Structure and Photocatalytic Performance of Zr4+Doped Bi2WO6 Synthesized by Fast Microwave-assisted Hydrothermal Method

Zr4＋ doped Bi2WO6 was prepared by a fast microwave-assisted hydrothermal method and used for photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction（XRD）, transmission electron microscopy（TEM） and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The results indicate that cell volume of Bi2WO6 has a slight increase dependent on the substitution of W6＋ by Zr4＋ with increasing the Zr doping amount. The photocatalytic performance of Zr4＋ doped Bi2WO6 was evaluated by the photodegradation of MO under visible light irradiation. Compared with samples obtained with traditional hydrothermal method as well as pure Bi2WO6, an obviously improved photocatalytic efficiency of Zr4＋ doped Bi2WO6 is achieved by this microwave-assisted hydrothermal way. The 3% Zr doped Bi2WO6 sample exhibited the best photocatalytic activity, which is probably because of the appropriate proportion of components and optimum amount of oxygen vacancies of the sample.

Effect of Zr-doping on Pd/CexZr1-xO2 catalysts for oxidative carbonylation of phenol

Ce–Zr solid solution(CexZr1-xO2,CZO)was prepared by the citric acid sol–gel method.The CZO was then used as a support for Pd/CZO catalysts for the oxidative carbonylation of phenol to diphenyl carbonate.The Pd/CZO catalyst showed enhanced activity and diphenyl carbonate selectivity compared with the Pd/CeO2 catalyst.The catalytic performance of Pd/CZO was influenced by the calcination temperature of the CZO support.X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy,N2 adsorption–desorption measurements,X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and H2 temperature-programmed reduction measurements were used to investigate the effects of Zr doping and calcination temperature.The catalytic performance of Pd/CZO and Pd/CeO2 for the oxidative carbonylation of phenol was affected by several factors,including the specific surface area,Ce^3+and/or oxygen vacancy content,oxygen species type and Pd(II)content of the catalyst.All these properties were influenced by Zr doping and the calcination temperature of the CZO support.

Boosting cell performance of LiNi_(0.8)Co_(0.1)Mn_(0.1)O_(2) cathode material via structure design

Ni-rich cathodes exhibit appealing properties,such as high capacity density,low cost,and prominent energy density.However,the inferior ionic conductivity and bulk structural degradation become bottlenecks for Ni-rich cathodes and severely limit their commercial utilization.Traditional coating and doping methods suffer fatal drawbacks in functioning as a unit and cannot radically promote material performance to meet the needs of Li-ion batteries(LIBs).Herein,we successfully devised an ingenious and facile synthetic method to establish Ni-rich oxides with a La_(2)Zr_(2)O_(7) coating and Zr doping.The coating layer improves the ion diffusion kinetics and enhances Li-ion transportation while Zr doping effectively suppresses the phase transition of LiNi_(0.8)Co_(0.1)Mn_(0.1)O_(2) cathode.Owing to the synergetic effect of Zr doping and La_(2)Zr_(2)O_(7) coating,the modified material shows prominent initial discharge capacity of 184.7 m Ah g^(-1) at 5℃ and maintains 177.5 m Ah g^(-1) after 100 cycles at 1℃.Overall,the proposed feasible electrode design method can have a far-reaching impact on further fabrication of advanced cathodes for high-performance LIBs.

Tailoring interphase structure to enable high-rate, durable sodium-ion battery cathode

Na-based layered transition metal oxides with O_(3)-type structure have been considered to be promising cathodes for Na-ion batteries. However, the intrinsically limited Na-ion conductivity induced by the Otype Na-coordinate environment compromises their rate and cycle capability, hindering their practical application. Here, we report an interphase-structure tailoring strategy that improves the electrochemical properties of O_(3)-type layered cathodes achieved through surface coating and doping processes.Specifically, a Zr-doped interphase structure is designed in the model compound NaNi_(1/3)Mn_(1/3)Fe_(1/3)O_(2) using the ionic conductor Na_(3)Zr_(2)Si_(2)PO_(12) as the surface coating material and Zr-dopant provider. We discover that the modified NaNi_(1/3)Mn_(1/3)Fe_(1/3)O_(2)cathode shows a stable Na-storage structure as well as an enhanced rate/cycle capability. Combined with theoretical calculations, it is suggested that the superior electrochemical performances originate from the Zr-doped interphase structure, which has an enlarged Na layer spacing that forms favorable Na-ion diffusion channels. This work highlights a general material interface optimization method which opens a new perspective for fabricating high-performance electrodes for Na-ion batteries and beyond.

The mechanism of the UV band edge photorefractivity suppression in highly doped LiNbO3：Zr crystals

The ultraviolet(UV) band edge photorefractivity of LiNbO_3:Zr at 325 nm has been investigated. The experimental results show that the resistance against photorefraction at 325 nm is quite obvious but not as strong as that at 351 nm, when the doping concentration of Zr reaches 2.0 mol%. It is reported that the photorefractivity in other tetravalently doped LiNbO_3 crystals, such as LiNbO_3:Hf and Li NbO_3:Sn, is enhanced dramatically with doping concentration over threshold. Here we give an explicit explanation on such seemly conflicting behaviors of tetravalently doped LiNbO_3, which is ascribed to the combined effect of increased photoconductivity and the absorption strength of the band edge photorefractive centers.