Modification of TiO_2 Nanoparticles with Organodiboron Molecules Inducing Stable Surface Ti^(3+) Complex

As one of the most promising semiconductor oxide materials, titanium dioxide (TiO_2) absorbs ultraviolet (UV) light but not visible light. To address this limitation, the introduction of Ti^(3+) defects represents a common strategy to render TiO_2 visible-light-responsive. Unfortunately, current hurdles in Ti^(3+) generation technologies impeded the widespread application of Ti^(3+) modified materials. Herein, we demonstrate a simple and mechanistically distinct approach to generating abundant surface-Ti^(3+) sites without leaving behind oxygen vacancy and sacrificing one-off electron donors. In particular, upon adsorption of organodiboron reagents onto TiO_2 nanoparticles, spontaneous electron injection from the dibron-bound O^(2-) site to adjacent Ti^(4+) site leads to an extremely stable blue surface Ti^(3+)‒O^(-•) complex. Notably, this defect generation protocol is also applicable to other semiconductor oxides including ZnO, SnO_2, Nb_2O_5 and In_2O_3. Furthermore, the as-prepared photoelectronic device using this strategy affords 10^3 fold higher visible light response, and the fabricated perovskite solar cell shows an enhanced performance

Microbacterium spp. peritonitis in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis: a single-center experience and literature review

IntroductionPeritoneal dialysis-related peritonitis (PDRP) caused by Microbacterium spp. is very rare, with only 9 cases reported to date. In this study, we report the treatment experiences of 7 patients at our peritoneal dialysis center.MethodsWe retrospectively collected clinical characteristics and antibiotic management of all 7 episodes of PDRP caused by Microbacterium spp. in 7 patients from at our center over 4 years, and reviewed the documented Microbacterium spp. PDRP in the literature.ResultsEmpiric antibiotic therapy was initiated as soon as possible, and consisted of intraperitoneal (IP) gentamicin in combination with vancomycin. After up to 5 days, gentamicin was changed to meropenem if the treatment was not effective. The intended course of antibiotic treatment was 21-day. Totally, 6 episodes were cured (85.7%), which was higher than reported.ConclusionThe 21-day antibiotic therapy program by combining vancomycin and meropenem may benefit the management of Microbacterium spp. PDRP

Modification of TiO_2 Nanoparticles with Organodiboron Molecules Inducing Stable Surface Ti^(3+) Complex

As one of the most promising semiconductor oxide materials, titanium dioxide (TiO_2) absorbs ultraviolet (UV) light but not visible light. To address this limitation, the introduction of Ti^(3+) defects represents a common strategy to render TiO_2 visible-light-responsive. Unfortunately, current hurdles in Ti^(3+) generation technologies impeded the widespread application of Ti^(3+) modified materials. Herein, we demonstrate a simple and mechanistically distinct approach to generating abundant surface-Ti^(3+) sites without leaving behind oxygen vacancy and sacrificing one-off electron donors. In particular, upon adsorption of organodiboron reagents onto TiO_2 nanoparticles, spontaneous electron injection from the dibron-bound O^(2-) site to adjacent Ti^(4+) site leads to an extremely stable blue surface Ti^(3+)‒O^(-•) complex. Notably, this defect generation protocol is also applicable to other semiconductor oxides including ZnO, SnO_2, Nb_2O_5 and In_2O_3. Furthermore, the as-prepared photoelectronic device using this strategy affords 10^3 fold higher visible light response, and the fabricated perovskite solar cell shows an enhanced performance

Light-assisted decomposition of dyes over iron-bearing soil clays in the presence of H2O2

Four types of soil clays from different sites in China have been chosen to simulate chemical remediation of soils contaminated with dyes by light-assisted Fenton-like method. X-Ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic (XPS) and electron spin resonance (ESR) measurements indicated that these soil clays contain iron oxides such as magnetite and hematite, where nondistorted iron active sites (ESR spectra, g = 2.3) predominate. Upon visible or UV irradiation, the soil clays were very effective for the degradation of nonbiodegradable cationic dyes such as Rhodamine B (RhB) by activating H2O2 at neutral pH. The photodegradation rates of RhB were closely related to total Fe content in clays and H2O2 dosage, indicating the mineral-catalyzed Fenton-like reactions operated. Soil organic matters (SOM) would remarkably inhibit the photodecomposition of RhB dye. The reaction products were some low-molecular-weight dicarboxylic acids and their derivatives, all of which are easily biodegradable. A possible mechanism was proposed based on the results obtained by spin-trapping ESR technique