Two-dimensional carbon-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications

• Suneel Kumar,
• Ashish Kumar,
• Ashish Bahuguna,
• Vipul Sharma and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1571–1600, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.159

• focussed our review on only two of the 2D morphology of carbon materials, graphene and g-C3N4, and their nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications. In this review, we firstly discuss the synthetic procedures and salient properties of these two 2D carbon

• materials, followed by a detailed discussion on what makes them suitable for photocatalysis applications and the different roles played by them during the photocatalysis process. Subsequently, we discuss the use of graphene and g-C3N4 based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and

Preparation of thick silica coatings on carbon fibers with fine-structured silica nanotubes induced by a self-assembly process

• Benjamin Baumgärtner,
• Hendrik Möller,
• Thomas Neumann and
• Dirk Volkmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1145–1155, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.116

• bears several advantages in comparison to the powdered carbon materials, such as suitability for electrical and electrochemical procedures. In addition, activated carbon cloths are light materials that can be arranged in different configurations. The same features that promote the application in the

Hierarchically structured nanoporous carbon tubes for high pressure carbon dioxide adsorption

• Julia Patzsch,
• Deepu J. Babu and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1135–1144, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.115

• used for increasing their adsorption capacity: (i) morphological structuring to increase the surface area and (ii) modification of the tube surface with functional groups to enhance the adsorbent/adsorbate attraction. For (i), new carbon materials have been studied as adsorbents such as ordered

• regime. The BET surface decreases drastically with the increasing carbonization temperature due to a lower amount of micropores. Meanwhile the mesopore content increases. This observation corresponds well with commercial glassy carbon materials which are processed at low temperature and obey a narrow

Fully scalable one-pot method for the production of phosphonic graphene derivatives

• Kamila Żelechowska,
• Marta Prześniak-Welenc,
• Marcin Łapiński,
• Izabela Kondratowicz and
• Tadeusz Miruszewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1094–1103, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.111

• carbon materials. The Raman spectrum of GO-P (Figure 5B) is similar to the spectrum of its precursor, but showing a higher intensity of the D band compared to the G band. A shift of ca. 30 cm−1 to lower wavenumbers can be observed for the D band and the G band is shifted to higher wavenumbers by about 20

Stable Au–C bonds to the substrate for fullerene-based nanostructures

• Taras Chutora,
• Jesús Redondo,
• Bruno de la Torre,
• Martin Švec,
• Pavel Jelínek and
• Héctor Vázquez

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1073–1079, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.109

• result in a wide range of products after removal of a series of fragments [23], it has been shown that sputtering of carbon materials with such low energies as in our case results in predominantly single vacancies [32][33][34]. C59 molecules also have the highest energetic stability after C60 [24][25

Nanostructured carbon materials decorated with organophosphorus moieties: synthesis and application

• Giacomo Biagiotti,
• Vittoria Langè,
• Cristina Ligi,
• Stefano Caporali,
• Maurizio Muniz-Miranda,
• Anna Flis,
• K. Michał Pietrusiewicz,
• Giacomo Ghini,
• Alberto Brandi and
• Stefano Cicchi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 485–493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.52

Fundamental properties of high-quality carbon nanofoam: from low to high density

• Natalie Frese,
• Shelby Taylor Mitchell,
• Christof Neumann,
• Amanda Bowers,
• Armin Gölzhäuser and
• Klaus Sattler

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 2065–2073, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.197

• production techniques have resulted in a large number of carbon materials with different sizes and structural properties. In particular, nanocarbons have been the focus since their properties depend critically on the synthetic methods, and as a consequence, many exciting developments have been reported [15

• ]. The unique ability of carbon to occur in the form of sp1, sp2, and sp3 hybridizations and combinations between these configurations results in a wide range of morphologies. Among these are the complex carbon materials with nanometer-sized porous structures such as carbon aerogels [16] and carbon

• . A large variety of carbon materials have been investigated by XPS. In particular, XPS reveals important bonding information about carbons with nanoscale units such as carbon nanotubes [31], diamond-like carbon films [32], nanostructured carbon films [33], tetrahedral amorphous carbon films [34

Evolution of the graphite surface in phosphoric acid: an AFM and Raman study

• Rossella Yivlialin,
• Luigi Brambilla,
• Gianlorenzo Bussetti,
• Matteo Tommasini,
• Andrea Li Bassi,
• Carlo Spartaco Casari,
• Matteo Passoni,
• Franco Ciccacci,
• Lamberto Duò and
• Chiara Castiglioni

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1878–1884, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.180

• second-order features, which are commonly found in disordered carbon materials or graphene molecules [20]. The Raman features of the disordered phase show remarkable analogies to the Raman spectra of samples of graphene oxides subjected to chemical reduction [21]. This analogy suggests that the material

Improved lithium-ion battery anode capacity with a network of easily fabricated spindle-like carbon nanofibers

• Mengting Liu,
• Wenhe Xie,
• Lili Gu,
• Tianfeng Qin,
• Xiaoyi Hou and
• Deyan He

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1289–1295, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.120

• MnO and carbon materials can effectively resolve problems such as the high conductivity of the carbon materials and allows a buffering for the volume expansion or contraction to some degree. Moreover, many studies have shown that N modification can improve the conductivity and Li+ storage performance

• of carbon materials [4][8][15]. Based on these pioneer works, the electrochemical properties of a system consisting of carbon materials, MnO nanostructures and a N element should be further studied for the development of high-performance LIBs. Various MnO–C composites with controlled nanostructures

• carbon materials can be successfully applied for LIB electrodes. Experimental Fabrication of the carbon network All chemicals were of analytical degree and were used without any purification. A typical procedure is as follows. Firstly, 0.45 g of manganese acetate tetrahydrate (Mn(COOH)2·4H2O), together

Reasons and remedies for the agglomeration of multilayered graphene and carbon nanotubes in polymers

• Rasheed Atif and
• Fawad Inam

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1174–1196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.109

• polymers. Carbon nanotubes CNTs were first discovered by Iijima in 1991, who produced multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) through arc-discharge evaporation [33]. The synthesis of CNTs can be linked to the discovery of fullerene C60 (buckyball) in 1985 [34]. CNTs can be regarded as one dimensional carbon

• materials with aspect ratios greater than 1000 [35]. CNTs have density down to about 1.3 g·cm−3 [2]. The graphite planes in CNTs are rolled up in cylindrical shape with diameters at the nanoscale. The ends of CNTs are capped with hemifullerene [35]. Hemifullerene is more reactive than CNTs itself due to the

Manufacturing and investigation of physical properties of polyacrylonitrile nanofibre composites with SiO₂, TiO₂ and Bi₂O₃ nanoparticles

• Tomasz Tański,
• Wiktor Matysiak and
• Barbara Hajduk

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1141–1155, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.106

• , Silesian University of Technology, Konarskiego 18a Str., 44-100 Gliwice, Poland Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 M. Curie-Sklodowska Str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland 10.3762/bjnano.7.106 Abstract The aim of this study was to produce nanocomposite polymer fibres, consisting

Facile synthesis of water-soluble carbon nano-onions under alkaline conditions

• Gaber Hashem Gaber Ahmed,
• Rosana Badía Laíño,
• Josefa Angela García Calzón and
• Marta Elena Díaz García

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 758–766, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.67

• H2SO4 (n = 1.33) with a quantum yield of 0.54 at λex = 350 nm was used as a reference. C-dots and C-onions were dissolved in Milli-Q water (n = 1.33). Instrumentation HRTEM (JEOL JEM-2100F, 200 kV) was used to determine the size and morphology of the synthesized carbon materials. Powder X-ray

Efficiency improvement in the cantilever photothermal excitation method using a photothermal conversion layer

• Natsumi Inada,
• Hitoshi Asakawa,
• Taiki Kobayashi and
• Takeshi Fukuma

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 409–417, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.36

• . This is because carbon materials (e.g., graphite and CNT) provide a high efficiency in conversion of light to heat [28][29][30] and hence are used in various fields such as printing technology and thermal-type infrared sensing. Since colloidal graphite shows a high absorption efficiency at wide

Characterisation of thin films of graphene–surfactant composites produced through a novel semi-automated method

• Nik J. Walch,
• Alexei Nabok,
• Frank Davis and
• Séamus P. J. Higson

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 209–219, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.19

• –2700 cm−1. This is indicative of graphene flakes with a high number of edge defects [17]. The G band is present in all sp2-hybridised carbon materials, and is caused by stretching of the C–C bond. The reduction in intensity in the graphene spectrum compared with the graphite spectrum is caused by the

Synthesis and applications of carbon nanomaterials for energy generation and storage

• Marco Notarianni,
• Jinzhang Liu,
• Kristy Vernon and
• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 149–196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.17

Nanostructures for sensors, electronics, energy and environment II

• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1937–1938, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.197

• be exploited in room temperature gas sensing devices. The plasmonic effect, generated by the inclusion of metallic nanoparticles, can be used to overcome certain limitations of the carbon materials, especially in organic solar cells [5]. The optical properties of nanomaterials can also be exploited

Possibilities and limitations of advanced transmission electron microscopy for carbon-based nanomaterials

• Xiaoxing Ke,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Gustaaf Van Tendeloo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1541–1557, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.158

• ” referring to charcoal. The use of charcoal, soot and coal dates back to prehistoric times, when nano-structured carbon materials already existed. Analysis of prehistoric cave paintings in Altamira (Spain) and Lascaux (France) has revealed the presence of carbon nanoparticles [14][15][16]. Carbon

From lithium to sodium: cell chemistry of room temperature sodium–air and sodium–sulfur batteries

• Philipp Adelhelm,
• Pascal Hartmann,
• Conrad L. Bender,
• Martin Busche,
• Christine Eufinger and
• Juergen Janek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1016–1055, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.105

• lithium/oxygen battery” [29]. This cell could be re-charged at room temperature at least three times at potentials as low as 3.8 V. In 2002, Read characterized a Li/O2 cell comprising different carbon materials and different electrolyte formulations [30]. This was the first work to analyze and correlate

• solvent employed in their study (DMSO) is known to be unstable in Li/O2 cells [85][86]. Notwithstanding the above, the understanding of electrode corrosion and the search for stable electrode materials, either modified carbons or non-carbon materials, is of crucial importance for a reliable Li/O2 battery

Low-cost formation of bulk and localized polymer-derived carbon nanodomains from polydimethylsiloxane

• Juan Carlos Castro Alcántara,
• Mariana Cerda Zorrilla,
• Lucia Cabriales,
• Luis Manuel León Rossano and
• Mathieu Hautefeuille

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 744–748, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.76

• of carbon materials, are clearly present. However, the G′ band (ca. 2700 cm−1) is visible in the dark regions while the 2D band (ca. 2700 cm−1) and the G + D band (ca. 2935 cm−1) are characteristics of the shiny areas [10]. The difference in visual appearance may then be also justified by a shift

Chains of carbon atoms: A vision or a new nanomaterial?

• Florian Banhart

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 559–569, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.58

• important in a bulk solid) and, hence, study the interesting properties of linear arrangements of carbon atoms. Review The model of linear sp1-hybridized carbon Linear sp1-hybridized carbon already results from the logical reduction of dimensions in carbon materials. Due to the similarity with the bonding

Raman spectroscopy as a tool to investigate the structure and electronic properties of carbon-atom wires

• Alberto Milani,
• Matteo Tommasini,
• Valeria Russo,
• Andrea Li Bassi,
• Andrea Lucotti,
• Franco Cataldo and
• Carlo S. Casari

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 480–491, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.49

• powerful tool for the characterization of carbon materials and nanostructures due to its sensitivity to the vibration of C–C bonds. For instance, strong electron–phonon coupling and resonance effects allow for the measurement of single carbon nanostructures and together with confinement effects, provides

Materials and characterization techniques for high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

• Roswitha Zeis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 68–83, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.8

• potentials leads to severe corrosion of theses carbon materials, a drawback well-known from the PAFC research. Carbon nanotubes are a promising alternative for catalyst support because of their higher corrosion resistivity [47]. Matsumoto et al. [48] fabricated a catalyst material by wrapping individual

Carbon nano-onions (multi-layer fullerenes): chemistry and applications

• Juergen Bartelmess and
• Silvia Giordani

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1980–1998, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.207

• Juergen Bartelmess Silvia Giordani Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Nano Carbon Materials, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy 10.3762/bjnano.5.207 Abstract This review focuses on the development of multi-layer fullerenes, known as carbon nano-onions (CNOs). First, it briefly summarizes the most

• . Analogous to carbon nanotubes, CNOs display poor solubility in both aqueous and organic solvents. This is due to aggregation, promoted by strong intermolecular interactions such as van-der-Waals forces. To overcome this tendency to aggregate, functionalization of the surface of the carbon materials is the

• the one of fullerene C60. These encouraging results could be a first step toward in situ remediation of heavy metal contaminants. Electronic applications Capacitors: Carbon materials are commonly used as electrode materials in capacitors, but the first study probing CNOs as electrode materials in

Highly NO₂ sensitive caesium doped graphene oxide conductometric sensors

• Carlo Piloto,
• Marco Notarianni,
• Mahnaz Shafiei,
• Elena Taran,
• Dilini Galpaya,
• Cheng Yan and
• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1073–1081, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.120

• the oxygen defects that act as low energy adsorption sites. To further enhance its gas sensing properties, reduced GO can be doped with alkali metals [18], similarly to what has been done in other carbon materials, to tune up the electronic properties for sensing applications [44]. Different research

Classical molecular dynamics investigations of biphenyl-based carbon nanomembranes

• Andreas Mrugalla and
• Jürgen Schnack

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 865–871, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.98

• the results and our interpretation. The article closes with an outlook. Classical carbon–carbon interaction A realistic classical carbon–carbon interaction must be able to account for the various spn-binding modes. Two potentials, developed by Tersoff and Brenner, have been used for carbon materials