Synthesis Method for Cellulose Nanofiber Biotemplated Palladium Composite Aerogels

Here, a method to synthesize cellulose nanofiber biotemplated palladium composite aerogels is presented. Noble metal aerogel synthesis methods often result in fragile aerogels with poor shape control. The use of carboxymethylated cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) to form a covalently bonded hydrogel allows for the reduction of metal ions such as palladium on the CNFs with control over both nanostructure and macroscopic aerogel monolith shape after supercritical drying. Crosslinking the carboxymethylated cellulose nanofibers is achieved using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC) in the presence of ethylenediamine. The CNF hydrogels maintain their shape throughout synthesis steps including covalent crosslinking, equilibration with precursor ions, metal reduction with high concentration reducing agent, rinsing in water, ethanol solvent exchange, and CO2 supercritical drying. Varying the precursor palladium ion concentration allows for control over the metal content in the final aerogel composite through a direct ion chemical reduction rather than relying on the relatively slow coalescence of pre-formed nanoparticles used in other sol-gel techniques. With diffusion as the basis to introduce and remove chemical species into and out of the hydrogel, this method is suitable for smaller bulk geometries and thin films. Characterization of the cellulose nanofiber-palladium composite aerogels with scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, thermal gravimetric analysis, nitrogen gas adsorption, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry indicates a high surface area, metallized palladium porous structure.

Salt-Mediated Au-Cu Nanofoam and Au-Cu-Pd Porous Macrobeam Synthesis

Multi-metallic and alloy nanomaterials enable a broad range of catalytic applications with high surface area and tuning reaction specificity through the variation of metal composition. The ability to synthesize these materials as three-dimensional nanostructures enables control of surface area, pore size and mass transfer properties, electronic conductivity, and ultimately device integration. Au-Cu nanomaterials offer tunable optical and catalytic properties at reduced material cost. The synthesis methods for Au-Cu nanostructures, especially three-dimensional materials, has been limited. Here, we present Au-Cu nanofoams and Au-Cu-Pd macrobeams synthesized from salt precursors. Salt precursors formed from the precipitation of square planar ions resulted in short- and long-range ordered crystals that, when reduced in solution, form nanofoams or macrobeams that can be dried or pressed into freestanding monoliths or films. Metal composition was determined with X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Nitrogen gas adsorption indicated an Au-Cu nanofoam specific surface area of 19.4 m²/g. Specific capacitance determined with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was 46.0 F/g and 52.5 F/g for Au-Cu nanofoams and Au-Cu-Pd macrobeams, respectively. The use of salt precursors is envisioned as a synthesis route to numerous metal and multi-metallic nanostructures for catalytic, energy storage, and sensing applications.

A Rapid Synthesis Method for Au, Pd, and Pt Aerogels Via Direct Solution-Based Reduction

Here, a method to synthesize gold, palladium, and platinum aerogels via a rapid, direct solution-based reduction is presented. The combination of various precursor noble metal ions with reducing agents in a 1:1 (v/v) ratio results in the formation of metal gels within seconds to minutes compared to much longer synthesis times for other techniques such as sol-gel. Conducting the reduction step in a microcentrifuge tube or small volume conical tube facilitates a proposed nucleation, growth, densification, fusion, equilibration model for gel formation, with final gel geometry smaller than the initial reaction volume. This method takes advantage of the vigorous hydrogen gas evolution as a by-product of the reduction step, and as a consequence of reagent concentrations. The solvent accessible specific surface area is determined with both electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. After rinsing and freeze drying, the resulting aerogel structure is examined with scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, and nitrogen gas adsorption. The synthesis method and characterization techniques result in a close correspondence of aerogel ligament sizes. This synthesis method for noble metal aerogels demonstrates that high specific surface area monoliths may be achieved with a rapid and direct reduction approach.

Cellulose Nanofiber Biotemplated Palladium Composite Aerogels

Noble metal aerogels offer a wide range of catalytic applications due to their high surface area and tunable porosity. Control over monolith shape, pore size, and nanofiber diameter is desired in order to optimize electronic conductivity and mechanical integrity for device applications. However, common aerogel synthesis techniques such as solvent mediated aggregation, linker molecules, sol⁻gel, hydrothermal, and carbothermal reduction are limited when using noble metal salts. Here, we present the synthesis of palladium aerogels using carboxymethyl cellulose nanofiber (CNF) biotemplates that provide control over aerogel shape, pore size, and conductivity. Biotemplate hydrogels were formed via covalent cross linking using 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC) with a diamine linker between carboxymethylated cellulose nanofibers. Biotemplate CNF hydrogels were equilibrated in precursor palladium salt solutions, reduced with sodium borohydride, and rinsed with water followed by ethanol dehydration, and supercritical drying to produce freestanding aerogels. Scanning electron microscopy indicated three-dimensional nanowire structures, and X-ray diffractometry confirmed palladium and palladium hydride phases. Gas adsorption, impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry were correlated to determine aerogel surface area. These self-supporting CNF-palladium aerogels demonstrate a simple synthesis scheme to control porosity, electrical conductivity, and mechanical robustness for catalytic, sensing, and energy applications.

Versatile three-dimensional virus-based template for dye-sensitized solar cells with improved electron transport and light harvesting

By genetically encoding affinity for inorganic materials into the capsid proteins of the M13 bacteriophage, the virus can act as a template for the synthesis of nanomaterial composites for use in various device applications. Herein, the M13 bacteriophage is employed to build a multifunctional and three-dimensional scaffold capable of improving both electron collection and light harvesting in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). This has been accomplished by binding gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) to the virus proteins and encapsulating the AuNP-virus complexes in TiO2 to produce a plasmon-enhanced and nanowire (NW)-based photoanode. The NW morphology exhibits an improved electron diffusion length compared to traditional nanoparticle-based DSSCs, and the AuNPs increase the light absorption of the dye-molecules through the phenomenon of localized surface plasmon resonance. Consequently, we report a virus-templated and plasmon-enhanced DSSC with an efficiency of 8.46%, which is achieved through optimizing both the NW morphology and the concentration of AuNPs loaded into the solar cells. In addition, we propose a theoretical model that predicts the experimentally observed trends of plasmon enhancement.