Exploring Calcium Manganese Oxide as a Promising Cathode Material for Calcium-Ion Batteries.

The dependence on lithium for the energy needs of the world, coupled with its scarcity, has prompted the exploration of postlithium alternatives. Calcium-ion batteries are one such possible alternative owing to their high energy density, similar reduction potential, and naturally higher abundance. A critical gap in calcium-ion batteries is the lack of suitable cathodes for intercalating calcium at high voltages and capacities while also maintaining structural stability.

Polyvinylidene Fluoride-Based Gel Polymer Electrolytes for Calcium Ion Conduction: A Study of the Influence of Salt Concentration and Drying Temperature on Coordination Environment and Ionic Conductivity.

Calcium-ion batteries emerged as a potential sustainable alternative energy storage system; however, there remains the need to further develop electrolytes to improve their performance. We report a gel polymer electrolyte (GPE)-based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) for calcium ion conduction. The gel electrolyte was synthesized by combining a PVDF polymer host, Ca(TFSI) salt, and -methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) solvent.

Fluorescent Waveguide Lattices for Enhanced Light Harvesting and Solar Cell Performance.

We present the properties and performance of fluorescent waveguide lattices as coatings for solar cells, designed to address the significant mismatch between the solar cell's spectral response range and the solar spectrum. Using arrays of microscale visible light optical beams transmitted through photoreactive polymer resins comprising acrylate and silicone monomers and fluorescein ,'-dimethacrylate comonomer, we photopolymerize well-structured films with single and multiple waveguide lattices. The materials exhibited bright green-yellow fluorescence emission through down-conversion of blue-UV excitation and light redirection from the dye emission and waveguide lattice structure.

Plating and Stripping Calcium Metal in Potassium Hexafluorophosphate Electrolyte toward a Stable Hybrid Solid Electrolyte Interphase.

The use of calcium (Ca) metal anodes in batteries is currently challenged by the development of a suitable solid electrolyte interface (SEI) that enables effective Ca ion transport. Native calcium electrolytes produce a passivation layer on the surface of the calcium electrodes during cycling, causing a decrease in capacity during cycling and the need for large overpotentials. The use of a hybrid SEI is a strategy to mitigate the uncontrolled production of a passivation layer and reduce the overpotentials needed for the plating and stripping of calcium.