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Nanomaterials
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The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems
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The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy and Catalysis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2021) | Viewed by 8655

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Francisco Ruiz-Zepeda

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Guest Editor
National Institute of Chemistry, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: nanostructure; electron microscopy; solid state physics; energy materials
Prof. Dr. Daniel Bahena

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centro de Investigacion y de Estudios Avanzados del IPN, Mexico City, Mexico
Interests: materials; electron microscopy; catalysis
Dr. John Fredy Vélez Santa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Materials Physics Center (CSIC-UPV/EHU), Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
Interests: batteries; solid-state electrolytes; organic electrodes; catalysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the field of electrochemical energy storage (batteries) the components, that is, anode, cathode and even the electrolytes (solid-state), the rational design of nanostructures and nanomaterials is required to achieve optimal battery performance. Nanostructurization of these materials improves the conduction paths of the ions involved in the charge/discharge process (e.g. Li+, Na+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Al3+), increasing the electrochemical surface area while improving the electronic conductivity, critical variables in the development of high energy density batteries related to the operational requirements for applications such as hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and electric vehicles (EVs). In this sense, in an attempt to fulfill a demand for other clean forms of sustainable and renewable energies, the hydrogen storage and hydrogen production technologies have undergone a rapid growth, like for instance the study of photocatalytic reactions to produce hydrogen, need it in the alternative and promising energy-generation systems known as PEM fuel cells. Although, issues still overwhelm the synthetized catalytic materials employed in these systems, namely durability and performance/cost, usually ascribed to their nanostructure, composition and surface morphology; characteristics that have to endure the harsh conditions occurring in a regular workload during the electrochemical cycling. Different kind of architectures, including nanoparticles, nanorods, nanoneedles, nanowires, nanotubes, 2D nanomaterials or single atoms, either in their pure form or in composites (interconnecting the active material and the carbon source or by confining small molecules in those nanostructures) had been studied vastly. These nanomaterials not only are built with purposes to meet the specifications mentioned earlier but also to give the material a greater chemical/electrochemical and thermal stability for longer life span in batteries, fuel cells or catalytic converters.

It is our pleasure to host this special issue which aims to reunite a collection of works concerning recent advances in nanomaterials for applications in energy storage, conversion and generation where the relationship between nanostructure and their physical and chemical properties is highlighted. In other words, research describing the influence of the structure and the materials behavior at the nano level in electro-catalysis, photo-electro catalytic energy conversion, solid state ionics, electrochemical energy storage and other energy-related systems is welcome. This includes reports on novel synthesis, related advanced characterizations, theoretical calculations or simulations of nano engineered materials and nanostructured systems with better functionality for energy-related applications.

Accepted papers are published in the joint Special Issue in Nanomanufacturing or  Nanomaterials (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nanomanufacturing/special_issues/Nanomanufacturing_energy-systems)

Dr. Francisco Ruiz-Zepeda
Prof. Dr. Daniel Bahena
Dr. John Fredy Vélez Santa
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nanomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Nanostructure
  • Batteries
  • Fuel cells
  • Hydrogen generation and storage
  • Electro-catalysis
  • Photo-catalysis

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 5322 KiB  
Article
Effect of a Support on the Properties of Zinc Oxide Based Sorbents
by Maciej Chomiak, Bartłomiej M. Szyja, Marta Jędrysiak and Janusz Trawczyński
Nanomaterials 2022, 12(1), 89; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12010089 - 29 Dec 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1297
Abstract
We present the comparative analysis of three Zn-based sorbents for the process of sulphur removal from hot coal gas. The sorbents were prepared by a slurry impregnation of TiO2, SiO2 and Al2O3, resulting in complex, multiphase [...] Read more.
We present the comparative analysis of three Zn-based sorbents for the process of sulphur removal from hot coal gas. The sorbents were prepared by a slurry impregnation of TiO2, SiO2 and Al2O3, resulting in complex, multiphase materials, with the dominant phases of Zn2TiO4, Zn2SiO4 and ZnAl2O4, respectively. We have analyzed the effect of supports on the phase composition, texture, reducibility and H2S sorption. We have found that the phase composition significantly influences the susceptibility of the investigated materials to reduction by hydrogen. Zn2TiO4 have been found to be the easiest to reduce which correlates with its ability to adsorb the largest amount of hydrogen sulphide—up to 4.2 gS/100 g—compared to the other sorbents, which absorb up to 2.2 gS/100 g. In the case of Zn2SiO4 and ZnAl2O4, this effect also correlates with reducibility—these sorbents have been found to be highly resistant to reduction by hydrogen and to absorb much less hydrogen sulphide. In addition, the capacity of ZnAl2O4 for H2S adsorption decreases in the subsequent work cycles—from 2.2 gS/100 g in the first cycle to 0.8 gS/100 g in the third one. Computational analysis on the DFT level has shown that these materials show different thermodynamic stability of sulphur sites within the unit cells of the sorbents. For Zn2TiO4 and Zn2SiO4, the adsorption is favorable in both the first and second layers of the former and only the top layer of the latter, while for zinc aluminate it is not favorable, which is consistent with the experimental findings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems)
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11 pages, 2727 KiB  
Article
Cationic Cyclopropenium-Based Hyper-Crosslinked Polymer Enhanced Polyethylene Oxide Composite Electrolyte for All-Solid-State Li-S Battery
by Shuang Lian, Yu Wang, Haifeng Ji, Xiaojie Zhang, Jingjing Shi, Yi Feng and Xiongwei Qu
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(10), 2562; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11102562 - 29 Sep 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2351
Abstract
The development of solid-state polymer electrolytes is an effective way to overcome the notorious shuttle effect of polysulfides in traditional liquid lithium sulfur batteries. In this paper, cationic cyclopropenium based cross-linked polymer was firstly prepared with the one pot method, and then the [...] Read more.
The development of solid-state polymer electrolytes is an effective way to overcome the notorious shuttle effect of polysulfides in traditional liquid lithium sulfur batteries. In this paper, cationic cyclopropenium based cross-linked polymer was firstly prepared with the one pot method, and then the counter ion was replaced by TFSI− anion using simple ion replacement. Cationic cyclopropenium hyper-crosslinked polymer (HP) was introduced into a polyethylene oxide (PEO) matrix with the solution casting method to prepare a composite polymer electrolyte membrane. By adding HP@TFSI to the PEO-based electrolyte, the mechanical and electrochemical properties of the solid-state lithium-sulfur batteries were significantly improved. The PEO-20%HP@TFSI electrolyte shows the highest Li+ ionic conductivity at 60 °C (4.0 × 10−4 S·cm−1) and the highest mechanical strength. In the PEO matrix, uniform distribution of HP@TFSI inhibits crystallization and weakens the interaction between each PEO chain. Compared with pure PEO/LiTFSI electrolyte, the PEO-20%HP@TFSI electrolyte shows lower interface resistance and higher interface stability with lithium anode. The lithium sulfur battery based on the PEO-20%HP@TFSI electrolyte shows excellent electrochemical performance, high Coulombic efficiency and high cycle stability. After 500 cycles, the capacity of the lithium-sulfur battery based on PEO-20%HP@TFSI electrolytes keeps approximately 410 mAh·g−1 at 1 C, the Coulomb efficiency is close to 100%, and the cycle capacity decay rate is 0.082%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems)
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9 pages, 1877 KiB  
Article
Sulfur-Doped Graphdiyne as a High-Capacity Anode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Fanan Kong, Yong Yue, Qingyin Li and Shijie Ren
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(5), 1161; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11051161 - 29 Apr 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2340
Abstract
Heteroatom doping is regarded as a promising approach to enhance the electrochemical performance of carbon materials, while the poor controllability of heteroatoms remains the main challenge. In this context, sulfur-doped graphdiyne (S-GDY) was successfully synthesized on the surface of copper foil using a [...] Read more.
Heteroatom doping is regarded as a promising approach to enhance the electrochemical performance of carbon materials, while the poor controllability of heteroatoms remains the main challenge. In this context, sulfur-doped graphdiyne (S-GDY) was successfully synthesized on the surface of copper foil using a sulfur-containing multi-acetylene monomer to form a uniform film. The S-GDY film possesses a porous structure and abundant sulfur atoms decorated homogeneously in the carbon skeleton, which facilitate the fast diffusion and storage of lithium ions. The lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) fabricated with S-GDY as anode exhibit excellent performance, including the high specific capacity of 920 mA h g−1 and superior rate performances. The LIBs also show long-term cycling stability under the high current density. This result could potentially provide a modular design principle for the construction of high-performance anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems)
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Review

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23 pages, 8607 KiB  
Review
Recent Application of Nanomaterials to Overcome Technological Challenges of Microbial Electrolysis Cells
by Byeongcheol Kim, Euntae Yang, Bongkyu Kim, M. Obaid, Jae Kyung Jang and Kyu-Jung Chae
Nanomaterials 2022, 12(8), 1316; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12081316 - 12 Apr 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1832
Abstract
Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) have attracted significant interest as sustainable green hydrogen production devices because they utilize the environmentally friendly biocatalytic oxidation of organic wastes and electrochemical proton reduction with the support of relatively lower external power compared to that used by water [...] Read more.
Microbial electrolysis cells (MECs) have attracted significant interest as sustainable green hydrogen production devices because they utilize the environmentally friendly biocatalytic oxidation of organic wastes and electrochemical proton reduction with the support of relatively lower external power compared to that used by water electrolysis. However, the commercialization of MEC technology has stagnated owing to several critical technological challenges. Recently, many attempts have been made to utilize nanomaterials in MECs owing to the unique physicochemical properties of nanomaterials originating from their extremely small size (at least <100 nm in one dimension). The extraordinary properties of nanomaterials have provided great clues to overcome the technological hurdles in MECs. Nanomaterials are believed to play a crucial role in the commercialization of MECs. Thus, understanding the technological challenges of MECs, the characteristics of nanomaterials, and the employment of nanomaterials in MECs could be helpful in realizing commercial MEC technologies. Herein, the critical challenges that need to be addressed for MECs are highlighted, and then previous studies that used nanomaterials to overcome the technological difficulties of MECs are reviewed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Nanostructured Materials in Energy Related Systems)
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