Zinc oxide with excellent photocatalytic performance for the photodegradation of dyes (superior to Degussa P25 TiO(2)) could be easily prepared in large quantity by direct calcination of zinc acetate (Zn(Ac)(2)·2H(2)O).

There is a great desire to develop the high-efficient anodes materials for Li batteries, which require not only large capacity but also high stability and mobility. In this work, the phosphorene/graphene heterostructure (P/G) was carefully explored based on first-principles calculations. The binding energy of Li on the pristine phosphorene is relatively weak (within 1.9 eV), whereas the phosphorene/graphene heterostructure (P/G) can greatly improve the binding energy (2.6 eV) without affecting the high mobility of Li within the layers. The electronic structures show that the large Li adsorption energy and fast diffusion ability of the P/G origin from the interfacial synergy effect. Interestingly, the P/G also displays ultrahigh stiffness (Cac = 350 N/m, Czz = 464 N/m), which can effectively avoid the distortion of the pristine phosphorene after the insertion of lithium. Thus, P/G can greatly enhance the cycle life of the battery. Owing to the high capacity, good conductivity, excellent Li mobility, and ultrahigh stiffness, P/G is a very promising anode material in Li-ion batteries (LIBs).

Developing an efficient electrocatalyst with the desired architectural and electronic properties is paramount for water splitting. Here, we apply theoretical calculations to experimental studies to uncover the influence of structure engineering (quantizing and support coupling) on the HER catalytic activity and develop an optimized C3N4 hybrid catalyst. Impressively, the desired atom-thick C3N4 quantum dots on graphene (CNQDs@G) has been successfully obtained and achieves HER performance with low overpotential (110 mV) at 10 mA cm–2, large exchange current density (3.67 μA cm–2), and long-term durability, better than those of many metallic catalysts. In combination with the experimental results, DFT calculations also disclose that the HER catalytic activity of CNQDs@G originates from bisynergetic effects: one between G and CNQDs and another between the edge pyridinic-N sites and the molecular sieve structure.