Optimization of Porous Structures of Carbon Matrices for Loading Red Phosphorus to Achieve High-Capacity and Long-Life Anodes for All-Solid-State Lithium-Ion Batteries.

All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries (ASSLIBs) using sulfide electrolytes and high-capacity alloy-type anodes have attracted sizable interest due to their potential excellent safety and high energy density. Encapsulating insulating red phosphorus (P) inside nanopores of a carbon matrix can adequately activate its electrochemical alloying reaction with lithium. Therefore, the porosity of the carbon matrix plays a crucial role in the electrochemical performance of the resulting red P/carbon composites.

Potassium-Hydrogen Hybrid Ion Alkaline Battery: A New Rechargeable Aqueous Battery Combined a K Storage Cathode and an Electrochemical Hydrogen Storage Anode.

A rechargeable aqueous hybrid ion alkaline battery, using a proton and a potassium ion as charge carriers for the anode and cathode, respectively, is proposed in this study by using well-developed potassium nickel hexacyanoferrate as the cathode material and mesoporous carbon sheets as the anode material, respectively. The constructed battery operates in a concentrated KOH solution, in which the energy storage mechanism for potassium nickel hexacyanoferrate involves the redox reaction of Fe/Fe associated with potassium ion insertion/extraction and the redox reaction of Ni(OH)/NiOOH. The mechanism for the carbon anode is electrochemical hydrogen storage.

Polyolefin-Based Separator with Interfacial Chemistry Regulation for Robust Potassium Metal Batteries.

Potassium metal batteries (KMBs) are ideal choices for high energy density storage system owing to the low electrochemical potential and low cost of K. However, the practical KMB applications suffer from intrinsically active K anode, which would bring serious safety concerns due to easier generation of dendrites. Herein, to explore a facile approach to tackle this issue, we propose to regulate K plating/stripping via interfacial chemistry engineering of commercial polyolefin-based separator using multiple functional units integrated in tailored metal organic framework.

Surface Acidity Dictates Proton Transport in WO/ZrO: Proton-Conductive Behavior and Mechanistic Insight.

Development of inorganic proton conductors that are applicable in a wide temperature range is crucial for applications such as fuel cells. Most of the reported proton conductors suffer from limited proton conductivity, especially at low temperature. In addition, the mechanism of proton conduction in the conductors is not fully understood, which limits the rational design of advanced proton conductors.

Boosting Interfacial Ion Transfer in Potassium-Ion Batteries via Synergy Between Nanostructured Bi@NC Bulk Anode and Electrolyte.

Using high-capacity alloy-type anodes can greatly advance potassium-ion batteries (PIBs). However, the primary limits are unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) and tough interfacial ion transfer associated with large-size K during electrochemical (de)alloy reactions. Here, we achieve excellent energy storage performance of PIBs via the synergy between a nanostructured Bi@N-doped carbon (Bi@NC) bulk anode and a KPF-dimethoxyethane (DME) electrolyte.

In-situ polymerized composite polymer electrolyte with cesium-ion additive enables dual-interfacial compatibility in all-solid-state lithium-metal batteries.

Solid composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs) that combine the advantages of inorganic and organic electrolytes are regarded as the most appealing candidates for all-solid-state lithium-metal batteries (ASSLMBs). Nonetheless, the interfacial incompatibility issues resulting from poor cathode/electrolyte contact and uncontrolled dendrite growth on Li anode are fundamentally challenging for the development of ASSLMBs. Herein, we design a solid CPE with dual-interface compatibility based on in-situ thermal polymerization of a precursor solution containing polymer monomer, cesium-ion (Cs), and inorganic Li conductor.

Ultrasensitive electrochemical sensor for mercury ion detection based on molybdenum selenide and Au nanoparticles thymine-Hg-thymine coordination.

An ultrasensitive and specific-selection electrochemical sensor was constructed for Hg detection based on Au nanoparticles and molybdenum selenide (Au NPs@MoSe) as well as the thymine-Hg-thymine (T-Hg-T) coordination. Herein, Au NPs@MoSe not only could improve the sensitivity due to the large surface area and good electrical conductivity but also offered more sites to immobilize thiol-labeled T-rich hairpin DNA probes (P-1), which has a specific recognition for Hg and methylene blue-labeled T-rich DNA probes (MB-P). When Hg and MB-P exist, P-1 and MB-P can form a stable T-Hg-T complex.

A sandwich-type photoelectrochemical aptasensor using Au/BiVO and CdS quantum dots for carcinoembryonic antigen assay.

A novel sandwich-type photoelectrochemical (PEC) aptasensor for the carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) assay was fabricated using the CEA aptamer, Au/BiVO and CdS quantum dots (CdS QDs). In virtue of the localized surface plasmon resonance effect of Au nanoparticles, Au/BiVO showed an effective utilization of visible light and excellent photoactivity, and was employed as the photoanode. After CdS QDs were conjugated to Au/BiVO through the sandwich structure based on the hybridization of the CEA aptamer with two partially complementary single-stranded DNA molecules, the photocurrents were further enhanced by a resonance energy transfer between CdS QDs and Au nanoparticles.

Tuning the Intrinsic Activity and Electrochemical Surface Area of MoS via Tiny Zn Doping: Toward an Efficient Hydrogen Evolution Reaction (HER) Catalyst.

Molybdenum sulfide (MoS ) is considered as an alternative material for commercial platinum catalysts for electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Improving the apparent HER activity of MoS to a level comparable to that of Pt is an essential premise for the commercial use of MoS . In this work, a Zn-doping strategy is proposed to enhance the HER performance of MoS .

Cellulose-based material in lithium-sulfur batteries: A review.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery is considered to be a promising energy storage system due to its high energy density and low cost. However, the commercialization of Li-S battery is hindered by several problems such as the insulating nature of active materials, notorious "shuttle effect" and damage of lithium dendrites. Cellulose-based materials have attracted widespread attention in the development of Li-S battery on account of their environmentally friendly nature, unique network structure, and possibility for chemical functionalization.

3D Coral-like LLZO/PVDF Composite Electrolytes with Enhanced Ionic Conductivity and Mechanical Flexibility for Solid-State Lithium Batteries.

Composite polymer electrolytes (CPEs) are very promising for high-energy lithium-metal batteries as they combine the advantages of polymeric and ceramic electrolytes. The dimensions and morphologies of active ceramic fillers play critical roles in determining the electrochemical and mechanical performances of CPEs. Herein, a coral-like LLZO (LiLaZrAlO) is designed and used as a 3D active nanofiller in a poly(vinylidene difluoride) polymer matrix.

Activating the hydrogen evolution activity of Pt electrode via synergistic interaction with NiS.

Electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a green approach to produce high-quality hydrogen fuel. Developing efficient electrocatalyst is the key to realize cost-effective HER. Pt is the state-of-the-art HER catalyst so far.

Multifunctional Polypropylene Separator via Cooperative Modification and Its Application in the Lithium-Sulfur Battery.

The continuous shuttling of dissolved polysulfides between the electrodes is the primary cause for the rapid decay of lithium-sulfur batteries. Modulation of the separator-electrolyte interface through separator modification is a promising strategy to inhibit polysulfide shuttling. In this work, we develop a graphene oxide and ferrocene comodified polypropylene separator with multifunctionality at the separator-electrolyte interface.

The determination of trace free acid content in lithium-ion battery electrolytes by coulometric titration in non-aqueous media.

A new quantitative analysis method was proposed, aiming at resolving the difficulty encountered in accurately determining the trace content of a free acid in lithium-ion battery electrolytes in the past 30 years. The presented method overcame the three restrictive factors of lithium-ion battery electrolytes, namely, poor thermal stability, the formation of hydrofluoric acid with water and difficulty in the accurate determination of trace free acids. The free acid in lithium-ion battery electrolytes was directly titrated with ethoxide ions generated through the electrolyzation of a 0.

Self-assembled N-doped carbon with a tube-in-tube nanostructure for lithium-sulfur batteries.

Lithium-sulfur batteries hold broad prospects as the low-cost and high-energy storage system. However, the practical application is limited by the intrinsic insulating nature of sulfur and severe shuttle effect of soluble polysulfide intermediates. Herein, we demonstrate a convenient self-assembly strategy for encapsulating carbon nanotubes in nitrogen-doped hollow carbon shells, to construct a nitrogen-doped tube-in-tube carbon nanostructure (NTTC) as a host material of sulfur.

Chemical Prelithiation of Negative Electrodes in Ambient Air for Advanced Lithium-Ion Batteries.

This study reports an ambient-air-tolerant approach for negative electrode prelithiation by using 1 M lithium-biphenyl (Li-Bp)/tetrahydrofuran (THF) solution as the prelithiation reagent. Key to this strategy are the relatively stable nature of 1 M Li-Bp/THF in ambient air and the unique electrochemical behavior of Bp in ether and carbonate solvents. With its low redox potential of 0.

Confining nano-sized platinum in nitrogen doped ordered mesoporous carbon: An effective approach toward efficient and robust hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst.

Despite recent progress in the development of earth abundant electrochemical catalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), Pt based materials still stand as the state of the art HER catalyst. Due to the high cost of Pt, it is desirable to increase the utilization efficiency of Pt in practical HER process to a realize cost effective hydrogen production. Herein, we repot a novel nitrogen doped ordered mesoporous carbon supported Pt (Pt@NOMC-A) catalyst with a low Pt loading of 7.

Electrochemical Hydrogen Storage in Facile Synthesized Co@N-Doped Carbon Nanoparticle Composites.

A Co@nitrogen-doped carbon nanoparticle composite was synthesized via a facile molecular self-assembling procedure. The material was used as the host for the electrochemical storage of hydrogen. The hydrogen storage capacity of the material was over 300 mAh g at a rate of 100 mAg.

The effects of structural properties on the lithium storage behavior of mesoporous TiO.

Understanding the effects of structural properties on the lithium storage behavior of mesoporous TiO is crucial for further optimizing its performance through rational structure design. To achieve this, herein, the surface area and the grain size of the prepared mesoporous TiO are intentionally adjusted by controlling the calcination temperatures. It is found that the capacities of the mesoporous TiO contain both the lithium-ion insertion into the bulk phase (Q ) and the additional surface lithium storage (Q ).

Self-assembly synthesis of a unique stable cocoon-like hematite @C nanoparticle and its application in lithium ion batteries.

A novel cocoon-like FeO@C nanoparticle was fabricated via a facile hydrothermally molecular self-assembly procedure. Compared to bare FeO nanoparticles, the carbon coated FeO nanoparticles exhibit higher specific capacity, excellent rate capacity and cyclic stability as the anode in lithium ion batteries. These cocoon-like FeO@C nanoparticles carry enhanced lithium storage properties with a reversible capacity of 358mAhg after 150 cycles under the current density of 1000mAg, while the carbon-free bare FeO can only deliver a much lower capacity of 127.

Advanced Separators for Lithium-Ion and Lithium-Sulfur Batteries: A Review of Recent Progress.

Li-ion and Li-S batteries find enormous applications in different fields, such as electric vehicles and portable electronics. A separator is an indispensable part of the battery design, which functions as a physical barrier for the electrode as well as an electrolyte reservoir for ionic transport. The properties of the separators directly influence the performance of the batteries.

Investigation of the Li-S Battery Mechanism by Real-Time Monitoring of the Changes of Sulfur and Polysulfide Species during the Discharge and Charge.

The mechanism of the sulfur cathode in Li-S batteries has been proposed. It was revealed by the real-time quantitative determination of polysulfide species and elemental sulfur by means of high-performance liquid chromatography in the course of the discharge and recharge of a Li-S battery. A three-step reduction mechanism including two chemical equilibrium reactions was proposed for the sulfur cathode discharge.

High-Capacity and Self-Stabilized Manganese Carbonate Microspheres as Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Manganese carbonate (MnCO3) is an attractive anode material with high capacity based on conversion reaction for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), but its application is mainly hindered by poor cycling performance. Building nanostructures/porous structures and nanocomposites has been demonstrated as an effective strategy to buffer the volume changes and maintain the electrode integrity for long-term cycling. It is widely believed that microsized MnCO3 is not suitable for use as anode material for LIBs because of its poor conductivity and the absence of nanostructure.

Preferential Solvation of Lithium Cations and Impacts on Oxygen Reduction in Lithium-Air Batteries.

The solvation of Li+ with 11 nonaqueous solvents commonly used as electrolytes for lithium batteries was studied. The solvation preferences of different solvents were compared by means of electrospray mass spectrometry and collision-induced dissociation. The relative strength of the solvent for the solvation of Li+ was determined.

Hydrogen ion supercapacitor: a new hybrid configuration of highly dispersed MnO₂ in porous carbon coupled with nitrogen-doped highly ordered mesoporous carbon with enhanced H-insertion.

A new configuration of hydrogen ion supercapacitors was reported. A positive electrode composed of pseudocapacitive MnO2, highly dispersed into active porous carbon through an impregnation method, was combined with a nitrogen-doped highly ordered mesoporous carbon with enhanced electrochemical hydrogen insertion capacity as a negative electrode. During the operation, hydrogen ion shuttled between MnO2 and carbon electrodes.