The design and engineering strategies of metal tellurides for advanced metal-ion batteries

Owning various crystal structures and high theoretical capacity,metal tellurides are emerging as promising electrode materials for high-performance metal-ion batteries(MBs).Since metal telluride-based MBs are quite new,fundamental issues raise regarding the energy storage mechanism and other aspects affecting electrochemical performance.Severe volume expansion,low intrinsic conductivity and slow ion diffusion kinetics jeopardize the performance of metal tellurides,so that rational design and engineering are crucial to circumvent these disadvantages.Herein,this review provides an in-depth discussion of recent investigations and progresses of metal tellurides,beginning with a critical discussion on the energy storage mechanisms of metal tellurides in various MBs.In the following,recent design and engineering strategies of metal tellurides,including morphology engineering,compositing,defect engineering and heterostructure construction,for high-performance MBs are summarized.The primary focus is to present a comprehensive understanding of the structural evolution based on the mechanism and corresponding effects of dimension control,composition,electron configuration and structural complexity on the electrochemical performance.In closing,outlooks and prospects for future development of metal tellurides are proposed.This work also highlights the promising directions of design and engineering strategies of metal tellurides with high performance and low cost.

Ultrasmall AuPd nanoclusters on amine-functionalized carbon blacks as high-performance bi-functional catalysts for ethanol electrooxidation and formic acid dehydrogenation

The synthesis of ultrasmall metal nanoclusters(NCs) with high catalytic activities is of great importance for the development of clean and renewable energy technologies but remains a challenge. Here we report a facile wet-chemical method to prepare ~1.0 nm Au Pd NCs supported on amine-functionalized carbon blacks. The Au Pd NCs exhibit a specific activity of 5.98 mA cm_(AuPd)^(-2)and mass activity of 5.25 A mg_(auPd)^(-1) for ethanol electrooxidation, which are far better than those of commercial Pd/C catalysts(1.74 mAcm_(AuPd)^(-2) and 0.54 A mg_(Pd)^(-1) ). For formic acid dehydrogenation, the Au Pd NCs have an initial turn over frequency of 49339 h^(-1) at 298 K without any additive, which is much higher than those obtained for most of reported Au Pd catalysts. The reported synthesis may represent a facile and low-cost approach to prepare other ultrasmall metal NCs with high catalytic activities for various applications.

3D Nanoporous Graphene Based Single-Atom Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion and Storage

CONSPECTUS:This Account will provide an overview and analysis on recent research of 3D nanoporous graphene based single-atom electrocatalysts for energy conversion and storage applications.In order to meet the increasing energy demands and assist in the transition from a global economy that relies heavily on fossil fuels to one that utilizes more renewable energy sources,there is urgent need to develop highperforming electrocatalysts toward renewable energy related reactions.These catalysts are expected to have low overpotentials,high reaction selectivity,long cycling stability,and,importantly,lower materials costs to address the challenges of traditional nanoparticulate noble metal catalysts.

Twisted fiber microfluidics:a cutting-edge approach to 3D spiral devices

The development of 3D spiral microfluidics has opened new avenues for leveraging inertial focusing to analyze small fluid volumes,thereby advancing research across chemical,physical,and biological disciplines.While traditional straight microchannels rely solely on inertial lift forces,the novel spiral geometry generates Dean drag forces,eliminating the necessity for external fields in fluid manipulation.Nevertheless,fabricating 3D spiral microfluidics remains a labor-intensive and costly endeavor,hindering its widespread adoption.Moreover,conventional lithographic methods primarily yield 2D planar devices,thereby limiting the selection of materials and geometrical configurations.To address these challenges,this work introduces a streamlined fabrication method for 3D spiral microfluidic devices,employing rotational force within a miniaturized thermal drawing process,termed as mini-rTDP.This innovation allows for rapid prototyping of twisted fiber-based microfluidics featuring versatility in material selection and heightened geometric intricacy.To validate the performance of these devices,we combined computational modeling with microtomographic particle image velocimetry(uTPiM)to comprehensively characterize the 3D flow dynamics.Our results corroborate the presence of a steady secondary flow,underscoring the effectiveness of our approach.Our 3D spiral microfluidics platform paves the way for exploring intricate microflow dynamics,with promising applications in areas such as drug delivery,diagnostics,and lab-on-a-chip systems.