Search

Owing to the speculated price hike and scarcity of lithium resources, sodium-ion batteries are attracting significant research interest these days. However, sodium-ion battery anodes do not deliver good electrochemical performance, particularly rate performance. Herein, we report the facile electrospinning synthesis of a free-standing nickel disulfide (NiS2) embedded on carbon nanofiber. This electrode did not require a conducting agent, current collector, and binder, and typically delivered high capacity and rate performance. The electrode delivered a high initial capacity of 603 mAh g−1 at the current density of 500 mA g−1. Moreover, the electrode delivered the capacity of 271 mAh g−1 at the high current density of 15 A g−1. The excellent rate performance and high coulombic efficiency of the electrode were attributed to its low charge transfer resistance and unique structure.

Transition metal oxide materials with high theoretical capacities have been studied as substitutes for commercial graphite in lithiumion batteries. Among these, SnO2 is a promising alloying reaction-based anode material. However, the problem of rapid capacity fading in SnO2 due to volume variation during the alloying/dealloying processes must be solved. The lithiation of SnO2 results in the formation of a Li2O matrix. Herein, the volume variation of SnO2 was suppressed by controlling the voltage window to 1 V to prevent the delithiation reaction between Li2O and Sn. Using this strategy the unreacted Li2O matrix was enriched with metallic Sn particles, thereby providing a pathway for lithium ions. The specific capacity decay in the voltage window of 0.05–3 V was 1.8% per cycle. However, the specific capacity decay was improved to 0.04% per cycle after the voltage window was restricted (in the range of 0.05–1 V). This strategy resulted in a specific capacity of 374.7 mAh g−1 at 0.1 C after 40 cycles for the SnO2 anode.

In this work, the hydrothermal method was employed to produce SnO2/rGO as anode material. Nanostructured SnO2 was prepared to enhance reversibility and to deal with the undesirable volume changes during cycling. The SnO2/rGO hybrid exhibits long cycle life in lithium-ion storage capacity and rate capability with an initial discharge capacity of 1327 mAh/g at 0.1 C rate. These results demonstrate that a fabricated SnO2/rGO matrix will be a possible way to obtain high rate performance.

Sn/SnO2 nanocomposite of core-shell structure covered with multilayer graphene was synthesized by one step process of electrical wire explosion in liquid media. The synthesized Sn/SnO2 nanocomposites were characterized by various analyzers such as Raman, XRD, FESEM, FETEM, XPS and TGA. The electrochemical performance of the electrode has been investigated by galvanostatic cycling and cyclic voltammetry. FESEM and FETEM results showed that diameter of the Sn/SnO2 nanoparticles is around 10–50 nm and the thickness of the SnO2 shell is about 5–8 nm. The nanocomposite electrode showed a high specific capacity of 1270 mAhg−1 after 100 cycles. Furthermore, the nanocomposite exhibited high reversible capacity of around 650 mAhg−1 at the current density of 5000 mAg−1. These results indicated that multilayer graphene-encapsulated Sn/SnO2 nanocomposites are one of rational structural design to improve the electrochemical performance of Sn-based anode materials for LIBs.

Silicon, owing to its exceptionally high theoretical capacity of 4200 mAh/g, is one of the potential anode materials explored by the lithium ion battery community. However, it undergoes tremendous volume expansion upon cycling that result in the material fracture and cracking, leading to electronic isolation and loss of cycle-able Li. In the present study, Si-nanopowder inserted Cu plates are utilized as current collectors so as to accommodate the volume expansion and electronic isolation caused by the secession of active materials from the electrode upon electrochemical cycling. The Cu plates are etched with sandpapers of different grades to effectively enable the Si insertion by a simple and facile brushing method. Electrodes were finally coated with a binder layer for encapsulation of Si active materials and were compared in terms of the electrochemical performances. The electrochemical investigations reveal that the electrodes fabricated by the surface modified Si/Cu plates with the SiC sandpaper #800 coupled with the binder coating afforded the best electrochemical performance among the electrodes investigated with excellent capacity retention of 1074 mAh/g even after 1000 cycles.

A freestanding porous sulfurized polyacrylonitrile/vapor grown carbon fiber (SVF) composite was prepared as cathode material for high-performance lithium sulfur batteries by a facile electrospinning technique. The synthesized composite possessed high sulfur utilization, high Coulombic efficiency, and excellent cycling stability with the property of flexibility, essential to the development of flexible batteries. The capacity retentions of the SVF cell were 903 mAh g−1 after 150 cycles at 1 C and 600 mAh g−1 after 300 cycles at 2 C. At a high rate of 4 C, the SVF composite showed reasonable capacity retention. The superior performance of SVF composite was attributed to the highly porous structure, which effectively improved the wettability, accessibility, and absorption of electrolyte to facilitate rapid ion transfer in the cell. Vapor-grown carbon fibers embedded inside SVF as a carbon material notably enhanced the electrical conductivity of the cell, guaranteeing the electrochemical performance at high C-rates. The freestanding porous SVF fiber composite is a promising cathode material for advanced flexible lithium sulfur batteries.

In this paper, the relationship between the pore spatial structures, pore sizes, and pore types of highly ordered mesoporous CMK-based carbons (CMK-1, CMK-3, and CMK-5) and their electrochemical performance in Li-S batteries is investigated. CMK-1 has a complex spatial structure and small pores. The structure is good for limiting polysulfide in the pores, but not for rapid transfer of Li+ ions in the cell. CMK-3 and CMK-5 have similar spatial structures and pore sizes, but different pore types. Compared to the single pore structure of CMK-3, the bimodal pore structure of CMK-5 not only improves the electrolyte accessibility, but also increases the number of reaction sites, resulting in better electrochemical performance. Studying the correlation between the physical structure of carbon-based materials and their electrochemical performance in Li-S batteries will provide new insights for optimizing porous electrode materials.

In this study, NiS/graphene nanocomposites were synthesized by simple heat treatment method of three graphene materials (graphene oxide (GO), reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and nitrogen-doped graphene oxide (N-rGO)) and NiS precursor. The morphology and crystal structure of NiS/graphene nanocomposites were characterized using field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy. Electrochemical properties were also investigated. NiS/graphene nanocomposites homogeneously wrapped by graphene materials have been successfully manufactured. Among the three nanocomposites, NiS/N-rGO nanocomposite exhibited the highest initial and retention capacity in discharge, respectively, of 1240 mAh/g and 467 mAh/g up to 100 cycles at 0.5 C.

Tin-based materials, due to their high theoretical capacity of 994 mAh g-1 are potential candidates which can substitute the commercialized graphite anodes (372 mAh g-1). However, practical usage of pure tin in Li-ion cells has been hampered by the tremendous volume expansion of more than 260% during the lithium insertion/extraction process, resulting in particle pulverization and electrical disconnection from the current collector. In order to overcome this shortcoming, Sn/Cu6Sn5/C composites in this work were prepared by using pulsed wire explosion in a liquid medium and subsequently in situ polymerization. For comparison, Sn/C composite without tin-copper chemical compounds are also fabricated under a similar process. The Sn/Cu6Sn5/C and Sn/C composites were used as anodes for lithium-ion batteries. The Sn/Cu6Sn5/C composite anode showed good cyclability (scalability) and was maintained up to a capacity of 430 mAh g-1 after 100 cycles at 1 C-rate. The rate capability of the Sn/Cu6Sn5/C composite anode also showed higher performance (280 mAh g-1) than that (200 mAh g-1) of Sn/C composite at the 5 C-rate.

The microstructure and corrosion properties of as-cast AZ61 (Mg-6%Al-1%Zn) and AZ61 alloys doped with titanium and calcium and subjected to high ratio differential speed rolling were investigated. Addition of the alloying elements to the AZ61 alloy resulted in remarkable modification of the morphology and the amount of continuous β (Mg17Al12)-phase. Addition of Ti to the as-cast AZ61 alloy causes a decrease in the volume fraction (or discontinuity of the β-phase), leading to strong anodic dissolution. In contrast, addition of Ca to the as-cast AZ61 alloy is rather effective for preventing pitting corrosion. This is attributed to the formation of a semi-continuous network β-structure. The (Mg, Al)4Ca phases dispersed between the β (Mg17Al12)-phases led to continuity in the AZ61 alloy with Ca. The AZ61 and AZ61-X(Ca, Ti) alloys subjected to severe plastic deformation via high-ratio differential speed rolling possessed a nano-composite-like microstructure in which the α-Mg matrix with an ultra-fine grain was surrounded by a large number of fine β particles. These particles were either dynamically precipitated or broken at the grain boundaries, as well as in the grain interiors, by the high ratio differential speed rolling process. The corrosion resistance of the AZ61 and AZ61-X (X = Ca, Ti) alloys subjected to high ratio differential speed rolling was largely improved by the microstructural modification. The high ratio differential speed rolling process greatly influenced the texture of the Mg alloys, which significantly affected their corrosion behavior.

Recently, tin oxide (SnO2) has received significant attention for use as an anode material for next generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) owing to its high theoretical capacity (782 mAh g-1), which is more than twice of that of the commercialized graphite (372 mAh g-1). Several additional advantages, such as low cost, environmental friendliness, easy fabrication and natural abundance improve its promise. Although the theoretical capacity of SnO2 is high, volume expansion during cycling causes issue with cycling stability. In this study, an ordered mesoporous SnO2 was synthesized using a hard template (SBA-15), such that its mesoporous structure can buffer SnO2 particles from cracks caused by volume expansion. It can also allow effective electrolyte infiltration to ensure better reactivity of the active material with Li+ ions. The capacity of synthesized mesoporous SnO2 improved to 218.4 mAh g-1 compared regular SnO2 nanoparticles (69.6 mAh g-1) after 50 cycles at a rate of 0.1 C. Furthermore, carbon-coated mesoporous SnO2 enhanced capacity retention upon cycling (844.6 mAh g-1 after 50 cycles at 0.1 C) by insulating and preventing the cracking of the active material during lithiation and delithiation.

To improve the quality and productivity of the process or system before resorting to expensive and laborious experimental tests, it is essential to model and predict the system performance concerning its operational parameters. Predictive modeling and parameter optimization through machine learning techniques has been the most advantageous process and are the best alternative to the conventional statistical tools. In this work, carbide cutting tool inserts were coated with molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) solid lubricant utilizing the electrostatic spray deposition (ESD) process. The optimum artificial neural network (ANN) model with 3-6-6-1 architecture includes 0.6 momentum term and 0.3 learning rate with attained mean squared error (MSE), absolute error in prediction (AEP) of trained and test data are 0.000334, 0.197, and 0.543, respectively. The support vector machine (SVM) hyperplane parameters are optimized using the Bayesian optimization technique, and after 90 evaluations, the model with the least error is used for predicting ESD coating thickness. The coating thickness predictions from ANN and SVM models were related to the response surface methodology (RSM) model predictions. From the results presented, the correlation coefficient (R-value) between experimental results and model predictions for ANN and SVM are 0.979 and 0.991, respectively, whereas, for RSM, it is 0.919. In addition, a genetic algorithm (GA) has been employed to establish the optimum conditions for the ESD deposition parameters. The presented SVM and GA method would support rapid and precise estimate and optimization of coating thickness in the ESD process.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are attractive and prominent power sources due to high theoretical capacity and the availability of sulfur at a low price. However, sulfur has limitations such as the formation of polysulfides and low conductivity. To overcome these problems, we prepared a cheese-like carbon (CLC) using a simple annealing process from an egg white. The as-prepared carbon material contains NaCl and KCl compounds. The CLC with nanoholes were formed after cleaning with distilled water and ethanol several times. The prepared CLC had a strong polysulfide capturing ability, high conductivity, a large surface area, and high catalytic activity. To prepare the CLC/S composite, sulfur was added by the melt diffusion method. CLC/S cathode material exhibited a high initial capacity of nearly 1420 mA h g−1 at 0.1 C and excellent rate capability with a low capacity-fading rate. The present work revealed that CLC/S cathodes are potential candidate cathodes for Li-S batteries.

Micro carbon fibers (CFs) as a current collector were coated on sulfurized poly-acrylonitrile (SPAN) electrodes fabricated by using electrostatic flocking method. The alignment and flocking density of CFs and the electrochemical properties of SPAN electrodes were investigated with various flocking parameters of flocking distance, length of CF, and loading weight. A long flocking distance gave a sufficient space to rotate charged CFs and stand CFs on the surface of electrodes during flocking process. The flocking density was increased with a decrease of milling time and the increase of loading weight. The current collectors flocked with 12 h-milled carbon fibers (CFs) exhibited less weight than Al current collector. SPAN electrodes with CF current collector demonstrated better electrochemical performance than that with Al current collector. In particular, SPAN electrodes flocked with a loading weight of 0.3 g showed stable cycleability (76% of capacity retention until 100th cycle) and good rate capability (930 mAh/g_sulfur at 2.0 C-rate).

Tin (Sn) based anode materials are the most promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries due to their high theoretical capacity corresponding to the formation of Li4.4Sn composition (Li4.4Sn, 994 mAh/g). However, the applications of tin based anodes to lithium-ion battery system are generally limited by a large volume change (>260%) during lithiation and delithiation cycle, which causes pulverize and poor cycling stability. In order to overcome this shortcoming, we fabricate a Sn/C nanoparticle with a yolk-shell structure (Sn/void/C) by using pulsed wire evaporation process and oxidation/reduction heat treatment. Sn nanoparticles are encapsulated by a conductive carbon layer with structural buffer that leaves enough room for expansion and contraction during lithium insertion/desertion. We expect that the yolk-shell structure has the ability to accommodate the volume changes of tin and leading to an improved cycle performance. The Sn/Void/C anode with yolk-shell structure shows a high specific capacity of 760 mAh/g after 50 cycles.

The effects of solvents on the preparation of sulfur cathodes were investigated by fabricating binder-free sulfur electrode films using three different solvents: 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP), acetonitrile, and deionized water. These solvents are commonly employed to dissolve binders used to prepare sulfur cathodes for lithium–sulfur batteries. The sulfur electrode fabricated with NMP had a higher discharge capacity and longer cycle life than the ones fabricated with acetonitrile and deionized water. Better adhesion between the current collector and the sulfur electrode accounted for the improved capacity and cycle life of the battery. In addition, the stability of the electrode in the electrolyte was a result of the solubility of sulfur in the solvent. We thus concluded that the solvents used in the fabrication of sulfur electrodes had a positive influence on the electrochemical properties of Li–S batteries.

We prepared sulfur/active carbon composites via a simple solution-based process using the following commercial activated carbon-based materials: coal, coconut shells, and sawdust. Although elemental sulfur was not detected in any of the sulfur/activated carbon composites based on Thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy, Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy results confirmed its presence in the activated carbon. These results indicate that sulfur was successfully impregnated in the activated carbon and that all of the activated carbons acted as sulfur reservoirs. The sulfur/activated carbon composite cathode using coal exhibited the highest discharge capacity and best rate capability. The first discharge capacity at 1 C (1.672 A g−1) was 1240 mAh g−1, and a large reversible capacity of 567 mAh g−1 was observed at 10 C (16.72 A g−1).

Si film electrodes were fabricated on surface-modified Cu current collectors using an oxidation-reduction process. Flower-like nanostructures (FLNSs) with diameters of 2–3 μm and plate-like nanostructures (PLNSs) with lengths of 1 μm were formed on the Cu foil oxidized at 423 K for 0.5 h, but only the PLNSs remained after sonication. Reduction of the preoxidized Cu foil at 673 K resulted in the formation of plate-like and coral-like nanostructures on the Cu foils reduced for 1 and 3 h and a smooth surface without specific structures on the Cu foil reduced for 6 h. The best electrochemical properties in terms of the first columbic efficiency (85.4%) and the cycle performance (67.3% at 50 cycles) were obtained from the Si film electrode fabricated on the Cu foil that had been reduced for 3 h because the coral-like nanostructures on the Cu foil enhanced the adhesion of the Si film and improved the structural stability of the Si film electrode during the electrochemical reactions.

Sn is one of the promising anode material for lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries because of Sn has many advantages such as a high theoretical capacity of 994 mAh/g, inexpensive, abundant and nontoxic. However, Sn-based anodes have a critical problem from pulverization of the particles due to large volume change (>300% in lithium-ion battery and 420% in the sodium-ion battery) during alloying/dealloying reaction. To overcome this problem, we fabricate Sn/C particle of core/shell structure. Sn powder was produced by pulsed wire explosion in liquid media, and amorphous carbon coating process was prepared by hydrothermal synthesis. The charge capacity of Sn electrode and amorphous carbon coated Sn electrode was 413 mAh/g and 452 mAh/g after 40 cycles in lithium half-cell test. The charge capacity of Sn electrode and amorphous carbon coated Sn electrode was 240 mAh/g and 487 mAh/g after 40 cycles in sodium half-cell test. Amorphous carbon coating contributed to the improvement of capacity in lithium and sodium battery systems. And the effect of amorphous carbon coating in sodium battery system was superior to that in lithium battery system.

A new type of sulfur electrodes with the ability for polysulfide adsorption was prepared by incorporating silica nanoparticles (SN) or amine functionalized silica nanoparticles (AFSN). AFSN was synthesized by a simple and cost-effective method. The functionalization and surface morphology of silica were confirmed with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. Polysulfide adsorption studies were carried out using UV–vis spectrometer, which confirmed the excellent adsorption of polysulfides by AFSN. Interaction of polysulfides with SN or AFSN was studied using FTIR and FT-Raman spectroscopy. The effective polysulfide adsorption by SN and AFSN leads to good and stable cycle performance of lithium sulfur cells. The results show that the incorporation of SN or AFSN with sulfur is a promising method to prepare cathode material for lithium sulfur batteries.

Highlights: • The content of sulfur in activated carbon was controlled by solution process. • The sulfur electrode with low sulfur content shows the best performance. • The Li/S battery has capacity of 1360 mAh/g at 1 C and 702 mAh/g at 10 C. - Abstract: The content of sulfur in sulfur/activated carbon composite is controlled from 32.37 wt.% to 55.33 wt.% by a one-step solution-based process. When the sulfur content is limited to 41.21 wt.%, it can be loaded into the pores of an activated carbon matrix in a highly dispersed state. On the contrary, when the sulfur content is 55.33 wt.%, crystalline sulfur can be detected on the surface of the activated carbon matrix. The best electrochemical performance can be obtained for a sulfur electrode with the lowest sulfur content. The sulfur/activated carbon composite with 32.37 wt.% sulfur afforded the highest first discharge capacity of 1360 mAh g{sup −1} at 1 C rate and a large reversible capacity of 702 mAh g{sup −1} at 10 C (16.75 A/g)

Carbon-coated lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4/C) with uniform carbon coating was synthesized by a mechanical activation method. Silicon negative electrode material was obtained in the form of thin films of amorphous silicon on a Cu foil substrate by vertical deposition technique. The electrochemical performance of the full cell, LiFePO4/C-Si, was tested with 1 M LiPF6 in EC/DMC at 0.5 and 1 C-rates. The cell exhibited an initial discharge capacity of 143.9 mAh g(-1) at 0.5 C-rate at room temperature. A reasonably good cycling performance under a high current density of 1 C-rate could be obtained with the full cell.

Microstructural changes and corrosion behavior of pure magnesium for different milling times were investigated. The samples with a finer grain size showed poor corrosion resistance because of unstable or metastable protective film formation after immersion in 0.8 wt% NaCl solution. The corrosion resistance did not improve despite the strong (0002) texture of the sample prepared by spark plasma sintering at 500 °C for 0.3 Ks and milling for 2 h. By studying the microstructural changes and texture development, we concluded that the deformation-dependent grain size is the dominant factor controlling the corrosion properties of mechanically milled magnesium. Increased grain boundary densities lead to an enhancement of the overall surface reactivity and, consequently, the corrosion rate.

Highlights: • A highly porous carbon (HPC) with regular spherical morphology was synthesized. • Sulfur/HPC composites were prepared by melt–diffusion method. • Sulfur/HPC composites showed improved cyclablity and long-term cycle life. - Abstract: Sulfur composite material with a highly porous carbon sphere as the conducting container was prepared. The highly porous carbon sphere was easily synthesized with resorcinol–formaldehyde precursor as the carbon source. The morphology of the carbon was observed with field emission scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope, which showed a well-defined spherical shape. Brunauer–Emmett–Teller analysis indicated that it possesses a high specific surface area of 1563 m{sup 2} g{sup −1} and a total pore volume of 2.66 cm{sup 3} g{sup −1} with a bimodal pore size distribution, which allow high sulfur loading and easy transportation of lithium ions. Sulfur carbon composites with varied sulfur contents were prepared by melt–diffusion method and lithium sulfur cells with the sulfur composites showed improved cyclablity and long-term cycle life.

Sulfur composite was prepared by encapsulating sulfur into CMK-3 mesoporous carbon with different heating times and then used as the cathode material for lithium sulfur batteries. Thermal treatment at 300 °C plays an important role in the sulfur encapsulation process. With 20 h of heating time, a portion of sulfur remained on the surface of carbon, whereas with 60 h of heating time, sulfur is confined deeply in the small pores of carbon that cannot be fully exploited in the redox reaction, thus causing low capacity. The S/CMK-3 composite with thermal treatment for 40 h at 300 °C contained 51.3 wt.% sulfur and delivered a high initial capacity of 1375 mA h g−1 at 0.1 C. Moreover, it showed good capacity retention of 704 mA h g−1 at 0.1 C and 578 mA h g−1 at 2 C even after 100 cycles, which proves its potential as a cathode material for high capability lithium sulfur batteries.

During discharge of lithium sulfur (Li–S) battery with a liquid electrolyte system, sulfur is first reduced to Li2S8, which is dissolved into the organic electrolyte and this serves as the liquid cathode. In solution, lithium polysulfides undergo a series of chemical reactions and their concentration varies during cell reaction. The amount of sulfur and electrolytes in the system plays an important role in determining the cell performance. In this work, the effect of sulfur loading in cathode and the amount of electrolyte on the energy density and cycle performance of Li–S battery has been investigated. Cathodes with sulfur loading of 0.99, 2.98, and 6.80 mg_S cm−2 were prepared. Precisely controlled amount of electrolyte was added with varied electrolyte/sulfur (E/S) ratios of 1.67, 5, 10, 20, and 40 µl/mg_S. The surface morphology of fresh and cycled sulfur cathodes was characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS).

Magnesium doped Li1−2xMgxFePO4/C (x = 0.00, 0.01, 0.03, 0.05) cathode materials were synthesized by sol–gel method, and the effect of magnesium doping as well as its content on the electrochemical properties for lithium batteries was also investigated. Their morphology was studied with field emission scanning electron microscope and Li1−2xMgxFePO4 materials showed the olivine phase without impurities. The thin carbon layer of Li1−2xMgxFePO4/C was confirmed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The magnesium doped Li1−2xMgxFePO4/C particles were smaller than those undoped. The Li1−2xMgxFePO4/C materials showed better cycling behavior than undoped LiFePO4, especially at high C-rate in which Li0.94Mg0.03FePO4/C composition exhibited the best electrochemical properties.

Gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) were prepared with electrospun poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) [P(VdF-HFP)] nanofibrous membrane containing low molecular-weight polymer plasticizers, poly(ethylene glycol) dimethyl ether (PEGDME, Mw = 250 and 500). The fibers of electrospun membrane were stacked in layers to give fully interconnected pore structure with high porosity. The porous structure acted as a good host matrix to accommodate the polymer plasticizers. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) were used for thermal and physical characterizations, respectively. The GPEs exhibit high electrolyte uptake, high ionic conductivity, high anodic stability, and low interfacial resistance. Ionic conductivity and electrolyte uptake increased with the decrease in molecular weight of the polymer plasticizer. Prototype cells using electrospun P(VdF-HFP) nanofibrous GPEs with polymer plasticizers showed stable cyclic performances at different C-rates.

Polyaniline (PAN!) was doped with different lithium salts such as LiPFG and LiClO4 and evaluated as cathode-active material for application in room-temperature lithium batteries. The doped PANT was characterized by FTIR and XPS measurements. In the FTIR spectra, the characteristic peaks of PANT are shifted to lower bands as a consequence of doping, and it is more shifted in the case of PANI doped with LiPFG. The cathodes prepared using PANT doped with LiPF6 and LiClO4 delivered initial discharge capacities of 125 mAh g(-1) and 112 mAh g(-1) and stable reversible capacities of 114 mAh g(-1) and 81 mAh g(-1), respectively, after 10 charge-discharge cycles. The cells were also tested using polymer electrolyte, which delivered highest discharge capacities of 142.6 mAh g(-1) and 140 mAh g(-1) and stable reversible capacities of 117 mAh g(-1) and 122 mAh g(-1) for PANT-LiPF6 and PANI-LiClO4, respectively, after 10 cycles. The cathode prepared with LiPFG doped PANT shows better cycling performance and stability as compared to the cathode prepared with LiClO4 doped PANT using both liquid and polymer electrolytes.

Various physical, chemical and mechanical methods, such as inert gas condensation, chemical vapor condensation, sol-gel, pulsed wire evaporation, evaporation technique, and mechanical alloying, have been used to synthesize nanoparticles. Among them, chemical vapor condensation (CVC) has the benefit of its applicability to almost all materials because a wide range of precursors are available for large-scale production with a non-agglomerated state. In this work, Fe nanoparticles and nanowires were synthesized by chemical vapor condensation method using iron pentacarbonyl (Fe(CO)5) as the precursor. The effect of processing parameters on the microstructure, size and morphology of Fe nanoparticles and nanowires were studied. In particular, we investigated close correlation of size and morphology of Fe nanoparticles and nanowires with atomic quantity of inflow precursor into the electric furnace as the quantitative analysis. The atomic quantity was calculated by Boyle's ideal gas law. The Fe nanoparticles and nanowires with various diameter and morphology have successfully been synthesized by the chemical vapor condensation method.

HSS has high strength, wear resistance, and hardness together with an appreciable toughness and fatigue resistance. PIM has received attention owing to its ability to shape without additional processes. The experimental specimens were manufactured using PIM with T42 powders (59 vol.%) and polymer (41 vol.%). The green parts were solvent debound in n-Hexane at 60 °C for 24 hours and further thermally debound in a N2-H2 mixed gas atmosphere for 18 hours. The specimens were then sintered in a vacuum (10−5 mtorr), hydrogen and nitrogen gas atmosphere. In the vacuum, the specimen sintered at 1240 °C had the highest hardness at 520 Hv. In this condition, the carbides were well-distributed and located in the grain. The grain size was 10 μm, and the carbide size was 1 μm. When sintering in a vacuum at over 1260 °C, the carbides converted to eutectic carbide and were located at the grain boundary. Grain growth was observed. The specimens sintered in a nitrogen atmosphere had a lower density and hardness than that produced in the vacuum.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were purified using acid solution, and CNT-sulfur composite powder was prepared via precipitation, using the purified CNTs. In addition, the effect of the purified CNTs (PUCNTs) on the electrochemical performance of the Li/S cell was investigated. After the purification, almost all the impurities in the as-synthesized CNTs (ASCNTs) were removed, and the dispersibility of the CNTs was improved. On the other hand, the concentration of the structural defects and of the disordered structures in the PUCNTs was increased due to the surface oxidation of the tubes during acid treatment. In the case of the PUCNT-S composite powder, the outer wall of the tubes was well covered with sulfur, as opposed to the tubes in the ASCNT-S composite powder. The Li/S cell containing ASCNT-S composite cathode showed a large voltage decrease and a 680 mAh/g capacity during the first discharge process. The Li/S cell with PUCNT-S composite cathode, however, showed a higher discharge capacity and better cycle performance than the cell with ASCNT-S composite cathode. The electrochemical performance of the Li/S cell was improved for the PUCNT-S composite cathode using the CNTs purified by acid treatment.

High purity and single crystalline beta-Ga2O3 nanomaterials with various morphologies were obtained through the simple thermal evaporation of metal gallium powder on a gold-coated silicon substrate in argon. In this report, the growth behavior of the beta-Ga2O3 nanomaterials as a function of synthesis time and source material supply was delicately surveyed via FESEM and HRTEM. The synthesis time and source material supply affected morphology, growth rate and growth mechanism of the grown nanomaterials. It was confirmed that the growth mechanism of the beta-Ga2O3 nanomaterials was varied in the order of VLS, combination of VLS and VS, and VS, by increasing the synthesis time without regard to the supply of the source material. When the source materials supply was increased, many beta-Ga2O3 nanomaterials with various morphologies, such as sheet, triangle, and belt-like were appeared. It was confirmed that the oxidation reaction of gallium and oxygen for the formation of gallium oxide nanomaterials carried out the precipitation of gallium at the same time due to the supersaturation of the gallium atoms in gold catalyst. The growth and formation mechanism of the beta-Ga2O3 nanomaterials are discussed herein.

β-Ga 2 O 3 nanowires with different diameters were successfully synthesized by adjusting the size of catalyst via a simple thermal evaporation of elemental gallium powder in argon ambient. The size of catalyst was controlled by adjusting the sputtering time. The critical size of catalyst, which can be provided as a seed of nanowires, was investigated in detail. In this work, we have found that the growth mechanism of nanowires can be changed on the basis of catalyst size. The Ga 2 O 3 nanowires synthesized by the vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) mechanism were successfully grown on the catalyst with a diameter not exceeding 65 nm. The HRTEM results indicate that the growth direction of nanowires synthesized by the VLS mechanism strongly depends upon the crystal direction of the catalyst.

Li0.98Ni0.7Ti0.3O1.92 (LNTO) cathode material for Li ion batteries was thermally synthesized using Ni/Li/TiNi film and Li/TiNi film. Structural and electrochemical properties of the synthesized electrodes were investigated by means of x-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and galvanostatic charge?discharge half-cell test. A large amount of LNTO was synthesized in a Ni/Li/TiNi system compared to a Li/TiNi system, and the Ni film in the Ni/Li/TiNi system restrained Li leakage during thermal synthesis at high temperature. The surface of the annealed Ni/Li/TiNi film consisted of a peel-off layer part (Li2O2) and an exposed surface part (LNTO). A cell with LNTO electrode synthesized in the Ni/Li/TiNi system showed 103?mAh?cm?2 initial discharge capacity and 83% of capacity retention after 10 cycles.

To prevent the dissolution of lithium polysulfides into liquid electrolyte and to promote the lithium/sulfur redox reaction, nano-sized Al2O3 particles having large specific surface area were added into sulfur electrode. The effects of nano-sized Al2O3 particles on the electrochemical properties of sulfur electrode for lithium/sulfur battery were investigated using CV measurements, charge/discharge tests and ionic conductivity measurements of liquid electrolyte. From the results, the sulfur electrode containing nano Al2O3 particles showed good cycle performance and higher discharge capacity of 660 mAh g−1-sulfur than that of the sulfur electrode without nano Al2O3. It is therefore concluded that the addition of nano-sized Al2O3 particles gives the beneficial effects of preventing the dissolution of lithium polysulfides into liquid electrolyte.

Three kinds of electrolytes are investigated to find out the proper electrolyte for magnesium battery. Propylene carbonate electrolyte using magnesium salt of Mg(ClO4)2 shows a higher ionic conductivity than that of dimethyl carbonate and tri(ethyleneglycol dimethyl)ether (TRGDME) but low decomposition potential. The TRGDME electrolyte with 0.5 M Mg(ClO4)2 has a higher ionic conductivity of 6 × 10−4 S cm−1 than that of dimethyl carbonate, but the decomposition voltage of the electrolyte is over 3.0 V which can be used for Mg/S cell.

Ni sulfides were formed on a Ni-deposited Ti–50.0Ni(at) alloy by annealing under a sulfur pressure of 100 kPa at 673 K for 0.36 ks. Martensitic transformation, superelasticity and electrochemical properties were characterized using different techniques. Ni sulfides consisting of NiS and NiS2 of thickness 0.8 μ m were formed by a reaction between Ni and S. Some spherical particles and pores were found in the sulfides. A Ti–50.0Ni alloy with Ni sulfide surface layers showed a two-stage B2–R–B19' transformation behavior. A partial superelasticity with a superelastic recovery ratio of 78% found in a current collector showed a clear discharge behavior with a voltage plateau between 1.3–1.6 V. Discharge capacities of the Ni sulfide cathode decreased largely from 700 to 510 mAh(g-NiS2)−1 with increasing number of cycles up to 3, above which it decreased gradually.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been synthesized through chemical vapor deposition in argon gas atmosphere using Fe–2.5%Mo alloyed nanoparticles as a catalyst and H2/CH4 gas mixture as a reaction gas. Fe–2.5 wt.%Mo alloyed nanoparticles with average diameter of 7, 20, 45 and 85 nm are prepared by the chemical vapor condensation process using the pyrolysis of iron pentacarbonyl (Fe(CO)5) and molybdenum hexacarbonyl (Mo(CO)6). The morphologies of the CNTs are controlled by adjusting the nanoparticle size, reaction gas ratio and reaction temperature. With decreasing nanoparticle size under the same experimental conditions, the degree of crystalline perfection increases gradually and the morphologies of the carbon nanotubes vary from multi wall carbon nanotubes to single wall carbon nanotubes. Also, the ratio of reaction gas has an effect on the morphology and the degree of crystallinity of CNTs. In this work, it is suggested that morphology, diameter and degree of crystallinity of CNTs could be controlled by adjusting the reaction gas ratio, reaction temperature and catalyst size.

Si and Si/Ni thin film electrodes less than 1m in total thickness were fabricated on the roughened Cu substrate by rf sputtering. Their surface morphology and crystalline structure were carefully investigated by means of FESEM and XRD. The morphology of films is dependent on the surface feature of substrate, and the grown films were amorphous. The initial capacity and the irreversible capacity loss of a Li/Si film cell were improved with insertion of a Ni buffer layer. The effect of the film morphology on the electrochemical properties of cells was demonstrated based on the observations of film electrodes.

High purity nanowires are successfully synthesized by chemical vapor deposition. In this work, we have tried synthesis of GaP nanowires with copper oxide catalyst using chemical vapor deposition method involving a metal oxide-assisted vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth mechanism. The synthesis process is the same as that described in existing work except for a catalyst. The mixture of GaP and Ga powder was used as GaP source for synthesis of GaP nanowires. And the mixture powder was directly vaporized in the range of 700~1000°C under argon ambient in a furnace. The wire-like products was observed in the range of 800~950°C. The diameter of nanowires increases with increasing synthesis temperature, but reversely, the length of nanowires decreases steadily. The nanowires prepared at 850°C possess perfect wire-like shape and uniform distribution of diameter. The average diameter and length of nanowires are about 50 and 150, respectively. HRTEM and EDX analysis were carried out to obtain more detailed information of its microstructure. Nevertheless, all condition of processing was set for making the high purity GaP nanowires as existing reported method, the nanowires were identified as well-crystallized gallium oxide nanowires with an amorphous outer layer. It does not accord with existing reported results. This result means that the catalysts play a key role in the growth of nanowires.

Gallium phosphide nanowires were successfully synthesized by the catalytic chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method using MgO powder-impregnated nickel oxide as catalyst and gallium phosphide and gallium powders as GaP source. The synthesis of GaP nanowires were carried out at 900°C for 30min under argon ambient and directly vaporized Ga and GaP powder. The diameter of GaP nanowires is about 25~70nm and the length is up to several tens of micrometers. The GaP NWs was core-shell structure, which consists of the GaP core and the Ga oxide outer layers. The GaP nanowires have a single-crystalline zinc blend structured crystals with the [111] growth direction. Nanowires larger than around 50nm in diameter exhibited twinning faults, which appears in the TEM images as discrete dark lines and alternating wire contrast. We demonstrate that MgO powder-impregnated nickel oxide catalyst exhibited a large catalytic effect on the growth of high-purity and -quantity gallium phosphide(GaP).

We investigated on the additive effect of carbon nanotube in the sulfur electrode on the first discharge curve and cycling property of lithium/sulfur cell. The sulfur electrode with carbon nanotube had two discharge plateau potentials and the first discharge capacity about 1200 mAh/g sulfur. The addition carbon nanotube into the sulfur electrode did not affect the first discharge behavior, but improved the cycling property of lithium/sulfur cell. The optimum content of carbon nanotube was 6 wt% of sulfur electrode.

Various physical, chemical and mechanical methods, such as inert gas condensation, chemical vapor condensation, sol-gel, pulsed wire evaporation, evaporation technique, and mechanical alloying have been used to synthesize nanoparticles. Among them, chemical vapor condensation(CVC) represents the benefit for its applicability to almost materials because a wide range of precursors are available for large-scale production with a non-agglomerated state. In this work, iron nanoparticles and nanowires have synthesized by chemical vapor condensation(CVC) process, using iron pentacarbonyl(Fe(CO)5) as precursor. The effects of processing parameters on the morphology, microstructure and size of iron nanoparticles and nanowires were studied. Iron nanoparticles and nanowires having various diameters were obtained by controlling the inflow of metallic organic precursor. Both nanoparticles and nanowires were crystallized. Characterization of obtained nanoparticles and nanowires were investigated by using a field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission microscopy and X-ray diffraction.

The alloy nanowires are more prospective magnetic and shape memory materials. Fabrication of binary or more alloy nanowires using electrochemical deposition process is generally challenging due to the different synthesis conditions of individual elements. In the present work, binary NiCo alloy nanowire arrays have been fabricated by electrochemical deposition using anodic aluminum oxide template medium technique. The optimum conditions (temperature, voltage and time) for synthesis of NiCo alloy nanowire array were achieved based on the ideal experimental conditions of single Ni and Co nanowire arrays. The synthesized NiCo alloy nanowire arrays were characterized by X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer. The amorphous NiCo alloy nanowires were crystallized by annealing of 800 degrees C for 1 hour in argon atmosphere. The controlled composition of electrolyte provided to achieve a uniformly distributed chemical composition of Ni and Co (49.26:50.74) in nanowires.

The microstructure of Ni sulfides prepared by thermal sulfidation of pure Ni and their dependence of fabrication parameters were investigated by means of scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffractions. Sulfidation was made by isothermally annealing Ni with the sulfur in vacuum sealed glass ampoules at 673 K for 120 – 600s under the sulfur pressure of 100 and 220 kPa. The sulfide layers formed in the early stage were found to consist of spherical particles smaller than 0.5um, which were grown and agglomerated with increasing annealing temperature. Thickness of sulfides developed on Ni substrate was found to increase with increasing annealing time and sulfur pressure. It was also found that compositions of dominant Ni sulfides changed with varying annealing time. At the initial stage, only Ni3S2 sulfide was formed on pure Ni, which was tightly bonded to Ni substrate. On increasing annealing time, NiS sulfide was formed. On further increasing annealing time, NiS1.97 sulfide was formed, which always coexisted with NiS sulfide. A mechanism for sulfidation of Ni is proposed as follows: 3Ni + 2S Ni3S2, Ni3S2 +S NiS, NiS + S NiS1.97

Iron(Fe)-molybdenum(Mo) alloyed nanopaticles and nanowires were produced by the chemical vapor condensation(CVC) process using the pyrolysis of iron pentacarbonyl(Fe(CO)5) and molybdenum hexacarbonyl(Mo(CO)6). The influence of CVC parameter on the formation of nanoparticle, nanowire and size control was studied. The size of Fe-Mo alloyed nanoparticles can be controlled by quantity of gas flow. Also, Fe-Mo alloyed nanowires were produced by control of the work chamber pressure. Obtained nanoparticles and nanowires were investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction.

FeSx nanoparticles were synthesized by the chemical vapor condensation (CVC) process using the pyrolysis of iron pentacarbonyl (Fe(CO)5) and sulfur (S). The influence of CVC parameter on the formation of nanoparticle and size distribution was studied. The synthesized nanoparticles consisting of FeS, FeS2 and Fe2O3 were nearly spherical shape and 5~40 nm in mean diameter. Obtained particles were studied by applying the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. Electrochemical properties of the electrode fabricated with synthesized nanoparticles were evaluated.

The electrochemical properties of Si/Ni/Cu film electrodes fabricated with different Ni film thicknesses were evaluated by investigating their structural properties. As the Ni film thickness increased from 0.5 to 3.5 μm, the growth behavior of the Ni film was changed from a fine grain structure to a column structure grown preferentially. The morphology of Ni clusters was also changed from round to trigonal due to the increase of the interfacial energy between the Ni and the Cu increased greatly with increasing Ni film thickness. The formation of trigonal clusters in the 3.5-μm film reduced the stress in the film and enhanced the adhesion between the Si film and the Ni film. The structurally stabilized Si electrode with a 3.5-μm thick Ni film improved the electrochemical properties of the Li/Si thin film cell.