OH scavenging pyridinic N for facile oxygen reduction reaction on free Pt surface.

Compared to hydrogen oxidation reaction, oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is a sluggish reaction in the proton exchange membrane fuel cell. Many studies have focused on the development of complex synthesis methods for new catalysts. In this study, we introduce a simple catalyst layer preparation method using an additive based on physical mixing for facile ORR in acid media.

Improved Redox Reaction of Lithium Polysulfides on the Interfacial Boundary of Polar CoC O as a Polysulfide Catenator for a High-Capacity Lithium-Sulfur Battery.

Invited for this month's cover is the group of Jaeyoung Lee at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology. The cover shows how the cobalt oxalates faced on the conductive carbon can act as an electrocatalyst to facilitate the redox reaction of lithium polysulfide at the cathode interface in lithium-sulfur batteries. The facilitated electrochemical redox reaction of lithium polysulfides was proved by a series of catenation reactions formed on the interfacial boundary area.

Improved Redox Reaction of Lithium Polysulfides on the Interfacial Boundary of Polar CoC O as a Polysulfide Catenator for a High-Capacity Lithium-Sulfur Battery.

The performance of cobalt oxalate as an electrocatalyst in a lithium-sulfur battery (LSB) is improved owing to the suitable adsorbent properties of sulfur. The adsorption mechanism is elucidated by UV/Vis spectroscopy and surface analysis through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Li S is converted into thiosulfate and polythionate by a catenation reaction on the interfacial boundary of CoC O contacted with carbon.

Electrochemical Properties of High Nickel Content Li(NiCoMn)O₂ with an Alumina Thin-Coating Layer as a Cathode Material for Lithium Ion Batteries.

The cathode material, high Nickel content NiCoMn (NCM), was synthesized by coprecipitation with NH₄OH used as a complexing agent. The prepared materials are made in the formation of spherical particles of Li(NiCoMn)O₂ of several micrometers in diameter. Al₂O₃ was coated by an impregnation method and its content was gradually increased to 1, 2 and 5 wt%.

Effective Electrochemical Activation of Oleate-Residue-Fouled Pt Nanoparticle Catalysts for Methanol and Formic Acid Oxidation.

Platinum plays a crucial role in the field of basic electrochemistry, regeneration energy, and so on. Pt nanomaterials with well-controlled size and shape could be easily obtained from metal-oleate complexes. However, these nanoparticles (NPs) were electrochemically inactive because of the attached organic residue.

Scalable Synthesis of Few-Layer MoS2 Incorporated into Hierarchical Porous Carbon Nanosheets for High-Performance Li- and Na-Ion Battery Anodes.

It is still a challenging task to develop a facile and scalable process to synthesize porous hybrid materials with high electrochemical performance. Herein, a scalable strategy is developed for the synthesis of few-layer MoS2 incorporated into hierarchical porous carbon (MHPC) nanosheet composites as anode materials for both Li- (LIB) and Na-ion battery (SIB). An inexpensive oleylamine (OA) is introduced to not only serve as a hinder the stacking of MoS2 nanosheets but also to provide a conductive carbon, allowing large scale production.

Facile synthesis of one-dimensional iron-oxide/carbon hybrid nanostructures as electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline media.

One-dimensional iron-oxide/carbon hybrid nano tubular structures were synthesized via anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) template method. Highly unform iron oxide nanoparticles and carbon structures were formed simultaneously on the wall surface of the AAO template from an iron-oleate precursor by solventless thermal decomposition method. The 1D iron-oxide/carbon nanostructures were obtained after removing the AAO template.

A chemically activated graphene-encapsulated LiFePO4 composite for high-performance lithium ion batteries.

A composite of modified graphene and LiFePO4 has been developed to improve the speed of charging-discharging and the cycling stability of lithium ion batteries using LiFePO4 as a cathode material. Chemically activated graphene (CA-graphene) has been successfully synthesized via activation by KOH. The as-prepared CA-graphene was mixed with LiFePO4 to prepare the composite.

Uniform graphene quantum dots patterned from self-assembled silica nanodots.

Graphene dots precisely controlled in size are interesting in nanoelectronics due to their quantum optical and electrical properties. However, most graphene quantum dot (GQD) research so far has been performed based on flake-type graphene reduced from graphene oxides. Consequently, it is extremely difficult to isolate the size effect of GQDs from the measured optical properties.

Electrochemical detection of dopamine in the presence of ascorbic acid using graphene modified electrodes.

Dopamine plays a significant role in the function of human metabolism. It is important to develop sensitive sensor for the determination of dopamine without the interference by ascorbic acid. This paper reports the synthesis of graphene using a modified Hummer's method and its application for the electrochemical detection of dopamine.