We report a promising photoanode material of Fe2O3/BiOI for efficient photoelectric conversion in solar cells, which was fabricated with BiOI attached to a one-dimensional Fe2O3 nanorod array. The two semiconductors of p-type BiOI and n-type Fe2O3 formed a heterogeneous structure for efficient charge separation. The highest open circuit voltage and short circuit current of the solar cell can reach 0.41 V and 4.89 mA/cm2, respectively. This study opens an available field to develop low-cost and environmentally friendly photoelectric materials for solar cells.

•d-glucaric acid adsorption performs different isotherms under different pH.•Freundlich isotherm was combined with pore diffusion and surface diffusion model.•Ion-exchange resin 335 was screened the best for d-glucaric acid adsorption.Since d-glucaric acid was produced by Escherichia coli and other microorganism, the purification of d-glucaric acid has been an important issue for downstream production. This work studied the adsorption of d-glucaric acid by means of seven ion exchange resins and three non-ionic adsorbents. Ion exchange resins showed superiority in adsorption capacity. Their isotherms could be fitted by Freundlich equation at pH 3.9 and Langmuir equation at pH 6.0, respectively. The highest adsorption capacity is 350 mg/mL at pH 3.9 by using 335 ion exchange resin. Compared to ion exchange resins, non-ionic adsorbents showed less capacity and Freundlich isotherm was suitable for both pH conditions. For adsorption kinetics, pore diffusion model and surface diffusion model were combined with Freundlich isotherm to study the uptake rate of ion exchange resins. 335 resin has the pore diffusion coefficient of 18.3 × 10−10 m2/s and the surface diffusion coefficient of 1.29 × 10−11 m2/s. Generally, 335 resin is the best choice for d-glucaric acid adsorption owing to its superior capacity and diffusivity as well.

A new B12-PIL/rGO hybrid was prepared successfully through immobilizing a B12 derivative on the surface of poly(ionic liquid) (PIL)-modified reduced graphene oxide (rGO) by electrostatic attraction and π–π stacking attraction among the different components. The hybrid catalyst showed an enhanced photocatalytic activity in the presence of Ru(bpy)32+ for 1,1-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-2,2,2-trichloroethane (DDT) dechlorination with ∼100% conversion. Especially, the yield of didechlorinated products could reach 78% after 1 h of visible light irradiation, which should be attributed to a synergistic effect of B12, rGO and PIL in B12-PIL/rGO, including their respective catalytic performance, the excellent electron transport of rGO and the concentration of DDT and 1,1-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-2,2-dichloroethane (DDD) on the surface of B12-PIL/rGO. Furthermore, the hybrid catalyst was easily recycled for use without obvious loss of catalytic activity.

A type of ionic liquid functionalized high-aspect-ratio Janus SiO2 nanosheets (IL-Janus nanosheets), which possesses a side terminated by imidazolin salt groups and the opposite side terminated by phenyl groups, was prepared and its emulsification performance was investigated. The surface wettability of ionic liquid functionalized side could be tailored via simple anion exchanging, giving the amphiphilic or totally hydrophobic Janus nanosheets. The influence of several parameters including surface wettability, particle concentration, oil composition, oil-water ratio as well as initial location of the nanosheets on the stability, morphology and type of the Pickering emulsions (O/W or W/O) stabilized by the amphiphilic IL-Janus nanosheets was evaluated. The research results revealed that average emulsion droplets size was decreased with increase of nanosheets concentration below a concentration value but had almost no change beyond the concentration; catastrophic phase inversion phenomenon occurred by varying volume fraction of water phase in the oil-water systems, and transitional phase inversion could be achieved by in-situ exchanging Cl− anion of the IL-Janus nanosheets with phosphomolybdate H2PMo12O40−. The responsiveness of Pickering emulsions towards phosphomolybdic acid is resulted from irreversible anion exchanging of Cl− by H2PMo12O40− and the variation of surface wettability of the nanosheets.Download high-res image (76KB)Download full-size image

We report a novel graphene oxide quantum dot (GOQD)-sensitized porous TiO2 microsphere for efficient photoelectric conversion. Electro-chemical analysis along with the Mott-Schottky equation reveals conductivity type and energy band structure of the two semiconductors. Based on their energy band structures, visible light-induced electrons can transfer from the p-type GOQD to the n-type TiO2. Enhanced photocurrent and photocatalytic activity in visible light further confirm the enhanced separation of electrons and holes in the nanocomposite.Download high-res image (78KB)Download full-size image

•P4VPBA functionalized PPy/GO nanosheets were successfully synthesized.•P4VPBA was modified on the surface of PPy/GO by a covalent method.•The excellent electrochemical catalytic activities towards CC and HQ were achieved.•P4VPBA/PPy/GO can act as an electrode material for simultaneously detecting CC and HQ.Novel poly(4-vinylphenylboronic acid) (P4VPBA) functionalized polypyrrole/graphene oxide (PPy/GO) nanosheets, which combined the advantages of GO, PPy and PBA groups, were successfully prepared by a simple polymerization of 4-vinylphenylboronic acid (4VPBA) on the surface of pre-treated PPy/GO containing vinyl groups. Because of the synergistic effects of GO with excellent 2D structures and large surface area, PPy with good electronic conductivity and PBA with high recognition capability, P4VPBA/PPy/GO modified glassy carbon electrode presented excellent electrochemical sensing capabilities toward catechol (CC) and hydroquinone (HQ) with good stability, high sensitivity and selectivity, especially giving a large anodic peak potential difference between CC and HQ enough to well distinguish and simultaneously determine the two dihydroxybenzene isomers in their mixture. It is found that PBA groups on the surface of P4VPBA/PPy/GO nanosheets played an essential role for the discrimination and simultaneous electrochemical determination of CC and HQ, which may be due to the selective formation of stable cyclic esters by the covalent interaction between PBA groups and related molecules with a cis-diol in an alkaline aqueous solution. Therefore, P4VPBA/PPy/GO nanosheets can act as a good electrode material for building a steady electrochemical sensor for detecting the two dihydroxybenzene isomers with high sensitivity and selectivity.Novel poly(4-vinylphenylboronic acid) functionalized polypyrrole/graphene oxide nanosheets were successfully synthesized and presented excellent electrochemical performance for simultaneous determination to catechol and hydroquinone.Download high-res image (120KB)Download full-size image

Spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) are attractive anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) because of their unique electrochemical properties. Herein, we report a facile one-step hydrothermal method in preparation of a nanocomposite anode consisting of well-dispersed mesoporous LTO particles onto rGO. An important reaction step involves glucose as a novel linker agent and reducing agent during the synthesis. It was found to prevent the aggregation of LTO particles, and to yield mesoporous structures in nanocomposites. Moreover, GO is reduced to rGO by the hydroxyl groups on glucose during the hydrothermal process. When compared to previously reported LTO/graphene electrodes, the newly prepared LTO/rGO nanocomposite has mesoporous characteristics and provides additional surface lithium storage capability, superior to traditional LTO-based materials for LIBs. These unique properties lead to markedly improved electrochemical performance. In particular, the nanocomposite anode delivers an ultrahigh reversible capacity of 193 mA h g–1 at 0.5 C and superior rate performance capable of retaining a capacity of 168 mA h g–1 at 30 C between 1.0 and 2.5 V. Therefore, the newly prepared mesoporous LTO/rGO nanocomposite with increased surface lithium storage capability will provide a new opportunity to develop high-power anode materials for LIBs.Keywords: anode; high power; lithium-ion batteries; reduced graphene oxide; spinel Li4Ti5O12;

Spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) has been intensively investigated as promising anode material for large-scale stationary electrochemical storage of energy produced from renewable sources due to its remarkable structural stability and excellent safety. In this paper, nanoparticles-constructed LTO with extra surface lithium storage capability is successfully prepared in air at 600 °C via employing TiOSO4·2H2O as Ti source. The newly prepared nanoparticles-constructed LTO displays enhanced electrochemical performances, demonstrating ultrahigh reversible capacity of 173 mAh g−1 at 0.5C and superior rate performance of more than 145 mAh g−1 at 30C between 1.0 and 2.5 V vs. Li+/Li. The influences of specific surface area and crystallinity on the extra surface lithium storage capability of the sintered samples for LIBs are investigated in detail in terms of reversible capacity, cyclability and rate capability. Our results reveal that not only specific surface area but also crystallinity and pored structure are vital for reducing electrode polarization and achieving extra surface lithium storage of LTO. We anticipate that the uniquely extra surface lithium storage reaction of LTO will get more attentions in the near future.

•Ion exchange is used to synthesize ZnO/chalcogenide semiconductor heterostructures.•ZnO/chalcogenide heterostructures have good visible-light photoelectric effect.•ZnO/ZnS has the lowest onset potential and ZnO/Ag2S has the highest photocurrent.We develop a novel ion exchange method to prepare ZnO/ZnS, ZnO/CdS and ZnO/Ag2S heterogeneous nanorod (NR) arrays on F-doped SnO2 glass. The chalcogenides semiconductors (ZnS, CdS and Ag2S) form the shell of the ZnO NRs on the ZnO NR arrays by the ion exchange, and the obtained samples maintained the well-ordered regular hexagonal morphology of the ZnO NRs. The photoelectric currents and photocatalytic water oxidation properties of these heterostructures were investigated in detail under simulated sunlight (AM1.5) in comparison with fresh ZnO NRs. In addition, theoretical analysis of the photoelectric effect is preliminarily explored on the basis the flat band potential results.

A novel kind of multilayer films consisting of graphene oxide and a cationic zinc phthalocyanine complex (ImZnPc) were fabricated through an electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly technique and were characterized using UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. These multilayer films were not only homogeneously formed, but also the complex ImZnPc was absorbed on the surface of GO as a non-aggregative monomolecular film. Under visible light irradiation, these films exhibited significant cathodic photocurrent generation with good stability and reproducibility. Especially, the four-layer film exhibited a very large cathodic photocurrent density of 5.6 μA cm−2, which makes this novel hybrid thin film a potential material for photoelectric conversion.

Cerasomes are a novel organic–inorganic hybrid material composed of spherical lipid bilayer vesicles with an internal aqueous compartment, which are similar to liposomes formed from phospholipids, with an inorganic silicate framework covering the vesicular surface. In this research, an anionic cerasome formed from N,N-dihexadecyl-N′-[(3-triethoxysilyl)propyl]urea was successfully prepared, and the cerasomes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), behaving as a spherical-like structure. An electrochemical platform was constructed using a combination of the cerasomes and cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) on a glassy carbon electrode. Ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy was used to monitor the assembly process and the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results demonstrated that ChOx had been successfully immobilized. The obtained enzyme-modified electrode exhibited both the effective direct electron transfer between the enzyme and electrode surface and the excellent electrochemical catalytic activity towards cholesterol with a wide linear range from 5.0 × 10−6 to 3.0 × 10−3 mol L−1 and a low detection limit 1.7 × 10−6 mol L−1 (S/N 3). The excellent catalytic performance of the modified electrode is attributed to the good biocompatibility of the cerasomes, which can provide a soft and morphologically stable interface for enzymatic immobilization, allowing the enzyme to retain its catalytic activity, along with their specific affinity (Km 0.139 mmol L−1) for water-insoluble cholesterol. The results indicate that cerasomes are useful as a platform for electrochemical sensing of cholesterol and have the potential to immobilize enzymes for bioelectrochemical applications.

A novel graphene nanocomposite, functionalized by polymeric ionic liquids (PILs) and poly(sodium-p-styrenesulfonate) (PSS), was successfully prepared and exhibited excellent conductivity, favourable biocompatibility and good film-forming properties as an electrode material. TEM showed that the nanocomposite possessed an individual nanosheet-like structure. Owing to the surface modification of graphene, PSS/PILs–GP can not only be well dispersed in aqueous solution, but also possesses a strong negative charge. Due to electrostatic interactions, positively charged cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) can be immobilized onto the surface of PSS/PILs–GP to form the ChOx/PSS/PILs–GP/GC electrode material. UV-vis and FT-IR spectroscopy were used to monitor the assembly process of the nanocomposite. Due to the conductivity and biocompatibility of PSS/PILs–GP, the immobilized ChOx exhibited enhanced direct electron transfer (DET) at a glassy carbon (GC) electrode. Furthermore, the ChOx/PSS/PILs–GP/GC electrode displayed excellent catalytic performance with a wide linear range of 10.5 × 10−6 to 10.4 × 10−3 mol L−1, and a low detection limit of 3.5 μmol L−1 for the detection of cholesterol.

•A novel fluorescent nanohybrid was firstly designed.•The nanohybrid can be utilized as matrix for the immobilization of redox protein.•The protein immobilization process could be visible detected.•Direct electron transfer reaction was achieved at Hb-QDs-cerasome/GC electrode.•The electrode displayed amplified electrocatalytic signals.A novel fluorescent nanohybrid was fabricated via the self-assembly of semiconductive quantum dots (QDs) on biocompatible cerasomes. The nanohybrid (denoted as QDs-cerasome) was used as an electrode material for visible protein immobilization and bioelectrochemistry. The morphology and surface properties of the QDs-cerasome hybrid were characterized by transmission electron microscopies, atomic force microscopies and zeta potential measurements. Because the QDs-cerasome hybrid possessed a positive charge in aqueous solution, it could be used as a matrix to immobilize negatively charged hemoglobin (Hb) via electrostatic interaction. Ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy demonstrated that Hb was immobilized on the hybrid matrix without denaturation. The fluorescence of the QDs-cerasome was quenched as Hb was immobilized, indicating that the protein immobilization process could be visibly detected. Compared with protein electrodes constructed using a single-component material, including Hb-QDs/GC and Hb-cerasome/GC electrodes, the Hb-QDs-cerasome/GC electrode not only realized enhanced direct electrochemistry, but also displayed higher sensitivity and a wider linear range toward the detection of hydrogen peroxide because of the synergistic effect of the QDs and cerasomes. The experimental results demonstrate that this fluorescent multicomponent hybrid material provides a novel and effective platform to immobilize a redox protein to realize direct electrochemistry. As such, this hybrid shows promise for application in third-generation electrochemical biosensors.

•Zwitterionic PVIPS functionalized PPy/GO nanosheets were successfully synthesized.•Their surface charge property has been obviously changed to electronegativity.•The excellent electrochemical catalytic activities towards DA were achieved.•SO3− groups with negative charge changed the transmission mode of electrons.•PVIPS/PPy/GO can act as an electrode material for detecting DA at low concentration.Poly(3-(1-vinylimidazolium-3-yl)propane-1-sulfonate) (PVIPS), a novel kind of poly(zwitterionic liquids) (PZILs) containing both imidazolium cation and sulfonate anion, was successfully modified on the surface of polypyrrole/graphene oxide nanosheets (PPy/GO) by covalent bonding. The obtained novel PZILs functionalized PPy/GO nanosheets (PVIPS/PPy/GO) modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) presented the excellent electrochemical catalytic activity towards dopamine (DA) with high stability, sensitivity, selectivity and wide linear range (40–1220 nM), especially having a lower detection limit (17.3 nM). The excellent analytical performance is attributed to the strongly negative charges on the surface of modified GCE in aqueous solution, which is different from conventional poly(ionic liquids) modified GCE. DA cations could be quickly enriched on the electrode surface by electrostatic interaction in solution due to the existence of SO3− groups with negative charge at the end of pendant groups in zwitterionic PVIPS, resulting in a change of the electrons transmission mode in the oxidation of DA, that is, from a typical diffusion-controlled process at conventional poly(1-vinyl-3-ethylimidazole bromide) (PVEIB)/PPy/GO modified GCE to a typical surface-controlled process.Novel poly(zwitterionic liquids) functionalized polypyrrole/graphene oxide nanosheets were successfully synthesized and presented an excellent performance for determination to DA.

Novel poly(ionic liquids) functionalized polypyrrole nanotubes (PILs/PPyNTs) were successfully synthesized. 1-Vinyl-3-ethylimidazole bromide (VEIB) was polymerized on the surface of novel polymerizable vinyl imidazolium-type IL modified PPyNTs prepared by a covalent method. Due to the modification of PILs, the dispersibility of PILs/PPyNTs in aqueous solution was significantly improved and their surface charge properties were obviously changed to electropositivity. Because of the synergetic effects of conductive PPyNTs and biocompatible PILs, excellent electrochemical catalytic activities towards dopamine (DA) and ascorbic acid (AA) were achieved using a PILs/PPyNTs modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE), which gave a large potential difference enough to well distinguish DA from AA, with excellent sensitivity and good stability, for the simultaneous detection of DA and AA. The existence of PILs effectively improved the transmission mode of electrons of DA and AA oxidation on the electrode and resulted in their different electrocatalytic performance.

•Unique mesoporous LTO nanosheets are prepared for the first time.•The mesoporous LTO nanosheets display remarkable surface lithium storage.•The surface lithium storage is attributed to its advanced microstructure.•The surface lithium storage contributes to its improved performances.•The mesoporous LTO nanosheets are attractive for high performance anodes.Spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) has been intensively investigated as promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) due to its remarkable structural stability and excellent safety. In this paper, unique LTO nanosheets with porous microstructure are successfully prepared for the first time by a facile approach without any additives and template under hydrothermal conditions following calcination. Particularly, compared with traditional LTO microspheres and smooth LTO nanosheets, the newly prepared mesoporous LTO nanosheets demonstrate extra surface lithium storage reaction and much improved electrochemical performances, delivering ultrahigh reversible capacity of 169 mAh g−1 at 1C and superior rate performance of more than 140 mAh g−1 at 30C between 1.0 and 2.5 V vs. Li+/Li. The beneficial surface lithium storage is mainly attributed to its advanced microstructure, which can facilitate the transfer of lithium-ions and electrons. The exceptionally improved electrochemical performance of the mesoporous LTO nanosheets will undoubtedly make this microstructure attractive for high performance electrode materials of LIBs.

Intense research works had been devoted worldwide to the improvement of electrons conductivity of Li4Ti5O12 spinel to get better power performances. In this study, our experimental results revealed that pristine Li4Ti5O12 spinel possessed excellent power charge performance. Three charge–discharge modes were employed to take advantage of its outstanding power charge capacity. The power capacity of Li4Ti5O12 spinel was increased about 13 times at high current density by using an appropriate working mode. Even at 30C, Li4Ti5O12 could keep 90% of the reversible capacity at 0.5C in the improved mode, whereas it was only 7% in the ordinary mode. The corresponding improvement mechanism of different working modes was demonstrated. Our results suggested that designing appropriate working modes for electrode materials according to their inherent characteristics would be a promising way to achieve advanced performance in the field of lithium-ion battery.

By using a one-step copolymerization of styrene (St) and 3-(1-vinyllimidazolium-3-yl)propane-1-sulfonate (VIPS), a kind of poly(St-co-VIPS) microsphere, with a hierarchical structure composed of nanospheres or nanoparticles with diameters in the range of 70–90 nm arranged on its surface and that look like a flower, has been simply prepared in the presence of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) in an aqueous alcohol system. A formation mechanism of the flower-like poly(St-co-VIPS) microspheres is proposed by investigating the influence of reaction conditions on its morphologies and observing its growth process with time. Because of the existence of zwitterionic liquid functional groups, flower-like poly(St-co-VIPS)-acid microspheres, a novel kind of heterogeneous catalyst, were successfully prepared by immobilizing heteropoly acids and H2SO4 on the flower-like poly(St-co-VIPS) microspheres, and the heterogeneous catalysts showed better catalytic activities for esterifications, acetalizations and transesterifications than with H2SO4 as the catalyst. Especially, the heterogeneous catalysts presented excellent catalytic efficiency for the acetalization of benzaldehyde and 1,2-propanediol, which could successfully reach 96.2%. Furthermore, the crosslinked flower-like poly(DVB-co-VIPS)–H2SO4 microspheres prepared under the same conditions where only St was replaced by divinyl benzene (DVB) have better reusability than that of the flower-like poly(St-co-VIPS)–H2SO4 with poor solvent resistance, and could be reused four times without significant loss of the catalytic activity, indicating that they could act as excellent recyclable heterogeneous catalysts for the synthesis of acetals and have potential application in industry.

We reported a novel BiOI/mesoporous TiO2 photoanode for solar cells, which was fabricated with BiOI attached onto a three-dimensional mesoporous TiO2 film by a chemical bath deposition (CBD) method. BiOI was revealed as an efficient and environmental friendly semiconductor sensitizer to make TiO2 respond to visible light. Based on this photoanode, mesoporous TiO2-based solar cell sensitized by BiOI exhibited promising photovoltaic performance. Meanwhile, the optimization of photovoltaic performance was also achieved by varying cycles of deposition immersions. The highest open circuit voltage and short circuit current of the solar cell can reach 0.5 V and 1.5 mA/cm2, respectively.

Flat band potential (Vfb) is one of the most important physical parameters to study and understand semiconductor materials. However, the influence of surface states on the evaluating Vfb of titanium oxide (TiO2) and other semiconductor materials through a Mott–Schottky plot is ignored. Our study indicated that the influence of surface states should be introduced into the corresponding equivalent circuit even when the kinetic process did not occur. Ignoring the influence of surface states would lead to an underestimation of the space charge capacitance. Our paper would be beneficial for accurate determination of Vfb of semiconductor materials. We anticipate that this preliminary study will open new perspectives in understanding the semiconductor–electrolyte interface.Keywords: equivalent circuit; Flat band potential; Mott−Schottky method; semiconductor materials; semiconductor−electrolyte interface; space charge capacitance;

Ionic liquid functionalized Janus nanosheets are synthesized by selective treatment of the imidazolin terminated side of Janus nanosheets while the other side is preserved. The Janus performance of the nanosheets and thus emulsion stability are reversibly triggered by anion exchange.

A series of SrTiO3–TiO2 microspheres with different porosities were prepared by a facile hydrothermal reaction method in the presence of Sr(OH)2 and titanium glycolate. The photogenerated charge separation and surface trapping process was studied by surface photovoltage (SPV) spectra and corresponding phase spectra. Compared with one-dimension nanowires, the SrTiO3–TiO2 microspheres show structural advantage in photocatalytic degradation under visible-light. The enhanced photocurrent of Rhodamine B (RhB) sensitized SrTiO3–TiO2 porous microspheres reveals that a photosensitization effect leads to the photodegradation process. According to the experimental results, these SrTiO3–TiO2 porous microspheres have great potential applications in photocatalytic decomposition or optoelectronic devices.

Spherical spinel Li4Ti5O12 with advanced electrochemical performances was synthesized via a facile hydrolysis-assisted process. The as-synthesized spherical Li4Ti5O12 exhibited narrow size distribution and high crystallinity, contributing to its excellent reversible capacity and utilization efficiency. At 0.1 C, its reversible capacity was close to the theoretical capacity of spinel Li4Ti5O12 (175 mA h g−1) and about 170 mA h g−1 could be obtained in the voltage plateau (about 1.5 V). Even at 10 C, its reversible capacity could reach 150 mA h g−1, which was higher than the reported pristine Li4Ti5O12.

Spinel Li4Ti5O12 coated by highly dispersed nanosized Ag particles was synthesized via a facile and effective ultrasonic-assisted method in this paper. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that Ag was not doped into the lattice of spinel Li4Ti5O12. The as-synthesized Li4Ti5O12/Ag exhibited enhanced electronic conductivity and excellent electrochemical performances. Its electronic conductivity was increased about four times compared to that of the pristine Li4Ti5O12. Even at 10 C rate, the as-synthesized Li4Ti5O12/Ag could keep 86.5 % of the reversible capacity at 1 C rate and its reversible capacity was higher than 140 mAhg−1 whereas those were 75.3 % and 118 mAhg−1 for the pristine Li4Ti5O12.

An acidic ionic liquid N-butyl-N-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate ([BMIm]HSO4) was applied as extractant and catalyst for the oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophenes (DBT) in the presence of H2O2 in model oil. Several parameters, e.g., catalyst amount, hydrogen peroxide quantity, reaction time, and temperature, were investigated in detail. The catalytic oxidative desulfurization rate can reach 100% for DBT in model oil. The ionic liquid [BMIm]HSO4 can be recycled 5 times with only a slight reduction in activity.

•Au/PILs/PPyNTs hybrids were successfully synthesized.•PILs have been applied as the linkers between Au NPs and PPyNTs.•The excellent electrochemical catalytic activities towards EP were achieved.•Au/PILs/PPyNTs can act as an excellent electrode material for detecting EP.Poly(ionic liquids) (PILs) have been applied as the linkers between Au nanoparticles (NPs) and polypyrrole nanotubes (PPyNTs) for the synthesis of Au/PILs/PPyNTs hybrids. Due to the presence of PILs, high-density and well-dispersed Au NPs have been deposited on the surface of PILs/PPyNTs by anion-exchange with Au precursor and the in-situ reduction of metal ions. The obtained Au/PILs/PPyNTs hybrids can be used as a good steady electrode material for sensitively and selectively detecting epinephrine (EP). The catalytic oxidation peak currents obtained from differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) increased linearly with increasing EP concentrations in the range of 35–960 μM with a detection limit of 298.9 nM according to the criterion of a signal-to-noise ratio = 3 (S/N = 3), respectively, which showed the excellent electrocatalytic activity towards this significant hormone in human life.

Spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) has been widely studied as a promising anode material due to its outstanding structural stability and remarkable safety. However, the poor electron conductivity and low lithium-ion diffusion coefficient seriously limit its rate capability for the application in power lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Herein, we demonstrate rationally designed Ag quantum dot (QD) modified LTO/TiO2 nanosheets (Ag-LTO/TiO2 NSs) synthesized via a facile hydrothermal process followed by heat treatment, highlighting simultaneously the promotion of electron conductivity and lithium-ion diffusion coefficient. The newly prepared Ag-LTO/TiO2 NSs deliver an ultrahigh reversible capacity of 177 mA h g−1 at 0.5C and a superior rate performance of more than 148 mA h g−1 at 30C between 1.0 and 2.5 V. The achieved superior electrochemical performance largely surpasses that of the state-of-the-art LTO-based materials for LIBs. The present work provides a facile yet effective approach to significantly boost the high rate capability of LTO/TiO2 composites. These novel quantum dot modified 2-dimensional (2D) materials will pave the way to a new family of carbon-free anode materials in response to the increasing demands for high-power energy storage.

Ionic liquid functionalized Janus nanosheets are synthesized by selective treatment of the imidazolin terminated side of Janus nanosheets while the other side is preserved. The Janus performance of the nanosheets and thus emulsion stability are reversibly triggered by anion exchange.

Novel poly(ionic liquids) functionalized polypyrrole nanotubes (PILs/PPyNTs) were successfully synthesized. 1-Vinyl-3-ethylimidazole bromide (VEIB) was polymerized on the surface of novel polymerizable vinyl imidazolium-type IL modified PPyNTs prepared by a covalent method. Due to the modification of PILs, the dispersibility of PILs/PPyNTs in aqueous solution was significantly improved and their surface charge properties were obviously changed to electropositivity. Because of the synergetic effects of conductive PPyNTs and biocompatible PILs, excellent electrochemical catalytic activities towards dopamine (DA) and ascorbic acid (AA) were achieved using a PILs/PPyNTs modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE), which gave a large potential difference enough to well distinguish DA from AA, with excellent sensitivity and good stability, for the simultaneous detection of DA and AA. The existence of PILs effectively improved the transmission mode of electrons of DA and AA oxidation on the electrode and resulted in their different electrocatalytic performance.