NaBi/NaVO Hybrid Interfacial Layer Enables Stable and Dendrite-Free Sodium Anodes.

The challenges of sodium metal anodes, including formation of an unstable solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) and uncontrolled growth of sodium dendrites during charge-discharge cycles, impact the stability and safety of sodium metal batteries. Motivated by the promising commercialization potential of sodium metal batteries, it becomes imperative to systematically explore innovative protective interlayers specifically tailored for sodium metal anodes. In this work, a NaBi/NaVO hybrid and porous interfacial layer on sodium anode is successfully fabricated via pretreating sodium with bismuth vanadate.

Partial Exsolution Enables Superior Bifunctionality of Ir@SrIrO for Acidic Overall Water Splitting.

The pursuit of efficient and durable bifunctional electrocatalysts for overall water splitting in acidic media is highly desirable, albeit challenging. SrIrO based perovskites are electrochemically active for oxygen evolution reaction (OER), however, their inert activities toward hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) severely restrict the practical implementation in overall water splitting. Herein, an Ir@SrIrO heterojunction is newly developed by a partial exsolution approach, ensuring strong metal-support interaction for OER and HER.

Nickel-Regulated Composite Cathode with Balanced Triple Conductivity for Proton-Conducting Solid Oxide Fuel Cells.

Proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells (H-SOFCs) have the potential to be a promising technology for energy conversion and storage. To achieve high chemical compatibility and catalytic activity, nickel-doped barium ferrate with triple conducting ability is developed as cathodes for H-SOFCs, presenting an impressive electrochemical performance at intermediate temperatures. The cell performance with the optimized BaCe Ni Fe O - (BCNF10) composite cathode reaches an outstanding performance of 1.

Unique Proton Transportation Pathway in a Robust Inorganic Coordination Polymer Leading to Intrinsically High and Sustainable Anhydrous Proton Conductivity.

Although comprehensive progress has been made in the area of coordination polymer (CP)/metal-organic framework (MOF)-based proton-conducting materials over the past decade, searching for a CP/MOF with stable, intrinsic, high anhydrous proton conductivity that can be directly used as a practical electrolyte in an intermediate-temperature proton-exchange membrane fuel cell assembly for durable power generation remains a substantial challenge. Here, we introduce a new proton-conducting CP, (NH)[Zr(HPO)] (ZrP), which consists of one-dimensional zirconium phosphate anionic chains and fully ordered charge-balancing NH cations. X-ray crystallography, neutron powder diffraction, and variable-temperature solid-state NMR spectroscopy suggest that protons are disordered within an inherent hydrogen-bonded infinite chain of acid-base pairs (N-H···O-P), leading to a stable anhydrous proton conductivity of 1.

A High-Performing Sulfur-Tolerant and Redox-Stable Layered Perovskite Anode for Direct Hydrocarbon Solid Oxide Fuel Cells.

Development of alternative ceramic oxide anode materials is a key step for direct hydrocarbon solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). Several lanthanide based layered perovskite-structured oxides demonstrate outstanding oxygen diffusion rate, favorable electronic conductivity, and good oxygen surface exchange kinetics, owing to A-site ordered structure in which lanthanide and alkali-earth ions occupy alternate (001) layers and oxygen vacancies are mainly located in [LnOx] planes. Here we report a nickel-free cation deficient layered perovskite, (PrBa)0.

Unravelling the Proton Conduction Mechanism from Room Temperature to 553 K in a 3D Inorganic Coordination Framework.

The preparation of proton-conducting materials that are functional and stable at intermediate temperatures (393-573 K) is a focal point of fuel cell development. The purely inorganic material, HNd(IO3)4, which possesses a dense 3D framework structure, can reach a maximum of 4.6 × 10(-4) S·cm(-1) at 353 K and 95% relative humidity and exhibit a high conductivity of 8.