Synthesis of LiMnPO_4/C composite material for lithium ion batteries by sol-gel method

The LiMnPO4/C composite material was synthesized via a sol-gel method based on the citric acid. The X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and electrochemical performance tests were adopted to characterize the properties of LiMnPO4/C. The XRD studies show that the pure olivine phase LiMnPO4 can be obtained at a low temperature of 500 °C. The SEM analyses illustrate that the citric acid used as the chelating reagent and carbon source can restrain the particle size of LiMnPO4/C well. The LiMnPO4/C sample synthesized at 500 °C for 10 h performs the highest initial discharge capacity of 122.6 mA-h/g, retaining 112.4 mA-h/g over 30 cycles at 0.05C rate. The citric acid based sol-gel method is favor to obtain the high electrochemical performance of LiMnPO4/C.

Preparation and Characterization of Sodium Sulfate/Silica Composite as a Shape-stabilized Phase Change Material by Sol-gel Method

A sodium sulfate （NaeSO4）/silica （SiO2） composite was prepared as a shape-stabilized solid-liquid phase change material by a sol-gel procedure using Na2SiO3 as the silica source. Na2SO4 in the composite acts as a latent heat storage substance for solid-liquid phase change, while SiO2 acts as a support material to provide structural strength and prevent leakage of melted NazSO4. The microstructure and composition of the prepared composite were characterized by the N2 adsorption, transmission electron microscope （TEM）, scanning electron microscope （SEM）, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR） and X-ray diffraction. The results show that the prepared Na2SOJSiO2 composite is a nanostructured hybrid of NazSO4 and SiO2 without new substances produced during the phase change. The macroscopic shape of the NazSO4/SiO2 composite after the melting and freezing cycles does not change and there is no leakage of Na2SO4. Determined by differential scanning calorimeter （DSC） analysis, the values of phase change latent heat of melting and freezing of the prepared NazSO4/SiO2 （50%, by mass） composite are 82.3 kJ.kg i and 83.7 kJ.kg-1, and temperatures of melting and freezing are 886.0 ℃ and 880.6 ℃, respectively. Furthermore, the Na2SOJSiO2 composite maintains good thermal energy storage and release ability even after 100 cycles of melting and freezing. The satisfactory thermal storage performance renders this composite a versatile tool for high-temperature thermal energy storage.

Synthesis of Long Afterglow Photoluminescent Materials Sr_2MgSi_2O_7∶Eu^(2+), Dy^(3+) by Sol-Gel Method

Long afterglow photoluminescent materials Sr2MgSi2O7 doped with Eu2+, Dy3+ were prepared by sol-gel method. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction. The excitation spectrum, emission spectrum and long decay curve were measured and analyzed. XRD pattern indicates that phosphor is with Sr2MgSi2O7 crystal structure. The wide range of excitation wavelength indicates that luminescent material can be excited by light from ultraviolet ray to visible light. The main peak of emission spectrum is located at 466 nm. Sample excited by visible light can emit bright blue light, and the afterglow time lasts more than 8 h.

Electrochemical performance of Al-substituted Li_3V_2(PO_4)_3 cathode materials synthesized by sol-gel method

The effect of Al-substitution on the electrochemical performances of Li3V2(PO4)3 cathode materials was studied.Samples with stoichiometric proportion of Li3AlxV2-x(PO4)3(x=0,0.05,0.10)were prepared by adding Al(NO3)3 in the raw materials of Li3V2(PO4)3.The XRD analysis shows that the Al-substituted Li3V2(PO4)3 has the same monoclinic structure as the un-substituted Li3V2(PO4)3.The SEM images show that Al-substituted Li3V2(PO4)3 has regular and uniform particles.The electrochemical measurements show that Al-substitution can improve the rate capability of cathode materials.The Li3Al0.05V1.95(PO4)3 sample shows the best high-rate performance.The discharge capacity at 1C rate is 119 mA·h/g with 30th capacity retention rate about 92.97%.The electrode reaction reversibility and electronic conductivity are enhanced,and the charge transfer resistance decreases through Al-substitution.The improved electrochemical performances of Al-substituted Li3V2(PO4)3 cathode materials offer some favorable properties for their commercial application.

Research on the High-Strength Coating Preparation Methodology based on Acid Catalytic and Sol-Gel Method

In this paper, we conduct research on the high-strength coating preparation methodology based on acid catalytic and Sol-Gel method. This method has been widely used in the preparation of various functional thin film, film and protective film structure, etc. As a result of sol gel process continuously broaden the application field, this method has been more and more get the favor of people. Compared with other traditional preparation methods of inorganic material, sol-gel process has many characteristics. To adjust the solution acidity and add a small amount of acid or alkali can have the effect of＂ catalyst, its reaction process on sol to get and gel structure may also be affected. Our research analyze the topic theoretically and numerically which is meaningful.

Enhanced High-Temperature Cycling Stability of LiMn<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>4</SUB>by LiCoO<SUB>2</SUB>Coating as Cathode Material for Lithium Ion Batteries

LiCoO2 surface layer is proposed and prepared through sol-gel method. The physical and electrochemical performances of pristine LiMn2O4 and LiCoO2-coated LiMn2O4 cathode materials were investigated by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, electrochemical measurements respectively. Comparing with the pristine LiMn2O4, the LiCoO2- coated LiMn2O4 phase significantly improved cycling stability, especially at 55°C. Additionally, the thermal safety of LiMn2O4 is greatly enhanced after being coated by LiCoO2. ICP-AES measurement, structural analysis, and impedance experiments indicate that the improved electrochemical property of LiCoO2-coated LiMn2O4 should be attributed to the alleviated dissolution loss of manganese, strengthened structural stability.

Analysis of the Performances of a New Type of Alumina Nanocomposite Structural Material Designed for the Thermal Insulation of High-Rise Buildings

The sol-gel method is used to prepare a new nano-alumina aerogel structure and the thermal properties of this nanomaterial are investigated comprehensively using electron microscope scanning,thermal analysis,X-ray and infrared spectrometer analysis methods.It is found that the composite aerogel alumina material has a multi-level porous nano-network structure.When employed for the thermal insulation of high-rise buildings,the alumina nanocomposite aerogel material can lead to effective energy savings in winter.However,it has almost no energy-saving effect on buildings where energy is consumed for cooling in summer.

Amorphous Zr(OH)4 coated LiNi0.915Co0.075Al0.01O2 cathode material with enhanced electrochemical performance for lithium ion batteries

LiNiCoAlO（NCA） with Zr（OH）coating is demonstrated as high performance cathode material for lithium ion batteries（LIBs）. The coated materials are synthesized via a simple dry coating method of NCA with Zr（OH）powders, and then characterized with scanning electron microscopy（SEM）, transmission electron microscopy（TEM） and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy（XPS）. Experimental results show that amorphous Zr（OH）powders have been successfully coated on the surface of spherical NCA particles, exhibiting improved electrochemical performance. 0.50 wt% Zr（OH）coated NCA delivers a capacity of 197.6 mAh/g at the first cycle and 154.3 mAh/g after 100 cycles with a capacity retention of 78.1% at 1 C rate. In comparison, the pure NCA shows a capacity of 194.6 mAh/g at the first cycle and 142.5 mAh/g after 100 cycles with a capacity retention of 73.2% at 1 C rate. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy（EIS） results show that the coated material exhibits a lower resistance, indicating that the coating layer can efficiently suppress transition metals dissolution and decrease the side reactions at the surface between the electrode and electrolyte. Therefore, surface coating with amorphous Zr（OH）is a simple and useful method to enhance the electrochemical performance of NCA-based materials for the cathode of LIBs.

Sol-gel Method Synthesized Polyhedron SnO_2 Anode Material for Lithium Ion Battery

1 Introduction Tin-based oxides will be promising anode materials for lithium ion batteries due to its high specific capacity, low potential platform, and safety[1]. Many methods have been applied to synthesize SnO2 materials of different morphologies, such as chemical vapor deposition, spray, sol-gel method[2]. Triblock copolymer poly (ethylene oxide)-block-poly (propylene oxide)-block-poly (ethane oxide) (P123) has been used as surfactant to prepare nano-crystalline tin oxide particles[3]. In this pap...

Sol-gel synthesis of nanometer silicon/silicon suboxide/carbon anode material

A stacked Si/SiO_(x)/C composite anode material with carbon-coated structure was prepared by sol-gel method combined with carbothermal reduction using organic silicon.The results of X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy, and elemental analysis show that the Si/SiO_(x)/C material is a secondary particle with a porous micronanostructure, and the presence of nanometer silicon does not affect the carbothermal reduction and carbon coating.Electrochemical test results indicate that the specific capacity and first coulombic efficiency of SiO_(x)/C composite with nanometer silicon can be increased to 1 946.05 mAh/g and 76.49%,respectively.The reversible specific capacity of Si/SiO_(x)/C material blended with graphite is 749.69 mAh/g after 100 cycles at a current density of 0.1 C,and the capacity retention rate is up to 89.03%.Therefore, the composite has excellent electrochemical cycle stability.

Luminescence properties of red-emitting Ca_2Al_2SiO_7:Eu^(3+) nanoparticles prepared by sol-gel method

A series of red-emitting Ca2_xA12SiOT：xEu^3＋ （x = 1 mol.%-10 tool.%） phosphors were synthesized by the sol-gel method. The effects of annealing temperature and doping concentration on the crystal structure and luminescence properties of Ca2A12SiO7：Eu^3＋ phosphors were investigated. X-ray diffraction （XRD） profiles showed that all peaks could be attributed to the tetragonal Ca2A12SiO7 phase when the sample was annealed at 1000℃. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） micrographs indicate that the phosphors have an irregularly rounded mor- phology with particles of about 200 nm. Excitation spectra showed that the strong broad band at around 258 nm and weak sharp lines in 350-490 nm were attributed to the charge transfer band of Eu^3＋-O^2- and f-f transitions within the 4f^6 configuration of Eu^3＋ ions, respectively. Emission spectra implied that the red luminescence could be attributed to the transitions from the ^5D0 excited level to the 7Fj （J = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4） levels of Eu3＋ions with the main electric dipole transition ^5D0→^7F2 （618 and 620 nm）, and Eu^3＋ ions prefer to occupy a lower symmetry site in the crystal lattice. Moreover, the photoluminescence （PL） intensity was strongly dependent on both the sintering temperature and doping concentration, and the highest PL intensity was observed at an Eu^3＋ concentration x = 7 mol.% after annealing at ll00℃. The obtained Ca2A12SiO7：Eu^＋3＋ phosphor may have potential application for the red lamp phosphor.

Low temperature synthesis and luminescence properties of YAG:Eu nanopowders prepared by modified sol-gel method

Europium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet nanopowders were synthesized through an aqueous sol-gel method. The structure, morphology and luminescence spectra were investigated by using X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy measurements. The results show that YAG：Eu with an average particle size of 50 nm is formed. The activation energy of YAG：Eu nanocrystallite growth during calcination is 24.1 kJ/mol. The crystalline YAG：Eu nanopowders show an orange-red emission with 5D0–7F1 as the most prominent group.

Structural and Electrochemical Properties of Ceria-Doped SnO_2 Prepared by Sol-Gel Method

Tin dioxide (SnO2) and Ce-doped SnO2 were successfully synthesized by sol-gel method and electrochemical properties were studied in cell with Li as counter electrode. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). XRD patterns presented that a second phase (CeO) was observed when the Ce content reached 5%. TEM micrograph indicated that Ce-doped SnO2 had a small particle with mean size of 30 nm. The electrochemical properties were also characterized at room temperature, and the results demonstrated that the Ce-doped SnO2 samples exhibited promising electrochemical properties and Ce doped in as-prepared samples plays an important role.

Anticorrosion of WO₃-Modified TiO₂Thin Film Prepared by Peroxo Sol-Gel Method

The aim of this study was to develop a method to prepare WO3-TiO2 film which has high anticorrosion property when it was coated on type 304 stainless steel. A series of WO3-modified TiO2 sols were synthesized by peroxo-sol gel method using TiCl4 and Na2WO4 as the starting materials. TiCl4 was converted to Ti(OH)4 gel. H2O2 and Na2WO4 were added in Ti(OH)4 solution and heated at 95°C. The WO3-TiO2 sol was transparent, in neutral (pH^7) solution, stable suspension without surfactant, nano-crystallite and no annealing is needed after coating, and very stable for 2 years in stock. WO3-TiO2 sol was formed with anatase crystalline structure. These sols were characterized by XRD, TEM, and XPS. The sol was used to coat on stainless steel 304 by dip-coating. The WO3-TiO2 was anatase in structure as characterized by X-ray diffraction. There were no WO3 XRD peaks in the WO3-TiO2 sols, indicating that WO3 particles were very small, possibly incorporating into TiO2 structure, providing the amount of WO3 was very small. The TiO2 particles were rhombus shape. WO3-TiO2 had smaller size area than pure TiO2. The SEM results showed that the film coated on the glass substrate was very uniform. All films were nonporous and dense films. Its hardness reached 2 H after drying at 100°C, and reached 5 H after annealing at 400°C. The WO3-TiO2 film coated on 304 stainless steel had better anticorrosion capability than the unmodified TiO2 film under UV light illumination. The optimum weight ratio of TiO2: WO3 was 100:4.

Simple Preparation and Characterization of Nano-Crystalline Zinc Oxide Thin Films by Sol-Gel Method on Glass Substrate

Nanocrystalline ZnO thin films have been fabricated by a multi-step solgel method using spin coating technique. Zinc acetate dihydrate, 2-methoxyethanol and monoethanolamine were used as a starting material, solvent and stabilizer, respectively. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) were employed to characterize structure and morphologies of the as-deposited samples. The results of XRD and SEM showed that the heat treatment conditions, final rotational (spinning) speed, fume exhaust and precise control of concentration of reactants (precursor and solvent used) strongly affect the crystallographic orientation and morphology of the resultant ZnO films. The XRD pattern showed that the ZnO films formed the preferred orientation along c-axis and the grain size is 16nm for the samples. Only one peak corresponding to the (002) plane at 2θ = 34.34 appears on the diffractograms. The as-deposited films had a transparency of greater than 80% in the visible-near IR region from 400 nm - 800 nm. The optical band gap energy and thickness were calculated to be 3.296 eV and 266 nm respectively.

Application of nanotechnology in a silver/graphite contact material and optimization of its physical and mechanical properties

By applying nanotechnology, a new type of silver/graphite (AgC) electricalcontact was fabricated and characterized. The AgC coating powders were obtained through high-energyball milling and reducer liquid spraying-coating method. The as-prepared powders were examined bytransmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and X-ray diffraction(XRD). The results show that the thickness of graphite flakes milled for 10 h is about 50-60 nm andthe AgC coating powders exhibit flocculent structure with quite fine and homogeneous internalmicropores. XRD implies that the average crystalline size of silver in coating powders is about 50nm. The mechanical and physical properties of this newly developed AgC contact made from theabove-mentioned nanocrystalline powders by traditional powder metallurgy technique were measured.Compared with its counterparts made from other techniques, the properties of this new AgC contacthave been optimized. High surface energy and high-energy interfaces of the nanocrystalline AgCcoating powders provide powerful driving force for sintering densification. Moreover, the flocculentstructure of the powders is also an important factor to acquire fine density ratio.

Post-treatment of 351 nm SiO_(2) antireflective coatings for high power laser systems prepared by the sol-gel method

Different post-treatment processes involving the use of ammonia and hexamethyldisilazane(HMDS) were explored for application to 351 nm third harmonic generation SiO_(2)antireflective(3ω SiO_(2)AR) coatings for high power laser systems prepared by the sol-gel method.According to experimental analysis,the 3ω SiO_(2)AR coatings that were successively post-treated with ammonia and HMDS at 150℃ for 48 h and again heat-treated at 180℃ for 2 h(N/H 150+180 AR) were relatively better.There were relatively fewer changes in the optical properties of the N/H 150+180 AR coating under a humid and polluted environment,and the increase in defect density was slow in high humidity environments.The laser-induced damage threshold of the N/H 150+180 AR coating reached 15.83 J/cm;(355 nm,6.8 ns),a value that meets the basic requirements of high power laser systems.

Preparation Nano-Diamond Film by Sol-Gelled Coating Method for Field Emission Display

The mixture of Nano-graphite and organic vehicles doped to Nano-diamond paste. The suitable paste proportion was found. Nano-diamond film (NDF) was prepared by sol-gel coating method on ITO glass at 3000/min. The field emission characteristics of luminance-current, luminance-voltage and luminance-power of Nano-diamond film were analyzed and tested. Comparing these tested curves, the luminance was well proportional to current was got. Theoretic, the inner resistance of NDF field emission display (FED) consumes electric energy and real voltage change between the cathode and the anode of NDF-FED was very small after electrons emit. So the characteristic of NDF-FED was preferable to describe by luminance-current linear relationship, which was advantageous to device tested and designed.

Study and Characterization of Organically Modified Silica-Zirconia Anti-Graffiti Coatings Obtained by Sol-Gel

In this work, it is presented the synthesis and characterization of transparent and colorless organic-inorganic hybrid anti-graffiti protective materials obtained by sol-gel method. This type of materials is based on MTES （methyltriethoxysilane）, TPOZ （tetrapropoxide of zirconium） and PDMS （polydimethylsiloxane）. The synthesis has been carried out at 25, 35 and 45 ℃ in order to evaluate the role of temperature in the structure, microstructure and anti-graffiti behavior as well. The incorporation of zirconium within the organic modified silica network, of sols after being gelled and dried, is evident by a shoulder which increased with temperature situated at 950 cml （Si-O-Zr bonds）, and it is homogenously dispersed inside the matrix avoiding the formation of large ZrO2 precipitates. As the temperature increases, the hydrolysis and condensation reactions occur in more extension and thus, the obtained sols are more cross-linked and present more Si-O-Zr linkages. The promising anti-graffiti beha＇4ior of the protectNe hybrids was qualitatively determined being the spot removal higher than 90%.

Influence of pH value and chelating reagent on performance of Li_3V_2(PO_4)3/C cathode material

The Li3V2（PO4）3/C composite cathode material was synthesized via sol-gel method using three different chelating agents （citric acid, salicylic acid and polyacrylic acid） at pH value of 3 or 7. The crystal structure, morphology, specific surface area and electrochemical performance of the prepared samples were investigated by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, cyclic voltammetry （CV）, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS） and galvanostatic charge/discharge test. The results show that the effects of pH value on the performance of the prepared materials are greatly related to the chelating agents. With salicylic acid or polyacrylic acid as the chelating reagent, the structure, morphology and electrochemical performance of the samples are greatly influenced by the pH values. However, the structure of the materials with citric acid as the chelating agent does not change as pH value changes, and the materials own uniform particle size distribution and good electrochemical performance. It delivers an initial discharge capacity of 113.58 mA·h/g at 10C, remaining as high as 108.48 mA·h/g after 900 cycles, with a capacity retention of 95.51%.