scholarly journals Influence of Carbon Dioxide and Humidity on the Stability of (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99Co1−xTixO3−δ Cathode

Author(s):  
Alar Heinsaar ◽  
Indrek Kivi ◽  
Priit Moller ◽  
Kuno Kooser ◽  
Tanel Käämbre ◽  
...  

Abstract (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99CoO3−δ is a very promising cathode material due to its excellent electronic and ionic conductivity. However, when using non-artificial air from the ambient atmosphere, it contains impurities such as H2O and CO2. These chemicals cause degradation and performance loss of the cathode. Introduction of Ti into the B-site of (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99CoO3−δ improves the chemical stability of this material. (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99Co1−xTixO3−δ (0 ≤ x ≥ 0.1) electrodes prepared in this work were analyzed using X-ray diffraction method (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Studied (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99CoO3−δ materials with Ti in B-site showed reversible degradation under gas mixture with carbon dioxide addition. Under gas mixture with water addition, improved stability was observed for (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99Co1−xTixO3−δ materials with Ti in B-site compared to unmodified (La0.6Sr0.4)0.99CoO3−δ.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer A. Rudd ◽  
Ewa Kazimierska ◽  
Louise B. Hamdy ◽  
Odin Bain ◽  
Sunyhik Ahn ◽  
...  

The utilization of carbon dioxide is a major incentive for the growing field of carbon capture. Carbon dioxide could be an abundant building block to generate higher value products. Herein, we describe the use of porous copper electrodes to catalyze the reduction of carbon dioxide into higher value products such as ethylene, ethanol and, notably, propanol. For <i>n</i>-propanol production, faradaic efficiencies reach 4.93% at -0.83 V <i>vs</i> RHE, with a geometric partial current density of -1.85 mA/cm<sup>2</sup>. We have documented the performance of the catalyst in both pristine and urea-modified foams pre- and post-electrolysis. Before electrolysis, the copper electrode consisted of a mixture of cuboctahedra and dendrites. After 35-minute electrolysis, the cuboctahedra and dendrites have undergone structural rearrangement. Changes in the interaction of urea with the catalyst surface have also been observed. These transformations were characterized <i>ex-situ</i> using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We found that alterations in the morphology, crystallinity, and surface composition of the catalyst led to the deactivation of the copper foams.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Durga Sankar Vavilapalli ◽  
Ambrose A. Melvin ◽  
F. Bellarmine ◽  
Ramanjaneyulu Mannam ◽  
Srihari Velaga ◽  
...  

AbstractIdeal sillenite type Bi12FeO20 (BFO) micron sized single crystals have been successfully grown via inexpensive hydrothermal method. The refined single crystal X-ray diffraction data reveals cubic Bi12FeO20 structure with single crystal parameters. Occurrence of rare Fe4+ state is identified via X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). The lattice parameter (a) and corresponding molar volume (Vm) of Bi12FeO20 have been measured in the temperature range of 30–700 °C by the X-ray diffraction method. The thermal expansion coefficient (α) 3.93 × 10–5 K−1 was calculated from the measured values of the parameters. Electronic structure and density of states are investigated by first principle calculations. Photoelectrochemical measurements on single crystals with bandgap of 2 eV reveal significant photo response. The photoactivity of as grown crystals were further investigated by degrading organic effluents such as Methylene blue (MB) and Congo red (CR) under natural sunlight. BFO showed photodegradation efficiency about 74.23% and 32.10% for degrading MB and CR respectively. Interesting morphology and microstructure of pointed spearhead like BFO crystals provide a new insight in designing and synthesizing multifunctional single crystals.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 522
Author(s):  
Zhi Yan Lee ◽  
Huzein Fahmi bin Hawari ◽  
Gunawan Witjaksono bin Djaswadi ◽  
Kamarulzaman Kamarudin

A tin oxide (SnO2) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) hybrid composite gas sensor for high-performance carbon dioxide (CO2) gas detection at room temperature was studied. Since it can be used independently from a heater, it emerges as a promising candidate for reducing the complexity of device circuitry, packaging size, and fabrication cost; furthermore, it favors integration into portable devices with a low energy density battery. In this study, SnO2-rGO was prepared via an in-situ chemical reduction route. Dedicated material characterization techniques including field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were conducted. The gas sensor based on the synthesized hybrid composite was successfully tested over a wide range of carbon dioxide concentrations where it exhibited excellent response magnitudes, good linearity, and low detection limit. The synergistic effect can explain the obtained hybrid gas sensor’s prominent sensing properties between SnO2 and rGO that provide excellent charge transport capability and an abundance of sensing sites.


Author(s):  
Ke Qu ◽  
Yuqi Bai ◽  
Miao Deng

Abstract The ever-increasing need for small and lightweight power sources for use in portable or wearable electronic devices has spurred the development of supercapacitors as a promising energy storage and conversion system. In this work, a simple, facile and easy-to-practice method has been developed to employ carbon paper (CP) as the support to coat molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and graphene oxide (GO), followed by electrodeposition of polyaniline (PANI) to render CP/MoS2-GO-PANI. The preparation parameters, such as amounts of MoS2, GO and number of aniline electropolymerization cycles, have been optimized to render CP/MoS2-GO-PANI the best capacitive performance. The as-prepared optimal CP/MoS2-GO-PANI is characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The supercapacitive properties of CP/MoS2-GO-PANI as an electrode have been evaluated electrochemically via cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy testing. CP/MoS2-GO-PANI delivers a specific capacitance of 255.1 F/g at 1.0 A/g and exhibits excellent rate capability under larger current densities. Moreover, a symmetrical supercapacitor is assembled and three are connected in series to power a light-emitting diode for ~15 minutes, demonstrating the promising application potential of CP/MoS2-GO-PANI-based supercapacitor.


2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 20160056 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Pruna ◽  
F. Palacio ◽  
M. Martínez ◽  
O. Blázquez ◽  
S. Hernández ◽  
...  

Fabrication and organosilane-functionalization and characterization of nanostructured ITO electrodes are reported. Nanostructured ITO electrodes were obtained by electron beam evaporation, and a subsequent annealing treatment was selectively performed to modify their crystalline state. An increase in geometrical surface area in comparison with thin-film electrodes area was observed by atomic force microscopy, implying higher electroactive surface area for nanostructured ITO electrodes and thus higher detection levels. To investigate the increase in detectability, chemical organosilane-functionalization of nanostructured ITO electrodes was performed. The formation of 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GOPTS) layers was detected by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. As an indirect method to confirm the presence of organosilane molecules on the ITO substrates, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were also carried out. Cyclic voltammograms of functionalized ITO electrodes presented lower reduction-oxidation peak currents compared with non-functionalized ITO electrodes. These results demonstrate the presence of the epoxysilane coating on the ITO surface. EIS showed that organosilane-functionalized electrodes present higher polarization resistance, acting as an electronic barrier for the electron transfer between the conductive solution and the ITO electrode. The results of these electrochemical measurements, together with the significant difference in the X-ray spectra between bare ITO and organosilane-functionalized ITO substrates, may point to a new exploitable oxide-based nanostructured material for biosensing applications. As a first step towards sensing, rapid functionalization of such substrates and their application to electrochemical analysis is tested in this work. Interestingly, oxide-based materials are highly integrable with the silicon chip technology, which would permit the easy adaptation of such sensors into lab-on-a-chip configurations, providing benefits such as reduced size and weight to facilitate on-chip integration, and leading to low-cost mass production of microanalysis systems.


Electrochemical hydrogenation, lithiation and sodiation of the phases GdFe2–xMx and GdMn2–xMx (M=Mn, Co, Ni, Zn, and Mg) and the influence of doping components on electrochemical characteristics of electrode materials on their basis were studied using X-ray powder diffraction method, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, X-ray fluorescent spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Phase analysis showed a simple correspondence between unit cell parameters of the phases and atomic radii of doping elements. Electrode materials based on GdFe2 and GdMn2 doped with 2 at.% of Co, Ni and Mg demonstrated better hydrogen sorption properties than those doped with Mn and Zn. Corrosion resistance of the doped electrodes was also better than of the binary analogues (e.g. corrosion potential of the GdFe2-based electrode was –0.162 V whereas that of GdFe1.96Ni0.04 was –0.695 V). The capacity parameters were increased in the following ranges: Zn<Mn<Mg<Co<Ni and Zn<Fe<Mg<Co<Ni for GdFe2–xMx and GdMn2–xMx, respectively. After fifty cycles of charge/discharge, we observed the changes in surface morphology and composition of the electrode samples. In the structure of studied Laves type phases with MgCu2-type structure, the most suitable sites for hydrogen atoms are tetrahedral voids 8a. During lithiation and sodiation of the phases, the atoms of the M-component of the structure are replaced by the atoms of lithium, and the atoms of gadolinium are replaced by the atoms of sodium. This difference in interaction is due to the difference in atomic sizes of the atoms. No insertion of lithium or sodium into the structural voids of the phases was observed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 1642-1649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harol Moreno Fernández ◽  
Marco Zangrando ◽  
Guillaume Sauthier ◽  
Alejandro R. Goñi ◽  
Vincent Carlino ◽  
...  

The choice of a reflective optical coating or filter material has to be adapted to the intended field of application. This is mainly determined by the required photon energy range or by the required reflection angle. Among various materials, nickel and rhodium are common materials used as reflective coatings for (soft) X-ray mirrors. Similarly, aluminium is one of the most commonly used materials for extreme ultraviolet and soft X-ray transmission filters. However, both of these types of optics are subject to carbon contamination, which can be increasingly problematic for the operation of the high-performance free-electron laser and synchrotron beamlines. As an attempt to remove this type of contamination, an inductively coupled plasma source has been used in conjunction with N2/O2/H2 and N2/H2 feedstock gas plasmas. Results from the chemical surface analysis of the above materials before and after plasma treatment using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are reported. It is concluded that a favorable combination of an N2/H2 plasma feedstock gas mixture leads to the best chemical surface preservation of Ni, Rh and Al while removing the carbon contamination. However, this feedstock gas mixture does not remove C contamination as rapidly as, for example, an N2/O2/H2 plasma which induces the surface formation of NiO and NiOOH in Ni and RhOOH in Rh foils. As an applied case, the successful carbon removal from ultrathin Al filters previously used at the FERMI FEL1 using an N2/H2 plasma is demonstrated.


2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (23) ◽  
pp. 234002
Author(s):  
Yifan Ye ◽  
Hongyang Su ◽  
Kyung-Jae Lee ◽  
David Larson ◽  
Carlos Valero-Vidal ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 62-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Li ◽  
Peng Yang ◽  
Bin Wang ◽  
Zhongqing Liu

Bimetallic phosphides have been attracting increasing attention due to their synergistic effect for improving the hydrogen evolution reaction as compared to monometallic phosphides. In this work, NiCoP modified hybrid electrodes were fabricated by a one-step electrodeposition process with TiO2 nanotube arrays (TNAs) as a carrier. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, UV–vis diffuse reflection spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used to characterize the physiochemical properties of the samples. The electrochemical performance was investigated by cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. We show that after incorporating Co into Ni–P, the resulting Ni x Co y P/TNAs present enhanced electrocatalytic activity due to the improved electron transfer and increased electrochemically active surface area (ECSA). In 0.5 mol L−1 H2SO4 electrolyte, the Ni x Co y P/TNAs (x = 3.84, y = 0.78) demonstrated an ECSA value of 52.1 mF cm−2, which is 3.8 times that of Ni–P/TNAs (13.7 mF cm−2). In a two-electrode system with a Pt sheet as the anode, the Ni x Co y P/TNAs presented a bath voltage of 1.92 V at 100 mA cm−2, which is an improvment of 79% over that of 1.07 V at 10 mA cm−2.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document