Entropy-engineered perovskite cathodes: A novel approach for efficient and durable CO electrolysis.

The application of solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) for high-temperature CO reduction reaction (CORR) is constrained by the electrochemical activity and stability of the cathode materials. In this study, a series of iron-based perovskite oxides, designed by systematically varying A-site configurational entropy, are investigated as cathode materials for the CORR. Experimental results reveal that these high-entropy materials, derived from LaSrFeO (LSF), exhibit high electrocatalytic activity and durability.

Ultrahigh Plateau-Capacity Sodium Storage by Plugging Open Pores.

Hard carbon (HC) stands out as the most promising anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs), and a precise adjustment of the pore structure is the key to achieving high plateau-capacity. In this work, composite hard carbon is developed by integrating graphitic carbon with biomass waste (banana peel)-derived activated carbon (AC). In this design, N-doped pseudographite layer is stacked at the entrance of open pores, forming a long-range graphitic layer without excessive graphitization.

Integrating commercial graphite with network-like carbon fibers for high-rate and long-term cycling K-storage.

K can reversibly intercalate into graphite by forming KC (279 mA h g, ≈0.2 V) in conventional carbonate electrolytes, but the large ionic radius of K (1.38 Å) easily results in structural degradation and rapid capacity decay.

A Dual-Carbon Potassium-Ion Capacitor Enabled by Hollow Carbon Fibrous Electrodes with Reduced Graphitization.

The large size of K ions (1.38 Å) sets a challenge in achieving high kinetics and long lifespan of potassium storage devices. Here, a fibrous ZrO membrane is utilized as a reactive template to construct a dual-carbon K-ion capacitor.

Construction of hierarchical InO/InS-ZnCdS ternary microsphere heterostructures for efficient photocatalytic nitrogen fixation.

Photocatalytic ammonia production holds immense promise as an environmentally sustainable approach to nitrogen fixation. In this study, InO/InS-ZnCdS ternary heterostructures were successfully constructed through an innovative in situ anion exchange process, coupled with a low-temperature hydrothermal method for ZnCdS (ZCS) incorporation. The resulting InO/InS-ZCS photocatalyst was proved to be highly efficient in converting N to NH under mild conditions, eliminating the need for sacrificial agents or precious metal catalysts.

Realizing Efficient Activity and High Conductivity of Perovskite Symmetrical Electrode by Vanadium Doping for CO Electrolysis.

Solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) show significant promise in converting CO to valuable fuels and chemicals, yet exploiting efficient electrode materials poses a great challenge. Perovskite oxides, known for their stability as SOEC electrodes, require improvements in electrocatalytic activity and conductivity. Herein, vanadium(V) cation is newly introduced into the B-site of SrFeMoO perovskite to promote its electrochemical performance.

Attapulgite-intercalated g-CN/ZnInS 3D hierarchical Z-scheme heterojunction for boosting photocatalytic hydrogen production.

Construction of hierarchical architecture with suitable band alignment for graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) played a pivotal role in enhancing the efficiency of photocatalysts. In this study, a novel attapulgite-intercalated g-CN/ZnInS nanocomposite material (ZIS/CN/ATP, abbreviated as ZCA) was successfully synthesized using the freeze-drying technique, thermal polymerization, and a simple low-temperature hydrothermal method. Attapulgite (ATP) was intercalated into g-CN to effectively regulate its interlayer structure.

Ultrasensitive monitoring of PCB77 in environmental samples using a visible-driven photoelectrochemical sensing platform coupling with exonuclease I assisted in target recycling.

Due to the urgent need for detecting trace amounts of 3,3',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (PCB77) in the environment, we have developed an efficient and visible-driven photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensing platform based on carbon quantum dots (CQDs) modified titanium dioxide nanorods (TiO NRs), coupling with exonuclease I (Exo I) assisted in target recycling for significant signal amplification. CQDs/TiO NRs with high visible-light absorption ability and electron-hole separation efficiency is used as photoactive substrate for anchoring anti-PCB77 aptamer and its complementary DNA (cDNA). With the addition of PCB77, the specific interaction between PCB77 and its aptamer forces aptamer to separate from the electrode surface, resulting in an increase in photocurrent density.

Interface engineering of Ruddlesden-Popper perovskite/CeO/carbon heterojunction for rechargeable zinc-air batteries.

The development of noble metal-based bifunctional electrocatalysts is the key to driving the sluggish oxygen reduction/evolution reaction (ORR/OER) for rechargeable zinc-air battery applications. There is an urgent need to design and construct robust and cost-efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts. Herein, an interface engineering strategy of Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) perovskite/CeO/carbon heterojunction with core-shell nanostructures is described.

Atomistic Insights into Medium-Entropy Perovskites for Efficient and Robust CO Electrolysis.

Solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) show great promise in converting CO to valuable products. However, their practicality for the CO reduction reaction (CORR) is restricted by sluggish kinetics and limited durability. Herein, we propose a novel medium-entropy perovskite, Sr(FeTiCrMnMo)O (SFTCMM), as a potential electrode material for symmetrical SOEC toward CORR.

Laser-induced transient conversion of rhodochrosite/polyimide into multifunctional MnO/graphene electrodes for energy storage applications.

Laser-induced graphene (LIG) has been extensively investigated for electrochemical energy storage due to its easy synthesis and highly conductive nature. However, the limited charge accumulation in LIG usually leads to significantly low energy densities. In this work, we report a novel strategy to directly transform natural rhodochrosite into ultrafine manganese dioxide (MnO) nanoparticles (NPs) in the polyimide (PI) substrate for high-performance micro-supercapacitors (MSCs) and lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) through a scalable and cost-effective laser processing method.

Recent Advancements of Graphene-Based Materials for Zinc-Based Batteries: Beyond Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Graphene-based materials (GBMs) possess a unique set of properties including tunable interlayer channels, high specific surface area, and good electrical conductivity characteristics, making it a promising material of choice for making electrode in rechargeable batteries. Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) currently dominate the commercial rechargeable battery market, but their further development has been hampered by limited lithium resources, high lithium costs, and organic electrolyte safety concerns. From the performance, safety, and cost aspects, zinc-based rechargeable batteries have become a promising alternative of rechargeable batteries.

Ultrastable Graphite-Potassium Anode through Binder Chemistry.

Graphite with abundant reserves has attracted enormous research interest as an anode of potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) owing to its high plateau capacity of 279 mAh g at ≈0.2 V in conventional carbonate electrolytes. Unfortunately, it suffers from fast capacity decay during K storage.

3D printing of hierarchically micro/nanostructured electrodes for high-performance rechargeable batteries.

3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is capable of fabricating 3D hierarchical micro/nanostructures by depositing a layer-upon-layer of precursor materials and solvent-based inks under the assistance of computer-aided design (CAD) files. 3D printing has been employed to construct 3D hierarchically micro/nanostructured electrodes for rechargeable batteries, endowing them with high specific surface areas, short ion transport lengths, and high mass loading. This review summarizes the advantages and limitations of various 3D printing methods and presents the recent developments of 3D-printed electrodes in rechargeable batteries, such as lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries, and lithium-sulfur batteries.

Functionalized Halloysite Scaffold Controls Sodium Dendrite Growth.

Sodium metal is one of the most promising anodes for the prospective low-cost rechargeable batteries. Nevertheless, the commercialization of Na metal anodes remains restricted by sodium dendrite growth. Herein, halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) were chosen as the insulated scaffolds, and Ag nanoparticles were introduced as sodiophilic sites to achieve uniform sodium deposition from bottom to top under the synergistic effect.

Cross-Linked Sodium Alginate as A Multifunctional Binder to Achieve High-Rate and Long-Cycle Stability for Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) hold great promise owing to the naturally abundant sodium resource and high safety. The research focus of SIBs is usually directed toward electrode materials, while the binder as an important component is rarely investigated. Herein, a cross-linked sodium alginate (SA)/graphene oxide (GO) binder is judiciously designed to serve as a robust artificial interphase on the surface of both anode and cathode of SIBs.

Rationally designing a TiCT/CNTs-CoS heterostructure as a sulfur host with multi-functionality for high-performance lithium-sulfur batteries.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have been regarded as potential next-generation batteries owing to their ultrahigh theoretical capacity and abundance of sulfur. However, polysulfide shuttling, poor electronic conductivity, and severe volume expansion limit their commercial prospects. In this work, we rationally constructed a 3D porous TiCT/CNTs-CoS heterostructure derived from a zeolite imidazole framework (ZIF)/TiCT MXene composite carbonization and subsequent sulfidation.

A montmorillonite-modification strategy enabling long cycling stability of dual-ion batteries.

Lithium‖graphite dual-ion batteries (DIBs) have received widespread attention due to their low cost and high operating voltage (nearly 5 V). However, DIBs face several challenges such as decomposition of the electrolyte under high voltage and structural deterioration of graphite. Herein, montmorillonite (MMT) is employed to generate a favorable and robust cathode electrolyte interface (CEI) layer on the graphite surface.

Metal organic framework derived perovskite/spinel heterojunction as efficient bifunctional oxygen electrocatalyst for rechargeable and flexible Zn-air batteries.

Interface engineering strategy has been developed to design efficient catalysts for boosting electrocatalytic performance in past few decades. Herein, heterojunctions of PrCoO/CoO nanocages (PCO/CoO NCs) with atomic-level engineered interfaces and rich oxygen vacancies are proposed for Zn-air batteries. The synthesized product shows exceptional bifunctional activity and robust stability towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER).

A Mechanically Flexible Necklace-Like Architecture for Achieving Fast Charging and High Capacity in Advanced Lithium-Ion Capacitors.

Integration of fast charging, high capacity, and mechanical flexibility into one electrode is highly desired for portable energy-storage devices. However, a high charging rate is always accompanied by capacity decay and cycling instability. Here, a necklace-structured composite membrane consisting of micron-sized FeSe cubes uniformly threaded by carbon nanofibers (CNF) is reported.

Natural ore molybdenite as a high-capacity and cheap anode material for advanced lithium-ion capacitors.

Hybrid lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) receive special interests because they work by combining the merits of high-capacity lithium-ion batteries and high-rate capacitors in a Li salt containing electrolyte, so as to bridge the gap between the two devices. One of main challenges for LICs is to develop inexpensive and superior anode materials at high rates. In this work, natural molybdenite was utilized as precursor to achieve the scalable production of cheap MoS/carbon composites.

Hierarchical MXene/transition metal chalcogenide heterostructures for electrochemical energy storage and conversion.

MXenes have gained rapidly increasing attention owing to their two-dimensional (2D) layered structures and unique mechanical and physicochemical properties. However, MXenes have some intrinsic limitations (, the restacking tendency of the 2D structure) that hinder their practical applications. Transition metal chalcogenide (TMC) materials such as SnS, NiS, MoS, FeS, and NiSe have attracted much interest for energy storage and conversion by virture of their earth-abundance, low costs, moderate overpotentials, and unique layered structures.

Rational design of all-solid-state TiO/Cu/ZnO Z-scheme heterojunction via ALD-assistance for enhanced photocatalytic activity.

Poor visible light utilization and charge separation efficiency of TiO restrict its extensive application in the photocatalytic field. Herein, a specific Z-scheme TiO/Cu/ZnO heterojunction was successfully constructed by atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique and spray pyrolysis technology. Benefited from the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of Cu and Z-scheme heterojunction, the visible light absorption capacity was greatly enhanced.