MCM-41 silica particles with several morphologies have been controllably synthesized with a basic medium. Nanospherical MCM-41 silica with an average size of 110 nm was produced through reaction of extremely low surfactant concentrations of CTAB with TEOS in the sodium hydroxide medium at 353 K, while a submicrometer-sized silica rod, 0.3-0.6 µm in diameter and 1 µm in length, and micrometer-sized oblate silica with nominal diameter around 1 µm were synthesized in aqueous ammonia, where the size and the morphology were controlled by varing the content of the solvent. A morphogenetic mechanism that is based on the deposition of self-assembled silicate surfactant rodlike micelles is proposed and explains well the controllability of the morphology.

A hierarchical all‐solid‐state electrolyte based on nitrile materials (SEN) is prepared via in situ synthesis method. This hierarchical structure is fabricated by in situ polymerizing the cyanoethyl polyvinyl alcohol (PVA‐CN) in succinonitrile (SN)‐based solid electrolyte that is filled in the network of polyacrylonitrile (PAN)‐based electrospun fiber membrane. The crosslinked PVA‐CN polymer framework is uniformly dispersed in the SN‐based solid electrolyte, which can strongly enhance its mechanical strength and keeps it in a quasi‐solid state even over the melting point. The electrospun fiber membrane efficiently reduces the thickness of SEN film besides a further improvement in strength. Because of the unique hierarchical structure and structure similarity among the raw materials, the prepared SEN film exhibits high room‐temperature ionic conductance (0.30 S), high lithium ion transference number (0.57), favorable mechanical strength (15.31 MPa), excellent safety, and good flexibility. Furthermore, the in situ synthesis ensures an excellent adhesion between SEN and electrodes, which leads to an outstanding electrochemical performance for the assembled LiFePO4/SEN/Li cells. Both the superior performance of SEN and the simple fabricating process of SEN‐based all‐solid‐state cells make it potentially as one of the most promising electrolyte materials for next generation lithium‐ion batteries.

In the past decade, iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) have attracted more and more attention for their excellent physicochemical properties and promising biomedical applications. In this review, we summarize and highlight recent progress in the design, synthesis, biocompatibility evaluation and magnetic theranostic applications of IONPs, with a special focus on cancer treatment. Firstly, we provide an overview of the controlling synthesis strategies for fabricating zero-, one- and three-dimensional IONPs with different shapes, sizes and structures. Then, the in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility evaluation and biotranslocation of IONPs are discussed in relation to their chemo-physical properties including particle size, surface properties, shape and structure. Finally, we also highlight significant achievements in magnetic theranostic applications including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), magnetic hyperthermia and targeted drug delivery. This review provides a background on the controlled synthesis, biocompatibility evaluation and applications of IONPs as cancer theranostic agents and an overview of the most up-to-date developments in this area.

The low Coulombic efficiency and serious security issues of lithium (Li) metal anode caused by uncontrollable Li dendrite growth have permanently prevented its practical application. A novel SiO2 hollow nanosphere‐based composite solid electrolyte (SiSE) for Li metal batteries is reported. This hierarchical electrolyte is fabricated via in situ polymerizing the tripropylene gycol diacrylate (TPGDA) monomer in the presence of liquid electrolyte, which is absorbed in a SiO2 hollow nanosphere layer. The polymerized TPGDA framework keeps the prepared SiSE in a quasi‐solid state without safety risks caused by electrolyte leakage, meanwhile the SiO2 layer not only acts as a mechanics‐strong separator but also provides the SiSE with high room‐temperature ionic conductivity (1.74 × 10−3 S cm−1) due to the high pore volume (1.49 cm3 g−1) and large liquid electrolyte uptake of SiO2 hollow nanospheres. When the SiSE is in situ fabricated on the cathode and applied to LiFePO4/SiSE/Li batteries, the obtained cells show a significant improvement in cycling stability, mainly attributed to the stable electrode/electrolyte interface and remarkable suppression for Li dendrite growth by the SiSE. This work can extend the application of hollow nanooxide and enable a safe, efficient operation of Li anode in next generation energy storage systems.

In this study, we exploit a facile, one-pot method to prepare MCM-41 type mesoporous silica nanoparticles decorated with silver nanoparticles (Ag-MSNs). Silver nanoparticles with diameter of 2-10 nm are highly dispersed in the framework of mesoporous silica nanoparticles. These Ag-MSNs possess an enhanced antibacterial effect against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria by preventing the aggregation of silver nanoparticles and continuously releasing silver ions for one month. The cytotoxicity assay indicates that the effective antibacterial concentration of Ag-MSNs shows little effect on human cells. This report describes an efficient and economical route to synthesize mesoporous silica nanoparticles with uniform silver nanoparticles, and these nanoparticles show promising applications as antibiotics.

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We report a new kind of polyethlene oxide (PEO)-Li based composite polymer electrolyte containing active nanocomposite particles with ethylene carbonate (EC)/propylene carbonate (PC) plasticizers embedded in mesoporous SiO2 (EC/PC-SiO2). A very large enhancement of the ionic conductivity was observed for the PEO-Li/(EC/PC-SiO2) electrolytes. This could be attributed mainly to conducting EC/PC nanochannels in the active nanocomposite particles. This unique mechanism is absent in currently known nanocomposite polymer electrolytes with inert oxide nanoparticles. Both high ionic conductivity and excellent stability of such new nanocomposite polymer electrolytes potentially makes it one of the most promising electrolyte materials.

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