Spent battery recycling has received considerable attention because of its economic and environmental potential.A large amount of retired graphite has been produced as the main electrode material,accompanied by a deta...Spent battery recycling has received considerable attention because of its economic and environmental potential.A large amount of retired graphite has been produced as the main electrode material,accompanied by a detailed exploration of the repair mechanism.However,they still suffer from unclear repair mechanisms and physicochemical evolution.In this study,spent graphite was repaired employing three methodologies:pickling-sintering,pyrogenic-recovery,and high-temperature sintering.Owing to the catalytic effect of the metal-based impurities and temperature control,the as-obtained samples displayed an ordered transformation,including the interlayer distance,crystalline degree,and grain size.As anodes of lithium ions batteries,the capacity of repaired samples reached up to 310 mA h g^(-1)above after 300loops at 1.0 C,similar to that of commercial graphite.Meanwhile,benefitting from the effective assembly of carbon atoms in internal structure of graphite at>1400℃,their initial coulombic efficiency were>87%.Even at 2.0 C,the capacity of samples remained approximately 244 mA h g^(-1)after 500 cycles.Detailed electrochemical and kinetic analyses revealed that a low temperature enhanced the isotropy,thereby enhancing the rate properties.Further,economic and environmental analyses revealed that the revenue obtained through suitable pyrogenic-recovering manners was approximately the largest value(5500$t^(-1)).Thus,this study is expected to clarify the in-depth effect of different repair methods on the traits of graphite,while offering all-round evaluations of repaired graphite.展开更多
Main observation and conclusion Polymer-supramolecular double-network hydrogels(PS-DN hydrogels)often show much improved recovery rates than conventional double-network hydrogels because of the fast self-assembling pr...Main observation and conclusion Polymer-supramolecular double-network hydrogels(PS-DN hydrogels)often show much improved recovery rates than conventional double-network hydrogels because of the fast self-assembling properties,making them attractive candidates for tissue engineering and flexible electronics.However,as the supramolecular network is dynamic and susceptible to break under low strains,the overall mechanical properties of PS-DN hydrogels are still limited.Here,we report the mechanical properties for PS-DN hydrogels can be significantly improved by tuning the supramolecular network structures.A single amino acid change of the self-assembling peptide can tune the assembled structures from nanofiber to nanoribbon.Such a microscopic structural change can greatly increase the Young's modulus(107.4 kPa),fracture stress(0.48 MPa),and toughness(0.38 MJ·m^(–3))of the PS-DN hydrogels.Moreover,the structural change also leads to slightly faster recovery rates(<1 s).We propose that such dramatically different mechanical properties can be understood by the impact of individual peptide rupture events on the overall network connectivity in the two scenarios.Our study may provide new inspirations for combining high mechanical strength and fast recovery in double network hydrogels by tuning the supramolecular network structures.展开更多
In soft connective tissues,the extracellular matrix(ECM)provides spatiotemporally well-defined mechanical and chemical cues that regulate the functions of residing cells.However,it remains challenging to replicate the...In soft connective tissues,the extracellular matrix(ECM)provides spatiotemporally well-defined mechanical and chemical cues that regulate the functions of residing cells.However,it remains challenging to replicate these essential features in synthetic biomaterials.Here,we develop a self-sorting double network hydrogel(SDNH)with spatially well-defined bioactive ligands as synthetic ECM.Specifically,the SDNH is made of two peptides that can independently self-assemble into fibers of different microscopic features,mimicking the hierarchical protein assemblies in ECM.Each peptide contains a photo-reactive moiety for orthogonally patterning bioactive molecules(i.e.,cyclic arginine-glycine-aspartate(cRGD)and osteogenic growth peptide(OGP))using UV and visible light.As a proof-of-principle,we demonstrate the engineering of SDNH with spatially separated or colocalized cRGD and OGP molecules to control the response of encapsulated stem cells.Our study represents an important step towards defining the mechanical and biochemical cues of synthetic ECM using advanced chemical biology tools.展开更多
基金financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(52374288,52204298)Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by China Association for Science and Technology(2022QNRC001)+2 种基金National Key Research and Development Program of China(2022YFC3900805-4/7)Hunan Provincial Education Office Foundation of China(No.21B0147)Collaborative Innovation Centre for Clean and Efficient Utilization of Strategic Metal Mineral Resources,Found of State Key Laboratory of Mineral Processing(BGRIMM-KJSKL-2017-13)。
文摘Spent battery recycling has received considerable attention because of its economic and environmental potential.A large amount of retired graphite has been produced as the main electrode material,accompanied by a detailed exploration of the repair mechanism.However,they still suffer from unclear repair mechanisms and physicochemical evolution.In this study,spent graphite was repaired employing three methodologies:pickling-sintering,pyrogenic-recovery,and high-temperature sintering.Owing to the catalytic effect of the metal-based impurities and temperature control,the as-obtained samples displayed an ordered transformation,including the interlayer distance,crystalline degree,and grain size.As anodes of lithium ions batteries,the capacity of repaired samples reached up to 310 mA h g^(-1)above after 300loops at 1.0 C,similar to that of commercial graphite.Meanwhile,benefitting from the effective assembly of carbon atoms in internal structure of graphite at>1400℃,their initial coulombic efficiency were>87%.Even at 2.0 C,the capacity of samples remained approximately 244 mA h g^(-1)after 500 cycles.Detailed electrochemical and kinetic analyses revealed that a low temperature enhanced the isotropy,thereby enhancing the rate properties.Further,economic and environmental analyses revealed that the revenue obtained through suitable pyrogenic-recovering manners was approximately the largest value(5500$t^(-1)).Thus,this study is expected to clarify the in-depth effect of different repair methods on the traits of graphite,while offering all-round evaluations of repaired graphite.
基金supported mainly by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.11804148,11804147,11674153 and 12002149)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province(Nos.BK20180320 and BK20180335)+1 种基金the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(Nos.020414380187,020414380148 and 020414380138)the Technological Innovation Foundation of Nanjing University(No.020414913413).
文摘Main observation and conclusion Polymer-supramolecular double-network hydrogels(PS-DN hydrogels)often show much improved recovery rates than conventional double-network hydrogels because of the fast self-assembling properties,making them attractive candidates for tissue engineering and flexible electronics.However,as the supramolecular network is dynamic and susceptible to break under low strains,the overall mechanical properties of PS-DN hydrogels are still limited.Here,we report the mechanical properties for PS-DN hydrogels can be significantly improved by tuning the supramolecular network structures.A single amino acid change of the self-assembling peptide can tune the assembled structures from nanofiber to nanoribbon.Such a microscopic structural change can greatly increase the Young's modulus(107.4 kPa),fracture stress(0.48 MPa),and toughness(0.38 MJ·m^(–3))of the PS-DN hydrogels.Moreover,the structural change also leads to slightly faster recovery rates(<1 s).We propose that such dramatically different mechanical properties can be understood by the impact of individual peptide rupture events on the overall network connectivity in the two scenarios.Our study may provide new inspirations for combining high mechanical strength and fast recovery in double network hydrogels by tuning the supramolecular network structures.
基金This research is supported mainly by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.22137003,21977043,and 11804147).
文摘In soft connective tissues,the extracellular matrix(ECM)provides spatiotemporally well-defined mechanical and chemical cues that regulate the functions of residing cells.However,it remains challenging to replicate these essential features in synthetic biomaterials.Here,we develop a self-sorting double network hydrogel(SDNH)with spatially well-defined bioactive ligands as synthetic ECM.Specifically,the SDNH is made of two peptides that can independently self-assemble into fibers of different microscopic features,mimicking the hierarchical protein assemblies in ECM.Each peptide contains a photo-reactive moiety for orthogonally patterning bioactive molecules(i.e.,cyclic arginine-glycine-aspartate(cRGD)and osteogenic growth peptide(OGP))using UV and visible light.As a proof-of-principle,we demonstrate the engineering of SDNH with spatially separated or colocalized cRGD and OGP molecules to control the response of encapsulated stem cells.Our study represents an important step towards defining the mechanical and biochemical cues of synthetic ECM using advanced chemical biology tools.
