Plasmonic enhanced Cu2O-Au-BFO photocathodes for solar hydrogen production.

A novel Cu2O-Au-BFO heterostructure photocathode was constructed which significantly improved the efficiency of photo-generated carrier transfer for solar hydrogen production. A BiFeO3 (BFO) ferroelectric film was synthesized on top of a Cu2O layer by a sputtering process. The BFO layer acted to protect the Cu2O layer from photochemical corrosion, increasing photoelectrochemical (PEC) stability. The p-n heterojunction between Cu2O and BFO layers enhanced the PEC properties by suppressing charge recombination and improved interfacial charge transfer efficiency. When Cu2O and BFO are interfaced by Au Nanoparticles (NPs) the PEC performance was further enhanced, due to hot-electron transfer at the plasmonic resonance. After positive poling, the depolarization field across the whole volume of BFO film drove electrons into the electrolyte solution, inducing a significant anodic shift, Vop of 1.01 V vs. RHE, together with a significantly enhanced photocurrent density of -91 µA/cm2 at 0 V vs. RHE under 100 mW/cm2 illumination. The mechanism was investigated through experimental and theoretivcal calculations.

Improved photocathodic performance in Pt catalyzed ferroelectric BiFeO3 films sandwiched by a porous carbon layer.

A porous carbon layer was inserted between a BiFeO3 film and a Pt catalyst for efficient solar water splitting. A photocathodic current density of -235.4 µA cm-2 at 0 V versus RHE and an onset potential of 1.19 V versus RHE were obtained under 100 mW cm-2 Xe-lamp illumination.

Civets are equally susceptible to experimental infection by two different severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus isolates.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) was caused by a novel virus now known as SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV). The discovery of SARS-CoV-like viruses in masked palm civets (Paguma larvata) raises the possibility that civets play a role in SARS-CoV transmission. To test the susceptibility of civets to experimental infection by different SARS-CoV isolates, 10 civets were inoculated with two human isolates of SARS-CoV, BJ01 (with a 29-nucleotide deletion) and GZ01 (without the 29-nucleotide deletion). All inoculated animals displayed clinical symptoms, such as fever, lethargy, and loss of aggressiveness, and the infection was confirmed by virus isolation, detection of viral genomic RNA, and serum-neutralizing antibodies. Our data show that civets were equally susceptible to SARS-CoV isolates GZ01 and BJ01.

Isolation of avian infectious bronchitis coronavirus from domestic peafowl (Pavo cristatus) and teal (Anas).

Coronavirus-like viruses, designated peafowl/China/LKQ3/2003 (pf/CH/LKQ3/03) and teal/China/LDT3/2003 (tl/CH/LDT3/03), were isolated from a peafowl and a teal during virological surveillance in Guangdong province, China. Partial genomic sequence analysis showed that these isolates had the S-3-M-5-N gene order that is typical of avian coronaviruses. The spike, membrane and nucleocapsid protein genes of pf/CH/LKQ3/03 had >99 % identity to those of the avian infectious bronchitis coronavirus H120 vaccine strain (Massachusetts serotype) and other Massachusetts serotype isolates. Furthermore, when pf/CH/LKQ3/03 was inoculated experimentally into chickens (specific-pathogen-free), no disease signs were apparent. tl/CH/LDT3/03 had a spike protein gene with 95 % identity to that of a Chinese infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) isolate, although more extensive sequencing revealed the possibility that this strain may have undergone recombination. When inoculated into chickens, tl/CH/LDT3/03 resulted in the death of birds from nephritis. Taken together, this information suggests that pf/CH/LKQ3/03 might be a revertant, attenuated vaccine IBV strain, whereas tl/CH/LDT3/03 is a nephropathogenic field IBV strain, generated through recombination. The replication and non-pathogenic nature of IBV in domestic peafowl and teal under field conditions raises questions as to the role of these hosts as carriers of IBV and the potential that they may have to transmit virus to susceptible chicken populations.