We report the electrochemical properties and performance of Pt-decorated carbon nanotube (Pt-CNT) catalysts for long-term operation in phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs). Electrochemical measurements of Pt-CNT catalysts including cyclic voltammetry, rotating ring disk electrode voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were conducted to evaluate the catalyzed oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Furthermore, we tested the long-term performance of the Pt-CNT catalysts in 2 '' x 2 '' PAFC cathodes operating at 190 C in 85% H3PO4 for extended periods (up to 240 days). Lifetime studies show that electrodes containing the Pt-CNT catalysts were approximately 20 times more stable than conventional Pt-C catalyst materials, even with a substantially thinner catalyst layer. This finding of the enhanced Pt-CNT catalyst stability bodes well for possible personal electronics or automotive applications, where catalyst longevity is an essential requirement.

We have developed an optimized high-throughput UV Raman spectrometer that utilizes a simple, inexpensive new 224.3 nm hollow cathode laser. This quasi-continuous wave (CW) 224.3 nm laser can be used to detect sub-ppm concentrations of aromatic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in aqueous solutions. This excitation is also useful for studying aromatic amino acids in proteins. We demonstrate the utility of this spectrometer to study the environments of tyr and trp in horse heart myoglobin.

Solvent extraction is a potential isotope separation method, but for heavy elements with small isotopic mass differences only small separation factors are observed. We have shown a dramatic enhancement in separation factor by exposing solvent extraction systems consisting of zirconium complexes distributed between organic and aqueous solvent phases to optical excitation in the visible and near UV. The optical effect is thought to originate in the interaction of the nuclear magnetic moment μ of 91Zr with the excited electronic state of the complex.