Low-Voltage Haze Tuning with Cellulose-Network Liquid Crystal Gels

Being key components of the building envelope, glazing products with tunable optical properties are in great demand because of their potential for boosting energy efficiency and privacy features while enabling the main function of allowing natural light indoors. However, windows and skylights with electric switching of haze and transparency are rare and often require high voltages or electric currents, as well as not fully meet the stringent technical requirements for glazing applications. Here, by introducing a predesigned gel material we describe an approach dubbed "Haze-Switch" that involves low-voltage tuning of the haze coefficient in a broad range of 2-90% while maintaining high visible-range optical transmittance. The approach is based on a nanocellulose fiber gel network infiltrated by a nematic liquid crystal, which can be switched between polydomain and monodomain spatial patterns of optical axis via a dielectric coupling between the nematic domains and the applied external electric field. By utilizing a nanocellulose network of nanofibers ∼10 nm in diameter we achieve <10 V dielectric switching and <2% haze in the clear state, as needed for applications in window products. We characterize physical properties relevant to window and smart glass technologies, like the color rendering index, haze coefficient, and switching times, demonstrating that our material and envisaged products can meet the stringent requirements of the glass industry, including applications such as privacy windows, skylights, sunroofs, and daylighting.

Cellulose Aerogel Membranes with a Tunable Nanoporous Network as a Matrix of Gel Polymer Electrolytes for Safer Lithium-Ion Batteries

Cellulose aerogel membranes (CAMs) are proposed as a matrix for gel polymer electrolyte to the fabrication of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with superior thermal stability. The CAMs are obtained from a cellulose-ionic liquid solution via a dissolution-regeneration-supercritical drying route. The presence of high porosity, the nanoporous network structure, and numerous polar hydroxyl groups benefits the quick absorption of liquid electrolytes for gelation of the CAMs and improves the ionic conductivity of the gelled CAMs. LIBs assembled with the gelled CAMs display excellent electrochemical performance at room temperature, and more importantly, the intrinsic thermal resistance of cellulose allows the LIBs to run stably for at least 30 min at working temperatures as high as 120 °C. The CAMs, with their excellent thermal stability, are promising for the development of highly safe, cost-effective, and high-performance LIBs.

Assembly of a bacteriophage-based template for the organization of materials into nanoporous networks

M13 bacteriophages are assembled via a covalent layer-by-layer process to form a highly nanoporous network capable of organizing nanoparticles and acting as a scaffold for templating metal-oxides. The morphological and optical properties of the film itself are presented as well as its ability to organize and disperse metal nanoparticles.