Shandong Normal University

About: Shandong Normal University is a education organization based out in Jinan, Shandong, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Laser & Catalysis. The organization has 12378 authors who have published 12576 publications receiving 174572 citations.

Atomic Co/Ni dual sites and Co/Ni alloy nanoparticles in N-doped porous Janus-like carbon frameworks for bifunctional oxygen electrocatalysis

Abstract: Single-atom electrocatalysts have attracted board interest in the recent years as they combine the advantages of heterogeneous and homogeneous electrocatalysts. Nevertheless, single-atom electrocatalysts with single metal component cannot further satisfy the demand of catalytic properties. This work developed atomic Co/Ni dual sites in N-doped porous carbon Janus-like frameworks through epitaxial growth of cobalt based MOFs on nickel complexes. Structural characterization and atomic-scale transmission electron microscopy revealed the homogeneously dispersed active sites of Co-Ni alloy and single Co/Ni atoms. Electrochemical data strongly demonstrated the advantages of integrating Co-MOF and Ni complex with different topological structures to form a Janus-like structure. The resultant catalysts afforded onset potential of 0.93 V and half-wave potential of 0.84 V for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline media, and 0.86 V and 0.73 V in acid media, which is better than single noble-metal-free catalysts, even close to commercial Pt/C. Besides, the catalysts also exhibited good oxygen evolution reaction performance (a current density of 10 mA cm−2 at a potential of 1.59 V) and overvoltage between ORR and OER is 0.78 V. Density functional theory calculations indicated the high electrocatalytic activities are originated from the synergetic effect of atomic Co/Ni-N-C bonds and microstructure of the prepared materials. This work paves a new avenue for the development of multiatomic electrocatalysts for energy conversion.

A multicolor nanoprobe for detection and imaging of tumor-related mRNAs in living cells.

Abstract: Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and accounts for several millions of deaths every year. The survival of cancer patients is strongly associated with the stage of the tumor at the time of diagnosis. Identifying the cancer at the cellular level in an early stage before metastasis holds great promise for increasing the survival of cancer patients. A major focus of research towards this goal is on the estimation of abnormalities in gene expression in living cells. Tumor-related mRNA has been widely used as a specific marker to assess the migration of tumor cells locally or in the bloodstream. Changes in the level of tumor-related mRNA expression are correlated with tumor burden and malignant progression. The detection of tumor-related mRNA markers in intact cancer cells provides new tools for identifying cancer cells in clinical samples. Recently, a variety of techniques have been exploited to monitor tumor-related mRNAs. Among these methods, fluorescence imaging analysis offers an appealing approach for the detection of cancer at the cellular level, which may be of prognostic significance. Many fluorescence probes have been synthesized for the detection and imaging of mRNA in cancer cells and most of the research focuses on detecting a single type of mRNA, which may yield false positive results and limits the development of intracellular mRNA imaging and detection. Notably, cancer is associated with multiple tumor-related mRNAs, and some mRNA markers are expressed in normal cells. Simultaneous detection of multiple targets brings new opportunities for improving the accuracy of early cancer detection over the single-marker assay. Although various types of platforms for the detection of multiple targets have been developed, none have been designed for imaging three or more markers in living cells. Such intracellular imaging techniques for multiple tumorrelated mRNAs could promote the progress of early cancer detection. Herein, we describe a multicolor fluorescence nanoprobe based on nanoflares, which simultaneously detects three intracellular tumor-related mRNAs. The nanoprobe consists of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) functionalized with a dense shell of recognition sequences (synthetic oligonucleotides) hybridized to three short dye-terminated reporter sequences by gold–thiol bond formation (Figure 1). The recognition sequences contain 21-base recognition elements for three specific mRNA transcripts: c-myc mRNA, TK1 mRNA, and GalNAc-T mRNA.

Intralayered Ostwald Ripening to Ultrathin Nanomesh Catalyst with Robust Oxygen‐Evolving Performance

Abstract: An etching-intralayered Ostwald ripening process is proposed, which leads to the formation of a β-Ni(OH)2 ultrathin nanomesh with abundant and uniformly distributed nanopores of 3-4 nm. The nanomesh catalyst exhibits outstanding oxygen evolution reaction performance, with high catalytic current density and superior long-term stability, making this Earth-abundant nanomesh catalyst a promising candidate for commercial water splitting.

Transition Metal Nitrides for Electrocatalytic Energy Conversion: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract: Electrocatalytic energy conversion has been considered as one of the most efficient and promising pathways for realizing energy storage and energy utilization in modern society. To improve electrocatalytic reactions, specific catalysts are needed to lower the overpotential. In the search for efficient alternatives to noble metal catalysts, transition metal nitrides have attracted considerable interest due to their high catalytic activity and unique electronic structure. Over the past few decades, numerous nitride-based catalysts have been explored with respect to their ability to drive various electrocatalytic reactions, such as the hydrogen evolution reaction and the oxygen evolution reaction to achieve water splitting and the oxygen reduction reaction coupled with the methanol oxidation reaction to construct fuel cells or rechargeable Li-O2 batteries. This Minireview provides a brief overview of recent progress on electrocatalysts based on transition metal nitrides, and outlines the current challenges and future opportunities.