Energy & Environmental Materials最新文献

Hydrogen spillover effect has recently garnered a lot of attention in the field of electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reactions. A new avenue for understanding the dynamic behavior of atomic migration in which hydrogen atoms moving on a catalyst surface was opened up by the setup of the word “hydrogen spillover.” However, there is currently a dearth of thorough knowledge regarding the hydrogen spillover effect. Currently, the advancement of sophisticated characterization procedures offers progressively useful information to enhance our grasp of the hydrogen spillover effect. The understanding of material fabrication for hydrogen spillover effect has erupted. Considering these factors, we made an effort to review most of the articles published on the hydrogen spillover effect and carefully analyzed the aspect of material fabrication. All of our attention has been directed toward the molecular pathway that leads to improve hydrogen evolution reactions performance. In addition, we have attempted to elucidate the spillover paths through the utilization of DFT calculations. Furthermore, we provide some preliminary research suggestions and highlight the opportunities and obstacles that are still to be confronted in this study area.

Air quality is deteriorating due to continuing urbanization and industrialization. In particular, nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is a biologically and environmentally hazardous byproduct from fuel combustion that is ubiquitous in urban life. To address this issue, we report a high-performance flexible indium phosphide nanomembrane NO₂ sensor for real-time air quality monitoring. An ultralow limit of detection of ~200 ppt and a fast response have been achieved with this device by optimizing the film thickness and doping concentration during indium phosphide epitaxy. By varying the film thickness, a dynamic range of values for NO₂ detection from parts per trillion (ppt) to parts per million (ppm) level have also been demonstrated under low bias voltage and at room temperature without additional light activation. Flexibility measurements show an adequately stable response after repeated bending. On-site testing of the sensor in a residential kitchen shows that NO₂ concentration from the gas stove emission could exceed the NO₂ Time Weighted Average limit, i.e., 200 ppb, highlighting the significance of real-time monitoring. Critically, the indium phosphide nanomembrane sensor element cost is estimated at <0.1 US$ due to the miniatured size, nanoscale thickness, and ease of fabrication. With these superior performance characteristics, low cost, and real-world applicability, our indium phosphide nanomembrane sensors offer a promising solution for a variety of air quality monitoring applications.

Lithium-sulfur batteries are emerging as sustainable replacements for current lithium-ion batteries. The commercial viability of this novel type of battery is still under debate due to the extensive use of highly reactive lithium-metal anodes and the complex electrochemistry of the sulfur cathode. In this research, a novel sulfur-based battery has been proposed that eliminates the need for metallic lithium anodes and other critical raw materials like cobalt and graphite, replacing them with biomass-derived materials. This approach presents numerous benefits, encompassing ample availability, cost-effectiveness, safety, and environmental friendliness. In particular, two types of biochar-based anode electrodes (non-activated and activated biochar) derived from spent common ivy have been investigated as alternatives to metallic lithium. We compared their structural and electrochemical properties, both of which exhibited good compatibility with the typical electrolytes used in sulfur batteries. Surprisingly, while steam activation results in an increased specific surface area, the non-activated ivy biochar demonstrates better performance than the activated biochar, achieving a stable capacity of 400 mA h g⁻¹ at 0.1 A g⁻¹ and a long lifespan (>400 cycles at 0.5 A g⁻¹). Our results demonstrate that the presence of heteroatoms, such as oxygen and nitrogen positively affects the capacity and cycling performance of the electrodes. This led to increased d-spacing in the graphitic layer, a strong interaction with the solid electrolyte interphase layer, and improved ion transportation. Finally, the non-activated biochar was successfully coupled with a sulfur cathode to fabricate lithium-metal-free sulfur batteries, delivering a specific energy density of ~600 Wh kg⁻¹.

Next-generation Li-ion batteries are expected to exhibit superior energy and power density, along with extended cycle life. Ni-rich high-capacity layered nickel manganese cobalt oxide electrode materials (NMC) hold promise in achieving these objectives, despite facing challenges such as capacity fade due to various degradation modes. Crack formation within NMC-based cathode secondary particles, leading to parasitic reactions and the formation of inactive crystal structures, is a critical degradation mechanism. Mechanical and chemical degradation further deteriorate capacity and lifetime. To mitigate these issues, an artificial cathode electrolyte interphase can be applied to the active material before battery cycling. While atomic layer deposition (ALD) has been extensively explored for active material coatings, molecular layer deposition (MLD) offers a complementary approach. When combined with ALD, MLD enables the deposition of flexible hybrid coatings that can accommodate electrode material volume changes during battery operation. This study focuses on depositing $��{\mathrm{TiO}}_2�$-titanium terephthalate thin films on a $��{\text{LiNi}}_{0.8}�{\mathrm{Mn}}_{0.1}�{\mathrm{Co}}_{0.1}�O_2�$ electrode via ALD-MLD. The electrochemical evaluation demonstrates favorable lithium-ion kinetics and reduced electrolyte decomposition. Overall, the films deposited through ALD-MLD exhibit promising features as flexible and protective coatings for high-energy lithium-ion battery electrodes, offering potential contributions to the enhancement of advanced battery technologies and supporting the growth of the EV and stationary battery industries.

The capture, regeneration, and conversion of CO₂ from ambient air and flue gas streams are critical aspects of mitigating global warming. Solid sorbents for CO₂ absorption are very promising as they have high mass transfer areas without energy input and reduce emissions and minimize corrosion as compared to liquid sorbents. However, precisely tunable solid CO₂ sorbents are difficult to produce. Here, we demonstrate the high-throughput production of hydrogel-based CO₂-absorbing particles via liquid jetting. By wrapping a liquid jet consisting of an aqueous solution of cross-linkable branched polyethylenimine (PEI) with a layer of suspension containing hydrophobic silica nanoparticles, monodisperse droplets with a silica nanoparticle coating layer was formed in the air. A stable Pickering emulsion containing PEI droplets was obtained after these ejected droplets were collected in a heated oil bath. The droplets turn into mm-sized particles after thermal curing in the bath. The diameter, PEI content, and silica content of the particles were systematically varied, and their CO₂ absorption was measured as a function of time. Steam regeneration of the particles enabled cyclic testing, revealing a CO₂ absorption capacity of 6.5 ± 0.5 mol kg⁻¹ solid PEI in pure CO₂ environments and 0.7 ± 0.3 mol kg⁻¹ solid PEI for direct air capture. Several thousands of particles were produced per second at a rate of around 0.5 kg per hour, with a single nozzle. This process can be further scaled by parallelization. The complete toolbox for the design, fabrication, testing, and regeneration of functional hydrogel particles provides a powerful route toward novel solid sorbents for regenerative CO₂ capture.

Electrocatalytic reduction of CO₂ into high energy-density fuels and value-added chemicals under mild conditions can promote the sustainable cycle of carbon and decrease current energy and environmental problems. Constructing electrocatalyst with high activity, selectivity, stability, and low cost is really matter to realize industrial application of electrocatalytic CO₂ reduction (ECR). Metal–nitrogen–carbon (M–N–C), especially Ni–N–C, display excellent performance, such as nearly 100% CO selectivity, high current density, outstanding tolerance, etc., which is considered to possess broad application prospects. Based on the current research status, starting from the mechanism of ECR and the existence form of Ni active species, the latest research progress of Ni–N–C electrocatalysts in CO₂ electroreduction is systematically summarized. An overview is emphatically interpreted on the regulatory strategies for activity optimization over Ni–N–C, including N coordination modulation, vacancy defects construction, morphology design, surface modification, heteroatom activation, and bimetallic cooperation. Finally, some urgent problems and future prospects on designing Ni–N–C catalysts for ECR are discussed. This review aims to provide the guidance for the design and development of Ni–N–C catalysts with practical application.

The demand for electronic devices that utilize lithium is steadily increasing in this rapidly advancing technological world. Obtaining high-purity lithium in an environmentally friendly way is challenging by using commercialized methods. Herein, we propose the first fuel cell system for continuous lithium-ion extraction using a lithium superionic conductor membrane and advanced electrode. The fuel cell system for extracting lithium-ion has demonstrated a twofold increase in the selectivity of Li⁺/Na⁺ while producing electricity. Our data show that the fuel cell with a titania-coated electrode achieves 95% lithium-ion purity while generating 10.23 Wh of energy per gram of lithium. Our investigation revealed that using atomic layer deposition improved the electrode's uniformity, stability, and electrocatalytic activity. After 2000 cycles determined by cyclic voltammetry, the electrode preserved its stability.

With the widespread use of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles, energy storage, and mobile terminals, there is an urgent need to develop cathode materials with specific properties. However, existing material control synthesis routes based on repetitive experiments are often costly and inefficient, which is unsuitable for the broader application of novel materials. The development of machine learning and its combination with materials design offers a potential pathway for optimizing materials. Here, we present a design synthesis paradigm for developing high energy Ni-rich cathodes with thermal/kinetic simulation and propose a coupled image-morphology machine learning model. The paradigm can accurately predict the reaction conditions required for synthesizing cathode precursors with specific morphologies, helping to shorten the experimental duration and costs. After the model-guided design synthesis, cathode materials with different morphological characteristics can be obtained, and the best shows a high discharge capacity of 206 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1C and 83% capacity retention after 200 cycles. This work provides guidance for designing cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries, which may point the way to a fast and cost-effective direction for controlling the morphology of all types of particles.

Lithium metal batteries (LMBs) are considered the ideal choice for high volumetric energy density lithium-ion batteries, but uncontrolled lithium deposition poses a significant challenge to the stability of such devices. In this paper, we introduce a 2.5 μm-thick asymmetric and ultrastrong separator, which can induce tissue-like lithium deposits. The asymmetric separator, denoted by utPE@Cu₂O, was prepared by selective synthesis of Cu₂O nanoparticles on one of the outer surfaces of a nanofibrous (diameter ~10 nm) ultrastrong ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) membrane. Microscopic analysis shows that the lithium deposits have tissue-like morphology, resulting in the symmetric lithium cells assembled using utPE@Cu₂O with symmetric Cu₂O coating exhibiting stable performance for over 2000 h of cycling. This work demonstrates the feasibility of a facile approach ultrathin separators for the deployment of lithium metal batteries, providing a pathway towards enhanced battery performance and safety.

Enhancing the lifetime of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is one of the essential challenges for their industrialization. Although the external encapsulation protects the perovskite device from the erosion of moisture and oxygen under various harsh conditions. However, the perovskite devices still undergo static and dynamic thermal stress during thermal and thermal cycling aging, respectively, resulting in irreversible damage to the morphology, component, and phase of stacked materials. Herein, the viscoelastic polymer polyvinyl butyral (PVB) material is designed onto the surface of perovskite films to form flexible interface encapsulation. After PVB interface encapsulation, the surface modulus of perovskite films decreases by nearly 50%, and the interface stress range under the dynamic temperature field (−40 to 85 °C) drops from −42.5 to 64.8 MPa to −14.8 to 5.0 MPa. Besides, PVB forms chemical interactions with FA⁺ cations and Pb²⁺, and the macroscopic residual stress is regulated and defects are reduced of the PVB encapsulated perovskite film. As a result, the optimized device's efficiency increases from 22.21% to 23.11%. Additionally, after 1500 h of thermal treatment (85 °C), 1000 h of damp heat test (85 °C & 85% RH), and 250 cycles of thermal cycling test (−40 to 85 °C), the devices maintain 92.6%, 85.8%, and 96.1% of their initial efficiencies, respectively.