MnO/N—C anode materials for lithium-ion batteries prepared by cotton-templated combustion synthesis

We herein report a facile one-pot synthesis of MnO/N-doped carbon(N—C) composites via a sustainable cotton-template glycineenitrate combustion synthesis to yield superior anode materials for Li ion batteries. MnO nanoparticles with several nanometers were well-embedded in a porous N-doped carbon matrix. It displays the unique characteristics, including the shortened Li^+-ion transport path, increased contact areas with the electrolyte solution, inhibited volume changes and agglomeration of nanoparticles, as well as good conductivity and structural stability during the cycling process, thereby benefiting the superior cycling performance and rate capability. This favorable electrochemical performance of obtained MnO/N—C composites via a one-pot biomass-templated glycine/nitrate combustion synthesis renders the suitability as anode materials for Li-ion batteries.

Functional layer engineering to improve performance of protonic ceramic fuel cells

Protonic ceramic fuel cells(PCFCs)have been attracting increasing attention because of their advances in high-efficiency power generation in an intermediate-temperature range,as compared to the high-temperature solid oxide fuel cells(SOFCs).The greatest difference between PCFCs and SOFCs is the specific requirement of protonic(H+)conductivity at the PCFC cathode,in addition to the electronic(e^(-))and oxide-ion(O^(2-))conductivity.The development of a triple H^(+)/e^(-)/O^(2-)conductor for PCFC cathode is still challenging.Thus,the most-widely used cathode material is based on the mature e^(-)/O^(2-)conductor.However,this leads to insufficient triple phase boundary(TPB),i.e.,reaction area.Herein,an efficient strategy that uses a~100 nm-thick proton conductive functional layer(La_(0.5)Sr_(0.5)CoO_(3-δ),LSC55)in-between the typical La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)CoO_(3-δ)cathode(a mature e-/O^(2-)conductor,LS C 82)and B aZr_(0.4)Ce_(0.4)Y_(0.1)Yb_(0.)1O_(3-δ)elec trolyte(11 mm in diameter,20μm in thickness)is proposed to significantly enhance the reaction area.Reasonably,the ohmic resistance and polarization resistance are both decreased by 47%and 62%,respectively,compared with that of PCFCs without the functional layer.The power density of the PCFC with such a functional layer can be raised by up to 2.24 times,superior to those described in previous reports.The enhanced PCFC performances are attributed to the well-built TPB and enhanced reaction area via the functional layer engineering strategy.

Single-phase La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Co_(1-x)Mn_(x)O_(3-δ) electrocatalyst as a triple H^(+)/O^(2-)/e^(-) conductor enabling high-performance intermediate-temperature water electrolysis

Hydrogen,especially the“green hydrogen”based on water electrolysis,is of great importance to build a sustainable society due to its high-energy-density,zero-carbon-emission features,and wide-range applications.Today's water electrolysis is usually carried out in either low-temperature(<100℃),e.g.,alkaline electrolyzer,or high-temperature(>700℃)applications,e.g.,solid oxide electrolyzer.However,the low-temperature devices usually suffer from high applied voltages(usually>1.5 V@0.01 A cm^(-2))and high cost;meanwhile,the high-temperature ones have an unsatisfied lifetime partially due to the incompatibility among components.Reasonably,an intermediate-temperature device,namely,proton ceramic cell(PCC),has been recently proposed.The widely-used air electrode for PCC is based on double O^(2-)/e^(-)conductor or composited O^(2-)/e^(-)-H^(+)conductor,limiting the accessible reaction region.Herein,we designed a single-phase La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Co_(1-x)Mn_(x)O_(3-δ)(LSCM)with triple H^(+)/O^(2-)/e^(-)conductivity as the air electrode for PCCs.Specifically,the La_(0.8)Sr_(0.2)Co_(0.8)Mn_(0.2)O_(3-δ)(LSCM8282)incorporates 5.8%proton carriers in molar fraction at 400℃,indicating superior proton conducting ability.Impressively,a high current density of 1580 mA cm^(-2) for hydrogen production(water electrolysis)is achieved at 1.3 V and 650℃,surpassing most low-and high-temperature devices reported so far.Meanwhile,such a PCC can also be operated under a reversible fuel cell mode,with a peak power density of 521 mW cm^(-2) at 650℃.By correlating the electrochemical performances with the hydrated proton concentration of single-phase triple conducting air electrodes in this work and our previous work,a principle for rational design of high-performance PCCs is proposed.