Facile Synthesis of Stacked Ni(OH)2 Hexagonal Nanoplates in a Large Scale

Using NiCl2 and NaOH as raw materials, stacked Ni(OH)2 hexagonal nanoplates with different edge lengths were prepared in a large scale by a simple hydrothermal route. The stacked Ni(OH)2 structure was composed of a certain amount of parallel Ni(OH)2 hexagonal nanoplates along the (001) direction. Each parallel Ni(OH)2 nanoplate had a single-crystal structure, and the exposed planes were (001), (00−1), and (100). The formation mechanism of the stacked Ni(OH)2 structures was discussed on the basis of the Ni(OH)2 crystal structure.

Porous direct Z-scheme heterostructures of S-deficient CoS/CdS hexagonal nanoplates for robust photocatalytic H2 generation

Photocatalytic water-splitting with Z-scheme semiconductor heterojunctions is a promising way to achieve renewable solar fuels. Nevertheless, developing earth-abundant direct Z-scheme photocatalytic systems for efficient H2 production is still under-developed. In...

Anion-Regulated Synthesis of ZnO 1D Necklace-Like Nanostructures with High Photocatalytic Activity

One-dimensional (1D) nanomaterials with specific architectures have received increasing attention for both scientific and technological interests for their applications in catalysis, sensing, and energy conversion, etc. However, the development of an operable and simple method for the fabrication of 1D nanostructures remains a challenge. In this work, we developed an “anion-regulated morphology” strategy, in which anions could regulate the dimensionally-restricted anisotropic growth of ZnO nanomaterials by adjusting the surface energy of different growth facets. ZnO 1D necklace-like nanostructures (NNS) could be prepared through a hydrothermal treatment of zinc acetate and urea mixture together with a subsequent calcination procedure at 400 °C. While replacing the acetate ions to nitrate, sulfate, and chlorion ions produced ZnO nanoflowers, nanosheets and hexagonal nanoplates, respectively. Density functional theory calculations were carried out to explain the mechanism behind the anions-regulating anisotropic crystal growth. The specified ZnO 1D NNS offered improved electron transport while the grain surface could supply enlarged specific surface area, thus providing advanced photocatalytic ability in the following photodegradation of methyl orange (MO). Among the four photocatalysts with different morphologies, ZnO 1D NNS, possessing the highest catalytic activity, degraded 57.29% MO in the photocatalytic reaction, which was 2 times, 10 times and 17 times higher than nanoflowers, nanosheets and hexagonal nanoplates, respectively. Our work provides new ideas for the construction and application of ZnO 1D nanomaterials.

Synthesis of Silver Nanoplates with the Assistance of Natural Polymer (Sodium Alginate) Under 0 °C

Some special conditions are important for chemical syntheses, such as high temperature and the medium used; unfortunately, uncontrollable influences are introduced during the process, resulting in unexpectedly low repeatability. Herein, we report a facile, environmentally friendly, stable, and repeatable methodology for synthesizing silver nanoplates (SNPs) at 0 °C that overcomes these issues and dramatically increases the yield. This method mainly employs sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and sodium alginate (SA) as the surface stabilizer and assistant, respectively. Consequently, we produced hexagonal nanoplates and tailed nanoplates, and the characterization showed that SA dominates the clear and regular profiles of nanoplates at 0 °C. The tailed nanoplates, over time, showed the growth of heads and the dissolving of tails, and inclined to the nanoplates without tails. The synthesis method for SNPs used in this study—0 °C without media—showed high repeatability. We confirmed that these special conditions are not required for the synthesis of silver nanostructures (SNSs). Furthermore, we constructed a new method for preparing noble metal nanostructures and proved the possibility of preparing metal nanostructures at 0 °C.