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This work demonstrates a two-step gram-scale synthesis of presynthesized silver (Ag) nanoparticles impregnated with mesoporous TiO 2 and evaluates their feasibility for wastewater treatment and hydrogen gas generation under natural sunlight. Paracetamol was chosen as the model pharmaceutical pollutant for evaluating photocatalytic performance. A systematic material analysis (morphology, chemical environment, optical bandgap energy) of the Ag/TiO 2 photocatalyst powder was carried out, and the influence of material properties on the performance is discussed in detail. The experimental results showed that the decoration of anatase TiO 2 nanoparticles (size between 80 and 100 nm) with 5 nm Ag nanoparticles (1 wt %) induced visible-light absorption and enhanced charge carrier separation. As a result, 0.01 g/L Ag/TiO 2 effectively removed 99% of 0.01 g/L paracetamol in 120 min and exhibited 60% higher photocatalytic removal than pristine TiO 2 . Alongside paracetamol degradation, Ag/TiO 2 led to the generation of 1729 μmol H 2 g −1 h −1 . This proof-of-concept approach for tandem pollutant degradation and hydrogen generation was further evaluated with rare earth metal (lanthanum)-and nonmetal (nitrogen)-doped TiO 2 , which also showed a positive response. Using a combination of ab initio calculations and our new theory model, we revealed that the enhanced photocatalytic performance of Ag/TiO 2 was due to the surface Fermi-level change of TiO 2 and lowered surface reaction energy barrier for water pollutant oxidation. This work opens new opportunities for exploiting tandem photocatalytic routes beyond water splitting and understanding the simultaneous reactions in metal-doped metal oxide photocatalyst systems under natural sunlight.

The electronic structure, elastic, thermal and optical properties of the cubic strontium thorate SrThO3 are calculated using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method (FP-LAPW) based on the density functional theory with generalized gradient approximations GGA and local density approximation LDA. The modified Becke-Johnson potential (mBJ) is applied in electronic structure for calculating the energy gap. The obtained results are the Young modulus, shear modulus, the Poisson ratio, isotropic shear modulus, longitudinal, transverse and average sound velocities, the Zener anisotropy factor, the Kleinman parameter and the Debye temperature of the systems. All results are discussed and compared with the available experimental data.

First-principles calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) confirm the half-metallic ferromagnetism in both [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], and the nearly half-metallic ferromagnetism in [Formula: see text] Heusler alloys with the [Formula: see text]-type structure [Formula: see text]. The electronic band structures and density of states (DOS) calculations of the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] compounds show that the spin-up electrons are metallic, whereas the spin-down bands are semiconducting with a gap of 0.47 eV and 0.53 eV, respectively, with 0.21 eV and 0.36 eV as a spin-flip gap, respectively. The [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] Heusler were half-metal compounds with magnetic moment of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] at the equilibrium lattice constants [Formula: see text] Å and [Formula: see text] Å, respectively, which agrees with the Slater–Pauling rule, and have 100% polarization for a wide range of lattice parameters. The [Formula: see text] is a nearly half-metal (NHF) compound with magnetic moment of [Formula: see text] and 92.9% polarization at the equilibrium lattice constants [Formula: see text] Å and acquire half-metal behavior under the pressure 16.70 GPa.

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