Yosuke Ugata, Rei Matsumoto, Sera Sato, Jaejin Lim, Yong Min Lee, Hiroshi Ueda, Atsuo Omaru, Kosuke Ishii, Naoaki Yabuuchi
{"title":"Unlocking Three‐Dimensional Electron and Ion Transport in High‐Loading and Dense Lithium‐Ion Battery Electrodes Assisted via Porous Graphene Networks","authors":"Yosuke Ugata, Rei Matsumoto, Sera Sato, Jaejin Lim, Yong Min Lee, Hiroshi Ueda, Atsuo Omaru, Kosuke Ishii, Naoaki Yabuuchi","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71677","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71677","url":null,"abstract":"Achieving efficient electron and ion transport in high‐loading, densely packed electrodes remains a major challenge for high‐energy‐density lithium‐ion batteries. Increasing mass loading extends transport pathways for both charge carriers, while electrode densification by roll pressing, essential for maximizing gravimetric and volumetric energy density and minimizing electrolyte content, further restricts ion transport in low‐porosity electrodes. Here, graphene mesosponge (GMS) is introduced as a functional conductive additive that tailors electrode microstructure through its sponge‐like mesoporous framework. High‐loading electrodes based on Co‐free, pure‐Ni layered oxides containing only 1 wt.% GMS exhibit enhanced electronic and ionic conductivity, delivering high reversible capacity with reduced polarization. The deformable mesoporous framework of GMS also buffers compressive stress during roll pressing, enabling practical electrode densities above 3.5 g cm <jats:sup>−3</jats:sup> without inducing cracking of the active material particles. Digital‐twin analysis reveals that the porous GMS architecture forms a three‐dimensional electron‐ and ion‐transport network, with electrolyte retained within its mesopores facilitating ion transport and resulting in superior rate capability compared with electrodes containing single‐walled carbon nanotubes. These results demonstrate that GMS is a transformative conductive additive for simultaneously improving energy and power densities in practical lithium‐ion batteries through rational microstructural design of dense composite electrodes.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"88 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Wenyan Ma, Chong Zhang, Ran Zhou, Xiaoxiao Zhang, Can Liu, Zikang Deng, Ziming Tu, Xunliang Hu, Jia‐Xing Jiang
{"title":"Macromolecular Design of Bipolar Donor–Acceptor Polymer Cathodes for Fast and Durable Aluminum Dual‐Ion Batteries","authors":"Wenyan Ma, Chong Zhang, Ran Zhou, Xiaoxiao Zhang, Can Liu, Zikang Deng, Ziming Tu, Xunliang Hu, Jia‐Xing Jiang","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71683","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71683","url":null,"abstract":"Rechargeable aluminum dual‐ion batteries (ADIBs) are promising for sustainable electrochemical energy storage, yet organic cathodes rarely combine efficient bipolar redox utilization, rapid charge transport, long‐term durability, and operation at high mass loadings. Here, four phenothiazine–anthraquinone donor–acceptor polymers are constructed by varying chain architecture, D–A connectivity, and backbone rigidity to elucidate how macromolecular structure regulates bipolar charge storage. The resulting structure–transport relationships reveal that open crosslinked networks improve ion accessibility, whereas direct D–A conjugation within rigid backbones promotes orbital delocalization and charge transfer. These complementary structural features activate both p‐type phenothiazine and n‐type anthraquinone redox centers, enabling reversible co‐storage of AlCl <jats:sub>4</jats:sub> <jats:sup>−</jats:sup> and AlCl <jats:sup>2+</jats:sup> . Accordingly, the optimized PTZAQ‐C3 delivers a reversible capacity of 243 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> , excellent rate capability (122 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> at 50.0 A g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> ), and exceptional cycling stability up to 90,000 cycles. PTZAQ‐C3 also maintains 200 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> at −30°C and reaches an areal capacity of 10.08 mAh cm <jats:sup>−2</jats:sup> at a mass loading of 50.4 mg cm <jats:sup>−2</jats:sup> . These findings highlight macromolecular design as a general strategy for developing high‐performance bipolar organic cathodes for aluminum dual‐ion and related multicarrier batteries.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"26 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130503","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Calendering‐Dependent Electrochemical and Cost‐Energy Tradeoffs in Layered – Olivine Blend Cathodes","authors":"Huyen T. K. Nguyen, Arumugam Manthiram","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71694","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71694","url":null,"abstract":"Blended cathodes comprised of layered oxide and olivine materials, such as LiNi <jats:sub>0.9</jats:sub> Mn <jats:sub>0.05</jats:sub> Co <jats:sub>0.05</jats:sub> O <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> (NMC) and LiMn <jats:sub>0.7</jats:sub> Fe <jats:sub>0.3</jats:sub> PO <jats:sub>4</jats:sub> (LMFP), are appealing due to their reduced cost and enhanced safety, rate capability, and cyclability compared to high‐Ni layered oxides. However, while these blends are often discussed in terms of particle‐level properties, the effect of processing conditions, such as calendering, has received less attention, despite their strong influence on electrode microstructure due to the differences in morphology, surface characteristics, and crystallographic density. We investigate here systematically NMC, NMC/LMFP with 70/30 wt.%, and NMC/LMFP with 50/50 wt.% cathodes under uncalendered, moderately‐calendered, and hard‐calendered conditions, employing state‐of‐charge‐dependent rate analysis, full‐cell cycling, electrode‐level transport characterization, and cathode‐level cost‐energy evaluation. NMC tolerates calendering, maintaining rate capability, while showing improved capacity retention over 500 cycles. In contrast, NMC/LMFP blends show a narrower, composition‐dependent calendering limit. The 70/30 blend retains its rate‐capability benefit under no‐to‐moderate calendering, whereas the 50/50 blend is strongly penalized by densification. Hard calendering induces transport‐limited behavior in the blends, eliminating rate benefits and degrading cyclability. Stabilizing the NMC with Nb incorporation further improves cyclability and energy retention of the 70/30 blend, demonstrating a pathway to combine microstructure‐enabled rate capability with improved durability and favorable cathode‐level cost‐energy balance.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"26 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130504","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zeyi Yao, Jiahui Hou, Zifei Meng, Xiaotu Ma, Jinzhao Fu, Zexin Wang, Zhenzhen Yang, Jianguo Wen, Maksim Sultanov, Hari Adhikari, Yihao Shen, Geoffrey A. Tompsett, Yan Wang
{"title":"Upcycling Strategy for Mixed Spent Batteries to Enable NMC622 & Graphite Full Batteries","authors":"Zeyi Yao, Jiahui Hou, Zifei Meng, Xiaotu Ma, Jinzhao Fu, Zexin Wang, Zhenzhen Yang, Jianguo Wen, Maksim Sultanov, Hari Adhikari, Yihao Shen, Geoffrey A. Tompsett, Yan Wang","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71680","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71680","url":null,"abstract":"The rapid growth of lithium‐ion batteries is intensifying pressure on critical‐material supply chains while generating increasing volumes of complex battery waste. However, existing recycling technologies struggle to process mixed feedstocks efficiently and often recover products with limited added value. Here, we advance beyond cathode‐focused hydrometallurgical recycling by integrating composition‐adjustable cathode resynthesis with the purification and surface modification of co‐recovered graphite, followed by full‐pouch‐cell validation and unified process‐level assessment. Mixed low‐nickel cathodes are upgraded to high‐performance LiNi <jats:sub>0.6</jats:sub> Mn <jats:sub>0.2</jats:sub> Co <jats:sub>0.2</jats:sub> O <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> (NMC622) with improved lithium‐ion transport and cycling stability. Meanwhile, a closed‐loop graphite upcycling process produces battery‐grade anodes with enhanced interfacial kinetics and durability. Full pouch cells assembled entirely from the upcycled materials exhibit fewer side reactions and approximately twice the cycle life of cells using commercial counterparts, retaining 70% of their capacity after 2590 cycles. Techno‐economic and life‐cycle analyses further indicate >95% recycled‐material utilization, 22.9% higher profitability, and reductions of 27.0% in greenhouse‐gas emissions and 29.4% in energy consumption relative to the reference recycling route. These findings establish mixed battery waste as a viable feedstock for producing high‐value battery materials and demonstrate a pathway from conventional resource recovery toward value‐added remanufacturing for circular, resilient, and low‐carbon battery supply chains.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"36 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149130505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Janus Ag Nanoskin‐Armored Polyimide Bilayer Separator Enables Efficient Li‐Nucleation Regulation for Dendrite‐Free Lithium Metal Battery","authors":"Pengpeng Li, Xinluo Li, Qingsong Zhang, Yisong Zhou, Junyi Han, Nianyu Yue, Jiameng Li, Jiaji Yue, Guohua Sun, Nanjun Chen","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71684","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71684","url":null,"abstract":"Uncontrolled lithium (Li) dendrite growth has been regarded as the most critical obstacle for the widespread adoption of Li metal batteries (LMBs), stemming from the preferential nucleation of Li ions (Li <jats:sup>+</jats:sup> ) at low‐energy‐barrier sites that trigger heterogeneous deposition. Therefore, it is pivotal yet significantly challenging to effectively control Li nucleation and deposition in LMBs. Here, we engineer a Janus Ag nanoskin‐armored polyimide (Ag@PI/PI) bilayer separator by in situ growth Ag nanoparticles on the surface of PI nanofiber and integrating a high‐strength PI nanofiber membrane as the dorsal substrate. Specifically, the Ag nanoskin acts as a three‐dimensional lithiophilic host to seize Li and induce sequential Li nucleation, thereby preventing Li dendrite formation. As a result, the Ag@PI/PI‐Li||Cu cell exhibits a low overpotential of 31.0 mV, high Coulombic efficiency of 98.9%, and prolonged Sand's time of 26.3 h. Significantly, the Ag@PI/PI separator delivers a high Li <jats:sup>+</jats:sup> transference number (0.70) and exceptional cycling stability (1600 h) in a Li||Li cell. Moreover, the Ag@PI/PI‐based Li||NCM523 cell achieves a remarkable specific capacity of 108.32 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> at 5 C while retaining a satisfying capacity retention of 88.7% at 1 C. These results underscore the viability of this universal and efficient Ag nanoskin‐armored strategy for high‐security LMBs applications.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"7 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123657","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gengchang Lai, Qiuyan Li, Xiaoxiao Feng, Huijuan Ma, Chao Peng, Paul K. Chu, Xue‐Feng Yu, Jiahong Wang
{"title":"In Situ Formation of a Hybrid Alloy‐Fluoride Interphase for Stable High‐Capacity Phosphorus Anodes","authors":"Gengchang Lai, Qiuyan Li, Xiaoxiao Feng, Huijuan Ma, Chao Peng, Paul K. Chu, Xue‐Feng Yu, Jiahong Wang","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71682","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71682","url":null,"abstract":"Phosphorus‐based anodes are promising candidates for next‐generation high‐energy‐density lithium‐ion batteries owing to their high theoretical capacity. However, their practical application is severely limited by drastic volume variation and unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) chemistry. Achieving both mechanical robustness and rapid ion transport within the SEI remains a long‐standing challenge. Herein, trace SbF <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> is doped into the phosphorus‐carbon (P/C) composites through a facile ball‐milling. Taking advantage of the SbF <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> preferential reduction over phosphorus, a hybrid interphase enriched with Li <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> Sb and LiF is in situ formed during initial lithiation. The hybrid interphase effectively suppresses the dissolution and shuttling of polyphosphides, which also integrates fast ionic/electronic transport with enhanced mechanical rigidity, thereby accelerating reaction kinetics. The synergetic effect endows the P/C‐SbF <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> anode with a high retained capacity of 970.10 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> after 500 cycles at 1 A g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> and a superior rate capability of 893.84 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> at 15 A g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> . When paired with an NCM811 cathode, the full cell retains 80.25% of its capacity after 400 cycles at 1 C. The single‐layer pouch full cell further confirms the practical feasibility. This work highlights in situ formed hybrid interphase engineering for overcoming the stability‐transport trade‐off in high‐capacity alloying anodes.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"96 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123656","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Guangming Cao, Heng Zhang, Youcun Bai, Yingying Song, Lang Qiu, Xiang‐Long Huang, Tao Song, Wei Sun, Chang Ming Li
{"title":"Integrated d‐p Orbital Coupling Within High‐Entropy Oxide/Halloysite Accelerates Sulfur Reduction Kinetics in Sodium‐Sulfur Batteries","authors":"Guangming Cao, Heng Zhang, Youcun Bai, Yingying Song, Lang Qiu, Xiang‐Long Huang, Tao Song, Wei Sun, Chang Ming Li","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71654","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71654","url":null,"abstract":"The sodium polysulfides (NaPSs) shuttle effect remains a major obstacle to achieving the high theoretical capacity of room‐temperature sodium‐sulfur (RT Na–S) batteries. Herein, the high‐entropy oxide/halloysite nanotube hybrid host (HEO/HNT) is developed by integrating multicomponent catalytic sites with a naturally abundant 1D clay scaffold for efficient sulfur conversion. The hollow tubular structure of HNT enables uniform HEO anchoring and effective confinement of sulfur species, while the robust Si─O and Al─OH framework enhances cathode stability during long‐term cycling. Density functional theory calculations reveal that interfacial coupling between the metal 3d orbitals of HEO and the Al/Si 3p orbitals of HNT induces extended orbital delocalization, thereby strengthening NaPSs adsorption and lowering the free energy barriers for stepwise polysulfide conversion. In situ and ex situ characterizations further verify accelerated NaPSs reduction kinetics and suppressed shuttling. Benefiting from these synergistic effects, the S@HEO/HNT cathode delivers a high reversible capacity of 1225 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> after 450 cycles at 1 C and maintains 478 mAh g <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> over 2500 cycles at 10 C, corresponding to an ultralow capacity fading of 0.008% per cycle. This study bridges high‐entropy oxide with naturally abundant clay substrates, offering a scalable route toward durable, high‐rate RT Na–S batteries.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"165 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123655","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Songyang Chang, Zhilong Wang, Angelica Del Valle‐Perez, Wentao Hou, Jose Fernando Florez Gomez, Lisandro Cunci, Gerardo Morell, Shen Qiu, Fengqi You, Xianyong Wu
{"title":"Medium‐Concentration Electrolytes Balance Hydrogen‐Bond Disruption and Ion–Ion Interactions for Wide‐Temperature Aqueous Trivalent Indium Metal Batteries","authors":"Songyang Chang, Zhilong Wang, Angelica Del Valle‐Perez, Wentao Hou, Jose Fernando Florez Gomez, Lisandro Cunci, Gerardo Morell, Shen Qiu, Fengqi You, Xianyong Wu","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71678","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71678","url":null,"abstract":"It is desirable to develop aqueous batteries that can operate efficiently across wide temperature ranges; however, it remains a grand challenge to simultaneously suppress electrolyte freezing at low temperatures and water‐induced side reactions at elevated temperatures. Herein, we demonstrate that a medium‐concentration chloride electrolyte can effectively regulate the electrolyte solvation structures, leading to high‐efficiency and wide‐temperature aqueous trivalent indium metal batteries. Specifically, the increment of salt concentration progressively disrupts the hydrogen‐bonding network of water and reconstructs the In <jats:sup>3+</jats:sup> solvation structure toward chloride‐rich complexes, achieving a balanced effect at the medium concentration (10 m) of the studied range (5, 10, and 15 m). The optimized 1 m InCl <jats:sub>3</jats:sub> + 10 m LiCl electrolyte shows the best anti‐freezing property at −70°C with sufficient ionic conductivity of 1.42 mS cm <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup> , and it further mitigates the In <jats:sup>3+</jats:sup> hydrolysis tendency and water‐related side reactions at elevated temperatures (+65°C). Consequently, in metal anode exhibits a highly reversible plating behavior with high Coulombic efficiencies of 99%–99.95% over a wide temperature range from −70 to +65°C. Rather than simply maximizing the electrolyte concentration, our work demonstrates that balancing hydrogen‐bond disruption and chloride‐rich ion coordination is the key to achieving wide‐temperature stability in aqueous trivalent electrolytes.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123864","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Chloride‐Mediated Photoelectrochemical Selective Oxidation of Polyols Coupled With Hydrogen Evolution","authors":"Lan Luo, Shanshan Zhang, Xiaomei Zhang, Yutong Cai, Wangsong Chen, Wenjing Dai, Haisong Feng, Zhen Yin, Zhenhua Li, Mingfei Shao","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71687","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71687","url":null,"abstract":"Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting coupled with the oxidation of polyols into high‐value‐added chemicals is of practical significance for the upgrading of biomass and polyester plastics. However, the current polyols selective oxidation reactions suffer from harsh reaction conditions (strong basic electrolyte) and high costs of noble metal‐based catalyst via the reactive oxygen species‐mediated pathway. Herein, we for the first time demonstrate a chlorine radicals‐mediated route toward polyols oxidation under neutral conditions. As proof‐of‐concept, NiCo‐LDH‐decorated TiO <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> has been developed to promote the oxidation of ethylene glycol (EG) to glycolic acid (GA), achieving a GA production rate of 8.7 µmol cm <jats:sup>‒2</jats:sup> h <jats:sup>‒1</jats:sup> with a selectivity of 76.2% in NaCl electrolyte under irradiation, which is the highest value reported to date in PEC system. Mechanistic studies reveal that the key chlorine radicals facilitate C─H bond cleavage to form chlorinated intermediates for GA production. Additionally, we successfully coupled PEC PET‐derived EG valorization with H <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> generation from seawater, attaining GA and H <jats:sub>2</jats:sub> productivity of 30.6 and 93.9 µmol cm <jats:sup>‒2</jats:sup> , respectively. This work offers a novel perspective on polyols oxidation reaction pathway modulation and demonstrates a solar‐to‐chemical conversion approach for integrating low‐value carbon sources recycling and PEC synthesis.","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":27.8,"publicationDate":"2026-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149123658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tess Seip, Lijun Zhu, Salvatore Ranieri, James Torres, Yuxuan Zhang, Roger Hobbs, Hassina Bilheux, Jean-Christophe Bilheux, Aimy Bazylak
{"title":"Hybrid Ionomer-Free Porous Transport Electrodes With Catalyst Coated Membranes for Enhanced Water Electrolysis","authors":"Tess Seip, Lijun Zhu, Salvatore Ranieri, James Torres, Yuxuan Zhang, Roger Hobbs, Hassina Bilheux, Jean-Christophe Bilheux, Aimy Bazylak","doi":"10.1002/aenm.71479","DOIUrl":"10.1002/aenm.71479","url":null,"abstract":"<p>To promote industrial uptake of clean hydrogen production technologies such as polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) water electrolyzers, advancements in catalyst layer (CL) morphology are required. We demonstrate how improved electrochemical performance can be achieved when using an ionomer free porous transport electrode (PTE) coupled with a traditional catalyst coated membrane (CCM) assembly in PEM water electrolyzers. Notably, we reveal that the superior performance achieved when utilizing a hybrid PTE and CCM assembly is due to enhanced ohmic performance caused by optimal contact with both the porous transport layer (PTL) and PEM interfaces. Using operando neutron radiography, we demonstrate that configurations utilizing a CCM resulted in more rapid water replenishment to reaction sites, indicating enhanced membrane hydration beneficial for performance. This enhanced membrane hydration coupled with improved contact area at the PEM-catalyst layer (CL) and PTL-CL interfaces was revealed through the reduced ohmic overpotentials of the hybrid PTE-CCM design, which achieved the lowest ohmic overpotential of 431 mV at 2000 mA cm<sup>−2</sup>. While the average in-plane water distributions are generally similar between cell configurations, we reveal that utilizing a PTE configuration promotes a more homogenous water distribution near the CL-membrane interface due to enhanced catalyst utilization.</p>","PeriodicalId":111,"journal":{"name":"Advanced Energy Materials","volume":"16 37","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":25.5,"publicationDate":"2026-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aenm.71479","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148768553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}