Advancements and Challenges in Organic-Inorganic Composite Solid Electrolytes for All-Solid-State Lithium Batteries.

To address the limitations of contemporary lithium-ion batteries, particularly their low energy density and safety concerns, all-solid-state lithium batteries equipped with solid-state electrolytes have been identified as an up-and-coming alternative. Among the various SEs, organic-inorganic composite solid electrolytes (OICSEs) that combine the advantages of both polymer and inorganic materials demonstrate promising potential for large-scale applications. However, OICSEs still face many challenges in practical applications, such as low ionic conductivity and poor interfacial stability, which severely limit their applications.

N-doped 3D carbon encapsulating nickel selenide nanoarchitecture with cation defect engineering: An ultrafast and long-life anode for sodium-ion batteries.

Transition metal chalcogenides (TMCs) hold great potential for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) owing to their multielectron conversion reactions, yet face challenges of poor intrinsic conductivity, sluggish diffusion kinetics, severe phase transitions, and structural collapse during cycling. Herein, a self-templating strategy is proposed for the synthesis of a class of metal cobalt-doped NiSe nanoparticles confined within three-dimensional (3D) N-doped macroporous carbon matrix nanohybrids (Co-NiSe/NMC). The cation defect engineering within the developed Co-NiSe and 3D N-doped carbon plays a crucial role in enhancing intrinsic conductivity, reinforcing structural stability, and reducing the barrier to sodium ion diffusion, which are verified by a series of electrochemical kinetic analyses and density functional theory calculations.

Tunneling Interpenetrative Lithium Ion Conduction Channels in Polymer-in-Ceramic Composite Solid Electrolytes.

Polymer-in-ceramic composite solid electrolytes (PIC-CSEs) provide important advantages over individual organic or inorganic solid electrolytes. In conventional PIC-CSEs, the ion conduction pathway is primarily confined to the ceramics, while the faster routes associated with the ceramic-polymer interface remain blocked. This challenge is associated with two key factors: (i) the difficulty in establishing extensive and uninterrupted ceramic-polymer interfaces due to ceramic aggregation; (ii) the ceramic-polymer interfaces are unresponsive to conducting ions because of their inherent incompatibility.

Effects of Li conduction on the capacity utilization of cathodes in all-solid-state lithium batteries.

Li conduction in all-solid-state lithium batteries is limited compared with that in lithium-ion batteries based on liquid electrolytes because of the lack of an infiltrative network for Li transportation. Especially for the cathode, the practically available capacity is constrained due to the limited Li diffusivity. In this study, all-solid-state thin-film lithium batteries based on LiCoO thin films with varying thicknesses were fabricated and tested.

Anion Defects Engineering of Ternary Nb-Based Chalcogenide Anodes Toward High-Performance Sodium-Based Dual-Ion Batteries.

Highlights: We developed an efficient and extensible strategy to produce the single-phase ternary NbSSe nanohybrids with defect-enrich microstructure. The anionic-Se doping play a key role in effectively modulating the electronic structure and surface chemistry of NbS phase, including the increased interlayers distance (0.65 nm), the enhanced intrinsic electrical conductivity (3.

Characterization of a novel detergent-resistant type I pullulanase from Y103 and its application in laundry detergent.

This study aims to find a moderate pullulanase for detergent industry. The gene (2217 bp) from Y103 was cloned and expressed in . PulY103B contained four conserved regions of glycoside hydrolase family (GH) 13 and the typical sequence of type I pullulanase.

Effect of alginate coatings incorporated with chitinase from 'Baozhu' pear on the preservation of cherry tomato during refrigerated storage.

The effects of edible coatings based on sodium alginate with 'Baozhu' pear chitinase on the quality of cherry tomatoes during refrigerated storage were evaluated. Cherry tomatoes inoculated with were coated and stored up to 21 days. All coatings with the chitinase significantly reduced .

Confined WS Nanosheets Tubular Nanohybrid as High-Kinetic and Durable Anode for Sodium-Based Dual Ion Batteries.

Sodium based dual-ion battery (SDIB) has been regarded as one of the promising batteries technologies thanks to its high working voltage and natural abundance of sodium source, its practical application yet faces critical issues of low capacity and sluggish kinetics of intercalation-type graphite anode. Here, a tubular nanohybrid composed of building blocks of carbon-film wrapped WS nanosheets on carbon nanotube (WS /C@CNTs) was reported. The expanded (002) interlayer and dual-carbon confined structure endowed WS nanosheets with fast charge transportation and excellent structural stability, and thus WS /C@CNTs showed highly attractive electrochemical properties for Na storage with high reversible capacity, fast kinetic, and robust durability.

Enhancing ionic conductivity in solid electrolyte by relocating diffusion ions to under-coordination sites.

Solid electrolytes are highly important materials for improving safety, energy density, and reversibility of electrochemical energy storage batteries. However, it is a challenge to modulate the coordination structure of conducting ions, which limits the improvement of ionic conductivity and hampers further development of practical solid electrolytes. Here, we present a skeleton-retained cationic exchange approach to produce a high-performance solid electrolyte of LiZrSiPO stemming from the NASICON-type superionic conductor of NaZrSiPO.

TiO Nanofiber-Modified Lithium Metal Composite Anode for Solid-State Lithium Batteries.

Solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs), using lithium metal as the anode and garnet-structured LiLaZrTaO (LLZTO) as the electrolyte, are attractive and promising due to their high energy density and safety. However, the interface contact between the lithium metal and LLZTO is a major obstacle to the performance of SSLMBs. Here, we successfully improve the interface wettability by introducing one-dimensional (1D) TiO nanofibers into the lithium metal to obtain a Li-lithiated TiO composite anode (Li-TiO).

Li/Garnet Interface Optimization: An Overview.

Solid-state lithium batteries can improve the safety and energy density of the present liquid-electrolyte-based lithium-ion batteries. To achieve this goal, both solid electrolyte and lithium anode technology are the keys. Lithium garnet is a promising electrolyte to enable the next generation solid-state lithium batteries due to its high ionic conductivity, good chemical, and electrochemical stability, and easiness to scale up.

Preparation of Nanocomposite Polymer Electrolyte via In Situ Synthesis of SiO Nanoparticles in PEO.

Composite polymer electrolytes provide an emerging solution for new battery development by replacing liquid electrolytes, which are commonly complexes of polyethylene oxide (PEO) with ceramic fillers. However, the agglomeration of fillers and weak interaction restrict their conductivities. By contrast with the prevailing methods of blending preformed ceramic fillers within the polymer matrix, here we proposed an in situ synthesis method of SiO nanoparticles in the PEO matrix.

Highly Adhesive Li-BN Nanosheet Composite Anode with Excellent Interfacial Compatibility for Solid-State Li Metal Batteries.

Solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs) are promising energy storage devices by employing lithium metal anodes and solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) to offer high energy density and high safety. However, their efficiency is limited by Li metal/SSE interface barriers, including insufficient contact area and chemical/electrochemical incompatibility. Herein, a strategy to effectively improve the adhesiveness of Li metal to garnet-type SSE is proposed by adding only a few two-dimensional boron nitride nanosheets (BNNS) (5 wt %) into Li metal by triggering the transition from point contact to complete adhesion between Li metal and ceramic SSE.

Dual Substitution and Spark Plasma Sintering to Improve Ionic Conductivity of Garnet LiLaZrO.

Garnet LiLaZrO is one of the most promising solid electrolytes used for solid-state lithium batteries. However, low ionic conductivity impedes its application. Herein, we report Ta-doping garnets with compositions of LiLaZrTaO (0.

Association of lower leukocyte count before thrombolysis with early neurological improvement in acute ischemic stroke patients.

Early neurological improvement (ENI) after thrombolysis in acute ischemic stroke is associated with a favorable long-term outcome. With the goal to evaluate ENI, we aimed to investigate whether ENI bears a relationship with routine blood tests before thrombolysis. A total of 240 patients with confirmed early ischemic stroke and intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) treatment were enrolled from two teaching hospitals, between June 2010 and March 2016.

Well-ordered mesoporous FeO/C composites as high performance anode materials for sodium-ion batteries.

Sodium-ion batteries have attracted considerable attention in recent years. In order to promote the practical application of sodium-ion batteries, the electrochemical performances, such as specific capacity, reversibility, and rate capability of the anode materials, should be further improved. In this work, a FeO/C composite with a well-ordered mesoporous structure is prepared via a facile co-impregnation method by using mesoporous silica SBA-15 as a hard template.

One-Step Synthesis of MnO2 Flower/Carbon Nanotube with Improved Lithium Storage Properties.

This work reports a one-step hydrothermal synthesis of MnO2-flower/Carbon nanotube (CNTs) binary material, featuring a coated-worm like structure. The material showed a specific capacity of 800 mA h g(-1), a working plateau at 0.5 V against a Li+/Li electrode, and ideal stability under a current density of 2 A g(-1).

Carbon coated MnO@Mn3N2 core-shell composites for high performance lithium ion battery anodes.

Carbon coated MnO@Mn(3)N(2) core-shell composites (MnO@Mn(3)N(2)/C) were synthesized in a simple approach by calcining MnO(2) nanowires with urea at 800 °C under an ammonia atmosphere. Urea derived carbon nanosheets were partially coated on pure phase MnO@Mn(3)N(2) core-shell composites. Electrochemical measurements reveal that the MnO@Mn(3)N(2)/C displayed high discharge capacities, an excellent high-rate capability and an enhanced cycling performance.

Direct exfoliation of graphite to graphene by a facile chemical approach.

Facile exfoliation of graphite: High-quality graphene sheets are produced directly from graphite by a facile chemical approach. The new strategy for non-oxidized chemical exfoliation of graphite is based on a pre-intercalated process with oleum and a further strong reaction with sodium in the graphite layers under grinding conditions. This method is facile, low cost, and high throughput.

Electrocatalysis on shape-controlled titanium nitride nanocrystals for the oxygen reduction reaction.

The high price of platinum (Pt)-based cathode catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) have slowed down the practical application of fuel cells. Thanks to their low cost, and outstanding, stable catalytic properties, titanium nitrides (TiN) are among the most promising non-precious metal electrocatalysts for replacing Pt. However, the shape-activity relationships of TiN electrocatalysts have not been well-studied or understood up to now.

Role of electricity production in the anaerobic decolorization of dye mixture by exoelectrogenic bacterium Shewanella oneidensis MR-1.

This study investigated the anaerobic decolorization of the dye mixture containing methyl orange (MO) and naphthol green B (NGB) by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1. S. oneidensis MR-1 showed a strong ability to decolorize the dye mixture.

Controlled synthesis of highly crystalline MoS2 flakes by chemical vapor deposition.

The controlled synthesis of highly crystalline MoS2 atomic layers remains a challenge for the practical applications of this emerging material. Here, we developed an approach for synthesizing MoS2 flakes in rhomboid shape with controlled number of layers by the layer-by-layer sulfurization of MoO2 microcrystals. The obtained MoS2 flakes showed high crystallinity with crystal domain size of ~10 μm, significantly larger than the grain size of MoS2 grown by other methods.

Sucrose-assisted loading of LiFePO4 nanoparticles on graphene for high-performance lithium-ion battery cathodes.

A simple approach for loading LiFePO4 (LFP) nanoparticles on graphene (G) that could assemble amorphous LiFePO4 nanoparticles into a stable, crystalline, graphene-modified layered materials (G-S-LFP, S=sucrose) by using graphene as building block and sucrose as a linker has yet to be developed. On the basis of differential scanning calorimetric and transmission electron microscopy analysis of the samples from controlled experiment, a possible mechanism was proposed to explain the "linker" process of LFP and graphene with sucrose as the linker. The electrochemical properties of the samples as cathode material for lithium-ion batteries were studied by cyclic voltammogrametry and galvanostatic methods.