Biomimetic construction of bifunctional perovskite oxygen catalyst for zinc-air batteries

Ceria-based electrospun nanofibers and their widespread applications: A review

Electrospinning is a highly efficient technique for producing nanofibers, and it is noted for its cost-effectiveness, versatility, and user-friendly nature. The article evaluates the production of Ceria-based nanofibers primarily utilizing electrospinning technology and electrospinning parameters and explores their various potential applications. Ceria infused with lanthanoids and transition metals demonstrates significant potential as catalysts, optical sensors, and supercapacitors in various energy-related industrial applications. Their role as catalysts in water-gas and reverse water-gas shift reactions greatly enhances the water-splitting reaction in the Deacon process. Composite ceria nanofibers for wound therapy were developed by integrating polyurethane, cellulose acetate, and zein for biological applications. Soot-induced blockages in automobile filters pose challenges for the regeneration process of diesel particle filters, and the effectiveness of ceria-based nanofibers in soot and CO oxidation has been explored. Ce-based nanofibers produced via the electrospinning technique, with different operating parameters, exhibit notable variations in their morphology. Research indicates that, compared to traditional ceria, Ce-based nanofibers demonstrate greater surface area and porosity, a higher density of oxygen vacancies, and improved oxygen transfer efficiency, all essential for numerous redox and catalytic processes. The nanofibrous structure enhances electrical conductivity by expanding the surface area accessible for interaction with active components. The nanofibrous composite structure exhibits enhanced thermal and mechanical durability, making it appealing for numerous applications.

A Review of Rechargeable Zinc-Air Batteries: Recent Progress and Future Perspectives

Zinc-air batteries (ZABs) are gaining attention as an ideal option for various applications requiring high-capacity batteries, such as portable electronics, electric vehicles, and renewable energy storage. ZABs offer advantages such as low environmental impact, enhanced safety compared to Li-ion batteries, and cost-effectiveness due to the abundance of zinc. However, early research faced challenges due to parasitic reactions at the zinc anode and slow oxygen redox kinetics. Recent advancements in restructuring the anode, utilizing alternative electrolytes, and developing bifunctional oxygen catalysts have significantly improved ZABs. Scientists have achieved battery reversibility over thousands of cycles, introduced new electrolytes, and achieved energy efficiency records surpassing 70%. Despite these achievements, there are challenges related to lower power density, shorter lifespan, and air electrode corrosion leading to performance degradation. This review paper discusses different battery configurations, and reaction mechanisms for electrically and mechanically rechargeable ZABs, and proposes remedies to enhance overall battery performance. The paper also explores recent advancements, applications, and the future prospects of electrically/mechanically rechargeable ZABs.

Suppressing the Surface Amorphization of Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3-δ Perovskite toward Oxygen Catalytic Reactions by Introducing the Compressive Stress

Ba_0.5Sr_0.5Co_0.8Fe_0.2O_3-δ (BSCF) perovskite has been recognized as a promising oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalyst due to its superior intrinsic catalytic activity. However, BSCF suffers from serious degradation during the OER process due to its surface amorphization caused by the segregation of A-site ions (Ba²⁺ and Sr²⁺). Herein, we construct a novel BSCF composite catalyst (BSCF-GDC-NR) by anchoring the gadolinium-doped ceria oxide (GDC) nanoparticles on the surface of a BSCF nanorod by a concentration-difference electrospinning method. Our BSCF-GDC-NR has greatly improved bifunctional oxygen catalytic activity and stability toward both oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and OER compared with the pristine BSCF. The improvement of the stability can be related to that anchoring GDC on BSCF effectively suppresses the segregation and dissolution of A-site elements in BSCF during the preparation and catalytic processes. The suppression effects are ascribed to the introduction of compressive stress between BSCF and GDC, which greatly inhibits the diffusions of Ba and Sr ions. This work can give a guidance for developing the perovskite oxygen catalysts with high activity and stability.

High-Property Anode Catalyst Compositing Co-Based Perovskite and NiFe-Layered Double Hydroxide for Alkaline Seawater Splitting

The progress of high-efficiency non-precious metal anode catalysts for direct seawater splitting is of great importance. However, due to the slow oxygen evolution reaction (OER) kinetics, competition of chlorine evolution reaction (ClER), and corrosion of chloride ions on the anode, the direct seawater splitting faces many challenges. Herein, we develop a perovskite@NiFe layered double hydroxide composite for anode catalyst based on Ba0.5Sr0.5Co0.8Fe0.2O3 (BSCF) and NiFe layered double hydroxide (NiFe-LDH) heterostructure. The optimized BSCF@CeO2@NiFe exhibits excellent OER activity, with the potential at 100 mA cm−2 (Ej = 100) being 1.62 V in the alkaline natural seawater. Moreover, the electrolytic cell composed of BSCF@CeO2@NiFe anode shows an excellent stability, with negligible attenuation during the long-term overall seawater splitting with the remarkable self-recovery ability in the initial operation stage, and the direct seawater splitting potential increasing by about 30 mV at 10 mA cm−2. Our work can give a guidance for the design and preparation of anode catalysts for the direct seawater splitting.