Thin polymer electrolyte with MXene functional layer for uniform Li^(+) deposition in all-solid-state lithium battery

Solid polymer electrolyte(SPE) shows great potential for all-solid-state batteries because of the inherent safety and flexibility;however, the unfavourable Li+deposition and large thickness hamper its development and application. Herein, a laminar MXene functional layer-thin SPE layer-cathode integration(MXene-PEO-LFP) is designed and fabricated. The MXene functional layer formed by stacking rigid MXene nanosheets imparts higher compressive strength relative to PEO electrolyte layer. And the abundant negatively-charged groups on MXene functional layer effectively repel anions and attract cations to adjust the charge distribution behavior at electrolyte–anode interface. Furthermore,the functional layer with rich lithiophilic groups and outstanding electronic conductivity results in low Li nucleation overpotential and nucleation energy barrier. In consequence, the cell assembled with MXene-PEO-LFP, where the PEO electrolyte layer is only 12 μm, much thinner than most solid electrolytes, exhibits uniform, dendrite-free Li+deposition and excellent cycling stability. High capacity(142.8 mAh g-1), stable operation of 140 cycles(capacity decay per cycle, 0.065%), and low polarization potential(0.5 C) are obtained in this Li|MXene-PEO-LFP cell,which is superior to most PEO-based electrolytes under identical condition. This integrated design may provide a strategy for the large-scale application of thin polymer electrolytes in all-solid-state battery.

Plasmonic sensor with self-reference capability based on functional layer film composed of Au/Si gratings

We propose a simple one-dimensional grating coupling system that can excite multiple surface plasmon resonances for refractive index(RI)sensing with self-reference characteristics in the near-infrared band.Using theoretical analysis and the finite-difference time-domain method,the plasmonic mechanism of the structure is discussed in detail.The results show that the excited resonances are independent of each other and have different fields of action.The mode involving extensive interaction with the analyte environment achieves a high sensitivity of 1236 nm/RIU,and the figure of merit(FOM)can reach 145 RIU-1.Importantly,the mode that is insensitive to the analyte environment exhibits good self-reference characteristics.Moreover,we discuss the case of exchanging the substrate material with the analyte environment.Promising simulation results show that this RI sensor can be widely deployed in unstable and complicated environments.

Analytical solution of axisymmetric contact problem about indentation of a circular indenter into a soft functionally graded elastic layer

The paper addresses a contact problem of the theory of elasticity,i.e.,the penetration of a circular indenter with a flat base into a soft functionally graded elastic layer.The elastic properties of a functionally graded layer arbitrarily vary with depth,and the foundation is assumed to be elastic,yet much harder than a layer.Approximated analytical solution is constructed,and it is shown that the solutions are asymptotically exact both for large and small values of characteristic dimensionless geometrical parameter of the problem.Numerical examples are analyzed for the cases of monotonic and nonmonotonic variations of elastic properties.Numerical results for the case of homogeneous layer are compared with the results for nondeformable foundation.

Green's functions for uniformly distributed loads acting on an inclined line in a poroelastic layered site

Based on one type of practical Biot＇s equation and the dynamic-stiffness matrices ofa poroelastic soil layer and half-space, Green＇s functions were derived for unitformly distributed loads acting on an inclined line in a poroelastie layered site. This analysis overcomes significant problems in wave scattering due to local soil conditions and dynamic soil-structure interaction. The Green＇s functions can be reduced to the case of an elastic layered site developed by Wolf in 1985. Parametric studies are then carried out through two example problems.

Green Functions with Pulsating Sources in A Two-Layer Fluid of Finite Depth

The derivation of Green function in a two-layer fluid model has been treated in different ways. In a two-layer fluid with the upper layer having a free surface, there exist two modes of waves propagating due to the free surface and the interface. This paper is concerned with the derivation of Green functions in the three dimensional case of a stationary source oscillating. The source point is located either in the upper or lower part of a two-layer fluid of finite depth. The derivation is carried out by the method of singularities. This method has an advantage in that it involves representing the potential as a sum of singularities or multipoles placed within any structures being present. Furthermore, experience shows that the systems of equations resulted from using a singularity method possess excellent convergence characteristics and only a few equations are needed to obtain accurate numerical results. Validation is done by showing that the derived two-layer Green function can be reduced to that of a single layer of finite depth or that the upper Green function coincides with that of the lower, for each case. The effect of the density on the internal waves is demonstrated. Also, it is shown how the surface and internal wave amplitudes are compared for both the wave modes. The fluid in this case is considered to be inviscid and incompressible and the flow is irrotational.

Intercalation Assembly and Chemical Product Engineering of Layered Intercalated Functional Materials Based on Efficient Utilization of Magnesium Resources in Salt Lakes

1 Introduction Magnesium salts are very important by-product of salt lake industry in West China.Nearly 200 million cubic meters of waste brine are released to the environment

Green's function of multi-layered poroelastic half-space for models of ground vibration due to railway traffic

This study proposes a Green＇s function, an essential representation of water-saturated ground under moving excitation, to simulate ground borne vibration from trains. First, general solutions to the governing equations of poroelastic medium are derived by means of integral transform. Secondly, the transmission and reflection matrix approach is used to formulate the relationship between displacement and stress of the stratified ground, which results in the matrix of the Green＇s function. Then the Green＇s function is combined into a train-track-ground model, and is verified by typical examples and a field test. Additional simulations show that the computed ground vibration attenuates faster in the immediate vicinity of the track than in the surrounding area. The wavelength of wheel-rail unevenness has a notable effect on computed displacement and pore pressure. The variation of vibration intensity with the depth of ground is significantly influenced by the layering of the strata soil. When the train speed is equal to the velocity of the Rayleigh wave, the Mach cone appears in the simulated wave field. The proposed Green＇s function is an appropriate representation for a layered ground with shallow ground water table, and will be helpful to understand the dynamic responses of the ground to complicated moving excitation.

A novel dual-functional layer exhibiting exceptional protection and photocatalytic activity by organic functionalization of plasma electrolyzed layer

The formation of inorganic-organic hybrids(IOH)on the metallic substrates would play a decisive role in improving their structural and functional features.In this work,the growth of organic coating(OC)consisting of coumarin-3-carboxylic acid(3-CCA)and albumin(ALB)on the inorganic layer(IC),produced by plasma electrolysis of AZ31 Mg alloy,led to enabling organically synergistic reactions on the porous inorganic surface,forming a flake-like structure sealing the structural defects of IC.Synergistic actions between OC and IC endow the flake-like structures with chemical protection and photocatalytic performance.Upon contact with a corrosive solution,the IOH layer possesses stable morphologies that delay the corrosive degradation of the whole structure.The electrochemical stability of the sample produced by immersion IC in the organic solution for 10 h(IOH2 sample)was superior to the other samples as it had the lowest corrosion current density(1.69×10^(−10)A·cm^(−2))and the highest top layer resistance(1.2×10^(7)Ω·cm^(2)).Moreover,the IOH layer can photodegrade the organic pollutants in model wastewater,where the highest photocatalytic efficiency of 99.47%was found in the IOH2 sample.Furthermore,computational calculations were performed to assess the relative activity of different parts of the ALB and 3-CCA structures,which provide helpful information into the formation mechanism of the IOH materials.

Dynamic stiffness matrix of a poroelastic multi-layered site and its Green's functions

Few studies of wave propagation in layered saturated soils have been reported in the literature.In this paper,a general solution of the equation of wave motion in saturated soils,based on one kind of practical Blot's equation, was deduced by introducing wave potentials.Then exact dynamic-stiffness matrices for a poroelastic soil layer and half- space were derived,which extended Wolf's theory for an elastic layered site to the case of poroelasticity,thus resolving a fundamental problem in the field of wave propagation and soil-structure interaction in a poroelastic layered soil site.By using the integral transform method,Green's functions of horizontal and vertical uniformly distributed loads in a poroelastic layered soil site were given.Finally,the theory was verified by numerical examples and dynamic responses by comparing three different soil sites.This study has the following advantages:all parameters in the dynamic-stiffness matrices have explicitly physical meanings and the thickness of the sub-layers does not affect the precision of the calculation which is very convenient for engineering applications.The present theory can degenerate into Wolf's theory and yields numerical results approaching those for an ideal elastic layered site when porosity tends to zero.

Complementary Sliding Mode Speed Control with Saturation Function Boundary Layer Optimization

A simple method is proposed to optimize the thickness parameter of the boundary layer of the saturation function in the Complementary Sliding Mode Control (CSMC). A pair of complementary sliding surfaces are constructed. And the Taylor series is used to estimate the steady state error of CSMC system to optimize the parameter value for the boundary layer of the saturation function without artificial settings. This proposed CSMC strategy is applied to the speed regulation in permanent magnet synchronous motor with lump uncertainties. The experimental results show that the proposed CSMC strategy can obtain an optimal value for the boundary layer parameter effectively suppressing the chattering and keep an excellent system performance.

Recent progress in functionalized layered double hydroxides and their application in efficient electrocatalytic water oxidation

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs), a class of anionic clays consisting of brucite-like host layers and interlayer anions, have been widely investigated in the last decade due to their promising applications in many areas such as catalysis, ion separation and adsorption. Owing to the highly tunable compositi on and uniform distribution of metal cations in the brucite-like layers, as well as the facile exchangeability of intercalated anions, LDHs can be modified and functionalized to form various nanostructures/composites through versatile processes such as anion intercalation and exfoliation, decoration of nanoparticles, selfassembly with other two-dimensional (2D) materials, and controlled growth on conductive supports (e.g., nanowire arrays, nano tubes, 3D foams). In this article, we briefly review the recent advances on both the LDH nano structures and functionalized composites toward the applications in energy conversion, especially for water oxidation.

In-plane dynamic Green's functions for inclined and uniformly distributed loads in a multi-layered transversely isotropic half-space

The dynamic stiffness method combined with the Fourier transform is utilized to derive the in-plane Green’s functions for inclined and uniformly distributed loads in a multi-layered transversely isotropic（TI）half-space.The loaded layer is fixed to obtain solutions restricted in it and the corresponding reactions forces,which are then applied to the total system with the opposite sign.By adding solutions restricted in the loaded layer to solutions from the reaction forces,the global solutions in the wavenumber domain are obtained,and the dynamic Green’s functions in the space domain are recovered by the inverse Fourier transform.The presented formulations can be reduced to the isotropic case developed by Wolf（1985）,and are further verified by comparisons with existing solutions in a uniform isotropic as well as a layered TI halfspace subjected to horizontally distributed loads which are special cases of the more general problem addressed.The deduced Green’s functions,in conjunction with boundary element methods,will lead to significant advances in the investigation of a variety of wave scattering,wave radiation and soil-structure interaction problems in a layered TI site.Selected numerical results are given to investigate the influence of material anisotropy,frequency of excitation,inclination angle and layered on the responses of displacement and stress,and some conclusions are drawn.

Study of the Electrical Double Layer of a Spherical Micelle: Functional Theoretical Approach

By using the iterative method in functional theory, an analytic expression of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation (PB eq.), which describes the distribution of the potential of electrical double layer of a spherical micelle, has been carried out under the general potential condition for the first time. The method also can give the radius, the surface potential, and the thickness of the layer.

Experimental researches for scaling laws of low-order structure function in boundary layer

Scaling laws are addressed by analysing moments of velocity increments which obtained by Particle-image Velocimetry(PIV)system in the boundary layer of a flat plate.In the paper,we measure the moments of increments of upstream velocity(u'),longitudinal velocity(v')and ponderance of vorticity(dv'/dx)at Reθ=2167 in different wall distance and verify the anomaly of the scaling exponents of high-order structure functions with the increasing order of the moments,discuss the scaling of non-integer moments of order between+2 and-1.The difference of scaling exponents of low-order structure functions between the experimental data and Kolmogorov's,SL's(She & Leveque)prediction increases as the moment order decreases toward-1,which shows that the anomaly is manifested in low-oeder moments as well.However,for same order structure functions,the scaling exponents of v' and dv'/dx are not changeable in different wall distance.

Free vibration of functionally graded material beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers in thermal environment

Free vibration of statically thermal postbuckled functionally graded material （FGM） beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers subject to both temperature rise and voltage is studied. By accurately considering the axial extension and based on the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory, geometrically nonlinear dynamic governing equations for FGM beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers subject to thermo-electro- mechanical loadings are formulated. It is assumed that the material properties of the middle FGM layer vary continuously as a power law function of the thickness coordinate, and the piezoelectric layers are isotropic and homogenous. By assuming that the amplitude of the beam vibration is small and its response is harmonic, the above mentioned non-linear partial differential equations are reduced to two sets of coupled ordinary differential equations. One is for the postbuckling, and the other is for the linear vibration of the beam superimposed upon the postbuckled configuration. Using a shooting method to solve the two sets of ordinary differential equations with fixed-fixed boundary conditions numerically, the response of postbuckling and free vibration in the vicinity of the postbuckled configuration of the beam with fixed-fixed ends and subject to transversely nonuniform heating and uniform electric field is obtained. Thermo-electric postbuckling equilibrium paths and characteristic curves of the first three natural frequencies versus the temperature, the electricity, and the material gradient parameters are plotted. It is found that the three lowest frequencies of the prebuckled beam decrease with the increase of the temperature, but those of a buckled beam increase monotonically with the temperature rise. The results also show that the tensional force produced in the piezoelectric layers by the voltage can efficiently increase the critical buckling temperature and the natural frequency.

Synergistic interaction between redox-active electrolytes and functionalized carbon in increasing the performance of electric double-layer capacitors

The increasing demand of high-performance supercapacitors has aroused great interest in developing specific capacitance and energy density. Active carbon （AC） has attracted much attention as a promising electrode material for electric double-layer capacitors （EDLCs）. Here, a facile strategy has been employed to fabricate high-performance EDLCs using the surface-oxygen functionalized active carbon （FAC） as an electrode and 2 M KOH with K3Fe（CN）6 as an electrolyte. In this system, K3Fe（CN）6 was used as a redox additive to enhance the performance of EDLCs. A 38.5% increase in specific capacitance （207.7 F g-1） was achieved compared with the KOH electrolyte without adding K3Fe（CN）G （152.9 F g-1）, due to the synergistic effects between oxygenic functional groups and redox electrolyte. These findings provide an alternative route to improve the performance of EDLCs, which are promising candidates for the broad applications of high-performance supercapacitors.

Study the Structural, Electronic, Optical Properties of CZTS Compound after Doping Ba at Zn Site and Si at Sn Site Using Density Functional Theory (DFT)

The structural, electronic, and optical properties of Cu2Zn1−xBaxSn1−ySiyS4 compounds have been calculated using GGA-PBE function within the framework of Density Functional Theory (DFT). In the present work, lattice parameters remained the same, that is tetragonal crystal structure for 0% and 100% doping concentration. The electronic band gap of Cu2Zn1−xBaxSn1−ySiyS4 compounds has been gradually increased for continuous increment of doping concentration where the highest electronic band gap is 1.117 eV for Cu2BaSiS4 structure. Moreover, the band gap changes from direct to indirect band gap with the increase of doping concentration in the parent compound. The absorption coefficient has been found to be high (> 104 cm−1) in UV-region for all the doping concentration which makes the studied compound as a potential candidate of absorber layer in the UV detector. The theoretical study of the effect of double doping in the CZTS compound is very interesting for improving the quality of it and it would be a reference for the theoretical and experimental researchers.

MULTI-SCALE COHERENT STRUCTURES IN TURBULENT BOUNDARY LAYER DETECTED BY LOCALLY AVERAGED VELOCITY STRUCTURE FUNCTIONS

The time sequence of longitudinal velocity component at different vertical locations in turbulent boundary layer was finely measured in a wind tunnel. The concept of coarse_grained velocity structure functions, which describes the relative motions of straining and compressing for multi_scale eddy structures in turbulent flows, was put forward based on the theory of locally multi_scale average. Based on the consistency between coarse_grained velocity structure function and Harr wavelet transformation,detecting method was presented, by which the coherent structures and their intermittency was identified by multi_scale flatness factor calculated by locally average structure function. Phase_averaged evolution course for multi_scale coherent eddy structures in wall turbulence were extracted by this conditional sampling to educe scheme. The dynamics course of multi_scale coherent eddy structures and their effects on statistics of turbulent flows were studied.

SINGULARLY PERTURBED SEMI-LINEAR BOUNDARY VALUE PROBLEM WITH DISCONTINUOUS FUNCTION

A class of singularly perturbed semi-linear boundary value problems with discontinuous functions is examined in this article. Using the boundary layer function method, the asymptotic solution of such a problem is given and shown to be uniformly effective. The existence and uniqueness of the solution for the system is also proved. Numerical result is presented as an illustration to the theoretical result.

Structural impairment patterns in peripapillary retinal fiber layer and retinal ganglion cell layer in mitochondrial optic neuropathies

AIM：To evaluate the structural injure patterns in peripapillary retinal fiber layer （pRNFL）, retinal ganglion cell layer （RGCL） and their correlations to visual function in various mitochondrial optic neuropathies （MON） to offer help to their differential diagnosis.METHODS：Totally 32 MON patients （60 eyes） were recruited within 6mo after clinical onsets, including 20 Leber hereditary optic neuropathy （LHON） patients （37eyes）, 12 ethambutol-induced optic neuropathy （EON）patients （23 eyes）, and 41 age-gender matched healthy controls （HC, 82 eyes）. All subjects had pRNFL and RGCL examinations with optic coherence tomography （OCT） and visual function tests.RESULTS：In the early stages of MON, the temporal pRNFL thickness decreased （66.09±22.57μm）, but increased in other quadrants, compared to HC （76.95±14.81μm）. The other quadrants remaining stable for LHON and EON patients besides the second hour sector of pRNFL thickness reduced and the temporal pRNFL decreased （56.78±15.87μm） for EON. Total macular thickness in MON reduced remarkably（279.25±18.90μm; P=0.015）, which mainly occurring in the inner circle （3 mm diameter of circle） and the nasal temporal sectors in the outer circle （5.5 mm diameter of circle）, in contrast to those in HC. RGCL thickness reduced in each sector of the macula （61.90±8.73μm; P≤0.001）. It strongly showed the correlationship of best corrected visual acuity （R=0.50, P=0.0003） and visual field injury （R=0.54,P=0.0002） in MON patients.CONCLUSION：OCT is a potential tool for detecting structural alterations in the optic nerves of various MON. Different types of MON may have different damage patterns.