Semi-closed synthesis of nitrogen and oxygen Co-doped mesoporous carbon for selective aqueous oxidation

Heteroatom-doped meso/micro-porous carbon materials are conventionally produced by harsh carbonization under an inert atmosphere involving specific precursors,hard/soft templates,and heteroatom-containing agents.Herein,we report a facile synthesis of N and O co-doped meso/micro-porous carbon(NOMC)by template-free carbonization of a small-molecule precursor in a semi-closed system.The semi-closed carbonizaiton process yields hydrophilic NOMCs with large surface area in a high yield.The porous structure as well as the elemental composition of NOMCs can be modulated by changing the holding time at a particular temperature.NOMCs as metal-free heterogeneous catalysts can selectively oxidize benzyl alcohol and its derivatives into aldehydes/ketones with>85%conversion in aqueous solution,which is much higher than that of the control sample obtained in tube furnace(21%conversion),mainly due to their high N content,high percentage of pyridinic N,and large surface area.The presence of O-containing moieties also helps to improve the hydrophilicity and dispersion ability of catalysts and thus facilitates the mass transfer process during aqueous oxidation.The NOMC catalysts also dispayed excellent activity for a wide range of substrates with a selectivity of>99%.

A lightweight nitrogen/oxygen dual-doping carbon nanofiber interlayer with meso-/micropores for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur(Li-S) batteries are promising energy-storage devices for future generations of portable electronics and electric vehicles because of the outstanding energy density,low cost,and nontoxic nature of S.In the past decades,various novel electrodes and electrolytes have been studied to improve the performance of Li-S batteries.However,the very limited lifespan and rate performance of Li-S batteries originating from the dissolution and diffusion of long-chain polysulfides in liquid electrolytes,and the intrinsic poor conductivity of S severely hinder their practical application.Herein,an electrospinning method was developed to fabricate a thin conductive interlayer consisting of meso-/microporous N/O dual-doping carbon nanofiber(CNF).The freestanding 3 D interwoven structure with conductive pathways for electrons and ions can enhance the contact between polysulfides and N/O atoms to realize the highly robust trapping of polysulfides via the extremely polar interaction.Consequently,combining the meso-microporous N/O dual-doping CNF interlayer with a monodispersed S nanoparticle cathode results in a superior electrochemical performance of 862.5 mAh/g after 200 cycles at 0.2 C and a cycle decay as low as 0.08% per cycle.An area specific capacity of 5.22 mAh/cm^(2) can be obtained after 100 cycles at 0.1 C with a high S loading of 7.5 mg/cm^(2).

Oxygen adsorption/desorption behavior of YBaCo4O7+δ and its application to oxygen removal from nitrogen

A new medium-temperature (200-400 °C) adsorbent material for oxygen removal and air separation, YBaCo4O7+δ, was prepared by the solid-state reaction method. This new adsorbent could adsorb a large quantity of oxygen in the temperature range of 200-370 °C. Adsorbed oxygen could be released by raising temperature over 400 °C or by switching the atmosphere from oxygen to nitrogen. This oxygen adsorption and desorption process had good reproducibility. Taking advantage of this unique oxygen intake/release behavior, a nitrogen purification process was investigated. The results showed that YBaCo4O7+δ material was a promising candidate for the oxygen sorption process and could be used to produce high-purity nitrogen or to remove trace oxygen from other gases.

Oxygen vacancy enhancing mechanism of nitrogen reduction reaction property in Ru/TiO2

To search the new effective nitrogen reduction reaction(NRR)electrocatalyst is very important for the ammonia-based industry.Herein,we reported the design of a novel NRR electrocatalyst with Ru NPs loaded on oxygen-vacancy TiO2(Ru/TiO2-Vo).Structural characterizations revealed that oxygen vacancy was loaded in the matrix of Ru/TiO2-Vo.Electrocatalytic results indicated that Ru/TiO2-Vo showed good NRR performance(2.11μg h^-1 cm^-2).Contrast tests showed that NRR property of Ru/TiO2-Vo was much better than those of Ru/TiO-12(B)(0.53μg hcm^-2)and Ru/P25(0.42μg h^-1 cm^-2).Furthermore,density functional theory calculation results indicated catalytic mechanism of NRR and rate-determining step(*N2+1/2 H2→*N+*NH)was the potential-determining step with the overpotential requirement of 0.21 V.A combination of electronic structure analysis and catalytic measurement shed light on the synergistic effect of Ru and oxygen vacancy on the NRR performance.

Modelling nitrogen and phosphorus cycles and dissolved oxygen in the Zhujiang EstuaryⅠ.Model development

An ecosystem-based water quality model was designed to estimate the biochemical reaction of nutrient and dissolved oxygen in conjunction with a three-dimensional hydrodynamic and sediment model. As both phosphorus and nitrogen successively limit phytoplankton growth in many estuaries, the model simulates both there nutrient cycles each using five variables, namely, dissolved inorganic nutri- ent, detritic organic matter, benthic matter, phytoplankton and zooplankton.

Effects of Dissolved Oxygen on Nitrogen Release from Jialu River Sediment

[Objective] The aim was to study the effects of dissolved oxygen(DO) on nitrogen release from Jialu River sediment.[Method] Based on the present pollution of Jialu River(in Zhengzhou),the effects of dissolved oxygen on nitrogen transformation in Jialu River sediment were analyzed through simulation test of original columnar sediment.[Result] DO was the main impact factor of nitrogen transformation in Jialu River sediment,and DO with different concentrations had various effects on the transformation time and transformation efficiency of ammonia nitrogen,nitrite nitrogen and nitrate nitrogen.Under aerobic environment,ammoniation,nitrosification and nitrification conducted completely,and the transformation time of ammonia nitrogen,nitrite nitrogen and nitrate nitrogen was less than that under anaerobic environment,while the transformation efficiency was higher than that under anaerobic environment.[Conclusion] The study could provide scientific references for the water pollution control of Jialu River.

Comparison of Mechanisms of N-Nitrosation and N-Nitration of Ammonia and Dimethylamine by Reactive Nitrogen Oxygen Species:A Theoretical Study

Reactive nitrogen oxygen species（RNOS） implicate damage in biological systems,especially leading to inflammation,neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases,and cancer by altering the functions of biomolecules through the N-nitrosation and N-nitration reactions.The mechanisms of N-nitrosation and N-nitration reactions of ammonia and dimethylamine by RNOS,i.e.,N2O3,N2O4,N2O5 and ONOOH,were investigated at the CBS-QB3 level of theory.The computational results indicate that the N-nitrosation reaction prefers a concerted mechanism,in which a H-abstraction and ON-addition occur simultaneously,whereas a stepwise mechanism（also called a free radical mechanism） is more favorable for most nitrating agents in the N-nitration reaction,where NO2 first abstracts a hydrogen atom from the nitrogen of amines and then the induced intermediate reacts with NO2 once more to form the nitration products.However,the concerted pathway is still a feasible process for some nitrating agents such as N2O5.In addition,the relationship between the structures of different RNOS and their nitrosating or nitrating abilities was also investigated.

Role of nitrogen and oxygen in emission of Si quantum dots formed by pulse laser

Silicon quantum dots fabricated by nanosecond pulsed laser in nitrogen, oxygen or air atmosphere have enhanced photoluminescence （PL） emission with the stimulated emission observed at about 700 nm. It is difficult to distinguish between the photoluminescence peaks emitted from samples prepared in different atmospheres. The reason for the appearance of similar peaks may be the similar distribution of the localised states in the gap for different samples when silicon dangling bonds of quantum dots are passivated by nitrogen or oxygen. It is revealed that both the kind and the density of passivated bonds on quantum dot surface prepared in oxygen or nitrogen have a strong influence on the enhancement of PL emission.

Nitrogen-doped cobalt nanoparticles/nitrogen-doped plate-like ordered mesoporous carbons composites as noble-metal free electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction

In this work, nitrogen-doped cobalt nanoparticlesinitrogen-doped plate-like ordered mesoporous carbons (N/Co/OMCs) were used as noble-metal free electrocatalysts with high catalytic efficiency. Compared with OMCs with long channel length, due to more entrances for catalytic target accessibility and a short pathway for rapid diffusion, the utilization efficiency of cobalt nanoparticles inside the plate-like OMCs with short pore length is well improved, which can take full advantage of porous structure in electrocatalysis and increase the utilization of catalysts. The active sites in N/Co/OMCs for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) are highly exposed to oxygen molecule, which results in a high activity for ORR. By combination of the catalytic properties of nitrogen dopant, incorporation of Co nanoparticles, and structural properties of OMCs, the N/Co/plate-like OMCs are highly active noble-metal free catalysts for ORR in alkaline solution. (C) 2016 Science Press and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press. All rights reserved.

Effects of oxygen/nitrogen co-incorporation on regulation of growth and properties of boron-doped diamond films

Regulation with nitrogen and oxygen co-doping on growth and properties of boron doped diamond films is studied by using laughing gas as dopant. As the concentration of laughing gas(N2O/C) increases from 0 to 10%, the growth rate of diamond film decreases gradually, and the nitrogen-vacancy(NV) center luminescence intensity increases first and then weakens. The results show that oxygen in laughing gas has a strong inhibitory effect on formation of NV centers, and the inhibitory effect would be stronger as the concentration of laughing gas increases. As a result, the film growth rate and nitrogen-related compensation donor decrease, beneficial to increase the acceptor concentration(~3.2×10^(19)cm^(-3)) in the film. Moreover, it is found that the optimal regulation with the quality and electrical properties of boron doped diamond films could be realized by adding appropriate laughing gas, especially the hole mobility(~700cm^(2)/V·s), which is beneficial to the realization of high-quality boron doped diamond films and high-level optoelectronic device applications in the future.

Preparation of nitrogen and sulfur co-doped ultrathin graphitic carbon via annealing bagasse lignin as potential electrocatalyst towards oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline and acid media

Renewable lignin used for synthesizing materials has been proven to be highly potential in specific electrochemistry.Here,we report a simple method to synthesize nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon nanosheets by using bagasse lignin,denoted as lignin-derived carbon(LC).By adjusting the ratio of nitrogen source and annealing temperature,we obtained the ultrathin graphitic lignin carbon(LC-4-1000)with abundant wrinkles with high surface area of 1208 m2g_1 and large pore volume of 1.40 cm3g_1.In alkaline medium,LC-4-1000 has more positive half-wave potential and nearly current density compared to commercial Pt/C for oxygen reduction reaction(ORR).More importantly,LC-4-1000 also exhibits comparable activity and superior stability for ORR in acid medium due to its high graphitic N ratio and a direct four electron pathway for ORR.This study develops a cost-effective and highly efficient method to prepare biocarbon catalyst for ORR in fuel cells.

Novel Co_3O_4 Nanoparticles/Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Composites with Extraordinary Catalytic Activity for Oxygen Evolution Reaction(OER)

Herein, Co_3O_4 nanoparticles/nitrogen-doped carbon(Co_3O_4/NPC) composites with different structures were prepared via a facile method. Structure control was achieved by the rational morphology design of ZIF-67 precursors, which were then pyrolyzed in air to obtain Co_3O_4/NPC composites. When applied as catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction(OER), the M-Co_3O_4/NPC composites derived from the flower-like ZIF-67 showedsuperior catalytic activities than those derived from the rhombic dodecahedron and hollow spherical ZIF-67. The former M-Co_3O_4/NPC composite displayed a small overpotential of 0.3 V, low onset potential of 1.41 V, small Tafel slope of 83 m V dec^(-1), and a desirable stability.(94.7% OER activity was retained after 10 h.) The excellent performance of the flower-like M-Co_3O_4/NPC composite in the OER was attributed to its favorable structure.

Controllable active sites and facile synthesis of cobalt nanoparticle embedded in nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbon nanotubes as efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction and evolution reactions

Development of efficient and promising bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction and evolutionreactions is desirable. Herein, cobalt nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen and sulfur co-doped carbonnanotubes(Co@NSCNT) were prepared by a facile pyrolytic treatment. The cobalt nanoparticles and co-doping of nitrogen and sulfur can improve the electron donor-acceptor characteristics of the carbon nan-otubes and provide more active sites for catalytic oxygen reduction and evolution reactions. The preparedCo@NSCNT, annealed at 900℃, showed excellent electrocatalytic performance and better durability thancommercial platinum catalysts. Additionally, Co@NSCNT-900 catalysts exhibited comparable onset poten-tials and Tafel slopes to ruthenium oxide. Overall, Co@NSCNT showed high activity and improved dura-bility for both oxygen evolution and reduction reactions.

Purified oxygenand nitrogen-modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes as metal-free catalysts for selective olefin hydrogenation

Oxygen and nitrogen-functionalized carbon nanotubes （OCNTs and NCNTs） were applied as metal-free catalysts in selective olefin hydro- genation. A series of NCNTs was synthesized by NH3 post-treatment of OCNTs. Temperature-programmed desorption, N2 physisorption, Raman spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were employed to characterize the surface properties of OCNTs and NCNTs, aiming at a detailed analysis of the type and amount of oxygen- and nitrogen-containing groups as well as surface defects. The gas-phase treatments applied for oxygen and nitrogen functionalization at elevated temperatures up to 600 ℃ led to the increase of surface defects, but did not cause structural damages in the bulk. NCNTs showed a clearly higher activity than the pristine CNTs and OCNTs in the hydrogenation of 1,5-cyclooctadiene, and also the selectivity to cyclooctene was higher. The favorable catalytic properties are ascribed to the nitrogen-containing surface functional groups as well as surface defects related to nitrogen species. In contrast, oxygen-containing surface groups and the surface defects caused by oxygen species did not show clear contribution to the hydrogenation catalysis.

Effective exposure of nitrogen heteroatoms in 3D porous graphene framework for oxygen reduction reaction and lithium–sulfur batteries

The introduction of nitrogen heteroatoms into carbon materials is a facile and efficient strategy to regulate their reactivities and facilitate their potential applications in energy conversion and storage. However,most of nitrogen heteroatoms are doped into the bulk phase of carbon without site selectivity, which significantly reduces the contacts of feedstocks with the active dopants in a conductive scaffold. Herein we proposed the chemical vapor deposition of a nitrogen-doped graphene skin on the 3D porous graphene framework and donated the carbon/carbon composite as surface N-doped grapheme（SNG）. In contrast with routine N-doped graphene framework（NGF） with bulk distribution of N heteroatoms, the SNG renders a high surface N content of 1.81 at%, enhanced electrical conductivity of 31 S cm^（-1）, a large surface area of 1531 m^2 g^（-1）, a low defect density with a low I_D/I_G ratio of 1.55 calculated from Raman spectrum, and a high oxidation peak of 532.7 ℃ in oxygen atmosphere. The selective distribution of N heteroatoms on the surface of SNG affords the effective exposure of active sites at the interfaces of the electrode/electrolyte, so that more N heteroatoms are able to contact with oxygen feedstocks in oxygen reduction reaction or serve as polysulfide anchoring sites to retard the shuttle of polysulfides in a lithium–sulfur battery. This work opens a fresh viewpoint on the manipulation of active site distribution in a conductive scaffolds for multi-electron redox reaction based energy conversion and storage.

Promoting effect of nitrogen doping on carbon nanotube-supported RuO2 applied in the electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction

RuO2 nanoparticles supported on multi-walled carbon nanotubes（CNTs） functionalized with oxygen（OCNTs） and nitrogen（NCNTs） were employed for the oxygen evolution reaction（OER） in 0.1 M KOH.The catalysts were synthesized by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition using ruthenium carbonyl（Ru3（CO）（12）） as Ru precursor. The obtained RuO2/OCNT and RuO2/NCNT composites were characterized using TEM, H2-TPR, XRD and XPS in order probe structure–activity correlations, particularly, the effect of the different surface functional groups on the electrochemical OER performance. The electrocatalytic activity and stability of the catalysts with mean RuO2 particle sizes of 13–14 nm was evaluated by linear sweep voltammetry, cyclic voltammetry, and chronopotentiometry, showing that the generation of nitrogen-containing functional groups on CNTs was beneficial for both OER activity and stability. In the presence of RuO2, carbon corrosion was found to be significantly less severe.

The Effect of Atmospheric Oxygen on the Puffing and Bursting Phenomena during Vegetable Oils Droplets Vaporization Process for Their Use as Biofuel in Diesel Engine

The past literature on the use of vegetable oils as fuel in diesel engine revealed that utilizing vegetable oil fuels in diesel engines may require property changes in the oil or perhaps, some minor engine modifications or operating changes. This study was conducted to search for the effect of atmospheric oxygen on the puffing and bursting phenomena that occur during vegetable oils droplet vaporization process in their use as fuel in diesel engine. The fiber-suspended droplet technique was used, and the normalized square droplet diameter as well as the temperature evolution vicinity the droplet was analyzed. The results show that puffing and bursting phenomena highly depend on oxygen. In presence of atmospheric oxygen, there is an increase of the puffing and bursting intensity and therefore the evaporation rate of the vegetable oil droplets, but in an inert environment or when the environment is oxygen-depleted puffing and bursting phenomena disappearing and make place of a series of explosions with lower magnitude. The lack of oxygen reduces the thermal degradation, polymerization and oxidation reactions and consequently the vaporization rate of vegetable oils droplets;and could therefore lead to the formation of deposits in the form of polymers. This is unsuitable for their use as a fuel in diesel engines. It can also be concluded that atmospheric oxygen has some positive effects on engine performance and emissions when operating with vegetable oil. These results help to address the challenge for the use of alternative fuels such as non-edible vegetable oils.

Hollow cobalt oxide nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets as an efficient bifunctional catalyst for Zn–air battery

Rational design of low-cost, highly electrocatalytic activity, and stable bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction(ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction(OER) has been a great significant for metal–air batteries. Herein, an efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst based on hollow cobalt oxide nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets(Co/N-Pg) is fabricated for Zn–air batteries. A lowcost biomass peach gum, consisting of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen without other heteroatoms, was used as carbon source to form carbon matrix hosting hollow cobalt oxide nanoparticles. Meanwhile, the melamine was applied as nitrogen source and template precursor, which can convert to carbon-based template graphitic carbon nitride by polycondensation process. Owing to the unique structure and synergistic effect between hollow cobalt oxide nanoparticles and Co-N-C species, the proposal Co/N-Pg catalyst displays not only prominent bifunctional electrocatalytic activities for ORR and OER, but also excellent durability. Remarkably, the assembled Zn–air battery with Co/N-Pg air electrode exhibited a low discharge-charge voltage gap(0.81 V at 50 mA cm^-2) and high peak power density(119 mW cm^-2) with long-term cycling stability. This work presents an effective approach for engineering transition metal oxides and nitrogen modified carbon nanosheets to boost the performance of bifunctional electrocatalysts for Zn–air battery.

Simultaneous nitrification and denitrification in step feeding biological nitrogen removal process

The simultaneous nitrification and denitrification in step-feeding biological nitrogen removal process were investigated under different influent substrate concentrations and aeration flow rates. Biological occurrence of simultaneous nitrification and denitrification was verified in the aspect of nitrogen mass balance and alkalinity. The experimental results also showed that there was a distinct linear relationship between simultaneous nitrification and denitrification and DO concentration under the conditions of low and high aeration flow rate. In each experimental run the floc sizes of activated sludge were also measured and the results showed that simultaneous nitrification and denitrification could occur with very small size of floc.

Impact of an accidental explosion in Tianjin Port on enhanced atmospheric nitrogen deposition over the Bohai Sea inferred from aerosol nitrate dual isotopes

In recent years,emergent pollutant’s accidents have occurred frequently in China,causing serious harm to the ecological environment.In this study,the impact of an accidental fire and explosion at Tianjin Port in 2015 on the atmosphere over the Bohai Sea was explored.Results showed sharp increases in the concentrations of several important components of fine particulate matter(e.g.NO3−,SO42−,NH4+,organic carbon,elemental carbon)over Beihuangcheng Island after the explosion.Among them,NO3−was most affected(about 10 days),with a maximum concentration of 16.45μg m−3.Theδ15N-NO3−ranged from−1.58‰to+8.74‰,with an average of+2.79‰±3.32‰.Influenced by the explosion,δ15N-NO3−decreased significantly,which was in accordance with the industrial processes of explosives.Theδ18O-NO3−varied between+49.40‰and+69.52‰,and showed a marked increase(+66.62‰±3.92‰)in the explosion-affected period.Using Monte Carlo simulation,the•OH pathway for NO3−formation was 51.79%±10.94%at that time—much lower than in the regular period.The elevated dry deposition of NO3−caused by the explosion was 266.08μmol N m−2 d−1 over the Bohai Sea—again,much higher than in the regular period.With the dry nitrogen deposition of NH4+(42.41μmol N m−2 d−1),the total nitrogen deposition increased by 308.49μmol N m−2 d−1,leading to severe ecological risk.Through the inverse computation of the dry deposition flux of NO3−,the affected area over the Bohai Sea was less than 1.42×104 km2,which is about 20%of the total area.