Search results for " interfaces"

The influence of Al doping on the photocatalytic activity of nanostructured ZnO: The role of adsorbed water

2018

Abstract Al doped ZnO nanoparticles (labeled as x% A-ZnO, x = 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5) were synthesized by a simple sol-gel method, characterized and tested as photocatalysts for the degradation of a model compound under UV-light irradiation. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and photoelectrochemical analysis have been performed to evidence their optical and electronic behavior. The structural features of the powders were highlighted by means of specific surface area (SSA) analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy. Al doping results in enhanced photocatalytic activity of the modified powders with respect to pure ZnO. In particular, the h…

Photocatalytic degradation enhancement in pickering emulsions stabilized by solid particles of bare TiO 2

2019

Pickering emulsions provide a new way to enhance the efficiency of photocatalytic degradation of water-insoluble pollutants. Indeed, the semiconductor solid particles dually act as the photocatalyst and stabilizer of the emulsion droplets whose size dramatically affects the photocatalytic reaction. The present work aims at the validation of this concept by using bare TiO 2 without any surface modification. Nanostructured TiO 2 has been prepared by a simple sol-gel process and characterized by X-ray diffraction, specific surface area analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The emulsions were prepared by using 1-methylnaphthalene (1-MN) as a model organic…

Comparative study of air and vacuum annealing atmosphere towards Pt/Ti–W/SiO2 stability

2013

Abstract The thermal stability of Pt/Ti–W/SiO2 system was studied after annealing under air or vacuum in the present work. A Ti–W adhesive film (30 at. % Ti) was deposited on a SiO2 substrate followed by a thicker Pt layer. Depositions were performed using DC magnetron sputtering. The whole as-deposited films are metallic with a columnar growth of platinum deposit which totally wets the substrate. Whatever the atmosphere is, annealing at 500 °C for 12 h does not change the platinum state but modifies the morphology of platinum particles, the lateral average size of which increasing from less than 10 nm up to ca. 75 nm. Besides, a noticeable diffusion of metallic tungsten through Pt film is …

Imbibition of Femtoliter-Scale DNA-Rich Aqueous Droplets into Porous Nylon Substrates by Molecular Printing

2019

This work presents the first reported imbibition mechanism of femtoliter (fL)-scale droplets produced by microchannel cantilever spotting (μCS) of DNA molecular inks into porous substrates (hydrophilic nylon). Differently from macroscopic or picoliter droplets, the downscaling to the fL-size leads to an imbibition process controlled by the subtle interplay of evaporation, spreading, viscosity, and capillarity, with gravitational forces being quasi-negligible. In particular, the minimization of droplet evaporation, surface tension, and viscosity allows for a reproducible droplet imbibition process. The dwell time on the nylon surface permits further tuning of the droplet lateral size, in acc…

Growth and characterization of AP-MOCVD iron doped titanium dioxide thin films

1999

Abstract Atmospheric pressure metal organic chemical vapor deposition (AP-MOCVD) was used to prepare iron doped titanium dioxide thin films. Thin films, between 40 and 150 nm thick, were deposited on Si, SiO 2 and Al 2 O 3 substrates using titanium tetra isopropoxide and ferrocene as metal organic precursors. TiO 2 iron doping was achieved in the range of 1–4 at.%. The film morphology and thickness, polycrystalline texture and doping content were studied using respectively scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The influence of growth temperature, deposition time, substrate type and dopant partial pressure were studied. Electr…

Mn2+-induced room-temperature ferromagnetism and spin-glass behavior in hydrothermally grown Mn-doped ZnO nanorods

2014

The magnetic properties of Mn-doped ZnO (ZnO:Mn) nanorods grown by hydrothermal process at a temperature of 200 °C and a growth time of 3 h have been studied. The samples were characterized by using powder X-ray diffraction with Rietveld refinement, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray analysis and SQUID magnetometry. Mn (3 wt%) and (5 wt%)-doped ZnO samples exhibit paramagnetic and ferromagnetic behavior, respectively, at room temperature. The spin-glass behavior is observed from the samples with respect to the decrease of temperature. At 10 K, both samples exhibit a hysteresis loop with relatively low coercivity. The room-temperature ferromagnetism in 5 wt% Mn-doped ZnO n…

Soft X-ray emission spectroscopy used for the characterization of a-C and CNx thin films

2015

Abstract We present the results of a soft X-ray emission spectroscopy study of a-C and CNx films on a Si(100) substrate. Also for the characterization of the homogeneity in depth of these films electron energy loss spectroscopy measurements with localization better than 4 nm were carried out. In case of CNx films the highest diamond-like modification occurs in the region close to the Si(100) substrate. The film density decreases with increasing distance from the substrate and becomes almost constant in range of thicknesses more than ~ 2 nm.

Role of Intrinsic Dipoles in the Evaporation‐Driven Assembly of Perovskite Nanocubes into Energy‐Harvesting Composites

2020

Self-Assembly of Polymer Blends and Nanoparticles through Rapid Solvent Exchange.

2019

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to study the fabrication of polymeric colloids containing inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) via the flash nanoprecipitation (FNP) technique. During this process, a binary polymer blend, initially in a good solvent for the polymers, is rapidly mixed with NPs and a poor solvent for the polymers that is miscible with the good solvent. The simulations reveal that the polymers formed Janus particles with NPs distributed either on the surface of the aggregates, throughout their interior, or aligned at the interface between the two polymer domains, depending on the NP-polymer and NP-solvent interactions. The loading and surface density of NPs can be contro…

Oil-in-Water fL Droplets by Interfacial Spontaneous Fragmentation and Their Electrical Characterization

2019

Inkjet printing is here employed for the first time as a method to produce femtoliter-scale oil droplets dispersed in water. In particular, picoliter-scale fluorinated oil (FC40) droplets are printed in the presence of perfluoro-1-octanol surfactant at a velocity higher than 5 m/s. Femtoliter-scale oil droplets in water are spontaneously formed through a fragmentation process at the water/air interface using minute amounts of nonionic surfactant (down to 0.003% v/v of Tween 80). This fragmentation occurs by a Plateau-Rayleigh mechanism at a moderately high Weber number (10(1)). A microfluidic chip with integrated microelectrodes allows droplets characterization in terms of number and diamet…