Catalisadores nanoestruturados contendo ligas de 'PT' e 'TI''O IND.2' para a oxidação eletroquímica de etanol

Pós-graduação em Química - IQ

Simple and direct potentiometric determination of potassium ions in biodiesel microemulsions at a glassy carbon electrode modified with nickel(II) hexacyanoferrate nanoparticles

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Aplicação de métodos computacionais no estudo das fases intermetálicas ordenadas pt-sn

Fuel cells are a very promising solution to the problems of power generation and emission of pollutant to the environment, excellent to be used in stationary application and mobile application too. The high cost of production of these devices, mainly due to the use of noble metals as anode, is a major obstacle to massive production and deployment of this technology, however the use of intermetallic phases of platinum combined with other metals less noble has been evaluated as electrodes in order to minimize production costs and still being able to significantly improve the catalytic performance of the anode. The study of intermetallic phases, exclusively done by experimental techniques is not complete and demand that other methods need to be applied to a deeper understanding of the behavior geometric properties and the electronic structure of the material, to this end the use of computer simulation methods, which have proved appropriate for a broader understanding of the geometric and electronic properties of the materials involved, so far not so well understood.. The use of computational methods provides answers to explain the behavior of the materials and allows assessing whether the intermetallic may be a good electrode. In this research project was used the Quantum-ESPRESSO package, based on the DFT theory, which provides the self-consistent field calculations with great precision, calculations of the periodic systems interatomic force, and other post-processing calculations that points to a knowledge of the geometric and electronic properties of materials, which may be related to other properties of them, even the electrocatalytic. The electronic structure is determined from the optimized geometric structure of materials by analyzing the density of states (DOS) projected onto atomic orbital, which determines the influence of the electrocatalytic properties of the material... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Development and application of a screen-printed electrode modified with MWCNT for the electrocatalytic detection of thiram

Interest in the electronic properties of carbon nanotubes has increased in recent years. These materials can be used in the development of electrochemical sensors for the measurement and monitoring of analytes of environmental interest, such as pharmaceuticals, dyes, and pesticides. This work describes the use of homemade screen-printed electrodes modified with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) for the electrochemical detection of the fungicide thiram. The electrochemical characteristics of the proposed system were evaluated using cyclic voltammetry, with investigation of the electrochemical behavior of the sensor in the presence of the analyte, and estimation of electrochemical parameters including the diffusion coefficient, electron transfer coefficient (α), and number of electrons transferred in the catalytic electro-oxidation. The sensor response was optimized using amperometry. The best sensor performance was obtained in 0.1 mol L-1 phosphate buffer solution at pH 8.0, where a detection limit of 7.9 x 10-6 mol L-1 was achieved. Finally, in order to improve the sensitivity of the sensor, square wave voltammetry (SWV) was used for thiram quantification, instead of amperometry. Using SWV, a response range for thiram from 9.9 x 10-6 to 9.1 x 10-5 mol L-1 was obtained, with a sensitivity of 30948 µA mol L-1, and limits of detection and quantification of 1.6 x 10-6 and 5.4 x 10-6 mol L-1, respectively. The applicability of this efficient new alternative methodology for thiram detection was demonstrated using analyses of enriched soil samples.

Desenvolvimento de catalisadores sem platina: estudos comparativos da oxidação de metanol em 'PD''RU'/'C' e 'PT''RU'/'C' em meio alcalino

Pós-graduação em Química - IQ

Aplicação eletroanalítica de complexos oxo-manganês biomimetizadores de centros ativos enzimáticos na determinação de espécies de interesse analítico

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Structural study of copper oxide supported on a ceria-modified titania catalyst system

A structural study of CuO supported on a CeO2-TiO2 system was undertaken using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) techniques. The results of XRD revealed the presence of only two phases, TiO2 anatase and CeO2 cerianite. A trend towards smaller TiO2 crystallites was observed when cerium content increased. When the amount of cerium increased, Ti K-edge XANES analysis showed an increasing distortion of Ti sites. The results of Ce LIII-edge EXAFS showed that Ce atoms are coordinated by eight oxygen atoms at 2.32 Å. For the sample containing a small amount of cerium, the EXAFS analysis indicated that the local structure around Ce atoms was highly distorted. The catalysts presented quite different Cu K-edge XANES spectra compared to the spectra of the CuO and Cu2O reference compounds. The Cu-O mean bond length was close to that of the CuO and the Cu atoms in the catalysts are surrounded by approximately four oxygen atoms in their first shell. Copper supported on the ceria-modified titania support catalysts displayed a better performance in the methanol dehydrogenation when compared to copper supported only on titania or on ceria. © 2002 Plenum Publishing Corporation.

Preparation of a clay-modified carbon paste electrode based on 2-thiazoline-2-thiol-hexadecylammonium sorption for the sensitive determination of mercury

A montmorillonite from Wyoming-USA was used to prepare an organo-clay complex, named 2-thiazoline-2-thiol-hexadecyltrimethylammonium-clay (TZT-HDTA-clay), for the purpose of the selective adsorption of the heavy metals ions and possible use as a chemically modified carbon paste electrode (CMCPE). Adsorption isotherms of Hg 2+, Pb 2+, Cd 2+, Cu 2+, and Zn 2+ from aqueous solutions as a function of the pH were studied at 298 K. Conditions for quantitative retention and elution were established for each metal by batch and column methods. The organo-clay complex was very selective to Hg(II) in aqueous solution in which other metals and ions were also present. The accumulation voltammetry of Hg(II) was studied at a carbon paste electrode chemically modified with this material. The mercury response was evaluated with respect to the pH, electrode composition, preconcentration time, mercury concentration, cleaning solution, possible interferences and other variables. A carbon paste electrode modified by TZT-HDTA-clay showed two peaks: one cathodic peak at about 0.0 V and an anodic peak at 0.25 V, scanning the potential from -0.2 to 0.8 V (0.05 M KNO 3 vs. Ag/AgCl). The anodic peak at 0.25 V presents excellent selectivity for Hg(II) ions in the presence of foreign ions. The detection limit was estimated as 0.1 μg L -1. The precision of determination was satisfactory for the respective concentration level. 2005 © The Japan Society for Analytical Chemistry.

In vitro reduction of Streptococcus mutans biofilm on silver nanoparticle-modified resin composite

Introduction: Currently, new methods to reduce biofilm formation on biomaterials are very studied, for example the use of silver nanoparticles, which were bactericidal. However, there are few studies investigating the benefits of these particles in dental restorative materials. Objective: This study aimed to compare in vitro the Streptococcus mutans biofilm formation on conventional light-cured composite resin with that on experimental light-cured composite resin, modified with silver nanoparticles. Material and methods: Discs were produced with either conventional resin (control group) and resin modified with different concentrations of silver nanoparticles, 0.1%, 0.3% and 0.6 % wt. (groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively). The samples were incubated in bacterial suspension (S. mutans) enriched with 20% sucrose to promote biofilm growth on the surfaces. Incubation times were 1, 4 and 7 days. After each period, adherent biofilms were disaggregated by ultrasound. Then, the numbers of viable cells recovered from the biofilms were counted through the serial dilution method. A morphological analysis of biofilm was also performed by Scanning Electron Microscopy. The data were subjected to Anova and Tukey’s test (α = 0.05). Results: The number of viable cells was statistically lower in groups 2 and 3 than in group 1 and control group, after the three incubation periods, without statistical difference between groups 2 and 3. The number of viable cells was statistically lower in group 1 than in control group, after 4 and 7 days of incubation. Conclusion: Resins modified with silver presented reduction of S. mutans biofilm on their surfaces, according to the conditions of this study.