NANOlab Center of Excellence literature database -- Query Results

	NANOlab Center of Excellence literature database Home \| Show All \| Simple Search \| Advanced Search	Login Quick Search: Field: contains: ...
	1–30 of 607 records found matching your query (RSS \| history):

Select All Deselect All

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 >>

List View

Citations

Details

	Records
	Author	Verbruggen, S.W.; Keulemans, M.; Goris, B.; Blommaerts, N.; Bals, S.; Martens, J.A.; Lenaerts, S.
	Title	Plasmonic ‘rainbow’ photocatalyst with broadband solar light response for environmental applications			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2016	Publication	Applied catalysis : B : environmental	Abbreviated Journal	Appl Catal B-Environ
	Volume	188	Issue	188	Pages	147-153
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	We propose the concept of a ‘rainbow’ photocatalyst that consists of TiO2 modified with gold-silver alloy nanoparticles of various sizes and compositions, resulting in a broad plasmon absorption band that covers the entire UV–vis range of the solar spectrum. It is demonstrated that this plasmonic ‘rainbow’ photocatalyst is 16% more effective than TiO2 P25 under both simulated and real solar light for pollutant degradation at the solid-gas interface. With this we provide a promising strategy to maximize the spectral response for solar to chemical energy conversion.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000372677500016	Publication Date	2016-02-03
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0926-3373	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	9.446	Times cited	47	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	S.W.V. and B.G. acknowledge the Research Foundation—Flanders (FWO) for a postdoctoral fellowship. M.K. acknowledges IWT for the doctoral scholarship. S.B. acknowledges the European Research Council (ERC) for financial support through the ERC grant agreement no. 335078-COLOURATOM. J.A.M. acknowledges the Flemish government for long-term structural funding (Methusalem).; ECAS_Sara; (ROMEO:green; preprint:; postprint:can ; pdfversion:cannot);			Approved	Most recent IF: 9.446
	Call Number	c:irua:130995			Serial	4061
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Snoeckx, R.; Heijkers, S.; Van Wesenbeeck, K.; Lenaerts, S.; Bogaerts, A.
	Title	CO₂conversion in a dielectric barrier discharge plasma: N₂in the mix as a helping hand or problematic impurity?			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2016	Publication	Energy & environmental science	Abbreviated Journal	Energ Environ Sci
	Volume	9	Issue	9	Pages	999-1011
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Plasma Lab for Applications in Sustainability and Medicine – Antwerp (PLASMANT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Carbon dioxide conversion and utilization has gained significant interest over the years. A novel gas conversion technique with great potential in this area is plasma technology. A lot of research has already been performed, but mostly on pure gases. In reality, N2 will always be an important impurity in effluent gases. Therefore, we performed an extensive combined experimental and computational study on the effect of N2 in the range of 1–98% on CO2 splitting in dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma. The presence of up to 50% N2 in the mixture barely influences the effective (or overall) CO2 conversion and energy efficiency, because the N2 metastable molecules enhance the absolute CO2 conversion, and this compensates for the lower CO2 fraction in the mixture. Higher N2 fractions, however, cause a drop in the CO2 conversion and energy efficiency. Moreover, in the entire CO2/N2 mixing ratio, several harmful compounds, i.e., N2O and NOx compounds, are produced in the range of several 100 ppm. The reaction pathways for the formation of these compounds are explained based on a kinetic analysis, which allows proposing solutions on how to prevent the formation of these harmful compounds.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000372243600030	Publication Date	2015-12-15
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1754-5692	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	29.518	Times cited	68	Open Access
	Notes	The authors acknowledge financial support from the IAP/7 (Inter-university Attraction Pole) program ‘PSI-Physical Chemistry of Plasma-Surface Interactions’, financially supported by the Belgian Federal Office for Science Policy (BELSPO), as well as the Fund for Scientific Research Flanders (FWO). This work was carried out in part using the Turing HPC infrastructure at the CalcUA core facility of the Universiteit Antwerpen, a division of the Flemish Supercomputer Center VSC, funded by the Hercules Foundation, the Flemish Government (department EWI) and the University of Antwerp.			Approved	Most recent IF: 29.518
	Call Number	c:irua:133169			Serial	4020
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Asapu, R.; Claes, N.; Bals, S.; Denys, S.; Detavernier, C.; Lenaerts, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Silver-polymer core-shell nanoparticles for ultrastable plasmon-enhanced photocatalysis			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2017	Publication	Applied catalysis : B : environmental	Abbreviated Journal	Appl Catal B-Environ
	Volume	200	Issue	200	Pages	31-38
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Affordable silver-polymer core-shell nanoparticles are prepared using the layer-by-layer (LbL) technique. The metallic silver core is encapsulated with an ultra-thin protective shell that prevents oxidation and clustering without compromising the plasmonic properties. The core-shell nanoparticles retain their plasmonic near field enhancement effect, as studied from finite element numerical simulations. Control over the shell thickness up to the sub-nanometer level is there for key. The particles are used to prepare a plasmonic Ag-TiO2 photocatalyst of which the gas phase photocatalytic activity is monitored over a period of four months. The described system outperforms pristine TiO2 and retains its plasmonic enhancement in contrast to TiO2 modified with bare silver nanoparticles. With this an important step is made toward the development of long-term stable plasmonic (photocatalytic) applications.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000384775600004	Publication Date	2016-06-28
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0926-3373	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	9.446	Times cited	45	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	CD, SL and SWV acknowledge the Research Foundation − Flanders (FWO) for financial support. CD further acknowledges BOF-UGent (GOA 01G01513) and the Hercules Foundation (AUGE/09/014). SB acknowledges the European Research Council for the ERC Starting Grant #335078-COLOURATOM.; ECAS_Sara; (ROMEO:green; preprint:; postprint:can ; pdfversion:cannot);			Approved	Most recent IF: 9.446
	Call Number	c:irua:134384 c:irua:134384UA @ admin @ c:irua:134384			Serial	4104
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Spanoghe, J.; Grunert, O.; Wambacq, E.; Sakarika, M.; Papini, G.; Alloul, A.; Spiller, M.; Derycke, V.; Stragier, L.; Verstraete, H.; Fauconnier, K.; Verstraete, W.; Haesaert, G.; Vlaeminck, S.E.
	Title	Storage, fertilization and cost properties highlight the potential of dried microbial biomass as organic fertilizer			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2020	Publication	Microbial biotechnology	Abbreviated Journal	Microb. Biotechnol.
	Volume		Issue		Pages	1-13
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	The transition to sustainable agriculture and horticulture is a societal challenge of global importance. Fertilization with a minimum impact on the environment can facilitate this. Organic fertilizers can play an important role, given their typical release pattern and production through resource recovery. Microbial fertilizers (MFs) constitute an emerging class of organic fertilizers and consist of dried microbial biomass, for instance produced on effluents from the food and beverage industry. In this study, three groups of organisms were tested as MFs: a high-rate consortium aerobic bacteria (CAB), the microalga Arthrospira platensis (‘Spirulina’) and a purple non-sulfur bacterium (PNSB) Rhodobacter sp. During storage as dry products, the MFs showed light hygroscopic activity, but the mineral and organic fractions remained stable over a storage period of 91 days. For biological tests, a reference organic fertilizer (ROF) was used as positive control, and a commercial organic growing medium (GM) as substrate. The mineralization patterns without and with plants were similar for all MFs and ROF, with more than 70% of the organic nitrogen mineralized in 77 days. In a first fertilization trial with parsley, all MFs showed equal performance compared to ROF, and the plant fresh weight was even higher with CAB fertilization. CAB was subsequently used in a follow-up trial with petunia and resulted in elevated plant height, comparable chlorophyll content and a higher amount of flowers compared to ROF. Finally, a cost estimation for packed GM with supplemented fertilizer indicated that CAB and a blend of CAB/PNSB (85%/15%) were most cost competitive, with an increase of 6% and 7% in cost compared to ROF. In conclusion, as biobased fertilizers, MFs have the potential to contribute to sustainable plant nutrition, performing as good as a commercially available organic fertilizer, and to a circular economy.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000563539700001	Publication Date	2020-03-16
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1751-7915	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	5.7	Times cited		Open Access
	Notes	The authors would like to kindly acknowledge (i) the MIP i‐Cleantech Flanders (Milieu‐innovatieplatform; Environment innovation platform) project Microbial Nutrients on Demand (MicroNOD) for financial support, (ii) the DOCPRO4 project ‘PurpleTech’, funded by the BOF (Bijzonder onderzoeksfonds; Special research fund) from the University of Antwerp for financially supporting J.S., (iii) all MicroNOD partners, including the University of Antwerp, Ghent University, AgrAqua, Greenyard Horticulture and Avecom; and (iv) all steering committee members, including Greenyard Frozen, Agristo, AVBS, Vlakwa, het Innovatiesteunpunt, VCM and OVAM.			Approved	Most recent IF: 5.7; 2020 IF: NA
	Call Number	DuEL @ duel @c:irua:167595			Serial	6357
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Borah, R.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Silver–Gold Bimetallic Alloy versus Core–Shell Nanoparticles: Implications for Plasmonic Enhancement and Photothermal Applications			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2020	Publication	Journal Of Physical Chemistry C	Abbreviated Journal	J Phys Chem C
	Volume		Issue		Pages	acs.jpcc.0c02630
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Bimetallic plasmonic nanoparticles enable tuning of the optical response and chemical stability by variation of the composition. The present numerical simulation study compares Ag–Au alloy, Ag@Au core–shell, and Au@Ag core–shell bimetallic plasmonic nanoparticles of both spherical and anisotropic (nanotriangle and nanorods) shapes. By studying both spherical and anisotropic (with LSPR in the near-infrared region) shapes, cases with and without interband transitions of Au can be decoupled. Explicit comparisons are facilitated by numerical models supported by careful validation and examination of optical constants of Au–Ag alloys reported in the literature. Although both Au–Ag core–shell and alloy nanoparticles exhibit an intermediary optical response between that of pure Ag and Au nanoparticles, there are noticeable differences in the spectral characteristics. Also, the effect of the bimetallic constitution in anisotropic nanoparticles is starkly different from that in spherical nanoparticles due to the absence of Au interband transitions in the former case. In general, the improved chemical stability of Ag nanoparticles by incorporation of Au comes with a cost of reduction in plasmonic enhancement, also applicable to anisotropic nanoparticles with a weaker effect. A photothermal heat transfer study confirms that increased absorption by the incorporation of Au in spherical Ag nanoparticles also results in an increased steady-state temperature. On the other hand, anisotropic nanoparticles are inherently better absorbers and hence better photothermal sources, and their photothermal properties are apparently not strongly affected by the incorporation of one metal in the other. This study of the optical/spectral and photothermal characteristics of bimetallic Au–Ag alloy versus core–shell nanoparticles provides detailed physical insight for development of new taylor-made plasmonic nanostructures.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000538758700039	Publication Date	2020-05-19
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1932-7447	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.7	Times cited		Open Access
	Notes	Universiteit Antwerpen, DOCPRO4 Rituraj Borah ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.7; 2020 IF: 4.536
	Call Number	DuEL @ duel @c:irua:169223			Serial	6367
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Borah, R.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Silver–Gold Bimetallic Alloy versus Core–Shell Nanoparticles: Implications for Plasmonic Enhancement and Photothermal Applications			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2020	Publication	Journal Of Physical Chemistry C	Abbreviated Journal	J Phys Chem C
	Volume		Issue		Pages	acs.jpcc.0c02630
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Bimetallic plasmonic nanoparticles enable tuning of the optical response and chemical stability by variation of the composition. The present numerical simulation study compares Ag–Au alloy, Ag@Au core–shell, and Au@Ag core–shell bimetallic plasmonic nanoparticles of both spherical and anisotropic (nanotriangle and nanorods) shapes. By studying both spherical and anisotropic (with LSPR in the near-infrared region) shapes, cases with and without interband transitions of Au can be decoupled. Explicit comparisons are facilitated by numerical models supported by careful validation and examination of optical constants of Au–Ag alloys reported in the literature. Although both Au–Ag core–shell and alloy nanoparticles exhibit an intermediary optical response between that of pure Ag and Au nanoparticles, there are noticeable differences in the spectral characteristics. Also, the effect of the bimetallic constitution in anisotropic nanoparticles is starkly different from that in spherical nanoparticles due to the absence of Au interband transitions in the former case. In general, the improved chemical stability of Ag nanoparticles by incorporation of Au comes with a cost of reduction in plasmonic enhancement, also applicable to anisotropic nanoparticles with a weaker effect. A photothermal heat transfer study confirms that increased absorption by the incorporation of Au in spherical Ag nanoparticles also results in an increased steady-state temperature. On the other hand, anisotropic nanoparticles are inherently better absorbers and hence better photothermal sources, and their photothermal properties are apparently not strongly affected by the incorporation of one metal in the other. This study of the optical/spectral and photothermal characteristics of bimetallic Au–Ag alloy versus core–shell nanoparticles provides detailed physical insight for development of new taylor-made plasmonic nanostructures.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000538758700039	Publication Date	2020-05-19
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1932-7447	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.7	Times cited		Open Access
	Notes	Universiteit Antwerpen, DOCPRO4 Rituraj Borah ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.7; 2020 IF: 4.536
	Call Number	DuEL @ duel @c:irua:169223			Serial	6368
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Van Hoecke, L.; Laffineur, L.; Campe, R.; Perreault, P.; Verbruggen, S.W.; Lenaerts, S.
	Title	Challenges in the use of hydrogen for maritime applications			Type	A1 Journal Article;Review article, Hydrogen Production, Hydrogen Storage, Maritime Applications
	Year	2021	Publication	Energy & Environmental Science	Abbreviated Journal	Energ Environ Sci
	Volume		Issue		Pages
	Keywords	A1 Journal Article;Review article, Hydrogen Production, Hydrogen Storage, Maritime Applications; Sustainable energy, air and water technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Maritime shipping is a key factor that enables the global economy, however the pressure it exerts on the environment is increasing rapidly. In order to reduce the emissions of harmful greenhouse gasses, the search is on for alternative fuels for the maritime shipping industry. In this work the usefulness of hydrogen and hydrogen carriers is being investigated as a fuel for sea going ships. Due to the low volumetric energy density of hydrogen under standard conditions, the need for efficient storage of this fuel is high. Key processes in the use of hydrogen are discussed, starting with the production of hydrogen from fossil and renewable sources. The focus of this review is different storage methods, and in this work we discuss the storage of hydrogen at high pressure, in liquefied form at cryogenic temperatures and bound to liquid or solid-state carriers. In this work a theoretical introduction to different hydrogen storage methods precedes an analysis of the energy-efficiency and practical storage density of the carriers. In the final section the major challenges and hurdles for the development of hydrogen storage for the maritime industry are discussed. The most likely challenges will be the development of a new bunkering infrastructure and suitable monitoring of the safety to ensure safe operation of these hydrogen carriers on board the ship.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000621101100009	Publication Date	2021-01-07
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1754-5692	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	29.518	Times cited		Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	For the completion of this work we would like to thank, Compagnie Maritime Belge for initial funding 9 of the research into maritime hydrogen storage and the University of Antwerp for funding of the 10 Doctoral Project that allowed for the completion of this work.			Approved	Most recent IF: 29.518
	Call Number	DuEL @ duel @c:irua:174754			Serial	6668
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Borah, R.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Effect of size distribution, skewness and roughness on the optical properties of colloidal plasmonic nanoparticles			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2022	Publication	Colloids and surfaces: A: physicochemical and engineering aspects	Abbreviated Journal	Colloid Surface A
	Volume	640	Issue		Pages	128521
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	It is a generally accepted idea that the particle size distribution strongly affects the optical spectra of colloidal plasmonic nanoparticles. It is often quoted as one of the main reasons while explaining the mismatch between the theoretical and experimental optical spectra of such nanoparticles. In this work, these aspects are critically analyzed by means of a bottom up statistical approach that considers variables such as mean, standard deviation and skewness of the nanoparticle size distribution independently from one another. By assuming normal and log-normal distributions of the particle size, the effect of the statistical parameters on the Mie analytical optical spectra of colloidal nanoparticles was studied. The effect of morphology was also studied numerically in order to understand to what extent it can play a role. It is our finding that the particle polydispersity, skewness and surface morphology in fact only weakly impact the optical spectra. While, the selection of suitable optical constants with regard to the crystallinity of the nanoparticles is a far more influential factor for correctly predicting both the plasmon band position and the plasmon bandwidth in theoretical simulations of the optical spectra. It is shown that the mean particle size can be correctly estimated directly from the plasmon band position, as it is the mean that determines the resonance wavelength. The standard deviation can on the other hand be estimated from the intensity distribution data obtained from dynamic light scattering experiments. The results reported herein clear the ambiguity around particle size distribution and optical response of colloidal plasmonic nanoparticles.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher	Elservier	Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000765946900002	Publication Date	2022-02-04
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0927-7757	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	5.2	Times cited		Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes				Approved	Most recent IF: 5.2
	Call Number	DuEL @ duel @c:irua:185704			Serial	6908
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Blommaerts, N.; Asapu, R.; Claes, N.; Bals, S.; Lenaerts, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Gas phase photocatalytic spiral reactor for fast and efficient pollutant degradation			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2017	Publication	Chemical engineering journal	Abbreviated Journal	Chem Eng J
	Volume	316	Issue	316	Pages	850-856
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Photocatalytic reactors for the degradation of gaseous organic pollutants often suffer from major limitations such as small reaction area, sub-optimal irradiation conditions and thus limited reaction rate. In this work, an alternative solution is presented that involves a glass tube coated on the inside with (silvermodified) TiO2 and spiraled around a UVA lamp. First, the spiral reactor is coated from the inside with TiO2 using an experimentally verified procedure that is optimized toward UV light transmission. This procedure is kept as simple as possible and involves a single casting step of a 1 wt% suspension of TiO2 in ethanol through the spiral. This results in a coated tube that absorbs nearly all incident UV light under the experimental conditions used. The optimized coated spiral reactor is then benchmarked to a conventional annular photoreactor of the same outer dimensions and total catalyst loading over a broad range of experimental conditions. Although residence time distribution experiments indicate slightly longer dwelling of molecules in the spiral reactor, no significant difference in by-passing of gas between the spiral reactor and the annular reactor can be claimed. Acetaldehyde degradation efficiency of 100% is obtained with the spiral reactor for a residence time as low as 60 s, whereas the annular reactor could not achieve full degradation even at 1000 s residence time. In a final case study, addition of long-term stable silver nanoparticles, protected by an ultra-thin polymer shell applied via the layer-by-layer (LbL) method, to the spiral reactor coating is shown to double the degradation efficiency and provides an interesting strategy to cope with higher pollutant concentrations without changing the overall dimensions.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000398985200089	Publication Date	2017-02-08
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1385-8947	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	6.216	Times cited	30	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	N.B. wishes to thank the University of Antwerp – Belgium for financial support. N.C. and S.B. acknowledge financial support from European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant #335078- COLOURATOM). S.W.V. acknowledges the Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO) for a postdoctoral fellowship. (ROMEO:green; preprint:; postprint:can ; pdfversion:cannot); ecas_sara			Approved	Most recent IF: 6.216
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @ c:irua:140925UA @ admin @ c:irua:140925			Serial	4481
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Asapu, R.; Ciocarlan, R.-G.; Claes, N.; Blommaerts, N.; Minjauw, M.; Ahmad, T.; Dendooven, J.; Cool, P.; Bals, S.; Denys, S.; Detavernier, C.; Lenaerts, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Plasmonic Near-Field Localization of Silver Core–Shell Nanoparticle Assemblies via Wet Chemistry Nanogap Engineering			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2017	Publication	ACS applied materials and interfaces	Abbreviated Journal	Acs Appl Mater Inter
	Volume	9	Issue	9	Pages	41577-41585
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Silver nanoparticles are widely used in the field of plasmonics because of their unique optical properties. The wavelength-dependent surface plasmon resonance gives rise to a strongly enhanced electromagnetic field, especially at so-called hot spots located in the nanogap in-between metal nanoparticle assemblies. Therefore, the interparticle distance is a decisive factor in plasmonic applications, such as surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). In this study, the aim is to engineer this interparticle distance for silver nanospheres using a convenient wet-chemical approach and to predict and quantify the corresponding enhancement factor using both theoretical and experimental tools. This was done by building a tunable ultrathin polymer shell around the nanoparticles using the layer-by-layer method, in which the polymer shell acts as the separating interparticle spacer layer. Comparison of different theoretical approaches and corroborating the results with SERS analytical experiments using silver and silver−polymer core−shell nanoparticle clusters as SERS substrates was also done. Herewith, an approach is provided to estimate the extent of plasmonic near-field enhancement both theoretically as well as experimentally.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000417005900057	Publication Date	2017-11-29
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1944-8244	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	7.504	Times cited	29	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	financial support through a research fellowship. C.D. wishes to thank the Hercules foundation for the financial support (SPINAL). P.C. and R.-G.C. acknowledge financial support by FWO Vlaanderen (project no. G038215N). N.C. and S.B. acknowledge the financial support from the European Research Council (ERC starting grant #335078-COLOURATOM). (ROMEO:white; preprint:; postprint:restricted 12 months embargo; pdfversion:cannot); saraecas; ECAS_Sara;			Approved	Most recent IF: 7.504
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:147243			Serial	4804
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Liao, T.-W.; Verbruggen, S.; Claes, N.; Yadav, A.; Grandjean, D.; Bals, S.; Lievens, P.
	Title	TiO2 Films Modified with Au Nanoclusters as Self-Cleaning Surfaces under Visible Light			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2018	Publication	Nanomaterials	Abbreviated Journal	Nanomaterials-Basel
	Volume	8	Issue	8	Pages	30
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	In this study, we applied cluster beam deposition (CBD) as a new approach for fabricating efficient plasmon-based photocatalytic materials. Au nanoclusters (AuNCs) produced in the gas phase were deposited on TiO2 P25-coated silicon wafers with coverage ranging from 2 to 8 atomic monolayer (ML) equivalents. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images of the AuNCs modified TiO2 P25 films show that the surface is uniformly covered by the AuNCs that remain isolated at low coverage (2 ML, 4 ML) and aggregate at higher coverage (8 ML). A clear relationship between AuNCs coverage and photocatalytic activity towards stearic acid photo-oxidation was measured, both under ultraviolet and green light illumination. TiO2 P25 covered with 4 ML AuNCs showed the best stearic acid photo-oxidation performance under green light illumination (Formal Quantum Efficiency 1.6 x 10-6 over a period of 93 h). These results demonstrate the large potential of gas-phase AuNCs beam deposition technology for the fabrication of visible light active plasmonic photocatalysts.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000424131600030	Publication Date	2018-01-08
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2079-4991	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.553	Times cited	29	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	The research leading to these results has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement n 607417 (Catsense). We also thank the Research Foundation—Flanders (FWO, Belgium), the Flemish Concerted Action (BOF KU Leuven, Project No. GOA/14/007) research program, and the microscope was partly funded by the Hercules Fund from the Flemish Government for the support. N.C. and S.B. acknowledge financial support from European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant #335078-COLOURATOM). ECAS_Sara (ROMEO:green; preprint:; postprint:can ; pdfversion:can);			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.553
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:147898UA @ admin @ c:irua:147898			Serial	4805
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Claes, N.; Asapu, R.; Blommaerts, N.; Verbruggen, S.W.; Lenaerts, S.; Bals, S.
	Title	Characterization of silver-polymer core–shell nanoparticles using electron microscopy			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2018	Publication	Nanoscale	Abbreviated Journal	Nanoscale
	Volume	10	Issue	10	Pages	9186-9191
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Silver-polymer core–shell nanoparticles show interesting optical properties, making them widely applicable in the field of plasmonics. The uniformity, thickness and homogeneity of the polymer shell will affect the properties of the system which makes a thorough structural characterization of these core–shell silver-polymer nanoparticles of great importance. However, visualizing the shell and the particle simultaneously is far from straightforward due to the sensitivity of the polymer shell towards the electron beam. In this study, we use different 2D and 3D electron microscopy techniques to investigate different structural aspects of the polymer coating.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000437007700028	Publication Date	2018-04-16
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2040-3364	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	7.367	Times cited	11	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	N. C. and S. B. acknowledge financial support from European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant #335078-COLOURATOMS) and from the FWO through project funding (G038116N). R. A. and S. L. acknowledge the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO) for financial support. (ROMEO:yellow; preprint:; postprint:restricted ; pdfversion:cannot); ECAS_Sara			Approved	Most recent IF: 7.367
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:151290UA @ admin @ c:irua:151290			Serial	4959
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Blommaerts, N.; Vanrompay, H.; Nuti, S.; Lenaerts, S.; Bals, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Unraveling Structural Information of Turkevich Synthesized Plasmonic Gold-Silver Bimetallic Nanoparticles			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2019	Publication	Small	Abbreviated Journal	Small
	Volume	15	Issue	15	Pages	1902791
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	For the synthesis of gold-silver bimetallic nanoparticles, the Turkevich method has been the state-of-the-art method for several decades. It has been presumed that this procedure results in a homogeneous alloy, although this has been debatable for many years. In this work, it is shown that neither a full alloy, nor a perfect core-shell particle is formed but rather a core-shell-like particle with altering metal composition along the radial direction. In-depth wet-chemical experiments are performed in combination with advanced transmission electron microscopy, including EDX tomography, and Finite Element Method modeling to support the observations. From the electron tomography results, the core-shell structure could be clearly visualized and the spatial distribution of gold and silver atoms could be quantified. Theoretical simulations are performed to demonstrate that even though UV-Vis spectra show only one plasmon band, this still originates from core-shell type structures. The simulations also indicate that the core-shell morphology does not so much affect the location of the plasmon band, but mainly results in significant band broadening. Wet-chemistry experiments provide the evidence that the synthesis pathway starts with gold enriched alloy cores, and later on in the synthesis mainly silver is incorporated to end up with a silver enriched alloy shell.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000482637100001	Publication Date	2019-08-25
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1613-6810	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	8.643	Times cited	26	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	Universiteit Antwerpen; Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, 1S32617N G.0369.15N G.0381.16N ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 8.643
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:161636			Serial	5290
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Peeters, H.; Keulemans, M.; Nuyts, G.; Vanmeert, F.; Li, C.; Minjauw, M.; Detavernier, C.; Bals, S.; Lenaerts, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Plasmonic gold-embedded TiO2 thin films as photocatalytic self-cleaning coatings			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2020	Publication	Applied Catalysis B-Environmental	Abbreviated Journal	Appl Catal B-Environ
	Volume	267	Issue	267	Pages	118654
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); AXES (Antwerp X-ray Analysis, Electrochemistry and Speciation); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Transparent photocatalytic TiO2 thin films hold great potential in the development of self-cleaning glass sur- faces, but suffer from a poor visible light response that hinders the application under actual sunlight. To alleviate this problem, the photocatalytic film can be modified with plasmonic nanoparticles that interact very effectively with visible light. Since the plasmonic effect is strongly concentrated in the near surroundings of the nano- particle surface, an approach is presented to embed the plasmonic nanostructures in the TiO2 matrix itself, rather than deposit them loosely on the surface. This way the interaction interface is maximised and the plasmonic effect can be fully exploited. In this study, pre-fabricated gold nanoparticles are made compatible with the organic medium of a TiO2 sol-gel coating suspension, resulting in a one-pot coating suspension. After spin coating, homogeneous, smooth, highly transparent and photoactive gold-embedded anatase thin films are ob- tained.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000518865300002	Publication Date	2020-01-18
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0926-3373	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	22.1	Times cited	57	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	H.P. is grateful to the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO) for an aspirant PhD scholarship.			Approved	Most recent IF: 22.1; 2020 IF: 9.446
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:165616			Serial	5446
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Blommaerts, N.; Hoeven, N.; Arenas Esteban, D.; Campos, R.; Mertens, M.; Borah, R.; Glisenti, A.; De Wael, K.; Bals, S.; Lenaerts, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.; Cool, P.
	Title	Tuning the turnover frequency and selectivity of photocatalytic CO2 reduction to CO and methane using platinum and palladium nanoparticles on Ti-Beta zeolites			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2021	Publication	Chemical Engineering Journal	Abbreviated Journal	Chem Eng J
	Volume	410	Issue		Pages	128234
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL); Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Laboratory of adsorption and catalysis (LADCA); AXES (Antwerp X-ray Analysis, Electrochemistry and Speciation)
	Abstract	A Ti-Beta zeolite was used in gas phase photocatalytic CO2 reduction to reduce the charge recombination rate and increase the surface area compared to P25 as commercial benchmark, reaching 607 m2 g-1. By adding Pt nanoparticles, the selectivity can be tuned toward CO, reaching a value of 92% and a turnover frequency (TOF) of 96 µmol.gcat-1.h-1, nearly an order of magnitude higher in comparison with P25. By adding Pd nanoparticles the selectivity can be shifted from CO (70% for a bare Ti-Beta zeolite), toward CH4 as the prevalent species (60%). In this way, the selectivity toward CO or CH4 can be tuned by either using Pt or Pd. The TOF values obtained in this work outperform reported state-of-the-art values in similar research. The improved activity by adding the nanoparticles was attributed to an improved charge separation efficiency, together with a plasmonic contribution of the metal nanoparticles under the applied experimental conditions.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000623394200004	Publication Date	2021-01-09
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1385-8947	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	6.216	Times cited	15	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	N.B., S.L., S.W.V. and P.C. wish to thank the Flemish government and Catalisti for financial support and coordination in terms of a sprint SBO in the context of the moonshot project D2M. N.H. thanks the Flanders Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VLAIO) for the financial support. The Systemic Physiological and Ecotoxicological Research (SPHERE) group, R. Blust, University of Antwerp is acknowledged for the ICP-MS measurements.			Approved	Most recent IF: 6.216
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:174591			Serial	6662
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Dingenen, F.; Blommaerts, N.; Van Hal, M.; Borah, R.; Arenas-Esteban, D.; Lenaerts, S.; Bals, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Layer-by-Layer-Stabilized Plasmonic Gold-Silver Nanoparticles on TiO2: Towards Stable Solar Active Photocatalysts			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2021	Publication	Nanomaterials	Abbreviated Journal	Nanomaterials-Basel
	Volume	11	Issue	10	Pages	2624
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	To broaden the activity window of TiO2, a broadband plasmonic photocatalyst has been designed and optimized. This plasmonic ‘rainbow’ photocatalyst consists of TiO2 modified with gold–silver composite nanoparticles of various sizes and compositions, thus inducing a broadband interaction with polychromatic solar light. However, these nanoparticles are inherently unstable, especially due to the use of silver. Hence, in this study the application of the layer-by-layer technique is introduced to create a protective polymer shell around the metal cores with a very high degree of control. Various TiO2 species (pure anatase, PC500, and P25) were loaded with different plasmonic metal loadings (0–2 wt %) in order to identify the most solar active composite materials. The prepared plasmonic photocatalysts were tested towards stearic acid degradation under simulated sunlight. From all materials tested, P25 + 2 wt % of plasmonic ‘rainbow’ nanoparticles proved to be the most promising (56% more efficient compared to pristine P25) and was also identified as the most cost-effective. Further, 2 wt % of layer-by-layer-stabilized ‘rainbow’ nanoparticles were loaded on P25. These layer-by-layer-stabilized metals showed superior stability under a heated oxidative atmosphere, as well as in a salt solution. Finally, the activity of the composite was almost completely retained after 1 month of aging, while the nonstabilized equivalent lost 34% of its initial activity. This work shows for the first time the synergetic application of a plasmonic ‘rainbow’ concept and the layer-by-layer stabilization technique, resulting in a promising solar active, and long-term stable photocatalyst.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000712759800001	Publication Date	2021-10-06
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2079-4991	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.553	Times cited	7	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	Research was funded by Research Foundation—Flanders (FWO), FN 700300001— Aspirant F. Dingenen.			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.553
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @c:irua:183281			Serial	6812
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Asapu, R.; Claes, N.; Ciocarlan, R.-G.; Minjauw, M.; Detavernier, C.; Cool, P.; Bals, S.; Verbruggen, S.W.
	Title	Electron Transfer and Near-Field Mechanisms in Plasmonic Gold-Nanoparticle-Modified TiO₂Photocatalytic Systems			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2019	Publication	ACS applied nano materials	Abbreviated Journal	ACS Appl. Nano Mater.
	Volume	2	Issue	2	Pages	4067-4074
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Laboratory of adsorption and catalysis (LADCA); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	The major mechanism responsible for plasmonic enhancement of titanium dioxide photocatalysis using gold nanoparticles is still under contention. This work introduces an experimental strategy to disentangle the significance of the charge transfer and near-field mechanisms in plasmonic photocatalysis. By controlling the thickness and conductive nature of a nanoparticle shell that acts as a spacer layer separating the plasmonic metal core from the TiO2 surface, field enhancement or charge transfer effects can be selectively repressed or evoked. Layer-by-layer and in situ polymerization methods are used to synthesize gold core–polymer shell nanoparticles with shell thickness control up to the sub-nanometer level. Detailed optical and electrical characterization supported by near-field simulation models corroborate the trends in photocatalytic activity of the different systems. This approach mainly points at an important contribution of the enhanced near field.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000477917700006	Publication Date	2019-05-31
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2574-0970	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited	32	Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	This work was supported by Research Foundation Flanders (FWO). P.C. and R-G.C. acknowledge financial support from FWO (Project No. G038215N). N.C. and S.B. acknowledge financial support from the European Research Council (ERC Starting Grant No. 335078-COLOURATOM).			Approved	Most recent IF: NA
	Call Number	EMAT @ emat @UA @ admin @ c:irua:160579			Serial	5184
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Lu, Y.; Cheng, X.; Tian, G.; Zhao, H.; He, L.; Hu, J.; Wu, S.-M.; Dong, Y.; Chang, G.-G.; Lenaerts, S.; Siffert, S.; Van Tendeloo, G.; Li, Z.-F.; Xu, L.-L.; Yang, X.-Y.; Su, B.-L.
	Title	Hierarchical CdS/m-TiO 2 /G ternary photocatalyst for highly active visible light-induced hydrogen production from water splitting with high stability			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2018	Publication	Nano energy	Abbreviated Journal	Nano Energy
	Volume	47	Issue		Pages	8-17
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Electron microscopy for materials research (EMAT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Hierarchical semiconductors are the most important photocatalysts, especially for visible light-induced hydrogen production from water splitting. We demonstrate herein a hierarchical electrostatic assembly approach to hierarchical CdS/m-TiO2/G ternary photocatalyst, which exhibits high photoactivity and excellent photostability (more than twice the activity of pure CdS while 82% of initial photoactivity remained after 15 recycles during 80 h irradiation). The ternary nanojunction effect of the photocatalyst has been investigated from orbitals hybrid, bonding energy to atom-stress distortion and nano-interface fusion. And a coherent separation mechanism of charge carriers in the ternary system has been proposed at an atomic/nanoscale. This work offers a promising way to inhibit the photocorrosion of CdS and, more importantly, provide new insights for the design of ternary nanostructured photocatalysts with an ideal heterojunction.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000430057000002	Publication Date	2018-02-14
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2211-2855	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	12.343	Times cited	58	Open Access	Not_Open_Access
	Notes	This work supported by National Key R&D Program of China (2017YFC1103800), Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University (IRT_15R52), National Natural Science Foundation of China (U1663225, U1662134, 51472190, 51611530672, 21711530705, 51503166, 51602236, 21706199), International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (2015DFE52870), Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province (2016CFA033, 2017CFB487), Open 22 Project Program of State Key Laboratory of Petroleum Pollution Control (PPC2016007) CNPC Research Institute of Safety and Environmental Technology., China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2016M592400), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (WUT: 2017IVB012).			Approved	Most recent IF: 12.343
	Call Number	EMAT @ lucian @c:irua:150720			Serial	4925
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Zewdie, M.C.; Van Passel, S.; Moretti, M.; Annys, S.; Tenessa, D.B.; Ayele, Z.A.; Tsegaye, E.A.; Cools, J.; Minale, A.S.; Nyssen, J.
	Title	Pathways how irrigation water affects crop revenue of smallholder farmers in northwest Ethiopia: A mixed approach			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2020	Publication	Agricultural Water Management	Abbreviated Journal	Agr Water Manage
	Volume	233	Issue		Pages	106101
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Economics; Engineering sciences. Technology; Engineering Management (ENM); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	The relationship between irrigation water availability and crop revenue is multifaceted. However, most of the previous studies focused only on the direct effect of irrigation water on crop revenue or considered that the indirect effect passes only through the farmers’ improved farm inputs usage. Nevertheless, unlike previous studies, this study argues that a one-sided argument that irrigation water directly causes high crop revenue or indirectly affects crop revenue only via the farmers’ improved farm inputs usage is incomplete, as irrigation water not only directly contributes to crop revenue but also indirectly conduces to crop revenue via both the type of crops produced and the farmers’ improved farm inputs usage. Considering the previous studies’ limitations, this study investigates pathways how small-scale irrigation water affects crop revenue and identifies challenges of small-scale irrigation farming in Fogera district, Ethiopia. Results endorsed that irrigation water has both direct and indirect effects on crop revenue. The indirect effect is 67 percent of the total effect and it is mediated by both the type of crops produced and farmers’ improved farm inputs usage. The result also indicated that irrigation user farmers have a higher income, more livestock assets and resources and better food, housing, and cloths than the non-users. Moreover, challenges related to agricultural output and input market were identified as the most severe problem followed by crop disease. The findings of our study suggest that to utilize the benefits of irrigation water properly, it is crucial to encourage farmers to use more improved farm inputs and to shift from staple to cash crop production. Moreover, farmers are frequently exposed to cheating by illegal brokers in the output market, therefore it is also important to increase farmers’ accessibility to output and input markets, the quality of improved farm inputs, and the bargaining power of farmers with market information.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000525291200025	Publication Date	2020-02-29
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0378-3774	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	6.7	Times cited		Open Access
	Notes	Bahir Dar University – Institutional University Cooperation;			Approved	Most recent IF: 6.7; 2020 IF: 2.848
	Call Number	ENM @ enm @c:irua:167592			Serial	6353
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Ramakers, M.; Heijkers, S.; Tytgat, T.; Lenaerts, S.; Bogaerts, A.
	Title	Combining CO2 conversion and N2 fixation in a gliding arc plasmatron			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2019	Publication	Journal of CO2 utilization	Abbreviated Journal	J Co2 Util
	Volume	33	Issue		Pages	121-130
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Plasma Lab for Applications in Sustainability and Medicine – Antwerp (PLASMANT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Industry needs a ﬂexible and eﬃcient technology to convert CO2 into useful products, which ﬁts in the Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) philosophy. Plasma technology is intensively being investigated for this purpose. A promising candidate is the gliding arc plasmatron (GAP). Waste streams of CO2 are often not pure and contain N2 as important impurity. Therefore, in this paper we provide a detailed experimental and computational study of the combined CO2 and N2 conversion in a GAP. Is it possible to take advantage of the presence of N2 in the mixture and to combine CO2 conversion with N2 ﬁxation? Our experiments and simulations reveal that N2 actively contributes to the process of CO2 conversion, through its vibrational levels. In addition, NO and NO2 are formed, with concentrations around 7000 ppm, which is slightly too low for valorization, but by improving the reactor design it must be possible to further increase their concentrations. Other NO-based molecules, in particular the strong greenhouse gas N2O, are not formed in the GAP, which is an important result. We also compare our results with those obtained in other plasma reactors to clarify the diﬀerences in underlying plasma processes, and to demonstrate the superiority of the GAP.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000487274100013	Publication Date	2019-05-22
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2212-9820	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	4.292	Times cited	3	Open Access	Not_Open_Access: Available from 23.05.2021
	Notes	Fund for Scientific Research Flanders, G.0383.16N ; Excellence of Science program of the Fund for Scientific Research, G0F9618N ; Hercules Foundation, the Flemish Government; UAntwerpen; We acknowledge ﬁnancial support from the Fund for Scientiﬁc Research Flanders (FWO; Grant no. G.0383.16N) and the Excellence of Science program of the Fund for Scientiﬁc Research (FWO-FNRS; Grant no. G0F9618N; EOS ID: 30505023). The calculations were performed using the Turing HPC infrastructure at the CalcUA core facility of the Universiteit Antwerpen (UAntwerpen), a division of the Flemish Supercomputer Center VSC, funded by the Hercules Foundation, the Flemish Government (department EWI) and the UAntwerpen. Finally, we also want to thank Dr. Ramses Snoeckx for the very interesting discussions, and A. Fridman and A. Rabinovich for developing the GAP.			Approved	Most recent IF: 4.292
	Call Number	PLASMANT @ plasmant @UA @ admin @ c:irua:159984			Serial	5173
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Snoeckx, R.; Van Wesenbeeck, K.; Lenaerts, S.; Cha, M.S.; Bogaerts, A.
	Title	Suppressing the formation of NO_xand N₂O in CO₂/N₂dielectric barrier discharge plasma by adding CH₄: scavenger chemistry at work			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2019	Publication	Sustainable Energy & Fuels	Abbreviated Journal	Sustainable Energy Fuels
	Volume	3	Issue	6	Pages	1388-1395
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Plasma Lab for Applications in Sustainability and Medicine – Antwerp (PLASMANT); Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	The need for carbon negative technologies led to the development of a wide array of novel CO<sub>2</sub>conversion techniques. Most of them either rely on high temperatures or generate highly reactive O species, which can lead to the undesirable formation of NO<sub>x</sub>and N<sub>2</sub>O when the CO<sub>2</sub>feeds contain N<sub>2</sub>. Here, we show that, for plasma-based CO<sub>2</sub>conversion, adding a hydrogen source, as a chemical oxygen scavenger, can suppress their formation,<italic>in situ</italic>. This allows the use of low-cost N<sub>2</sub>containing (industrial and direct air capture) feeds, rather than expensive purified CO<sub>2</sub>. To demonstrate this, we add CH<sub>4</sub>to a dielectric barrier discharge plasma used for converting impure CO<sub>2</sub>. We find that when adding a stoichiometric amount of CH<sub>4</sub>, 82% less NO<sub>2</sub>and 51% less NO are formed. An even higher reduction (96 and 63%) can be obtained when doubling this amount. However, in that case the excess radicals promote the formation of by-products, such as HCN, NH<sub>3</sub>and CH<sub>3</sub>OH. Thus, we believe that by using an appropriate amount of chemical scavengers, we can use impure CO<sub>2</sub>feeds, which would bring us closer to ‘real world’ conditions and implementation.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000469258600021	Publication Date	2019-02-20
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	2398-4902	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access	OpenAccess
	Notes	Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, G0F9618N ; Universiteit Antwerpen; King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, BAS/1/1384-01-01 ;The research reported in this publication was supported by funding from the “Excellence of Science Program” (Fund for Scientic Research Flanders (FWO): grant no. G0F9618N; EOS ID: 30505023). The authors R. S. and M. S. C. acknowledge nancial support from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), under award number BAS/1/1384-01-01.			Approved	Most recent IF: NA
	Call Number	PLASMANT @ plasmant @UA @ admin @ c:irua:160268			Serial	5188
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Mishra, V.K.; Kumar, P.; Van Poppel, M.; Bleux, N.; Frijns, E.; Reggente, M.; Berghmans, P.; Int Panis, L.; Samson, R.
	Title	Wintertime spatio-temporal variation of ultrafine particles in a Belgian city			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	The science of the total environment	Abbreviated Journal
	Volume	431	Issue		Pages	307-313
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Simultaneous measurements of ultrafine particles (UFPs) were carried out at four sampling locations situated within a 1 km(2) grid area in a Belgian city, Borgerhout (Antwerp). All sampling sites had different orientation and height of buildings and dissimilar levels of anthropogenic activities (mainly traffic volume). The aims were to investigate: (i) the spatio-temporal variation of UFP within the area, (ii) the effect of wind direction with respect to the volume of traffic on UFP levels, and (iii) the spatial representativeness of the official monitoring station situated in the study area. All sampling sites followed similar diurnal patterns of UFP variation, but effects of local traffic emissions were evident. Wind direction also had a profound influence on UFP concentrations at certain sites. The results indicated a clear influence of local weather conditions and the more dominant effect of traffic volumes. Our analysis indicated that the regional air quality monitoring station represented the other sampling sites in the study area reasonably well; temporal patterns were found to be comparable though the absolute average concentrations showed differences of up to 35%. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000306887900037	Publication Date	2012-06-14
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0048-9697; 1879-1026	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:101123			Serial	8759
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Fenu, A.; De Wilde, W.; Gaertner, M.; Weemaes, M.; de Gueldre, G.; van de Steene, B.
	Title	Elaborating the membrane life concept in a full scale hollow-fibers MBR			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	Journal of membrane science	Abbreviated Journal
	Volume	421	Issue		Pages	349-354
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	The membrane life-time has a strong impact on competitivity and viability of MBRs. This study critically analyzes the membrane life-time concept, approaching it through different assessment methods. A full scale MBR's membrane life-time was assessed on the following: (i) maintaining the permeate flow throughput to the MBR; (ii) the permeability decline; (iii) oxidative aging; (iv) the increase in energy costs; and (v) mechanical aging. The method based on permeability decline provides a membrane life-time estimate up to a theoretical end. It was further elaborated inherently to operations with no long-term flux decline. The increase in operating pressure remains the main end-of-life trigger for deciding when to replace membrane modules. On the contrary, mechanical and permeate flow throughput analysis of the data are not able to provide a clear estimate of the membrane life-time. As for the membrane life-time estimation based on chlorine contact, it was found to be too optimistic. Complete irreversible fouling occurs before maximum contact time with chlorine is reached. At end-of-life operating conditions, the energy consumption raised of 170% due to the reduced flow rate. The cost raise appears high but still affordable. Earlier membrane replacement thus can never be counterbalanced by energy costs saving. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000308741100039	Publication Date	2012-08-07
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0376-7388	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:101790			Serial	7856
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Vos, P.E.J.; Nikolova, I.; Janssen, S.
	Title	A high-order model for accurately simulating the size distribution of ultrafine particles in a traffic tunnel			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	Atmospheric environment : an international journal	Abbreviated Journal
	Volume	59	Issue		Pages	415-425
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	We present a computational model for simulating the dispersion of traffic emitted particulate matter inside a road tunnel, with an emphasis on the number concentration of ultrafine particles (UFP). The model primarily calculates the size distribution of the particle number concentration at each location inside the tunnel. The proposed model differs from existing models in the sense that it uses a continuous representation of the size distribution based upon the high-order finite element method and that it solves the governing equations using the state-of-the-art discontinuous Galerkin method. Next to the traditional transport processes, the model also implements the most important aerosol transformation processes such as coagulation, condensation and dry deposition. It is shown that based upon parametrisations found in literature, the process of condensation in a traffic tunnel cannot properly be modelled. Therefore, we present a correction factor that allows for a better parametrisation. The adequate performance of the model is demonstrated by both a verification study and a validation study. For the verification we show that the discretisation error converges consistently while for the validation we compare the modelled results with a suitable set of data from a UFP measurement campaign in a Taiwanese traffic tunnel. The model is shown to correctly simulate the observed behaviour and by applying a statistical model evaluation we demonstrate that the proposed model meets widely accepted air quality model acceptance criteria. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000309081100047	Publication Date	2012-05-25
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1352-2310	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:101793			Serial	8033
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Van Noyen, J.; Middelkoop, V.; Buysse, C.; Kovalevsky, A.; Snijkers, F.; Buekenhoudt, A.; Mullens, S.; Luyten, J.; Kretzschmar, J.; Lenaerts, S.
	Title	Fabrication of perovskite capillary membranes for high temperature gas separation			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	Catalysis today	Abbreviated Journal	Catal Today
	Volume	193	Issue	1	Pages	172-178
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Oxygen-permeable perovskites with mixed ionic-electronic conducting properties can play an important role in carbon capture and storage techniques. Their ability to separate oxygen from air is needed, more specifically, in oxy-fuel and pre-combustion technologies. In this work, the first detailed comparative analysis and new results are reported on four types of Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-delta (BSCF) capillary membranes: non-coated sulphur-containing; catalyst-coated sulphur-containing; non-coated sulphur-free and catalyst-coated sulphur-free. The fabrication of BSCF capillaries by a spinning technique based on phase inversion is further discussed and their oxygen separation performances are interpreted. The comparison of the performance of these different generations of BSCF capillaries of similar dimensions demonstrates a significant impact of the sulphur contamination on both the oxygen flux through the membrane and the activation energy of the overall oxygen transport mechanism. Careful attention is paid to the effect of activation layers on both sulphur-free and sulphur-containing types of capillaries. Additional long-term testing of the sulphur-free BSCF capillaries is presented, where partial decomposition of the membrane surface was observed due to kinetic demixing. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000308675900025	Publication Date	2012-04-15
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0920-5861	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	4.636	Times cited	9	Open Access
	Notes	; The authors want to express their thanks to the VITO personnel for their continuous support, especially B. Molenberghs, W. Doyen (Separation and Conversion Technology, VITO), R. Kemps, M. Mertens, I. Thijs, M. Schoeters, W. Bouwen and J. Cooymans (Materials Department, VITO). C. Buysse thankfully acknowledges a Ph.D. scholarship provided by VITO and the University of Antwerp. This work is performed in the framework of the German Helmholtz Alliance Project “MEM-BRAIN”, aiming at the development of gas separation membranes for zero-emission fossil fuel power plants. ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 4.636; 2012 IF: 2.980
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:101797			Serial	5951
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Huyskens, C.; De Wever, H.; Fovet, Y.; Wegmann, U.; Diels, L.; Lenaerts, S.
	Title	Screening of novel MBR fouling reducers : benchmarking with known fouling reducers and evaluation of their mechanism of action			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	Separation and purification technology	Abbreviated Journal	Sep Purif Technol
	Volume	95	Issue		Pages	49-57
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	A novel fouling characterization method was applied for a first screening of two novel synthetic flocculants developed by BASF (BASF-1 and BASF-2) and benchmarking with six well-known products. Results showed that this MBR-VITO Fouling Measurement (VFM) was able to identify beneficial and adverse effects of different additives on the mixed liquor's reversible and irreversible fouling and, in combination with supporting mixed liquor analyses, allowed to identify the additive's main working mechanism. The first screening tests indicated that BASF-1 and BASF-2 reduced reversible and irreversible fouling to a similar extent as the known synthetic flocculants due to a charge neutralization mechanism, resulting in enhanced flocculation and SMP removal. Further testing at different additive concentrations provided a first indication of the optimal dosage and revealed a considerable risk of overdosing for BASF-2, rendering it less suited for fouling control. In contrast, such adverse effects were not observed for BASF-1. BASF-1 induced similar beneficial effects as the known MPE50 polymer at lower dosage and was therefore considered promising for application in MBRs. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000307032100008	Publication Date	2012-04-26
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1383-5866	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.359	Times cited	24	Open Access
	Notes	; The authors would like to thank K. Luyckx, J. Fret, L. Heylen, R. Muyshondt, H. Sterckx, J. Verheyden and J. Vande-Velden for technical assistance and V. Iversen for kindly supplying some of the commercial additives. Celine Huyskens is indebted to the Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO). The European Commission is acknowledged for financial support to Aquafit4use (FP7, Grant 211534). ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.359; 2012 IF: 2.894
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:101903			Serial	5990
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Haest, P.J.; Springael, D.; Seuntjens, P.; Smolders, E.
	Title	Self-inhibition can limit biologically enhanced TCE dissolution from a TCE DNAPL			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	Chemosphere	Abbreviated Journal
	Volume	89	Issue	11	Pages	1369-1375
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Biodegradation of trichloroethene (TCE) near a Dense Non Aqueous Phase Liquid (DNAPL) can enhance the dissolution rate of the DNAPL by increasing the concentration gradient at the DNAPL-water interface. Two-dimensional flow-through sand boxes containing a ICE DNAPL and inoculated with a TCE dechlorinating consortium were set up to measure this bio-enhanced dissolution under anaerobic conditions. The total mass of TCE and daughter products in the effluent of the biotic boxes was 3-6 fold larger than in the effluent of the abiotic box. However, the mass of daughter products only accounted for 19-55% of the total mass of chlorinated compounds in the effluent, suggesting that bio-enhanced dissolution factors were maximally 1.3-2.2. The enhanced dissolution most likely primarily resulted from variable DNAPL distribution rather than biodegradation. Specific dechlorination rates previously determined in a stirred liquid medium were used in a reactive transport model to identify the rate limiting factors. The model adequately simulated the overall TCE degradation when predicted resident microbial numbers approached observed values and indicated an enhancement factor for TCE dissolution of 1.01. The model shows that dechlorination of TCE in the 20 box was limited due to the short residence time and the self-inhibition of the TCE degradation. A parameter sensitivity analysis predicts that the bio-enhanced dissolution factor for this TCE source zone can only exceed a value of 2 if the TCE self-inhibition is drastically reduced (when a TCE tolerant dehalogenating community is present) or if the DNAPL is located in a low-permeable layer with a small Darcy velocity. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000310112600015	Publication Date	2012-06-30
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	0045-6535; 1879-1298	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:102142			Serial	8512
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Gielis, J.; Caratelli, D.; Fougerolle, Y.; Ricci, P.E.; Tavkelidze, I.; Gerats, T.
	Title	Universal natural shapes : from unifying shape description to simple methods for shape analysis and boundary value problems			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	PLoS ONE	Abbreviated Journal
	Volume	7	Issue	9	Pages	e29324-11
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Gielis curves and surfaces can describe a wide range of natural shapes and they have been used in various studies in biology and physics as descriptive tool. This has stimulated the generalization of widely used computational methods. Here we show that proper normalization of the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm allows for efficient and robust reconstruction of Gielis curves, including self-intersecting and asymmetric curves, without increasing the overall complexity of the algorithm. Then, we show how complex curves of k-type can be constructed and how solutions to the Dirichlet problem for the Laplace equation on these complex domains can be derived using a semi-Fourier method. In all three methods, descriptive and computational power and efficiency is obtained in a surprisingly simple way.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000309517500001	Publication Date	2012-09-30
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1932-6203	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:102202			Serial	8711
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Smits, M.; Ling, Y.; Lenaerts, S.; Van Doorslaer, S.
	Title	Photocatalytic removal of soot : unravelling of the reaction mechanism by EPR and in situ FTIR spectroscopy			Type	A1 Journal article
	Year	2012	Publication	ChemPhysChem : a European journal of chemical physics and physical chemistry	Abbreviated Journal	Chemphyschem
	Volume	13	Issue	18	Pages	4251-4257
	Keywords	A1 Journal article; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract	Photocatalytic soot oxidation is studied on P25 TiO2 as an important model reaction for self-cleaning processes by means of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Contacting of carbon black with P25 leads on the one hand to a reduction of the local dioxygen concentration in the powder. On the other hand, the weakly adsorbed radicals on the carbon particles are likely to act as alternative traps for the photogenerated conduction-band electrons. We find furthermore that the presence of dioxygen and oxygen-related radicals is vital for the photocatalytic soot degradation. The complete oxidation of soot to CO2 is evidenced by in situ FTIR spectroscopy, no intermediate CO is detected during the photocatalytic process.
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos	000313692600026	Publication Date	2012-11-13
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN	1439-4235	ISBN		Additional Links	UA library record; WoS full record; WoS citing articles
	Impact Factor	3.075	Times cited	9	Open Access
	Notes	; This work was supported by the University of Antwerp (PhD grants of M. S. and Y.L.). We would like to thank Birger Hauchecorne for the scientific discussion. ;			Approved	Most recent IF: 3.075; 2012 IF: 3.349
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:104568			Serial	5980
Permanent link to this record



	Author	Tytgat, T.
	Title	Research and development of self-supporting TiO₂ foams for removal of VOCs from ambient air			Type	Doctoral thesis
	Year	2012	Publication		Abbreviated Journal
	Volume		Issue		Pages	164 p.
	Keywords	Doctoral thesis; Engineering sciences. Technology; Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology (DuEL)
	Abstract
	Address
	Corporate Author				Thesis
	Publisher		Place of Publication		Editor
	Language		Wos		Publication Date
	Series Editor		Series Title		Abbreviated Series Title
	Series Volume		Series Issue		Edition
	ISSN		ISBN	978-90-5728-395-6	Additional Links	UA library record
	Impact Factor		Times cited		Open Access
	Notes				Approved	no
	Call Number	UA @ admin @ c:irua:104607			Serial	8472
Permanent link to this record