40 research outputs found

    The formation of highly dispersed zinc oxide powder during combustion of zinc nitrate with glycine mixture and its application for photocatalytic phenol decomposition

    Get PDF
    The paper presents the results of a detailed study of the process and products of combustion during self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) of ZnO zinc oxide powder from mixtures of such common reagents as oxidizer zinc nitrate and reducing agent (fuel) glycine, as well as the application of synthesized highly dispersed submicron and nanosized ZnO powder for the phenol photocatalytic decomposition under the action of ultraviolet irradiation. An aqueous solution of a mixture of reagents (the SHS-S process or Solution Combustion Synthesis – SCS) and the gel from a mixture of initial dry reagents formed when they were moistened due to hygroscopicity (the SHS-G process or Gel Combustion Synthesis – GCS) were combusted. The authors studied the phase and chemical compositions, the structure of the combustion product, and the effect of calcination in an oxidizing air medium and grinding in drum ball and planetary-centrifugal mills, as well as in mortar, on them and their photocatalythic activity. The study showed that calcination considerably increases the photocatalytic activity of combustion products due to a significant decrease in carbon impurity in the unburned fuel remains, and grinding in mills reduces the photocatalytic activity due to iron contamination and coarsening of ZnO particle agglomerates. The difference between the photocatalytic activity of the SHS-G and SHS-S products in the phenol decomposition is evident only at the initial stage of ultraviolet irradiation, after which this difference disappears. The authors discuss the direction of further research to increase significantly the photocatalytic activity of zinc oxide synthesized during combustion to use it effectively for the phenol decomposition under the action of visible light

    Modelling human choices: MADeM and decision‑making

    Get PDF
    Research supported by FAPESP 2015/50122-0 and DFG-GRTK 1740/2. RP and AR are also part of the Research, Innovation and Dissemination Center for Neuromathematics FAPESP grant (2013/07699-0). RP is supported by a FAPESP scholarship (2013/25667-8). ACR is partially supported by a CNPq fellowship (grant 306251/2014-0)

    Theta and alpha band modulations reflect error-related adjustments in the auditory condensation task

    No full text
    Error commission leads to adaptive adjustments in a number of brain networks that subserve goal-directed behavior, resulting in either enhanced stimulus processing or increased motor threshold depending on the nature of errors committed. Here, we studied these adjustments by analyzing post-error modulations of alpha and theta band activity in the auditory version of the two-choice condensation task, which is highly demanding for sustained attention while involves no inhibition of prepotent responses. Errors were followed by increased frontal midline theta (FMT) activity, as well as by enhanced alpha band suppression in the parietal and the left central regions; parietal alpha suppression correlated with the task performance, left central alpha suppression correlated with the post-error slowing, and FMT increase correlated with both behavioral measures. On post-error correct trials, left-central alpha band suppression started earlier before the response, and the response was followed by weaker FMT activity, as well as by enhanced alpha band suppression distributed over the entire scalp. These findings indicate that several separate neuronal networks are involved in post-error adjustments, including the midfrontal performance monitoring network, the parietal attentional network, and the sensorimotor network. Supposedly, activity within these networks is rapidly modulated after errors, resulting in optimization of their functional state on the subsequent trials, with corresponding changes in behavioral measures

    Selenium(IV) Polybromide Complexes: Structural Diversity Driven by Halogen and Chalcogen Bonding

    No full text
    Reactions between bromoselenate(IV)-containing solutions, dibromine and salts of pyridinium-family organic cations resulted in structurally diverse, bromine-rich polybromine-bromoselenates(IV): (4-MePyH)5[Se2Br9][SeBr6](Br3)2 (1), (2-MePyH)2{[SeBr6](Br2)} (2), (PyH)2{[SeBr5]Br(Br2)2} (3), (1-MePy)2{[SeBr6](Br2)} (4). The compounds feature halogen and (in the case of 3) chalcogen bonding in solid state, resulting in formation of supramolecular architectures of different dimensionality. DFT calculations allowed estimation of the energies of non-covalent interactions in 1–4; additionally, characterization by Raman spectroscopy was performed

    The Solution Combustion Synthesis of ZnO Powder for the Photodegradation of Phenol

    No full text
    Nanoscale and submicron powder of zinc oxide (ZnO) is known as a highly efficient photocatalyst that is promising for solving the problem of wastewater treatment from toxic organic pollutants including phenol and its derivatives. The results of laboratory studies of ZnO preparation by a simple, energy-saving, and highly productive method of solution–combustion synthesis from a mixture of solutions of zinc nitrate and glycine, as well as the use of the ZnO powder synthesized by combustion for the photocatalytic decomposition of phenol, are presented. The modes and characteristics of combustion, phase composition, chemical composition, and structure of the combustion product at different ratios of glycine with zinc nitrate were determined. It is shown that calcination at 650 °C reduces the content of carbon impurity in the combustion product to ~1 wt.% and leads to obtaining ZnO powder in the form of porous agglomerates up to 100 μm in size sintered from crystalline nanoscale and submicron ZnO particles with an average crystallite size of 44 nm. The ZnO powder exhibits high photocatalytic activity, leading to the almost complete degradation of phenol in an aqueous solution under the action of ultraviolet irradiation in less than 4 h

    The Solution Combustion Synthesis of ZnO Powder for the Photodegradation of Phenol

    No full text
    Nanoscale and submicron powder of zinc oxide (ZnO) is known as a highly efficient photocatalyst that is promising for solving the problem of wastewater treatment from toxic organic pollutants including phenol and its derivatives. The results of laboratory studies of ZnO preparation by a simple, energy-saving, and highly productive method of solution–combustion synthesis from a mixture of solutions of zinc nitrate and glycine, as well as the use of the ZnO powder synthesized by combustion for the photocatalytic decomposition of phenol, are presented. The modes and characteristics of combustion, phase composition, chemical composition, and structure of the combustion product at different ratios of glycine with zinc nitrate were determined. It is shown that calcination at 650 °C reduces the content of carbon impurity in the combustion product to ~1 wt.% and leads to obtaining ZnO powder in the form of porous agglomerates up to 100 μm in size sintered from crystalline nanoscale and submicron ZnO particles with an average crystallite size of 44 nm. The ZnO powder exhibits high photocatalytic activity, leading to the almost complete degradation of phenol in an aqueous solution under the action of ultraviolet irradiation in less than 4 h
    corecore