Recent advances in graphene based polymer composites

The recent advances in electrocatalysis for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are thoroughly reviewed. This comprehensive Review focuses on the low- and non-platinum electrocatalysts including advanced platinum alloys, core–shell structures, palladium-based catalysts, metal oxides and chalcogenides, carbon-based non-noble metal catalysts, and metal-free catalysts. The recent development of ORR electrocatalysts with novel structures and compositions is highlighted. The understandings of the correlation between the activity and the shape, size, composition, and synthesis method are summarized. For the carbon-based materials, their performance and stability in fuel cells and comparisons with those of platinum are documented. The research directions as well as perspectives on the further development of more active and less expensive electrocatalysts are provided.

http://repository.ust.hk/ir/bitstream/1783.1-77094/1/acs.chemrev.5b00462_withlink.pdf

Recent Advances in Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Graphene oxide: preparation, functionalization, and electrochemical applications.

Gold nanoparticles have been used in biomedical applications since their first colloidal syntheses more than three centuries ago. However, over the past two decades, their beautiful colors and unique electronic properties have also attracted tremendous attention due to their historical applications in art and ancient medicine and current applications in enhanced optoelectronics and photovoltaics. In spite of their modest alchemical beginnings, gold nanoparticles exhibit physical properties that are truly different from both small molecules and bulk materials, as well as from other nanoscale particles. Their unique combination of properties is just beginning to be fully realized in range of medical diagnostic and therapeutic applications. This critical review will provide insights into the design, synthesis, functionalization, and applications of these artificial molecules in biomedicine and discuss their tailored interactions with biological systems to achieve improved patient health. Further, we provide a survey of the rapidly expanding body of literature on this topic and argue that gold nanotechnology-enabled biomedicine is not simply an act of ‘gilding the (nanomedicinal) lily’, but that a new ‘Golden Age’ of biomedical nanotechnology is truly upon us. Moving forward, the most challenging nanoscience ahead of us will be to find new chemical and physical methods of functionalizing gold nanoparticles with compounds that can promote efficient binding, clearance, and biocompatibility and to assess their safety to other biological systems and their long-term term effects on human health and reproduction (472 references).

The golden age: gold nanoparticles for biomedicine

DLS and zeta potential - What they are and what they are not?

As one unique group of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, 2D metal nanomaterials have drawn increasing attention owing to their intriguing physiochemical properties and broad range of promising applications. In this Review, we briefly introduce the general synthetic strategies applied to 2D metal nanomaterials, followed by describing in detail the various synthetic methods classified in two categories, i.e. bottom-up methods and top-down methods. After introducing the unique physical and chemical properties of 2D metal nanomaterials, the potential applications of 2D metal nanomaterials in catalysis, surface enhanced Raman scattering, sensing, bioimaging, solar cells, and photothermal therapy are discussed in detail. Finally, the challenges and opportunities in this promising research area are proposed.

Two-Dimensional Metal Nanomaterials: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

A versatile method for selectively synthesizing single-crystalline rhombic dodecahedral, cubic, and octahedral palladium nanocrystals, as well as their derivatives with varying degrees of edge- and corner-truncation, was reported for the first time. This is also the first report regarding the synthesis of rhombic dodecahedral palladium nanocrystals. All the nanocrystals were readily synthesized by a seed-mediated method with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide as surfactant, KI as additive, and ascorbic acid as reductant. At the same ascorbic acid concentration, a series of palladium nanocrystals with varying shapes were obtained through manipulation of the concentration of KI and the reaction temperature. The formation of different palladium facets were correlated with their growth conditions. In the absence of KI, the 100 palladium facets are favored. In the presence of KI, the concentration of KI and the reaction temperature play an important role on the formation of different palladium facets. The 110 palladium facets are favored at relatively high temperatures and medium KI concentrations. The 111 palladium facets are favored at relatively low temperatures and medium KI concentrations. The 100 palladium facets are favored at either very low or relatively high KI concentrations. These correlations were explained in terms of surface-energy and growth kinetics. These results provide a basis for gaining mechanistic insights into the growth of well-faceted metal nanostructures.

Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Single-Crystalline Palladium 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. CPC surfactants are found to alter the surface energies of gold facets in the order {100} > {110} > {111} under the growth conditions in this study, whereas the growth kinetics leads to the formation of thermodynamically less favored shapes that are not bounded by the most stable facets. The competition bet...

Selective synthesis of single-crystalline rhombic dodecahedral, octahedral, and cubic gold nanocrystals.

Water reduction under two different visible-light ranges (λ > 400 nm and λ > 435 nm) was investigated in gold-loaded titanium dioxide (Au-TiO2) heterostructures with different sizes of Au nanoparticles (NPs). Our study clearly demonstrates the essential role played by Au NP size in plasmon-driven H2O reduction and reveals two distinct mechanisms to clarify visible-light photocatalytic activity under different excitation conditions. The size of the Au NP governs the efficiency of plasmon-mediated electron transfer and plays a critical role in determining the reduction potentials of the electrons transferred to the TiO2 conduction band. Our discovery provides a facile method of manipulating photocatalytic activity simply by varying the Au NP size and is expected to greatly facilitate the design of suitable plasmonic photocatalysts for solar-to-fuel energy conversion.

Surface Plasmon-Driven Water Reduction: Gold Nanoparticle Size Matters

Environmentally Friendly and Highly Sensitive Ruthenium(II) Tris(2,2′‐bipyridyl) Electrochemiluminescent System Using 2‐(Dibutylamino)ethanol as Co‐Reactant

Wenxin Niu

Papers

Two-Dimensional Metal Nanomaterials: Synthesis, Properties, and Applications

Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Single-Crystalline Palladium Nanocrystals

Selective synthesis of single-crystalline rhombic dodecahedral, octahedral, and cubic gold nanocrystals.

Surface Plasmon-Driven Water Reduction: Gold Nanoparticle Size Matters

Environmentally Friendly and Highly Sensitive Ruthenium(II) Tris(2,2′‐bipyridyl) Electrochemiluminescent System Using 2‐(Dibutylamino)ethanol as Co‐Reactant