Anhui Normal University

About: Anhui Normal University is a education organization based out in Wuhu, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Catalysis & Population. The organization has 7955 authors who have published 7309 publications receiving 117443 citations.

SnS2 nanosheet-based microstructures with high adsorption capabilities and visible light photocatalytic activities

Abstract: The engineering of semiconductors with high adsorption and visible light-driven photocatalytic activity is of growing interest in the removal of environmental pollutants. Herein, SnS2 nanosheet-based microstructures of flower-like, nanosheet-like, nest-like and nanoplate-like morphologies with high adsorption capacities and visible light photocatalytic activities were experimentally achieved by a facile solution-phase approach based on a simple reaction of SnCl4·5H2O and three hydration sodium diethyldithiocarbamate (C5H10NS2Na·3H2O) in a solvent of ethylene glycol with or without the addition of acetic acid, where C5H10NS2Na·3H2O served as both a sulfur source and a coordination agent. The negatively charged nature of the as-prepared SnS2 products is responsible for the superior absorptive and visible light photocatalytic performances of cationic dyes. The revelation of the charged nature of the surface of SnS2 nanosheet-based microstructures leads to a new possibility for the design of adsorptive photocatalysts.

Toward Bifunctional Overall Water Splitting Electrocatalyst: General Preparation of Transition Metal Phosphide Nanoparticles Decorated N-Doped Porous Carbon Spheres

Abstract: It is very important to explore novel synthesis strategies for constructing highly active and inexpensive electrocatalysts for water-splitting. In present work, a novel and efficient coordination-polymerization-pyrolysis (CPP) strategy was developed to prepare cobalt phosphide nanoparticles modified N-doped porous carbon spheres (CoP@NPCSs) hybrids as a powerful catalyst for overall water-splitting (OWS). It can be found that both the carbonization temperatures and the metal contents affect the electrocatalytic performances. As a result, a device assembled with CoP@NPCSs demonstrates low potential (1.643 V @ 10 mA·cm–2) and good stabilization for OWS. Besides, other transition metal phosphides (TMPs)-based materials also can be synthesized by the CPP approach, evidencing the generality of the CPP strategy. Here, we not only constructs a high-efficiency OWS catalyst, but also broadens the synthetic methodology of TMPs from nanoscale.

Versatile Electronic and Magnetic Properties of SnSe2 Nanostructures Induced by the Strain

Abstract: First-principles calculations were employed to explore the electronic and magnetic properties of a two-dimensional (2D) SnSe2 monolayer sheet and its derived one-dimensional (1D) nanoribbons and nanotubes. The results unveiled that the semiconductor–metal or metal–semiconductor transition can be realized by subtly controlling the strain for all these nanostructures. Surprisingly, without introduction of impurities and the absence of transition metal atoms, a −10% compressive strain can induce magnetic behaviors in SnSe2 armchair nanoribbons and the emerged magnetic moment increases rapidly and linearly with the increase of strain. The magnetism is found to be stemmed from the nonmetallic anionic Se atom at the ribbon edge. The tunable electronic and magnetic properties can be well understood through the analysis of partial charge density distribution and partial density of states. It was found that the direction of applied strain is a determined factor that can affect the energy shift of Se p orbital, lea...