Electrodeposition of atmosphere-sensitive ternary sodium transition metal oxide films for sodium-based electrochemical energy storage.

We introduce an intermediate-temperature (350 °C) dry molten sodium hydroxide-mediated binder-free electrodeposition process to grow the previously electrochemically inaccessible air- and moisture-sensitive layered sodium transition metal oxides, NaMO (M = Co, Mn, Ni, Fe), in both thin and thick film form, compounds which are conventionally synthesized in powder form by solid-state reactions at temperatures ≥700 °C. As a key motivation for this work, several of these oxides are of interest as cathode materials for emerging sodium-ion-based electrochemical energy storage systems. Despite the low synthesis temperature and short reaction times, our electrodeposited oxides retain the key structural and electrochemical performance observed in high-temperature bulk synthesized materials.

NitroxylFluor: A Thiol-Based Fluorescent Probe for Live-Cell Imaging of Nitroxyl.

Detection of nitroxyl (HNO), the transient one-electron reduced form of nitric oxide, is a significant challenge owing to its high reactivity with biological thiols (with rate constants as high as 10 M s). To address this, we report a new thiol-based HNO-responsive trigger that can compete against reactive thiols for HNO. This process forms a common N-hydroxysulfenamide intermediate that cyclizes to release a masked fluorophore leading to fluorescence enhancement.

Electroplating lithium transition metal oxides.

Materials synthesis often provides opportunities for innovation. We demonstrate a general low-temperature (260°C) molten salt electrodeposition approach to directly electroplate the important lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery cathode materials LiCoO, LiMnO, and Al-doped LiCoO. The crystallinities and electrochemical capacities of the electroplated oxides are comparable to those of the powders synthesized at much higher temperatures (700° to 1000°C).

Exploring the impact of a summer sport-based youth development program.

The purpose of this study was to examine the benefits of youth participation in a sport-based youth development summer program, the National Youth Sport Program (NYSP). This study also identified areas of programmatic strength within the program, as well as areas for improvement. 193 participants in NYSP completed a pre- and post-test that assessed belonging, social competence, athletic competence, and competence related to eight specific sports.