Highly conductive VCT MXene-enhanced polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel electrolytes for flexible all-solid-state supercapacitors.

Hydrogel electrolytes are an integral part of flexible solid-state supercapacitors. To further improve the low ionic conductivity, large interfacial resistance and poor cycling stability for hydrogel electrolytes, the VCT MXene-enhanced polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel electrolyte was fabricated to enhance its mechanical and electrochemical performance. The high-conductivity VCT MXene (16,465.

Construction Au/FAPbI Schottky Heterojunction towards a High-Speed Electron Transfer Channel for High-Performance Perovskite Quantum Dot Solar Cells.

Formamidinium lead triiodide quantum dot (FAPbI QD) exhibits substantial potential in solar cells due to its suitable band gap, extended carrier lifetime, and superior phase stability. However, despite great attempts toward reconfiguring the surface chemical environment of FAPbI QDs, achieving the optimal efficiency of charge carrier extraction and transfer in cells remains a challenge. To circumvent this problem, we selectively introduced Au/FAPbI Schottky heterojunctions by reducing Au to Au and subsequently anchoring them on the surface of FAPbI QDs, which acts as a light-harvesting layer and establishes high-speed electron transfer channels (Au dot ↔ Au dot).

Modulation of Photoinduced Phase Segregation and Stress-Driven Nanoscale Cracking in Hybrid Halide Perovskite Solar Cells.

The negative effect of photoinduced halide segregation (PIHS) on the properties of hybrid halide perovskites poses a major obstacle for its future commercial application. Therefore, the in-depth understanding of halide-ion segregation and its causes is an urgent and intractable problem. When PIHS reaches a certain threshold, it will aggravate the deterioration of the film surface morphology and form nanoscale cracks.

Regulating Functional Groups Enhances the Performance of Flexible Microporous MXene/Bacterial Cellulose Electrodes in Supercapacitors.

Ultrathin MXene-based films exhibit superior conductivity and high capacitance, showing promise as electrodes for flexible supercapacitors. This work describes a simple method to enhance the performance of MXene-based supercapacitors by expanding and stabilizing the interlayer space between MXene flakes while controlling the functional groups to improve the conductivity. TiCT MXene flakes are treated with bacterial cellulose (BC) and NaOH to form a composite MXene/BC (A-M/BC) electrode with a microporous interlayer and high surface area (62.

[BMP][BF]-Modified CsPbIBr Solar Cells with Improved Efficiency and Suppressed Photoinduced Phase Segregation.

With the rapid progress in a power conversion efficiency reaching up to 26.1%, which is among the highest efficiency for single-junction solar cells, organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells have become a research focus in photovoltaic technology all over the world, while the instability of these perovskite solar cells, due to the decomposition of its unstable organic components, has restricted the development of all-inorganic perovskite solar cells. In recent years, Br-mixed halogen all-inorganic perovskites (CsPbI3-xBrx) have aroused great interests due to their ability to balance the band gap and phase stability of pure CsPbX3.

Numerical Simulation Technologies in Solar-Driven Interfacial Evaporation Processes.

Solar interfacial evaporation technology has the advantages of environmentally conscious and sustainable benefits. Recent research on light absorption, water transportation, and thermal management has improved the evaporation performance of solar interfacial evaporators. However, many studies on photothermal materials and structures only aim to improve performance, neglecting explanations for heat and mass transfer coupling or providing evidence for performance enhancement.

Solvothermal synthesis of SnO nanoparticles for perovskite solar cells application.

Perovskite solar cells show great potential application prospects in the field of solar cells due to their promising properties. However, most perovskite solar cells that exhibit excellent photovoltaic performance typically require a carrier transport layer that necessitates a high-temperature annealing process. This greatly restricts the scalability and compatibility of perovskite solar cells in flexible electronics.

Rational design of flower-like MnO/TiCTcomposite electrode for high performance supercapacitors.

Combining the new two-dimensional conductive MXene with transition metal oxide to build composite structure is a promising path to improve the conductivity of metal oxide. However, a critical challenge still remains in how to achieve a good combination of MXene and metal oxide. Herein, we develop a facile hydrothermal route to synthesize the MnO/TiCTcomposite electrode for supercapacitors by synergistically coupling MnOnanowires with TiCTMXene nanoflakes.

One-Step Electrochemical Synthesis and Surface Reconstruction of NiCoP as an Electrocatalyst for Bifunctional Water Splitting.

We adopted a simple one-step electrochemical deposition to acquire an efficient nickel cobalt phosphorus (NiCoP) catalyst, which avoided the high temperature phosphatization engineering involved in the traditional synthesis method. The effects of electrolyte composition and deposition time on electrocatalytic performance were studied systematically. The as-prepared NiCoP achieved the lowest overpotential (η = 111 mV in the acidic condition and η = 120 mV in the alkaline condition) for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).

3D Porous Compact 1D/2D Fe O /MXene Composite Aerogel Film Electrodes for All-Solid-State Supercapacitors.

2D MXene nanoflakes usually undergo serious restacking, that easily aggravates during the traditional vacuum-assisted filtration process; and thus, hinders the electrochemical performance of the corresponding film electrodes. Herein, 3D porous compact 1D/2D Fe O /MXene aerogel film electrode with an enhanced electrochemical performance is fabricated by freeze-drying assisted mechanical pressing. An introduction of 1D α-Fe O nanorods can not only alleviate the restacking of 2D MXene but also provide additional pseudocapacitance for the composite film system.

Optimization of Evaporation and Condensation Architectures for Solar-Driven Interfacial Evaporation Desalination.

Solar-driven interfacial evaporation is an ideal technology for seawater desalination, and the corresponding system is mainly composed of a solar evaporator and a condensing collector. The traditional scheme focuses on the evaporation efficiency of the evaporator. Still, it ignores the influence of condensing collection scheme on the overall efficiency, which is one of the obstacles to the practical use of solar seawater desalination.

Hole transport free carbon-based high thermal stability CsPbIBr solar cells with an amorphous InGaZnO electron transport layer.

Due to their low cost, tunable band gap and excellent thermostability, all-inorganic halide perovskites CsPbX (X = Br, I) have become a kind of promising photovoltaic material. However, compared to the organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells, the performance of CsPbX solar cells still needs to be improved. In this work, for the first time, we applied the sol-gel derived amorphous InGaZnO film as electron transport layers (ETLs) in CsPbX-based devices.

In Situ Electrosynthesis of MAX-Derived Electrocatalysts for Superior Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.

MAX phases are frequently dominated as precursors for the preparation of the star material MXene, but less eye-dazzling by their own potential applications. In this work, the electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity of MAX phase is investigated. The MAX-derived electrocatalysts are prepared by a two-step in situ electrosynthesis process, an electrochemical etching step followed by an electrochemical deposition step.

Flexible MXene-Based Composite Films: Synthesis, Modification, and Applications as Electrodes of Supercapacitors.

MXenes, as a 2D planar structure nanomaterial, were first reported in 2011. Due to their large specific surface area, high ductility, high electrical conductivity, strong hydrophilic surface, and high mechanical flexibility, MXenes have been extensively explored in the development of various functional materials with desired performances. This review is aimed to summarize the current progress in synthesis, modification, and applications of MXene-based composite films as electrode materials of flexible energy storage devices.

Fabrication of Nanoparticle/Polymer Composite Photocatalytic Membrane for Domestic Sewage In Situ Treatment.

Photocatalytic technology using semiconductor catalysts is a promising candidate for light-polluted water treatment. In the past decades, TiO-related nanomaterials and photocatalytic devices have been applied for sewage ex-situ treatment. However, in situ photocatalytic technology using functional membranes is still needed for many large-scale outdoor scenarios.

2D/1D MXene/MWCNT Hybrid Membrane-Based Evaporator for Solar Desalination.

Solar vapor generation through evaporation using photothermal materials is a promising candidate for seawater desalination. The TiC MXene membrane has exhibited photothermal behavior in solar water evaporation. However, dense packed two-dimensional (2D) MXene membrane with high reflection loss and insufficient vapor escape channels limited its solar evaporation performance.

Passive Solar-driven Interfacial Evaporation Nanosystems: Beyond Desalination Towards Multiple Applications.

Recently, passive solar-driven interfacial evaporation has become one of the fastest-growing technologies for solar energy utilization and desalination. Herein this patent, we provide an overview of other emerging and potential applications of evaporation nanosystems beyond desalination, i.e.

Hole transport free flexible perovskite solar cells with cost-effective carbon electrodes.

Low temperature derived carbon electrodes are employed to fabricate low cost hole transport layer free perovskite solar cells, in which perovskite films annealed in glovebox and ambient air are used as the absorbers, respectively. Results suggest that the air annealed sample has bigger crystal grains and higher crystallinity, and the existence of a small amount of lead iodide which passivates grain boundaries contributes to a lower trap density. As a result, a maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 13.

Photoinduced Phase Segregation Leading to Evident Open-Circuit Voltage Loss in Efficient Inorganic CsPbIBr Solar Cells.

The photoinduced phase segregation (PIPS) of mixed-halide perovskites (MHPs), due to halogen migration, has reaped considerable attention for its retroaction on film photostability and photovoltaic output. Nevertheless, the original mechanism is still unclear. Herein, taking the representative CsPbIBr material as an example, a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) technique was adopted to track the PIPS and dark recovery procedures.

Size- and Morphology-Dependent Auger Recombination in CsPbBr Perovskite Two-Dimensional Nanoplatelets and One-Dimensional Nanorods.

CsPbX (X = Cl, Br, I) perovskite nanocrystals (NCs), including zero-dimensional (0D) quantum dots (QDs), one-dimensional (1D) nanorods (NRs), and two-dimensional (2D) nanoplatelets (NPLs), have shown promising performances in light-emitting diode (LED) and lasing applications. However, Auger recombination, one of the key processes that limit their performance, remains poorly understood in CsPbX 2D NPLs and 1D NRs. We show that the biexciton Auger lifetimes of CsPbBr NPLs (NRs) scale linearly with the NPL lateral area (NR length) and deviates from the "universal volume scale law" that has been observed for QDs.

Additive-assisted one-step formed perovskite/hole conducting materials graded heterojunction for efficient perovskite solar cells.

Solar cells based on organometallic perovskite materials have been intensively investigated as the most promising next-generation photovoltaic technology. The quality of perovskite film and the heterojunction between perovskite and charge transporting materials dominate the performance of resulting devices. Herein, we report a facile additive-assisted method to form perovskite/2, 2', 7, 7'-tetrakis (N, N-di-p-methoxyphenylamine)-9, 90-spirobifluorene (spiro-OMeTAD) graded heterojunction by one step instead of spin-coating two layers separately.

Multi-wavelength optical data processing and recording based on azo-dyes doped organic-inorganic hybrid film.

While single wavelength all-optical information encoding through optically induced orientation of azobenzene dyes is being extensively pursued, we propose multi-wavelength optical data processing and recording based on disperse red 1 (DR1) and 4-(4-hydroxybutyloxy) azobenzene doped organic-inorganic hybrid films to increase the density of recording data. By investigating the change of absorbance spectrum of the doped film under different irradiations, results indicate a laser pulses around 470 nm would be suitable as the probe beam. In the measurement of optical data processing and recording, two cw lasers pulse at 532 nm and 355 nm induce trans-cis isomerization of the azo-dyes in the film, while the output of the probe beam record the processed data as {(-1), (0), (1)} according to different inputs of the pump beams.

Fabrication of Ag₂O-Bi₂Sn₂O Heterostructured Nanoparticles for Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity.

Ag2O-Bi2Sn2O7 composites were prepared by a chemical co-precipitation method. The microstructural, morphological and optical properties of the as-prepared composites were characterized and studied. Effects of Ag2O contents on photocatalytic activity of the Ag2O-Bi2Sn2O7 composites were also investigated in detail.