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Vol. 10 No. 1 (2018)

Simultaneous Detection and Removal of Formaldehyde at Room Temperature: Janus Au@ZnO@ZIF-8 Nanoparticles

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-017-0158-0
Dawei Zhang
Department of Mechanical & Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23219, USA
Zhiwei Li
Department of Chemistry, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
Jian Zhou
Department of Physics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Hong Fang
Department of Physics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Xiang He
Department of Mechanical & Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23219, USA
Puru Jena
Department of Physics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA
Jing-Bin Zeng
College of Science China University of Petroleum (East China), Qingdao 266580, People’s Republic of China
Wei-Ning Wang
Department of Mechanical & Nuclear Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23219, USA

Corresponding Author: Wei-Ning Wang

wnwang@vcu.edu

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 10 No. 1 (2018), Article Number: 4

Abstract

The detection and removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are of great importance to reduce the risk of indoor air quality concerns. This study reports the rational synthesis of a dual-functional Janus nanostructure and its feasibility for simultaneous detection and removal of VOCs. The Janus nanostructure was synthesized via an anisotropic growth method, composed of plasmonic nanoparticles, semiconductors, and metal organic frameworks (e.g., Au@ZnO@ZIF-8). It exhibits excellent selective detection to formaldehyde (HCHO, as a representative VOC) at room temperature over a wide range of concentrations (from 0.25 to 100 ppm), even in the presence of water and toluene molecules as interferences. In addition, HCHO was also found to be partially oxidized into non-toxic formic acid simultaneously with detection. The mechanism underlying this technology was unraveled by both experimental measurements and theoretical calculations: ZnO maintains the conductivity, while ZIF-8 improves the selective gas adsorption; the plasmonic effect of Au nanorods enhances the visible-light-driven photocatalysis of ZnO at room temperature.


Highlights:


1 Au@ZnO@ZIF-8 Janus nanostructure was designed and synthesized via an anisotropic growth method for the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
2 Due to the synergistic effects of the high conductivity of ZnO, the superior gas adsorption capability of ZIF-8, the clean interface between ZnO and ZIF-8, and the plasmonic resonance of gold nanorods, the Janus nanostructure demonstrates an excellent sensing performance with a selective detection toward formaldehyde at room temperature.

Keywords

Indoor air quality Volatile organic compounds Janus structure Metal organic frameworks Plasmonic nanoparticles
Zhang, Dawei, Zhiwei Li, Jian Zhou, Hong Fang, Xiang He, Puru Jena, Jing-Bin Zeng, and Wei-Ning Wang. 2017. “Simultaneous Detection and Removal of Formaldehyde at Room Temperature: Janus Au@ZnO@ZIF-8 Nanoparticles”. Nano-Micro Letters 10 (1):4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-017-0158-0.
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