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 & Catalysis. The organization has 40384 authors who have published 36724 publications receiving 575695 citations. The organization is also known as: WUT.

Walnut-like Porous Core/Shell TiO2 with Hybridized Phases Enabling Fast and Stable Lithium Storage.

Abstract: TiO2 is a promising and safe anode material for lithium ion batteries (LIBs). However, its practical application has been plagued by its poor rate capability and cycling properties. Herein, we successfully demonstrate a novel structured TiO2 anode with excellent rate capability and ultralong cycle life. The TiO2 material reported here shows a walnut-like porous core/shell structure with hybridized anatase/amorphous phases. The effective synergy of the unique walnut-like porous core/shell structure, the phase hybridization with nanoscale coherent heterointerfaces, and the presence of minor carbon species endows the TiO2 material with superior lithium storage properties in terms of high capacity (∼177 mA h g–1 at 1 C, 1 C = 170 mA g–1), good rate capability (62 mA h g–1 at 100 C), and excellent cycling stability (∼83 mA h g–1 was retained over 10 000 cycles at 10 C with a capacity decay of 0.002% per cycle).

Unravelling the electrochemical mechanisms for nitrogen fixation on single transition metal atoms embedded in defective graphitic carbon nitride

Abstract: Electrochemical reduction of nitrogen (N2), in which the conversion of N2 to ammonia (NH3) takes place under mild conditions, is of timely significance for paving a way toward technological applications in agriculture and the chemical industry. In this work, various single transition metal atoms anchored on graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) with nitrogen vacancies (TM@NVs-g-C3N4), acting as electrocatalysts for N2 reduction, were systematically investigated by means of density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Most of the isolated metal atoms (Ti, V, Co, Ni, Zr, Mo, Ru and Pt) can be fixed by the nitrogen vacancies stably after performing the molecular dynamics simulation. For hexagonal close-packed and body centered cubic metal atoms, their N2 chemisorption activity decreases as the coordination number of the single atom rises. Nevertheless, the anchored cubic close-packed metal atom does not serve as a good site for N2 adsorption and activation even with a low-coordination number. Among all studied TM single atoms, the single Ti atom is found to be the most promising catalyst for its excellent N2 reduction performance with a potential-limiting step of 0.51 eV and a rate-determining barrier of 0.57 eV. Atomic level insights are provided to elucidate the electrochemical mechanisms for N2 reduction. The coordination number of the active center is accountable for the robust N2 reduction activity with high stability. Overall, this work exemplifies the in-depth investigations of different single TM atoms, including the coordination number and binding mode, which are essential to lay the groundwork for the advancement of single atom catalysis toward practical implementation.

Enhanced Visible-Light Photocatalytic H2 Production by ZnxCd1−xS Modified with Earth-Abundant Nickel-Based Cocatalysts

Abstract: The application of various earth-abundant Ni species, such as NiS, Ni, Ni(OH)(2), and NiO, as a co-catalyst in a ZnxCd1-xS system for visible-light photocatalytic H-2 production was investigated for the first time. The loading of Ni or NiS enhanced the photocatalytic activity of ZnxCd1-xS because they could promote the electron transfer at the interface with ZnxCd1-xS and catalyze the H-2 evolution. Surprisingly, Ni(OH)(2)-loaded ZnxCd1-xS exhibits a very high photocatalytic H-2-production rate of 7160 mu mol h(-1) g(-1) with a quantum efficiency of 29.5% at 420 nm, which represents one of the most efficient metal sulfide photocatalysts without a Pt co-catalyst to date. This outstanding activity arises from the pronounced synergetic effect between Ni(OH)(2) and metallic Ni formed in situ during the photocatalytic reaction. However, the loading of NiO deactivated the activity of ZnxCd1-xS because of their unmatched conduction band positions. This paper reports the optimization of the ZnxCd1-xS system by selecting an appropriate Ni-based co-catalyst, Ni(OH)(2), from a series of Ni species to achieve the highest photocatalytic H-2-production activity for the first time and also reveals the roles of these Ni species in the photocatalytic activity.

Poorly-/well-dispersed graphene: Abnormal influence on flammability and fire behavior of intumescent flame retardant

Abstract: Surface feature of ammonium polyphosphate is modified by cation exchange reaction with piperazine, and then reduced graphene oxide nanosheets are attached to the surface of modified flame retardant via hydrogen bonding interactions. Good dispersion of graphene in the polypropylene matrix is observed. The dispersion state of graphene has an abnormal effect on the flammability results under small flame and fire behavior under forced flaming condition of intumescent flame retardant (IFR) composites. The well-dispersed graphene results in significantly deteriorated limiting oxygen index and UL-94 rating. The graphene with good dispersion is adverse to flammability results, which is in contrary to the widely-acknowledged flame retardant mechanisms. Low content of well-dispersed graphene exhibits higher reduction effect on heat release than that of poorly-dispersed counterpart. Novel flame retardant mechanism and model are proposed and new understanding of the role of graphene in the combustion of IFR is provided.

Immobilization technology: a sustainable solution for biofuel cell design

Abstract: Biofuel cells provide a versatile means to generate electrical power from environmentally friendly biomass or biofuels. Immobilization technology has played an important role in the design of biofuel cells. This review addresses recent advances in immobilization technology applied to assembling biofuel cells. After identifying the advantages and problems of biofuel cells, the immobilization technology, which offers a sustainable and effective solution for biofuel cell design, is thoroughly presented: (i) A brief introduction to immobilization methods, including adsorption, covalent binding and entrapment, is first presented. (ii) The immobilization structure and nanostructures are emphasized, which strongly influence mass and electron transfer, including zero, one, two, and three dimensional nanostructures are then discussed. (iii) The immobilization materials, which are considered as a critical factor in immobilization technology, including polymer, carbon, oxide and metallic nanomaterials, sol–gel based materials and particularly composite materials, are reviewed to conclude. The interesting issues related to the future of biofuel cell design are also highlighted, for example, the 3D electrode assembly using low dimensional structures as a future challenge, biofuel cells within logic systems as a new aspect, crystalline mesoporous carbon with high enzyme loading as a future desired material, and composite materials with multiple functions and structures as a hot area of work.