Identification of Degradation Reasons for a CO MEA Electrolyzer Using the Distribution of Relaxation Times Analysis.

The application of membrane electrode assembly (MEA) in electrocatalytic CO reduction (ECOR) technology is an essential step toward industrialization. Nevertheless, the issue of ECOR failure in MEA during extended operation hinders its industrial application. In this work, we employed in situ, nondestructive electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques combined with distribution of relaxation times (DRT) methodology to diagnose the causes of the failure.

Cu Tailoring Pt Enables Branched-Structured Electrocatalysts with High Concave Surface Curvature Toward Efficient Methanol Oxidation.

Surface engineering offers opportunities for the design and synthesis of Pt-based alloyed electrocatalysts with high mass activity and resistance to CO poisoning, which is of great significance for methanol electrooxidation. Surface curvature regulation may endow electrocatalysts with enhanced atomic utilization and abundance of unsaturated atoms; however, a reliable synthetic route for controlled construction of tailorable curved surface is still lacking. Here, a colloidal-chemical method to synthesize two types of PtCu branched-structured electrocatalysts, where the concave curvature can be customized is reported.

Self-supporting dual-confined porous Si@c-ZIF@carbon nanofibers for high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

Dual-confined porous Si@c-ZIF@carbon nanofibers (Si@c-ZIF@CNFs) are fabricated that possess excellent antioxidant capacity, high surface area and abundant pores, which enhances conductivity, relieves volume expansion and facilitates electrolyte penetration during cycling. When evaluated as self-supporting anodes for lithium-ion batteries, the Si@c-ZIF@CNFs exhibit excellent cycling and rate performance.