{"title":"Design of highly conductive iongel soft solid electrolytes for Li-O2 batteries","authors":"","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.59","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.59","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80632749","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiaolang Chen, Jingjing Zhao, Guisheng Li, Dieqing Zhang, Hexing Li
{"title":"Recent advances in photocatalytic renewable energy production","authors":"Xiaolang Chen, Jingjing Zhao, Guisheng Li, Dieqing Zhang, Hexing Li","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2021.24","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2021.24","url":null,"abstract":"The development of green and renewable energy is becoming increasingly more important in reducing environmental pollution and controlling CO2 discharge. Photocatalysis can be utilized to directly convert solar energy into chemical energy to achieve both the conversion and storage of solar energy. On this basis, photocatalysis is considered to be a prospective technology to resolve the current issues of energy supply and environmental pollution. Recently, several significant achievements in semiconductor-based photocatalytic renewable energy production have been reported. This review presents the recent advances in photocatalytic renewable energy production over the last three years by summarizing the typical and significant semiconductorbased and semiconductor-like photocatalysts for H2 production, CO2 conversion and H2O2 production. These reactions demonstrate how the basic principles of photocatalysis can be exploited for renewable energy production. Finally, we conclude our review of photocatalytic renewable energy production and provide an outlook for future related research. Page 2 of Chen et al. Energy Mater 2022;2:200001 https://dx.doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2021.24 36","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"28 19 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88885297","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yi Guo, Cheng Liu, Lei Xu, Kaixin Huang, Hao Wu, Wenlong Cai, Yun Zhang
{"title":"A cigarette filter-derived nitrogen-doped carbon nanoparticle coating layer for stable Zn-ion battery anodes","authors":"Yi Guo, Cheng Liu, Lei Xu, Kaixin Huang, Hao Wu, Wenlong Cai, Yun Zhang","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.45","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.45","url":null,"abstract":"Despite the low cost, safety and high theoretical capacity of metallic zinc, zinc anodes face chronic problems, including zinc dendrites, corrosion and side reactions in aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs). Herein, a nitrogen-doped carbon nanoparticle coating layer derived from discarded cigarette filters is constructed to suppress parasitic side reactions and zinc dendrite growth. The dense coating layer isolates water from the zinc anode, effectively inhibiting side reactions. Furthermore, the special micro-mesoporous structure and sufficient zincophilic groups guarantee uniform Zn stripping/plating. Consequently, durable cycle stability (2400 cycles at a current density of 1 mA cm-2) with a stable polarization potential is achieved for symmetrical cells. The coating layer derived in this study therefore has the potential to improve the electrochemical performance of ZIBs.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74393974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Atomistic Engineering of Ag/Pt nanoclusters for remarkably boosted mass electrocatalytic activity","authors":"Liangzhen Liu, Qiangyu Zhu, Junwei Li, Junxiang Chen, Junheng Huang, Qingfu Sun, Z. Wen","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.03","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.03","url":null,"abstract":"It is of vital importance to boost the intrinsic activity and augment the active sites of expensive and scarce platinum-based catalysts for advancing a variety of electrochemical energy applications. We herein report a mild electrochemical bottom-up approach to deposit ultrafine, but stable, Pt8Ag4 alloy clusters on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by elaborately designing bimetallic organic cluster precursors with four silver and eight platinum atoms coordinated with µ,σ-bridged ethynylpyridine ligands, i.e., [Ag4(C24H16N4Pt)8(BF4)4]. The Pt8Ag4 cluster/CNT hybrids present impressively high platinum mass activity that is threefold that of commercial Pt/C toward the hydrogen evolution reaction, as a result of the cooperative contributions from the Ag atoms that enhance the intrinsic activity and the CNT supports that increase the activity sites. The present work affords an attractive avenue for engineering and stabilizing Pt-based nanoclusters at the atomic level and represents a promising strategy for the development of high-efficiency and durable electrocatalysts.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80351449","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gaojie Li, Siguang Guo, Ben Xiang, Shixiong Mei, Yang Zheng, Xuming Zhang, B. Gao, Paul K. Chu, K. Huo
{"title":"Recent advances and perspectives of microsized alloying-type porous anode materials in high-performance Li- and Na-ion batteries","authors":"Gaojie Li, Siguang Guo, Ben Xiang, Shixiong Mei, Yang Zheng, Xuming Zhang, B. Gao, Paul K. Chu, K. Huo","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.24","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.24","url":null,"abstract":"Alloying materials (e.g., Si, Ge, Sn, Sb, and so on) are promising anode materials for next-generation lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to their high capacity, suitable working voltage, earth abundance, environmental friendliness, and non-toxicity. Although some important breakthroughs have been reported recently for these materials, their dramatic volume change during alloying/dealloying causes severe pulverization, leading to poor cycling stability and safety risks. Although the nanoengineering of alloys can mitigate the volumetric expansion to some extent, there remain other drawbacks, such as low initial Columbic efficiency and volumetric energy density. Porous microscale alloys comprised of nanoparticles and nanopores inherit micro- and nanoproperties, so that volume expansion during lithiation/sodiation can be better accommodated by the porous structure to consequently release stress and improve the cycling stability. Herein, the recent progress of porous microscale alloying-type anode materials for LIBs and SIBs is reviewed by summarizing the Li and Na storage mechanisms, the challenges associated with different materials, common fabrication methods, and the relationship between the structure and electrochemical properties in LIBs and SIBs. Finally, the prospects of porous microscale alloys are discussed to provide guidance for future research and the commercial development of anode materials for LIBs and SIBs.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"46 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90792751","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yuejuan Zhang, S. Bi, Zhiqiang Niu, Weiya Zhou, S. Xie
{"title":"Design of Zn anode protection materials for mild aqueous Zn-ion batteries","authors":"Yuejuan Zhang, S. Bi, Zhiqiang Niu, Weiya Zhou, S. Xie","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.08","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.08","url":null,"abstract":"Rechargeable aqueous Zn-ion batteries (AZIBs) are considered alternative stationary storage systems for large-scale applications due to their high safety, low cost, and high power density. However, Zn anode issues including dendrite formation and side reactions greatly hinder the practical application of AZIBs. To solve the Zn anode issues, various strategies based on material designs have been developed. It is necessary to analyze and classify these strategies according to different materials, because different properties of materials determine the underlying mechanisms. In this review, we briefly introduce the fundamental issues in Zn anodes. Furthermore, this review highlights the material designs for the protection of Zn anodes in mild AZIBs. Finally, we also offer insight into potential directions in the material designs to promote the development of AZIBs in the future.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"67 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84056225","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
L. Xie, Jiadong Tang, Runan Qin, Jingbing Liu, Qianqian Zhang, Yuhong Jin, Hao Wang
{"title":"Two-dimensional nanofluidics for blue energy harvesting","authors":"L. Xie, Jiadong Tang, Runan Qin, Jingbing Liu, Qianqian Zhang, Yuhong Jin, Hao Wang","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.04","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.04","url":null,"abstract":"Blue energy harvesting based on the ion flow obtained from seas and rivers provides a clean, stable and continuous electric output that is highly dependent on ion-selective membranes (ISMs) that conduct single ions. In recent years, ISMs constructed based on two-dimensional (2D) nanofluidics have demonstrated promising application prospects in blue energy harvesting due to their facile fabrication, excellent ion selectivity and high ion flux. In this review, the principles of 2D nanofluidics in regulating ionic transport are firstly proposed and discussed, including ion selectivity and ultrafast ion transmission, which are considered as two critical factors for achieving highly efficient blue energy harvesting. The advantages of 2D nanofluidics towards blue energy harvesting are analyzed to reveal the necessity of this review. The construction of 2D nanofluidic membranes based on several typical materials and their recent research advances in salinity gradient- and pressure-driven blue energy harvesting are also summarized in detail. Finally, the existing challenges of 2D nanofluidic membranes regarding blue energy harvesting applications are discussed to provide new insights for the development of high-performance blue energy harvesting systems based on 2D nanofluidics.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"84 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78934368","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Henghan Dai, Ruicong Zhou, Zhao Zhang, Jinyuan Zhou, Gengzhi Sun
{"title":"Design of manganese dioxide for supercapacitors and zinc-ion batteries: similarities and differences","authors":"Henghan Dai, Ruicong Zhou, Zhao Zhang, Jinyuan Zhou, Gengzhi Sun","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.56","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.56","url":null,"abstract":"Energy storage devices, e.g., supercapacitors (SCs) and zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs), based on aqueous electrolytes, have the advantages of rapid ion diffusion, environmental benignness, high safety and low cost. Generally, SCs provide excellent power density with the capability of fast charge/discharge, while ZIBs offer high energy density by storing more charge per unit weight/volume. Although the charge storage mechanisms are considered different, manganese dioxide (MnO2) has proven to be an appropriate electrode material for both SCs and ZIBs because of its unique characteristics, including polymorphic forms, tunable structures and designable morphologies. Herein, the design of MnO2-based materials for SCs and ZIBs is comprehensively reviewed. In particular, we compare the similarities and differences in utilizing MnO2-based materials as active materials for SCs and ZIBs by highlighting their corresponding charge storage mechanisms. We then introduce a few commonly adopted strategies for tuning the physicochemical properties of MnO2 and their specific merits. Finally, we discuss the future perspectives of MnO2 for SC and ZIB applications regarding the investigation of charge storage mechanisms, materials design and the enhancement of electrochemical performance.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"46 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72618906","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Research progress on the surface/interface modification of high-voltage lithium oxide cathode materials","authors":"Yong-Li Heng, Zhenyi Gu, Jin-Zhi Guo, Xiaotong Yang, Xin‐Xin Zhao, Xing Wu","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.18","url":null,"abstract":"Lithium oxides are the most promising cathode candidates for high-performance lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), owing to their high theoretical capacity and average working voltage, which are conducive to achieving the ultimate goal of upgrading energy density. By raising the upper limit of the cutoff voltage, we may be able to further improve both the practical capacity and average voltage of lithium oxide cathodes. Unfortunately, the high-voltage operation of these cathodes results in significant challenges, namely, reduced surface structural stability and interfacial stability with electrolytes, thus degrading the electrochemical performance. Accordingly, surface/interface modification strategies, including surface coating, electrolyte regulation, binder design, and special surface treatments, are systematically summarized and comprehensively analyzed for high-voltage lithium oxide cathode materials in this review. Furthermore, the corresponding modification mechanisms are discussed in detail to better grasp the internal mechanisms for the enhanced electrochemical performance. Based on recent progress, we further propose predictable development directions for high-performance LIBs in future practical applications. This review provides new insights into various high-voltage lithium oxide cathodes and their universal surface/interface modification strategies towards advanced next-generation LIBs with high energy and power density and long cycle life.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84048367","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiaomi Zhou, Jingjing Yang, Ruoming Wang, Wei Zhang, Sining Yun, Baoyuan Wang
{"title":"Advances in lithium-ion battery materials for ceramic fuel cells","authors":"Xiaomi Zhou, Jingjing Yang, Ruoming Wang, Wei Zhang, Sining Yun, Baoyuan Wang","doi":"10.20517/energymater.2022.76","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20517/energymater.2022.76","url":null,"abstract":"Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and ceramic fuel cells (CFCs) are important for energy storage and conversion technologies and their materials are central to developing advanced applications. Although there are many crosslinking research activities, e.g., through materials and some common scientific fundamentals employed for both LIB and CFCs, crosslinking scientific aspects to achieve a comprehensive understanding are missing. There is a lack of such a review to promote and guide further research and development in the crosslinking of LIBs and CFCs. Herein, we review the existing application of LIB materials in CFCs to discover the scientific advances of lithium-ion and proton transport cooperation and identify the new directions of Li-CFCs in the future. This review is the first to propose CFC advances, especially at low temperatures (300-600 °C) by applying LIB materials to practical devices and highlight the material properties and new device functions with enhanced performance, as well as the scientific mechanisms and principles. Furthermore, we seek to deepen the scientific understanding of materials science, ion transport mechanisms and semiconductor electrochemistry to benefit both the battery and fuel cell fields.","PeriodicalId":21863,"journal":{"name":"Solar Energy Materials","volume":"31 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91230224","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}