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The interaction between activators (ZnO) and co-activators (stearic acid, SA) represents a key step in the vulcanization process, to generate Zn(II) intermediate complexes that enhance the reaction kinetic and promote the shortening of sulfur bridges, leading to highly cross-linked materials. To understand the influence of the structural, morphological and surface properties of ZnO in the reactivity with SA, in this work, pure ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) and ZnO NPs anchored on SiO2 (ZnO/SiO2) were prepared through soft chemistry techniques. Tailoring of morphology and surface features was accomplished through a fine control of the synthetic parameters, as demonstrated by the careful characterization of the activators. Then, the interaction of pure ZnO and ZnO/SiO2 activators with SA in the absence of rubber was investigated by using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The occurrence of Zn(II)-SA complexes with different thermal stability and structural properties was assessed by a comprehensive thermogravimetric and spectroscopic survey. The generation and the chemical structure of these specific vulcanization intermediates was related to the peculiar characteristics of the ZnO/SiO2 systems and, in turn, to their ability in imparting faster kinetics and higher curing efficiency to isoprene rubber nanocomposites, compared to bare ZnO. These results, besides proposing a valid benchmark for achieving further insights on the interaction of stearic acid with activators, pave the way to provide specific protocols for a better design and implementation of ZnO-based materials able to effectively enhance the rubber vulcanization process, with significant economic and environmental advantages.

Under near-ambient pressure conditions, carbon monoxide molecules intercalate underneath an epitaxial graphene monolayer grown on Ni(111), getting trapped into the confined region at the interface. On the basis of ab-initio density functional theory calculations, we provide here a full investigation of the intercalated CO pattern, highlighting the modifications induced on the graphene electronic structure. For a CO coverage as low as 0.14 monolayer (ML), the graphene layer is spatially decoupled from the metallic substrate, with a significant C 1s core level shift towards lower binding energies. The most relevant signature of the CO intercalation is a clear switching of the graphene doping state, which changes from n-type, when strongly interacting with the metal surface, to p-type. The shift of the Dirac cone linearly depends on the CO coverage, reaching about 0.9 eV for the saturation value of 0.57 ML. Theoretical predictions are compared with the results of scanning tunnelling microscopy, low-energy electron diffraction and photoemission spectroscopy experiments, which confirm the proposed scenario for the nearly saturated intercalated CO system. This result opens the way to the application of the graphene/Ni(111) interface as gas sensor to easily detect and quantify the presence of carbon monoxide.

Fast X-ray photoemission spectroscopy has been carried out to track the interaction of ammonia gas with hybrid materials based on ZnO nanorods and nanostructured carbon. We provide, for the first time, direct evidence of gas adsorption of ammonia on nanostructured hybrid interfaces combining photoemission with transport measurements through the resistivity change upon gas exposure. This operando methodology allowed us to reconstruct the adsorption isotherms and relate the different behavior to the sample morphology at the nanoscale. While on bare ZnO nanorods, physisorption of ammonia is detected along with photon beam assisted cracking, on the nanostructured carbon the formation of amine groups is detected, without displaying any effect induced by photon beam exposure. Our results make the present experiment an operando general methodology, with the possibility to relate the transport versus dose curves (ultimately the adsorption isotherms) to a specific investigation of the gas/surface interactions.

High-quality nitrogen-doped graphene on nickel is prepared by exploiting both the catalytic properties of nickel and the solubility of nitrogen atoms into its bulk. Following the standard chemical vapor deposition procedure, a previously nitrogen-doped nickel substrate is exposed to carbon-containing precursors so that nitrogen atoms, segregating to the surface, remain trapped in the growing gra- phene network. Morphological and chemical characterization by scanning tunneling microscopy and X- ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrates that the process yields a flat, wide, continuous nitrogen- doped graphene layer. Experimental results are combined with a thorough density functional theory investigation of possible structural models, to obtain a clear description at the atomic scale of the various configurations of the nitrogen atoms observed in the graphene mesh. This growth method is potentially scalable and suitable for the production of high-performance nano-devices with well-defined nitrogen centers, to be exploited as metal-free carbon-based catalysts in several applicative fields such as elec- trochemistry, energy storage, gas storage/sensing or wastewater treatment.

Molecules intercalate at the graphene/metal interface even though defect-free graphene is impermeable to any atomic and molecular species in the gas and liquid phase, except hydrogen. The mechanism of molecular intercalation is still a big open question. In this Letter, by means of a combined experimental (STM, XPS, and LEED) and theoretical (DFT) study, we present a proof of how CO molecules succeed in permeating the graphene layer and get into the confined zone between graphene and the Ni(111) surface. The presence of N-dopants in the graphene layer is found to highly facilitate the permeation process, reducing the CO threshold pressure by more than one order of magnitude, through the stabilization of multiatomic vacancy defects that are the open doors to the bidimensional nanospace, with crucial implications for the catalysis under cover and for the graphene-based electrochemistry.

The present study aims at supplying a more in-depth picture of the Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals (EPFRs) generation from phenol (PhOH) on ZnO/SiO2 systems, by exploring the properties of ZnO nanoparticles with different intrinsic defectivity grown on highly porous silica with spherical (ZnO/SiO2_S) and worm-like morphology (ZnO/SiO2_W). In detail, besides an extensive structural, morphological, and surface investigation, the occurrence of inequivalent defect centers in the samples was tracked by photoluminescence (PL) experiments, which unveiled, for ZnO/SiO2_W, intense blue emissions possibly involving radiative recombination from Zni excited levels to the valence band or to VZn levels. Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) spectra, corroborated these results and revealed a remarkably different behaviour of the samples in the EPFRs formation model reaction. In fact, upon PhOH contact, the ESR spectrum of ZnO/SiO2_S showed the exclusive presence of a weak isotropic signal ascribable to a PhenO• EPFR. Instead, for ZnO/SiO2_W, intense features associated to oxygen species in proximity of VO+, VZn‒ and (VZn‒)2‒ centers dominate the spectra, while a minor contribution of PhenO• radical can be discovered only by signals simulation. These outcomes definitively envisage a role of the intrinsic defectivity of ZnO NPs on the final yield and stability of EPFRs generation, with VO+ and VZn‒ defects possibly involved in dissociative adsorption or oxidation processes at the oxide surface. Although this work focuses on ZnO, it is expected to foster a critical re-examination and integration of important results on other metal oxide/silica systems already reported in the literature, offering the chance to better evaluate the dependence EPFRs generation on the oxide defects chemistry.

The present study reports on a simple preparation strategy of a hybrid catalyst, TiO2/HKUST-1, containing TiO2anatase nanoparticles (NPs) with tailored morphology and photocatalytic activity coupled with a porous metal-organic framework (MOF), namely HKUST-1, as an advanced material for the CO2photocatalytic reduction. In detail, TiO2/HKUST-1 catalyst was prepared via an easy slow-diffusion method combined with a step-by-step self-assembly at room temperature. The growth of crystalline HKUST-1 onto titania surface was achieved by functionalizing TiO2nanocrystals, with phosphoesanoic acid (PHA), namely TiO2-PHA, which provides an intimate contact between MOF and TiO2. The presence of a crystalline and porous shell of HKUST-1 on the TiO2surfaces was assessed by a combination of analytical and spectroscopic techniques. TiO2/HKUST-1 nanocomposite showed a significant efficiency in reducing CO2to CH4under solar light irradiation, much higher than those of the single components. The role of MOF to improve the photoreduction process under visible light was evidenced and attributed either to the relevant amount of CO2captured into the HKUST-1 porous architecture or to the hybrid structure of the material, which affords enhanced visible light absorption and allows an effective electron injection from TiO2-PHA to HKUST-1, responsible for the photochemical reduction of CO2.

Two-dimensional materials are known to harbour properties very different from those of their bulk counterparts. Recent years have seen the rise of atomically thin superconductors, with a caveat that superconductivity is strongly depleted unless enhanced by specific substrates, intercalants or adatoms. Surprisingly, the role in superconductivity of electronic states originating from simple free surfaces of two-dimensional materials has remained elusive to date. Here, based on first-principles calculations, anisotropic Eliashberg theory, and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), we show that surface states in few-monolayer MgB2 make a major contribution to the superconducting gap spectrum and density of states, clearly distinct from the widely known, bulk-like σ- and π-gaps. As a proof of principle, we predict and measure the gap opening on the magnesium-based surface band up to a critical temperature as high as ~30 K for merely six monolayers thick MgB2. These findings establish free surfaces as an unavoidable ingredient in understanding and further tailoring of superconductivity in atomically thin materials.

Environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) are toxic products deriving from incomplete combustion and are able to generate DNA damage and pulmonary dysfunction. They are formed on particulate matter through interaction with aromatic hydrocarbons, catalyzed by transition metal oxides, and produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) in aquatic media. The processes are already described for substituted aromatic molecules, for example, phenol, but not for unsubstituted aromatic systems, such as benzene. This Article reports on the reaction of benzene with molecular oxygen in the presence of CuxO/SiO2, suggesting a mechanism based on cluster and periodic computational models. The activation of O2 by interaction with silica coordinated Cu(I) centers leads to a peroxy species that yields the phenoxy radical upon reaction with benzene. Dissociation of OH• radical eventually allows for the recovery of the catalyst. The experimental characterization of the CuxO/SiO2 catalyst regarded morphology, crystal structure, copper electronic state, and crystal field around Cu(II). Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy revealed the formation of phenoxy radical entrapped in the catalyst upon reaction between benzene and CuxO/SiO2. Moreover, EPR investigation of ROS in aqueous solution evidenced the generation of OH• radicals by benzene-contacted CuxO/SiO2. All of the experimental results nicely fit the outcomes of the computational models.

The graphene-Ni(111) (GrNi) growth via chemical vapor deposition has been explored by resonant, angle-resolved, and dichroic photoemission spectroscopy (soft x-ray Res-ARPES) in order to identify the possible contributions to the electronic structure deriving from different phases that can coexist in this complex system. We provide evidences of electronic states so far unexplored at the Γ point of GrNi, appearing at the C K-edge resonance. These states show both circular dichroism (CD) and k dependence, suggesting a long-range orbital ordering, as well as a coherent matching with the underlying lattice. Through a comparison of core-level photoemission, valence band resonances, and constant initial-state spectroscopy, we demonstrate that these states are actually induced by a low residual component of nickel carbide (Ni2C). These results also show that caution must be exercised while interpreting x-ray magnetic circular dichroism collected on C K-edge with Auger partial yield method, due to the presence of CD in photoelectron spectra unrelated to magnetic effects.