Search

• Elastomer-based sandwich material with enhanced piezoelectric performances. • emarkable stability in harsh environments. • Low cost and simple fabrication process. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) sponges are widely used in many application areas due to their porous structure. In this paper, we present a PDMS sponge-based piezoelectric material which is composed of a PTFE-PDMS composite sponge sandwiched between a pair of Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) solid films. After corona charging, pores inside the sandwich material are internally charged, and charges of positive or negative polarity are produced. The introduction of PTFE nano-particles creates PTFE-PDMS interface traps that can trap charges with stability. The design of the sandwich structure enhances the breakdown strength of the sandwich material, which avoids the early breakdown during poling. The results of the experiments demonstrate the sandwich material exhibits excellent piezoelectric performance and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A simple one-step reduction method was explored to synthesize silver particles of different size. During synthesis, Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and CH2O were used as the protective agent and the reducing agent, respectively. It is found that the reaction parameters including the concentration of PVP and AgNO3, the amount of ammonia and the reaction temperature has great influence on the size and uniformity of silver particles. By careful tuning the reaction parameters, mono-disperse silver particles with the size of 40–2000nm can be obtained controllably. It is considered that there were two growth modes: diffusional growth and aggregation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • Facet engineered Fe/TiO 2 was used as photocatalyst for persulfate activation. • The band gap of the prepared Fe-{0 0 1}TiO 2 nanocatalyst was decreased from 3.24 eV to 2.97 eV. • The degradation efficiency of 3 % Fe/{0 0 1}TiO 2 was 97.81 % for 80 min. • OH, SO 4 − , e− and h+ were contributed to the degradation in photo-synergetic persulfate system. • Fe-{0 0 1}TiO 2 exhibited excellent stability even after five consecutive cycles. Photo-synergetic persulfate oxidation is a prospective technology for water decontamination. Understanding the engineering facet activity of TiO 2 based nanocatalyst for persulfate (PS) activation is vital. Herein, Fe-doped TiO 2 nanocrystal with {0 0 1} crystal face exposed (Fe/TiO 2) is used to improve the degradation efficiency of Rhodamine B (RhB). The experimental results show that the Fe is introduced into the TiO 2 lattice, resulting in abundant surface oxygen vacancies in Fe/TiO 2 nanocrystal. The band gap of the as-prepared nanocatalyst was reduced from 3.24 eV to 2.97 eV. The degradation efficiency of RhB (10 mg/L) reaches 97.81 % after 80 min reaction. The enhanced catalytic performance benefits from the synergistic effect of enhanced visible light absorption and persulfate activation. OH, SO 4 − , e− and h+ are proved to contribute to the degradation of RhB. This work presents a new opportunity to improve the efficiency of photo-synergetic persulfate oxidation by Fe doped TiO 2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uniform hierarchical MoS 2 microspheres have been successfully synthesized via facile hydrothermal method with the aid of nonionic surfactant polyethylene glycol (PEG). The products were analyzed by XRD, SEM, TEM, XPS, BET and FTIR. Results indicated that PEG 6000 played a crucial role in the formation of the hierarchical MoS 2 microspheres and the obtained MoS 2 microspheres with diameters of 5–10 µm are organized by numerous ultrathin nanosheets assembled nanospheres. Interestingly, the MoS 2 architectures displayed remarkable performance towards removal of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution. More importantly, the hierarchical MoS 2 microspheres were easy to separate from the reaction system because of the hierarchical structure and large sizes. This resulting hierarchical MoS 2 microspheres are very promising adsorbent for adsorb organic pollutants and other applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Branched Ag 3 PO 4 polypods form in the thin film precursor solution, where the special ion redistributions at gas-liquid and liquid-solid interfaces are expected to be the source that induces nucleation and growth of crystals and the branched structures. • Ion redistribution at interfaces promotes the growth of Ag 3 PO 4 branched structures. • The thickness of thin film reaction solution for Ag 3 PO 4 growth is below 1350 µm. • Our work provides a potential way to tune the crystal growth and resulting structures. Interfaces of liquid-solid and air-liquid are known to change the chemical and physical properties of the liquid solution and thus utilized for multiple applications. However, their role in crystal growth, especially of branched structures, is seldom investigated. Here we synthesized branched silver phosphate polypods in a thin layer of aqueous solution (thickness of 810 µm or below) taking advantage of the unique properties of both the air-liquid and a hydrophilic liquid-solid interfaces. Our results indicate that the synergism of long-range electric fields (ion distributions) at the interfaces promotes not only the nucleation and growth of silver phosphate but also the formation of branched structures. This work can be a reference for facilitating crystal nucleation and growth and controlling structures by understanding and mimicking the properties at the interfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A novel and simple chemical reaction method has been developed to synthesize the Tb(OH)3 nanorods with diameters of 20–30 nm and lengths of about 300 nm at 90 °C using cyclohexylamine as the alkaline source. The formation mechanism for the synthesis of the Tb(OH)3 nanostructures with different morphologies has been primarily discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]