Recent advances in one-dimensional nanostructures for energy electrocatalysis

Catalysts play decisive roles in determining the energy conversion efficiencies of energy devices.Up to now,various types of nanostructured materials have been studied as advanced electrocatalysts.This review highlights the application of one‐dimensional(1D)metal electrocatalysts in energy conversion,focusing on two important reaction systems-direct methanol fuel cells and water splitting.In this review,we first give a broad introduction of electrochemical energy conversion.In the second section,we summarize the recent significant advances in the area of 1D metal nanostructured electrocatalysts for the electrochemical reactions involved in fuel cells and water splitting systems,including the oxygen reduction reaction,methanol oxidation reaction,hydrogen evolution reaction,and oxygen evolution reaction.Finally,based on the current studies on 1D nanostructures for energy electrocatalysis,we present a brief outlook on the research trend in 1D nanoelectrocatalysts for the two clean electrochemical energy conversion systems mentioned above.

Spurious Solutions in the Multiband Effective Mass Theory Applied to Low Dimensional Nanostructures

In this paper we analyze a long standing problem of the appearance of spurious,non-physical solutions arising in the application of the effective mass theory to low dimensional nanostructures.The theory results in a system of coupled eigenvalue PDEs that is usually supplemented by interface boundary conditions that can be derived from a variational formulation of the problem.We analyze such a system for the envelope functions and show that a failure to restrict their Fourier expansion coeffi-cients to small k components would lead to the appearance of non-physical solutions.We survey the existing methodologies to eliminate this difficulty and propose a simple and effective solution.This solution is demonstrated on an example of a two-band model for both bulk materials and low-dimensional nanostructures.Finally,based on the above requirement of small k,we derive a model for nanostructures with cylindrical symmetry and apply the developed model to the analysis of quantum dots using an eight-band model.

One-Dimensional ZnO Nanostructures： Solution Growth and Functional Properties

One-dimensional （1D） ZnO nanostructures have been studied intensively and extensively over the last decade not only for their remarkable chemical and physical properties, but also for their diverse current and future technological applications. This article gives a comprehensive overview of the progress that has been made within the context of 1D ZnO nanostructures synthesized via wet chemical methods. We will cover the synthetic methodologies and the corresponding growth mechanisms, various nanostructures grown, their doping and alloying, and position-controlled growth on substrates. Finally, we will review their functional properties in catalysis, hydrophobic surface modification, sensing, and electronic, optical, optoelectronic, and energy harvesting devices.

Synthesis and Characterization of La(OH)_3 Nanorods by Hydrothermal Microemulsion Method

La（OH）3 nanorods with diameters of 20-40 nm and lengths of 200-300 nm were synthesized by a hydrothermal microemulsion method. The structure and morphology of the final products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and field emission scanning electron microscope （FESEM）.

CONTROLLED FABRICATION OF ONE-DIMENSIONAL POLYMER NANOSTRUCTURES via METALLOGEL TEMPLATE POLYMERIZATION

A facile method is reported to controllably fabricate one dimensional （1D） polymer nan,astructures via metallogel template polymerization. The metallogel was prepared through coordination interactions between silver ions and a ligand （L） bearing three pyridyl groups in tetrahydrofuran （THF）. The diameters of the metallogel nanofibers could be tuned by the gel concentration （GC）. Due to its high thermal stability and facility of removal, the metallogel was used as the template for radical polymerization of diacryolyl-2,6-diaminopyridine （DADAP） to form poly-diacryolyl-2,6-diaminopyridine （PDADAP） nanostructures. The gradually eroding of the templates by PDADAP provided us an effective way to fabricate various nanostructures of the polymer. We have demonstrated that different 1D nanostructures, including n^noribbons, nanotubes and nanowires, could be selectively fabricated by adjusting polymerization time, monomer concentration and GC. The rheological properties of the gel samples were tested by a rheometer. As prolonging the reaction time, more and more polymers were formed and the strength of the resulting polymer gels became higher and higher. The simple preparation process, easy controlled microstructures and adequate gel strength would make it a facile synthetic method for different 1D polymer nanosturctures.

Effects of indium doping concentration on the morphology and electrical properties of one-dimensional SnO_2 nanostructures prepared by a molten salt method

In this paper,indium doped SnO2 nanorods and nanowires have been prepared by the molten salt method,and the effects of indium doping concentration on the morphology and electrical properties of one-dimensional(1D) SnO2 nanostructures have been studied.It is found that indium doping concentration can affect the epitaxial growth,morphology and the electrical conductance of 1D SnO2 nanostructures.It is also found that the element made by using 6 mol% indium doped SnO2 nanorods responds to nitrogen gas.