- New article published: Microscopic Characterization of Mineral Dissolution and Precipitation at Variable Salinity for Improved Oil Recovery in Carbonate ReservoirsRead more
- New article published: Nanometer-Resolved Operando Photo-Response of Faceted BiVO4 Semiconductor NanoparticlesPhoto(electro)catalysis with semiconducting nanoparticles (NPs) is an attractive approach to convert abundant but intermittent renewable electricity into stable chemical fuels. However, our understanding of the microscopic processes governing the performance of the materials has been hampered by the lack of operando characterization techniques with sufficient lateral resolution. Here, we demonstrate that the local surface potentials of NPs of bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) and their response to illumination differ between adjacent facets and depend strongly on the pH of the ambient electrolyte. The isoelectric points of the dominant {010} basal plane and the adjacent {110} side facets differ by 1.5 pH units. Upon illumination, both facets accumulate positive charges and display a maximum surface photoresponse of +55 mV, much stronger than reported in the literature for the surface photo voltage of BiVO4 NPs in air. High resolution images reveal the presence of numerous surface defects ranging from vacancies of a few atoms, to single unit cell steps, to microfacets of variable orientation and degree of disorder. These defects typically carry a highly localized negative surface charge density and display an opposite photoresponse compared to the adjacent facets. Strategies to model and optimize the performance of photocatalyst NPs, therefore, require an understanding of the distribution of surface defects, including the interaction with ambient electrolyte.Read more
- New article published: Microscopic Characterization of Mineral Dissolution and Precipitation at Variable Salinity for Improved Oil Recovery in Carbonate Reservoirs
- New article published: Nanometer-Resolved Operando Photo-Response of Faceted BiVO4 Semiconductor Nanoparticles
- New article published: Elastometry of Complex Fluid Pendant Capsules
- New article published: Microfluidics for Carbonate Rock IOR: Some Lessons From Fabrication, Operation and Image Analysis (Review Paper)
- Energy transition: pure bio-gas from pilot with 'modified cat litter pellets'
- Congratulations Dr. Su !
- Thursday June 29, 13.30 hr, ZH 286, Colloquium Prof.dr. Angelika Kühnle, Professor of Physical Chemistry at Bielefeld University
- New article published: Non-equilibrium configurations of swelling polymer brush layers induced by spreading drops of weakly volatile oil
- Vacancy Technician
- Igor Siretanu et al. published an article in Faraday Discussions on hydration forces at the interface between electrolytes of variable composition and crystalline mica vs. amorphous silica
- Thursday March 23, 11.30 hrs, Zuidhorst ZH 286, Colloquium Assistant Prof. dr. Helen King from Utrecht University.
- New article published: Microfluidics for Carbonate Rock IOR: Some Lessons From Fabrication, Operation and Image Analysis (Conference Paper)