Electrochemical Performance of Polymer-Derived Silicon-Oxycarbide/Graphene Nanoplatelet Composites for High-Performance Li-Ion Batteries

Amorphous polymer-derived silicon-oxycarbide (SiOC) ceramics have a high theoretical capacity and good structural stability, making them suitable anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. However, SiOC has low electronic conductivity, poor transport properties, low initial Couloumbic efficiency, and limited rate capability. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore an efficient SiOC-based anode material that could mitigate the abovementioned limitations. In this study, we synthesized carbon-rich SiOC (SiOC-I) and silicon-rich SiOC (SiOC-II) and evaluated their elemental and structural characteristics using a broad spectrum of characterization techniques. Li-ion cells were fabricated for the first time by pairing a buckypaper composed of carbon nanotubes with SiOC-I or SiOC-II as the anode. When mixed with graphene nanoplatelets, the SiOC-II/GNP composites exhibited improved electrochemical performance. High specific capacity (average specific capacity of 744 mAh/g at a 0.1C rate) was achieved with the composite anode (25 wt % SiOC-II and 75% GNP), which was much better than that of monolithic SiOC-I, SiOC-II, or GNPs. This composite also exhibited excellent cycling stability, achieving 344 mAh/g after 260 cycles at a 0.5C rate and high reversibility. The enhanced electrochemical performance is attributed to better electronic conductivity, lower charge-transfer resistance, and short ion diffusion length. Due to their superior electrochemical performance, SiOC/GNP composites with CNT buckypaper as a current collector can be considered a promising anode material for LiBs.

Disseminated Medicopsis Romeroi Infection in a Kidney Transplant Recipient

Medicopsis romeroi is a rare, dematiaceous fungus that is difficult to identify using conventional fungal tests. Although uncommon, immunocompromised patients are particularly susceptible to this opportunistic fungus. Here, we report the case of a renal transplant recipient who presented with painful disseminated subcutaneous and soft tissue lesions. Sequencing of the Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal DNA identified the fungus as Medicopsis romeroi. Additionally, tissue samples from a non-healing wound on the left forearm grew Rhizopus spp. on Sabouraud dextrose agar, indicating a Mucormycosis superinfection. The patient's condition improved with surgical intervention and antifungal therapy with Posaconazole and Terbinafine. This case demonstrates the need for a high index of suspicion in order to facilitate early diagnosis and treatment and thus reduce the risk of dissemination.

Graphene nanoplatelets as nanofillers in mesoporous silicon oxycarbide polymer derived ceramics

Understanding the role of graphene in the thermal stability and pore morphology of polymer derived silicon oxycarbide is crucial for electrochemical energy storage and hydrogen storage applications. Here in this work, we report the synthesis of graphene nanoplatelets dispersed silicon oxycarbide ceramics by the polymer to ceramic synthesis route. Samples containing graphene and without graphene are subjected to different pyrolysis conditions and are characterized using FT-IR, XPS, Raman spectroscopy, XRD, FE-SEM, HR-TEM, and BET. The results show that the graphene dispersed in the ceramic has undergone structural distortions upon pyrolysis and resulted in the formation of nanoclusters of graphene and turbostratic graphene. The XRD results confirm that with the incorporation of higher wt.% of GNP there is resistance to crystallization even at an exceedingly high pyrolysis temperature. The pores are bimodal in nature with specific surface area ranging between 22 and 70 m2/g and are generated in-situ during the polymer to ceramic conversion. Our study confirms that upon adjusting the graphene content it is possible to tune the structure and pore morphology of the polymer derived ceramics as per the requirements.