The boron modified TiO2 nanotube (B-TNTs) samples were prepared via a hydrothermal treatment and an impregnation method, using boric acid as the boron precursor. Characterization methods including XRD, XPS, SEM and TEM were carried out to elucidate the structural evolution of the samples on the introduction of boron. The samples retained their crystallographic phase as anatase TiO2 after the modification with boron. Rh/B-TNTs catalysts, for the catalytic hydroformylation of styrene, were systematically investigated. It is shown that the boron loading and the B-TNTs preparation method have great effect on the behavior of the catalyst. Experimental results showed that the Rh/B-TNTs-hydrothermal-10% catalyst exhibited the best catalytic performance, affording the highest TOF (up to 18 458 h−1). These findings showed that boron modified TNTs can be an important milestone in the search for efficient heterogeneous catalysts for olefins hydroformylation.

Nature has given us great inspirations to fabricate high-performance materials with extremely exquisite structures. Presently, particles with a superhydrophobic surface are prepared through nature-inspired polyphenol chemistry. Briefly, adhering of a typical polyphenol (tannic acid, widely existed in tea, red wine, chocolate, etc.) is first conducted on titania particles to form a multifunctional coating, which is further in charge of reducing Ag+ into Ag nanoparticles/nanoclusters (NPs/NCs) and responsible for grafting 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorodecanethiol, thus forming a lotus-leaf-mimic surface structure. The chemical/topological structure and superhydrophobic property of the as-engineered surface are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), water contact angle measurements, and so on. On the basis of the hierarchical, superhydrophobic surface, the particles exhibit a fascinating capability to form liquid marble and show some possibility in the application of oil removal from water. After particles are in situ adhered onto melamine sponges, the acquired particle-functionalized sponge exhibits an absorption capacity of 73–175 times of its own weight for a series of oils/organic solvents and shows superior ease of recyclability, suggesting an impressive capability for treating oil spills.Keywords: Liquid marble formation; Lotus-leaf-mimic surface structure; Nature-inspired polyphenol chemistry; Oil spills treatment; Particles; Sponges; Superhydrophobic surface

Cu2O deposited on 2D continuous lamellar g-C3N4 (Cu2O/g-C3N4) was prepared via a facile impregnation–chemical reduction procedure. The composition, structure and morphology of as-prepared Cu2O/g-C3N4 were characterized by XRD, SEM, TEM, CO-TPR, FT-IR and nitrogen adsorption, respectively. The influence of Cu2O loading on the performances of Cu2O/g-C3N4, e.g. adsorption ability for methyl orange (MO) and the stability as well as catalytic activity for CO oxidation, was investigated. The changing trend of adsorption ability and the catalytic activity of Cu2O/g-C3N4 moved in the same direction. When the mass ratio of Cu2O to g-C3N4 was 4:10, the as-prepared composite exhibited the strongest adsorption ability and the highest catalytic activity; it also showed excellent stability in CO oxidation and over it the 100% conversion of CO was kept for more than 12 h under reaction conditions. The strong adsorption ability and good catalytic performance of Cu2O/g-C3N4 were ascribed to the synergetic effects between g-C3N4 and Cu2O as well as the improved dispersibility and the decreased particle size of Cu2O.

Iron-coated TiO2 coaxial nanotubes (Fe2O3/TiO2 nanotubes) synthesized by treating TiO2 nanotubes with Fe(OH)3 sol are used as a support, and gold nanoparticles are loaded on the support by a simple one-pot strategy using lysine as both the linker and the capping agent. The obtained Au/Fe2O3/TiO2 hybrid nanotube materials are characterized by TEM, XRD, XPS, UV-vis, AAS and nitrogen adsorption. The photocatalytic performance is evaluated by the photocatalytic degradation rates of methyl orange under UV light irradiation. The effects of Au content, the absence/presence of lysine and Fe2O3, the pH value of solution and the addition amount of H2O2 to solution on the photocatalytic performance of Au/Fe2O3/TiO2 nanotubes are investigated. The results reveal that gold nanoparticles capped by lysine can be highly dispersed on the supports against aggregation, and the products exhibit higher thermal stability and photocatalytic activity in comparison to pristine TiO2 nanotubes.

A novel and facile strategy was applied to synthesize Au nanoparticles (Au NPs)-functionalized ZnO microsheet (MS) hybrid-materials. First, the layered 2D porous ZnO MSs were fabricated by a simple hydrothermal method followed by a calcination process, only using zinc acetate dihydrate and urea as the sources. Then the as-prepared ZnO MSs were further functionalized by small Au NPs, assembled by using green, non-toxic lysine as a capping agent. The obtained samples were characterized by means of XRD, TGA, SEM, TEM and EDS. In order to prove the enhanced combining properties of the hybrid materials, gas sensors were fabricated based on them. And the obtained results showed that, after functionalization with Au NPs, the porous ZnO MS hybrid sensor exhibited enhanced sensing performances towards several volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including n-butanol, ethanol, methanol, acetone and benzene, indicating its potential application as a gas sensor in detecting VOCs. The enhanced sensing properties are related to the unique structure of porous ZnO MSs and the strong spillover effect of small Au NPs for catalyzing sensing reactions, as well as the increased Schottky barriers caused by the electronic interaction between Au NPs and the ZnO support.