Materials Chemistry Commons^™

Recent Progress In Key Materials For Room-Temperature Sodium-Ion Batteries, Fan-Fan Wang, Xiao-Bin Liu, Long Chen, Cheng-Cheng Chen, Yong-Chang Liu, Li-Zhen Fan

Journal of Electrochemistry

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) have attracted tremendous attention in large-scale energy storage applications due to their resource advantages. However, Na+ is larger and heavier than Li+, which will limit its reversible reaction with the electrode materials and result in poor electrochemical performance. Thus, developing stable and high-efficiency electrode materials is the key to promoting the practical application of SIBs. Furthermore, the optimization of electrolyte is essential for the construction of high-safety and long-lifespan SIBs. In this review, we mainly summarize the recent advancements of electrode materials and electrolytes for room-temperature SIBs and discuss their challenges and possible resolution strategies. We hope …

Ni/Mn3O4/Nimn2O4 Double-Shelled Hollow Spheres Embedded Into Reduced Graphene Oxide As Advanced Anodes For Sodium-Ion Batteries, Chong Yan, Hua-Ri Kou, Bo Yan, Xiao-Jing Liu, De-Jun Li, Xi-Fei Li

Journal of Electrochemistry

Delicately building the unique nanocomposite with the combination of hollow structure and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) is highly desirable and still remains a great challenge in the field of energy conversion and storage. In this work, Ni/Mn₃O₄/NiMn₂O₄ double-shelled hollow spheres coated by rGO (denoted as R-NMN) have been successfully synthetized via one-step rapid solvothermal treatment followed by subsequent annealing for the first time. Served as anodes for sodium ion batteries (SIBs), the R-NMN composite containing 25wt% rGO exhibits a high discharge capacity of 187.8 mAh·g^-1 after 100 cycles at 50 mA·g^{-1 …}

A Comparative Study Of Pre-Lithiated Hard Carbon And Soft Carbon As Anodes For Lithium-Ion Capacitors, Zhao Li, Xian-Zhong Sun, Wen-Jie Liu, Xiong Zhang, Kai Wang, Yan-Wei Ma

Journal of Electrochemistry

Lithium-ion capacitor (LIC) has emerged to be one of the most promising electrochemical energy storage devices. Presently, activated carbon (AC) is the mostly used cathode material for LIC. Nevertheless, various carbonaceous materials can be used as anode materials, such as hard carbon (HC) and soft carbon (SC). Therefore, HC and SC with different structural and electrochemical characteristics have been investigated as the anode materials of LICs in this work. Compared with the HC electrode, the SC electrode showed higher electronic conductivity and reversible capacity. The rate capabilities of the two carbonaceous materials as a function of coating thickness have been …

Slips-Teng: Robust Triboelectric Nanogenerator With Optical And Charge Transparency Using A Slippery Interface, Wanghuai Xu, Xiaofeng Zhou, Chonglei Hao, Huanxi Zheng, Yuan Liu, Xiantong Yan, Zhengbao Yang, Michael Leung, Xiao Cheng Zeng, Ronald X. Xu, Zuankai Wang

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Energy harvesting devices that prosper in harsh environments are highly demanded in a wide range of applications ranging from wearable and biomedical devices to self-powered and intelligent systems. Particularly, over the past several years, the innovation of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) that efficiently convert ambient kinetic energy of water droplets or wave power to electricity has received growing attention. One of the main bottlenecks for the practical implications of such devices originates from the fast degradation of the physiochemical properties of interfacial materials under harsh environments. To overcome these challenges, here we report the design of a novel slippery lubricant-impregnated porous …

Development Of In Situ Forming Hydrogels For Intra-Articular Drug Delivery, Andy Prince

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Hydrogels are 3-dimensional crosslinked polymer networks that can absorb significant amounts of water. The physical properties associated with hydrogels affords them resemblance to biological tissues making them good candidates for biomedical applications. Many pharmaceuticals, specifically non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), have poor aqueous solubility, which limits their bioavailability and efficacy. People suffering from chronic osteoarthritis (OA) are required to frequently take large doses to mitigate pain, which can lead to serious side effects. Hydrogels are good strategies to deliver NSAIDs via articular injection because they can form solid gels in situ. This thesis describes the synthesis, formulation, mechanical testing, in …

Toward Unraveling The Mechanisms Of “Green” Mechanochemical Reactions, Richard Chen, Mehmet Kerem Gokus

Undergraduate Research Symposium

The mechanical processing of solids, such as milling or grinding powders, often leads to mechanochemical reactions. Mechanochemistry affords “green” synthetic routes avoiding or reducing the use of solvents, thus providing environmentally friendly and cost-effective synthetic alternatives for many materials. The solid-state reactants are usually ground together with small quantities of organic solvents, called “liquid assisted grinding” (LAG). LAG increases the reaction rates, it can yield products from otherwise unreactive mixtures, it increases the products crystallinity, and it selectively leads to crystal structures (polymorphs) of the products, depending on the quantities and physicochemical properties of the liquids used in LAG.

Mechanochemistry …

Optimization Of Magnetic Powdered Activated Carbon For Aqueous Hg(Ii) Removal And Magnetic Recovery, Emily K. Faulconer, Natalia Hoogesteijn Von Reitzenstein, David W. Mazyck

Emily Faulconer

Activated carbon is known to adsorb aqueous Hg(II). MPAC (magnetic powdered activated carbon) has the potential to remove aqueous Hg to less than 0.2 mg/L while being magnetically recoverable. Magnetic recapture allows simple sorbent separation from the waste stream while an isolated waste potentially allows for mercury recycling. MPAC Hg-removal performance is verified by mercury mass balance, calculated by quantifying adsorbed, volatilized, and residual aqueous mercury. The batch reactor contained a sealed mercury-carbon contact chamber with mixing and constant N₂(g) headspace flow to an oxidizingtrap. Mercury adsorption was performed using spiked ultrapure water (100 mg/L Hg). Mercury concentrations …

Effect Of Dissolved Salts On The Physiochemical Properties Of Deep Eutectic Solvents, Eleanor Haeska, Megan Radtke

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

Green chemistry seeks to make chemical procedures safer, improve reaction efficiency, and utilize environmentally safe reagents. Deep eutectic solvents (DES) have recently become of great interest due to their eco-friendly nature and functionality as solvent for various chemical processes. One key characteristic of DES is their conductive nature and depressed melting point. This project sought to determine the effect of the addition of aqueous solutions of halides on the conductivity of two selected types of DES. Also assessed were the polarity and viscosity of the DES. It can be concluded that aqueous halides had no measureable effect on the conductivity …

Facile Synthesis Of A Tailored-Designed Au/Pt Nanoanode For Enhanced Formic Acid, Methanol, And Ethylene Glycol Electrooxidation, Yaser M. Asal Mr., Islam M. Al-Akraa Dr, Ahmad M. Mohammad Prof

Chemical Engineering

The recent revolution in nanoscience and global energy demand have motivated research in liquid fuel cells (LFCs) due to their enhanced efficiency, moving flexibility, and reduced contamination. In line with this advancement, a glassy carbon (GC) electrode was modified with platinum (PtNPs) and gold (AuNPs) nanoparticles to fabricate a nanosized anode for formic acid, methanol, and ethylene glycol electrooxidation (abbreviated, respectively, to FAO, MO, and EGO), of the key anodic reactions of LFCs. The deposition sequence of the catalyst’s layers was important where the Au/Pt/GC electrode (in which PtNPs were directly deposited onto the GC surface followed by AuNPs—surface coverage …

Diisopropylammonium Bromide Based Two-Dimensional Ferroelectric Monolayer Molecular Crystal With Large In-Plane Spontaneous Polarization, Liang Ma, Yinglu Jia, Stephen Ducharme, Jinlan Wang, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

In light of their easy processing, light weight and mechanical flexibility, ferroelectric molecular crystal with large spontaneous polarization (P_s) is highly desired for many advanced applications. Herein, we report the first theoretical study of two-dimensional (2D) ferroelectric molecular crystals via ab initio calculations. Specifically, we show that diisopropylammonium bromide (DIPAB) based 2D ferroelectric monolayer molecular crystal with large in-plane P_s of ∼1.5 × 10⁻⁶ μC cm⁻¹ can be achieved by slicing the bulk DIPAB along a specific plane while keeping the space group unchanged. The important roles of hydrogen bonds are …

Facile Synthesis Of A Tailored-Designed Au/Pt Nanoanode For Enhanced Formic Acid, Methanol, And Ethylene Glycol Electrooxidation, Islam M. Al-Akraa Dr., Yaser M. Asal Mr

Chemical Engineering

The recent revolution in nanoscience and global energy demand have motivated research in liquid fuel cells (LFCs) due to their enhanced efficiency, moving flexibility, and reduced contamination. In line with this advancement, a glassy carbon (GC) electrode was modified with platinum (PtNPs) and gold (AuNPs) nanoparticles to fabricate a nanosized anode for formic acid, methanol, and ethylene glycol electrooxidation (abbreviated, respectively, to FAO, MO, and EGO), of the key anodic reactions of LFCs. The deposition sequence of the catalyst’s layers was important where the Au/Pt/GC electrode (in which PtNPs were directly deposited onto the GC surface followed by AuNPs—surface coverage …

A Promising Modification Of Pt Surfaces With Cnts For Decreasing Poisoning Impact In Direct Methanol Fuel Cells, Islam M. Al-Akraa Dr., Yaser M. Asal Mr, Aya A. Khalifa Ms.

Chemical Engineering

Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) are clean energy sources that have many applications due to the high energy density of methanol as a fuel. However, this type of fuel cells (FCs) has limitations that are preventing it from being commercialized. One such limitation is the adsorption of intermediates such as CO into the surface of the Platinum (Pt) catalyst during methanol oxidation (MO) which deactivates its active sites, where the reaction is taking place, and leads to poisoning of the electrode over the long term. In this study, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been introduced to the Pt-modified glassy carbon …

Metal-Organic Frameworks With Metal Catecholates For O2/N2 Separation, Samuel J. Stoneburner, Hakan Demir, Wooseok Jeong, Debmalya Ray, Xuan Zhang, Omar K. Farha, Christopher J. Cramer, Ilja Siepmann, Laura Gagliardi

Educator Scholarship

Oxygen and nitrogen are widely produced feedstocks with diverse fields of applications, but are primarily obtained via the energy-intensive cryogenic distillation of air. More energy-efficient processes are desirable, and materials such as zeolites and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have been studied for air separation. Inspired by recent theoretical work identifying metal-catecholates for enhancement of O2 selectivity MOFs, in this work the computation-ready experimental (CoRE) database of MOF structures was screened to identify promising candidates for incorporation of metal catecholates. Based on structural requirements, preliminary Grand-Canonical Monte Carlo simulations, and further constraints to ensure the computational feasibility, over 5,000 structures were eliminated …

On The Use Of Vibrational Spectroscopy And Scanning Electron Microscopy To Study Phenolic Extractability Of Cooperage Byproducts In Wine, Berta Baca‑Bocanegra, Julio Nogales‑Bueno, Brian Gorey, Francisco José Heredia, Hugh Byrne, José Miguel Hernández‑Hierro

Articles

Wood is an important source of phenolic compounds, which can be transferred to wine during aging process, improving its properties, from an organoleptic point of view. Therefore, understanding and optimizing the extractability of phenolic compounds from wood are crucial in the oenological field. The structural composition of oak wood samples has been evaluated using Raman and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR–FTIR) spectroscopies, and their main spectral features have been linked to phenolic compound extractabilities, as measured by classic chemical analyses. To support the analysis, microscopic images of the samples were also recorded using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The …

Crystallographically Determined Etching And Its Relevance To The Metal-Assisted Catalytic Etching (Mace) Of Silicon Powders, Kurt W. Kolasinski, Bret A. Unger, Alexis T. Ernst, Mark Aindow

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Metal-assisted catalytic etching (MACE) using Ag nanoparticles as catalysts and H2O2 as oxidant has been performed on single-crystal Si wafers, single-crystal electronics grade Si powders, and polycrystalline metallurgical grade Si powders. The temperature dependence of the etch kinetics has been measured over the range 5–37◦C. Etching is found to proceed preferentially in a h001i direction with an activation energy of ∼0.4 eV on substrates with (001), (110), and (111) orientations. A quantitative model to explain the preference for etching in the h001i direction is developed and found to be consistent with the measured activation energies. Etching of metallurgical grade powders …

Organizing 6, 5-Carbon Nanotubes On Dna Origami Arrays, Kathryn A. Pitton

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Carbon nanotubes¹ are cylindrical carbon molecules and can be considered to be composed of one atom thick sheets of carbon called graphene. They have been at the forefront of nanochemistry due to their strength and multiple properties such as absorption, fluorescence, semiconduction, and light scattering capability. DNA Origami (DO)² has emerged as a novel domain for molecular design, resulting in the generation of numerous one, two, and three-dimensional structures that have provided platforms for the organization of organic species and inorganic nanoparticles through simple modifications. The use of DNA Origami to control the placement of single walled carbon …

Modeling The Condensed-Phase Behavior Of Π-Conjugated Polymers, Walker Mask

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

It is well established that the morphology and physical properties of an organic semiconducting (OSC) material regulate its electronic properties. However, structure-function relationships remain difficult to describe in polymer-based OSC, which are of particular interest due to their robust mechanical properties. If relationships among the molecular and bulk levels of structure can be found, they can aid in the design of improved materials. To explore and detail important structure-function relationships in polymer-based OSC, this work employs molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to study various π-conjugated polymers in different environments. Two independent investigations are discussed in this work. One investigation examines how …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Carbonaceous Particles From Xylose And Soybean Residuals, Shanshan Wang

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Carbonaceous materials, especially in micro and nanoscale, are useful in optical, energy storage, electronic, and biomedical devices or technologies. Techniques have been developed for preparation and modification of the carbonaceous materials, while it is still challenging to tailor the properties of carbonaceous materials effectively and economically. Laser is a powerful tool in academic and industrial laboratories, which also plays important roles in the preparation and modification of high-performance carbonaceous nanomaterials.

In this study low-cost hydrothermal synthesis, high-temperature annealing, and Laser ablation (LAL) methods are developed to prepare functionalized carbon nanomaterials and modify their electrochemical and optical properties.

Sub-micro hollow carbon …

Lewis Base Promoted Annulations Of Allenoates With 1,4-Naphthoquinones, Nicole Marie Shoup

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lewis base promoted cyclization of allenoates with electron deficient olefins open up the possibility to generate more complex organic structures. By generating more complex molecules, we are able to produce new compounds for biomedical and material applications. Both phosphine and amine Lewis bases offer interesting annulations with allenoates resulting in Lu or Morita–Baylis–Hillman type reactions. Once the Lewis base engages with the allenoate there can be several modes of nucleophilic reactivity that allows for the allenic ester to act as a two or three carbon synthon. The allenoate can then react with varying electron deficient olefins generating more complex molecules …

Au60–: The Smallest Gold Cluster With The High-Symmetry Icosahedral Core Au13, Seema Pande, Xingao Gong, Lai-Sheng Wang, Xiao Cheng Zeng

Xiao Cheng Zeng Publications

Among coinage metal nanoclusters with 55 atoms, only Ag₅₅^– and Cu₅₅^– are the geometric magic-number clusters, as both exhibit icosahedral symmetry. Au₅₅^–, however, exhibits much lower symmetry due largely to the strong relativistic bonding effect. In this study, we collect a much larger population (>10,000 isomers) of low-energy isomers of Au₅₅^– to Au₆₀^– by using the combined density-functional theory and basin-hopping global optimization method. We also include the spin−orbit effect in the density-functional theory computation to achieve simulated photoelectron spectra in quantitative fashion. Remarkably, we uncover that the …