This contribution reports a comprehensive investigation into the structural, electronic and thermal properties of bulk and surface terbium dioxide (TbO2); a material that enjoys wide spectra of catalytic and optical applications. Our calculated lattice dimension of 5.36 Å agrees well with the corresponding experimental value at 5.22 Å. Density of states configuration of the bulk structure exhibits a semiconducting nature. Thermo-mechanical properties of bulk TbO2 were obtained based on the quasi-harmonic approximation formalism. Heat capacities, thermal expansions and bulk modulus of the bulk TbO2 were obtained under a wide range of temperatures and pressures. The dependency of these properties on operational pressure is very evident. Cleaving bulk terbium dioxide affords six distinct terminations. Bader's charge distribution analysis for the bulk and the surfaces portrays an ionic character for Tb-O bonds. In an analogy to the well-established finding pertinent to stoichiometric CeO2 surfaces, the (111):Tb surface appears to be the thermodynamically most stable configuration in the nearness of the lean-limit of the oxygen chemical potential. For the corresponding non-stoichiometric structures, we find that, the (111):O + 1VO surface is the most stable configuration across all values of accessible oxygen chemical potentials. The presence of an oxygen vacant site in this surface is expected to enable potent catalytic-assisted reactions, most notably production of hydrogen from water
An electrochemical sensor based on an amino-functionalized iron NH2-MIL-101(Fe) metal-organic framework (MOF)/Pd nanoparticles (NPs) composite-modified screen-printed electrode (SPE) is prepared for the simultaneous determination of norepinephrine (NEPI) and acetaminophen (ACP). The NH2-MIL-101(Fe) MOF/Pd NPs/SPE electrochemical sensor shows a significant enhancement in the response peak current of NEPI, as compared to bare SPE. This suggests that the unique features of NH2-MIL-101(Fe) MOF/Pd NPs composite-modified SPE improve the electrocatalytic oxidation of NEPI. Such a synergistic effect between NH2-MIL-101(Fe) MOF and Pd NPs results in a significant enhancement in the response, where the MOF's high surface area co
... Show MoreThis work focuses on the preparation of pure nanocrystalline SnO2 and SnO2:Cu thin films on cleaned glass substrates utilizing a sol-gel spin coating and chemical bath deposition (CBD) procedures. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the possible use of these thin films in the context of gas sensor applications. The films underwent annealing in an air environment at a temperature of 500 ◦C for duration of 60 minutes. The thickness of the film that was deposited may be estimated to be around 300 nm. The investigation included an examination of the structural, optical, electrical, and sensing characteristics, which were explored across various preparation circumstances, specifically focusing on varied
... Show MoreWe describe the synthesis and characterization of a novel 2D-MnOx material using a combination of HR-TEM, XAS, XRD, and reactivity measurements. The ease with which the 2D material can be made and the conditions under which it can be made implies that water oxidation catalysts previously described as “birnessite-like” (3D) may be better thought of as 2D materials with very limited layer stacking. The distinction between the materials as being “birnessite-like” and “2D” is important because it impacts on our understanding of the function of these materials in the environment and as catalysts. The 2D-MnOx material is noted to be a substantially stronger chemical oxidant than previously noted for other birnessite-like manganese oxi
... Show MoreIn this work, (ZnO)1-x(MnO2)x compounds were synthesized with composition (x=0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5) of manganese oxide content using solid state reaction. Thin films were prepared from these compounds on glass substrates at room temperature using pulsed laser deposition method. The structure of the prepared compounds and thin films were analyzed using x-ray diffraction while the optical properties was measured using UV-visible spectrophotometry. It was found that the synthesized composites declared many peaks in the diffraction pattern which indicate polycrystalline structure with hexagonal wurtzite hexagonal structure of ZnO, and MnO2 and Mn2O3 secondary phases. A narrowing in the optical e
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