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High-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer nanocomposites containing Zn2Al-X (X= CO3(2-), NO3(-), Cl(-), SO4(2-)) layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanoparticles with different loadings from 10 to 40 wt % were synthesized using a modified solvent mixing method. Synthesized LDH nanofillers and the corresponding nanocomposites were carefully characterized using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy, etc. The thermal stability and flame retardancy behavior were investigated using a thermo gravimetric analyzer and microscale combustion calorimeter. Comparing to neat HDPE, the thermal stability of nanocomposites was significantly enhanced. With the addition of 15 wt % Zn2Al-Cl LDH, the 50% weight loss temperature was increased by 67 °C. After adding LDHs, the flame retardant performance was significantly improved as well. With 40 wt % of LDH loading, the peak heat release rate was reduced by 24%, 41%, 48%, and 54% for HDPE/Zn2Al-Cl, HDPE/Zn2Al-CO3, HDPE/Zn2Al-NO3, and HDPE/Zn2Al-SO4, respectively. We also noticed that different interlayer anions could result in different rheological properties and the influence on storage and loss moduli follows the order of SO4(2-) > NO3(-) > CO3(2-) > Cl(-). Another important finding of this work is that the influence of anions on flame retardancy follows the exact same order on rheological properties.

Black TiO2 nanobelts/g-C3N4 nanosheets laminated heterojunctions (b-TiO2/g-C3N4) as visible-light-driven photocatalysts are fabricated through a simple hydrothermal-calcination process and an in-situ solid-state chemical reduction approach, followed by the mild thermal treatment (350 °C) in argon atmosphere. The prepared samples are evidently investigated by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, N2 adsorption, and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, respectively. The results show that special laminated heterojunctions are formed between black TiO2 nanobelts and g-C3N4 nanosheets, which favor the separation of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Furthermore, the presence of Ti3+ and g-C3N4 greatly enhance the absorption of visible light. The resultant b-TiO2/g-C3N4 materials exhibit higher photocatalytic activity than that of g-C3N4, TiO2, b-TiO2 and TiO2/g-C3N4 for degradation of methyl orange (95%) and hydrogen evolution (555.8 μmol h−1 g−1) under visible light irradiation. The apparent reaction rate constant (k) of b-TiO2/g-C3N4 is ~9 times higher than that of pristine TiO2. Therefore, the high-efficient laminated heterojunction composites will have potential applications in fields of environment and energy.

Ti self-doped blue TiO(B) single-crystalline nanorods (b-TR) are fabricated via a simple sol-gelation method, cooperated with hydro-thermal treatment and subsequent in situ treatment method, and afterward annealed at 350 °C in Ar. The structures are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The prepared b-TR with narrow band gap possesses single-crystalline TiO(B) phase, Ti self-doping, and one-dimensional (1D) rodlike nanostructure. In addition, the improved photocatalytic performance is studied by decomposition of Rhodamine B (RhB) and hydrogen evolution. The degradation rate of RhB by Ti self-doped blue TiO(B) single-crystalline nanorods is ∼6.9- and 2.1-times higher compared with the rates of titanium dioxide nanoparticles and pristine TiO(B) nanorods under visible light illumination, respectively. The hydrogen evolution rate of b-TR is 26.6 times higher compared with that of titanium dioxide nanoparticles under AM 1.5 irradiation. The enhanced photocatalytic performances arise from the synergetic action of the special TiO(B) phase, Ti self-doping, and the 1D rod-shaped single-crystalline nanostructure, favoring the visible light utilization and the separation and transportation of photogenerated charge carriers.

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A novel 3 D mesoporous black TiO2 (MBT)/MoS2 /MBT sandwich-like nanosheet was successfully fabricated using a facile mechanochemical process combined with an in situ solid-state chemical reduction approach, followed by mild calcination (350 °C) under an argon atmosphere. The MBT/MoS2 /MBT exhibits a 3 D sandwich-like nanosheet structure and heterojunctions are formed at the interfaces between MoS2 and black TiO2 . The significantly narrowed band gap of MBT/MoS2 /MBT is attributed to the introduction of MoS2 and the formed Ti(3+) species in the frameworks. The visible-light photocatalytic degradation rate of methyl orange and the hydrogen production rate are as high as 89.86 % and 0.56 mmol h(-1)  g(-1) , respectively. The introduction of MoS2 and Ti(3+) in the frameworks favors the visible-light absorption and the separation of photogenerated charges, and the 3 D sandwich-like heterojunction structure facilitates the transfer of photogenerated charges.