Stability of Plasmonic Mg-MgO Core-Shell Nanoparticles in Gas-Phase Oxidative Environments

Magnesium is a recent addition to the plasmonic toolbox: nanomaterials that efficiently utilize photons' energy due to their ability to sustain localized surface plasmon resonances. Magnesium nanoparticles protected by a native oxide shell can efficiently absorb light across the solar spectrum, making them a promising photocatalytic material. However, their inherent reactivity toward oxidation may limit the number of reactions in which Mg-MgO can be used. Here, we investigate the stability of plasmonic Mg-MgO core-shell nanoplates under oxidative conditions. We demonstrate that the MgO shell stabilizes the metallic Mg core against oxidation in air at up to 400 °C. Furthermore, we show that the reactivity of Mg-MgO nanoplates with water vapor (3.5 vol % in N2) decreases with temperature, with no oxidation of the Mg core detected from 200 to 400 °C. This work unravels the potential of Mg-MgO nanoparticles for a broad range of catalytic transformations occurring in oxidative environments.

Structural characterization of self-assembled chain like Fe-FeOx Core shell nanostructure

One of the big challenge of studying the core-shell iron nanostructures is to know the nature of oxide shell, i.e., whether it is γ-Fe₂O₃ (Maghemite), Fe₃O₄ (Magnetite), α-Fe₂O₃ (Hematite), or FeO (Wustite). By knowing the nature of iron oxide shell with zero valent iron core, one can determine the chemical or physical behavior of core-shell nanostructures. Fe core-shell nanochains (NCs) were prepared through the reduction of Fe³⁺ ions by sodium boro-hydride in aqueous solution at room atmosphere, and Fe NCs were further aged in water up to 240 min. XRD was used to study the structure of Fe NCs. Further analysis of core-shell nature of Fe NCs was done by TEM, results showed increase in thickness of oxide shell (from 2.5, 4, 6 to 10 nm) as water aging time increases (from 0 min, 120 min, 240 min to 360 min). The Raman spectroscopy was employed to study the oxide nature of Fe NCs. To further confirm the magnetite phase in Fe NCs, the Mössbauer spectroscopy was done on Fe NCs-0 and Fe NCs-6. Result shows the presence of magnetite in the sample before aging in water, and the sample after prolonged aging contains pure Hematite phase. It shows that prolonged water oxidation transforms the structure of shell of Fe NCs from mixture of Hematite and Magnetite in to pure hematite shell. The Magnetic properties of the Fe NCs were measured by VSM at 320 K. Because of high saturation magnetization (Ms) values, Fe NCs could be used as r₂ contrasts agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in near future.

Enhanced Oxidative and Adsorptive Removal of Diclofenac in Heterogeneous Fenton-like Reaction with Sulfide Modified Nanoscale Zerovalent Iron

Sulfidation of nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) has shown some fundamental improvements on reactivity and selectivity toward pollutants in dissolved-oxygen (DO)-stimulated Fenton-like reaction systems (DO/S-nZVI system). However, the pristine microstructure of sulfide-modified nanoscale zerovalent iron (S-nZVI) remains uncovered. In addition, the relationship between pollutant removal and the oxidation of the S-nZVI is largely unknown. The present study confirms that sulfidation not only imparts sulfide and sulfate groups onto the surface of the nanoparticle (both on the oxide shell and on flake-like structures) but also introduces sulfur into the Fe(0) core region. Sulfidation greatly inhibits the four-electron transfer pathway between Fe(0) and oxygen but facilitates the electron transfer from Fe(0) to surface-bound Fe(III) and consecutive single-electron transfer for the generation of H₂O₂ and hydroxyl radical. In the DO/S-nZVI system, slight sulfidation (S/Fe molar ratio = 0.1) is able to nearly double the oxidative removal efficacy of diclofenac (DCF) (from 17.8 to 34.2%), whereas moderate degree of sulfidation (S/Fe molar ratio = 0.3) significantly enhances both oxidation and adsorption of DCF. Furthermore, on the basis of the oxidation model of S-nZVI, the DCF removal process can be divided into two steps, which are well modeled by parabolic and logarithmic law separately. This study bridges the knowledge gap between pollutant removal and the oxidation process of chemically modified iron-based nanomaterials.

Zinc nanostructures for oxygen scavenging

In this work, oxidation of carbon supported Zn nanostructures was studied to elucidate their utilization as oxygen scavenging materials activated by the relative humidity in the environment. Moisture-activated nano-scavengers were produced on carbon substrates using magnetron sputtering attaining nano-islands (nanoparticles), randomly distributed on the carbon surface, with arbitrary crystallographic orientations. They possess a Zn-ZnO core-shell structure, caused by surface passivation, which provides them with a self-assembled protective layer that prevents complete oxidation of nanoparticles prior to utilization. The oxidation rate is independent of the nanoparticle size and orientation, for particles between 5 and 18 nm. The oxidation kinetics are not in complete agreement with the Cabrera and Mott theory. When exposed to a high relative humidity environment, an acceleration in the oxidation process is observed, dissolving the Zn nanoparticles and forming a layer on the carbon, which facilitates the consumption of the Zn to form ZnO. These results support the idea of its potential use in applications where high RH environments are required, such as food packaging.

Synthesis and exceptional thermal stability of Mg-based bimetallic nanoparticles during hydrogenation

Here we report the extraordinary thermal stability of Mg rich bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs), which is important for hydrogen storage technology. The enhanced NP stability is accomplished because of two critical improvements: (i) no void development within NPs (nanoscale Kirkendall effect) during their formation and (ii) suppressed Mg evaporation and NP hollowing during Mg hydrogenation at elevated temperature. The mechanism leading to the improved thermal stability of Mg-based bimetallic NPs is shown to be due to MgH2 hydride formation before evaporation can take place. These findings were tested for various compositions of Mg with Ni, Cu, and Ti, which are interesting combinations of materials for hydrogen storage systems. To achieve this we first demonstrate the synthesis mechanism of Mg-Ni and Mg-Cu NPs, which is well controlled at the single particle level, in order to accomplish multi-shell, alloy and intermetallic structures of interest for hydrogen storage tests. Aberration corrected transmission electron microscopy was carried out to unravel the detailed atomic structure and composition of the bimetallic NPs after production, processing, and hydrogenation. Finally, a simple and effective methodology is proposed for tuning the composition of the Mg-based bimetallic NPs based on the temperature-dependent nucleation behavior of NPs in the gas-phase.

Kinetics of zero valent iron nanoparticle oxidation in oxygenated water

Zero valent iron (ZVI) nanoparticles are versatile in their ability to remove a wide variety of water contaminants, and ZVI-based bimetallic nanoparticles show increased reactivity above that of ZVI alone. ZVI nanoparticles degrade contaminants through the reactive species (e.g., OH*, H(2(g)), H(2)O(2)) that are produced during iron oxidation. Measurement and modeling of aqueous ZVI nanoparticle oxidation kinetics are therefore necessary to optimize nanoparticle design. Stabilized ZVI and iron-nickel nanoparticles of approximately 150 nm in diameter were synthesized through solution chemistry, and nanoparticle oxidation kinetics were determined via measured mass change using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). Under flowing aerated water, ZVI nanoparticles had an initial exponential growth behavior indicating surface-dominated oxidation controlled by migration of species (H(2)O and O(2)) to the surface. A region of logarithmic growth followed the exponential growth which, based on the Mott-Cabrera model of thin oxide film growth, suggests a reaction dominated by movement of species (e.g., iron cations and oxygen anions) through the oxide layer. The presence of ethanol or a nickel shell on the ZVI nanoparticles delayed the onset of iron oxidation and reduced the extent of oxidation. In oxygenated water, ZVI nanoparticles oxidized primarily to the iron oxide-hydroxide lepidocrocite.

Nucleation and growth of apatite by a self-assembled polycrystalline bioceramic

The formation aspects of a polycrystalline self-assembled bioceramic leading to the nucleation of hard-tissue mineral from a supersaturated solution are discussed. Scanning electron imaging and surface-sensitive interrogations of the nucleated mineral indicated the presence of an intermediate amorphous layer encompassing a rather crystalline phase that formed on niobium oxide (Nb(2)O(5)) microstructures. The crystalline phase was identified from Raman spectroscopy as hydroxyapatite (HAP), while the phosphorous-rich amorphous layer is suggested to have the chemical form CaO-P(2)O(5). In addition, the mechanism favoring HAP nucleation is discussed in terms of the (0 0 2) and (0 0 1) diffraction planes of HAP and Nb(2)O(5), respectively. The small mismatch along several lattice dimensions strongly suggests epitaxy as a dominant mode in the heterogeneous nucleation of HAP. Furthermore, the effectiveness of this mode was shown to critically depend on the self-organization of the Nb(2)O(5) microstructures. Because nucleation does not appear to depend solely on the integrity of Nb(2)O(5) crystals, the self-organization of Nb(2)O(5) crystals also contributes significantly to HAP nucleation. Based on our results, we propose the organized arrangement of bioceramic crystals as a new mode for the bioinspiration of hydroxyapatite and other hard-tissue mineral.