. Ellipsometrical results showed that TZ film had the lowest fibrinogen, BSA and lysozyme thickness after 120 min adsorption compared with Ta2O5 and ZnO. Other samples, bilayer oxide films in

  3. Impacts of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles on marine organisms.

    PubMed

    Baker, Tony J; Tyler, Charles R; Galloway, Tamara S

    2014-03-01

    Increasing use of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles [Me(O)NPs] in products means many will inevitably find their way into marine systems. Their likely fate here is sedimentation following hetero-aggregation with natural organic matter and/or free anions, putting benthic, sediment-dwelling and filter feeding organisms most at risk. In marine systems, Me(O)NPs can absorb to micro-organisms with potential for trophic transfer following consumption. Filter feeders, especially bivalves, accumulate Me(O)NPs through trapping them in mucus prior to ingestion. Benthic in-fauna may directly ingest sedimented Me(O)NPs. In fish, uptake is principally via the gut following drinking, whilst Me(O)NPs caught in gill mucus may affect respiratory processes and ion transport. Currently, environmentally-realistic Me(O)NP concentrations are unlikely to cause significant adverse acute health problems, however sub-lethal effects e.g. oxidative stresses have been noted in many organisms, often deriving from dissolution of Ag, Cu or Zn ions, and this could result in chronic health impacts. Crown Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Milky Way globular cluster metallicity and low-mass X-ray binaries: the red giant influence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vulic, N.; Barmby, P.; Gallagher, S. C.

    2018-02-01

    Galactic and extragalactic studies have shown that metal-rich globular clusters (GCs) are approximately three times more likely to host bright low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) than metal-poor GCs. There is no satisfactory explanation for this metallicity effect. We tested the hypothesis that the number density of red giant branch (RGB) stars is larger in metal-rich GCs, and thus potentially the cause of the metallicity effect. Using Hubble Space Telescope photometry for 109 unique Milky Way GCs, we investigated whether RGB star density was correlated with GC metallicity. Isochrone fitting was used to calculate the number of RGB stars, which were normalized by the GC mass and fraction of observed GC luminosity, and determined density using the volume at the half-light radius (rh). The RGB star number density was weakly correlated with metallicity [Fe/H], giving Spearman and Kendall Rank test p-values of 0.000 16 and 0.000 21 and coefficients rs = 0.35 and τ = 0.24, respectively. This correlation may be biased by a possible dependence of rh on [Fe/H], although studies have shown that rh is correlated with Galactocentric distance and independent of [Fe/H]. The dynamical origin of the rh-metallicity correlation (tidal stripping) suggests that metal-rich GCs may have had more active dynamical histories, which would promote LMXB formation. No correlation between the RGB star number density and metallicity was found when using only the GCs that hosted quiescent LMXBs. A complete census of quiescent LMXBs in our Galaxy is needed to further probe the metallicity effect, which will be possible with the upcoming launch of eROSITA.

  5. Can we judge an oxide by its cover? The case of the metal/oxide interface from first principles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caspary Toroker, Maytal

    Metal/metal-oxide interfaces appear in a wide variety of disciplines including electronics, corrosion, electrochemistry, and catalysis. Specifically, covering a metal-oxide with a metal is often thought to enhance solar energy absorption and to improve photocatalytic activity. For example, the platinum/hematite (Pt/ α-Fe2O3) interface has demonstrated improved functionality. In order to advance our understanding of how metal coverage over an oxide helps performance, we characterize the geometry and electronic structure of the Pt/ α-Fe2O3 interface. We investigate the interface using density functional theory +U, and find a stable crystallographic orientation relationship that agrees with experiment. Furthermore, there are significant changes in the electronic structure of α-Fe2O3 as a result of Pt coverage. We therefore suggest the concept of ``judging'' the electronic properties of an oxide only with its cover. Specifically, covering Fe2O3 with Pt reduces carrier effective mass and creates a continuum of states in the band gap. The former could be beneficial for catalytic activity, while the latter may cause surface recombination. In order to circumvent this problem, we suggest putting metal coverage behind the oxide and far from the electrolyte in a photoelectrochemical device in order to quickly collect electron carriers and avoid recombination with vulnerable holes accumulating as a result of catalysis at the surface. Reference: O. Neufeld and M. Caspary Toroker, ``Can we judge an oxide by its cover? The case of platinum over alpha-Fe2O3 from first principles'', Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 17, 24129 (2015). This research was supported by the Morantz Energy Research Fund, the Nancy and Stephen Grand Technion Energy Program, the I-CORE Program of the Planning and Budgeting Committee, and The Israel Science Foundation (Grant No. 152/11).

  6. Metal Oxide Semi-Conductor Gas Sensors in Environmental Monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Fine, George F.; Cavanagh, Leon M.; Afonja, Ayo; Binions, Russell

    2010-01-01

    Metal oxide semiconductor gas sensors are utilised in a variety of different roles and industries. They are relatively inexpensive compared to other sensing technologies, robust, lightweight, long lasting and benefit from high material sensitivity and quick response times. They have been used extensively to measure and monitor trace amounts of environmentally important gases such as carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. In this review the nature of the gas response and how it is fundamentally linked to surface structure is explored. Synthetic routes to metal oxide semiconductor gas sensors are also discussed and related to their affect on surface structure. An overview of important contributions and recent advances are discussed for the use of metal oxide semiconductor sensors for the detection of a variety of gases—CO, NOx, NH3 and the particularly challenging case of CO2. Finally a description of recent advances in work completed at University College London is presented including the use of selective zeolites layers, new perovskite type materials and an innovative chemical vapour deposition approach to film deposition. PMID:22219672

  7. Acoustic wave-driven oxidized liquid metal-based energy harvester

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jeon, Jinpyo; Chung, Sang Kug; Lee, Jeong-Bong; Doo, Seok Joo; Kim, Daeyoung

    2018-06-01

    We report an oxidized liquid metal droplet-based energy harvester that converts acoustic energy into electrical energy by modulating an electrical double layer that originates from the deformation of the oxidized liquid metal droplet. Gallium-based liquid metal alloy has been developed for various applications owing to the outstanding material properties, such as its high electrical conductivity (metallic property) and unlimited deformability (liquid property). In this study, we demonstrated energy harvesting using an electrical double layer between the acoustic wave-modulated liquid metal droplet and two electrodes. The proposed energy harvester consisted of top and bottom electrodes covered with the dielectric layer and a Gallium-based liquid metal droplet placed between the electrodes. When we applied an external bias voltage and acoustic wave to the proposed device, the contact area between the liquid metal droplet and the electrodes changed, leading to the variation of the capacitance in the electrical double layer and the generation of electrical output current. Using the proposed energy harvester, the maximum output current of 41.2 nA was generated with an applied acoustic wave of 30 Hz. In addition, we studied the relationships between the maximum output current and a variety of factors, such as the size of the liquid metal droplet, the thickness of the hydrophobic layer, and the distance between the top and bottom electrode plates.

  8. Is Neurotoxicity of Metallic Nanoparticles the Cascades of Oxidative Stress?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Song, Bin; Zhang, YanLi; Liu, Jia; Feng, XiaoLi; Zhou, Ting; Shao, LongQuan

    2016-06-01

    With the rapid development of nanotechnology, metallic (metal or metal oxide) nanoparticles (NPs) are widely used in many fields such as cosmetics, the food and building industries, and bio-medical instruments. Widespread applications of metallic NP-based products increase the health risk associated with human exposures. Studies revealed that the brain, a critical organ that consumes substantial amounts of oxygen, is a primary target of metallic NPs once they are absorbed into the body. Oxidative stress (OS), apoptosis, and the inflammatory response are believed to be the main mechanisms underlying the neurotoxicity of metallic NPs. Other studies have disclosed that antioxidant pretreatment or co-treatment can reverse the neurotoxicity of metallic NPs by decreasing the level of reactive oxygen species, up-regulating the activities of antioxidant enzymes, decreasing the proportion of apoptotic cells, and suppressing the inflammatory response. These findings suggest that the neurotoxicity of metallic NPs might involve a cascade of events following NP-induced OS. However, additional research is needed to determine whether NP-induced OS plays a central role in the neurotoxicity of metallic NPs, to develop a comprehensive understanding of the correlations among neurotoxic mechanisms and to improve the bio-safety of metallic NP-based products.

  9. Binary Synergy Strengthening and Toughening of Bio-Inspired Nacre-like Graphene Oxide/Sodium Alginate Composite Paper.

    PubMed

    Chen, Ke; Shi, Bin; Yue, Yonghai; Qi, Juanjuan; Guo, Lin

    2015-08-25

    A crucial requirement for most engineering materials is the excellent balance of strength and toughness. By mimicking the hybrid hierarchical structure in nacre, a kind of nacre-like paper based on binary hybrid graphene oxide (GO)/sodium alginate (SA) building blocks has been successfully fabricated. Systematic evaluation for the mechanical property in different (dry/wet) environment/after thermal annealing shows a perfect combination of high strength and toughness. Both of the parameters are nearly many-times higher than those of similar materials because of the synergistic strengthening/toughening enhancement from the binary GO/SA hybrids. The successful fabrication route offers an excellent approach to design advanced strong integrated nacre-like composite materials, which can be applied in tissue engineering, protection, aerospace, and permeable membranes for separation and delivery.

  10. Patterning with metal-oxide EUV photoresist: patterning capability, resist smoothing, trimming, and selective stripping

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mao, Ming; Lazzarino, Frederic; De Schepper, Peter; De Simone, Danilo; Piumi, Daniele; Luong, Vinh; Yamashita, Fumiko; Kocsis, Michael; Kumar, Kaushik

    2017-03-01

    Inpria metal-oxide photoresist (PR) serves as a thin spin-on patternable hard mask for EUV lithography. Compared to traditional organic photoresists, the ultrathin metal-oxide photoresist ( 12nm after development) effectively mitigates pattern collapse. Because of the high etch resistance of the metal-oxide resist, this may open up significant scope for more aggressive etches, new chemistries, and novel integration schemes. We have previously shown that metal-oxide PR can be successfully used to pattern the block layer for the imec 7-nm technology node[1] and advantageously replace a multiple patterning approach, which significantly reduces the process complexity and effectively decreases the cost. We also demonstrated the formation of 16nm half pitch 1:1 line/space with EUV single print[2], which corresponds to a metal 2 layer for the imec 7-nm technology node. In this paper, we investigate the feasibility of using Inpria's metal-oxide PR for 16nm line/space patterning. In meanwhile, we also explore the different etch process for LWR smoothing, resist trimming and resist stripping.

  11. Structure, Bonding and Surface Chemistry of Metal Oxide Nanoclusters

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-06-23

    studies to cobalt and chromium oxides and to both oxides and pure metal clusters of aluminum, using acetonitrile as the ligand. The chromium solutions...seen in molecular beam experiments. The cobalt oxide sample produced a blue solution, and mass spectra had a single main peak at 551 amu. Mass...of cobalt and nickel oxide cluster cations," J. Phys. Chem. A 116, 5398-5404 (2012). DOI: 10.1021/jp302560p. 4. A. M. Ricks, A. D. Brathwaite, M

  12. Synthesizing new types of ultrathin 2D metal oxide nanosheets via half-successive ion layer adsorption and reaction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gao, Linjie; Li, Yaguang; Xiao, Mu; Wang, Shufang; Fu, Guangsheng; Wang, Lianzhou

    2017-06-01

    Two-dimensional (2D) metal oxide nanosheets have demonstrated their great potential in a broad range of applications. The existing synthesis strategies are mainly preparing 2D nanosheets from layered and specific transition metal oxides. How to prepare the other types of metal oxides as ultrathin 2D nanosheets remains unsolved, especially for metal oxides containing alkali, alkaline earth metal, and multiple metal elements. Herein, we developed a half-successive ion layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method, which could synthesize those types of metal oxides as ultrathin 2D nanosheets. The synthesized 2D metal oxides nanosheets are within 1 nm level thickness and 500 m2 · g-1 level surface area. This method allows us to develop many new types of ultrathin 2D metal oxides nanosheets that have never been prepared before.

  13. Metal oxides for optoelectronic applications.

    PubMed

    Yu, Xinge; Marks, Tobin J; Facchetti, Antonio

    2016-04-01

    Metal oxides (MOs) are the most abundant materials in the Earth's crust and are ingredients in traditional ceramics. MO semiconductors are strikingly different from conventional inorganic semiconductors such as silicon and III-V compounds with respect to materials design concepts, electronic structure, charge transport mechanisms, defect states, thin-film processing and optoelectronic properties, thereby enabling both conventional and completely new functions. Recently, remarkable advances in MO semiconductors for electronics have been achieved, including the discovery and characterization of new transparent conducting oxides, realization of p-type along with traditional n-type MO semiconductors for transistors, p-n junctions and complementary circuits, formulations for printing MO electronics and, most importantly, commercialization of amorphous oxide semiconductors for flat panel displays. This Review surveys the uniqueness and universality of MOs versus other unconventional electronic materials in terms of materials chemistry and physics, electronic characteristics, thin-film fabrication strategies and selected applications in thin-film transistors, solar cells, diodes and memories.

  14. Metal oxides for optoelectronic applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yu, Xinge; Marks, Tobin J.; Facchetti, Antonio

    2016-04-01

    Metal oxides (MOs) are the most abundant materials in the Earth's crust and are ingredients in traditional ceramics. MO semiconductors are strikingly different from conventional inorganic semiconductors such as silicon and III-V compounds with respect to materials design concepts, electronic structure, charge transport mechanisms, defect states, thin-film processing and optoelectronic properties, thereby enabling both conventional and completely new functions. Recently, remarkable advances in MO semiconductors for electronics have been achieved, including the discovery and characterization of new transparent conducting oxides, realization of p-type along with traditional n-type MO semiconductors for transistors, p-n junctions and complementary circuits, formulations for printing MO electronics and, most importantly, commercialization of amorphous oxide semiconductors for flat panel displays. This Review surveys the uniqueness and universality of MOs versus other unconventional electronic materials in terms of materials chemistry and physics, electronic characteristics, thin-film fabrication strategies and selected applications in thin-film transistors, solar cells, diodes and memories.

  15. Design Principles for Metal Oxide Redox Materials for Solar-Driven Isothermal Fuel Production.

    PubMed

    Michalsky, Ronald; Botu, Venkatesh; Hargus, Cory M; Peterson, Andrew A; Steinfeld, Aldo

    2015-04-01

    The performance of metal oxides as redox materials is limited by their oxygen conductivity and thermochemical stability. Predicting these properties from the electronic structure can support the screening of advanced metal oxides and accelerate their development for clean energy applications. Specifically, reducible metal oxide catalysts and potential redox materials for the solar-thermochemical splitting of CO 2 and H 2 O via an isothermal redox cycle are examined. A volcano-type correlation is developed from available experimental data and density functional theory. It is found that the energy of the oxygen-vacancy formation at the most stable surfaces of TiO 2 , Ti 2 O 3 , Cu 2 O, ZnO, ZrO 2 , MoO 3 , Ag 2 O, CeO 2 , yttria-stabilized zirconia, and three perovskites scales with the Gibbs free energy of formation of the bulk oxides. Analogously, the experimental oxygen self-diffusion constants correlate with the transition-state energy of oxygen conduction. A simple descriptor is derived for rapid screening of oxygen-diffusion trends across a large set of metal oxide compositions. These general trends are rationalized with the electronic charge localized at the lattice oxygen and can be utilized to predict the surface activity, the free energy of complex bulk metal oxides, and their oxygen conductivity.

  16. Epitaxial heterojunctions of oxide semiconductors and metals on high temperature superconductors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vasquez, Richard P. (Inventor); Hunt, Brian D. (Inventor); Foote, Marc C. (Inventor)

    1994-01-01

    Epitaxial heterojunctions formed between high temperature superconductors and metallic or semiconducting oxide barrier layers are provided. Metallic perovskites such as LaTiO3, CaVO3, and SrVO3 are grown on electron-type high temperature superconductors such as Nd(1.85)Ce(0.15)CuO(4-x). Alternatively, transition metal bronzes of the form A(x)MO(3) are epitaxially grown on electron-type high temperature superconductors. Also, semiconducting oxides of perovskite-related crystal structures such as WO3 are grown on either hole-type or electron-type high temperature superconductors.

  17. A molecular cross-linking approach for hybrid metal oxides

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jung, Dahee; Saleh, Liban A. M.; Berkson, Zachariah J.

    Developing methods to create hybrid materials to maximize their transformative capabilities has been the subject of significant interest. In particular, several key methods have been developed to manipulate earth abundant metal oxides such as TiO 2 to produce hybrid materials with improved or new properties relevant to a broad spectrum of applications. Here, we introduce a new approach we refer to as “molecular doping”, whereby a hybrid molecular boron oxide material is formed from polyhedral boron cluster precursors of the type [B 12(OH) 12] 2-. This new approach is enabled by the inherent robustness of the boron cluster molecular buildingmore » block, which is compatible with harsh thermal and oxidizing conditions that are necessary for the synthesis of many metal oxides. In this work, we show how this material can be successfully interfaced with TiO 2, resulting in boron-rich hybrid materials with unprecedented photophysical and electrochemical properties.« less

  18. Core–Shell Au@Metal-Oxide Nanoparticle Electrocatalysts for Enhanced Oxygen Evolution

    DOE PAGES

    Strickler, Alaina L.; Escudero-Escribano, Marı́a; Jaramillo, Thomas F.

    2017-09-25

    Enhanced catalysis for electrochemical oxygen evolution is essential for the efficacy of many renewable energy technologies, including water electrolyzers and metal–air batteries. Recently, Au supports have been shown to enhance the activity of many 3d transition metal-oxide thin films for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. In this paper, we translate the beneficial impact of Au supports to high surface area, device-ready core–shell nanoparticles consisting of a Au-core and a metal-oxide shell (Au@M xO y where M = Ni, Co, Fe, and CoFe). Through a systematic evaluation, we establish trends in performance and illustrate the universal activity enhancementmore » when employing the Au-core in the 3d transition metal-oxide nanoparticles. Finally, the highest activity particles, Au@CoFeO x, demonstrate an overpotential of 328 ± 3 mV over a 2 h stability test at 10 mA cm –2, illustrating that strategically coupling Au support and mixed metal-oxide effects in a core–shell nanoparticle morphology is a promising avenue to achieve device-ready, high-performance OER catalysts.« less

  19. Core–Shell Au@Metal-Oxide Nanoparticle Electrocatalysts for Enhanced Oxygen Evolution

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Strickler, Alaina L.; Escudero-Escribano, Marı́a; Jaramillo, Thomas F.

    Enhanced catalysis for electrochemical oxygen evolution is essential for the efficacy of many renewable energy technologies, including water electrolyzers and metal–air batteries. Recently, Au supports have been shown to enhance the activity of many 3d transition metal-oxide thin films for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. In this paper, we translate the beneficial impact of Au supports to high surface area, device-ready core–shell nanoparticles consisting of a Au-core and a metal-oxide shell (Au@M xO y where M = Ni, Co, Fe, and CoFe). Through a systematic evaluation, we establish trends in performance and illustrate the universal activity enhancementmore » when employing the Au-core in the 3d transition metal-oxide nanoparticles. Finally, the highest activity particles, Au@CoFeO x, demonstrate an overpotential of 328 ± 3 mV over a 2 h stability test at 10 mA cm –2, illustrating that strategically coupling Au support and mixed metal-oxide effects in a core–shell nanoparticle morphology is a promising avenue to achieve device-ready, high-performance OER catalysts.« less

  20. Method of CO and/or CO.sub.2 hydrogenation to higher hydrocarbons using doped mixed-metal oxides

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shekhawat, Dushyant; Berry, David A.; Haynes, Daniel J.

    2017-03-21

    A method of hydrogenation utilizing a reactant gas mixture comprising a carbon oxide and a hydrogen agent, and a hydrogenation catalyst comprising a mixed-metal oxide containing metal sites supported and/or incorporated into the lattice. The mixed-metal oxide comprises a pyrochlore, a brownmillerite, or mixtures thereof doped at the A-site or the B-site. The metal site may comprise a deposited metal, where the deposited metal is a transition metal, an alkali metal, an alkaline earth metal, or mixtures thereof. Contact between the carbon oxide, hydrogen agent, and hydrogenation catalyst under appropriate conditions of temperature, pressure and gas flow rate generate amore » hydrogenation reaction and produce a hydrogenated product made up of carbon from the carbon oxide and some portion of the hydrogen agent. The carbon oxide may be CO, CO.sub.2, or mixtures thereof and the hydrogen agent may be H.sub.2. In a particular embodiment, the hydrogenated product comprises olefins, paraffins, or mixtures thereof.« less

  1. Impact dynamics of oxidized liquid metal drops

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Qin; Brown, Eric; Jaeger, Heinrich M.

    2013-04-01

    With exposure to air, many liquid metals spontaneously generate an oxide layer on their surface. In oscillatory rheological tests, this skin is found to introduce a yield stress that typically dominates the elastic response but can be tuned by exposing the metal to hydrochloric acid solutions of different concentration. We systematically studied the normal impact of eutectic gallium-indium (eGaIn) drops under different oxidation conditions and show how this leads to two different dynamical regimes. At low impact velocity (or low Weber number), eGaIn droplets display strong recoil and rebound from the impacted surface when the oxide layer is removed. In addition, the degree of drop deformation or spreading during impact is controlled by the oxide skin. We show that the scaling law known from ordinary liquids for the maximum spreading radius as a function of impact velocity can still be applied to the case of oxidized eGaIn if an effective Weber number We is employed that uses an effective surface tension factoring in the yield stress. In contrast, no influence on spreading from different oxidations conditions is observed for high impact velocity. This suggests that the initial kinetic energy is mostly damped by bulk viscous dissipation. Results from both regimes can be collapsed in an impact phase diagram controlled by two variables, the maximum spreading factor Pm=R0/Rm, given by the ratio of initial to maximum drop radius, and the impact number K=We/Re4/5, which scales with the effective Weber number We as well as the Reynolds number Re. The data exhibit a transition from capillary to viscous behavior at a critical impact number Kc≈0.1.

  2. Two-Dimensional Metal Oxide Nanomaterials for Next-Generation Rechargeable Batteries.

    PubMed

    Mei, Jun; Liao, Ting; Kou, Liangzhi; Sun, Ziqi

    2017-12-01

    The exponential increase in research focused on two-dimensional (2D) metal oxides has offered an unprecedented opportunity for their use in energy conversion and storage devices, especially for promising next-generation rechargeable batteries, such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (NIBs), as well as some post-lithium batteries, including lithium-sulfur batteries, lithium-air batteries, etc. The introduction of well-designed 2D metal oxide nanomaterials into next-generation rechargeable batteries has significantly enhanced the performance of these energy-storage devices by providing higher chemically active interfaces, shortened ion-diffusion lengths, and improved in-plane carrier-/charge-transport kinetics, which have greatly promoted the development of nanotechnology and the practical application of rechargeable batteries. Here, the recent progress in the application of 2D metal oxide nanomaterials in a series of rechargeable LIBs, NIBs, and other post lithium-ion batteries is reviewed relatively comprehensively. Current opportunities and future challenges for the application of 2D nanomaterials in energy-storage devices to achieve high energy density, high power density, stable cyclability, etc. are summarized and outlined. It is believed that the integration of 2D metal oxide nanomaterials in these clean energy devices offers great opportunities to address challenges driven by increasing global energy demands. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  3. Impact of Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles on Plant: A Critical Review

    PubMed Central

    Rastogi, Anshu; Zivcak, Marek; Sytar, Oksana; Kalaji, Hazem M.; He, Xiaolan; Mbarki, Sonia; Brestic, Marian

    2017-01-01

    An increasing need of nanotechnology in various industries may cause a huge environment dispersion of nanoparticles in coming years. A concern about nanoparticles interaction with flora and fauna is raised due to a growing load of it in the environment. In recent years, several investigators have shown impact of nanoparticles on plant growth and their accumulation in food source. This review examines the research performed in the last decade to show how metal and metal oxide nanoparticles are influencing the plant metabolism. We addressed here, the impact of nanoparticle on plant in relation to its size, concentration, and exposure methodology. Based on the available reports, we proposed oxidative burst as a general mechanism through which the toxic effects of nanoparticles are spread in plants. This review summarizes the current understanding and the future possibilities of plant-nanoparticle research. PMID:29075626

  4. Impact of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles on plant: A critical review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rastogi, Anshu; Zivcak, Marek; Sytar, Oksana; Kalaji, Hazem M.; He, Xiaolan; Mbarki, Sonia; Brestic, Marian

    2017-10-01

    An increasing need of nanotechnology in various industries may cause a huge environment dispersion of nanoparticles in coming years. A concern about nanoparticles interaction with flora and fauna is raised due to a growing load of it in the environment. In recent years, several investigators have shown impact of nanoparticles on plant growth and its accumulation in food source. This review examines the research performed in the last decade to show how metal and metal oxide nanoparticles are influencing the plant metabolisms. We addressed here, the impact of nanoparticle on plant in relation to its size, concentration, and exposure methodology. Based on the available reports, we proposed oxidative burst as a general mechanism through which the toxic effects of nanoparticles are spread in plants. This review summarises the current understanding and the future possibilities of plant-nanoparticle research.

  5. VUV photo-oxidation of gaseous benzene combined with ozone-assisted catalytic oxidation: Effect on transition metal catalyst

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huang, Haibao; Lu, Haoxian; Zhan, Yujie; Liu, Gaoyuan; Feng, Qiuyu; Huang, Huiling; Wu, Muyan; Ye, Xinguo

    2017-01-01

    Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) cause the major air pollution concern. In this study, a series of ZSM-5 supported transition metals were prepared by impregnation method. They were combined with vacuum UV (VUV) photo-oxidation in a continuous-flow packed-bed reactor and used for the degradation of benzene, a typical toxic VOCs. Compared with VUV photo-oxidation alone, the introduction of catalysts can greatly enhance benzene oxidation under the help of O3, the by-products from VUV irradiation, via ozone-assisted catalytic oxidation (OZCO). The catalytic activity of transition metals towards benzene oxidation followed the order: Mn > Co > Cu > Ni > Fe. Mn achieved the best catalytic activity due to the strongest capability for O3 catalytic decomposition and utilization. Benzene and O3 removal efficiency reached as high as 97% and 100% after 360 min, respectively. O3 was catalytically decomposed, generating highly reactive oxidants such as rad OH and rad O for benzene oxidation.

  6. Chemicl-looping combustion of coal with metal oxide oxygen carriers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Siriwardane, R.; Tian, H.; Richards, G.

    2009-01-01

    The combustion and reoxidation properties of direct coal chemical-looping combustion (CLC) over CuO, Fe2O3, Co3O4, NiO, and Mn2O3 were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and bench-scale fixed-bed flow reactor studies. When coal is heated in either nitrogen or carbon dioxide (CO2), 50% of weight loss was observed because of partial pyrolysis, consistent with the proximate analysis. Among various metal oxides evaluated, CuO showed the best reaction properties: CuO can initiate the reduction reaction as low as 500 °C and complete the full combustion at 700 °C. In addition, the reduced copper can be fully reoxidized by air at 700 °C.more » The combustion products formed during the CLC reaction of the coal/metal oxide mixture are CO2 and water, while no carbon monoxide was observed. Multicycle TGA tests and bench-scale fixed-bed flow reactor tests strongly supported the feasibility of CLC of coal by using CuO as an oxygen carrier. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of solid reaction products indicated some changes in the surface morphology of a CuO-coal sample after reduction/oxidation reactions at 800 °C. However, significant surface sintering was not observed. The interactions of fly ash with metal oxides were investigated by X-ray diffraction and thermodynamic analysis. Overall, the results indicated that it is feasible to develop CLC with coal by metal oxides as oxygen carriers.« less

  7. Highly Sensitive Sensors Based on Metal-Oxide Nanocolumns for Fire Detection.

    PubMed

    Lee, Kwangjae; Shim, Young-Seok; Song, Young Geun; Han, Soo Deok; Lee, Youn-Sung; Kang, Chong-Yun

    2017-02-07

    A fire detector is the most important component in a fire alarm system. Herein, we present the feasibility of a highly sensitive and rapid response gas sensor based on metal oxides as a high performance fire detector. The glancing angle deposition (GLAD) technique is used to make the highly porous structure such as nanocolumns (NCs) of various metal oxides for enhancing the gas-sensing performance. To measure the fire detection, the interface circuitry for our sensors (NiO, SnO₂, WO₃ and In₂O₃ NCs) is designed. When all the sensors with various metal-oxide NCs are exposed to fire environment, they entirely react with the target gases emitted from Poly(vinyl chlorides) (PVC) decomposed at high temperature. Before the emission of smoke from the PVC (a hot-plate temperature of 200 °C), the resistances of the metal-oxide NCs are abruptly changed and SnO₂ NCs show the highest response of 2.1. However, a commercial smoke detector did not inform any warning. Interestingly, although the NiO NCs are a p -type semiconductor, they show the highest response of 577.1 after the emission of smoke from the PVC (a hot-plate temperature of 350 °C). The response time of SnO₂ NCs is much faster than that of a commercial smoke detector at the hot-plate temperature of 350 °C. In addition, we investigated the selectivity of our sensors by analyzing the responses of all sensors. Our results show the high potential of a gas sensor based on metal-oxide NCs for early fire detection.

  8. Enhanced sun protection of nano-sized metal oxide particles over conventional metal oxide particles: an in vitro comparative study.

    PubMed

    Singh, P; Nanda, A

    2014-06-01

    A systematic and detailed study has been designed and conducted, taking into account some of the proposed benefits such as increased efficiency, transparency, unique texture, protection of active ingredient and higher consumer compliance of cosmetics containing nano-sized metal oxides. This study also presents an in vitro method to determine sun protection factor of the investigational sunscreen cream samples containing zinc oxide and titanium dioxide with a varied range of particle size. Finally, a comparative study has been conducted between metal oxide particles, conventional as well as nanoparticles. All the skin cosmetics formulated were thermally stable with a pH ranging from 7.9 to 8.2. Moreover, the fatty acid substance content and residue were found to be analogous to the standard values in each skin cosmetic. The skin cosmetics containing the titanium or zinc oxide nanoparticles were found to have improved spreadability as compared to skin cosmetics containing conventional titanium or zinc oxide particles, respectively. All skin cosmetics were found to have uniform distribution of the particles. The sunscreen creams containing zinc oxide nanoparticles and titanium dioxide nanoparticles were found to have higher in vitro sun protection factor (SPF of 3.65 for ZnO nanoparticles and 4.93 for TiO2 nanoparticles) as compared to that of sunscreen creams containing conventional zinc oxide particles (SPF = 2.90) and conventional titanium dioxide (SPF = 1.29), clearly indicating the effect of reduction in particles size, from micro to nano, on the sun protection factor. Good texture, better spreadability and enhanced in vitro SPF proved the advantageous role of nanoparticles in cosmetics. © 2014 Society of Cosmetic Scientists and the Société Française de Cosmétologie.

  9. Modifying the catalytic and adsorption properties of metals and oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yagodovskii, V. D.

    2015-11-01

    A new approach to interpreting the effect of promoters (inhibitors) of nonmetals and metals added to a host metal (catalyst) is considered. Theoretical calculations are based on a model of an actual two-dimensional electron gas and adsorbate particles. An equation is derived for the isotherm of induced adsorption on metals and semiconductors with respect to small fillings of θ ~ 0.1-0.15. The applicability of this equation is verified experimentally for metals (Ag, Pd, Cu, Fe, and Ni), graphitized ash, and semiconductor oxides Ta2O5, ZnO, and Ni. The applicability of the theoretical model of promotion is verified by the hydrogenation reaction of CO on ultradispersed nickel powder. The use of plasmachemical surface treatments of metals and oxides, accompanied by an increase in activity and variation in selectivity, are investigated based on the dehydrocyclization reactions of n-hexane and the dehydrogenation and dehydration of alcohols. It is established that such treatments for metals (Pt, Cu, Ni, and Co) raise their activity due to the growth of the number of active centers upon an increase in the activation energy. Applying XPES and XRD methods to metallic catalysts, it is shown that the rise in activity is associated with a change in their surface states (variation in the structural characteristics of metal particles and localization of certain forms of carbon in catalytically active centers). It is shown that plasmachemical treatments also alter their surface composition, surface activity, and raise their activity when used with complex phosphate oxides of the NASICON type. It is shown by the example of conversion of butanol-2 that abrupt variations in selectivity (prevalence of dehydration over dehydrogenation and vice versa) occur, depending on the type of plasma. It is concluded that plasmachemical treatments of metals and ZnO and NiO alter the isosteric heats and entropies of adsorption of isopropanol.

  10. Spectroscopy of hot subdwarf binaries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kreuzer, Simon; Irrgang, Andreas; Heber, Ulrich

    2018-06-01

    We present a status report of our spectroscopic analysis of subdwarf binaries consisting of a subdwarf and a F/G/K-type main-sequence companion. These systems selected from SDSS photometry show significant excess in the (infra-)red which can not be explained by interstellar reddening. Inspection of SDSS spectra revealed that most of them are composite spectrum sdB binaries. Once their spectra are disentangled, a detailed spectral analysis can be carried out. It reveals Teff, log g and the metal abundance of each individual star. The cool companion is of particular interest, because its spectrum reveals the original chemical composition of the binary.

  11. All-alkoxide synthesis of strontium-containing metal oxides

    DOEpatents

    Boyle, Timothy J.

    2001-01-01

    A method for making strontium-containing metal-oxide ceramic thin films from a precursor liquid by mixing a strontium neo-pentoxide dissolved in an amine solvent and at least one metal alkoxide dissolved in a solvent, said at least one metal alkoxide selected from the group consisting of alkoxides of calcium, barium, bismuth, cadmium, lead, titanium, tantalum, hafnium, tungsten, niobium, zirconium, yttrium, lanthanum, antimony, chromium and thallium, depositing a thin film of the precursor liquid on a substrate, and heating the thin film in the presence of oxygen at between 550 and 700.degree. C.

  12. Tailoring transition-metal hydroxides and oxides by photon-induced reactions

    DOE PAGES

    Niu, Kai -Yang; Fang, Liang; Ye, Rong; ...

    2016-10-18

    Controlled synthesis of transition-metal hydroxides and oxides with earth-abundant elements have attracted significant interest because of their wide applications, for example as battery electrode materials or electrocatalysts for fuel generation. Here, we report the tuning of the structure of transition-metal hydroxides and oxides by controlling chemical reactions using an unfocused laser to irradiate the precursor solution. A Nd:YAG laser with wavelengths of 532 nm or 1064 nm was used. The Ni 2+, Mn 2+, and Co 2+ ion-containing aqueous solution undergoes photo-induced reactions and produces hollow metal-oxide nanospheres (Ni 0.18Mn 0.45Co 0.37O x) or core–shell metal hydroxide nanoflowers ([Ni 0.15Mnmore » 0.15Co 0.7(OH) 2](NO 3) 0.2•H 2O), depending on the laser wavelengths. We propose two reaction pathways, either by photo-induced redox reaction or hydrolysis reaction, which are responsible for the formation of distinct nanostructures. As a result, the study of photon-induced materials growth shines light on the rational design of complex nanostructures with advanced functionalities.« less

  13. Low temperature formation of electrode having electrically conductive metal oxide surface

    DOEpatents

    Anders, Simone; Anders, Andre; Brown, Ian G.; McLarnon, Frank R.; Kong, Fanping

    1998-01-01

    A low temperature process is disclosed for forming metal suboxides on substrates by cathodic arc deposition by either controlling the pressure of the oxygen present in the deposition chamber, or by controlling the density of the metal flux, or by a combination of such adjustments, to thereby control the ratio of oxide to metal in the deposited metal suboxide coating. The density of the metal flux may, in turn, be adjusted by controlling the discharge current of the arc, by adjusting the pulse length (duration of on cycle) of the arc, and by adjusting the frequency of the arc, or any combination of these parameters. In a preferred embodiment, a low temperature process is disclosed for forming an electrically conductive metal suboxide, such as, for example, an electrically conductive suboxide of titanium, on an electrode surface, such as the surface of a nickel oxide electrode, by such cathodic arc deposition and control of the deposition parameters. In the preferred embodiment, the process results in a titanium suboxide-coated nickel oxide electrode exhibiting reduced parasitic evolution of oxygen during charging of a cell made using such an electrode as the positive electrode, as well as exhibiting high oxygen overpotential, resulting in suppression of oxygen evolution at the electrode at full charge of the cell.

  14. Reactivity of metal oxide sorbents for removal of sulfur compounds from coal gases at high temperature and pressure

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kwon, K.C.; Crowe, E.R.; Gangwal, S.K.

    1997-01-01

    Hot-gas desulfurization for the integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) process has been investigated to effectively remove hydrogen sulfide with various metal oxide sorbents at high temperatures and pressures. Metal oxide sorbents such as zinc titanate oxide, zinc ferrite oxide, copper oxide, manganese oxide and calcium oxide were found to be promising sorbents in comparison with other removal methods such as membrane separation and reactive membrane separation. The removal reaction of H{sub 2}S from coal gas mixtures with zinc titanate oxide sorbents was conducted in a batch reactor. The main objectives of this research are to formulate promising metal oxide sorbentsmore » for removal of hydrogen sulfide from coal gas mixtures, to compare reactivity of a formulated sorbent with a sorbent supplied by the Research Triangle Institute at high temperatures and pressures, and to determine effects of concentrations of moisture contained in coal gas mixtures on equilibrium absorption of H{sub 2}S into metal oxide sorbents. Promising durable metal oxide sorbents with high-sulfur-absorbing capacity were formulated by mixing active metal oxide powders with inert metal oxide powders and calcining these powder mixtures.« less

  15. Formation of self-organized nanoporous anodic oxide from metallic gallium.

    PubMed

    Pandey, Bipin; Thapa, Prem S; Higgins, Daniel A; Ito, Takashi

    2012-09-25

    This paper reports the formation of self-organized nanoporous gallium oxide by anodization of solid gallium metal. Because of its low melting point (ca. 30 °C), metallic gallium can be shaped into flexible structures, permitting the fabrication of nanoporous anodic oxide monoliths within confined spaces like the inside of a microchannel. Here, solid gallium films prepared on planar substrates were employed to investigate the effects of anodization voltage (1, 5, 10, 15 V) and H(2)SO(4) concentration (1, 2, 4, 6 M) on anodic oxide morphology. Self-organized nanopores aligned perpendicular to the film surface were obtained upon anodization of gallium films in ice-cooled 4 and 6 M aqueous H(2)SO(4) at 10 and 15 V. Nanopore formation could be recognized by an increase in anodic current after a current decrease reflecting barrier oxide formation. The average pore diameter was in the range of 18-40 nm with a narrow diameter distribution (relative standard deviation ca. 10-20%), and was larger at lower H(2)SO(4) concentration and higher applied voltage. The maximum thickness of nanoporous anodic oxide was ca. 2 μm. In addition, anodic formation of self-organized nanopores was demonstrated for a solid gallium monolith incorporated at the end of a glass capillary. Nanoporous anodic oxide monoliths formed from a fusible metal will lead to future development of unique devices for chemical sensing and catalysis.

  16. CATALYTIC OXIDATION OF DIMETHYL SULFIDE WITH OZONE: EFFECTS OF PROMOTER AND PHYSICO-CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF METAL OXIDE CATALYSTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    This study reports improved catalytic activities and stabilities for the oxidation of dimethyl sulfide (DMS), a major pollutant of pulp and paper mills. Ozone was used as an oxidant and activities of Cu, Mo, Cr and Mn oxides, and mixed metal oxides supported on -alumina, were tes...

  17. Reactor vessel using metal oxide ceramic membranes

    DOEpatents

    Anderson, Marc A.; Zeltner, Walter A.

    1992-08-11

    A reaction vessel for use in photoelectrochemical reactions includes as its reactive surface a metal oxide porous ceramic membrane of a catalytic metal such as titanium. The reaction vessel includes a light source and a counter electrode. A provision for applying an electrical bias between the membrane and the counter electrode permits the Fermi levels of potential reaction to be favored so that certain reactions may be favored in the vessel. The electrical biasing is also useful for the cleaning of the catalytic membrane.

  18. Radiation hardening of metal-oxide semi-conductor (MOS) devices by boron

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Danchenko, V.

    1974-01-01

    Technique using boron effectively protects metal-oxide semiconductor devices from ionizing radiation without using shielding materials. Boron is introduced into insulating gate oxide layer at semiconductor-insulator interface.

  19. Interface plasmonic properties of silver coated by ultrathin metal oxides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sytchkova, A.; Zola, D.; Grilli, M. L.; Piegari, A.; Fang, M.; He, H.; Shao, J.

    2011-09-01

    Many fields of high technology take advantage of conductor-dielectric interface properties. Deeper knowledge of physical processes that determine the optical response of the structures containing metal-dielectric interfaces is important for improving the performance of thin film devices containing such materials. Here we present a study on optical properties of several ultrathin metal oxides deposited over thin silver layers. Some widely used materials (Al2O3, SiO2, Y2O3, HfO2) were selected for deposition by r.f. sputtering, and the created metal-dielectric structures with two of them, alumina and silica, were investigated in this work using attenuated total reflectance (ATR) technique and by variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry (VASE). VASE was performed with a help of a commercial ellipsometer at various incident angles and in a wide spectral range. A home-made sample holder manufactured for WVASE ellipsometer and operational in Otto configuration has been implemented for angle-resolved and spectral ATR measurements. Simultaneous analysis of data obtained by these two independent techniques allows elaboration of a representative model for plasmonic-related phenomena at metal-dielectric interface. The optical constants of the interface layers formed between metal and ultrathin oxide layers are investigated. A series of oxides chosen for this study allows a comparative analysis aimed for selection of the most appropriate materials for different applications.

  20. Polyoxometalate electrocatalysts based on earth-abundant metals for efficient water oxidation in acidic media

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blasco-Ahicart, Marta; Soriano-López, Joaquín; Carbó, Jorge J.; Poblet, Josep M.; Galan-Mascaros, J. R.

    2018-01-01

    Water splitting is a promising approach to the efficient and cost-effective production of renewable fuels, but water oxidation remains a bottleneck in its technological development because it largely relies on noble-metal catalysts. Although inexpensive transition-metal oxides are competitive water oxidation catalysts in alkaline media, they cannot compete with noble metals in acidic media, in which hydrogen production is easier and faster. Here, we report a water oxidation catalyst based on earth-abundant metals that performs well in acidic conditions. Specifically, we report the enhanced catalytic activity of insoluble salts of polyoxometalates with caesium or barium counter-cations for oxygen evolution. In particular, the barium salt of a cobalt-phosphotungstate polyanion outperforms the state-of-the-art IrO2 catalyst even at pH < 1, with an overpotential of 189 mV at 1 mA cm-2. In addition, we find that a carbon-paste conducting support with a hydrocarbon binder can improve the stability of metal-oxide catalysts in acidic media by providing a hydrophobic environment.

  1. Heat and mass transfer enhancement of nanofluids flow in the presence of metallic/metallic-oxides spherical nanoparticles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qureshi, M. Zubair Akbar; Ali, Kashif; Iqbal, M. Farooq; Ashraf, Muhammad; Ahmad, Shazad

    2017-01-01

    The numerical study of heat and mass transfer for an incompressible magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) nanofluid flow containing spherical shaped nanoparticles through a channel with moving porous walls is presented. Further, another endeavour is to study the effect of two types of fluids, namely the metallic nanofluid (Au + water) and metallic-oxides nanofluid (TiO2 + water) are studied. The phenomena of spherical metallic and metallic-oxides nanoparticles have been also mathematically modelled by using the Hamilton-Crosser model. The influence of the governing parameters on the flow, heat and mass transfer aspects of the problem is discussed. The outcome of the investigation may be beneficial to the application of biotechnology and industrial purposes. Numerical solutions for the velocity, heat and mass transfer rate at the boundary are obtained and analysed.

  2. Evidence for single metal two electron oxidative addition and reductive elimination at uranium.

    PubMed

    Gardner, Benedict M; Kefalidis, Christos E; Lu, Erli; Patel, Dipti; McInnes, Eric J L; Tuna, Floriana; Wooles, Ashley J; Maron, Laurent; Liddle, Stephen T

    2017-12-01

    Reversible single-metal two-electron oxidative addition and reductive elimination are common fundamental reactions for transition metals that underpin major catalytic transformations. However, these reactions have never been observed together in the f-block because these metals exhibit irreversible one- or multi-electron oxidation or reduction reactions. Here we report that azobenzene oxidises sterically and electronically unsaturated uranium(III) complexes to afford a uranium(V)-imido complex in a reaction that satisfies all criteria of a single-metal two-electron oxidative addition. Thermolysis of this complex promotes extrusion of azobenzene, where H-/D-isotopic labelling finds no isotopomer cross-over and the non-reactivity of a nitrene-trap suggests that nitrenes are not generated and thus a reductive elimination has occurred. Though not optimally balanced in this case, this work presents evidence that classical d-block redox chemistry can be performed reversibly by f-block metals, and that uranium can thus mimic elementary transition metal reactivity, which may lead to the discovery of new f-block catalysis.

  3. Impact dynamics of oxidized liquid metal drops.

    PubMed

    Xu, Qin; Brown, Eric; Jaeger, Heinrich M

    2013-04-01

    With exposure to air, many liquid metals spontaneously generate an oxide layer on their surface. In oscillatory rheological tests, this skin is found to introduce a yield stress that typically dominates the elastic response but can be tuned by exposing the metal to hydrochloric acid solutions of different concentration. We systematically studied the normal impact of eutectic gallium-indium (eGaIn) drops under different oxidation conditions and show how this leads to two different dynamical regimes. At low impact velocity (or low Weber number), eGaIn droplets display strong recoil and rebound from the impacted surface when the oxide layer is removed. In addition, the degree of drop deformation or spreading during impact is controlled by the oxide skin. We show that the scaling law known from ordinary liquids for the maximum spreading radius as a function of impact velocity can still be applied to the case of oxidized eGaIn if an effective Weber number We* is employed that uses an effective surface tension factoring in the yield stress. In contrast, no influence on spreading from different oxidations conditions is observed for high impact velocity. This suggests that the initial kinetic energy is mostly damped by bulk viscous dissipation. Results from both regimes can be collapsed in an impact phase diagram controlled by two variables, the maximum spreading factor P(m)=R(0)/R(m), given by the ratio of initial to maximum drop radius, and the impact number K=We*/Re(4/5), which scales with the effective Weber number We* as well as the Reynolds number Re. The data exhibit a transition from capillary to viscous behavior at a critical impact number K(c)≈0.1.

  4. Non-hydrolytic metal oxide films for perovskite halide overcoating and stabilization

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Martinson, Alex B.; Kim, In Soo

    A method of protecting a perovskite halide film from moisture and temperature includes positioning the perovskite halide film in a chamber. The chamber is maintained at a temperature of less than 200 degrees Celsius. An organo-metal compound is inserted into the chamber. A non-hydrolytic oxygen source is subsequently inserted into the chamber. The inserting of the organo-metal compound and subsequent inserting of the non-hydrolytic oxygen source into the chamber is repeated for a predetermined number of cycles. The non-hydrolytic oxygen source and the organo-metal compound interact in the chamber to deposit a non-hydrolytic metal oxide film on perovskite halide film.more » The non-hydrolytic metal oxide film protects the perovskite halide film from relative humidity of greater than 35% and a temperature of greater than 150 degrees Celsius, respectively.« less

  5. Influence of uranium hydride oxidation on uranium metal behaviour

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Patel, N.; Hambley, D.; Clarke, S.A.

    2013-07-01

    This work addresses concerns that the rapid, exothermic oxidation of active uranium hydride in air could stimulate an exothermic reaction (burning) involving any adjacent uranium metal, so as to increase the potential hazard arising from a hydride reaction. The effect of the thermal reaction of active uranium hydride, especially in contact with uranium metal, does not increase in proportion with hydride mass, particularly when considering large quantities of hydride. Whether uranium metal continues to burn in the long term is a function of the uranium metal and its surroundings. The source of the initial heat input to the uranium, ifmore » sufficient to cause ignition, is not important. Sustained burning of uranium requires the rate of heat generation to be sufficient to offset the total rate of heat loss so as to maintain an elevated temperature. For dense uranium, this is very difficult to achieve in naturally occurring circumstances. Areas of the uranium surface can lose heat but not generate heat. Heat can be lost by conduction, through contact with other materials, and by convection and radiation, e.g. from areas where the uranium surface is covered with a layer of oxidised material, such as burned-out hydride or from fuel cladding. These rates of heat loss are highly significant in relation to the rate of heat generation by sustained oxidation of uranium in air. Finite volume modelling has been used to examine the behaviour of a magnesium-clad uranium metal fuel element within a bottle surrounded by other un-bottled fuel elements. In the event that the bottle is breached, suddenly, in air, it can be concluded that the bulk uranium metal oxidation reaction will not reach a self-sustaining level and the mass of uranium oxidised will likely to be small in relation to mass of uranium hydride oxidised. (authors)« less

  6. Gas Sensors Based on One Dimensional Nanostructured Metal-Oxides: A Review

    PubMed Central

    Arafat, M. M.; Dinan, B.; Akbar, Sheikh A.; Haseeb, A. S. M. A.

    2012-01-01

    Recently one dimensional (1-D) nanostructured metal-oxides have attracted much attention because of their potential applications in gas sensors. 1-D nanostructured metal-oxides provide high surface to volume ratio, while maintaining good chemical and thermal stabilities with minimal power consumption and low weight. In recent years, various processing routes have been developed for the synthesis of 1-D nanostructured metal-oxides such as hydrothermal, ultrasonic irradiation, electrospinning, anodization, sol-gel, molten-salt, carbothermal reduction, solid-state chemical reaction, thermal evaporation, vapor-phase transport, aerosol, RF sputtering, molecular beam epitaxy, chemical vapor deposition, gas-phase assisted nanocarving, UV lithography and dry plasma etching. A variety of sensor fabrication processing routes have also been developed. Depending on the materials, morphology and fabrication process the performance of the sensor towards a specific gas shows a varying degree of success. This article reviews and evaluates the performance of 1-D nanostructured metal-oxide gas sensors based on ZnO, SnO2, TiO2, In2O3, WOx, AgVO3, CdO, MoO3, CuO, TeO2 and Fe2O3. Advantages and disadvantages of each sensor are summarized, along with the associated sensing mechanism. Finally, the article concludes with some future directions of research. PMID:22969344

  7. Evaluation of transition metal oxide as carrier-selective contacts for silicon heterojunction solar cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ding, L.; Boccard, Matthieu; Holman, Zachary

    2015-04-06

    "Reducing light absorption in the non-active solar cell layers, while enabling the extraction of the photogenerated minority carriers at quasi-Fermi levels are two key factors to improve current generation and voltage, and therefore efficiency of silicon heterojunction solar devices. To address these two critical aspects, transition metal oxide materials have been proposed as alternative to the n- and p-type amorphous silicon used as electron and hole selective contacts, respectively. Indeed, transition metal oxides such as molybdenum oxide, titanium oxide, nickel oxide or tungsten oxide combine a wide band gap typically over 3 eV with a band structure and theoretical bandmore » alignment with silicon that results in high transparency to the solar spectrum and in selectivity for the transport of only one carrier type. Improving carrier extraction or injection using transition metal oxide has been a topic of investigation in the field of organic solar cells and organic LEDs; from these pioneering works a lot of knowledge has been gained on materials properties, ways to control these during synthesis and deposition, and their impact on device performance. Recently, the transfer of some of this knowledge to silicon solar cells and the successful application of some metal oxide to contact heterojunction devices have gained much attention. In this contribution, we investigate the suitability of various transition metal oxide films (molybdenum oxide, titanium oxide, and tungsten oxide) deposited either by thermal evaporation or sputtering as transparent hole or electron selective transport layer for silicon solar cells. In addition to systematically characterize their optical and structural properties, we use photoemission spectroscopy to relate compound stoichiometry to band structure and characterize band alignment to silicon. The direct silicon/metal oxide interface is further analyzed by quasi-steady state photoconductance decay method to assess the quality of

  8. Correction: A binary catalyst system of a cationic Ru-CNC pincer complex with an alkali metal salt for selective hydroboration of carbon dioxide.

    PubMed

    Ng, Chee Koon; Wu, Jie; Hor, T S Andy; Luo, He-Kuan

    2016-12-22

    Correction for 'A binary catalyst system of a cationic Ru-CNC pincer complex with an alkali metal salt for selective hydroboration of carbon dioxide' by Chee Koon Ng et al., Chem. Commun., 2016, 52, 11842-11845.

  9. Coupling characteristics of thin-film metal-oxide-metal diodes at 10.6 microns

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wang, S. Y.; Gustafson, T. K.; Izawa, T.

    1975-01-01

    Direct detection experiments have demonstrated the coherent coupling of 10.6 micrometer radiation into photolithographically fabricated metal-oxide-metal tunnel junctions. A CO2 laser beam mechanically chopped at 1 KHz was focused at a variable angle of incidence with a power density of about 10 W/sq cm at the diodes. Diodes in which the junction resistance was much greater than the lead resistance displayed angular characteristics dominated by coherent antenna coupling.

  10. Band gap tuning in transition metal oxides by site-specific substitution

    DOEpatents

    Lee, Ho Nyung; Chisholm, Jr., Matthew F; Jellison, Jr., Gerald Earle; Singh, David J; Choi, Woo Seok

    2013-12-24

    A transition metal oxide insulator composition having a tuned band gap includes a transition metal oxide having a perovskite or a perovskite-like crystalline structure. The transition metal oxide includes at least one first element selected form the group of Bi, Ca, Ba, Sr, Li, Na, Mg, K, Pb, and Pr; and at least one second element selected from the group of Ti, Al, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zr, Nb, Mo, Ru, Rh, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Os, Ir, and Pt. At least one correlated insulator is integrated into the crystalline structure, including REMO.sub.3, wherein RE is at least one Rare Earth element, and wherein M is at least one element selected from the group of Co, V, Cr, Ni, Mn, and Fe. The composition is characterized by a band gap of less of 4.5 eV.

  11. Bipolar resistive switching in graphene oxide based metal insulator metal structure for non-volatile memory applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Rakesh; Kumar, Ravi; Kumar, Anil; Kashyap, Rajesh; Kumar, Mukesh; Kumar, Dinesh

    2018-05-01

    Graphene oxide based devices have attracted much attention recently because of their possible application in next generation electronic devices. In this study, bipolar resistive switching characteristics of graphene oxide based metal insulator metal structure were investigated for nonvolatile memories. The graphene oxide was prepared by the conventional Hummer's method and deposited on ITO coated glass by spin-coating technique. The dominant mechanism of resistive switching is the formation and rupture of the conductive filament inside the graphene oxide. The conduction mechanism for low and high resistance states are dominated by two mechanism the ohmic conduction and space charge limited current (SCLC) mechanism, respectively. Atomic Force Microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Cyclic-Voltammetry were conducted to observe the morphology, structure and behavior of the material. The fabricated device with Al/GO/ITO structure exhibited reliable bipolar resistive switching with set & reset voltage of -2.3 V and 3V respectively.

  12. Solidification phenomena of binary organic mixtures

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chang, K.

    1982-01-01

    The coalescence rates and motion of liquid bubbles in binary organic mixtures were studied. Several factors such as temperature gradient, composition gradient, interfacial tension, and densities of the two phases play important roles in separation of phases of immiscible liquids. An attempt was made to study the effect of initial compositions on separation rates of well-dispersed organic mixtures at different temperatures and, ultimately, on the homogeneity of solidification of the immiscible binary organic liquids. These organic mixtures serve as models for metallic pseudo binary systems under study. Two specific systems were investigated: ethyl salicylate - diethyl glycol and succinonitrile - water.

  13. Metal and Metal Oxide Interactions and Their Catalytic Consequences for Oxygen Reduction Reaction

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jia, Qingying; Ghoshal, Shraboni; Li, Jingkun

    2017-06-01

    Many industrial catalysts are composed of metal particles supported on metal oxides (MMO). It is known that the catalytic activity of MMO materials is governed by metal and metal oxide interactions (MMOI), but how to optimize MMO systems via manipulation of MMOI remains unclear, due primarily to the ambiguous nature of MMOI. Herein, we develop a Pt/NbOx/C system with tunable structural and electronic properties via a modified arc plasma deposition method. We unravel the nature of MMOI by characterizing this system under reactive conditions utilizing combined electrochemical, microscopy, and in situ spectroscopy. We show that Pt interacts with the Nbmore » in unsaturated NbOx owing to the oxygen deficiency in the MMO interface, whereas Pt interacts with the O in nearly saturated NbOx, and further interacts with Nb when the oxygen atoms penetrate into the Pt cluster at elevated potentials. While the Pt–Nb interactions do not benefit the inherent activity of Pt toward oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), the Pt–O interactions improve the ORR activity by shortening the Pt–Pt bond distance. Pt donates electrons to NbOx in both Pt–Nb and Pt–O cases. The resultant electron efficiency stabilizes low-coordinated Pt sites, hereby stabilizing small Pt particles. This determines the two characteristic features of MMO systems: dispersion of small metal particles and high catalytic durability. These findings contribute to our understandings of MMO catalytic systems.« less

  14. Controlling the physics and chemistry of binary and ternary praseodymium and cerium oxide systems.

    PubMed

    Niu, Gang; Zoellner, Marvin Hartwig; Schroeder, Thomas; Schaefer, Andreas; Jhang, Jin-Hao; Zielasek, Volkmar; Bäumer, Marcus; Wilkens, Henrik; Wollschläger, Joachim; Olbrich, Reinhard; Lammers, Christian; Reichling, Michael

    2015-10-14

    Rare earth praseodymium and cerium oxides have attracted intense research interest in the last few decades, due to their intriguing chemical and physical characteristics. An understanding of the correlation between structure and properties, in particular the surface chemistry, is urgently required for their application in microelectronics, catalysis, optics and other fields. Such an understanding is, however, hampered by the complexity of rare earth oxide materials and experimental methods for their characterisation. Here, we report recent progress in studying high-quality, single crystalline, praseodymium and cerium oxide films as well as ternary alloys grown on Si(111) substrates. Using these well-defined systems and based on a systematic multi-technique surface science approach, the corresponding physical and chemical properties, such as the surface structure, the surface morphology, the bulk-surface interaction and the oxygen storage/release capability, are explored in detail. We show that specifically the crystalline structure and the oxygen stoichiometry of the oxide thin films can be well controlled by the film preparation method. This work leads to a comprehensive understanding of the properties of rare earth oxides and highlights the applications of these versatile materials. Furthermore, methanol adsorption studies are performed on binary and ternary rare earth oxide thin films, demonstrating the feasibility of employing such systems for model catalytic studies. Specifically for ceria systems, we find considerable stability against normal environmental conditions so that they can be considered as a "materials bridge" between surface science models and real catalysts.

  15. One-pot synthesis of binary metal organic frameworks (HKUST-1 and UiO-66) for enhanced adsorptive removal of water contaminants.

    PubMed

    Azhar, Muhammad Rizwan; Abid, Hussein Rasool; Sun, Hongqi; Periasamy, Vijay; Tadé, Moses O; Wang, Shaobin

    2017-03-15

    In this study, binary metal organic frameworks (MOFs) with HKUST-1 and UiO-66 have been synthesized in a one-pot process. The synthesized MOFs were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N 2 adsorption, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The meso-porosity and thermal stability of the binary MOFs were higher than those of single HKUST-1 or UiO-66. The synthesized MOF hybrids were then tested for adsorptive removal of methylene blue (MB) from wastewater in terms of kinetic and isothermal adsorption as compared to a commercially available activated carbon (AC). All the synthesized MOFs showed significant removal of MB under a wide range of pH. The adsorption capacities of HKUST-1 are higher than UiO-66 and commercial AC while the binary MOFs presented an even higher adsorption capacity than single MOFs. This is the first time that binary HKUST-1 and UiO-66 MOFs have been successfully synthesized and demonstrated enhanced adsorptive removal of contaminants. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Magnetic preferential orientation of metal oxide superconducting materials

    DOEpatents

    Capone, D.W.; Dunlap, B.D.; Veal, B.W.

    1990-07-17

    A superconductor comprised of a polycrystalline metal oxide such as YBa[sub 2]Cu[sub 3]O[sub 7[minus]X] (where 0 < X < 0.5) exhibits superconducting properties and is capable of conducting very large current densities. By aligning the two-dimensional Cu-O layers which carry the current in the superconducting state in the a- and b-directions, i.e., within the basal plane, a high degree of crystalline axes alignment is provided between adjacent grains permitting the conduction of high current densities. The highly anisotropic diamagnetic susceptibility of the polycrystalline metal oxide material permits the use of an applied magnetic field to orient the individual crystals when in the superconducting state to substantially increase current transport between adjacent grains. In another embodiment, the anisotropic paramagnetic susceptibility of rare-earth ions substituted into the oxide material is made use of as an applied magnetic field orients the particles in a preferential direction. This latter operation can be performed with the material in the normal (non-superconducting) state. 4 figs.

  17. Magnetic preferential orientation of metal oxide superconducting materials

    DOEpatents

    Capone, Donald W.; Dunlap, Bobby D.; Veal, Boyd W.

    1990-01-01

    A superconductor comprised of a polycrystalline metal oxide such as YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-X (where 0metal oxide material permits the use of an applied magnetic field to orient the individual crystals when in the superconducting state to substantially increase current transport between adjacent grains. In another embodiment, the anisotropic paramagnetic susceptibility of rare-earth ions substituted into the oxide material is made use of as an applied magnetic field orients the particles in a preferential direction. This latter operation can be performed with the material in the normal (non-superconducting) state.

  18. The Biomechanisms of Metal and Metal-Oxide Nanoparticles’ Interactions with Cells

    PubMed Central

    Teske, Sondra S.; Detweiler, Corrella S.

    2015-01-01

    Humans are increasingly exposed to nanoparticles (NPs) in medicine and in industrial settings, where significant concentrations of NPs are common. However, NP interactions with and effects on biomolecules and organisms have only recently been addressed. Within we review the literature regarding proposed modes of action for metal and metal-oxide NPs, two of the most prevalent types manufactured. Iron-oxide NPs, for instance, are used as tracers for magnetic resonance imaging of oncological tumors and as vehicles for therapeutic drug delivery. Factors and theories that determine the physicochemical and biokinetic behaviors of NPs are discussed, along with the observed toxicological effects of NPs on cells. Key thermodynamic and kinetic models that explain the sources of energy transfer from NPs to biological targets are summarized, in addition to quantitative structural activity relationship (QSAR) modeling efforts. Future challenges for nanotoxicological research are discussed. We conclude that NP studies based on cell culture are often inconsistent and underestimate the toxicity of NPs. Thus, the effect of NPs needs to be examined in whole animal systems. PMID:25648173

  19. Metal-accelerated oxidation in plant cell death

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Czuba, M.

    1993-05-01

    Cadmium and mercury toxicity is further enhanced by external oxidizing conditions O[sub 3] or inherent plant processes. Lepidium sativum L, Lycopersicon esculentum Mill., or Phaseolus vulgaris L, were grown inpeat-lite to maturity under continuous cadmium exposure followed by one oxidant (O[sub 3]-6 hr. 30 pphm) exposure, with or without foliar calcium pretreatments. In comparison, Daucus carota, L and other species grown in a 71-V suspension, with or without 2,4-D were exposed continuously to low levels of methylmercury during exponential growth and analyzed in aggregates of distinct populations. Proteins were extracted and analyzed. Mechanisms of toxicity and eventual cell death aremore » Ca-mediated and involve chloroplast, stomatal-water relations and changes in oxidant-anti-oxidant components in cells. Whether the metal-accelerated oxidative damage proceeds to cell death, depends on the species and its differential biotransformation system and cell association component.« less

  20. Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy at transition metal/oxide interfaces and applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dieny, B.; Chshiev, M.

    2017-04-01

    Spin electronics is a rapidly expanding field stimulated by a strong synergy between breakthrough basic research discoveries and industrial applications in the fields of magnetic recording, magnetic field sensors, nonvolatile memories [magnetic random access memories (MRAM) and especially spin-transfer-torque MRAM (STT-MRAM)]. In addition to the discovery of several physical phenomena (giant magnetoresistance, tunnel magnetoresistance, spin-transfer torque, spin-orbit torque, spin Hall effect, spin Seebeck effect, etc.), outstanding progress has been made on the growth and nanopatterning of magnetic multilayered films and nanostructures in which these phenomena are observed. Magnetic anisotropy is usually observed in materials that have large spin-orbit interactions. However, in 2002 perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) was discovered to exist at magnetic metal/oxide interfaces [for instance Co (Fe )/alumina ]. Surprisingly, this PMA is observed in systems where spin-orbit interactions are quite weak, but its amplitude is remarkably large—comparable to that measured at Co /Pt interfaces, a reference for large interfacial anisotropy (anisotropy˜1.4 erg /cm2=1.4 mJ /m2 ). Actually, this PMA was found to be very common at magnetic metal/oxide interfaces since it has been observed with a large variety of amorphous or crystalline oxides, including AlOx, MgO, TaOx, HfOx, etc. This PMA is thought to be the result of electronic hybridization between the oxygen and the magnetic transition metal orbit across the interface, a hypothesis supported by ab initio calculations. Interest in this phenomenon was sparked in 2010 when it was demonstrated that the PMA at magnetic transition metal/oxide interfaces could be used to build out-of-plane magnetized magnetic tunnel junctions for STT-MRAM cells. In these systems, the PMA at the CoFeB /MgO interface can be used to simultaneously obtain good memory retention, thanks to the large PMA amplitude, and a low write current

  1. Effect of oxygen partial pressure on oxidation of Mo-metal

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sharma, Rabindar Kumar; Kumar, Prabhat; Singh, Megha; Gopal, Pawar; Reddy, G. B.

    2018-05-01

    This report explains the effect of oxygen partial pressure (PO2 ) on oxidation of Mo-metal in oxygen plasma. XRD results indulge that oxide layers formed on Mo-surfaces at different oxygen partial pressures have two different oxide phases (i.e. orthorhombic MoO3 and monoclinic Mo8O23). Intense XRD peaks at high pressure (i.e. 2.0×10-1 Torr) points out the formation of thick oxide layer on Mo-surface due to presence of large oxygen species in chamber and less oxide volatilization. Whereas, at low PO2 (6.5×10-2 and 7.5×10-2 Torr.) the reduced peak strength is owing to high oxide volatilization rate. SEM micrographs and thickness measurements also support XRD results and confirm that the optimum -2value of PO2 to deposited thicker and uniform oxide film on glass substrate is 7.5×10-2 Torr through plasma assistedoxidation process. Further to study the compositional properties, EDX of the sample M2 (the best sample) is carried out, which confirms that the stoichiometric ratio is less than 3 (i.e. 2.88). Less stoichiometric ratio again confirms the presence of sub oxides in oxide layers on Mo metal as evidenced by XRD results. All the observed results are well in consonance with each other.

  2. Removal of oxides from alkali metal melts by reductive titration to electrical resistance-change end points

    DOEpatents

    Tsang, Floris Y.

    1980-01-01

    Alkali metal oxides dissolved in alkali metal melts are reduced with soluble metals which are converted to insoluble oxides. The end points of the reduction is detected as an increase in electrical resistance across an alkali metal ion-conductive membrane interposed between the oxide-containing melt and a material capable of accepting the alkali metal ions from the membrane when a difference in electrical potential, of the appropriate polarity, is established across it. The resistance increase results from blocking of the membrane face by ions of the excess reductant metal, to which the membrane is essentially non-conductive.

  3. Controlled synthesis of different metal oxide nanostructures by direct current arc discharge.

    PubMed

    Su, Yanjie; Zhang, Jing; Zhang, Liling; Zhang, Yafei

    2013-02-01

    Direct current (DC) arc discharge method gives high temperature in a short time, which has been widely used to prepare carbon nanotubes. We use this simple approach to synthesize metal oxide nanostructures (MgO, SnO2) without any catalyst. Different morphologies (nanowires, nanobelts, nanocubes, and nanodisks) of metal oxide nanostructures can be controllably synthesized by changing the content of air in buffer gas. The growth mechanisms for these nanostructures are discussed in detail. Oxygen partial pressure is supposed to be one of the most important key factors. The methodology might be used to synthesize similar nanostructures of other functional oxide materials and non-oxide materials.

  4. Solution combustion synthesis of metal oxide nanomaterials for energy storage and conversion.

    PubMed

    Li, Fa-tang; Ran, Jingrun; Jaroniec, Mietek; Qiao, Shi Zhang

    2015-11-14

    The design and synthesis of metal oxide nanomaterials is one of the key steps for achieving highly efficient energy conversion and storage on an industrial scale. Solution combustion synthesis (SCS) is a time- and energy-saving method as compared with other routes, especially for the preparation of complex oxides which can be easily adapted for scale-up applications. This review summarizes the synthesis of various metal oxide nanomaterials and their applications for energy conversion and storage, including lithium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, hydrogen and methane production, fuel cells and solar cells. In particular, some novel concepts such as reverse support combustion, self-combustion of ionic liquids, and creation of oxygen vacancies are presented. SCS has some unique advantages such as its capability for in situ doping of oxides and construction of heterojunctions. The well-developed porosity and large specific surface area caused by gas evolution during the combustion process endow the resulting materials with exceptional properties. The relationship between the structural properties of the metal oxides studied and their performance is discussed. Finally, the conclusions and perspectives are briefly presented.

  5. Solution combustion synthesis of metal oxide nanomaterials for energy storage and conversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Fa-Tang; Ran, Jingrun; Jaroniec, Mietek; Qiao, Shi Zhang

    2015-10-01

    The design and synthesis of metal oxide nanomaterials is one of the key steps for achieving highly efficient energy conversion and storage on an industrial scale. Solution combustion synthesis (SCS) is a time- and energy-saving method as compared with other routes, especially for the preparation of complex oxides which can be easily adapted for scale-up applications. This review summarizes the synthesis of various metal oxide nanomaterials and their applications for energy conversion and storage, including lithium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, hydrogen and methane production, fuel cells and solar cells. In particular, some novel concepts such as reverse support combustion, self-combustion of ionic liquids, and creation of oxygen vacancies are presented. SCS has some unique advantages such as its capability for in situ doping of oxides and construction of heterojunctions. The well-developed porosity and large specific surface area caused by gas evolution during the combustion process endow the resulting materials with exceptional properties. The relationship between the structural properties of the metal oxides studied and their performance is discussed. Finally, the conclusions and perspectives are briefly presented.

  6. Method of dissolving metal oxides with di- or polyphosphonic acid and a redundant

    DOEpatents

    Horwitz, Earl P.; Chiarizia, Renato

    1996-01-01

    A method of dissolving metal oxides using a mixture of a di- or polyphosphonic acid and a reductant wherein each is present in a sufficient amount to provide a synergistic effect with respect to the dissolution of metal oxides and optionally containing corrosion inhibitors and pH adjusting agents.

  7. Metal Organic Framework-Metal Oxide Composites for Toxic Gas Adsorption and Sensing

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2014-05-01

    zeolitic imidazolate framework Zn(NO3)2 zinc nitrate ZrCl4 zirconium chloride 21 SUMMARY Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and metal oxide-MOF...performed better for the other gases and conditions. Compared to the standard adsorbents BPL carbon and zeolite 13X, the cobalt and magnesium MOF...g)24 and zeolite 5A (1.25 mmol/g),25 compared to 3.5 mmol/g for Ni-MOF-74, 4 mmol/g for Mg-MOF-74, and 6 mmol/g for Co-MOF-74. Mg-MOF-74 shows the

  8. Bi–Mn mixed metal organic oxide: A novel 3d-6p mixed metal coordination network

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shi, Fa-Nian, E-mail: fshi@ua.pt; Department of Chemistry, CICECO, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro; Rosa Silva, Ana

    2015-05-15

    A new terminology of metal organic oxide (MOO) was given a definition as a type of coordination polymers which possess the feature of inorganic connectivity between metals and the direct bonded atoms and show 1D, 2D or 3D inorganic sub-networks. One such compound was shown as an example. A 3d-6p (Mn–Bi. Named MOOMnBi) mixed metals coordination network has been synthesized via hydrothermal method. The new compound with the molecular formula of [MnBi{sub 2}O(1,3,5-BTC){sub 2}]{sub n} (1,3,5-BTC stands for benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate) was characterized via single crystal X-ray diffraction technique that revealed a very interesting 3-dimensional (3D) framework with Bi{sub 4}O{sub 2}(COO){sub 12}more » clusters which are further connected to Mn(COO){sub 6} fragments into a 2D MOO. The topology study indicates an unprecedented topological type with the net point group of (4{sup 13}.6{sup 2})(4{sup 13}.6{sup 8})(4{sup 16}.6{sup 5})(4{sup 18}.6{sup 10})(4{sup 22}.6{sup 14})(4{sup 3}) corresponding to 3,6,7,7,8,9-c hexa-nodal net. MOOMnBi shows catalytic activity in the synthesis of (E)-α,β-unsaturated ketones. - Graphical abstract: This metal organic framework (MOF) is the essence of a 2D metal organic oxide (MOO). - Highlights: • New concept of metal organic oxide (MOO) was defined and made difference from metal organic framework. • New MOO of MOOMnBi was synthesized by hydrothermal method. • Crystal structure of MOOMnBi was determined by single crystal X-ray analysis. • The catalytic activity of MOOMnBi was studied showing reusable after 2 cycles.« less

  9. Metal-insulator and charge ordering transitions in oxide nanostructures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Sujay Kumar

    Strongly correlated oxides are a class of materials wherein interplay of various degrees of freedom results in novel electronic and magnetic phenomena. Vanadium oxides are widely studied correlated materials that exhibit metal-insulator transitions (MIT) in a wide temperature range from 70 K to 380 K. In this Thesis, results from electrical transport measurements on vanadium dioxide (VO2) and vanadium oxide bronze (MxV 2O5) (where M: alkali, alkaline earth, and transition metal cations) are presented and discussed. Although the MIT in VO2 has been studied for more than 50 years, the microscopic origin of the transition is still debated since a slew of external parameters such as light, voltage, and strain are found to significantly alter the transition. Furthermore, recent works on electrically driven switching in VO2 have shown that the role of Joule heating to be a major cause as opposed to electric field. We explore the mechanisms behind the electrically driven switching in single crystalline nanobeams of VO2 through DC and AC transport measurements. The harmonic analysis of the AC measurement data shows that non-uniform Joule heating causes electronic inhomogeneities to develop within the nanobeam and is responsible for driving the transition in VO2. Surprisingly, field assisted emission mechanisms such as Poole-Frenkel effect is found to be absent and the role of percolation is also identified in the electrically driven transition. This Thesis also provides a new insight into the mechanisms behind the electrolyte gating induced resistance modulation and the suppression of MIT in VO2. We show that the metallic phase of VO2 induced by electrolyte gating is due to an electrochemical process and can be both reversible and irreversible under different conditions. The kinetics of the redox processes increase with temperature; a complete suppression of the transition and the stabilization of the metallic phase are achievable by gating in the rutile metallic phase

  10. Solution Processed Metal Oxide High-κ Dielectrics for Emerging Transistors and Circuits.

    PubMed

    Liu, Ao; Zhu, Huihui; Sun, Huabin; Xu, Yong; Noh, Yong-Young

    2018-06-14

    The electronic functionalities of metal oxides comprise conductors, semiconductors, and insulators. Metal oxides have attracted great interest for construction of large-area electronics, particularly thin-film transistors (TFTs), for their high optical transparency, excellent chemical and thermal stability, and mechanical tolerance. High-permittivity (κ) oxide dielectrics are a key component for achieving low-voltage and high-performance TFTs. With the expanding integration of complementary metal oxide semiconductor transistors, the replacement of SiO 2 with high-κ oxide dielectrics has become urgently required, because their provided thicker layers suppress quantum mechanical tunneling. Toward low-cost devices, tremendous efforts have been devoted to vacuum-free, solution processable fabrication, such as spin coating, spray pyrolysis, and printing techniques. This review focuses on recent progress in solution processed high-κ oxide dielectrics and their applications to emerging TFTs. First, the history, basics, theories, and leakage current mechanisms of high-κ oxide dielectrics are presented, and the underlying mechanism for mobility enhancement over conventional SiO 2 is outlined. Recent achievements of solution-processed high-κ oxide materials and their applications in TFTs are summarized and traditional coating methods and emerging printing techniques are introduced. Finally, low temperature approaches, e.g., ecofriendly water-induced, self-combustion reaction, and energy-assisted post treatments, for the realization of flexible electronics and circuits are discussed. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Microwave-assisted synthesis of carbon supported metal/metal oxide nanocomposites and their application in water purification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gunawan, Gunawan

    A novel, easy, and cost effective method for synthesizing carbon supported metal/metal oxide nanocomposites has been studied. Carbon supported metal/metal oxide nanocomposites have niche applications in the area of catalysis, fuel cells, electrodes, and more. The method utilizes a commercial microwave and features the addition of a developed graphite-jacket technique with renewable carbon resources, tannin and lignin. The method has been successfully used to synthesize carbon/nickel, carbon/iron oxide, and carbon/nickel phosphide nanocomposites. The method has shown its versatility in the synthesis of carbon nanocomposites. The process is much simpler when compared with the available methods for synthesizing carbon nanocomposites. The synthesized nanocomposites were classified using several characterization techniques, such as electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, surface area analysis, thermogravimetric analysis, and spectrophotometric studies. One application of the carbon nanocomposite is in wastewater remediation. The synthesized carbon/iron oxide nanocomposite was noted as being useful for removing arsenic (As) and phosphorus (P) from contaminated water. The adsorption process of the nanocomposite was critically studied in order to understand the process of removing pollutants from contaminated water. The study shows that the nanocomposites are capable of removing As and P from contaminated water. Kinetic and adsorption isotherm studies were applied to understand the adsorption of As and P onto the adsorbent. Several methods, such as pseudo-first and second order kinetic models, Elovich's equation, and the Weber-Morris intraparticle diffusion model were used to explain the kinetic aspects of the adsorption process. For the adsorption isotherm study, Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models were applied.

  12. Mesoporous metal oxide microsphere electrode compositions and their methods of making

    DOEpatents

    Parans Paranthaman, Mariappan; Bi, Zhonghe; Bridges, Craig A; Brown, Gilbert M

    2014-12-16

    Compositions and methods of making are provided for treated mesoporous metal oxide microspheres electrodes. The compositions comprise (a) microspheres with an average diameter between 200 nanometers (nm) and 10 micrometers (.mu.m); (b) mesopores on the surface and interior of the microspheres, wherein the mesopores have an average diameter between 1 nm and 50 nm and the microspheres have a surface area between 50 m.sup.2/g and 500 m.sup.2/g, and wherein the composition has an electrical conductivity of at least 1.times.10.sup.-7 S/cm at 25.degree. C. and 60 MPa. The methods of making comprise forming a mesoporous metal oxide microsphere composition and treating the mesoporous metal oxide microspheres by at least one method selected from the group consisting of: (i) annealing in a reducing atmosphere, (ii) doping with an aliovalent element, and (iii) coating with a coating composition.

  13. Reactions of metal ions at surfaces of hydrous iron oxide

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hem, J.D.

    1977-01-01

    Cu, Ag and Cr concentrations in natural water may be lowered by mild chemical reduction involving ferric hydroxide-ferrous ion redox processes. V and Mo solubilities may be controlled by precipitation of ferrous vanadate or molybdate. Concentrations as low as 10-8.00 or 10-9.00 M are readily attainable for all these metals in oxygen-depleted systems that are relatively rich in Fe. Deposition of manganese oxides such as Mn3O4 can be catalyzed in oxygenated water by coupling to ferrous-ferric redox reactions. Once formed, these oxides may disproportionate, giving Mn4+ oxides. This reaction produces strongly oxidizing conditions at manganese oxide surfaces. The solubility of As is significantly influenced by ferric iron only at low pH. Spinel structures such as chromite or ferrites of Cu, Ni, and Zn, are very stable and if locally developed on ferric hydroxide surfaces could bring about solubilities much below 10-9.00 M for divalent metals near neutral pH. Solubilities calculated from thermodynamic data are shown graphically and compared with observed concentrations in some natural systems. ?? 1977.

  14. Electroforming and Switching in Oxides of Transition Metals: The Role of Metal Insulator Transition in the Switching Mechanism

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chudnovskii, F. A.; Odynets, L. L.; Pergament, A. L.; Stefanovich, G. B.

    1996-02-01

    Electroforming and switching effects in sandwich structures based on anodic films of transition metal oxides (V, Nb, Ti, Fe, Ta, W, Zr, Hf, Mo) have been studied. After being electroformed, some materials exhibited current-controlled negative resistance with S-shapedV-Icharacteristics. For V, Fe, Ti, and Nb oxides, the temperature dependences of the threshold voltage have been measured. As the temperature increased,Vthdecreased to zero at a critical temperatureT0, which depended on the film material. Comparison of theT0values with the temperatures of metal-insulator phase transition for some compounds (Tt= 120 K for Fe3O4, 340 K for VO2, ∼500 K for Ti2O3, and 1070 K for NbO2) showed that switching was related to the transition in the applied electric field. Channels consisting of the above-mentioned lower oxides were formed in the initial anodic films during the electroforming. The possibility of formation of these oxides with a metal-insulator transition was confirmed by thermodynamic calculations.

  15. Volatile organometallic complexes suitable for use in chemical vapor depositions on metal oxide films

    DOEpatents

    Giolando, Dean M.

    2003-09-30

    Novel ligated compounds of tin, titanium, and zinc are useful as metal oxide CVD precursor compounds without the detriments of extreme reactivity yet maintaining the ability to produce high quality metal oxide coating by contact with heated substrates.

  16. STUDY OF THE OXIDATION OF NON-ALLOYED ZIRCONIUM AND OF OXYGEN DIFFUSION IN THE OXIDE FILM AND IN THE METAL (in French)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Debuigne, J.; Lehr, P.

    1963-12-01

    The oxidation processes of zirconium at 600-850 deg C were studied. A micrographic and radiocrystallographic analysis of the oxide layers formed at the surface of the metal was carried out. The kinetic results, weight gains as function nf time, were completed by the study of oxygen diffusion through the oxide layer formed and in the underlying metal. (auth)

  17. Binary rare earth element-Ni/Co metallic glasses with distinct β-relaxation behaviors

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhu, Z. G.; Wang, Z.; Wang, W. H., E-mail: whw@iphy.ac.cn

    2015-10-21

    We report the formation of a series of rare earth element (RE)-Ni/Co binary metallic glasses (MGs) with unusual distinct β-relaxation peak compared with that of most of the reported MGs which usually exhibit as an excess wing or a shoulder. The β-relaxation behavior of RE-Ni/Co MGs is sensitive to the composition and the atomic radii of the RE and can be tuned through changing the fraction of RE-Ni (or Co) atomic pairs. The novel RE-Ni/Co MGs with distinct β-relaxation can serve as model system to investigate the nature of the β-relaxation as well as its relations with other physical andmore » mechanical properties of MGs.« less

  18. In Situ Growth of Free-Standing All Metal Oxide Asymmetric Supercapacitor.

    PubMed

    Yin, Bo-Si; Wang, Zhen-Bo; Zhang, Si-Wen; Liu, Chang; Ren, Qing-Qing; Ke, Ke

    2016-10-05

    Metal oxides have attracted renewed interest in applications as energy storage and conversion devices. Here, a new design is reported to acquire an asymmetric supercapacitor assembled by all free-standing metal oxides. The positive electrode is made of 3D NiO open porous nanoribbons network on nickel foam and the negative electrode is composed of SnO 2 /MnO 2 nanoflakes grown on carbon cloth (CC) substrate. The combination of two metal oxide electrodes which replaced the traditional group of carbon materials together with metal oxide has achieved a higher energy density. The self-supported 3D NiO nanoribbons network demonstrates a high specific capacitance and better cycle performance without obvious mechanical deformation despite of undergoing harsh bulk redox reactions. The SnO 2 /MnO 2 nanoflakes as the pseudocapacitive electrode exhibit a wide range of voltage window (-1 to 1 V), which is conducive to electrochemical energy storage. The (CC/SnO 2 /MnO 2 )(-)//(NiO/Ni foam)(+) asymmetric supercapacitor device delivers an energy density of 64.4 Wh kg -1 (at a power density of 250 W kg -1 ) and two devices in series are applied to light up 24 red LEDs for about 60 s. The outstanding electrochemical properties of the device hold great promise for long-life, high-energy, and high-power energy storage/conversion applications.

  19. Reductive mineralization of cellulose with vanadium, iron and tungsten chlorides and access to MxOy metal oxides and MxOy/C metal oxide/carbon composites.

    PubMed

    Henry, Aurélien; Hesemann, Peter; Alauzun, Johan G; Boury, Bruno

    2017-10-15

    M x O y and M x O y /C composites (M=V, Fe and W) were obtained by mineralization of cellulose with several metal chlorides. Cellulose was used both as a templating agent and as an oxygen and a carbon source. Soluble chloride molecules (VOCl 3 and WCl 6 ) and a poorly soluble ionic chloride compound (FeCl 3 ) were chosen as metal oxide precursors. In a first time, primary metal oxide/cellulose composites were obtained via a thermal treatment by reacting urea impregnated filter paper with the corresponding metal chlorides in an autoclave at 150°C after 3days. After either pyrolysis or calcination steps of these intermediate materials, interesting metal oxides with various morphologies were obtained (V 2 O 5, V 2 O 3 , Fe 3 O 4 , WO 3, H 0.23 WO 3 ), composites (V 2 O 3 /C) as well as carbides (hexagonal W 2 C and WC, Fe 3 C) This result highlight the reductive role that can play cellulose during the pyrolysis step that allows to tune the composition of M x O y /C composites. The materials were characterized by FTIR, Raman, TGA, XRD and SEM. This study highlights that cellulose can be used for a convenient preparation of a variety of highly demanded M x O y and M x O y /C composites with original shapes and morphologies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Self-Assembly of Metal Oxides into Three-Dimensional Nanostructures: Synthesis and Application in Catalysis

    EPA Science Inventory

    Nanostructured metal (Fe, Co, Mn, Cr, Mo) oxides were fabricated under microwave irradiation conditions in pure water without using any reducing or capping reagent. The metal oxides self-assembled into octahedron, spheres, triangular rods, pine, and hexagonal snowflake-like thre...