First-Principles Study on Adsorption and Decomposition of NOx on Mo (110) Surface

Based on the density functional theory, the adsorption and decomposition of NOx (x = 1, 2) on Mo (110) surface are studied with first-principles calculations. Results show that the stable structures of NO2/Mo (110) are MoNO2 (T, μ1-N), MoNO2 (H, μ3-N, O, O′), MoNO2 (S, η2-O, O′), and MoNO2 (L, η2-O, O′). The corresponding adsorption energies for the structures are −3.83 eV, −3.40 eV, −2.81 eV, and −2.60 eV, respectively. Besides, the stable structures of NO/Mo (110) are MoNO (H, μ1-N), MoNO (H, μ2-N, O), and MoNO (H, η1-N) with the corresponding adsorption energies of −3.75 eV, −3.57 eV, and −3.01 eV, respectively. N and O atoms are easily adsorbed at the hollow sites on Mo (110) surfaces, and their adsorption energies reach −7.02 eV and −7.70 eV, respectively. The preferable decomposition process of MoNO2 (H, μ3-N, O, O′) shows that the first and second deoxidation processes need to overcome energy barriers of 0.11 eV and 0.64 eV, respectively. All these findings indicate that NO2 is relatively easy to dissociate on Mo (110) surface.

Roles and Influences of Kerosene on Chalcopyrite Flotation in MgCl2 Solution: EDLVO and DFT Approaches

Seawater has been increasingly used as an alternative to freshwater in mineral flotation. Although previous studies suggest that Mg2+ ions in seawater have the primary negative roles in chalcopyrite flotation, insufficient work has been conducted to understand the effects of kerosene as a collector in chalcopyrite flotation. In this study, the influence of kerosene emulsion on chalcopyrite floatability in a solution containing Mg2+ was systematically investigated. The results indicated that the addition of kerosene significantly reduced the adsorption of hydrophilic Mg-precipitates onto the chalcopyrite’s surface. In addition to contact angle, zeta potential, optical microscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analyses, extended Derjguin–Landau–Verwey–Overbeek (EDLVO) theory and density functional theory (DFT) calculations were conducted to understand the influencing mechanisms of kerosene on chalcopyrite flotation. The adsorption energies showed an order of kerosene and Mg(OH)2 > kerosene and chalcopyrite > chalcopyrite and Mg(OH)2, indicating kerosene was preferentially adsorbed on the Mg(OH)2 surface, forming agglomerates and therefore reducing the adsorption of Mg(OH)2 precipitates onto the chalcopyrite’s surface. In addition, hydrophobic agglomerates were also formed due to the attachment of kerosene to the chalcopyrite’s surface when additional kerosene was added, further enhancing chalcopyrite floatability.

INFLUENCE OF HALOGEN NATURE ON THE ADSORPTION ABILITY OF ARYL HALIDES ON PALLADIUM CLUSTERS

В данной работе методом теории функционала плотности проведен расчет энергий адсорбции бензольного кольца на маленьких кластерах Pd (состоящих из четырех или девяти атомов). Показано, что адсорбция бензола на кластерах палладия ведет к заметному выигрышу системы в энергии: -146 кДж/моль в случае Pd и -117 кДж/моль в случае Pd. Кроме того, для системы Pd * CH рассчитаны энергии адсорбции хлор-, бром- и йоданизола. Показано, что адсорбция йоданизола, характеризующаяся наибольшим выигрышем системы в энергии (-278 кДж/моль), происходит диссоциативно и безактивационно, что принципиально отличает его от хлор- и броманизола. Полученные данные могут использоваться для объяснения различий в поведении катализаторов на основе сверхсшитого полистирола в реакциях кросс-сочетания различных арилгалогенидов c фенилбороновой кислотой, а также того факта, что арилйодиды могут провоцировать образование гомогенных форм палладия. In this paper, the density functional theory calculations were carried out in order to find the adsorption energies of a benzene ring on small Pd clusters consisting of four or nine atoms. The adsorption of benzene on palladium clusters was found to result in a noticeable energy gain of the system: -146 kJ/mol in the case of Pd, and -117 kJ/mol in the case of Pd. The adsorption energies of chloro-, bromo- and iodoanisole on Pd * CH were also calculated. The adsorption of iodoanisole was characterized by the highest energy gain of the system (-278 kJ/mol) and occurred dissociatively without activation, that fundamentally distinguished it from chloro- and bromoanisole. The data obtained can be used to explain the differences in the behavior of catalysts based on hypercross-linked polystyrene in cross-coupling reactions of various aryl halides and phenylboronic acid, and also the fact that aryl iodides can favor the formation of homogeneous forms of palladium.

A First-Principles Study of Gas Molecule Adsorption on Carbon-, Nitrogen-, and Oxygen-Doped Two-Dimensional Borophene

A first-principles study was performed to investigate the adsorption properties of gas molecules (CO, CO2, NO, and NO2) on carbon- (C-), nitrogen- (N-), and oxygen-doped (O) borophene. The adsorption energies, adsorption configurations, Mulliken charge population, surface work functions, and density of states (DOS) of the most stable doped borophene/gas-molecule configurations were calculated, and the interaction mechanisms between the gas molecules and the doped borophene were further analyzed. The results indicated that most of the gas molecules exhibited strong chemisorption at the VB site (the center of valley bottom B–B bond) of the doped borophene (compared to pristine borophene). Electronic property analysis of the C-doped borophene/CO2 and the NO2 adsorption system revealed that there were numerous charge transfers from the C-doped borophene to the CO2 and NO2 molecules. This indicated that C-doped borophene was an electron donor, and the CO2 and NO2 molecules served as electron acceptors. In contrast to variations in the adsorption energies, electronic properties, and surface work functions of the different gas, C-, N-, and O-doped borophene adsorption systems, we concluded that the C-, N-, and O-doped borophene materials will improve the sensitivity of CO, CO2, and NO2 molecule; this improvement of adsorption properties indicated that C-, N-, and O-doped borophene materials are excellent candidates for surface work functions transistor to detect gas molecules.

Adsorption of Cr(OH)n(3−n)+ (n = 1–3) on Illite (001) and (010) Surfaces: A DFT Study

The development of clay adsorption materials with high Cr(III) removal capacities requires an understanding of the adsorption mechanism at the atomic level. Herein, the mechanisms for the adsorption of Cr(OH)2+, Cr(OH)2+, and Cr(OH)3 on the (001) and (010) surfaces of illite were studied by analyzing the adsorption energies, adsorption configurations, charges, and state densities using density functional theory (DFT). The adsorption energies on the illite (010) and (001) surfaces decrease in the order: Cr(OH)2+ > Cr(OH)2+ > Cr(OH)3. In addition, the energies associated with adsorption on the (010) surface are greater than those on the (001) surface. Further, the hydrolysates are highly active and can provide adsorption sites for desorption agents. The silica (Si–O) ring on the illite (001) surface can capture Cr(OH)n(3−n)+ (n = 1–3). In addition, both Cr(OH)2+ and Cr(OH)2+ form one covalent bond between Cr and surface OS1 (Cr–OS1), whereas the hydroxyl groups of Cr(OH)3 form three hydrogen bonds with surface oxygens. However, increasing the number of hydroxyl groups in Cr(OH)n(3−n)+ weakens both the covalent and electrostatic interactions between the adsorbate and the (001) surface. In contrast, the Cr in all hydrolysates can form two covalent Cr–OSn (n = 1–2) bonds to the oxygens on the illite (010) surface, in which Cr s and O p orbitals contribute to the bonding process. However, covalent interactions between the cation and the (010) surface are weakened as the number of hydroxyl groups in Cr(OH)n(3−n)+ increases. These results suggest that the illite interlayer can be stripped to expose Si–O rings, thereby increasing the number of adsorption sites. Furthermore, regulating the generated Cr(III) hydrolysate can increase or weaken adsorption on the illite surface. Based on these findings, conditions can be determined for improving the adsorption capacities and optimizing the regeneration performance of clay mineral materials.

Water Splitting on Multifaceted SrTiO3 Nanocrystals: Computational Study

Recent experimental findings suggest that strontium titanate SrTiO3 (STO) photocatalytic activity for water splitting could be improved by creating multifaceted nanoparticles. To understand the underlying mechanisms and energetics, the model for faceted nanoparticles was created. The multifaceted nanoparticles’ surface is considered by us as a combination of flat and “stepped” facets. Ab initio calculations of the adsorption of water and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) intermediates were performed. Our findings suggest that the “slope” part of the step showed a natural similarity to the flat surface, whereas the “ridge” part exhibited significantly different adsorption configurations. On the “slope” region, both molecular and dissociative adsorption modes were possible, whereas on the “ridge”, only dissociative adsorption was observed. Water adsorption energies on the “ridge” ( −1.50 eV) were significantly higher than on the “slope” ( −0.76 eV molecular; −0.83 eV dissociative) or flat surface ( −0.79 eV molecular; −1.09 eV dissociative).

Electronic structure of molecular hydrogen in MoS2 nanopores

Atom controlled sub-nanometer MoS2 pores have been recently fabricated with promising applications, such gas sensing, hydrogen storage and DNA translocation. In this work we carried out first-principles calculations of hydrogen adsorption in tiny MoS2 nanopores. Some of the pores show metallic behavior whereas others have a sizeable band gap. Whereas adsorption of molecular hydrogen on bare pores are dominated by physisorption, adsorption in the nanopores show chemisorption behavior with high selectivity depending on the pore inner termination. Finally, we show that functionalization with copper atoms leads to does not improve dignificantly the adsorption energies of selected pores.selected pores.

Oxygen (O2) reduction reaction on Ba-doped LaMnO3 cathodes in solid oxide fuel cells: a density functional theory study

The oxygen adsorption and subsequent reduction on the {100} and {110} surfaces of 25% Ba-doped LaMnO3 (LBM25) have been studied at the density functional theory (DFT) with Hubbard correction and the results compared with adsorption on 25% Ca-doped LaMnO3 (LCM25) and Sr-doped LaMnO3 (LSM25). The trend in the reduction energies at the Mn cation sites are predicted to be in the order LSM25 < LBM25 < LCM25. In addition, the trend in dissociation energies for the most exothermic dissociated precursors follow the order LBM25 < LSM25 < LCM25. The adsorption energies (− 2.14 to − 2.41 eV) calculated for the molecular O2 precursors at the Mn cation sites of LCM25, LSM25 and LBM25 are thermodynamically stable, when compared directly with the adsorption energies (Eads = − 0.56 to − 1.67 eV) reported for the stable molecular O2 precursors on the Pt, Ni, Pd, Cu and Ir {111} surfaces. The predicted Gibbs energies as a function of temperature (T = 500–1100 °C) and pressures (p = 0.2 atm) for the adsorption and dissociation on the surfaces were negative, an indication of the feasibility of oxygen reduction reaction on the {100} and {110} surfaces at typical operating temperatures reported in this work.