Chemical bonding of perovskite LaFeO_(3) with Li_(1.2)Mn_(0.6)Ni_(0.2)O_(2) to moderate anion redox for achieving high cycling stability

Oxygen anion redox reaction provides a high theoretical capacity for Li-rich manganese-based cathodes.However,irreversible surface oxygen release often results in further oxygen loss and exacerbates the decomposition of the electrolyte,which could reduce the capacity contribution from the anionic redox and produce more acidic substances to corrode the surface of the material.In this paper,the surface oxygen release is suppressed by moderating oxygen anion redox activity via constructing chemical bonds between M(M=Fe and La)in LaFeO_(3)and surface oxygen anions of Li_(1.2)Mn_(0.6)Ni_(0.2)O_(2).The constructed interface layer stabilizes the surface lattice oxygen and retards the electrolyte from being attacked by the nucleophilic oxygen generated in the process of oxygen release,as evidenced by Differential Electrochemical Mass Spectrometry(DEMS)and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy(XPS)detections.Moreover,in the charge and discharge process,the formed FeF_(3),located at the cathode electrolyte interfacial layer,is conducive to the stability of the cathode surface.The modified Li_(1.2)Mn_(0.6)Ni_(0.2)O_(2)electrode with 3 wt%LaFeO_(13)exhibits a high specific capacity of 189.5 mA h g-at 1C(200 mA g^(-1))after 150 cycles with capacity retentions of 96.6%,and 112.6 mA h g^(-1)(84.7%)at 5C after 200 cycles higher than the pristine sample.This study provides a rational design chemical bonding method to suppress the oxygen release from the cathode surface and enhance cyclic stability.

First-principles calculation of the electronic structure, chemical bonding, and thermodynamic properties of β-US_2

The electronic structure, magnetic states, chemical bonding, and thermodynamic properties of β-US2 are investigated by using first-principles calculation through the density functional theory（DFT） ＋U approach. The obtained band structure exhibits a direct band gap semiconductor at Γ point with a band gap of 0.9 e V for β-US2, which is in good agreement with the recent experimental data. The charge-density differences, the Bader charge analysis, and the Born effective charges suggest that the U–S bonds of the β-US2 have a mixture of covalent and ionic characters, but the ionic character is stronger than covalent character. The Raman-active, infrared-active, and silent modes at the Γ point are further assigned and discussed. The obtained optical-mode frequencies indicate that the three apparent LO–TO（longitudinal optical–transverse optical） splittings occur in B1 u, B2 u, and B3 umodes, respectively. Furthermore, the Helmholtz free energy ？F, the specific heat ？E, vibrational entropy S, and constant volume CVare studied over a range from 0 K-100 K. We expect that our work can provide some valuable information for further experimental investigation of the dielectric properties and the infrared reflectivity spectrum of uranium chalcogenide.

Electronic Structure and Chemical Bonding of a Tetranuclear Neodymium Complex Nd_4O(OR)_4(NR'_2)_6

The nonrelativistic DV-X_α-SCC method was used to study the electronic structure and chemi- cal bonding of tetranuclear neodymium complex Nd_4O(OR)_4(NR′_2)_6,with emphasis on the bonding charac- ter of the central μ_4-O atom and the four Nd atoms.The results of calculation show that the μ_4-O atom uses its sp^3 valence orbitals to contribute four O-Nd bonding MOs with character of multicenter bond apparent- ly.The Mulliken population analysis shows that the overlap population between Nd atoms is almost equal to zero,therefore there is no direct metal-metal bond between Nd atoms.The coordination number of Nd in the complex is discussed briefly.

Chemical Bonding States of TiC Films before and after Hydrogen Ion Irradiation

TiC films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering followed by Ar＋ ion bombardment were irradiated with a hydrogen ion beam. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） was used for characterization of the chemical bonding states of C and Ti elements of the TiC films before and after hydrogen ion irradiation, in order to understand the effect of hydrogen ion irradiation on the films and to study the mechanism of hydrogen resistance of TiC films. Conclusions can be drawn that ion bombardment at moderate energy can cause preferential physical sputtering of carbon atoms from the surface of low atomic number （Z） material. This means that ion beam bombardment leads to the formation of a non-stoichiometric composition of TiC on the surface. TiC films prepared by ion beam mixing have the more excellent characteristic of hydrogen resistance. One important cause, in addition tO TiC itself, is that there are many vacant sites in TiC created by ion beam mixing. These defects can easily trap hydrogen and effectively enhance the effect of hydrogen resistance.

Electronic Structures and Chemical Bonding of NbS6^(-/0)Clusters

Density functional theory（DFT） and coupled cluster theory（CCSD（T）） calculations were employed to investigate the structural and electronic properties of Nb S6^- and Nb S6 clusters. Generalized Koopmans＇ theorem was applied to predict the vertical detachment energies and simulate the photoelectron spectra（PES）. The current study indicated that various types of sulfur ligands（i.e., S^（2-）, S^（2-）, S2^（2-） and S3^（2-）） were presented in the lowest-energy structures of Nb S6^（-/0）. The ground-state structure of Nb S6^- is shown to be Cs（~1A＇） symmetry with a terminal S^（2-）, a side-on bound S2^（2-） and a S3^（2-） ligands. Molecular orbital analyses were performed to analyze the chemical bonding in NbS6^（-/0） clusters and elucidate their structural and electronic properties.

The Electronic Structures and Chemical Bonding of Some Dinuclear and T

The electronic structures of several dinuclears and trinuclears of molybdenum containing thiolates complexes have been calculated by quantum chemistry SCC-DV-Xa method, and the reactivity of complexes has been analyzed in terms of the molecular orbital energy level diagrams, orbital characters and charge populations.

Two material removal modes in chemical mechanical polishing:mechanical plowing vs.chemical bonding

With the rapid development of semiconductors,the number of materials needed to be polished sharply increases.The material properties vary significantly,posing challenges to chemical mechanical polishing(CMP).Accordingly,the study aimed to classify the material removal mechanism.Based on the CMP and atomic force microscopy results,the six representative metals can be preliminarily classified into two groups,presumably due to different material removal modes.From the tribology perspective,the first group of Cu,Co,and Ni may mainly rely on the mechanical plowing effect.After adding H_(2)O_(2),corrosion can be first enhanced and then suppressed,affecting the surface mechanical strength.Consequently,the material removal rate(MRR)and the surface roughness increase and decrease.By comparison,the second group of Ta,Ru,and Ti may primarily depend on the chemical bonding effect.Adding H_(2)O_(2)can promote oxidation,increasing interfacial chemical bonds.Therefore,the MRR increases,and the surface roughness decreases and levels off.In addition,CMP can be regulated by tuning the synergistic effect of oxidation,complexation,and dissolution for mechanical plowing,while tuning the synergistic effect of oxidation and ionic strength for chemical bonding.The findings provide mechanistic insight into the material removal mechanism in CMP.

An insight into the enhanced mechanism of Ru–MoO_(2)interfacial chemical bonding for hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline media

An effective strategy was proposed to control the formation of the interfacial bonding between Ru and molybdenum oxide support to stabilize the Ru atoms with the aim to enhance the hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)activity of the resultant catalysts in alkaline medium.The different interfacial chemical bonds,including Ru–O,Ru–O–Mo,and mixed Ru–Mo/Ru–O–Mo,were prepared using an induced activation strategy by controlling the composition of reducing agents in the calcination process.And the regulation mechanism of the interfacial chemical bonds in molybdenum oxide supported Ru catalysts for optimizing HER activity was investigated by density functional theory(DFT)and experimental studies.We found that a controlled interfacial chemical Ru–O–Mo bonding in Ru-MoO_(2)/C manifests a 12-fold activity increase in catalyzing the hydrogen evolution reaction relative to the conventional metal/metal oxide catalyst(Ru-O-MoO_(2)/C).In a bifunctional effect,the interfacial chemical Ru-O-Mo sites promoted the dissociation of water and the production of hydrogen intermediates that were then adsorbed on the nearby Ru surfaces and recombined into molecular hydrogen.As compared,the nearby Ru surfaces in Ru–Mo bonding have weak adsorption capacity for the generation of these hydrogen intermediates,resulting in a 5-fold increase HER activity for Ru-Mo-MoO_(2)/C catalyst compared with Ru-O-MoO_(2)/C.

Design method of extractant for liquid-liquid extraction based on elements and chemical bonds

In the petrochemical industry process, the relative volatility between the components to be separated is close to one or the azeotrope that systems are difficult to separate. Liquid-liquid extraction is a common and effective separation method, and selecting an extraction agent is the key to extraction technology research. In this paper, a design method of extractants based on elements and chemical bonds was proposed. A knowledge-based molecular design method was adopted to pre-select elements and chemical bond groups. The molecules were automatically synthesized according to specific combination rules to avoid the problem of “combination explosion” of molecules. The target properties of the extractant were set, and the extractant meeting the requirements was selected by predicting the correlation physical properties of the generated molecules. Based on the separation performance of the extractant in liquid-liquid extraction and the relative importance of each index, the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation membership function was established, the analytic hierarchy process determined the mass ratio of each index, and the consistency test results were passed. The results of case study based on quantum chemical analysis demonstrated that effective determination of extractants for the analysis of benzene-cyclohexane systems. The results unanimously prove that the method has important theoretical significance and application value.

Hybridization： A Chemical Bonding Nature of Atoms

Both the bonding mode and geometry can serve as the chemical bonding nature of central cation, which is essentially determined by the atomic orbital-hybridization. In this work, we focus on the possible chemical bonding scheme of central cations on the basis of a quantitative analysis of electron domain of an atom. Starting from the hybridization of outer atomic orbitals that are occupied by valence electrons, we studied the possible orbital hybridization scheme of atoms in the periodic table and the corresponding coordination number as well as possible molecular geometries. According to distinct hybrid orbital sets, the chemical bonding of central cations can be classified into three typical types, resulting in the cations with a variety of coordination numbers ranging from 2 to 16. Owing to different hybridization modes, the highest coordination number of cations in IA and IIA groups is larger than that in IB--VIIIB groups, and the coordination number of lanthanide elements is most abundant. We also selected NaNO3, Fe（NO3）3·9H2O, Zn（NO3）2·6H2O, Y（NO3）3·3H2O, and La（NO3）3·6H2O as examples to confirm the direct relationship between chemical bonding characteristics and orbital hybrid set by IR spectra. The present study opens the door to reveal the chemical bonding nature of atoms on the basis of hybridization and will provide theoretical guides in structural design at an atomic level.

Hybridized valence electrons of 4f^(0-14)5d^(0-1)6s^2:the chemical bonding nature of rare earth elements

The chemical bonding nature of rare earth（RE） elements can be studied by a quantitative analysis of electron domain of an atom. The outer electrons of RE elements are within the valence shell 4f^（0-14）5d^（0-1）6s^2, which are involved in all chemical bonding features. We in this work found that the chemical bonding characteristics of 4f electrons are a kind of hybridizations, and classified them into three types of chemical bonding of 4f^（0-14）5d^（0-1）6s^2, furthermore, the coordination number ranging from 2 to 16 could thus be determined. We selected Y（NO_3）_3, La（NO_3）_3, Ce（NO_3）_3, YCl_3, LaCl_3, and CeCl_3 as examples to in-situ observe their IR spectra of chemical bonding behaviors of Y^（3＋）, La^（3＋） and Ce^（3＋） cations, which could show different chemical bonding modes of 4f and 5d electrons. In the present study, we obtained the direct criterion to confirm whether 4f electrons can participate in chemical bonding, that is, only when the coordination number of RE cations is larger than 9.

Effect of sintering temperature on the chemical bonding,electronic structure and electrical transport properties of β-Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds

A model system,which is based on iron(Fe)doped gallium oxide(Ga_(2)O_(3))(Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3)),has been considered to elucidate the combined effect of transition-metal ion doping and processing temperature on the chemistry,local structure and chemical bonding,and electrical transport properties of a wide band gap oxide(Ga_(2)O_(3)).The Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds were synthesized using standard high-temperature solid state reaction method.The effect of processing conditions in terms of different calcination and sintering environments on the structural and electrical properties of Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds is studied in detail.Structural characterization by Raman spectroscopy revealed that Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds exhibit monoclinic crystal symmetry,which is quite similar to the intrinsic parental crystal structure,though Fedoping induces lattice strain.Sintering temperature(T_(sint))which was varied in the range of 900-1200℃,has significant impact on the structure,chemical bonding,and electrical properties of Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds.Raman spectroscopic measurements indicate the proper densification of the Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds achieved through complete Fe diffusion into the parent Ga_(2)O_(3) lattice which is evident at the highest sintering temperature.The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy validates the chemical states of the constituent elements in Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds.The electrical properties of Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) fully controlled by T_(sint),which governed the grain size and microstructural evolution.The temperature and frequency dependent electrical measurements demonstrated the salient features of the Fe doped Ga_(2)O_(3) compounds.The activation energy determined from Arrhenius equation is 0.5 e V.The results demonstrate that control over structure,morphology,chemistry and electrical properties of the Ga_(1.9)Fe_(0.1)O_(3) compounds can be achieved by optimizing T_(sint).

Estimating heat capacities of liquid organic compounds based on elements and chemical bonds contribution

Molecular property depends on the property, the number of the elements, and the interaction between elements(such as chemical bonds). Based on the above-mentioned idea, two methods to estimate the isobaric heat capacity of liquids organic compounds were developed. Ten elements groups and 32 chemical bond groups were defined by considering the structure of organic compounds. The group contribution values and correlation parameters were regressed by the ridge regression method with the experiment data of 1137 compounds. The heat capacity can be calculated by summating the contributions of the elements and chemical bond groups. The two methods were compared with existing group contribution methods, such as Chickos, Zabransky-Ruzicka, and Zdenka Kolska. The results show that those new estimation methods' overall average relative deviations were 5.81% and 5.71%, which were lower than the other three methods. Those methods were more straightforward in compound splitting.Those new methods can be used to estimate the liquid heat capacity of silicon-containing compounds,which the other three methods cannot estimate. The new methods are more accessible, broader, and more accurate. Therefore, this research has important scientific significance and vast application prospects.

Recent progress on confinement of polysulfides through physical andchemical methods

With high theoretical energy density and the natural abundance of S, lithium-sulfur （Li-S） batteries areconsidered to be the promising next generation high-energy rechargeable energy storage devices. How-ever, issues including electronical insulation of S, the lithium polysulfides （LiPSs） dissolution and the shortcycle lifespan have prevented Li-S batteries from being practical applied. Feasible settlements of confiningLiPSs to reduce the loss of active substances and improve the cycle stability include wrapping sulfur withcompact layers, designing matrix with porous or hollow structures, adding adsorbents owning stronginteraction with sulfur and inserting polysulfide barriers between cathodes and separators. This reviewcategorizes them into physical and chemical confinements according to the influencing mechanism. Withfurther discussion of their merits and flaws, synergy of the physical and chemical confinement is believedto be the feasible avenue that can guide Li-S batteries to the practical application.

Solution-based Chemical Strategies to Purposely Control the Microstructure of Functional Materials

Micro/nanostructured crystals with controlled architectures are desirable for many applications in optics, electronics, biology, medicine, and energy conversions. Low-temperature, aqueous chemical routes have been widely investigated for the synthesis of particles, and arrays of oriented nanorods and nanotubes. In this paper, based on the ideal crystal shapes predicted by the chemical bonding theory, we have developed some potential chemical strategies to tune the microstructure of functional materials, ZnS and Nb205 nanotube arrays, MgO wiskers and nestlike spheres, and cubic phase Cu2O microcrystals were synthesized here to elucidate these strategies. We describe their controlled crystallization processes and illustrate the detailed key factors controlling their growth by examining various reaction parameters. Current results demonstrate that our designed chemical strategies for tuning microstructure of functional materials are applicable to several technologically important materials, and therefore may be used as a versatile and effective route to the controllable synthesis of other inorganic functional materials.

Geometries and electronic structures of Zr_(n)Cu(n=2–12) clusters: A joint machine-learning potential density functional theory investigation

Zr-based amorphous alloys have attracted extensive attention because of their large glassy formation ability, wide supercooled liquid region, high elasticity, and unique mechanical strength induced by their icosahedral local structures.To determine the microstructures of Zr–Cu clusters, the stable and metastable geometry of Zr_(n)Cu(n=2–12) clusters are screened out via the CALYPSO method using machine-learning potentials, and then the electronic structures are investigated using density functional theory. The results show that the Zr_(n)Cu(n ≥ 3) clusters possess three-dimensional geometries, Zr_(n)Cu(n≥9) possess cage-like geometries, and the Zr_(12)Cu cluster has icosahedral geometry. The binding energy per atom gradually gets enlarged with the increase in the size of the clusters, and Zr_(n)Cu(n=5,7,9,12) have relatively better stability than their neighbors. The magnetic moment of most Zr_(n)Cu clusters is just 1μB, and the main components of the highest occupied molecular orbitals(HOMOs) in the Zr_(12)Cu cluster come from the Zr-d state. There are hardly any localized two-center bonds, and there are about 20 σ-type delocalized three-center bonds.

Systematic Method for Constructing Lewis Representations

The systematic method for constructing Lewis representations is a method for representing chemical bonds between atoms in a molecule. It uses symbols to represent the valence electrons of the atoms involved in the bond. Using a number of rules in a defined order, it is often better suited to complicated cases than the Lewis representation of atoms. This method allows us to determine the formal charge and oxidation number of each atom in the edifice more efficiently than other methods.

Electronic Structures and Chemical Bonds of Cobaltite and Ni-Doped

The relation among electronic structure, chemical bond and thermoelectric property of Ca3 Co2 O6 and Ni-doped was studied by density function theory and discrete variation method（DFT-DVM）. The results indicate that the highest valence band（ HVB ）attd the lowest conduction band（ LCB ） are mainly attribuled to Co3d, Ni3d and O2p atomic orbitals. The property of a semiconductor is shown from the gap between HVB and LCB. The gap of Ni-doped one is less than that of Ca3 Co2 O6. The non-metal bond or ceramic characteristic of Ni-doped one is weaker than that of Ca3 Co2 O6, but the metal characteristics of Ni-doped one are stronger than those of Ca3 Co2 O6. The thermoelectric property should be improved by adding Ni element into the system of Ca3 Co2 O6 .

Electronic Structure and Chemical Bond of Titanium Diboride

Titanium diboride was calculated by the density function and discrete variational (DFT-DVM) method to study the relation between structure and properties.Titanium and its first-nearest boron atoms form a strong covalent bond,so TiB 2 has high melting point,hardness and chemical stability.Titanium atom releases two electrons to form Ti 2+ ions,and a boron atom gets one electron to come into B- ion.B- takes the sp2 hybrid and forms σ bonds to link other boron atoms in the same layer.The other one 2p z orbital of every B- ion in the same layer interacts each other to form the π molecular orbital,so TiB 2 has fine electrical property.The calculated density of state is close to the result of XPS experiment of TiB 2.Mainly Ti3d and B2p atomic orbitals contribute the total DOS near the Fermi level.

Electronic Structures and Bonding Properties of Ti_2AlC and Ti_3AlC_2

The relation among electronic structure, chemical bond and property of Ti2AlC, Ti3AlC2 and doping Si into Ti2AlC was studied by density function and the discrete variation （DFT-DVM） method. After adding Si into Ti2AlC, the interaction between Si and Ti is weaker than that between Al and Ti, and the strengths of ionic and covalent bonds decrease both. The ionic and covalent bonds in Ti3AlC2, especially in Ti-Al, are stronger than those in Ti2AlC. Therefore, in synthesis of Ti2AlC, the addition of Si enhances the Ti3AlC2 content instead of Ti2AlC. The density of state （DOS） shows that there is mixed conductor characteristic in Ti2AlC and Ti3AlC2. The DOS of Ti3AlC2 is much like that of Ti2AlC. Ti2SiAl1-xC has more obvious tendency to form a semiconductor than Ti2AlC, which is seen from the obvious difference of partial DOS between Si and Al 3/7.