Influence of nickel hydroxide catalyst ink formulation on direct bar coating of anion exchange membranes.

Achieving uniform and high-performing catalyst-coated membranes (CCMs) is a critical challenge in the field of electrochemical energy conversion technologies. This challenge is particularly pronounced in the coating of catalyst inks, where optimizing ink formulations and mixing conditions is essential for producing homogeneous catalyst layers that enhance electrochemical performance. In this study, we investigate the influence of mixing parameters and solvent composition on the rheological behavior and performance of nickel hydroxide-based anode inks, specifically for application in anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolysis.

Pt/C catalysts synthesized in a commercial particle atomic layer deposition system enabling improved durability in fuel cells.

Particle atomic layer deposition (ALD) is an emerging method for engineering 3D materials, such as powders, for energy applications. In our study, we employ a commercially available and scalable particle ALD system to synthesize Pt/C electrocatalysts for fuel cells. Our method yields Pt/C catalysts characterized by highly dispersed platinum nanoparticles with a narrow particle size distribution of 2.

Reference Electrode Types for Zero-Gap CO Electrolyzers: Benefits and Limitations.

Integrated reference electrodes allow to deconvolute voltage contributions of anode and cathode and contribute to a better understanding of CO electrolyzers. However, in zero-gap cell configurations, this integration can be challenging and obtaining error-free data with such a setup is a non-trivial task. This study compares five different methods to integrate a reference electrode into an alkaline zero-gap CO electrolysis cell.

Carbon black supported Ag nanoparticles in zero-gap CO electrolysis to CO enabling high mass activity.

In this study Ag nanoparticles supported on carbon black (Ag/C) were studied as catalysts for the electrochemical reduction of CO to CO. The nanoparticles were synthesized on three carbon supports, namely Super P, Vulcan and Ketjenblack with surface areas from 50 to 800 m g using cysteamine as a linker as proposed by Kim Gas diffusion electrodes were fabricated with all three Ag/Cs and then characterized in a zero-gap electrolyzer. All three supported catalysts achieve high voltage efficiencies, mass activities, and faradaic efficiencies above 80% up to 200 mA cm with Ag loadings of ∼0.

Alternative and facile production pathway towards obtaining high surface area PtCo/C intermetallic catalysts for improved PEM fuel cell performance.

The design of catalysts with stable and finely dispersed platinum or platinum alloy nanoparticles on the carbon support is key in controlling the performance of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. In the present work, an intermetallic PtCo/C catalyst is synthesized double-passivation galvanic displacement. TEM and XRD confirm a significantly narrowed particle size distribution for the catalyst particles compared to commercial benchmark catalysts (Umicore PtCo/C).

High-resolution neutron imaging of salt precipitation and water transport in zero-gap CO electrolysis.

The electrochemical reduction of CO is a pivotal technology for the defossilization of the chemical industry. Although pilot-scale electrolyzers exist, water management and salt precipitation remain a major hurdle to long-term operation. In this work, we present high-resolution neutron imaging (6 μm) of a zero-gap CO electrolyzer to uncover water distribution and salt precipitation under application-relevant operating conditions (200 mA cm at a cell voltage of 2.

Rapid wet-chemical oxidative activation of graphite felt electrodes for vanadium redox flow batteries.

To boost the performance of vanadium redox flow batteries, modification of the classically used felt electrodes is required to enable higher cycling performance and longer life cycles. Alternative approaches to the standard thermal oxidation procedure such as wet chemical oxidation are promising to reduce the thermal budget and thus the cost of the activation procedure. In this work we report a rapid 1 hour activation procedure in an acidified KMnO solution.

Performance and stability comparison of Aemion™ and Aemion+™ membranes for vanadium redox flow batteries.

Anion exchange membranes (AEMs) have shown a significant rise in performance and durability within recent years for applications such as electrolysis and fuel cells. However, in vanadium redox-flow batteries, their use is of particular interest to lower costs and self-discharge rates compared to conventional perfluorinated sulfonic acid-based ionomers such as Nafion. In this work we evaluate the properties of two commercial AEMs, Aemion™ and Aemion+™, based on characterizations, an accelerated stress test degradation study (>1000 hours storage in highly oxidizing VO electrolyte at 35 °C) and electrochemical battery cycle tests.

Improving the performance of proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers with low Ir-loaded anodes by adding PEDOT:PSS as electrically conductive binder.

Reducing the iridium catalyst loading in the anode of polymer electrolyte membrane electrolyzers is a major goal to bring down the cost. However, anodes with low Ir-loading can suffer from poor electrical connectivity and hence lower the efficiency of the electrolyzer. In this work, we replace parts of the Nafion binder in the anode with an electrically conductive polymer (poly-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene and polystyrene sulfonate acid complex, PEDOT:PSS) to counter this effect.

Towards 3D-lithium ion microbatteries based on silicon/graphite blend anodes using a dispenser printing technique.

In this work we present for the first time high capacity silicon/carbon-graphite blend slurries designed for application in 3D-printed lithium ion microbatteries (3D-MLIBs). The correlation between electrochemical and rheological properties of the corresponding slurries was systematically investigated with the prospect of production by an automated dispensing process. A variation of the binder content (carboxymethyl cellulose/styrene-butadiene rubber, CMC/SBR) between 6 wt%, 12 wt%, 18 wt% and 24 wt% in the anode slurry proved to be crucial for the printing process.

Improving the water management in anion-exchange membrane fuel cells ultra-thin, directly deposited solid polymer electrolyte.

Thin ionomer membranes are considered key to achieve high performances in anion exchange membrane fuel cells. However, the handling of unsupported anion exchange membranes with thicknesses below 15 μm is challenging. Typical pre-treatments of KOH-soaking, DI-water rinsing and/or wet assembly with sub-15 μm thin films are particularly problematic.

Children with social anxiety disorder show blunted pupillary reactivity and altered eye contact processing in response to emotional faces: Insights from pupillometry and eye movements.

Cognitive models and adult research associate social anxiety disorder (SAD) with hypervigilant-avoidant processing of social information, such as eye contact. However, processing biases in childhood SAD remain mostly unexplored. We examined 10- to 13-year-old children's eye contact processing and pupil dilation in response to happy, neutral, and angry faces in three groups: SAD (n = 31), mixed anxiety disorders (MAD; n = 30), and healthy controls (HC; n = 32).