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This review presents the recent progress and research potential of biocompatible ZBs for wearable and implantable devices. Challenges and solutions have been discussed for future investigations, followed by roadmaps towards biocompatibility.

Rechargeable zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are attractive for large-scale energy storage due to their superiority in resources, safety, and environmental friendliness. However, the lack of suitable ZIBs cathode materials limits their practical applications. In consideration of the excellent electrochemical performance of phosphate materials in monovalent ion (Li

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) have been widely studied and developed due to their rich resources, low cost and high safety. Conversion- and alloy-type chalcogenides are considered to be promising anode materials because of their excellent redox reversibility and high theoretical specific capacity. However, they suffer from large volume expansion and unsatisfactory cycling stability. Multiphase construction technology has been considered as an effective strategy to solve these problems. In view of the summarized characteristics and the problems with chalcogenides, the synergistic effect of multiphase construction is proposed to achieve better properties of these materials, including satisfactory pseudocapacitance, restrained expansion, suppressed side reactions and enhanced cycling performance. Finally, an in-depth understanding and perspectives are also provided, highlighting scientific suggestions and directions for further research. This review aims to present a full scope of multiphase chalcogenides and provide insightful perspectives for the rational design of the next generation of advanced anode materials for use in SIBs.

We investigated elastic wave attenuation characteristics using a PCI-2 acoustic emission system. A lead-break test was employed to carry out attenuation experiments in granite, marble, red sandstone, and limestone. Because the centroid frequency variation of the red sandstone differs significantly from the other rocks, a pendulum steel ball impact test was also performed to study the attenuation characteristics of elastic waves in red sandstone. The results show that the elastic wave signal amplitude decreases with increasing propagation distance for all four rock types. In granite and red sandstone, the peak frequency of the elastic wave declines abruptly after the propagation exceeds 800 and 100 mm, respectively, and remains almost unchanged in marble and limestone. The attenuation of centroid frequency in granite, limestone, and marble shows the same trend; however, in red sandstone, when the elastic wave propagation exceeds a certain distance, the variation of centroid frequency shows an upward tendency. The main influence of elastic wave attenuation in rock is the packing state of mineral particles: less tightly packed rocks consistently have a higher attenuation coefficient. The secondary cause of attenuation is the development of structures such as joints and stratifications. More developed interior structures lead to higher attenuation coefficients. Sensor selection is also very important in rock attenuation tests. We recommend use of a wide resonant frequency sensor or sensors with different resonant frequencies along the elastic wave propagation path.

The anatase TiO2 nanopowders with exposed {100} planes were prepared by a hydrothermal method using H2O2 as morphology control reagent. The structures, morphologies and photoelectric properties of samples were studied by XRD, BET, TEM, UV–vis DRS and PL methods. The exposure of {100} planes is attributed to the introduction of H2O2. More addition of H2O2 leads to larger grain size. The exposed {101} planes are the electron accumulation planes with strong reduction (electron donate) property. The synergistic effect between {101} and {001} planes is unchanged whether {100} planes are exposed, which are shown by the photoreduction test of Ag+ ions. The oxidation (electron gain) ability order among planes, Ag+ and Pb2+ is {100}>Ag+>{101}>Pb2+, as shown by the further photooxidation result of Pb2+ ions. The exposed {100} planes of nanoatatase are helpful to improve the photocatalytic performance by decreasing the electron-hole recombination rate, as shown by the results of UV–vis DRS and PL tests.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries are largely restricted by the unsatisfactory performance of zinc (Zn) anodes, including their poor stability and irreversibility. In particular, the mechanism behind the electrochemical contrast caused by the surface crystal plane, which is a decisive factor of the electrochemical characteristics of the hostless Zn anode, is still relatively indistinct. Hence, new insight into a novel anode with a surface-preferred (002) crystal plane is provided. The interfacial reaction and morphology evolution are revealed by theoretical analysis and post-mortem/operando experimental techniques, indicating that Zn anodes with more exposed (002) basal planes exhibit free dendrites, no by-products, and weak hydrogen evolution, in sharp contrast to the (100) plane. These features benefit the Zn (002) anode by enabling a long cyclic life of more than 500 h and a high average coulombic efficiency of 97.71% for symmetric batteries, along with delivering long cycling stability and reversibility with life spans of over 2000 cycles for full batteries. This work provides new insights into the design of high-performance Zn anodes for large-scale energy storage and can potentially be applied to other metal anodes suffering from instability and irreversibility.

The rechargeable multivalent-ion batteries (MVIBs) that transfer Zn2+, Mg2+, Al3+, Ca2+ etc. as charge carriers, have become a research hotspot and been emerging as attractive candidates for grid energy storage in terms of cost, volumetric energy density and safety. But there is still a long way from their maturity due to the challenges related to the limited multivalent-ion diffusion kinetic. Unfortunately, the insightful understanding in this aspect is still at an early stage. In this review, considering the critical role of defect chemistry, we have highlighted the fundamental scientific understanding of its relationship with multivalent-ion migration in electrode materials of MVIBs. We first remarked on the basic principles of ion diffusion, from which we further discussed the key factors affecting ion migration and pointed out the critical issues of multivalent-ion diffusion. More importantly, how characteristic parameters of defect engineering cause changes in multivalent-ion diffusion behavior has been expounded in the areas of ion diffusion path and intrinsic structural parameters. The application of defective electrodes in MVIBs with advanced functions was also discussed. Finally, the future perspectives for important areas of defect chemistry for multivalent-ion migration were presented.

The commercial application of aqueous zinc metal batteries in the field of large-scale energy storage is still suffered from their low-temperature operation, in which the electrochemical behaviors of the electrolyte, electrode materials, and their interfaces will deteriorate at low temperatures. Herein, considering the significance of this topic, an in-depth comprehensive and systematic summary of low-temperature zinc metal batteries with the main challenges and corresponding optimization strategies were provided. Furthermore, the promising perspectives have also been proposed, aiming to guide the scientific future development of LTZMBs.

Rechargeable zinc-based batteries are attracting considerable attention for practical energy storage owing to their abundant reserves, low cost, and high safety. However, it remains a significant challenge to develop cathode materials with robust structure and high energy density. Layered VOPO4·xH2O was proposed as a cathode candidate for aqueous Zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs), but its structural stability and conductivity need to be further optimized. Herein, a novel amorphous superlattice of Vanadyl phosphate intercalated with Nitrogen-doped carbon (VOP/NC) is formed by organic molecule interlayer engineering and in-situ carbonization. The nitrogen-doped carbon as interlayer guest not only acts as a structure stabilizer to inhibit the dissolution of active materials, but also serves as capacity contributor to boost the pseudocapacitive capabilities. Based on the characteristics of stable structure and abundant active sites, the modified VOP/NC performs well in ZIBs in terms of long-term durability (1,000 cycles at 500 mA g−1) and high reversible capacity (187.9 mA h g−1 at 50 mA g−1). Furthermore, an intercalation pseudocapacitive Zn2+ storage mechanism accompanied by reversible cationic (Vn+/V(n−1)+) and anionic (N3−/N2−) redox reactions is proposed. This strategy is promising to intercalative layered materials for advanced zinc-based energy storage applications.

Constructing stable and reversible manganese-based cathode is one of the key technologies of aqueous Zn/MnO2 batteries (AZMBs). Herein, a rational strategy of fluorine doping is proposed to improve the reversibility and activity of MnO2. According to the strong bonding induced by high electronegativity of fluorine, the integrity of frameworks can stabilize, and the ion diffusion kinetics is promoted. Meanwhile, the strong ‘pinning effect’ of fluorine effectively retains the electrochemical activity and guides the reversible electrochemical behavior, which plays a critical role in improving both the cycle life and energy efficiency. As expected, a significant specific capacity of 300 mAh/g at 0.6 C and impressive stability over 1,200 cycles at 5 C are achieved without obvious decay. Such high stable Zn/F–MnO2 system may provide novel perspectives for designing high-performance AZMBs.

Aqueous rechargeable batteries have been considered as promising candidates to achieve the requirements for the stationary energy storage system. In recent years, numerous studies have focused on aqueous rechargeable zinc batteries (ARZBs) due to their merits of low-cost, material abundance, acceptable energy density, and environmental friendliness. The fundamental advances in energy storage of batteries are largely dependent on the electrode materials. Focusing on the recent advances of ARZBs, in this review, the reaction mechanisms, electrochemical performances, and challenges about Mn-based materials for ARZBs are systematically introduced. Meanwhile, the optimization strategies for high-performance Mn-based materials with different nanostructures, morphologies, and compositions for ARZBs are discussed as well. This paper combining reviews and perspectives of Mn-based electrodes may shed light on the development of advanced aqueous zinc batteries.

In this paper we present a life cycle assessment (LCA) based biofuel supply chain model with multi-conversion pathways. This model was formulated as a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) problem which took economic, energy, and environmental criteria (3E) into consideration. The economic objective was measured by the total annual profit. The energy objective was measured by using the average fossil energy input per megajoule (MJ) of biofuel. The environmental objective was measured by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per MJ of biofuel. After carefully consideration of the current situation in China, we chose to examine three conversion pathways: bio-ethanol (BE), bio-methanol (BM) and bio-diesel (BD). LCA was integrated to a multi-objective supply chain model by dividing each pathway into several individual parts and analyzing each part. The multi-objective MILP problem was solved using a e-constraint method by defining the total annual profit as the optimization objective and assigning the average fossil energy input per MJ biofuel and GHG emissions per MJ biofuel as constraints. This model was then used to design an experimental biofuel supply chain for China. A surface of the Pareto optimal solutions was obtained by linear interpolation of the non-inferior solutions. The optimal results included the choice of optimal conversion pathway, biomass type, biomass locations, facility locations, and network topology structure in the biofuel supply chain. Distributed and centralized systems were also factored into our experimental system design. In addition, the influence of price change on the optimal solutions was investigated. The optimal solutions obtained in this study reveal a tradeoff between the impact of the 3E criteria. These results indicate that our model will be extremely useful for the design and planning of biofuel supply chains in China.

This paper presents a life cycle assessment (LCA) based biofuel supply chain (SC) analysis framework which enables the study of economic, energy and environmental (3E) performances by using multi-objective optimization. The economic objective is measured by the total annual profit, the energy objective is measured by the average fossil energy (FE) inputs per MJ biofuel and the environmental objective is measured by greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per MJ biofuel. A multi-objective linear fractional programming (MOLFP) model with multi-conversion pathways is formulated based on the framework and is solved by using the ɛ-constraint method. The MOLFP problem is turned into a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) problem by setting up the total annual profit as the optimization objective and the average FE inputs per MJ biofuel and GHG emissions per MJ biofuel as constraints. In the case study, this model is used to design an experimental biofuel supply chain in China. A set of the weekly Pareto optimal solutions is obtained. Each non-inferior solution indicates the optimal locations and the amount of biomass produced, locations and capacities of conversion factories, locations and amount of biofuel being supplied in final markets and the flow of mass through the supply chain network (SCN). As the model reveals trade-offs among 3E criteria, we think the framework can be a good support tool of decision for the design of biofuel SC.