Insights on advanced substrates for controllable fabrication of photoanodes toward efficient and stable photoelectrochemical water splitting

Conversion of solar energy into H_(2) by photoelectrochemical(PEC)water splitting is recognized as an ideal way to address the growing energy crisis and environmental issues.In a typical PEC cell,the construction of photoanodes is crucial to guarantee the high efficiency and stability of PEC reactions,which fundamentally rely on rationally designed semiconductors(as the active materials)and substrates(as the current collectors).In this review work,we start with a brief introduction of the roles of substrates in the PEC process.Then,we provide a systematic overview of representative strategies for the controlled fabrication of photoanodes on rationally designed substrates,including conductive glass,metal,sapphire,silicon,silicon carbide,and flexible substrates.Finally,some prospects concerning the challenges and research directions in this area are proposed.

Recent advances in cobalt phosphide-based materials for electrocatalytic water splitting:From catalytic mechanism and synthesis method to optimization design

Electrochemical water splitting has long been considered an effective energy conversion technology for trans-ferring intermittent renewable electricity into hydrogen fuel,and the exploration of cost-effective and high-performance electrocatalysts is crucial in making electrolyzed water technology commercially viable.Cobalt phosphide(Co-P)has emerged as a catalyst of high potential owing to its high catalytic activity and durability in water splitting.This paper systematically reviews the latest advances in the development of Co-P-based materials for use in water splitting.The essential effects of P in enhancing the catalytic performance of the hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction are first outlined.Then,versatile synthesis techniques for Co-P electrocatalysts are summarized,followed by advanced strategies to enhance the electrocatalytic performance of Co-P materials,including heteroatom doping,composite construction,integration with well-conductive sub-strates,and structure control from the viewpoint of experiment.Along with these optimization strategies,the understanding of the inherent mechanism of enhanced catalytic performance is also discussed.Finally,some existing challenges in the development of highly active and stable Co-P-based materials are clarified,and pro-spective directions for prompting the wide commercialization of water electrolysis technology are proposed.

Atomically dispersed Ni electrocatalyst for superior urea-assisted water splitting

Urea oxidation reaction(UOR) has been selected as substitution for oxygen evolution reaction ascribing to its low thermodynamic voltage as well as utilization of nickel as electrocatalyst.Herein,we report the formation of nickel single atoms(Ni-SAs) as exceptional bifunctional electrocatalyst toward UOR and hydrogen evolution reaction(HER) in urea-assisted water splitting.In UOR catalysis,Ni-SAs perform a superior catalytic performance than Ni-NP/NC and Pt/C ascribing to the formation of HOO-Ni-N_(4) structure evidenced by in-situ Raman spectroscopy,corresponding to a boosted mass activity by 175-fold at 1.4 V vs.RHE than Ni-NP/NC.Furthermore,Ni-SAs requires only 450 mV overpotential to obtain HER current density of 500 mA cm^(-2).136 mA cm^(-2) is achieved in urea-assisted water splitting at1.7 V for Ni-SAs,boosted by 5.7 times than Pt/C-IrO_(2) driven water splitting.

Ionic liquid derived electrocatalysts for electrochemical water splitting

Hydrogen production from electrochemical water splitting is a promising strategy to generate green energy,which requires the development of efficient and stable electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction and the oxygen evolution reaction(HER and OER).Ionic liquids(ILs)or poly(ionic liquids)(PILs),containing heteroatoms,metal-based anions,and various structures,have been frequently involved as precursors to prepare electrocatalysts for water splitting.Moreover,ILs/PILs possess high conductivity,wide electrochemical windows,and high thermal and chemical stability,which can be directly applied in the electrocatalysis process with high durability.In this review,we focus on the studies of ILs/PILs-derived electrocatalysts for HER and OER,where ILs/PILs are applied as heteroatom dopants and metal precursors to prepare catalysts or are directly utilized as the electrocatalysts.Due to those attractive properties,IL/PIL-derived electrocatalysts exhibit excellent performance for electrochemical water splitting.All these accomplishments and developments are systematically summarized and thoughtfully discussed.Then,the overall perspectives for the current challenges and future developments of ILs/PILs-derived electrocatalysts are provided.

Variations of shear-wave splitting parameters in the source region of the 2023 Türkiye doublet earthquakes

In this study,the shear-wave splitting parameters of local seismic events from the source regions of the 2023 Türkiye MW7.7 and MW7.6 doublet earthquakes(event 1 and event 2,respectively)were measured from June 1,2022,to April 25,2023,and their spatiotemporal characteristics were analyzed.The results revealed clear spatial and temporal differences.Spatially,the dominant fast-wave polarization direction at each station shows a strong correlation with the direction of the maximum horizontal principal compressive stress,as characterized by focal mechanism solutions of seismic events(MW≥3.5)near the station.The dominant fast-wave polarization direction and the regional stress field also showed a strong correlation with the intermovement of the Arabian Plate,African Plate,and Anatolian Block.Along the Nurdagi-Pazarcik fault zone,the seismic fault of event 1,stations closer to the middle of the fault where the mainshock occurred exhibited notably greater delay times than stations located towards the ends of the fault and far from the mainshock.In addition,the stations located to the east of the Nurdagi-Pazarcik fault and to the north of the Sürgüfault also exhibited large delay times.The spatial distribution of shear-wave splitting parameters obtained from each station indicates that the upper-crust anisotropy in the source area is mainly controlled by the regional stress field,which is closely related to the state of the block motion.During the seismogenic process of the MW7.7 earthquake,more stress accumulated in the middle of the Nurdagi-Pazarcik fault than at either end of the fault.Under the influence of the MW7.7 and MW7.6 events,the stress that accumulated during the seismogenic process of the earthquake doublet may have migrated towards some areas outside the aftershock intensive area after the earthquakes,and the crustal stress and its adjustment range near the outer stations increased significantly.With the exception of two stations with few effective events,all stations showed a consistent change in shear-wave splitting parameters over time.In particular,each station showed a decreasing trend in delay times after the doublet earthquakes,reflecting the obvious intensification of crustal stress adjustment in the seismogenic zone after the doublet earthquakes.With the occurrence of the earthquake doublet and a large number of aftershocks,the stress accumulated during the seismogenic process of the doublet earthquakes is gradually released,and then the adjustment range of crustal stress is also gradually reduced.

A Second-Order Implicit-Explicit Scheme for the Baroclinic-Barotropic Split System of Primitive Equations

The baroclinic-barotropic mode splitting technique is commonly employed in numerical solutions of the primitive equations for ocean modeling to deal with the multiple time scales of ocean dynamics.In this paper,a second-order implicit-explicit(IMEX)scheme is proposed to advance the baroclinic-barotropic split system.Specifically,the baroclinic mode and the layer thickness of fluid are evolved explicitly via the second-order strong stability preserving Runge-Kutta scheme,while the barotropic mode is advanced implicitly using the linearized Crank-Nicolson scheme.At each time step,the baroclinic velocity is first computed using an intermediate barotropic velocity.The barotropic velocity is then corrected by re-advancing the barotropic mode with an improved barotropic forcing.Finally,the layer thickness is updated by coupling the baroclinic and barotropic velocities together.In addition,numerical inconsistencies on the discretized sea surface height caused by the mode splitting are alleviated via a reconciliation process with carefully calculated flux deficits.Temporal truncation error is also analyzed to validate the second-order accuracy of the scheme.Finally,two benchmark tests from the MPAS-Ocean platform are conducted to numerically demonstrate the performance of the proposed IMEX scheme.

Semi-regularized Hermitian and Skew-Hermitian Splitting Preconditioning for Saddle-Point Linear Systems

In this paper,a two-step semi-regularized Hermitian and skew-Hermitian splitting(SHSS)iteration method is constructed by introducing a regularization matrix in the(1,1)-block of the first iteration step,to solve the saddle-point linear system.By carefully selecting two different regularization matrices,two kinds of SHSS preconditioners are proposed to accelerate the convergence rates of the Krylov subspace iteration methods.Theoretical analysis about the eigenvalue distribution demonstrates that the proposed SHSS preconditioners can make the eigenvalues of the corresponding preconditioned matrices be clustered around 1 and uniformly bounded away from 0.The eigenvector distribution and the upper bound on the degree of the minimal polynomial of the SHSS-preconditioned matrices indicate that the SHSS-preconditioned Krylov subspace iterative methods can converge to the true solution within finite steps in exact arithmetic.In addition,the numerical example derived from the optimal control problem shows that the SHSS preconditioners can significantly improve the convergence speeds of the Krylov subspace iteration methods,and their convergence rates are independent of the discrete mesh size.

Two-Parameter Block Triangular Splitting Preconditioner for Block Two-by-Two Linear Systems

This paper proposes a two-parameter block triangular splitting(TPTS)preconditioner for the general block two-by-two linear systems.The eigenvalues of the corresponding preconditioned matrix are proved to cluster around 0 or 1 under mild conditions.The limited numerical results show that the TPTS preconditioner is more efficient than the classic block-diagonal and block-triangular preconditioners when applied to the flexible generalized minimal residual(FGMRES)method.

Outcome of split liver transplantation vs living donor liver transplantation:A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND The outcomes of liver transplantation(LT)from different grafts have been studied individually and in combination,but the reports were conflicting with some researchers finding no difference in both short-term and long-term outcomes between the deceased donor split LT(DD-SLT)and living donor LT(LDLT).AIM To compare the outcomes of DD-SLT and LDLT we performed this systematic review and meta-analysis.METHODS This systematic review was performed in compliance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis guidelines.The following databases were searched for articles comparing outcomes of DD-SLT and LDLT:PubMed;Google Scholar;Embase;Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials;the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews;and Reference Citation Analysis(https://www.referencecitationanalysis.com/).The search terms used were:“liver transplantation;”“liver transplant;”“split liver transplant;”“living donor liver transplant;”“partial liver transplant;”“partial liver graft;”“ex vivo splitting;”and“in vivo splitting.”RESULTS Ten studies were included for the data synthesis and meta-analysis.There were a total of 4836 patients.The overall survival rate at 1 year,3 years and 5 years was superior in patients that received LDLT compared to DD-SLT.At 1 year,the hazard ratios was 1.44(95%confidence interval:1.16-1.78;P=0.001).The graft survival rate at 3 years and 5 years was superior in the LDLT group(3 year hazard ratio:1.28;95%confidence interval:1.01-1.63;P=0.04).CONCLUSION This meta-analysis showed that LDLT has better graft survival and overall survival when compared to DD-SLT.

Dirac and Maxwell Systems in Split Octonions

The known equivalence of 8-dimensional chiral spinors and vectors, also referred to as triality, is discussed for (4 + 4)-space. Split octonionic representation of SO(4, 4) and Spin(4, 4) groups and the trilinear invariant form are explicitly written and compared with Clifford algebraic matrix representation. It is noted that the complete algebra of split octonionic basis units can be recovered from the Moufang and Malcev relations for the three vector-like elements. Lagrangians on split octonionic fields that generalize Dirac and Maxwell systems are constructed using group invariant forms. It is shown that corresponding equations are related to split octonionic analyticity conditions.

Defects and morphology engineering for constructing V_(s)-Ni_(3)S_(2)@V_(s)-Cu_(2)S nanotube heterojunction arrays toward efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting

The development of highly active,stable and inexpensive electrocatalysts for hydrogen production by defects and morphology engineering remains a great challenge.Herein,S vacancies-rich Ni_(3)S_(2)@Cu_(2)S nan-otube heterojunction arrays were in-situ grown on copper foam(V_(s)-Ni_(3)S_(2)@V_(s)-Cu_(2)S NHAs/CF)for efficient electrocatalytic overall water splitting.With the merits of nanotube arrays and efficient electronic mod-ulation drived by the OD vacancy defect and 2D heterojunction defect,the resultant V_(s)-Ni_(3)S_(2)@V_(s)-Cu_(2)S NHAs/CF electrocatalyst exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity with a low overpotential of 47 mV for the hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)at 10 mA cm^(-2) current density,and 263 mV for the oxygen evolution reaction(OER)at 50 mA cm^(-2) current density,as well as a cell voltage of 1.48 V at 10 mA cm^(-2).Moreover,the nanotube heterojunction arrays endows V_(s)-Ni_(3)S_(2)@V_(s)-Cu_(2)S NHAs/CF with outstanding stability in long-term catalytic processes,as confirmed by the continuous chronopotentiom-etry tests at current densities of 10 mA cm^(-2) for 100 h.

The component-activity interrelationship of cobalt-based bifunctional electrocatalysts for overall water splitting:Strategies and performance

Cobalt-based electrocatalysts take advantage of potentially harmonizable microstructure and flexible coupling effects compared to commercial noble metal-based catalytic materials.However,conventional water electrolysis systems based on cobalt-based monofunctional hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)or oxygen evolution reaction(OER)catalysts have certain shortcomings in terms of resource utilization and universality.In contrast,cobalt-based bifunctional catalysts(CBCs)have attracted much attention in recent years for overall water splitting systems because of their practicality and reduced preparation cost of electrolyzer.This review aims to address the latest development in CBCs for total hydrolysis.The main modification strategies of CBCs are systematically classified in water electrolysis to provide an overview of how to regulate their morphology and electronic configuration.Then,the catalytic performance of CBCs in total-hydrolysis is summarized according to the types of cobalt-based phosphides,sulfides and oxides,and the mechanism of strengthened electrocatalytic ability is emphasized through combining experiments and theoretical calculations.Future efforts are finally suggested to focus on exploring the dynamic conversion of reaction intermediates and building near-industrial CBCs,designing advanced CBC materials through micro-modulation,and addressing commercial applications.

A review of understanding electrocatalytic reactions in energy conversion and energy storage systems via scanning electrochemical microscopy

To address climate change and promote environmental sustainability,electrochemical energy conversion and storage systems emerge as promising alternative to fossil fuels,catering to the escalating demand for energy.Achieving optimal energy efficiency and cost competitiveness in these systems requires the strategic design of electrocatalysts,coupled with a thorough comprehension of the underlying mechanisms and degradation behavior occurring during the electrocatalysis processes.Scanning electrochemical microscopy(SECM),an analytical technique for studying surface electrochemically,stands out as a powerful tool offering electrochemical insights.It possesses remarkable spatiotemporal resolution,enabling the visualization of the localized electrochemical activity and surface topography.This review compiles crucial research findings and recent breakthroughs in electrocatalytic processes utilizing the SECM methodology,specifically focusing on applications in electrolysis,fuel cells,and metal–oxygen batteries within the realm of energy conversion and storage systems.Commencing with an overview of each energy system,the review introduces the fundamental principles of SECM,and aiming to provide new perspectives and broadening the scope of applied research by describing the major research categories within SECM.

Sparse-view neutron CT 3D image reconstruction algorithm based on split Bregman method

As a complement to X-ray computed tomography(CT),neutron tomography has been extensively used in nuclear engineer-ing,materials science,cultural heritage,and industrial applications.Reconstruction of the attenuation matrix for neutron tomography with a traditional analytical algorithm requires hundreds of projection views in the range of 0°to 180°and typically takes several hours to complete.Such a low time-resolved resolution degrades the quality of neutron imaging.Decreasing the number of projection acquisitions is an important approach to improve the time resolution of images;however,this requires efficient reconstruction algorithms.Therefore,sparse-view reconstruction algorithms in neutron tomography need to be investigated.In this study,we investigated the three-dimensional reconstruction algorithm for sparse-view neu-tron CT scans.To enhance the reconstructed image quality of neutron CT,we propose an algorithm that uses OS-SART to reconstruct images and a split Bregman to solve for the total variation(SBTV).A comparative analysis of the performances of each reconstruction algorithm was performed using simulated and actual experimental data.According to the analyzed results,OS-SART-SBTV is superior to the other algorithms in terms of denoising,suppressing artifacts,and preserving detailed structural information of images.

Molecular-level proton acceptor boosts oxygen evolution catalysis to enable efficient industrial-scale water splitting

Industrial water splitting has long been suppressed by the sluggish kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction(OER),which requires a catalyst to be efficient.Herein,we propose a molecular-level proton acceptor strategy to produce an efficient OER catalyst that can boost industrial-scale water splitting.Molecular-level phosphate(-PO_(4))group is introduced to modify the surface of PrBa_(0.5)Ca_(0.5)Co_(2)O_(5)+δ(PBCC).The achieved catalyst(PO_(4)-PBCC)exhibits significantly enhanced catalytic performance in alkaline media.Based on the X-ray absorption spectroscopy results and density functional theory(DFT)calculations,the PO_(4)on the surface,which is regarded as the Lewis base,is the key factor to overcome the kinetic limitation of the proton transfer process during the OER.The use of the catalyst in a membrane electrode assembly(MEA)is further evaluated for industrial-scale water splitting,and it only needs a low voltage of 1.66 V to achieve a large current density of 1 A cm^(-2).This work provides a new molecular-level strategy to develop highly efficient OER electrocatalysts for industrial applications.

Acoustic Bilayer Gradient Metasurfaces for Perfect and Asymmetric Beam Splitting

We experimentally and theoretically present a paradigm for the accurate bilayer design of gradient metasurfaces for wave beam manipulation,producing an extremely asymmetric splitting effect by simply tailoring the interlayer size.This concept arises from anomalous diffraction in phase gradient metasurfaces and the precise combination of the phase gradient in bilayer metasurfaces.Ensured by different diffraction routes in momentum space for incident beams from opposite directions,extremely asymmetric acoustic beam splitting can be generated in a robust way,as demonstrated in experiments through a designed bilayer system.Our work provides a novel approach and feasible platform for designing tunable devices to control wave propagation.

In-situ building of multiscale porous NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni heterojunction for superior overall water splitting

The development of efficient nonprecious bifunctional electrocatalysts for water electrolysis is crucial to enhance the sluggish kinetics of the oxygen evolution reaction(OER)and hydrogen evolution reaction(HER).A self-supporting,multiscale porous NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni catalyst with a triple interface heterojunction on nickel foam(NF)(NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni/NF)was in-situ fabricated using an electroplating-annealing-etching strategy.The unique multiinterface engineering and three-dimensional porous scaffold significantly modify the mass transport and electron interaction,resulting in superior bifunctional electrocatalytic performance for water splitting.The NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni/NF catalyst demonstrates low overpotentials of 187 m V for HER and 320 mV for OER at a current density of 600 mA/cm^(2),along with high durability over 150 h in alkaline solution.Furthermore,an electrolytic cell assembled with NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni/NF as both the cathode and anode achieves the current densities of 600 and 1000 m A/cm^(2) at cell voltages of 1.796 and 1.901 V,respectively,maintaining the high stability at 50 mA/cm^(2) for over 100 h.These findings highlight the potential of NiFeZn/NiZn-Ni/NF as a cost-effective and highly efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting.

Defect Engineering and Carbon Supporting to Achieve Ni‑Doped CoP_(3) with High Catalytic Activities for Overall Water Splitting

This work reports the use of defect engineering and carbon supporting to achieve metal-doped phosphides with high activities and stabilities for the hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)and the oxygen evolution reaction(OER)in alkaline media.Specifically,the nitrogen-doped carbon nanofiber-supported Ni-doped CoP_(3) with rich P defects(Pv·)on the carbon cloth(p-NiCoP/NCFs@CC)is synthesized through a plasma-assisted phosphorization method.The p-NiCoP/NCFs@CC is an efficient and stable catalyst for the HER and the OER.It only needs overpotentials of 107 and 306 mV to drive 100 mA cm^(-2) for the HER and the OER,respectively.Its catalytic activities are higher than those of other catalysts reported recently.The high activities of the p-NiCoP/NCFs@CC mainly arise from its peculiar structural features.The density functional theory calculation indicates that the Pv·richness,the Ni doping,and the carbon supporting can optimize the adsorption of the H atoms at the catalyst surface and promote the strong electronic couplings between the carbon nanofiber-supported p-NiCoP with the surface oxide layer formed during the OER process.This gives the p-NiCoP/NCFs@CC with the high activities for the HER and the OER.When used in alkaline water electrolyzers,the p-NiCoP/NCFs@CC shows the superior activity and excellent stability for overall water splitting.

Deactivation mechanism for water splitting:Recent advances

Hydrogen(H_(2)) has been regarded as a promising alternative to fossil-fuel energy.Green H_(2) produced via water electrolysis(WE)powered by renewable energy could achieve a zero-carbon footprint.Considerable attention has been focused on developing highly active catalysts to facilitate the reaction kinetics and improve the energy efficiency of WE.However,the stability of the electrocatalysts hampers the commercial viability of WE.Few studies have elucidated the origin of catalyst degradation.In this review,we first discuss the WE mechanism,including anodic oxygen evolution reaction(OER)and cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction(HER).Then,we provide strategies used to enhance the stability of electrocatalysts.After that,the deactivation mechanisms of the typical commercialized HER and OER catalysts,including Pt,Ni,RuO_(2),and IrO_(2),are summarized.Finally,the influence of fluctuating energy on catalyst degradation is highlighted and in situ characterization methodologies for understanding the dynamic deactivation processes are described.

Defect engineering in transition-metal(Fe,Co,andNi)-based electrocatalysts for water splitting

Electrocatalytic water splitting seems to be an efficient strategy to deal with increasingly serious environmental problems and energy crises but still suffers from the lack of stable and efficient electrocatalysts.Designing practical electrocatalysts by introducing defect engineering,such as hybrid structure,surface vacancies,functional modification,and structural distortions,is proven to be a dependable solution for fabricating electrocatalysts with high catalytic activities,robust stability,and good practicability.This review is an overview of some relevant reports about the effects of defect engineering on the electrocatalytic water splitting performance of electrocatalysts.In detail,the types of defects,the preparation and characterization methods,and catalytic performances of electrocatalysts are presented,emphasizing the effects of the introduced defects on the electronic structures of electrocatalysts and the optimization of the intermediates'adsorption energy throughout the review.Finally,the existing challenges and personal perspectives of possible strategies for enhancing the catalytic performances of electrocatalysts are proposed.An in-depth understanding of the effects of defect engineering on the catalytic performance of electrocatalysts will light the way to design high-efficiency electrocatalysts for water splitting and other possible applications.