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Chinnappa Chinnabathini V, Ag KR, Nguyen THT, Zarkua Z, Abbas I, Hoang TH, Lievens P, Grandjean D, Verbruggen SW, Janssens E. AuCu bimetallic nanocluster-modified titania nanotubes for photoelectrochemical water splitting: composition-dependent atomic arrangement and activity. NANOSCALE 2025; 17:833-845. [PMID: 39588610 DOI: 10.1039/d4nr03219e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2024]
Abstract
The photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting reaction of bimetallic AuxCu1-x (x = 1, 0.75, 0.5, 0.25 and 0) nanocluster-decorated TiO2 nanotube (TNT) photoanodes was investigated using a solar simulator. A strong enhancement in the anodic photocurrent relative to pristine TNTs was found with clear composition-dependent PEC activity, increasing with the Cu content and peaking at Au0.25Cu0.75. Electron microscopy and X-ray absorption fine structure spectra recorded at both Au and Cu edges identified a clear composition-dependent atomic arrangement of the spherical nanoclusters on anatase TNTs, resulting mostly from a time-dependent restructuring of the original metallic nanoalloys in the ambient environment. With time, Cu segregates from the alloy to form a surface oxide layer surrounding a pure gold metallic core in the gold-rich nanoclusters (x = 0.75 and 0.50) or a face centered tetragonal (fct)-intermetallic Au0.5Cu0.5 nanoalloy in copper-rich (x = 0.25) particles. In pure Cu nanoclusters, a metallic Cu core is stabilized by surrounding Cu2O and CuO. The enhanced PEC activity is attributed to a synergy between Au and Cu that upon segregation produces bifunctional catalytic sites consisting of a metallic Au/AuCu alloy and copper oxide at the surface of the nanoclusters. The photoactivity under solar light illumination is boosted by the plasmonic response of the metal. The ordered structure of the fct-AuCu alloy present in the most active Au0.25Cu0.75 may explain its higher stability and photocatalytic performance. Hence, this work provides insight into the relationship between the atomic-level structure of AuxCu1-x nanoalloys on TNTs and their PEC activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vana Chinnappa Chinnabathini
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
- Sustainable Energy, Air & Water Technology (DuEL), University of Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Karthick Raj Ag
- Sustainable Energy, Air & Water Technology (DuEL), University of Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Thi Hong Trang Nguyen
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Zviadi Zarkua
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Imran Abbas
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Thi Hang Hoang
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Peter Lievens
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Didier Grandjean
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Sammy W Verbruggen
- Sustainable Energy, Air & Water Technology (DuEL), University of Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Ewald Janssens
- Quantum Solid-State Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, KU Leuven, Belgium.
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Wang M, Liu Z, Wu M, Wang T, Yu X, Niu N, Chen L. Ratiometric luminescent sensor based on BSA-coated gold/silver nanoclusters for the selective determination and spatiotemporal imaging of gallic acid in plants. Mikrochim Acta 2023; 191:60. [PMID: 38153646 DOI: 10.1007/s00604-023-06156-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/29/2023]
Abstract
A new fluorescence sensing strategy has been developed. Four bimetallic nanoclusters, gold/silver, gold/copper, gold/molybdenum and gold/cobalt, were prepared using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The fluorescence properties of four nanoclusters were explored by solid-state UV and XPS. The gold/silver nanoclusters (BSA-Au/Ag NCs) with the best ratiometric fluorescence properties for gallic acid (GA) in plants were selected to realize the sensitive detection of GA. GA affected the conformation of BSA, thereby disrupting the luminescent environment of the nanoclusters, resulting in a pronounced fluorescence quenching at 566 nm. The ratiometric fluorescence signal (I566/I453) was used for trace detection of GA in plants. It has a wide response range of 1.25-40.0 μM and a low detection limit of 45.27 nM. GA was detected at 19.49 μM in the plant extract, and the spiked recoveries ranged from 96.09 to 104.6%. In addition, due to the non-toxic and biocompatible properties of BSA, BSA-Au/Ag NCs have also been validated for fluorescence imaging of plant tissues. It realized the comparison of GA content in different parts of plants and the difference of GA content in plants after abiotic stress. Therefore, the developed strategy offers potential application for the analytical study of active substances in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengyuan Wang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Zhixin Liu
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Meng Wu
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Tong Wang
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Xueling Yu
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Na Niu
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China.
| | - Ligang Chen
- College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Resource Utilization, Key Laboratory of Forest Plant Ecology, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin, 150040, China.
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