Hydrogen peroxide biosensor based on electrodeposition of zinc oxide nanoflowers onto carbon nanotubes film electrode

A new amperometric biosensor for hydrogen peroxide was developed based on adsorption of horseradish peroxidase at the glassy carbon electrode modified with zinc oxide nanoflowers produced by electrodeposition onto multi-walled carbon nanotubes （MWNTs） film. The morphology of the MWNTs/nano-ZnO electrode has been investigated by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, and the electrochemical performance of the electrode has also been studied by amperometric method. The resulting electrode offered an excellent detection for hydrogen peroxide at -0.11 V with a linear response range of 9.9×10^-7 to 2.9×10^-3 mol/L with a correlation coefficient of 0.991, and response time 〈5 s. The biosensor displays rapid response and expanded linear response range, and excellent stability.

3D MoS_(2)/graphene nanoflowers as anode for advanced lithium-ion batteries

Vertical MoS2nanosheets were controllably patterned onto graphene as nanoflowers through a two-step hydrothermal method. The interconnected network and intimate contact between MoS2nanosheets and graphene by vertical channels enabled a high mechanical integrity of electrode and cycling stability. In particular, MoS2/graphene nanoflowers anode delivered an ultrahigh specific capacity of 901.8 mA·h/g after 700 stable cycles at 1000 mA/g and a corresponding capacity retention as 98.9% from the second cycle onwards.

MoS_(2) nanoflowers coupled with ultrafine Ir nanoparticles for efficient acid overall water splitting reaction

Bi-functional electrocatalysts for acid overall water splitting reactions are crucial but still challenging to the development of proton exchange membrane water electrolysis.Herein,an efficient bi-functional catalyst of Ir/MoS_(2) nanoflowers(Ir/MoS_(2) NFs) catalyst was reported for acidic water electrolysis which can be constructed by coupling three-dimensionally interconnected MoS_(2) NFs with ultrafine Ir nanoparticles.A more suitable adsorption ability for the H* and *OOH intermediates was revealed,where the Ir sites were proposed as the main active center and MoS_(2) promoted the charge relocation to electronically modify the interfacial structure.The significant interfacial charge redistribution between the MoS_(2) NFs and the Ir active sites synergistically induced excellent catalytic activity and stability for the water electrolysis reaction.Specifically,the catalyst required overpotentials of 270 and 35 mV to reach a kinetic current density of 10 mA cm^(-2)for OER and HER,respectively,loading on the glass carbon electrode,with high catalytic kinetics,stability,and catalytic efficiency.A two-electrode system constructed by Ir/MoS_(2) NFs drove 10 mA cm^(-2)at a cell voltage of 1.55 V,about 70 mV lower than that of the commercial Pt/C||IrO_(2) system.In addition,partial surface oxidation of Ir nanoparticles to generate high-valent Ir species was also found significant to accelerate OER.The enhanced catalytic performance was attributed to the strong metal-support interaction in the Ir/MoS_(2) NFs catalyst system that changed the electronic structure of Ir metal and promoted the synergistic catalytic effect between Ir and MoS_(2) NFs.The work presented a novel platform of Ir-catalyst for proton exchange membrane water electrolysis.

Graphene quantum dots decorated rutile TiO_2 nanoflowers for water splitting application

Flower like rutile TiO_2 films were decorated with green-photoluminescent graphene quantum dots（GQDs） and photovoltaic properties were investigated for water splitting application. Rutile TiO_2 nanoflowers（NFs） and GQDs（average width of^12 nm） synthesized separately using a hydrothermal method and TiO_2 NFs were decorated with various amounts of GQDs solution（x = 5, 10, 15 and 20 μL） by spin coating. Optical characterization reveals that GQDs are highly luminescent and absorb UV and visible light photons with wavelengths up to 700 nm. GQDs-x/TiO_2 electrode shows a photocurrent enhancement of ~95% compared to pristine TiO_2 NFs for the optimum sample（x = 15 μL） at an applied potential of P = 0 V using 1 M Na_2SO_4 solution as electrolyte.

Self-assembled MoS_(2)/C nanoflowers with expanded interlayer spacing as a high-performance anode for sodium ion batteries

Two-dimensional(2D)MoS_(2) nanomaterials have been extensively studied due to their special structure and high theoretical capacity,but it is still a huge challenge to improve its cycle stability and achieve superior fast charge and discharge performance.Herein,a facile one-step hydrothermal method is proposed to synthetize an ordered and self-assembled MoS_(2) nanoflower(MoS_(2)/C NF)with expanded interlayer spacing via embedding a carbon layer into the interlayer.The carbon layer in the MoS_(2) interlayer can speed the transfer of electrons,while the nanoflower structure promotes the ions transport and improves the structural stability during the charging/discharging process.Therefore,MoS_(2)/C NF electrode exhibits exceptional rate performance(318.2 and 302.3 mA·h·g^(-1) at 5.0 and 10.0 A·g^(-1),respectively)and extraordinary cycle durability(98.8%retention after 300 cycles at a current density of 1.0 A·g^(-1)).This work provides a simple and feasible method for constructing high-performance anode composites for sodium ion batteries with excellent cycle durability and fast charge/discharge ability.

Novel P-doping-tuned Pd nanoflowers/S,N-GQDs photo-electrocatalyst for high-efficient ethylene glycol oxidation

Traditional photo-electcatalyst structures of small noble metal nanoparticles assembling into large-scale photoactive semiconductors still suffer from agglomeration of noble metal nanoparticles,insufficient charge transfer,undesirable photoresponse ability that restricted the photo-electrocatalytic performance.To this end,a novel design strategy is proposed in this work,namely integrating small-scale photoactive materials(doped graphene quantum dots,S,N-GQDs)with large-sized noble metal(Pd P)nanoflowers to form novel photo-electrocatalysts for high-efficient alcohol oxidation reaction.As expected,superior electrocatalytic performance of Pd P/S,N-GQDs for ethylene glycol oxidation is acquired,thanks to the nanoflower structure with larger specific surface area and abundant active sites.Furthermore,nonmetal P are demonstrated,especially optimizing the adsorption strength,enhancing the interfacial contact,reducing metal agglomeration,ensuring uniform and efficient doping of S,N-GQDs,and ultimately significantly boost the catalytic activity of photo-electrocatalysts.

Enzyme@silica nanoflower@metal-organic framework hybrids： A novel type of integrated nanobiocatalysts with improved stability

A novel integrated nanobiocatalyst system based on an enzyme@silica nanoflower@metal-organic framework （enzyme@SNF@ZIF-8） structure with improved stability is fabricated for the first time. The versatility of this system is validated using penicillin G acylase （PGA） and catalase （CAT） as model enzymes. The microporous ZIF-8 layer can be controlled by varying the number of ZIF-8 coating cycles, which produces PGA@SNF@ZIF-8 nanobiocatalysts with different ZIF-8 layer thicknesses. After the second ZIF-8 coating cycle, a PGA@SNF@ZIF-8（2） structure with a homogeneous and well-intergrown ZIF-8 layer is formed, which possesses excellent mechanical and chemical stability. Moreover, PGA@SNF@ZIF-8（2） shows improved thermal/storage stability and reusability compared with free PGA and PGA immobilized on silica nanoflowers （PGA@SNF）. The obtained CAT-based nanobiocatalysts （CAT@SNF@ZIF-8（2）） also show excellent catalytic performance.

Hydrophilic bismuth sulfur nanoflower superstructures with an improved photothermal efficiency for ablation of cancer cells

Nanomaterials with intense near-infrared （NIR） absorption exhibit effective photon-to-thermal energy transfer capabilities and can generate heat to ablate cancer cells, thus playing a pivotal role in photothermal cancer therapeutics. Herein, hydrophilic flower-like bismuth sulfur （Bi2S3） superstructures with uniform size and improved NIR absorption were controllably synthesized via a facile solvothermal procedure assisted by polyvinylpyrrolidone （PVP）, which could adjust the product morphology. Induced by an 808-nm laser, the as-prepared Bi2S3 nanoflowers exhibited much higher photothermal conversion efficiency （64.3%） than that of Bi2S3 nanobelts （36.5%） prepared in the absence of PVP. This can be attributed not only to the Bi2S3 nanoflower superstructures assembled by 3-dimensional crumpled-paper-like nanosheets serving as many laser-cavity mirrors with improved reflectivity and absorption of NIR light but also to the amorphous structures with a lower band gap. Thus, to achieve the same temperature increase, the concentration or laser power density could be greatly reduced when using Bi2S3 nanoflowers compared to when using Bi2S3 nanobelts, which makes them more favorable for use in therapy due to decreased toxicity. Furthermore, these Bi2S3 nanoflowers effectively achieved photothermal ablation of cancer ceils in vitro and in vivo. These results not only supported the Bi2S3 nanoflowers as a promising photothermal agent for cancer therapy but also paved an approach to exploit new agents with improved photothermal efficiency.

Rare earth(Gd,La) co-doped ZnO nanoflowers for direct sunlight driven photocatalytic activity

In this work Gd/La@ZnO nanoflower photocatalyst was successfully synthesized by a co-precipitation method and applied for rhodamine B(Rh B) and tetracycline(TCN) degradation under direct sunlight irradiation.The doping of rare earth elements extends the optical absorption wavelength of ZnO from UV region(390 nm) to visible-light region(401 nm).In addition,the co-doped ZnO nanoflower exhibits a lower charge recombination efficiency which was confirmed by photoluminescence emission analysis.Moreover,the co-doped ZnO nanoflower exhibits the maximum degradation efficiency of 91% for Rh B and 74% for TCN under sunlight irradiation.The calculated synergistic index of co-doped ZnO is higher than that of the pure ZnO.Reactive radicals’ production was confirmed by terephthalic acid(TA) and nitro-blue tetrazolium(NBT) tests.The holes and hydroxyl(·OH) radicals play the major role in degradation reaction and it was confirmed by scavenger’s test.Moreover,the recycling test confirms the stability of the photocatalyst.

Gold nanoflowers for 3D volumetric molecular imaging of tumors by photoacoustic tomography

By binding molecular probes that target tumor cells, gold nanoparticles （AuNPs） with superior characteristics have shown great potential in tumor molecular imaging studies. The non-invasive, high-resolution, and three-dimensional imaging of the targeted AuNPs within the tumor is desirable for both diagnosis and therapy. In this study, gold nanoflowers （AuNFs） are presented as a novel contrast agent for photoacoustic tomography （PAT）. By binding to folic acid, the molecular probe, the tail-vein injected AuNFs concentrated within the tumor site in mice; this was clearly visualized by three-dimensional （3D） PAT imaging. In addition, toxicity assay proved that AuNFs were harmless to living cells and animals. Our results demonstrate that AuNFs have great potential in tumor molecular imaging.

Three-dimensional porous superaerophobic nickel nanoflower electrodes for high-performance hydrazine oxidation

Finding inexpensive electrodes with high activity and stability is key to realize the practical application of fuel cells. Here, we report the fabrication of three-dimensional （3D） porous nickel nanoflower （3D-PNNF） electrodes via an in situ reduction method. The 3D-PNNF electrodes have a high surface area, show tight binding to the electroconductive substrate, and most importantly, have superaerophobic （bubble repellent） surfaces. Therefore, the electrocatalytic hydrazine oxidation performance of the 3D-PNNF electrodes was much higher than that of commercial Pt/C catalysts because of its ultra-weak gas-bubble adhesion and ultra-fast gas-bubble release. Furthermore, the 3D-PNNF electrodes showed ultra-high stability even under a high current density （260 mA/cm^2）, which makes it promising for practical applications. In addition, the construction of superaerophobic nanostructures could also be beneficial for other gas evolution processes （e.g., hydrogen evolution reaction）.

Photocatalytic activity of TiO2 containing anatase nanoparticles and rutile nanoflower structure consisting of nanorods

A series of TiO2 with different crystal phases and morphologies was synthesized via a facile hydrothermal process using titanium nbutoxide and concentrated hydrochloric acid as raw materials. The photocatalytic activity of the samples was evaluated by degradation of Methyl Orange in aqueous solution under UV-Visible light irradiation. On the basis of detailed analysis of the characterizing results of high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller measurement, it was concluded that the photo-activity of the catalyst is related directly to the 3D morphology and the crystal phase composition. An excellent catalyst should have both a futile 3D flower-like structure and anatase granulous particles. The 3D flower-like structure could enhance light harvesting, as well as the transfer of reactant molecules from bulk solution to the reactive sites on TiO2. In addition, the optimum anatase/rutile phase ratio was found to be 80：20, which is beneficial to the effective separation of the photogenerated electron-hole pairs.

A nanoporous oxide interlayer makes a better Pt catalyst on a metallic substrate： Nanoflowers on a nanotube bed

To improve the contact between platinum catalyst and titanium substrate, a layer of TiO2 nanotube arrays has been synthesized before depositing Pt nanoflowers by pulse electrodeposition. Dramatic improvements in electrocatalytic activity （3x） and stability （60x） for methanol oxidation were found, suggesting promising applications in direct methanol fuel cells. The 3x and 60x improvements persist for Pt/Pd catalysts used to overcome the CO poisoning problem.

Facile self-template fabrication of hierarchical nickel-cobalt phosphide hollow nanoflowers with enhanced hydrogen generation performance

Developing facile methods to construct hierarchical-structured transition metal phosphides is beneficial for achieving high-efficiency hydrogen evolution catalysts.Herein,a self-template strategy of hydrothermal treatment of solid Ni-Co glycerate nanospheres followed by phosphorization is delivered to synthesize hierarchical Ni Co P hollow nanoflowers with ultrathin nanosheet assembly.The microstructure of Ni Co P can be availably tailored by adjusting the hydrothermal treatment temperature through affecting the hydrolysis process of Ni-Co glycerate nanospheres and the occurred Kirkendall effect.Benefitting from the promoted exposure of active sites and affluent mass diffusion routes,the HER performance of the Ni Co P hollow nanoflowers has been obviously enhanced in contrast with the solid Ni Co P nanospheres.The fabricated Ni Co P hollow nanoflowers yield the current density of 10 m A cmà2at small overpotentials of 95 and 127 m V in 0.5 mol Là1H2SO4and 1.0 mol Là1KOH solution,respectively.Moreover,the two-electrode alkaline cell assembled with the Ni Co P and Ir/C catalysts exhibits sustainable stability for overall water splitting.The work provides a simple but efficient method to regulate the microstructure of transition metal phosphides,which is helpful for achieving high-performance hydrogen evolution catalysts based on solid-state metal alkoxides.

CuO nanoflowers/copper fiber felt integrated porous electrode for lithium-ion batteries

The structure of current collectors has significant effects on the performance of a lithium-ion battery(LIB).In this study,we use copper fiber felts made by multi-tooth cutting and high-temperature solid-phase sintering as the current collector for LIBs.An integrated porous electrode based on CuO nanoflowers/copper fiber felt is developed for the anode.Results suggest that the reversible capacity and cycle stability of this new anode are significantly improved,compared with the pristine bare-surface copper plate under the same condition of rate cycles.The new anode structure based on the copper-fiber felt with a porosity of 60%exhibits a higher performance with an initial specific capacity of 609.5 mAh g^(-1)and retains 486.1 mAh g^(-1)after 200 cycles at a current density of 0.5 C.The improved electrochemical performance of this electrode is attributed to its large surface area of CuO nanoflowers and porous structure of the copper fiber felt,due to enhanced contact between the active material of CuO nanoflowers and electrolyte.This pore-rich structure makes the electrolyte easy to permeate into the electrode,shortens the diffusion path of Li^(+),reduces the internal resistance and alleviates the volume expansion of the active material during the insertion and desertion processes of Li^(+).

Thermal transformation of δ-MnO_2 nanoflowers studied by in-situ TEM

ln-situ transmission electron microscopy in combination with a heating stage has been employed to real-time monitor varia- tions of δ-phase MnO2 nanoflowers in terms of their morphology and crystalline structures upon thermal annealing at elevated temperatures up to -665 ℃. High-temperature annealing drives the diffusion of the small δ-MnO2 nanocrystallites within short distances less than 15 nm and the fusion of the adjacent δ-MnO： nanocrystallites, leading to the formation of larger crystalline domains including highly crystalline nanorods. The annealed nanoflowers remain their overall flower-like morphology while they are converted to α-MnO2. The preferred transformation of the δ-MnO2 to the α-MnO2 can be ascribed to the close lattice spacing of most crystalline lattices between δ-MnO2 and α-MnO2, that might lead to a possible epitaxial growth of ct-MnO2 lattices on the 8-MnO2 lattices during the thermal annealing process.

Facile synthesis of gold nanoflowers as SERS substrates and their morphological transformation induced by iodide ions

We report a new strategy to prepare gold nanoflowers （AuNFs） using a two-step seed-mediated method. The as-prepared AuNFs were employed as surface-enhance Raman scattering （SERS） substrates, showing strong signal enhancement. We further found that iodide ions （I^-） could selectively induce the morphological transformation of AuNFs to spheres, resulting in a blue-shift of the localized surface plasmon resonance （LSPR） bands, a color change of the AuNFs solution from blue to red, and decreased SERS activity. This behavior allows the AuNFs to be used in the determination of I^-.

Facile Synthesis of Mesoporous Co3O4 Nanoflowers for Catalytic Combustion of Ventilation Air Methane

Flower-like Co3O4 hierarchical microspheres composed of self-assembled porous nanoplates were pre- pared by employing Pluronic F127 block-copolymer as template. The samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction（PXRD）, scanning/transmission electron microscopy（SEM/TEM）, and nitrogen adsorption-desorption at 77 K. The results show that the catalytic activity of Co3O4 nanoflowers for the combustion of ventilation air methane is higher than that of commercial Co3O4. The superior catalytic performance of this material can be related to its dominantly exposed {112} crystal planes and higher content of surface Co3＋.

Construction of a CaHP04-PGUSl hybrid nanoflower through protein-inorganic self-assembly, and its application in glycyrrhetinic acid 3-0-mono-β-D-glucuronide preparation

Glycyrrhetinic acid 3-0-mono-β-D-glucuronide (GAMG), an important pharmaceutical intermediate and functional sweetener, has broad applications in the food and medical industries. A green and cost-effective method for its preparation is highly desired. Using sitedirected mutagenesis, we previously obtained a variant of β-glucuronidase from Aspergillus oryzae Li-3 (PGUS1), which can specifically transform glycyrrhizin (GL) into GAMG. In this study, a facile method was established to prepare a CaHP04-PGUSl hybrid nanoflower for enzyme immobilization, based on protein-inorganic hybrid selfassembly. Under optimal conditions, 1.2 mg of a CaHP04- PGUS1 hybrid nanoflower precipitate with 71.2% immobilization efficiency, 35.60 mg·g^-1 loading capacity, and 118% relative activity was obtained. Confocal laser scanning microscope and scanning electron microscope results showed that the enzyme was encapsulated in the CaHP04-PGUSl hybrid nanoflower. Moreover, the thermostability of the CaHP04-PGUSl hybrid nanoflower at 55°C was improved, and its half-life increased by 1.3 folds. Additionally, the CaHP04-PGUSl hybrid nanoflower was used for the preparation of GAMG through GL hydrolysis, with the conversion rate of 92% in 8 h, and after eight consecutive runs, it had 60% of its original activity.

Palladium nanoflowers supported on amino-fullerene as novel catalyst for reduction of 4-nitrophenol

In this study,we report the synthesis of novel palladium nanoflowers(Pd NFs)on amino-functionalized fullerene(C60-NH2)by hydrothermal self-assembly growth using ethylenediamine(EA)as a functional reagent.The successful formation of Pd nanoflowers supported amino-functionalized fullerene(C60-NH2/Pd NFs)is evidenced by UV-vis and powder X-ray diffraction(XRD).The morphology of Pd NFs over the C60-NH2 surface has been investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy(TEM)and Fourier-transform infrared(FT-IR)techniques.The supported Pd nanoflowers(Pd NFs/C60-NH2)exhibit remarkably superior catalytic activity toward the reduction of 4-nitrophenol(4-NP).It exhibits remarkable UV-vis spectra response from 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol(4-AP)(99%in 2.0 min)with a turnover frequency of 12.35 min^-1.Its excellent catalytic stability and durability offer the promising application in catalysis.