National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

About: National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology is a government organization based out in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Catalysis & Thin film. The organization has 22114 authors who have published 65856 publications receiving 1669827 citations. The organization is also known as: Sangyō Gijutsu Sōgō Kenkyū-sho.

All-solid-state Z-scheme in CdS-Au-TiO2 three-component nanojunction system.

Abstract: Natural photosynthesis, which achieves efficient solar energy conversion through the combined actions of many types of molecules ingeniously arranged in a nanospace, highlights the importance of a technique for site-selective coupling of different materials to realize artificial high-efficiency devices1. In view of increasingly serious energy and environmental problems, semiconductor-based artificial photosynthetic systems consisting of isolated photochemical system 1 (PS1), PS2 and the electron-transfer system have recently been developed2,3. However, the direct coupling of the components is crucial for retarding back reactions to increase the reaction efficiency. Here, we report a simple technique for forming an anisotropic CdS–Au–TiO2 nanojunction, in which PS1(CdS), PS2(TiO2) and the electron-transfer system (Au) are spatially fixed. This three-component system exhibits a high photocatalytic activity, far exceeding those of the single- and two-component systems, as a result of vectorial electron transfer driven by the two-step excitation of TiO2 and CdS.

From Bimetallic Metal‐Organic Framework to Porous Carbon: High Surface Area and Multicomponent Active Dopants for Excellent Electrocatalysis

Abstract: Bimetallic metal-organic frameworks are rationally synthesized as templates and employed for porous carbons with retained morphology, high graphitization degree, hierarchical porosity, high surface area, CoNx moiety and uniform N/Co dopant by pyrolysis. The optimized carbon with additional phosphorus dopant exhibits excellent electrocatalytic performance for the oxygen reduction reaction, which is much better than the benchmark Pt/C in alkaline media.

A library of atomically thin metal chalcogenides

Abstract: Investigations of two-dimensional transition-metal chalcogenides (TMCs) have recently revealed interesting physical phenomena, including the quantum spin Hall effect1,2, valley polarization3,4 and two-dimensional superconductivity 5 , suggesting potential applications for functional devices6–10. However, of the numerous compounds available, only a handful, such as Mo- and W-based TMCs, have been synthesized, typically via sulfurization11–15, selenization16,17 and tellurization 18 of metals and metal compounds. Many TMCs are difficult to produce because of the high melting points of their metal and metal oxide precursors. Molten-salt-assisted methods have been used to produce ceramic powders at relatively low temperature 19 and this approach 20 was recently employed to facilitate the growth of monolayer WS2 and WSe2. Here we demonstrate that molten-salt-assisted chemical vapour deposition can be broadly applied for the synthesis of a wide variety of two-dimensional (atomically thin) TMCs. We synthesized 47 compounds, including 32 binary compounds (based on the transition metals Ti, Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Mo, W, Re, Pt, Pd and Fe), 13 alloys (including 11 ternary, one quaternary and one quinary), and two heterostructured compounds. We elaborate how the salt decreases the melting point of the reactants and facilitates the formation of intermediate products, increasing the overall reaction rate. Most of the synthesized materials in our library are useful, as supported by evidence of superconductivity in our monolayer NbSe2 and MoTe2 samples21,22 and of high mobilities in MoS2 and ReS2. Although the quality of some of the materials still requires development, our work opens up opportunities for studying the properties and potential application of a wide variety of two-dimensional TMCs.

Towards sustainable and versatile energy storage devices: an overview of organic electrode materials

Abstract: As an alternative to conventional inorganic intercalation electrode materials, organic electrode materials are promising candidates for the next generation of sustainable and versatile energy storage devices. In this paper we provide an overview of organic electrode materials, including their fundamental knowledge, development history and perspective applications. Based on different organics including n-type, p-type and bipolar, we firstly analyzed their working principles, reaction mechanisms, electrochemical performances, advantages and challenges. To understand the development history and trends in organic electrode materials, we elaborate in detail various organics with different structures, including conducting polymers, organodisulfides, thioethers, nitroxyl radical polymers and conjugated carbonyl compounds. The high electrochemical performance, in addition with the unique features of organics such as flexibility, processability and structure diversity, provide them great perspective in various energy storage devices, including rechargeable Li/Na batteries, supercapacitors, thin film batteries, aqueous rechargeable batteries, redox flow batteries and even all-organic batteries. It is expected that organic electrode materials will show their talents in the “post Li-ion battery” era, towards cheap, green, sustainable and versatile energy storage devices.

Genome sequencing and analysis of Aspergillus oryzae

Abstract: The genome of Aspergillus oryzae, a fungus important for the production of traditional fermented foods and beverages in Japan, has been sequenced. The ability to secrete large amounts of proteins and the development of a transformation system have facilitated the use of A. oryzae in modern biotechnology. Although both A. oryzae and Aspergillus flavus belong to the section Flavi of the subgenus Circumdati of Aspergillus, A. oryzae, unlike A. flavus, does not produce aflatoxin, and its long history of use in the food industry has proved its safety. Here we show that the 37-megabase (Mb) genome of A. oryzae contains 12,074 genes and is expanded by 7-9 Mb in comparison with the genomes of Aspergillus nidulans and Aspergillus fumigatus. Comparison of the three aspergilli species revealed the presence of syntenic blocks and A. oryzae-specific blocks (lacking synteny with A. nidulans and A. fumigatus) in a mosaic manner throughout the genome of A. oryzae. The blocks of A. oryzae-specific sequence are enriched for genes involved in metabolism, particularly those for the synthesis of secondary metabolites. Specific expansion of genes for secretory hydrolytic enzymes, amino acid metabolism and amino acid/sugar uptake transporters supports the idea that A. oryzae is an ideal microorganism for fermentation.