Mineralization and Structural Controls of the AB-Bid Carbonate-Hosted Pb-Zn (±Cu) Deposit, Tabas-Posht e Badam Metallogenic Belt, Iran

The Ab-Bid deposit, located in the Tabas-Posht e Badam metallogenic belt (TPMB) in Central Iran, is the largest Pb-Zn (±Cu) deposit in the Behadad-Kuhbanan mining district. Sulfide mineralization in the Ab-Bid deposit formed in Middle Triassic carbonate rocks and contains galena and sphalerite with minor pyrite, chalcopyrite, chalcocite, and barite. Silicification and dolomitization are the main wall-rock alteration styles. Structural and textural observations indicate that the mineralization occurs as fault fills with coarse-textured, brecciated, and replacement sulfides deposited in a bookshelf structure. The Ab-Bid ore minerals precipitated from high temperature (≈180–200 °C) basinal brines within the dolomitized and silicified carbonates. The sulfur isotope values of ore sulfides suggest a predominant thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR) process, and the sulfur source was probably Triassic-Jurassic seawater sulfate. Given the current evidence, mineralization at Ab-Bid resulted from focusing of heated, over-pressurized brines of modified basinal origin into an active fault system. The association of the sulfide mineralization with intensely altered wall rock represents a typical example of such features in the Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) metallogenic domain of the TPMB. According to the structural data, the critical ore control is a bookshelf structure having mineralized dextral strike-slip faults in the northern part of the Ab-Bid reverse fault, which seems to be part of a sinistral brittle shear zone. Structural relationships also indicate that the strata-bound, fault-controlled Ab-Bid deposit was formed after the Middle Jurassic, and its formation may be related to compressive and deformation stages of the Mid-Cimmerian in the Middle Jurassic to Laramide orogenic cycle in the Late Cretaceous-Tertiary.

Controllable preparation and electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution characteristics of Fe3S4 nanocrystals

In order to obtain better electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance, Fe3S4 with different morphologies was synthesized by controlling the reaction conditions. During that progress, the ferric oleate as an iron source, and the sulfur powder dissolved in oleylamine as a sulfur source. Fe3S4 with particle morphology proved to have the best electrochemical catalytic activity after adding 40% carbon black. In dehydrogenation, the overpotential was 234 mV and the Tafel slope was 213 mV/dec at a current density of 10 mA/cm2. Meanwhile, Fe3S4 with a particle morphology exhibited superior electrochemical stability. Therefore, the controllably fabricated Fe3S4 with a particle morphology is a promising electrocatalyst for dehydrogenation.

Sulfonitrocarburizing of High-Speed Steel Cutting Tools: Kinetics and Performances

The scholarly literature records information related to the performance increase of the cutting tools covered by the superficial layers formed “in situ” when applying thermochemical processing. In this context, information is frequently reported on the carbamide role in processes aiming carbon and nitrogen surface saturation. Sulfur, together with these elements adsorbed and diffused in the cutting tools superficial layers, undoubtedly ensures an increase of their operating sustainability. The present paper discusses the process of sulfonitrocarburizing in pulverulent solid media of high-speed tools steel (AISI T1, HS18-0-1) and its consequences. The peculiarity of the considered process is that the source of nitrogen and carbon is mainly carbamide (CON2H4), which is found in solid powdery mixtures together with components that do not lead to cyan complex formation (non-toxic media), and the sulfur source is native sulfur. The kinetics of the sulfonitrocarburizing process, depending on the carbamide proportion in the powdered solid mixture and the processing temperature, was studied. The consequences of the achieved sulfonitrocarburized layers on the cutting tools’ performance are expressed by the maximum permissible cutting speed and the maximum cut length. An interesting aspect is highlighted, namely the possibility of using chemically active mixtures. Their components, by initiation of the metallothermic reduction reaction, become able to provide both elements of interest and the amount of heat needed for the ultrafast saturation of the targeted metal surfaces.

Marginal defects modified graphene with S-C-N-C groups for highly selective oxygen reduction to H2O2

Developing efficient metal-free catalysts to achieve electrochemical synthesis of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is crucial for substituting traditional energy-intensive anthraquinone process. Heteroatom-doped carbon materials have shown great potential toward 2e-pathway for catalyzing oxygen reduction to hydrogen peroxide (ORHP). However, conventional nanocarbon electrocatalysts show slow kinetics toward ORHP due to the weak binding strength with OOH* intermediate, resulting reduction of O2 to H2O. Here, sulfur and nitrogen dual-doped graphene (SNC) electrocatalyst consisting of S-C-N-C functional group are synthesized through hydrothermal self-assembly and nitridation processes with thiourea as sulfur source. In S-C-N-C functional group, pentagon-S and pyrrolic-N are covalently grafted onto the edge of graphene and produce marginal carbon ring defects, which provide highly active sites for catalyzing ORHP. The obtained SNC catalysts deliver an outstanding ORHP activity and selectivity for H2O2 production, while retaining remarkable stability. The experimental and computational results reveal that marginal S-C-N-C functional groups afford an appropriate adsorption strength with OOH* intermediate and a low reaction barrier as well, which are essential for the activity of ORHP.

Glycothermally Synthesized Self-aggregated ZnS Spherical Particles for Methyl Orange Photodecomposition

Using ethylene glycol (C2H6O2) as the solvent, ZnS particles were synthesized in high yield at a relatively low temperature of 125 oC via the glycothermal method. We report a facile method for preparing spherical self-aggregated ZnS particles from ZnS nanocrystals, using zinc acetate as the Zn2+ source and thiourea as a sulfur source, without mineralization or other agents. The crystal phase structure, morphology, size, surface chemical composition, and optical properties of the self-aggregated ZnS particles were characterized using XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, XPS, BET, and UV-Vis absorption. The ZnS particles had a cubic phase zinc blende structure without any other impurities. The average crystallite size of the synthesized primary nanocrystal, estimated from XRD peak width and TEM images, was nearly 4 nm. FE-SEM images showed that all of the ZnS consisted of self-aggregated particles with a spherical morphology and a size of approximately 0.2 µm~0.5 µm, and contained many tiny primary nanocrystals. The prepared ZnS exhibited strong photoabsorption in the UV region. The optical band gap decreased from 3.85 eV to 3.62 eV as the glycothermal reaction temperature was increased, due to improvement in particle size and crystallization. The effects of the glycothermal reaction temperature on the photocatalytic activity of the synthesized selfaggregated ZnS particles were investigated by the photodecomposition of methyl orange (MO) dye under UV illumination (λ = 365 nm). The prepared ZnS exhibited excellent photocatalytic degradation with increasing reaction temperature, of 125 oC (5%), 150 oC (10%), 175 oC (60%), and 200 oC (90%) after irradiation for 60 min. It was found that the ZnS particle prepared at 200 oC achieved the highest photocatalytic degradation, with nearly 100% MO decomposition after 90 min, by various photogenerated radical scavengers.

Glycothermally Synthesized Self-aggregated ZnS Spherical Particles for Methyl Orange Photodecomposition

Using ethylene glycol (C2H6O2) as the solvent, ZnS particles were synthesized in high yield at a relatively low temperature of 125 oC via the glycothermal method. We report a facile method for preparing spherical self-aggregated ZnS particles from ZnS nanocrystals, using zinc acetate as the Zn2+ source and thiourea as a sulfur source, without mineralization or other agents. The crystal phase structure, morphology, size, surface chemical composition, and optical properties of the self-aggregated ZnS particles were characterized using XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, XPS, BET, and UV-Vis absorption. The ZnS particles had a cubic phase zinc blende structure without any other impurities. The average crystallite size of the synthesized primary nanocrystal, estimated from XRD peak width and TEM images, was nearly 4 nm. FE-SEM images showed that all of the ZnS consisted of self-aggregated particles with a spherical morphology and a size of approximately 0.2 µm~0.5 µm, and contained many tiny primary nanocrystals. The prepared ZnS exhibited strong photoabsorption in the UV region. The optical band gap decreased from 3.85 eV to 3.62 eV as the glycothermal reaction temperature was increased, due to improvement in particle size and crystallization. The effects of the glycothermal reaction temperature on the photocatalytic activity of the synthesized selfaggregated ZnS particles were investigated by the photodecomposition of methyl orange (MO) dye under UV illumination (λ = 365 nm). The prepared ZnS exhibited excellent photocatalytic degradation with increasing reaction temperature, of 125 oC (5%), 150 oC (10%), 175 oC (60%), and 200 oC (90%) after irradiation for 60 min. It was found that the ZnS particle prepared at 200 oC achieved the highest photocatalytic degradation, with nearly 100% MO decomposition after 90 min, by various photogenerated radical scavengers.