Optimization of sputtered ZnO transparent conductive seed layer for flexible ZnO-nanorod-based devices

This research was supported by the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports projects CENTEM CZ.1.05/2.1.00/03.0088 and CENTEM PLUS LO1402. Author MK acknowledges the assistance provided by the Research Infrastructure NanoEnviCz under Project no. LM2015073. JB acknowledges funding from Innovate UK project 101796

Improvement of Orange II Photobleaching by Moderate Ga 3+

Highly photoactive Ga3+-doped anatase modification of titania was prepared by homogeneous hydrolysis of aqueous solutions mixture of titanium oxo-sulphate TiOSO4 and gallium(III) nitrate with urea. Incorporation of Ga3+ into the anatase lattice has a clear positive effect on the photocatalytic activity under UV and Vis light irradiation up to a certain extent of Ga. Ga3+ doping decreased the size of the crystallites, increased surface area, and affected texture of the samples. Higher amount of gallium leads to the formation of a nondiffractive phase, probably photocatalytically inactive. The titania sample with 2.18 wt.% Ge3+ had the highest activity during the photocatalysed degradation in the UV and visible light regions; the total bleaching of dye Orange II was achieved within 29 minutes. Ga concentration larger than 5% (up to 15%) significantly inhibited the growth of the anatase crystal domains which formed the nondiffractive phase content and led to remarkable worsening of the photobleaching efficiency

Chemical and electrochemical study of fabrics coated with reduced graphene oxide

Polyester fabrics coated with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) have been obtained and later characterized by means of chemical and electrochemical techniques. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed a decrease of the oxygen content as well as an increase of the sp2 fraction after chemical reduction of graphene oxide (GO). The electrical conductivity was measured by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and showed a decrease of 5 orders of magnitude in the resistance (¿) when GO was reduced to RGO. The phase angle also changed from 90° for PES-GO (capacitative behavior) to 0° for RGO coated fabrics (resistive behavior). In general an increase in the number of RGO layers produced an increase of the conductivity of the fabrics. EIS measurements in metal/sample/electrolyte configuration showed better electrocatalytic properties and faster diffusion rate for RGO specimens. Scanning electrochemical microscopy was employed to test the electroactivity of the different fabrics obtained. The sample coated with GO was not conductive since negative feedback was obtained. When GO was reduced to RGO the sample behaved like a conducting material since positive feedback was obtained. Approach curves indicated that the redox mediator had influence on the electrochemical response. The Fe(CN)63¿/4¿ redox mediator produced a higher electrochemical response than Ru(NH3)63+/2+ one.Authors thank to the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (contract CTM2011-23583) and Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (Vicerrectorado de Investigacion PAID-06-10 contract 003-233) for the financial support. J. Molina is grateful to the Conselleria d'Educacio (Generalitat Valenciana) for the FPI fellowship. A.I. del Rio is grateful to the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnologia for the FPI fellowship. J.C. Galvan is gratefully acknowledged for help with EIS measurements and data analysis.Molina Puerto, J.; Fernández Sáez, J.; Del Río García, AI.; Bonastre Cano, JA.; Cases Iborra, FJ. (2013). Chemical and electrochemical study of fabrics coated with reduced graphene oxide. Applied Surface Science. 279:46-54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2013.04.020S465427

Synthesis of Pt nanoparticles on electrochemically reduced graphene oxide by potentiostatic and alternate current methods

Reduced graphene oxide (RGO) has been synthesized on Pt wires by means of a potentiodynamic method between +0.6 V and -1.4'V for 20 scans. Cyclic voltammetry characterization of the coatings showed the typical capacitative behavior of graphene. Pt nanoparticles were synthesized on Pt-RGO electrodes by means of potentiostatic methods and a comparison between different synthesis potentials (-0.16, 0, +0.2 and +0.4 V) for the same synthesis charge (mC.cm(-2)) was established. The electrodes obtained were characterized in 0.5 M H2SO4 solution to observe the characteristic oxidation and reduction processes of the Pt surface. A 0.5 M H2SO4/0.5 M CH3OH solution was used to measure the catalytic properties of the deposits against methanol oxidation. The most appropriate potential to perform the synthesis was 0 V followed by -0.16 V and +0.2 V. The morphology of the coatings varied depending on the potential applied as observed by scanning electron microscopy. Alternate current methods were also used to synthesize Pt nanoparticles and compare the results with the traditional potentiostatic method. Different frequencies were used: 0.1, 1, 10, 100, 1000 and 10000 Hz. Alternate current synthesis is more efficient than traditional potentiostatic methods, obtaining more electroactive coatings with less effective synthesis time. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Authors wish to thank to the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (contract CTM2011-23583) and Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (Vicerrectorado de Investigacion PAID-06-10 contract 003-233) for the financial support. J. Molina is grateful to the Conselleria d'Educacio, Formacio i Ocupacio (Generalitat Valenciana) for the Programa VALi+D Postdoctoral Fellowship. A.I. del Rio is grateful to the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnologia for the FPI fellowship.Molina Puerto, J.; Fernández Sáez, J.; Del Río García, AI.; Bonastre Cano, JA.; Cases Iborra, FJ. (2014). Synthesis of Pt nanoparticles on electrochemically reduced graphene oxide by potentiostatic and alternate current methods. Materials Characterization. 89:56-68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2014.01.003S56688

Hmotnostni spektrometrie plazmatu a vytvareni tenkych vrstev Si-C-N.

Although many results have been reported on the sputtered C-N and Si-C-N films in the literature, deposition mechanisms of such films have not yet been explained in a consistent way. This is due to the lack of knowledge about complex physical and chemical processes occurring on the magnetron target surface, in the plasma bulk and in the sheath region near the powered substrate holder, and on the surface or in the subsurface region of the growing film.Summary in English and GermanAvailable from STL, Prague, CZ / NTK - National Technical LibrarySIGLECZCzech Republi

Composite Fe3O4/humic acid magnetic sorbent and its sorption ability for chlorophenols and some other aromatic compounds

A composite magnetic sorbent with a relatively high content of humic substances (above 35% of organic carbon) was prepared by co-precipitation of Fe2+/Fe3+ salts with commercially available alkaline humate concentrate. Magnetite (Fe3O4) was identified as the main crystalline phase bearing the magnetic properties of the sorbent. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images revealed the presence of uniform sub-micron structures on the surface of the sorbent grains. Due to the presence of humic substances, the sorbent exhibited good sorption ability towards low-polarity organic pollutants, namely chlorophenols. The sorption efficiency increased in the order of 4-mono- < 2,4-di- < 2,4,5-trichlorophenol in accordance with growing hydrophobicity of these compounds, confirming a hydrophobic nature of the interactions involved in the sorption process. Similar trends were found in the desorption study utilizing water and methanol as leachants. Some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (naphthalene, anthracene, phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene) were also retained on the sorbent. The chemical composition as well as the main physical characteristics (surface area, phase composition) of the sorbent remained virtually unchanged during the sorption process. The sorbent retained its magnetic properties during the sorption of organic substances from aqueous solutions, which provides an opportunity for its regeneration.Web of Science48132035202

Comparison of the Influence of Two Types of Plasma Treatment of Short Carbon Fibers on Mechanical Properties of Epoxy Composites Filled with These Treated Fibers

The interfacial interface between fibers and matrix plays a key role for epoxy matrix composites and short recycled randomly arranged fibers. This study used short recycled carbon fiber (RCF) as a filler. Plasma treatment was used for carbon fiber surface treatment. This treatment was performed using radio (RF) and microwave (MW) frequencies at the same pressure and atmosphere. Appropriate chemical modification of the fiber surfaces helps to improve the wettability of the carbon fibers and, at the same time, allows the necessary covalent bonds to form between fibers and the epoxy matrix. The effect of the plasma treatment was analyzed and confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and wettability measurements. Composite samples filled with recycled carbon fibers with low concentrations (1 wt%, 2.5 wt% and 5 wt%) and high concentrations (20 wt% and 30 wt%) were made from selected treated fibers. The mechanical properties (impact toughness, 3PB) were analyzed on these samples. It was found that the modulus of elasticity and bending stress increase with the increasing content of recycled carbon fibers. A more significant change in impact strength occurred in samples with low concentration

Synthesis and properties of nanocomposites of WO3 and exfoliated g-C3N4

The nanocomposites of WO3 nanoparticles and exfoliated graphitized C3N4 (g-C3N4) particles were prepared and their properties were studied. For this purpose, common methods used for characterization of solid samples were completed with dynamic light scattering (DLS) method and photocatalysis, which are suitable for study of aqueous dispersions. The WO3 nanoparticles of monoclinic structures were prepared by a hydrothermal method from sodium tungstate and g-C3N4 particles were prepared by calcination of melamine forming bulk g-C3N4, which was further thermally exfoliated. Its specific surface area (SSA) was 115 m(2) g(-1). The nanocomposites were prepared by mixing of WO3 nanoparticles and g-C3N4 structures in aqueous dispersions acidified by hydrochloric acid at pH = 2 followed by their separation and calcination at 450 degrees C. The real content of WO3 was determined at 19 wt%, 52 wt% and 63 wt%. It was found by the DLS analysis that the g-C3N4 particles were covered by the WO3 nanoparticles or their agglomerates creating the nanocomposites that were stable in aqueous dispersions even under intensive ultrasonic field. Using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) the average size of the pure WO3 nanoparticles and those in the nanocomposites was 73 nm and 72 nm, respectively. The formation of heterojunction between both components was investigated by UV Vis diffuse reflectance (DRS) and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), photocatalysis and photocurrent measurements. The photocatalytic decomposition of phenol under the LED source of 416 nm identified the formation of Z-scheme heterojunction, which was confirmed by the photocurrents measurements. The photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposites decreased with the increasing content of WO3, which was explained by shielding of the g-C3N4 surface by bigger WO3 agglomerates. This study also demonstrates a unique combination of various characterization techniques working in solid and liquid phase.Web of Science4316135911358

Structural Characterization of Nanopatterned Surfaces

In this work, chemically and topographically nanopatterned surfaces were produced by a top-down processing approach for biosensing devices. The nanopatterning was the result of the combination of plasma polymerisation (pp) of biofunctional materials and colloidal lithography techniques. The morphological and chemical properties induced by the plasma deposition–etching treatment were characterised by optical method combining ellipsometry and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy studies. This method supported by atomic force microscopy measurements, allowed the full optical characterization of each step of the top-down process. The optical characterization of the end-up nanopatterned samples demonstrated that the chosen process is able to produce well-defined nanostructured surfaces with controlled chemical and morphological properties.JRC.I.4-Nanotechnology and Molecular Imagin