An innovative photocatalyst, Carbon nanotube （CNT） supported Ce-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via modi-fied sol gel method and investigated in a batch reactor for abolition of phenol under UV light...An innovative photocatalyst, Carbon nanotube （CNT） supported Ce-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via modi-fied sol gel method and investigated in a batch reactor for abolition of phenol under UV light spectrum. Characterization of catalyst micro-structure and internal properties were done by means of X-ray diffraction （XRD）, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller （BET）, scanning electron micros-copy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra （DRS）. Ce doping can inhibit phase transfor-mation from anatase to rutile and eliminate the recombination of electron-hole pairs in the catalyst. The presence of CNT in TiO2 composite can both increase the photoactivity under UV and change surface properties to achieve sensitivity to visible light. The optimum mass ratio of CNT support and cerium （Ce） dopant in TiO2 was the prominent factor to harvest CNT/Ce-TiO2 photocatalyst nanocomposite. The results demonstrated that optimum mass ratio of CNT：TiO2：Ce was 0.02：1.0：0.06, which resulted in the great performance of the photocatalyst to de-grade about 94% of phenol in a 50 mg/L solution in only 3 h. In this paper, dissimilar role of CNT support and Ce dopant in the TiO2 photo-catalysis of phenol was also discussed.展开更多
Meso-porous Si-coated carbon nanotube （CNT） composite powders were prepared by combining a sol-gel method and the magnesiothermic reduction process. Meso-porous Si-coated CNT electrodes exhibit excellent cycle and r...Meso-porous Si-coated carbon nanotube （CNT） composite powders were prepared by combining a sol-gel method and the magnesiothermic reduction process. Meso-porous Si-coated CNT electrodes exhibit excellent cycle and rate performances as anodes in Li-ion batteries （LIBs）, which can be attributed to the efficient accommodation of volume change from meso-porous Si structure and the enhanced electrical conductivity from CNT core. This simple synthesis and subsequent reduction process provide a scalable route for the large-scale production of Si-C composite nanostructures, which can be utilized in a variety of applications, such as in photocatalysis, photoelectrochemical cells （PECs）, and LIBs.展开更多
Oil spills in the sea have caused many serious environmental problems worldwide. In this study, carbon nanotube （CNT） sponges were used to cleanup oil slicks on sea waters. This method was compared with two traditio...Oil spills in the sea have caused many serious environmental problems worldwide. In this study, carbon nanotube （CNT） sponges were used to cleanup oil slicks on sea waters. This method was compared with two traditional representative sorbents, including polypropylene fiber fabric and woolen felt. The CNT sponges had a larger oil sorption capacity than the other two sorbents. The maximum oil sorption capacity （Qm） of the CNT sponge was 92.30 g/g, which was 12 to 13.5 times larger than the Qm of the other two sorbents （the Qm of the polypropylene fiber fabric and woolen felt were 7.45 and 6.74 g/g, respectively）. In addition, unlike the other two sorbents, the CNT sponge was super- hydrophobic and did not adsorb any water during oil spill cleanup. CNT sponges are potentially very useful for cleaning up oil spills from sea water.展开更多
基金Project supported by Research University Grant Scheme (Project A/C No.814004)the Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) under the Commercialization of Research and Development Fund (CRDF) (MBF065-USM/05)
文摘An innovative photocatalyst, Carbon nanotube （CNT） supported Ce-TiO2 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via modi-fied sol gel method and investigated in a batch reactor for abolition of phenol under UV light spectrum. Characterization of catalyst micro-structure and internal properties were done by means of X-ray diffraction （XRD）, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller （BET）, scanning electron micros-copy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra （DRS）. Ce doping can inhibit phase transfor-mation from anatase to rutile and eliminate the recombination of electron-hole pairs in the catalyst. The presence of CNT in TiO2 composite can both increase the photoactivity under UV and change surface properties to achieve sensitivity to visible light. The optimum mass ratio of CNT support and cerium （Ce） dopant in TiO2 was the prominent factor to harvest CNT/Ce-TiO2 photocatalyst nanocomposite. The results demonstrated that optimum mass ratio of CNT：TiO2：Ce was 0.02：1.0：0.06, which resulted in the great performance of the photocatalyst to de-grade about 94% of phenol in a 50 mg/L solution in only 3 h. In this paper, dissimilar role of CNT support and Ce dopant in the TiO2 photo-catalysis of phenol was also discussed.
文摘Meso-porous Si-coated carbon nanotube （CNT） composite powders were prepared by combining a sol-gel method and the magnesiothermic reduction process. Meso-porous Si-coated CNT electrodes exhibit excellent cycle and rate performances as anodes in Li-ion batteries （LIBs）, which can be attributed to the efficient accommodation of volume change from meso-porous Si structure and the enhanced electrical conductivity from CNT core. This simple synthesis and subsequent reduction process provide a scalable route for the large-scale production of Si-C composite nanostructures, which can be utilized in a variety of applications, such as in photocatalysis, photoelectrochemical cells （PECs）, and LIBs.
文摘Oil spills in the sea have caused many serious environmental problems worldwide. In this study, carbon nanotube （CNT） sponges were used to cleanup oil slicks on sea waters. This method was compared with two traditional representative sorbents, including polypropylene fiber fabric and woolen felt. The CNT sponges had a larger oil sorption capacity than the other two sorbents. The maximum oil sorption capacity （Qm） of the CNT sponge was 92.30 g/g, which was 12 to 13.5 times larger than the Qm of the other two sorbents （the Qm of the polypropylene fiber fabric and woolen felt were 7.45 and 6.74 g/g, respectively）. In addition, unlike the other two sorbents, the CNT sponge was super- hydrophobic and did not adsorb any water during oil spill cleanup. CNT sponges are potentially very useful for cleaning up oil spills from sea water.
