Wuhan University of Technology

About: Wuhan University of Technology is a education organization based out in Wuhan, China. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Microstructure & Photocatalysis. The organization has 40384 authors who have published 36724 publications receiving 575695 citations. The organization is also known as: WUT.

Bio-inspired Murray materials for mass transfer and activity

Abstract: Both plants and animals possess analogous tissues containing hierarchical networks of pores, with pore size ratios that have evolved to maximize mass transport and rates of reactions. The underlying physical principles of this optimized hierarchical design are embodied in Murray's law. However, we are yet to realize the benefit of mimicking nature's Murray networks in synthetic materials due to the challenges in fabricating vascularized structures. Here we emulate optimum natural systems following Murray's law using a bottom-up approach. Such bio-inspired materials, whose pore sizes decrease across multiple scales and finally terminate in size-invariant units like plant stems, leaf veins and vascular and respiratory systems provide hierarchical branching and precise diameter ratios for connecting multi-scale pores from macro to micro levels. Our Murray material mimics enable highly enhanced mass exchange and transfer in liquid-solid, gas-solid and electrochemical reactions and exhibit enhanced performance in photocatalysis, gas sensing and as Li-ion battery electrodes.

Visible-Light Photocatalytic Activity and Deactivation Mechanism of Ag3PO4 Spherical Particles

Abstract: Ag(3)PO(4) spherical particles were synthesized by a facile precipitation method using silver nitrate and Na(2) HPO(4) as precursors. The as-prepared samples had a high photocatalytic activity toward Rhodamine B (RhB) degradation under visible-light illumination. With increasing recycling times the photocatalytic activity first increased and then decreased. Based on systematic characterization of particles by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), a possible mechanism responsible for the improvement and subsequent decline of the photocatalytic performance of Ag(3)PO(4) is proposed. Ag(3)PO(4) spherical particles recycled for four times showed the highest photocatalytic activity because, according to our mechanism, Ag nanoparticles deposited on Ag(3)PO(4) acted as electron trapping centers to prevent photogenerated electron-hole pairs from recombination. A further increase in the recycle times decreases the photocatalytic activity owing to the shielding effect by Ag layers on the surface of Ag(3)PO(4). The results presented herein shed new light on the photostability of Ag(3) PO(4) spherical particles and are potentially applicable to other photocatalytically active composites.

Tremendous Effect of the Morphology of Birnessite-Type Manganese Oxide Nanostructures on Catalytic Activity

Abstract: The octahedral layered birnessite-type manganese oxide (OL-1) with the morphologies of nanoflowers, nanowires, and nanosheets were prepared and characterized with X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric/differential scanning calorimetry (TG/DSC), Brunnauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), inductively coupled plasma (ICP), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The OL-1 nanoflowers possess the highest concentration of oxygen vacancies or Mn(3+), followed by the OL-1 nanowires and nanosheets. The result of catalytic tests shows that the OL-1 nanoflowers exhibit a tremendous enhancement in the catalytic activity for benzene oxidation as compared to the OL-1 nanowires and nanosheets. Compared to the OL-1 nanosheets, the OL-1 nanoflowers demonstrate an enormous decrease (ΔT(50) = 274 °C; ΔT(90) > 248 °C) in reaction temperatures T50 and T90 (corresponding to 50 and 90% benzene conversion, respectively) for benzene oxidation. The origin of the tremendous effect of morphology on the catalytic activity for the nanostructured OL-1 catalysts is experimentally and theoretically studied via CO temperature-programmed reduction (CO-TPR) and density functional theory (DFT) calculation. The tremendous catalytic enhancement of the OL-1 nanoflowers compared to the OL-1 nanowires and nanosheets is attributed to their highest surface area as well as their highest lattice oxygen reactivity due to their higher concentration of oxygen vacancies or Mn(3+), thus tremendously improving the catalytic activity for the benzene oxidation.