Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes coated with zinc oxide nanoparticles as sulfur encapsulator for high-performance lithium/sulfur batteries

• Yan Zhao,
• Zhengjun Liu,
• Liancheng Sun,
• Yongguang Zhang,
• Yuting Feng,
• Xin Wang,
• Indira Kurmanbayeva and
• Zhumabay Bakenov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1677–1685, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.159

• carbon nanotubes coated with zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO@NCNT) were prepared via a sol–gel route as sulfur encapsulator for lithium/sulfur (Li/S) batteries. The electrochemical properties of the S/ZnO@NCNT composite cathode were evaluated in Li/S batteries. It delivered an initial capacity of 1032

• providing pathways for ion and electron transport. The as-prepared S/ZnO@NCNT composite is a promising cathode material for Li/S batteries. Keywords: batteries; nanocomposites; sol–gel processes; sulfur; zinc oxide (ZnO); Introduction Due to its high theoretical specific capacity of 1672 mAh·g−1 and

• electrode. Conclusion Nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes coated with zinc oxide (ZnO@NCNT) were successfully prepared via a sol–gel synthetic route. They exhibit a unique ability to absorb polysulfides and, thus, to improve electrochemical properties of a S cathode. The S/ZnO@NCNT cathode has shown excellent

Sulfur-, nitrogen- and platinum-doped titania thin films with high catalytic efficiency under visible-light illumination

• Boštjan Žener,
• Lev Matoh,
• Giorgio Carraro,
• Bojan Miljević and
• Romana Cerc Korošec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1629–1640, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.155

• suitable for use in environmental related fields such as air and water treatment and self-cleaning surfaces. In this work, titania thin films and powders were prepared by a particulate sol–gel route, using titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) as a precursor. Afterwards, the prepared sols were doped with nitrogen

• and subsequent degradation was used to fit the experimental data. The results have shown an increase in photocatalytic activity under visible-light illumination of nonmetal and metal doped and co-doped titania thin films compared to an undoped sample. Keywords: doping; photocatalysis; sol–gel

• by the linear combination of the 3p orbitals of S and the 2p orbitals of O [39][40]. In this case, the crystal lattice of TiO2 becomes distorted due to the larger ionic radius of S2− compared to O2−. Among all of the approaches to preparation of titania thin films, the sol–gel method is the most

Correlative electrochemical strain and scanning electron microscopy for local characterization of the solid state electrolyte Li_1.3Al_0.3Ti_1.7(PO₄)₃

• Nino Schön,
• Deniz Cihan Gunduz,
• Shicheng Yu,
• Hermann Tempel,
• Roland Schierholz and
• Florian Hausen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1564–1572, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.148

• . Experimental Synthesis of Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 (LATP) The synthesis of Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 (LATP) has been described in detail elsewhere [17] and consists of an oxalic acid supported sol–gel process. Binder-free dense LATP pellets as used in this study were obtained by an improved route involving

Cr(VI) remediation from aqueous environment through modified-TiO₂-mediated photocatalytic reduction

• Rashmi Acharya,
• Brundabana Naik and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1448–1470, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.137

• with further increase in the calcination temperature because of the decrease in the specific surface area induced by the aggregation and agglomeration of particles [157]. TiO2/Fe3O4 composite photocatalysts were synthesized through a polymerizable sol−gel route to investigate the photocatalytic

• photocurrent. Dozzi et al. synthesized a series of titanium–tungsten mixed oxides through coupling of TiO2 with varying WO3 percentage by a base-catalyzed sol–gel method [175]. WO3 plays a vital role in inhibiting charge recombination for efficient charge transfer to enhance the Cr(VI) reduction. Bi2O3

• possesses a narrow band gap (2.8 eV), appropriate valence band position, and similar photocatalytic mechanism to that of TiO2. Hence, it can conveniently be coupled with TiO2 [176][177]. Yang and co-workers prepared Bi2O3/TiO2 coupled photocatalysts by a sol–gel method followed by a hydrothermal technique

Understanding the performance and mechanism of Mg-containing oxides as support catalysts in the thermal dry reforming of methane

• Nor Fazila Khairudin,
• Mohd Farid Fahmi Sukri,
• Mehrnoush Khavarian and
• Abdul Rahman Mohamed

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1162–1183, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.108

• CO2/CH4 ratio. The conversion of CO2 and CH4 was in the range of 70 to 80% when the obtained H2/CO ratio was between 1 and 1.5. The influence of the synthesis method on the Ni/Al2O3–MgO catalyst by sol–gel and impregnation techniques was investigated by Hassani Rad et al. [37]. A higher specific

• surface area (178 m2/g) was recorded with the MgO-doped catalyst obtained by the sol–gel method than that obtained using the impregnation method (70 m2/g). As a consequence, the preparation technique significantly affected the catalytic performance of the Ni/Al2O3–MgO catalyst and the Ni/Al2O3–MgO

• catalyst prepared using the sol–gel method, exhibiting large yields for H2, CO, and H2/CO, which were 90%, 98%, and 98%, respectively, at a reaction temperature of 850 °C. Evidently, the application of the sol–gel method and MgO as a support promoter improved the surface area and Ni dispersion and resulted

Single-crystalline FeCo nanoparticle-filled carbon nanotubes: synthesis, structural characterization and magnetic properties

• Rasha Ghunaim,
• Maik Scholz,
• Christine Damm,
• Bernd Rellinghaus,
• Rüdiger Klingeler,
• Bernd Büchner,
• Michael Mertig and
• Silke Hampel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1024–1034, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.95

• devices. Different techniques have been applied for the synthesis of these magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs), such as mechanical alloying [23], electrodeposition [24], radio frequency (rf)-plasma torch [25], sol–gel methods [26][27], reverse micelle systems [28] and thermal decomposition of bimetallic alloys

A review of carbon-based and non-carbon-based catalyst supports for the selective catalytic reduction of nitric oxide

• Shahreen Binti Izwan Anthonysamy,
• Syahidah Binti Afandi,
• Mehrnoush Khavarian and
• Abdul Rahman Bin Mohamed

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 740–761, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.68

• for preparing a catalyst such as impregnation, sol–gel, incipient-wetness, co-precipitation, electroplating, and the polyol process. Some of the catalysts prepared via these methods can achieve low temperatures of SCR with content resistance of H2O and SO2. Each method is different from the other, and

• ” reaction to improve low-temperature SCR activity. The sol–gel method has been used quite frequently for the development of nano-based catalysts. Basically, certain chemical solutions together with a foaming agent (citric acid) is mixed vigorously by stirring under room temperature to produce a homogeneous

• mixture. Subsequently, the produced sols are dried at a specific temperature for 24 hours in order to obtain xerogel. Then, the xerogel is crushed before being calcined at a desired atmosphere condition and temperature [37]. In the case of catalyst preparation, many researchers have adopted the sol–gel

Synthesis and characterization of two new TiO₂-containing benzothiazole-based imine composites for organic device applications

• Anna Różycka,
• Agnieszka Iwan,
• Krzysztof Artur Bogdanowicz,
• Michal Filapek,
• Natalia Górska,
• Damian Pociecha,
• Marek Malinowski,
• Patryk Fryń,
• Agnieszka Hreniak,
• Jakub Rysz,
• Paweł Dąbczyński and
• Monika Marzec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 721–739, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.67

• of imine:TiO2 composites for organic device applications were examined. The investigated titanium dioxide (in anatase form, obtained via the sol–gel method) exhibited a surface area of 59.5 m2/g according to Brunauer–Emmett–Teller theory, and its structure is a combination of both meso- and

• physical parameters of titanium dioxide TiO2 powder was prepared via the sol–gel technique using titanium(IV) isopropoxide (TIPO) as a precursor as was fully described in our previous paper [34]. The obtained TiO2 powder exhibited an anatase form, which was confirmed from X-ray diffraction (XRD

• /polymers or other device architectures. This will be a challenge of our future work. Experimental All chemicals and reagents were used as received from Sigma-Aldrich. Synthesis of TiO2 TiO2 powder was prepared by the sol–gel method using 4.5 mL TIPO dissolved in a solution of 20 mL ethanol and 3.5 mL

Cyclodextrin-assisted synthesis of tailored mesoporous silica nanoparticles

• Fuat Topuz and
• Tamer Uyar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 693–703, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.64

• additives in a simple, one-pot reaction system for a wide range of applications. Keywords: cyclodextrin; faceted particles; mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSN); microporous; Introduction With the availability of several types of surfactants and the increased understanding of sol–gel chemistry, numerous

• a highly challenging task to date. MSNs are commonly synthesized by surfactant-templated sol–gel reactions [12][13]. In this regard, mesoporous silica nanospheres are the most commonly used form of silica particles that are produced using a pore templating agent, such as cetyltrimethylammonium

• structures were produced using a combination of CTAB surfactant, ethylene glycol solvent and NH4OH as the catalyst. MSNs were also reported in branched forms using organosilane precursors in a one-pot, CTAB-directed sol–gel synthesis [17]. For such a system, increasing the ethyl acetate concentration led to

Mechanistic insights into plasmonic photocatalysts in utilizing visible light

• Kah Hon Leong,
• Azrina Abd Aziz,
• Lan Ching Sim,
• Pichiah Saravanan,
• Min Jang and
• Detlef Bahnemann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 628–648, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.59

• issues [45][46][47][48][49]. Synthesis routes such as sol–gel, hydrothermal, microwave hydrothermal, impregnation, electrochemical deposition, chemical deposition, deposition-precipitation, UV photodeposition and direct sunlight photodeposition have been reported [23][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58

• ][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80][81][82][83][84][85][86]. The conventional and most frequently used methods are the sol–gel and deposition–precipitation methods. These are mostly widely preferred due to the relatively facile and direct synthesis

Anchoring Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles in a reduced graphene oxide aerogel matrix via polydopamine coating

• Błażej Scheibe,
• Radosław Mrówczyński,
• Natalia Michalak,
• Karol Załęski,
• Michał Matczak,
• Mateusz Kempiński,
• Zuzanna Pietralik,
• Mikołaj Lewandowski,
• Stefan Jurga and
• Feliks Stobiecki

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 591–601, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.55

• -forming nanomaterials, as it allows obtaining three-dimensional highly porous structures, characterized by low density and high specific surface area [2][3][4][5]. Typically, the fabrication of aerogel is a multistep process, involving hydrogel formation via sol–gel technique followed by freeze drying or

Influence of the preparation method on the photocatalytic activity of Nd-modified TiO₂

• Patrycja Parnicka,
• Paweł Mazierski,
• Tomasz Grzyb,
• Wojciech Lisowski,
• Ewa Kowalska,
• Bunsho Ohtani,
• Adriana Zaleska-Medynska and
• Joanna Nadolna

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 447–459, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.43

• materials for various applications. According to the literature, RE-modified TiO2 could be prepared through a wide spectrum of methods, such as sol–gel [18][25], hydrothermal [23][26][27], solvothermal [28], electrospinning [29], co-precipitation [30] and electrochemical [8] methods. In our previous papers

• , we presented experimental studies concerning the effect of synthesis methods on lanthanide-modified TiO2. In these studies we compared hydrothermal and sol–gel method. The synthesis method significantly affects the structure, optical, luminescence and photocatalytic properties. It was found that all

• samples (TiO2 modified with Y3+, Pr3+, Er3+ and Eu3+) obtained through the hydrothermal method approach exhibited a higher photocatalytic activity, while the samples prepared via the sol–gel method approach yielded more luminescence when irradiated with 980 nm photons [24]. Meanwhile, the hydrothermal

Facile synthesis of ZnFe₂O₄ photocatalysts for decolourization of organic dyes under solar irradiation

• Arjun Behera,
• Debasmita Kandi,
• Sanjit Manohar Majhi,
• Satyabadi Martha and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 436–446, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.42

• , hydrothermal [15][16][17] solid-state combustion, sol–gel, co-precipitation, mechanochemical [18] and microwave-hydrothermal assisted ionic liquids have been reported for the synthesis of metal ferrite [10][13][19]. Recently, Sharma et al. reported the synthesis of ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles by an urea combustion

Synthesis and characterization of electrospun molybdenum dioxide–carbon nanofibers as sulfur matrix additives for rechargeable lithium–sulfur battery applications

• Ruiyuan Zhuang,
• Shanshan Yao,
• Maoxiang Jing,
• Xiangqian Shen,
• Jun Xiang,
• Tianbao Li,
• Kesong Xiao and
• Shibiao Qin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 262–270, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.28

• using an electrospinning technique followed by calcination, using sol–gel precursors and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) as a processing aid. The resulting samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET

• vigorously stirred for 24 h at room temperature to form a sol–gel solution for further electrospinning. The solution was then loaded into 10 mL plastic syringes equipped with a 9-gauge stainless steel needle. A high voltage power supply was used to provide a voltage of 15 kV to the needle tips and the

Bombyx mori silk/titania/gold hybrid materials for photocatalytic water splitting: combining renewable raw materials with clean fuels

• Stefanie Krüger,
• Michael Schwarze,
• Otto Baumann,
• Christina Günter,
• Michael Bruns,
• Christian Kübel,
• Dorothée Vinga Szabó,
• Rafael Meinusch,
• Verónica de Zea Bermudez and
• Andreas Taubert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 187–204, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.21

• mechanically and chemically stable to withstand the conditions during photocatalysis. Daoud and Xin [35] coated cotton fibers with 20 nm anatase particles via a sol–gel method. The covalently bonded TiO2 particles have a 50+ UV protection factor and are stable against washing. In an alternative approach, Zheng

Atomic layer deposition and properties of ZrO₂/Fe₂O₃ thin films

• Kristjan Kalam,
• Helina Seemen,
• Peeter Ritslaid,
• Mihkel Rähn,
• Aile Tamm,
• Kaupo Kukli,
• Aarne Kasikov,
• Joosep Link,
• Raivo Stern,
• Salvador Dueñas,
• Helena Castán and
• Héctor García

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 119–128, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.14

• structures were found to possess ferromagnetic behavior [9]. Ferromagnetism was also observed in annealed Co and Fe co-doped ZrO2, prepared by the sol–gel method [10]. Samples of Mn- and Fe-stabilized cubic zirconia were obtained by a co-precipitation method and no ferromagnetism was observed in such samples

• behavior in Fe-doped ZrO2 was observed. One can note that, for example, in the work by Okabayashi et al. [10], annealing was presumably required in order to initiate crystallization in sol–gel-synthesized (and therefore initially amorphous) films. Magnetization-field hysteresis loops were recorded in the

Review on optofluidic microreactors for artificial photosynthesis

• Xiaowen Huang,
• Jianchun Wang,
• Tenghao Li,
• Jianmei Wang,
• Min Xu,
• Weixing Yu,
• Abdel El Abed and
• Xuming Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 30–41, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.5

• technology by use of the microreactors. Water splitting In the early studies on optofluidic-based water splitting, the optofluidic device often employed sol–gel catalysts on planar channels. For example, Erickson et al. demonstrated a planar setup with TiO2–Pt to process the water splitting reaction [73

Enhanced photoelectrochemical water splitting performance using morphology-controlled BiVO₄ with W doping

• Xin Zhao and
• Zhong Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2640–2647, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.264

• , the pore size decreases. The film prepared from the water-based solution with the smallest amount of EG (0.5-EG) exhibits cracks in the film (Figure S2, Supporting Information File 1) and has poor adhesion to the substrate. The sol–gel method allows reagents to be mixed at the atomic/molecular level

• films can be successfully synthesized by the sol–gel method. Elemental analysis was also performed to confirm the composition. To simplify the test, two typical samples, 0-water and 1-EG, were selected for the EDX analysis. The results were shown in Table S1 and Table S2 of Supporting Information File 1

Synthesis of metal-fluoride nanoparticles supported on thermally reduced graphite oxide

• Alexa Schmitz,
• Kai Schütte,
• Vesko Ilievski,
• Juri Barthel,
• Laura Burk,
• Rolf Mülhaupt,
• Junpei Yue,
• Bernd Smarsly and
• Christoph Janiak

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2474–2483, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.247

• modern chemistry [53][54]. Nanoscale main-group metal fluorides can be obtained from a fluorolytic sol–gel route by the reaction of the metal alkoxide or acetate with anhydrous HF in a suitable organic solvent. Strong Lewis-acidic main-group metal fluorides such as AlF3 or MgF2 represent a new class of

Synthesis and characterization of noble metal–titania core–shell nanostructures with tunable shell thickness

• Bartosz Bartosewicz,
• Marta Michalska-Domańska,
• Malwina Liszewska,
• Dariusz Zasada and
• Bartłomiej J. Jankiewicz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2083–2093, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.208

• formation is desired. A sol–gel based titania coating method, which allows control over the shell thickness, was developed and applied to the synthesis of Ag@TiO2 and Au@TiO2 with various shell thicknesses. The morphology of the synthesized structures was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM

• control [21]. This is also the main reason for the low monodispersity of TiO2 particles prepared from titanium alkoxides using the sol–gel method [23]. The limitations in titania coating can be overcome by using the less common but more expensive TiO2 precursors, various solvents or their mixtures

Systematic control of α-Fe₂O₃ crystal growth direction for improved electrochemical performance of lithium-ion battery anodes

• Nan Shen,
• Miriam Keppeler,
• Barbara Stiaszny,
• Holger Hain,
• Filippo Maglia and
• Madhavi Srinivasan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2032–2044, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.204

• sol−gel approaches, the hydro/solvothermal synthesis route is known to be advantageous due to the homogenous nucleation/growth process and highly crystallized products [20][21][22]. In order to develop a synthesis method with morphology control aspects, inorganic ions as well as organic reagents

Two-dimensional carbon-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications

• Suneel Kumar,
• Ashish Kumar,
• Ashish Bahuguna,
• Vipul Sharma and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1571–1600, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.159

• known as chemical-modified graphene [51]. The schematic illustration of RGO preparation from graphite is shown in Figure 2. The composite formation of graphene with semiconductor materials has been reported by various methods, such as hydrothermal/solvothermal [52], sol−gel [53], self-assembly [54

• concentration, temperature, reaction time, etc., nanocomposites with various exposed crystal facets can be obtained by hydrothermal/solvothermal methods. The sol–gel method is another widely explored method for the synthesis of graphene-based nanocomposites [53]. The precursor material undergoes a series of

• reactions, mainly controlled hydrolysis and condensation, to form the desired photocatalyst. The major advantage of using the sol–gel method is the in situ growth of nanostructures so that the various functional groups on the surface of GO sheets are available to provide reactive and anchoring sites for the

Low-temperature CO oxidation over Cu/Pt co-doped ZrO₂ nanoparticles synthesized by solution combustion

• Amit Singhania and
• Shipra Mital Gupta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1546–1552, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.156

• reported a high activity of Cu-containing ZrO2-based nanocomposites (T50 = 70 °C) for CO oxidation. So, the combination of Cu, Pt and ZrO2 appears to be very interesting and promising. In literature, different methods have been used for the synthesis of doped ZrO2 nanoparticles. These include sol–gel, ball

• milling, precipitation, combustion, and reverse microemulsion [30][31][32][33]. Vahidshad et al. [34] synthesized sol–gel-derived Cu–ZrO2 nanoparticles. Similarly, Saha et al. [35] prepared CuO-doped ZrO2 nanoparticles via ball milling. Among the described methods, solution combustion is used frequently

Calcium fluoride based multifunctional nanoparticles for multimodal imaging

• Marion Straßer,
• Joachim H. X. Schrauth,
• Sofia Dembski,
• Daniel Haddad,
• Bernd Ahrens,
• Stefan Schweizer,
• Bastian Christ,
• Alevtina Cubukova,
• Marco Metzger,
• Heike Walles,
• Peter M. Jakob and
• Gerhard Sextl

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1484–1493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.148

• fluorolytic sol–gel process [33]. The stability and biocompatibility of CaF2 makes it an attractive material for biomedical applications [28][29]. In addition, due to the high capacity to accept lanthanide ions, CaF2 is suitable for the preparation of CAs for multimodal imaging [24]. In this study, we report

Bright fluorescent silica-nanoparticle probes for high-resolution STED and confocal microscopy

• Isabella Tavernaro,
• Christian Cavelius,
• Henrike Peuschel and
• Annette Kraegeloh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1283–1296, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.130

• silica matrix, which is mostly based on non-polar aromatic or conjugated π-electron systems [33], is not easy to achieve due to the hydrophobic character of the organic dye molecules. Commonly, fluorescent silica nanoparticles are obtained by hydrolysis and condensation of a silica precursor via sol–gel

• or reverse microemulsion synthesis [34]. Using the traditional sol–gel synthesis of silica particles described by Stöber et al. [35], particles are available in the size range of a few tens of nanometres up to the micrometre range. Although the Stöber method can be utilised to obtain particles with a