Search

The solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) plays crucial roles for the reversible operation of lithium metal batteries. However, fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of SEI formation and evolution is still limited. Herein, we develop a depth-sensitive plasmon-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (DS-PERS) method to enable in-situ and nondestructive characterization of the nanostructure and chemistry of SEI, based on synergistic enhancements of localized surface plasmons from nanostructured Cu, shell-isolated Au nanoparticles and Li deposits at different depths. We monitor the sequential formation of SEI in both ether-based and carbonate-based dual-salt electrolytes on a Cu current collector and then on freshly deposited Li, with dramatic chemical reconstruction. The molecular-level insights from the DS-PERS study unravel the profound influences of Li in modifying SEI formation and in turn the roles of SEI in regulating the Li-ion desolvation and the subsequent Li deposition at SEI-coupled interfaces. Last, we develop a cycling protocol that promotes a favorable direct SEI formation route, which significantly enhances the performance of anode-free Li metal batteries. The solid-electrolyte interphase is crucial for most batteries, but its characterization is challenging. Here, authors develop a depth-sensitive plasmon-enhanced Raman spectroscopy method to enable in-situ and nondestructive resolving of its structure and chemistry as well as formation mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (SEIRAS) in attenuated total reflection (ATR) configuration has been extended to the Fe electrode/electrolyte interface in neutral and weakly acidic solutions for the first time. The SEIRA-active Fe film electrode was obtained through a potenfiostatic electrodeposition of a virtually pinhole-free 40 nm-thick Fe overfilm onto a 60 nm-thick Au underfilm chemically predeposited on the reflecting plane of an ATR Si prism. The infrared absorption for CO adlayer at the Fe film electrode measured with ATR-SEIRAS was enhanced by a factor of larger than 34, as compared to that at a Fe bulk electrode with external infrared absorption spectroscopy in the literature. More importantly, the unipolar band shape enabled the reliable determination of the Stark tuning rates of CO adlayer at Fe electrode. In situ ATR-SEIRAS was also applied to study the electrosorption of a typical corrosion inhibitor benzotriazole (BTAH) on Fe electrode as a function of potential, providing additional spectral information at positive potentials in support of the formation of a polymer-like surface complex [Fe.sup.II.sub.m][(BTA).sub.n], as the corrosion-resistant layer. 10.1021/ac1002323

CuI N-heterocycle thiolate clusters efficiently catalyze the acceptorless dehydrogenation of alcohols at 70 °C. A variety of secondary/primary benzylic, allylic, and aliphatic alcohols are dehydrogenated to the corresponding ketones and aldehydes in high yields of isolated product upon release of H2. This simple catalytic system is involved in the synthesis of imines through the one-pot reaction of alcohols and amines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new approach was developed for the magnetic separation of copper(II) ions with easy operation and high efficiency. p-Mercaptobenzoic acid served as the modified tag of Fe2O3@Au nanoparticles both for the chelation ligand and Raman reporter. Through the chelation between the copper(II) ions and carboxyl groups on the gold shell, the Fe2O3@Au nanoparticles aggregated to form networks that were enriched and separated from the solution by a magnet. A significant decrease in the concentration of copper(II) ions in the supernatant solution was observed. An extremely sensitive method based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy was employed to detect free copper(II) ions that remained after the magnetic separation, and thus to evaluate the separation efficiency. The results indicated the intensities of the surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy bands from p-mercaptobenzoic acid were dependent on the concentration of copper(II) ions, and the concentration was decreased by several orders of magnitude after the magnetic separation. The present protocol effectively decreased the total amount of heavy metal ions in the solution. This approach opens a potential application in the magnetic separation and highly sensitive detection of heavy metal ions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SERS has been applied to monitor different types of catalytic reactions on the surface of metal NPs in recent years, which requires bifunctional metal structures with plasmonic properties as well as catalytic activity. Monitoring catalytic reactions with SERS technology in previous reports was usually performed in metal solution, using metal electrodes or on a glass/silica substrate with an immobilized metal. Here, we report a general approach for preparing novel SERS-active substrates which are used to monitor catalytic reactions. The polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/Ag–M (M = Au or Pd) bimetallic nanofibrous mats are prepared through galvanic replacement reactions of Ag with Au or Pd on the surface of electrospun PAN/Ag nanofibers. The composition of Ag and Au or Pd could be tuned by changing the concentration of the metal solution used for replacement. The PAN/Ag0.60Au0.40 and PAN/Ag0.90Pd0.10 bimetallic nanofibrous mats exhibit both excellent SERS and catalytic activities. The reduction of 4-nitrothiophenol (4-NTP) to the corresponding to 4-aminothiophenol (4-ATP) on PAN/Ag0.60Au0.40 and PAN/Ag0.90Pd0.10 bimetallic nanofibrous mats are monitored by SERS technology. The SERS signals of the reaction intermediate, 4,4′-dimercapto-azobenzene(4,4′-DMAB), are observed as the reaction proceeds with time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dependence of the electrochemical reduction behavior of benzene on Pt and Rh electrodes on the acidity of electrolyte and the electrode potential has been studied by confocal microprobe Raman spectroscopy and electrochemical methods. The results show that benzene can be reduced directly to cyclohexane. The process is found to be significantly influenced by the acidity of the solution, the roughness of the electrode and the entity of the substrates. The catalytic efficiency of Rh electrode was found to be higher than that of Pt electrode. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) studies of electrode/solution interfaces are important for understanding electrochemical processes. However, revealing the nature of reactions at well-defined single crystal electrode surfaces, which are SERS-inactive, remains challenging. In this work, shell-isolated nanoparticle-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SHINERS) was used for the first time to study electrochemical adsorption and hydrogenation reactions at single crystal surfaces in nonaqueous solvents. A roughened Au surface was also studied for comparison. The experimental results show that the hydrogenation of adsorbed p-ethynylaniline (PEAN) on roughened Au electrode surfaces occurred at very negative potentials in methanol because of the catalytic effect of surface plasmon resonance (SPR). However, because “hot electrons” were blocked by the silica shell of Au@SiO 2 nanoparticles and aprotic acetonitrile was an ineffective hydrogen source, surface reactions at Au(111) were inhibited in the systems studied. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that the PEAN triple bond opened, allowing adsorption in a flat configuration on the Au(111) surface via two carbon atoms. This work provides an advanced understanding of electrochemical interfacial processes at single crystal surfaces in nonaqueous systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect is critically dependent on the gap distance of adjacent nanostructures, i.e., “hot spots”. However, the fabrication of dynamically controllable hot spots still remains a remarkable challenge. In the present study, we employed an external magnetic field to dynamically control the interparticle spacing of a two-dimensional monolayer film of Fe 3 O 4 @Au nanoparticles at a hexane/water interface. SERS measurements were performed to monitor the expansion and shrinkage of the nanoparticles gaps, which produced an obvious effect on SERS activities. The balance between the electrostatic repulsive force, surface tension, and magnetic attractive force allowed observation of the magnetic-field-responsive SERS effect. Upon introduction of an external magnetic field, a very weak SERS signal appeared initially, indicating weak enhancement due to a monolayer film with large interparticle spacing. The SERS intensity reached maximum after 5 s and thereafter remained almost unchanged. The results indicated that the observed variations in SERS intensities were fully reversible after removal of the external magnetic field. The reduction of interparticle spacing in response to a magnetic field resulted in about one order of magnitude of SERS enhancement. The combined use of the monolayer film and external magnetic field could be developed as a strategy to construct hot spots both for practical application of SERS and theoretical simulation of enhancement mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The plasmon catalyzed surface reaction has been attracted considerable attention due to its promising application in heterogeneous catalysis. This kind of plasmon catalysis played bilateral roles in driving the unconventional reactions or destructing the surface molecule layer. The acceleration or inhibition on this catalysis is still remained significant challenge. In this paper, monolayer film of Au nanoparticles was fabricated at air/water interface as substrates both for surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and plasmon catalyzed surface reaction. The influence from several issues, involving surfactants, coadsorption species, the solvent and water, were systemically investigated to probe the acceleration and inhibition on the plasmon catalysis reaction. The concentration and molecular weight of surfactant polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) exhibited significant influence in the reactive activity for the plasmon catalyzed dimerization of para-nitrothiophenol (PNTP) to p,p′-dimercaptoazobenzene (DMAB). A suitable molecular weight of 10,000 and concentration of 10 mg/mL were beneficial for improving the conversion efficiency of PNTP to DMAB. The higher molar ratio of coadsorbed 1-octanethiol and the aprotic solvents resulted in the inhibition of dimerization because 1-octanethiol occupied the surface sites to isolate the adsorbed PNTP molecules with a larger distance and lack of proton source. The plasmon catalysis occurred in ionic liquids suggested that water was essential for the dimerization of PNTP, in which it was used to accelerate the reaction rate and severed as the hydrogen source. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] A facile approach has been developed to fabricate multifunctional Fe3O4@AuAg nanoparticles. [•] The nanocompositions integrated the stronger magnetism and tunable SERS effect. [•] The combination of magnetism, SERS and microfluidic chip improved the enrichment efficiency and detection sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A measurement method of 85Kr using an internal gas proportional counter (IGPC) is presented in this study. The operation conditions of the IGPC were determined and optimized, including the operating voltage, pressure, sample volume, interference from other gas components such as nitrogen or air, and mitigation of the memory effect. The IGPC was calibrated using certified standards, and the detection efficiency was approximately 58% for typical samples. A lower limit of detection of approximately 0.11 MBq/m3(Kr) was achieved after counting for 5 h with 1 mL pure Kr, corresponding to the atmospheric activity concentration of 0.18 Bq/m3 (air). It was shown that the IGPC could be used effectively for measuring 85Kr. • A measuring setup of krypton-85 with an internal proportional counter is described. • Operating conditions were tested and optimized. • The performance of the method is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]