Templateless, surfactantless, electrochemical route to a cuprous oxide microcrystal: From octahedra to monodisperse colloid spheres

Herein we report a simple electrochemical route for the controlled synthesis of a Cu2O microcrystal from perfect octahedra to monodisperse colloid spheres via control of the electrodeposition potential without the introduction of any template or surfactant. Perfect Cu2O octahedra and monodisperse colloid spheres have been obtained in high yield (similar to 100%).

Optical gain at 1550 nm from colloidal solution of Er3+-Yb3+ codoped NaYF4 nanocubes

We demonstrated optical amplification at 1550 nm with a carbon tetrachloride solution of Er3+-Yb3+ codoped NaYF4 nanocubes synthesized with solvo-thermal route. Upon excitation with a 980 nm laser diode, the nanocube solution exhibited strong near-infrared emission by the I-4(13/2) -> I-4(15/2) transition of Er3+ ions due to energy transfer from Yb3+ ions. We obtained the highest optical gain coefficient at 1550 nm of 0.58 cm(-1) for the solution with the pumping power of 200 mW. This colloidal solution might be a promising candidate as a liquid medium for optical amplifier and laser at the optical communication wavelength. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America

Rapid synthesis of polyethylenimine-protected Prussian blue nanocubes through a thermal process

Polyethylenimine (PEI)-protected Prussian blue nanocubes have been simply synthesized by heating an acidic mixture of PEI, FeCl3, K3Fe(CN)(6), and KCI. The experiment results presented here demonstrate that the pH of the mixture plays an important role in controlling the shape and composition of the resultant product.

Carbon nanotubes decorated with Pt nanocubes by a noncovalent functionalization method and their role in oxygen reduction

Combined with polymer wrapping and layer-by-layer techniques, a noncovalent functionalization method is developed to disperse Pt nanocubes (NCs) onto carbon nanotubes (CNTs). By adjusting the relative ratio of Pt NCs to CNTs, nanotubes with different Pt NC loadings are produced. The composites exhibit excellent electrocatalytic activity towards oxygen reduction.

Seed-Mediated Growth of Nearly Monodisperse Palladium Nanocubes with Controllable Sizes

Nearly monodisperse Pd nanocubes with controllable sizes were synthesized through a seed-mediated growth approach. By using Pd nanocubes of 22 nm in size as seeds, the morphology of the as-grown nanostructures was fixed as single-crystalline, which enabled us to rationally tune the size of Pd nanocubes. The formation mechanism of initial 22 nm nanocubes was also discussed. The size-dependent surface plasmon resonance properties of the as-synthesized Pd nanocubes were investigated. Compared with previous methods, the yield, monodispersity, perfection of the shape formation, and the range of size control of these nanocubes are all improved.

Facile EG/ionic liquid interfacial synthesis of uniform RE3+ doped NaYF4 nanocubes

Uniform multicolor upconversion luminescent RE3+ doped NaYF4 nanocubes are fabricated through a facile ethylene glycol (EG)/ionic liquid interfacial synthesis route at 80 degrees C, with the ionic liquids acting as both reagents and templates.

Surprising arching sheet-like dendrites growing from BaF2 nanocubes

BaF2 nanocubes were prepared from quaternary reverse micelles of cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB), n-butanol, n-octane, and water. Interestingly, there are arching sheet-like dendrites growing between two neighbouring sides of these cubes. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) analysis showed that the products were BaF2 single phase. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or transition electron microscopy (TEM) was used to estimate the size of the final products. The results showed that the shape and size of particles were strongly dependent on the reaction conditions, such as the temperature and reaction time. When the reaction temperature was 25 degreesC, we obtained cuboid-like particles with 'clean' surfaces (no dendrites growing on them), and when the temperature was 35 degreesC, we obtained nanocubes with dendrites growing from them between the neighbouring sides. The influence of reaction time at a temperature of 35 degreesC is also discussed.

Electrostatic assembly of Cu2O nanoparticles on DNA templates

In this paper, a method for highly ordered assembly of cuprous oxide (Cu2O) nanoparticles (NPs) by DNA templates was reported. Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB)-capped Cu2O NPs were adsorbed onto well-aligned lambda-DNA chains to form necklace-like one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures. UV-vis, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the nanostructure. The Cu2O nanostructures fabricated with the method are both highly ordered and quite straight.

典型PPCPs的生态毒理效应与强化处理技术

人类长期且大量的使用药品及个人护理用品（PPCPs），使其持续不断地输入环境，导致它们在环境中的残留浓度日益增加，并对人类和其他生物产生了不良的生态毒理效应。本文以四种典型PPCPs（对乙酰氨基酚、土霉素、三氯生、佳乐麝香）为研究对象，采用常规的毒理学实验方法，研究了它们对小麦种子发芽、根伸长的急性毒性，以及低浓度长期暴露对小麦幼苗叶绿素（CHL）、可溶性蛋白（SP）、过氧化物酶（POD）和超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）等生理生化特性的影响。由于PPCPs具有生态风险性，而传统的水处理工艺却不能有效的将这些物质去除。因此，开发更多的新技术以强化处理PPCPs，使它们在环境中残留的浓度尽可能降低是一项很重要的工作。本研究以零价铁处理有机物的原理为依据，自制铁铜双金属复合物，研究了其对PPCPs溶液的处理效果及影响因素，并对整个过程中的反应机理进行了初探。实验结果表明： 实验浓度下，四种PPCPs与小麦根长及芽长抑制率之间具有良好的剂量-效应关系。根据线性回归方程计算的EC50可知，不同种类的PPCPs对小麦种子发芽的毒性大小不同，而且小麦的芽及根部对不同PPCPs胁迫的敏感部位不同。对乙酰氨基酚、土霉素、三氯生对小麦根长的抑制较芽长显著，它们的EC50分别为668.8 mg/L、34.7 mg/L和147.8mg/L；而佳乐麝香对小麦芽长的抑制更为显著，EC50为143.4 mg/L。实验浓度范围内，四种PPCPs对小麦种子的发芽率均没有显著的抑制作用。四种PPCPs暴露21天后，2.8～22.4 mg/L对乙酰氨基酚、0.15～2.4 mg/L土霉素以及0.2～3.0 mg/L三氯生和佳乐麝香显著抑制小麦叶片/根部中的CHL和SP，而且使POD和SOD酶活性降低或上升，从而打破抗氧化系统的动态平衡；暴露21天内对CHL、SP、POD和SOD等含量在不同PPCPs胁迫下的变化趋势具有各自的特点。 以零价铁降解有机物的原理为依据，自制了铁铜双金属复合体系，以强化处理PPCPs溶液。电子扫描显微镜（SEM）及X-衍射（XRD）分析得出铁铜复合物（FeCu/Cu2O）由Fe、Cu及Cu2O组成。与零价铁相比，FeCu/Cu2O显著提高了对PPCPs的去除效果，主要是由于Cu的存在扩大了反应的电极电位差，即增加了Fe-Cu之间的外加阳极电流，从而加速Fe的阳极溶解，产生更多的高活性物质以更好的去除PPCPs。溶解氧是影响FeCu/Cu2O对PPCPs处理效果的重要因素，它们可以在FeCu/Cu2O表面获得电子后生成O2-，形成类Fenton体系。此外，由于Cu2O的光化学活性，光照也可以强化FeCu/Cu2O对PPCPs的处理效果。不同的反应条件下体系内的pH值及自由基的产生量不同。根据实验现象及相关的经典理论，本文对FeCu/Cu2O处理PPCPs的作用机理进行了初探，认为整个反应过程包括Fe的还原反应、Cu2O的光催化反应、Fe-Cu微电解反应以及絮凝过程等。

One-step aqueous solvothermal synthesis of In2O3 nanocrystals

Highly crystalline and nearly monodisperse In2O3 nanocrystals with both cube and flower shapes were successfully synthesized in one step through a facile aqueous solvothermal method for the first time, free of any surfactant or template. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selective area electron diffraction (SAED), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) were used to characterize the samples. In our work, the use of diethylene glycol (DEG) is a crucial factor for the formation of the In2O3 phase.

Selective Synthesis of Single-Crystalline Rhombic Dodecahedral, Octahedral, and Cubic Gold Nanocrystals

This paper reports a versatile seed-mediated growth method for selectively synthesizing single-crystalline rhombic dodecahedral, octahedral, and cubic gold nanocrystals. In the seed-mediated growth method, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) and CPC-capped single-crystalline gold nanocrystals 41.3 nm in size are used as the surfactant and seeds, respectively. The CPC-capped gold seeds can avoid twinning during the growth process, which enables us to study the correlations between the growth conditions and the shapes of the gold nanocrystals. Surface-energy and kinetic considerations are taken into account to understand the formation mechanisms of the single-crystalline gold nanocrystals with varying shapes.