Gold Nanoparticles in Melting Gels

Melting gels were prepared by the sol–gel process from methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) and dimethyldiethoxysilane (DMDES). Two compositions, 75 mol% MTES-25 mol% DMDES and 65 mol% MTES–35 mol% DMDES, were compared. Citrate-capped gold nanospheres were added to the melting gels during the synthesis process in five concentrations 8, 10, 12, 14, and 18 nM. The doped melting gels were studied both before and after their consolidation into hybrid glasses. Oscillatory rheometry and differential scanning calorimetry were employed to determine glass transition temperatures of the gels. According to oscillatory rheometry performed at constant frequency, the gels initially behave as viscous fluids and this continues as temperature is decreased, while recording the evolution of both storage G’(t,ω0) and loss G” (t,ω0) moduli with temperature. Glass transition temperature was determined as the moduli crossover point. Viscosity was dependent on temperature, but showed little variation with stress. As a general trend, viscosity decreased in the doped gels when compared to the undoped gel. UV–Vis spectra were collected to verify the presence of the gold nanospheres and to monitor their size. For the consolidated samples the position of the plasmon peak reflected the interaction between the gold nanospheres and the hybrid glass matrix

Core/shell nanoparticles as hybrid platforms for the fabrication of a hydrogen peroxide biosensor

Core/shell nanoparticles consisting of a Fe3O4 nanoparticle core and a mesoporous silica shell (Fe3O4/m-silica) were used as a matrix for immobilization of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) enzyme and subsequent design of an amperometric hydrogen peroxide biosensor. HRP enzyme was immobilized on the core/shell nanoparticles through the electrostatic interaction between oppositely charged HRP enzyme and the silica shell at neutral pH. The enzyme-core/shell nanoparticle hybrid material was deposited on screen printed electrodes and further characterized by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). This set up was used as a biosensor to detect hydrogen peroxide. The hydrogen peroxide biosensor showed a detection limit of 4.3 x 10(-7) M, at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3, and a sensitivity of 84.4 mu A mM(-1) cm(2)

Effect of multi-walled carbon nanotubes on the stability of dye sensitized solar cells

We report the improvement of the operational stability of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) by incorporating multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) in conventional nanostructured semiconducting TiO2 photoanodes. DSSCs were prepared by adding various concentrations of MWCNTs (up to 1.0% wt.) to TiO2 anatase nanoparticles. Optimization of MWCNT concentration leads to photoconversion efficiency as high as 4.1% as opposed to 3.7% for pure TiO2 photoanodes. The performance of the solar cells was measured for 10 consecutive days of continuous ambient light exposure. MWCNT addition results in the decrease of efficiency from 4.1% to 3.7%, while a decrease from 3.7% to 2.4% was recorded in pure TiO2 photoanodes. These results are encouraging toward the commercial exploitation of DSSCs. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved