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The size and morphology of metal oxide particles have a large impact on the physicochemical properties of these materials, e.g., the aspect ratio of particles affects their catalytic activity. Bioinspired synthesis routes give the opportunity to control precisely the structure and aspect ratio of the metal oxide particles by bioorganic molecules, such as peptides. This study focusses on the identification of tin(II) oxide (tin monoxide, SnO) binding peptides, and their effect on the synthesis of crystalline SnO microstructures. The phage display technique was used to identify the 7-mer peptide SnBP01 (LPPWKLK), which shows a high binding affinity towards crystalline SnO. It was found that the derivatives of the SnBP01 peptide, varying in peptide length and thus in their interaction, significantly affect the aspect ratio and the size dimension of mineralized SnO particles, resulting in flower-like morphology. Furthermore, the important role of the N-terminal leucine residue in the peptide for the strong organic–inorganic interaction was revealed by FTIR investigations. This bioinspired approach shows a facile procedure for the detailed investigation of peptide-to-metal oxide interactions, as well as an easy method for the controlled synthesis of tin(II) oxide particles with different morphologies.

In a 2.45 GHz plasma torch, carbon dioxide (CO2) has been converted into carbon monoxide (CO) and oxygen (O2) at atmospheric pressure. The conversion and the efficiency of the plasma have been determined using two independent measuring methods: mass spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy. The conversion depends on the measurement position in the exhaust gas duct. The conversion values at the beginning of the exhaust gas duct are significantly higher (maximum conversion is 22 %) than in the thermalized state at the end of the duct. In the cold, thermalized state of the gas, the maximum conversion rate is 8 % at 1.5 eV molecule−1. The maximum efficiency of 25 % is achieved at approximatively 0.6 eV molecule−1 operating at a microwave power of 0.48 kW and a mass flow of 12 slm CO2.