A low-dimensional N-rich coordination polymer as effective fluorescence sensor for 2,4,6-trinitrophenol detection in an aqueous medium

2,4,6-Trinitrophenol (TNP) is highly explosive and toxic in nitroaromatic compounds. The selective detection of TNP is crucial for life safety and the social environment. As a novel multifunctional material, coordination...

Green synthesis of Zinc sulphide (ZnS) nanostructures using S. frutescences plant extract for photocatalytic degradation of dyes and antibiotics

Pollutants such as dyes and pharmaceuticals have become a problem in the environment, thus there is a need to find multifunctional materials that are safe and can be used for the removal of various pollutants. In this study, we report on the synthesis of Zinc sulphide (ZnS) nanostructures and their use as photocatalysts for the degradation of dyes and various antibiotics. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR) confirmed the functional groups found in plants and these were linked to the biomolecules identified through Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LCMS). Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) confirmed the formation of the ZnS nanostructures. Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Brunner Emmet Teller (BET) confirmed the material was thermally stable up until 480oC and mesoporous in nature, respectively. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) showed that the material is spherical in shape and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) further corroborated their formation. From the degradation analysis, 90% of the malachite green (MG) dye could be degraded in 60 min at optimum conditions (pH 6, 25 mg and 10 mg/L) and the holes were responsible for the degradation. Lastly, when tested against antibiotics, the ZnS material managed to degrade both the sulfisoxazole (SSX) and sulfamethoxazole (SMX). These results showed that the ZnS nanoparticles could be used as a multifunctional material for the degradation of various pollutants.

Recent Advances in Spinel Ferrite-Based Thin Films: Synthesis, Performances, Applications, and Beyond

This review provides a comprehensive overview of the recent advances in the various typical spinel ferrite-based thin films with controlled synthesis, their performances, applications in multifunctional material fields, fundamental scientific challenges, and beyond. Firstly, the crystal structures of spinel ferrite-based thin films are introduced. Secondly, recent progress in traditional synthesizing and novel methods for preparation of spinel ferrite-based films are highlighted. Thirdly, their magnetism, electricity, optics performances, and applications in advanced information technology, energy storage and conversion, and environmental conservation fields are also summarized and discussed in-depth. Some effective strategies for optimizing performances and further applications are summarized. Finally, the present review work ends with a short discussion concerning the challenges, opportunities, and future prospects of spinel ferrite-based thin films.

Stable dinitrile end-capped closed-shell non-quinodimethane as donor, acceptor and additive of organic solar cells

Non-fullerene acceptors exhibit great potential to improve photovoltaic performances of organic solar cells. However, it is important to further enhance chemical stability and device durability for future commercialization, especially for Y6-series small molecule acceptors with 2-(3-oxo-2,3-dihydroinden-1-ylidene)malononitrile (IC) type as ending group. In this work, an IC-free photovoltaic material YF-CN consisting of 2-fluoren-9-ylidenepropanedinitrile terminal was designed and synthesized by stille coupling. YF-CN exhibits enhanced photostability and improves morphological compatibility with the binary PCE10:Y6 blend. The moderate energy level makes YF-CN could serve as a multifunctional material, such as donor, acceptor and the third component. When adding YF-CN as second donor into PCE10:Y6 system, an improved power conversion efficiency of 12.03% was achieved for as-cast device. Importantly, the ternary PCE10:YF-CN:Y6-devices showed enhanced storage durability maintaining 91% of initial PCE after the 360 hours. This work provides new perspective to understand the open-shell and closed-shell structure of donors and acceptors, as well as promising design concept of stable IC-free acceptors for organic solar cells.

Stabilization of the Surface of ZnO Films and Elimination of the Aging Effect

Zinc oxide is a promising multifunctional material. The practical use of nano- and polycrystalline ZnO devices faces a serious problem of instability of electrical and luminescent characteristics, due to the adsorption of oxygen by the surface during aging. In this paper, the aging effect in ZnO films and nanorod arrays was studied. It was found that ZnO samples demonstrate different behavior of the degradation process, which corresponds to at least two different types of adsorbing surface sites for O2, where O2 adsorption is of a different nature. The first type of surface sites is rapidly depassivated after hydrogen passivation and the aging effect takes place due to these centers. The second type of surface sites has a stable structure after hydrogen passivation and corresponds to HO–ZnO sites. The XPS components of these sites include the Zn2p3/2 peak at 1022.2 ± 0.2 eV and Zn2p1/2 peak at 1045.2 ± 0.2 eV, with a part of the XPS O1s peak at 531.5 ± 0.3 eV. The annealing transforms the first type of site into the second one, and the subsequent short-term plasma treatment in hydrogen results in steady passivation, where the degradation of characteristics is practically reduced to zero.