Synthesis and electrocatalytic activity towards oxygen reduction reaction of gold-nanostars

The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is a characteristic reaction which determines the performance of fuel cells which convert a chemical energy into an electrical energy. Aims of this study are to synthesize Au-based nanostars (AuNSs) and determine their preliminary electro-catalytic activities towards ORR by a rotating-disk electrode method in alkaline electrolyte. The images obtained from a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and a transmission electron microscope (TEM) analyses confirm the formation of the star-shaped nanoparticles. Among the investigated nanostar catalysts, an AuNS5 with smaller size and a few branches showed the higher electrocatalytic activity towards ORR than other catalysts with a bigger size. In addition, the electron numbers transferred for all the catalysts are approximately two. The present study results infer that the size of the Au-based nanostars may influence greatly on their catalytic activity. The present study results show that the further improvement is needed for Au-based nanostar catalysts towards the ORR reaction

Atomic-scale perspective on the origin of attractive step interactions on Si(113)

Recent experiments have shown that steps on Si(113) surfaces self-organize into bunches due to a competition between long-range repulsive and short-range attractive interactions. Using empirical and tight-binding interatomic potentials, we investigate the physical origin of the short-range attraction, and report the formation and interaction energies of steps. We find that the short-range attraction between steps is due to the annihilation of force monopoles at their edges as they combine to form bunches. Our results for the strengths of the attractive interactions are consistent with the values determined from experimental studies on kinetics of faceting.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev B, Rapid Communication

Optimizing both catalyst preparation and catalytic behaviour for the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane of Ni-Sn-O catalysts

[EN] Bulk Ni-Sn-O catalysts have been synthesized, tested in the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane and characterized by several physicochemical techniques. The catalysts have been prepared by evaporation of the corresponding salts using several additives in the synthesis gel, i.e. ammonium hydroxide, nitric acid, glyoxylic acid or oxalic acid, in the synthesis gel. The catalysts were finally calcined at 500 degrees C in air. Important changes in the catalytic behaviour have been observed depending on the additive. In fact, an important improvement in the catalytic performance is observed especially when some additives, such as glyoxylic or oxalic acid, are used. Thus the productivity to ethylene multiplies by 6 compared to the reference Ni-Sn-O catalyst if appropriate templates are used, and this is the result of an improvement in both the catalytic activity and the selectivity to ethylene. This improved performance has been explained in terms of the decrease of the crystallite size (and the increase in the surface area of catalyst) as well as the modification of the lattice parameter of nickel oxide.The authors would like to acknowledge the DGICYT in Spain (CTQ2015-68951-C3-1-R and CTQ2012-37925-C03-2) for financial support. We also thank the University of Valencia and SCSIE-UV for assistanceSolsona Espriu, BE.; López Nieto, JM.; Agouram, S.; Soriano Rodríguez, MD.; Dejoz, A.; Vázquez, MI.; Concepción Heydorn, P. (2016). Optimizing both catalyst preparation and catalytic behaviour for the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane of Ni-Sn-O catalysts. Topics in Catalysis. 59(17-18):1564-1572. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11244-016-0674-zS156415725917-18Heracleous E, Lee AF, Wilson K, Lemonidou AA (2005) J Catal 231:159–171Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA (2006) J Catal 237:162–174Savova B, Loridant S, Filkova D, Millet JMM (2010) Appl Catal A 390:148–157Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA (2010) J Catal 270:67–75Solsona B, Nieto JML, Concepcion P, Dejoz A, Ivars F, Vazquez MI (2011) J Catal 280:28–39Skoufa Z, Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA (2012) Catal Today 192:169–176Zhu H, Ould-Chikh S, Anjum DH, Sun M, Biausque G, Basset JM, Caps V (2012) J Catal 285:292–303Skoufa Z, Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA (2012) Chem Eng Sci 84:48–56Zhu H, Rosenfeld DC, Anjum DH, Caps V, Basset JM (2015) ChemSusChem 8:1254–1263Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA (2015) J Catal 322:118–129Solsona B, Concepcion P, Demicol B, Hernandez S, Delgado JJ, Calvino JJ, Nieto JML (2012) J Catal 295:104–114Nieto JML, Solsona B, Grasselli RK, Concepción P (2014) Top Catal 57:1248–1255Popescu I, Skoufa Z, Heracleous E, Lemonidou AA, Marcu IC (2015) PCCP 17:8138–8147Zhang X, Gong Y, Yu G, Xie Y (2002) J Mol Catal A 180:293–298Popescu I, Skoufa Z, Heracleous E, Lemonidou A, Marcu I-C (2015) Phys Chem Chem Phys 17:8138–8147Nakamura KI, Miyake T, Konishi T, Suzuki T (2006) J Mol Catal A 260:144–151Solsona B, Dejoz AM, Vazquez MI, Ivars F, Nieto JML (2009) Top Catal 52:751–757Bortolozzi JP, Gutierrez LB, Ulla MA (2013) Appl Catal A 452:179–188Takeguchi T, Furukawa S, Inoue M (2001) J Catal 202:14–24Richardson JT, Turk B, Twigg MV (1996) Appl Catal 148:97–112Biju V, Khadar MA (2002) J Nanopart Res 4:247–253Van Veenendaal MA, Sawatzky GA (1993) Phys Rev Lett 70:2459–2462Vedrine JC, Hollinger G, Duc TM (1978) J Phys Chem 82:1515–1520Salagre P, Fierro JLG, Medina F, Sueiras JE (1996) J Mol Catal A 106:125–13

The rise and fall of methanotrophy following a deepwater oil-well blowout

The blowout of the Macondo oil well in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010 injected up to 500,000 tonnes of natural gas, mainly methane, into the deep sea1. Most of the methane released was thought to have been consumed by marine microbes between July and August 20102, 3. Here, we report spatially extensive measurements of methane concentrations and oxidation rates in the nine months following the spill. We show that although gas-rich deepwater plumes were a short-lived feature, water column concentrations of methane remained above background levels throughout the rest of the year. Rates of microbial methane oxidation peaked in the deepwater plumes in May and early June, coincident with a rapid rise in the abundance of known and new methane-oxidizing microbes. At this time, rates of methane oxidation reached up to 5,900 nmol l−1 d−1—the highest rates documented in the global pelagic ocean before the blowout4. Rates of methane oxidation fell to less than 50 nmol l−1 d−1 in late June, and continued to decline throughout the remainder of the year. We suggest the precipitous drop in methane consumption in late June, despite the persistence of methane in the water column, underscores the important role that physiological and environmental factors play in constraining the activity of methane-oxidizing bacteria in the Gulf of Mexico