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Transition metal tungstate-based nanomaterials have become one of the research hotspots in electrochemistry due to their abundant natural resources, low costs, and environmental friendliness. Extensive studies have demonstrated their significant potentials for electrochemical applications, such as supercapacitors, Li-ion batteries, Na-ion batteries, electrochemical sensing, and electrocatalysis. Considering the rapidly growing research enthusiasm for this topic over the last several years, herein, a critical review of recent progress on the application of transition metal tungstates and their composites for electrochemical applications is summarized. The relationships between synthetic methods, nano/micro structures and electrochemical properties are systematically discussed. Finally, their promising prospects for future development are also proposed. It is anticipated that this review will inspire ongoing interest in rational designing and fabricating novel transition metal tungstate-based nanomaterials for high-performance electrochemical devices.

Adsorption and activation of C–H bonds by photocatalysts are crucial for the efficient conversion of C–H bonds to produce high-value chemicals. Nevertheless, the delivery of surface-active oxygen species for C–H bond oxygenation inevitably needs to overcome obstacles due to the separated active centers, which suppresses the catalytic efficiency. Herein, Ni dopants are introduced into a monolayer Bi 2 WO 6 to create cascaded active units consisting of unsaturated W atoms and Bi/O frustrated Lewis pairs. Experimental characterizations and density functional theory calculations reveal that these special sites can establish an efficient and controllable C–H bond oxidation process. The activated oxygen species on unsaturated W are readily transferred to the Bi/O sites for C–H bond oxygenation. The catalyst with a Ni mass fraction of 1.8% exhibits excellent toluene conversion rates and high selectivity towards benzaldehyde. This study presents a fascinating strategy for toluene oxidation through the design of efficient cascaded active units. By introducing Ni dopants into monolayer Bi 2 WO 6 , Bi/O frustrated Lewis pairs, unsaturated W atoms, and Ni active units are formed. The authors show that these units facilitate oxygen species transfer and enhance photocatalytic toluene oxidation.

The photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to energy-rich hydrocarbon fuels is a promising and sustainable method of addressing global warming and the imminent energy crisis concomitantly. However, a vast majority of the existing photocatalysts are only capable of harnessing ultraviolet （UV） or/and visible light （Vis）, whereas the near-infrared （NIR） region still remains unexplored. In this study, carbon quantum dots （CQDs）-decorated ultrathin BizWO6 nanosheets （UBW） were demonstrated to be an efficient photocatalyst for CO2 photoreduction over the Vis-NIR broad spectrum. It is noteworthy that the synthesis procedure of the CQDs/UBW hybrid nanocomposites was highly facile, involving a one-pot hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide （CTAB）-assisted hydrothermal process. Under visible light irradiation, the optimized 1CQDsAJBW （1 wt.% CQD content） exhibited a remarkable 9.5-fold and 3.1-fold enhancement of CH4 production over pristine Bi2WO6 nanoplatelets （PBW） and bare UBW, respectively. More importantly, the photocatalytic responsiveness of CQDs/UBW was successfully extended to the NIR region, which was achieved without involving any rare earth or noble metals. The realization of NIR-driven CO2 reduction could be attributed to the synergistic effects of （i） the ultrathin nanostructures and highly exposed {001} active facets of UBW, （ii） the excellent spectral coupling of UBW and CQDs, where UBW could be excited by the up-converted photoluminescence of CQDs, and （iii） the electron-withdrawing nature of the CQDs to trap the photogenerated electrons and retard the recombination of charge carriers.

Simple and rapid analysis of cadmium ion in environmental and biological samples is of great importance due to the severe toxicity caused by this heavy metal. In the present work, nickel tungstate (NiWO 4 ) dispersion was mixed with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) to obtain a homogenous composite of (NiWO 4 /MWCNTs) which was assigned as carbon paste electrode modifier. The composite was fully characterized using various characterization techniques including X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Thermo-Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) and Fourier Transform InfraRed (FTIR). The electrochemical redox reactions of cadmium (II) ions at the modified electrode interface were investigated using cyclic voltammetry (CV), differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV). Effective parameters on the electro-analysis assay performance including the electrode composition, types of electrolyte, scan rate and pH were tested to achieve the best effective optimum conditions. Accordingly, a linear relation of cadmium ions was achieved in the concentration range 50–450 µM with limit of detection of 0.12 µM. Besides, the proposed electrode was successfully used to monitor trace amounts of cadmium ions in various real samples. Graphical abstract Schematic illustration of synthesis process of NiWO4/MWCN nanocomposite and its application as high-performance cadmium ion sensors

Heterojunction composites with intimate interfaces can shorten the diffusion distance, which leads to a shorter path for photogenerated carriers, thereby increasing photocatalytic activity. Herein, we report the fabrication of Ti 3 C 2 -Bi 2 WO 6 (TC-BW) heterojunctions hinged by Bi 2 Ti 2 O 7 joints via an in situ hydrothermal reaction of Ti 3 C 2 in the presence of Na 2 WO 4 and Bi(NO 3 ) 3 . The TC-BW was characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), and Raman spectroscopy. TC-BW showed superior photocatalytic activity (productivity over 15TC-WB reaches up to 5.0 mmol reacted BA ·g cat. −1 ·h −1 ) in the oxidation of benzyl alcohol using light-emitting diode (LED) light, arising from the surface defects and intimate heterojunction interface between the Ti 3 C 2 MXene and Bi 2 WO 6 nanosheets. TC-BW heterojunctions provide an enhanced separation efficiency of photogenerated charges, which in turn yields superior photocatalytic activity. Furthermore, it is well substantiated by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. In summary, this study elucidates the preparation of heterojunction composites with intimate interfaces for highly efficient photooxidation.

In this study, a chemical precipitation approach was adopted to produce a photocatalyst based on bismuth tungstate Bi2WO6 for enhanced and environmentally friendly organic pollutant degradation. Various tools such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), optical spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, were employed to assess the structural and morphological properties. Hence, the XRD profiles showed a well crystallized Bi2WO6 orthorhombic phase. The photocatalytic performance of the resulting photocatalyst was assessed by the decomposition of Rhodamine B (RhB) and methyl orange (MO) with a decomposition efficiency of 97 and 92%, along with the highest chemical oxygen demand of 82 and 79% during 120 min of illumination, respectively. The principal novelty of the present work is to focus on the changes in the crystalline structure, the morphology, and the optical and the photoelectrochemical characteristics of the Bi2WO6, by tuning the annealing temperature of the designed photocatalyst. Such physicochemical property changes in the as-prepared photocatalyst will affect in turn its photocatalytic activity toward the organic pollutant decomposition. The photocatalytic mechanism was elaborated based on electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, photocurrent analysis, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and radical trapping measurements. The overall data indicate that the superoxide O2•− and holes h+ are the principal species responsible for the pollutant photodegradation.

This paper presents the results of a study on the morphology, structure, and luminescent properties of ceramics synthesized in the radiation field of MeWO4 compositions (where Me is Mg, Ca, and Zn). The synthesis of ceramics was carried out by the direct action of the electron flux on an initial mixture of powders of the given stoichiometric composition. WO3, ZnO, MgO, and CaO powders with particle sizes in the range of 1–50 microns were used for the synthesis of the samples. It was found that the yield of the radiation synthesis reaction (the ratio of the mass of the sample and the charge used), when treated with an electron flux with an energy of 1.4 MeV and a flux power density of 15–18 kW/cm2, was in the range of 75–99%. The synthesis of all compositions was carried out under the same radiation treatment modes, although the melting temperatures of the starting materials varied significantly and ranged from 1473 °C (WO3) to 2825 °C (MgO). The study of the ceramic structure showed that under the radiation effect of powerful radiation fluxes on the charge, a crystalline phase of the appropriate composition formed, regardless of the synthesis modes. The results of XRD studies show that during the radiation treatment of the charge, ceramics are formed mainly with the crystalline phases ZnWO4, MgWO4, and CaWO4. These resulting MeWO4 ceramics can be used for the same purposes as crystals. Photoluminescence (PL) and cathodoluminescence (CL) were studied under excitation using stationary ultraviolet radiation and nanosecond pulses of electron flux. In general, the PL and CL of synthesized ceramic samples ZnWO4, MgWO4, and CaWO4 showed that their luminescent properties are similar to those of luminescence in corresponding crystalline materials. This indicates the formation of a crystalline phase in synthesized ceramic samples.

Photocatalytic hybrid carbon nanotubes (CNTs)–mediated Ag-CuBi 2 O 4 /Bi 2 WO 6 photocatalyst was fabricated using a hydrothermal technique to effectively eliminate organic pollutants from wastewater. The as-prepared samples were characterized via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM), UV–vis Diffuse Reflectance spectrum (UV–Vis DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) studies. The photocatalytic performance of fabricated pristine and hybrid composites was examined by photo-degradation of toxic dye viz. Rhodamine B (RhB) under visible light. Photo-degradation results revealed that the fabricated Ag-CuBi 2 O 4 /CNTs/Bi 2 WO 6 semiconductor photocatalyst followed pseudo-first-order kinetics and displayed a higher photocatalytic rate, which was found to be approximately 3.33 and 2.35 times higher than the pristine CuBi 2 O 4 and Bi 2 WO 6 semiconductor photocatalyst, respectively. Re-cyclic results demonstrated that the formed composite owns excellent stability, even after five consecutive cycles. As per the matched Fermi level of CNTs in between Ag-CuBi 2 O 4 and Bi 2 WO 6 , carbon nanotubes severed as electron transfer-bridge, Ag doping on CuBi 2 O 4 surface successfully increased photon absorption all across CuBi 2 O 4 surface. Also, it hindered the assimilation of photoinduced electron–hole pairs. The increased photocatalytic efficiency is contributed to the uniform dispersion of photo-generated electron–hole pairs via the construction of an S-scheme system. ROS trapping and ESR experiments suggested that (∙OH) and (O 2 − ∙) were the main radical species for enhanced photo-degradation of RhB dye. The current investigation, from our perspective, highlights the new insights for the fabrication of practical CNTs-mediated S-scheme–based semiconductor photocatalyst for the resolution of environmental issues based on practical considerations.

The CRESST experiment (Cryogenic Rare Even Search with Superconducting Thermometers), located at Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy, searches for dark matter particles via their elastic scattering off nuclei in a target material. The CRESST target consists of scintillating CaWO4 crystals, which are operated as cryogenic calorimeters at millikelvin temperatures. Each interaction in the CaWO4 target crystal produces a phonon signal and a light signal that is measured by a second cryogenic calorimeter. Since the CRESST-II result in 2015, the experiment is leading the field of direct dark matter search for dark matter masses below 1.7 GeV/c2, extending the reach of direct searches to the sub-GeV/c2 mass region. For CRESST-III, whose Phase 1 started in July 2016, detectors have been optimized to reach the performance required to further probe the low-mass region with unprecedented sensitivity. In this contribution the achievements of the CRESST-III detectors will be discussed together with preliminary results and perspectives of Phase 1.

In situ Raman spectra of aqueous K2WO4-HCl, K2WO4-HCl-NaCl, and K2WO4-CO2-NaCl solutions were collected at elevated temperature (T, 100–400°C) and constant pressure (P) of 30 MPa. The stretching vibration band of the W=O bond (v1) was analyzed to reveal the species of tungsten (W) responsible for the hydrothermal transport of W during mineralization. Results showed that monomeric tungstates with v1(W=O) bands at ~930 and 950 cm-1 are the dominant W species in weakly alkaline (room temperature, pH=7.7) to near-neutral (room temperature, pH=7.2) solutions under the investigated T‐P conditions. Overall, the stability of polymeric tungstate species with v1(W=O) bands at ~965–995 cm-1 decreases with rising temperature and was not detected at ≥300°C in moderately acidic solution (room temperature, pH=4.9). However, increased fluid acidity and salinity obviously enlarged the temperature stability field of polymeric tungstate species. In highly acidic solution (room temperature, pH=1.4), polymeric tungstates are the only stable W species even at 400°C. In the presence of 1.9 mol/kg NaCl, polymeric tungstate(s) can persist to at least 350°C in moderately acidic solution. Considering that 300–350°C is the major W-mineralizing T range and W-mineralizing fluid is generally characterized by a moderately acidic nature, we propose that, in addition to monomeric tungstates, polymeric tungstates can also be important W species in some natural geological fluids that are responsible for the mineralization of W. Future studies of the W mineralization mechanism should take this issue into account.