Magnesium alloys as alternative anode materials for rechargeable magnesium-ion batteries:Review on the alloying phase and reaction mechanisms

Magnesium-ion batteries(MIBs)are promising candidates for lithium-ion batteries because of their abundance,non-toxicity,and favorable electrochemical properties.This review explores the reaction mechanisms and electrochemical characteristics of Mg-alloy anode materials.While Mg metal anodes provide high volumetric capacity and dendrite-free electrodeposition,their practical application is hindered by challenges such as sluggish Mg^(2+)ion diffusion and electrolyte compatibility.Alloy-type anodes that incorporate groups XIII,XIV,and XV elements have the potential to overcome these limitations.We review various Mg alloys,emphasizing their alloying/dealloying reaction mechanisms,their theoretical capacities,and the practical aspects of MIBs.Furthermore,we discuss the influence of the electrolyte composition on the reversibility and efficiency of these alloy anodes.Emphasis is placed on overcoming current limitations through innovative materials and structural engineering.This review concludes with perspectives on future research directions aimed at enhancing the performance and commercial viability of Mg alloy anodes and contributing to the development of high-capacity,safe,and cost-effective energy storage systems.

Liquid marbles containing petroleum and their properties

Liquid marbles （non-stick droplets） containing crude petroleum are reported. Liquid marbles were ob- tained by use of fluorinated decyl polyhedral oligomeric silsequioxane （FD-POSS） powder. Marbles containing crude petroleum remained stable on a broad diversity of solid and liquid supports. The effective surface tension of marbles filled with petroleum was established. The mechanism of friction of the marbles is discussed. Actuation of liquid marbles containing crude petroleum with an electric field is presented.

Predicting accurate cathode properties of layered oxide materials using the SCAN meta-GGA density functional

Layered lithium intercalating transition metal oxides are promising cathode materials for Li-ion batteries.Here,we scrutinize the recently developed strongly constrained and appropriately normed(SCAN)density functional method to study structural,magnetic,and electrochemical properties of prototype cathode materials LiNiO_(2),LiCoO_(2),and LiMnO_(2) at different Li-intercalation limits.We show that SCAN outperforms earlier popular functional combinations,providing results in considerably better agreement with experiment without the use of Hubbard parameters,and dispersion corrections are found to have a small effect.In particular,SCAN fares better than Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof(PBE)functional for the prediction of band-gaps and absolute voltages,better than PBE+U for the electronic density of states and voltage profiles,and better than both PBE and PBE+U for electron densities and in operando lattice parameters.This overall better performance of SCAN may be ascribed to improved treatment of localized states and a better description of short-range dispersion interactions.